Note: Hey everyone! I'm back with another chapter! I'm so sorry its taking so long to get through this arc. I've been trying to keep each chapter at around 8 thousand words to try and get through it but any more than that and my brain starts to melt and the quality seems to drop along with my sanity. I'm also running on like 2-3 hours of sleep a night so if this chapter isn't super amazing I blame sleep depravity lol.
@BobIsBadAtEnglish: Whats up Bob?! Good to hear from ya! Yeah it felt important for Peter to not look like the bad guy after the Monoma fight. I've finally settled on exactly how I want peter vs shoto to go as well as the other two! Hopefully peter vs Tetsutetsu was a fun read too. I really like Tetsutetsu so I gave him a good farewell for now. Let me know what you think of this one! I kinda got stuck on it. :)
@SulliMike23: He certainly does! And it only gets worse from here! :)
@abijayks: Yeah I needed to cut away to something and it seemed like the most logical subject. Peter vs Shoto is planned to start during the next chapter! Hope you enjoy!
@DrCoogans: What's up Doc! Just let me say, I read your review so many times when I was writing this chapter. Ive been exhausted. And i really struggled with it. Also, I ran into my worst case of writer's block halfway through. Nothing I wrote seemed to fit well. But it was really great to be able to read the things you had to say. So I want you to know I really appreciated it! :)
@CRUDEN: Thanks! Its been extremely fun but also challenging to go through so many different fight scenes one after another, while trying to keep everything in between interesting enough to read, but I'm glad you liked it!
@sixdry: Hey thanks! Stick around for the next chapter. I think I'm going to do some longer chapters for the last three fights.
@lackof1022: Sorry it took me like 10 days to see this... Guest reviews don't pop up in my notifications for some reason. Anyway, I really do appreciate the feedback and hopefully you're still following along so you see this. I definitely have a lot of things planned for Peter in the near and distant future. Hope to hear from you again!
Thank you guys for taking the time to read this story!!!
I do not own any of the characters depicted in this story...
Tenya Iida briskly walked down the hallway with his phone in hand. He had left Uraraka and Midoriya in the capable hands of their close mutual friend Tsuyu Asui. The group had taken a liking to the green haired girl ever since her and Midoriya were forced to fight for their lives during the USJ incident. The trio welcomed her into their group with open arms and have become close friends ever since.
Tenya had a great respect for her. She was a very driven young lady with an innocent heart that brightened up the day of whoever she was around. Her bluntness was often the source of many fits of laughter and also served as an effective way to keep her peers grounded in times of great stress. For this reason, he was more than comfortable with leaving his friends in the infirmary under her watchful care.
He always had a desire to reach his destination in a more than timely manner, as all self respecting speed oriented heroes should... Said destination... his assigned waiting room.
He continued to scroll through the contacts of his phone and tapped the call button beside one of them as he pushed the door in front of him open. The phone continued to ring as he made his way to one of the tables and sat down. After a few more seconds, he was sent to voicemail.
"This is Tensei Iida. I'm unable to come to the phone right now. Please leave a message and I will get back to you as soon as I can."
*Beep
"Hey big brother... It's Tenya... I know you're probably very busy patrolling right now so I'm not sure if you've gotten the chance to keep up with the sports festival... But I made it to the quarter finals! I'm sure mother and father are recording the whole thing... We'll have to watch it together sometime... I can't wait to tell you all about it. I know you've got a lot of people in Hosu counting on Ingenium right now... And a lot of people looking up to you... M-myself included... Be safe and keep making our family proud! We'll talk soon brother..."
He ended the call and sat the phone down on the table in front of him as he began to focus on his upcoming match.
Hosu City Japan, 1:30 P.M.
A cracked phone screen buzzed on the concrete with a picture of Tenya Iida displayed on it. The phone continued to vibrate without rest, as the owner of the device would not be answering it anytime soon... A stream of blood ran down and began to cover the device from the large red pool a few feet away.
A hero clad in silver armor laid there motionless in the crimson liquid with a spiked boot planted firmly between his shoulder blades. The serrated blade of a katana was wedged between the fallen hero's neck and shoulder and was mercilessly ripped back out by a man with a tattered white mask and long black hair. He licked the blood from the corners of his mouth and upon his face grew a diabolically unhinged smile of satisfaction. His raspy voice was the only sound that echoed throughout the alleyway.
"All of you are fakes... Not a single one of you were worthy of the title: hero... Everything I do, is for a greater purpose... To form a better society." He spat on the pile of corpses that laid cut to pieces beside the quickly fading Ingenium... As the wail of sirens filled the air the man darted off down the alley and out of reach of law enforcement.
The Hero Killer Stain had just claimed his 38th... 39th... 40th... And 41st victim...
"Well Mr. Parker... There's good news, bad news, and some more good news... Which would you like to hear first?" Recovery Girl said as she pawed through his X-Rays.
