Chapter 20: (Episode 18: Cavalry Battle Finale)
The opening theme commences.
'You know, maybe I should just ask…' Mashirao smiled at the opening visuals, seeing this as a sign, so he turned to Yuga and asked the blond, "I know you said you were fine, Aoyama-kun, but I couldn't help but think something's bothering you."
"Whatever could you mean?"
"A gut feeling, I don't know, I just think you're not being honest. We can talk about it later at lunch if you want, I promise I'll listen."
Yuga just stared for a moment into the genuineness of Mashirao, swallowing the lump in his throat as he looked down, "I said I was fine- I am fine, so there is no need to worry about me."
"It doesn't look that way to me. Aoyama-kun, I know we all just met, but if there's anything you want to talk a-"
"I don't need to talk about anything…!" Yuga gritted his teeth, straining his smile to mask his emotions as he gripped the armrest, trying to shake off Mashirao's concern.
"And that's fine, but I'm just saying that if you need to, we'll be here for you-"
"I said I'm fine!" Yuga cut off his words with an exclamation, his volume surprising Mashirao as he jumped while the conversations around them ceased, looking at the two. Standing up from the couch, his lip quivered as he stared down at the concern worming its way into the tail boy's eyes before he had enough of it, walking behind to sit alone at the end of the fourth row, where the other had been previously.
"What was that all about?" Tsuyu asked for the majority of them, some choosing to ignore it and go back to what they were doing before.
"I… I don't…" Mashirao hadn't meant to make him angry, a wave of guilt washing over him until an arm slipped around his neck, jolting him from the negative thoughts.
"Hey, maybe he'll come around later." Hanta reassured the blond, Mashirao thinning his lip before he slowly nodded.
"I was just trying to be nice and I thought it would be fine to ask… But, maybe I wasn't being as considerate as I thought, and may have been a bit pushy."
"Maybe a bit, but it shows that ya care. There's nothing wrong with caring for someone."
"Young Ojiro, try not to fret about what you are unable to do." Toshinori crouched down at the end of the sofa, Hanta and Mashirao glancing over to the hero as he softly smiled, "If Young Aoyama is not comfortable discussing what is on his mind, it may be best to wait until he is ready. No one can force you to speak what's on your mind and it's good to show that you care. But you also must learn patience."
"Yes, sir…"
"I admire your spirit, Young Ojiro. That is a wonderful quality trait to possess as a young hero-in-training." Toshinori nodded to the teen, who's eyes lit up at the praise.
"Yes, sir!"
Yuga felt nothing but guilt after he pushed Mashirao away. But it wasn't like the boy could understand what was going through his mind and he would hate him if he said what was troubling him. It was best if he just isolated himself from the rest of the students, both for his sake and theirs. And that may not be the easiest when you're forced into a secluded place for who knows how long with these people, but he could manage.
'Just keep it all inside…'
"The second round of the U.A. Sports Festival first-year stage is… A cavalry battle with the top forty-two from the qualifier!"
"It's like the second round qualifiers are in favor of the hero course, kero."
"You kids need to make your mark at the Sports Festival so heroes can scout you for the internships later to come." Shota looked back to Tsuyu as he explained why, Hitoshi rolling his eyes at the obvious.
"-with a chance for those at the bottom to overthrow the top!"
Iida pushed his glasses up as he stared at his friend, his rival, stating as he turned around, "Bakugo-kun and Todoroki-kun aren't the only ones who see you as a rival. I will challenge you."
Seeing this again, Ochaco puffed her cheeks out with a huff, still a little salty that Tenya abandoned them just to prove himself worthy of being Izuku's opponent. Or whatever he was thinking when he made that decision.
Midoriya tightened the headband around his head while his team assembled, Uraraka smiling up at her friend as Tokoyami leaned forward, Dark Shadow upfront as their line of defense.
"Uraraka-san."
"Yes!" she shouted.
"Hatsume-san."
She giggled with a grin.
"Tokoyami-kun."
"Yeah." he spoke, Dark Shadow narrowing her eyes at their enemies.
"I'm counting on you!"
"We're counting on you too, Deku-kun…! Let's do our best!" Ochaco bumped the greenet on the shoulder, startling him faintly before he reciprocated her smile nervously. She did the same thing to Fumikage, who also had a smirk as the anticipation grew.
"Repetitive, boring, exposition…" Tomura sighed, a little interested to see how the battle between Katsuki and Neito would end. Hopefully with someone dead, but maybe that was too much to ask.
From within Shoji's arms, Asui and Mineta both threw attacks in Midoriya's direction, in an attempt to capture them on the ground and steal the ten million points from him. But that all ended when their team suddenly took off for the air, Uraraka's boot breaking apart, which would cause malfunctions later.
However, right now wasn't the time to worry about that as Bakugo came blasting his way up for them, a trail of smoke behind him on his way to victory. Midoriya began to panic when he caught sight of his opponent.
"Kacchan!"
"Don't get carried away!" Bakugo grinned as Uraraka squeaked when their classmate stretched his hand out to grab their headband, hearing him cry out, "DAMN IT!"
"Tokoyami-kun!" Midoriya shouted next, shielding his face just as Dark Shadow roared to life, reforming in between Bakugo and their team as the quirk took the blast from the blond.
Midoriya closed his eyes at the sudden halt of his teammates, gasping out before beginning to peel his eyelids open again only to widen them at who their next opponent just happened to be.
Todoroki stared back at them, his teammates all prepared and ready to take their points as the rider decided, "I'll be taking that now."
It was then that Midoriya realized it would only go downhill from here.
Title screen 'Episode 18. Cavalry Battle Finale'
"Yes, this thing is finally gonna be over soon…!"
"We still have the final event to get to…"
"Huh…?" Tomura's grin was wiped away as soon as he heard what Hanta said, the black-haired boy raising a glaring brow in the villain's direction while Katsuki rolled his eyes.
"Did you hear anything that was said about the Sports Festival…?"
"I think he was sleeping, kero."
Just when Tomura thought sweet release was on its way, apparently, it wouldn't be coming as soon as he hoped.
"Stupid heroes and always getting their way…"
"-to lose! Shoji, full attack mode!" Mineta commanded with his horse responding by opening his arms, him and Asui holding onto Shoji's back before he charged forward to Midoriya and Todoroki's teams, "We're gonna steal the points from those two teams with everything we've got!"
Meanwhile, as they faced one another, Tokoyami muttered up to his green teammate, "I thought we would not have a confrontation until later in this contest. He seems to think highly of you, Midoriya."
Izuku wasn't sure if that was true, both for Shoto here and there; it could have just been that he was waiting for the perfect opportunity once the other teams decided to go for themselves.
