Short chapter. Like, 520 words. Sorry 😛
In this, what they're doing is basically like the one-on-one battles during the sports festival, except it's for training instead. I think I mentioned something like this in my story Here With You if you want more details.
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“ALRIGHT, CLASS!”
All Might greeted them all as they filed off of the bus.
“Everyone suited up? Great! Now to get into our first matchups!” He reached down and started drawing names at random. “First up are Kirishima and Bakugo,” Bakugo scoffed and Kirishima playfully punched him in the shoulder, “and following them will be Midoriya and Uraraka; Iida and Shoji; Tokoyami and Asui; Sero and Kaminari; Yaoyorozu and Jiro -” the two girls smiled at one another, “-Ashido and Aoyama; Ojiro and Hagakure; Koda and Mineta; and finally, Sato and Todoroki. The winners of this round will advance to the next. Understood?”
They all chorused sounds of agreement, and All Might’s smile widened, if at all possible.
"FANTASTIC! Let’s get started!”
The students began settling into their places inside the observing area as the first battle took place, waiting for their own turn to spar. Todoroki was about to head into the waiting space when he was tugged away from the group by the arm, pulled to the side as a brief flare of adrenaline kicked in. He snatched the person’s wrist, whipping around to face his attacker. His sudden icy gaze melted as he came face to face with Yaoyorozu.
"Relax. It’s just me.”
His tensed muscles did just as she spoke, releasing his hold on her with a sigh. “Yaoyorozu. What is it?”
She looked anxious, but he wasn’t sure why. She had no reason to be nervous during this training exercise. If she could hold her own against his ice and fire, then she could surely hold her own against Jiro’s earphone jacks.
“I’m the sixth battle. You’re the tenth. If we both win all of our matchups, we’ll be against one another for the sixteenth battle, and the victor will move on to the final rounds as they wait for the other matchups to commence.”
"Uh, huh.” Todoroki nodded. “Are you nervous?”
Her cheeks flushed bright red as she lowered her head. He noticed how Yaoyorozu tensed up as he asked the question. Looks like she still doesn’t have to self-confidence she used to have. “W-well… n-not exactly nervous, just…” Her voice trailed off and lowered so much in tone that he couldn’t make out anything else she spoke. He placed a gentle, comforting hand on the girl’s shoulder, making her look him in the eyes.
“Hey,” he said firmly enough to gain her attention. “You’ll make it to the end. With all the times we’ve been matched up against each other, I’m sure you’ve learned some tricks along with my weaknesses and exploits and how to use them against me. Just as I have for you. No matter what the outcome of these battles, we’ll both have done our best, correct?” Yaoyorozu placed her hand over his, her unease falling away.
"Correct.” She offered a bright smile that warmed his heart.
"Glad to hear it. I wish you luck,” he turned to walk back inside the observing area.
“Good luck,” she said softly. But she quickly stopped him once more. “Wait.”
Todoroki glanced back as something tugged at his arm, looking down to see her hands firmly holding onto him so he couldn’t walk away. “Yes?”
“If I win our matchup,” she began, “if I win… you have to hear me out!”
