Chapter 15

Izuku and the others joined Shoto and Toru for lunch. All throughout it, however, he was wondering about how the brackets for the final round would look. His plan for the third round hadn't changed. He would lose in purpose on the second round while not showing too much of what his quirk could really do. If he did that, it would make working in disguise as his true calling all the easier and he could continue as a mole in UA. However, one thing worried him. Bakugo.

It was always Bakugo. Every time he had a problem, it was Bakugo. During the first round, he got so ahead of himself because of what Bakugo said and the fact he was always right there in front of him the entire race. And Izuku just couldn't catch him. Even now, even after he'd gotten so much stronger, he STILL couldn't do it. Did he really have so much left to go? The prospect pissed him off. It was hard enough to keep his emotions in check during the usual Hero lessons when he was forced to train alongside his old so called friend. But if he was forced to fight against him… He had to take himself out of the contest before that happened. He couldn't afford to lose himself. Not now.

Returning to the arena, his body felt cold. He was nervous. He had this feeling of anticipation that weighed down heavily on his entire form. He glanced his eyes around the other fifteen students standing in the arena, waiting for the announcement of the brackets. His eyes met Momo's. She mimed slow breathing. Izuku got the message. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He felt as his heart beat slowed and his body cooled down. He just needed to remain calm. He just needed to stop thinking about it.

" WELCOME BACK!" Present Mic shouted. " WE'VE BEEN THINKING LONG AND HARD ABOUT WHAT'S ABOUT TO HAPPEN! THE EXCITEMENT ABOUT TO BE HAD. THE TALENT OF OUR STUDENTS! THAT'S RIGHT, IT'S THE CROWNING MOMENT OF ANY SPORTS FESTIVAL HERE AT UA! ROUND NUMBER THREE! THE TOURNAMENT!" The crowd cheered. " NOW WE'RE NO STRANGER TO TOURNAMENTS! YOU KNOW THE RULES AND SO DO I!"

" No. Stop that." Aizawa sighed.

" THESE SIXTEEN STUDENTS ARE ABOUT TO COMPETE IN A 4 ROUNDS OF BATTLE TO DETERMINE WHO THE BEST OF THE BEST IS! HELL YEAH! LET'S GET TO THE CONTESTANTS!"

" This is a joke." Izuku grumbled. " They're making us beating the crap out of each other a spectacle." Izuku already knew the students. Most of them came from the two Hero Course classes. Only two didn't. The sixteen were made from the four winning teams from the previous round. From Team Bakugo, there was Katsuki Bakugo, Hanta Sero, Eijiro Kirishima and Mei Hatsume. From Team Yaoyarozu was him, Izuku Midoriya under alias Mikumo Akitani, obviously, Momo Yaoyarozu, Denki Kaminari and Ochako Uraraka. From Team Neito, Izuku's rival in the second round, was Neito Momoma, Kosei Tsuburaba, Sen Kaibara and Ibara Shiozaki. Finally, from Team Tokoyami, there was Fumikage Tokoyami, Tenya Iida, Kyoka Jiro and Reiko Yanagi.

" NOW THEN! LET'S SEE WHO LANDS WHERE ON THE BRACKETS!" Mic yelled. Vlad King ushered everyone's attention to the screen. Izuku narrowed his eyes while scanning the brackets. None of them had been forced to fight one another. Not yet at least. Ochako was first of theirs on the list, match three, taking Sero. After that, match four, was Denki taking on Yanagi. Match Six was between Momo and Iida. Finally, match eight, him taking on Monoma. He looked around to see where everyone else lay. He silently cursed. Match Seven: Bakugo Vs Tokoyami. This was bad.

pponent.

