Chapter 25: Strike Pose
Aizawa came back a short time later, which cut Izuku's quirk experimentation short. Oh well. All he had left to check out was his new title Self-Sufficient, but he could do that on his own time when he was released from the medical wing.
In Aizawa's hands was hot noodle-and-vegetable soup, which had quickly reminded Izuku of how hungry he was. He gulped down the soup with a speed that surprised even him, though on second thought it was probably late enough to be past dinner now. On that note, Izuku was thankful his mom was taking a long shift at the hospital today, otherwise she'd probably be missing him already.
… Unless UA contacted his mom about this.
He was not looking forward to that conversation.
Once Izuku had finished his soup, he carefully set the bowl and glanced up at Aizawa, who had been waiting patiently for him. "Are you still alright with Nedzu visiting?" he asked.
Izuku already knew that he was. "Yeah, I'm fine with it." If anything, he was intensely curious about why exactly Nedzu was keeping a death trap in his basement.
Aizawa nodded and opened the door carefully. A few seconds later, Nedzu stepped into the room, likely having been waiting out in the hall for Aizawa to let him in. The serious look on his face a far cry from his usual cheerful expression. "Midoriya. How are you feeling this evening?"
"I feel fine," Izuku said. "Much better."
"Good," Nedzu said. "I imagine you have some questions about what happened."
"I do," Izuku said. For a brief moment, he braced himself to ask Nedzu to his face if he'd put him in there on purpose to get an extra quirk. He stopped at the last second, heart thumping with adrenaline. Confronting an authority figure to their face was still somewhat against Izuku's nature. Maybe he'd ask Nedzu later.
"...Why'd I get stuck in there?" Izuku settled on a much more neutral-sounding question.
"I was talking with Snipe about potentially running simulations to track your growth," Nedzu said. "Unfortunately, my communication was unclear, and Snipe believed that I wanted to run you through some existing simulations. Specifically, the ones in the basement support floor. However, those simulations were designed for me only, and pose danger to any other person."
"You go through those normally?" Izuku couldn't help but say. "How do you not die?"
Nedzu puffed out a breath, subdued but amused. "I'm much smaller than you are, Midoriya. As such, I have much more room to dodge the obstacles."
Izuku remembered how he'd been forced to crouch repeatedly in the simulation, and suddenly he had an idea of what Nedzu was talking about. "...Oh, I can sort of see that," Izuku said. "So it was just… a mistake?"
It felt a little bit dizzying to Izuku. The idea that something so significant to him, something so dangerous, something that could have killed him… had just been a simple mistake on the part of someone else…
"It will never happen again," Nedzu added quickly. "We've changed the access locks on the doors, and of course Snipe will face consequences--"
As Nedzu rattled off some of the security measures they'd changed, Izuku couldn't help but zone out. It all just seemed… distant. Izuku felt weird and shaky, and he didn't like it. Why did he feel this way? He'd gotten out of there just fine!
Maybe it was because it was so unexpected. When he was walking into that room, the last thing he'd expected was life-threatening danger. Maybe he could say the same for the USJ, but at least in that case Izuku could justify the danger in retrospect with it being an off-campus facility. On the other hand, Izuku honestly hadn't expected anything to be able to hurt him in the heart of UA's stronghold.
Aizawa seemed to notice how Izuku was feeling. He gently placed a hand on Nedzu's shoulder, who stopped talking and glanced up at him.
"We may have made changes now that could stop this from happening in the future," Aizawa said. "But it didn't stop what happened to you. That's the most important thing right now. I'm sorry."
Izuku blinked at that. He hadn't expected an apology, especially not from such a strict teacher. "Thanks," Izuku said. "Um, I believe you. When you say it won't happen again." It was less belief and more a raw, wounded hope, but same-difference. "And… um… I got a new quirk!" Izuku said, changing the subject. "I'm hyper-durable now."
Instead of looking excited at the idea of him developing a new superpower for use in his Heroics, Nedzu looked pained. Meanwhile, Aizawa frowned deeply.
"And… that's… good…?" Izuku tried, his original train of thought derailed by their dark expressions.
"It means that you were truly at risk of death," Nedzu said, ears subtly drooping. "I'd expected it, but this is proof."
"Oh," Izuku said. He didn't know what to say to that. He'd expected the reception to his new quirk to be… more positive? Now things were just awkward. Though…
It did feel kinda good for Nedzu and Aizawa to treat this event with such seriousness. It made him feel important, like he mattered.
"Yes, but I made it," Izuku said, finally feeling like he could brush off the event. "Barely even got scratched up. So you don't need to worry."
Aizawa nodded, though his eyes were doubtful. "Don't be afraid to drop by Hound Dog for counseling if you're struggling, whether it's related to this or not," Aizawa said.
Izuku wasn't sure he really wanted to do that, but he nodded regardless.
"We contacted your mother that you'd been in an incident involving some dangerous equipment, but we made sure to tell her you were uninjured with the exception of some cuts," Nedzu added. "She was quite relieved that you were unhurt, and promised to join us once her shift had finished."
"What time is it?" Izuku asked.
"It's around six," Nedzu said.
"Her shift's almost done then," Izuku explained. "She'll be driving over soon."
"We should get your things together," Aizawa said. "Do you remember where you left your backpack?"
Shouta watched Midoriya reunite with his mother a few minutes later.
She fretted over him, but he assured her that everything was fine and that he'd barely even been hurt. She believed him easily, only stopping to ask Shouta if Recovery Girl was still there so she could thank her. Recovery Girl had already left.
But by far the most interesting thing Midoriya said to his mother was I probably shouldn't have been down there anyways, which was just untrue considering he'd been led down there by a teacher. Shouta frowned, puzzled, as Midoriya easily breezed over the fact that it had been UA that put him in that situation in the first place.
Instead, he acted like he was the one in the wrong, implying that he'd been hanging out in places where he wasn't supposed to. For whatever reason, he was trying to make it his fault, even when no one was saying it was. Was he worried how his mom would react? Or was he such a humble personality that he felt the need to take some blame even when he was totally innocent?
Shouta was about to correct Midoriya's obfuscations right then and there, prepared to tell Ms. Midoriya all about how culpable they were, but his student gave him a half-angry, half-panicked look when he saw him about to intervene. Frankly, Shouta was startled by it, and in response, he just closed his mouth. Clearly his student didn't want him explaining.
