Chapter Text
Third POV
Black-sclerae eyes with rings of yellow opened slowly, staring at the blank blue ceiling.'W-Where am I?'Mina Ashido thought as her groggy mind was in a haze, a ringing sound almost muffling her own thoughts. As she tried to move, a flare of pain racked through her entire body, every limb and body part registering pain and soreness. Still, the pink-skinned girl pushed through, groaning as she lifted her head and shifted her weight up on the bed she lay in.
"Easy does it, there, dearie," The voice of an elderly woman passed through the ringing in her ears. Mina turned to the sound, her groggy eyes clearing up to register the voice's recipient as Recovery Girl, staring at her with grandmotherly concern and warmth. "You're still pretty beaten up after that nasty ordeal you went through."
'Nasty...ordeal?'Mina thought, pondering what Recovery Girl was talking about. Was it what happened that caused her so much pain? Was that why she was in her room? Being treated?
Suddenly, the cries of multiple Pokémon caught her attention. Mina looked down at her bed to see that her awakening and Recovery Girl's words finally registered to her shocked Pokémon, all of whom leaped at Mina with joy.
Mina laughed, or as much as she could before she had to cough, at her Pokémon attempting to smother her in their cuddling. Mukky covered almost her entire left side under his liquid body, the Sludge Pokémon's eyes closed yet joyful. Goopy cuddled at her right, rubbing her slimy body on her shoulder, eating away at the hospital clothes around her shoulder but doing nothing to melt away at her acid-resistant skin. Fangy had flown up to the left side of her head, landing his tiny feet next to her pillow, and began licking her face, drawing giggles and tickles toward the pink-haired girl. Her latest Pokémon, Hauntikens the Gastly, licked at the left side of her face, floating above the left side of her pillow.
"G-Guys, come on! Enough!" Mina tried yelling out through her laughter and giggles, appreciating her Pokémon's affections, it was a sign that told her they truly loved her, but it was becoming too much, and she tried to get her bearings and clear her hazy mind.
Just then, as she thought of it, her mind did clear and the events and memories of what led her to this bed came back to her in a flash. Her match against Bakugou, exchanging blows, the revelations of his bullying of Midoriya, her acid-filled slap across his face, and a feral-looking Bakugou rushing at her, followed by smoke, ash, heat, light, and raging, hateful red eyes.
At the memory, Mina's stomach throbbed, and she flinched, groaning in pain as she reached her hands over to cover her bandage-covered stomach. A mistake as her bruised and sore arms also throbbed in exertion at her efforts.
"Alright, enough, the four of you," Recovery Girl shooed Mina's Pokémon off of their Trainer. "You can rejoice at her waking later, however, I need to examine my patient. How are you, dearie?"
"Sore, in lots of pain, my stomach feels like it got hit by a ton of firecrackers," Mina answered truthfully, her eyes closed in pain. "Otherwise, peachy."
Recovery Girl hummed as she placed a stethoscope by her stomach, chest, and heart. "I see. Poor thing. What about your head? Are you experiencing any grogginess? Are things a little hazy? Trouble remembering things?" Recovery Girl asked a series of questions, gauging her response and the workings of her body.
"A little. I almost forgot what happened or why I was here at first," Mina answered honestly, again, rubbing at her bandaged-wrapped forehead. "A little groggy really."
"Hmm, as I feared," Recovery Girl hummed. "From the signs, you are suffering a minor concussion, but after I heal you up a bit more, you will be fine. However, don't try and move around so much, Rest, and don't think so hard."
Mina nodded, though her mind had other ideas as she drifted her eyes around the room, eventually landing on the body on the bed next to hers. "Kirishima?!" Mina exclaimed.
Her faux red-haired best friend was covered head-to-toe in bandages and wrappings, more than even her. He almost looked like Mr. Aizawa after his injuries from the Nomu at the USJ. Her friend was asleep, as evidenced by his shut eyes and steady breathing. Her eyes looked around to see if anyone else was around, like Kiri's Pokémon, but only his Quillidan and Rockruff were out on his bed. 'Which makes sense,' Mina thought. 'As much as they want to, I don't think Onix won't fit well inside this room.' Mina tried to imagine the Rock Snake Pokémon trying to fit his giant head through the Recovery Hero's door, much less fit the rest of itself. Rhyhorn may have fit inside, but given a Rhyhorn's clumsiness, probably not a good idea to have it inside a nurse's room.
A sharp stab of pain went through Mina, the pink-skinned girl hissing as she clutched her head.
"What did I tell you about thinking so hard?!" Recovery Girl hissed in exasperation at her patient's immediate lack of following her instructions.'Honestly, it's like that oaf of a Hero is already infecting the students with his recklessness.'The elderly Hero sighed at the thought of All Might and his similar lack of self-preservation.
"S-Sorry," Mina apologized. "W-What happened to him?"
"I'm afraid much like what happened to you, my dear," Recovery Girl answered. "That Bakugou boy did quite a number on your friend in their match. Do not worry though, your friend returned the favor with some good licks in on that loud, rude boy." Recovery Girl remembered when the Bakugou boy came in with Kirishima and how he complained that she was focusing more on Kirishima's injuries than his own. The elderly pro couldn't tell whether the boy wanted her to focus on him first because his injuries were lesser and would take less time to heal, or whether he just held no concern for the well-being of his former opponent. He clearly showed no concern or guilt at seeing Ashido's condition, so she wouldn't deny that the latter possibility was likely.
She did revel in straightening the boy up by countering that Kirishima's larger extent of injuries meant that her focus should be more focused on him given that any serious and even permanent damage may occur if she doesn't tend to him immediately. It did well to shut Bakugou up, though Recovery Girl likely attributed it mostly to her fierce glare. The boy had left just before Ashido awakened, and she couldn't help but marvel at what was a stroke of luck, or perhaps divine intervention if Chiyo was superstitious enough, that Bakugou's departure lightened Ashido enough to finally awaken as if his very presence was a blight on the girl's condition.
"Oh," Mina muttered, her tone foul at the mention of the bully. Mina had to shake the thoughts and rising anger away before it once more sent another flash of pain through her skull. She instead focused her thoughts on her friends. "And M-Midori? A-And my friends?"
Recovery Girl raised an eyebrow at the special mention of Midoriya, something Mina blushed in self-realization and embarrassment. Recovery Girl shook her head fondly while smiling, amusingly sighing about 'young love'. "They came by to see if you were okay," Recovery Girl answered. "They were quite distraught and afraid for your health, and angry over who put you in that bed. Especially Midoriya. He had to be practically dragged away from your side to go to his next match."
Mina blushed fiercely at Recovery Girl's words, her heart beating like a hyperactive Rillaboom. Mina's hand subconsciously drifted up to the side of her head, brushing past her pink locks and rubbing, unaware, of where Midoriya placed his hand. She felt that side warm, and not just because she was in a fight with a guy who created explosions in his palms. No, it felt like a different kind of warmth. Caring, gentle, loving, even. Mina swore she could feel Midori's presence, even his smell. Cinnamon, pine trees, and the breeze of the sea. It smelt so...Midori, if that made any sense.
"W-Where is he?" Mina blushingly asked further, not even bothering trying to hide how she felt about the boy from the woman.
"He's in the semi-finals, against the Todoroki boy," Recovery Girl replied, pointing toward the television. "See?"
Mina whirled her gaze toward the TV screen hanging by the wall, her eyes widening at what she saw.
SSSSHHHKKKK
As soon as Midnight waved her whip down, a massive wave of ice shot out toward Shoto Todoroki's opponent. Its approach was like a tidal wave of ice and cold that meant to bury and entrap the obstacle toward his goal. Todoroki had put as much power and speed into the attack as he could to try and finish his opponent as swiftly as possible, like Uraraka.
However, much like Mariella, his opponent was quick to make that effort fail.
"DELAWARE SMASH!"Midoriya's voice roared out with a loud snap of his fingers. A surge of wind, pressure, and power blasted and tore through the wave of ice, smashing Todoroki's attack like it was nothing and sending cold, freezing winds past Todoroki and into the stands of the viewing audience.
"Oh, man! That's freezing!"
"I think I'm about to freeze up solid!"
Despite the sudden counterattack, Todoroki had prepared for it, and while he was pushed back a few inches, the son of Endeavor erected a wall of ice behind him, ceasing Todoroki's movement and bracing him against the massive blast of wind.
