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A sharp boom rang out, followed by a ripple of smoke rising above a cluster of sleek tech buildings. Izuku Midoriya, walking through the tourist zone with Melissa Shield, immediately stiffened at the sound. Instinct overrode logic.
"An explosion!" he exclaimed, eyes wide with urgency. Without waiting for Melissa's reply, Izuku took off at a run.
"Wait—Midoriya!" Melissa called, but he was already halfway down the nearest walkway.
Izuku raced toward the source of the blast, zigzagging past startled tourists and security bots. The panic in his chest settled only slightly as he rounded a corner and came face-to-face with…
A sign that read:
VILLAIN ATTACK: Hero Combat Arena – Challenge Yourself in a Realistic Emergency!
Laser-lit spotlights swung across a wide training dome. Inside, shattered robot limbs littered the floor. Giant screens displayed live rankings, with names and times in bold, glowing letters.
Izuku blinked."It's just… a challenge event?"
At that moment, he spotted Eijiro Kirishima deactivating his Hardening Quirk. He stepped off the field, cracking his knuckles with a grin and sweat on his brow.
"Woo! Forty-three seconds! Not bad, right?" he yelled up toward the small crowd in the spectator stands. His name flashed on the board: 8th Place.
Izuku waved back, smiling in relief, until his smile faltered.
"Move it, extras."
A loud blast echoed.
From across the stadium, a flash of orange light streaked through the air—Katsuki Bakugo.
His body practically blurred through the field, detonating villain bots left and right, weaving between them like a missile. Dust flew. Limbs clattered. The crowd cheered wildly.
Eleven seconds.
Bakugo's name shot to the top of the leaderboard:
#1: KATSUKI BAKUGO - 11 SECONDS
"Tch." Bakugo clicked his tongue and stalked away from the course, wiping soot off his sleeve. "Took too long. Could've done it in nine."
To the far left, another scene unfolded.
Shoto Todoroki stood with arms crossed as a flustered Event Representative scolded him beneath a patch of ice that still clung to the ceiling.
"You froze the entire simulation zone!" the man exclaimed. "This isn't a real villain crisis—there are rules here!"
"I completed the objective in less than a second," Todoroki said plainly. "Your robots were neutralized. Your argument seems redundant."
"Yes, but—"
"It's not my fault you didn't prepare for success," Todoroki replied, turning his back. "Goodbye."
As he walked off, he calmly murmured, "Next time, I'll just leave before anyone notices. That seems to be the standard protocol."
Meanwhile, back in the stands...
Kirishima waved again and pointed, "Hey! Midoriya!"
Izuku raised his hand—just in time to be lunged at by a familiar blur.
"DEKU!!!"
Bakugo landed with a thunderous crack, causing nearby spectators to flinch. He slammed his hands against the railing and glared directly into Izuku's face, nose inches away.
"You showed up late just to mooch off my spotlight?! You want a piece of me, nerd?!"
"I—I wasn't trying to—"
"Because if you wanna go, we'll go, you freckled green bean!"
Kirishima walked over, clapping a hand on Bakugo's shoulder."C'mon, man. Chill. You already blew everyone away—literally. Give the guy a break."
Bakugo growled but backed off with a sharp exhale.
"He got invited 'cause he won the Sports Festival," Kirishima explained to Melissa, who had finally caught up. "I just tagged along as his emotional support friend-slash-babysitter-slash-unwilling hostage."
"That's… oddly specific," Melissa blinked.
Melissa turned to Izuku."So, are you going to try it?"
Izuku hesitated. He wasn't as flashy as Bakugo or Todoroki. He wasn't trying to prove anything to anyone right now.
But… she was watching. So were his classmates. And even more than that, this was the perfect moment to measure his growth.
Bakugo's words echoed in his head—so did Melissa's genuine curiosity.
"I guess… I'll give it a try," Izuku said quietly, walking toward the ramp.
Melissa smiled."I'd love to see what your Quirk can do."
...
Standing at the starting point, Izuku closed his eyes."Don't focus on Bakugo… Don't chase first place… Just control your body. Focus on movement. Minimize impact."
He clenched his fists. His bones hummed with pressure.
Full Cowl: 9%.Green lightning sparked across his limbs. His body felt like a high-tension wire.
"Begin!"
The bots launched from all sides, their sensors locking onto him.
Izuku vanished.
His feet pounded across steel. He slid under one robot, spun around the next, landed a kick against a bot's sensor eye, and pivoted into a roundhouse strike—BOOM. He moved like a shadow, fluid and barely visible, every motion surgically calculated to strike weak points without overexerting.
Fourteen seconds.
When he stopped moving, the field was empty. The bots lay disabled.
📊 The Results
The leaderboard updated:
#2: IZUKU MIDORIYA - 14 SECONDS
The crowd clapped, impressed. Kirishima whistled. Bakugo scowled.
"You're still slower than me, Deku!"
Izuku smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, but I didn't explode the wall."
Bakugo growled but didn't reply.
Melissa watched the green sparks dissipate from his body.
"It's so much like Uncle Might's movements… But it's more controlled. He's trying to minimize damage to himself, not maximize output."
Her eyes narrowed slightly as her mind shifted gears."His Quirk… hurts him?"
Melissa looked down at her small bag, where a half-completed prototype rested.
"I wasn't planning to make support gear this week... but for a friend? Maybe it's time."
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[Auther: Lowkey...I'm bored, as expected, when writing for your self, it's hard to force yourself to work constantly, takes the fun outta it.]