My Hero Academia: Lion of Courage
Chapter 31: The Reflection Hero
Disclaimer: I do not own My Hero Academia. All rights go to Kohei Horikoshi.
Author's Note: Sorry for the delay. I really struggled with this chapter, so it may not be all that pretty.
Takeo raced up the stairs leading to the bleachers where the attendees were sitting. He was certain he was heading up to the correct one to see a dear friend of his family he hadn't seen in a long time. He had seen him before the Sports Festival started, but didn't have time to see him due to the events and spending the hour-long break with Satoshi, then eating. It took him a while to find who he was looking for, but eventually caught up to him: Nobu Yamashita, formerly the Reflection Hero: Rebound.
"Uncle Nobu!" Takeo addressed. The man with messy dirty blonde hair and blue eyes sat down on the floor with his back against the wall. He simply looked over at Takeo with a depressed expression.
"Hey, kid," he spoke in a monotone voice. "I saw you during the events. Good job."
"What brings you here?" Takeo asked as he approached him.
"She would've been here," Nobu replied. "She would've been performing here today. My Anzu…"
Nobu reached into his shirt and pulled out a locket. He looked at it with great despair, as though looking at a precious treasure that was worth all the islands of Japan. His blue eyes filled with great sorrow as he continued to look for several more moments before he put it away.
"Uncle Nobu," Takeo spoke lowly, earning a small chuckle from Nobu.
"You still call me Uncle after all these years. Some things never change."
Takeo wished that Nobu, who he called an uncle despite not being blood-related, hadn't changed. He and his mother, Lioness, met at U.A. High School during their 2nd year and the two of them immediately became friends. Even after becoming Pro Heroes, the two kept in contact and became less of friends and more like family. Seeing Nobu, a once well-respected and powerful Pro Hero, become such a depression-stricken man hurt Takeo.
"Mom's been worried about you," Takeo spoke.
"I can tell," Nobu replied rather bitterly. "Why can't she just leave me alone and let me mourn in peace?"
"She just wants to help you, Uncle Nobu," Takeo replied. "If you'd just let her like she let Uncle Chairo help her after…after I lost my dad…"
"If I wanted her help, I'd ask for it," Nobu responded before getting up. "Is that what you and your mother think you're doing, helping? All you're doing is being part of a never-ending cycle that continues to claim lives one after another with no end in sight. One day, both of you, many students here, many Pro Heroes here…they'll just be more bodies added to an endless pile of corpses."
"Uncle Nobu…you can't believe that," Takeo replied. "There was always conflict, even before Quirks emerged in the world. We can't prevent every tragedy, but we can protect those who we can. We continue to protect those who cannot protect themselves."
Nobu wasn't convinced by Takeo's words. Having once been a Pro Hero, he had experienced the conflict between heroes and villains for years. It was true that newer heroes would take the place of the old ones, but the same also applied to villains: no matter how many were defeated and locked away, new ones would arise and continue to endanger the innocent. More people, innocent or guilty, would continue to die, to be sacrificed, to be needlessly slaughtered.
"You once believed in protecting those who needed help," Takeo brought up. "You stood with my mother-"
"And what did we achieve in the end?" Nobu interrupted bitterly. "It's as if all our victories and triumphs simply meant nothing. People are still dying and villains are still a threat. You're not making a difference, Takeo."
"You're wrong," Takeo rebuked. "You're better than this, Uncle Nobu-"
"Just leave me alone and let me mourn in peace," Nobu demanded, turning around and walking away from Takeo.
Takeo tried to think of what to say to help Nobu, but nothing could come to mind despite the immense heartbreak he felt looking at him. Once a great and respected Pro Hero, now a depressed shell of a man who couldn't see the good in the world, only the evil that conflict wrought.
"Dammit, Takeo," he thought to himself. "What can I say…? What can I do?"
As Nobu kept walking away, he thought back on his conversation with Takeo. He was young; he didn't understand the complexities of Pro Hero work. Like many people his age, he only saw an idealized version of it where heroes save the innocent, beat the bad guy and go home triumphant. But what many of them failed to see were the cost of keeping innocent people safe, the price that was constantly being paid to maintain 'peace'.
Just like his father, Paladin, Takeo wanted to protect those who couldn't protect themselves, to be a symbol of courage and hope for others. Admirable to most people, but to Nobu, all it'd do is potentially add Takeo to the pile of corpses that Quirk-filled conflicts had caused. That's all heroes and villains would eventually end up as, just rotting, decaying corpses whose deaths would be used to promote heroism.
