Chapter 8: Fighting Back
Midnight cracked her whip, striking a pose for the crowd, and leaning into the microphone. "Our first event will be a race! The race itself is composed of several legs and obstacles! I won't be telling you what, though, a girl needs to keep a few secrets for herself!" She winks at the students, some of whom blush profusely.
Heh, still got it.
"In this event, the first forty two participants to pass the finish line will move on to the next round! All participants, make your way to the Starting Line immediately!"
The risque teacher cracked her whip again, watching as the students began to slowly meander off as her eyes locked onto the mechanised student towards the rear of the group. She could hear the sound of servos whirring, followed by the clicking of gears and the loud footfalls of heavy metal greaves.
Nemuri was confused by the presence of the armoured competitor, moreso at Nezu's insistence that he be allowed to participate, despite the clear issues with the suit. Honestly, just based on the weight of the exoskeleton, and the things she could visibly note about the suit, she would not have personally allowed these things in the competition. Some of the attachments seem incredibly dangerous.
I mean, is that a jackhammer spike on the left arm?! What exactly was that supposed to do?
Not to mention the suit, despite being solidly built, looked like it was created in a junkyard. In the visible joints and gaps in the armour, she could see what appeared to be a mechanics jumpsuit underneath, covering the entire body of the participant. She also saw a few items barely hidden by armour plating, what appeared to be an aluminium propane tank, and a car battery covered partially by a thigh plate. Was that the fuel and power supply? No…it wouldn't be so exposed if it were, not when the armour itself seemed to be so thick in other areas.
She recalled what Hizashi had told her after he went dark for a bit…Midoriya.
She had never spoken with the quirkless student personally, outside of the support courses' required art classes. He was good. Very good, actually. But in class he always seemed so distracted, looking away from his assignments, or seeming to get lost in his own head.
Was he planning this all this time?
She shook her head a bit, before making her way over to the starting line as well, grabbing a green flag on her way. Nezu had the final call on if the boy is allowed to participate or not, despite her own trepidation. If he sees no problem with it, then that's that. Besides, Nezu usually makes the right call…
…But she can't help but feel something bad is going to happen…
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Setting up on the starting line, Izuku finds himself lost slightly in the sea of students. He notes that even in this event, the hero course starts with an advantage. Classes 1-A and 1-B are set up at the front of the pack, right behind the actual starting line. The actual start of the race isn't wide enough for everyone to have a place at the front of the pack, so of course the hero course got dibs.
But…that wasn't the only issue.
Izuku looked up, his faceplate obscuring his vision slightly, but he was still able to notice the long tunnel directly in front of the track. This spelled a few issues…not only was the tunnel fairly narrow, it was also too long for him to clearly see the end.
In other words, everything beyond the tunnel was an unknown variable…Izuku did not do well with unknown variables.
Not to mention getting pushed into a mass melee this early could be disastrous. Everyone is going to run for the gate the minute it starts, and all get caught in the ensuing clusterfuck. Even if he does manage to get through, the suit is focused on power, not speed. It's bulky, and hard to move in, if he gets caught in the mass, he is screwed.
So…he needs to find a new angle.
He knows exactly why this event is set up this way. It's to cull the herd. Ultimately people getting caught in the tunnel is the perfect way to separate those who are capable, from those who aren't.
The race hasn't even started, and he is already unsure of what to do.
"Ok…time to explore possibilities…" He looks up at the top of the tunnel, the massive stadium looming overhead, with thousands of screaming fans looking down at the starting line. "...Can't go over it, rocket jump won't go high enough, not to mention I risk hurting some of the fans if I am imprecise. I would rather avoid that if at all possible." His eyes wander to the crowd around him. "Plus…if I do anything drastic I could potentially cause a panic…no…no I need to make sure I avoid the melee. I need to get out of the crowd as soon as possible…but how ?"
"The rocket jump only goes about 100 metres forward, not nearly enough to clear the tunnel…not to mention it takes about three seconds to spool up…plus the afterburner could injure those behind me…unless…"
Izuku smirks, before lowering himself into a slight crouch, the best the exoskeleton could provide.
"Unless there is nobody behind me to injure…"
Midnight made it to the top of the tunnel, flag in hand, as three green lights lit over the tunnel. The students immediately all lowered into a runner's stance, some looki9ng anxious, while others looking determined. But for Izuku, his mind was already swimming with ideas.
The first light ticked down, and a tension filled the students. Izuku readied his suit, he could feel his heart pounding in his chest.
The second light followed the first, and he could see many students in three point stances raise their lower bodies into the air, ready to sprint.
And when the final light switched off, Midnight waved her flag, and the crowd immediately began to sprint ahead…
…all except for Izuku.
Izuku remained in his slight crouch, not moving an inch, as every student ran past him. Some of the students looked back in confusion, and some with barely contained annoyance as they ran into the back of the iron goliath, but Izuku did not pay them any mind, eyes locked forward at the crowd of people as their mass began to slow, and stop.
Just as expected, there was a pileup.
Many students tried to force their way into the tunnel…too many…and they all began to catch against each other, pressing the outer edges of the crowd into the wall, and stopping the entire crowd dead. Not to mention as soon as the crowd reached the tunnel, a wave of ice shot out, covering the entire floor of the tunnel.
Todoroki…
Izuku waited one more moment, letting the whole crowd settle in, before he finally flicked the switch under his right thumb. He heard the sounds of jet engines whirring up, as oxygen was sucked into the intake turbine right behind the back of his neck.
"Sure…100 metres isn't enough to clear the tunnel…"
Izuku smiled under the mask, a fire behind his eyes.
"...but it's more than enough to clear that !"
He heard the sound of the afterburner firing off, the suit rocketing forward as he angled it just above the crowd, as anticipated, he launched himself completely clear of the blockage of bodies, soaring directly over them. At the apex of the jump, he felt a scraping against his back as the engine rubbed slightly into the roof of the tunnel, before the engine shut off, and he began to descend. He immediately did as practised, putting his legs out in front of him in a long jump position, and he felt the shock absorbers on his legs click and extend outward. His landing kicked up a cloud of dirt in front of him, but any pain he might have felt after such a hard landing was mitigated by the matrix attached to his lower body.