So Shouta ended up saying nothing, and the two Midoriyas left the school a few minutes later. Ms. Midoriya even thanked them on the way out, thoroughly convinced that the incident was the result of either her son's own recklessness or simple happenstance, biased by her son's softened retelling of the events.
Shouta felt a little bit sick thinking about it. They'd just gotten off scot-free. No bad press, no outrage, not even an angry parent.
When something that bad happens to a kid, there should be an angry parent.
Nedzu at least seemed to share his sentiment, if the seething rage that began lighting up in his eyes after the Midoriyas left was any indication. "He almost died," he said. "And she didn't even confront us about it."
"Midoriya told her everything was fine, that it wasn't our fault, and she believed it," Shouta murmured. "I almost want to call her back."
"I'm going to have a talk with Midoriya tomorrow," Nedzu said. "This… it needs to be sorted out. This isn't acceptable."
Shouta nodded in approval.
"And he's not the only one I'm going to be having a talk with," Nedzu said, cold anger in his voice. "Snipe is going to get a lesson on why he shouldn't endanger students."
Hm. It had been a long time since Nedzu had been so upset with one of the staff members. Sure, Nedzu was disappointed with humans on a daily basis, but not usually his staff. If Shouta remembered right, nothing good had come from the last incident in which Nedzu had gotten legitimately angry at one of his teachers. Shouta couldn't feel that much pity for Snipe though, considering he was partially responsible for what had gone on.
"Didn't even bother to double-check… doesn't he know anything about simulations… support equipment safety…!" Nedzu grumbled to himself.
Though…
Shouta felt a spark of annoyance. It seemed like Nedzu thought Snipe was the only one at fault. In fact, Nedzu didn't seem to be holding the second person responsible to account. Aizawa would just have to do it for him.
"It wasn't only his fault, you know," Shouta said
Nedzu glanced up at him. "Hm?"
"For such a simple miscommunication to cause such serious injuries, there was probably something wrong with our safety procedure in the first place," Shouta said. "Why did Snipe have access to such dangerous support equipment when we all know he doesn't know anything about the subject? Speaking of that, if we all had access to such a dangerous room, someone could have easily gone in there by accident. Potentially with a student in tow."
Shouta let what he said hang in the air for a few moments.
"So, it wasn't just Snipe's fault. It was also yours," he said.
There was a long, painful silence.
Shouta immediately felt the urge to backtrack. His mind told him he'd done the right thing by telling Nedzu the truth, but his gut told him he'd taken things too far. Whatever the case, he'd meant what he said, so he wasn't going to take it back.
Nedzu remained quiet. His face was indecipherable, and his gaze was calculating. Then, he finally spoke. "Do you know why I hired you?"
"No," Shouta answered truthfully. He still wasn't sure what exactly had drawn Nedzu to hire him as a teacher back when he'd been a young hero.
"I had many reasons, but one of them is that you were brutally honest, unafraid to give your real opinion," Nedzu said. "And… it seems that I got what I wanted."
Monkey's paw, Shouta absently thought.
"I'm sorry," Shouta said.
And Shouta did feel bad for the guy. It couldn't be easy to hear something like that.
But Shouta couldn't let him off easy. Not after what had almost happened.
"I'm going to spend some time alone," Nedzu said. Shouta just nodded in response, and Nedzu vanished behind an office door.
Shouta really did feel a little bit bad.
When Izuku got home, the first thing he did was more testing with his commands.
Unfortunately, he realized pretty quickly that he only had one. He could attach it to anything, but he'd only be able to cast one thing silently at any time.
All he had to do now was pick his most useful skill or action. Observe, maybe? He'd had a lot of problems with people thinking it was weird for him to say Observe all the time in the past… or maybe Detect Enemies?
Humming, and considering his options, Izuku opened the titles tab to get a new look at the ability "Self-Sufficient."
Self-Sufficient: When this title is equipped, this player can use +2 additional silent command(s).
Izuku grinned. This was the perfect solution to his problem! Now he could choose three!
Izuku decided to equip Self-Sufficient right away. As far as he knew, he wouldn't be coming into contact with any chemicals, so tabling Broken Chemist for now would probably be worthwhile.
"Equip Self-Sufficient," Izuku said. Okay then, what else do I choose?
He decided almost immediately. "Silent command 'observe', silent command 'detect enemies'" Izuku said, adding the two to his silent command list. With Cast, Detect Enemies, and Observe, he would be able to use his core abilities without tipping anyone off.
This would be really useful for the Sports Festival. He'd be able to snatch his opponent's quirks without being forced to say it aloud! Plus, silent casting (healing in particular) would stop him from tipping off opponents by going 'heal minor wound!' every time he wanted to fix up a bruise.
And of course, Izuku was excited by how close he was to some things. Only six skill points away from Heal Major Wound, and only two levels away from unlocking inventory! And was there a chance he'd get something cool by unlocking VIT? If so, he just needed one more stat point to unlock it!
Izuku really wanted to get a quest during the Sports Festival, but he was trying not to get his hopes up. Usually quests only showed up for very important things, and even though he considered the Sports Festival quite important, he wasn't sure if his quirk would feel the same.
But, even though his stats were sorted out…
He had one more thing to check. "Relationships."
RELATIONSHIPS
Midoriya Inko: Rep +98. Unconditional Love.
Aizawa Shouta: Rep+10. Fond.
Bakugou Katsuki: Rep -46. Enemy. (Type=Abusive)
Iida Tenya: Rep +32. Admiration.
Nedzu: Rep +22. Fiercely Protective.
Uraraka Ochako: +19. Friendly.
So Nedzu's rep was still protective. In fact, it had gotten even higher, going from normal protective to fiercely protective. And Aizawa's rep had, in a strange but welcome turn of events, gone from neutral to fond, around seven points in increase.
Huh.
Well…
Even though Izuku had some doubts, he was pretty sure a person who 'fiercely' wanted to protect you wasn't the type to shove you in something that could kill you in the hopes that you'd manifest a new quirk. Aizawa seemed uninvolved with the situation (and was fond of him) so Izuku figured in a worst-case scenario, Snipe had done this intentionally without permission from Nedzu and Aizawa. And that kinda didn't matter because he didn't have Snipe for any classes.
Izuku was satisfied with this turn of events, and he found himself extending forgiveness towards Nedzu and Aizawa. He was still kinda upset, but knowing that this wasn't a malicious incident made him much more willing to overlook what had happened. He was glad he'd kept the most incriminating detail (the fact that Snipe had led him to the danger room) out so that he wouldn't have to deal with his mom being angry at them. Instead, he could just forgive them on his own time.
