The next few fights were more of a bore. Hatsume turned her fight unto an advertisement for her equipment. Which worked because he kept her in mind for any new kinds of energies she might have. From Jirou's and Mina's descriptions of her, she would have something up her sleeve or make it if asked. Iida won by default after Hatsume walked off when she was done.
Koda won against Aoyama to everyone's surprise. The docile boy charged forward and weaved through the light beams and knocked the French man out in one uppercut. Then he proceeded to panic about hurting the other boy.
Yayoruzo didn't get a chance to fight back against Dark Shadow's barrage of strikes and pushed her out of bounds. It was a disappointment in Izuku's opinion.
Kirishima's and Sato's fight turned into a slugfest with Sato's fists turning bloody quickly as he punched the brick wall that was Kirishima. It was a hammer against a stone and it was dragging out. While they fought, Bakugo walked to his waiting room and Uraraka got up to follow but stopped.
She approached Izuku and greeted him. "Hey there, I'm Ochako Uraraka. I know we've never spoken but you know Bakugo well don't you?"
Izuku nodded a greeting back and wrinkled his nose at the name alone. "Very well. Why?"
"I saw you tear apart Shinso before the festival, can you do it again for Bakugo? Any tips would be welcome." She sounded hopeful as she asked about Bakugo's weaknesses.
Izuku gave a wide grin and patted the seat next to him. Tooru watched him with the smile that would fit on a cat that cornered a mouse. "I'd be glad to." And he explained everything that he had on Bakugo that could help her in a fight against him. He explained his quirk and the weaknesses of overusing it. How he fights and how proficient he is at it. "He won't hold back because you're a girl, he won't care. My advice to you keep your range, don't get close. Use whatever you can and throw it at him, there will be plenty of rubble. Your quirk negates gravity, not kinetic force. I'd suggest you get a ranged weapon for your hero suit."
"What do you mean about kinetic force?" Uraraka listened attentively as Izuku spoke.
"If you are an astronaut in space and a space rock comes at you with no gravity, it will still shoot through you like wet paper."
Uraraka stared blankly at Izuku and then turned away and stared at the floor with dead eyes. "Why didn't I think of that, I bloody love space and missed that."
Tooru giggled at the girl's response and patted her back. "Don't worry, he's done the same for all our quirks. I think we would have figured it out but he sped up the process."
Uraraka stood up and with a fierce nod toward Izuku. "I'll use what you've given me to do my best. I won't forget this."
"You don't have- and she's gone," Izuku called out to her but she had already left.
"Sato is unconscious! Kirishima wins!" Just in time, Sato lay unconscious with bloody fists and Kirishima breathed heavily covered in Sato's blood. Robot paramedics rolled up to Sato and set him on a stretcher and then rolled to Recovery Girl. Kirishima walked behind them until he collapsed and another pair of robots tossed him on another stretcher and pulled him away.
Cementoss sank the spots of blood under the arena and Bakugo and Uraraka walked on stage. Present Mic introduced them like always and Midnight gave the rules out to them.
"Midoriya, will Bakugo truly not hold back?" Tsu asked from behind Izuku.
He turned around and many classmates' eyes were on him waiting for the answer. "No, he won't."
"It's unbecoming of a hero." Iida chopped his arms as he spoke.
"As much as I hate to say it, Bakugo has no reason to hold back. She joined the hero course and knew full well what she was getting into. That doesn't mean Bakugo isn't a shit stain." Izuku explained as the match started with a bang from Bakugo.
Everyone watched as Uraraka tried to get close many times but was blasted back every time. Soon there was smoke in the air obscuring most of the arena. It was quiet when they heard the first shout of pain from Bakugo and Izuku smiled at the sound. Everyone witnessed as debris from the explosions was flung at high speeds out of the smoke and some hitting their mark. It wasn't meant to last, as Bakugo launched into the air and blasted the whole arena causing Uraraka to be flung out of the ring. Bakugo was bruised and bloodied, more than Uraraka. She got up and limped out of the arena after Midnight called the match. Izuku had to give her respect for her grit.
They called a break to repair the arena and his friends scrambled to food vendors for the upcoming match. Izuku shook his head fondly as they returned with hotdogs and popcorn. Tooru force-fed Izuku a dango, much to Izuku's embarrassment. After, that Izuku made his way down to the waiting room, Todoroki left long ago.
As he walked, he felt a large heat source ahead and Izuku saw who it was. Endeavor stood towering over Izuku with a contemptuous look. Izuku had read many reports of the man and his hero career and they were not good. Way too many innocents were hurt and too much collateral damage to the cities. Overall, he was an adult version of Bakugo in his mind.
"Izuku Midoriya, you have a peculiar quirk. You will be a perfect stepping stone for my Shoto, do your best not to embarrass yourself." He began to walk past and then Izuku spoke.
"Your Shoto is turning out a perfect copy of you. If that was your plan then you succeed to make someone who cares for themselves before others." Izuku shot back with a sneer and hoped it would be enough.