'With his ice, it would be reasonable to try and isolate us from the other teams so that he would have a better chance of getting our points… With Kaminari-kun and Yaoyorozu-san, that would make it more likely, but that could also limit Iida-kun on his speed… And since he won't be using his fire for… personal reasons, it gives them less options…'
"Only half the time is left. Don't stop moving!" Midoriya replied back down to Tokoyami before signaling his team to move further to his left.
"Iida, forward!" Todoroki ordered in return, leaning over to get a grip on his teammates shoulders.
"Right!" Iida's engines fired up as he started to run in pursuit.
"Yaoyorozu, prepare to guard us and conduct electricity."
"Right." she called back, multiple objects forming from her glowing skin.
"Kaminari, you-"
"I know what I have to do!"
'What's their plan, what's their plan…?' Izuku stressed, biting the end of his pencil while hoping his future self could figure it out in time and either stop it or evade.
"Watch our surroundings. It's not just one group coming for us!" Midoriya exclaimed, five teams in sight and all racing forward.
"Make sure you guard well…" Kaminari gritted his teeth, electricity buzzing from his skin and after Todoroki threw a sheet over his body, a staff sticking into the concrete, the blond called upon his ultimate attack, "Indiscriminate Shock… 1.3 MILLION VOLTS!"
Midoriya gaped at the incoming shockwave until Dark Shadow appeared just as the blow hit, Tokoyami's quirk taking it for them as the other four teams were harshly affected by Kaminari's quirk. The three members of his group were protected thanks to an insulation sheet that Yaoyorozu created, shielding them from his power.
"KAMINARI…!"
"I'm really glad I'm not in that…" Hitoshi felt a little bad for those getting shocked, but that also meant less teams to evade and more points, so sometimes sacrifices were necessary.
"Yeah baby, get shocked…!"
Fumikage gripped his chest, gritting his teeth to settle the beast withering deep inside. He knew that electricity would shy his quirk away and would lower their defense, but he assured the shadow that she would be fine, this wasn't really happening.
"Tokoyami-kun, are you all right…?"
His agony must have been alerted, glancing to his left at Ochaco's concern expression, Izuku probably still engrossed in the fighting battle.
"I shall be, thank you. It is simply the action of my quirk."
"Your power? So, Dark Shadow is a sentient quirk, then…?"
"That is correct, yes. Rest assured, I have everything under control." Fumikage dipped his head to the girl as he let out a deep breath, watching Ochaco hesitate to trust his word until she eventually returned the gesture, slipping a hand through his and squeezed it for comfort.
"Dammit, guess this is the end for us…" Kyoka spat after watching Shoto ice all four teams down, Minoru on the other side of the couch crying in protest, his efforts in vain.
"-but he took into account how a lot of people avoided it in the obstacle course."
"Nice commentary!" Mic praised his coworker, sending Aizawa a thumbs up after he verbally explained Todoroki's plan when icing down the horses' feet of the teams.
A sheet of ice whipped back around with an orange-haired girl holding her head until she realized something was missing.
"I might as well take these." Todoroki called back, his hand raised as he held multiple headbands that he stole from the teams' he stopped just a second ago.
Understanding that this was the end of the line for her team, she cried out in frustration, "Damn it!"
"What? Mine, too?"
"Oh, that must be back up for us if we can't get the ten million, right…?!" Denki leaned past Tenya to check up with Shoto on his strategies, Momo turning an eye on the boy as well.
"Shut up, I'm getting those points."
The three students were slightly taken aback by his tone, each giving one another a quick look before glancing to Shoto again, the dual-quirked teen gritting his teeth as he glared at the screen. Momo and Tenya thought about Neito's words from the last episode and how they might be affecting their future teammate while Denki shrank back into his seat.
"Shoot, if the jet pack's failing, that means we can't escape through the air anymore, right…?! I won't be able to float us all either, so that means we're kind of stuck too, I guess…" Ochaco gritted her teeth at the unfortunate turn of events for their team, Fumikage agreeing with her while feeling slightly responsible for the machine's failure.
"It'll be okay…" Izuku gulped when he spoke, trying to convince himself that that was so as the two and Toshinori looked over to him, thinning his lips as he tried to smile through the stress with his mind racing with a plan from the data they knew on the four.
Sensing his deep concentration, Ochaco smiled down at her teammate, nodding her head even though she knew he wasn't paying attention while she thought, 'I already put my trust in you, Deku-kun, so I believe you…!'
When Dark Shadow was unable to cut through Yaoyorozu's defense, Tokoyami called her back, putting his quirk back to defend them just in case they tried anything. Cornered by a wave of Todoroki's ice, it wasn't like Team Midoriya had anywhere to go any time soon, especially with the jetpack malfunctioning.
"Yaoyorozu-san's Creation is too hard to deal with!"
"No…" Tokoyami disagreed, eyeing a specific member of the opponent's team as he admitted, "Kaminari is worse."
Denki couldn't help but dangerously grin at that, a few of the students wondering why that was.
'My weakness…!' Fumikage feared that it would be revealed.
"With that level of armor, if it had been sunlight, Dark Shadow would've been ripped apart."
"That's a gruesome way to put it." Tsuyu turned around to look up at Fumikage, who had his beak in his hand as what he feared came to light.
"It is the truth…"
"Does that mean your quirk can disappear…?!" Ochaco loudly gasped in horror, Izuku leaning around her as he awaited his response.
"Not necessarily, no. Dark Shadow simply needs time to recover before I can use her again."
"'Her'?" Ochaco and Izuku tilted their heads while Fumikage nodded, causing the girls to squeal with delight at this information.
"Oh my god, you're saying Dark Shadow is a girl…?! That's so adorable!"
"I think there's more important matters…? Like… winning?" Hanta stated through Mina's shaking.
"My weakness…"
"Don't worry, Tokoyami-kun…! Remember what we said earlier- What is revealed in this theater, stays in this theater!"
"Yeah, that rule doesn't apply to me." Tomura chuckled out, which caused Ochaco to flinch, a little fearful for if he somehow knew about her family's financial problems.
"It's a very unique choice, under the circumstances." Tokoyami informed Midoriya of his quirk's abilities, before the cavalry battle had begun, and his rider's confidence had him smirk as he acknowledged his classmate, "Very well. Try using me. I leave it to you, Midoriya."
Remembering that fact about Tokoyami's quirk had Midoriya gritting his teeth, "I see… Kaminari-kun's lightning…"
"As long as he keeps discharging electricity, attacking will be difficult. Dark Shadow will become timid." Tokoyami noted as well, a bead of sweat running down his neck as Midoriya gasped when they noticed the sentient shadow whimpering.
