Chapter 39

"All right," Midnight started then, picking up a box that she'd had set by her side. "Now, we'll determine who fights who through this lottery," she continued, shaking the object so that they could hear the numbers inside. "Once the matchups are decided, we'll have the recreation events before the final round. Whether or not the sixteen of you want to compete in the recreation events is up to you since I'm sure you'll want to prepare and save your strength. So, starting with-"

"Excuse me!" called one of the students. Turning to the side, Kazuki saw Ojiro with his hand raised. "Sorry," the boy added, looking and feeling very uncomfortable. There was rock solid determination on his face though. "I'd like to sit this one out."

Kazuki's eyes widened then and he wasn't the only one shocked. Several of their classmates voiced their own incredulity. This was the biggest event of their lives so far. This was their chance to show the world what they had, who they were, what they were capable of.

To not participate in the last, most important event of them all was…

'What's going on here?' Kazuki wondered, frowning as he tried to read his classmate's emotions.

"Truth is, I didn't do anything during the Cavalry Battle, really," Ojiro admitted, making everyone else blink. Kazuki though, had an idea of what was going on there. 'So it was the kid's mind control Quirk, huh?' he mused, turning to look at the purple haired student from Gen Ed. "Because of him," Ojiro added, turning to give a side glare as he confirmed Kazuki's suspicions. "I know it's a big chance, but I didn't earn my place here like everyone else. It wouldn't feel right to stand there."

Kazuki understood the point, he truly did. However, like the rest of their classmates, he didn't think it was a very smart thing to do. It sounded very noble, for sure, but he had to wonder how many of the heroes that were watching and how many people in the public would care all that much. Sure, it was great that he didn't go for an unearned prize but… He was still not showing them as much as he could. The heroes wouldn't know as much about what he could do, which could mean they wouldn't want to risk picking an unknown. The crowd might like it more, but ultimately they were here for the spectacle.

'This is getting ridiculous,' Kazuki thought then, as the two other 1-B students that had been on the Gen Ed guy's team decided that they were out too. The worst part was that Midnight looked like she'd allow the whole thing to happen. 'I guess it's whatever. Their decision,' he mused, grateful that at least it wasn't one of his friends that wanted to do such a thing.

He might have had to smack them on national TV if they were.

Thus, Midnight also decided that the three members of the fifth team would fill in for the three students that were stepping down. 'So, the 1-B girls, huh?' Kazuki mused. He knew Kendo, sort of. They mostly just saw each other at the class representative meetings, really, but she'd also made an appearance in a training session or two. Same for… the mushroom girl he'd forgotten the name of. Yanagi was an old training buddy by that point. The fourth member of that team, he didn't know though. 'Wonder which of them will join the tournament.'

In the meantime, Kazuki was fairly sure that he heard an explosion somewhere away from them. 'Bakugo's not happy,' he thought, somewhat amused but also very annoyed, mainly because all that anger was reaching him. 'Skill issue,' he added, refocusing on the talk for the event. Besides, he couldn't say he wasn't happy that the boy wouldn't be part of the last stretch.

He hadn't expected the blonde to keep his promise to behave all that much to begin with.

"And these are the matchups for the final event!" Midnight called.

'Of course I'm matched against the one I don't know,' Kazuki thought with a wry smile on his face as he read the name of his opponent. 'Setsuna Tokage,' he thought, tilting his head to look at the green-haired girl. 'Isn't that the one Monoma talked about during the Cavalry Battle? The one that can separate parts of her body?' he wondered, trying to remember the specifics of what was said and all. Alas, he'd been a little too focused on his grimm and the general chaos of the whole thing.

If he was honest though, Kazuki wasn't as worried about that matchup as he was the next one. Because right next to his name and Tokage's were Kamakiri and Todoroki. 'Kamakiri's very unlucky… If he doesn't win, so will I be, provided I win,' he thought, taking a deep breath in and then letting it out.

Turning his head to the side, he locked eyes with Todoroki. It seemed that the half and half boy was having similar thoughts to his. Kazuki wasn't going to take it easy on him though, sad backstory or not. He had one of those himself, after all. He didn't care for which was the saddest, but none of that really affected things for him.

