And we are back! Sorry this one took a while to come out (thanks college). Anyway just sit back and enjoy the chapter.

Chapter 12: Sports Festival Finale

"It's almost time, folks! The final round of the Sports Festival!" Present Mic yelled out excitedly.

"This year will be different from the others. Seeing as how we have three contestants remaining, there will be a three way battle royale to determine the victor of the festival," Aizawa said, his low and bored tone a stark contrast to his friend beside him.

"That's right! This is going to be a real exciting match up. Who's going to win?! Will it be the explosive Katsuki Bakugo? The cool and scorching Shoto Todoroki? Or the earth shattering Zen Takeda? We'll find out in just a bit!" Present Mic screamed out much to the annoyance of his bandaged companion.

The stadium was as loud as ever, as everyone waited anxiously for the final round to begin. In particular, Class 1-A was the most nervous for the upcoming match since all three finalists came from their group.

"Man, I'm feeling pretty tense about this," Jiro said while rubbing her arms.

"I can't blame you. These three are pretty intense. It's hard to say how this will go," Kirishima said.

"Yeah. Especially if they went all out. I can't even imagine what would happen," Tsuyu said nervously. Everyone beside her understood what she meant. The images of the three matches where they displayed outstanding power kept flashing through their minds. Bakugo's massive explosion during his match with Uraraka, Todoroki's colossal ice wall and fire power, and Zen's mysterious cracks in the air which shook the entirety of the stadium to its core. The possibility of these three things happening all at once was almost too scary to imagine.

"So does anyone know how Deku is doing?" Uraraka asked in a worried tone.

"When we went to go tell Takeda about the match, we asked Hina about it. She said he had some pretty bad damage, but he'll be fine. He just needs a little bit of rest, right now," Kirishima said, which reassured Uraraka a little.

"Hey, was it just me, but when we talked to Takeda earlier, did he seem a little different to you guys?" Mina asked.

"Really? I didn't notice anything," Kirishima said, confused.

"Actually I think I know what you mean, Mina. He did seem a little different than before," Momo said.

"How so? He seemed the same to me," Ojiro said, leaning over his seat.

"I'm not really sure how to describe it, but... he seemed a little calmer," Momo said, recalling how he was when they talked.

"Calmer? Isn't he always pretty calm though?" Jiro asked.

"Yeah, but I don't know. Before he always had this hint of unease around him, but when we talked earlier, he just seemed so much more relaxed. His eyes and his voice seemed a lot more at ease," Momo said.

"I guess now that you mentioned it, he did seem a bit different. I wonder what happened. Could it have been something Midoriya said to him during their fight? They both seemed pretty conflicted when they fought, especially Takeda," Ojiro said while pondering what could've happened.

"Well we won't know until either after this match or if Midoriya gets back," Kirishima said.

"Yeah. Right now we should be more worried about how this fight is about to go down," Tsuyu said. The others nodded, as they turned their gazes back towards the empty stadium where they knew would be sight of something big in mere moments.

O-O

Down in one of the waiting rooms, Zen sat quietly as he listened to the roaring cheers above him. He stared blankly at his right hand. The sounds of cracking were still ringing through his ears.

"Just what was that? It came from me, no doubt, but..." Zen mumbled to himself. He was going through so much at the time that he could barely remember it.

"I wonder how I can trigger it again," Zen sighed while trying to think of any possibilities. All he could remember was the blurry image of the cracks in front of him. As blurry as they were, he could no doubt tell they were there. The only thing that he could remember clearly was the look on Izuku's face as the two clashed. It was still so clear in his head. Sighing, he leaned back on his chair and turned his head until he was facing the ceiling.

"You're my friend!"

Those same words kept replaying through his head ever since their fight ended. Each time he remembered it, a warmth welled up in his chest which he wasn't sure what to think of it. In fact, ever since their fight ended, he's been feeling a lot of different things. His head has just been so much clearer, and he was so much more at ease than before. Despite there still being so many thoughts going through his head, he was nowhere near as overwhelmed by it as before. Leaning back even more, he actually began to feel relaxed which was such a foreign feeling after so long. That nice feeling didn't last long however, as the door to the room was suddenly kicked down. Looking over, he saw a confused looking Bakugo.

"The hell? Damn it! Wrong room again?!" Bakugo said, annoyed. Sitting back up, he watched as Bakugo started approaching him with his usual annoyed expression. Slamming his hand down on the table, he shot an angry look to Zen.

"Whatever. Might as well get this out of the way now. I'll tell you the same thing I told Icy Hot. You'd better not hold anything back in our fight, got it?!" Bakugo said angrily. Zen said nothing, as he closed his eyes which only made Bakugo angrier.

"What? Got nothing to say? You were a lot more talkative when you fought Deku. Just know that I'm not going to hand you the match like he did. Whatever issues you have, I don't care. Keep it out of our match and fight harder than you did against that weakling," Bakugo said.

"He didn't hand me the match," Zen said, opening his eyes.

"What was that?" Bakugo said quietly, feeling himself getting even angrier.

"He fought with everything he had during our fight. He didn't hold anything back while trying to help me. As stupid as he was, he did all he could. He's not weak. As for you and me, you don't have to tell me anything. I'll fight the way I want to fight," Zen said while looking directly into Bakugo's eyes. Bakugo could see a fire in his eyes which he hadn't seen before from him.

"Oh? Is that right? Whatever. Just make sure you bring your all to the fight. Don't forget to use those cracks or whatever. I want to beat you and Icy Hot at your best, so don't disappoint me. I'll show everyone what a real champion looks like!" Bakugo said with a large grin on his face as he stormed out.

