Chapter 30: Festival
"Alright. Do you have everything you need?" Izuku asked Ochako, who had just exited her room.
"Yep!" She replied, an excited smile on her face. "I think so."
Izuku nodded, before turning to where Rei was situated at the kitchen table, still working on the breakfast he had prepared.
"We're heading out. We'll see you there in a bit."
"Alright." She responded with a small smile, exhaustion still obvious in her eyes from where she just woke up. "I'll try to catch up with you before it starts. But if I don't, have fun!"
Izuku grew a smile of his own. "Of course."
Then he reached a hand out to Ochako, which she took, allowing him to swing her up onto his back with practiced ease.
As the two of them exited the room out onto the balcony, Izuku felt Tamako's consciousness flicker away in the direction of Rei, most likely to give their own goodbye, before returning a moment later. Izuku could feel their contentment as they settled back into place.
Izuku launched into the air, rapidly rising above the building before turning towards Yueii. His smile grew as he considered the newest addition to their family and to the bundle of quirks in his chest.
Despite only being made aware of their own sapience a few short days before, Tamako had been growing at a truly astounding pace. The confusion and uncertainty they'd displayed at first was nowhere to be found, and if Izuku hadn't had a front row seat to their development, he almost wouldn't have been able to tell that they'd spent the last thirty years or so being suppressed. Almost.
Obviously, Tamako still had more growing to do. They mostly only spoke when spoken to and was at times hesitant to give their opinion. They were, for lack of a better description, a blank slate. But then, they'd only been allowed to speak for just under three days.
Izuku suspected that a significant factor towards the speed of Tamako's development – aside from actually being allowed to experience the world and being surrounded by Izuku, Rei, and Ochako, who had all accepted them immediately and actively engaged them in conversation – was his intelligence quirks.
Tamako was in Izuku's mind now, in his body. That meant that any quirks affecting him would affect Tamako as well. Izuku had five intelligence quirks – six if 'Quick Thinker' was included –. That was a lot for Tamako to work with.
And it wasn't simply a case of each intelligence quirk directly making him smarter. All but two of them had separate functions that, when combined, gave great benefits.
Two of them increased the speed at which his brain processed information, similar in effect to Nezu's 'High Spec.' These two allowed him to think faster and gave him greatly improved reaction times. 'Quick Thinker' operated on a similar principle. It also increased his brain's processing speed, but to the point that the world seemed to slow around him, which was why he didn't keep it active at all times as he did the others.
One of the remaining three improved his memory, almost to the point of having perfect recall. That meant that he remembered nearly everything that he experienced. Though he would still occasionally forget things.
Another actually technically wasn't an intelligence quirk at all, but it allowed the others to be used to their fullest potential, so he considered it one. It acted as a heat sink for his brain, cooling it and allowing it to keep up with his other quirks.
Humans already had a natural way to keep their brains cool – it was essentially an organic computer, sending millions of constant electrical signals. The amount of heat it generated was not insignificant – but with Izuku's brain operating far beyond what the human body was naturally equipped to handle, it needed something extra. This quirk provided that.
The final quirk yielded the greatest outright change. It mutated his brain to allow multiple signals to be sent simultaneously by each neuron. This essentially meant that a particular section of his brain was capable of focusing on more than one thing at any given moment. It was almost the same as having a second brain, perfectly layered over the first. Because of this, he was able to multitask at a level that most people wouldn't be capable of.
It wasn't simply a case of dividing his focus between two separate tasks at one time, but rather he could devote his full focus to those two tasks simultaneously. It was one of the reasons he was able to maintain quirks such as 'Metallum' or his weaker healing quirk in the middle of a fight, despite both of them requiring focus to maintain.
That quirk enabled Tamako to act as a fully independent consciousness rather than one that shared space with Izuku.
When Tamako was with another person, only one of them could 'speak' at a time, meaning only one could make use of the host's internal voice, which severely limited any conversation that might occur between them and resulted in a great deal of jumbled thoughts if they tried to think at the same time.
However, with Izuku, Tamako was able to think and speak entirely separate from him. They were able to exist independently, despite being housed within Izuku's mind.
It was for this reason that Izuku believed that Tamako was able to develop at such an impressive pace.
Whatever the case, Izuku was pleased to see Tamako so quickly breaking free of the shackles of their previous user.
'Remember, Tamako, once we get there, you're free to wander and do as you wish, but it is imperative that you avoid Tokoyami at all costs. I don't know the full nature of the bond he shares with Dark Shadow, but it's possible that they could discover you much more easily than other people. For all I know, it would even be possible for them to discover your connection to me.'
"Okay. I'll keep that in mind. Tokoyami is the one with the bird head, right?"
'Yep. That's the one. It also might be a good idea to avoid Nezu and Eraser as well. Nezu is intelligent. It's hard to tell what he might be able to feel and deduce if you make contact with him. Eraser isn't quite as important, but we do need to decide whether it's best for you to avoid him while I'm "Izuku" or while I'm "Oni." We'll encounter him enough both ways, and if he feels your presence with both then it might lead to some difficulties.'
"Avoid Nezu and Eraserhead. Got it."
'Very good.' Izuku communicated, a small smile on his face. 'Also, as we discussed before, once the festival actually begins, you'll be with Rei. I want to keep things fair, or at least as fair as they can be when I've got multiple quirks, and that means I can't have you there potentially helping me.'
"Okay." They responded easily. "I can't wait to watch you fight from the outside. I wasn't able to do so properly last time."
