By the time Miyuki got back to the stands, the seventh match between Tetsutetsu and Ejirou was over with both of them being knocked out. It was announced that, once they recovered, a winner will be decided from a simple arm-wresrling match.
Miyuki took her seat beside Izuku and her eyes immediately went to the arena down below. It was empty for now, but when she glanced on either side to both corridors leading into the arena, she could just make out the silhouettes of Ochaco and Katsuki.
"While we wait for Tetsutetsu and Kirishima to recover, we'll start the next match!"
"Looks I'll have to watch it on TV," Miyuki muttered, sitting back in her chair.
"Next might be the most disturbing match up," Tsuyu said from behind them. Miyuki sighed quietly at the image Katsuki had engraved of himself in their classmates.
"I almost don't want to watch..." Kyoka admitted.
"The eighth and last match of the first round!" Present Mic announced. "He was kind of famous in middle school! This isn't the face of a regular person! From the Hero course, Bakugo Katsuki!"
"I understand you're being tough and all, but..." Miyuki's mouth wavered as she observed the ash-blonde boy's expression with her Quirk. "What's with that face...? You're already tough-looking as it is..."
"Versus - Another competitor I'm rooting for," Present Mic continued. "From the Hero course, Uraraka Ochaco!"
"You're the one that makes things float, right, Round face?" Katsuki spoke up when he came face to face with his opponent. Miyuki bit her lip.
"Round...?" Ochaco repeated, taken aback by his words.
"If you're going to withdraw, do it now," Katsuki went on without missing a beat. Miyuki wasn't shocked by this - in fact, she felt like she knew what was coming next. "You won't get off with just an 'Ouch.'"
I can feel his arrogance oozing all the way from here...
"Midoriya-Kun," Tenya said as he turned to look at the green-haired boy. "What was the strategy you were going to tell Uraraka-Kun earlier for her to use against Bakugou-Kun?"
"It was nothing, really," Izuku replied. "Kacchan's strong. In a close combat fight, he has almost no openings, and the more he moves, the more he sweats, making his Explosion Quirk stronger. He can use the blasts from his explosions to move around in the air, but if Uraraka-San touches Kacchan and uses her Quirk to make him float, then she would have the upper hand. Thats why the first thing Uraraka-San should do is..."
"Eighth match, start!"
"...A swift attack!" Izuku finished. Miyuki leaned against the railing eagerly, her eyes lighting up as she activated her Quirk. "Yuki-Chan, are you alright?"
"Withdrawing isn't a choice!" Ochaco exclaimed as she made the first move and rushed towards Katsuki.
That's my girl!
"Ochaco-Chan, you can do it!" Miyuki shouted spontaneously.
"All right!" Izuku exclaimed, watching just as closely. "That's good! Even if it's by accident, as long as she can touch him, she can make him float."
"But Bakugo-Kun won't want Uraraka-San to get close to him," Tenya pointed out.
"That's right," Miyuki agreed. She was keeping as close an eye on Katsuki as she was on Ochaco. "He won't make it easy. He's not the sort of person to back down from a fight, no matter his opponent or circumstance. That's what makes him such a brilliant and astute fighter... deadly, too, but that's something he works to his advantage." She pursed her lips, a rosy blush rising to her cheeks when she realized she was just singing his praises. "W-What I mean to say is that Uraraka-San will have to remember his signature right swing."
"Yuki-Chan is right," Izuku said, eyeing the girl with curiosity. What was all that just now? "Uraraka-San will have to watch out for his big right swing."
Ochaco reached Katsuki fairly quickly and, as she didn't need her Quirk to see his right swing exploded so close to Ochaco's face. Smoke rose from the track, blocking her view of them.
"Uraraka-San!" Izuku and Tenya exclaimed. Even Miyuki's grip on the railing tensed slightly.
"Did he blast her?!" Minoru shouted.
"Even though you're fighting a girl, you have no mercy, do you, Bakugo-Chan?" Tsuyu spoke up. Miyuki's eyes frantically moved around as she searched the smoke, waiting for it to clear up.
"I'll take care of you," Katsuki growled as he noticed something moving in the smoke. "Don't underestimate me!" He attacked it -
What?
...But it only turned out to be Ochaco's jacket.
"Brilliant move, Ochaco-Chan!" Miyuki quietly cheered to herself.
"Oh, she made her jacket float and sent it over there?" Present Mic exclaimed to the crowd who was watching with bated breath. "She did it in an instant, too!"
Miyuki watched with knots in her stomach as Ochaco rushed at Katsuki from behind.