The temperature rose drastically in the halls and Endeavor turned on Izuku with rage covering his face. He only saw the boy smile as the flames around him were sucked into Izuku. It began to get cold but Endeavor didn't want to lose to the child. More flames burst out but it wasn't enough as Izuku took it all away.
The thermal energy that he absorbed from energy was high quality. The flame he took was worth two regular flames in his core. It was an opportunity he couldn't let pass him. "Thank you, your fire will be put to good use." Izuku smiled at the number two hero with derision and turned around to walk into the arena.
Endeavor stood there watching the boy with many thoughts running through his head. With a contemplative hum, he turned to the stands and watch what would happen.
Izuku stared at Todoroki across the concrete platform and the fire and ice user stared back. "You won't win, especially without using your full quirk." Some banter would be nice.
"I won't use his fire," Todoroki growled out.
"He powers your quirk?" Izuku tilted his head in confusion.
"What?"
"Does Endeavor power your quirk? Is that why it's his fire?" Izuku was getting confused by the wording.
"No, I produce the flames. It would be idiotic to think he gave me power." Todoroki looked just as confused as Izuku did.
"Then it's your fire?" The match started already but it didn't stop them from talking.
He scrunched up his nose and looked down. "It's his fire." With that, he sent out an iceberg at Izuku and it covered him. He turned around to leave when the whole thing cracked.
Izuku released a portion of sound energy all around him and the ice shattered into snow. With some kinetic, the powder was flung away. Izuku stepped forward towards Todoroki. "So, you want to use ice only? Then use ice to your heart's content." Izuku grabbed all the ambient thermal energy and pulled it into himself. Frost spread from his position and crawled around him. The temperature shot down lower than it was before. Midnight stepped back from the absolute cold that hit her.
Todoroki began to shiver at the cold that Izuku produced. It was colder than anything he could ever produce. Frost cracked at every step Izuku took toward Todoroki. Then the area around his feet cracked and Izuku was beside Todoroki in an instant. With a kinetic blast, Todoroki was sent sprawling. He gasped for air but it stung to breathe it in. He turned to Izuku and he was walking again toward him. With a yell, he sent a wave of ice spikes at him but they stopped when they reached his skin. With a blast of sound, they shattered and Izuku blasted toward the split-haired boy. He threw up a wall of ice but it was shattered into snow in an instant. The absorber exploded out of the white fluff and punched his opponent again with a kinetic strike. Todoroki felt the impact of the fist and then the release of kinetic energy immediately afterward, it was devastating.
"You know, at this point, you're no better than your father. You would rather hold your pride over helping someone in need, just like Endeavor." He dodged a wave of ice at him and kept talking "What's a few lives against your oath or whatever." He launched upwards and forward to land on the opposite side of the frozen arena.
"Shut up." Todoroki stuttered out with frost covering his face.
"Will you do the same with your children? The same he did to you?"
"Shut up."
"Groom them into whatever he had planned? How many lives are worth your beliefs?"
"Stop talking!"
"It is only a matter of time from my point of view." That was too much for the breaking boy.
"No!" An intense blaze of flames was shot at Izuku on the other side of the arena. The flames melted the stone in its path, so hot they were. Izuku was engulfed by them and the crowd stood in shock. "No." Todoroki stepped back in horror at what he had done.
Izuku walked out of the flames in his gym uniform hanging that was hanging on by a thread. He ripped off what remained and the flames behind him spun and steamed into his body. "Good, but it wouldn't be enough." Izuku stepped forward and the stone melted under his barefoot. The heat that Izuku produced was a mirror of the cold he showed at the start.
Todoroki was thawed out enough to launch an iceberg but it turned into steam immediately when it got close to Izuku. The ground turned to glass with every step as he stepped closer and closer. Todoroki tried to throw some flames but they were just absorbed into Izuku with an inhale of breath.
Without a word, Izuku raised his arm and shot out thermal energy propelled by some kinetic. It blasted Todoroki off his feet and launched him out of the ring. The whole stadium was quiet as they watched an incarnation of fire pull the remaining heat from the area and absorbed it. The red glass that was on the ground cooled rapidly and cracked. The air became breathable again and the temperature equalized to before their match.
Izuku turned to an air-fried Midnight and waited for her to call the match. She raised what remain of her riding crop and spoke into the quiet. "Midoriya wins by ring out!" The crowd exploded into cheers and Izuku took the opportunity to absorb the sound. He had lost some kinetic and sound that round but it was worth getting the hero in training his head screwed straight. He looked down at what he had left of his clothes and made his way to Recovery Girl for some spares.
He walked into the nurse's station happy that he got over one obstacle to win the festival. His joy was smothered when Recovery Girl walked over to him and hit him in the leg with her cane. For a while, Izuku has grown to keep kinetic absorption active at all times. It helped him with his paranoia of getting jumped and something to have as a hero. The elderly hero thwacked his leg again but there was no impact.
"You could have hurt that boy if you weren't so lucky!" She waved her cane at his face angrily.
