Written by Aduubo, Buckichamp, and PikachuSpartan.
I OWN NOTHING. KILL LA KILL IS OWNED BY STUDIO TRIGGER AND KAZUKI NAKASHIMA. MHA IS OWNED BY TOHO ANIMATION AND KOHEI HORIKOSHI.
—
Soon after Team A was declared victorious, All Might had Transpo-Bots escort Izuku to the Nurse's office. Katsuki hadn't moved an inch from where he stood since the trial ended, staring at his hands in disbelief. The possibility of Deku beating him if he went all-out clouded the blonde's mind, causing his breath to accelerate sporadically.
A large hand clasped Bakugo's shoulder, suddenly snapping him back to reality and subduing his panic.
"Young Bakugo, cool your jets. Let's go review your work," All Might said, speaking with a more restrained tone.
"Whether you win or lose, you can always take something away from an experience like this. As long as you're open to learning."
A few minutes passed with everyone, sans Midoriya, back in the monitoring room to review the first trial. While one might have expected the MVP of the battle to come from the victors, the award actually went to Iida, drawing audible gasps from most of the students and an incredulous look from Iida.
"Shouldn't it be one of the heroes instead, since they're the winners?" The frog girl questioned.
"Mm. Why didn't I choose one of those two? Who has a guess?" All Might opened the floor up for a brave volunteer to speak, with Ryuko noticing the girl with the large front bang, Momo Yaoyorozu, raising her hand to speak.
Yaoyorozu noted that Iida embraced the challenge and was the only one to adapt to their assigned role.
"I'll explain. Bakugo's judgement was clouded by a personal grudge against Midoriya. As you pointed out earlier, launching a large-scale attack indoors was a foolish move. It could have been disastrous."
Ryuko bit her lip to try to not blurt out and interrupt, but she wouldn't have it, not now. She was fed up and done with holding back.
"Sorry to interrupt here, but what the fuck were you doing out there Katsuki?!" Ryuko cut in, everyone on edge for an explosive show.
Bakugo looked up from his sullen trance as Ryuko approached the hot-tempered student, her hand tightened into a fist with the collar of his costume being smothered in it.
"I don't care what issues you have to work out. But for fuck sakes, grow the hell up! You almost killed Izuku out there!"
"And YOU!" She turned her ire towards the Symbol of Peace, a shiver sent down his spine, "Why didn't you step in to stop the fight, huh?! Did you want blood on your hands?"
"That's enough, Young Matoi. There's still some details to cover from the first match. I assure you that if the worst was to come, I would have stopped it immediately," All Might said sternly, not losing his smile.
Ryuko looked back at Katsuki and violently released him. As soon as his feet hit the ground, she was finally able to pick up on something about him that she didn't realize sooner.
Bakugo was just standing there, barely budging, his gaze hollow. His pride was still broken, trying to reconcile what happened and the reality of his loss not having sunk in completely.
Ryuko understood what All Might meant by his tone of response, softening up a bit as she retreated back into the pack of students. The rest of the class let out a collective sigh of relief as the situation de-escalated instead of going haywire again.
"It appears Bakugo is taking things harder than expected," Senketsu concluded. Ryuko stood at the back of the room while Yaoyorozu continued on with the analysis of the first match.
"Yeah, Izuku finally shattered his ego. 'Bout damn time," Ryuko whispered, making sure no one picked up on what she said, especially Katsuki.
By the time her classmate finished breaking down the remaining three fighter's performances in the fight, All Might couldn't help but stand there taken aback by the analysis. It was practically spot on.
"Yes… Well, you overlooked a few things. Young Iida could have relaxed a little bit in the exercise, but… otherwise, you nailed it!" he hedged, giving a weird little giggle at the end with a thumbs up.
"One should always start with the basics and devote themselves wholeheartedly to learning. That's the only real way to become a top hero," Yaoyorozu stated.
"She does have a good eye on her," Senketsu said, with Ryuko nodding in turn.
"Yeah. She made it sound so sophisticated yet extremely simple to follow along," Ryuko whispered, impressed by the analysis. She assumed that this girl had to have gotten into UA on a recommendation.
With everything said and done, All Might called for the two teams facing off in the second match to prepare for their turn, sending them on their way.
"We're up," Ryuko murmured as she passed by the large banged girl on her way out, drawing another dismissive glance that lasted for only a brief second.
'I get why she'd give me that look since I interrupted her earlier, but something tells me this isn't just for that. She gave me that same look yesterday, too,' she remembered, the scene still vivid in her mind. But Ryuko had to put it aside for now, as it was her turn to show what she could do.
-Battle Building B-
"Match Two! Team B will be our heroes! And Team I will be the villains!" All Might echoed over the intercom.
All five participants had made their way over to their destinations, with Ryuko set to act the part of the villain in her first match with Toru Hagukre and Mashirao Ojiro.
"Hey guys, Let's get serious. I'm gonna take off all my clothes and totally disappear," Hakugre informed them, with Ojiro and Ryuko acknowledging the idea.
Still, the tailed male certainly wasn't comfortable given his modest nature.
'This is really weird. I have a practically naked girl standing right next to me and a fully naked invisible girl also on my team. How is this going to go?' Ojiro squirmed a bit at the thought.
