Chapter 111: Chapter 111: That boy is dangerous.
"Kai-shonen!"
Right after Kai spoke, All Might's somewhat worried voice echoed in the hallway. A moment later, he appeared on the scene, then placed his hand on Kai's shoulder and spoke in a calmer tone, thus ending the staring contest that seemed to have formed between the boy and Endeavor.
"What happened here, Kai-shonen?"
"Well, this pathetic excuse for a hero here came to confront me and spew a bunch of nonsensical nonsense, so I was just about to teach him why that's not a good idea." Kai turned to look at All Might and responded casually, a relaxed smile on his face, causing Endeavor's expression to visibly tense.
"Kai-shonen, you can't speak about people that way. Besides, this person is Endeavor, the number two hero in Japan."
"Well, thanks for the info. I'll make sure to forget it as soon as possible." Kai commented with a mocking tone, looking amused as more veins bulged on the flaming hero's head. All Might could only offer an ironic smile before turning to Endeavor and asking.
"Endeavor, what's a hero like you doing in the students' entrance area?"
"I just wanted to have a word with this villain-in-the-making." Endeavor spoke in a dark tone, staring directly at Kai's mocking grin. Kai then commented in a disdainful tone.
"Says the one who sneaks into the student zone to confront a first-year student. Yes, very heroic of you."
"Motherf—" Endeavor exclaimed, offended, but at that moment All Might raised his voice, cutting him off abruptly.
"Endeavor! Kai-shonen is right. You shouldn't be here, and your presence could cause you serious legal and reputational problems, so you'd better come with me to the exit."
"…"
Upon hearing All Might's words, Endeavor stared at him silently with bloodshot eyes. After a moment, he snorted irritably and began walking toward the exit, causing All Might to smile wryly and start walking behind him while saying goodbye.
"See you later, Kai-shonen. Try not to cause trouble."
"Don't worry, and try to keep the number two hero well monitored and in check, number one hero, hehehe." Kai commented with a mocking tone, which turned into a small chuckle as he saw the rabid dog's flames crackle violently. This made All Might's smile falter, and after a moment, he spoke again in a nearly resigned tone.
"Seriously, Kai-shonen, don't cause problems."
"Hahaha, fine." Kai replied, amused, and then walked off with Salem on his shoulder toward the stands where Momo was.
Meanwhile, Endeavor couldn't resist looking back to stare intently at the dangerous boy's retreating figure. After a moment, he turned his gaze forward and commented in a dark, yet evidently serious tone.
"That boy is dangerous."
"He certainly is." All Might replied seriously, which greatly surprised Endeavor. He couldn't help but look at All Might and speak in a solemn tone.
"For even you to acknowledge it, he must be even more dangerous than I imagined."
"He is, in more than one sense. But that's why he's here. Principal Nezu made a great effort to get him to enroll. We can't allow someone like that to fall into the villains' hands." All Might replied seriously as he walked alongside Endeavor, who could only remain silent, his mind full of deep thoughts.
"…"
…
…
…
By the time Kai reached the stands, he found the entire Class 1-A seated in their chairs, except for Midoriya and that blond guy with the laser from his stomach—one of the class's biggest annoyances—since they had the next duel. Momo was surrounded by her friends: Mina, Jiro, and the invisible girl. Meanwhile, Uraraka and Tsuyu had their own group, along with the annoyance known as Iida.
Seeing Momo so entertained with her friends, Kai chose to sit in the corner seat and not draw much attention, then started playing with Salem, who wisely chose to remain silent so as not to alert anyone and keep all his master's attention for himself.
"Audience! The finals you've all been waiting for are about to begin!!"
After some time, Present Mic announced loudly, provoking a great ovation from the crowd. This greatly alarmed Momo, who began to look around with worry written on her face. This allowed her to notice Kai in a corner playing with Salem, bringing a pleasant smile to her face. She quickly stood up and walked toward him, attracting the attention of the girls next to her.
"The first match, from the Hero Course: Midoriya Izuku!!!"
While Present Mic announced excitedly and the green-haired boy entered the stadium, Momo reached Kai's side and sat down next to him. She then asked in a tone tinged with mild reproach.
"Where were you? I was worried because you didn't arrive."
"I've been here for a while, but I didn't want to interrupt you, so I stayed here." Kai replied casually as he placed Salem back on his shoulder, causing Momo to hug his arm and comment with a small smile.
"You're such a dummy. Of course you wouldn't have interrupted me. You should have come to say hello."
"Better not. I'm fine here." Kai commented casually while looking toward the cement arena at the center of the stadium, to which Momo could only respond in a playfully reproachful tone, tapping Kai's cheek with her index finger.
"You're so mean, did you know that?"
...
"Versus, also from the Hero Course: Aoyama Yuga!!!"
With Present Mic's words, Aoyama entered the stadium, acting as if he were some kind of idol, throwing rose petals into the air and smiling for the cameras. Midoriya, who was already on the combat platform, looked incredibly nervous. At that moment, Present Mic spoke again.
"The rules are simple: immobilize your opponent or knock them out of the bounds! You can also make the other say 'I give up'. It doesn't matter if you get hurt—we have our Recovery Girl standing by! Set aside ethics and morals for the moment! But of course, endangering the other's life is crap! It's forbidden!! Heroes only fight to capture villains!!"
After a great ovation from the audience, Aoyama finally stood in front of Midoriya on the combat platform. Present Mic quickly announced with enthusiasm.