"WHOA! MIDORIYA MADE ANOTHER HUGE BLAST OF WIND THAT TORE THROUGH TODOROKI'S ICE AND ITS WIND IS GIVING THE AUDIENCE A MAKESHIFT BLIZZARD ATTACK! I CAN FEEL THE COLD FROM HERE!"Mic announced as he shivered, exaggeratedly.
'He did it again,'Aizawa thought as he looked down at the field.
"Holy Arceus! That's Cold!" Kaminari exclaimed as he braced against the cold wind that even affected the area behind Midoriya.
Many of Class 1-A braced and covered themselves against the onslaught of cold winds. Momo and Kyoka had covered Asui in a warm, heated blanket in preparation and even then, they huddled together with the shivering frog girl from the freezing mini blizzard formed from the clash of Midoriya's and Todoroki's attacks.
"Izu," Serena muttered, peering through her arms, squinting against the cold, strong winds.
Izuku's Pokémon likewise braced against the wind as best they could. Froakie stuck himself strong beside Asui, keeping warm against the cold and bracing as strong as he could with the pads on his hands and feet. Pikachu had taken precautions from the last time he faced his boss's air blasts and hid behind Combusken, whose steadiness against the wind and rising heat against cold likewise warmed Pikachu up. Eevee was secure in Momo's arms turning his away from the blast and pushing his fur and head against Momo's face to warm her as her arms did for him.
"Young Midoriya," All Might muttered as he stared at the field, unfazed even as his hair was blown against the wind.
The wind even reached Taishi and Nezu, where the rodent principal did his best not to show his fur sticking up or shivering against the falling temperature. Taishi narrowed his eyes, even as the wind blew his long silver locks back, his eyes shining grey-blue as he stared at the results on the field.
Just as the wind died down, Todoroki stared ahead at his opponent.'Just as I thought he would,'Todoroki thought to himself.
On the other side, Izuku Midoriya stood tall and defiant against his attack, his hand raised toward him, with his previously bandaged pointer finger once more broken, the bandages were even destroyed to pieces against the force of power.
"And Just Like Before, Midoriya's Broken His Fingers Again!"Mic exclaimed.
Meanwhile, the teen himself glared determinedly toward Todoroki, with only a slight twitch in his eyes showcasing he even registered the pain of his broken appendage.
"Izuku," Inko muttered worryingly, her heart breaking at the sight of her son breaking his fingers before her eyes. Before it was already painful during his battle with Tenya Iida, but to see it again was just as bad as before, if not worse for just how powerful of an opponent her son faced.
"Jesus," Mitsuki cursed, frowning concerningly down at her surrogate nephew for yet another massive show of power that resulted in another broken finger. Masaru beside her likewise frowned, concerned and aghast at the extent of damage that Midoriya was willfully inflicting on himself.
'From seeing his previous fights, Young Midoriya must have known the extent of power that Todoroki was prepared to fire on him, so he had to counter with a massive, no-holds-back Smash,'All Might analyzed, gazing worriedly at his protege.'Given the stakes and information gathered, this truthfully was the only way he could likely evade Todoroki's attack. Not even dodging with Full Cowling could have given him enough distance to evade if the whole side of his field was covered in an iceberg. However...'All Might looked at Midoriya's broken fingers with confirming trepidation.
Midoriya took a few steps forward. Todoroki narrowed his eyes and fired another massive wave of ice. And just as before, as the ice crept toward him, Midoriya raised his hand again and yelled,"SMASH!"Another snap and a blast of wind pressure smashed through the ice, pushing Todoroki back against his ice wall, even as parts of it cracked under the pressure.
"HE COUNTERED AGAIN?!"Mic yelled as blood flew out of another broken finger of Izuku Midoriya, the teen himself gritting his teeth but still glaring at Todoroki with unflinching determination.
The flames of Endeavor's body blew back against the cold wind, yet he stood firm and warm against the gale, his eyes only narrowing at the continued stubbornness of his son.
"Man! That Midoriya's hardcore!" Miruko grinned down at the field, arms crossed and her figure standing strong and still against the wind, even as her large bunny ears and platinum hair blew backward.
"His resolve and willingness to break his own fingers to achieve victory speaks to his determination," Ryukyu agreed, and approved of such fire in the boy, yet a frown began to grow in place as the consequences of such actions began to take root in her mind. "Yet also his recklessness."
"I Like It!" Miruko exclaimed, her grin only widening and her interest only soaring.
"Of course, you would," Ryukyu sighed, rolling her eyes.
Izuku stalked closer and slowly toward Todoroki, his gaze holding strong against his opponent. 'I studied as much as I could of Todoroki's fighting style from his match against Serena. Not only is he powerful, but his mobility, reaction time, and resourcefulness are all incredible,'Izuku thought back to the match against his best friend and his current opponent.'After Ochaco's fight and our meeting, I knew he would try and freeze me solid with as much power as he could muster without leaving him defenseless if I broke through, and I was right. He even erected a wall of ice behind him to keep him from flying back from one of my Delaware Smashes.'Izuku noticed bits of frost on Todoroki's right side, but microscopic compared to the amount he had after his massive attack on Uraraka.'I knew I was right to sacrifice my fingers. They were the only way I could hold against his attacks without becoming useless. Even a full-powered Smash with my whole arm wouldn't have blasted him out of the ring if he could erect a solid enough wall, and if I did that, I would be doomed. And I couldn't evade with Full Cowling in time, in any direction, without getting caught in the blast zone.'
Izuku took another step forward, the weight and power of his foot, powered by One For All, cracking the ice beneath him.'What's more is that even though I blast the ice attack away, there's still ice on the floor, and if try and rush at him afterward without caution, I could slip and catch myself off guard for another attack, and it would be over. Even his battle reasoning is impressive,'Izuku narrowed his eyes as he stared at the as-of-now useless left side of Shoto Todoroki.'At least, some parts. Regardless, I have to approach as carefully and steadily as I can, find an opening to strike at, and above all...'
"You wanna turn this into an endurance match? Fine," Todoroki growled, misty cold breath leaking out his mouth, as he stomped forward. "Let's continue."
Another wave of ice followed, and thus another massive blast of wind pressure followed and destroyed the ice, blasting Todoroki back against his crumbling ice wall, one he had to reinforce. Midoriya flinched at yet another broken finger.'5 or 6 more chances,'Midoriya counted his remaining, non-broken fingers, as he continued to stomp his way closer, faster as more of the ice in front of him had blasted away.
Back in the 1-A stands, Katsuki Bakugou walked out to see the match between Deku and 'Icy Hot', as Bakugou preferred to call Todoroki. Instantly, the battle prodigy could pick up that Icy Hot had started the match firing those massive icebergs of his and, thanks in part to the rumbling and wind he heard on his way in, Deku fired off one of those full-powered 'Smashes' of his, causing the icebergs to break away. As he noticed it happened repeatedly, Bakugou figured that unless the nerd had finally blown a gasket, he must have been using his fingers instead of his arms, like how he did in their Battle Training Exercise.
The memory of that, and the subsequent defeat of his by the hands of the worthless nerd, made Bakugou grit his teeth and growl. Unfortunately, that growl revealed his presence to his class of extras. Serena was quick to notice him and glare at him with hateful eyes, followed quickly by the rest of the nerd's worthless Pokémon and suck-up friends. It was clear that they still looked down on him for what he did to Ashido, and the stares he got from the other extras must have been from his match against sh*tty Hair.
One did catch his attention though: Ears. The girl with a purple bob-cut hair and those jacks in her ears glared at him like he was scum of the earth. It was interesting. 'Did the nerd's group add another worthless member?' Bakugou considered. Bakugou hadn't seen Ears hang out with the nerd or any of the other extras, besides High Class. Bakugou wouldn't have even given a sh*t about who hung out with who, or who was banging whom, but sh*tty Hair's idea to form a friend group of their own to rival Deku's little squad at least perked up his interest. He figured that if he could entertain sh*tty Hair's idea of a 'friend group' then they would be useful lackeys for him, new and better replacements than the suck-ups from Aldera, they could, if Bakugou was generous enough, be fit enough to be his future sidekicks for when he goes pro.
