"ALRIGHT, YOUNG HEROES! WATCH CLOSELY!"
All Might's thunderous voice made the control panels in the dark monitor room vibrate. Class 1-A, or at least those not participating in the first match, huddled in front of the wall of screens. The bluish glow illuminated their tense faces.
"YOU WILL LEARN AS MUCH FROM YOUR CLASSMATES' VICTORIES AS FROM THEIR DEFEATS! EVERY BATTLE IS A VITAL LESSON!"
"YEAAAH!"
Present Mic's scream burst from the speakers, making Kaminari jump and Jiro cover her ears with a grimace.
"GEEZ, MY EARS! HE'S GONNA BREAK SOMETHING!" Kaminari shouted, ironically almost as loud as the pro hero.
"WELCOME TO THE FIRST, VERY FIRST HERO VS. VILLAIN TRAINING COMBAT FOR CLASS 1-A!" Mic was in a small glass booth in the corner, adjusting his huge headphones with a manic grin. "I'M YOUR HOST, PRESENT MIC, READY TO NAAAAARRATE ALL THE ELECTRIFYING ACTION!"
"Does he really need to shout so much?" Mina whispered. "We're in the same room."
Izuku, standing next to All Might, ignored the noise. His eyes scanned dozens of screens at once while his fingers flew across a tablet.
"Incredible," he muttered, too engrossed to regulate his voice. "So much real-time data. Biometric sensors, the building's structural integrity, movement patterns. We can analyze their reaction times, the efficiency of their Quirk use in a simulated urban environment, team synergies, countermeasures..."
All Might let out a laugh that shook the floor. "HAHAHA! THAT'S THE SPIRIT, YOUNG MIDORIYA! ANALYZE EVERY DETAIL! DON'T WASTE A SECOND! THAT'S THE THINKING OF A TRUE HERO!"
In a dark corner, a yellow sleeping bag on the floor sighed. "I'm going to need painkillers. A lot of them," Aizawa's muffled voice muttered. "And Mic, if you blow out another speaker, it's coming out of your paycheck."
"WHATEVER YOU SAY, BUDDYYYY!" Mic shouted, oblivious to the threat. "AND HERE WE GO WITH THE FIRST MATCHUP! TEAM B, SHOTO TODOROKI AND MEZO SHOJI, WILL PLAY THE ROLE OF VILLAINS! THEY'LL DEFEND THE FAKE NUCLEAR WEAPON ON THE FIFTH FLOOR!"
The main cameras focused on the villain team. Shoji, with his imposing figure, had already deployed several duplicate arms, creating ears and eyes that watched the entrances. Todoroki, in contrast, was perfectly still, his back against the wall.
"WHILE TEAM I, WITH MASHIRAO OJIRO AND TORU HAGAKURE, WILL BE THE BRAVE HEROES TRYING TO STOP THEM! LET THE BATTLE BEGIN!"
"Come on, Ojiro," Uraraka whispered in the control room.
On the screens, Ojiro and Hagakure were seen sneaking in through a first-floor window.
"Good infiltration tactic," Izuku muttered, now in full analysis mode. "Hagakure-san goes first as an invisible scout, while Ojiro-kun uses his tail to check blind spots and maintain balance. It minimizes noise."
"But where is Hagakure?" Kaminari asked, squinting at the screen.
"She's invisible, idiot," Jiro replied, elbowing him.
"I know that! I mean... how do they know where she is? She could trip over Ojiro!"
"They have communicators, kero," said Asui, who had joined the group. "And she's probably whispering. It's a good combination for stealth."
The cameras followed the invisible pair and the martial artist as they climbed the stairs. They moved carefully, Ojiro using his tail to feel the ground ahead of him, checking for possible traps.
"They're taking their time," Kirishima commented. "Smart! That's being cautious!"
Meanwhile, on the fifth floor, Shoji turned to his partner. "They're getting closer. West wing, second floor. Moving slow. Two presences."
Todoroki said nothing. He didn't even look at Shoji. He just pushed off the wall and walked to the center of the room. He placed his right hand on the floor.
"Wait, what's he going to do?" Sero asked, leaning forward.
And then, everything turned white.