As soon as he landed, he kicked his feet downward, pushing his upper body forward and evening his centre of balance, before he began to run, the crowd of people still stuck in the tunnel, although with a few finally escaping the pileup, and joining the race. Izuku knew they would be able to catch up to him, even running as fast as he could. The suit is heavy, and he can already feel the weight of the armour pressing him down, but he kept moving.
"I don't need to win…I just need to make sure someone else loses…"
Izuku finally reaches the end of the tunnel, other competitors brushing past him, when he finally sees the open sky again, and notices the next obstacle in front of him.
"Oh you have got to be kidding me!"
In front of him were two massive robots, each easily the size of a small skyscraper. They moved on massive treads, like a tank, and appeared to have multiple hidden armaments strewn about their body. He did notice that one of the robots was half covered in ice, though it seemed to be falling towards the earth.
…Directly in front of Izuku.
"Well," Izuku said, moving his left arm in front of him, "Time to see if this works!"
As he ran, he grabbed the inner forearm of his left arm with his right hand, putting his thumb on a hidden switch.
'Bakugo stood up, rage clear as day on his face, before looking down at his now smouldering shirt.'
"...Hold him down."
Izuku shook himself out of his memories, looking forward to the giant mech currently falling to the earth directly in his path. He quickly turned the dial next to the switch up to its maximum value, and focused his vision on the point in front of him.
"The suit is at 89% after that rocket jump, but it is slowly recharging…I should be able to fire off a consistent burst without killing the power loop…hopefully."
Izuku flipped the switch, hearing the sound of energy gathering in his palm, on a lens hidden within his closed fist.
"Time to see just how strong this can get."
His vision was filled with a bright blue light, as a beam of energy fired out of his palm, connecting with the still descending mech. The beam immediately met the middle of the machine, before blasting through the armoured plating of the mech, and punching a hole in the top of the mech. Izuku lowered his arm, dragging the beam through the machine and bisecting the sections of the technological titan.
The two pieces now fell independently of each other to the earth, both to the sides of Izuku as he continued to charge forward, the pieces finally hitting the ground with a loud tremor. Izuku did not let himself get distracted by the loud quaking, instead locking his eyes forward, still charging unimpeded.
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"Nezu, you can't be serious!" Kan was once again in front of the principal, who stared at the screen, unaffected by what he had just witnessed their unexpected variable accomplish. "He just bisected one of the Zero Pointers with a concentrated beam! Do you know what could happen if he turns that on an opponent?!"
Maijima leans back in his seat, putting his hands on the back of his head. "Probably the same thing that would happen if Aoyama went full power on an opponent." Vlad King can't see, but Maijima's eyes were still locked on the screen, a wide smile on his face.
Kan whirled around to Maijima, anger and disbelief clear on his face. "This is absolutely not the same thing! The hero course has training to know when to hold back, as well as how to properly regulate their quirks," He points a large finger at the screen, directly at the armoured support student still running towards the next obstacle, "He does not have those lessons! That beam had enough power to punch through reinforced plating! What is to say he doesn't turn that power on a competitor?! Or worse, has something even more dangerous up his sleeve?!"
"It sounds to me like you are worried he might win, Vlad." A previously unheard voice finally interjects.
"Aizawa, surely you see this is far too dangerous. Even his little stunt in the tunnel was incredibly risky. If he mistimed that jump, he could have hit the other students, or smashed himself into a crowd of bystanders!" Kan raised his hands in exasperation. "He is clearly not aware of how dangerous his invention is, using it so recklessly. Somebody needs to do something !"
Nezu gestured to Kan, sipping his tea with his other hand. "But he didn't injure anybody, did he?"
"Well…not yet! But it's only a matter of time with that level of recklessness!"
"Really? Is that what you saw?" Nezu poured himself more tea, eyes never meeting Kan, "Because what I saw was a well calculated maneuver, well planned out given the circumstances, as well as a well executed landing which avoided the largest group of people, while still clearing the obstacle in front of him." Nezu finally met Kan, his beady rodent eyes not giving anything away, as usual. "In truth, I believe we should be praising his tactical wit, not trying to have him disqualified."
Kan looked around to the other teachers, hoping somebody else would back him up, but seeing everyone else simply staring at the screen. He was about to give up, until he saw the emaciated figure of All Might stand up.
"I agree with Kan…even if I do not agree with his reasoning."
All of the teachers turned to the number one hero, and he continued, "Honestly, I think having a quirkless boy in this event is dangerous for the boy. This is not simply a game, there are points in the competition where he could be seriously injured, and he clearly doesn't consider his own safety as much as he should be. I think for Young Midoriya's wellbeing, he should be forced to withdraw from the tournament."
Maijima stood up, a sneer on his face, before Nezu held up a hand to him, stopping him. "Your objection has been noted, All Might," Nezu stated, eyes looking at All Might with some visible disappointment, "However, quirkless or not, Midoriya has done nothing to warrant being disqualified. If he wishes to participate, then nobody can stop him."
Aizawa had sat down again, looking towards the monitor at the various students going through the tournament, his eyes lingering on the topic of their heated discussion.
"...Well, Midoriya, let's see what else you can do."
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Kirishima stared ahead at the vast expanse directly in front of him. Bakugo and Todoroki getting further and further ahead. He looked down at the chasm in front of him, a shiver going down his spine.
He knew that U.A. liked to go Plus Ultra, but this seemed a bit ridiculous. I mean…a giant pit?! This is insane! How exactly were we supposed to clear this?!
Sure, Bakugo and Todorki could clear it easily enough, but Todoroki had made a bridge of ice, and Bakugo could literally fly with his quirk! Everyone else was left with some trepidation, wondering how to proceed. Kirishima simply stood at the edge of the chasm, looking over at the line that connected both sides.
The only way that he could cross…
He felt his heart hammering in his chest, fear creeping into his mind. How was he supposed to do this?! How was he supposed to do anything?! He had no idea how to proceed…no plan, no options.
…He had failed…
But then, he heard the sound of thunderous footsteps that had become familiar to him. He looked behind him and saw the suit of armour from the opening ceremony rushing forward, moving surprisingly fast given its size. The sound of metal clicking against metal, weight crushing the ground under the hulking metal figure's feet. It continued to run forward, with no signs of slowing down.
Directly towards Kirishima.
Kirishima tried to warm the other student, waving his hands and telling him to slow down, before he heard a distorted voice call out, as the student waved an arm in front of him.