Izuku let out a small laugh. 'Well just so you know, it won't be exactly like you're expecting.'
He felt a momentary flash of confusion from Tamako, before continuing.
'The way I fight as Oni is very different from how I fight as Izuku.' He explained. 'When I fight as Oni, I'm aiming to hurt the enemy, to incapacitate them quickly, harshly, and definitively. I aim to punish them for their crimes, and that more often than not leads to them being sent to the hospital.'
'But when I fight as Izuku, so long as it's not against criminals and villains threatening myself or someone else, then I only fight as much as is necessary to win. So when I fight today, it won't be with the aim of outright hurting my opponents, only to incapacitate them enough to win the fight.'
Izuku could feel Tamako considering his explanation.
"I see. All the same though, I can't wait to watch you fight. And I can't wait to watch you win."
Izuku smiled at that. 'Don't count Ochako out just yet. She's been working hard, and there's no doubt in my mind that she'll go far.'
Izuku trailed his hands through the bundle of quirks in his chest, singling out Tamako. He bumped a hand against them and immediately felt the contentment rolling off of them in waves.
He couldn't wait for the festival either.
---
Soon enough, Izuku and Ochako arrived at Yueii, at the arena some distance from the main building, that served as the location of the annual sports festival.
The area in front of the arena was mostly empty as they touched down. There was no sign of the crowds that would soon fill the seats, but he could see a few people and robots – similar to those that helped Recovery Girl and that he had seen cleaning the main building – rushing around, likely handling final preparations. He could also see a few heroes walking around, likely the security for the event.
All of the participating students had been asked to arrive early, so that they would have plenty of time to prepare. It would still be a few hours before any spectators arrived. And keeping in line with their usual behavior, Izuku and Ochako had arrived even earlier.
Izuku didn't lower himself to the ground to let Ochako slide off his back once they landed, nor did she make any move to dismount. She stayed in place, nestled in between his wings as they moved towards the entrance of the arena.
Actually, if he wasn't mistaken, she might've started to doze off during the flight. It was a bit earlier than when they normally would've left the apartment after all.
He decided to leave her be for the moment. If she needed a few more minutes of sleep, and was settled enough to not fall, then so be it.
Just as they reached the entrance, and before they could go inside, Nezu appeared. He must've noticed their arrival.
"Ah, Etsumi, Miss Uraraka." He greeted. "As expected, you two have arrived early."
"Of course." Izuku responded, a bit quieter than usual for Ochako's sake. "I'm excited for the festival. I wouldn't simply arrive on time."
Nezu let out a small laugh, lowering his voice as he noticed Izuku's reason for being quiet. "I understand the feeling. Despite how many of these festivals I've watched, seeing my students give their all and show off their growth never fails to excite me."
They came to an intersection as they spoke.
"To the right, you'll find the waiting rooms, and the connected locker rooms, for each of the classes." Nezu explained. "To the left is the main entrance for spectators."
"You two are free to have a look around until your classmates arrive, or if you wish you can go straight to the waiting room. The choice is yours."
Izuku considered it for a moment, before speaking.
"Where is the VIP seating located?"
Nezu nodded, a look of understanding on his face. "Directly above the commentators booth." He answered. "A seat has been reserved for your sister, as you requested. Though it wasn't much trouble seeing as the only other people up there will be myself and All Might."
Izuku nodded. "All the same, it is appreciated."
For the past few years, Nezu had been sending Deku invitations to the sports festival, for seats in the VIP area. Obviously it had been an attempt to find his real identity, but since that was no longer necessary, Izuku had requested that a spot be reserved for Rei.
She had been wanting to watch the festival in person for some time now. Unfortunately, seating for people with size-altering quirks was some of the most expensive in the stadium. It got to the point that, even with the income through his analysis work, it would be a significant expenditure.
With Izuku and Ochako taking part in the festival, Rei's desire to see it in person was even greater than previous years. Izuku had been incredibly grateful that Nezu reserved the spot. And as expected, Rei had been extremely excited when Izuku told her.
"I'd like to see it, if you don't mind." Izuku said.
"Of course! Right this way."
Nezu turned and began walking down the left pathway. Izuku followed behind a moment later
---
The waiting room was silent. Everyone was changed into their gym uniforms, with the exception of Ashido and Hagakure, who had been allowed to wear their uniforms to properly utilize their quirks. Ashido's had been limited to only the base part of the costume, the bodysuit. She didn't have her waistcoat or boots, instead wearing a simple pair of athletic shoes.
Along with their uniforms, all of the students had been given small metal bracelets to wear around their wrist. It was a piece of metal cord that linked to itself magnetically to create the loop. No one had explained why they had to wear it, only that it was a requirement.
There was a tension in the air as 1-A sat around the room, that looked more like a lounge than a waiting room, awaiting the signal to file out onto the field. A tension that had begun to rise as they heard the din of the spectators rise in volume as the stadium filled. Nobody spoke.
Though, despite the tension, Izuku knew that everyone was prepared. They had all been working hard for the past two weeks to prepare, and they all had shown significant improvements.
And they knew it. They knew that they given their all, that they had become stronger. They weren't nervous, at least not nearly as much as they could've been.
It wasn't arrogance, but confidence, though the line between the two was incredibly thin. Confidence in their abilities, and from the knowledge that they would be giving their all when they walked out onto the field.
Eventually, after a good deal of waiting, the tension rising to a peak, they heard an announcement sound out in the room to head out onto the field.