"I'm against violence…"
"Girl, me too."
"It's a good thing I was chosen for the team, huh? I guess Yaoyorozu too could have created something, but that gives her more opportunities to create things…!" Denki grinned to the three, Tenya the only one acknowledging him as he agreed with the boy.
"They don't know that, do they?" Midoriya asked Tokoyami if their other classmates knew about this aspect of his quirk.
"I don't believe so. The only person I've told about this weakness is Koda, at USJ, and he is a man of few words."
Koji was a little surprised at this information, but he was also relieved to know that Fumikage had trusted him enough to tell him this secret. Besides, maybe it was also so that they could survive together against the villains; that was a scary time to watch. A reminder of the attack had a few students shivering as well.
"If they don't know about it, then we can use it to hold them back." Midoriya stated while eyeing Todoroki's left shoulder, glaring at his opponent as he reassured himself and his team, "It's fine. No matter what, we will hang on to the ten million!"
Bakugo's eyes widened as his headband was snatched from him.
"Finally…!" Katsuki had been doing his best to wait patiently while taking in the information on the other teams, but now that the focus had gone back to him, he was more than prepared to see what kind of karma he was going to rain down on Neito. His teammates felt the same way, not to his degree, however.
"-is too simple-minded."
"He got us!" Ashido gasped as she turned back.
"What'd you say, bastard?! Give that back! I'll kill you!"
"You're famous, aren't you?"
"I swear-" Katsuki groaned under his breath, stiffening as it played the same scene from the sludge attack, hissing through gritted teeth, "-if this stupid, damn, fucking show mentions one more fucking part of that damn attack…"
"I'm sorry you had to go through that…"
"HAH?!" Katsuki exclaimed after he heard what Eijiro said, the dark-haired teen immediately clasping his mouth as he regretted saying that, throwing his hands out apologetically.
"I-I-I'm sorry! Sorry, I don't- I don't know what came over me…!"
Katsuki narrowed his gaze at the boy in front of him, really looking at the kid as he tried to understand him. He acted and sounded like Izuku, but there was something just different about him that didn't give the blond the same ick that he felt with the greenet. He didn't really care, but it was a mystery to him and damn if he hated not knowing things.
"Monoma, don't provoke him! You'll be the same as him." one of the light-haired blond's teammates looked up to him as he called the boy out.
"That's right. It wouldn't become a hero. Besides, don't you often hear about heroes who get done in by villains who want revenge?"
"What is this kid's problem…?" Hanta spat as Mina bristled while Izuku openly glared at the TV, waiting for Katsuki's counter to prove Neito wrong.
"If you don't calm down, we won't be able to get the points back!" Kirishima shouted back at Bakugo, trying to help him stay focused until the blond yelled out in rage, punching his fists into his palm as he let an explosion erupt and smoke cover them.
"Forward, Kirishima! Right now, I'm totally calm!"
"Liar."
"THIS IS ME BEING CALM!"
Izuku chuckled to that and thank goodness Katsuki didn't hear it.
"But jeez, you've said his name twice now- Twice…! Are you having a change of heart, Bakugo?"
"I'll murder you next, Tape Arms." Katsuki scoffed, a nerve pulsing as he glared at the short-haired teen, which had Hanta grinning in return.
Evading his opponent's outstretched hand, Monoma leaned to the side with his hand held up as it ran along Bakugo's arm, the ash blond gaping in shock at the motion. He hadn't been expecting his target to move like that, turning back around to hopefully try again before he got his own explosion to the face.
"What the hell…?! He has an Explosion quirk too!"
"Long lost twins…?!" Mina and Hanta gasped while Katsuki was floored at his move being used on him.
'He's complimenting my quirk…? Does that mean it's not his own? But that would be impossible unless… Can he… copy other quirks…?' Katsuki leaned forward with a hand to his chin as he let the scene play out, hoping to figure out the answer.
Bringing his smoking hand down, Monoma smacked Kirishima's spiky hair while Bakugo shook out his own locks, the side of his cheek faintly burned.
"That's my-"
"Bakugo, someone has the same quirk as you, too?" Kirishima exclaimed out in confusion, which only pissed off Bakugo as he swung out his arm again toward his annoying opponent.
"Damn it!" Bakugo yelled, his hand hitting his target this time and covering the two teams in a cloud of smoke.
"Really, such nice quirks." Monoma taunted as the dark fog began to clear, revealing hardened skin where he blocked Bakugo's attack, smirking as he eyed the hand on his arm, "Mine's better, though."
"Eh?! He has my quirk too…?!"
"A damn copycat, huh…?" Katsuki huffed as he leaned back in his seat, a few looking over to him.
"What do you mean?"
"Ain't it obvious? He can copy people's quirks and use them, duh."
"Just another quirkless loser… No quirk to call his own…" Tomura cackled out as he leaned forward with his chin in his palm, calling down to Shota, "Honestly, you and the real quirkless freak should make a group with that kid, Eraser."
Some of the teens turned to glare over at the villain while Izuku flinched in Toshinori's hold before Tomura went on with a laugh, "I bet the lonely little guy up front would make a great addition…! That's probably why he didn't make it into the hero course… Ah, too bad, not everyone can be a hero, kid… Why do you think villains exist, hm?"
"Couldn't he have just stayed quiet…?!" Minoru trembled while a few eyes took a second to glance down at Hitoshi, who shook in his spot, trying to keep his emotions inside as he attempted to forget what was just said.
'No, no, no- It was the robots… The exam was fighting robots and obviously, with my quirk, I can't do that…! Don't listen to him, don't let him get in your head, Hitoshi, that's just what villains do! You'd be no better than him if you let his words affect you…! Just focus- Focus on the event to make sure you pass!'
"It's okay, kid, you're doing good." Shota slid over to squeeze Hitoshi's shoulder, the boy wincing at his touch as he gasped, the pro taking his hand away slowly while he kept his eye on the teen.
"After them!" Bakugo yelled as Monoma's team was retreating.
"It's solidifying!" Kirishima exclaimed out over the blond, Bakugo's eyes widening as his expression changed when he saw the redhead's entire right leg covered in a hardened liquid, him straining as he gaped, "Wow! I can't move!"
"Wait a sec! I'll melt it with my quirk!"
"Hurry! We've got zero points right now! Hurry!" Sero tried to rush the process, Ashido spraying her Acid from the holes in her shoe to help Kirishima out.
"Oh, don't get mad at me." Monoma had the nerve to look back at Bakugo as they retreated, holding his hand out to let one last explosion out while smirking, "You're the one who provoked us, right?
"Uh, no he wasn't…! You literally brought up a bad memory from the past- That's literally so unhero-like!"