He grinned at the old lady who's caring heart reminded him a lot of his aunt's. "I'm not used to there being good news..." He chuckled.
"In that case we'll get the bad news out of the way first... All of your fingers and knuckles, excluding your thumbs, are broken... Along with your wrists and a few others bones in your hands..."
"Would you believe me if I said that it wouldn't be the first time?" He said light heartedly as he winced from the pain he was experiencing.
"I certainly would after looking at your X-ray results..." She said sternly, "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you've suffered this kind of injury before and left it untreated judging by the condition your bones seem to be in... Care to explain?"
He suddenly grew sheepish. "Would you accept the terrible state of the American healthcare system as my excuse?..." He joked.
"I might if I wasn't one of the staff members who are aware of your "background" to put it vaguely... I knew I was going to have my hands full with you the second I saw you dive off that building on your very first day here... Which brings me to my first bit of good news... You appear to have found yourself a young lady with enough sense in her brain for the both of you. It would seem that she is more than capable of keeping that reckless behavior of yours in check." She smiled as she opened up a drawer on the table Peter was sitting on.
His cheeks began to glow pink. He was certain that he hadn't ever blushed so many times in a single day and had a sneaking suspicion that the trend was likely to continue. "I'm guessing your conversation with her went farther than pointing you in my direction..."
She sat out a pair of scissors, a roll of bandages, and medical tape as she looked up at the young man. "Indeed it did. She told me that I found you anywhere other than my office, to let her know so she could have a little chat with you." She chuckled.
Peter laughed. "Sounds about right. She's not one to mess around when it comes to making sure I get medical attention. I know better than to test her on that..." He remembered the flick to the top of his hand from earlier.
"Oh that's just a young lady's way of letting you know how much she cares about you... I've had to twist my husband's arm about the same thing more times than I can count. Fifty three years of me giving that man sound medical advice and he still refuses to go to the doctor when he should. Barbarians, the lot of you." She teased. "That being said, the other good news is that your hands are in much better shape than Mr. Midoriya's were. I should be able to heal you up just fine without any surgery... I should have you out of here in plenty of time to watch your little girlfriend's match." She grinned at him as she planted her signature healing kiss on the side of his head.
He knew what to expect from the old lady's quirk. It definitely wasn't his first rodeo. He had found himself in and out of her office ever since he started at UA, even stopping by just to say hello to her at the end of most days just as a way of showing his appreciation for all of her extraordinarily vital work... And the two had cultivated a friendly dynamic between them as a result. He felt the usual fatigue wash over him as the pain simultaneously began to finally subside. He watched as she began to bandage his hands up.
"Actually... We're not exactly together yet..." He said in a tired voice. Almost immediately his heavy eyes snapped open at the realization of how he had phrased his sentence... A slip of the tongue that did not go unnoticed by the school nurse.
"Well now... Isn't that an interesting way to put it? I might be old, but I haven't gotten to the point where my hearing is starting to go..." She grinned as she finished with his left hand.
"I-I didn't mean to..." He sighed. There wasn't any point in trying to hide it from her... She was as sharp as she was short, and had been around the block a time or two in her lifetime. "Fine... Nothing gets past you, does it?" He grinned down at her.
"And don't ever forget it... But remember this Mr. Parker... there's nothing wrong with listening to something your heart is trying to tell you." He smiled at her words of wisdom and thanked her. Much to her nature she outwardly brushed it off, but internally she enjoyed having the opportunity to pass down some of the knowledge she had aquired over her life, and appreciated the boy for always appearing to listen to her every word. "And... There you go! Go ahead and try to wiggle your wrist a bit."
He did as he was told but the tape held firm, creating a steady brace on each hand. "Nice and tight! Thanks! I already feel a million times better!"
"I'd say so... you really did a number on yourself... How you just shrugged it off for so long I'll never know considering that you don't seem to show any signs of nerve damage." She said as the boy raised up on the table and swung his legs over the side. "Those bandages should be good to come off before your fight rolls around." She said as they left the examination room.
"Thanks again for taking such good care of me." He said as they stepped into the waiting area.
"It's what I'm here for. Try to be careful in your next match..."
"I'll do my best... But you saw what happened last time someone fought Shoto..." He pointed a thumb behind him at Midoriya who was too preoccupied by his conversation with Uraraka and Tsu to hear the playful jab that was thrown his way.
The elderly lady shook her head, "Well at least come straight here afterwards... Or I'll tell Miss Yaoyorozu I found you standing around at a vending machine instead of waiting for me here." She jabbed, "Now hurry up, I'm sure her match is going to start any minute now."
Peter nodded and headed for the door. As he reached out for the handle, he stopped and turned around. "Hey! Midoriya!"
His three classmates turned to him as he smirked, "When you guys get outta here, come find me in the stands... I believe we still have a debate to settle."
The trio shook their heads with amusement as Peter exited the infirmary.