"Hey, uh... Just don't look, okay?" Hakugre pleaded.
"What's the difference?" Ojiro asked, Ryuko nodding in agreement.
"It's not like we can see you right now anyway," Ryuko noted, eliciting chuckles from the entire group and easing the others' nerves.
"So, any ideas on our first course of action?" Ryuko asked her two teammates.
"Well, we know that Todoroki is going to be the ace on that team with his ice quirk. We don't exactly know what the limits of his powers are though," The tailed hero responded.
"He did get second place on the quirk assessment, so I'm betting he'd be able to wreck this building as much as Midoriya did if he wanted to," Hagakure pitched in, which left Ryuko to ponder.
"Ryuko."
"Yeah?"
"From what I can remember, he can form ice on practically any kind of surface, right?"
"Yeah, I think so," Ryuko responded to Senketsu, which left Ojiro and Hagakure confused as they watched her talk to her Kamui.
"If All Might's lesson about destruction stuck, Todoroki might attempt to freeze us into place so that we'd be incapacitated immediately."
"Damn. Got it. Alright, listen up! Todoroki can form ice on any surface, right? So he'll probably try to use it to freeze us, that way we won't be able to fight. Right now, we need to keep an eye out for when it comes. If we're caught, I'll come and try to break you free," Ryuko directed.
"Right. So we should just stick together now just in case. This could actually work in our favor since I'm betting Shoji is gonna try and listen in with his Quirk. He'll probably stay outside to avoid being frozen as well."
"Ooh! So we'll be able to jump Todoroki like bandits when he comes in!" Hagakure chipped in.
"Not exactly a hero-like example, but yeah, something like that," Ojiro nodded and chuckled.
"Stick behind me, just in case. Let's kick some ass today, team!" Ryuko raised her fist to bump it with the others.
"Look alive, kids! Show us you're the embodiment of good... Or evil! Let's go!" All Might shouted as the horn sounded, starting the 15 minute timer.
Shoji was the first to step inside and expanded his wing-like arms, scouting for what to expect. Many of his tentacles had shape-shifted into ears to listen in on what the villain team was up to.
"One's in the hall on the north side of the fourth floor. And I think the other two are on the same floor somewhere. I'm betting the invisible one plans to sneak up on us while the other two are taking us head on."
"For your own safety, go outside and wait for my call on the radio. I'm sure our opponents intend to fight a defensive battle. But it's different now that they have Matoi up their sleeve. Come on in when I give the call," Todoroki spoke cooly. He placed his hand on the wall, ice soon emanating from it and from his foot as well.
The walls and floors were soon engulfed by ice, spreading throughout the entire building. Shoji was already outside before half of the building was frosted.
Ryuko and the others stood in formation, waiting for Team B to make their approach. Soon, the ice started appearing through the cracks, much sooner than they expected.
"Damn! The ice is fast!" Ryuko expressed her shock as she attempted to leap away from the upcoming ice.
"Ahh! Oh no!" Hagakure was caught ankle deep in the ice, unable to move while Ojiro was able to keep up and avoid the frost as well.
"Hang on!" Ryuko rushed over in an attempt to bust the ice and pull Hagakure out.
"Ryuko wait! The ice is practically sewn into her skin. Use your thrusters to melt it. We don't want to risk her getting hurt from any skin peeling," Senketsu quickly instructed.
"Right. Hold still, Hagakure, this may hurt," Ryuko turned around and pointed her thrusters at the invisible girl's feet before igniting them.
Once the entire building was iced over, Todoroki began stepping further into the building and made his way to the objective. So far he had not heard any sounds yet, but he made sure to stay on his toes. Ryuko stood out the most as a threat compared to the other two.
If the others were currently incapacitated, he and Shoji could probably take Ryuko on and still secure the victory.
Suddenly, he began to hear footsteps cracking the ice floor that weren't his own. It was a bit difficult to pinpoint where the source was coming from as the sounds echoed throughout every corner of the halls. The noise was getting closer and closer, making Todoroki retreat behind a wall for cover. Then the sound stopped, it was now eerily quiet.
'Did they predict that I'd freeze the building?' he wondered, far more vigilant now that he knew someone had to be close.
Thinking the coast was clear, Todoroki took a step forward with his left foot. Little did he know Ryuko was waiting for him to move from around the corner, dashing from behind at a blazing speed. Todoroki dodged as the blunt end of her scissor blade made quick and destructive work of the wall, breaking a chunk of it from her swing.
"I knew you'd be the one to charge me alone. Still, you're a fool for thinking you can take me on in a one-on-one fight," The half-and-half hero's foot pressed into the ground, forming continuous slopes of ice towards Ryuko.
"You kidding? This'll be a great time to stop pulling my punches!" Ryuko once again used the hilt of her sword to smash the ice head on, putting all the force she had to break the slopes which enabled her to charge towards him and close the gap.
Todoroki unleashed another wave of ice, engulfing the entire room with sharp shards of his ice quirk. Anticipating this, Ryuko jumped back and swung her scissor blade upward, releasing a shockwave strong enough to break the incoming attack.
"Shoji, get up here now. I could use a hand against Matoi," Todoroki called in his radio as he let loose another formation of ice, which Ryuko smashed immediately.