"I'm… pretty sure that's what you would call PTSD…"
"I DON'T HAVE NO FUCKING PTSD!"
"Not yet, maybe." Hanta muttered under his breath so Katsuki wouldn't hear.
'Not just first place. I'll take an indisputable first place!' Bakugo swore to himself and the world when he made that pledge, and he wasn't going to give it all away just because of a little boy that purposefully held himself back.
The crowd was roaring as they continued to watch the battle, Mic's announcing voice heightening their cries as he warned the students in cheer, "One minute left!"
"ALREADY?!"
"Yaaay…!" Tomura lazily cheered while the kids panicked, especially Katsuki and his teammates.
"-he'd have the ten million to himself to seize in an instant! At least, that's what I thought five minutes ago! But unbelievably, Midoriya's been able to keep away in that cramped space for five minutes!"
"YAY- That's amazing, Deku-kun…!" Ochaco exclaimed as she shook his shoulders, Izuku blushing at her praise until Toshinori patted him on the back next, which resulted in the stars forming in his eyes.
'For five minutes…? This guy… Keeping to my left…?' Shoto gritted his teeth as he spat under his breath, "That bastard…"
His glare only intensified when Enji was shown on screen again.
"He can see right through you. Fool."
'Don't you call me a damn fool, you bastard!' Shoto hissed through his teeth while a few of the students were faintly surprised by the way Enji referred to his son.
"Instead of calling him a fool, why not just say something more… positive? Supportive?" Mashirao nervously suggested even though the fiery hero wasn't here to listen.
That was until they noticed the TV speakers had stopped playing.
"No…" Shoto sat up, everyone turning to him as he trembled and slowly began to panic as he gaped, "No, no, no, no, no, no, no-"
His head whipped around to the sound of a creaking door.
"NO- WHY IS HE HERE?!" Shoto jumped from his seat, backing away from the man that towered over the rest, his piercing blue eyes that glared at the people in the theater and callous hands gripped the door to his room. Then his gaze landed on him.
"Shoto." Enji growled lowly.
"STAY AWAY FROM ME!"
"Todoroki-" Shota spun around as he stood before he blinked at Mezo, watching him walk up and then wrap his arms around Shoto's form as the boy started to cry.
"Todoroki, it's okay-"
"WHY THE HELL ARE YOU HERE?! WHY THE HELL WOULD YOU BRING HIM HERE?!"
"Greetings, Endeavor-san."
"What is happening? Why is Shoto here when he should be training?" Enji tightened his grip on the sliding door before walking into the theater, slamming it shut with the teens jolting at the sound.
'Endeavor is the last person I want finding out about One for All…' Toshinori gulped as the realization set in, but first, he had to make sure Shoto was all right, slowly walking over to where Mezo was now holding the boy as he gently began to say, "Young Todoroki, everything is okay… It will be all right, we swear."
"Don't you pamper him…! Get away from him!"
"Endeavor, that is enough." Shota approached the young man next while narrowing his eyes ahead at Enji, who scowled at the sight of the dark-haired hero.
"And who the hell are you supposed to be?"
"Your son's homeroom teacher for U.A. High School."
"'High school'? What ever do you mean by that…?"
"You have been given an opportunity to see the future through the eyes of a viewer. The only way you may be able to return home is by finishing this viewing. The light that is illuminated above you is a quirk canceling lamp, meaning you are unable to use your quirk. I shall resume the episode again once you have agreed and taken a seat. Also, I should mention the system that has been emplaced, in which you are able to control the episodes by simply saying the word 'pause' to halt the progress of the show."
"Excuse me? Is this some kind of cheap prank?" Enji looked up and around at whoever could have spoken, clenching his fist as he spat, "No one messes with the number two hero…"
But no flames came when he called upon his quirk.
"What the-?"
"Endeavor."
Enji glared at the person who was approaching him, Toshinori steeling his expression as he stood in front of the powerful man before he raised his eyes, narrowing his azure gaze into blazing turquoise, stating, "Allow me to explain."
(One tense explanation later)
It was a hard sit through to watch Toshinori, a frail man who was their Symbol of Peace, have to explain to Enji, an intimidating and muscular built hero, his condition and quirk. Everyone was dead silent, save for Tomura's commentary every now and then when the fiery man wanted to argue like a child. This obviously piqued his interest, his powerful glare turning to the villain for a moment to question who he was while the blond adult tried to continue. It was hard for Shota because he wanted to intervene, but he needed to be with Shoto. That was why the other left, so that he could deal with the father and he would be here to comfort the son.
Currently, they had moved to the first row where Hitoshi hastily sat up and went to sit on the other end of the couch, Mezo carrying Shoto over and carefully setting him down. It was clear as day that the boy was in the middle of a panic attack, with Shota doing his best to help the boy calm down and breathe. It was only when Toshinori finished with Enji did it seem that he was making progress with the boy.
"So…" Enji huffed, Toshinori standing his ground with his head ducked down as the number two hero spat, "...the fleeting and invincible Symbol of Peace is, in reality, a frail, old man with a quirk that isn't his…? What a fraud."
"As long as the people feel safe and are reassured by my presence, then I am not a fraud." Toshinori remarked back, Enji scoffing as their eyes met once more, reminding him, "This is not information that should be taken lightly, Endeavor. If word got out about my power, villains would track me down and do everything in their power to take it from me, and the young boy I have chosen to pass it on to."
"Then perhaps you should choose your successor more carefully." Enji retorted, narrowing his eyes over the shoulder of the hero to stare at Izuku, who gulped at the powerful look. His sea-green gaze soon turned over to the empty theater, huffing as he saw Tomura's gleaming smile, "Besides, it seems you already failed at that first task."
"Oh, it's not like the mighty Symbol of Peace had a choice in the matter…"
"Fine. I will watch this wretched film only to make sure that my masterpiece will defeat your chosen successor."
"You-You mean your… 'son', right…?" Hanta dangerously voiced, questioning the fiery hero's wording as Enji moved to stand behind the row of couches, Denki holding his breath out of intimidation while he leaned against Tenya.
"Aizawa Sensei, will you sit with Todoroki? I don't want to take up space."
"Of course, Shoji." Shota nodded to the boy, Mezo standing back up to head back to his teammates while the teacher softly asked Shoto over the playing speakers, "Todoroki? Shoto, can you hear me? Is it okay if I touch you?"
Seeing the boy shaking and trembling like this made Shota wonder if he could actually hear him until a fierce hand reached out to grab his, squeezing it tightly.
"If you would just use your fire, then you wouldn't be having this problem, Shoto."
His grip tightened on Shota's hand.