It didn't take long for them to get there, with Izuku following behind the rest as per usual. As soon as they stepped out into the sunlight, they all looked up to take in the sight of thousands of spectators cheering for them. Over the cacophony, Izuku could hear Present Mic announcing their arrival, followed by the other classes as they made their way onto the field.
As the others made their way out, Izuku looked up towards the commentator booth, and at the seating area above it. Blinking, he activated the magnification aspect of 'Spectrum.' With it, he could see Rei watching the field, with Nezu and Yagi settled a few seats away.
He tapped Ochako's shoulder to get his attention, before pointing up at where Rei was. She hadn't been awake when Nezu showed him the VIP area, nor were they able to meet up with Rei before everything got started.
Ochako, in response, waved up at the area Izuku was pointing at, and he could see Rei waving back. Nezu must've had some screens up there displaying the field, because without 'Spectrum' he could barely make her out.
Once all the classes were out and announced, Izuku noticed a stone pillar rising at the edge of the stadium interior, beneath the commentator booth. Midnight stood atop it.
When she spoke, her voice boomed out across the stadium, silencing most of the chatter from the spectators. She didn't bother with a greeting, instead getting right into it.
"To kick things off for this year's first year sports festival. Please welcome the first-year representative, Izuku Etsumi, to deliver our starting remarks!"
As she spoke, another, smaller, pillar rose from the ground directly in front of hers. It had a microphone already set up on it.
"Eh?" Izuku heard a few of his classmates express their shock.
"First-year representative? What's that?"
Izuku was already moving as he answered.
"It's the title given to whoever scores the highest in the entrance exams. They're always the one to give a speech at the start of the festival."
He had known for some time now that he was expected to deliver the speech. Even if someone hadn't told him – which Nezu happened to mention in passing in the middle of a conversation – he already had a good idea of what he was going to say.
The spectators cheered as he made his way to the podium, before falling silent as he climbed it.
Izuku settled himself in front of the microphone, a good bit of his tail hanging off of it. He took a moment to look around at the faces of the spectators, all trained on him. The entire arena was deathly silent as they waited for him to speak.
He took a deep breath, before speaking.
"One of the greatest problems we face today as a society, is the amount of stock we put into quirks, and the inherent judgement we put each other through because of them."
"Weak versus strong. Villainous versus heroic. Even so far as quirked versus quirkless. We judge each other and ourselves based on such flawed logic, and then we let those judgements shape who we become, when in reality our quirks should hold no more bearing on who we become than the rest of our character. We should not let the judgements of others decide who we are."
"Why should you care if someone else thinks that your quirk is villainous, or that it's absolutely perfect for heroics? Why should you care what anyone thinks of you? The only thing that matters is how you see yourself and what you wish to be. And if you don't like something about yourself, then change it. If you think you aren't smart enough, then study harder. If you think you aren't strong enough, then train harder. If you think your quirk isn't strong, then strengthen yourself in other ways."
He paused for a moment for effect, to let his words sink in.
"All Might himself is not the number one hero because of his quirk, but because of who he is as a person and because of how he chooses to inspire those around him. It is his character, his willpower, his heart, that makes him as great as he is."
"This problem persists to the point that there are those that believe that some people only get where they are because of their quirk. And while that certainly may be the case in certain places, there is one thing you can be absolutely certain of today."
He gestured out at all the gathered students.
"Everyone you see standing here on the field today has earned the right to do so. We have all worked hard to get where we are, and I know that a good number of us have put our hearts into preparing for this event, to ensure that the performance we give is the best we are capable of."
Izuku found the purple-haired student that had confronted 1-A. Shinsou, as Nezu had informed him. He looked the student in the eye as he spoke, even as the boy glared at him.
"I can't speak for everyone here, but I fully intend to put just as much effort into this festival. I intend to give it my all. And if you fail to do the same, you will find yourself falling short."
With that, Izuku turned from the microphone and made his way back towards his class. The stadium was silent for a few long moments, before it erupted in applause.
"That was pretty good." Tamako complimented. "Did you have that all planned out beforehand?"
'Nothing specific.' He answered. 'I knew the basics of what I wanted to say, but I mostly just went with the flow when I started.'
"Impressive. But was that last bit meant for the purple haired kid? You were staring right at them when you said it."
'Only if he interprets it as such. It was meant for everyone, but if he decides to take it personally, then that's his decision. I want to see if he's smart enough to move past it and just do his best to succeed.'
His classmates congratulated him as he made it back to them. They were barely audible over the noise.
"That was great, Izuku!" Ochako said once he was close enough. "I didn't even know you had to give a speech, but you were amazing!"
"Hell yeah!" Kirishima chimed in. "That was manly! I'm gonna give my all too, so you better watch out!"
Izuku smiled. "I look forward to it."
"A lovely speech to get things started!" Midnight called out, cutting through the noise once more. "With that, it's time to get into the reason you're all here today. It's time for the first event of today's festival!"
On every screen in the stadium, a giant lottery slot machine appeared, with a few different symbols depicted. A moment later, the wheels were spinning.
Izuku had a few ideas as to what the first event would be. In past years, it was almost always something to eliminate most of the competitors in a single go. This year, there were approximately one-hundred-sixty students taking part – everyone but the management classes – and if past years were a good pattern to draw from, they needed to narrow it down to sixteen before the third event.
After a few seconds of spinning, the wheels landed on a cartoonish picture of three people in a ring fighting.
"This year's first event is the battle royale!"
As she continued to speak, the pillar she stood on began to inch its way closer to the wall, as the smaller one disappeared entirely. Izuku narrowed his eyes as he watched.
