Reset and Rewind

Chapter 8 - Fanning the Flames

The cavalry battle was going well, a little too well. It set Izuku on edge. Something was about to go wrong, it just had to. They'd been running and dodging successfully for a while now and something had to give. Even with his past experience, this shouldn't be a flawless run. Just as he was about to point this out to Ochako, an ice shard flew past his face. Ah, there it was.

"Took you long enough, Shoto-kun," Izuku muttered under his breath, turning to face the heterochromatic teen. So this is where the real fight starts, huh?

"So what's the plan, Deku-kun? Are we hitting the air?" Ochako asked. Izuku nodded, signaling for Hatsume to start up her babies. They weren't airborne for long before Todoroki shot another shard towards them, effectively damaging the hoover boots. Hatsume cried out for her babies, swearing she'd get back at Todoroki for harming them. Izuku felt bad for the boy, he had no idea who's wrath he just called upon himself...

"We're losing altitude," Tokoyami stated, doing his best to stabilize their fall, allowing their feet to touch the ground without anyone falling over. They were pushed to the edge of the arena though, and team Todoroki was blocking their path.

"I'll be taking those points now, Midoriya," Todoroki said, his voice as monotone as ever.

"Tokoyami," Izuku called out.

"On it!" he answered, sending out Dark Shadow. If he attacked, they might be able to push them back and get away, but Yaoyorozu blocked him. They continued their back and forth for a while, Todoroki's team attacking and Izuku's team defending and the other way around. Neither were gaining or losing any ground, and Izuku counted himself lucky that the other teams seemed preoccupied for the moment. He'll have to thank Kacchan for that distraction later.

This wasn't over yet though. Izuku remembered Iida-kun would show off his trump card during the last minute of the round and he had to be ready for when that happened. Maybe they wouldn't take his headband this time around? He could only try, right? Besides, their team already got enough points to advance, they didn't need the 10 million. So when Midnight announced they were in their last minute, Izuku was ready for Iida's Recipro Burst. He ducked on time, Ochako putting her arm over his head at the same time, also knowing what was about to come. And so Todoroki wasn't able to steal his headband while they shot across the field.

"We did it Deku-kun!" Ochako exclaimed. They did it... They changed what happened! Izuku sucked in a shaky breath when he sat up right again, really hoping that wouldn't come back to bite him in the ass later...

"No!" Todoroki yelled in frustration, small flames licking his side. Oh that wasn't good...

"I didn't know you could go that fast, Iida," Yaoyorozu gaped.

"It's a last resort," Iida sighed. "I won't be super mobile for a while, I'm sorry Todoroki!"

If Todoroki was pissed before, he was definitely furious now. Izuku's eyes widened when he saw flames rise from his left side. There it is, the consequences of his own actions! He didn't know what to do when Todoroki glared at them, stretching his arm and taking aim. Yaoyorozu was begging him to calm down, to turn down the heat, but he was not listening. The fact Endeavor was screaming and hollering from the stands wasn't helping either.

"Todoroki-kun, please calm down," Izuku asked, holding his hands up in surrender. "You're hurting your teammates! Please, don't do this!"

Todoroki wouldn't listen though, and Dark Shadow had to come in between them, taking most of the heat as he screamed in pain at the flames. Yaoyorozu couldn't take it anymore, breaking formation just as the timer ran out, dropping Todoroki on the ground. The shock of the fall broke him from his trance, making him realize what he'd done. Recovery Girl came rushing on the battlefield to treat Yaoyorozu's burns as fast as she could and Izuku just hoped this wouldn't leave scars.