"Aizawa Sensei." Mezo's voice came again from behind, Shota turning an eye to the gray-haired student while still watching Shoto as the boy whispered into his ear softly, "I'm making an assumption on this based on what Todoroki told me, but… I think he strongly dislikes his father…"
'Makes perfect sense with how he reacted when Endeavor came in…' Shota thought to himself before replying back to the teen, "Thank you, Shoji."
Mezo nodded and stepped away to continue watching.
'-more minute.' Todoroki gritted his teeth, watching Midoriya carefully as the boy was doing the same, sweat trailing down his freckled cheeks as he spat, 'The bastard…!'
"Everyone-" Iida called to his teammates, bringing Todoroki out of his thoughts as he began to say, "-there's less than a minute left."
"Still don't know how we let five minutes slip by without being able to do anything…" Denki murmured as he now sat in between Momo and Tenya, who straightened in his seat as he listened to what he was telling Shoto.
'Am I… about to use that move…? Logically, it would be wise as there is seconds left before the event ends, but… anything can happen when Midoriya-kun is in the equation…' Tenya would just have to wait and see.
"Iida?" Todoroki gaped just as Iida position into a runner's crouch.
"Hang on tight. Make sure you get it, Todoroki-kun!" Iida exclaimed as his engines fired up again, blasting out firepower like never before, pulling out his special move as the hot flames turned blue, "Torque Over…"
Iida shot forward, his warning carried through as his teammates held on tight in their formation while Midoriya threw out his arm, a signal for his team to move in that direction. But in one second, Todoroki's team had closed the distance and the boy managed to get a snag on the greenet's headband, surprising everyone.
"Reciproburst!"
"AHHHH!" Ochaco and Izuku screamed, both in shock and awe as they whipped around to face Tenya, who jumped back at their expressions, "Iida-kun, that was awesome!"
"Thank… you?"
"I can't believe you took our points just like that- That's so unfair, Iida-kun! Meanie! Iida-kun's a meanie!"
"Iida-kun, Iida-kun! Could you always do that move…?! You said it renders you useless after, so is it like how I'm using One for All now; a one-shot use that needs time to recover?! Like Dark Shadow- Like how Dark Shadow shies away from light and harms her…!"
"Um, I suppose so… It's a move that my brother and I have been perfecting for the past years and I am glad to hear your positive reactions to it."
"Iida, you did the team a solid…" Denki patted the blue-haired boy on the shoulder, Tenya turning to the blond just as he held a thumbs up, "You're the MVP…!"
Tenya gasped at his praise.
"Coming for you then, Half n' Half…" Katsuki cracked his knuckles at the thought of both Izuku and Shoto being eliminated from the final round with his team as the indisputable victories. Well, if the show ever went back to them, that was.
"That I'd challenge you." Iida grinned back at Midoriya's offending glare.
The crowd roared to life at the turn of events in the final minute, Mic sharing his own surprise at this as well, "The tables are turned! Offense and defense right at the edge! Reining that in, Todoroki gets the ten million! And Midoriya is suddenly left with zero points!"
"Get back in there!" Midoriya exclaimed in a hurry.
"As long as they have Kaminari, we'll be at a disadvantage if we attack! Won't it be safer to try for other points right now?" Tokoyami tried to reason with their rider as Dark Shadow whimpered, Hatsume agreeing whole-heartedly with his side.
"NO!" Midoriya argued against it, Uraraka worriedly looking up to her friend as he explained quickly, "I don't know how the other points got split up! This is our only chance!"
"All right!" Uraraka cried out suddenly, pushing their team forward as she yelled up to Midoriya in full support, "We'll get it back, Deku-kun! We definitely will!"
"Uraraka-san…" Midoriya was stunned for a second by her actions until he remembered her goal.
'I'll definitely become a hero and make money and let my parents take it easy.'
Ochaco buried her head deep into the palm of her hands while Izuku felt a little bad for her. Enji scoffed at the girl's reasoning for wanting to become a hero, but also because he didn't care for this team and just wanted to judge Shoto's performance.
"Huh? Don't remember that…" Tomura scoffed, but at the same time, he didn't care while he mumbled under his breath, stretching, "Stupid power of friendship montage… I wanna go back to Blasty and Copycat…"
'Same.' Katsuki didn't dare voice his agreement with the villain out loud.
One for All charged through Midoriya's entire arm, gritting his teeth as he held its power while reminding himself, 'The feelings of the three… who trust in me…'
Todoroki was also taken aback by the strange aura radiating from his opponent as the other team ran back toward them, aiming for the thing that they lost in the final minute.
'I'm carrying all that right now!' Midoriya screamed in his heart just as Todoroki raised his left hand, steam bursting from his skin before they were overtaken by flames, the two great rivals meeting face to face for the ten million.
Shoto felt the air escape his lungs as he stared at the imagery. At the fire that licked from his palm.
"Have you finally quit your childish behavior, Shoto?"
He could feel Enji's burning gaze on him as he heard his snarl, the students close to the fiery man moving away from his fury as Shoto felt he couldn't move. The scene didn't last for long, soon switching to show the current leaderboard, but he couldn't stop shaking from what they saw.
'No… Why did I use it…? Why did I allow myself to get so riled up like that…?! If that old bastard wasn't here… Midoriya…'
"Shoto?" Shota called, but was ignored, the man sighing as he softly assured, "I'm here, if you need it."
"I thought Todoroki said he wasn't going to use his fire…?" Denki whispered only to Tenya, making sure Enji couldn't hear him and going so far as to lean the broad-shouldered boy closer to him and Momo.
"He did, but… I believe it was in the heat of the moment…"
"I don't think that's the best word for this situation."
"Anyway, focus on keeping that spot."
"Wait! I said, wait!"
Monoma rolled his eyes at Kirishima's yell, sighing as his shoulders fell while glancing back, "Jeez, so persistent. As a hero, not to mention as a person, that persistence will-"
The blond was cut off when Bakugo suddenly blasted himself away from his own team, taking a dangerous leap toward Monoma that had Kirishima shouting out next, "Don't act on your own, Bakugo!"
"Tsuburaba! Guard!" Monoma exclaimed in a panic while his teammate responded, sucking in a deep breath before blowing out air that solidified into glass, Bakugo landing on the material in surprise.
"Hey!"
"Damn bastard- Don't you think for a second that can hold me!"
"If that didn't hold you, we would be disqualified! Stop thinking of only yourself- This is a team battle, not a solo mission I-can-do-whatever-the-hell-I-please-because-I'm-Bakugo battle!"
Katsuki raised a brow to Hanta's rebuttal, but said nothing to it.
"Serves you right!" Tsuburaba, a chestnut brunette on Monoma's team led the group away from Bakugo's flailing fist to break his quirk, hoping to quickly get away before that could happen.