Kirishima was already a loyal lackey, and strong, Bakugou could admit that. If he focused more on his hardening and less on his diatribes of 'being Manly', Bakugou could see the redhead better strengthening his hardening enough to be a strong tank of a sidekick. An immovable wall to his unstoppable force. sh*tty Hair then brought in Tape Arms and Weird Eyes. Bakugou could tolerate Tape Arms, it was Weird Eyes he had a problem with, mainly because she was also friends with the nerd, and for some Arceus-forsaken reason, she seemedinterestedin the nerd, even. It nauseated him, even worse when he saw all those other girls flock around the nerd like he was the goddamn Messiah or some sh*t.
Bakugou wanted to tell her to get lost, and he almost did, but somehow sh*tty Hair convinced him to let her in, and, not wanting to waste any more time debating with the stubborn redhead, Bakugou allowed it. Fat load of good that did in the end. Not only did Weird Eyes somehow find out about his past, but even sh*tty Hair turned on him, and telling from his glare, Tape Arms is as good as gone too. Ungrateful bastards, the lot of them.
When it came to the others in his class, each one was a disappointment that only made Bakugou want to can this 'Bakusquad' that sh*tty Hair wanted to make. Sparkle Turd was annoying, Big Lips was strong, but his Quirk made him an idiot, Weird Head was a shy, meek loser, like Deku, and he honest to God forgot that Tail Guy was even around 90% of the time. The biggest obvious no's were those that already made up the 'Dekusquad'. Glasses, who was already a stick up the ass that he didn't need, Round Cheeks, who was practically clinging onto the nerd that he made him want to puke, See-Through, another suck-up that clung onto the nerd because he was probably the only one who would give her the time of day, Sparkplug, who was too much of an idiot for his brain cells to stand, Frog Girl, especially after the USJ, High Class, whom, despite being an admitted goddess of a woman that would look fine wrapped around his arms, was also somehow attracted to the nerd, so she must obviously have brain damage of some kind, Sea Bitch, who seemed to despise his very existence, and, the worst of them all, Deku himself. No need to explain why Bakugou didn't want that lying nerd in his group.
That left Icy Hot, Arms, Bird Boy, and Ears. Icy Hot was anti-social as Hell, and it seemed like a waste of time to try and get him on board, Arms looked like the no-nonsense kind of guy who wouldn't endorse any kind of smear campaign against the nerd, so he was a loss, and Bird Boy followed in this line of thought as well, only worsening with the guy's blooming friendship with the nerd after the 2nd round. And finally, Ears. Bakugou thought to write her off as well given her friendship with High Class, a member of Deku's squad, and she wasn't exactly a looker compared to the rest of the girls. Even See-Through left a little mystery as to what she might be hiding past her Quirk and her uniform highlighted that she at least had it going on in the front.
Now, Ears was looking at him like was the filthiest Trubbish on the face of the planet. Her glare seemed comparable to Sea Bitch's, and that left Bakugou curious if the aforementioned water user spilled the beans to Ears, and if she did the same with Weird Eyes and sh*tty Hair. But then, as if knowing what he was thinking, Ears raised her jacks and pointed to her ears and then to him, the sharp jacks pointing at him like they were knives ready to shiv him. Bakugou's mind clicked as he realized just what Ears's problem was: she heard. She heard everything that happened in his fights with Weird Eyes and sh*tty Hair. That Quirk of hers allowed her to listen in on his conversation with the two in their respective matches and find out everything that they entailed.
'So, why? Why does she care at all?'Bakugou thought, still at a loss for why Ears, Sea Bitch, or anyone in their class of extras would even care about what he did. Why would they give the nerd the time of day? It didn't make sense to Bakugou. 11 years of his life told him that he was in his right to see the nerd as the weakling he was. He didn't have a Quirk, he was scrawny and weak, spineless and meek, and even his Pokémon, Eevee, was a weakling that could never hope to defeat his Quilava. All the teachers said so, all the students and lackeys agreed with him, so what changed? Why was the nerd suddenly seen as an equal to these extras, someone who deserves happiness, or got so pissy with him when he tried to put the worthless Caterpie in his place?
'His Quirk,'The thought came to Bakugou like a moment of eureka. That had to be it. That was the only viable explanation. It had to be. But then even Sea Bitch knew that the nerd was Quirkless beforehand and still hated Bakugou's guts. But it had to be because he had a Quirk now. The nerd must have met the girl after he got his Quirk and Sea Bitch hated him by thinking he had picked on some 'late bloomer' or something. That's why sh*tty Hair and Weird Eyes must hate him too, why Ears now seemed to hate him too. It all made sense to Bakugou, so much so that he came close to laughing out loud, only holding back so that he didn't look like he had gone crazy.
But then that left one last question that needed answering:'How did that worthless nerd get a Quirk?'Bakugou thought, looking down to see the green-haired stain on his road to greatness fire off another finger-breaking smash that destroyed Icy Hot's wave of ice. Bakugou's fists clenched, steam hissing from the rising heat of his palms.
Back on the field, Izuku cringed as he used his pinky for the last smash, the last of his right hand's fingers.
Todoroki noticed this and began to sprint off toward Midoriya.'He's out of the fingers of his right hand,'Todoroki analyzed as he began powering up his Quirk.'He'll start to switch over to his left hand. I'll use the opportunity to launch myself up with a ramp of ice and rush at him, catching him off guard. Then when unleash my ice on him, he'll have no choice but to use his whole arm to destroy it up close and blast me away.'Todoroki could feel the shiver in his body as he moved, how sluggish he was starting to get. Even after warming himself up after his last battles, his body was starting to give in more to the cold. If he had fought Midoriya earlier, and if he hadn't wasted so much energy on fighting Mariella, it would have been easier to handle, but after that aforementioned match with the water-bending girl and that massive, overkilled attack he did on Uraraka, his resistance to his ice was waning.
'I can't let this endurance match go on any further. I can't risk another close call like before,'Todoroki told himself.'I'll finish this as soon as possible and show that bastard that-'
Todoroki's train of thought ceased as he noticed Midoriya rushing at him, the green lightning of his Quirk encasing his body as he launched at him like a fierce Zangoose would its prey.
"Midoriya's finally got on the offensive and is rushing toward Todoroki!"Mic announced.
"sh*t!" Todoroki cursed under his cold breath and acted fast. He waved his right arm in an arc before him, unleashing a wider, harsher wave of ice to impede Midoriya's path.
Midoriya slid to a stop and raised his left hand, his thumb already in a flicking motion with his other bandaged pointer finger. "SMASH!"With another blast of wind pressure, the ice broke away and revealed the ice that had been behind the wave of ice. A ramp of ice, like a rising cliff. And while the base was likewise broken apart, and the ramp of ice was falling apart, Todoroki had already reached the peak and jumped off, falling toward with his right hand drawn back, the hand hissing with frost and cold air, like a readied claw about to strike at him overhead.
Acting quickly, Izuku zipped away to the side, gaining a good few feet away before Todoroki landed and smashed his hand to the ground. Instantly, ice spread all over, four rows of sharp ice spreading out in the four cardinal directions, the western one racing toward Midoriya."SMASH!"Another finger down, but the blast of wind shattered the ice almost instantly, making its way to Todoroki who had to erect a low ice wall before he was sent flying off. Using this time, Izuku zipped as fast as he could toward Todoroki, reaching him just as the scarred teen got his bearings, but before he could attack, Izuku drew his left fist back, clenching it hard despite the two broken fingers, green lightning sparking around him and the limb.
"DETROIT SMASH!"Izuku slammed the fist into Todoroki's stomach, making the white-and-red-haired teen gape, spittle falling out his mouth.
"DIRECT HIT! MIDORIYA FINALLY LANDED A DIRECT HIT ON TODOROKI!"Mic roared and so too did the crowd.
"Yeah! That's the stuff, Boss!"Pikachu cheered, punching the air in mimicking his Trainer."Right in the bowels!"
"Master Izuku has finally landed a blow, but he has sacrificed six fingers by this point,"Froakie croaked."Even so much as punching must feel like agony to him."Froakie would know, he and the others can vaguely feel Izuku's pain with their link.
"But if Izuku keeps up the offensive like this, Todoroki won't be able to launch another wave of ice, and Izuku can swiftly knock him out,"Eevee pointed out, smiling hopefully down at his best friend."He can win."
"Wait,"Combusken paused, raising her hands at the others for them to pause too."Something's not right. Look!"
