Josefumi blinked, his eyes heavy as he let out a small groan. His alarm was ringing in his left ear, meaning that it was time to wake up. However, the young Joestar wasn't all too interested in doing that. He just wanted to stay in his comfy bed, snuggled up in his blankets, his head against the pillow with his eyes clamped shut with Karera right next to him—and after all of that hellish training, who could blame him?
Outside of himself and Karera, Gio was sleeping on the couch with a pillow and a thin sheet, whilst Gyro was staying at a hotel nearby, about a block or two away. Those two were going back to Italy in a few hours, and as much as he liked spending time with Gio, he had enough of him being around.
Don't get him wrong, he and Gio were thick as thieves, but there were only so many pranks that could be pulled, and so many steel balls thrown specifically at one's kneecaps before one pretty much exploded.
The training, as previously mentioned, was hellish. Gyro wasn't kidding when he said he was going to put Josefumi through hell. He ran laps, he lifted weights twice his usual weight, he practiced The Spin in loud bustling cities so he could learn to concentrate on it above all other things, and he worked on incorporating The Spin into his Stand's abilities which had been the easiest thing that he had done.
Well, that was until Gyro brought out Ball Breaker. Seriously, for something so small Josefumi never would've thought that it would do so much damage. He remembered that the damn thing had fractured one of his ribs just by lightly slapping his chest. He was thankful for Gyro also being a Hamon master. That would've been a serious problem if he hadn't been.
"Hnn… Jojo…" the soft voice of Karera whispered into his right ear. She had wrapped her arms around his right arm, which only made the teen let out a tired sigh. To be fair to her, they hadn't gotten to be like this in two weeks. Gyro had taken him and Gio out camping to practice The Spin in solitude except for the times they trained within the city, to which he made him stay in an abandoned building by a busy highway to practice his Spin there.
He also should've expected her to demand that they have time by themselves, which Gyro tried to stop.
Key word being tried.
It turns out that Love Love Deluxe, while being weaker than Ball Breaker, was faster, and its ability was infinitely more useful for hanging people by their hair upside down and specifically by their left pinky toe. That alone made it better than enhancing the range of The Spin. Needless to say, the evening he returned with Gyro and Gio, they got to witness that spectacle, and then he got dragged into their room.
The less he said about what happened in that room, the better.
The Joestar sighed, slowly sitting up and shaking his arm free from Karera, who shifted underneath their covers, grumbling something. Josefumi let out a sigh before yawning, glancing out the bedroom window of their apartment. It was 5:30 AM, and when he saw the time, he wanted to groan. He might have gotten into his bed at 10:30 last night, but he didn't fall asleep until 1:00 AM.
And it was all Karera's fault.
Not that he would be against what they did last night. Far from it, in fact. His only issue was that it was 1:00 AM when she decided to stop, and now they were both about to go to the Sports Festival on 4 hours of sleep.
He turned around, knelt on the bed, and shook her trying to wake her up, earning a groan. "Hnn… Jojo, stop it… I don't want to get up yet…." Karera moaned, only to be shaken again. "Jojo…."
"No, Karera. It's time to get up. Today's the Sports Festival, and I'm not going to be the one to drag you out of bed," Josefumi replied, getting off the bed. "If you're really that tired, get some coffee into your system. That way you'll be awake enough for later today," Josefumi continued, sighing.
"But my legs hurt..."
"For fucks sake, take a painkiller or something. And besides, that's partially your fault. You should've told me to stop if you knew it was going to impact you that badly," Josefumi said, getting his school uniform out of his dresser drawer. He quickly swapped out his dirty underwear with a clean pair, put on his school uniform, and then went to leave. "Oh, and you need to use one of those tests, I think one of the condoms broke cause when I dumped them into the trash bin last night, one of them had a tear in them."
Josefumi had never seen her run so fast in his entire life. Thankfully, it came out as negative, but that point still stood. At least it got her out of bed, even if it was for a particularly scary reason. The last thing he wanted was to be a father, especially while being in U.A.
And if he did end up knocking up Karera, his father would've Ora Ora'd him with Tusk faster than he probably could've countered.
Oh, who was he kidding, there was no way Soft & Wet even stood a chance against Tusk. Not even remotely. Tusk was a beast, especially when his father was pissed off. He was pretty sure, outside of Star Platinum—the Stand of the late great Jotaro Kujo—none of The Joestar's Stands in the past or present could best it.
Well, maybe Gold Experience Requiem. But only when it was in its Requiem state. Even then, it would probably only delay the inevitable. The Ultimate Shield versus The Ultimate Spear (read as an enraged pink fridge).
If there was one thing his father was against happening was Josefumi being a father so early into his life. He was already uncomfortable with the two of them being sexually active, especially considering his own experiences with, well, having a child. But the less Josefumi thought about that, the better. That aside, it wasn't as if it happened, so that was all that mattered.
After waiting for Karera to get dressed, have herself a cup of coffee and take some pain meds for her legs and waist, the two left the house after saying goodbye to Gyro and Gio. Then, it was off to U.A. to face the music.
The Sports Festival was going to be one hell of an event, and he was sure as hell that he wasn't going to lose to anyone. Not even to Karera if it came down to it. That, and he had a secret weapon up his sleeve.
Soft & Wet was a powerhouse. While he had promised Gyro that he'd only use The Spin during The Sports Festival, if push came to shove, he would use Soft & Wet. Effectively, he was hindering himself. He knew he was. But he wanted to put all of that difficult training to good use.
He didn't go through hell and back for nothing, now did he?
As they pulled up to U.A. and rushed to their classes, Josefumi gave Karera a good luck kiss. Besides, both of them were going to need it. After that, they went their separate ways—Karera to 1 – B, and Josefumi to 1 – A.
A part of him was worried. Class 1 – A had been more than divided on the topic of a certain blonde. He figured that in The Sports Festival, it would be no different. If there was ever a time to prove one's worth, and another's unworthiness to be in The Hero Course, it was The Sports Festival.
Considering that the whole of Japan was guaranteed to be watching, it was all up to Kira to pull herself out of the rut she had found herself in. He wasn't going to help her in that regard. During The Sports Festival, it was every man for himself, so to speak.
And after all that training… he wasn't going to lose to anyone.
[XXXX]
Kyoka was excited. Today was The Sports Festival, and something deep within her was telling her that today was going to be her day. She was pumped up and ready to kick some tail. She had done everything to increase her physical power and speed, as well as the ability to take more blows and dish even more out.