"Look dude, I can tell that this is slowly gonna turn into the most boring back-and-forth imaginable. I'm gonna lunge, you attack with your ice, I back up and attack. Rinse and repeat. So, how about we make this a little more than a crappy endurance match?
Todoroki stared back, clearly annoyed by the scissor blade wielder. Did she expect this match to be all fun and games, or was she just screwing with him?
"I don't know if you've been in a real fight before…"
Todoroki leaned his weight forward onto his right leg, producing a large chunk of ice beneath his sole.
"...but there usually isn't this much TALKING!"
He then unleashes another, even greater wave of ice towards Ryuko. Stunned, she puts both her arms up to block the incoming blast, only to end up being engulfed by it.
Ryuko looks up at Todoroki, not one bit impressed by the display of power on his end. He proceeded to walk towards the heroine, capture tape in hand and ready to be used.
"Honestly, I was hoping you would be more than just a run of the mill bruiser. But after what I saw, you're not even much of a challenge. Are you even taking this seriously?" Todoroki remarked as he moved closer to Ryuko.
Ryuko stared back at Todoroki with a… smirk?
"Man, you have got to be the most narcissistic punk I've seen since I got into this school. I mean, minus the rabid mutt throwing a pity party back at the observation room."
Ryuko continued on with her remarks.
"I can tell just by a glance that you ooze internal angst and repressed daddy issues. I mean, what sane person leaves their partner when going into a villain's hideout? The kind of guy that either has an insane death wish, or is too damn prideful about their power. And let me tell ya, the second option is looking VERY good right now."
Todoroki stopped his advance and stood there, growing even more enraged by her insults.
"Shoji would have gotten in the way if he entered with me. If anyone is overestimating themselves in this situation, it's you. You thought you could take me with only a ridiculous sword and brute strength. So tell me, how am I at a disadvantage?"
Ryuko stares into Todoroki's eyes with a devilish grin.
"Two things really. One, you forgot that this was a team battle…"
Suddenly, their communicators spark to life with All Might's voice.
"MEZOU SHOJI HAS BEEN CAPTURED! ONE HERO REMAINS!"
Todoroki is stunned by the sudden broadcast of Shoji's capture. He looked back at the grinning Ryuko in complete surprise.
"And two, you're gonna need to pay attention on this one…"
Suddenly, Todoroki felt something hard and fast hit the back of his head, knocking him to the ice covered floor. Dazed, he looks up to see Ojiro and the sound of trudging footsteps, most likely Hagakure navigating around his ice.
"In a real fight, you NEVER have your back turned. Shit like that will get you killed." Ryuko finishes as she breaks free from her frozen prison.
"You could move… this entire time?" Todoroki grunted, delirious from Ojiro's surprise attack.
"Well yeah, I just let you do that so I could give those two time to take out Shoji. So all I had to do was take the hit and stall. Not really my style, but in this case I was willing to make an exception." Ryuko remarked as she wrapped the capture tape around Todoroki, ending the team battle.
"The Villain team wins! Excellent work everyone! Please report back to the observation room to go over the results," The Number One Hero called out to the participating students.
Ryuko released the tape on Todoroki and reached down to help him up, only for him to scoff and slap her hand away from him. Ryuko donned a rather unamused expression on her face, finding it typical to see that response from one with pride. But she shrugged it off and made her way to the exit.
"We actually won! Matoi, that was awesome!" Hagakure cheered on as she caught up with Ojiro and Ryuko.
"Yeah, if you hadn't given that tip about his ice powers, we'd probably be icicles. The plan went very smoothly," Ojiro added in.
"Oh it's no big deal. I actually feel bad for them. Though it isn't their fault since this is drawn by lots. Still, it's going to be fun hearing what the class will say about our plan," Ryuko chuckled, feeling confident about everyone praising her team's performance.
…
-Monitoring Room-
"I WAS TOO RECKLESS?!" Ryuko shouted.
"Indeed," All Might explained. "While you did take a risk by confrontingTodoroki alone, if Shoji had captured either one of your two teammates, you all would have been in a bad spot to counter attack. It worked out in the end, but a well organized group of villains won't make that kind of mistake."
"Think of it this way, Young Matoi. You exploited the other team's weakness by splitting them up, but you still could have easily been captured. If Young Todoroki had wrapped the capture tape around you, the battle likely flips."
Ryuko scratched at the back of her head feeling a little embarrassed. The Symbol of Peace was right. If she hadn't kept Todoroki distracted and if Shoji hadn't been captured, they'd have lost.
"Still, you put trust in your teammates and they came through. All of you did well and earned passing marks!" All Might congratulated Ryuko and the others with his fist raised in the air.
While Ryuko was receiving her critique, Bakugo stood by himself behind the crowd, lamenting. Both Ryuko and Todoroki's fight made him realize that if he were to take either of them on in a one-on-one fight, he would lose. Ryuko had barely won against Todoroki, which meant that there was no telling who was better than the other currently.
The concept of the unknown was tearing Bakugo apart. Up until now, he was confident that he knew the outcome of any fight he'd have with the other students. But now Ryuko, Todoroki, and even Deku have forcibly opened his eyes to a new perspective: One where he wasn't always the victor.