Izuku plopped down on his bed and grabbed an adventure book off the shelf.
What a long day.
"Ah, Tomura, what an auspicious evening to see you on," All for One said, a hint of smugness in his voice.
Tomura picked up on the hint. "Auspicious? You mean lucky?"
"Indeed," he said. "I've found something quite interesting in the doctor's lab."
It was good that All for One sounded pleased, for once. He hadn't been lately, what with the capture of Kyudai, his most loyal subordinate.
"Yes, I found something fascinating in his quirk collection," All for One said. "It's called Dark Reflection, and I must say, the next time we see our dear doctor I'll need to give him a talk over keeping such an interesting quirk to himself!"
All for One liked Kyudai, so Tomura was pretty sure he'd keep him around once they found him even if he'd hid this from All for One. He nodded.
"It's a bit more subtle than many other quirks, which is perhaps why my friend Kyudai thought he could keep it for himself," All for One said. "Or… it is within the beginning stages, at least. It's quite obvious and damaging once it reaches the final stage, but at that point, it would likely be too late with the plan I have in mind. In fact, if we act now, that student who copied you might be among the number killed by the collateral damage."
Tomura wasn't sure how he felt about that, but he quickly shoved down all his doubts. "So when do we start?"
"It would be beneficial to use the quirk as soon as possible, but there is no benefit to recklessness," All for One said. "We must wait for an opening. To our luck, however, there is a day in the near future in which UA finds itself vulnerable, even if they are only partially opening to the public." All for One pointed to the wall calendar, on a specific day around one week away.
Tomura knew exactly what he was talking about.
"The Sports Festival," he said.
Chapter 26: Interim
School continued towards the Sports Festival, despite what had happened.
"I still can't believe All Might bailed on us!" Ashido said loudly.
"He was transporting the teachers to our location, give it a break Ashido," Satou said wearily. They'd had this argument before.
"I just think it's hilarious—"
"Well, I for one am glad the teachers got there fast," Uraraka added.
"But why'd he bother though! All Might could have cleared the whole mess up on his own!" Hagakure said. "He's probably stronger than all the other teachers combined!"
"I bet he was just giving the other teachers a piece of the action," Bakugou scoffed. "But when I'm number one, I won't bother."
Izuku enjoyed spending time with his classmates. Even if they were having a conversation just a hair's-breadth away from a state secret. "Well, good for you, Kacchan," Izuku mumbled.
"Are you making fun of me!?" Bakugou said angrily.
"I think he was being sincere, kero," Asui said.
Kaminari swung a casual arm around Midoriya. "Our guy is less out to get you than you think, Bakugou. I don't think he's got a mean bone in his body."
Izuku's classmates always tended to back him up in conversations if Bakugou got too mean, and they generally seemed to like him. They even called him 'Class Pres' sometimes! It made Izuku feel like some kind of political powerhouse.
"Yeah, yeah," Bakugou grumbled, turning back to his worksheet.
Aizawa, who was sitting at his desk, stared at his phone for a few moments. Then, he looked at Izuku.
At this point, with so many meetings with the principal under his belt, Izuku knew exactly what that look meant. He gave Aizawa a nod, got up from his seat and walked over to speak with him. "Meeting with Nedzu?" Izuku asked, quiet enough his classmates wouldn't hear. They'd already been asking questions about all his 'secret meetings' with Nedzu.
"Meeting with Nedzu," Aizawa confirmed, and Izuku left the classroom.
When Izuku reached Nedzu's office, he quickly realized what Nedzu had called him here for when the principal started talking about the meeting with his mom. After another apology about what had happened, Nedzu asked him if they needed to talk with her again, having noticed very apparently how she'd been 'misled' about the situation.
Izuku felt a bit warm inside, and some of his remaining doubt melted away. They were willing, even determined, to own up to their mistakes? It made him feel very charitable.
But also a little annoyed. Because he did not want to tell his mother.
"I didn't do it for you," Izuku eventually said. "I did it for me. I don't want my mom to have to worry about me. And it's my decision."
Nedzu sighed. "If you're sure. But if you change your mind…"
"I know," Izuku said. "Is there anything else you want to talk to me about?"
"One more thing," Nedzu said. "It's about the Sports Festival."
"Hm?"
"As the class president, you and Yaoyorozu will be introducing yourself as representatives of Class 1-A to the visiting heroes before the official event starts. It will likely last around an hour, and it will mostly be a social event."
Izuku resisted the urge to frown. Social events were hard… but, it was reassuring to know his charisma was at least decent. He couldn't self-deprecatingly say I'm bad with people when his stats numerically proved otherwise. "Okay, when does that start?" Izuku asked.
"You'll be given more details about it tomorrow," Nedzu said. "But this might give you an extra day to prepare."
I'll try my best to prepare, Izuku said. Social event plus athletic event means I need to be ready in both mind and body. Thankfully…
Thankfully, Izuku spent a lot of time training with Mirio.
"The last day before the Sports Festival," Izuku said, a bit wistfully.
"I'm so excited!" Neijire said. "I'm sure you'll do great, don't be worried."
"Thanks, it's a shame that this is our last meeting, though," Izuku said.
"I'll still see you in class!" Mirio reminded him. "And you can still train with us sometimes! We just won't be meeting so frequently."
"You really have improved," Tamaki said quietly, and he was right. In just two weeks, his Unarmed Combat skill had jumped to level 12, which was an incredible rate of growth for any skill. Izuku was certain it was because they were excellent teachers.
"You guys have improved too!" Izuku said. "Mirio's really good with his new strength quirk!" Even though it still doesn't make any sense… honestly, I need to sit down and think that through…
"Ah, thank you…"
"Good luck, Midoriya!" Neijire said cheerfully.
"You too!"
Izuku hadn't really expected to need to dress up in a suit for his first Sports Festival. He had a gym uniform in his backpack for the actual events, of course, but he needed to attend the formal first. This is one of the benefits of the class president position, Izuku reminded himself. Networking. This is a benefit!
It still kind of felt like an evil obligation, but it would be fine.
He glanced at himself in the mirror, giving a hesitant smile. Besides his messed-up tie (which he still couldn't get to work correctly!) he looked pretty good!
Oh well. Like his mom said, he should just try his best to have fun.
Chapter 27: Deep Fangs
Izuku marched into the building attached to the Sports Festival Stadium, feigning confidence. Thankfully, Yaoyorozu was waiting for him just inside.
"Hello," Izuku said. "Alright, let's do this."