As Izuku punched Todoroki, despite the latter's pain, the son of Endeavor reached out his right hand and grazed Izuku's left arm, the touch enough to spread ice across the limb.
"Oh no, he's freezing Deku's arm!" Ochaco exclaimed in fright.
"Izi!" Hagakure yelled.
Noticing the ice, Izuku growled, glaring at Todoroki. Fighting through the sheer amount of pain, Izuku's right hand clenched tight, blood spilling out of the broken fingers, but the teen raised the fist."SMASH!"Izuku roared as he launched the mostly broken fist onto Todoroki's face, the left side of his face.
"Holy! Midoriya just punched Todoroki with his mostly broken hand!"Mic exclaimed, a part of his voice carrying horror at the hardcore act.
Inko brought her hands up to her mouth, covering them as tears were shedding. Call it a mother's intuition or her brain making things up, but Inko could almost feel the very pain that Izuku must have felt then, and it broke her heart to see her baby like this. She could feel Mitsuki's hands and arms around her, comfortingly rubbing her sides.
"RRAAAGGHHH!" Izuku roared as he pushed through the pain and resistance from Todoroki and sent the boy flying backward.
The scarred teen stumbled and vaulted over the lowering wall of ice he had formed earlier and stumbled and fell a few feet away, clutching at the left side of his face. Todoroki could feel the soreness from it, knowing it would bruise, and wiped his mouth, his left arm showing blood spilling out from a cut on his lip. Todoroki, shakily, got up and looked back at Midoriya. The green-haired boy looked worse than Todoroki and his classmates had ever seen him. Not even his broken arm from the Battle Training Exercise or his hand and leg from the USJ compared to the multiple broken and bleeding fingers on both hands, and the ice covering Midoriya's arm from the forearm to his bicep. Todoroki had intended to do more, but the surprise punch from Midoriya had knocked him out of using his Quirk.
Todoroki had also recognized the point of punching at his left side despite Midoriya's right hand bearing mostly broken fingers. It was because it was Todoroki's left side, his fireside, the side Todoroki refused to use. Midoriya banked on him still not using his left side to burn him away and thus struck there where he couldn't freeze or attack him any further. But what's more, that punch sent a message. A message that said, 'I can do that and get away with it because you still won't use that side of yourself'. Todoroki couldn't decide what stung more, the punch or the message.
Regardless, Midoriya couldn't do anything more now. He used up all his fingers, save his thumb, on his right hand and rendered the left one useless under that ice.'Just one or two more ice waves should end-'Todoroki's thought was cut off again by what followed, stunning him and the crowd.
Green lightning sparked more wildly around Midoriya's body, including his left arm, which seemed to flex and bulge under the power. The ice around his limb began cracking, and Todoroki realized what Midoriya was going to do.
"RRRRAAAAAGGGHHHH!" With a cry of fury, Midoriya punched the ground with his left arm hard, a small shockwave of force blowing a small amount of wind at Todoroki's face, which he covered with his arms, but it was only enough to make him take a few steps back. When Todoroki peered through his arms, he could see that Midoriya's fist was on the ground, cratered under his punch, and the ice that once encased his arm was broken off. Not even the frost seemed to remain, the sleeves of Midoriya's gym uniform were likewise destroyed and showing the bulging muscles of his arm, though they didn't look broken at all.
"Holy Arceus," Setsuna muttered, wide-eyed and face frozen in shock, her mouth a tiny bit ajar but enough to show her breathing in and out heavily. She felt like a fire just got lit inside her chest from that, frankly, awesome act.
Down a line of seats, beside an equally surprised, and impressed, Kendo, Yui Kodai, another of their classmates, and Deputy Rep of Class 1-B raised an intrigued eyebrow at the green-haired boy.
Izuku flinched as he could feel the strain on his arm.'I raised the percentage to 10% for that punch. I can only handle 8% safely, with 9% if I wanted to risk it,'Izuku stretched and moved the arm a bit, only slightly wincing at how furious his muscles burned.'A little strained, but good enough.'
Izuku turned his attention back to Todoroki, who was staring at him with wide, shocked eyes. If Izuku was any more confident and self-assured, he would have thought that Todoroki looked intimidated, like he'd been put into a corner with no way out.'And yet, he does.'
Todoroki fired another wave of ice at him one that made Izuku's eyes widen.'The speed of the attack...it's slower. He's getting slower. For no reason!'Izuku gritted his teeth and snapped his ring finger at full power, destroying the ice attack, the weaker attack getting blasted through easily, forcing Todoroki back even farther. If it weren't for a last-second ice wall, the son of Endeavor would have fallen off the ring.
"Stop it," Izuku muttered. "Just stop it."
"What?" Todoroki blinked, barely able to hear what Midoriya said.
"I said Stop it! Stop screwing around, Todoroki!" Izuku roared out, furious and glaring daggers at the teen. "Look at this farce that you're making of the Festival, Todoroki! Look how much you're hindering yourself!" Izuku gestured toward Todoroki's right side, more and more frost covering the white-and-red-haired teen's body. "You could be mopping the floor with me, and yet you're holding yourself back, over a stupid vendetta! It's honestly pathetic!"
Todoroki gritted his teeth, clear offense, and rage in Todoroki's mismatched eyes. "Why do you care so much if I use my left side or not? Is it my dad? Did he bribe you or something to get me to use it? f*ck off!" Todoroki roared before firing another wave of ice, this one larger and more powerful.
'Yet still so slow,'Izuku thought as he sacrificed his left pinkie for another blast that tore through the ice and sent the advancing Todoroki back to his ice wall. "This isn't about your father, it's about you!" Izuku yelled back. "All the stupid decisions you made, all the people and Pokémon you've hurt, how you're destroying yourself by adhering to this stupid revenge story of yours!" The faces of those he cared for, his friends, and even Todoroki's Vulpix came to the forefront of his mind. "Uraraka." Ochaco's frozen-covered body and the sounds of her tears in her waiting room came to mind. "Iida, Kaminari, Tsu, Toru." The faces of shame that his friends had over their faces for choosing to adhere to Todoroki's manipulations. "Momo!" Izuku's fists clenched tightly at remembering her tear-stricken face. "Even your own Vulpix." His memory of Vulpix during their Pokémon battle came to his mind, as well as the sadness he felt from his Pokeball. "All of them suffering because of your desire to get back at your father. But also, yourself! How you let yourself get humiliated by Serena because you wouldn't use your fire. How broken and sad you looked after your match with Ochaco. You're destroying yourself, all because you're letting your father mess with your head and hold you back. If you want to reject him so badly, then fine, do it! But you don't have the right to be here, the right to be Number 1 if you aren't going to use everything you got!"
"Look at me, Todoroki!" Izuku raised his left arm, showing all the broken, bleeding fingers he had and his sleeveless arm. "Despite all this damage, you haven't landed a single scratch on me yet!" Izuku's hand clenched into a fist, the pain nonexistent to Izuku's mind and heart. "So, man the Hell up, and Come at Me with All You Got!"
Back up in the stands, while they couldn't hear what Midoriya was yelling, his conviction, determination, and will were written all over his face for all to see and mutter.
"Damn! That Midoriya sure has some Power in him!" Mirio flexed at the use of his favorite word but grinned wide and impressed at the strength of his junior classman, a strength that Mirio had to admit he hadn't seen compared to some of the students in his own year.
"His inner light shines bright, like the sun," Tamaki muttered, gazing at Midoriya as he would toward Mirio. "It's amazing, inspiring, a-and a little terrifying." Tamaki shivered and quaked in his boots at the last part, and not because of the cold.
Nejire could feel the very Aura that burned and raged within her Kouhei, like a burning sun, like Tamaki said, yet raging and destructive like a storm, fitting with the green lightning that sparked off him. It drew at her, called to her, like a Venemoth to a flame. She could feel the waves of pain that emanated from him with every flick of his fingers, or punch with his broken digits, and yet he kept going. It left the periwinkle-haired teen slack-jawed and amazed.
Todoroki's teeth mashed together so hard that he wondered if they would shatter, his mind buzzed like a hoard of Cutiefly had wormed their way into his very brain. Images of his past came flaring back up. His younger self on the ground puking his guts out, his mother shielding him from his father, his father smacking her away like trash, his mother's crazy eyes as she reached for a pot of boiling water. Rage and fury burned at his very core, the frost around his body spreading like a virus. "YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING!" Todoroki roared to the heavens as he flooded the whole field with ice, making its way toward Midoriya.