Ryuko wiped beads of sweat from her forehead as she took a sip out of a school-provided water bottle. This new endurance workout of staying in sync mode was really taking its toll on her, but it was for the better. She didn't have any intention of unsynchronizing. If this would help her become strong enough to take on Satsuki, she'd see it all the way through.
But for now, she at least got to sit back, relax and spectate... For 15 minutes.
-Battle Building D-
Ryuko hopped up immediately after the third match. She was paired up with Kyouka Jirou and Denki Kaminari on Team G. They'd be taking on Momo Yaoyorozu and Minoru Mineta of Team C.
"Man... I'm really getting worn out here. No de-synching and immediately getting back out there. I hope that I can keep myself together through the rest of this. That last fight wasn't exactly a cakewalk," Ryuko practically slumped over while trying to read the map of the new building.
The amount of force she had to put behind breaking Todoroki's ice, along with being encased in the cold making her drowsy, Ryuko definitely put in a lot more work than she realized.
Kaminari and Jirou were both doing the same thing when the male noticed Ryuko coming by. His nose began to run with blood as he got a much better view of her figure. A crazed laugh began to surface from his vocals as his eyes filled with lust.
Ryuko immediately noticed Kaminari's lingering eyes, furrowing her eyebrows in annoyance.
"You really weren't paying attention to the fight earlier, huh? Do you really want to be doing that right now?" Ryuko sneered as she prepared to add a black shiner on him intended to match the one in his hair.
Before Ryuko could do anything, an earphone jack lodged its way into the blonde's ear, the jolting pain shaking him to his core before falling to the pavement in a heap.
"You really are an idiot. Don't forget that we have a trial to complete," Jirou scolded Kaminari as her earphone jack retracted.
"Hey, thanks. 'Was about to do something myself. Name's Ryuko Matoi."
"Kyouka Jirou," Jirou said with a quick nod.
"I gotta say, I really like your style. I wish I could have something like that for an extra outfit," Ryuko complimented.
"Excuse me?" Senketsu questioned, sounding somewhat offended.
"Thanks. I had a hunch that you would be into this kind of thing, even with what you're currently wearing. It's cool to meet others I can relate to," Jirou responded with a slight grin, taking kindly to her new friend.
Ryuko returned the gesture before using her foot to nudge Kaminari.
"You! Up. Now! We've gotta figure out a plan here. Especially against the chick who got first place in the quirk assessment," Ryuko hissed.
"Right now, we know that Yaoyorozu's quirk gives her the ability to create anything, and the small one throws balls that can stick to surfaces and probably people as well," Jirou noted.
"She's also super smart, so I'm betting she's the one making the strategies here. Which makes her our top priority," Ryuko said.
"Right. With my jacks, I'll be able to listen in on what they might be doing, so we can get the jump on them if I hear anything funny happening."
"At least let me be involved in the plan too. I can do things," Kaminari complained as he was able to finally get himself back up.
"We'll have to get to that later when we find the weapon," Jirou responded.
"Let the trials continue! Team G and Team C, your time starts now!" All Might announced.
And with that, the heroes made their way into the building and ventured their way around to find the weapon. Meanwhile, Yaoyorozu was reinforcing the entrance with a steel frame that she had created. She knew it wouldn't do much to stop the likes of Ryuko, but it would slow them down enough.
Mineta on the other hand, spent time enjoying himself as he ogled at Momo's figure which she caught onto right away. She gave him a glare, which shot fear throughout his short being.
"Are you going to focus or not? This isn't all fun and games, you know. We're clearly at a disadvantage here."
"I'm sorry!"
"Honestly, drawing lots can be so unfair. But heroes face these odds nonetheless, so we will make sure to succeed. What's the capabilities of your quirk, Mineta?"
"Well, I can stick my balls onto any surface or person. They don't actually stick to me and will bounce off," Mineta answered.
"Alright. Right now, I believe that our best chance of winning would be to capture them, just like what Team I did to Team B. We can use your quirk to ensnare them, though we'll have to keep our distance since they're mainly close quarters fighters," Momo laid a solid first-line basis of a strategy against the trio of heroes. It was now time to see which plan would be fit to succeed.
'Let's find out what she's really made of,' Yaoyorozu thought after laying the final piece of the barricade.
Momo overheard Ryuko talking with Midoirya, Iida and Uraraka the other day about how she wound up being one of the recommended students to UA. But something was odd about that statement for Yaoyorozu. Matoi wasn't present for the Recommendation Entrance Exam.
But for now, she would sit on that thought. She had to focus on the match in progress.
As Team G walked through the halls, Jirou injected her jack into the concrete wall, attempting to listen in on Yaoyorozu and Mineta. She then pointed up towards the ceiling, grabbing the attention of her two teammates once she pinned a location.
"The villains are with the weapon and on the east side of the third floor, " Jirou whispered.
"Nice. Saves us the time of going up an extra floor of stairs," Kaminari quietly expressed.
Thanks to Jirou's jacks, the team didn't have to waste time being careful around the halls looking for the other team and the weapon. From what was seen in the monitoring room, the most logical strategy would be for the villains to play defense in the room with the weapon.
Team G were then faced up against a reinforced door that sealed the only entrance of the room that the other team were hidden in. Jirou once again placed her jack into the concrete wall, checking what was on the other side before giving the notion that the enemy team was present.
