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Chapter 27: The Burden of Limelight.
🕑 Added 2024-06-25 19:04:31 +0000 UTCWell, my internet is finally good enough to load anything.
I have no idea why, but ever since January, I've developed this one crack ship, which I know will NEVER work in canon. However, whenever I think of an AU, I always try to find a way to fit that in. That ship is Cobolt Guardian, the ship of Toya Todoroki(A hero) and Mellissa Shield(aged up a couple years). Part of the appeal is that I just find it within the behavior of one of Enji's sons to date someone so connected to All Might.
But on a more serious note, the ship came from the idea of if they met when Toya was younger before he, well…'died'. With her learning of his dream(obsession) of being a hero and as a support student, vowing to create him gear and tools that can help keep him from harming himself and using his quirk in ways his dad can only dream about, with her helping him learn much like Shoto does, to find his OWN way, separate from his father.
Chapter 27: The Burden of Limelight.
"This doesn't affect me. I'm coming for you, pyromaniac!" Bakugo yelled as he swung for him, to which Midoriya reacted by swinging his arm out to meet his, but lower, so when they crossed, he forced Bakugo's palm upwards, directing the explosion harmlessly away from him.
“And Bakugo challenges Midoriya for first place with an explosive right swing! Rejoice, mass media! This is the action you love!” Present Mic announced as the people in the stadium cheered for the latest development, one made all the more exciting when both Midoriya and Bakugo looked behind and immediately jumped out of the way of a wall of jagged ice, as Todoroki wasn’t about to let them take first without a fight.
'This is not what I wanted!' Midoriya thought to himself as the 3 engaged in a running brawl, attacking and defending on two sides from the others to try and regain first place, a title they shared at the moment. But how tightly knit they were and the fact that Midoriya noticed that the spread of the mines grew tighter as they progressed made that impossible. If he handled Todoroki, that momentary window was sealed by Bakugo attacking. If he pushed back Bakugo, Todoroki was ready in the wings.
"What is this? It's a triple-threat match for first place! Those 3 are as competitive as they came! They don't even want others butting in; how nice!" Present Mic called out as the cameras focused on them, including the parts where they would simultaneously strike at any that tried to pass them as they fought; Tokage's pieces were blasted away by an explosion by Bakugo, while Shiozaki's vines found themselves frozen. Iida was kicked by Midoriya right into a mine, the green haired boy only yelling an apology before refocusing on his two main threats.
"It would make sense that all three are so invested in taking first place. While Midoriya took first in the hero course entrance exam, Bakugo was runner-up. At the same time, Todoroki had the best score of those who entered via recommendation." Vlad added as Midoriya kicked Todoroki away, but he managed to glance a touch of Midoriya's leg, freezing it from skin to knee, slowing him down, and letting Bakugo try and get past both.
"So this is a battle of the best of the best to see who will be crowned king, how exciting, give it your all, boys!" Present Mic yelled back as Todoroki didn’t lost a step and stamped his foot, sending ice towards Bakugo, cutting his momentum before he was the defensive as Midoriya melted the ice on his leg and was in a mood to counter him, with Bakugo slamming into both with explosions and anger.
“Dammit, those 3 are insane!” Tokage stated as she had to keep her distance, even as the rest reached the mines, exploding ringing out and bodies of surprised, terrified students flying about to their rear.
"They're forgetting this is a race." Honenuki, who had caught up, agreed with her; someone yelling about how the hell U.A. even got permission to use landmines, to begin with, was a good question. Still, he had met their principal and knew he was crazy.
With the trio taking the center of the field, Shiozaki and Honenuki went for the flanks. Shiozaki used her vines to detect mines and, if need be, prematurely detonate them, giving her passage but one that others couldn't follow as she would leave many mines untouched in her wake. Honenuki merely used his quirk to soften the ground. Still, unlike Todoroki, who could freeze the ground, his quirk made it hard to follow as he left a path that was too soft and ankle-deep in muck.