"This event will be one giant free-for all between all of you!" She announced. "In your waiting rooms, you were all given bracelets to wear. They will be very important during this event. Your objective in this fight is to take bracelets from other people. So long as you have yours at the end, you'll be able to move on. The only catch is that you won't know how much time is left, so you better hang onto yours."
As the pillar merged with the wall, leaving only a small platform up off the ground, Izuku got a feeling in his stomach. It was the kind of impression he usually got when a fight was about to break out.
He leaned over to Ochako, careful to keep his voice down.
"Ochako, take my hand."
She didn't hesitate, grabbing his hand and letting him swing her up onto his back.
'Tamako. It's time, go to Rei.'
"Got it."
Tamako's presence immediately disappeared from his mind, and he focused on Midnight.
"There are no rules in this event, aside from needing a bracelet in order to move along. Beyond that, you can do what you wish. Form teams, fight everyone, do what you need to to win."
"Hold on tight." Izuku whispered over his shoulder. Ochako's grip around his neck tightened in response.
"And without any further ado, begin!"
As Izuku expected, there wasn't going to be any setup before the event started. They wanted to through the competitors into chaos.
He smirked. Luckily for him, chaos was where he thrived.
As the majority of the students stared up at Midnight in confusion, Izuku surged forwards, reaching the point directly beneath Midnight's platform in an instant.
He pulled on 'Air Cannon' as he moved, winding an arm back. Spinning around to face the students, he swung his arm out in front of him, releasing a massive rush of air that knocked most everyone back.
Everyone finally took that as the signal to move, as they got up off the ground and immediately started to fight the first person they saw.
Izuku let Ochako climb down off of his back as he watched the chaos. He looked over at her as she moved to stand next to him.
He had a smile on his face. "Shall we get started?"
She returned his smile full force. "Let's do it. I bet I can get more bracelets than you."
Izuku let out a laugh. "I'd like to see you try."
If Izuku was correct in his assumption, there wasn't a time limit for this event. If the point of this was to narrow down the number of competitors, then it would likely continue until the necessary number had been eliminated. Though if it continued long enough, they would likely end it and simply move on to the next event and let it thin out the numbers or take the number of bracelets one had into account.
Either way, Izuku had a fight to take part in.
With a wide smile on his face and a laugh working its way out of his throat, Izuku launched himself into the chaos.
---
"And with that, the first event has come to an end!"
Midnight's announcement sounded out across the stadium, all but freezing the remaining students in place.
Izuku smiled, barely even breathing hard as he eyed the bracelets on his arms.
It seemed that his earlier assumption was correct. There wasn't a strict time limit. The first event was meant to reduce the number of competitors.
Based on Izuku's internal count, the event had been going on for just over thirteen minutes before Midnight announced the end which, assuming he had counted correctly, was a very odd time to set.
"We now have forty students remaining!" She announced. "With most of them holding more than one bracelet. And in first place, we have Izuku Etsumi, with forty-one bracelets!"
Izuku smiled as a number of the other students looked at him with a number of emotions. He had directly removed a quarter of the total competition from the festival. Granted, most of them had been from the support and general education courses so they weren't necessarily experienced when it came to a fight, but it was still early in the festival, and most of the hero course had made it into the next stage, which meant the chances of him getting to have some real fun would only increase.
"All of you remaining will get a short break as we prepare for the next event, but first we have to determine what that event will be!"
She gestured at one of the screens and, as they had before, an image of a slot machine appeared, beginning to spin after a moment.
Since Izuku's assumption about the first event being a crowd thinner was correct, he didn't have many guesses as to what this one would be. In the past, there had been a quite impressive variety. In fact, he hadn't seen two events repeated in all the years he'd been watching. One year had the students shooting each other with paintballs, another had them riding on each other attempting to steal headbands, and one year even had them playing a massive trivia game.
The thought of an unknown event excited him, and he hoped that it would be something interesting.
The wheels came to a stop on a picture of two flags crossed over one another.
"The second event will be capture the flag!"
It seemed that Izuku would not be disappointed.
"With that decided, all of you that are moving on, please return to your waiting rooms while we prepare the arena! For all of you that were eliminated, better luck next year! You are free to head to the seating areas reserved for your class!"
She snapped her whip, signaling them all to start moving. Izuku watched the rest of his class begin to gravitate towards the door they had come from and followed them.
Not long after they settled back into the waiting room, most lounging across couches and chairs, a deep rumbling began to shake the room around them.
None of them knew what the cause might be, but it certainly served to build their anticipation for what was to come.
---
Moving back out onto the field, Izuku found that the word wasn't an accurate descriptor anymore. Where before the arena was mostly dirt with a ring of grass around the outside, now it was as if they had entered one of Yueii's training sites.
It was an entire mock city, almost identical to the ones they had used for the battle trials, albeit a bit smaller.
Izuku found himself wondering what the extent of Cementoss' powers were, because he was the only person Izuku was aware of that was able to do something like this. To be able to raise an entire small section of city in such a short time. If the hero didn't care about the structural stability of buildings in the city, he would be a force of nature in the modern world. As it was, he was still exceptionally powerful, but he dedicated his power more for construction than fighting.
As soon as the students were all back in the arena, into a sizeable courtyard right in the center, Midnight began speaking again.
"Now that we've changed the arena into something a bit more suitable for this event, it's time to go over the rules!"
