"The crowd's going wild in anticipation! This first fight of the second round is bound to be epic!" Present Mic announced. "First we have the guy who won by a literal landslide, leaving half the audience frozen! Give it up for... Shoto Todoroki!"
The crowd cheered as Shoto entered the arena.
"And next we have the guy who can bend the elements to his will! Can he be the one who gives Todoroki a taste of his own medicine?! Let's hear it for... Benio Toriokoyoshi!"
Ben stepped into the arena and glared at Shoto.
"So here we are at least. And this time it's just one-on-one." Shoto said.
Ben nodded. "You'd better be prepared to use your entire Quirk this time, Todoroki. Because if you don't... I will be winning this fight."
"BEGIN!" Midnight announced, making sure to stand clear this time.
Shoto quickly launched an ice flurry but Ben simply made hand gestures casually before holding his finger in a flick.
"Pathetically predictable."
Flicking his finger, Ben unleashed a massive explosion of flames that stopped the ice flow and shattered the incoming glacier. Shoto quickly put his guard up as the ice shards came flying right back at him.
"Damn it! Toriokoyoshi's too strong!" He thought. "Will I really need to close the distance in order to win? But even then he'll have the advantage due to his greater strength and versatility."
"Kick his ass, Toriokoyoshi!" Sero cheered before noticing the stares he was getting. "Sorry, I was feeling vindicative there..."
"Todoroki can only control ice and fire, but Ben has far more elements to work with," Morimoto noted. "But Ben isn't just ending this here and now, he needs to prove something to Todoroki first."
Shoto continued trying to send more ice Ben's way but he simply bypassed it with various elements; a blast of magma in the shape of a dog's head, a wave of pure light energy, heck, Ben even teleported himself above the ice and slid on it to kick Shoto in the stomach.
Luckily for Shoto, he had already set up a small ice wall behind him in an effort to keep from being blown out of the ring. However, Ben was far from impressed.
"Please, I could do this all day."
Eijirou came up to the stands. "Good, I didn't miss anything. What's going on?"
"The Icy-Hot bastard's still just launching ice attacks. But it's like throwing stones at a brick wall." Katsuki said.
Mayumi nodded. "Ben can easily reflect anything he throws at him and then some."
"Yeah, Torikoyoshi barely looks winded but Todoroki looks like he's near the end of his rope," Denki noted. "He was probably hoping for a quick resolution, but Toriokoyoshi's not even giving him the option."
Realizing he wasn't getting anywhere just launching ice, Shoto decided to go on the offensive, creating an ice sheet to run across. Ben responded by running across an ice sheet of his own.
"Got you!" Shoto shouted, firing off more ice to try and trap Ben.
However, Ben's body became engulfed in flames before spinning around to create a blazing tornado. The force knocked Shoto back, stopping his flight with another ice barrier.
"You're shaking, Todoroki. Either you're reaching your limit... Or I'm starting to make you nervous." Ben noted.
"I know I could handle this better if I used that damned fire Quirk, but HE'S watching right now. I can see his disappointed face. But I won't give him the satisfaction... Even if I have to lose. But I don't intend to lose at all." Shoto thought. "One overwhelming shot. If I can trap him, that alone should be enough."
He mustered every ounce of power in his right side and fired off a huge glacier.
"Looks like Todoroki's trying to end this right here and now!" Present Mic realized.
Tsumi snickered. "Big mistake...he just pissed Ben off."
Ben looked at the incoming glacier with an apathetic glance. He was done playing nice, it was time to give Shoto a taste of reality.
Taking a deep breath, Ben unleashed a massive torrent of flames from his mouth that hit the glacier and overwhelmed it completely, melting it and creating a massive steam cloud. Shoto shielded his eyes...and that was all Ben needed to close the distance and grab him by the neck before slamming him to the ground.
"You're so focused on attacking me, that you've forgotten your Quirk is still a physical ability. Normally you wait until a battle is over before using any sort of heat to warm your body up so you don't suffer hypothermia. But you stubbornly refuse to do so during a fight, no matter how practical it would be." Ben said with annoyance.
"Man, Todoroki is surely killing himself by using his ice side only. At this rate, Toriokoyoshi might as well let him win out of pity." Present Mic noted as he looked closer. "Man, he's shivering."
Aizawa shrugged. "I will give Todoroki a last chance to use his fire after the final exams. If he doesn't, he's as good as expelled."