The rumble from the crowd was growing stronger with each passing moment as Momo stood ready in the tunnel. She controlled her breathing and let her body relax. Her opponent was extremely powerful. Fumikage Tokoyami... An incredibly high hurdle to clear. Due to his reserved nature, she knew very little about his quirk... And even less about any weakness the boy had, if any. He understood the advantage of keeping one's cards close to their chest.
Her brow furrowed as she began trying to think of anything and everything she knew about her opponent, ultimately coming up empty other than two certainties: He had a strong understanding of how to effectively use his power... And that he wouldn't be underestimating her.
She remembered the words she had heard him utter back when her and Peter were leaving the classroom Monday morning...
"They're quite an effective pair when they work together... Yaoyorozu has yet to lose a single match since Parker joined our class. If they plan on training together this week, I sure hope I'm not matched up against one of them during the tournament."
'That's an odd way to end that thought...' she inwardly acknowledged. Her highly intelligent mind began to work its magic using the very slightest amount of information afforded to her. She began to dissect that specific thought down to the most miniscule detail.
"...I sure hope I'm not matched up against one of them during the tournament."
'After watching that last match, I really don't think anyone would exactly be jumping at the chance to fight Peter... His strength gives a whole different definition to the word "power"... That much is understandable... But why would he not want to face me? My combat skills are on an entirely new level after training with Peter, sure... But I don't even have a fraction of the physical strength he has... There has to be a different reason he doesn't want to fight us... Something we share in common...'
Her eyes widened as she found the answer immediately. 'Our intelligence!! He's afraid of our critical thinking abilities! Which means he does have a weakness, and he knows that we would be the two most likely to figure it out...'
Her eyes fell to the ground as she racked her brain, desperately trying to figure out just what that weakness could possibly be. Just as she was beginning to lose hope in solving the puzzle before her, the sunlight that bathed the stadium in its brightness crept its way across the toes of her sneakers.
'Wait!'
The events of the cavalry battle flooded her mind. Her opponent was the main line of defense for Team Midoriya... But he never went on the offensive until things became desperate in the final seconds of the competition. If his quirk was as invincible as it seemed to be on the surface, then why didn't he use it to attack more than he did?... She quickly came to the conclusion that someone on her team must've posed a significant threat to him. If that were the case she was able to rule out Iida and herself... Leaving only Todoroki and... 'Kaminari!'
Her mind flashed back to the moment she originally stole the ten million point headband. The light from Kaminari's electricity completely negated Tokoyami's Dark Shadow and created the opening for her to make her move!
"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!!!! ONE HALF OF OUR FINAL FOUR HAS BEEN SET IN STONE!!!! NOW LET'S SEE WHICH OF THESE TWO PROMISING HEROES IN THE MAKING ARE GOING TO JOIN SHOTO TODOROKI AND PETER PARKER AS THE THIRD MEMBER OF OUR SEMI FINAL BOUND STUDENTS!!! ITS ALL ABOUT CLASS 1A FROM THIS POINT FORWARD, SO I FIND IT ONLY FITTING TO INTRODUCE THIS LOVELY LITTLE LADY FIRST!!!!"
'I know what I have to do! As long as I stay on my toes... I've already won!' she thought as she summoned her newfound confidence to push her forward.
Peter ran through the hallways and out towards his seat. He had heard the muffled beginning to the introductions from the inner workings of the stadium and quickened his pace substantially, reaching his destination in no time. He refused to miss a second of Momo's match and was determined to be in his seat cheering by the time she walked out of that tunnel, just like she had done for him. He found his trio of friends chatting back and forth in their usual spots in the section and called out to them.
"Make some room!!! Coming in hot!!!" He said as the three quickly snapped their heads to his presence and moved over as Peter hopped over the back of the empty seat beside Shoto and Jiro.
"It's about time you got here Parker, where the heck have you been?!" Mina asked him.
"Well by the looks of his hands, I'd say he's been in the infirmary." Shoto said eyeing his bandages.
The boy grinned, "Yeah... Long story short... Busted my hands up pretty good. Lots of broken bones."
Jiro raised an eyebrow, "So, was I seeing things or did you actually dent that dude's face?"
Peter turned to her in surprise, "How did you see that from this far away?"
She chuckled, "They hire the best camera crews in Japan to cover this thing! These big ass screens around the stadium aren't just here for show..."
"Makes sense... Hey! You guys are intellectuals... Care to help me settle a debate after this?"
The trio raised an eyebrow but were unable to give any sort of response as Present Mic continued the introductions.
"OUR FIRST FIGHTER HAS DEFINITELY LEFT HER MARK ON ALL YOU SPORTS FANS OUT THERE!!! SHE'S BACK FOR MORE AFTER A BRILLIANT SHOWING IN HER LAST VICTORY!!!! THESE FINALS ARE WRAPPING UP AND ITS ALL ABOUT CLASS 1A!!! SO HOW ABOUT WE ALL GIVE A HUGE WELCOME TO THEIR VICE REPRESENTATIVE!!! MOMO YAOYOROZUUUUUUUU!!!!!!!"