The dozens of screens showing the inside of the building were covered in frost. A massive wave of ice spread from the fifth floor downward, covering every inch of the building at a terrifying speed. The floor, the walls, the ceiling, the stairs... everything was buried under a thick layer of ice.
On the screens following Ojiro and Hagakure, the ice was seen rushing up the stairs with overwhelming speed. Ojiro tried to jump, but he was too slow. The ice caught him, freezing his feet and rising to his waist in a second. A muffled scream was heard from Hagakure, and a burst of icy vapor indicated where she was, equally trapped.
"BUT WHAT... WHAT... WHAT WAS THAT?!" Kaminari shouted, his eyes wide.
"Damn," Kirishima said. "That... did he do that in one move?"
"The building's temperature... dropped twenty degrees in ten seconds," Izuku muttered, looking at his tablet's data. "The energy level he just released is..."
Todoroki walked calmly through the icy landscape he had created. His boots crunched on the ice, but he didn't seem to feel the cold at all. He calmly descended the frozen hallways, walking past the ice statues of his opponents. He didn't even glance at them.
He reached the fake bomb, which was covered in frost but intact. He touched it gently with his hand.
"Weapon secured," he said calmly over the communicator.
There was a stunned silence in the monitor room. Even Present Mic was speechless for a moment.
"WHAT... WHAT OVERWHELMING POWER!" All Might finally roared, breaking the silence. "YOUNG TODOROKI NEUTRALIZED THE THREAT WITH INCREDIBLE EFFICIENCY! AND IN LESS THAN THIRTY SECONDS!"
"Yeah, but..." Izuku frowned, looking at the screens with concern. "Wasn't it too much?"
All Might turned to him. "What do you mean, Young Midoriya? It was a decisive victory!"
"He froze his opponents. Ojiro-kun and Hagakure-san could have suffered severe hypothermia if this were real. And look, he didn't even try to work with Shoji-kun. Shoji was there for reconnaissance, but Todoroki-kun never planned to use that information. It was pure brute force, not team strategy."
Izuku pointed to another screen. "Besides, he could have damaged the building to the point of collapse, and even the weapon he was supposed to protect. If the 'bomb' had been temperature-sensitive, he would have failed the mission. He won the match, but... did he really act like a hero?"
All Might's enthusiasm faltered for a split second.
Present Mic, catching his breath, tried to regain control of the narration. "A BOLD AND DECISIVE MOVE BY TODOROKI! A... CHILLING VICTORY! BUT MAYBE A LITTLE... COLD! HUH? HUH?"
No one laughed. The silence was awkward and icy.
"Ugh. What a bad joke," Jiro muttered.
"Okay," Kirishima said, rubbing his arms. "I have to admit, that was cool, but... it's a little scary. He didn't even break a sweat."
"NEXT COMBAT!" Present Mic shouted, clearly nervous about the lack of reaction. "TEAM F, WITH MOMO YAOYOROZU AND EJIRO KIRISHIMA AS VILLAINS! VERSUS TEAM G, DENKI KAMINARI AND KYOKA JIRO AS HEROES!"
"Oh, it's our turn!" Kaminari exclaimed, elbowing Jiro. "Let's go!"
"Don't screw it up," Jiro muttered, following him out of the monitor room.
"Go, Kiri! Momo!" Mina cheered from her seat.
On the screen, Yaoyorozu and Kirishima were barricading themselves in a control room on the third floor.
"Alright, Kirishima-san," Yaoyorozu said, her gaze intense. Her skin glowed as a large metal panel began to emerge from her arm. "I need you to block the main entrance. I will fortify the flanks and create some... countermeasures."
"Got it!" Kirishima grinned, slamming his fists together. "No one's getting past me! You can count on it!"
"Whoa! Look at Yaoyorozu!" Mina exclaimed. "She's creating a barricade out of thin air!"
"Her Creation Quirk is incredibly versatile," Izuku nodded, writing furiously on his tablet. "But it consumes lipids. Her stamina will depend on how much she ate today. A prolonged battle will be tough for her."
"Leave 'em to me, Yaoyorozu!" Kirishima shouted on the screen, planting himself in front of the door and hardening his arms. "They're gonna break their knuckles trying to get through!"
Kaminari and Jiro came running down the hall.