"Clear the way!"
Kirishima immediately backed away, the distorted metallic voice echoing out across the track. Several other students moved aside as the armour got closer to the crowd. He heard the sound of a jet engine starting, growing louder and louder, until finally the armoured figure reached the edge of the chasm. And leaping right off the edge.
Kirishima panicked, reaching out to see if he could grab the student and stop them from falling, but then he saw the massive engine strapped to the back of the mech finally fire off, smaller jets on their boots firing off at the same time, and the armour began to soar. Kirishima watched in awe as the figure leaped over the chasm, powered by rockets strapped to his back, before the rockets stalled and he took a feet forward position. The armoured figure landed with a loud thunderous bang, but quickly shook off the landing, continuing to run ahead.
Kirishima stared in disbelief at the shrinking visage of the armour, trying to process what had just happened. Before he could say anything, he heard some angry muttering coming from his side, a student he didn't recognize with blue eyes and matching hair.
"Seriously?! They let quirkless Midoriya bring that into the tournament?! That has to be cheating, right?!"
Quirkless…
That armoured figure…Midoriya…he's quirkless ?
Kirishima looks back towards the armoured figure, trying to process this information. He looked down at the chasm again, and then back up at Midoriya.
"Here you are, complaining about not having a quirk that can clear the chasm, and this quirkless kid comes along and clears it no problem? He doesn't even hesitate to take that leap!"
Kirishima finally looks at the cable again, the fear once present behind his eyes fading, as a fire of determination fills their place. Maybe he didn't have the right quirk for the situation, but as a hero…how often would he? Why should that stop him from doing something, why should his quirk stop him right now?!
No…Kirishima swore that he would live his life without regrets…how was he supposed to do that if he couldn't even face his fear right now?!
Kirishima moved over to the cable, grabbing it with both hands, and wrapping his legs around the line, inching himself across.
He would not lose here.
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Izuku heard a cannon go off ahead of him, the finish line in sight, and then heard the familiar voice of Present Mic as the speakers crackled to life.
"And we have the winner of the Preliminary race! First to cross the finish line…Katsuki Bakugo! Followed closely by Shouto Todoroki!"
Izuku rolls his eyes. Of course Bakugo wins, for as much of an arrogant asshole as he is, Bakugo is strong, smart, and very capable in a variety of situations.
He hated to admit that, but he would be lying if he didn't.
Izuku looked forward at the track in front of him, seemingly empty save for small mounds in the ground. Izuku looked ahead to see several other figures running ahead, including a clean kept head of blue hair waving in the wind, and square rimmed glasses glinting off of the sunlight.
"Tenya Iida, quirk: Engine. He has small combustion engines that grow from within his thighs, allowing him to run faster than most people alive." Izuku shook his head, "No way I can keep up with him…but I don't have to…maybe I can use him to test out the path ahead?" Izuku fell in behind Iida, allowing him to rocket on ahead, but as soon as he reached the mounds, the boy slowed down, trying to maneuver around them.
"Strange…" Izuku looks at Iida, still dancing around the mounds, "He seems to be avoiding the mounds in the ground…must be something sensitive to footfalls…though I do notice he is moving far slower than he did before…" Izuku smirks, "Seems he can't handle sharp turns or rough terrain well…" He heard Present Mic announce that ten people had already passed the finish line.
"Knowledge to file away for later, for now focus on the task at hand."
By this point, several other students had reached the mounds, including the distinctive vine-covered head of Shiozaki Ibara, who simply used her vines to extend herself into the air, then walked forward with the vines. Others were not so lucky, as he saw a black haired girl with a bob hairstyle accidentally step on one of the mounds, inducing a soft click sound, followed by a loud bang, and a visible pink explosion, as the black haired girl was launched into the air.
Izuku's vision fills with the pink cloud directly in front of him, the sound of a detonation echoing across the track. A minefield…of course it's a minefield! He looks over at Iida, who still seems to be slowly making his way across the track, though he does look up and see Izuku rushing forward. At this point, Ibara had cleared the track, as well as the segmented floating body parts of Setsuna Tokage, and several other students close behind.
The voice of Present Mic echoes overhead. "25 competitors have already crossed the finish line! Better hurry up, stragglers!"
Izuku begins to panic, taking a quick glance at the heat gauge. "The rocket jump may not consume too much power, but it does produce a significant amount of heat…the mechanism is starting to clock out, getting close to overheating." Izuku looked ahead, the minefield getting closer and closer, "I can't let that happen…not this early…I don't necessarily need to conserve power, but I do need to avoid heat, and maintain my resources."
"So how am I supposed to cross this?!"
Ahead of him, more and more people hit the minefield, all slowing down to dance across the minefield, avoiding the hidden explosives like the plague. There must have been at least a dozen of them ahead of him, but Izuku simply stood at the mouth of the minefield, paralyzed with indecision.
"Ok…can't go around them, the suit is too bulky and unwieldy, I'll step on the mines for sure…I can't go over it, because my suit will overheat. Can't go around without leaving the track…think dammit!"
He saw at least 20 competitors ahead of him right now, each of them slowly stepping their way to victory, while Izuku simply stood at the rear of the minefield, his crisis overtaking him.
He had failed…again…
Just like always.
He felt his mind start to consume him, his own self-loathing eating away at whatever confidence he started the race at.
"So…this is the limit of how far I go, huh? Why am I even surprised? You never would have made it, not against the advantage of the hero course. Your suit isn't good enough, you aren't good enough!"
He looks down at the heat gauge, praying that the temperature has decreased, but the needle still hovers close to the red line.
"If only I could use my rocket jump again…then I would be able to clear this easily…
…
…the rocket jump…that's it!"
Izuku immediately turned around, running backwards a few metres, before turning back towards the minefield, and beginning to run forward.
"The rocket may be out of commission, but the shock matrix is automatic! It triggers as soon as I start to fall! So while I can't go over the minefield…"
Izuku leaps as far as he can, which with the heavy steel suit on, was admittedly not that far, but it is more than enough for him to clear the first row of mines, his foot impacting directly on top of one of the mines in the second row.
"I can still go through it!"
