The three intruders launched in different directions as chaos spread through the arena in an instant. The few dozen teachers that had been on the sidelines thus far raced down in front of the frenzied students, shouting for them to stay back as they chased after the villains.
"Do not engage!" Aizawa yelled behind him as he intercepted the redheaded boy who lunged at a group of Ketsubutsu students. He caught his arm and threw him away from the group before charging at him, his eyes pulsing red as his quirk activated.
"Damn pros, always getting in the way," the redhead sneered, ducking Aizawa's fist and countering with his own. "Luckily for me, I don't need my quirk to beat you, unlike some people," he muttered under his breath as he dodged a series of blows, aiming a kick at the man's chest.
Aizawa caught his leg and harshly twisted around it, using it as leverage to swing himself up and bringing his knee sharply towards the back of his neck. The boy ducked and grabbed Aizawa's arm, flinging him over his head. He landed on his feet a few meters away and quickly charged at him once again, reactivating his quirk.
"We have to move! We need to get out of the way!" Yaoyorozu shouted, grabbing her friends and pulling them behind her as she hastily ran towards the raised bleachers. The group she had been with, Midoriya's group, and a few other 1-A students quickly followed without a word, bewilderment and fear etched into their panicked faces. They were nearly swallowed by the mass of other students desperately racing towards the outer ring, and by the time they reached the top of the raised seating, Yaoyorozu glanced behind her to find herself separated from the rest of her classmates.
Shrieks ripped through the bleachers as an enormous blast of blue fire shot across the arena. Everyone instantly fell to the ground as the scorching flames tore past them, mere inches above their heads. The sudden heat knocked the air from their lungs, and had it been any closer, they wouldn't have escaped so easily.
"Watch your aim, stitches," Unknown clicked her tongue as she glanced at the boulder flying towards her, instantly shattering it to pieces as she spiked the pressure on the face of the stone.
"Thanks for the advice, princess," he replied dully, jumping back to dodge a punch before sending an arc of fire at the four pro-heroes surrounding him.
Unknown leapt in the opposite direction as an enormous fist smashed into the ground where she stood only moments ago. Her eyes flicked to a large chunk of fallen metal below and quickly lifted it to meet her foot mid-air, shifting her weight backward to stand on it. She glanced down to see a whale-like humanoid charging at her. If she recalled correctly, he was one of the higher-ranked heroes: Gang Orca, was it?
"What are you doing here?" he shouted gruffly as he leapt up, swinging a clawed fist at her just as she pulled back, smoothly dodging the hit. She raised the slab of metal underneath her further into the air and out of his reach, eyes already scanning languidly over the figures encircling her below.
There were five in total: all pro-heroes, she assumed, though she didn't recognize any aside from Gang Orca. Just like the rest of them, they wore expressions of confusion, determination, and most familiarly, fear. One woman with pale hair quickly brandished an immaterial whip, unfurling it and snapping it at her. The thin leather tip would have left a painful mark had she not quickly knocked it from its course with a pulse of pressurized air. Once the tail slowed enough for her eyes to focus on it, she unbalanced the pressures on the surface of the glowing leather, making it tear itself from the woman's hand. Ignoring her shouts of protest, Unknown tossed it somewhere far over her shoulder.
She looked down as she noticed the air begin to ripple unnaturally in front of her. Her eyes followed the disturbance and again landed on Gang Orca, and all of a sudden, her muscles stiffened against her will.
Unknown tried to lift her arm and found it wouldn't budge, she tried to turn her head but her body wouldn't listen to her; even moving her eyes was suddenly difficult. Her brow twitched as she frowned stiffly. Fortunately, she was in a position where she didn't need to move in order to see.