"What're you doing here, Rebound?" Endeavor questioned as he appeared in front of Nobu. The former Pro Hero looked up at the Flame Hero, immediately seeing his usual frowning expression.
"Endeavor," Nobu addressed.
"What a shame you've become on our kind," he antagonized. "You were once believed to one day surpass All Might and yet here you are, an empty shell of a man. What kind of business do you have watching the Sports Festival?"
"I just felt like coming here," Rebound responded in a defeated tone.
"I don't want to hear your moping," Endeavor mocked. "Even now, there are still some people who believe you would've surpassed All Might had you not retired from Pro Hero Work. Maybe if they saw how pathetic and empty you've become, they'd realize they're wasting their faith on a nobody."
"You're right," Rebound spoke apathetically. "People always did have high expectations for me, expectations I couldn't meet. What good is a hero except to be a body thrown at villains in the name of justice and honor? It's all just a waste of time."
Endeavor glared at Rebound for what he viewed as insulting Pro Heroes. Many Pro Heroes had worked hard to maintain the ideals and laws of society, Rebound once being considered one of the best. Now, he said it was all a waste of time? Everything they did was for nothing?
"You have some nerve," Endeavor snarled. "You were once a Pro Hero too; you know the effort many of us put into our work. How dare you say it's all just a waste of time."
"Think of it what you will, Endeavor," Rebound replied. "But the price of Pro Hero Work is too much to pay. Maybe you can pay that price, but I can't…not anymore." Endeavor held out his arm to stop Rebound from walking away.
"All you're doing is proving that you never deserved the title of #1 Hero. Look at you: the once mighty Rebound reduced to a sad, pathetic man. I don't understand why Lioness bothers with you anymore."
"Don't bring her into this," Nobu rebuked as he pushed past Endeavor's arm and continued to walk past him, but stopped. "In the end, Endeavor, everything we've done is for nothing. In the end...all we'll end up as are corpses."
Endeavor turned and glared at Nobu. He had put into too much effort to have all his years of hard work criticized by a depressed, cynical man. He wouldn't tolerate it, so much that his temper started to get the best of him and his left fist was lit aflame. He bared his teeth in fury before preparing to punch Nobu with the flaming left fist, but before he could make contact, Nobu turned around sharply and his blue eyes flashed.
Tsukiba Okami walked around, looking for a quiet place in the stadium to pull out his phone and dial a number. Once he found a good enough place, he dialed a number and waited for several moments before it picked up.
"Hey, Kiba sweetie. How are you?"
"I'm doing fine, Mom," Tsukiba answered. "Did you hear? I made it into the top four teams. I'm proceeding to the Tournament."
"That's wonderful, dear," Mrs. Okami replied. "What were the events? I…I couldn't watch the Festival unfortunately." Tsukiba paused for a moment before proceeding to explain to his mom about the Obstacle Course and Cavalry Battle he had participated in. He even told her about the student he had met, Takeo Raionhato.
"He seems like a cool guy," Tsukiba told his mom. "Class 1-A doesn't seem to be made up of egomaniacs like Monoma says they are. They seem like good people."
"I really don't understand all this hatred towards that class," Mrs. Okami spoke. "Weren't they the ones who were attacked at the USJ? If anything, shouldn't the other students feel relieved for them?"
"Well…not all of Class 1-A seems good," Tsukiba replied. He brought up the student, Katsuki Bakugo, the 1st Place winner of the Entrance Exam. Instead of giving the Student Pledge, he condescended to everyone and said he'd win, immediately earning everyone's enmity. However, so far, he had been unable to keep that promise as he didn't get 1st Place in either the Obstacle Course or the Cavalry Battle.
It also wasn't helped by Todoroki using his Quirk to freeze a leaning Zero Pointer robot that almost crushed him. Luckily, two who had been caught, Kirishima and Tetsutetsu, were able to activate their Quirks and protect them from the impact. Before he had left to call her, he had seen Todoroki pulled aside by Cementoss and Midnight, most likely to scold him for his reckless action.
"I just hope you're doing okay," Mrs. Okami continued. "Even though U.A. has committed to better safety precautions over the years, there are still quite a few who find those safety precautions…questionable."
"Mom, we're training to become Pro Heroes," Tsukiba informed. "Injuries are going to happen every now and then, so-"
BOOM!
"What was that!?" Mrs. Okami gasped before she started breathing heavily.
