MHA Universe, Earth, Japan, Musutafu.
{"We're halfway through the first round, Aizawa!"} Hizashi shouted after the match between Izuku and Tenya ended with Izuku as the winner. {"And things have been super-explosive. Seriously PLUS ULTRA~~~~~!"}
{Yes, they're trying really hard."} Aizawa said in his usual tired tone. {"Anyway, can we move on to the next match, already?"}
{"Sure! But first, let's take a look at the current bracket for those who don't remember!"} Hizashi shouted.
As soon as Hizashi's voice started to fade, the screens in the stadium all changed to show the current status of the first round bracket of the tournament.
{Tournament Bracket – First Round
1 - Hanta Sero
Vs.
2 - Matou Sakura [W]
3 - Soramoto Tatsuo [W]
Vs.
4 - Todoroki Shoto
5 - Kirishima Eijiro
Vs.
6 - Tokoyami Fumikage [W]
7 - Ida Tenya
Vs.
8 - Midoriya Izuku [W]
9 - Ashido Mina
Vs.
10 - Hanekura Shizuka
11 - Kaminari Denki
Vs.
12 - Uraraka Ochaco
13 - Yaoyorozu Momo
Vs.
14 - Hatsume Mei
15 - Shiozaki Ibara
Vs.
16 - Bakugo Katsuki}
While most of the crowd was looking forward to the next match, Tatsuo, Sakura, and the other students who were participating in the tournament were sitting in the stands, waiting for their next matches to come up… provided they had not been eliminated already.
"The next match is between Akatsuki-San and Mina-Chan." Sakura said softly while looking at the bracket. She then turned to Tatsuo and asked, "Do you think Akatsuki-San will win?"
"Actually, this one is a bit of a toss-up." Tatsuo said while watching Cementoss, a.k.a. Ishiyama Ken, the Modern literature Teacher, repaired the ring after the match between Izuku and Tenya. "In terms of raw skill, Akatsuki has the advantage. But Mina-Chan has the advantage in area of effect. Basically, if the fight comes down to close combat, Akatsuki's got it in the bag. But if Mina-Chan can keep things at a distance, then she's got the win."
"Does Mina-Chan have the control to use her [Quirk] in such a way?" Momo asked curiously from Tatsuo's other side.
"Who knows?" Tatsuo replied nonchalantly. "We've all been training solo for the past month or so. So, I don't know what level she's at now."
In response, Sakura rolled her eyes. She knew that if he wanted to, Tatsuo could keep track of every students' training without breaking a sweat. But she also knew that he probably would not do that, seeing how he was trying everything he could to make the Sports Festival more interesting for himself.
Not long after that, the match between Akatsuki and Mina began. This match was one of the longer matches in the first round. Just as Tatsuo said, Akatsuki was having trouble closing the distance with Mina. However, after a while, Mina's stamina was used up and Akatsuki was able to get close where she dominated Mina in close-quarters-combat.
The next match was between Denki and Ochaco. And this match went just as everyone expected. At the beginning of the match, Ochaco used her [Zero Gravity Quirk] to increase her mobility while Denki fired bolts of electricity after her.
However, with every missed electrical strike, chunks of the ring were blown apart, giving Ochaco a way to attack from range, as well. Yet, Denki was able to use his electricity to destroy all the chunks of cement Ochaco sent flying his way.
Seeing that attacking at long distance was not working, Denki used what he figured out from Tatsuo to increase his speed by stimulating his body with his electricity to close the distance.
However, just as he reached within an arm's distance from Ochaco, he seemed to reach his limit, as his determined expression turned into a dopey smile, his electricity dispersed, and he raised both hands in a thumbs up gesture as he stopped moving.
Tatsuo thought the expression on Ochaco's face was hilarious when this happened. He also found it funny how careful Ochaco was when she used her [Quirk] on Denki, floating him off the ground, and dragged him to the edge of the ring before gently setting him down just outside the ring.
"Hmph! Damn extras wasting time." Katsuki said disdainfully. He then turned towards Tatsuo with a snarl. "You'd better not waste my time in the finals, you pretty boy bastard."
"Wow, you've got a lot of confidence in the two of us, Bakugo." Tatsuo replied with an annoying smile. "To think you care so much. I'm touched."
"Don't flatter yourself, Bastard." Katsuki replied. "But if you let anyone else defeat you, I'll kill you."
"Wow! He's kind of a tsundere, isn't he?" Sakura asked while ignoring the growl that followed her words.
"Yeah." Tatsuo replied with a nod. "That was kind of obvious, I think. After all, the only reason he bullied Midoriya so much was because he didn't want his best friend to get hurt chasing an unrealistic dream, right?"
"Shut your damn mouth!" Katsuki shouted angrily. "Or I really will kill you."
"You've been saying that since the first day of school, Bro." Tatsuo said nonchalantly. "And honestly, it just sounds like hot air and overcompensation to me."