"Guess I'll be making the entrance, huh?" Ryuko whispered as she pulled out her scissor blade.
"Break a leg, but be careful. I heard Yaoyorozu create something just a moment ago," Jirou warned.
Ryuko nodded before aiming her blade to the door. Whatever was going to happen next, she could trust her teammates to back her up. She cut a clean slash through the door before kicking into the center, knocking the two halves over.
For a split second, the doors revealed Momo with a bazooka, aimed directly at Ryuko.
"What the?!" Ryuko was taken back by what she saw before Yaoyorozu's weapon fired, launching a ball of cloth that expanded and ensnared Ryuko once it made contact with her. The force of the blast was strong enough to slam her against the wall for a brief moment.
"MINETA! NOW!" Yaoyorozu called out before Mineta would launch a barrage of his balls at Ryuko. But before they made contact, Jirou made the save by sliding over and grabbing her, narrowingly avoiding Mineta's projectiles.
"Damn! That was close! Thanks!"
"Don't mention it. Can you get free?" Jirou pressed.
"Yeah, don't worry about me," Ryuko assured her. Luckily, she had the sharp end of the blade making contact with the cloth, enabling her to cut herself free.
Yaoyorozu created a metal staff before retreating into the halls, Mineta soon continued throwing balls towards the three heroes. This proved to be difficult to avoid since they were in enclosed and tight spaces. The heroes were forced to hide around the corner further away from the weapon, which worked in the villains' strategy.
"Good! The villains are making use of the environment, putting the heroes on the defensive while pushing them away from their objective. Take note of this excellent strategy, folks!" All Might noted to the onlooking students.
"You have electricity right?! Can't you taze those two?!" Ryuko shouted at Kaminari.
"I can't! I can cover myself with electricity. But if I try to shoot it out, it'll go all over the place! Everyone would get fried! You two are the only ones that can get us through this trial!" Kaminari shouts to his irritated teammates.
"Now you tell us?! If you weren't wasting time being a perv earlier, we would have-" Before Jirou could interject, Momo dashed from around the corner to flank the trio, boxing them in. As she swung her staff to attack, Ryuko was the first to block with her Scissor Blade.
The two black haired students clashed weapons, followed up by Momo once again swinging her staff at Ryuko, who would then duck and weave behind her. Before she could react, Yaoyorozu laid a side kick right into her side, making Ryuko cry out in pain as she was thrown off balance and into the hall, separating her from her teammates.
"Crap! We lost Matoi!" Jirou called out.
To make matters worse, Mineta was seen jumping around the corner to continue his assault on the two remaining heroes. Jirou locked her jack into her amp, using her heartbeat to create powerful sound waves, which forced Mineta back and slammed into the wall.
Jirou and Kaminari attempted to make a break further down the hall to catch up with their teammate, but were once again intercepted as Mineta continued to throw his balls, forcing them to turn another corner to evade him. A chase ensues as Ryuko is left alone to fight Yaoyorozu head on.
Her blade shifted upward to block Yaoyorozu's swing, but it didn't matter. It was a distraction, which Yaoyorozu would then take advantage of by swinging another kick into Ryuko's left, slamming her into the nearby wall.
Ryuko yelped, the pain shooting throughout her body in all directions. The fatigue of the last match and her extended use of Senketsu continued to take its toll on her, which was something Momo was well aware of.
…
"Senketsu here suggested that I try to stay in synchronization mode longer to build my stamina. This will be great exercise for that."
Yaoyorozu remembered these words and used them to her advantage. Ryuko could just barely keep up with her, which left her open for Momo to get more hits in. Her attacks were fast and swift, not letting up and keeping up the pressure. Ryuko had no time to think. She whipped back around to see Momo aiming another hit on her.
"This is bad. If this keeps up, she's going to wear you out," Senketsu warned.
"Can't you give some words of encouragement here?!" Ryuko barked in frustration.
Yaoyorozu had the capture tape in hand, preparing to use it to take Ryuko out of the trial. Defensive measures were taken as Senketsu began releasing smoke from the vents, creating a diversion that took up the hall they were fighting in. Ryuko took the chance to retreat and gain distance from Momo in hopes to regroup with Kaminari and Jirou.
"Holy crap, Matoi's really getting roughed up by Yaoyorozu. She didn't even have a moment to breathe!" The pink haired student named Mina Ashido commented.
"Villains are often ruthless and relentless in their attacks. She's playing the part well. Young Matoi also made the right call to retreat so that she could regain her footing," All Might responded.
Katsuki's shock continued to be a lingering thought in his mind. Ryuko got absolutely pummeled by Yaoyorozu, and she was arguably the strongest in the class currently. Could that same outcome have happened to him if he were to fight her? Even without any augmentative abilities, Yaoyorozu was able to force Ryuko into a very defensive position.
"Ryuko, you need to desynchronize. Your stamina is dropping fast," Senketsu pressed.
"I know... But I said that I'd see this through to the end. I need to get stronger so that we can fight Satsuki at our best. I just...need to find the others," Ryuko panted while fumbling around, now scaling the walls in order to keep her balance.
"Guys... I managed to get away. Any ideas?" Ryuko weakly asked over the earpiece.
"The short one's projectiles look like they stick to anything. We're having trouble here."