"Before we get things started, you all will have to separate yourselves into teams. These teams can consist of whoever you wish, regardless of class, but there must be at least two, and no more than five people on a team. Once you all have teamed up, you will be given a flag, which you must defend from other teams."
"As with any game of capture the flag, the objective is to capture your opponents flags while defending your own. At the end of this event, the teams with the most flags will be able to move onto the third and final stage of this festival."
"Now, as you can all see, we have converted the arena into a more urban environment to make this second event a bit more interesting. Once you have your flag, you'll be able to spread out and pick a spot to keep your flag. You have access to anywhere and everywhere within the arena, including all of the buildings. However, keep in mind that once the event begins, you will be unable to move your flag, unless it is to return a stolen flag back to its place."
"Oh, one final thing before you all form your teams. The team of the first place competitor from the battle royale has already had their position picked out for them! For the duration of this event, their flag must stay right where you are, in the middle of the arena! Not only that, but they will also be starting this event with two flags, instead of one!"
Almost all the other students turned to look at Izuku as Midnight spoke. Not only would his team start with an additional flag, but they would be stuck right in the center of the arena. They would be vulnerable to attack from all sides.
He smiled – something that closely resembled one of his Oni smiles. Something that unnerved those that saw it – as he looked around at all the people looking at him like an easy target.
He hoped they thought that way.
The only ones that didn't look at him like that were the other students in 1-A. They had all seen him fight, and had all fought against him at least once. They knew why he was smiling, and why he wasn't fazed by the gazes trained on him.
With Midnight finished with her explanation, everyone began to spread out as they formed their teams.
Immediately, Ochako was at Izuku's side. Or rather, she'd already been standing there since they walked out of the waiting room, but simply moved a bit closer once everything started. He also spotted a few other members of 1-A gravitating towards him.
Within minutes of the process beginning, Izuku had filled his team. He had Ochako, Tsuyu, Tokoyami, and Ashido.
They had been the ones to reach him first out of the rest of 1-A, but also, for one reason or another, they were the ones that Izuku was the most knowledgeable about regarding their abilities. He knew their capabilities, and how they could work together.
The other members of class 1-A, with the exception of Kouda, who had given his bracelet to Shoji as soon as the battle royale had started, and who hadn't expressed much interest in fighting at all during the two weeks of preparation, separated to form their own groups.
Looking out across the other competitors, Izuku saw that 1-A and 1-B, being the classes that made up the majority, were mainly sticking to themselves. The only exceptions were the only student from the support course, a pink haired girl that seemed to be teaming up with Bakugou, and Shinsou, the only one from general education, who was surrounded by students from 1-B.
"So, what's the plan?" Ashido asked, the question directed at Izuku. Everyone in his group seemed to have automatically turned to him to lead.
"I'm going to stay here and guard the flags while the four of you go out and secure flags from other teams."
None of them questioned his plan, not after seeing him fight firsthand on multiple occasions and seeing his skill, but all of them except for Ochako did seem a bit skeptical. It was understandable, after all, their success in this event was being put on the line with his plan.
"Don't worry." He reassured them. "I know that with how out in the open we are, there's a risk of our flags being attacked, but that's actually what I'm counting on."
He smiled as he explained, with Ochako mimicking it with a slightly smaller one.
"Because of how exposed we are, how many teams do you think are going to flock to us immediately in order to take our flags? However many end up doing so, they're likely to bring as many people as they can, whether to overpower us or to deal with other teams with the same idea."
The others began to smile as well as they caught on to his reasoning.
"Since I'm the only one that will be staying here, the four of you will be free to target those teams. As almost a full team yourselves, you shouldn't have too much issue dealing with whatever they leave behind."
As he spoke, a staff member approached them with the two flags they would be defending as well as a set of earpieces that they would be able to use to communicate with one another.
Izuku looked at the flags, with their metal poles, and smiled to himself. Midnight had said that the flags couldn't move once they were set, but she never specified what sort of manner they needed to be displayed in.
Picking one up and weighing it in his hands, he moved over to the direct center of the courtyard. There was a crossroads of concrete pathways that went through the open area. Tightening his grip on the flag, he thrust it downwards, planting it into the concrete. Giving it an experimental tug, and finding that he was satisfied with it, he repeated the process with the second flag. A moment later, both were firmly secured in the ground. It certainly shouldn't be impossible for someone to retrieve them, especially with the variety of quirks he saw in some of the groups, but this would at least give them one more obstacle.
With that, Izuku coiled himself around the flags and settled as he watched the other teams begin to spread out.
"Alright." He said. "It's a good thing we have these earpieces, so we can keep in touch and so we can adjust our strategy on the fly, but until we get started I've got some ideas on how some of the other teams might handle things."
The other teams got one more glimpse of the unnerving smile on his face as they all went their separate ways to hide their flags.
---
"Begin!"
Midnight's voice rang out over the sound of cheering spectators. At the same time, Izuku spoke as well.
"Go."
Immediately, the other four members of his team set out towards one of the other buildings.
It wasn't one that they happened to see another team enter, just the opposite actually. It was one that Izuku hadn't noticed anyone approach. Their goal was to avoid other teams for the moment and get to the top to have a vantage point over the rest of the arena so they could watch for where everyone had set up.
Then, once they found another team, or once enough time had passed for the majority of the competitors to be away from their flags, they would start to move. Between Ochako making them all weightless and Tokoyami and Tsuyu both having ranged abilities to assist in mobility, they would be able to travel between buildings with ease.
"And they're off!" Present Mic's voice boomed through the arena, spectating the events of the game. "In a surprising move, most of Etsumi's team has taken off immediately, leaving him to defend the flags by himself!"