Her parents watched eagerly from their luxury box, ready to cheer their hearts out for their beloved daughter.
Momo took a deep breath and stepped out of the tunnel. Luck was on her side today as fate seemed to shine down on her along with the bright sunlight that had washed over the city of Musutafu. This fight couldn't have taken place at a better time for someone who planned on using the sun to their advantage...
She strolled forward and caught sight of the brown haired boy she had grown so attached to. As he smiled down at her, she vowed that she would not let her sports festival journey end here. The sight of him cheering her on from the stands was all the motivation she needed to go win this fight. She stepped into the ring and removed the top of her uniform as she had in her previous match. After tossing the garment to the side, she squinted as she glanced up into the sky to triangulate which part of the ring would allow her to best utilize her strategy.
"AND COMING OUT OF THE OTHER TUNNEL IS NONE OTHER THAN THE MASTER OF SHADOWS HIMSELF. HIS LAST MATCH ONLY LASTED A TOTAL OF SEVEN SECONDS BEFORE HE TOSSED HIS OPPONENT FROM THE RING!!!!"
Mina perked up, "Wow, I lasted longer than I thought I did..." Earning a chuckle from those around her.
"THIS YOUNG MAN'S QUIRK SEEMS TO HAVE NO LIMITATIONS OR WEAKNESS AT ALL!!! CAN HE FIND A WAY TO TOPPLE HIS VICE REPRESENTATIVE AND MOVE HIS NAME UP THE TOURNAMENT TREE?!?! LETS HEAR IT FOR FUMIKAGE TOKOYAMIIIIIIIII!!!!!!"
The crowd watched as out of the darkness of the tunnel, Fumikage emerged with a look of unbreakable determination. There was no acknowledgement of the massive crowd around him... No showboating... And no fear coming from the part avian as he joined Momo in the ring.
The two combatants walked towards the center of their battle ground and Tokoyami finally broke his long silence.
"I'm sure you already know... But I won't be taking you lightly... Holding back against someone of your skill would be folly."
Momo matched his intensity and she stared unshaken by his words. She would not be deterred... And she would not be denied a spot on the podium with Peter. "Likewise... You're quite the obstacle Tokoyami..." She narrowed her eyes as a grin that was very reminiscent of Peter's spread across her face. "But I think you'll find that I am too... Good luck and give it your best." She bowed respectfully.
He followed suit as they turned away from each other and prepared to start their match. As Tokoyami reached his sideline, he turned to find that his opponent had taken a rather unorthodox starting position in the far left corner of the ring.
"What is she doing?" Mina asked Jiro.
"I have no clue..." She said utterly confused as Shoto chimed in.
"That starting position puts her at an unnecessary disadvantage when it comes to mobility..." He said trying to find the logic in her thinking, but came up empty. "She's boxed herself in... She has to know that... Right?"
Peter furrowed his brow. "She wouldn't be doing this if she didn't have some sort of plan..." He responded refusing to doubt her in any way. A grin suddenly crept its way onto his face. "I think she's already found a way to win..."
Present Mic scratched his head... "Uhh... Hey Midnight? What's the story on that starting position there? Is that allowed?"
She took up her microphone, "TOURNAMENT RULES STATE THAT AN OPPONENT MAY START FROM ANYWHERE WITHIN THE CONFINES OF THE RING AS LONG AS THEY REMAIN IN THEIR HALF."
Momo rolled her eyes... In her opinion, there should be no reason for her to know the tournament rules better than any of the staff members.
With that small interruption out of the way, Midnight stepped forward.
"Momo Yaoyorozu and Fumikage Tokoyami... Congratulations on your advancement to the quarter finals! Are you both ready to start your match?!" She called out as she raised her hand once more.
Both gave their nods and her hand fell towards the ground.
"BEGIN!!"
At the very drop of her hand, Tokoyami unleashed the beast contained within his body. The size of Dark Shadow began to swell as it raced towards its target at a break-neck pace.
Momo immediately put her plan into action and created a shield made of the most reflective metal on earth... Pure silver. She stepped forward as the monstrous silhouette opened its claws to deal a heavy strike, and angled her shield in just the right way to reflect a bright ray of light directly into the glowing yellow eyes of Dark Shadow.
The dark figure let out an ear piercing shriek and recoiled instantly, bringing it's hands over its face. She used the opportunity that was presented to her to create a shorter staff that was more suitable for single hand use.
Tokoyami's eyes widened at his opponent's chosen course of action as he sent his sentient shadow companion out over and over again, only for Momo to counter flawlessly by using her shield to push back the darkness that threatened to overtake her. She began to close in on her opponent as she ducked, rolled, and dodged around the quickly growing desperate and sloppy attacks of Dark Shadow. She took care to choose a path forward that would continue to let her use the light to her advantage.