The explosion is almost deafening, and Izuku briefly is taken back to a dark place, a world of pain, being pinned down to his garage floor, the acrid smell of burning sugar and blood filling his nostrils, but he shakes himself out of it, leaning forward at the last second, and letting the mine detonate underneath his boot. The detonation launches him up and forward, deeper into the minefield, and immediately, Izuku begins calculating his landing, looking at the next spot.
He notes that the conclusion of his mine leap is going to land him directly in the middle of some of the pack currently trying to weave through the minefield, and a cruel idea pops into his head.
"Time to start fighting for my placement."
Instead of landing and holding position as he had before, Izuku chooses to land feet forward, allowing the shock matrix to absorb the impact, before ducking into a forward roll, rolling over several mines, and crouching over two more, which launch him into the air again, towards the front of the pack. He hears the surprised gasps and cries of anger and surprise as several mines detonate at once, the force catching the other competitors, and launching them to the sides of the minefield, into more mines. The ensuing chaos was a chain reaction of racers falling onto mines, detonating those mines, and other racers then also being caught in the crossfire.
In a way, it was beautiful, but he didn't have time to appreciate the chaos behind him.
Landing in a long jump stance again, Izuku feels the shock matrix mitigate the impact once again, though he does note the feeling of one of the shocks on his left leg catching on something, causing a sting of pain to shoot through his knee. He winces, but gets back up to his feet and begins running forward, towards the group just now crossing the finish line.
As his suit sluggishly sprints forward, he starts to hear the telltale sound of sprinter's breaths to his left and right. Looking to the side, he watches as Iida rockets past him, with several other hero course members catching up. He tried to push the suit to run faster, but some passed by him, rocketing ahead as he lugged his body forward.
"Cmon, move! We're so close!"
Every student who crosses the finish line before him fills Izuku with a sense of dread, just waiting for Present Mic to call the race, but Izuku keeps running forward, keeps running to the checkered line at the end of the track, he hears more figures behind him, slowly catching up, but doesn't turn. Instead he keeps his eyes on the finish line, on his goal, and only stops after his metal boot makes contact with the line.
He looks over to see as some other students cross after him, and notes that there is a large pack making their way to the pockmarked soil that once was the minefield, and looks around at the other competitors who had made it. He immediately points out the pink dreadlocks of Mei, who had finished close behind him, and takes the time to really look at her gear.
Begrudgingly, he can't help but be impressed.
Izuku immediately leans against the wall of the stadium, looking at his left leg, and noticing that some loose rocks had gotten caught in the spring while it was extending, causing the shock to lose function. He pulls off one of his gloves and reaches into the shock, digging the pebble out, and sighing in relief as the shock contracts back into its socket.
Good…it wasn't broken.
Izuku laughed to himself once, a smile crossing his face as he let himself bask in his success, he really had done it, hadn't he?
His good mood didn't last, as Present Mic's voice rang out over the speakers again.
"And in 36th place, we have the quirkless wonder of the support course, Izuku Midoriya! Followed by his classmate, Mei Hatsume in 37th, the ice queen of 1-B Yui Kodai in 38th, and the American exchange student, Pony Tsunatori, in 39th!"
Izuku's blood ran cold, as the arena suddenly grew very quiet. The students all began to turn towards him, and he was suddenly very glad that his armour covered his face, so they couldn't see the fear in his eyes. He immediately saw them whispering, all pointing in his direction and subtly muttering to each other, some with disdain clear on their faces. Though none of them compared to the barely restrained rage that one Katsuki Bakugo levied directly at his armoured visage.
… fuck .
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Katsuki Bakugo had been having a good day. The extras in his class hadn't bothered him today, besides Shitty Hair, who always seemed to go out of his way to tell Bakugo how great he was.
Not like he needed the reminder.
Then he got his chance to state his intentions at the opening ceremony for all to see, making his greatness clear. He knew that the extras in the crowd of students wouldn't see it like that, but their opinion hardly mattered for someone destined for greatness like him.
The race had been a cakewalk, the only annoying part being Icy-Hot trying to get in his way. He had cleared every single event with ease, blasting straight forward as always, and had gotten his well deserved victory.
Just like always.
But as he was basking in the cheers of the crowd, he heard this loud thumping sound, and saw this walking junkyard cross the finish line way after he did. He looked at the figure and scoffed at how pathetic it all looked.
Honestly, it was embarrassing, needing that much gear and to not even place in the top 10? Disgusting. Katsuki was sure that he wouldn't last past round 2.
But then he heard the announcement.
"And in 36th place, we have the quirkless wonder of the support course, Izuku Midoriya!"
And just like that, his good mood was ruined, and the only thing he felt was rage.
Deku
Fucking Deku had managed to not only cheat his way into U.A., but had cheated his way into placing in the Sports Festival?!
No…this would not stand.
His eyes zeroed in on the armoured coward, as he began walking towards him, explosions popping in his hands. That little freak actually thought he deserved to be here? In His dream backstory?! Looks like that defect needed to learn another lesson.
He thought back to that day almost a year ago, when he crushed the quirkless loser and proved his superiority. He had hoped that Deku would have finally realised that his place was beneath him, under his boot, and out of his life. But clearly the message hadn't been clear enough.
He saw the faceplate of the armour turn, locking onto Katsuki's, but much to his frustration, the quirkless loser didn't shrink into himself, instead he almost seemed to even out, readying his arms as the octagon shaped bulge rotated and clicked into place. Not that it would matter.
There was nothing that quirkless freak could use that could possibly hold a candle to someone as great as Katsuki.
But before Katsuki could finally put the loser in his place, he saw Shitty Hair jog up to Deku, a stupid smile on his face, before speaking in that annoying loud voice of his.
"Dude, you're quirkless?! That is so manly !"
…What?
"I mean, don't get me wrong, the suit is amazing no matter what, but you're making that and being Quirkless?! That's amazing!"
Bakugo stared at the interaction in disbelief, looking at Shitty Hair as Deku seemed to shrink back from the red-haired boy. The quirkless freak began to stutter out some stupid response, but Bakugo wasn't paying attention, trying to understand what the hell Shitty Hair was talking about.
Bakugo looked around, seeing all the people looking at Deku in a cacophony of pity, confusion and barely contained annoyance, and chuckled to himself.
Well, at least not everyone had lost their mind.