But in a last attempt, swinging his fist back as far as he could, Bakugo punched through the solid air, breaking it like glass and had a death grip on all of Monoma's headbands. He sat there, frozen for a moment as he processed what just happened, fear taking over just as the ash blond pulled, taking with him two of the three bands he wore.
"YEAH!"
"NOT YET!"
"HUH?!"
"We're not done with that fucker yet- Don't call victory yet, ya idiots!" Katsuki tapped his finger impatiently against his bicep, spitting as he continued watching while the three could only stare at him.
"B-But we're in the top four…! That's all it takes to make it to the next round-"
"It's number one or nothing." Katsuki grinned with determination, wanting to knock Neito off his pedestal first before going after the ten million with Shoto and Izuku.
Hanta and Mina didn't get it, but Eijiro parted his lips as he stared at Katsuki.
Multiple teams attempted to ambush Monoma, but was stopped by the help of Tsuburaba's quirk, as well as the blond copying it to give them double the defense.
"Tsunotori!"
"Damn it…!"
"It's fine. We're in fourth!" Tsuburaba assured their leader, running as fast as they could while he called up to Monoma, "Kendo's been frozen and can't move."
"Yeah… As long as we defend this one to the death, we'll definitely…" Monoma narrowed his eyes, agreeing as he clutched the headband tightly, holding onto it as if his life depended on it.
Meanwhile, Sero was reeling Bakugo back to them, making sure he wouldn't hit the ground first as he lectured the blond, "I told you to say something if you're gonna jump!"
"But this means we'll definitely get through to the next round-"
"NOT YET!" Bakugo shouted once he was back with his teammates, cutting off Kirishima at his disagreement before he began to knock his fist against the hard head.
"What?!"
"Abuse…"
"You guys are forgetting what my quirk is…"
"Bakugo's hand should be broken if that's the case. He's gonna give you brain damage instead."
"I can't make myself that hard!"
Mina and Hanta gave the black-haired boy a long stare after he said that, Eijiro clasping his mouth while Katsuki's sole focus was on the TV screen.
'But there's just one thing that is unfortunate…' Aizawa thought about Monoma's plan as he watched the two teams fight in the remaining minute of the cavalry battle.
"I couldn't brace myself enough earlier on my own! Go!" Bakugo admitted to his teammates while they continued forward toward their opponent, his sights only on the platinum blond ahead and his remaining headband. Clenching his fist, the spiky-haired teen declared without hesitation, "We'll get our points back, too, and then go for the ten million!"
Some caught Katsuki's word choice and were a little surprised to hear it. But none were as shocked as Izuku, taken aback just as the three were on screen.
'Kacchan…' Izuku turned his eyes, staring down at the ash blond tapping his finger against his arm impatiently, the green-haired teen finding himself smiling as he realized, 'U.A. really is something, huh…? You would never have worked with anyone willing…'
"Jeez…" Sero grinned until Bakugo raised his leg.
"Flat Face! Tape!"
"It's Sero!" the black-haired boy tried to argue, but it was no use when it came to Bakugo, following orders as he shot out a strip of Tape from his elbow that whizzed past Monoma's horses.
"You missed!"
Hanta was about to despair until the episode went on.
"Raccoon Eyes! Lay down a weak dissolving solution in the direction we're going!"
"My name's Ashido Mina!"
Kirishima leaned his head out of the way of Ashido's hand, just in the nick of time as she sprayed a layer of Acid down in front of them, letting it pool and spread out.
'Young Bakugo, you understand very well without being told, don't you?' All Might wondered as he watched their teamwork, both impressed and waiting with anticipation for what could happen next. Reeling his Tape in and the acid solution under their feet, Bakugo's team was on a headway for Monoma's, the number one hero thinking to himself how different the two hero classes were, 'Those who are always aiming for the top, and those who aren't. Their difference…'
Hands back, Bakugo let out an explosion that sent them sliding on the acid and Sero's Tape to keep them balanced as they crossed the distance in seconds.
'You didn't take the difference in tenacity into consideration, did you?' Aizawa huffed, Tsuburaba blowing out an air shield to try and stop Bakugo before the blond easily broke through, stealing the team's final headband in triumph.
"Bakugo is merciless!"
Katsuki grinned while his teammates cheered out along with the audience, some of the students' satisfied that Neito was taken down. Even Tomura had found the whole ordeal entertaining, leaning forward with anticipation and couldn't stop himself from smirking when the ash blond came out victorious. He might find himself liking the punk.
However, as soon as Katsuki's hearing caught the sound of Izuku's cheers, he got tired of it.
"The hell does a damn nerd like you need to be cheering for, huh?! You're sitting in last fucking place, you shitty Deku!"
"Y-Yeah, yeah, you're right…! Sorry!" Izuku replied back nervously, clenching his fists and biting his lip as he worried, 'Shoot, I hope there's still time to get it back…!'
"Come, Deku-kun, chin up…! The battle's not over yet!" Ochaco punched his shoulder, getting him to look back up to the screen as the focus changed, back to them and Shoto.
'It was the first time… I tried to use this power on a person…'
'It's fine.' Midoriya assured himself, reaching with One for All charged up as he faced Todoroki, 'Either way, I'm not gonna hit him. Like cutting through air… break down the opponent's defenses!'
As that fire continued to burn from his left, Shoto gritted his teeth, wondering how he wasn't feeling that heat or aware that he had used the quirk.
Acting like he was going to grab Todoroki's wrist, Midoriya instead thrusted his hand back, the force and impact of his action causing his opponent's arm and flames to also get thrown back. Seeming to realize the blazing fire, his heterochromatic eyes widened as they went out, intaking a gasp of air.
'My left… What am I…?' Todoroki turned his complete attention to this revelation, giving an opening to the other team.
"Todoroki…"
"Todoroki-san's concentration should be more focused on the event than his personal feelings." Momo huffed, Denki whipping his head around to look at her while Tenya spared a glance.
"Are you serious…? Todoroki's obviously got some… vendetta, or something going on with him and his father… And you're saying he should just let it go?"
"That is not what I am trying to say, Kaminari-san. What I am trying to communicate is that fighting on unresolved personal feelings in a battlefield will only hinder you. We learned this yesterday with Bakugo-san's match against Midoriya-san, yes?"
"Oh, yeah, I guess we did… B-But even so, this isn't our place to say that…!"
"I agree with both of your points." Tenya provided, causing the two to look over to him, raising his hand as he found a middle ground for their conversation, "Perhaps discussing this with Todoroki-kun later will clear up how we view the situation? For now, it is important to watch and learn from our mistakes. That is why we are here."