"Indeed! This is our first debut as class president and vice president. Let's be professional and polite," Yaoyorozu said, puffing out her chest. She wore a long, light-green dress and white heels, a gold headpiece in her hair. Izuku found himself nodding in response. Something about Yaoyorozu made him not want to disappoint her. "Of course," he said.
The two made their way into the area reserved for the event, but it was empty for now. A long snack table adorned one of the walls, and though Izuku was tempted to grab a cream puff off it, he just followed Yaoyorozu instead. It would be awkward if someone important arrived while he was stuffing his mouth full of cream puff.
"Hey there, Class A," said an orange-haired girl, and Izuku recognized her as Kendo Itsuka, Class 1-B's representative. She was with who must have been her vice, a short boy who looked considerably shyer.
"Hello, Kendo," Yaoyorozu greeted. "It's great to see you."
"Likewise! Hopefully we can put this rivalry between our classes behind us…"
"Absolutely. I'm sorry about Bakugou."
"And I'm sorry about Monoma!"
For a moment, Izuku looked around for the other class presidents, before realizing that this was the First Year Sports Festival. It was just going to be these four.
Oh dear.
The door behind them creaked open, and the students turned to glance at it. Nedzu was there, accompanied by several other teachers. Present Mic, Midnight, Power Loader, and Vlad King in particular.
Aizawa had explained what would happen a few days ago. He said this was mostly a social event for the pros, with the first year reps mostly so they could learn how to interact in formal settings. But, since there wouldn't be that many students to talk to and there was the possibility of many curious pros, a few staff members would be showing up at the social to make sure neither of them got dogpiled.
Not to mention several teachers also wanted to attend themselves. Present Mic and Midnight showed up nearly every year just to enjoy the atmosphere, while Power Loader liked coming to promote his support equipment business. Izuku suspected Vlad might be attending just to keep an eye on his first-years; on the other hand, Aizawa's absence clearly indicated he'd bailed at any hint of social interaction or partying.
"You kids ready?" Midnight asked, grinning.
"Yes ma'am!" Yaoyorozu said.
"Alright--people will start entering through that door in a minute. They'll probably come up to greet you, you'll say hi, and then they'll start to disperse," Midnight said. "We'll be mingling with people around the room. Don't be afraid to come get us if you need anything."
"Alright," Izuku said, though a knot of nervousness formed in his stomach.
The teachers started meandering around the room a bit. Present Mic stood by the snack table, looking a bit too excited by the cream puffs. Vlad King leaned against the wall behind them, from a spot that let him observe the whole room, while Nedzu stood at the front, clearly ready to cheerfully greet guests. And after a few minutes, they arrived.
The first to walk in was Fatgum, wearing the yellow hooded sweatshirt that typically accompanied his hero costume. Izuku resisted the urge to greet him too excitedly or ask him about his quirk. Fanboying would look unprofessional at best. Though…
As Fatgum said, "Well, heya there!" and Izuku smiled in response, he silently cast Observe, quickly gathering Fatgum's stat block. Quirk was Fat Absorption, of course… but his title was Cuddle Bug for some reason, which Izuku found very adorable.
As heroes walked in, Izuku greeted them, while also using Observe to look at their name and quirk. Though some people spoke for much too long or were patronizing or standoffish, saying hello was all-in-all a fairly easy task. The whole thing was mostly pleasantries, after all. And looking at their fascinating quirks was even easier.
And then, of course, came Endeavor.
Frankly, Izuku had not expected him at this party. He hadn't seen anyone too high up in the ranks so far (except Shishido, the No. 13 Hero, who Izuku had seen earlier) and he'd figured that was because they were watching from their houses and would only come in person to the Third-Year Sports Festival. Actually… considering Endeavor's son was a first-year… that might be why he was here.
"Um, h-hello," Izuku said, cursing his stutter.
"Hm," Endeavor said. "So you two are the representatives for my son's class."
"Yes, we are," Yaoyorozu said smoothly. "Being in class with your son has been excellent. I think he'll make a great hero."
Izuku used Observe on Endeavor, to interesting results. Name was Todoroki, of course (he would have been concerned if it wasn't) and his quirk was Hellfire, but his title was Number Two. Ouch. Izuku wasn't sure how titles were decided, and becoming the second hero in all of Japan was an incredible feat, but Izuku also got the impression that Endeavor wouldn't be too impressed that his title was essentially Second Place. Thankfully he didn't know.
After a very awkward exchange, in which Endeavor spoke minimally, he walked off and got caught up in a conversation with Nedzu, which sort of made sense. Nedzu was the only person in the room besides Shishido who even approached Endeavor's level when it came to political status. Whatever the case, Izuku tried to put Endeavor out of his mind and focus on the new people coming in.
And, in spite of what he'd expected, Izuku actually found himself enjoying the experience. He was able to talk to the pros pretty well, and he got to know all their quirks! And they had such interesting ones too! Hair-Raiser, Sandstorm, Lightning Rod, Gatling… Laser, Dark Reflection, and High-Kick!
Even though he said he'd use his ability to make sure he didn't forget any names, Izuku was essentially only paying attention to the quirks at this point. He really did enjoy seeing all the types of quirks a pro could have.
Wait…
Did Dark Reflection have a tag on it? Like transferred or combined? He felt like he'd seen something attached to it… but he didn't exactly remember what it had… all he really remembered about them was that she'd been polite and had black hair, but that applied to maybe half the heroes here.
Yaoyorozu was deep in a conversation with some hero called X-Less, and no more heroes were entering the building. That meant it was the perfect time to do a little search. Izuku glanced around, using Observe, trying to find that Dark Reflection lady again.
This proved incredibly difficult, though. Using Observe a bunch of times in a row clogged up his screen with white text, so it was hard to read whose was whose. And it gave him a serious headache. Ugh. It looked like Observe was pretty useful when it came to figuring out what a person's quirk was, but rather less useful when it came to scanning a crowd for a particular quirk.
Izuku shook his head. It was probably nothing. He didn't really remember well whether or not he'd seen a tag attached to that them, so he didn't want to make a big deal out of it. Especially since he had no idea what the tags even meant.
It was probably fine.
Izuku spotted the friendly-looking Fatgum not far away. "Ah, hello!" Izuku said, trying to make conversation. "You're Tamaki's mentor, right?"
Nedzu pulled his tie back in order and walked brusquely toward the door.