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Izuku stared down at Kirishima, still looking up at him enthusiastically, as the energetic redhead fired off question after question. Izuku was not used to this kind of attention, especially some that seemed so positive, but he steeled himself, and shook his head, his voice becoming distorted by the metal plating as he responded to Kirishima.
"What's your game, huh? Expecting me to tell you exactly how my suit works?"
Kirishima's smile faded, and he looked up at Izuku in confusion. "No, not really, I just think it's awesome, you being quirkless but still building something so amazing!"
Izuku rolled his eyes under the mask, "Oh, so just because I'm quirkless, suddenly I'm incapable of building this?"
Kirishima's eyes widened, and he brought up his hands in placation, "Whoa, no no! That isn't what I meant." The redhead seemed to consider his words carefully, "I just think it's super manly, you fighting and everything. I want to see what you can do!" Kirishima's grin goes wider, sharp teeth displaying in full to Izuku, "Plus, I can't wait to face you in the final!"
Izuku continued to stare down at Kirishima, face slack in disbelief. He…he actually thinks he can make it to the final? He shook his head.
"No…no he's baiting me…that's all this is." Even though Kirishima can't see it, he stares down at him with anger. "I'm not gonna fall for it…not again."
He looks around, and his eyes fall on the figure of Mei, who seems to be staring at him from a fair distance away. But when his eyes meet her, she turns her head, face twisting in hesitation. He looks around again, seeing several recognizable faces staring at him in either confusion, pity, or both. He notes Kubo looking his suit up and down, trying to get a read on the overall design, as well as Iida, staring intensely at Izuku, but he tried not to let it get to him.
Izuku began to walk away, Kirishima stuttering out an objection as he did so, but he didn't care. He just needed to keep focused on the next task. He saw Bakugo staring at him, face still twisted in rage, and Izuku was ashamed of the fear that shot through his body.
"Calm down, don't let him get to you…you aren't weak anymore." Izuku looked up towards the stage, where Midnight strutted up to the microphone, preparing to announce the next event.
"Alright kiddos, listen well!" She cracked her whip, the sound being enough to calm the crowd's irritation slightly. "The next event will begin shortly, and this one is going to be…" She reaches over to her right, a cloth covering what appears to be a sign. Lifting the cloth off with a flourish. "A Cavalry Battle! Each of you will form teams of up to four, and compete to gather points from all the other teams!"
Midnight gestures to the electronic scoreboard behind her, "Points will be divided up based on your position in the last event, with higher places in the race earning more points, and the first place contender getting…Ten Million points!" Eyes all moved to Bakugo, many students staring at him with determination, but Bakugo hardly reacted, ignoring the staring to continue to glare at Izuku.
"With Only four teams being able to move onto the final round of the festival. Make sure to pick your teams wisely!"
Teams…
Izuku felt his heart sink at that word, looking around at everyone else in the tournament.
…Why did it have to be teams?!
Chapter 9: A Stacked Game
Maijima was normally a patient man, and over the years he had gotten quite good at biting his tongue. All of the times he had to take tongue-lashings from heroes who were dissatisfied with their gear had strengthened his patience significantly. As such, usually it took something unfathomably stupid or malicious for him to even respond to it.
This meant that nobody had even tried to stop him when he grabbed Present Mic and began to shake him like wet laundry.
Everyone stood stunned as the normally collected teacher sneered at their overly energetic coworker, throttling him in his chair and screaming louder than anybody had ever heard him talk. Even Nezu seemed caught off guard, but he quickly composed himself again. It wasn't until Kan and Ishiyama grabbed Maijima and held him back that Yamada got to collect himself, shrinking back in his chair as Maijima continued to verbally assault him.
"Of all of the idiotic things you have ever done, Mic, this has to be the stupidest one by far!" Maijima struggled against Kan and Ishiyama's grip, trying to break away so he could continue to slam Mic against his chair. "Do you even know what you just did, you moron?!"
Hizashi shook himself back to his senses, and immediately put up his hands in placation. "I-i'm sorry! I didn't mean anything by it! I was watching the kid's progress and announcing the race and it just kinda slipped out." Hizashi looked down, having the decency to look guilty, "I know that I just made things harder for the kid, but that wasn't my int-"
"Harder is an understatement , Yamada! I don't think you even realise how badly you fucked up!" Maijima started to slack against the grip of his coworkers, instead levelling Present Mic with an unseen glare, "Midoriya has already displayed trust issues towards his peers and the faculty. He tenses up when I address him in class, he refuses to see the nurse if he gets hurt, and he barely lets me see what he is building half the time, let alone anyone else! I have been trying to show Midoriya that he doesn't have to be afraid of his teachers, that of all people, he can trust us ."
Maijima takes a deep breath, lowering his eyes to the ground, "...and then you come along, and basically set the kid up for a beating." The helmeted hero raises his eyes again, and even though his eyes aren't visible, Present Mic can feel the disdain behind the glare. "You just painted a target on that kid's back, Mic. You robbed him of his fair chance."
Present Mic looks down at the switchboard, lost in his own head. He doesn't dare meet Power Loader's gaze. Instead his eyes darted around the different dials and levers, as if they held some sort of solution to this problem. It is at this point that Nezu leaves his seat, and begins walking towards the front of the teacher's booth.
"Well," Nezu begins, teacup still in hand, "Unfortunate circumstances or not, this particular pandora's box cannot be closed again. The reality is that Midoriya's secret would have likely gotten out one way or another, so maybe it's better that a teacher informed the populus rather than someone a bit more partial." Nezu reached the group, looking out the window at the crowd below. His eyes zeroed in on the armoured student within the mass of competitors.
"Besides, perhaps this can present a unique opportunity for Midoriya." Nezu takes a sip of his tea, eyes never straying from Midoriya. "We have already seen the boy's ability to think on his feet, a skill he has clearly cultivated. Now, Midoriya will have to find a new angle, he can't rely on quick thinking alone to win this competition, especially not now ." Nezu glances at Yamada, who doesn't meet his eyes.
"Instead," Nezu continues, "Midoriya will have to think outside of traditional avenues for a solution to this problem. He has been thrust into a situation where his chances of victory are minimal…I wonder how he will adapt?"
While Nezu was speaking, Aizawa had moved from the corner of the room, approaching the viewing window slowly. His mind was swarming with thoughts, namely profanity against his loud coworker, but also considering Nezu's words. He looked over at the rat, observing the slight upward turn of his lips into a subtle, but smug grin.