She knew that she wasn't the physically strongest out of everyone in Class 1 – A. That spot was split between Midoriya and a sugar-amped Sato. But she at least had leapt from second to last place to being somewhere in the middle. She noticed that she wasn't the only one who had slightly bulked up to match the ferocity of what was to come.
Uraraka looked a little more confident in herself, and so did the likes of Koji and even the usually reserved and skitterish Midoriya. So was Sero and so was Kaminari—actually, scratch that, pretty much damn near everyone in Class 1 – A looked amped, some moreso than others, for The Sports Festival.
This was their chance to get their names out there without any kind of controversy being attached. It also meant that she could finally let loose. Yes, stipulations applied to certain things, but she could actually let all of that pent-up aggression out. This was The Sports Festival. This was her time to shine.
She wasn't going to let anyone walk all over her.
A part of her was saddened that she couldn't share her so-to-be victory with her parents. Her father shot her a text message wishing her good luck and that he'd be watching, as did Beelz. She had blocked Mika's number from her phone, but she still got an email from her that she mostly ignored.
Uncle Jojo was going to physically be there, so that meant that they were finally going to meet. Kujo wasn't exactly thrilled to know his father was going to be there in the flesh—he said something about not wanting to be embarrassed in front of his class, but that sounded like a personal problem.
"So. You ready for today?" Kaminari spoke up, catching Kyoka a little off guard as he approached. Kyoka smirked as she leaned into her desk chair, looking up at Kaminari, who was leaning against his desk which just so happened to be next to hers.
"As ready as I'll ever be, Pikachu," Kyoka teased as Kaminari chuckled to himself. It was strange. Kyoka never really saw herself being friends with someone like Kaminari, but after The Battle Trials, they kind of hit it off. It didn't help that he had earned her respect after single-handedly winning The Battle Trials for their team.
In between all the bullshit her life had been up to that point, they had been regularly hanging out at arcades and getting snacks and treats together. She even got to meet a couple of his friends. One of them was a pothead, but she didn't let it bother her. Kaminari made it clear that he himself didn't bother with that kind of stuff.
A part of her had the sinking suspicion that Kaminari may have a crush on her, but she didn't let him know that she was on to him about it. She didn't mind the idea of it, but it was a little hard to reciprocate those feelings when she was into other women. She wouldn't tell him now, only when he confronted her about it. She didn't want to break his heart and ruin whatever friendship they had by suddenly bringing the topic up.
"So, I was thinking," Kaminari began as he rubbed the back of his neck. "After The Sports Festival, if we aren't super tired, we could hit up the local arcade again?"
"Sure," Kyoka replied as a smirk took up her visage. "I'm gonna curb stomp you in Street Fighter again, though. That's inevitable."
"You wanna bet that?" Kaminari taunted, a competitive gleam taking up his eyes as he matched Kyoka's smirk. Kyoka brushed a hand through her hair, a couple of blond hairs bristling through as Kaminari blinked, tilting his head slightly. "Wait, do you dye your hair purple?"
"Huh?" Kyoka said, blinking as she realized that he probably saw some of the stray blond hairs that were starting to show up every now and again. She frowned, the competitive spirit in her fizzled out as she sighed. "Oh, no. It's a genetic thing. I think my hair is slowly turning blond. I think it's because of my Dad. My mother has purple hair but my Dad has blond hair."
"That's…" Kaminari muttered, confusion littering his face. "…genetics don't work like that, though. I don't think so, anyway."
"Nah, it can happen, but it's extremely rare. Hormones change over time, and they can cause alterations in a person's physical appearance. Though, it would take a massive and sudden shift within someone's biology to prompt it. It's also a stress thing. It's how sometimes babies can go from having platinum blond hair to having brown hair over the course of their time maturing into a toddler," Kyoka replied, resting her left cheek on her hand.
"Oh…" Kaminari said, a little embarrassed as Kyoka smirked.
"This is why you pay attention in biology class, Kaminari-kun," Kyoka teased again, a flair of embarrassment flushing over Kaminari's face as he turned and looked away. As Kaminari wallowed in his little moment of dumbness, Kyoka couldn't help but glance over in the direction of Kira and Midoriya.
Something changed about those two. They were talking in class. That didn't sound like much, but considering that Kira liked to be left alone in the morning from what she knew of her, this was weird. It also didn't help that Kira had a flirty air about her at the moment, and her heartbeat was irregular.
It was both a blessing and a curse to have enhanced hearing. If she focused, she could pick up on people's heartbeats. Kira's was a little faster than normal as she spoke to Midoriya and the way he was smiling like a child in a candy store… She connected the two dots together as a devious grin took up her visage.
"Those two are so dating. Ha. Wait till Ashido finds out, that'll be a riot," Kyoka thought as, for a brief moment, it sounded almost nonsensical. Kira seemed to be like the loner kind of person, and Midoriya was cripplingly anti-social to the point where he stuttered every other sentence. However, she supposed that recently hadn't been the case.
Still, though. Midoriya and Kira. It was certainly an odd pairing, that much was for sure. If she was correct in thinking that they were dating, then that would certainly be a shock. Then again, they were always friends. Aside from the first few days at U.A., they always sat with one another at lunch alongside Kujo, Ida, Uraraka, and a student from 1 – B. Maybe it wasn't exactly surprising or shocking that those two got together—assuming she wasn't wrong in her assumption.
"So, what's your game plan for The Sports Festival, Jirou-san?" Kaminari asked, snapping Kyoka out of her thoughts as she looked back to Kaminari. Her game plan? She didn't really have one.
"Kick ass and take names, that's the plan," Kyoka replied as Kaminari snorted out a laugh.
"Yeah, that makes sense."
Kyoka frowned, before jabbing Kaminari in the chest with an earphone jack, knocking him into his seat. Regardless of what was to come next, all that really mattered was that she won The Sports Festival.
Nothing else mattered.
Above all else, Kyoka Jirou was going to win. She had to. To prove to herself and everyone else in her life that she could do it.
To prove to herself that she was not weak.
She would never be weak again.
Ever.
[XXXX]
Yoshihara was a mix of anxiety and nerves today, and it was pretty obvious as to why. Despite her cold and stoic demeanour on the outside, on the inside, she was positively a mess. The Sports Festival was finally here, and whereas she had thought she had been ready for it, the reality of the situation struck her the moment Aizawa-Sensei came into the room and told them to get changed into their tracksuits.