"Yes, Iida-san, I do agree." Momo tucked a strand of hair behind her ear while Tenya shook at her praise, seeing it as the class representative agreeing with their vice.
While the three talked, everyone else in the theater had their sole focus on the fight for the ten million points. There were some conflicted feelings about Shoto flipping the headbands around, a few saying it should be illegal, but Nemuri had not made a call about it. Katsuki, however, was personally offended that Izuku had chosen to gamble on which was the ten million instead of taking them all, the greenet making a nervous note of that. Because obviously, it had not worked out for them in the end and their team now sat with only seventy points in the remaining seconds of the cavalry battle.
"Come on, come on, let's turn around and try again…!" Ochaco urged them, looping her arms through Fumikage and Izuku as she leaned forward, pulling the boys with her while they impatiently waited to see what their plan would be.
"-million points!" Mic yelled out dramatically, horrified, while Midoriya took a second to glance at the scoreboard, wondering where they sat with the seventy point headband.
It wasn't enough to make it.
"Seventy points… isn't good enough!"
"Don't stall, just go!"
"Quick, Midoriya!"
"Just one more!"
"This is a long minute…" Tomura sighed, just wishing it was over while the three shouted at the TV.
"Kaminari!"
Dark Shadow attempted to strike Todoroki, but shied away at Kaminari's lightning, Tokoyami gritting his teeth at the buzz. Steam rose from a section of the ice wall, Bakugo's team running through the fog until the blond blasted himself forward, leaving his teammates in the smoke.
"Damn Deku!"
"Bakugo!" Kirishima exclaimed, his friend having sights for the ten million points only.
"Huh…?" Kaminari was close to going braindead.
"Uraraka-san!"
"Got it!"
Three teams with eyes on one prize. A last minute battle was about to come and neither one of them would have been prepared for this finale.
Iida faltered when his engines gave out nothing but smoke, glancing back with worry while Todoroki looked to black-haired girl and called, "Yaoyorozu!"
"The ten million points are…?!" Bakugo caught on that the greenet didn't have the headband anymore, moving his eyes to Todoroki, who now held a staff. Midoriya reached out as far as he could, a fleeting attempt to gain back what he had lost, while the ash blond changed his trajectory, blasting toward his new enemy as he yelled, "Half-and-Half Bastard!"
Ice covered the metal rod, Todoroki preparing his defense while his two common enemies were seconds away from meeting their mark.
"TIME'S UP!"
Ochaco was leaning too far over the edge of her seat, so when the announcement came, she accidentally fell over, along with Fumikage and Izuku piling on top of her. Toshinori fretted over them for a moment until they showed visible signs that they were physically fine. However, mentally…
"Damn it…"
"Deku-kun, it's okay."
"No- No, it's not…!" Izuku choked out, clenching his fists as his forehead laid against the carpet floor, tear tracks beginning to fall.
"Midoriya, we did our best. That is all that can be asked of us."
"If I had just… grabbed all of Todoroki-kun's points, maybe…"
"We'll just have to try for real, once we get into U.A.." Ochaco gently laid her hands on Izuku's back, rubbing circles while she hid her disappointment in a soft smile, Fumikage catching it before he hung his head.
Meanwhile, Katsuki too had fallen out of his seat, his teammates cheering until it was drawn out by his frustrated scream.
"Why is Bakugo not happy…? Weren't we in second place?"
"He wanted the ten million, remember? He's probably mad at himself that he couldn't get it."
"I'LL KILL YOU, YOU HALF N' HALF BASTARD!"
"...or at Todoroki."
"I wouldn't be surprised if he's also somehow angry with Midoriya, too." Hanta slumped into his seat, relieved that he made it to the final round.
"Who was in third and fourth place, kero?"
"Not one of us…" Minoru spat out, also in the depths of his despair while Mezo shook his head.
"We'll have to do better, then."
"Kero."
"-close!"
"Well, second place isn't bad. All's well that ends well." Sero grinned with a sigh, throwing out his hand to grab Kirishima and Ashido's attention.
"Do you think that's how he feels?" Kirishima nervously muttered, observing ahead to where Bakugo was crouched on the ground, yelling in anguish about once again not making it to first place.
"In third place, Tetsute- Huh?" Mic started before checking the scoreboard again, gasping as he slipped up and found a new third placer, calling, "What, it's Team Shinso?!"
"YES! YES, YES, YES- YES!" Hitoshi leapt out of his seat, falling to his knees with a wide grin as he soaked in this victory. Most of the students were just as confused as Hizashi sounded while the purplenet didn't care, spinning around to look at Shota as he pointed to the teacher, "I did it, Eraser…! Now you pros have no choice but to consider it!"
"Yes, you're right."
"Huh? Sensei, Sensei, what are you talking about…?" Toru called over while Kyoka scrunched up her nose.
"I told Shinso that if a general course student makes it to the final round, usually, us teachers will speak with that student and consider their transfer to the hero course."
"Wait, wait, wait, wait, does that mean one of us will be transferred out…?! Just because he made it to the final round and we didn't?!" Minoru exclaimed in a panic, Shota shrugging back to the teen while he eyed the TV with interest.
"I had hoped to get the ten million points… but things don't always go as you wish." Tokoyami ominously explained to Midoriya, who gaped as his eyes began to tear up while his teammate continued, smirking as he stated, "Even so, I got one. I took the one on his head where his guard was the weakest. Midoriya, this was thanks to the opening you created with your last spurt."
Dark Shadow sent the curly-haired greenet a thumbs up, the boy breaking down as Mic announced the fourth and final team that advanced to the last round, "In fourth place, Team Midoriya!"
As the crowd roared at the winners for the final round, Midoriya's tears sprayed out from his eyes, cracking the cement by the pressure while Uraraka cheered for their turnaround.
Some of the teens also feared that Izuku would break the carpet here, looking back only to find him in a state of shock, until he looked to Fumikage with watery, green eyes.
"Tokoyami-kun…" Izuku choked out, sniffing as the realization set in.
"Thank you, for that opening then, Midoriya."
"Tokoyami-kun…!" Izuku wiped his eyes, gasping for air as he tried to ask clearly through his sobbing, "Can I- C-Can I… hug you… To-Tokoyami-kun…?!"
Fumikage was a little surprised by the question, but allowed it, nodding as he moved closer to wrap an arm around Izuku, who squeezed the air out of the student as he cried. Not wanting to miss out, Ochaco threw herself onto the two boys in excitement, smothering them while she continued to rub her friend's back.
Meanwhile, Enji narrowed his eyes in thought, 'That boy… He doesn't appear to possess the exact same power output as All Might does… If it were to come that Shoto must fight him, it would be a disgrace for him to lose to someone like him…'
"How was Midori-kun able to break the ground like that…? Are you sure that's not his quirk?"
