章 13: Chapter 13
With most of Class 1-A having no idea what Shinso had done, tensions were high in the wake of the second round. Fortunately, All Might was present, garnering the Class's attention with a barrel-chested laugh before exclaiming, "That was an excellent performance by both the Hero and Villain Teams! The Hero Team, in particular, deserves recognition for securing the payload and defeating their enemies without damaging their surroundings or causing needless harm! Well done...!"
Though Kaminari, in particular, was still bothered by what had transpired during the exam, All Might's words had a decent effect on the rest of the Class. Ida even started a short ovation, prompting several others to join in while All Might exhaled a hearty laugh in the background.
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After reaching the location of the bomb they needed to protect, a large room on the fifth floor of an office building, Ashido asked, "What do you think our chances are? Do you think you'll be able to take on Shoji-kun?"
Shaking his head, Izuku answered, "I might be able to do something if he was simply strong, but his Quirk makes him a nightmare in close combat. Six hands are better than two..."
Maintaining a faint smile, Ashido asked, "Does that mean we should just give up?"
Adopting a smile of his own, Izku replied, "Of course not. I may not be able to defeat Shoji-kun in a contest of strength, at least not at my current Level, but that isn't the objective. So long as we can stall for time, it's our victory."
Nodding her head in approval, Ashido said, "Okay." before asking, "And how do you propose we do that? I can use my acid to block off all the entrances, but if the pH is too high, Shoji-kun will just be able to break through it. If it's too low, it'll eat through the concrete."
Punching his right fist into the palm of his left hand, Izuku mused, "The solution is simple. This building has ten floors, and the Hero Team has no idea where the bomb is. It would be difficult to search every room within the time limit, so the smartest course of action is to face them directly or act like the bomb is on a different floor. I may not be as powerful as Shoji-kun, but I'm confident in my stamina, speed, and durability. If it's just ten minutes, I can easily stall him."
Pumping her fists excitedly, Ashido's smile broadened as she exclaimed, "Now you're talking! I hate sitting around and doing nothing, so let's take the fight to our opponents!"
Though he nodded in agreement, Izuku felt compelled to advise, "Still, we should be careful. Mineta's stature and Hero costume may make him look ridiculous, but he must have some tricks up his sleeve to get into the Hero Course. During the Quirk Apprehension Test, I noticed that the grape-like balls he pulls from his head have powerful adhesive properties, but he's able to bounce off of them. If he spreads them through our surroundings or manages to stick them to our bodies, things will get troublesome very quickly."
Waving her hand in front of her face, Ashido assured, "That won't be an issue. Just focus on Shoji-kun and leave that little pipsqueak to me. I'll teach him a lesson on behalf of every girl in Class. Our costumes may be designed to be admired, but taking advantage of his short stature to stare at girls' butts is inexcusable!"
Since Ashido's Quirk should be a direct counter to Mineta's, Izuku didn't question her decision. Instead, he extended his right fist, saying, "Let's do this." with a toothy grin. Ashido readily bumped fists with them, and then the two of them made their way to the second floor to stage an ambush...
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Though he silently bemoaned the fact he had been paired with Mineta, Shoji was looking forward to trading blows with Izuku. The latter had ranked second during the Quirk Apprehension Test, so Shoji wanted to see how he, the person ranked seventh, compared.
Interrupting Shoji's focus, Mineta, wearing a grape-themed bodysuit, large yellow gloves, oversized yellow boots, a yellow cape, and a pair of shorts that vaguely resembled a diaper, asked, "So, what do you think we should do, Shoji-kun? If we knew where the bomb was, I could try scaling the building from the outside."
"..."
Resisting the urge to tell Mineta to stay out of his way, Shoji spread his tentacle-like arms, interconnected by his extremely elastic flesh, to form the shape of a satellite dish. Then, using his ability to manifest body parts on the ends of his tentacles, he reproduced several ears to see if he could detect the location of Izuku and Ashido via sound.
Without saying anything, Shoji began leading the way into the office-like complex. Mineta eventually followed after him, but only after balling his hands into fists and looking down at himself with a self-deprecating smile. Being expelled compelled him to reflect on his motivations and reconsider if he truly had what it took to become a Hero. Being shunned by someone he was supposed to be cooperating with was surprisingly painful...
Unaware of Mineta's thoughts, Shoji used his excellent hearing to pinpoint Izuku's and Ashido's locations on the second floor. He couldn't make out what they were saying, but they seemed to be talking to each other in the same room.
Speaking for the first time since the start of the operation, Shoji revealed, "I've located them." in a deep, somewhat raspy voice. Then, recalling Mineta's previous suggestion, he proposed, "You should try and find a way to sneak in from behind while I draw their attention from the front."
Realizing that Shoji was giving him a chance, Mineta briefly became teary-eyed before quickly wiping away the evidence, giving a thumbs-up gesture, and responding, "Just leave it to me!" He was a little ashamed that he immediately thought about how sneaking in from behind would let him get a view of Ashido's backside, but it wasn't like he could change his entire personality in a single evening...