The Sports Festival was an all-day event, so there was no time for banter or getting together with friends to mess around for a few minutes. They had to get changed and get to the arena before they were late. Everyone else was leaving at around the same time, and they were the only class that was a little bit behind schedule.
To make matters worse, Yoshihara barely got any sleep last night. She was too busy preoccupied with the myriad of thoughts that had been travelling through her head. It was already bad enough that she was running on just barely five hours of sleep, but it was made even worse by the fact that she had the mounting pressure of going on a date after The Sports Festival.
That shouldn't have mattered as much as it did, but it did. She didn't want to mess it up or jump the gun too quickly. There was a lot happening today, and her mind was all over the place. By the time everyone had gotten changed, though, she was able to rope herself together for just long enough to focus on the here and now rather than the future.
She already knew that everyone was already against her. Everyone from most of Class 1 – A sans Uraraka, Ida, Kujo, Ashido, Ojiro, Kaminari, Jirou, and recently Bakugo. All of Class 1 – B sans Karera, and just about everyone else, excluding the staff.
Walking to the buses, she ignored all the scathing glares she was getting from anyone who noticed her. The only people who didn't do that were, surprisingly, The Big Three when she saw them. They saw her, and one of them—a blue-haired girl who looked a little bit like Uraraka now that she thought about it—waved and her and smiled with recognition on her face.
That at least meant that one of the Big Three was on her side of things. She didn't know about the other two, so she wouldn't assume. All that she knew was that they weren't going to interact. Why? Because The Sports Festival was split up into three groups.
Group 1 were the first-year students, which had their own stadium. Group 2 were the second-year students, who also had their own stadium. Finally, Group 3 were the third-year students, and they also had their own stadium. There would be no intermingling of the grades. Which was good. It meant that things were at least somewhat balanced.
That didn't change the fact that she was still nervous, though. Just because second and third-year students weren't participating with the first-year students, that didn't mean it would be smooth sailing. It would be anything but. Not to mention that there was still one unidentified Stand User lurking amongst the first years….
Yoshihara put that thought aside. It wasn't important. Not right now, anyway. She'd deal with that Stand User if she ever had to. Kujo or Karera could always get to them first, assuming that they had the chance to.
Of course, that was the least of her worries. While the mysterious Stand User was equal parts concerning and annoying, they were in a constantly monitored environment, meaning that they weren't in danger of getting into life-threatening combat.
Once everyone arrived at the First Year stadium, each class was taken by hired security intel—mainly Pro Heroes and Police Officers—to be taken to their waiting rooms. As Class 1 – A and 1 – B were taken to their separate waiting rooms, she heard Karera wish them good luck, to which Kujo replied with the same thing. After that, they were separated.
Upon entering their assigned waiting room, Class 1 – A was greeted with four cheap fold-out tables with five chairs each. There were several inspirational posters in the room with different top-tier heroes, namely Mirko, All Might, a hero by the name of Blackwell, and of course, Endeavour.
When Todoroki saw that poster of Endeavour, he grumbled to himself about something, though Yoshihara wasn't able to make out what it was he was muttering about. Although, considering that he was Endeavour's son, it was probably something personal.
Everyone took their seats, and once they did, it was clear that there was a sense of excitement and joy in the class. Everyone in the room was jittery. Nerves were high and the prospect of the upcoming competition was bubbling just over everyone's heads. Soon, they would be pitted against each other in an Olympic-style event for the amusement of others.
In any other setting, that would be something of a dystopian nightmare. But given that this was a school event, and it was meant to get names out there into the wide-open world so that they could be scouted by heroes, it wasn't nearly as bad.
Typically, Yoshihara never really cared about winning or losing. She wasn't the kind of person to want to make enemies. But, for an occasion such as this, she saw no real qualms for making an exception that time around.
Maybe, just maybe, if she won The Sports Festival, opinions about her would change. Fame usually outshines infamy. Of course, there was always the possibility that even so much as showing her face here would put a new spotlight on the drama surrounding her and ignite it like a match to an oil fire.
Hopefully, it was more of the former and less of the latter.
Currently, Yoshihara and Izuku were standing side by side, the latter looking a bit nervous, while Yoshihara looked relatively calm as she observed those in the class that would be the biggest threats in The Sports Festival. The first of which was Kujo. He was a Stand User, so that made him a threat to her chances at victory.
While Kujo and her had fought before, that was before he trained with Zeppelli, so who knew just what kind of tricks he had up his sleeve? He could be even more dangerous than before, and potentially even win this time.
Aside from Kujo, the next few people were all the same in terms of threat level, though one moreso than the other two. Those people being Bakugo, Todoroki, and Izuku. Bakugo was going to be a pain in the ass because, well, he was Bakugo Katsuki. He was a hardhead and didn't know when to quit.
He was fast, he was strong, and he could take a hit and shrug it off. Even if she threw a full-powered punch from Killer Queen in his direction, she was fairly certain that he could shrug it off at least once. That would be all he needed to land a knockout blow.
Todoroki was more of a glass canon. He could free her solid with just one move, so she needed to be faster than him which was easier said than done. Ironically, despite using Ice, he was insanely quick—maybe not as fast as Bakugo but he was still quick. She'd need to somehow disable him before he could do anything.
When Kujo fought him in The Battle Trials, he had to plan around him and him alone. That was just how much of a threat he had been—and that was earlier in the year before the two months of training they had undergone. Who knew just how much stronger he had gotten in that amount of time?
Finally, there was Izuku. Unlike those other two, however, he knew about Stands. He knew how to dodge and read the movements in the air that they created thanks to Inko. He knew what her ability was and what he could potentially counter it with. He was quick on his feet and with his new Full Cowling ability he was coming up with, he was even more of a threat than the other two just by those two principles alone.
Of course, he was still super squishy. Meaning that if she put pressure on him and forced him to break his bones due to the blowback of his Quirk, she could come out on top and beat him.
With a game plan in mind for each person who she knew would be a problem for her, she was now slightly more confident in her capabilities.
Yoshihara glanced over to Izuku, who gave her a half-hearted smile, a light dusting of pink on his cheeks. She knew exactly what was going through his mind right now. It probably had something to do with last night.
She could still feel that sensation from their brief encounter on her lips. It was cheesy, but it left a lasting mark on her. She wasn't used to that feeling, but she liked it. She liked it a lot. A small part of her wanted to skip The Sports Festival and go out with Izuku now rather than later.