He always felt a little bit… conflicted about these events. Part of him liked them, part of him hated them. He loved the looks on people's faces when he surprised them, but he despised being surrounded by random humans he didn't know or like. Not to mention, in social events like these it took effort to seem both friendly and competent considering his cutesy appearance. And he knew when he got impatient, he started coming off as unsettling instead.
At least Nedzu had Vlad King to keep an eye on the first-years so he could handle the pros at the door. Nedzu suspected it was because Vlad King specifically wanted to make sure Shoda would be okay.
Whatever the case, it made things easier for him. Nedzu opened the door and found that the students, as expected, were already in place.
Yaoyorozu wore a long, ruffled dress, Kendo wore a black blazer, and Shoda wore a regular blue-colored suit. All normal formal wear. Midoriya on the other hand chose to wear a reddish-brown pinstripe suit, with a pale yellow shirt underneath. It was slightly oversized, and the red of the suit vaguely reminded Nedzu of rusty nails. The colors did not match.
Nedzu resisted the urge to sigh, instead going to the doors to greet guests. His suspicion that this wouldn't be a fun event turned out to be the case once people started coming in. There were far too many people for his liking. And of course he had to make conversation with Endeavor, who was always disappointingly disinterested in what he had to say. And, one of the guests, a person with dark hair, had even legitimately shoved him out of the way to get to the snack table. How irritating. Far too many impolite humans here.
Oh well. The event would be over soon. And…
Glancing over, Nedzu noticed Midoriya grinning and talking with Fatgum, while Kendo seemed to be having a vigorous conversation with the martial artist Double Hit, with Shoda often adding shyly to their discussion.
At least the students were having fun.
The event was over before he knew it. It was only an hour or two long, considering the first-years had to get to the Sports Festival, so while the pros meandered around continuing their conversation, the four reps were ushered out towards the student area of the building to change into their costumes and ready for the events.
Izuku, though, even changing for the event, was deep in-thought about the tags. What did it mean for that Dark Reflection guy? Nedzu had been super concerned when he'd heard his quirk doctor had one… did that mean they had some kind of inherent meaning? Did the tag set the person apart from others?
Think, Izuku, think…
Yagi's quirk was associated with the word remnants. Remnants, meaning, what remains. And Mirio's quirk was transferred, meaning that it's changed places.
Suddenly, it clicked.
Remnants… what remains… what remains of One for All! And the reason he only has remnants, and not the entire quirk…
Is because he gave it to Mirio.
He transferred it to him.
The idea seemed impossible. Izuku had never heard of anything like that before. But it just made too much sense. People don't normally have more than one quirk. That's just scientifically… incorrect, unless you do some kind of biological experimentation, which is what probably happened to the blue-black creature at the USJ. And Mirio… from what Neijire had said, Mirio hadn't had any quirk other than Permeation before. According to her, Mirio had just 'gotten' a new strength quirk, presumably some time in either early third year or late second year.
The exact time frame in which Yagi's quirk had gone from transferred to remnants.
It lined up too perfectly.
And Yagi's quirk had originally been transferred--did that mean he'd received it from someone else? Was it the quirk itself that could be passed around like a basketball?
Could Mirio give it to someone else?
If he could… he could get rid of his health problems!
It didn't really explain the combined and copy tags, but Izuku could guess that they were related to quirk experimentation because of those tags' connection to Kyudai. They must appear when someone tampers with your quirk.
Had Dark Reflection been tampered with at some point? Was that something that didn't matter, or was that an ominous sign? Had it been against their will?
Izuku finished changing and walked out, joining his classmates. They were chattering excitedly, ready for their debut in the Sports Festival, theorizing intensely about what the first challenge would be.
Hm. I'll have to ask Nedzu about all of this later--and maybe report that Dark Reflection person to him, if it's warranted. But, Izuku didn't really know where he was, and the main event was starting in just a few minutes. He'd try to search for him in between events.
For now, Izuku prepared himself to win the Sports Festival.
Chapter 28: Sports Festival Stadium
Present Mic cheerfully introduced 1-A through the loudspeakers as the group walked into the Stadium. Cheers erupted, and Present Mic then introduced the other classes. With a noticeable bias towards the hero classes.
Or, well, not really bias, but he definitely put more focus on them as he was announcing them coming on the field. That made some amount of sense, considering that they were what people were here to see, but Izuku still saw some Support and Gen Ed students huff in annoyance at the difference.
Midnight quickly announced the first race as an Obstacle course. The first forty-two to pass the finish line would be moving on to the next round. Izuku found himself grinning a bit at that. He only needed to get in the top 40-ish to win, which should be easy enough. He might have been nervous about it, but he had succeeded in Nedzu's mini obstacle course, which was due to be much deadlier than anything here.
Though… there were a lot of people with dexterity-based quirks here. Or area-effect quirks that could slow him down. He probably shouldn't let his guard down.
"Go!" Midnight called, and Izuku shot forward toward the gate, which quickly became congested with all the students trying to get through. He still managed to squeeze through pretty easily, but a giant ice sheet sent back by Todoroki narrowly missed him a few seconds later. He clumsily leapt over it, and though he didn't get stuck in it like many other students, he still had to slow down so that he didn't slip on the ice. At least everyone else is getting slowed down too…
Luckily, Izuku had an idea. He snatched the long pole that Yaoyorozu had left on the ground (the one that she'd used to launch herself ahead of Todoroki's ice sheet) and used it like a makeshift ski, pushing himself across the ice at a reasonable speed. It wasn't the quickest, but if he kept going at this rate, he'd be able to keep pace with some of the faster contestants.
Er, well. Then the robots showed up.
Several giant robots, including one of the zero-pointers from UA's entrance exams, suddenly appeared in their path, clearly meant to be the next obstacle. Izuku dodged the robots' swings, looking for a way through. He didn't need to look for long. The hero students ahead of him (and Todoroki in particular) tore down several of the robots, leaving a perfect path for him. And, in the meantime, Izuku managed to snap up a usefully-shaped piece of robot armor to use as a shield.
Having cleared the giant robots, Izuku ran forward and found himself on the precipice of another obstacle, this one a mass of platforms with ropes attaching them.
Oh boy. Climbing time.
At least Izuku's DEX was decent-ish.
The obstacle course was mostly as Nedzu had anticipated: Bakugou and Todoroki in the lead, and Class A performing well. Though…Class B was performing a little worse than he'd expected them to. Was Class 1-B hanging back intentionally, so that they could figure out Class A's quirks? It was true that all they needed was to get in was the top 42.