"Mom, breathe!" Tsukiba told her. "Breathe, breathe." He kept repeating the words calmly to ease his mother's panicked breathing, though he himself had been rather spooked by the sudden noise. After nearly a minute, his mom's breathing started to settle and she started taking slower breaths to calm herself.
"Are you okay, Mom?" Tsukiba asked.
"I'm…I'm fine," she assured.
"I'll go check what is," Tsukiba said. "Love you, Mom."
"Love you, honey." Okami then hung up and hurried off to see what had happened, what caused the booming noise. He got there quicker than expected and, much to his shock, the #2 Hero, Endeavor, was on the ground against the wall. He looked as though he had been attacked and slammed into the wall. Tsukiba looked around, but didn't see anyone, though he did catch a faint scent of another person.
"Endeavor!" All Might addressed, having heard the noise and arrived along with Open Palm. "My, are you alright? You look rather beaten." He reached out to help the Flame Hero, but he smacked his hand away.
"Keep your damn sympathy, All Might," Endeavor groaned as she struggled to get back up onto his feet.
Endeavor mentally scolded himself for his blatant stupidity in attacking Rebound. He believed that due to his years of depression, his instincts had dulled and he would've been an easy target to attack after undermining all the effort Pro Heroes had done to keep society safe. Instead, he had underestimated him and he ended up on the receiving end of the attack, sending him flying into the wall.
"Hmph," Todoroki let out as he too arrived on the scene. Despite his stoic expression, he was surprised to see his father struggling to get onto his feet as well as the crater in the wall. Shoto hated his old man with a passion, but he could never question Endeavor's strength and skill, so he was genuinely shocked to see that someone had managed to send his father flying. He pulled out his phone, took a picture of his father with the crater in the wall and then favorited it, even though his father saw him doing it.
"Mr. Todoroki!" Himari Kataiya called out as she arrived on the scene as well. "Please make your way to the infirmary. We'll need-"
"I don't need your help, girl," Endeavor responded out of pride. "I'm the #2 Hero and I don't need to-"
"I don't care if you're the #1 Hero!" Kataiya cut him off in a very stern tone, one completely opposite to her usual shy and timid tone. "You could've sustained a serious injury from this! Now get to the infirmary before I have All Might drag you there!"
Everyone present was shocked by Himari's stern and commanding tone, including Endeavor himself. She had always presented herself as a very timid and shy girl, often speaking in a soft voice, but whenever her work as a doctor-in-training was involved, she became stern and no-nonsense. Many of the teachers in U.A. could stand witness to that, including All Might and Open Palm.
"You heard her, #2 Hero," Todoroki spoke, putting a lot of emphasis on the last two words. Endeavor groaned, both out of frustration for letting himself be caught in such a situation and at Shoto for mocking him, as he got onto his feet. He reluctantly made his way to the infirmary, much to his ire.
"Um…w-was that too much?" she asked, her voice now normal.
"No," All Might replied. "Endeavor is strong, but also stubborn and proud. Knowing him, he'd probably would've ignored it and gone on his way."
"But who could've done that?" Shoto asked. "It'd definitely have to be someone stronger than my old man to do something like this."
"Well," Tsukiba spoke, sniffing. "I'm catching a scent of someone else who was here. But I can't tell who it is."
"Well, whoever it was, they're gone now," Open Palm replied. "All Might and I will look into this. You two should head back and get ready for your matches."
Todoroki wasn't afraid at all for his match against his classmate, Sero. All he could do was dispense tape from his elbows while Todoroki could create a torrent of ice, so he viewed it as a very easy victory. It was Midoriya he wanted to fight, to defeat in front of his father using only the right side of his Quirk.
He thought back to when he pulled Midoriya aside during lunch and questioned him about his relationship to All Might. Despite his rival claiming that he had no connection to the Symbol of Peace whatsoever, Shoto wasn't fooled; he had seen how similar Midoriya and All Might's Quirks were. Somehow, they were connected, but that wasn't important; what was important was that Shoto beat him using only his ice and proving to everyone that he didn't need his flames to become a Hero.
"W-well, I'll go check on Endeavor," Himari meekly informed as she left to go to the infirmary.
As she walked away, Todoroki's mind went to the nurse-in-training, the young woman who had just stood up to his father. He knew how intimidating and terrifying his father could be to those who weren't familiar with him, so he partially expected to have to walk in and defend Kataiya. Instead, she didn't back down and demanded he make his way to the infirmary so she could check for any lasting injuries from what happened.