But, this was mandatory, so there wasn't much she could do about it.
Slowly, Yoshihara slipped her hand next to Izuku's, as she quietly intertwined her fingers with his. He reciprocated the action, their hands now firmly held in each other's grasp. Her cheeks lit up a deep scarlet as she looked away. The way his fingers felt intertwined with hers… it felt perfect.
God, what she would give to— "NOPE!" She cut that thought off before it could even begin. Seriously, what the hell was wrong with her?! Now was not the place for those kinds of thoughts. Her hand gripped his a little tighter, which prompted him to take a step closer to her. He shot her a concerned glance, but she simply smiled and brushed the concern off.
It had been so long since she had felt loved by someone outside those who were obligated to do so, be it as a guardian or otherwise—and even then, she didn't remember a time when her mother had loved her at any point. It was only ever memories of abuse.
But now, things were different.
Things were better now.
"Midoriya. Kira," the cold, emotionless tone of Todoroki interrupted her line of thought as Yoshihara and Izuku's hands quickly separated from one another whilst the pair looked in Todoroki's direction, a tense air surrounding the group of three.
Todoroki stared at the pair, narrowing his eyes when he looked at Yoshihara, who simply glared at him in return. Finally, after some time passed, Izuku spoke up. "Todoroki, uh… what is it?" Izuku asked as Todoroki looked over at him.
"Objectively speaking, I'm stronger than you and more capable than you," Todoroki regarded coldly, making Izuku flinch. "All Might's got his eye on you, doesn't he?" Todoroki prodded, his expression becoming dead serious, making Izuku a little bit uncomfortable. "Now I'm not about to pry into why that is, but… I will beat you."
Todoroki's declaration seemed to shake the room just a little bit, and when he was finished talking to Izuku, he turned his attention to Yoshihara. "And you. You being here illudes me. I don't understand why you weren't expelled for your actions and for the murder you committed, but that's not why I'm talking to you," Todoroki stated as Yoshihara crossed her arms, still not the least bit impressed that he mentioned The Incident. She ignored the snide remark as he continued.
"From what I've seen of you, you seem to have a similar, albeit a more powerful version of Bakugo's Quirk, if what Kujo said back during the combat trials is to be believed. However, my Ice will overpower you, and I will beat you as well," Todoroki continued, earning a dry expression from Yoshihara.
The pair stared at one another, Todoroki with the competitive gaze that was on his face, meanwhile, there was Yoshihara whose expression was completely devoid of any real emotion outside of annoyance.
"You seem so sure of yourself, Todoroki," Yoshihara replied, stuffing her hands into her tracksuit pockets. "But if I recall correctly, your Quirk is called Half-Hot-Half-Cold, was it not? Why would you only fight using your ice? That puts you at an extreme disadvantage. Besides, you only know the surface details of my Quirk. You don't know what it can do. You've only seen what I've allowed you all to see. I have more up my sleeve than you think I do," Yoshihara stated, causing Todoroki to frown.
The jab at the nature of his Quirk had upset him, as was evident with the gleam of anger flashing through his eyes. But why? Why would he be angry about the fact that his Quirk was also one part fire as it was one part ice? Was there something that she was missing here?
"Hey you two, cut it out! We're about to go on…" Kirishima cut in, walking up to the two and placing a hand on both of their shoulders. Todoroki simply shrugged Kirishima's hand off of his shoulder as he let out a sigh.
"I don't care. I'm not pretending to be anyone's friend here," Todoroki responded, both to Kirishima and Yoshihara. She was about to interject, but Izuku spoke up before she could.
"I'll be honest, Todoroki. I don't know why you feel that way. I don't know why you wanted to tell me you were going to beat me. I can't deny that you're stronger, and I can't deny that compared to me your control over your Quirk is far superior to mine," Izuku began with a slightly determined look on his face. "However, you know nothing about what I've done to get this far. All you've seen is what I can do at school. Besides, you're not the only one who's aiming for the top. Hell, it's not just the hero course students, it's everyone else as well. From the General Study students to the Support Course students. Even the Business Course students are giving it their all!" Izuku continued, staring directly into the eyes of Todoroki, a burning fire of determination deep within his emerald eyes.
"So, let me say this, Todoroki. If you're going to reach for the top. If you're declaring war on me. Then I'm going to do the exact same thing. I'm going to beat you, Shoto Todoroki!" As Izuku made his declaration, Todoroki scoffed, turning around and looking away from Izuku.
"Right." That was all he got in response from Todoroki. However, he wasn't the only one who overheard his little speech. The whole class did. That included Bakugo, who found himself a little impressed at with what Deku had said.
"Heh, so Deku's got a bit more of a spine, eh? Not that it'll matter," Bakugo thought, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. "He might be a bit stronger than before, but he ain't got shit on me. I'll kick his ass, and show him he's still beneath me," Bakugo continued that line of thought as his eyes lingered over to Blondie.
He didn't know what to make of her, outside of the fact that she was still hiding something. Yeah, sure, she killed a few people. So what? Two were accidents and one was a shithead villain. The situation was kill or be killed, and besides, who was he to judge what someone else did or didn't do? It wasn't his fight nor was it his life.
That being said…. "That damn imposter. I'm gonna kick her ass, too. Explosions are my thing, not hers! She won't take the limelight from me, damnit!" Bakugo thought, narrowing his eyes, and glaring at her with a mix of intense hatred and envy. Before he could say anything, one of the heroes acting as security detail told them that The Sports Festival was about to begin.
Not too long after that, they were escorted to where The Sports Festival was going to begin. Excitement, anxiety, and competition bubbled in the air as each first-year student was led to the entrance to the main field.
Once the doors to the main field opened up, the class was greeted by the sounds of a loud crowd cheering, whooping and hollering. Amongst the whooping and hollering, Yoshihara could make out the voice of one Present Mic, who was the announcer for the event. "Introducing The First Year Stage! Here come the Students now!"
"The whole country's watching me…."Yoshihara thought, slowly raising a fist to her chest." No doubt the villains who attacked us at the USJ are as well. And if that's the case…"Yoshihara's thoughts continued with a determined look shining in her normally vacant eyes. "Then I'm going to make them all see just how strong I am!"
And with that mini-declaration in her mind, she walked past the gates along with her classmates, gathering with the other first-year students, her class being the one in front of them all. The light of the sun beamed down on everyone. The skies were clear, and the air was crisp—reflecting the mood that was in the air as cheers filled their ears.