He needed the greatest showing he could manage in this event, regardless of everyone else. Todoroki would continue on his path to heroics if he failed. Just like Ojiro would even though he gave up before the last stage. Everyone could afford to lose or do badly.

Everyone but him.

'So, sorry, but I ain't going easy on anyone,' Kazuki thought to himself then, taking another deep breath in before starting to walk away. He had little interest in recreational events, if he were honest. He was sure they were nice and all, but participating in those just added more risk of him messing up and he'd rather not have to ruin everything for something that he could just not do. It just wasn't worth whatever meager boost it would give his image, or so he guessed.

'Besides, I have to prepare for the fights,' Kazuki thought, determination filling him even through the emotions that reached him from all around. He'd been doing well keeping those away and he'd continue to do so. 'I'll win this whole thing,' he told himself.

[}-o-{]

"You two have to represent our group now!" Hagakure demanded, although she sounded too excited to exert any kind of pressure, really. "This is gonna be amazing! What if you meet at the final?!"

"I very much doubt that," Yaoyorozu commented weakly, drawing into herself a little. Kazuki could feel the nervousness and the insecurities there. That wouldn't do.

"You'll do great, Beauty," he told her with a smile. "Uraraka might be a hard opponent, but you've been training a lot. I'm sure you'll do well there. And after that it's either Kendo or Hatsume, you should have more than a fair chance against those."

"I know," the girl mumbled, fidgeting with the drink she'd gotten for herself. "I'm just unsure if I'll do well in a straight fight," she said, pursing her lips.

"I mean, just by showing your Quirk people will know you have a lot of potential. Fights aren't everything," Mineta commented, idly picking up one of his snacks and bringing it to his mouth. "And that's the point of all this, really? At least you'll be on the main stage with everyone looking, so even if you lose, people will know who you are and what you can do."

"Wow, that's actually very encouraging," Kazuki told his vertically challenged friend.

"Why do you sound surprised?"

"He's not wrong. You have a great Quirk, you trained hard and you are probably the smartest person in our class. You'll be fine regardless, Yaoyorozu," Jiro told their worried friend.

"I don't want people to pick me just because I have a good Quirk. I want to prove that I deserve this," the girl said then, half filled with determination and half with dread. Kazuki was very much aware of the second, at the very least.

"And you'll do it. You've proven it to me, at the very least. I'm sure you can prove it to everyone else," he told her then, drawing her eyes towards him.

"Have I?"

"For sure." "Yeah!" "Of course." "As if that were even a question."

"Need I remind you how much ass you've kicked during our training sessions?" Kazuki added with a half-smile. At all those responses, a watery smile formed on Yaoyorozu's face and she looked like she might start crying any second.

"Thanks."

"Don't mention it," Kazuki replied with a smile of his own.

"That's what friends are for," Mineta added, as if it were obvious.

"What the pervert said," Jiro deadpanned.

"Oi!"

With that out of the way, there was someone else that Kazuki needed to bring attention to, else he'd feel shitty… And not only because of his Quirk.

"So, do we have to cheer you up too, Togeike?" he asked, causing everyone to turn towards the Gen Ed student. Maybe he should have been more subtle or something, considering how uncomfortable the girl got right after that. There was even a small spike of fear. "You are up against the other Gen Ed, right? Shindo?"

"Shinso," she corrected, her voice barely above a whisper. "And yeah. I think I should be good against him. He won't be able to use his Quirk on me and I… probably won't be able to use mine on him. It'll be just regular fighting," she explained, causing him to hum and nod. It was just bad luck that they were probably going to fight there in the middle of a stage, with no liquids whatsoever for her to use. "I have an idea, but I kind of… want to see if I can save it for later."

"An ace up your sleeve?" Jiro asked, being the first one of the others to join the conversation. "Well, make sure you can actually use it later. It'd be a shame if you lost before that because you refused to use it."

"Yeah, I know that," Togeike replied, gulping down her nervousness. "I'll try not to let that happen… What about you though?"