"Plan A!" Kaminari shouted, sparks flying from him. "I'm gonna fry 'em all! Indiscriminate Discharge!"
"Wait, you idiot!" Jiro warned him over the communicator. "That's not the strategy! You could hit the weapon or fry the comms! And we don't even know if Yaoyorozu is near the door!"
But Kaminari was already charging up. "Trust me! It'll be great!"
He unleashed a massive discharge of one million volts at the door. The electricity exploded, lighting up the entire hallway.
"USELESS!" Kirishima roared from the other side.
He activated his hardening to the max. The metal door melted and warped from the heat, but Kirishima stood behind it, unharmed. The electricity sizzled harmlessly over his rocky skin. With a war cry, he burst through the wrecked door and charged straight at Kaminari.
"Uh oh!" Kaminari paled and started running backward.
"I told you it was a bad idea!" Jiro shouted.
"It's fine! Distraction! It's a distraction!" Kaminari yelled as he dodged a punch from Kirishima that shattered the wall plaster.
"You're unstoppable, Kirishima!" Mina shouted in the monitor room.
"But what about Yaoyorozu!" Uraraka said.
While Kaminari kept Kirishima busy, leading him down the hall in a chaotic chase, Jiro slipped into the room. She saw the barricade Momo had created. She was about to launch a sound cannon.
"Bad choice," Jiro whispered. She plugged one of her jacks into the hallway wall. She closed her eyes. "Got you."
She located Yaoyorozu's vibrations on the other side of the barricade. She focused her own heartbeat and sent it in a directional burst of sound through the concrete.
Inside, Yaoyorozu let out a choked cry and clutched her ears. Her creation stopped halfway and crumbled. She stumbled backward, disoriented by the internal sonic attack.
Jiro seized the opportunity. She plugged her jacks into her boots and kicked the makeshift barricade. The metal resonated violently and fell. Jiro leaped over the rubble and lunged at the still-dazed Yaoyorozu, using her jacks to tie her up quickly.
"Villain captured!" Jiro shouted.
"Nice job, Jiro!" Kaminari yelled from the hallway. Just then, Kirishima caught up and tackled him.
"Gotcha!" Kirishima shouted.
"No! Wait! Jiro already got her! Hero wins! Time out!"
Kirishima stopped, looking confused at Kaminari, who was pinned beneath him. "Huh? Already?"
"YAOYOROZU'S CREATION IS IMPRESSIVE, BUT HER SPEED IS STILL A LIMITING FACTOR UNDER PRESSURE!" Izuku commented, speaking loudly for All Might to hear. "AND KIRISHIMA! WHAT STAMINA! A PERFECT TANK! BUT JIRO USED CUNNING TO BYPASS THE DEFENSE! She split the enemy team and used a precision attack!"
"AN INDOMITABLE SPIRIT FROM YOUNG KIRISHIMA!" All Might agreed. "AND YOUNG JIRO'S CUNNING! EXEMPLARY TEAMWORK BY THE HEROES! ALBEIT A BIT CHAOTIC AT THE START!"
"THE HEROES SECURE THE CAPTURE THANKS TO A COMBINATION OF... WELL, OF WHAT THEY JUST SAID!" Present Mic added, clearly feeling left out of the analysis conversation. "THAT WAS A REAL ROCK DUET!"
"Please, someone shut him up," Sero complained.
"NEXT! TEAM E (AOYAMA AND ASHIDO) AS VILLAINS VERSUS TEAM J (KODA AND SATO) AS HEROES!"
"Oh, this one's gonna be fun!" said Kaminari, who had just entered the monitor room rubbing his shoulder. "Pure offense versus... well, versus Koda and Sato!"
The battle was visual chaos from the first second. Aoyama was firing his brilliant Navel Laser from a fourth-floor window.
"Je ne peux pas m'arrêter de briller! (I can't stop sparkling!)" he shouted, his voice echoing over the communicators.
"AOYAMA, STOP POSING AND WATCH THE STAIRS!" Ashido yelled. She was sliding across the main hallway floor on a trail of acid, laughing manically. "I'm gonna melt the whole floor!"
"What dazzling style!" All Might exclaimed. "YOUNG AOYAMA HAS A BLINDING SHINE! AND YOUNG ASHIDO'S AGILITY!"