"Yeah, I'm usually more lenient, but this takes the cake." Present Mic noted, shaking his head in disappointment. "If he's allowed to go on like this, people's lives as well as his will be lost."
"That's why I'm planning on letting him go. This can't go on." Aizawa said. "People's lives aren't a game where Todoroki can waste just to prove a dumb and stupid point."
Shoto was able to hear this and was left frozen in shock. Aizawa was planning to expel him because he wasn't using his father's fire?
"Aizawa-Sensei has a point, Todoroki." Ben began. "Even after seeing how much Ochako and Katsuki put into their fight... How much Momo struggled against Fumikage's attack... You still insist on only using half your Quirk?! Do you really think I'm going to let you move on in this tournament, let alone take the number one spot, by only half-assing it? We even have students from other courses putting in more effort than you!"
"You don't understand..." Shoto spat out. "How EVIL my father's flames are! Why can't you see the truth?!"
"You think dear old daddy is gonna care if you win or lose this?!" Ben snapped before taking a deep breath as he lifted Shoto up, still by the neck. "You forced my hand, Todoroki. I didn't want to do this, but this point needs to be made."
Ben's eyes suddenly turned a monstrous blood red, the same color reflecting in Shoto's eyes as he found himself thrust into a room. As he regained his bearings, he looked around to see that Ben was no longer there but in front of him was a sight that broke the heterochromatic boy:
His mother's lifeless body, hanging by a noose, swinging back and forth aimlessly.
"What...What are you doing?!" Shoto snapped. "Why would my mother kill herself?! Are you trying to show me some nightmare or something?!"
"A nightmare? Yes." Ben's voice echoed from everywhere. "And it could very well be a reality if you keep going the way you're going."
The sound of static alerted Shoto as he turned to see a TV turning on, showcasing a news feed of Endeavor, looking very haggard and heartbroken, his flames almost non-existent as he carried a dead body in his hands...Shoto's dead body.
"Endeavor forced to kill son, Ice Vigilante: Shoto Todoroki." The news feed said. "Family tragedy is met with praise as Endeavor managed to put an end to the reckless vigilante."
"This is what happens if you continue down this path. After Aizawa expels you for continuing to half-ass this shit because of some pathetic pledge, you turn to vigilantism...and you aren't a very good one." Ben's voice said. "You killed at least 550 people due to your reckless large-scale attacks, crippled at least 1200 people, left 15000 people homeless, caused 20000 people to become jobless, and did damages that reached billions of yen. Your actions stained the name of ice users so much that people began seeing them as villainous Quirks. Your mother killed herself because she couldn't handle the shame of birthing someone who would kill so many people just to prove a point, and had so little compassion for his victims."
Shoto flopped to the ground. He caused all this pain and misery.
"What are you so shocked about, big guy? Yes, you caused all this because you used your ice just to prove a point that no one cares about."
Shoto stood up shivering, "Then… then… I'll just be more careful. I'll…"
He was stopped by a punch to the face from Ben, who appeared out of nowhere as the room with Rei's hanging corpse shattered like glass. The Elementalist looked beyond pissed off.
"Stop thinking about your dad for one minute of your little worthless pathetic life!" Ben roared as he smashed Shoto's head against his knee. "After the dark future you saw, this is what you're thinking about?! How to make your life even more ingrained and influenced by your father?! You say you want to be free of him, but everything you do revolves around him!"
Multiple clones of Ben appeared and began pushing Shoto around, one made of stone formed a large fist of rock and punched Shoto across the face while one made of water fired a stream of scalding water in his face.
"You think by not using your fire, you're building your own person independent of who he is?" Ben asked before laughing as he grew to giant size. "Newsflash! You're dedicating your entire life to pissing him off!"
Ben swung his giant hand down on Shoto and in a flash, they were back in the real world, not a single physical injury on Shoto...unless one counted the emotional turmoil he was put through.
"Then why don't you just end it...?" Shoto asked weakly as he stumbled away from Ben.
"Because I'm not like you and neither is my best friend Izuku, who you brazenly declared war on. He wants to inspire others to be at their very best just like All-Might. And he's giving all he has to do so, which you should be doing too!"
Shoto's eyes widened at Ben's words, thoughts of the harsh training his father put him through running through his mind, but then remembering Izuku had gone through even harsher training under All-Might and faced it all without bending a knee. He then recalled his mother's words from his childhood.