Match two was marginally less boring. Kosei Tsuburaba facing off against Sen Kaibara, both members of Class 1-B and, as such, both peoples that Izuku only had minor knowledge about. According to the data retrieved by Toru, Tsuburaba's quirk was Solid Air, which allows air he breathed to turn into barriers. On the other hand, Kaibara's quirk, Gyrate, basically allowed him to turn his body parts into drills by rapidly rotating them. In this battle, it was a battle between sword and shield. And it was a completely one sided affair. As much as he tried, Tsuburaba's breath shields couldn't hold back Kaibara's drill arms and it ended in a fairly quick and very effortlessly on the part of Kaibara.

Match three was one Izuku watched with more interest. Ochako taking on Hanta Sero, his class mate. Sero was an interesting person. His quirk allowed him to fire tape from his elbows. It gave him a surprising amount of versatility when it came to battles. Ochako on the other hand had gotten a lot better since the entrance exam. Thanks to her work with Giran, the amount she could lift before feeling ill as well as how well she could control objects she removed the gravity of had drastically increased. As such, this fight was the most interesting one yet.

Ochako exhaled, calming her nerves, as she stepped out into the crowded stadium. She wondered if her parents would see this. They'd been awfully busy lately with odd jobs following their successful and swift rebuilding of the mall she had a hand in destroying. A simple high profile job was all they needed for business to really pick up. She'd never seen her parents working so hard and yet she'd also never seen them so happy. Work gave them life so she was happy to deliver it to them when needed. The mall wasn't the only thing she'd brought down for her folks to build back up after all.

She looked across the arena as her opponent stepped up. She remembered who this was from Izuku talking about him. Hanta Sero. His quirk let him fire sticky tape from his elbows. Niche quirk but when you just needed to immobilize your opponent, dangerous. " IT IS TIIIIME FOLKS FOR ROUND NUMBER THREE! ON ONE SIDE IT'S OCHAKO URARAKA" SHE'S ONLY A GENERAL COURSE STUDENT, BUT SHE'S STANDING UP HERE WITH THE HEROES TODAY! AND ON THE OTHER, CLASS 1-A'S HANTA SERO, ACCOMPLISHED HERO TO BE!"

" Sero's quirk let's him shoot tape from his elbows. If Uraraka's not careful, it'll be over quick. Her quirk, on the other side of things, let's her remove the effects of gravity from any object she touched." Aizawa said, sounding as bored as ever.

" WHO'S YOUR MONEY ON THEN, SHOTA?"

" Sero has trained a lot as a part of the Hero Course. As a member of 1-A, he's been through a Villain attack. Uraraka, general course student she may be, has already shown great strength to get passed a number of Hero Course students to get here. She's an unknown factor, yes, but not one that can be underestimate. It could go either way."

" SHOW SOME PRIDE IN YOUR KIDS, ERASER!"

" I'm being impartial. As should you." Ochako growled lightly in annoyance. They weren't taking her seriously. She slowly loosed the jacket of her uniform, pulling her arms free and resting it on her shoulders.

" WELL, IMPARTIAL OR NOT, WE'LL GET OUR ANSWER ON THE VICTOR SOON! BEGIIIIN!" As soon as the word was given, Sero shot his tape out at Ochako, wrapping her up in a swift motion. She expected as much. As Vlad King started raising his arm to declare Sero the winner, Ochako removed the gravity of her jacket and shrugged it off, sending it high in the sky covered in the tape that was meant to bind her while she dropped to the floor and ran at the hero course student. With a grimace, the boy quickly cut the tape and tried again. Ochako dodged to the side, quickly releasing her hold on her jacket and brushing her fingers across the tape she barely managed to avoid, careful not to get stuck to it. As Sero tried to cut it again, she stopped him with a swift yet powerful blow, slamming her fist into the boys temple.

When Ochako joined the League and explained what she did with Giran, Dabi was surprised to learn she had no idea how to defend herself. So, together with Himiko and Mina, they taught her some moves. She learned how to be quick on her feet from Mina, learning how to spot someone tells and how to move accordingly. Most of this training was done on a DDR machine, which Ochako found both strange yet oddly entertaining. From Himiko, she learned how to use a knife and how best to hold and swing it to get the most damage to a foe while also defending herself the most. Finally, from Dabi, she learned close quarters combat. It wasn't a real martial art she learned, more like street fighting than anything official. However, it was frighteningly effective.