"Oh no, this is bad!" Kaminari gripped at his hair, terrified and worried for his Pika Bro.
"Midoriya's used up all his fingers!" Iida gritted his teeth. "Even if he could use his thumbs, how could he? And would they even pack enough power to stop that attack?"
"Izuku," Momo gripped Eevee in her lap harder, worried. She wasn't even concerned about herself and whether Izuku's defeat would spell her doom, she was just worried that this attack might truly hurt him.
"Midori," Mina, back in Recovery Girl's room, clung to her sheets, begging for her green-haired crush to get out of the way.
As the ice raced towards him, Izuku made his choice, damn him his long-term health. Thus, Izuku raised his right hand again, moved his thumb to his broken, sparking finger, and felt the energy of One For All travel through the digit."SMASH!"He roared as he flicked again, another powerful blast of wind pressure shot out and carved through Todoroki's ice, to his and everyone's shock and horror.
"What The-! Midoriya Used His Broken Finger to Attack?!" Mic announced, shocked beyond belief. Even Eraserhead beside him was stunned.
All Might's jaw dropped in disbelief. 'Young Midoriya,'All Might thought, his gaunt hands gripping his pants tightly.
"WHAT THE HELL IS HE THINKING?!"Pikachu exclaimed, removing his Luchador mask, rubbing his eyes with his paws, and blinking repeatedly to verify what he was seeing was happening."Better question: IS HE THINKING AT ALL?!"
"For once, I agree with you,"Combusken muttered, in utter horror and shock at her Trainer's actions.
Inko choked up a sob at the act, tears flooding down her eyes like mini waterfalls.
Todoroki, Midnight, and Cementoss were front-row witnesses, shocked, at the action that took place. Midoriya, slightly hunched over, and with a mad look in his eyes, had his hand raised toward Todoroki, the already broken pointer finger now an ugly shade of purple compared to the dark red of the other broken fingers.
"Jesus," Miruko cursed under her breath, even herself taken aback at how far Midoriya was willing to go.
"Why?" Todoroki's head shook subtly from side to side, not believing what he was seeing. "Why are you going this far? For someone that you hate? For someone that you said hurt your friends?"
"I-I don't hate you, Todoroki," Izuku replied, drawing more surprise in Todoroki's eyes. "Even after everything you did, it's not like me to hate someone that's also hurting." Izuku's eyes still glared at him, but they held a sad softness to them that ate at Todoroki's conscious. "I can't truly fathom what you've gone through in your life. I can't speak to how you should treat yourself, but as long as your actions harm the innocent, I'll always stand up and fight back. That's all I ever wanted to do. Just like him." All Might's smiling face came to mind. "I want to be a Pro, a Hero. It may sound weak compared to your motivations, but that's all there is. So, I'm going to save them, my friends from their pain, Vulpix from his pain." Izuku's eyes met Todoroki's. "And yourself from yours! Because that's what Heroes do!"
Izuku rocketed toward Todoroki like a green, sparking missile, lightning almost sparking out from his eyes. He was a man on a mission, and that mission was to save this broken man. Even if he didn't deserve it. Even if he had to beat the lesson into his skull.
Todoroki gritted his teeth and rushed at Midoriya as well. "Even if what you say is true, you can't keep fighting like this. Not with your fingers and hands shattered like that," Todoroki raised his hand, ready to once more try and freeze Midoriya with a touch. The two reached each other, Todoroki prepared to reach and grab Midoriya, and end this.
"Did you forget, Todoroki," Izuku muttered, eyes clouded by his hair. The tone of his voice took Shoto aback. "I'm more than just my arms." Izuku swiftly dodged Todoroki's slow attack, lifting and rearing back. As Shoto turned to face Midoriya again, he gaped and kneeled over, spittle and blood launching out his mouth. Striking at Todoroki's stomach was Midoriya's empowered legs. "I Got My Legs!"
What followed was a to the audience a one-sided beatdown in Midoriya's favor. The green-haired teen rained blow after blow, kick after kick onto Todoroki's body, from stomps at the back of his knees, roundhouse kicks to his sides, even straight kicks to the scarred teen's gut. And it didn't stop with Midoriya's legs. Despite the broken fingers, Izuku also used his arms and hands, punching across Todoroki's face, and slamming his elbow and forearm onto Todoroki's back, face, gut, and chest. Whenever Todoroki tried to create a wave of ice, another quick finger snap destroyed it before it even came to be and Midoriya would be on him again to rain in another beatdown. Midoriya even gripped Todoroki's shirt, reared his head back and pulled, and brought his empowered forehead crashing onto Todoroki's nose, instantly breaking it and spilling blood everywhere.
Endeavor watched every blow come upon his son with a stoic expression. Or at least, as much as he could, a flinch or a wince appearing on his face every so often, guilt and sadness in the man's eyes as he watched his son be beaten to a pulp and had every manner of stopping it but didn't. Because of him.
Back over in a lavish Japanese villa, a woman with white hair with red flakes here and there watched with a Glacion by her side. Across the table, was a tall young man with slick back white, spiky hair, and an Alolan Sandslash by his side. Fuyumi and Natsuo watched their youngest brother's fight with Midoriya, watched as the youngest among them was being beaten to a pulp, and he was only using his right side.
Fuyumi covered her mouth and flinched at every blow, punch, and kick that landed on her baby brother, tears welling up as she noticed that Shoto was harming himself just as much as Midoriya was. Natsuo's fists clenched, and anger boiled in him, but it wasn't at Midoriya or even Shoto for not using his full power to stop the former, it was at himself. He had joined his brother's campaign in rejecting their father, supported and agreed with Shoto in rejecting every aspect of their abusive parent, and this was the consequence. His baby brother was destroying himself, humiliating himself, thanks in part to his vengeful big brother who should have taught him to let go instead.
"Midnight, shall we intervene here?" Cementoss radioed the R-Rated Hero as they both watched the match go on as it was. "Midoriya is getting reckless. He's banking on Recovery Girl healing his body after the match so he's sacrificing his body over and over." They watched Izuku snap another blast of wind and break further another finger before slamming an elbow across Todoroki's face. "But at this rate, those injuries might become permanent. Even if he does win this fight, it's unclear whether he would be able to fight in the finals."
Midnight agreed with her co-worker, every instinct in her screaming at her to tear her sleeves off and let her Quirk knock the two boys out. But she heard what Midoriya said, why he was going so far, he was trying to save Todoroki. Even after everything he said that the boy did to him and his friends, he was still willing to go this far to save someone in need. The Hero in her couldn't help but want to see that happen too.
Eraserhead overheard Cementoss on his comms, and almost wanted to order Midnight to end the fight right now, damn the spectacle and rules. His eyes twitched to use his Quirk and stop Midoriya's Quirk cold, but then with how Midoriya was going, he wouldn't be surprised if Midoriya still kept going even without it. The 1-A homeroom teacher thought back to when he berated Midoriya for breaking his arm in the Battle Training Exercise, telling him he needed to stop making the excuse of not having any control over his Quirk. And yet here, Eraser could see the truth. Midoriya was fighting recklessly because he lacked control, he knew his limits and was still going beyond regardless of the injuries that followed.
'He's using everything he has to succeed and achieve his goals,'Aizawa thought.'It's not recklessness, it's drive. Purpose.'
Todoroki fell to a tumble as Midoriya had once more kicked him away. He got up on his hands and knees, spitting out a wad of blood. "I-It doesn't matter," The scarred teen muttered. "H-He doesn't belong to me. He shouldn't have." His hands clawed at the ground. "That bastard just tossed him onto me-"
"No, he didn't," Izuku's words froze Todoroki instead. "Endeavor never gave you Vulpix."
"..." Todoroki's body shook, shifting his head over slowly toward Midoriya, his eyes wide and confused. "W-What?"
"You were right before, that Endeavor came to me to get you to use your left side," Izuku revealed through his panting. "I was already going to do this even without talking to him, but when I said I was going to save the Vulpix he tossed onto you, he said he never did. He wasn't the one to gift you Vulpix. Your mother did."