"... what do you know that we don't? "
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Midnight gestured behind her to the large screen, which flickered to display a set of rules. She picked the microphone off of its stand, lifting it to her lips and smirking flirtatiously. "Now I know how much everyone hates foreplay, but we do need to discuss a few ground rules." She noticed a few students blush, while others rolled their eyes. "Each team must have at least two members, you cannot go alone in this challenge. You need to have at least one team member as the "rider" and one as the "horse". The rider must possess each and every headband in your team's possession, openly and plainly, no hiding the headbands."
The screen switches to a new display, and Midnight continues, "The only real rule beyond that is the rider cannot touch the ground, or else your team is out! So make sure you consider that when making teams!" Midnight cracked her whip, "Now get moving, you have ten minutes to form a team!" The crowd began to disperse, conglomerating into teams. Izuku looked around and saw the vast majority of people doing their best to not meet his eyes. Anyone else was either fixing him with a pitying gaze, or glaring at him, the message clear in their eyes. His eyes met with some of his classmates, all of which simply ignored him, or in the case of Aoi and his cronies, fixing him with sadistic glares.
Wonderful.
The competition hadn't even begun, but he was already in a losing position. He glanced up at the teachers box, teeth clenched and eyes burning with contempt. If Present Mic just hadn't opened his mouth, then he wouldn't be in this position! He felt his hands shaking in his grip, his body tense as he scanned the crowd, trying to look for an exit.
The arena seemed to close in on him, every other student fixing him with a malicious gaze. His vision swam around him, desperately trying to clock every figure at once, but he was surrounded. He could feel them closing in, his body going rigid as the familiar sense of helplessness washed over him. He had to escape. He had to get out of here, right now. He had to-
Deep Breaths
In
Out
In
Out
His body slackened, his grip loosening and his head lowering as he simply let the reality of the situation wash over him.
"Honestly? It's my fault for expecting anything different." Izuku mused to himself, letting bitterness fill his heart, "I mean, every other teacher I had known would have done the same…did I really expect them to suddenly be different because they were heroes?"
"If anything, I should have expected far worse at this point."
Izuku let his eyes wander the crowd again, noting the familiar figures of Kirishima and Hatsume as they seemed to wander the crowd. Their eyes locked onto him, and he could see Kirishima begin to approach him, eyes bright and smile wide. Izuku immediately whirled around, walking in the opposite direction.
"Like I'm gonna trust that," Izuku began to scan over the competitors again, head swimming.
"The easiest way to stab someone in the back is from their side…No…I can't trust that his intentions are honest." His eyes turn back over his pink haired classmate, "...I can't trust her either. I can't trust anyone that willingly approaches me…after all, they could be baiting me…trying to get me locked in only to sabotage me…or worse." Izuku shakes his head,
"No…there is only one way I can ensure that my team tows the line." Izuku looked over at the other students again, trying to casually observe their facial expressions from behind his mask. "I need to find at least one person here that I can persuade to help me…whatever that might mean. But I can't just rely on good will…no I need something far more concrete than that."
"...I need someone who is desperate."
Izuku began to walk into the crowd, noting people parting as if he were a plague, and he felt his lip curl unconsciously. It was all so childish…they were acting like being near him would take their quirks away! He let his anger wash over him, propelling him to keep taking steps forward.
Just as it always had.
After about two minutes, Izuku started to panic internally. His heart began to hammer against his chest as he continued to scan the crowd, trying to see if he could spot a fitting candidate, when his eyes zeroed in on a scuffle happening further within the crowd.
He sees two students he didn't recognize, one with slicked back silver hair and squinted green eyes, and one with an unkempt mass of violet hair, his baggy eyes matching in colour. The silver haired boy seemed to be whispering aggressively to the violet one, who simply stared back at him with boredom.
"They aren't in the hero course…I would recognize them. They could be one of the other support courses…but the lack of support gear says otherwise. Must be general studies then."
Izuku quietly observed the confrontation, trying to hear what they were saying to each other.
"...Listen up, Shinso, there is only one spot open in the hero course. We both know that once people figure out your quirk, you can't win, especially against the hero course. So, I'm offering you a deal. You team with me, we both get to the final, and then you forfeit. I got into the hero course, and I put in a good word to you. Then you try again next year."
The violet-haired boy doesn't make a visible response, his expression remaining bored. "And…this benefits me…how?"
"It benefits you because I won't tell everyone what your quirk is right now." The silver haired boy's lips curl upward, and Izuku sees Shinso flinch barely. "You get to keep your dirty little secret…and still get a chance at the hero course later on. And I, in turn, get my rightful spot in 1-A." The silver haired boy puts out his hand, eyes narrowing as he waits for Shinso to shake it.
"Even in such a short conversation I can gather a few things." Izuku observes the pair, watching as Shinso's expression morphs from passive boredom into anger, with a small hint of fear. "The purple one, Shinso, clearly wants to get into the hero course…so does the silver boy…but there is a clear power dynamic. Shinso's quirk must be one that works best when he has surprise on his side…it also might carry some stigma with it. Meanwhile silver boy is clearly confident…but here he is in the general studies course…quirk probably is all flash, no substance, something he thinks would be great for hero work on spectacle alone…but probably lacks any critical use in its current state."
Izuku takes a step forward, but is interrupted when Shinso leans into the silver haired boy, and begins to whisper into his ear. Izuku watches as the silver boy's expression turns from smug satisfaction, to frustration, and finally settling on shock, and fear. Shinso leans back, and makes a shoo-ing gesture with his hand, as if talking to a belligerent puppy. The silver haired boy lowers his gaze, and begins to stomp off, leaving Shinso alone.
"Hmm…impressive," Izuku takes another step, approaching Shinso from the side, keeping himself in the boy's cone of vision, "This Shinso boy…he clearly has a chip on his shoulder…and he is willing to use dirty blows to win a fight, be it secrets, or sucker punches…that tells me he's desperate. Not to mention, he doesn't seem to have any other teammates…
…he's perfect."
"So," Izuku began, walking up to Shinso, and stopping a few paces away from him, "Mind telling me what you said to him?"