"No kidding... I can't shake the other one either. I'm getting exhausted. Where are you guys?"
"Still on the third floor. We can make our way over to you, just sit tight," Jirou assured before signaling to Kaminari that they would be on the move, now on the run to find Ryuko.
Meanwhile, Yaoyorozu and Mineta continued their search, though being very cautious about it.
"Mineta, what's your status?"
"I lost them. But I'm still at the entrance to the weapon."
"Good. I lost Matoi. But she's worn down from her power and fatigue. We just need to capture them or keep them away from the weapon for five more minutes. Let's regroup."
"You got it, sweetcheeks,"
"What was that?" Yaoyorozu spoke coldly over the radio.
"Er-Y-you got it!" Mineta stuttered as he made that save.
Ryuko kept her position while keeping a close watch for if Yaoyorozu were to attack again. Her breathing was heavy and her vision mildly blurred. Weariness along with the beatdown she just received were not mixing very well. Senketsu was right, if this keeps up, she'd be toast.
"Senketsu... We need a plan. I'm past my limit here..." Ryuko spoke exhaustedly.
For the time being, Ryuko and Senketsu began strategizing on what they learned about their opponents and how they could defeat them. She needed an idea fast before Jirou and Kaminari would arrive.
"We're here. Wow... you look like you went through hell. Are you still able to fight?" Kaminari asked.
"Yeah... but for a last ditch effort..."
"Then we need another plan. The small one throws sticky balls all over the place, maybe we can use that to our advantage," Jirou spoke.
"Was thinking the same thing too... Guess that's the game plan then," Ryuko responded.
Having regrouped, Team C traveled together and back on track toward the dummy weapon. Yaoyorozu had focus in her eyes while Mineta's were centered on looking her up and down. The black haired student would tilt her staff, slamming the shaft of it onto his head to divert his eyes. Mineta yelped in pain as he rubbed his scalp.
Suddenly, Ryuko turned a corner and charged at the two. Just before Mineta prepared to throw his balls, Jirou came around on the opposite corner, plugging her jacks into her amplifier and emitting a sound wave that engulfed Mineta and Yaoyorozu, but also at a lesser frequency so that she wouldn't catch Ryuko in range.
With his senses distorted by the sound waves, Mineta's aim was off kilter, not having as much force in his throw. Ryuko then did her best to catch as many balls as she could, a few sticking to her arms and hands.
"I got it!" Ryuko called, which then signaled Jirou to halt her waves. Ryuko then lunged, tackling both Yaoyorozu and Mineta to trap them with his spheres.
To her surprise, once Mineta made contact with a few of his spheres, they bounced right off him. Even though Ryuko was able to snatch up Yaoyorozu, the amount of force from the balls launched both of them away from Mineta. Now Ryuko and Yaoyorozu were trapped against the wall, Mineta however was able to continue.
"Crap! He doesn't stick?!" Kaminari exclaimed as the grape hero got back on his feet.
Worry began to race through Kaminari's mind as their last resort didn't fully finish the job. What could he do? He was practically useless because his power was too dangerous to pull off in the enclosed space. But there wasn't much time left, and their ace was now incapacitated. He had to act fast.
"Jirou! Run to the weapon! I'll hold him off!"
"What?!"
"Do it! Trust me!" Kaminari asserted.
Jirou stalled for a moment, but nodded, putting her trust in Kaminari and made a run for the weapon. The blonde smiled and then turned to face Ryuko.
"Matoi! This is going to hurt, but we don't have time for other options!" Kaminari began to raise his hands, electricity running through them. "Sorry about this!"
Ryuko nodded, knowing what he was about to do.
"Do it!"
Mineta however, did not know what fate was about to fall upon him.
"INDISCRIMINATE SHOCK, 100,000 VOLTS!" Kaminari slammed his hands down onto the floor, the electricity spreading out like wildfire. Ryuko, Mineta, and Yaoyorozu shouted and grunted in pain as they were surged by the shock. Kaminari did his best to hold back as much power as possible. All he had to do was briefly immobilize everyone so that Jirou could get to the objective.
With one minute on the clock, Jirou raced to the weapon as fast as she could. Upon entering the room, the weapon was right in sight. She dashed towards it immediately, finally able to plant her hand onto it.
"Got it!" Jirou exclaimed.
"The hero team wins! What an exciting battle!" All Might exclaimed over the megaphone.
Once it was finally over, Kaminari ceased his Indiscriminate Shock attack. Mineta plopped onto the floor as he was partially paralyzed, along with everyone else in the room. Thankfully this made the effects of his spheres wear off, releasing Ryuko and Yaoyorozu.
"I'm soooo sorry about that... Didn't have much to work with," Kaminari apologized breathlessly.
"It's alright, dude. We won in the end," Ryuko spoke up, finally reverted out of Sync Mode and back to normal as soon as the match had concluded.
"I would have been more disappointed if you were to hold back the whole match," Yaoyorozu pitched in.
"I wouldn't. That hurt... like... hell!" Mineta shouted in a muffled tone, for he was planted into the ground. Face down and rear up.
Jirou returned to the group, finding everyone except Kaminari currently incapacitated.
"Wow, you actually stopped them. Good job."