Todoroki felt his world beginning to shatter around him. His eyes blurred but whether through exhaustion or tears, Todoroki's couldn't tell anymore. "N-No...t-that can't be true...Mom only gave me Alolan Vulpix...Ninetails...s-she would never..." Todoroki's mind was in agony, images he'd never seen before flashing to the forefront of his aching mind. He saw a woman's smiling face, his mother's smile, and in her arms, where he only saw one bundle of white fur, the fog began to clear, and in her other arm was a red bundle of fur. Vulpix, the both of them, in his mother's arms, giving them to him.'W-What's happening to me?'
"She gave the both of them to you, didn't she? She made them promise to keep you safe, didn't she?" Izuku questioned. "That's why he never left. Despite everything you did to him, that's why he never left you alone, because he cared for you. Because he still cares for you. Like you should care for him too."
"N-No..." Todoroki clutched at his head, feeling it starting to split in two. "H-He can't...He shouldn't..."
"Look for yourself, Todoroki!" Izuku shouted at him.
"VULPIX-VUL!"
Todoroki froze to his core. As if his own Quirk turned against him, every thought, the beat of his heart, even the flow of his blood felt frozen solid as he heard that voice. Todoroki's gaze drifted toward the 1-A stands and there he was. Sitting on the very edge, beside the other students and Pokémon looking at him with surprise, there was Vulpix, crying out to him
"VUL! VUL-VUL-VULPIX!"Vulpix continued crying out to him, tears falling down its sad brown eyes.
Todoroki couldn't understand what he was saying clearly, but he could tell the feel of Vulpix's words, what he was trying to convey.'H-He's rooting...for me? H-He's cheering for me? W-Why? Why?! After everything, Why?!'
The rest of Todoroki's Pokémon came out the door, panting as they caught up with their runaway fellow Pokémon after he escaped from his Pokeball. They noticed what Vulpix was doing, cheering and rooting for the very Trainer who hated him. Britannian Darmanitan and Drizzile could not make sense of why he was doing this, but Ninetails knew, she always did. Vulpix was doing the same thing that he always did, what Rei Todoroki promised the two of them to always do: to be there for her son, to the very end.
And so Alolan Ninetails followed suit. The Fox Pokémon joined in with her regional cousin, her brother in a sense, and cried out for Todoroki's success. Soon, Darmanitan and Drizzile did the same, rooting for the Trainer they otherwise stood against not a few minutes ago. Because that was what they were supposed to do, what they felt was right of them, to be there for their Trainer, their partner, no matter what.
"Aww! Todoroki's Pokémon are cheering out for their Trainer! Isn't that adorable?!"Mic cooed through the PA.
Tears fell to the icy ground, from Todoroki's cheeks, down from Todoroki's pain-filled, confused eyes.'Why?'The tone of Todoroki's inner voice even sounded pathetic, whimpering like the broken child he was. Todoroki couldn't make sense of this. Even after everything, every insult, scoff, beratement, and mistreatment throughout the years, Vulpix was still there. Even after rebelling against him earlier, Ninetails and the others were still there. Shame filled his heart, all his misdeeds, all his treatment of his classmates and Pokémon, they all collided into his very soul...and he couldn't take it.
"AAAARRRRGGGHHH!" Todoroki slammed his right fist into the ground and an avalanche of ice raced towards Midoriya again.
Midoriya placed his sparking thumb onto the inside of his mouth, pressing against the edge of his mouth."SMASH!"He roared as he flicked the thumb out, breaking it under the power and the force of the wind, and the ice collided and exploded out in all directions. Both Todoroki and Midoriya stumbled back to the very edge of both their sides.
"Why? Why is he doing this? Why is Izu still trying to help him?!" Hagakure was in tears, as were most of her friends.
"Because that is just how Izu is," Serena answered, tears rolling down her proud eyes. "Like with Shinsou, even if you don't deserve it, he never gives up on you when you need help. Ever."
Bakugou flinched, the words hammering into his head like a hammer, but he scoffed and looked away with a growl.
"Izuku," Inko wept both proudly and painfully for her son, feeling like she was the proudest mother in the world.
Izuku's Pokémon couldn't hold back their tears either. Eevee even felt tears raining down from Yaoyorozu, her beautiful face both marred and graced by her river of tears.
Izuku and Todoroki panted, exhausted, in pain both physically and mentally. "U-Use it," Izuku demanded, his left cheek scratched and bruised.
"I...I-I can't..." Todoroki weakly protested.
"DAMN IT, TODOROKI! IT'S YOURS!"Izuku roared with all his might for the world to hear, his eyes glowing blue. Izuku didn't even notice the wave of barely visible blue that erupted out of his mouth like a shockwave."YOUR QUIRK, NOT HIS!"
As the wave of barely visible Aura reached him, Todoroki's eyes widened, and he fell out of all sense of time and space, into his mind. He could feel his inner self tumble and crash past the fog, breaking through.
*CRASH*
"UUUOOAAAAHHHH!"Todoroki could hear the cry of some unknown creature. A Pokémon? No, that didn't matter now...
Because now, he remembered. Everything.
Flashback...
"I never realized how much I had forgotten."
In his earliest memories, Shoto remembered leaning by that rail of his house, watching down below as his siblings played and laughed with each other. He remembered Fuyumi and Natsuo as they were younger, he remembered Touya, how little he did, and his mix of white and red hair, almost like his, before time turned the red hairs to white. He remembered the three of them playing kickball or keeping the ball up in the air with their kicks, how Touya was doing the best till he tripped and fell. He remembered Fuyumi looking concerned while Natsuo just laughed and playfully mocked his shorter, yet older brother.
It looked fun. Shoto wanted to join in. He wanted to have fun with them, too.
Then his father came. "Ignore them, Shoto," Enji Todoroki grabbed his hand and led him away, fire still on his chin like a mustache even though he was out of uniform. "They live in a completely different world than the one I'm training you for."
Shoto remembered trying to fight back, but what could a young boy like him do against the strength of his father?
Afterward, he was put through another training session, this time trying to fight against his own father, yet what could a little boy like him do against the terrifying mass and strength behind his Hero of a father? In no time, Shoto was on his knees, puking out his breakfast on the floor, crying and coughing as he clutched at his stomach, burning with pain.
"Now, stand up!" Endeavor ordered him, gazing down at him with no sympathy for what he did to his son. "If you get hurt that easily, you can forget about beating All Might, or even a small-time Villain."
But why would he want to beat All Might? Wasn't he a Hero? Wasn't he supposed to protect them? Wasn't he the good guy? Those were questions Shoto had asked before, and they only made the trainer harsher and more violent, his father's anger at his response dealt back to him till he learned to shut his mouth.
"Please, stop pushing him!" His mother's voice came in, the woman kneeling and trying to comfort him, to stand between her son and the monster she had the misfortune to call her husband. "He's only 5 years old!"
"He can take it! Now, get out of my way!" Endeavor yelled, the echo of a slap reverberating throughout the household.
"Mama?" Shoto cried as he saw his mother fly back and tumble to the ground, clutching her cheek with her back turned to him.
"I remembered the pain, the sadness, the fear."
"Mom, I feel like I'm going crazy," Shoto recalled that fateful day, overhearing his mother as she talked with Grandma. He had woken up in the middle of the night, walked to the kitchen to get himself something to drink, and gazed into the room from the ajar sliding door. His mother was in front of the stove, a pot of water on, and she was calling her mother through the phone. He paused as he listened to his mother's talk.
"I can't take it anymore. Every day, the children seem more like him," Shoto's mom whimpered, her body shaking in fear. "And Shoto, that child's left side sometimes looks unbearable to me. All I can see is his father! I can't raise him anymore! I want to run away from this life!"
Every word broke Shoto's young heart. He couldn't understand. No, he didn't want to understand. He didn't want his Mama to look at him like he was a monster.
"M-Mom?" Shoto's voice broke free of his restraint.
His mother gasped at his voice. Her body shook like she was in the middle of a blizzard. The pot of water steamed, its piercing cry ringing through the silence. Finally, Shoto's mother turned to face him, eyes wide and mad. Not angry mad, but crazy mad, insane mad.
What followed would forever scar Shoto, mind and body.
The next thing he knew, Shoto's left side was covered in wrappings, leaning against the wall as the world became numb to him. Cold even.
"That...That Moronic Woman! To hurt you of all people at such an important time!" Endeavor growled.
"W-Where is Mama?" Shoto asked.
"Huh? Oh. She hurt my masterpiece, so I put her in a hospital to keep you safe," Endeavor answered dismissively.