"I have a fairly good idea of what Tokage can do," Kazuki answered, leaning back on his seat. "Not to sound like an asshole, but I think I can take her."

"Language."

"I just have to be careful not to look bad while I'm doing it," he continued, ignoring Yaoyorozu with practiced ease. At that point, even she didn't seem to realize, saying it in reflex more than anything else. "I do know not to be too confident… I think. Is there some way you can actually strike a balance?"

"Pretty sure there is," Mineta said, not sounding quite as confident on that, amusingly enough.

"We'll tell you if you go over the limit, Creepy, don't worry," Hagakure added with a salute… or what he imagined was one.

"Well, good to know then," Kazuki replied with a slight smile. He wasn't sure how much he trusted them with that though. His friends were great, they really were, but they were also biased. On top of that, they also didn't quite understand the fine edge that he needed to walk in order to get people to like him. Not too incompetent, not too competent. Not too soft, not too harsh. Not too forceful, not too meek.

He needed to be perfect.

And by God was he going to try, even if it was futile.

"... Ugh, I need something to distract me, can we play cards or something?" he asked.

"Great idea," Yaoyorozu answered instantly, already extending her hand to make some.

"Please," Togeike added, slumping down on her seat.

Evidently, he wasn't the only one that was dreading this upcoming tournament. 'Soon though,' Kazuki thought as he was dealt the first card. 'It'll happen soon and it'll be over soon.'

And he could only hope it'd go well.

[}-o-{]

"First match!" Present Mic called over the speakers as Kazuki walked towards the battlefield Cementoss had created for the event. "The undisputed leader of this whole Sports Festival for the First Years so far! From the Hero Course, from 1-A, Kazuki Endo!"

There were screams from the crowd, but they sounded muted to his ears, weak compared to the usual ones. Expected, really. Kazuki didn't care. He couldn't do anything about any of that other than continue what he was doing. If it didn't work… Then it didn't work and he'd deal with that afterwards.

"And on the other side, one of the recommended students for the Hero Course, from 1-B, Setsuna Tokage!" Present Mic introduced them as they started climbing on the field, each from a set of stairs on opposite sides. Kazuki looked at the grinning girl with as calm an expression as he could muster. Flexing his fingers, he felt the shadow at his feet twitch accordingly.

The negativity flowed through him. The grimm were rearing to go inside the shadows. His mind was clear and focused despite the emotions around him. He had plans and training. He had put on the work and prepared for this.

He was ready.

"The rules are simple!" Yamada continued and Kazuki narrowed his eyes. "The match can be won by ring out, rendering your opponent immobile or getting them to give up!"

As if anyone would give up just like that. Kazuki imagined it was more likely that one of the other two would happen, regardless of anything else. If you could give up, then you could still fight. Or maybe he had a more extreme view of things because of his situation?

"Recovery Girl is waiting in the wings, so feel free to let loose!" Present Mic announced then, which sounded a little concerning when said like that, but this was a school for heroics. Expecting them to pull their punches was… probably a little naive. "Obviously, if you endanger someone's life, you are out." And, once more, they were a school for heroics. Putting someone's life at risk for your own benefit was extra shitty. There was a difference between wanting to win and being a psycho.

"Ready?" Midnight asked them from where she stood on a platform to the side. "Both of you?" she added, turning to look at them as they nodded. "Ok then."

"Ready!" Present Mic called then and Kazuki's body tensed up. "Start!"

Two things happened at the same time then. For one, Tokage's body immediately split into several parts that floated as they spread around. For another, Kazuki's shadow exploded outwards, causing spikes of emotion to flare up all over the crowd, but he ignored those. A Nevermore spread its wings behind him, covering his flanks and back from any of Togake's floating parts.

Then he gave Tokage a slight grin as he had the bird creature fold its wings so that he was covered completely. Maybe she could send a small part inside from a hole somewhere, but she'd have to find one first. Before she could, he could bet that he'd get her with one of his grimm. After all, immediately after doing that, he'd started generating a Beowolf.