Once he was gone, Zen let out a deep sigh, as he looked down at his hands. He felt a slight bit of annoyance. Something about Bakugo just seemed to rub him the wrong way. Despite that, however, he could tell that there was a lot more to him than just his toxic personality, that deep down he genuinely wanted to become something great.

"Whatever. Just focus on the fight for now. Everything else can come after," Zen shook his head before closing his fists tightly.

O-O

Everything was pitch black. His eyelids felt heavy, as he struggled to open them. Once he finally mustered the strength to open them, he was met with an almost blinding light. Once he was adjusted to it, all he could see was the tiled ceiling.

"U-Urgh..." Izuku groaned, as he tried to get up. Immediately, he was overwhelmed by a wave of pain washing over his entire body. Everything felt sore, especially his right arm. Wincing, he finally pried himself up.

"Hey there. Finally up?," Hina asked. The redhead sat beside his bed with Recovery Girl next to her.

"Hina? Ugh... my head's spinning," Izuku said in a groggy voice. When he tried to move his arm up to rub his head, he wasn't able to. Looking down, he saw his right arm in a cast.

"You got beat up pretty bad again. This time, we had to perform some surgery on you," Hina explained.

"Honestly! How many times are you planning on coming in one day?! How reckless can you be?!" Recovery Girl scolded.

"I'm so sorry!" Izuku said, closing his eyes.

"Hmph!" Recovery Girl pouted before turning back to her desk. Hina chuckled at her mentor's behavior.

"Anyway, we need to talk about your condition," Hina said, her expression turning serious.

"Is it that bad?" Izuku asked.

"The damage you sustained this time was even worse than your last match. Even with the healing properties of both of our quirks plus the surgery, it will take some time before you'll be able to do anything with that arm. There's even going to be some permanent scarring afterwards," Hina explained.

"You need to learn to control yourself. If you keep doing this to your body, you'll be bound to destroy yourself. You should understand that especially considering that both of our quirks combined couldn't heal all of your wounds," Recovery Girl said, sighing.

Izuku looked down quietly at his arm. Putting his other hand over his cast, he felt exhaustion washing over him.

"Hey there's no need to be so down. Just take better care of yourself from now on. Once you've learned how to better control your quirk, it won't be as big of a problem. For now, however, don't overexert yourself like that again, alright?" Hina said in a soft voice.

Izuku gave her an apologetic look before nodding.

"Good. You're free to go back to the stands if you want. I'm sure you'll want to see the final match," Hina said. Izuku's eyes instantly widened.

"Wait! The final match?! Has it started yet?" Izuku asked frantically.

"I think it's about to start soon. It's a three way match between Zen, Todoroki, and Bakugo," Hina said.

"I need to go see it!" Izuku said, quickly jumping down from his bed. The moment his feet hit the ground, he winced at the excruciating pain that shot through him.

"Slow down. I'm sure it hasn't started yet. Here, I'll come with you," Hina said, before helping him up. As the two reached the door, Izuku quickly glanced back at Recovery Girl.

"Thank you so much again for everything!" Izuku said, bowing his head to her. Hina chuckled.

"We'll be heading out now, Ma'am. I'll be back soon," Hina said.

After closing the door, Recovery Girl smiled to herself.

"Honestly, these kids,"

O-O

The two of them steadily made their way towards the stands, each step echoing in the quiet halls. The sounds of the excited crowd could be heard in the distance with it steadily getting louder, as they got closer. Hina had her hand on Izuku's back to support him, as he swayed from side to side.

"You know... I really should thank you," Hina said.

"Hm? What for?" Izuku asked.

"For not giving up on Zen. As a doctor, I don't approve of what you did to yourself, but as a sister... I'm really grateful. Even though you don't even know him that well, you still went so far for his sake," Hina said, smiling.

"Oh... I was just doing what I thought was right. I could tell that he was going through a lot, and I wanted to help him. I know that it probably isn't my business, but I just... couldn't help myself. I felt like I had to do something," Izuku said. The image of Zen's conflicted face flashing through his head.

"I see... I guess you're just a really nice guy, huh? You did the same thing for that Todoroki too. I just wish you wouldn't do this to yourself while helping people. I certainly hope this won't be a common thing for you," Hina said.

"I-I promise it won't be," Izuku said, bowing his head apologetically again.

"Good. Either way, just... thank you. You helped Zen remember some really important things. I'm sure he couldn't be more grateful to you," Hina said.

"Important things? Like what?" Izuku asked curiously. Hina chuckled and gave him a warm smile.

"Oh, don't worry about it. I'm sure Zen will tell you himself soon enough," Hina said in a light tone. Before Izuku could ask further, the stadium shook beneath their feet just as they reached the outside. Upon looking out, they immediately were met with the sight of a massive ice wave towering over most of the stadium in the center. At the base was Todoroki with neither Zen nor Bakugo in sight.

"Deku! You're alright!" Uraraka exclaimed happily upon noticing the two of them.

"Yeah, I'm fine. How's the match going?" Izuku asked.

"It just started. Todoroki made the first move as you can see," Iida said.

"Whoa. He went all out right off the bat," Izuku said, taking his seat while admiring the mountain of ice towering above them.

"Yeah, but there's no way that will be enough to take those two out," Hina said confidently. As soon as she said that, light rumbling could be heard from the arena.

Todoroki's eyes narrowed as the rumbling grew louder from two sides. From directly in front of him, a large explosion broke through his ice, leaving a large hole in its wake with Bakugo stepping through. To his right, large cracks began to form from all over the ice. In an instant, a large portion of the ice shattered into micro sized pieces creating a cold gust of wind to blow through the area. Emerging from it was an unfazed Zen.