She turned the metal beneath her feet until her vision met the large stones flying towards her. She focused on them just in time to divert them from their path, knocking them into a sharp turn and hurling them at Gang Orca instead. He quickly jumped out of the way, having to momentarily abandon his paralyzing frequency as he avoided the boulders crashing to the ground one by one. Two of the other teachers seized the opportunity to attack while she was preoccupied, the larger one giving the other a strong boost as he leapt towards her. She caught the blur out of the corner of her eye and quickly shifted herself higher into the air, moving to the side and pivoting to see the man mid-jump. The moment her eyes landed on his back, he slammed into the ground with relentless force, causing the earth beneath him to crack loudly upon impact as a cry of pain tore through the air. Feeling began returning to her limbs as Unknown made her way towards the edge of the arena. The teachers were persistent, however, as two more came rushing at her.
"Stop right there!"
"Don't let her get to the students!"
She wove around the large chunks of debris that came flying at her, moving too sporadically for the men to keep up as they attempted to knock her out of the air.
Their shouts had long melded into a single mass of incomprehensible noise, lost among the chaos of the arena. She could hardly make out their words from where she was, instead much more focused on the chunks of stone and concrete zipping past her ear as she twisted her way through them. Blatantly disregarding the aggressive shouts of the heroes below, her eyes, now back under her control, scanned the crowd of students.
A faint popping noise reached her ear, only standing out from the cacophony of voices and clamor all around her as it rapidly grew louder. She glanced behind her and immediately jerked to the side, narrowly avoiding an enormous explosion as an arm passed right by her head. Her eyes widened in surprise as they briefly connected with blazing red ones, only remaining for a moment before she pulled herself out of the way. The black and orange blur came to a halt as it landed on the ground below, and she soon realized why it seemed so familiar.
"Oh, it's you," she mused, blinking down at the crouching Bakugo. She couldn't quite tell from so far up, but he looked angrier than usual.
"Are you fucking kidding me?!" he demanded, his voice a dangerous growl as he glared furiously back at her. His pupils were contracted to mere pinpricks, gloved fists clenched so hard they nearly trembled. His palms crackled as he shot into the air, face twisted with rage as his other hand snapped out in front of him. His mind ran white with fury, leaving him unable to remember any of the livid, vile thoughts that plagued his mind day and night.
Unknown shifted to the side, handily avoiding the blinding explosion as she steadied herself. She slowed to a halt as she turned her back to him, redirecting her attention to the mass of students gathered near the edge of the arena.
"Don't you dare look away!"
Another blast tore through the air behind her as she pulled herself forward. She pivoted the metal under her feet, turning around to meet his furious gaze once again. Bakugo remained at eye-level with her, palms igniting with a stream of controlled explosions as she tilted her head quizzically.
"Aren't you supposed to stay out of this?" she raised an eyebrow. Her words only seemed to agitate him further, however, if it was possible.
"Is that all you have to say to me?! Are you fucking serious?!" he shouted, red filling his vision as he lunged towards her. Blood pounded in his ears so loudly that he missed the shouts of his classmates below.
"What else did you want to hear?" she asked flatly as she dodged another quirk-boosted blow.
"Fucking- I want a damn explanation for this bullshit!"
He charged at her again, and again, she dodged.
"What is there to explain?"
He snarled, eyes bulging in a blind rage. How was it possible that he couldn't land a hit? Had she always been this fast?
No, Naoko could barely hold her own against a fly, much less a serious opponent.
Naoko was afraid of fighting, and even when she did, she was clunky and ungraceful.
This was not Naoko. This girl was too strong, too cold, her movements too skillful, too precise, and it infuriated him.
As yet another attack met only empty air, Bakugo could feel his blood boil. He twisted around in midair just as he fell past her, and with an agitated shout, he brought his hands together, fingers spread and palms jutting out, just before an enormous, blinding explosion tore through the air. The burning white light engulfed a quarter of the arena and the recoil nearly slammed him into the opposite wall. He was able to catch himself in time, however, narrowly managing to land on top of the announcer's box instead.
He couldn't hear the gasps and screams all around him as he fixated on the core of the explosion. He grit his teeth as a sharp pain shot through his wrists.