If it mattered, Izuku would be slightly annoyed by Present Mic broadcasting his team's actions to everyone else. But as it stood, he was almost glad. That announcement made it that much more likely that other teams would come rushing.
A minute or two passed in silence, before Izuku could hear fighting in the distance. He could make out the resounding boom of explosions, and immediately knew recognized one half of the conflict.
Another few minutes passed in silence. Or at least, as silent as things could be with the crowds cheering and Present Mic's voice sounding out and describing every little thing that happened. At the very least, it was silent in the sense that no one had come for him just yet.
It was slightly surprising, but not entirely unexpected. He had taken into account different scenarios where no one would come after him right away.
The two most likely situations were that the other teams were smart enough to not charge straight in, and were either pursuing other teams or biding their time before they actually got moving. Or, they were still coming for him, they were just doing so incredibly cautiously. They were planning.
Personally, Izuku was favoring the second situation a bit more, because the more time they spent planning, the more likely it was that his opponents consisted of more than one group, which meant-.
Izuku noticed something with 'Proximity,' just at the edge of his senses.
He began to smile as that something became several somethings, much more than a single team.
'Class 1-B.'
'Proximity' extended to just outside the courtyard he was in. Just far enough that he could feel them moving around just out of sight.
From the front, from the sides, and from behind. He could feel them moving around him in all directions.
"They're surrounding me." He muttered to himself. "Good."
Then, only slightly louder, he spoke to the rest of his team.
"Heads up, people are finally making moves against us. The opponents are most likely all 1-B, and if I'm correct, three of the four teams are here. They're working together, and there's a good chance that they placed their flags near one another."
He thought for a moment, thinking back to the specific groups he saw before everyone dispersed.
For the moment, he decided not to count the group with Shinsou as one of his attackers. If the boy was smart, he would do his best to avoid Izuku for as long as he could. He hadn't had a chance to observe much of Izuku's strength yet, but he should know that Izuku would have no issue removing him from the competition for no other reason than because he could.
Taking that into account, he picked out the ones that had most likely been tasked with guarding the 1-B flags. He couldn't know for sure, but he would assume that they had each left one team member, keeping the majority of their numbers to overwhelm the other teams.
"Kojiro Bondo, Kosei Tsubaraba, and Shihai Kuroiro." He said. "The ability to create glue similar to how Ashido creates acid, barriers made from solid air, and the ability to travel through shadows, respectively. They're the ones that'll most likely be guarding the flags. Be on the lookout."
"Ashido, you can use your acid to neutralize Bondo's glue. Tsubaraba's air barriers will most likely have to be dealt with through brute force, and Ochako will have to be the one to incapacitate Kuroiro. Prevent him from touching shadows. Tokoyami, watch out for him, as he can most likely use his quirk on Dark Shadow."
Hearing his team all give their affirmative, Izuku focused all of his attention on his opponents. He schooled his expression, training his gaze off into the distance, pretending as if he had no idea what they were up to.
He could feel them gathering into small groups, likely pairing up quirks that would work well together, or planning out the order in which they would conduct their attack.
The corner of Izuku's mouth twitched, attempting to curl up into a smile. He couldn't wait to see what they would attempt.
---
"Oh my, he is about to completely dismantle Class 1-B." Nezu said from Rei's side, causing her to turn her focus from the screens that had been displaying Izuku and his team.
"Look at him. He is completely aware that they're there. He knows that they're surrounding him."
Rei nodded in agreement. From their bird's eye view, she had seen the other students begin to surround him and she had seen the smile that had flashed across his face when he noticed, before he forced a neutral expression.
She knew Izuku, obviously. She had watched him grow up and had watched him develop as a fighter, both as Izuku and as Oni. She knew that he was aware of the other students, just as she knew that right about now he would be practically bursting with excitement and anticipation for the fight. She knew that it was likely taking everything he had to not abandon the flags and rush his opponents.
"There isn't a single hint of apprehension or nervousness, either. He is totally and completely prepared for whatever they might attempt. The others aren't experienced enough to know that they've already lost."
He let out a chuckle that reminded Rei of when Izuku really started to get into his Oni persona. "Oh I can't wait to see it all unfold."
Rei found herself smiling as well. It wasn't often that she got to see Izuku fight. She was excited, both to see how he would handle the situation and simply to see him fight in general.
---
Izuku rolled his head back to look at the sky, deliberately making it seem as though he wasn't focused on his surroundings at all.
The response was almost immediate. Almost every single opponent began to move a bit closer.
The tension in the air was rising as Izuku could almost physically feel the moment approaching. The moment that the fight would begin.
As he waited, he noticed one breaking away from the pack and beginning to creep closer. He had a hunch as to who it was, but he needed to confirm it. If he was correct, that would determine the direction his opponents would take.
Faking a yawn, Izuku turned his head in the direction of the one creeping closer. They froze as soon as his eyes passed over them, despite the fact that he couldn't actually see anyone there.
His hunch was spot on. Monoma, inferiority complex, was the starting point of the whole fight.
Izuku wasn't sure when Monoma had gotten his hands on Hagakure's quirk, but he was relying on it to get him close to the flags, obviously not aware that something as simple as invisibility meant nothing to Izuku.
He felt the flags shift a bit where they were settled in the coils of his tail, and realized what the boy was trying to do. He was borrowing the quirk of Reiko Yanagi, a minor form of telekinesis, to attempt to steal the flags from under Izuku's nose.