Shoto's body shook, a different kind of fire raged inside him than the ones he and his father could make, from the left side his mother feared and hated. "That was your fault!" Shoto declared, Endeavor turning to face his son's wrath, the fury and tears that poured over from his right eye, his mother's side. "You're the one that made her hurt me!"
That was as much as he could remember. Anything more was a haze, just more of the same, or missing pieces and parts of him he wanted to be lost forever, for they brought only pain and longing.
But now...now, that changed.
"I remember."
This memory. All he remembered was a haze of it, just an image or two, and then nothing. Now, Shoto saw it clear as day to him.
"I-I don't want to, Mom!" Shoto saw his younger self cling to his mother's embrace, crying his eyes out. "I don't want to be like him! I don't want to be someone that bullies you and hurts people, Mama!"
Shoto felt shame, unbearable shame at those words. But he did. He did become like him, after all. Vulpix, Yaoyorozu, and his classmates. He treated them all like tools, he practically held Yaoyorozu hostage with their sham of an engagement, and he bullied Vulpix for being gifted to him by his father, something the Pokémon had no control over. Just as he had no control over what his Quirk would be.
Shoto's mom placed her hand over his head, rubbing and comforting him. "But honey, you do still want to be a Hero, don't you?" His mom asked. The younger Shoto looked up at his mother, seeing her kind smile, gentle, like the softest of snow.
It was then his memories went further back, to his true inspiration, the true icon of his dreams.
"Yes, that's right. Children often do inherit Quirks from their parents, or develop similar power sets, but the most important thing to remember is that a Quirk is what you make of it,"Shoto remembered watching a broadcast of an interview, an interview with none other than the man his father wanted him to surpass: All Might. Shoto remembered seeing his wide, empowering smile, flashing a thumbs up to all those watching, to Shoto. "Regardless of your history, or where you come from, only you can decide how you use it. That's what I mean when I say 'I Am Here'! Only you can decide to be a Hero, no one else. Remember, kids, You Got This!"
"That...That's right...he was always there. He was always there to tell me what my father could not. What my mother always reaffirmed."
"Honey, you do still want to be a Hero, don't you?" Shoto's mother repeated and the memory split between his younger self smiling at the screen, inspired and in awe, with his mother by his side, and his mother smiling down at him as he cried. "Just remember to stay true to yourself. You can be the Hero you want to be."
Shoto's mother then set his younger self down and raised a finger to wait a moment. She disappeared by a sliding door only to come back with two bundles of fur in her arms, one red and orange and the other white and blue, two kinds of Vulpix, Kantonian and Alolan, one a boy and the other a girl.
"Remember, my son, it doesn't matter where you come from, or who your father is, the only thing that matters is that you are your own person. Just as these are your own Pokémon. Not from your father, or me. Yours," His mother gave the two Pokémon to him, two brown eyes and two blue eyes gazing up at him. The two cried in happiness and joy at seeing his face and leaped up to lick at his sides, the red one at his right and the blue one at his left. Young Shoto laughed as they licked the tears from his cheeks, and Shoto smiled brightly and innocently.
"They will be your guides, your snow, and your flame, mist, and heat. But most importantly, they will be your partners, your Pokémon, your friends," Shoto's mom smiled at him. "Just as I made them promise to always be there for you. No matter how hard the journey gets, even if you stumble, fall, and lose your way, they will be there to guide you back, now, and to the end."
"I never realized how much I had forgotten."
"You are not a prisoner of your lineage," His mother, Rei Todoroki, spoke. "It's okay to use your power. To become who you are meant to be."
Flashback over...
Shoto found himself back in the real world, time resuming, space continuing, and the memories he had seen had all been imprinted into his very soul.
Todoroki panted, gasping for breath, steam boiling up from his left side, steam was set aflame, and with a silent roar, his entire body was engulfed in flames.
"WOAH! I-IS THAT FIRE?!"Mic exclaimed.
"He's actually doing it," Asui croaked, her already wide eyes widening even further, feeling the very heat from here.
"He's using his fire!" Uraraka yelled, her hair blowing back from the wind the flames and its heat created.
"Incredible," Iida muttered, sweat dripping down his head at the heat, remembering Todoroki's earlier proclamations to never use his left side.
"This...This is true Fire,"Combusken muttered, her body responding in kind to the rise in temperature.
Tokoyami stared wide-eyed at the pillar of flames that erupted, flinching slightly as the light weakened him. Bakugou noticed out of the corner of his eyes and they narrowed.
"Izu, you did it. You actually did it," Serena muttered, her wide eyes shedding tears for both her love and the man he saved. "You saved him."
"Was there ever any doubt?"Eevee questioned, grinning wide and bright.
"Not at all,"Both Pikachu and Froakie said at the same time.
Momo stared amazed at the sight of the fire rising into the air, brightening the whole stadium in its holy light, warming them all from the cold chill was hung in the air before.'This is what you were aiming for, right 'Zuku?'Momo felt a tear run down her face. 'You guide Todoroki back to the light. And what a light it is.'
Darmanitan and Drizzile stared slack-jawed. They couldn't believe it. Their Trainer was using his left side, his Fire! Meanwhile, Ninetails and Vulpix smiled wide, tears glistening as their Trainer found his way again.
'You made him use his fire. Young Midoriya, don't tell me you were trying to save Young Todoroki all this time?'All Might asked.
Aizawa's eyes slackened from their wideness prior, nodding in approval.'You made him change his ways. You made him truly use his full power. Just like Mariella knew you would, Midoriya,'Aizawa thought.
Back on the field, Izuku stared stunned at the pillar of fire that suddenly erupted from Todoroki. He knew that he could be capable of doing so, that should have done so, but seeing it now, the flames were beautiful.
"You're helping your opponent. You fool," Todoroki's voice came out past the roar of the flames. They subsided enough to see the frost on his body melting, new ice and cold mist covering his right side, but maintained and controlled, while the flames danced across his left side in revelry. "Even though you want to win this battle, too. Now, which one of us has been screwing around?" Izuku stared in awe at the sight before him.
"I want it too," Shoto Todoroki declared, ice and fire dancing around him in tandem, in perfect unity once again. "I'll be a Hero."
Izuku could do nothing but smile back. "Now, it's a fight," Izuku replied, eyes shining with a fiery glow.
Shoto smiled back, a tear of gratitude falling down his left eye before it boiled and evaporated.
"SHOTO!" Endeavor roared in sheer elation. "YES! Have you finally come to your senses, my boy?! Have you finally realized the destiny that was placed upon you?! REVEL IN YOUR POWER AND SHOW THE WORLD WHO YOU TRULY ARE!"
"Um, looks like Shoto's father is encouraging him?" Mic said, questioning the nature of that praise.
But Endeavor paused as he realized that neither Shoto nor Midoriya heard his words, or acknowledged his very existence. They just kept smiling, smiling like All Might.
"WHOOWEE! Now that's some Fire POWER!" Mirio flexed again, the energy in the air pumping up so bad he wanted to go down there and join the fight too.
"You're repeating yourself, Mirio," Tamaki muttered, hiding behind his seat, away from the flames, worried that they would run wild and burn him to a crisp.
"Wow," Nejire stared amazed at the fire, curiosity welling up in why that Todoroki guy never bothered to use this power, it was warm, full of energy, and bright. So bright. What's more, Nejire wondered what was that she felt before when Midoriya yelled, that wave of power.
"Did you feel it, old friend?" Nezu asked Taishi, pulling at the collar of his shirt as the heat ramped up.
"Yes. That yell of Midoriya's, it was Aura, literal words made manifest by Aura that collided with Young Todoroki's mind and soul," Taishi revealed. "Whatever veil was placed over Todoroki's mind, Midoriya's words, his Aura, and Todoroki's own memories shattered through it. Incredible."
"Why are you smiling?" Todoroki asked Midoriya, wiping away the blood from his nose. "With those injuries that you've sustained, in this Hopeless situation that you've put yourself in... you must be crazy."
Izuku's smile persisted, only growing wider and more alive at the challenge. "I've always been told that yeah, but if there is one thing that should have figured out about me, Todoroki, is this-" Green lightning flowed around Izuku, accompanied by a slight hue of blue, especially around his eyes. "I'm Never Without Hope!"
Todoroki huffed. "Then don't blame me for what comes next." Todoroki stomped his foot forward, ice forming around his right side as his flames gained intensity on his left.