The blow staggered Sero, stopping his movement and dissorienting him. Because of this, she was able to grab Sero's wn tape, weightless and easily manipulated thanks to her quirks power over it, quickly bind his hands together and brutally slammed him into the concrete, knocking him out. Yet another move Dabi taught her. She wondered if he was proud. She stood up panting, pulling her hands free of the tape with some effort.

" WITH A BRUTAL KNOCKOUT BLOW, IT IS OVER! THE GENERAL COURSE NEWCOMER HAS OVERCOME HER OPPONENT WITH A KNOCKOUT BLOW! THE VICTOR IS OCHAKO URARAKA!" There was a murmur of discontent before the applause slowly came. She wondered if it was because she wasn't a hero course member but she still put down a member of the hero course or if it was because of how violent she was. She couldn't say for sure. Either way, she left the arena with her head held high. She hoped she made everyone, both in her home and in the bar, proud.

The fourth match was Denki against Yanagi. Yanagi was a person Izuku had, at one time, considered trying to turn to their cause but wrote it off around the USJ due to how quick she became an acquaintance of his. Despite appearances, she was certainly a steadfast believer in the system with no flaws in her past or personality to exploit, making her similar to Iida in that regard, the other of his classmates that decided to initially hang around him. Her quirk was strong enough, though perhaps not in this situation. There wasn't any rubble to fling. So long as Denki kept it that way, she couldn't use her quirk at all. And keep it that way he did. It was a pretty simple finish to a fight. Despite Yanagi's attempt to avoid the attacks, Denki's wide range and high power eventually caught up with her, stunning her long enough Denki to shove her out of the ring. The fun prospect, Izuku found, was that the next fight was Denki Vs Ochako. That would be interesting.

Match 5 was Class 1-A's Kyoka Jiro vs Class 1-B's Ibara Shiozaki. From his readings, Izuku knew Shiozaki's quirk was strong and Jiro's quirk worked best with an amplifier, something she didn't have on her. With Shiozaki's quirk to create vines from her hair and sending them through the ground, Izuku figured Jiro would be taken down fairly easily. However, that wasn't what happened. From beginning of the fight, Jiro was very alert. She plugged her jacks into the ground and waited. Then, as Shiozaki struck, she moved, dodging forwards. Then she repeated the tactic. It took a few movements to figure out Jiro's plan. One wrong move and she was out. She couldn't escape Shiozaki's vines once she was ensnared. So she simply did her best to figure out where they'd come from and move to avoid it all while moving towards her rooted foe. She just needed to get close enough. Then, when she did, she jammed a jack into Shiozaki and unleashed a series of high frequency soundwaves. Shiozaki countered with one last strike and, though she grabbed her, it was too late. As she fainted, the vines loosened. Jiro won. Izuku raised an eyebrow. He hadn't expected that.

Izuku looked up at the screen. Three more matches. Then it was his turn. But first, it was Momo and then Bakugo. Izuku bit his lip. He just hoped Monoma's bite was as good as his bark.

" LADIES AND GENTLEMAN! IT'S TIME FOR THE SIXTH FIGHT OF THE FIRST ROUND!" Present Mic announced as Momo walked onto the arena. " AND WHAT A MATCH WE HAVE TODAY! AIZAWA! THEY'RE YOUR KIDS! HOW ABOUT YOU GIVE THEM THE INTRODUCTION THEY DESERVE!" An annoyed sigh and a slight shuffle could be heard through the microphone as Eraserhead got into position.

" This match is between the two heads of 1-A's homeroom. On one side, Momo Yaoyarozu, daughter of the Yaoyorozu Law firm's heads. On the other, Tenya Iida, brother of the Pro Hero Ingenium and successor to the Iida family Hero firm. There. Done."

" OH COME ON, SHOTA! HAVE A BIT OF ENERGY!"

" You don't pay me to be energetic."