Her eyes widened as she noticed the angles at which his body moved -
Flashback - A few days ago:
"Agh!"
Katsuki cried out when Miyuki intercepted his attack from behind. Before he could blast her away, she hit him with a blast of light energy which sent his body slamming into a tree.
When he got back up, there was volcanic anger raging in his eyes. He rushed straight towards her this time, explosions sparking in his hand -
"Use your reflexes, Bakugo-Kun. Listen and look with more than just your body," Miyuki advised him, sliding between his legs to dodge his attack. "Pay attention to your surroundings!"
"Stop telling me what to do!"
(Currently)
...and watched as Katsuki replicated her move and used it to blast Ochaco away from himself.
I didn't think he'd learn that so fast...
"He moved after he saw her?" Hanta asked, shocked by how quickly he reacted.
"With that reaction time, it doesn't matter if there's a smokescreen," Denki replied. "With Uraraka-San not being able to activate her Quirk unless she touches him, she's at a disadvantage against Bakugo's reflexes."
...But I guess I can be glad he was paying attention.
"Bakugo-Kun fights well," Miyuki added in. "But so does Ochaco-Chan."
Down below in the arena, Ochaco continued giving it her all against Katsuki. She continued attacking him, not giving herself a moment of respite in her efforts just to touch him once. Katsuki responded as one would expect of him – an explosion for every attack.
Soon, Miyuki saw what it was Ochaco was really doing because she could see precisely where the brunette was aiming her Quirk every time she attacked Katsuki.
Keep doing your best, Ochaco-Chan...
"Ochaco-Chan..." Tsuyu trailed off, frowning at the fight.
"I can't watch..." Kyoka admitted, hiding her face behind her hands.
"Bakugo, don't tell me your tastes run in that direction..." Minoru stated, and Miyuki shook her head at the direction of his thinking.
"Uraraka-San is attacking without rest, but... this is..." Present Mic trailed off, he, too, quite unable to watch on anymore.
Miyuki's gut roiled with unease when around them the crowd began expressing much the same - unable to continue watching this onslaught. She frowned when she heard their comments about Katsuki and Ochaco as well as Midnight and Cementoss.
"Hey, shouldn't you stop this?"
"Isn't he going too far?"
"I can't watch..."
"Hey! How can you say you want to be a hero like that?!"
"If there's such a huge difference in your abilities, then hurry up and send her out of bounds! Stop bullying and playing with the poor girl!"
"Yeah! Yeah!"
"There's booing from part of the crowd..." Present Mic said at the loud boos coming for Katsuki. Miyuki huffed, quietly frustrated at them. Couldn't they really see the full picture of what was going on? "Honestly, I feel the sa-" Aizawa elbowed him. "An elbow? What're you doin'?!"
"Was that a pro saying he's playing around?" Aizawa asked, addressing the man who was riling people up. "How many years have you been a pro? If you're saying that with a straight face then there's no point in you watching anymore, so go home! Go home and look into changing careers!"
"Aizawa-sensei...?" Izuku trailed off.
"Bakugo is being careful because he's acknowledged the strength of his opponent who has made it this far," Aizawa continued and Miyuki nodded along eagerly. "It's because he's doing everything that he can to win that he can't let his guard down or look down on her."
"That's right," Miyuki spoke up finally. "Bakugo-Kun won't go easy on Ochaco-Chan because she is female and what her quirk is. We shouldn't look down on her because of it either." She pointed to the sky above their heads and Izuku looked up to where she was pointing. "We have to pay attention to what's going on around us and see the bigger picture!"
There were vast amounts of debris floating above the arena, all in varying shapes and sizes. Izuku's eyes widened when he saw this. Not many people had noticed it yet.
"When did she...?" Izuku asked.
"When she attacked Bakugo-Kun, Ochaco-Chan kept her body low the entire time," Miyuki explained with a proud smile on her face. "She used the smoke as cover when Bakugo-Kun used his Explosive Quirk and touched as many rocks as she could. Now, at that height, she's basically converted them into weapons."
At that moment, Ochaco released her hold on the floating debris, causing it to rain down on Katsuki. She used that as her chance to rush at him, hoping to catch him while he was distracted.
"...Listen and look with more than just your body."
However, Katsuki, ever quick, used his Quirk to blast away the debris as well as Ochaco herself, throwing her back from the shockwave of his explosion.
"B-Bakugo delivers a satisfying Explosion!" Present Mic exclaimed in shock. "He blasts boldly through Uraraka's secret plan!"