With their plan decided, Shoji waited around a minute or so for Mineta to sneak outside before smashing through the doors leading to Izuku's and Ashido's locations. The two were chatting casually while the latter sat on the edge of an office desk, so Shoji hastily grabbed a cubicle partition, using it as a makeshift shield as he charged toward them like a bulldozer.
"You sure took your sweet time, Hero!" shouted Ashido, leaping backward to create some distance while Izuku bolted forward, surprising Shoji as he didn't expect the former to try and meet him head-on.
Taking advantage of the fact that Shoji had limited both his vision and movement by picking up a 'shield,' Izuku performed a leaping dropkick, his feet impacting the direct center of the partition. Shoji's momentum was greater than his, but the effects of [Bronze Body] allowed Izuku to endure the collision as his feet buried into Shoji's diaphragm.
Though Izuku's dropkick knocked the wind out of him, causing his torso to seize, Shoji didn't let his charge go to waste. The moment he realized Izuku's aim, he released his grasp on the partition, allowing it to shatter against his body as he spread his webbed arms wide with the very clear intent of capturing his opponent. He would have succeeded as well, if not for the fact that Izuku had planned ahead, using Shoji's solid frame as a springboard to propel himself away just as his muscular classmate's arms tried closing around him.
Landing on his feet, Izuku's smile exhibited traces of euphoria and battle lust as he shouted, "Sorry, Shoji-kun, but this match belongs to me! Can't have you embarrassing me in front of my future date...!"
With Shoji being forced to a knee due to his winded state, Izuku leaped over his body and followed up with a shoulder tackle. Shoji's inordinately flexible limbs allowed him to protect his front and back with similar ease, but even with the disparity in their sizes, Izuku's momentum was greater than his inertia. When the latter crashed into him, Shoji felt a sharp pain in his limbs as he was sent flying a short distance, crashing through several partitions and smashing an office desk.
Though his previous life's training mandated that he followed up to ensure his opponent was down for good, Izuku created some distance between himself and the downed Shoji. His goal was to confirm the results of his training and buy time, not brutalize one of his classmates, so Izuku didn't mind giving the six-armed man a chance to recover. In the meantime, he inspected his and Shoji's statuses, the former to confirm he was gaining a fair amount of Experience and the latter to ascertain whether a person's attributes changed mid-combat...
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Name: [Izuku Midoriya]
Quirk: Digitalization
Current Level: 16 (53,993->54,108 EXP)
Effective Level: 33
[Attributes]
Strength: 50
Agility: 50
Vitality: 100
Intelligence: 62
Dexterity: 50
Luck: 15
Free Attributes: 0
Rerolls Available: 2
[Perks]
[Bronze Skin], [Fleet-footed], [Lesser Regeneration], [Healthy Body], [Sharp Mind], [Nimble Fingers]
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Name: [Mezo Shoji]
Quirk: Dupli-Arms
Current Level: 20(147,100 EXP)
Effective Level: 48
[Attributes]
Strength: 137->130
Agility: 29->11
Vitality: 190->169
Intelligence: 28
Dexterity: 63->25
Luck: 35
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Seeing that most of Shoji's physical attributes had taken a hit, Izuku's green eyes blazed. He had observed a similar phenomenon in the past, specifically when taking self-defense classes, but the injuries sustained during spars were astronomically different from actual combat. Now, he knew with absolute certainty that a person's attributes varied based on Quirk usage and the condition of their bodies...
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Observing Izuku's and Shoji's battle from a short distance away, Ashido couldn't help thinking, ("Midoriya-kun is more capable than I expected. If it's true he only started training seriously two years ago, he must be some kind of genius...")
Though Quirks could make a person stronger, faster, and more perceptive, battle awareness and combat proficiency could only be acquired through experience. Ashido was confident in her abilities because she had trained extensively and taken dance classes since she was four. Because of this, she could tell Izuku wasn't a beginner. He couldn't be called a master, but his movements and relative calm alluded to a fair amount of experience in actual combat...
After making a mental note to probe more into Izuku's past during their date, Ashido stopped watching his fight and scanned her surroundings. Mineta had yet to appear, so she was starting to consider the possibility he had separated from Shoji to search for the bomb. This was within the scope of possibilities listed out by Izuku, but that didn't make her any less annoyed.
As it was clear that Izuku had things under control, Ashido waved her arm and called out to him, shouting, "Yo, Midoriya-kun! I'm going to make sure that little pervert doesn't stumble across the bomb by accident! You good here!?"
Without taking his eyes from the still-downed Shoji, Izuku gave a thumbs-up gesture and replied, "See you after we win." in a relaxed tone. His eyes were still blazing, but one of the first things he learned in BCT was to stay calm, stick to his training, and trust his companions. Ashido wasn't a child that required his oversight. More importantly, her physical attributes were far higher than Mineta's. Even if the latter managed to surprise her, Ashido should be able to beat the shit out of him without breaking a sweat...
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(A/N: So, if you break or cut off a person's limbs, their Agility decreases. Who could have imagined such a thing?)
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