"Kacchan burrowed his way through with explosions, and Takeda's shockwaves can't be contained by ice..." Izuku said.

"These guys are insane..." Kaminari said nervously.

The three fighters stared at each other intently. The air between them was thick, as each awaited for the others to make a move. After a few seconds of being on guard, the first to make his move was Zen, who began to rush towards Todoroki.

"(Can't let him get close)" Todoroki said before placing his palm against the ground. Several waves of ice stacked on top of each other quickly appeared from the ground which rapidly expanded towards Zen. It quickly towered over him before moving to engulf his entire position. right before it crashed down on him, Zen struck the ice with a quake empowered punch. The entirety of the ice crumbled before the force of Zen's punch which continued all the way to Todoroki's position. The force was enough to blow Todoroki back several feet before he stopped himself by creating an ice wall behind him. Slamming into it with a loud thud, he let out groan as bits of his broken ice flew past his face.

"(If a single one of those punches hit me head on, I'm done for. My ice can't stop him, so...)" Todoroki looked down at his left hand and winced.

As the bits and pieces of the broken ice rained down around them, Zen watched Todoroki's hesitation. Seeing his chance, he got ready to rush forward until he heard something coming from his right side. Looking over, he was met with the sight of Bakugo blasting himself through the air.

"You're wide open!" Bakugo yelled out before reaching his hand out. Zen quickly side stepped out of the way before Bakugo flew past him. Creating more explosions, Bakugo quickly maneuvered back around for another attack. Zen responded by throwing a punch forward, but to his surprise, Bakugo created a small explosion downward at the last second which let him fly above Zen's fist. Using that chance, Bakugo reached forward and created a small explosion from his palm which Zen narrowly evaded by moving his neck to the side. Sending another hook towards Bakugo, he was surprised when Bakugo once again dodged by using an explosion to get out of the way.

"(Has he been observing the timing of my attacks this whole time?)" Zen realized as Bakugo used his explosions just before his punches reached him.

"Like that's going to work on me!" Bakugo said before grabbing Zen's shoulder with one hand. Bakugo then tried to propel both of them by using an explosion with his other hand, but just before he could, he felt a sudden force coming from Zen's body.

"Pulse!"

Zen released a powerful shockwave that repelled Bakugo away from him. While he was disoriented, Zen quickly ran up to Bakugo before he could hit the ground, and uppercutted him right in his stomach. Letting out a pained groan, Bakugo was launched high into the air by the force of the punch. Before Zen could follow up with his attack, Todoroki launched another wave of ice from behind.

Zen stretched his hand out and smashed his palm onto the cold surface which stopped it immediately. Just as he was about to use a shockwave to destroy it, he heard the sound of explosions. Looking up, he saw Bakugo flying straight down towards him. Using the small window while Zen and Bakugo were focused on each other, Todoroki added another wave of ice to the one that Zen stopped. The sudden attack caught both Zen and Bakugo off guard as the two of them were both hit and pushed back by the ice. Both of them were rapidly propelled towards the edge of the stadium by the moving ice wall against their backs. Right as Zen tried to use another Pulse to blast the ice, Bakugo used an explosion from his palms to scatter bits of ice which covered Zen's eyes. While he was temporarily blinded, Bakugo flew above him before rapidly descending along the ice. Zen barely opened one of his eyes in time to see Bakugo coming before crossing his arms to block an explosion from the boy. While he evaded a direct hit, the power of the explosion shot Zen down to the ground where he was rolled along by the still moving wall of ice.

His vision started spinning violently, as the wall of ice continued driving him in a barrel roll towards the edge. Due to the rate he was being rolled along, he couldn't get a grip on the ground long enough to stop himself. Just as the ice was about to go over the edge, Zen was able to plant his hand on the ice for a split second before the ice came to a violent halt with it's jagged edges towering over the side of the stage.

"Did Takeda get knocked out?" Mina asked, her eyes shooting from side to side of the stage.

"I don't think so. I don't see him anywhere," Momo said, noticing his absence from where he should have been knocked off.

Due to the large arc at the top of the ice, no one could see what was under it. There, Zen was lying on his back in a hollow cavern that he created within the ice. At the last second, he was able to create a small shockwave which made the makeshift shelter within Todoroki's ice. He stared blankly at the shining ice above him while he had his fingertips at the very edge of the stadium where he would have been thrown off of. Sighing, he watched his cool breath become flow in the cold air around him which he found oddly relaxing.

"(Bakugo... this whole time, he was watching me. Each of my matches, he's been observing my movements and speed. Despite how idiotic he seems, he's pretty adept in battle)" Zen thought, as he rubbed the light bruise on his arm from Bakugo's last attack. ("And Todoroki. Even without his flames, he was still able to fight like that, and use Bakugo to his advantage")

Suddenly, the whole stadium shook causing bits of ice above him to start dropping down. Zen could feel from the wavelengths flowing through the ground that the two of them were fighting.

"(I should be excited about fighting these two, yet... I don't feel anything...)" Zen thought. "(The whole point of this was to challenge myself against strong opponents, yet now that I'm here...)".

For some reason, Zen felt oddly empty. Despite him looking forward to this when the festival began, he felt none of that now. His mind kept wandering back to his previous match. Looking at his hand to the side, he could still hear the cracks echoing in his head.

"Come on Todoroki! Don't give up, do your best!"

An all too familiar voice snapped him out of his thoughts. Jumping up, Zen looked in the direction of the voice. While he couldn't see anything, he knew all too well who it was.