"Alright let's get serious, then, Uraraka!" Katsuki said when the brunette pushed herself back up on shaky legs. He rushed towards her... but Ochaco turned around and fainted.
"Uraraka is down!" Present Mic announced.
"Ochaco-Chan..." Miyuki trailed off, watching as her friend still tried crawling toward Katsuki despite her condition. "Even though you've lost consciousness..." a proud smile slipped onto her face.
"Uraraka-San is out of commission!" Midnight announced when she went to check on the brunette's condition. "Bakugou-Kun advances to the second round!"
"The eighth match of the first round... Oh, Uraraka..." Present Mic trailed off in disappointment. "Oh yeah, Bakugo advances to the next round."
"If you're going to do it, do it properly," Aizawa said.
"Now," Present Mic said, still not fully right with his commentary. "Let's pull ourselves together -"
"You're letting your personal feelings take over," Aizawa pointed out.
"The first round is all done!" Present Mic said, back to his proper commentary finally. "Let's move on to the next round quickly after a short break!" The crowd cheered loudly despite the recent match.
Miyuki looked over at Izuku and noticed he looked a bit tense - probably because his match with Shoto was next. She would be nervous, too, especially since the nature of their Quirks were quite similar.
Miyuki motioned to him and the two of them left the stands to go to Player Waiting Room 2 where Ochaco would most likely be. It would also be good for Izuku to let himself relax before his next match against Shoto.
However, that didn't seem like it would be the case right away.
"Whoa! Kacchan!"
Miyuki turned around and saw Katsuki going up the staircase they walked past. He looked annoyed at seeing him, as always.
"What the -?!" Katsuki shouted. "What the hell do you want?! Die, scum!"
"Well, I'm next..." Izuku replied. "So I'm going to get ready in the waiting room... Also, congrats on winning the first round... Later...!"
"Congrats on winning your first match, Firecracker," Miyuki congratulated him, flashing him a small smile as Izuku pulled her along - something Katsuki narrowed his eyes at. "Good luck in your next one!"
"That was your idea, wasn't it?" Katsuki said loudly, following behind his childhood friend and rival. "That damned desperate plan. You just have to be annoying, don't you? What the hell -"
"It wasn't," Izuku interrupted as all three of them came to a stop. "All of it... Uraraka-San planned it all thinking about how she could beat you. If you thought that was annoying, that was because... Uraraka-San was leading you around by your nose!"
"Calm down, you two," Miyuki said, stepping in between the two childhood friends. She warningly placed a hand in front Katsuki's chest before he could move angrily against Izuku and she could feel the warmth radiating off of him. That definitely wasn't a good sign. "Neither of you should be squabbling about this right now."
Both Katsuki and Izuku backed down at her firm tone.
"Thank you." Miyuki sighed and dropped her hand. "Let's go, Izuku..." The ash-blonde boy glared down at her as she trailed off. His ire grew when Miyuki shook her head at him. "You should go get yourself checked out by Recovery Girl, Blasty. You're too warm and you should probably cool down."
"Don't tell me what to do, Pepperhead!" Katsuki shouted before walking away from them, his muscles tight with tension and pent up frustration. Miyuki watched as he left, frowning when he glared at her over his shoulder. Her smile returned when she turned to Izuku.
"Let's go to your waiting room, Izuku."
When they got to Waiting Room #2, Izuku and Miyuki peeked inside and saw Ochaco sitting there rather than in Recovery Girl's clinic. They shared a concerned look with each other,.
"I got carried away at the end thinking I could do it, dang it..."
"Uraraka-San, what about your injuries?" Izuku spoke up and Ochaco looked up, surprised to see him and Miyuki there. "Are you okay? Should you be here?"
"Yeah, Recovery Girl took care of me," Ochaco replied cheerfully when she noticed them. "It was only moderate healing so it wouldn't drain my stamina, so I've still got scratches and stuff, though."
"I'm glad you're okay, Ochaco-Chan," Miyuki said, clearly noticing how heavily she was taking her loss. She gave her an eased smile, hoping to assure hed. "And you did really well in your match! I was very impressed."
"Thank you, Yuki-Chan... But man, that Bakugo-Kun was really strong!" Ochaco complained, pretending to be alright. "He totally got me. I have to work harder, too!" She suddenly went quiet.
"Are you... alright...?" Izuku asked, sharing a look with Miyuki.
"I'm fine!" Ochaco replied. "Better than expected!" Her phone vibrated with an incoming call. "I mean, you immediately started looking ahead, Deku-Kun, and just because I lost doesn't mean I can lose."