"Let's give a warm welcome to the first years of The Hero Course! First up, is Class 1 – A!" Present Mic's booming voice echoed out into the stadium, with roars and cheers of those in the nosebleeds and seats throughout the stadium.
"Following them is Class 1 – B! Then after them are Classes C, D, and E of General Studies! Following them are the Support Course classes F, G, and H! And last but certainly not least are Classes I, J, and K from the business course!" Present Mic continued as he listed off the classes for the first-year students. All of them pooled together to make a massive crowd of over 300 people.
Yoshihara looked over to Izuku, a nervous expression on his face. It was clear that he hadn't been expecting the utter amount of people to be watching, and it seemed that all of his bravado in the prep room had pretty much faded. Her class was making idle chatter, not that she was going to add to any of it. However, it was cut short when a certain someone that Yoshihara recognized made themselves appear on the stage.
Yoshihara felt herself cringe when she saw Kayama-san wearing her hero costume, but then again, it didn't matter all that much. However, what confused her was why she was the first-year student's event organizer. From what she heard, last year it was Vlad King, but this year it was Kayama-san.
Maybe it was a cycle thing? Did that mean it was technically her turn to host The Sports Festival? It was certainly possible. Honestly, she didn't care, but it was still something noteworthy. Either that, or it was supposed to be Aizawa-Sensei, but due to his injuries, Kayama-san was covering for him.
Either way, it didn't matter. If things were going to cause trouble, then either of them would be useful, Kayama-san moreso than Aizawa-Sensei. Kayama-san's Quirk was better suited for ensuring that no one got hurt as it worked regardless of what the combatants had as their abilities.
"Now! It's time for the Athlete's oath!" Kayama-san shouted as the crowd started gawking at her, much to her annoyance. "Oi! Pipe down, everyone! I appreciate the attention but that's quite enough!" Kayama-san said, cracking her whip as the sound echoed throughout the stadium, prompting everyone to shut up. Once it went quiet, Kayama-san smirked, addressing the first years. "Your student representative for this year is Katsuki Bakugo from Class 1 – A!"
Bakugo walked up to the stage and stood next to the R-rated hero, taking the microphone from her. "Hmph. My original oath was scrapped because it was crap. The principal said it would only make things a nuisance," Katsuki began, scoffing as he overlooked the crowd. "Whatever. You clowns came here to prove yourselves, right? Especially you General Studies shmucks. You think you got what it fuckin' takes to worm your way into the Hero Course, right?" Bakugo roared, a sinister smile on his face. "Well, I doubt it. But if you think you can then prove it! Prove to everyone and yourself you fuckwits got what it takes! 'Cause if you can't, then I'd say you lot would make the perfect stepping stones to MY success!"
The crowd practically roared to life in anger and annoyance at Bakugo's words. In response, Bakugo created a loud explosion to snap everyone back to attention, which caused their roars to die down and go silent. "Shut the fuck up, you morons! I'm not finished!" Bakugo roared, glaring down at everyone.
"I dare you all to give it your best. All of you, don't wimp out cause you're seen as the underdogs! I want a challenge, not a complete stomp! I know some of you bastards in the General Studies Course have some above-average Quirks. I want to see'em at their fullest! If you bastards didn't train them then you have no reason to be here. The same goes with you bastards in the Business and Support Courses. You assholes better show me and the rest of Japan a damn good time! I don't want to get bored in this sea of mediocrity!"
The same reaction was garnered, though it was largely quieter than before, as some of the people in the crowd were beginning to decipher his words and make their own interpretations of them, ranging from him being arrogant to being slightly supportive in an aggressive tone, kinda like an American footballer.
Meanwhile, all of Class 1 – A felt just a tad bit annoyed that Bakugo pretty much turned the crowd completely against them, some people telling them to not get cocky or calling them dirty bastards. With his peace said, Bakugo returned to his spot within Class 1 – A, shooting a glare at Izuku, who smirked. He was the one who rewrote Bakugo's speech with his personality in mind.
Bakugo wasn't too happy about it, but it was under the headmaster's orders. The last thing Class 1 – A needed was more controversy. Though, as it appeared, it didn't really change much. Regardless, what was done was done, and there was nothing that could done about it.
"With that passionate speech out of the way! Let's get the first event started!" Kayama-san announced as a big screen showed up behind her. Several events began to spin like that of a slot machine, each one rapidly flinging by faster than the human eye could perceive. Even withKiller Queen'senhanced eyesight, Yoshihara couldn't make out what they were.
"These are the Qualifiers! It's in this stage that so many are sent home crying every year!" Kayama-san explained, turning to see the screen as it slowed down. "And the fateful first-year event this year is…!" Kayama-san continued as the event name showed itself on the massive television screen.Obstacle Course Race. "THIS!"
The crowd erupted into loud applause as the name of the event showed up on the massive jumbotron in the center of the enclosed stadium. Many of the students from all the different courses began to worry about their probability of making it through the Sports Festival, while others felt their chances skyrocket.
For Midoriya, he felt a bit nervous, but with his Full Cowling, he felt just a bit confident. Yoshihara, too, also felt confident, along with Josefumi, Todoroki, Bakugo, and Shinso Hitoshi, who had a wooden doll in his right hand, one that he had snuck past security in order to bring in.
The lights above the gate began to countdown as Yoshihara drew out Killer Queen as it overlapped with her. She felt her body double in physical strength, agility, and speed. As the final light glowed, a horn sounded off, and Kayama-san's voice rang out through the stadium.
"START!"
As soon as her voice boomed, Yoshihara stepped hard into the ground, creating a small spider-web crack where she had stepped withKiller Queen'sadded strength, slipping the balance of those around her, and with a powerful kick to get her moving, she burst forth at the same time as Todoroki froze the ground as he declared that the gate was the first filter. The pair shared a glance, Todoroki's eyes filled with shock while Yoshihara shot him a condescending smirk.
"I told you so," Yoshihara taunted, passing him with ease. Todoroki wasn't that far behind her, but he still felt as if his ego was spat on. It wasn't a good feeling, not even remotely. But he would get the leg up on her. He knew he would.
Meanwhile, back at the entrance, there were a bunch of complaints coming from those stuck at the rear, all the while Bakugo, Kirishima, Yaoyorozu, and Aoyama burst forth from the frozen ground. Bakugo made some sort of a taunt to further piss off Todoroki, but Yoshihara tuned it out, her confidence skyrocketed.