"Honestly. He's encouraging people even now. I'm guessing this means, those two are really going at i-

"Howitzer Impact!"

Bakugo's loud roar was followed by a massive explosion which violently shook the ground below him, and caused cracks to start forming in the ice around him.

"No point in thinking now," Zen said, before powering up his quick. With one swift motion of his hand, he obliterated the ice around him into bits with a shockwave. After his eyes adjusted, he was surprised to see the sight before him. In one corner of the stadium, a massive rubble of shattered ice completely covered the area. Lying atop the rubble was an unconscious Todoroki. Standing at the center was Bakugo, who seemed more frustrated than Zen had ever seen him.

"Hey..." Bakugo slowly began making his way towards Todoroki. He then quickly ran over, and grabbed Todoroki by his collar.

"Hey! Stop messing around! This isn't a real win for me unless you try harder! It can't end this way! Now get up!" Bakugo shouted while shaking the unconscious boy. Veins began popping out of his head, and his eyes started turning a little red, as he shook harder.

"That's enough! Todoroki is unable to battle. Let him go, or you're disqualified!" Midnight said sternly. Bakugo's mouth started shaking, as he let go of Todoroki, causing him to fall back onto the ice with a loud thud. He turned his head down which covered his expression.

"W-Well it looks like Todoroki is out! Not sure what's going on with Bakugo down there, but he does not look happy! Now we're left with just Bakugo and Takeda!" Present Mic said.

Everyone watched in shock as Todoroki was taken away by the medics. Izuku was especially shaken, as he watched the scene down there. Bakugo stood there, not moving the slightest inch, as the dual haired boy was carried off.

"Todoroki..." Zen watched as he was taken out of sight into one of the halls before finally turning his attention to Bakugo.

"You... Takeda..." Bakugo said slowly, yet Zen could feel the anger in his voice.

Bakugo turned around until their eyes finally met. Bakugo's expression was seething. His whole body was violently shaking as if it were about to explode.

"Don't you dare... hold anything back. I swear..." Bakugo's voice was low, each word seeming to hurt him more than the last. Zen could hear tiny sparks go off in each of Bakugo's hands which steadily got louder and more powerful until they were clearly visible.

Zen didn't say a word in response. All he did was straighten his stance, and put his hand over his fist, giving him the same bow that he showed to Izuku previously.

With a sudden explosion, Bakugo flew full speed towards Zen. Using his explosions to propel himself from side to side, he closed in on Zen until he was right above him. Zen sent an uppercut towards him, but just before it landed, Bakugo blasted himself slightly to the left. Just as Bakugo got ready to attack, Zen's fist which Bakugo thought he had evaded, suddenly changed direction. Bakugo felt a splitting pain in his jaw as the back of Zen's fist made contact.

Bakugo was knocked quickly to the side. He attempted to try and fly back, but he found himself too disoriented by the last blow to do so. He opened his eyes to see that Zen was already under him. Zen wasted no time in throwing another punch forward. Seeing the attack coming, Bakugo quickly moved to blast himself out of the way, but to his surprise, Zen's punch sped up at the last second. Zen's fist made contact with the side of Bakugo's face. He felt something cracking before he was sent flying by the power of his quake empowered punch. Right before he was thrown out of bounds, Bakugo put both of his hands behind him. Igniting as much of his sweat as he could, Bakugo unleashed a massive explosion behind him which brought him to a sudden halt in the air. Landing on one knee, he coughed up a little bit of blood before glaring at Zen.

"I knew it... You've been holding back on me. Damn you... Are you looking down on me?!" Bakugo said while wiping some blood from the side of his mouth, all the while grinding his teeth.

Zen stayed silent, as he watched his opponent in front of him. Taking back his stance, Zen stood ready for their next clash.

"Damn, you really piss me off. I guess I'll just have to make you fight seriously! You'd better do it soon, or you're gonna die!" Bakugo blasted forward once more.

Reaching forward, Bakugo set off an explosion which Zen narrowly evaded by turning his neck. Bakugo didn't let up there, however, as he reached forward and back over and over, setting off a chain of explosions with each movement. Zen kept taking a step back to dodge with each explosion that came at him. Bakugo then propelled himself up before sending a kick right for Zen's neck. Arching his back, he watched as Bakugo's leg just about breezed through above him. Stretching his hand out with his palm facing up, Zen sent a shockwave which struck Bakugo's front. He was carried high up into the air by the shockwave until it eventually dispersed. Shaking it off, Bakugo used explosions to keep himself at his current height. Aiming directly below him at Zen's position, Bakugo set off multiple rapid explosions. He began relentlessly bombarding the arena beneath him. Zen quickly began running along the edges, all the while jumping back and forth to evade the blasts that were aimed at him. Once a large cloud of smoke and dust began to form, Zen immediately ran into it to get out of Bakugo's line of sight. Soon that cloud fully enveloped the arena beneath him, but that didn't stop Bakugo. Instead, he began firing more rapidly into it in hopes of forcing Zen to reveal himself.

Eventually, he saw something within the dust. Before he could fire on it, something quickly flew towards him out from the smoke. Right before it reached him, he blasted it away, causing it to break into small bits of debris.

"What was that?" Bakugo asked before seeing another one coming for him. Squinting, he saw that it was one of the white square tiles that covered the stadium.

"(He's using the tiles that got blown up by my attack?)" Bakugo thought after realizing they must have come loose after the ground was destroyed.