"The draw from the seventh match of the first round!
The winner of their arm-wrestling match and advancing to the second round is..."
Miyuki turned and Present Mic's announcement coming in from the television broadcasted Ejirou and Tetsutetsu's match. The two boys were now wide awake and filled with a new sense of vigour as they competed against one another in their wrestling match.
"Winner, Kirishima-Kun...!" Midnight declared. Miyuki smiled softly at her classmate achieving victory.
"The one who won the ticket was Kirishima!" Present Mic announced to the cheers of the crowd.
"My metal fatigue...!" Tetsutetsu gasped. "I should've eaten more iron!" Miyuki found that amusing yet she was also a tad confused, but she guessed it had something to do with his Quirk.
"It was a good match," Ejirou responded, holding out his hand to his fallen opponent.
"S-So youthful!" Midnight commented, sparkling, and Miyuki sweat dropped.
"Now we've got everyone who's advancing to the second round!" Present Mic announced. "Now let's get started!"
"Already...?" Izuku said, slightly frightened at the thought of going out there. Miyuki looked at him. "Later...?"
"Oh, sorry, Deku-Kun!" Ochaco exclaimed, looking between the two best friends who shared another look. "You weren't able to prepare because I was here!"
"No, it's fine," Izuku replied, waving it off to alleviate her of her concerns.
"I'll be watching, 'kay?" Ochaco smiled. "Good luck, do your best!"
"Uh, I'll escort Izuku to the stadium, Ochaco-Chan," Miyuki informed the brunette. "I'll join you and Iida-Kun in the stands shortly, okay?"
"Thank you," Izuku responded to Ochaco before turning to leave with Miyuki. The brunette watched the both of them leave with a curious look.
"It's nice to see Ochaco-Chan not willing to give up," Miyuki said as they left the waiting room. "Although she did look quite disappointed..."
"Yuki-Chan, do you think I'll do well against Todoroki-Kun?" Izuku asked her. Miyuki hummed and scratched her cheek. "Do you think... I can win against someone so strong?"
"Realistically, at the moment..." She responded, turning to look Izuku in the eye. "Not likely - not with power alone. Also when you take into account that he has the remedies for his Quirk in his body..."
"Yu... Yuki-Chan..." Izuku wavered slightly, a slightly gloomy aura descending over him. "You're being uncharacteristically pessimistic..."
"S-Sorry..." Miyuki nervously scratched her cheek. Then, she quickly returned to her sunny disposition with her characteristic close-eyed smile. "But do your best!"
"Thanks..." Izuku muttered appreciatively. Before he could say anything more, though, the two rounded the corner and Izuku nearly collided with – "Endeavour?!"
Miyuki's eyes widened upon seeing the number two Hero up close.
"Oh, there you are," Endeavour said to the two of them. Izuku and Miyuki tensed up, concerned as to what he could want from them.
It probably has something to do with Todoroki-Kun..., Miyuki guessed.
"Endeavour," Izuku repeated. "W-What are you doing here...?"
"I watched your fight," the number two Hero replied. "You have a wonderful Quirk. You were able to create so much wind pressure just by flicking your fingers. If we're talking about power alone, yours is comparable to All Might's."
"W-What..." Izuku stammered. "What are you trying to say?"
"It is my Shoto's duty to surpass All Might," Endeavour said. The two of them looked at him in disbelief. "His match with you will be a very instructive test bed. Please don't disgrace yourself in it. That is all I wanted to say. I apologise for disturbing you right before your match."
"I am not... All Might," Izuku muttered. Endeavour stopped in his path.
"That's obviou-" He started.
"That's obvious, right?" Izuku interrupted. "Todoroki-Kun isn't you either."
Miyuki jumped slightly when Izuku grabbed her arm and pulled her down the corridor with him, leaving the number two Hero behind them.
"Are you okay, Izuku?" Miyuki asked the green-haired boy as they moved down the corridor. "Todoroki-Kun was right... I didn't expect Endeavour to come round to that..."
"There are a lot of things stacking up here, aren't there?" Izuku asked as they reached the corridor leading to the stadium. The sun had fully come out now, and it was bright outside. "And Todoroki-Kun has no intention of using his left side."
"That's right," Miyuki agreed. "And you have no intention of holding back, given everything you know now, right? It wouldn't be fair..."
Miyuki and Izuku shared a smile with each other, a quiet yet solid promise sealed in the collisions of their fists as they gently bumped them together.