After she had told them her tactics, they had no choice but to team up with her. It was ingenious, almost perfect, the way Kaede made them all overlook each other. In the phases when her team held their breath, no one could steal their points. Instead, they sneaked up on opponents and stole their points. The commentator constantly overlooked them, but at least they made it through the round.
When Midnight announced the duels, Kaede noticed the conflict Mashirao was facing. "I can't claim lir standing here on my own merit, so I don't want to participate in the competitions." The redhead also stated, "It was Kaede and Shinsou, we shouldn't benefit from their victory." So that was how it stood. Others would move up for the two, so there were still 16 participants in the tournament. "Kaede, if you help me with a tactic, I'll forgive you for not being on my team just now." Mina grinned slyly. "You don't even know who your opponent will be. But yes, I'll be happy to help you."
The division of the duels was announced and everyone crowded against the board to catch a glimpse of it. Kaede met Eijiro's gaze shortly after they realised they would be competing against each other. They pushed through the crowd towards each other. "Wow Kaede I hope our fight will be really badass!" "We need to show everything we've got, no one holds back, got it?"
"Your fight against Eijiro is before my fight against Yuga, how will you defeat him?" Kaede thought about it and propped herself up on the waiting room table. "I don't know. He'll be up against any of my attacks, so I can only push him out if I'm fast enough. If I hesitate, he'll probably get the upper hand and defeat me in hand-to-hand combat." She looked at Mina. "Well, I guess I'll just wing it. Let's get to you. Thinking about Yuga and your skills, you are superior because you can bombard him with attacks for longer, but you are too impatient. Slowly corner him until you can give him the final push from the ring. If that doesn't work, improvise and make it an endurance fight. Because of his Quirk, he won't last long." Mina was amazed:" That was all? That easy?" "Well, it may sound simple, but a fight never turns out the way you think it will." They both thought back to the USJ incident. "I will win Kaede, with your strategy and then we will see each other in the final fight." "Sure." Mina was eager to join the break games, but Kaede pulled back. She roamed the corridors, eventually returning to her assigned waiting room. When she opened the door, she startled, but then hurried in. "Keigo!" He had fallen asleep on the table as if he had nothing to fear in the world. "There you are," he murmured sleepily. Keigo sat up slowly and pinned his wings as Kaede took a seat opposite him. "Sleep well?" She asked with a mischievous grin. He frowned, questioning his entire sleep rhythm. "How do you still manage to stand upright with so little sleep?" She thought about it and then decided to enlighten him. "Physical needs like hunger pangs or tiredness are also under my control. So it's possible for me to ignore them for a while until my body can't take it anymore." Keige frowned even harder. "That doesn't sound healthy." "It's just now, so it won't get me out." He didn't look very convinced. "Don't worry" she tried to cheer him up "Do you know who you want to recruit yet?" He looked her straight in the eye and briefly considered whether he should respond to her change of topic. Then he relaxed. "That dark bird, Tokoyami? A bird that can't fly, that's not how it works. Maybe I should take him under my wing, but only if he'll convince me right away. If he doesn't make an effort, if he gives up, he's not for me. And I'll take you too, of course." Nervously, she tapped the tabletop. And looked at the pictures on the wall, the wood grain of the table, everything but Keigo's eyes. "What's wrong?" She forced herself to look at him. "I was thinking of not going to your agency," she confronted him. He waited for more and every second he was silent her guilt grew and she felt more and more like she had to justify herself. "I mean, I already know your agency inside out, I need to see new ones too, to get an idea of the job of a hero, I, I don't know. I wanted to convince so many people to want to take me on, so that I would have a lot of open paths later on. I..." She sighed. "I'm sorry." He shook his head. "What are you apologising for? It's your decision and it's a wise decision. I'm proud of you for starting to fly so early. What's the saying? Off to the unknown?" She knew he was a little hurt. She could see it in his eyes. They could have been openly out together as heroes for the first time. He had certainly been looking forward to it, and now she had just wiped his dreams away for a moment. "You know, you only know me from my generation too. Maybe it will do you good to meet Fumikage." "Sure." "Of course." They noddedand when their eyes met, they quickly looked in another direction. Kaede bit her lip. "I really need to get out now. Thanks for being there." He nodded at her. "You can do it." Now she was smiling again. "No question."