"Ready?!… Start!!!!"
With the starting signal, Aoyama quickly placed his hands behind his neck and then fired a laser in Midoriya's direction. Midoriya swiftly dodged by moving to the side, then rushed forward at high speed toward the blond boy, catching him off guard. In that instant, Midoriya landed a powerful blow to the boy's stomach, damaging his belt and knocking him unconscious onto the ground.
"Winner: Midoriya Izuku!!" With Aoyama's fall, Midnight quickly declared the end of the match in a firm tone, causing a great stir in the stands and a proud, beaming smile to form on All Might's face. Present Mic then announced excitedly.
"An instant victory! Such strength, such control—that was Midoriya Izuku!!!!"
"He really improved a lot in controlling his quirk. I'm genuinely surprised. Also, I felt a certain familiarity with that fighting style." Aizawa commented with a hint of surprise in his tired voice. He then looked over at the black-haired, blue-eyed boy in the Class 1-A stands, imagining what might have happened, which inevitably brought a smile to his face.
Shortly thereafter, Aoyama was carried out of the combat arena on a stretcher, while Midoriya looked on nervously before exiting the stadium himself. At that moment, Present Mic began to announce the next fight with a voice full of excitement.
"And now, we have before us the second match! From the Hero Course: Sero Hanta!!!" With Present Mic's words, Sero entered the stadium wearing his PE uniform, waving to the cheering crowd. Present Mic spoke again:
"Versus, from the Hero Course: Kirishima Eijiro!!!"
With the announcement, Kirishima entered the stadium and greeted in a manner similar to Sero's, then met him on the combat platform. Present Mic announced in a raspy, almost rock-like voice, filled with excitement.
"With that, we begin the second match! Ready?!… Start!!!"
"Well, let's see if all that training paid off!" Sero exclaimed loudly as he sent his tape to wrap around Kirishima and try to pull him out of the ring. But the red-haired boy quickly hardened his arms, managing to cut through the tape and free himself.
"Sero tried to throw him off the platform, but Kirishima is no easy opponent and quickly broke free!!!" Present Mic commented excitedly. Aizawa added in his typical tired tone:
"Kirishima is a close-combat fighter specialized in defense, and Sero focuses on skill and great mobility. This fight will be tough for both of them."
"That's not gonna be so easy, Sero!"
Kirishima shouted loudly as he hardened his feet and buried them deeply into the cement. Internally, he was a bit worried because Sero was the worst type of opponent he could've faced.
"We'll see about that!"
As he sent his tape out again, Sero responded confidently, though fully aware that things wouldn't be easy since his only real option would be to get Kirishima out of the ring. He simply didn't have the power to defeat him any other way.
But to Sero's surprise, Kirishima seemed to anticipate his attack, intercepting his tape midway and yanking it hard, sending Sero flying through the air in his direction. In an unexpected move, Kirishima then pulled his feet out of the cement.
Quickly, Sero launched his tape at the ground, then turned to send his tape at Kirishima again. But to his surprise, what he found coming at him was a block of cement approaching at high speed. He barely managed to dodge it by using his tape to pull himself toward the ground.
"Wow, wow! Things are heating up, folks! Sero tried a quick tape move, but Kirishima read him like a '90s action comic book! Yet the kid's got enough reflexes to dodge at the last second! This is a battle of strategy and raw power—I can't even blink!" Present Mic shouted excitedly, standing up on the table, causing a great ovation from the public.
"That was close…" Sero commented with cold sweat on his forehead. Not giving him a second to think, Kirishima started hurling blocks of cement he ripped from the floor at high speed, forcing Sero to dodge and run.
In the midst of his run, Sero quickly used his tape to catch one of the cement blocks in the air. He then spun rapidly on himself and flung it back at Kirishima, who was forced to cover himself and was even pushed back a few centimeters by the impact.
"Not bad, Sero." Kirishima said in a cheerful and challenging tone, making the tape-wielding boy smile confidently. Sero quickly added in a similar tone, a big grin on his face.
"Well, you're not the only one with ideas."
"What an impressive display of reflexes and tactics from both sides! Sero dodging and responding under pressure, while Kirishima keeps up the offensive with sheer brute force! This is a showdown of on-the-fly strategies, where every move counts and there's no room for mistakes!" Present Mic fulfilled his role as commentator to perfection, amplifying the audience's excitement. At that moment, Aizawa added in a tired yet intrigued voice.
"Their performance really surprises me, especially Kirishima's. I didn't expect to see such a display from him."
The duel continued with an exchange of debris. Sero didn't give Kirishima a chance to get close, though occasionally the tape user tried to catch the red-haired boy off guard to knock him out of the platform with his tape.
Soon, the cement platform was in ruins, making it much harder for Sero to move around, causing his expression to grow serious. At that moment, Kirishima hurled a large amount of debris, forcing Sero to use his tape to propel himself elsewhere. But mid-flight, Kirishima smiled, sending a stone he had secretly sharpened. It struck Sero's tape with precision, unsettling his opponent.
Surprised, Sero quickly raised his other elbow to send out more tape and avoid hitting the ground. But that brief moment of distraction proved fatal, as Kirishima, unwilling to waste the opportunity he had created, hardened his body—especially his legs—and shouted loudly, charging forward at great speed like an enraged bull.
"Iron Juggernaut!!"