Shinso looked up at the armoured figure, keeping his emotions hidden from view. "...Just a little secret I'm sure his daddy wouldn't want getting tossed around…"
Izuku smiled under his mask, "Well, I gotta admit, it was impressive nonetheless." Izuku takes a theatrical look around, noting the lack of competitors surrounding them. "I can see you are absolutely swimming with offers. But I figured I would throw my hat in the ring, so to speak." Izuku straightened, extending a hand out, "I want you on my team."
Shinso observed the extended hand, and chuckled. "You think I don't know who you are? Teaming with you puts a target right on my back as well. What could a quirkless person have that I would be interested in?"
Izuku grits his teeth, "I can guarantee a win in the upcoming round."
It isn't until his vision starts to fade, and his mind begins to empty, that he realises his mistake.
It feels like he is swimming in syrup, his conscious mind slowing and calming. He feels enclosed…safe within the subconscious. His eyes begin to grow hazy, still able to make out the figure of Shinso in front of him, and for the first time in a long time he feels his brain start to relax, letting the sensation wash over him. Then, he hears a voice echo through his entire being.
Take off your armour.
Izuku feels his body begin to obey the command, his arms moving to unbuckle the straps keeping his chestplate on. He immediately gets the sensation that something is wrong, and tries to struggle against the order, but no matter what he does, he can't control his body. It feels wrong, and he immediately begins to panic. Struggling against the syrupy feeling seems to only cause him to sink further, and for the first time in a long time, Izuku feels completely helpless as his body removes the armour, and steps out of the boots.
And just as fast as it began, it was over, and Izuku stood in front of Shinso once again, who looked at him with a deadly serious gaze.
"Are you sure you still want to team with me?"
Izuku stood paralysed for a moment, and Shinso took that as his response, and began to turn around. But then Izuku responded.
"Absolutely!"
Shinso whirled around in disbelief, only to see Izuku, still out of his armour, looking at him with excitement in his eyes.
"Actually, this works out even more perfectly! That quirk would be ideal for a plan I have cooking up. Not to mention it would make acquiring teammates even easier! Your quirk is some sort of activated mind control, right? Probably activated through vocal cues as we didn't have any contact…perhaps it involves nuances of conversation? If you would be willing, it would help for me to know just what your quirk can do to properly formulate a strategy."
Shinso simply stared in confusion, unsure of how to respond to Izuku's ramblings, before settling on a simple, "...what?"
"What do you mean 'what'? Of course I would want you on my team! Do you not understand how useful that power is? Your quirk is amazing!"
Shinso seems stunned for a moment, simply trying to process what Izuku said, before he shakes himself out of his stupor, adopting his bored expression again. "...You said you could guarantee a win…how?"
Izuku's smile turns slightly more smug, almost sinister, as Shinso can see ideas whirling like a hurricane behind the quirkless boy's eyes. "First…I need your help…we're gonna need more teammates, and I know just who to get."
Izuku walks over to Shinso, placing himself directly next to the slightly taller boy, and points his finger out to the crowd, landing on two long figures.
"We will need him…and him. You think you can help with that?"
Shinso looks at the two figures that Izuku pointed at for a moment, before fixing Izuku with a deadpan expression.
"...You're kidding, right?"
_________________________________________________________________________
Todoroki had been approached immediately by several of his classmates to team up for the second event, but honestly he just found himself frustrated by their presence. A part of him wished that they were allowed to go solo for this event. He was sure that he could do this all on his own.
Even without his fire.
He was about to pick between the groups, before he felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned around to see two boys he didn't recognize. One had purple hair and an exhausted expression, though his lazy grin might suggest otherwise. He recognized this boy from when he approached their class the other day, and made his declaration of war.
Todoroki had barely remembered the event…much less the boy's name.
The other boy, however, Todoroki knew he didn't recognize. He had green hair pulled back into a tight ponytail, with matching forest green eyes. Instead of wearing the normal U.A. gym uniform, the boy appeared to be wearing a mechanics jumpsuit and heavy welding gloves, though he also appeared to only be in socks.
…all in all, the pair seemed odd.
"What do you want?" Todoroki asked bluntly.
The purple haired boy chuckled, moving his hand to tap his chest with a closed fist. "Wow, real conversationalist, aren't you?"
Todoroki rolled his eyes, "I don't have time for random chatter, now tell me what you want, or leave."
Immediately, Todoroki felt his mind slip away, his thoughts emptying as he felt his soul withdraw into his unconscious. Immediately though, he heard words echoing out around him.
Ok ok, fine. I'll be quick…we want you on our team.
Immediately, Todoroki felt his body start to move, walking away from his classmates and towards the two strange boys. What was going on? Why couldn't he control his body?! Had one of these two boys done something to him? Through his hazy vision, he could see the purple haired boy looking back at Todoroki smugly, hand curling one finger in, and tapping it against his chest.
Was that the trigger? Was that how they had gotten him into this state?!
Todoroki tried to command his body to move, to follow what he wanted it to do, but no matter how much he struggled, he couldn't get his body to listen to him. He could see the two boys whispering through his hazy vision, but couldn't hear what they were saying.
...what had these two done to him?
_________________________________________________________________________
"So…remind me again why I'm tapping my chest?"
"Misdirection," Izuku kept his eyes locked forward, whispering low so only Shinso could hear, "By doing that, you are essentially creating a red herring. You said it yourself, people can still see when they are under your control. This is to keep him from getting a read on your quirk trigger like I did."
Shinso kept his eyes locked on Izuku, face filled with confusion, before shaking his head.
"Why are you helping me?"
Izuku looked over at Shinso, "At this current moment, we're allies…at least by circumstance. I'm just ensuring that we make it to the final round." Izuku sighed, "Plus, the less he knows about your quirk, the easier we can keep him in line." Izuku then stopped, turning to Shinso as his eyes hardened, "But let me be clear, once we pass this round, all bets are off. I'm not above using my knowledge of your quirk against you."
Shinso, similarly, hardened his features, before nodding. The pair turned back toward the crowd, a dazed Todoroki following along with an empty expression. Izuku's eyes lock onto their next target, and he gestures for Shinso to follow him, still tapping his chest, but then Izuku looks up at the timer in the corner, and puts out his arm, stopping Shinso.
"Let me take the lead on this one."