*Bang!* *Bang!* *Bang!*
The sound of explosions coming from Katsuki's palms made Tatsuo smile. However, he stopped paying attention to Katsuki after that, returning his attention to the ring. Not long after, Hizashi introduced the next pair of fighters, Momo and Mei.
However, the match between the two was not like any other. Because instead of a match, Mei convinced Momo to allow her to show off her inventions in return for forfeiting the match once her performance was over.
At the same time, Katsuki and Ibara made their way towards the waiting rooms to get ready for their match that would follow. Though, they had to wait much longer than they expected. Mei's showcase, which everyone expected to be short, lasted longer than anyone thought it would.
"Where did all those gadgets come from?" Akatsuki asked as Mei stepped off the ring with a smile on her face. "I mean, the P.E. uniforms don't have that many pockets."
"It's truly a mystery." Tatsuo replied while shaking his head with a wry smile on his face. "It's kinda like how big titty chicks pull all sorts of stuff out of their cleavage. Do they have a spatial pocket between them, or something?"
Akatsuki only rolled her eyes at Tatsuo's statement. She then looked down at her own chest before gritting her teeth in frustration. She then glanced at the other girls from Class 1-A, most of whom had larger breasts than she did. However, when her gaze landed on Kyoka, she sighed in relief.
"I don't like the way you just sighed after looking at me." Kyoka said with her eyes narrowed and her earphone jacks pointing at Akatsuki accusingly.
Akatsuki only looked away while trying to whistle innocently. Unfortunately, it seemed that whistling was not among her vast list of skills, as she only blew air between her lips in a comical manner.
"Anyway, it's about time for Sakura and I to start getting ready for our match." Tatsuo said with a chuckle as he watched Akatsuki act a little younger than her actual age. He then stood up and gestured for Sakura to do the same. "So, we'll see you guys when we get back."
Though she was clearly reluctant, Sakura stood up as well before leaving the seating area.
As the two left, the other students of Class 1-A wished them luck. Meanwhile, Hizashi began introducing the fighters in the next match, Katsuki and Ibara, who entered the ring shortly afterwards.
Not long later, Nemuri gave the signal for the match to begin. And just as expected, Katsuki blasted himself forward in an attempt to overwhelm his opponent. However, things were not as straightforward as Katsuki expected, as Ibara was no pushover.
Using her vines, Ibara was able to halt Katsuki's momentum almost immediately. Then, with precision, she lashed her vines, looking to catch Katsuki off guard. All the while, she sent more vines to stealthily approach from both behind and underground to bind her opponent.
Unfortunately for Ibara, plants, vines specifically, were not a good match for explosions. So, although she was able to show how skillful she was when using her [Quirk], she was unable to do any substantial damage to Katsuki. Instead, all her attempts ended with charred and burnt remains of her vines littering the ring. And in the end, she was forced off the ring when Katsuki was able to close the distance.
"Winner by ring-out, Bakugo Katsuki!" Nemuri announced while raising her whip.
*Cheer~~~~~~~~~~!*
{"And that's the end of the first round of the tournament!"} Hizashi shouted, just as hyped as the crowd. {"Next up, we'll be moving onto the quarter-finals.! But before we do that, let's check out the next ladder of the tournament bracket!"}
{"Seriously, you're too loud."} Shota said in a tired tone.
At the same time, the screens in the stadium changed to show the second-round's tournament bracket.
{Tournament Bracket – Second Round
2 - Matou Sakura
Vs.
3 - Soramoto Tatsuo
6 - Tokoyami Fumikage
Vs.
8 - Midoriya Izuku
10 - Hanekura Shizuka
Vs.
12 - Uraraka Ochaco
13 - Yaoyorozu Momo
Vs.
16 - Bakugo Katsuki}
{"Now, let's introduce the students for the next match!"} Hizashi shouted after giving the audience a few moments to read the match list for the second round. {"First, we have the Mistress of Shadows, Matou Sakura of Class 1-A!"}
*Cheer~~~~~~~~~~!*
{"All of the remaining students are from Class 1-A."} Shota pointed out. {"I don't think mentioning their classes is necessary any longer."}
{"And next, it's the space jumping Hero in training!"} Hizashi continued, completely ignoring Shota's completely reasonable observation. {"Give it up for Soramoto Tatsuo!"}
*Cheer~~~~~~~~~~!*
With the crowds cheers as accompanying background music, Tatsuo and Sakura made their way into the stadium. And while Tatsuo smiled at the crowd, Sakura walked towards the ring with her head down, clear signs of distress on her face.
*Zap!*
At the same time, the sound of crackling electricity drew a bit of attention as a violet streak of electricity tore through the sky before landing between Rumi and Ryuko.