As she drew near, Tokoyami narrowed his eyes as he trembled slightly. 'How?! How did she figure it out so fast?! No... Her strategy is too flawless for her to be improvising... She's planned this before the match started... Damn it! Her mind is more powerful than any weapon she could possibly create! How do you fight against someone who is so many steps ahead of you?!' he gritted his teeth. 'I was hoping I wouldn't have to resort to this technique... Mostly because I haven't had much practice using it... But now isn't the time to be apprehensive!'
"DARK SHADOW!!!" He reacalled the beast back to him. "BLACK ABYSS!!!"
At his command, Tokoyami was shrouded in shadow as the monster draped itself over his body. 'At present, this form won't give me much more than a moderate boost to my physical attack power... but it's the only chance I have...'
"WHAT'S THIS?!?! TOKOYAMI APPEARS TO BE READY TO SHOW OFF AN ENTIRELY NEW WAY OF USING HIS QUIRK!!!! HE'S COVERED HIS BODY IN A SHADOWY ARMOR OF DARKNESS!!!!"
He sprinted to meet his opponent and the next stage of their fight began. He leapt into the air and swung his fist forward, only for it to crash against the silver shield of his adversary.
Momo held her ground firmly as she pushed his fist away with all of her might. "Fine! If it's a fist fight you want, THEN I'M MORE THAN HAPPY TO GIVE YOU ONE!!!" She shouted as she drew back her shield and with a backhanded swing, cracked it across his face.
"WHAT A BRUTAL COUNTER FROM YAOYOROZU!!!! SHE'S BACK ON THE OFFENSIVE!!!"
He staggered backwards a few steps and quickly found himself on his heels. Momo rushed him without restraint as she began to pepper him with strikes from her staff, landing nearly all of them... But Tokoyami's constitution would not be so easily broken. He withstood her attacks and managed to grab a hold of her staff... After a short struggle, she was disarmed. He tossed the weapon far across the ring and began his counter attack. With his fists blanketed in the power of Dark Shadow, he began to throw left and right hooks into the shield of his opponent, desperately trying to knock away the object that provided her with her greatest advantage... Only to be met with more firm resistance as Momo continued to perry each one of his strikes.
"AND JUST LIKE THAT, TOKOYAMI IS BACK IN THE DRIVER'S SEAT AFTER DISPOSING OF YAOYOROZU'S SIGNATURE WEAPON OF CHOICE!!!! HE'S TURNED THE TABLES OF THIS FIGHT!!! JUST HOW LONG CAN THE DEFENSE OF MOMO YAOYOROZU HOLD UP AGAINST HIS FISTS OF FURY?!?!"
Aizawa narrowed his eyes, "If you're going to commentate, then you should at least try to be accurate... I wouldn't say he's in control of this fight by any means at all... She found a weakness in his power and exploited it beautifully with an incredibly well thought out strategy, forcing him to use his quirk in a way that's unfamiliar to him out of desperation." He said to the contrary of Present Mic's most recent announcement. "She's still very much in control of this fight..."
Peter watched with intensity from the stands. 'Come on Mo... Don't panic... Rise above it... You're still in this thing.'
She mentally berated herself for the unacceptable misstep, for this made the second match in a row that her opponent had managed to separate her from her weapon... Momo quickly redirected her mind, not allowing herself to focus on her mistake any longer. She still had a match to win... And every pro hero knows that sometimes you have to play with the hand of cards you are dealt. After all, she still had the upper hand when it came to combat sense.
She continued to wait for the correct opportunity to counter, knowing that Fumikage wasn't used to using his quirk in hand to hand combat. Finally her patience was rewarded... She swung her fist into her opponent's face which left him dazed. She capitalized on the opening, jumped into the air, and planted her right foot into the center of the avian's chest... Sending him sliding backwards towards the sideline. Tokoyami tried to gather himself but was thrown off his focus by the shield of his opponent careening towards his face. He dodged the unexpected projectile that was hurled at him, but his evasive maneuver left him vulnerable...
Momo charged the very moment the shield left her finger tips and as soon as her opponent's feet left the ground to jump out of the way, she saw her chance to claim her victory. As Tokoyami landed, she latched onto his gym uniform, pivoted into a spin, and used all of her momentum and strength to throw him out of the ring. The power she put into the throw pulled her to the concrete. She broke her fall with her hands and knees as she watched her opponent smack the ground outside of the ring.
Between her heavy breaths, she heard Midnight's ruling...
"TOKOYAMI IS OUT OF BOUNDS!!! YAOYOROZU ADVANCES TO THE FINAL FOUR!!!"