Izuku sighed, before grabbing the bottom of his shirt and tearing a sizeable strip from it. He wrapped the strip around his hand, covering as much skin as possible.
"Well then." He said, loud enough for all of his opponents to hear. "This has been quite fun, but I think it's about time we get things started, don't you?"
Before anyone could respond, Izuku spun around and delivered a punch to the side of Monoma's head, doing his best to ensure that their skin did not make contact. Before the boy could go flying, Izuku grabbed at his shirt and flung him in the direction of one of the other students – Yosetsu Awase, he now realized – sending them both tumbling.
There was a single moment of silence as everyone seemed to catch up to what had just happened, before everything exploded.
Vines burst from the ground all around him, wrapping around his arms and torso. At the same time, everyone else jumped out into the open.
Two opponents separated from the rest, charging directly at him. He recognized them as Sen Kaibara and Jurota Shishida, two quirks suited for close-quarters combat.
Izuku laughed as they approached, one from each side. He could feel the thorny vines tightening their hold on him – though the thorns didn't pierce his skin, not with his durability quirks active – ensuring that he was held in place. All the while, he could see the other students preparing their own attacks in case the current one failed.
They were wary of him. Good.
As the two attackers were pulling back fists to swing at him, he watched their quirks activate. Kaibara's arm began to rotate at a high enough speed to for it to blur, and Shishida increased in size and became considerably more beast-like in appearance.
He saw a flicker of triumph in their eye for just a moment – though it was barely visible past their determination – and decided that he had waited long enough.
Just as they both swung a fist at him, one rotating at a dangerous speed and the other a few times larger than it should be and sporting razor-sharp claws, Izuku moved.
His hands darted out, meeting no resistance whatsoever from the vines and even tearing them in a few places. He caught the two attacks, halting them.
The beast-like arm trembled as it struggled to overcome his strength, and Izuku's hand latched onto Kaibara's fist with enough strength to cause the quirk to backfire and nearly send his torso spinning if he hadn't deactivated it in time.
He savored the shocked expressions on their faces, just for a moment, before countering.
Tightening his grip on their fists, Izuku yanked them closer, switching his grip to Kaibara's neck in one swift movement. Lifting the boy up off the ground, Izuku aimed a punch to the center of Shishida's chest, sending him flying. Spinning around, he threw Kaibara at Awase, who had just managed to stand back up. He was sent tumbling once more.
"Incredible!" Present Mic's voice sounded out. "Etsumi has completely seen through the sneak attack set up by the 1-B teams and now seems ready to face them all down after dispatching a number of them in quick succession! Though he might want to be careful. It looks like his opponents mean business!"
The rest of the opponents didn't waste time on shock, instead moving immediately into their next attack.
The ground beneath Izuku softened into something akin to jelly, and he immediately began to sink. At the same time, he noticed a few small items flying towards him at high speeds, before suddenly expanding, revealing several of the fake cars that had been spread through the mock city.
More vines burst from the ground to wrap around him, this time also pulling him further into the softened ground. One of the remaining students began to grow scales across his body before launching them at Izuku, while another spread her hands, sending a cloud of what seemed to be dust floating towards him.
Five attacks from six different students. Six different quirks that were worthy of and were being developed by Yueii's hero course.
Izuku could feel his excitement growing.
A pull on 'Quick Thinker' had the world slowing around him, giving him time to take stock of everything. In a few short seconds – from his perspective. Even quicker from everyone else's – he worked out his plan of attack.
With his smile still in place – if anything it had only grown wider – he took a deep breath, filling his lungs before beginning to hold his breath. Then, flexing his arms, he broke free from the vines that were actively trying to drag him into the softened ground.
At the same time, he rose his torso up off the ground. He had no idea how far down the softening quirk affected, but he had about fifty feet of tail to work with before it became a problem.
In the time it took him to do that, the fake cars reached him. He swatted them aside with ease sending them crashing into the buildings that surrounded the courtyard.
He did nothing to defend against the scales that were assaulting him, instead letting them impact as 'Shock Absorption' did its job.
By now, the dust cloud, that he knew was composed of nothing but fungal spores, had reached him. Mushrooms began to sprout along his body, but he ignored it for the moment. Instead, he gripped as many vines in his hands as he could, yanking on them.
As he thought, they hadn't gone very deep into the ground to reach him, so they pulled up incredibly easily. Once they had, he yanked on them again, sending their source flying towards him.
She landed in his grip, his hand clamping over her face – including her mouth and nose – and cutting off her breathing. He did this partly to incapacitate her, as well as preventing her from breathing in the fungal spores that still floated in a cloud around him.
Bringing his free hand up, he pulled on 'Air Cannon,' before flicking towards Kinoko Komori, the source of the spores. A massive blast of air sent her flying, also serving to clear the air around him a bit.
He did the same to the source of the scales, incapacitating him.
"Izuku." He heard Ochako call out from the earpiece. "We found their flags. You were right, there are three of them together, and the people guarding them are the ones you mentioned. We've taken care of Bondo and Tsubaraba, but the last one is giving us trouble. They set up in a really dark room, and he keeps using Dark Shadow against us."
Izuku thought for a moment as he deflected a few more thrown cars, raising himself a bit higher off the ground to avoid sinking.
"What building are you in?" He asked, deciding to use up some of his oxygen. "What floor?"
"We're in the building directly beneath the commentator's booth. Third floor from the top."
Izuku got an idea as he watched another batch of cars float through the air.
"Is the area closest to the interior of the arena clear?"