It was spinning rapidly right for him. Blasting it to pieces, he looked down to see at least a dozen more coming at once. Wasting no time, Bakugo rapidly destroyed each and everyone, but with each one they came closer. By the time he had destroyed the last one, a dense cloud of smoke was left in front of him. Suddenly, to his shock, something appeared from it. Coming through the smoke was Zen, who now was not even an arm's length away. Bakugo tried to bring both of his arms to blast him, but Zen was faster in knocking both of them to the side. Bringing both of his palms forward in a circular motion, Zen thrusted them forward right into Bakugo's chest.

"Gong Strike!"

The attack completely overwhelmed Bakugo, as he was sent rocketing to the ground below. He flew into the ground with such speed that it completely blew away all of the smoke that covered the area before. Smashing into the ground like a meteor, the entire area shook as a crater formed where he had landed.

Landing back on his feet, Zen watched as Bakugo slowly walked out of the crater with shaky legs. His arms were limp in front of him, yet he had a toothy grin on his face.

"Haha... That's more like it! Come on! Throw everything you have at me!" Bakugo said before raising his palms at Zen.

The crackling between his palms slowly began to get louder as he built up power. Back on the stands, everyone began to get nervous as they knew what he was about to do.

"H-Hey, Bakugo's not going to do what I think he is, right?" Kaminari said nervously.

'It's the same as when he fought Uraraka, but this time he's going for a direct shot," Iida said, as a bead of sweat rolled down the side of his face.

"Isn't that a bit too dangerous? Surely he wouldn't..." Ojiro said.

"But he would. Especially since it's Takeda he's facing. He knows that he can take it. He's doing whatever it takes to make Takeda use everything including those cracks from before," Izuku said. Realizing that he was right, all they could do is nervously watch on.

By then, Bakugo's hands were glowing brightly, completely brimming with power. Bakugo had a wide grin, as he kept his hands ready to ignite his next attack.

"Let's go! Use everything you have because I'm not playing around!" Bakugo said in an excited tone.

Zen narrowed his eyes before forming a fist. A bright quake bubble appeared around it before he brought his fist over his shoulder. Seeing that Zen was ready, Bakugo tightened his muscles around his arounds.

"TAKE THIS!"

With one final crackle of sparks, Bakugo ignited all the sweat he had in one attack. Going off with a deafening bang, Bakugo let loose. A larger explosion than any he had created yet was fired off towards Zen, leaving a wide radius of destruction within its wake. With the large attack right in his face, Zen brought his fist forward, releasing a powerful shockwave. The two attacks met, immediately colliding with one another. On one side was Bakugo's explosion which continuously kept igniting, and on the other was Zen's large white shockwave which kept the explosion from moving forward. The entire stadium was rocked to its core from the collision of their powers. Everyone from the viewers in the audience to the heroes who stood guard outside had difficulty staying balanced. Even the glass of the booth where Aizawa and Present Mic sat was shattered by the power. Even the lights above the stadium were shattered, causing shards of glass to fall.

While the two sides seemed to be equal in power, Zen's shockwave slowly began to push back and overpower the explosions. Seeing this, Bakugo began to exert himself further to add more power to his explosions.

"That's more like it! Come on! Do more!" Bakugo roared before intensifying his explosions. It slowly pushed Zen's shockwaves back until the two were once more at a stalemate.

Zen expanded the bubble around his fist even more, allowing his shockwave to retake the momentum it had before. While he was pushing back against Bakugo's explosion, his mind wasn't concerned about Bakugo, but rather he was focused on his fist. Despite knowing that he was using about the same amount of power as he did with Izuku, no cracks were forming.

"(It's not working... How do I use it again?)" Zen pondered before using even more power. He began to release an even higher magnitude of waves from his fist, but he still didn't feel any different. While he did this, his shockwave quickly began pushing Bakugo's explosion further back until it was merely a few feet away from him. No matter how much stronger Bakugo made his explosions, it wasn't enough to slow down the shockwave before him. He began to sweat profusely which further fueled his explosions, but it still didn't make a dent. As the shockwaves got closer, Bakugo felt his arms getting more and more numb. Zen could see how hard he was trying, but despite how much he admired Bakugo's spirit, he couldn't find it in himself to show the same. The feeling of emptiness inside, together with his frustration of not being able to recreate the shockwaves, made Zen sigh to himself.

Right as Zen's shockwave was mere inches from Bakugo's face with only his explosions standing between them, Zen suddenly lowered the output of his quakes from his fist. Feeling this sudden moment of weakness from Zen, Bakugo roared loudly, as he made one last push with his explosions which rapidly overcame Zen's shockwave. It moved easily through until finally reaching Zen's spot. The explosion ignited violently over the edge which made many viewers wince the sudden gust of smoke and wind.

As the smoke began to clear, everyone waited anxiously for the two to reveal themselves. Once the smoke finally dissipated, the result was clear. On one side was Bakugo who stood with a shocked expression on his face. All of the arena in front of him was nothing more than shattered rubble dirt from the battle. On the other side was Zen, who still had his fist stretched out. Despite everything else having been destroyed in their clash, nothing in a small semi circle in front of his feet and the area directly behind him was damaged. While he had no visible damage from the explosion due to the protection from his shockwave, the problem lied beneath him. His left foot was out of bounds after having been pushed from the aftermath of their attacks. Midnight quickly raised his baton after seeing this.

"Takeda is out of bounds. Bakugo is the victor!" she declared. Suddenly the silent stadium erupted into a loud cheer.

"W-Well! That was certainly exciting! Looks like we have a winner, folks. The victor of the Sport's Festival is none other than Katsuki Bakugo!" Present Mic announced while slowly getting up from his seat.