A smile of accomplishment spread across her face as she raised herself up from her hands and exhaled. She felt an immense feeling of pride wash over her. She had made quick work of a very capable opponent and moved on to the semi finals. She had done it... Her silent goal of making it to the podium had finally been reached... She would be up there with him. She suddenly felt... Worthy... Worthy of his time he had spent helping her. The efforts she had shown today had proved that she had grown so much in strength and it invigorated her. In that very moment... the mindset of Momo Yaoyorozu changed forever... never again would she doubt herself or her abilities... Now all that was left was to find out what spot she would be standing on when the final match ended... She cut her internal celebration short as she watched her name move up the bracket. There was still a lot of work to be done...
Tokoyami let out a small groan as he raised up from the ground. His greatest worry had proved to be more than valid as his defeat slowly set in. He brought a hand to his aching head and sighed as his shadowy companion slowly floated to his side. "Sorry Fumikage..." It spoke in a disheartened raspy voice.
He closed his eyes and managed a small smile as he removed his hand from his own head and patted Dark Shadow's. "There's no need for apologies... There's no shame in losing to an opponent of her skill... But we have a lot of work to do, starting with more strength training in the daylight."
The shadow just grumbled as it retreated back into his body. His eyes fell to the ground with another sigh as he continued to sit in place outside of the ring until suddenly an outstretched hand appeared before him. He looked up to find Yaoyorozu smiling warmly and gladly took hold of her hand. She helped him to his feet and he spoke. "I'm not sure what kind of training you and Parker did over the week, but you've become a lot stronger than the last time I saw you in action..."
She chuckled, "He's quite the workout partner... And it certainly isn't for the faint of heart."
"I would say not... After watching his last match, I shutter to imagine just what his full power truly looks like." He glanced up at the jumbotron then back to her, "I'm not trying to dampen your spirits, but something tells me that your next match will prove more of a challenge than I could ever hope to offer you... Nevertheless, I'll be rooting for you. Good luck in your next match vice rep." The two both bowed and went their separate ways.
Jiro crossed her arms with a smirk, "Well she really took care of business, didn't she?"
"I'll say! Defeating an opponent as strong as Tokoyami that quickly is beyond impressive!" Peter said excitedly.
"Hey Parker, what was that debate you wanted us to help you settle?" Mina asked him.
He smirked as Midoriya, Ochako, and Tsu all rejoined the class. The boy was still covered in bandages and had draped his gym uniform over his shoulders as he moved gingerly down the stairs.
"Well, well, well... Look who it is... Take a seat you three, we're going to get to the bottom of this..."
"Oh my God, YES! PLEASE! I have to get this out of my brain!" Uraraka groaned.
Tsu chuckled as Midoriya rolled his eyes with a smile. "Why is this such a big deal to you?" The green haired boy asked Peter with an amused grin.
"Never question the importance of incredibly processed food to an American." Peter stated humorously.
The members of Team YaoyoRomance just blinked in confusion. "Uhhh... What?" Jiro managed to ask.
Peter turned to them. "Alright, apparently the question: 'Is a hotdog a sandwich?' is a more popular Google search than me at this point in time..." He began.
"Yeah, I could see that..." Shoto said with a smirk.
Peter turned to him with narrowed eyes and opened his mouth to speak but ultimately decided not to engage. He continued his discussion, "Anyway... Midoriya says no... As ridiculous as that may be... And I say it is... Discuss!" He finished as he clapped his hands together and stood up.
"Where are you going?" Shoto asked him as he started up the steps to the hallway.
"Where do you think?" He chuckled as he continued on his way.
Momo made her way into the tunnel amongst the cheers from the crowd, eager to rejoin her friends. She walked at a brisk pace feeling lighter than air before stopping dead in her tracks in the middle of the tunnel. There in front of her standing in a cold silence... Was Katsuki Bakugo.
His blood red eyes were fixed on her as he scowled. He uncrossed his arms and began to walk towards her, "Well if it isn't Parker's princess... I figured I'd have to face you eventually..." He said with a growl.
She stood her ground as he approached and furrowed her brow, refusing to be intimidated. "I'm no princess..." She said coldly.
"I don't really give a damn to be honest... I'm only here to tell you that you're not going to win your next match..." He said bluntly. "because you'll be facing me next."
She glared at him completely unphased, "You must be feeling pretty threatened by me if you are worried about a match you haven't earned a spot in yet."
He clenched his fist as frustration started to build up inside him. "Let's get something straight here you over-hyped 3D printer!" He shoved his index finger towards her. "I'm not afraid of any of you! Not the class rep! Not Icy Hot! Not your smart mouth boyfriend! And certainly not you! You got that?!"
She wiped her face in disgust, "Ugh! Do you always spit this much when you talk?" And pushed past the blonde indifferently. "If you ask me, underestimating your opponents is far worse than feeling threatened by them..."
His hand shot out and grabbed her arm, preventing her from going any further. She glared at him and ripped her arm from his grasp. "I didn't come here to get lectured by you your highness." He spat as he turned around to face her. "I'm here to say that if you set foot in that ring next round, then you better be ready to face the same fate as the gravity chick... I'm not holding back." He uttered venomously.