The rest of their class such as Tokoyami, Ashido, Ojiro, Midoriya, and Uraraka broke through the thick ice trap. However, Hitoshi Shinso also broke through, a smirk on his face, asEverybody Loves Meslammed its fist into the ground, cracking the ice and freeing a bunch of other students.
"That guy… He's got a pretty handy Quirk. Hmph," Hitoshi scoffed. His eyes narrowed as he glared at Yoshihara. "That girl… she's got a Stand too. Who knows how many others do as well," Hitoshi remarked, glancing over to his left as a kid with a pompadour that he didn't recognize summoned a Stand of his own and smashed the ice that was freeing his legs. Shinso scowled, taking off running at the same time as Josefumi.
Shoto looked back at everyone who escaped, frowning. "I expected it from our class, but… More made it past the blockade than I thought…." As Todoroki thought that, he felt a sharp impact knock him in the face, causing him to tumble on his ice, knocking into some of the crowd and slowing his advance.
"What the hell?!"Todoroki thought, his eyes raising in alarm while a small stream of blood spewed from his mouth."What hit me?"Todoroki's thoughts were frantic as he picked himself up. Up ahead were several robots, and he watched as Kira was blowing them up in a flash just by tapping them."It was probably shrapnel from Kira and her blowing up the robots… but, was it planned?"
However, Yoshihara quickly stopped dead in her tracks as three massive 40-foot-tall robots towered over all of the students."These are the robots that Midoriya, Karera, and Josefumi had to face? This should be easy…"Yoshihara thought as Present Mic spoke up through the speakers.
"EVERY OBSTACLE COURSE NEEDS OBSTACLES! INTRODUCING THE FIRST BARRIER!ROBO INFERN—OH!" Before Present Mic could finish his sentence, several of the Zero-Pointer Robots exploded into bits before they could even get the chance to initiate their attack, all in a straight path that allowed Yoshihara to slip past them, simultaneously distracting the robots with the explosion of their comrades.
"WELL! WOULD YOU LOOK AT THAT?! IT WOULD SEEM THAT KIRA YOSHIHARA FROM CLASS 1 – A IS MAKING AMPLE USE OF HER EXPLOSIVE QUIRK, BOMB CREATION, TO BUST THROUGH THE BARRIER WITH FORCE!" Present Mic announced. "BUT THAT'S NOT ALL!" This caused Yoshihara to flash a glance behind her as the rest of the Zero-Pointers were encased in ice. Several people tried to follow Todoroki, who had been the reason behind the freezing of the robots, only to be rudely awakened when the Zero-Pointers unthawed and fell over, creating an even bigger barrier than before.
"ANOTHER ONE OF CLASS 1 – A'S STUDENTS, TODOROKI SHOTO, IS BUSTING THROUGH AND SABOTAGING THE OTHERS IN ONE MOVE! THIS GUY'S COLD!" Present Mic announced as Yoshihara smirked, Todoroki going back to skating on his ice whilst Yoshihara continued bounding forward, keeping a solid lead ahead of Todoroki.
"Even afterKiller Queenknocked him in the face, it would seem as if he was able to recover quicker than I thought…."Yoshihara thought, placing bubbles underneath her feet as they exploded, sending her high up in the air, overlooking the next obstacle. Her eyes widened upon seeing it and then smirked."It's tight ropes. But unlike the exam…"Yoshihara's thoughts continued as she blasted forward using her bubble bombs, practically flying in the air at the constant replacement of her bubble bombs on her feet."I don't need to cross them!"
"IT WOULD SEEM AS IF KIRA HAS COMPLETELY BYPASSED THE SECOND OBSTACLE, THAT BEINGTHE FALL,BY ONCE AGAIN USING THE EXPLOSIVE QUIRK OF HERS TO FLY!" Present Mic announced. "BUT IT SEEMS LIKE SHE'S NO LONGER IN FIRST PLACE!" As Present Mic said that, Yoshihara looked around her before watching as Kujo was casually floating above her. He smirked, waving at her asSoft & Wetswam in front of him, to which he was grabbing the leg of his Stand as it dragged him through the air.
"IT WOULD SEEM AS IF CLASS 1 – A's KUJO JOSEFUMI USED HIS QUIRK, PLUNDER, TO STEAL HIS GRAVITY SO HE CAN FLY OVER THE COURSE! IS THAT EVEN ALLOWED ERASERHEAD?!" Present Mic questioned as Aizawa-Sensei sighed.
"The Sports Festival is being used to show off one's Quirks and mastery over them. So yes, he's allowed to do that," Aizawa replied, a tired drone to his voice. If he could rub the sleep out of his eyes, he would. But with his hands being bandaged, he could not do that. Noticing his plight, Hizashi reached over and rubbed at his eyes, earning a satisfied grunt from the man.
Down below, beneath the two Stand Users, a pink-haired girl was using some sort of propulsion device to swing from cliff to cliff, bouncing off the edge of the cliffs with some sort of boots that allowed her to stick to the walls and safely grapple herself to the next cliff, all of which had been pre-allowed by the staff.
Meanwhile, Todoroki, who was now in third place and a fair distance behind his two other classmates, gritted his teeth as he watched them practically fly above him, all the while he carefully ran on the ropes with perfect balance. He knew damn well that there was something up with those two. Something about those two had always rubbed him the wrong way.
And no, he wasn't mad because he was in third place, though it did annoy him that he was being outperformed by them seeing as hisfatherwas no doubt watching in the stands. Not that he cared all too much about what hisfatherthought of him or what he was doing, but that was beside the point.
The fact that he was being beaten by a murderer and a Joestar really ground his gears—especially because he was being beaten by a murderer. The Joestar? Not so much. But it was the fact that Kira was making good on her word back in the prep room that seriously pissed him off.
Meanwhile, the crowd was watching the events play out with cheers and shouts of excitement. However, there were a select few who, upon hearing the name Kira Yoshihara, began jeering and shouting. And by a few, it was more like half the stadium. Some of them who knew that she was going to be at the Sports Festival brought signs for protesting, while some of the heroes who were watching straight up left.
Then again, it wasn't as if Kira cared all that much.
Present Mic looked a bit worried and muted his and Aizawa's microphones, watching as the protests got louder and louder. He had even read a few of the signs, some of which wished death upon Kira for what she did, despite what she did being an obvious case of self-defence. How they were able to slip those signs past security was beyond him, but that was beside the point. "This can't be good… I mean, I knew the media whipped up a storm, but this is ridiculous…." Hizashi said, a bead of sweat dripping from his forehead as Shouta sighed.