The light quickly died down and left only an immense mass of dust and gray smoke clouding the air. As it gradually cleared, however, his eyes widened and he could feel bile rising in his throat.
There she stood, in the same spot: unshaken, uninjured, a billowing sphere of clean air snapping around her.
Impossible.
"I'm really not here for you, so please stay out of my way," she stated flatly, peering down at him in annoyance. The metal beneath her feet pivoted again as she began moving in the opposite direction.
Obscene shouts spilled from his lips as he crouched, his every instinct yelling at him to chase after her, but a harsh tug pulled him back before he could leave the ground.
"Let me go!" he growled, his furious glare snapping to Iida behind him.
"We're supposed to stay back! It's too dangerous to engage any of them! Let the teachers take care of it!"
"I don't give a damn what they-!"
A guttural, metallic creak sounded from the other side of the arena, drawing both their attentions. A section of wall across the field was partially melted at the base, causing the top to dip dangerously under its own weight. A chorus of screams reached their ears as people began streaming out from behind the destroyed wall, scrambling to get out before it fully collapsed.
"Who the hell are they?" Bakugo frowned, momentarily lapsing in his rage.
"They look like civilians!" Iida gaped in shock, "But they should have evacuated the building already! They're running right into the hands of the villains! We have to stop them!"
"Weren't you just saying we can't intervene?" Bakugo sneered.
"We have to get permission! Go find Mr. Aizawa- I'll bring the civilians to safety!"
"Hey, don't just think-! Fuck, fine!" he shouted in frustration before dashing off to find their teacher.
Unknown sent a young woman flying into the wall behind her just as a wave of screams filled her ears. She glanced down to see a crowd of civilians flooding onto the battlefield, scurrying wildly in every direction, clearly looking for an escape. She sighed, scratching her head as she smoothly lowered herself to the ground a few meters in front of the large group. The men and women gasped, instantly stopping in their tracks as she slowed to hover just above the earth. She didn't miss the way they trembled as they took a hesitant step back, eyes darting around wildly in search of a way out.
"Sorry about this," she muttered, lifting a hand. Palm facing down, she swung a languid arc in front of her.
They gasped as a blast of pressurized air slammed into them, knocking the wind from their lungs and sending them hurling backward. They skidded and scratched harshly across the dirt floor, clutching at their chests as they gasped for air. They frantically scrambled to their feet, panic etched into their faces as they made a mad dash in the opposite direction.
They didn't get far before a deep rumble shook beneath their feet. In the blink of an eye, an enormous boulder smashed to the ground in front of them, cutting off their path. Screams pierced the air as they scurried backward. Had they been two feet further along, they would have been crushed under the massive stone. They instantly scattered in every direction, not daring to look back for even a second.
"There! I see an exit!"
The frantic group looked towards where the man pointed and spotted a glowing red exit sign a few meters ahead, partially obscured by railings.
"Hurry!"
The first woman nearly crashed into the door as she desperately shook the knob.
"I-it won't open!"
"What do you mean it won't open?! Just open it!"
"I can't! It's locked!"
"It can't-"
"Get out of the way!"
"Hey! Don't just-!"
"Stop pushing-!"
"Hey, quit being-!"
"Guys!" a voice shouted from above, momentarily causing everyone to stop bickering and drawing their attention upwards. Leaning over the side of the bleachers nearby was one of the examinees. "The building is on lockdown- all the exits are sealed!"
"What?!"
"Do they want us to die?!"
"This is insane! We have to get out of here!"
"Come up to the stands! We'll protect you!" the girl shouted, waving them towards her.
Before they could even take a step towards the stairs, however, a metallic creak pierced the air as the bleachers dipped, ripping screams from the throats of the dozens of students huddled atop the stands. Looking around frantically, they spotted Unknown hovering high in the air only a few meters away, staring blankly down at the legs of the bleachers.