Tokage took to the skies over the center field, sending her pieces randomly from different directions to try and force the blockade that was Hebemi, Blasty, and Mr. Freeze. This didn't work as all three found themselves roped into the melee, now a 6-way free-for-all, much to the roaring enjoyment of the crowd, especially when Iida got back into the running for first, followed closely by Tsunotori, who rode her horns over the mines but couldn't be nearly as active in the fight else she loses balance and fall.
“This is insanity! We have an 8-man slug-fest in a race for first place! There are fire, explosions, vines, ice, and pieces of human flesh flying everywhere!” Present Mic yelled out in shock at how insane things were on the field as it looked closer to a warzone.
“Phrasing, Mic!” Vlad scolded him.
“What? It’s true!” As he defended himself, Monoma slowed as he finally reached the mines, but he was in serious trouble, and sure, plenty had already been set off; the school had prepared for that and overmined to the extreme. If that wasn't bad enough, he could see Midoriya, Shiozaki, Tokage, Honenuki, and the rest were already halfway done with it. The quirks he had copied would be of little use at this point, and that all excluded the face. There were so many more bodies between him and those front runners.
Thinking of a means through, he saw someone step on the mine, and a pink explosion sent them flying away. Those mines might not be lethal, but they still packed quite the punch.
Wait. If one mine could do that…if he could choose a angle of attack, and control his trajectory…. Monoma smirked as an idea formed in his head, an insane one that would probably be dangerous to even attempt. Still, it would assure him a fighting chance and be quite the spectacle to show up the rest. He just needed to dig up a few bombs.
Line Break
As the front-runners near the end, there was a massive explosion behind them. They all froze to turn back and see what the heck that was, as no single mine had that kind of power; it sounded like over a dozen of them had gone off all at once.
The blast wave was quick, traveling the length of the track in mere moments as the bright flash made it hard to see anything. "What the fuck?" Bakugo yelled.
“Was that a mine?!” Todoroki asked.
"No way, that was too strong!" Honenuki rebuked that as they all had to cover their faces from the blast, and dust kicked up, making it even harder to see what or who caused that. They weren't the only ones as the entire race ground to a halt as everyone in the minefield froze, while the spectators and school staff were on the edges of their seats, one out of anticipation, the other out of concern over the power of that blast, with All Might wondering how the hell did a mine that powerful manage to sneak through all the checks they did!
Squinting her eyes, Kendo worried for whoever was unlucky enough to step on that, as an explosive that powerful might have sent them halfway across the campus if they were sent in one piece at all. But she did spot something flying out of the smoke, moving at an insane speed. When she was able to make out its shape, her eyes widened. "You got to be kidding me."
She was the first, with others recognizing that it was not a what. Still, a who flying out of the smoke like a human rocket, their body covered in shiny but dented steel as they flew head first towards the lead. "What is an accident, or was it on purpose? It doesn't matter because Monoma of class B is flying toward first place like a human cannonball!” Present Mic announced, much to the shock and awe of the entire field and spectators.
Monoma relished in that awe, as it had taken a considerable effort to dig up the mines; having used Kamakiri's copied quirk as makeshift shovels too, he had thought that a few would be enough, but while one could send someone flying, it wasn't far, so he didn't stop digging till he had got 18 suckers ready. He then quickly organized them into a pile so that as much of the explosive force would be directed forward.
After that, it was a quirk pray before he activated the second quirk he had copied, Tetsutetsu's before he threw himself onto the mines belly first. And boy, was he glad he did that. 'Tetsutetsu's quirk is the only reason I didn't scatter myself all over the place, but even then, that explosion was powerful,' He thought to himself as the steel covering his gut felt like it nearly buckled. It hadn't stopped all the force from traveling past as he almost threw up.
But that was for later; right now, he had a race to win as he changed his angle, his eye on the prize. Still, well overhead, he passed right by everyone, including Midoriya and the rest, who, upon seeing that, disregarded their mele and charged straight ahead, some being slowed by the fact the mine concentration past the mid-way point made even just a single step dangerous, so much so that even the jumpers of their two classes were forced to move like the rest of them.
“And Monoma has taken the lead with explosive style!” Present Mic roared as Monoma’s name shot up from being in the mid-20s all the way to the top.
“No way it’s gonna stay that way!” Tokage raced after him, taking advantage of the lull in the fighting to bypass the obstacle that was their melee.