Izuku was reminded of the nurses at his old schools and how they treated Izuku when their star students hurt Izuku. His anger flared and he grabbed the tip of the cane and spoke coldly. "Do you attack every student that comes through your doors? Forget it, Todoroki knew what he was getting himself into when he joined the hero course." The tip of the can was slightly melted as he let go and went to look for clothes he could where until they were destroyed again.
Recovery Girl was taken aback when Izuku walked past her and grabbed some clothes and left. She never had anyone react the way he did. She would have to talk to Nezu about the incident.
Izuku took a deep breath and calmed down as finished changing. He hated that another thing in UA reminded him of before. It was frustrating that he couldn't do anything about his problems. Bakugo had someone watching over him. Todoroki could half-ass his way into 1A with Aizawa's 'no potential' policy. And now the nurse. With a scowl, he opened the door and was met with Tooru with her hand raised to knock.
"Tooru, what are you doing here?" Izuku tilted his head in confusion.
"Looking for you. You were taking a long time to come back and I began to get worried. Is everything alright?" She saw his furrowed brow before he saw who it was.
Izuku smiled softly at the thought of someone caring for Izuku like Tooru did. "Yes, no." He scratched his cheek in frustration.
Tooru saw the frustration in his motions and eyes. She grabbed his hand and pulled it out of the room. "Tell me what's wrong."
Izuku walked with her for a while as he tried to come up with the words. "I hate that so many things remind me of before UA. I had hoped UA was different but I'm seeing a few too many things similar to my liking." Izuku focused on the warmth of Tooru's hand on his arm.
"Like what?" Tooru prodded him to continue.
"Bakugo getting away from punishment. Powerful people do what they want without consequences. And now the nurse reminded me of others. It's frustrating that I can't do anything about it." They continued to walk through the tunnels as Izuku vented his problems.
"What did Recovery Girl do?" Tooru furrowed her brow at that.
"She hit me with her cane and told me off about Todoroki getting hurt." He scowled.
"That old bitch! And nothing about how Todoroki flamed you?" Izuku shook his head. "I'm going to steal her cane one day." She muttered angrily.
Izuku laughed at her anger on his behalf. "Thanks, Tooru but I don't want to see you get in trouble." Izuku paused and spoke again. "I am happy we met and became friends. Thank you Tooru for everything." He smiled at her.
For her part, she turned and embraced him in a tight hug. "I'm happy I got to meet you too." They stood in each other's arms for a bit longer until Izuku pulled back.
After that, they made their way up the stands with the rest of their class and his friends welcomed him back with congratulations for beating Todoroki. They went on to talk about how the battle looked from their angle. Izuku felt quite a bit embarrassed about how they described his dramatic show of thermal energy.
"It was all gasps and looks of horror but then you just walked out like a badass and sucked up the fire. It was some comic-level dramatics and it looked so fucken cool!" Kaminari mimicked walking out of the flames.
"Even Todoroki looked pale when he shot the fire out," Jirou added.
"Kaminari, shouldn't you be getting ready for your match?" Sero pointed out.
For a moment, Kaminari stared at him confused, and then his eyes widen and he bolted out of the class section. They shouted good lucks to his back as he disappeared around the corner. Cementoss just finished repairing the arena when Midnight walked out with a new riding crop and cleaned up after the last fight. Iida walked out of the gates and waited for Kaminari to arrive. The blond ran out of the arena after they waited for another minute. With a nod to confirm he was ready, the fight began.
Kaminari appeared to reach down to spray electricity everywhere like he used to and Iida reacted by jumping. The blond smiled at his trick and instead raises his hand and shot lightning at the midair target. Iida tried to dodge with his legs and managed to spin but was still nicked by the bolt of electricity. His leg went numb as he landed in a heap and tried to get up but Kaminari rushed at him. His speed was triple what it was before and he arrive at Iida's side with his hand aimed at the straight-laced teen.
"Yeild?" Kaminari asked with electricity arcing around his hand.
Iida looked pained at having to say it but he did. "I yield." The crowd cheered again at the spectacular quick paced fight. Kaminari helped the boy up and walked him out to the nurse's station.
The next fight wasn't as exciting as the ones before with Koda raising his fists to fight Dark Shadow and Tokoyami but the quirk just picked him up and set him gently out of the ring. Koda gave them a grateful nod and they parted ways.
Kirishima's fight against Bakugo was a one-sided beat down with Bakugo launching attacks nonstop at the redhead until he collapsed from stamina drain.
When it was Izuku's and Kaminari's time to fight, Kaminari raised his hands and forfeited. There were some jeers but the blond paid it no attention.
"Why?" Izuku asked confused about his decision.
He snorted in response. "Like I have a chance against you. You literally gave me my fighting style and not to mention your quirk completely overpowers mine. I just want to save us time. Now, I saw some tasty treats on the way here and I want to try some." He pointed in a direction and marched with purpose to a stand. Izuku smiled lopsidedly at his friend's antics and follows behind to get something for himself and maybe Tooru as well.