They shrieked again as another creak sounded and the stands wobbled dangerously. Students frantically leapt over the railings, pouring off the unstable bleachers in desperate waves. Those who weren't close enough to the edge or frozen in shock, however, could only grab hold of the seats, railings, anything to brace themselves as they squeezed their eyes shut.
An enormous icicle shot straight up into the air, knocking the chunk of metal out from under Unknown. Her eyes widened in surprise as she stumbled, her legs finding no footing as she suddenly felt herself plummeting to the ground. Vision tilted, a rush of adrenaline pulsed through her system as she noticed a strange flash in front of her. She twisted in midair, narrowly dodging a bolt of electricity before landing in a low crouch, the impact throwing up a small cloud of dust around her feet. Steely eyes darted up to scrutinize her attacker.
"You all again?" she mused distastefully, her gaze sweeping over the three familiar faces in front of her. "What do you want?"
"Stop it already, Naoko!" Kaminari shouted, his eyes uneasy. Yaoyorozu and Todoroki stood on either side of him, both bearing offensive stances and frowning apprehensively.
"Stay out of my way," she demanded flatly before her eyes darted to the towering column of ice that had knocked her from the air. A sharp crack rang out as a large piece broke off from the side and zipped towards her, quickly flipping to reveal a ragged, flat underside. She leapt onto the frozen platform as it passed, quickly guiding it higher as she lifted herself back into the air.
"Hey, stop! Todoroki!"
"Yea," he muttered as his left hand shot out. A blast of crimson flames tore through the air as it barreled towards Unknown, or rather, towards the ice beneath her feet.
The girl pulled off to the side, smoothly dodging the flames and shifting far enough to avoid much of the blistering heat. She dipped to the side once again as something large tore past her shoulder, the wind from it ruffling her hair.
Glancing back, she saw Yaoyorozu crouched next to what seemed to be a cannon.
Huh.
Yaoyorozu quickly struck a match, preparing to fire once again when the cannon slammed into the ground not a foot away from her, instantly cracking into pieces. She yelped and stumbled back as shards of ceramic and metal scattered violently across the ground.
"We have to stop her!" Kaminari shouted desperately, "But how are we supposed to reach her from here?!"
"I'll go. I can get to her," Todoroki stated, cold determination etched into his eyes.
"What?! It's too dangerous alone, man!"
"He's right! Let's find a different way- we need to stay together!"
"There's no time. Have Yaoyorozu make a set of propulsion equipment and come after me. I'll wear her out," Todoroki instructed, leaving no room for argument before a wave of ice shot out from his hand, thrusting him into the air.
He reached a few meters high before activating his other side, fire bursting from his palm and driving him further up.
Unknown glanced back, eyes narrowing upon seeing Todoroki rapidly approaching. She swerved to the side as he neared, abruptly changing directions without pause. This wasn't enough to lose him, however, as he quickly turned himself around and was once again in close pursuit.
With each brief pause in between controlled blasts of flame, Todoroki sent out waves of ice, forcing Unknown to drift further and further to the left to avoid them. As she passed under the massive hole in the roof, just a few feet below it now, he shifted his arm and shot a barrage of thin icicles towards her feet, leaving her no choice but to pull upwards and pass directly through the hole. He wasted no time in chasing after her.
Once he threaded past the ceiling, the cold air and blue sky instantly surrounding him, he quickly took advantage of her distraction to send a wall of ice barreling toward her. She pivoted away just in time to dodge the jagged points, but the chunk of ice beneath her feet was not so lucky. The crystal wall shot up and collided head-on with her platform, shattering it to pieces.
Todoroki and Unknown both landed on the roof at the same time. She instantly darted back towards the hole, but Todoroki was faster. His foot shot out and sent an enormous wave of ice towards the gap, forcing Unknown to jump back to avoid the giant, sharp crystals jutting up into the air. She landed just a meter away from the edge.