Zen nodded before getting out of his stance and standing back up straight. Giving a quick bow to Bakugo, Zen turned around to leave.

"Wait..." Bakugo called out. Zen looked over his shoulder to see a strange look on Bakugo's face. It was one filled with distraught. Both of his arms lay limp in front of him.

"What was that?" Bakugo asked in a quiet tone.

"What do you mean?" Zen asked. Suddenly, Bakugo's eyes burned. A look of pure rage appeared.

"What do I mean? What the hell do you think I mean?! That last moment, you..." Bakugo's breathing started getting more ragged, as he started to approach Zen slowly.

"I was simply at my limit from overexerting myself. You said that you would defeat me and you did. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to face you," Zen said respectfully before beginning to walk towards the exit.

"No! Don't you dare go! Get back here! This isn't a real win for me!" Bakugo shouted at the top of his lungs. He began to muster what strength he had left, and ran straight for Zen.

"Come back! I'm not through with you y-" suddenly Bakugo's head started getting cloudy, and his body got heavier. He found it harder to keep his eyes open and he steadily grew more sluggish in his movements. Finally, everything just stopped before he fell over onto the ground below. The last thing he would see before blacking out was a blurry image of Zen walking away with light clouds of purple gas around him. Seeing that he had fallen under the effect of her quirk, Midnight deactivated her quirk before checking on him.

"Thi... isn't... ove-" Bakugo said weakly before passing out.

Entering the hall, Zen was surprised to see Todoroki waiting for him.

"I see you're awake," Zen said.

"Just in time to see the end there. So... Why did you hold back at the end there?" Todoroki asked.

"Funny, coming from you," Zen said, walking past him before stopping. "I suppose I just ran out of steam. I've got a bit too much on my mind to give an honest fight, right now. I guess it was the same for you, huh?"

Todoroki looked to the side while rubbing his left side.

"You know he's never going to let us hear the end of this," Zen said, sighing.

"Hm. Unfortunately, you're right," Todoroki said before following him down to the infirmary.

O-O

"With this all of the events of this year's Sport's Festival have now concluded. Now for the awards ceremony to begin!" Midnight announced to all the students who were gathered together.

Fireworks and confetti were fired off from all sides to commemorate the event. Bright lights and smoke exploded, as a platform was raised for the top three performers. At the very middle of the platform where the first place victor was supposed to be, was a sight that shocked many. The big elephant in the room was none other than a chained up Bakugo with heavy iron restraints on his arms, chest, and legs. His mouth was covered up, but it didn't stop his angry voice from coming out, as he thrashed around like a madman.

"Honestly. I knew you were going to freak out, but isn't this a bit much?" Zen said in an exhausted voice while atop the second place podium.

"Unbelievable," Todoroki said while trying not to make eye contact. It was clear he still had a lot on his mind, as he kept his eyes down. Bakugo began to lash at the both of them, and while no words could be made out, they both knew he was cursing them somehow.

While everyone in the audience of students was flabbergasted by Bakugo's behavior, Zen noticed there was someone missing.

"(Hm? Where's Iida?)" Zen thought after noticing his absence. He then noticed that both Izuku and Uraraka had worried expressions on their faces. Before he could ponder on it more, Midnight began making her next announcement.

"Now it is time to begin handing out the awards, and of course there is only one person worthy of doing so!" Midnight said enthusiastically.

"Hahaha!" a familiar laugh rang out across the stadium, as a large shadow appeared from above. "I am here!"

With a loud bang, All Might landed before them. The crowd cheered wildly for his sudden appearance. Standing up, his great figure towered over the three of them even as they were on their podiums.

"Now for All Might to present the awards to the winners," Midnight said, handing him the medals. Taking the first one, he approached Todoroki first.

"Young Todoroki. Congratulations," he said before putting the medal over his head.

"I'm assuming there is a reason you didn't use your flames which costed you the final," All Might said.

"Midoriya cheered me on during our match, but I started to doubt myself. I think I'm starting to understand why you're so interested in him. I want to bet the kind of hero that you are, but my path isn't as clear as I thought. I have a lot to think about, and there is still something I need to settle with someone soon," Todoroki said, his eyes brighter than before. All Might nodded.

"I've never seen this sort of look on your face before. I won't ask for details, but trust yourself. I'm sure you'll work things out," All Might said before giving him a proud hug.

Letting go, All Might grabbed the next medal and walked up to Zen. Seeing him up close like this, Zen could feel an overwhelming yet familiar strength from him.

"Now for Young Takeda. Congratulations. You displayed extraordinary skill with not just your quirk, but your own abilities too. There were times however, where you seemed to be lost within yourself. May I ask why?" All Might asked, after placing the medal over Zen's head.

"For the longest time, I had forgotten why I really wanted to be a hero. Why I began this path in the first place. I wanted nothing more than to become stronger like you, but my path was cloudy. It was thanks to Midoriya that I remembered something important. The lessons that my grandfather taught me. After having forsaken them for so long, my fists have been uncertain, indecisive. There's still a lot I have to take care of before I can use them the way I should," Zen said, honestly. Seeing this new look on Zen's face, All Might's expression softened.

All Might pulled him into a tight hug which caught Zen by surprise. It was surprisingly warm in his embrace which somehow brought his heart to ease. It reminded him so much of his grandfather that it nearly brought a tear to his eye.

"I know that Full Tremor would be proud to see you now. Keep up the good work, and continue pressing forward. I know you'll find all the answers you need, and become the hero you want to be," All Might said softly. Nodding, Zen thanked him before pulling away.