"And it seems that Endo has managed to defend himself from Tokage's barrage!" Present Mic called when a handful of body pieces hit his creature's wings. Kazuki couldn't see the field now, but he could get a sense of everything from the Nevermore and the Beowolf – soon to be Beowolves – so as to know what was happening if not in detail.

He didn't need details. He needed them to do their jobs and he knew they could do it. Tokage was a slippery one, for sure, with her ability to turn into pieces and be able to float around away from his monsters. However, the Beowolves weren't just any creatures. They weren't weak or slow or dumb.

They proved this when one of them finally managed to do what he was urging them to and got a hold of one of Tokage's parts, snatching it from the air. 'Ring out, wasn't it?' Kazuki thought to himself, starting to guide his Beowolf off the ring and into the ground. He just needed to make that part touch-

Something got under the Nevermore's wings at that very moment, because of course. A hand, from what he could tell, and one that was climbing towards his neck. 'Well, it'd be too easy if that was all, right?' he thought wryly.

Immediately, he switched tactics, making the Nevermore open its wings and shoot feathers around. Now with his vision unimpaired, Kazuki got a hold of the limb that had gotten under his defenses. There were more coming, but he was ready for those. Grimm Guard rose to Boarbatusk's side in front of him to stop many of the pieces that shot towards him.

The number was low though, because Tokage had bigger worries at the moment than getting to him. Mainly keeping herself in the game by stopping his beowolf. After all, there was no way she'd take him out before he took her out. He was closer to victory and much better positioned.

Soon, she called most of her parts on that beowolf, wrapping around the thing's neck to kill it. 'And give me the biggest opening in the history of openings,' Kazuki thought, now free as he guided the other two grimm he had out to join that scuffle. His guard Nevermore would stay though, just in case. He couldn't risk letting his metaphorical guard down and he needed to be ready to raise his literal one at a moment's notice. He couldn't mess up now.

He couldn't mess up, period.

Tokage managed to take out his Beowolf, unsurprisingly. Her Quirk might not make her stronger but she was a Hero Course student. On top of that, Present Mic had said she was a recommended student. No way she'd be unable to take at least one of his creatures. However, the problem with Kazuki was that there was never only one grimm to deal with.

That was the issue Tokage found herself facing immediately after she disposed of the first Beowolf, when a second one and a Nevermore rushed at her. To her credit, she reacted fast, spreading herself all over the place to avoid them. However, she now knew that she was at a disadvantage here.

If she tried to go for Kazuki, she opened herself to being in a weak spot if she needed to fight one of his creatures whenever they inevitably caught one of her pieces to take it out of the ring. If she turtled up, making sure that those didn't get a chance to take her out, then she couldn't take him out. A rock and a hard place, that was her dilemma as Kazuki considered something for a bit.

After a moment of thought, he created a Beringel instead of a Beowolf to cover for his defeated creature. Some variety would be nice and he wanted to show as many of his grimm as possible. Not that he expected many hadn't had their eyes on him, but it never hurt to show a bit more. Besides, it wasn't like it was a bad decision anyway.

'Regardless, this is a matter of time,' Kazuki thought, walking with his Nevermore guard hopping behind him as he positioned himself in the middle of the arena. No need to risk being pushed out because he was overconfident. 'I can't mess up. I can't,' he told himself as he watched Tokage keep flying around his grimm, avoiding them as best he could. 'So, sorry, but I have to take this win,' he decided, raising a hand and making the guard Nevermore point its wings towards where there were the most Tokage pieces flying around.

Then he started shooting feathers, feeding negativity into the bird construct so that it could keep going forever. Now Tokage had a barrage of feathers to deal with on top of three grimm. Safe to say, she wasn't having a good time, Kazuki could bet.

'I could make some more grimm to speed this up though,' he thought then before stomping on that thought. Maybe it was true, and maybe he could manage that, but there was no need to risk it. There was no need and no justification for such a thing at that very moment. Finishing the fight faster might have been the right call for other people, but if it meant pushing his control more for just a minute or so, then it wasn't worth it.