"But look at Aoyama's belt, it's already blinking," Izuku pointed out. "His time limit is still a problem. And Ashido-san almost melted the fake bomb with her own acid on that last attack. Lots of power, but very little environmental control. They're fighting as individuals, not a team."
"Where are Sato and Koda?" Uraraka asked, searching the screens.
"Sato-kun is on the first floor," Izuku said, pointing to a camera in the lobby. "He's... eating."
Sure enough, Sato was devouring an entire bag of sugar. His muscles visibly began to swell.
"And Koda-kun is..." Izuku frowned. "He's next to a broken window... whistling."
"Whistling?" Kirishima repeated.
Suddenly, Sato let out a roar. He ran at a wall and, instead of using the stairs, smashed right through it.
"HE JUST MADE HIS OWN DOOR!" Kaminari shouted.
Sato charged up the stairs with incredible strength, ignoring Ashido's acid sizzling on his boots. Ashido threw a wave of corrosive liquid at him, but Sato simply ripped off a piece of the wall and used it as a makeshift shield.
"Where did he come from?!" Ashido shouted, dodging.
Meanwhile, Aoyama prepared for another laser shot. "It's time for my grand finale...!"
Just then, a huge swarm of pigeons descended from the sky, diving in through the broken window Koda had been whistling at. The birds swarmed Aoyama.
"AHHH! MY EYES! MY SUIT! THEY'RE... BIRDS! DISGUSTING! GET OFF, YOU VERMIN!"
Aoyama stumbled backward, flailing his arms, his laser firing harmlessly at the ceiling.
There was a moment of absolute silence in the monitor room.
Then, Kaminari and Sero burst out laughing.
"No way!" Sero wiped away a tear. "He beat him with pigeons! Pigeons!"
"Unexpected tactic," Izuku muttered, noting frantically on his tablet. "Effective environmental distraction. Koda-kun used urban resources. Very smart."
Sato took advantage of the confusion. He dodged one last puddle of acid from a distracted Ashido, jumped over the makeshift barricade, and tapped the fake bomb.
"THE HEROES WIN!" Present Mic shouted, sounding completely bewildered. "Did he seriously use pigeons? Is that legal? Well... I GUESS IT WORKED! TEAM J TAKES THE VICTORY WITH THE POWER OF SUGAR AND... BIRDS!"
"LAST COMBAT OF THIS ROUND!" he announced, trying to regain his composure. "TEAM C, TSUYU ASUI AND HANTA SERO, AS HEROES! VERSUS... WELL, VERSUS THE ONLY REMAINING STUDENT, MINORU MINETA, AS THE VILLAIN!"
The monitor room went quiet, a collective sense of discomfort settling in.
"Oh, no," Mina whispered. "Mineta's alone."
"Poor Asui and Sero," Jiro added.
On the screen, Mineta was alone in a small room, surrounded by the fake bomb. He had a perverse grin on his face.
"Hehehe! This will be my time to shine!" he muttered, his voice coming over the communicators. "I'll show them my true strength! When Asui-chan comes in, she'll get trapped on my sticky balls, and then I'll have to... hehehe... rescue her from her helplessness...!"
"Sensei," Uraraka said, her voice tense. "Can we mute his mic, please?"
All Might seemed to sweat a little. "Ahem! OBSERVE YOUNG MINETA'S DEFENSIVE STRATEGY! HE'S CREATING A MINEFIELD!"
Sure enough, Mineta began pulling the sticky balls from his head and throwing them all over the floor and walls, creating an adhesive bottleneck.
Asui and Sero arrived in the hallway.
"Looks like he's set traps, kero," Asui said, her long tongue flicking out for an instant. "How gross."
"No problem," Sero smiled. "I've got an idea. Cover me if I fall."
"What's he gonna do?" Kirishima asked in the room.
Sero aimed his elbows at the ceiling. He shot two streams of tape. With an agile, fluid motion, he swung over the sticky floor, entering the room through the air.
"WHAT?!" Mineta exclaimed, looking up in surprise.
Before he could pull another ball from his head, Sero shot another burst of tape directly at him. The tape wrapped him from head to toe in a tight cocoon, sticking him cleanly to the back wall.