Shinso raises an eyebrow, but shrugs and allows Izuku to walk forward, approaching their next target. Izuku then taps him on the shoulder, and addresses him.
"Kaminari, correct?"
Kaminari turns around, looking at the slightly shorter boy in confusion. "Uhh…yeah, why?"
Izuku nods to him, "Honestly, I'm interested in your quirk. It's some sort of electrical discharge, right?" Izuku's eyes lock to behind Kaminari, where he sees his classmates pairing up with others, and smirks. "Do you know how many kilowatts you can output?"
Kaminari scratches his head, and chuckles nervously. "I uh…I'm not sure? I have never really tested it, yknow?"
"No," Izuku thought, darkly, "Because if I had your quirk, that would have been one of the first things I check."
"I see, well that's fine…either way, I want you on our team." Izuku puts a hand out, "not only can I guarantee that you make it to the next round, i can guarantee that we will do it in a way that nobody has ever seen before."
Kaminari scratches the back of his neck, seeming bashful, "Well, as good as that sounds I kinda already have a team."
Izuku quietly gestures to Shinso, who approaches Kaminari.
"Do you?" Shinso asks,
Kaminari shrugs, "Yeah, I already paired with some of my classmates, sorry."
With that, Kaminari's eyes fade, and his expression grows slack. Izuku grins, and looks back up at Shinso, who is now tapping two fingers against his chest.
"Ok," Shinso said, looking down at Izuku, smirking but with hesitation behind his eyes, "So now that we have your little dream team, what is the plan?"
Izuku grins again, walking over to the armour currently on the ground, and begins to connect the chestplate to his shoulder socket. "First, let's let time run down."
Izuku rebuckles the armour, clicking every piece into place and refitting it onto his body, lowering the helmet and turning back around to Shinso. Izuku looks up at the timer, noting the time ticking down.
Three
Two
One
The sound of the buzzer rang out, and Shinso released both Todoroki and Kaminari, who began to look around in confusion.
"Congrats," Izuku turned around, addressing the others of his team, "You both are now part of this team, by default."
Kaminari looked around in confusion, while Todoroki faced Izuku with visible anger, ice seeping over his body. "You tricked us…both of us, didn't you?!"
The mechanised suit shrugged, "Guilty," Izuku moved closer to the team, "Look, you can whine and moan about it after this event is over. For now, we are your only option for passing this event."
Todoroki continued to glare, before relaxing his stance, ice fading off his right side. "...fine…so what is your genius plan?"
"Yeah," Shinso says, looking up at the armoured figure with mild annoyance, "Why did you need this specific team? Is there some kind of master plan to get a ton of headbands?"
Izuku chuckled, the metallic lilt of his faceplate distorting the sound, making it sound inhuman. "Oh…no this team is screwed in the cavalry battle."
His team stared at him, waiting for Izuku to deliver some kind of punchline, but none came. Eventually, Shinso clenched a fist, "...what do you mean, 'we're screwed'?"
"I mean what I said," Izuku continues, unimpeded, "In this competition, as the rules are written, we stand no chance." Izuku shakes his head, gesturing to the scoreboard, where their team lay directly in the middle of the board. "See that? We lie dead centre on the board. In truth, this team lacks the mobility and coverage to make a dent in that. Not to mention with me on the team, we have a target on our backs. People with top positions will likely come after us just to get to me."
Todoroki had his teeth clenched, eyes radiating anger, "So, you sabotaged us?"
"I didn't say that," Izuku turned back to Todoroki, "I said as the competition was laid out, we didn't stand a chance. Truth is, this game is stacked against us." Izuku leans down, and Shinso swears he can hear the smug grin on his face.
"So what do you do when you can't win the game?" Izuku looks towards the scoreboard again, feeling the familiar rush of endorphins as the pieces of this puzzle fall together in his head.
"You change the rules."
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Shinso rests himself on the back of Kaminari and Todoroki's outstretched arms, leaning forward onto the cold metal of his armoured teammate in front of him. He quickly picks the headband up, noting the point total emblazoned onto the front.
645
A decent number on its own…but not nearly enough to rest on when the competition kicks off…
He knocks on the back of Midoriya's helmet, who turns slightly to meet him with the corner of his gaze. "Are you sure this will work?"
"No," Izuku replies, bluntly, "Not without a proof of concept, but I have a backup plan in case it doesn't."
Shinso rolls his eyes. "Of course you don't know. Not like that's important or anything." Shinso's sarcasm was palpable, but Izuku noted the smile on his face, and began to grin under his mask.
"Admit it," Izuku states, "You are curious to see if it works."
"...maybe a little."
Shinso ties the headband around his neck, looking around at all the other teams collecting at the edges of the arena. His eyes immediately zero in on a familiar sight, and his smile grows wider.
"...you said you needed a proof of concept, right?" Shinso points at the team directly to their right. "That boy with the silver hair? His name is Ginji Maeda. He has the ability to emit bright light from his palms. I'm not sure what the limitations are, but I do know the last time he used it, he walked straight into a door frame." Shinso fixed Midoriya with a curious look, "You got anything for that?"
"My helmet has adaptive lenses in it, made for welding," Izuku responds, eyes zeroing in on the team just a few feet to the left, "As for the doorframe incident, maybe he isn't immune to his own light? Maybe using it for too long blinds him? It would explain the narrowed eyelids and pinprick pupils." Izuku's body then lowers into a ready stance, looking up at the scoreboard, and briefly noting the point total displayed over the individual teams.
10,008,960 points across a dozen or so teams...
Leaning down and to the right, Izuku readied himself for the event to begin. "Yeah…that should work as a test run."
The crack of a whip was heard, and the crowd began to cheer along with a countdown displayed on the jumbotron.
"Ten!"
"Nine!"
Izuku's eyes meet a team across the arena, the familiar sight of the explosive blonde glaring at him from all that distance away still sends a shiver up his spine.
"Focus…this is good. His attention is on you now, that is exactly what we want, at least for now."
"Eight!"
"Seven!"
"I wasn't lying to the team before…this competition is stacked against us as it is laid out."
"Six!"
"Five!"
"...but that doesn't mean that we are out…really this is how it has always been. From minute one, the world has stacked the deck against me."
"Four!"
"Three!"
"I never stood a chance before…not as I was…but now…"
"Two!"
"One!"
"Now I can fight back my way."
"GO!"