Smoothly, she rose to her feet, eyes carefully observing the new development: the gleaming ice had plugged the gap, cutting her off from the masses below.
A rather deliberate move.
Her gaze shifted to Todoroki who stood only a few paces away, his hands raised in front of him and his stance lowered, clearly on high alert as he watched her attentively. His brows were scrunched in apprehension, his jaw tightening as he grit his teeth.
They observed each other in silence for a moment, neither side moving from their spot.
Unknown was the first to break away, turning and idly stepping towards the mass of ice blocking the hole. His eyes followed her warily as she placed a hand on the closest icicle, one that towered well above her head.
He nearly recoiled as the giant crystal shattered violently, followed almost instantaneously by the rest of the enormous mass, all bursting into tiny shards in a series of sharp cracks and raining down into the arena below.
Suppressing his shock and quickly returning to his senses, he sent out another heavy wave of ice, and in seconds, the gap was yet again blocked with jagged crystals.
She glanced over to him pointedly before placing her hand on the nearest icicle once again, and once again shattering the entire mass in one motion. Todoroki had no intention of backing down, however, and sent a third wave to fill the hole, ignoring the rapidly building chill on his right side.
"What are you doing?" Unknown asked flatly, lips ticking downwards in annoyance.
"You're not getting back into the arena," he stated with a matching frown.
"Oh? Are you going to stop me?" she tilted her head questioningly, dark eyes boring into his own. Her finger traced the edge of the large crystal next to her. "If I destroy this one, will you make another? How long can you keep up?" she wondered plainly, eyeing the small patches of frost already building on his cheek.
He grit his teeth at her taunting words.
"Why are you here?" he asked sharply, activating his left side in an effort to diffuse the biting cold.
"Does it matter? Aren't you going to keep interfering regardless?"
"Why is the League of Villains targeting us?"
"Don't think so highly of yourself. This isn't about you."
"Then what is it about?"
The frost had all but dissolved by now, and he could feel his limbs tingle with returning warmth. His hands clenched into fists as he stared her down.
"Who knows? I'm just doing what I was told."
"Are you really blindly following their orders? Letting yourself be a pawn in their game?"
"You know, if it wasn't for that look you're giving me, I might have taken that as genuine concern, Todoroki," she smiled humorlessly. "Of course I'm a pawn to them: just a strong quirk they can point at things they don't like, and as far as they're concerned, that's all I'm good for. It doesn't matter much to me, really; they're welcome to think that. Though you're no stranger to people like them, are you, Todoroki?"
He frowned at her casual, almost carefree tone. The slight smile that didn't quite reach her eyes was foreign and unsettling, and her relaxed composure made it clear she was not the slightest bit concerned with him. He clenched his fists tighter before a blast of red flame shot from his hand directly at her.
Unknown made no effort to move, simply darting her eyes across the air as the flames closed in. Once its blaze reached just a foot in front of her, close enough for the blast of hot air to dry her skin and whip through her hair, the flames suddenly vanished.
Todoroki's eyes widened as he quickly recognized it as the same phenomenon that occurred in Kamino Ward.
"Right now, we think it may be some sort of pressure-based quirk. She might also be able to depressurize as well; that would explain why Endeavor's flames disappeared for a moment before he was rendered unconscious," Aizawa explained.
"Relax, I'm not interested in fighting you," she scoffed, taking a few steps away from the large formation of ice to sit down, leaning back against a metal generator box.
If she noticed Todoroki's glare burning through her, she didn't show it.
It didn't make sense. Why wouldn't she take the chance to attack him? Admittedly, it might not have been a good idea to isolate himself up here with her, but all he could think of in the moment was to keep her away from the civilians and students below. Though Aizawa had given them permission to engage, they were only supposed to protect the civilians; even in his rush, he had made it clear they were to stick together and avoid direct confrontation. It seemed Todoroki had disregarded the instructions before he even realized it.