"Mmph! Mmmph!" was all Mineta could say, his eyes wide and panicked.
Asui hopped in with great agility, effortlessly avoiding the few sticky balls at the entrance, and touched the bomb.
The battle had lasted less than thirty seconds.
"AND THERE YOU HAVE IT, LISTENERS!" Present Mic finally had his moment, his voice filled with genuine enthusiasm. "A DEMONSTRATION OF FLAWLESS TEAMWORK AND SUPERIOR MOBILITY! THE VILLAIN MINETA HAS BEEN COMPLETELY WRAPPED IN TAPE AND STUCK TO THE WALL! WHAT A PERFECT CAPTURE!"
"YEAH!" Kaminari shouted, high-fiving Sero, who had just walked in. "You shut him up! Literally!"
"THE HEROES, ASUI AND SERO, ARE THE UNDISPUTED WINNERS!" Mic concluded.
Izuku grimaced slightly in disgust as he took notes. "Well... that was... quick. Sero-kun used his three-dimensional mobility to completely nullify the terrain trap. It was the perfect countermeasure."
All Might let out a sigh that sounded disappointed. "I was expecting... a bit more strategy from Young Mineta. Perhaps some distraction tactics, or a smarter use of his Quirk... not just..."
"Being a pervert?" Jiro finished for him.
All Might cleared his throat and stood at the front of the room, his voice resuming its instructor tone.
"EXCELLENT COMBATS, YOUNG HEROES! WE'VE SEEN POWER, STRATEGY, AND TEAMWORK! AND WE'VE ALSO SEEN... WELL, OTHER THINGS!" He cast a meaningful glance at the screen showing Mineta being peeled off by a robot. "LEARN FROM EVERY ENCOUNTER! ANALYZE THE SUCCESSES AND THE FAILURES!"
Present Mic, sweating under his booth's imaginary spotlights and clearly irritated at being overshadowed as the main commentator, tried to close the session. "THAT CONCLUDES THE FIRST ROUND OF THESE INCREDIBLE MATCHUPS OF...!"
"AND NOW!"
All Might cut him off, his voice suddenly lower, more serious, but resonating with a new wave of emotion that silenced the students.
"PREPARE YOURSELVES FOR THE NEXT COMBAT! ONE THAT PROMISES TO BE... EXPLOSIVE!"
On the main screen, the names appeared in large, bold letters.
TEAM A (OCHAKO URARAKA & MELISSA SHIELD) - HEROES vs. TEAM D (KATSUKI BAKUGO & TENYA IIDA) - VILLAINS
An expectant silence fell over the monitor room. All conversations ceased.
"Oh, no," Kaminari whispered.
"Bakugo... against Melissa," Kirishima said, his tone losing all its previous cheerfulness. "Man, this is gonna be..."
"Intense," Sero finished.
Izuku, who had been muttering and writing nonstop, went completely still.
The cameras focused on the participants. In the heroes' waiting area, Uraraka was adjusting her wrist guards, her expression nervous but determined. Beside her, Melissa adjusted the gauntlets of her hero suit, her face calm and focused.
"Don't worry about Iida-kun," Melissa said over the communicator, her voice calm and clear. "His speed is a problem, but he's predictable. The real problem is Bakugo. He's erratic, powerful, and doesn't care about collateral damage."
"I know," Uraraka replied, her voice a little shaky but firm. "I've got this. We just need the plan."
"I have one," Melissa said.
Then, the camera switched to the bomb room. Iida was standing in a rigid pose, chopping his arms.
"Bakugo-kun! Our strategy must be flawless! The heroes will attempt a surprise attack! We must secure the bomb and patrol the hallways in a defensive pattern!"
Bakugo had his back to him, staring out a dark window. He didn't move. Tiny sparks popped from his palms.
"Shut up, Four-Eyes."
"But preparation is the key to victory! We must...!"
"I said shut up!" Bakugo turned slowly. The camera focused on his face. He wasn't just angry. He was smiling. It was a savage grin, full of an almost painful anticipation.
"I know exactly who's coming," he growled, his voice a dangerous whisper. "And I know exactly what I'm going to do to that damn inventor."
The most anticipated and personal battle yet was about to begin.