"And now, last but not least, Young Bakugo..." All Might couldn't help but be a little stunned by Bakugo's display.

"This is a little much, but you were true to your word," All Might said before removing the strap around his mouth. The boy's expression was every bit as furious as ever.

"All Might... Winning first place this way... Doesn't prove I'm the best one here! I refuse to accept it like this!" Bakugo roared out which actually intimidated All Might a little.

"W-Well, that may be the case, but you still had your eyes fully on the path ahead of you. Not many can stick to their promises like you can..." All Might said, but he saw that his speech had little affect on Bakugo's still raging expression. Taking the medal, he started to give it to Bakugo, but was quickly rebuked.

"Please take this medal even if you consider it a dishonor," All Might said.

"I don't want that piece of garbage! Don't you dar-" Bakugo was quickly silenced by the strap going over his head and getting caught in his mouth.

"And here we have the winners of this year's Sports Festival! I hope all of you think about your performances today, and how you challenged your own limits. Know that any of you could have been victorious today. Use this experience to learn and grow in order to continue forward on your path to being heroes. This is perhaps the most promising generation yet, so don't give up! And finally without further ado, everyone with me now!" All Might raised his finger high into the air.

"Great Work!"

"Plus Ultra!"

A wave of boos quickly followed after the confusion.

O-O

"Are you ready to go yet, sis?" Zen asked. He was now changed into his normal school uniform, as he waited for his sister in the infirmary.

"Just a little longer. You can head out to the car first. It's going to be a bit of a long ride, you know," Hina said, as she was cleaning up with Recovery Girl.

Nodding, Zen closed the door as he headed out.

"Oh? Are you two going somewhere special after this?" Recovery Girl asked.

"Yeah... It's somewhere really important," Hina said, smiling.

After exiting the building, Zen made his way to his sister's shiny red car which was parked out front. To his surprise, he saw Izuku in front of him, about to head home.

"Midoriya," Zen called out. Jumping up at his voice, Izuku quickly turned around.

"Oh. Takeda. What's the matter?" Izuku asked.

"Let's talk a little," Zen said, taking a seat on the staircase. Izuku nodded before sitting on the same step, but keeping a bit of distance. Zen eyed Izuku's arm which was still in the cast, as well as the various other bandages on his body.

"So, how's your arm holding up?" Zen asked.

"Oh! Well thanks to your sister and Recovery Girl, it'll be better soon. They did say there's going to be some scarring though," Izuku said.

"Honestly. How reckless can you get? You knew full well this was going to happen, yet you still went out of your way to do this not just once, but twice. I don't even know what's going on in your head," Zen said, sighing. Izuku turned his gaze down.

"I'm sorry. It's just... you and Todoroki seemed to have so much going on. I didn't want to fight either of you while you were being held down like that," Izuku said. Just then Izuku could hear a small chuckle from Zen.

"I think you should be more worried about yourself before worrying about others like that. Honestly, you're far too reckless with that quirk of yours. Absolutely no control whatsoever. Don't even get me started on your fighting skills which were just absolutely abysmal. It was like watching a flailing fish out of water. I think you should take the time to go over those things about yourself before deciding to stick your neck out for others," Zen reprimanded, before standing up and taking a step down. "

"But... I still have to thank you".

Izuku looked up at him, but couldn't see his expression.

"You helped me remember something important about myself. Something I've been going against because of how stupid I've been," Zen began walking away towards the front of the school.

"I will say that was a killer punch though. I'm sure the old man would've really like you," Zen said while rubbing his cheek. Somehow, he could still feel a tingling sensation where Izuku had punched him.

"Wait, Takeda," Izuku called out. Zen stopped and looked back at him. He could see a bright glint in his emerald green eyes.

"I know that I was probably really disappointing in our fight. I'm promising you here and now that one day, I will give a really worthy fight when we're both at our best," Izuku said. He brought his cast hand to cover his fist to make a very clumsy version of Zen's bow. Zen's eyes widened at this gesture before a small smile formed in the corner of his mouth.

"Hmph. I'll remember that. See you back in class," Zen said before leaving.

Smiling, Izuku waved at him. Hina, who stood at the door behind the two watched the entire sight, and couldn't help making a big smile.

O-O

Later, Hina and Zen were in her car driving up an empty road on a mountain side. The sun had just set behind them causing the sky to grow dimmer with each second. Soon they reached the top of the mountain where there was a big block in the road, preventing them from going any further.

"We're here," Hina said.

Upon stepping out of the car, they were instantly hit with a wave of nostalgia. A refreshing breeze blew through them, as they stood atop a high mountain. The area was vibrant with life. The rustling of tall grass blowing in the wind was soothing for the siblings. Looking down the mountain, they could see the city beginning to light up for the night. Behind them was a lush open field with few tall trees standing far apart. There was one narrow gravel path leading to their destination through the field.

"I had forgotten how beautiful it is up here," Hina said, taking in the scenery before her.

"Yeah..." Zen said softly. Zen couldn't help but remember all the times he and his grandfather sat, admiring the scenery after a long day of training together.

After a few seconds of waiting, the two decided to head up the path. After a few minutes of walking, the sound of wind chimes could be heard in the distance. Soon they reached what they were looking for. In front of them was a tall temple which they recognized all too well. Old rusty wind chimes hung along wooden edges of the building. Vines had begun growing along a few of the wooden beams out front. While the building was certainly worn down from years of being left alone, overall it was still sturdy and sound. Walking up to the double doors, Zen paused as he placed his hands on them.

"Are you alright?" Hina asked in a concerned tone. The dark haired boy nodded.