"Dang it!" Midoriya was with her on that, pumping stream into his legs to increase his speed as he ran, followed closely by the rest as Bakugo blasted himself forward while Todoroki gave up on not helping the rest, creating an ice path for himself to run on that could be used by others.
Monoma was acutely aware of that, as while he had taken the lead, he was slowly down and losing height fast. Looking behind him, he saw that when he landed, the former front runners would be on in moments, all hungry for that gold. "Looks like they’ve stopped throwing hands and are not putting their all into finishing this race!” Present Mic commented.
'I copied Kamakiri's quirk, but that wouldn't work here, not unless he gets into a fight with them and none are interested.' Monoma thought to himself, trying to figure out how he would keep his lead, even when up against the wall.
'I also copied Tetsutetsu's quirk, but that wouldn't be good either. I did copy one other after Kendo faded.' He smiled as he had only copied it on the off chance it would be helpful, but it would be perfect with how the field was and how closely bunched up his fellow racers and mines were.
"Monoma, we're coming for you!" Midoriya yelled as they closed in on his slowing position. He looked at them not with surprise or concern but with a smirk on his face, which set off alarm bells in the minds that knew him. Meanwhile, Todoroki, Bakugo, and Iida continued to barrel ahead.
“Remember what I told you, Midoriya. I’m gunning for the top!” Monoma yelled before his cheeks pulled out, revealing the third quirk he had copied, Tsuburaba's, as he fired out as wide a blast of solid air as he could, striking the mines between him and the rest.
"Cra-!" Whatever Honenuki said was lost in the explosion, a far cry from the one he had caused before, but still sizable as Monoma triggered almost a dozen bombs at once, knocking the rest off their feet while simultaneously blasting himself forward.
"And with another hat trick, Monoma sends the competition flying and retains first, and he's now in the final stretch!" Present Mic yelled over the speakers, much to Vlad's annoyance due to proximity. With the rest, Midoriya and Bakugo were the least affected by the blast thanks to their quirks and, as a result, were the first to race after Monoma, who now had to rely on his base athletic ability. Shiozaki and Todoroki were close behind them, as that might have bought Monoma time, but only seconds as they rushed ahead as fast as they could, passing or falling behind each other.
“Vlad, your class is amazing! What do you teach them?" Present Mic asked. Monoma didn't dare look behind him, as he could hear the competition closing in well enough. His heavy breaths could not hide that from him as he entered the tunnel that led back into the stadium. Midoriya and the rest were mere moments behind him and gaining fast.
“I didn’t do a thing. They just got each other fired up." Despite how much his legs hurt and how much his lungs burned, he pushed himself further to keep his lead. Monoma was determined—this was his moment, and he'd fight tooth and nail for it! Close behind him, Midoriya got ahead of the rest and was seconds from passing Monoma to reclaim first.
“We're moments away from the finish of the first event of the U.A. sports festival for our freshmen class! We have no cameras inside, so who will come out on top? Whose efforts will be rewarded with that gold?!" All cameras shifted to the entrance, where they could see flashes and movement, but the dark space hid whoever was in the lead from view. The audience in the stadium and the millions watching elsewhere held their breaths, wondering who would take first.
“That person is…” Present Mic started, till at last, a figure dashed out the entrance, followed so closely by the others that if the race was a second longer, they would have lost the race. “Monoma Neito! Monoma after lagging behind for most of the race blasted himself into first place and retained it till the finish line!” Monoma, in a fit of joy yelled with his arms out. as against all odds, he had done it.
His celebration was drowned out by the crowds' cheers, but he was soaking in praise, and calls of good work as he wiped his sweaty brow, smiling at his achievement. He had done it, he had taken his place in the spotlight, and not a single person here could dare question that.
While Monoma bathed in the praise of taking gold off to the side, Midoriya was frustrated that he had to settle for silver. He bent over and groaned as he was close, just a second behind Monoma! And he was going to make that known as he rushed Monoma.
“Monoma!” He charged him, only stopping before he would barrel into him. "That was mean; why did you blow us up?!"