"Yeah. Thanks!" An exhausted, but genuine grin grew on Kaminari's face before he began to stumble, Jirou jumping to his aid as a standing shoulder for him.
"You okay?"
"Yeah, I'll be fine. It's just that... I've never actually had to try and control my wattage before. I know my max is 1.3 Million Volts, but I dropped it to 100,000 so that I wouldn't hurt these guys too much. I had to do something instead of being useless and making you guys carry me," Kaminari explained.
"Well, would you look at that? Turns out that you are useful," Jirou lightly smiled as the fourth battle had finally come to a close, though not without everyone getting a bit banged up.
….
Once they got back to the observation room, All Might would go over his notes and critiques on their performance, "Good work everyone! This might have been the best fought match in terms of limiting mistakes and strategy."
"Team C, you two knew the limitations of the amount of fighters and how overwhelming a fight in the room with a weapon could have been. Launching a trap that would force the heroes not only further away, but to separate from each other to divide up the work. Even as villains, you had an effective strategy to fight while maintaining as little damage as possible."
Mineta and Yaoyorozu smiled. Their strategy was recognized and the praise wasn't lost on either of them.
"Team G, it was rough at first, but you three worked well together. Jumping to each other's aid immediately and protecting one another, and under heavy fire, you three were still able to work together and formulate a plan to win. That's a winning team in my book!"
"Young Kaminari, you pushed past your initial struggle and stood tall. Searching within yourself to find a solution is a significant step into the spirit of heroism. Even when we have our downs, we will always rise again. Good work."
A grin grew on Kaminari's face from the Number One Hero's insight. He felt he'd taken big steps in terms of growth from today's trial.
"Young Matoi, you did much better than the first match, but you were still too reckless. The stunt you pulled with performing twice cost you a great amount of stamina, wilting you throughout the trials. Which was then used against you when you were overwhelmed in close quarters with Yaoyorozu. The plan where you took the brunt of the assault from team C is also a hasty move."
Ryuko sulked a bit and groaned. Could she not get a break?
"...However, you did a fantastic job at capturing the essence of a hero. Risking your life for the safety of your teammates so that they can win, is a winning strategy in my book! Pros are always risking their lives, which is a true test of a hero. You performed very well, young Matoi. Be proud of that," All Might congratulated as he placed his palm onto her shoulder.
Ryuko's grin extended warmly, taking All Might's compliment to heart. It wasn't often that she received compliments like this. She looked up at the Number One Hero and nodded, "Thank you."
"Now then! Shall we continue with the rest of the trial?! Team F and Team E! Places!" All Might signaled off the other remaining teams.
The fifth match went fairly quick and with that, the Battle Trials came to a close.
"That's a wrap! Super work. You really stepped up to the plate. And we didn't have any major injuries, except for Midoriya. You should be proud, an excellent first day of training all around!" All Might congratulated the group.
"That's all for now, folks! I should go and check on Young Midoriya's progress! Now, watch how a pro exits. Like he's got somewhere to be!"
Turning tail and going back down the long corridor, All Might's burst of speed created a spiraling wind storm. It was only brief, but it amazed the other students.
"We should probably head back to class for now," Tokoyami piped up.
"Yeah," Ryuko and a few of the other students slouched, clearly not in the mood to go back to the banal core courses.
"Hopefully Deku is going to be okay," Uraraka chimed in as they trudged back to the main building.
"He'll be fine, Uraraka. He'll probably be ready to jump out of bed as soon as he's recovered or whatever," Ryuko reassured her, both of them giggling.
Bakugo trailed at the back of the pack. He was more sullen, but his spark was coming back. Only this time, said spark seethed with even more anger beneath the well of emotions after getting beaten.
….
Hours later, Izuku had finally woken up. Fresh from his treatments thanks to his second visit to Recovery girl, he walked down the halls to his class. He sported an arm cast while still in his hero costume, sulking while doing so.
"I missed all my afternoon classes. Mr. Aizawa's probably gonna choke me with his scarf."
The green haired hero then opened the door, preparing for any kind of backlash he would receive.
"Hey, it's Midoriya! Good to see you back, super!" Kirishima called out, which threw Izuku off guard.
Ryuko's red highlight perked up once she heard the red haired student call out Izuku's presence, "Oh, Izuku's back!" She got up from her chair and approached the forming party around Izuku.
"Ha! Man, I don't know what you were saying during that match. But you were all fired up, huh?"
"I can't believe you held your own against Bakugo! He's super strong!"
"You did a great job dodging!"
"You guys really turned up in the first match, so none of us held back in our rounds either!"
"You were far from elegant, but I suppose-"
"Hey Izuku! Glad to see you're holding up. You really killed it in today's match," Ryuko unintentionally interrupted.
Izuku's cheeks grew warm with a shade of red. He was receiving praise from a bunch of people at once, which was something he was not used to, compared to in middle school. All he received there were insults and words of contempt from everyone, including the teachers.
Those words were practically beaten into his skull. The change that was happening in front of him now was unexpected, but he definitely welcomed it. What he also welcomed was that most of the students began introducing themselves.
Eijiro Kirishima, Hanta Sero, Yuga Aoyama before being interrupted by Mina Ashido, Tsuyu Asui who preferred to be called Tsu, and finally, Sato.