"The matches will be starting soon," Open Palm brought back to Todoroki's attention since Tsukiba Okami had already left. "I'd suggest you get ready."
"I guess," Shoto responded with a lack of enthusiasm before turning to leave.
"Young Todoroki, a word before you go?" All Might asked. Shoto stopped and the Symbol of Peace approached him to put a hand on his shoulder.
"I do not know what is going on between you and your father and I won't pry, but you cannot hope to proceed as a hero using only your ice. You cannot fight using one half of your power; doing so will only hinder your progress. So don't be afraid to use your fire."
Shoto didn't respond and simply walked away under the assumption that All Might was done. Unfortunately, it was slowly becoming undeniable how much of a crutch not using his flames was becoming: he had been defeated twice while not using his flames and Zankoku had exploited this weakness during the Cavalry Battle. If it weren't for Yaoyorozu getting headbands from Zankoku's team, he would've lost.
But a deep fear resided in Shoto Todoroki, fear of becoming the very thing his father wanted him to be. All his life, his father never showed any concern for his happiness, his welfare, his dreams, only his progress as a fighter and future Pro Hero. He feared that if he used his flames in combat, he'd become the very thing Endeavor wanted him to become.
"You have a responsibility to surpass that brainless fool, All Might. When will you stop this childish rebellion and embrace who you are?"
"Selfish bastard," Shoto growled. "MY duty? What about your duty as a father, as a husband? You lecture me about my damn duty and yet you ignored your own! I don't care how many times I lose, I will never use my flames in combat. I'll be damned if I ever have to use your flames!"
"Why can't everyone just leave me be?" Rebound groaned as he made his way back to his seat.
"Ha ha!" a booming cheer was heard as All Might suddenly jumped in front of the Reflection Hero, causing Rebound to stumble back in surprise. "Rebound, old friend! How amazing it is to see you here! Come to see the promising future Pros?"
"No," he replied with an empty tone. "I came…because she would've been here today."
All Might's smile lowered a bit, knowing what Rebound was talking about. The Symbol of Peace couldn't help but feel pity and sympathy whenever he looked at the former Pro Hero, a hero he held in high regard despite his current condition. He wish he knew what to say to cheer him up, but the right words just couldn't come to mind.
"I see," he replied to Nobu. "I understand you're pretty close with Young Raionhato. If I heard correctly, he actually spoke to you earlier, did he not?"
"Yeah, he did," Nobu confirmed. "He still looks up to me as if I'm some great hero. I'm not a hero, not anymore. Why can't he just accept that?"
"Rebound, old chum," Toshinori addressed. "You fail to understand. You are Rebound, one of the best heroes I ever knew. If you were still in Pro Hero Work today, you'd be the one to most likely take my place as #1. Do you really question why Young Raionhato has such respect for you?"
"He shouldn't waste his time," Nobu responded. "I'm not who I was back then. I'm not like you, All Might: I don't have a reason to smile anymore."
It hurt All Might to see such a great Pro Hero in such an empty state. He held no doubt that if Rebound was still a Pro Hero, he'd become #1 should something happen to him. To hear him say that he no longer had a reason to smile felt like a knife had been driven into the heart of the Symbol of Peace.
"I never even wanted the title of #1 Hero," Rebound continued. "If Endeavor wants it, he's welcome to it. All that matters to me is that…is that I forget."
"Speaking of Endeavor," All Might started. "I saw that he was slammed into a wall pretty hard, something that very few people are capable of. I don't wish to sound interrogatory, but…was that you?"
Rebound didn't respond, but All Might knew he was one of the few capable of beating Endeavor. He had worked with the Flame Hero several times since ten years ago and while he respected his strength and skill, he didn't deny that Endeavor's personality was…rather lacking. He had always known that Endeavor never liked how Rebound was preferred to become #1 over him. However, he never thought Endeavor would attack Rebound, especially to the point where Rebound had to activate his Quirk. It also showed that despite his depressed state, Rebound was someone not to be underestimated, which he was certain Endeavor had learned the hard way.
"But as I said, if Endeavor wants the title, he can have it," Nobu repeated. "Now, if you'll excuse me-"
"Oh, come now, Rebound," All Might insisted, but Rebound glared at him.