Clever, but risky. Sacrificing the chance to show off one's quirk in the early stages, so that they had a greater chance of making it to the later (more publicized) stages.
And it was clear Midoriya was keeping up with the bunch. He seemed to use a variety of tools to his advantage, from things Yaoyorozu left behind, to broken robot exoskeleton. He was around the front-middle of the pack by the time he was done with The Fall, but that was quickly about to change. In fact, Nedzu broke into a grin when he saw Midoriya digging up the mines. An excellent solution to his predicament. Midoriya, using the force of the explosion, soared past Bakugou and Todoroki—
A sickly glee rose up in his chest, and suddenly Nedzu f̵e̷l̸t̵ ̸a̵ ̴li̴t̴t̸l̴e s̸tr̷an̶ge.̶
Nedzu rubbed his eyes, blinking. What had he been thinking about?
He glanced down at the event, just to see that Midoriya had won. An impressive feat, considering that he was competing with all the other first-years, not only just the heroics students. And though coming in first meant he would get the ten million point headband, Nedzu had no doubt that Midoriya would come up with something interesting in the next round.
Izuku panted as he raced across the finish line. Victory!
Todoroki and Bakugou brought up the rear, and it only took one look for Izuku to see that Bakugou was furious that he came in third, and especially at losing to Izuku. Izuku quickly backed away from the two, deciding he'd try to give Bakugou a little bit of space until he calmed down. There was something else he wanted to do.
There's a break in the action right now that I could use… so before everyone else finishes up with the Obstacle course…
Izuku slowly approached Midnight, who stood on a stage slightly above them. "Kayama-sensei?" he asked quietly.
Midnight flicked off the microphone that put her voice over the loudspeakers. "What's up?"
"Can you tell Nedzu that I saw another person with a 'quirk tag' during the formal? He'll know what I'm talking about when you say that," Izuku said.
Midnight's forehead furrowed in confusion, but she nodded in agreement. "I could text Vlad King and ask him to tell Nedzu," she said. Ah. That made sense. Midnight would need to commentate the rest of the event, so she couldn't physically leave.
"That would be great," Izuku said, and that was perfect! If the tags thing really was serious, Nedzu would know! Now all Izuku had to worry about was the Festival.
As Midnight typed up the message on her phone, more students ran through the gate and finished the race. Izuku was happy to see that Uraraka and Iia and the majority of his classmates also made it through. A lot of 1-B students had successfully gotten through as well, which was to be expected, plus that strange purple-haired 1-C guy who'd 'challenged' them earlier. Maybe he was more of a threat than Izuku had thought.
"Our next competition will be a cavalry battle!" Midnight announced. "That means you'll need to team up in groups of two to four!" As Midnight explained the event, revealing the need for a group, Izuku felt a vague dread settle over him, similar to the kind he felt whenever a teacher said they were doing a group project. And then Midnight revealed that the person who came in first place was getting the ten million point headband.
Izuku felt everyone's gazes upon him. Oops.
Now that I have all these points, but didn't show off an impressive quirk, so that could spell trouble… would anyone even want to work with me?
Luckily, Izuku's fear of being instantly abandoned by everyone was quickly assuaged.
"We should work together!" Uraraka said cheerfully, jogging up to him. "It's better to work with people you know you get along with!"
Oh thank goodness I have at least one person.
"Thank you," Izuku said, feeling touched. "We just need one or two more… if we could convince Iida…"
"Hey, Midoriya!" a voice said behind him.
Izuku turned around to see Yaoyorozu and Kendo.
"Mind if we join you?" Yaoyorozu said.
Izuku gaped. Two people? Yaoyorozu wants to team up?
Uraraka, glancing back behind her, said, "It looks like Iida's already joining Todoroki."
That was all she had to say for Izuku to agree wholeheartedly. "W-we'd love to have you!" Izuku said. He hadn't expected anyone to want to partner with him, let alone a person from 1-B! "W-what, uh--"
"Yaoyorozu mentioned you have a quirk that increases your intelligence," Kendo pointed out. "And considering she can make anything…"
"It ends up being a killer combo!" Uraraka said. "This'll work out great!"
"And I can be the muscle," Kendo affirmed.
Ah… so Yaoyorozu and Kendo hadn't joined his team out of class rep solidarity or anything like that… they'd joined up because they thought he could win. Oh boy that was a lot of pressure. "I'll do my best," Izuku promised. "What's your quirk?"
"Big Fist," Kendo said. "I can increase the size of my fists. My grip strength increases proportional to size."
"Hm," Izuku said. "Proportional to volume specifically? And how big can they get? And for how long?"
"Um, yeah, volume… and like… around the size of my head for a half hour, but bigger if just for a short period of time?" Kendo said.
Izuku gave a nod, deep in thought. Big Fist, Float, and Creation.
"Alright. I've got it. How would you feel about being the rider, Kendo?"
Chapter 29: Bring in the Cavalry
"Teams… start!" Midnight shouted, cracking her whip. Immediately, Izuku's team shot up into the air. The jetpack Yaoyorozu made lifted them up, helped by the fact that Uraraka had lightened them all. The other team with a jetpack (headed by a pink-haired support girl and two 1-B students) did the same and, rather unfortunately, rushed in their direction. Whether that group was running towards them because they wanted the ten million, or out of revenge for stealing their idea, it was anyone's guess.
Because Izuku had definitely stolen their idea. He'd seen that girl's jetpack and thought, yes, we could also use a jetpack. They… well, they needed a defensive strategy! And there were no anti-plagiarism rules governing the Sports Festival.
One of the enemy team members (Pony Tsunotori, Izuku remembered) suddenly detached from the flying group. Izuku almost yelled out, briefly scared for her, but after a few seconds of falling, she leveled out and began flying towards them as well. How…
Izuku peered closer.
She was flying by balancing on two of her horns! Yes, he remembered seeing her quirk was Horn Cannon, implying she could shoot them out, but she didn't realize that she could control them telepathically like Hawks!
And she wasn't the only one who was coming after them. Bakugou used explosions to shoot himself off of his group, launching himself toward them.
"Are they even allowed to do that!?" Mic announced in the distance.
"So long as they don't touch the ground they're fine, according to the rules!" was Midnight's response.
"Alright, anti-aerial defense! Like we planned!" Izuku called.
Yaoyorozu pulled several balls out of her stomach and handed them to Uraraka, who lightened them, and then over to Kendo, who threw them. With Kendo's increased hand strength and no excess weight to slow the balls down, they went flying at an incredible speed.