" I DON'T PAY YOU!"

" Exactly." Mic sighed.

" Hey, Tenya." Momo waved over at the boy.

" Hmm?" Momo took a few steps forwards and offered her hand.

" No hard feelings, right?" Tenya looked surprised. Then he smiled and accepted the handshake.

" Of course not. This is but a friendly contest." Tenya reassured her. " Please. Hold nothing back."

" Of course not." Momo nodded. Both hopped back to their starting points.

" LOOK AT THAT FOLKS! SUCH GOOD SPORTSMANSHIP!" Mic declared. " NOW THEN! AS WE ALL KNOW, THERE'S NO COUNTDOWNS IN HERO WORK! BEEEGIIIIN!" At the heroes yell, Tenya blasted forwards. Momo wasted no time, summoning a shield from her arm to block the resulting spin kick. She grunted at the force behind it. Nevertheless, she pushed him back and swung back with a created steel bat. After the Midnight affair, she had come to find the balanced weight of the weapon a lot more comfortable than the familiarity of her usual sword. Tenya leapt backwards to avoid the blow.

" Not bad, Tenya. You're just as strong as ever."

" And I'm glad you are not going to go down to my first attack. It has been too long since we did this, Momo."

" Heh. Yeah. Let's spar Tenya." Momo said gleefully. Tenya smiled confidently before rushing forwards again. Momo dodged and countered with her bat. The fight was completely reactionary based, with each of them matching each other blow for blow. Momo and Tenya had practically grown up together. Although he wasn't in their class, he, Momo and Shoto all went to Soumei Academy, even if Tenya was in a differant class, but they'd known each other for far longer than that. Both Tenya and Momo decided they wanted to be heroes and often helped each other with their quirks, training with each other. Unlike a lot of other of her parents friends, the Iida's weren't villainous heroes. Over his years, Tensei had been in only a handful of legitimate cases. Most simple property damage, which he paid out himself as an apology. One had ended, tragically, with the death of a civilian by his own fault. He personally gave up his license for three years after that event and spent those three years working to attone before coming back to Hero work. Tensei was a good hero. She knew Tenya would be too.

After five minutes, Momo took a deep breath. This had gone on long enough. Pushing back IIda again, she quickly formed a large sheet and wrapped herself up in it. Watching through a gap, she noticed Iida's surprise before he started charging his quirk. She knew what his thoughts were. He assumed the sheet was probably metal and she was using it as both reinforcement against his attacks so she could pull something large, like a canon, out of her body, as well as censorship so that she could use more of her body to do so without getting UA in trouble with television networks. Iida was going to rush in and break through the cover before she could.

However, that was what she wanted him to think.

As soon as Iida got close, Momo moved the sheet quickly, forcing Iida to run through it, before pulling, tangling him up. Iida lost control of his speed and fell, skidding across the floor and landing with a loud crash outside the ring. " TENYA IIDA IS OUT OF THE RING! THE WINNER IS MOMO YAOYOROZU!" As Momo walked over to Iida, still desperately trying to untangle the sheet from around his engines, the crowd roared above. Momo smiled proudly before helping Iida with the sheet.

" That was a dirty trick." Tenya told her.

" Well, we weren't getting anywhere your way." Tenya laughed.

" Well played, Momo. I shall have to keep an eye out for that the next time."

" Then I'll have to mix things up again the next time, won't I?" Momo helped Tenya up from the floor and, with a laugh and a wave, the two left the stadium together.

Izuku knew how match Seven would end before the first match had even started. Bakugo, the walking fireworks display, was facing off against Tokoyami, who's major weakness was bright lights. It was such an unbalanced fight that Izuku had to wonder if it was purposefully rigged in Bakugo's favour. He wondered if this is why he was here as well. Izuku broke down last time he faced Bakugo. Were they wanting him to do so again? Izuku didn't want to give them that satisfaction.

He decided he'd play around a little with Monoma before letting him stealing his quirk and beating him. He decided bowing out in a close loss would be better for him in the long run then losing his temper in a fight with Bakugo, win or lose. He walked onto the arena with this plan in mind as he looked over to the smiling face of Monoma. " So. You're my first opponent?" Momona asked. " I was hoping we'd meet in the finals. Prove my self with actions. That is what you said, yes?"

" I think so." Izuku smirked. " Still, I have to appreciate a guy who uses my tactics well."

" The Cavalry battle was fun. I'll admit. You're not bad, Akitani. But I'm still going to win."

" You can try. I won't let you win easily."

" FOR OUR NEXT MATCH, WE HAVE TWO STUDENTS WHO'VE BEEN MAKING WAVES TODAY! THE FIRST SHOWED US WHAT HE HAD IN THE FIRST ROUND EVEN IF FALTERING SLIGHTLY AT THE END, IT'S CLASS 1-A'S MIKUMO AKITANI! AND THE BOY WHO'S STRATEGIES WON HIS ENTIRE TEAM A PLACE IN THE TOP 3 OF THE SECOND ROUND, IT'S NEITO MONOMA! ONLY ONE OF THESE RISING STARS CAN CONTINUE EVEN HIGHER!"

" Both are strong and smart. Monoma's copy quirk let's him use the quirks of anyone he touches for a period of time. Akitani's Tempest lets him generate wind in his legs and use them in a number of ways. As we've already seen, both quirks are versatile and both fighters are intelligent. It's an even match between the two."

" AN EVEN MATCH BUT ONLY ONE CAN MOVE ON. WHICH ONE WILL IT BE? THE ANSWER WILL COOOOOOOME… IMMEDIATELY! BEGIIIIN!" Monoma decided against moving so Izuku took the first move. He blasted forwards with Bound towards Monoma. However, the second Monoma moved to take his quirk, Izuku used Air Walk to change his trajectory, moving through the air behind the 1-B student and kicking him in the back, sending him tumbling to the floor.

" I'm not letting you take my quirk that easily either." Izuku taunted. Monoma growled as he got back off the ground. Izuku didn't give him a chance to retort blasting forwards again. This time, Monoma was ready for his feint but he wasn't quick enough as Izuku dodged into the air above him and then shot down, smashing Monoma into the floor, leaping back off him. " Done yet?"

" Oh no. Nowhere close." Monoma stood up, a cocky smirk on his face. Izuku noticed the air starting to build into his legs. Monoma copied Bound. Guess it was time to lose then. With a content smile, Izuku charged forwards a third time, ready for Monoma to counter. Likely leap in the air and crash down on him.

Unfortunately, that didn't happen.

Izuku watched in horror as Monoma's attempt to use his quirk back fired horribly. The wind pressure sent Monoma spiralling off in a random direction. Izuku mentally face palmed. Izuku had months of rigorous training to master Bound and had Air Walk to help control his directions in the air. Monoma, safe to say, didn't. Monoma's use of Bound sent high into the air before hurtling down. Right into the stands. " NEITO LEAPT OUT OF BOUNDS! THE WINNER OF THE ROUND IS CLASS 1-A'S MIKUMO AKITANI! GUESS THE ORIGINAL IS ALWAYS BETTER IN THE END!" An eruption of cheers echoed around the arena. Izuku did his best to look happy as he left put in the inside, he was somewhere between incredibly angry and terrified. His next opponent was Bakugo.

The first match of the second round was between Kirishima and Kaibara and was a fairly even match. Both had a powerful offensive quirk while Kaibara was able to pierce Kirishima's defences with his quirk, making them even on a defensive level as well. In the end, it came down to skill and even then, it was a very close match. They wore each other down swing by swing but, in the end, the victory went to Kirishima after a decisive knockout blow.

Toru looked pumped up as Ochako and Denki walked onto the stage for their fight. " Chako and Denki, huh?" She said, turning to Shoto. " Who do you think is gonna win?"

" Denki. Easily."

" Huh? Why?"

" Ochako got lucky with Sero. He produced something for her to use. Denki on the other hand…" Toru hummed, realizing what he meant.

" She doesn't have anything to use her quirk on. Denki's quirk doesn't break the ground so she can't use loose rubble link someone with a more destructive quirk like Bakugo."

" Right." Shoto nodded. " As I said. Easily." Toru found herself agreeing with him.

The fight between Ochako and Denki was an unfortunate mirror of Denki's fight with Yanagi. Ochako really had neither the means to deal with Denki's high power, high ranged assault nor the ability to get closer by any real means. In the end, just like before, she was stunned and pushed out of the ring. Another concise victory.

The next match was Momo vs Jiro, a fight set-up that made Toru a bit sad for Momo. She hadn't known Momo for long but she couldn tell she really believed in what she was doing. In their League, a lot of people had different motives and different lengths they would go. Toru, for example, really didn't like the idea of killing but she would fight for her friends if needed and hacking was more her strong suit. Momo, however, for her ideals of being a punisher of the heroes who thought they could hide behind the Public Safety Commission meant she had come to terms with the idea she'll have to kill to be that. Even still, she wouldn't hurt good people. From what she had told her about Jiro, she wasn't an entirely good person but she was still someone she'd consider a good friend which was enough.

Jiro seemed uncomfortable about the set-up as well. However, with a few kind words before the fight, Momo didn't hold anything back. She knew exactly what her friend was capable of and fought furiously with no opening for Jiro to exploit. Like with Iida, any openings Jiro thought she had ended up leading her into a trap. Throughout the battle, Momo's stern yet friendly smile never faltered. She was confidant and, above all, terrifyingly efficient. Though the fight took a while to finish, Momo never seemed to lose control of the situation, like a chessmaster dominating the board. In the end, Jiro never stood a chance.

The final match of the Second Round was the one both Toru and Shoto were both the most worried about. Izuku Vs Bakugo. The worst case scenario. They hoped Izuku would finish fast with out much pain to himself. They knew the likelihood of that was extremely slim. Neither said a word as the fight started. Bakugo made the first move, rocketing forwards. Izuku froze up as he charged. Then, air burst from him as he made his move, kicking under Bakugo's blow and launching him across the arena. It seemed like that was it.

Then Izuku moved again. He bounced around the sides at high speeds, appearing in front of Bakugo's trajectory and kicking him down to the arena floor before he could leave the ring, creating a crater from the impact. Present Mic and the crowd shouted in surprise that Izuku just stopped his opponent from losing. But Toru and Shoto knew. This wasn't a friendly match anymore.

The League flinched as Bakugo slammed into the concrete. " Oh no." Ashido muttered, hands in front of her mouth. " Izuku…"

" That bastard from the last round." Shinso murmured. " If only he could control Zuku's quirk better."

" We may have to hold a prison break after this." Dabi said, half jokingly.

" I'm down." Toga said, not at all jokingly. Kurogiri remained silent but it was clear he'd become tense. Tomura took a deep breath and stood up. Everyone's attention fell on the League's leader suddenly. His cold eyes lit up as he glared down at the screen.

" Kick his ass, Izuku! Don't you dare lose!" He shouted, surprising everyone. Tomura didn't care. Like hell this little punk was going to win. Izuku was facing him now. If he didn't win, Tomura knew he'd just get even worse. And Tomura couldn't allow that. " I'll kill you if you lose, Izuku. So show no mercy. Crush him. Pay him back tenfold." He grinned manically. And when you do , he thought, we can celebrate with a drink.

The fight started and Bakugo charged. Izuku didn't see him after that. He smelled the smoke. Saw the crackling of explosions. He knew what would happen if it connected. His shoulder ached. No. He wouldn't let that happen again. He wouldn't be the one getting hurt today. Izuku swore it as he smashed Bakugo into the concrete and landed, walking towards his sworn enemy. " Get up, Katsuki." He spat. " We're not done yet."

" What the hell…" Bakugo growled as he rose up. He looked over only to get a face full of Air Bullet.

" We're not done." Izuku repeated. " So get up. You wanted your absolute victory. Try and take it."

" You fucking presumptuous bastard. One good shot and you think you're king?" Bakugo growled. " I don't get your fucking issue. Think you can get over your fucking trauma by beating me, huh? Well sorry. I ain't gonna be your therapy cushion." Bakugo shouted before firing off an explosion. Izuku flinched slightly before gritting his teeth. He leapt high into the air. Using Air Walk, Izuku danced around Bakugo's explosion, faltering slightly in each jump, before propelling himself down, bringing his heel down on Bakugo's head and smashing back into the ground.

" Call me what you want, but you're pathetic. A tiny man who feels the need to prove he's better than anyone else by pounding anyone who he sees as stronger than him into paste and destroying anyone whos dares defy him." Izuku stomped down on Bakugo's chest as he launched off him. " You're not a hero. You're a bully. A bully who needs to learn his fucking place."

" Big words." Bakugo said, getting up. He coughed slightly before grinning. " Big words from someone who's taking his anger out on a shadow of the problems he's facing. So what? I piss you off cause my quirks loud or I look like some dipshit villain. I ain't any of that." Bakugo's voice rose in anger. " I'm here because I made a promise! I'm gonna become Number One! Then, I'm gonna find my friend! And if you or any other shit head thinks they can get in my way, I'll just blow you away!" Hearing this statement made Izuku's blood boil.

" Friend? Friend?!" Izuku shouted, venom in his voice. How dare he, he thought. How dare he call him his friend after everything that had happened between them. " You don't have any friends! You have followers! Minions! People follow you out of fear, Katsuki! No-one respects you! No-one even likes you! You're a bully who pushes people around! But, sooner or later, they're gonna find out the real you!" Izuku leapt up in the air. " The sad, pathetic excuse for a man who's scared he'll never find his way to the top! And when they realize that, realize they've nothing to fear, they'll abandon you! And when that time comes, I hope-" Izuku as cut off by an explosion rocketing right past his ear. Instinctively, he flinched. All his momentum from his quirk vanished.

" You hope I'll what?" Bakugo asked, mockingly. " What's the matter? Didn't think I'd take advantage of everything I could when you were spouting shit? Tough luck. Now go ahead and get blown apart!" Izuku could only watch helplessly as Bakugo charged up a powerful explosion in his left hand. As soon as Izuku was in range, Bakugo slammed his palm to his foes chest and fired. " HELL DYNAMO!" The scent of burning flesh filled the air as Izuku crashed across the arena. Bakugo panted. " Yeah. How'd you like that… you piece of shit?" As the smoke cleared, the crowd gasped in horror. The explosion had burned away the top half of Izuku's uniform and singed his long fringe off. A massive, bright red bloody burn coated his entire chest and parts of his face. Izuku rose, growling like a mad beast, his eyes glowing with rage. Bakugo got ready to fight. Then he froze.

Over the many years of abuse from Bakugo and his cronies, Izuku had suffered numerous scars and burns. Now, most of them were on display to the world. Scars from blades, school instruments and scratches from quirks. Faded bruises left behind from strikes that broke bones. More over, burn marks by the tens scattered all over his body. A lot of them could be mistake for marks by flames or acid. Some were. But not all of them. Bakugo's eyes were locked to his shoulder. He went pale, shaking as he saw the hand shaped burn mark etched into it. He knew exactly what it was from, down to the exact time and date it happened. It was at that moment that all doubt of who Mikumo Akitani really was died. Bakugo didn't even resist as Izuku shot forwards, plowing his leg into Bakugo's ribs. Izuku glared down at his bully. " Die, Kacchan!" He growled through gritted teeth. Bakugo went flying, shooting across the arena once more. He wasn't stopped this time. He crashed into the stone archway of one of the fighter entrances of the arena, falling to the ground with a hail of rubble. Izuku panted. His vision went white as he fell to the ground. For the first time that day, the crowd fell silent.