"Why can't you people just leave me be? I gave everything when I became a Pro Hero, but nothing was gained, only lost! People are still dying today. Villains are still running loose today. We've changed nothing except keep this cycle of violence going, a cycle that cost…"
Nobu's breath shook several times as he thought of what Quirk-based violence had cost him. As he said, the cycle had done nothing but take lives of men, women, children, elderly…everyone who was caught up in that cycle became an unfortunate fatality. There was nothing to gain from becoming a Pro Hero and fighting villains, only a price to pay. Rebound had paid his price and it was one that he couldn't bear.
"Rebound…" All Might spoke, reaching out to the Reflection Hero, but Rebound smacked All Might's hand away.
"Just let me be," he groaned as he walked away from All Might. All the Symbol of Peace could do was watch as Nobu Yamashita walked away to sit in the bleachers.
"Rebound…" All Might spoke quietly. "I'm sorry." That's all he could say about the former Pro Hero.
"Man, that hurt," Shiruku groaned as he rubbed his cheek where Takeo had punched him. He recovered rather quickly from the beating he had gotten from Raionhato, Ojiro and Sato for having excluded Kiyama from the Cheerleading Prank. It wasn't helped by the fact that Mr. Aizawa looked rather disappointed in him and Kaminari for arranging the prank on their female classmates.
"Well, they did look cute in those outfits," he commented to himself before sighing.
He was so close to being in 5th Place; if he had been in that position rather than Shinso, then he could've been the one to move into the Tournament. He could've been the one to prove himself deserving of being a hero, knowing the kind of society he lived in.
In this kind of society, a lot of people believed that only those who had flashy combat-oriented Quirks had a chance of becoming Pro Heroes; even if their Quirks were strong or well-mastered, Pros mostly paid attention to those with flashy Quirks, like Midoriya, Bakugo and Todoroki. Even if Shiruku had made it to the Tournament, he felt he would've been overshadowed by his classmates and no Pro Heroes would've given him a second thought. Why bother with a student who can merely secrete spider-like web from his hands when they could have someone who can control fire and ice or create explosions?
"Stupid damn Quirk," he groaned at himself as he looked at his hands. He hated the Quirk he had received, the Quirk he had been forced to live with. People could complain about their Quirks all they wanted, but at least they had some kind of function even if they weren't flashy. Kirishima's Quirk basically gave him rock-like armor, Raionhato's could let him store and summon stuff away, and even Ojiro could use his tail like a monkey. What good was Web for? That was the question Shiruku constantly asked himself whenever he looked at the Quirks of others.
"What am I even doing here?" Shiruku asked. While he earned good grades in his academics, his fighting and combat skills were poor, proven since he had lost almost every spar he had been in except against Aoyama. He was surprised that he hadn't been kicked out by now, but then again, Bakugo was still allowed to stay here despite his violent tendencies and very disrespectful behavior.
"Can I even become a hero?" Shiruku asked himself. "How can I even become a hero when my Quirk is so…?"
"Shiruku?" Raionhato asked, having heard Shiruku talking to himself.
"Huh?" the Web user responded. "Oh, it's just you, Raionhato."
"Well, if you want my honest opinion, cut the crap on your perverted antics and you should be fine," he spoke. "Especially after that stunt you just pulled."
Shiruku honestly didn't care about the fact that he was rather perverted, especially since most young men his age would be rather hormonal themselves or so he believed. But that's not what he felt apprehended his ability to be a hero, it was his Quirk.
"How do you make it work?" he asked Raionhato. "Your Quirk."
"I don't understand your question," Raionhato replied.
"I mean how do you make it work?" Shiruku asked again. "All you can do is store stuff away and summon it for later. How do you make it work for you when…?"
"It's unflashy?" Takeo assumed. "Simple: I trained and learned to compensate. To be blunt, you haven't done the same."
It was undeniable that Shiruku hadn't trained to compensate for his Quirk's lack of combat prowess; the fact that he had only won one sparring match was proof of that. Others, like Kirishima and Ojiro, had found ways to compensate by learning hand-to-hand combat. Unfortunately, Shiruku didn't have an opportunity like that growing up nor did he make an effort.
"Were you ever told you couldn't be a hero because your Quirk is unflashy?" Shiruku asked. Takeo raised an eyebrow in confusion, unsure of what to make of Shiruku's sudden change in his rather easygoing attitude.
"What're you-"
"Just answer the question," Shiruku interrupted. "Have you been told that?"
"…Several times," Takeo replied. "They were just boneheads who thought that only those with flashy Quirks deserve to be Pro Heroes."
"Like Bakugo and Todoroki," Shiruku sneered, displaying some contempt for his classmates. "Bakugo's an arrogant asshole and Todoroki only got in because his dad's the #2 Hero."