"Bring it on!" Izuku exclaimed, stomping his foot forward, the material around his leg ripped away revealing the glowing red veins and sparking lightning around it. Izuku's broken heads were raised steadily by his sides, green lightning sparking like a wild storm around him as the wind itself was blowing around him.
Cementoss slammed his hands into the ground. "That's it, Midnight! That's enough of this!" He yelled as he worked his Quirk to cease this oncoming attack from both of them. "The both of them could be killed!"
"His body won't hold out!" Midnight tore at the white, skin-tight material on her arm, purple gas escaping.
Massive waves and pillars of ice shot out instantly from Todoroki, growing so fast, that spread, ironically, like wildfire. It rushed toward Midoriya like a tsunami.
"SHOTO!"Vulpix, Ninetails, Darmanitan, and Drizzile all exclaimed, roaring out their hopes and cheers to their Trainer.
Izuku rocketed from his spot and into the air, the ground behind him collapsing instantly. Midoriya soared over the waves of ice, his sheer speed and power tearing the ice to pieces at the very tailwind of his approach. Izuku didn't even register his left leg breaking, he just needed to get in closer and get it everything he had.
"IZU!/'ZUKU!/DEKU!/MIDORI!/ZU!/IZi!/MIDORIYA!" All of Izuku's friends yelled, pushing past their worries and giving out the best of their hopes and prayers with him.
"I see now, Midoriya," Todoroki raised the heat of his fire to superheated levels, the very ice and field around him almost melting under his power. Shoto raised his hands out, ready to unleash the full weight of his power. "Thank you."
The remainder of Izuku's sleeves on both arms tore away as lightning and energy sparked around them.'This is it,'Izuku thought.
"IZUKU!" All his Pokémon and his mother yelled for him, bestowing all their Hope and power onto him, and Izuku could feel it roaring to be let out.
Even as Cementoss's pillars started to form between them, as the speed of the world seemed to slow to a crawl, he knew they wouldn't hold past Todoroki's power, he knew that whatever he was going to toss out would not be enough to keep him from flying off the field if it landed. Even if he blew away the fire, the shockwave of energy would blast him away. It seemed truly Hopeless. He was going to lose.
'No,'Izuku declared, all his friends, their wishes and prayers to him, Momo's future, it all came back to him.'I can't lose. I Refuse it!'
Izuku drew on the very storm inside him, that awakening power inside him, his Aura, plunged his hand into the storm, and it exploded out in force. The phantom blue flames returned around him, his eyes became a swirling cacophony of sea green-blue and rainbow light. Izuku crossed his arms before him, the energy of One For All running wild and full power. As he reached the walls and the power that illuminated behind them, Izuku lashed his arms out in an X-formation, the wind and power behind that tearing through the cement walls like butter and clearing the flame and heat that followed.
But as the energy, the shockwave made its way to him, almost like he could see it, the remainder of his shirt tore away, and his whole body was engulfed in an encompassing barrier of blue flames and energy, and he shot forward like a rocket.
"AURA FORCE: NEW MEXICO SMASH!"
Izuku became a blue missile of energy, rocketing and carving through the shockwave and energy, through physics itself, till he reached him. Shoto. Todoroki's eyes widened just as Izuku smashed into him.
*BAM* *BOOOOOM*
The whole field exploded, wind, ice, and debris shot out like a bomb had gone off. Midnight was barely saved herself by Cementoss shielding the both of them in an ever-increasing dome of cement and they still almost were sent flying. The crowd exclaimed as they braced against the wind and thundering boom of the explosion, the barriers protecting them working overtime to shield them from the flying debris, ice, and powerful winds. Shinsou and his classmates once more grabbed Mineta before he was sent flying off to space. Mei erected another barrier that she made that she and her fellow Support Course students tried to hide behind. Nejire did her best to keep down her skirt and shield herself from the wind, her wild, blown hair lashing out at both Tamaki and Mirio. Setsuna and the rest of Class 1-B did their best to hide under the collective wide hands of both Kendo and Monoma using the former's Quirk.
"THIS IS CRAZY!" Kaminari yelled through the wind and sound, holding Sparky and Pikachu in his arms and shielding them the best he could.
Jiro was thankful for Mei's noise-canceling earplugs because the thundering boom she heard already would have left her deaf without them.
"WHAT'S HAPPENING DOWN THERE?!" Momo yelled as she held Eevee in her arms, and the Evolution Pokémon clung to her for dear life.
Asui managed to grab Froakie before he sailed away, reeling him to her, and shielding him from the remainder of the shockwave. Combusken, Uraraka, and Hagakure all huddled around in bracing themselves.
Vulpix was almost sent flying if not for being caught and shielded by Darmanitan. Drizzile and Ninetails braced themselves as best they could.
Inko and the Bakugous huddled together in bracing against the wind.
Serena braced her arms over her face and yelled out in sheer worry "IZU!"
The shockwave and wind were so powerful, they reached up to the teacher's stands quickly. All Might buffed himself to brace against the force of the wind, shielding the other teachers with the help of Vlad King. As it reached Nezu and Taishi, the latter formed a barrier of Aura that shielded the two from the blast, and the Aura teacher had to put a fair amount of strength in it for it to hold.
The rumble of the attack was so mighty that it even shook the nurse's room with Recovery Girl and Mina in it. "Midori!" Mina exclaimed, scared to death of what just happened when the attack momentarily muddied the TV feed.
Beside her, Kirishima had awoken. "What the-What's happening?! An earthquake?!" Kirishima exclaimed, looking around in worry.
"That foolish boy," Recovery Girl muttered, though even her anger was not enough to quell down her worry.
The Heroes outside of the stadium, namely Kamui Woods, Death Arms, and Mount Lady all looked at the feed and top of the field with eyes as wide as dinner plates.
The smoke and steam died down, revealing more and more of the now utterly destroyed field.
"HOLY MOTHER OF ARCEUS! WHAT JUST HAPPENED?!"Present Mic groaned, the Voice Hero having fallen over with his seat, while Eraserhead held strong and steady, if not still rattled. "WHAT IS UP WITH YOUR STUDENTS?! WHAT ARE YOU FEEDING THEM?!"
"The air around the arena had been cooled and then rapidly heated,"Eraserhead informed.
"Wait that's what caused the explosion?!"Mic got back up and asked.
"Partly,"Aizawa continued."Midoriya's sheer power generated from his arms also fueled the heat and the overall explosion, as well as the massive amounts of wind we experienced."
"Jeez-loweez, I still can't see a thing!"Mic exclaimed as he looked at the still-clouded field."Is the match still going or what?!"
Midnight and Cementoss got out of their protective bubble when they felt the explosion die down. Even as they came out, Midnight's hair was a mess and her red domino mask had flown off somewhere.
"Having a great Quirk doesn't necessarily mean you'll be a great Hero, but these two," Cementoss commented. "These two are amazing."
Midnight shook and rubbed her sore head and back, before turning her attention to the field. And so too did the eyes of all in the crowd and all those viewing in their respective homes lean in to see the results as the field finally cleared.
A path of shattered ice went from the arena to the field and laying on a cracking wall of ice, Shoto Todoroki's eyes were wide and white, unconsciousness claiming him. His torn-up shirt revealed not just his muscular figure but also an ugly bruise forming around his chest. His feet grazed the grass of the field.
Back in the arena, in the middle of it, Izuku Midoriya's shirtless body lay prone with his face on the ground. Both his arms were swollen purple and broken, even his left leg was broken, and through sheer luck, or a middle finger to all physics, his trademark red shoes remained intact. His body wasn't moving, but it was still in the arena.
Despite that, both boys weren't moving, and Todoroki was off the field, and Midnight almost raised her arms to call it a draw. However, something changed.
Suddenly, Midoriya's body moved. Lifting himself on one knee, then to his feet, pushing through the pain of his broken leg, he still stood tall, blood running down the cut on his forehead. As if moving on its own, Midoriya's broken right arm was raised into the air, in victory.
Midnight's eyes widened in sheer disbelief but the results spoke for themselves and so she called it.
"TODOROKI IS OUT OF BOUNDS AND UNABLE TO BATTLE!" Midnight announced as the sun shone down its light on Izuku's Midoriya's victorious form.
"THE WINNER IS IZUKU MIDORIYA!"
