"YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!"
Neither he nor Mina had managed to get a fourth partner.
Uraraka had, however.
One with shoulder-length pink hair, and four robotic tentacle arms.
Mina did not hide her thoughts on the matter.
"Seriously Uraraka?! HER?"
"Izuku said ANYONE would do, and she was the only one who said yes…"
Izuku stared at her face, though this time he could not see the hatred in Mei's eyes, as she had donned a set of black sunglasses.
He could feel it though. He closed his eyes for a moment, to feel her soul.
He had originally compared it internally as hatred like that Bakugou had towards him.
He was wrong.
Mei hated him, far, FAR more than Katsuki ever had.
Unlike Katsuki though, she at the very least was capable of putting up a false, not angry face. It was far more chilling than any angry outburst from Katsuki had ever been.
"So, what are we calling this team? Top 4?"
Izuku just stared at her.
"Are… Are you just going to pretend that round 1 didn't happen?"
"Sure. Water under the bridge. You need a 4th member, and I need to get into part 3 Right now. That's the only thing that matters to me right now."
Their sights met, and he understood.
Part 3 they would fight. No niceties, no holding back, no pretending. Just two people beating the shit out of each other.
If she hated him as much as he knew she did, then a one on one was probably her goal today.
"Also, the spotlight is going to be on miss 10 000 000, and everyone is going to be looking at her team the most of all! It'll be a perfect time for me and my beloved babies to shine like the Sun !"
Mina and Izuku both just looked at her dumbfounded, while Uraraka scratched her head awkwardly.
"Your… Babies?" Mina asked, confused.
In answer, the four arms made some rather… Disturbing clicking noises.
"Oh… Those creepy ass things."
"They aren't creepy! My little cuties Larry, Harry, Flo, and Moe are the greatest inventions of my life! They are a masterpiece of science and engineering that's going to pave the way for anyone , Quirkless or otherwise to become a hero!"
Izuku blinked.
Had… Had she said that on purpose to get a rise out of him? Or… Was it just a boast? Could… Could those things really lead to quirkless heroes?
Mina looked, first at Mei, then to Izuku, then back at Mei, then at Izuku.
"Are… Are we seriously gonna go with her?"
Izuku looked out over the field.
He couldn't see a single solitary student.
He made the choice.
"It's either her, or we go with 3."
"Yeah, but…" Mina seemed like she was trying desperately to find some excuse NOT to accept Mei unto their team.
"I think we should give her a chance." Uraraka piped in. "I mean… We don't really know why she hates Izuku right… I mean… You two clearly have some history right? It can't ALL have been bad… right?"
For just one moment, Mei's mask of a natural jovial face cracked like glass, her smile becoming grotesque. For some reason, she grasped around her left side.
"Yes… History… We have that. "
The smile fixed itself, and the left hand unclenched itself from her shirt.
"Let's make these 15 minutes peaceful ones, eh Midori? For old time's sake?"
She held out the hand in an open form.
It trembled.
Izuku hesitated for just one moment before he took it. They shook. Spider and Octopus.
He really wished he remembered what those old times were.
...
"So… What does your quirk do exactly?"
The tone of the question was friendly, which was in Stark contrast to the rest of the atmosphere.
Namely, it was thick as mud.
Having formed their human cavalry formation, they were now only waiting for the go signal for this entire round to start.
Mina at the front, with Uraraka behind on the left and Mei on the right, with Izuku being held by their hands.
He could feel the tenseness and underlying anger on his right side both in Mei's underlying anger directed at him and in Mina's anger towards Mei, both standing in sharp contrast with the Calmness of Uraraka.
He was rather grateful towards Uraraka trying to be the peacemaker. Unlike Mina, he frankly didn't have any strong feelings on Mei one way or another.
Other than confusion anyway.
"Oh it's a mixed quirk, I've got awesome hawk-like eyesight, and superhuman toughness like an invincible sandbag."
Another mixed quirk. How many of those were in their school anyway?
Uraraka, Todoroki, Mina, hell from what Mina told him, even Kaminari of all people had one.
It made sense that Yuei would be a gathering of those extraordinary few who were lucky enough to inherit two quirks from their parents, but it still seemed insane to have no less than 4 in one single class.
"That's seriously the metaphor you're going with for that? Sandbag? Not like… A steel wall or something?"
Mina didn't attempt to hide the anger in her voice. She really didn't like Mei.
By contrast, Mei really didn't seem to return her hostility at all. It seemed it was exclusively him she hated.
"Indeed! I don't possess superhuman strength whatsoever, so without my trusty babies, I am helpless! Thankfully, my gadgets are gloriously strong, able to rip apart steel like tissue paper."
The metal arms, two of whom were to his left and right, clicked in agreement. Their placement might make tactical sense, but they sure as hell didn't make him feel any better.
"Without any strength of my own, I am perfect for showcasing their incredible and amazing power to the world!"
"... You got a lot of faith in those things. So… Are those your masterworks?"
"Indeed they are Miss 10 000 000! I have nothing that comes close to their strength and versatility! Mikasa might have more range and power, but it is also incredibly likely to self-destruct! And Luke is more destructive, but it can't do anything else other than turn anything to ash and cinder! And then there's Eren, who'll just kill everything around it if it's not used carefully."
Izuku had a suspicion that Mei was planning to use "Mikasa, Eren, and Luke" against him during the next round. For now, though, she hadn't really brought out any more tech for this round, though she had given Uraraka her boots, which apparently contained some sort of air cushioning for high speed.
"In comparison, my beloved arms are so much more versatile, strong enough to lift 40 tons, yet capable of movements so delicate that they can handle frail glass!"
"AND NOW STUDENTS, GET READY FOR THE CAVALRY BATTLE! IT WILL BEGIN WHEN THIS COUNTDOWN REACHES ZERO, SO GET READY!"
...
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