"That's why... You can be the kind of hero you want to be growing up."
He remembered that which caused his mother to snap in the first place, before Endeavor had realized he had gone too far. He never allowed Shoto the chance for friends, believing his son to be destined for a far greater position. Rei had called her mom on the night of the incident, voicing concerns that her children were starting to become like Endeavor. She had been unable to look at Shoto without seeing Enji, and she felt like she couldn't raise her children anymore. When Shoto had asked what Rei was even saying, that's what caused her to snap. Shoto had always blamed his father, and still did.
"Endeavor isn't your opponent, I am!" Ben said, snapping Shoto out of his thoughts. "You better fight the enemy in front of you! Using YOUR Quirk!"
Those three words Ben said at the end were what finally got to Shoto. His left side heated up, and flames finally started surging forward.
Endeavor smiled proudly as he saw Shoto finally let go of his hatred and accept his Quirk as his own, not an extension of him or Rei.
"SHOTOOOOOO!" The Flame Hero roared. "THIS IS YOUR TRUE DESTINY! TO BECOME BETTER THAN I EVER COULD! TO BECOME A HERO WITH YOUR OWN QUIRK! YOUR OWN POWER!"
"I have to pay you back for showing me that nightmare," Shoto said as the ice on his left side finally thawed out.
"I can have Mom foot the bill for your therapy expenses," Ben smirked back.
"Well, thanks for that. But you've still made a big mistake screwing around. After all... I've remembered why I want to be a hero."
With fire and ice combined, Shoto launched himself full force at Ben, who smirked as he charged forward, surrounded by fire and ice of his own.
"Let's see what happens when two of the same force collide! PLUS ULTRA!"
The surge of fire and wind energy hit each other hard. Shoto threw up an ice shield to protect himself. As the dust settled, he tried to make out Ben's form...only to see him out of bounds and in a burned heap.
"You had several chances to defeat me..." Shoto realized. "But considering the methods you used to get me to see the error of my ways, you wanted this to happen as penance."
"Benio Toriokoyoshi is out of the ring!" Midnight announced. "The winner is Shoto Todoroki!"
Shoto made his way over to see if Ben was alright as the medi-bots rushed to his aid. Midnight also rushed over to see that, despite the burns, Ben was breathing fine...and he had a smile on his face.
"You..." The Elementalist said, cracking one eye open as he gave a pair of finger guns. "You're pretty good."
"What the hell was that shit?!" Tomura asked in disbelief. "He had that Todoroki brat on the ropes and he just let him beat him?!"
Sin Scholar hummed. "He had succeded in what he actually set out to do. He wanted to prove a point to the Todoroki child."
"I can only hope Midoriya kicks that peppermint punk's ass. I was actually rooting for the Elementalist to win." Tomura grumbled.
"Make sure to watch carefully then. After all, Midoriya is destined to be your arch-nemesis." Daybreaker advised.
Tomura nodded. "Of course."
Shoto was making his way to check up on Ben in the infirmary when he ran into his father again.
"You did well out there, Shoto. I arranged to have Rei see your fight. Hopefully it will remind her that you're you, not me."
"When did you decide to start acting like a real father?" Shoto asked skeptically.
"When I learned how foolish it was to shelter you from the outside world," Endeavor explained. "To that end, I'm also recommending you to a number of other potent Fire-Type Quirk users as a sidekick. You'll likely learn far more from them than from me. If I teach you, it will only be a step backward."
He placed a hand on his son's shoulder.
"I can't blame you for hating me for everything I put you through, but I've learned long ago how much such negative emotions can only hold you back."
Shoto gently moved his father's hand off his shoulder as he walked off.
"I'll be speaking with Mom once the festival is over. I feel like I have to do something I should've done a long time ago."
Endeavor nodded. "I can tell Toriokoyoshi put you through the emotional wringer. It will be necessary to see her in order to make sure the scar is tended to."
This chapter was dedicated to Ben beating the crap out of Shoto to prove that his pledge was foolish...and then let Shoto KO him as revenge for making him see a messed up nightmare future.
Next chapter will cover the rest of the second round matches. Hope you look forward to the action!
-BIO TIME-
[REI TODOROKI-HIMURA]
Quirk: Frost
Quirk Description: Frost gives Rei the capability of manipulating and producing ice around her body. Overuse can cause hypothermia and also leaves Rei's body better adapted to cooler weather.