"It seems Tokage is in a bit of a situation right now!" Present Mic called over the speakers. "Can she overcome these obstacles or will she fall under the pressure of Endo's creatures?!"

'Come on, give me half an opening,' he thought, narrowing his eyes at the flying parts of Tokage. She was making things difficult for no reason now. It was getting annoying, if he were honest. But he wasn't going to slip. No, he needed-

Whatever he needed, it wasn't what Tokage did then and there as her parts stopped storming around the grimm and instead all of them spread around all of a sudden. In a moment's notice, everything was rushing towards Kazuki. 'Last ditch effort?' he thought, preparing his Nevermore to cover himself with. Tokage had also already spotted at least one hole in that plan, so he needed to be careful, but he was confident she couldn't take him out fast enough for him not to come up with something to do.

Still, just in case, he had his grimm rush behind her. As he saw them coming at him though, he tilted his head. 'Is that her plan?' he wondered. It could be. She didn't know how in control of them he was. On the other hand, it wasn't like she had many options, so might as well, Kazuki supposed.

'It's not a good call though,' he thought while holding back a grin. If he played along, maybe he could catch her off guard. So, as she rushed him, wrapping around him like she had the Beowolf before, he prepared.

"Can't rush me if I'm on you can they?" Tokage asked, sounding both excited and relieved. "Wouldn't want to risk-What?" she started asking before interrupting herself.

Kazuki pulled up his Grimm Guard then, under her arm. Pulling her off of him by putting something in between, he kept his creatures rushing. When she started splitting so that she could better deal with this new situation, Kazuki capitalized on that. All his grimm immediately caught at least one piece each and then started going for opposite sides of the ring.

"No! Wait!" Tokage called, desperation lacing her voice and her emotions. "How-? No!" She cried out, trying to rush to the closest grimm. It was too late though. Even if she managed to take it out, which she did, the others were already well on their way. There was no stopping them and thus, no stopping the inevitable.

"Tokage is out!" Midnight called then, waving her fan towards Endo. "Endo passes to the second round!" she announced then.

"And another win for Kazuki Endo of the Hero Course, 1-A!" Present Mic shouted through the speakers. Kazuki was actually wondering if he was going to keep repeating from which class he was. Maybe it was to drill into people's heads what he was trying to become? A subtle – or maybe not – PR move in his favor?

Kazuki could only hope it worked, if that was the case.

The emotions were getting worse, and the cheering felt so very weak at that moment.

"Good fight," he said, walking up to the girl and helping her up. He almost sighed in relief when she took it, because it made his mind focus on something other than his sense.

"Yeah, same," she replied with a groan as she stood up. "Those things are annoying though."

"They are," he agreed with a chuckle.

"Such good sportsmanship, am I right? We are so proud of them," Present Mic said and Kazuki could almost imagine him wiping off a tear from his eye. "But can anybody stop Endo?! Or will he keep the lead all the way to the end?!" The teacher exclaimed then and Kazuki had to wonder that himself. After all, as he walked off the stage/field and back towards the main building, he crossed paths with the next combatant. One that was bound to get in the way of that happening.

"I guess we'll see who's stronger in the next round," Todoroki told him as he passed by.

Kazuki could only grin, half dreading and half anticipating the next battle. After all, no offense to Kamakiri, but Todoroki was in another league, really. And the winner of that fight was the one Kazuki would have to face afterwards.

'This Festival doesn't want to make things easy for me, it seems.'

[} Chapter End {]

Hey guys! How's it going?

And so the Sports Festival continues. We have the first of many battles and we start to see the matchups for this tournament. I did, as some of you predicted, use a randomizer to decide who faced who. I do like to make things that are supposed to be random actually random. Maybe it doesn't make for an interesting story but it makes for a realistic one, I feel, and that's more important for me.

Hope you don't have a problem with that and that you enjoyed the chapter.

As always, if you can't wait until next week for next chapter, or if you just feel like supporting my writing, there's up to three new chapters in my Pa tre on:

P a treon . com (slash) AdrianKing

Discord Link: discord .gg/UTDransjJZ

Random Question: How is that Top 3 looking now, guys?

See you.