Monoma laughed at his friend's anger, as he felt Midoriya wasn't even that upset. “I needed a way to keep you from catching up.” Midoriya didn't appreciate that all that much, and his face only got redder.
Monoma only laughed harder at his face, as he resembled a tomato. "I can't take you seriously when you look like that. It’s like you’re a baby kitten trying to glare at something.”
“I’m not a kitten!” Midoriya pouted. “Next time, I’m taking gold, you hear me?”
“I won’t make it easy for you.” Monoma lifted his hand to him.
“I wouldn’t want it any other way.” Midoriya shook it with a smile before pulling him in for a hug. "Congrats on the win, Neito." Monoma pat his back, letting his friend give him props for his win.
"Oh, isn't that just cute? Our used car salesman is getting a little love from little Hebemi.” Tokage made herself known, and there was a smile as Midoriya and Monoma quickly broke apart. She had Shiozaki and Tsunotori with her.
While they talked about Monoma's win and how they fought just to get into the top 10, Bakugo was stewing to the side as he struggled to contain his anger over this humiliation. He already had to stomach that pyromaniac placing first in the exam and hearing how his class managed to fend off villains. Still, he seemed to insult him by placing higher than him! Made all the worse by that smug weasel sneaking his way to first place. "Dammit…!"
As the rest of the students arrived, they gathered into their smaller groups to talk. Some were leaning on each other from the exhausting track or still scared from having to walk through a literal minefield. But once the last student crawled in, Midnight had them all gather before the stage.
“The first event of the 1st year sports festival is over. Now, let’s take a look at the results!”
1st Place: Class B Monoma Neito
2nd Place: Class B Midoriya Izuku
3rd Place: Class A Todoroki Shoto
4th Place: Class A Bakugo Katsuki
5th Place: Class B Shiozaki Ibara
6th Place: Class B Tokage Setsuna
7th Place: Class B Tsunotori Pony
8th Place: Class B Honenuki Juzo
9th Place: Class A Iida Tenya
10th Place: Class A Tokoyami Fumikage
11th Place: Class A Sero Hanta | 12th Place: Class A Kirishima Ejiro
13th Place: Class B Tetsutetsu Tetsutetsu | 14th Place: Class B Kaibara Sen
15th Place: Class B Kendo Itsuka | 16th Place: Class B Shishida Jurota
17th Place: Class A Ojiro Mashirao | 18th Place: Class B Awase Yosetsu
19th Place: Class A Asui Tsuyu | 20th Place: Class A Shoji Mezo
21st Place: Class A Sato Rikido | 22nd Place: Class A Uraraka Ochaco | 23rd Place: Class B Kamakiri Togaru | 24th Place: Class B Yanagi Reiko
25th Place: Class C Shino Hitoshi | 26th Place: Class A Yaoyorozu Momo | 27th Place: Class A Mineta Minoru | 28th Place: Class A Ashido Mina
29th Place: Class A Koda Koji | 30th Place: Class A Jiro Kyoka | 31st Place: Class B Tsuburaba Kosei | 32nd Place: Class A Kaminari Denki
33rd Place: Class B Bondo Kojiro | 34th Place: Class B Kuroiro Shihai | 35th Place: Class B Kodai Yui | 36th Place: Class B Hiyru Rin
37th Place: Class A Shouda Nirengeki | 38th Place: Class B Komori Kinoko | 39th Place: Class A Hagakure Toru | 40th Place: Class B Fukidashi Manga
41st Place: Class H Hatsume Mei | 42nd Place: Class A Aoyama Yuga
“Yes, you see it right. We only counted the first 42, as those are the students who made the cut to the next round. But don't worry, as for those who didn't make it, we've prepared other chances for you to shine in the recreational games.” Midnight's statement was innocent enough, but her licking her lip at the end made many of the students worried about what U.A. planned for this year's recreational games.
But as much as she liked making her students squirm, they did have a timetable to keep to. “But for those that managed to survive the gauntlet, don't think you're out of the woods yet, as the next event begins soon!” Midoriya and several others listened carefully as the screen behind her changed the projection from their scores to the same spinning randomizer-like animation that had started this.