"What are you going on about?" Raionhato questioned. "Why are you suddenly asking about my Quirk?"
"Because I don't know, dammit!" Shiruku barked. "I don't know if I can become a hero with a Quirk as lame as mine!" He flopped against the wall and let his head rest against it, looking up at the ceiling with uncertainty. Takeo walked up and leaned against the wall next to him.
He understood where Shiruku was coming from; as he said, he had met people who said he couldn't be a hero because of how unflashy and useless they thought his Quirk was. However, as he was instructed by his parents and Forge growing up, he was taught that a Quirk doesn't make a hero and one is a fool if they believed that a Quirk alone defined if they were worthy of being a hero or not.
"Shiruku…what's holding you back isn't your Quirk," Takeo spoke. "Your Quirk could be very versatile. It could be used as a grapple, to stick stuff together, to bind opponents…heck, you managed to trap me during the Cavalry Battle and if it weren't for my Ignition Glove, I wouldn't have been able to get out. Your Quirk is not useless."
"Well," Shiruku sighed. "It can be easy to think of it as that when no one tells you it can be of any use."
"No one?" Takeo asked. "Did you train with anyone before coming here?" Shiruku shook his head in response.
"There's the problem, Shiruku: you have a good Quirk, but you don't know how to use it properly nor have a way to compensate. I had to learn to compensate because of how my Quirk works, so I trained in weaponry and martial arts. That's probably why we have Mr. Suzukaze here, so students like us can learn to compensate when our Quirks alone aren't good for combat."
"In other words…put in the effort instead of just flirting with girls or trying to peep on them," Zankoku spoke as he approached the two. "I overheard a bit of the conversation, so I think I know enough." He then looked Shiruku dead in the eye.
"Shiruku, like Raionhato said, it's not your Quirk holding you back, it's the fact that you basically aren't willing to learn. Your combat skills are practically non-existent and instead of trying to get stronger, you waste your time gawking at girls or trying to peep on them. Nothing's holding you back but yourself, Shiruku. You want to be a hero, cut back on the perverted stuff and focus more on actually training. If that's too much for you, then no, you can't be a hero."
Shiruku just stood there, thinking of what Raionhato and Zankoku had told him. His lack of combat skills and his tendency to flirt with girls were the two big factors behind his lack of progress as a hero. He couldn't deny that he enjoyed flirting with girls, but it actively kept him from developing much needed combat skills.
"Well, yeah, I like girls, but-"
"Don't even," Zankoku interrupted, holding his hand up. "Don't fall back on that excuse. That time you wasted setting up our female classmates for that stupid prank could've been spent practicing your fighting skills. That time when you wanted to peek at the girls through that peephole could've been spent thinking of how to improve. Stop thinking about girls and start focusing on how to improve. Now let's go: the matches will be starting soon." He then turned to Raionhato.
"I hope you figured out a strategy against Ashido."
Raionhato had thought of how he would win against Ashido, especially since her Quirk was very dangerous for him. Her Acid could easily destroy or severely damage any of his weapons; his sword and bow would be resistant, but he didn't know how much acid they could endure because they wear. Only his shield, Lion Mane, stood a chance against withstanding Ashido's Quirk.
Plus, while she did lack combat abilities, she showed amazing reflexes and great control over her Quirk, at least against robotic foes. Her Quirk would make it easy for him to remain nimble, quick and agile, allowing her to get around very quickly. However, there were too glaring weaknesses.
The first was that despite her proficiency with her Quirk, she struggled against human opponents as her Acid could easily kill them if used improperly. So while movement wouldn't be an issue for her, taking a direct offense against Takeo would be. The second was that she could only secrete so much Acid before her skin started to lose its resistance to it, thus potentially damaging her skin.
As for Zankoku, he too had a hard battle to fight. Kirishima was the exact kind of opponent Zankoku struggled with as his Hardening would make it hard for him to inject him with poison and also increase his physical strength. If Kirishima managed to land a good hit on the scorpion, he'd undoubtedly be out of the match. If Shin were to win against Kirishima, he'd need to exploit his time limit weakness and wait for an opening to inject his poison.
As they walked to the bleachers, Shiruku thought of the words Raionhato and Zankoku shared in regards to how he had been holding himself back.
Author's Note: Sorry for the delay. I struggled with this chapter. If you have any constructive criticism to share, please message me or leave a review! Keep reading and writing!