NOTE: Last four days to Summer Sale [Flat 25% Off]
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10 minutes to go…
Toru Hagakure slowly, one step at a time, crawled sideways, keeping her back planted tightly against the frozen walls.
In her right hand, she clutched the Emergency Switch tightly.
She felt cold.
Extremely cold.
The fact that she was buck naked didn't help her case either.
She had miraculously survived Todoroki's ridiculous attack that had covered the entire city because she had holed herself up on the uppermost floor of a building.
But, with the laser boundaries threatening to jump over her at any moment, she had to make a choice.
Only ten minutes remained now, Hagakure confirmed, shaking like a leaf as she looked up at the timer on the holographic screen, the number of students standing at a mere 11.
Not too far from her, to her right, the laser boundaries stood, washing the entire land in a dull redness, making the ice look like frozen blood.
To her left, explosions rang mightily, ice hissing to keep the shockwaves at bay, as Todoroki and Bakugo fought.
Soon, in only five minutes, the laser boundaries would reach outermost boundary the central region, compressing all the remaining students into a very small area.
Hell would rain, then, Toru knew.
Each one of the remaining students would go above and beyond to defeat everyone else, hoping to be the last one standing before the final jump.
Toru was different, though.
All she needed to do was keep herself away from the fight and wait for the others to take care of each other.
With her Quirk, she had the best chance of winning this Sports Festival.
If… only if… only if her body just listened to her and stopped screaming in her mind to give up!
Even her tears had frozen, stuck like icy shards against her cheeks.
She couldn't bear it anymore… the cold… it was… killing her.
Toru clutched the Emergency Switch tighter, clenching her teeth to resist the urge to press it.
Everyone… Every single student was giving their best to prove themselves here. And she? Would she truly just give up after reaching so far into the game? No… No. She couldn't do that. Everyone had their Ultimate Moves. She only had this… invisibility. If she couldn't even do that properly, then…
"Oh… on the ice… I walk… turu-turu…"
"…?"
Open-mouthed, tasting fresh tears, Toru saw a student walk out from around a corner, glowing red against the laser boundary.
He donned orange-black armor, a similar-colored helmet covering his head. At his waist, he had tied a dark green robe, tattered at the ends. He also had a gauntlet on his left hand, but it looked somewhat broken.
More than the armor and gauntlet, it was what he was carrying around his right shoulder that stood out the most.
Vines.
It was a massive loop of thorny, green vines.
At the end of this long vine, he had tied a massive blade… covered in blood.
Now, walking, he was holding the vine a foot above the blade and was rotating it very fast now and then, making a whooshing noise.
And, yeah.
He was singing.
"Oh… under the fire… I walk… turu-turu…"
VILLAIN!
The word ROARED in Toru's mind, making her involuntarily let out a gasp.
The man stopped and looked toward her, the whirling vine and the blade at its end coming to a dangling halt.
Toru slammed her free hand over her mouth, now shaking and crying not only because of the cold, but also because of dread.
Because of the combined shock of her half-frozen state and the Villain's eyes on her, she even forgot that she was holding the Emergency Switch in her hand.
But, then again, even if she hadn't forgotten that, she wouldn't have been able to press the switch.
Toru's fingers and toes were so close to frostbite that the only thing keeping her standing and conscious at this point was a bucket-load of adrenaline.
The man kept looking in her direction.
Toru dared not even breathe.
Then, shrugging, he began rotating the bladed vine again, resuming his walk.
Toru's entire body relaxed, almost sliding an inch against the ice in relief.
That… saved her life, because in the very next moment, a blade came flying and lodged itself just above her head with a massive boom!
Panic washed over Toru.
She tried to get up, but her feet didn't listen to her.
She tried to scream, but other than a whimper, no sound came out.
She tried to remember all the training she had been through, but at this moment, all she could do was look forward as the man approached… slowly.
As Toru's heart pounded against her chest, the man grabbed the end of the blade and jerked, pulling it out of the concrete, dust and ice falling on Toru's head.
And then, along with that debris, a hand fell on her head, too.
Ruffling her hair, the Villain crouched in front of her.
His face was so close to her that she could feel his hot breath on her face, the warmth making her realize just how close she was to truly succumbing to the cold.
Then, through the slits on his helmet, Toru saw his eyes.
Blue… carrying amusement, and… concern.
"… Luke…" Toru took the name and then bawled her heart out, instantly collapsing forward in his arms.
Luke shook his hand.
Even through the gloves, he could feel Toru's skin… almost like ice.
As Toru cried, and knowing that she needed immediate care, Luke took her right hand and carefully took out the Emergency Switch before pressing it.
"You should know when to give up, too…" he said. "No one will look down on you for taking a step back and rethinking your options."
It was hard to say if Toru even heard his words.
Because at some point, crying out loud, she had already passed out.
Sighing, Luke took off the robe he had stolen from Togaru and draped it around the girl.
"I will take it from here…" Midnight said, standing on top of him, appearing like a ghost.
She was already keeping an eye on her… he realized, lifting Toru and handing her over to the Pro.
Then, as Midnight looked at him with a puzzled glance, Luke turned around and resumed his little walk, rotating the bladed vine.
"Oh… on the ice… I walk… turu-turu…"