"Yo. I'm back." Alfonzo said as the electricity dissipated, he hopped off his metal disc, and folded the disc before putting it in its usual place. "Hope you didn't miss me too much."
"You weren't even gone for an hour and a half." Rumi replied while rolling her eyes.
"Does that mean you would have missed me if I was gone longer?" Alfonzo asked with a cheeky smile on his face.
"Hardly." Rumi said while rolling her eyes again. "Though, I have been itching to hit you for a while. Does that count?"
"I'll take it." Alfonzo said with a chuckle.
And for a third time, Rumi rolled her eyes at Alfonzo's antics.
Meanwhile, Ryuko only watched the back and forth with an amused expression on her face.
"So, when are the two of you going to start dating?" Ryuko asked, a hint of teasing making it into her tone.
"That's up to her." Alfonzo replied with a shrug and a smile.
"Hmph! I don't need romance." Rumi replied with a huff as she turned her head away. Though, there was a slight reddening of her cheeks she refused to acknowledge.
'Lici's gonna be on my case about not adding her to the harem.' Alfonzo thought to himself while mentally shaking his head. 'She's gonna be really disappointed if I can't get her to change her mind.'
["Then you better fucking try harder!"] Riot, one of Alfonzo's [Armament Spirits] shouted angrily. ["Because if you end up disappointing Lici, I'm gonna beat the shit outta you!"]
["Simp."] Alfonzo's other [Armament Spirit], Bedlam, said in a dry tone.
["The fuck you just say?"] Riot shot back angrily.
'Ugh!' Having two Bakugo's in the same place is so much worse than I could have ever imagined.
"Are the fighters ready?" Nemuri asked, interrupting the back and forth between the three Heroes. Then, after receiving a firm nod from Tatsuo and an uncertain nod from Sakura, she continued. "Then, let the match... Begin!"
Immediately after Nemuri's announcement of the match's start, Sakura's [Shadow Space] spread out. Though, from what Tatsuo could tell, it was spreading slower than usual. Even so, he [Blinked] from where he stood, reappearing directly in front of Sakura with his right fist drawn back in preparation for a body blow.
*Swish!*
And just as Tatsuo appeared, Sakura's shadow shot up and lashed towards Tatsuo, intending to knock him away. However, just as Tatsuo noticed that her shadow spread slower than usual, he also noticed that the tendrils were lashing at him slower than usual, as well. And it was clear that the tendrils would not reach him before his fist landed on Sakura's abdomen. On top of that, his punch was powerful enough to send her flying pat the boundaries of the ring.
"What are you doing, Sakura?" Tatsuo asked with a frown as his fist stopped less than an inch from Sakura's abdomen.
At the same time, Sakura's tendrils stopped a little more than a foot away from striking Tatsuo. On top of that, she lowered her head with her eyes closed, clearly unwilling to see Tatsuo's disappointed expression.
"I... I don't wanna fight you, Tatsuo-Kun." Sakura said quietly. "I know I said I'd give it my all... But..."
"*Sigh*" Tatsuo could only sigh as he lowered his fist.
This naturally left most of the audience confused. However, anyone who already knew the relationship between Tatsuo and Sakura could almost see this coming before the match started.
"What's going on?" A woman in the audience asked in a confused tone.
"Is she gonna give up before even trying?" A man asked in a frustrated tone.
"Well, I can't blame her~." A young woman who looked to be in high school said in a dreamy tone. "I wouldn't wanna hit such a hottie, either."
"That's exactly what she should be doing." The man shouted angrily. "Mess up that pretty boy's face. That way, some of the girls will look at other guys."
"Hmph!" A second young woman looking to be in high school snorted disdainfully. "Even if Soramoto-Kun's face was all bruised, he would still be a hundred... No, a thousand times hotter than you."
"I kinda saw this coming." Tatsuo said as a wry smile curled his lips. "I guess you're gonna need some kind of motivation to fight me seriously, huh? So, how about this?"
That caused Sakura to raise her head slightly. Though, she did not raise it enough to make eye contact with the much taller Tatsuo.
"If you can beat me, I'll take you out on a date during the break we'll have from school after the festival." Tatsuo said.
*Swish!*
Immediately after his words ended, Tatsuo [Blinked] back to where he started the fight just in time to evade a shadow tendril that tore through the spot where his torso had just been.
"Well, I guess that was enough motivation." Tatsuo said as he looked into Sakura's eyes, which were staring at him with fervor.
"Date with Tatsuo-Kun... Date with Tatsuo-Kun... Date with Tatsuo-Kun..." Sakura repeated over and over as her shadow fluctuated violently with her emotions. She then spoke quietly, causing Tatsuo to smile happily as he took his fighting stance, and the surrounding space began to shake with his anticipation. "Fine, I'll fight... And I'll win..."
"Good." Tatsuo said with a battle hungry smile. "Then, let's go. Show me just how strong you are, Sakura."