He didn't know the full extent of what she was capable of, but he knew better than to let his guard down.
"What does the League gain from this? Why are you here?" he demanded, his voice even and controlled.
"When did you become so talkative?" she raised an eyebrow amusedly.
"Answer the question."
"I don't think I will."
"You haven't attacked any of us," he stated abruptly, drawing her attention as she tilted her head at him.
"What?"
"Earlier, Bakugo was attacking you persistently, but you never laid a hand on him. When Kaminari, Yaoyorozu, and I confronted you, you only ran. Even now, you haven't attacked me once despite having every opportunity to."
She stared at him for a moment, her gaze hard and calculating.
"Is that so? And what does that mean?"
"You've gone after many of the teachers and civilians, but you haven't attacked anyone from our class."
Not our.
"So you think I have a soft spot for you all?" she tilted her head, eyes half-lidded as a wry smile spread on her lips. "How self-important."
Her attempt at diverting the subject didn't escape him. The nagging feeling, the discomfort that had been forming in the pit of his stomach since the moment she appeared, bubbled again.
"What are you planning?" he demanded, fists tightening at his side.
"Haven't you been listening? I already told you, I don't know what they-"
"No, what are you planning?"
Unknown paused. Her dark eyes slowly narrowed, and he could feel her glare turn poisonous.
A long, tense silence dragged between them, their eyes boring into each other, neither giving in or turning away. She seemed to be assessing him, analyzing him, but for what purpose exactly, he didn't know.
Finally, after what felt like a lifetime, she tilted her head almost imperceptibly, a humorless smile spreading across her lips.
"I suppose you've always been like that, Todoroki," she mused in displeasure, "too observant for your own good."
He frowned in confusion, his guard inadvertently faltering for a moment as he absentmindedly took a step forward.
"What does that mean? What are you-"
"Come any closer and I'll bring this whole building down."
Her words shot through him as he instantly tensed, pausing mid-step. He stared down at her intently, as if searching for some clue that would answer all his questions.
"You're bluffing."
She smiled dryly, tapping her index finger against the metal roof beneath her. "Are you willing to bet a few thousand lives on that?" she challenged.
He was about to open his mouth to retort when the ear-piercing crack of shattering ice caught both their attentions.
Unknown leapt back as a laser-like blast shot towards her. It detonated with a rumbling boom in the spot where she sat only moments ago, the metal panels contorting under the force and leaving them charred and twisted. The displeased frown on her lips only deepened as her eyes landed on the unwelcome guest who wasted no time in charging at her once again.
"Thought you could get away so easily, damn scum?!" Bakugo snarled as his palm lit with furious sparks. He swung at her, explosions tearing through the air as she swiftly dodged, ducking and leaping away from his relentless barrage.
"Will you give it a rest?" she sneered, twisting away from another blast and batting the smoke from her eyes. She leapt over him, her eyes quickly finding a large chunk of ice and activating her quirk to pull it towards her. She jumped onto the jagged icicle just in time to avoid a ground-shaking blast aimed at her feet, the makeshift platform rapidly pulling her up and over to the hole in the ice where Bakugo had burst through. A burning stream of fire cut her off before she could reach it, however, and she reeled back, narrowly avoiding the scorching heat. Her eyes darted to Todoroki who now stood between her and the gap in the roof, but before she could ponder on it any more, a blast from behind shattered the ice under her feet.
Her eyes widened and her breath caught as she began to fall.
Time seemed to slow as she turned to see Bakugo growing closer, one hand stretched directly in front of her while the other slowly lifted towards it. His gloved palm engulfed most of her vision, mere inches away from her face and growing closer, yet she could clearly see his expression through the gaps in his fingers.
Rage.
His lip was pulled back, canines on full display; his blazing red eyes locked with hers, piercing with intensity, pupils contracted harshly as his face twisted with unbridled fury and hatred.
Then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw him reach for the pin in his gauntlet.