"Yeah. Just needed a moment," Zen said before pushing them slowly.

The old wood creaked loudly as it revealed the dark insides of the temple. Hina moved her hands along the side of the wall until finally she found a switch. With a light click, bright lights instantly illuminated the temple. Walking inside, the two of them were surprised to see everything more or less intact. The dojo inside looked almost exactly as it did all those years ago. At the back of the room in front of them was a tall stone statue of Bishamonten, the armored god of war. At the back wall was a giant family crest which resembled a flower within a flower divided into five petals. It was exquisitely carved into the wooden wall itself. There was a wide open court in the middle which was frequently used for sparring. Surrounding the court was a dozen sets of old samurai armor on stands, each with different color design and holding different weapons. Everything in the room to the ground itself was coated in dust and cobwebs.

With a wave of his hand, Zen released a weak shockwave which wasn't strong enough to damage anything, but enough to push all the dust aside with ease. At the slight force of his shockwave, all the windows burst open which allowed all of the dust to fly out, leaving behind a clean room. The walls, floor, ceiling, and everything in between were now free of coating of dust which layered on top of them. Seeing the mostly clean room brought back so many memories for the siblings. Hina wiped away a small tear which ran down her eye, as she looked all around the room.

"It's been over six years..." Hina said, as more tears began to well up. Seeing her like this, Zen turned his gaze down.

"I'm sorry, sis," Zen said, as he felt guilt welling up within him.

"For what?" Hina asked, confused.

"The reason you haven't come back here is because of me, isn't it? I'm sure you've wanted to come here many times, but you didn't because of me. Because I was too weak and afraid," Zen said, digging his nails into his palms.

"Don't blame yourself for that. I know it's been harder on you than anyone else. I wanted to come here with you, that's all, so don't blame yourself for that," Hina said, hugging him from behind. Zen calmed down, as he felt her embrace. Letting go, the two of them stopped in front of the statue. Clasping their hands together, they gave a quiet prayer. After finishing, the two of them continued to look around the temple, reminiscing all the times they spent there. Hina came to the large crest on the wall and stared at it.

"So that's the Oda family crest, huh? Haven't really thought much about it until now," Hina said.

"Yeah, he was always into our old family history. Apparently both the Oda and the Takeda from dad's side were once famous samurai clans a long time ago," Zen explained.

"Yeah, grandfather would never stop talking about them. He was a total dork for history," Hina said, giggling.

Seeing her happy again made a small smile appear on Zen's face. He walked around, looking at the various sets of armor until he stopped at a particular one. The armor had a rusted red color on its plating. It's helmet had two large horns with a demon mask attached. On it's shoulder piece was a crest which had four small diamonds arranged in the shape of a large diamond.

"This is the Takeda's crest," Zen said while running his hand over it. Hina looked at it over his shoulder.

"Oh yeah, I remember that. I like the look of it. Kind of suits us, huh?" Hina said. Zen nodded in agreement.

After spending a while in the temple, he two looked out at the windows to see that it had become fully dark outside. Looking at his phone, Zen realized that they had spent an hour there.

"I guess we should get going," Hina said in a slightly sad voice.

"We'll be back soon, though," Zen assured her.

It made her happy to see Zen so much more open than before. Nodding in agreement, the two headed out after turning out the lights, and closing the door securely behind them. As they started walking back down the path, Zen stopped to take one last look at the place. It looked so majestic in the dim moonlight. He imagined an image of a younger version of himself and Full Tremor standing in the front of the door, laughing together.

"Sorry it took me so long to come back," Zen said quietly before giving a quick bow before the temple.

O-O

Even as night came in, the city was still vibrant with life. There were bright lights and people at every corner. With heroes patrolling all over, it seemed that everything was perfectly fine. However, that was not the case. This is due to the fact that this very city had been the sight of the most recent attacks on heroes. Due to one many, many heroes had fallen victim to a brutal attack including Ingenium. While most people were on edge about this, they were all oblivious to the fact that this very man was looking at them all.

Atop a tall building was none other than the Hero Killer, Stain. With his menacing eyes and nose-less face, he surveyed all over in looking for his next victims.

Suddenly a dark cloud appeared behind him and from it, two yellow eyes emerged. Stain's bloodshot brown eyes soon met his, as the cloud materialized into Kurogiri.

"Hero Killer Stain... I've been looking for you. The League of Villains would like to speak with you,"

And that is a rap. Been wanting to make more chapters, but life has it's own ideas. Also, there is something I want to address. For the couple of people who have been sending me some pretty annoying messages and threatening me, please stop. You know who you are. The ones who have been sending me PM about Bakugo. Look, I'll be straight with you guys- I don't like Bakugo. He's just not my kind of guy. That's not to say he's a bad character or I hate him, it's just I'm not really into him. All the people going "You're not using him right" or "He should be the main character", just stop it. I think he is very interesting and complex character, and if you guys like him then that's fine, but I'm not going to alter my story for that. I accept that is what his character is like, and I respect that, but I personally am not into him which is just my opinion. He will not be a "main" character, but it's not like he'll be erased or anything. There are plenty of stories here and many of them will have what you want. I'm not going to change my story because you guys are butthurt about that. So the needless threatening and complaining at me on this issue is just pointless and honestly annoying. As for everyone else who's been motivating me to get more of this story done, thank you so much. It has really meant a lot to me, and all the little tips and ideas have been awesome too. Any ideas that I use from you guys will be credited, so don't worry. With all of that settled, once again thank you all for being interested in the story, and I'll see you in the next chapter!- EpicZL