"There's nothing we can do about it. Though I doubt any of them will try something. If they do, we have security that'll stop them," Aizawa replied, a frown forming underneath his bandages. He was sure that the public would've forgotten about what happened by now, but it seemed like they were still aware of it. Whatever the case might have been, he wasn't about to lecture a bunch of adults over the microphone. He wasn't there to police protestors, he was there to commentate over the obstacle course.
The mics were turned back on, and just in time for the third obstacle. Josefumi was floating just above it, while Yoshihara was still jumping on top of explosive bubbles for her to practically run above it, meanwhile, Todoroki was running the course the proper way.
"AND OUR THREE LEADS HAVE REACHED THE FINAL BARRIER! THAT IS TO SAY… THIS MINEFIELD! IT'S A DEADLY AFGHAN CARPET! A QUICK GLANCE IS ENOUGH TO REVEAL THE MINES' LOCATIONS! SO KEEP BOTH EYES OPEN AND WATCH YOUR STEP!" Present Mic announced, chuckling to himself for a brief second. "I SHOULD MENTION, OUR MINES DON'T PACK A DEADLY PUNCH BUT THEY'RE LOUD AND FLASHY ENOUGH THAT YOU MIGHT NEED A CHANGE OF UNDERWEAR WHEN IT'S ALL OVER!"
From behind, Izuku was covered in green electricity, keeping his movement fluid and his eyes ahead of him as he finished the tight rope section. That part had slowed him down, namely because using Full Cowling back at the tightrope section would've been a bad idea. He wasn't that good with it yet, and using it while balancing wouldn't have helped.
Upon making it to the minefield, he was able to dash past Todoroki, glancing at him as Todoroki stared ahead, his eyes wide with surprise. As he slammed his foot down on the ground, he bound forward, narrowly avoiding a mine. He bound forward once again and put a good distance between himself and Todoroki, sealing the deal as Izuku was now firmly in third place.
"IT WOULD SEEM AS IF MIDORIYA IZUKU, FROM CLASS 1 – A, STOLE TODOROKI SHOTO'S THIRD PLACE SPOT! WHAT A SHOCKING TURN OF EVENTS!" As Present Mic said that, Yoshihara glanced just underneath herself and smiled, watching as Izuku effortlessly passed Todoroki.
However, while that was nice and all, she had a race to win. Right now, Kujo was in the first place, and by a good margin. Izuku wasn't too far behind her, and from the corner of her eye, she could see that behind Todoroki was Bakugo ripping and roaring angrily, trying to catch up as fast as he could.
She'd give Bakugo one thing, he clearly knew how to use his Quirk properly for transport, and he was damn well good at it. That being said, that wouldn't mean that she wasn't going to one-up him once more. After all, Bakugo had to limit the power of his explosions to not damage himself too badly.
Yoshihara did not have that limitation, as she was mostly immune to Killer Queen's bombs, aside from the shockwave and force that they created—which was exactly what she planned to use to win the race.
Yoshihara smirked as she had Killer Queen group four explosive bubbles on each of her feet, and then, as it pressed its thumb down on the side of its hand, she pointed her hands above her head to mimic a spearhead, snapping forward and zooming past Kujo.
Kujo hadn't expected her to do something like that, and as a result faltered for just a moment, which allowed Izuku to sneak past him, claiming second place. The size of the explosion that Killer Queen unleashed matched the size of one of Bakugo's, but unlike one of Bakugo's explosions, it contained ten times the amount of explosive power, which kicked up a massive dust cloud, blinding the people who were behind her.
Just as Yoshihara dived toward the finish line, she did a tuck and roll to mitigate the landing, and just as she was about to run across the finish line in first place, a green blur cut just past her making her eyes widen. Izuku gave her a side glance, then a smile, and exited the gate, coming to a screeching halt.
"THE FIRST PERSON TO MAKE IT BACK TO THE STADIUM IS NONE OTHER THAN IZUKU MIDORIYA, STEALING THE FIRST PLACE POSITION FROM KIRA YOSHIHARA BY A LITERAL HAIR!" Present Mic announced, a roar of cheers erupting from the stadium.
Yoshihara followed behind him, just narrowly getting second place. Kujo came in third, Todoroki in fourth, and Bakugo in fifth. Speaking of Bakugo, his teeth were grit with a fierce rage, his arms were bulging with anger, and his blood-red eyes were set on the back of Izuku's head.
Two weeks ago, Deku was breaking his limbs to use his Quirk.
Two weeks ago, he was nothing but a pebble who had a little bit of confidence.
But now? He was different. He was using his Quirk without breaking his bones with some sort of flashy green lighting dancing around his body as a result, and to make things worse, Deku was fast. Really fucking fast. Not as fast as four eyes, but faster than him.
That was unacceptable. He was supposed to be better than Deku! Instead, Deku was outpacing him! It was bullshit! To matters worse, Blondie had outpaced him as well! She and Deku both had completely embarrassed him! He didn't give a rat's ass about Kujo, but those two? Those two jackasses…
"UN-FUCKING BELIEVABLE!" Bakugo snarled, small sparks popping off his palm. It was such fucking bullshit! How the hell did a nobody and a background character surpass him?! HIM?! BAKUGO FUCKING KATSUKI!
HE WAS THE BEST ALDERA HAD TO OFFER!
HE WAS THE ONE AND ONLY STUDENT FROM THAT SCHOOL THAT SHOULD'VE GONE TO U.A.!
HE WAS SUPPOSED TO BE BETTER THAN EVERYONE ELSE!
"You look like you're gonna pop a blood vessel," Ears spoke up, passing him calmly as Bakugo glared in her direction, which earned a scoff from her. "Damn, no need to get so worked up. It's just a race. 'Sides, fifth place ain't so bad. Better than my 19th place," Ears continued as the other extras began to filter through.
Bakugo waved her away, storming past her. As he walked away, Kyoka rolled her eyes. Since when was Bakugo such a sore loser? "Whatever, let him sulk to himself. He's not nearly as important as the top three, anyway," Kyoka thought, glancing over at Kira, Midoriya, and Kujo.
It was those three again. For some reason, those three were constantly doing wild shit. Why? What was so special about them? Kira with her controversy. Midoriya with All Might's strange favouritism aimed at him, of which the latter didn't hide all that well. Then there was Kujo, who was a Joestar so that checked out.
But why? It didn't make any sense.