Tsunori immediately dropped downward and backward when she saw them heading towards her, barely managing to avoid them by backing off and letting them whiz over her head. Bakugou, on the other hand, agily managed to dodge two that flew his way, but a third slammed into his thigh and sent him spiraling. For a second, Izuku thought that Bakugou might hit the ground, but no dice. He managed to steady himself before he got to that point.
Bakugou sent a snarl in his direction as the rest of his group caught up with him. Sero attached some of his elbow tape to Bakugou as he rose in the air again, likely as a new defensive measure in case he got sent flying backwards again. Meanwhile, Tsunori seemed to be readying herself for another attack.
"Oh wow, it looks like Kendo's group is playing fastball!" Present Mic said. "Better watch out, those look like they hurt!"
"They're using their vantage point to keep control of the field," Aizawa said, still monotone despite the fact that he was in the announcing booth. "Reaching them will be a challenge, but any intelligent team should be able to think up a counter-strategy."
"They have the high ground now---YEAH!"
"Keep an eye on Tsunori's team," Izuku said. "I think they're--"
Before he could finish his words, Tsunori quickly shot six sharp horns in their direction with Horn Cannon.
Oh shit--
A loud clang noise rang out as the horns clashed against metal. A metallic shield, in particular. Yaoyorozu had quickly made one and brought it up to defend them when she'd seen the horns coming.
"Q-quick reflexes, Yaoyorozu," Izuku breathed in relief.
"How-how's our height, Kendo?" Uraraka panted through the exertion of lightening the entire group. "We're up so high!"
"We can't get lower, though, otherwise we're in Todoroki's ice range."
"G-got it."
"Prepare to fire! Bakugou approaching!" Izuku called.
This time, Bakugou was expecting their attack. He dodged the balls in an impressive spiral motion, before lunging closer. But Izuku was expecting that. "Hit now!"
Uraraka pulled the long, thin baton from her sleeve and promptly smacked Bakugou in the side with it as hard as she could. Because he was flying forward so fast, so the hit was devastating, throwing Bakugou to the left with a loud thunk. Izuku heard Bakugou curse as he struggled to right himself in the air.
Better yet, this gave Yaoyorozu just enough time to throw up a ball to Kendo, who immediately whipped it down into Bakugou's stomach. Fortunately for him, Sero's tape went taut and snapped him back before he could get launched out-of-bounds.
Izuku had known that Bakugou would try to attack on Urarka's side. Bakugou needed to be wary of Yaoyorozu, who was capable of making anything, and he'd avoided Izuku like the plague ever since Battle Trials.
He also knew Bakugou would dive down slightly (into short-range weapon striking range) and then pop up to snatch the headband. It was a signature move of his, something Izuku knew from years of watching.
I knew that giving Uraraka a little extra reach might just save us in time--I'm so glad I asked Yaoyorozu to make it!
The fact that Bakugou didn't immediately come back up after them either meant the hit had been pretty bad or that he was sick of them and was going to try to get points from other teams. Izuku wasn't sure which was more likely.
"I'm running out of energy," Yaoyorozu said, sounding strained. "Not right now--but I can't keep making balls at this rate--"
Yaoyorozu quickly brought up her shield again as Pony Tsunori shot more Horn Cannons in their direction.
"I'm getting tired too," Uraraka admitted. "I might need to go down soon."
"Under ten minutes here folks--the stakes are high! Let's see what everyone can do!" Mic's announcement called.
Ten minutes… too much time.
Shoot… but I know what we need to do.
"I have a plan," Izuku announced. "Yaoyorozu, we need to take out the other team's jetpack."
"Tsunori is the one giving us the most trouble though, not her team," Kendo said. "And she can fly independently."
"That pink-haired support girl can't carry the other boy by herself," Izuku refuted. "And the rider's not allowed to hit the ground. If you take out his jetpack…"
"She'll be forced back to ground with them to carry him," Kendo said. "Okay, let's do it."
Tsunori was circling around, looking for another opening. They needed to do this quick.
"Uraraka, lighten that shield," Izuku said. Without questioning his suggestion, Uraraka did so. Then, Izuku grabbed it and handed it to Kendo. "Take aim," he whispered.
Kendo nodded in understanding.
With the shield gone, Tsunori lunged forward and started shooting her Horn Cannons at them again.
"Pull up!" Izuku shouted. Kendo pressed full thrust on the jetpack, sending them flying up into the sky. Then, she pulled her arm back, and threw the lightened shield with all her might at the other team.
Kendo was a martial artist, but that wasn't all. She was also fond of baseball, and many other throwing sports. Her aim was true, and sliced through the enemy team's jetpack.
Tsunori saw what happened. Panicked, she immediately turned around and went flying towards her teammates, catching them with her horns before they hit the ground. From there, she didn't fly up towards them again, seeming to have been grounded.
Maybe ' what if she grabs her teammates with her horns and flies back up' or perhaps ' will her team be okay once we knock them out of the sky?!' were questions that Izuku should have been asking himself before he came up with this plan, but to be fair, for the entire fight Tsunori hadn't been able to manipulate more than four horns at once (meaning she probably couldn't prop up her teammates with her) and they'd been fairly low to the ground.
"And Team Kendo has grounded the opposition! Is no one able to reach the ten million points!?"
" "... Both Team Bakugou and Team Monoma have tools at their disposal for flight, but going for the ten million over other points might be risky. We'll have to wait and see how it turns out."
"I don't feel so hot," Uraraka said. "I don't think…I can keep lifting us for much longer.."
"But the jetpacks Yaoyorozu made aren't designed to handle four people! That's why we lightened them!" Kendo started.
"Second phase of my plan," Izuku said. "Yaoyorozu, do you have enough energy left to make another jetpack."
"Yes, but barely," Yaoyorozu said.
"One jetpack is only designed to carry one person," Kendo repeated. "Being able to create just one more won't save us."
"That's okay, I have an idea," Izuku said. "One jetpack for us three. We'll lower ourselves down slowly, and then Uraraka releases Zero Gravity. And Kendo…"
"I stay up here," she realized. "With the second jetpack."
"But if Bakugou comes back up, you'll need to handle him on your own," Izuku warned. "Remember, play defensive. Hands stay up near the headband."
"I can do that," Kendo said. "Let's do it, quick. Try to nab some points while you're down there, won't you?"
"Alright!"