She looked him straight into his eyes and with a fire behind her words she replied, "You'd better not... Because if you do, I will beat you. I think you'll find me much more of a challenge than someone without any proficiency in hand to hand combat..." She continued to walk away from the blonde after giving her final response, leaving him in an aggravated silence behind her. She rounded the corner, proud of herself for standing up to one of the strongest fighters in her class. It wasn't that long ago that the sort of interaction she just took part in would have left her a trembling mess... That is, if she was lucky enough to get this far into the tournament to have it in the first place.
Suddenly a familiar voice called out to her, "Sorry I'm late! I would've been here sooner but you ended that fight way faster than I could have ever imagined! You did awesome!"
She looked up to see Peter jogging towards her and a smile instantly made its way onto her face. "I was hoping I'd find you... How're your hands?" She looked down to see them wrapped up in bandages.
"Waaaay better now! Who knew getting medical attention would be so helpful?! Why didn't you think of it?" He joked.
"Don't test me Peter..." She narrowed her eyes at him but wasn't able to keep a straight face for very long as she started to giggle. "Why do I get the feeling that I'm gonna have to take on the responsibility of being your voice of reason?"
"Well... I guess I could always ask Shoto." He smirked.
"Nah... I'll do it. You're no good to me dead. Just promise to behave yourself every now and again." She chuckled.
"I can only promise to try..." He smirked as they started back towards their seats. "By the way... I think I might have opened Pandora's box and you might have to help me close it when we get back to the stands..."
She giggled again and pressed her shoulder against his as they continued to walk forward. "I swear I can't leave you alone for twenty minutes, can I?"
"Well, to be fair, twenty minutes is a long time to be left completely unsupervised." He looked down at her.
She raised an eyebrow, "Well I guess I'll just have to take you everywhere with me so I can keep an eye on you then..." She grinned.
"That doesn't sound so bad..." He said with a grin of his own.
The pair approached the stairs that led down to their seats where they found their friends in the middle of a highly spirited debate. They noticed Jiro had her face buried in her hands and Todoroki pinching the bridge of his nose with his eyes closed. Momo turned to the boy beside her. "Pet-er... What did you do?..."
He smirked as he fiddled with the bandages on his hands. "Oh... This should be good..."
She rolled her eyes with a chuckle as they made their way to their seats.
Jiro raised her head as Momo sat down beside her and latched onto her best friend. "Ohmygod YaoMomo!!! Please don't ever leave me alone with this many idiots again! I've lost so many brain cells..." She groaned. Her eyes shifted to Peter, who was trying to hold in his wave of laughter... A wave of laughter that instantly disappeared as her eyes lit up with rage. "You!.. You started this god awful conversation!" She stood up and stepped towards Peter.
"H-hey! W-woah! What happened after I left?!" He said as he stood and raised his hands out in front of him as he began to back away slowly.
Shoto removed his hand from his nose and let it slap against his leg. "It takes a special kind of evil to present a group of people with an unresolvable, highly contentious debate topic then bail immediately the way you did..."
"I was coming back to partic- Wait, what do you mean, unresolvable? Don't tell me it's still a tie..."
Momo looked on in confusion and amusement as Jiro continued to step forward. "Yes! This entire time it's been an unbreakable tie! Leaving us all to discuss the dumbest topic I've ever heard without end!" She said in annoyance as she grabbed the collar of his shirt and her jacks pointed directly as Peter's eyes.
"Hold on! There were seven of us participating! How is it still tied?!"
"Because Uraraka refuses to give an opinion!" Jiro pointed at Ochako.
He turned to the brunette, "Umm... Why?"
"Because if I break the tie then I don't feel like the answer will be satisfying to my brain! I'm sorry!" She said with her eyes and hands shut tightly.
"You realize that makes absolutely no sense right?" Mina piped up.
"All I know is that you better figure out how to settle this before I lose what's left of my mind!" Jiro said as her jacks moved closer to his face.
"Mom... Dad... Please stop fighting..." Shoto said causing Mina and Midoriya to nearly have a stroke trying to control their laughter.
"Listen... Jiro... I promise I'll make it up to you! Just lower the earphone jacks and I think I have an idea on how to do just that."
She narrowed her eyes. "And what would that be?..."
He beckoned her closer and whispered something in her ear as the others cocked their heads to the side with raised eyebrows. To their surprise, the anger instantly left her face.
"Is it any good?" She asked and was met with more whispers.
...
"Chocolate huh?..." She thought it over for a moment before a smirk appeared on her face. "You know what Parker... I think I can forgive you." She patted his back as she sat down beside Momo who looked at her with suspicion.
She leaned over to her best friend as Mina joined in. "What did he say to you?" She whispered as her friend looked at the two of them deviously.
"I just got us desert for the movie marathon... You're welcome."
Mina became extremely excited, "That's my freaking girl!!!" She said in a hushed tone as Momo shook her head.
"I should have known..."
Peter sat back down between Shoto and Momo and breathed a sigh of great relief.
"What is this whole debate about anyway?" Momo asked as he turned to her.
"Well, when I went to the infirmary, me and Midoriya had disagreements on a certain culinary ques-"
"He asked us whether or not a hot dog is a sandwich..." Shoto interrupted. Peter turned to him again with narrowed eyes, "Can ya just let me have this one thing?"
"Absolutely not..." He chuckled, "Apparently the Internet finds it more interesting than his performance in the tournament so far." He said to Momo as the boy slumped down in his seat.
Momo looked at him with an amused grin. "Oh yeah? And just what side of the fence are you on?" She chuckled.
"He says i-mmph!!!" Shoto was interrupted by Peter's hand covering his mouth. "Actually how about you tell us your thoughts and break this tie so Uraraka can go to sleep tonight." He said as Shoto began to raise his body temperature to boiling heights, burning Peter's hand even through the bandages.
"OW! Son of a- Why are you like this right now?!" He said as he ripped his hand away from his best friend, causing everyone to laugh at his misfortune.
"I have the masses to entertain." He shrugged with a shit eating grin. Peter rolled his eyes and looked back at Momo as he shook his stinging hand, "As I was saying... What are your thoughts?"
Everyone leaned in expectantly as she glanced around her. "You guys know there is a right answer to this, don't you?" She began as the anticipation built amongst the group. "A hotdog, by definition, is a sandwich."
"HA!" Peter said with a sudden sense validation.
She giggled, "I'm guessing you agree."
"Thank God... Let's hurry up and never. talk. about. this. again!" Jiro huffed as the speakers surrounding the stadium came to life once more...
Katsuki stared at the ring from his position in the tunnel with his regular scowl. He hadn't moved an inch since she left. He still couldn't believe the way his interaction with his vice representative had gone. She looked straight into his eyes and let it be known that she wasn't afraid of him... He wasn't used to it... As far as he could remember, nobody had ever stood face to face with him before a fight and walked away without even the slightest trace of anxiety.
His scowl deepened as he recalled the last thing she said to him when he warned her that he wouldn't be holding back.
"You'd better not... Because if you do, I will beat you. I think you'll find me much more of a challenge than someone without any proficiency in hand to hand combat..."
He gritted his teeth, 'We'll see about that...'
He continued to think back on the interaction... Just when the hell did she get the nerve to sass him... Not only was she completely unbothered by his warning to drop out of the match, she had a snide little comment for every little taunt he threw her way... In all honesty, if the circumstances were different... and had she been speaking to someone else... He probably would have actually grown the faintest little sliver of respect for her... Her tongue was sharp and her mind worked extremely fast... Almost like...
'Parker...' his eyes flashed with annoyance as his brow furrowed further.
Of course he was behind this... Or at the very least, had some sort of hand in the matter. Ever since that bastard showed up, things had changed in the world of Katsuki Bakugo. He was no longer alone at the top of the food chain... Sure, there was an argument that Icy Hot was just as, if not more, powerful than him... But true to the blonde's nature, that simply wasn't ever a possibility in his mind. Of course there was also that damned nerd Deku, who had managed to get lucky a handful of times... But that was just luck... Nothing more.
The sudden appearance of Peter Parker, however, had turned the boys reality upside down. He tied his entrance exam score... He managed to beat him in their first and only fight when they squared off against one another in a hero training exercise... He surpassed him in terms of academics... And to put a shit covered ribbon on top of all of it, everyone seemed to love him.
His palm involuntarily crackled as he thought of the boy who had invaded his life.
'You had better find a way to win Parker... I want our rematch... And I want all of these worthless spectators to watch as I curb stomp you... Right after I eliminate your damned girlfriend!'
"HERE WE GO LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!!!! THE LAST MATCH OF THE QUARTER FINALS IS FINALLY SET TO GET UNDERWAY!!! THERE'S ONLY ONE SPOT LEFT IN THE FINAL FOUR, WHO'S GOING TO BE THE ONE TO TAKE IT?!?!?! OUR FIRST FIGHTER IS NONE OTHER THAN THE BOY WITH AN EXPLOSIVE PERSONALITY!!! HE'S PREPARED TO DO WHATEVER IT TAKES TO WIN NO MATTER WHAT CIRCUMSTANCE HE FINDS HIMSELF IN!!! NOBODY KNOWS MORE ABOUT VICTORY THAN THIS KID, AND SO FAR HIS PROMISE TO WIN THIS WHOLE TOURNAMENT IS STILL VERY MUCH ALIVE!!! PLEASE WELCOME TO THE RING, KATSUKI BAKUGOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!"
He cracked his knuckles and stepped out of the tunnel...