She was going to get to the bottom of this.
Meanwhile, Todoroki was using a slight amount of fire from his right side to heat his body. He had used his ice a lot back there, and using too much of it would've caused hypothermia to set in, which wasn't exactly a good thing. So, to counter-act it, he heated himself using his father's flames, though that would be the only time he used them, to heat himself back to normal temperatures.
He made a vow, a vow that he would never use the flames that belonged to his father. He would become a hero through his mother's ice only, just to prove Endeavor wrong. He would not dignify his father the pride he so desperately wanted. He would not allow his father the satisfaction of his "best creation" doing what he wants.
Meanwhile, Kayama-san was standing on stage, smirking as she overlooked the giant TV behind her. As the rest of the competitors came up into the stadium, she cleared her throat and spoke into the microphone. "Now that the first event is over, let's take a look at the standings!"
1st Place: Class A. Izuku Midoriya
2nd Place: Class A. Yoshihara Kira
3rd Place: Class A. Josefumi Kujo
4th Place: Class A. Shoto Todoroki
5th Place: Class A. Katsuki Bakugo
6th Place: Class B. Ibara Shiozaki
7th Place: Class B. Karera Sakunami
8th Place: Class B. Juzo Honenuki
9th Place: Class A. Ida Tenya
10th Place: Class A. Fumikage Tokoyami
11th Place: General Studies: Heimei Kishibe
12th Place: Class A. Eijirou Kirishima
13th Place: Class B. Tetsutetsu Tetsutetsu
14th Place: General Studies: Hitoshi Shinso
15th Place: Class A. Momo Yaoyorozu
16th Place: Class A. Ochako Uraraka
17th Place: General Studies: Tatami Utusagi
18th Place: Support Course: Mei Hatsume
19th Place: Class A. Kyoka Jirou
20th Place….
Yoshihara watched as the names and faces flashed up on the billboard and frowned. In total, 42 students qualified for the next round. Over 75% of the contenders were cut from the pool of opponents. Instead of it making the stress lessen, it only made it double. These 42 contenders were the cream of the crop, which meant that this next event might be challenging.
She recognized a lot of the people on the board, the obvious ones being from her class, as well as Karera, and Kishibe. But the rest? She had no idea who they were. Then again, she didn't pay attention to most of the other contenders. The only one she recognized the face of was a guy by the name of Hitoshi Shinso, the guy who declared war on her class.
He was a Stand User.
That made him a threat, and subsequently, he would need to be monitored. Whatever the next event was, he alongside Kujo and Kishibe were going to be problems, regardless of what the event was.
"The top 42 from this qualifying round will move on!" Kayama-san began, looking over the crowd of students before smiling. "But for those who placed lower, don't worry! We still have plenty of things that you guys can do to show off your mettle!" She continued as she gained a fierce expression.
"But now, the real fun begins!" As she said that, Yoshihara rolled her eyes at her theatrics. It seemed like she was getting a lot of mileage out of this whole event. "The main selection really begins! The Press Corps' are going to be jumping out of their seats, so give it all you got!" Kayama-san declared, several shouts coming from the crowd as the R-rated hero smirked with glee.
Walking over to the TV as it began to spin just like the first time. "Now, on to the second event! I already know what it's going to be, of course, but the suspense must be killing all of you! Next up is…THIS!"
Two big words showed up on the screen, and Yoshihara could practically hear Bakugo laughing in the back of her head. Why? Because the name of the event practically explained itself.
All Out War.
[XXXX]
Dabi didn't like The Sports Festival. He only ever watched it when he was bored all of the previous years. But this time, he had a reason to watch it. Shoto was attending it, and he would be lying if he had said he had no interest in what his younger brother was doing.
To say he felt a small amount of smug satisfaction that Shoto seemingly was only using his ice was an understatement. Endeavour must've been fuming, which was always a good thing. That piece of shit didn't deserve to have any kind of satisfaction. For all of what he did to their family, he deserved to look like a moron.
Neglecting everyone other than Shoto… If he had just shared his attention, then that accident wouldn't have happened. If he had just been paying more attention, he wouldn't have been burned alive.
Then again, it went both ways. Dabi wasn't stupid. Looking back at what happened, he had his own share of the blame. He shouldn't have overworked himself. But, in the same vain, all he wanted was for his father to see him. To view him as something worth acknowledging as his child instead of ignoring him—ignoring Natsuo. Ignoring Fuyumi.
It made his blood boil just thinking about how much of a piece of shit Endeavour was. It was all Endeavour's fault. His scars were a product of Endeavour's neglect. Nothing more, nothing less. If there was another reason for his scars, then he didn't particularly care to remember it.
As The Sports Festival went on ad-break, he couldn't help but think of the other person he saw there that he recognized. All it took was that newspaper confirming the appearance of the woman that the girl murdered, along with the name being leaked to the press, for him to confirm that the girl he just watched score second place in The Sports Festival was the same girl he had rescued all those years ago.
Dabi didn't regret a single thing. No child deserved to be abused. He knew from personal experience how awful being neglected was. It was almost comical, though, just how much shit that kid had gone through in such a short amount of time.
He didn't know about what she had been going through from then till now, but seriously. It was like that woman was doing a speedrun for becoming the world's worst mother. It was honestly kind of upsetting. What would drive a person to do all of that to someone that they brought into the world?
"Whatever," Dabi thought, yawning as he reached into the popcorn bucket he had made for himself. He was lying across a dusty old couch that he had gotten for free from a yard sale. Living in a cheap, barely kept-together apartment was kind of poetic. He was barely kept together and so was his home.
He was still waiting for that paycheque to come in from the people he was working with. It was supposed to come in later today. That way, he could use it to pay his bills. Just as he was about to stuff another mouthful of popcorn into his mouth, his phone buzzed. He pulled it out of his pants pocket, and unlocked the device, before opening his Email.
His eyes scanned over the information he was given, as a small smirk took up his visage.
It seemed as if he had a brand new job.
"The League Of Villains, eh? I wonder what he wants with them?" Dabi thought, sitting up. He had a man to go meet. He'd just have his TV record The Sports Festival for later viewing. Right now, this was more important.
Pressing the record button on his TV remote, he got up from his couch, putting the remote down as he walked over to grab his barely put-together black duster with metal cuffs. Once he had it one, the black fabric giving him a brief moment of comfort, he stepped out of his apartment and began to make his way to the meeting location.
It was time to make some more money.
-To Be Continued-