"Dude, do I look like someone who could answer that?" Hanta raised an eyebrow to Mina, who backed away from him.
Todoroki clenched his left fist, glaring at the hand as he spat under his breath, "I can't… At this rate, I'll be doing what my old man wants."
No one knew what Shoto meant by those words, but Shota and Toshinori were especially concerned. While the latter spared a glance back at the father, the former looked down to the son, wondering what could be going through this kid's head.
"Does Todoroki-chan not want to be a hero?" Tsuyu questioned out loud, but even though the boy who the question was for should have been able to answer, Shoto wasn't listening.
He was worried for what those words could mean for the rest of the festival.
"Now, we'll take an hour's break for lunch before we start the afternoon festivities! See ya!" Mic announced for the audience, the people in the stands already moving to grab something to eat. With the microphone still on, the hero's voice echoed through the speakers as he asked his friend, "Hey, Eraser Head, let's go grab food."
"I'm going to sleep."
"You really can sleep anywhere, can you?"
"Being an underground hero and teaching students doesn't give you much time to sleep."
"What's an underground hero…?" Hitoshi murmured with Shota eyeing the purplenet.
"A hero that works without media attention or coverage. Mostly operate on night patrols and closely work with the police and detectives on cases. It can also be a career for those with quirks that villains can easily avoid if it is known."
Hitoshi blinked at the provided description, making his mind ponder, 'If villains figure out my quirk, it'll be easy for them to avoid it… Maybe if… when I become a hero, I could maybe see if underground work would be better for me…'
Meanwhile, Minoru and Tsuyu huffed when it was shown who had taken their points, along with questionable looks down to Hitoshi when it implied that he had taken Tetsutetsu's points in the end.
"Mina-chan, congratulations." Asui walked up to the pink-skinned girl after leaving her frustrations behind with Mineta, disappointed they weren't able to make it to the final round.
"Well, Bakugo just let me join to use against Todoroki's ice, so I don't know if it reflects my abilities." Ashido rebutted her friend's compliment, rubbing the back of her neck.
"The move you, Bakugo-chan and Sero-chan pulled off was impressive, kero."
"Yeah, Tsuyu-chan's right…! I was the one that wasn't able to do much…"
"That's so not true, Kirishima!" Mina and Hanta immediately jumped up to make Eijiro reconsider his words, the long-haired boy wincing faintly at their exclamations.
"Weren't you the one that said you could take my blasts…?" Katsuki rolled his eyes, as if the words his future self said were irrelevant now.
"W-Well, yeah, but…"
"Shut up or die."
Eijiro faltered at that while Mina and Hanta glared at the ash blond.
"-huh?" Uraraka groaned out loudly at Iida, not understanding his need to beat Midoriya before it seemed to dawn on her as she looked around, "Speaking of which, where is that Midoriya-kun? Where's Deku-kun?"
Around the side of the stadium, where it was faculty and student entry only, Todoroki narrowed his gaze to the other side of the wall, where Midoriya stood, the greenet's eyes flickering as he stared back.
"What did you want to talk… about?"
Elsewhere in the arena, the flaming hero was heading down a flight of stairs before he was interrupted by a certain someone, All Might calling with a smile, "Hey! Long time no see. Let's have tea, Endeavor."
The fire on the neck of his costume roared at the thought of the suggestion, his voice giving away that resentment as Endeavor growled in distaste, "All Might…"
His piercing blue eyes locked on the bright gaze of his rival.
The ending theme commences.
"Talk about intense… Both with Endeavor and All Might, and with Todoroki and Midoriya…"
"Why do you want to talk with Midoriya-chan, Todoroki-chan?" Tsuyu wondered with her question making a few students tense up.
"Whatever it is about, it doesn't concern you…" Shoto spat back at her, the greenette flinching at the harsh tone of his words before he gritted his teeth, remarking, "But privacy isn't a luxury we have here anymore…"
"S-Sorry…"
"Deku-kun, we really need to make you stop apologizing for things out of your control…"
"But it is my fault- Hear me out, Uraraka-san…" Izuku put a hand up, stopping her reasons of objection. He thinned his lip as he picked at the rough skin around his nail before explaining, "Wh-When I got here, yesterday, th-the voice said I didn't have to go through with this-"
"Why the hell didn't you say no, you stupid nerd?!" Katsuki cut him off as he lashed out toward the boy, Izuku jolting in his seat while Ochaco turned her brown eyes to glare at the blond.
"Why don't you let him explain first, Bakugo-kun, and maybe you'll get your answer?"
Katsuki spat back, but didn't say anything else, giving Izuku the opening to finish, "Um, I didn't have to go through with it, but… when I said yes and K-Kacchan came in, they just said that he h-had to… If I had just said no and refused, maybe-"
"You can't ponder on the 'maybe', Midoriya. We are here now and even if you had refused, events may have been altered and this future might not have become." Fumikage interrupted this time, but he tried to reassure Izuku's worries instead, nodding to the curly-haired teen, "None of the blame falls on you."
"Besides, this beats being at school, so I was a hundred percent down for this." Denki grinned, adding his own voice of approval.
"You said it, Kaminari…!"
"All this music would have been lost…" Kyoka shook her fist, patiently waiting for their lunch break so that they could listen to the full songs.
As if the conversation reminded him of his cat still here, Hitoshi stood up abruptly and made his way to his room, checking on the small white cat. Catching the boy's movement, Mashirao glanced at the wavy-haired purplenet, biting his bottom lip as he came back to the couches.
"I hope next episode we'll figure out why Aoyama-kun and I were on his team…"
The song came to an end, but the episode had something else it wanted to show first.
Sitting in her apartment, watching the Sports Festival on her TV, Midoriya's mother shook on the couch while the female announcer came over her speaker, "U.A. High School Sports Festival! The first-years have finished their second game. The sixteen next-generation heroes moving on to the final round have been decided!"
Looking at the points from each team, Izuku realized with a heavy heart just how lucky Fumikage's grab was for the second headband, the two other teams in the thousands.
"Izuku…! I'm so glad! You really worked hard…! But… But just don't get injured…!"
"Ah, so it's hereditary…" Hanta chuckled, watching how Inko sobbed and how it exactly mirrored Izuku's cry from earlier.
Meanwhile, Izuku sheepishly smiled at his mother's worries, knowing that he was definitely not going to be keeping that promise until Fumikage asked the greenet suddenly, "Midoriya, just how do you plan to explain One for All to your mother?"
The look of fear that crossed over Izuku's eyes told Fumikage that the boy hadn't even thought of that.
"Would you like to continue to the next episode?"
Saved by the bell.