“Don't hold anything back, else you'll find yourselves the next one cut! But then, what is the next game? I know what it is, but what could it be? Another race, perhaps, a battle royale? Maybe even a little diving contest?” Okay, maybe not random if Midnight knew, but thinking on it, it made sense otherwise, U.A. would need to prepare to land on any option, which meant that many carefully and no doubt expensive types of events would be skipped that year.
“Well, let’s see what it will be!” Midnight continuing made Izuku shelf that little thought and look up at what had been chosen.
Calvary Battle
“Calvary battle?” He leaned his head to the side, which was seen by Tokage.
“Do you know what this is?” He shook his head at the question.
“I think so, though I was never picked to play it with others.” His statement, spoken so casually, had his friends who heard it double take. How lonely was he before U.A and meeting them?
“From a solo event to a team exercise, that's a weird change.” Honenuki mused, stroking his chin as he turned that over. Still, Tokage, Monoma, and Tetsutetsu were more hooked on what Midoriya had just said.
Before anyone could yell at Bakugo for that, Midnight explained the rules. At the same time the screen changed to how a 3-man team made from U.A. staff with Thirteen acting as the front-horse, All Might the rider and Present Mic holding the rear, both men smiling at the camera, though perhaps Thirteen was as well, one couldn't tell with her helmet visor up.
“Here's the rules for it. Participants can form teams of 2-4 people as they wish. Most of the rules will be standard to a regular calvary battle, but there is a key difference here." She looked back at the students, her eyes half-lidded, but her smile remained the same: very, seducing, and dangerous.
“Based on the last game's results, each person has been assigned a point value. The higher you placed in the Obstacle race, the higher your score, with last place having a score of 5 and 41st having 10, rising by 5 points each time.” The person in last, a blonde with a weird belt, seemed to take great offense to being at the bottom of the pack.
However, as they moved up the list, showcasing one more of their positions, but this time with their allotted value, Midnight didn't even let it get to the upper 10s before she dropped a bombshell. “But first place is special, as first place has been assigned a point value of 5 thousand!”
Her announcement was met with silence, not just from the spectators but also from the students. The projection on the field was also silenced, and many screens throughout the stadium changed to display Monoma's face and name, along with that massive point value underneath it.
"5-5000?!" Monoma, in a rare moment, was too stunned to act confident or smirk as his jaw fell to the floor in shock. Instantly, he could detect the shift in the others around him.
"That's more than every other score combined." Tokage's smile looked a little more dangerous. Did her teeth always look that sharp?
"In other words, take first, and you'll blaze your way to victory." Midoriya looked up at him, his innocent smile shifting just a little, looking closer to Koharu when she saw a tasty rat in the bushes as his canines flashed; he was sure they weren't meant to be that long either!
"Take first place, and you'll stand at the top no matter what." The rest concluded, their gazes becoming hungrier, more determined, and ambitious than before, with Monoma feeling the weight of it all on his shoulders. A consequence of the spotlight was learning that it came with a heavy burden, one that had him weak-kneed.
Midnight's smile shifted, becoming far more sadistic as she saw that Monoma had realized this and how he would have a target the size of Hokkaido on his back for this one. "That's right. It's survival of the fittest, with the chance for those at the bottom to ascend and overthrow the top!”
Line Break
A bit shorter than usual, but this seemed like a reasonable cut-off point for things. Concluding the race, which had a surprise victor, along with the change that they had the experience to not think, but act since class B attacked. Also, this time around, Monoma or anyone else didn't convince them to hold back at first. It showed that his students took first and second place since even the front runners were mainly class B, with Vlad being able to rub it in Aizawa's face later. In contrast, the literal speedster from class A had to suck it and eat in at 9th place.
Tensei: Tenya.
Tenya: I…don’t know how to explain it.
Tensei: How the heck did you use a race? Our quirk is built for stuff like this!
Tenya: I don't know; I've brought shame to the Iida family and must atone.
Tensei: Don't do it, brother-!
Tenya shaves his head, gets tattoos, moves to Romania, and opens a water park themed around turtles…in shame.
Oh, there was a small change in the story, nothing big as I just swapped what Midoriya’s quirk is called with something that makes a little more sense considering how it functions.