It was a lightning round with introductions, but it was convenient for both Ryuko and Izuku to properly learn more of their classmates names,
"And my name's Mineta!" The grape sporting midget popped in out of nowhere.
There was a nice positive vibe that filled the entire classroom at the moment. Students congratulating each other on their results and going over them. Things seemed all well and good-
"TOKOYAMI! Stop using that desk as a chair!" Iida shouted, which garnered everyone's attention immedietely. He very rigidly strutted his way over to Tokoyami, which made some of the students laugh and wonder if he was really a cyborg.
"Get off of it this instant!"
"Dude, you need to chill," Jirou spoke up.
"Uh-"
"You're carrying a lot of tension."
Iida's posture began to falter from the very one-sided battle he was up against, "No one understands. I cannot condone actions that disrespect these desks! Not when great men and women, our upperclassmen, once used them!"
"Also noisy," Tokoyami responded.
'Iida never relaxes, does he?' Izuku thought.
'Dude's stiff as a damn board,' Ryuko giggled.
After Ochako had arrived and greeted Izuku, he soon noticed Bakugo's empty seat in the room. This raised suspicion with him.
"Um, Uraraka? Where's Kacchan?"
"Oh, we tried to stop him from leaving. But he wouldn't listen. You just missed him."
"Ah, probably still butthurt from losing to Izuku. I'd say he earned it for his garbage attitude," Ryuko interjected.
"C'mon, give him some credit. He was on the villain team after all," Kirishima joked, while also trying to stick up for Bakugo.
"Pfft, that doesn't change the fact that he's an asshole!"
Before the back and forth continued, Izuku turned around and dashed out of the entrance.
"Izuku? Hey! Where are you going? Ryuko bolted out of the classroom, quickly catching up with the green haired boy.
It took only a couple more steps for her to reach her hand out and grab his shoulder, with Izuku grinding to a halt.
"Ryuko?" Izuku questioned.
"Yo, why did you run out of class like that?"
"There's something I have to tell Kacchan! I'll only be a sec-"
Ryuko grabbed his free hand, not letting him move another step forward.
"Is it because he lost?"
Izuku kept his mouth shut, knowing that Ryuko would not like the answer. But she could tell what the silence meant.
"Izuku, I don't say this to be mean, but to hell with Katsuki! You don't have to say shit to him! He lost fair and square! You know that!"
"Well-"
"Well, what? Dude! Iida and Uraraka didn't pick up on it yesterday, but I could sense the amount of pain you were going through. He abused you and you're going back to him like a puppy who's been mistreated his whole life! Just look at your arm and costume! He almost killed you with that blast!" Ryuko gritted her teeth, trying not to let her emotions overwhelm her.
Izuku flinched when Ryuko had cut him off. Seeing her like this was the last thing he'd expected. She cared, but something still gnawed at him.
"I just… feel like I owe Kacchan an explanation," Izuku's face showed guilt and anguish. He didn't know what to do at this point. What should he even say now?
"You don't owe him a damn thing. So, whatever you were going to tell him, tell me instead! I won't tell anyone else. You know that."
The two stood at the end of the hall next to the stairwell, too far for anyone else to pick out what they were saying. The hallway illuminated orange and yellow as the sunset shone through the clear glass windows along the pristine corridor.
"Ryuko…" Izuku trailed off as he stared into her eyes before averting his gaze. He realized now that if he spilled his secret to Kacchan, it would definitely not make All Might happy. He was conflicted.
The green haired boy looked out the window, seeing Bakugo just about to pass the front gate. He watched for a moment longer before turning his attention back to Ryuko, just as the blonde had officially walked off school grounds alone.
"I'll tell you what I wanted to say, but not here. Not right now. Alright? I won't go after him," Izuku assured his friend.
Ryuko only gave a nod, respecting his wishes.
"It's cool dude," she said with a fist bump into his unbroken arm. "We'll have plenty of time to talk about that later. If you're free tomorrow at some point, I could use your help."
….
A few minutes had passed, and Ryuko was walking to Nezu's office.
"Are you sure about this, Ryuko?" Senketsu asked.
"Yeah, I am. I realized it way earlier, but I won't regret this."
She approached the large door and gave it a few light taps, waiting for a response.
"Come on in!" Nezu called out.
Ryuko took a deep breath, exhaling the air from her lungs as she opened up the door to the principal's office.
"Hey, Principal Nezu."
"Ahh, Ms. Matoi! A pleasure to see you! How did today's classes go?" Nezu inquired.
"That's just it, well, sorta. Do you have a few minutes?" Ryuko asked.
"Why certainly! Have a seat," he motioned to the sofa in front of his desk.
Ryuko walked through and shut the door behind her. This was her decision to make, and for the better.
To be continued…
Aduubo A/N:
Hey ya'll! The gang behind HLK have something to announce. As life goes on, it changes our schedules. And that's what's happening with us. Can't say exactly why, though. With that being said, after Ch. 8 is posted, we'll be setting our upload rate to a chapter every two weeks. As we are getting busier, we want to make sure we can still commit to this Fanfic and keep its quality consistent. Nobody likes a rushed project, right?
Ch. 8 will go up next Thursday, October 14. Ch. 9 will release on Thursday, October 28.
Thanks for your understanding!