Yaoyorozu created a jetpack from her stomach and slung it around her back. Gingerly, Izuku clung on to her instead of Kendo, and the two carefully separated, with Kendo going a bit higher and Yaoyorozu slowly lowering. Soon enough, the team was in two, and Izuku was back on the ground. Uraraka released her quirk, looking sick. Kendo remained in the sky.
"Team Kendo has broken up! And it looks like Kendo is still flying. Say, we might have to ban air strats next year--this honestly seems unfair!"
"It won't be the same competition next year, so it doesn't really matter," Aizawa said. " But regardless, it is a hero's job to advance and succeed whether or not the situation is fair."
"Always so pragmatic, Eraser--oh wow, it looks like Team Bakugou is back on the leaderboard!"
Izuku risked a glance in that direction. It looked like Bakugou was harassing Monoma, that 1-B person who'd called him entitled or something earlier. So maybe he quit chasing them because he found someone else who he wanted to crush into paste?
Then, Bakugou turned to look up at the sky and growled.
… Okay, maybe he would be pursuing the ten million after all. That was bad.
Then, he winced, clutching his stomach and doubling over.
… Oh?! Maybe not?
"Two minutes on the clock, people!"
Izuku and his team tried to gather more points, in case something happened with Kendo, but it was very difficult. At this point, all the headbands were in the possession of the strongest teams. With Uraraka and Yaoyorozu both too tapped out to use their quirks, and Izuku not having an applicable one, it was difficult for them to sneak up on any teams. They almost managed to snatch one from a 1-B team, but the purple-haired gen ed student's team dove in and took it before they could.
Disappointing, but at this point, they were essentially just running down the clock.
"And that's time!"
Izuku stopped, panting. He looked over at the leaderboard.
"In first place, Team Kendo!"
The crowd cheered, and it suddenly dawned on Izuku that he'd come in first for two rounds in the Sports Festival. He felt almost dizzy with the realization. He was… succeeding?! In something hero-related?
"Great job, team," Uraraka said, sounding exhausted but excited.
"In second place, Team Bakugou!"
It looked like it was grating on Bakugou to be in second-place, but the placement was still relatively high. Definitely not the worst position.
And before Present Mic was even done announcing, Bakugou was already limping off the field toward the recovery area. Ouch. The baseball-to-stomach injury probably had hurt, or maybe it was the baton-to-hip at rapid speeds?
Well, now Izuku felt kinda guilty…
"In third place, Team Todoroki! In fourth, Team Shinsou! Everyone from these groups will be moving on!"
[ALERT: HEROICS QUEST ACTIVATION!]
Heroics Quest: Final Round
Goal: Finish in the Top FourBonus: Win the Sports FestivalREWARDS: ???
BONUS REWARDS: ???
The quest immediately snapped Izuku out of guilt and back to determination and focus. He would really love more stat points, he needed them pretty badly at this stage.
But to actually succeed in it, he needed to finish in the top four of the Sports Festival, with an additional optional bonus if he managed to win. That would be tough…
But he'd already gotten this far, right?
"Whew, I'm beat," Hizashi said, yawning.
Aizawa hid a fond smile in his capture weapon. Hizashi always looked adorable when he did that. It was almost worth getting roped into this horrible announcing position while the last of his burn wounds healed.
… Almost.
"You wanna grab coffee in the break room together while we wait for the next round to start?" Hizashi offered.
Aizawa shook his head. "I need to have a quick conversation with Nedzu. He called me for something, said it was important. I'll meet with you back at the booth."
Hizashi twitched oddly at this, his eyes rounding slightly. It was a bit of an unusual reaction.
"Something wrong?" Aizawa asked, tilting his head.
Hizashi paused. "No… nothing's wrong. I'll meet up with you later."
Hizashi turned and started walking towards the break room.
Hm. Whatever. He's probably just tired.
Aizawa walked to Nedzu's office.
Nedzu had received Midoriya's message about the person with the Dark Reflection quirk, and how it had a tag. Transferred, it had said.
He was glad that Midoriya had managed to get this message to him, even though Midoriya didn't know the importance of the tags or their implications. Maybe he needed to have a conversation with him about it later.
For now, though, Nedzu needed to focus on how one of the heroes in their midst had also received their quirk from an outside source, likely All for One.
Now, this wasn't an immediate red flag. Well, actually it was, but it wasn't a crimson-blood-red flag, it was just a mild warning sign. This was because All for One, before his defeat by All Might five years ago, had been at the helm of a significant quirk-trading business, and he often gave or took quirks in exchange for favors. It was quite possible that the person in question had asked for a Heroics-suited quirk in their younger days, thus causing this incident.
It didn't take long for Nedzu to find the hero in question by looking at all the quirks of those who had been in attendance.
Ah. It was a hero called Sparklebright, a recent graduate of Shiketsu. She'd been invited as a 'graduation present' of sorts, it seemed one of the Shiketsu teachers had managed to get her a ticket by arguing it would be good for cross-school relations. Her quirk was registered as: 'Dark Reflection--increases the user's strength when they feel negative emotions like stress, sadness or anger.'
That made some sense. A strength quirk would be something that Sparklebright could have wanted for Heroics, even if it pulled on negative emotions. It was unfeasible to think All for One had manipulated her into taking Dark Reflection quirk if he would get something in return from it.
Still, they couldn't have someone who owed All for One a favor hanging about on campus. So he'd called Aizawa to kindly escort her off-campus while making as little fuss as possible. And, if she attempted an attack, Aizawa would be able to dispatch her with ease.
But, as he was flipping through the cameras looking for her, Nedzu realized that she was near the exit, about to leave campus.
Hm, that's a little odd…
But then, he noticed her excitedly chatting with Gang Orca as he also left, trailing after him like an overexcited puppy. Gang Orca smiled gently back and talked with her too, though it was too far away to hear what they were saying on cameras. The two ended up walking off campus together.
Oh, that makes more sense. If she found a networking opportunity already and wasn't really interested in the final round anyways…
"What'd you need me for?" Aizawa asked, looking into his office.
"Oh, actually nothing, now. I resolved the situation," Nedzu said.
"Alright, then." Aizawa shrugged and left.
Nedzu turned back to his cameras. A little bit more cursory research on Sparklebright wouldn't go amiss. I can do that while I watch the final round. He felt a spark of excitement at the idea of the final round. He wanted to say that it was because he liked seeing young heroes thrive (which was true) but there was a more ever-present reason for his excitement. He couldn't help but feel a razor-sharp excitement (tension?) when he thought about how Midoriya would perform.
It's going to be an interesting year…