She hesitated for a moment, likely confused as to why he was asking, before confirming that there was no one near that wall.
"Alright. Get ready for a distraction."
As the cars flew at him, he deflected all but the final one. That one he caught with both hands, spinning to face the building that the rest of his team was in.
He reeled an arm back, his hand gripping the back of the car. It wasn't nearly as heavy as a real one. Izuku suspected that most of the internals were missing.
With a small grunt, Izuku launched the car at the building, guiding its trajectory with 'Bullseye.'
He heard the crash through the earpiece, along with the exclamations of his teammates. Luckily, they were at least partially prepared for something thanks to his warning. A few short seconds later, he heard Ochako's voice again.
"Not exactly what I was expecting when you said distraction, but it worked. We have their flags, should we come back?"
"Yes. Get back here as quickly as you can. I'm almost finished up over here."
Raising his hands, he launched another blast of air at the two that had been throwing the cars at him. They were both sent flying. He repeated the process on the one that was softening the ground. The ground solidifying with Izuku partially submerged was enough of an indicator that the student was incapacitated.
With only two opponents left, Izuku spread his wings and, still with 'Air Cannon' active, thrust them downwards. The massive surge of air cleared away most of the spores that remained, with the rest being cleared with a few more wingbeats.
He took a deep breath as the air finally cleared, before looking towards the final two, who were already moving.
Izuku caught the horn that was flying at him, snatching it out of the air, and a quick swipe of his hand deflected the blade that was thrust at him. In the brief opening, he grabbed the student with the blade quirk, Togaru Kamakiri, by the neck and slammed them into the ground, before using the horn in his hand to deflect the other that was already darting through the air at him. One more blast of air incapacitated her.
There was as surge in the spectators' cheering as he wrapped up, and Present Mic's voice sounded out once more.
"Absolutely incredible! Despite being outnumbered twelve-to-one, Etsumi has completely repelled the attacking teams, and on the opposite side of the conflict, his team has captured their flags! Just how strong is he!?"
Looking around at the fallen students, Izuku relaxed just a bit. Looking down at himself, he noticed that he was practically covered in a blanket of mushrooms. It was a wonder his eyes hadn't been affected. In fact-
Izuku worked his mouth around, before opening it in disgust.
"There is a mushroom, in my mouth." He said to no one in particular. "I guess that's what I get for talking while in the middle of a swarm of spores."
Sticking a hand into his mouth, he gripped at the tiny mushroom that was stuck to the inside of his cheek and yanked it out. There was a pinch as it separated from his flesh – he actually had no idea how they were actually attached – but when he inspected it there was no sign that it had taken any flesh or blood with it. The only thing left behind was a somewhat sour taste in his mouth.
As he waited for his team to return, he set to work prying the other mushrooms from his skin.
He managed to get about halfway down his torso before they arrived.
"We're back!" Ashido called, before catching sight of courtyard. "Woah, what happened here?"
"The three teams from 1-B whose flags you just retrieved." He answered. "They put up quite the fight."
"Are you okay?" Tsuyu asked. "You're covered in mushrooms, and you're partially buried."
"I'm fine." He reassured. "I haven't freed myself because I didn't want to uproot the flags before I was done dealing with them, and I didn't clear the spores away at first because I didn't want the other teams breathing them in."
He looked back down at himself. "I don't think they're really harmful, aside from some slight discomf-."
"And with that, the second event of this year's sports festival is over!"
Midnight's voice cut him off as she announced the end.
"We saw some exciting fights! And because of everything that went down, we have four teams remaining! These four teams will be the ones advancing to the third and final event!"
"In first place, with five flags, we have Team Etsumi! Next, tied for second with two flags each, we have Team Bakugou and Team Todoroki! Finally, coming in fourth place with one flag is team Shinsou!"
The crowd roared their approval as the teams were announced.
Izuku sighed. "Finally."
With a quick flex of his tail, Izuku all but shattered the ground beneath him, before working his tail up out of the hole.
"Those of you in need of medical attention, please make your way to the infirmary, or wait to be picked up. As for the rest of you, we will now be providing lunch during a short break while we prepare the arena for the final event."
"Speaking of, some of you might be wondering what this third event will be. But at this point, do we really even need to spin the wheel? You already know what it will be!"
She gestured up at one of the screens where a picture of a tournament bracket appeared.
"It's the one-on-one tournament, of course!"
The crowd managed to grow even louder at that, all but shaking the stadium.
As soon as she was finished, Izuku noticed staff members appearing from the edges of the arena, a number of them moving towards Izuku, likely to retrieve the fallen students of 1-B.
Izuku let out another sigh as he turned to make his way back out of the arena, the rest of his team following behind him. He continued to pick off mushrooms as he moved.
He had a smile on his face as he entered back into the waiting room, already turning to head for the infirmary to have the rest of the mushrooms removed. That had been an exciting fight. Easy, perhaps, but exciting nonetheless. The way the students had all worked together to attack him was nothing short of impressive, and moving to deal with all of them had been rather enjoyable.
All the same though. Regardless of how much fun that had been, he was looking forward to the final event even more.
There was no doubt in his mind that his fights in the tournament would be even more exciting.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
Dragoneel22
Dragoneel22 The teams that have progressed to the tournament are as follows:
-Izuku, Ochako, Tsuyu, Tokoyami, Ashido.
-Todoroki, Iida, Momo.
-Bakugou, Kirishima, Hatsume.
-Shinsou, Kendo, Tetsutetsu, Tokage, Shoda.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone