This was it. Today was the day. Izuku gulped audibly. The sports uniform on his body constricted his breathing despite it being rather comfortable. One look at his fellow classmates in the same stadium as he was, told him that they felt the same.

The UA Sports Festival, the event that has taken the hearts and minds of Japan since the Olympic Games. With the emergence of Quirks rendering raw physical prowess all but moot, the Sports Festival rose as its replacement in providing people their fix of watching their fellow man compete against one another. He chuckled a bit. Society really was a fragile and fickle thing, wasn't it? Underneath the veneer of order, of justice and peace, lay a primal beast barely shackled in place.

What was it that All Might told him? 'If it were not for Quirks, then humanity would be enjoying their interstellar holidays,' right? When he first heard that quote, he thought he understood. It made sense, with the sudden emergence of what were essentially superpowers in all but name, all of society would have ground to a halt. Of course, there was the whole song and dance about All for One and the origins of One for All but under the gaze of the thousands present—and the millions at home—the pressure that came with this understanding grew immensely.

At the end of the day, Hero society was hanging onto a thread of order. The Symbol of Peace, the mantle he must take up and all its burdens, was no different to the mythical Atlas. With the recent rise in villain activity and the attack at the USJ, Izuku hoped that nothing would cause Atlas to shrug or release the burden on his shoulder. After all, the Sports Festival was nothing more than a means to placate the beast's bloodlust, feasting upon the sight of young blood spilling their life essence over a battle of supremacy; the Heroes their masters, judging if these offerings that have toiled most of their childhoods away on promises of grandeur or idealism could be deemed worthy of their tutelage, to become the Heracles to their Chiron.

The Izuku to his All Might.

A dark smirk marred his otherwise innocent demeanour. No, he could not be worthy of it, that prestigious title. The man that lived in his head made sure of that. Being told that you had taken lives while simultaneously remaining innocent definitely made sure of that.

He did not remember, or did not want to remember, exactly when he had that talk with Diavolo but had that talk he did. He recalled confronting the former mob boss about Uraraka's revelation, demanding an explanation. Then, with only a momentary pause, Diavolo spoke. Back then, he naively assumed that the pause was that of hesitance, perhaps a sliver of guilt that he hoped the mob boss would have.

"I quickly dispatched the man, crushing his head under the heel of my shoe for good measure. Brain and bone are difficult to clean off," recalled Diavolo, his tone ever monotone.

Now, he realised, that pause was for himself. It was an act of unspoken consideration for him, the child that he was because as Diavolo relayed the details of that fateful night to him, he wished he remained ignorant. He gripped his hands firm. They still shook as the vivid recollections of Diavolo's massacre crawled out of the box he put them in. However, and this was something that terrified him even more than the contents of that box, what disturbed him more was the ease with which he accepted that news.

Like dark tendrils that wrapped around his heart, the darkness that he long since noticed after Diavolo's appearance in his life was changing him. The smirk grew. He grew to accept it more and more.

"You seem to be taking this quite well, brat," Diavolo pointed out.

"I-I don't know about that," he replied, "I'm not sure what I'm feeling right now. I know I should be appalled, and I am, but it… makes sense? They tried to hurt my friend, they tried to hurt me and my mother, kill us…"

"Then you've already grown, then," Diavolo declared. "I did what I had to do. Remember that the changes that affect you, affect me too."

His eyes widened. "What do you mean?"

"If I were the same man that I was over a hundred years ago, your friend would not have lived."

Thus, as his childhood friend stood atop the stands and made his declaration of war, as the air of tension condensed into hostility for his class, Izuku Midoriya came to a resolution.

He would not become a Hero under the conditions set upon him.

"CONTESTANTS, ARE YOU READY?" shouted Present Mic over the speakers, the murmur in the crowds erupting into fervent cheers.

Nor would he be allow his past failures define who he was today.

All the first years turned to the starting line, getting ready to head into the opening event, the obstacle race.

For the sake of those he cared for and to live up to the ideals that his mentor imparted upon him, he will leap past those failures and surpass the challenges that lay ahead.

With fervour that electrified the atmosphere, Present Mic shouted "GO!"

At the same time, Izuku finished viewing the visions Epitaph foretold him. His heart and mind were now resolute in their determination as he commanded the power of his Stand, power begging to be released from his legs.

To the observant ones that stood among him, they steeled themselves as the president of class 1-A's features morphed into a scowl as he shouted, "King Crimson!"

Chaos and confusion immediately reared their heads almost as soon as the festival began in earnest. One moment, all the contestants were raring to burst off. The next moment, ice encased the feet of nearly every contestant, the ones that escaped the ice found themselves stumbling over their steps or stopping altogether and the culprit had to let out a pillar of ice to stop him from falling mid-air.

What happened?

The spectators clamoured with speculation, some even suspecting a villain attack. Even the UA staff, the ones with knowledge of Izuku's Stand, found themselves at a loss at trying to explain what happened.

It sounded so easy on paper. The Stand allowed the user to skip/erase time, using a secondary ability to foresee the future.

However, knowing and experiencing were two very different things. Judging by the reactions in the stadium, there was no definite effect to the Stand's area of effect. Fortunately, Hizashi Yamada was no stranger to the unpredictability of voice-casting live events such as this as he took hold of the microphone.

"DID YOU SEE THAT, DEAR LISTENERS? SOMETHING UNBELIEVEABLE HAD JUST OCCURRED BEFORE OUR VERY EYES! IT'S AS IF TIME ITSELF HAD LEAPT FORWARDS RIGHT UNDER OUR VERY NOSES! AND LOOKING AT THE LEAD, THIS IS THE DOING OF NONE OTHER THAN 1-A'S OWN IZUKU MIDORIYA!"

The cheers returned once more, with more zeal than before, the confusion from earlier almost forgotten.

Meanwhile, Shoto Todoroki resumed his pursuit for the number one spot with vigour, taking advantage of the confusion. His brows furrowed as he spied the fleeting figure of his class president. There was a considerable distance between them but nothing that can't be remedied if he used his ice to fling himself forwards. The newfound revelation of Midoriya's new powers stunned him when he first heard about them but his resolve did not weaken.

The new Quirk abilities threw him off of his own theories on Midoriya's connection to All Might but it did not matter. Using only his mother's gift, he will surpass everyone without ever igniting his father's curse. He clicked his tongue when sounds of explosions came approaching behind him fast.

"Get outta my way, you shitty Half-and-Half!" he heard his challenger yell. Shoto replied with intensifying the propulsion of his ice pillar jumps.

Say what you will about Katsuki Bakugou but never let it be said that he was an idiot. Far from it. He did not coast his way into UA on sheer power alone, unlike some cushy elites and damn recommendation students. He knew damn well that Half-and-Half heard him and he definitely knew pretty fucking well that something happened to Deku. Going from a quirkless nobody to suddenly developing super-strength? Get fucking real. And then having bullshit time powers on top of that?

The heck was up with that? Well it didn't mean shit because he was going to win this. So what if the pebble turned into a boulder? He'd just blast it away like the rest of these extras once he reached the pinnacle.

Izuku was of the same mind as well. While he'd never go as far as to degrade his fellows, the shoes he needed to fill required sacrifices and if those meant doing whatever it took to win, then so be it.

The ground suddenly shook as giant metal stomps made tremors. Izuku's eyes widened in recognition. The zero-pointers from the entrance test. Leave it to UA to think having iron colossi attack its students was a good idea. Luckily for him, these robots were slow.

Someone's feeling bloodthirsty today.

'Not right now, Diavolo, I'm trying to focus,' Izuku chastised.

He narrowly dodged a giant fist slamming into the ground, spinning around it before continuing his sprint.

I am impressed with this newfound tenacity of yours, brat. Not that I prefer your usual meek disposition but you mind enlightening me to your awakening?

He dodged another, the gust of wind from the zero-pointer's swing sending him forward. His heartrate jumped as he heard the crackling of ice closing in.

'Please, Diavolo, not right now. You can read my mind, can't you? Figure it out on your own,' Izuku snarled.

He was getting closer to the next part of the obstacle course. A chasm too wide to jump over with the only across being a series of platforms connected by rope too thin to run on. Dang. He was going to have to take his time with this.

Oh, I know, Izuku, I know. Don't think that bark of yours will do any good in intimidating me, especially not one backed up with false bravado.

Izuku felt his skin crawl. The mob boss rarely spoke his name.

Wavering already? For shame. So tell me, what is it that's gnawing away at your soul? Is it guilt for my killings? Anger for my killings? Some contrite idealism that you stubbornly cling onto? Or could it be that feeling in your heart, gripping it tight?

Cold washed over Izuku, the freezing chill stabbing his chest was colder than the wave of ice that passed over him as he traversed the ropes leading to the next platform. Ignore it, he told himself. He must keep going. Even if all he wanted to do was sit in a corner and cry like a child that's just discovered the concept of death, he had to keep going.

His hands were still shaking. It took a lot of effort to keep his legs from shaking too. Beads of hot water were stinging his eyes and he could not be bothered to tell if they were his sweat or tears. Sounds of his classmates getting across the chasm grew muted as the weight of the events that happened on the night of Diavolo's takeover of his body sank in.

Truly sank in.

"A reported thirty casualties in a single night, no survivors," read a line in the newspaper's front page.

However, as he clawed his way atop the edge of the other side of the chasm, the faces of his mother and friends came to mind. Their smiles, their laughter, the hopes and dreams of the man who bestowed upon the chance to become a hero.

The words of the man who helped build his self-confidence in his own way.

While the cold remained in his heart, a fire was lit in his eyes, flashing a brilliant emerald. He swore he could almost see the mob boss grinning as he willed his legs to run once more.

His lack of mastery over One for All meant that he wasted precious time and his earlier lead advantage at the chasm. Sure, he was able to use One for All without breaking his bones a few times but that was not enough to ensure safe usage especially during an event as big as this. Todoroki and Kacchan had already passed him a while ago and he was currently amidst the throng of contestants.

This did not deter him in the slightest. His training regimen that he kept up from the time All Might helped him allowed him a greater pool of stamina to draw from. Soon enough, he managed to catch up with the two top contenders who were struggling to overcome the final obstacle.

An actual minefield. Seriously UA, just because the explosions were non-lethal did not mean that they were any less frightening or unfair.

Case in point: Katsuki Bakugou soaring over it with his explosions, forcing Todoroki to create a frozen path to allow him to match the explosion user at the cost of giving the people behind him a route to take.

Izuku had to think fast. If he had a contraption of sorts to dig up the mines, he could use them to propel himself across the large minefield but that was neither here nor there.

You know what you must do, Midoriya. Use it.

'But Diavolo, wouldn't that draw more attention to us?' Izuku questioned. 'I thought you didn't want more attention to yourself.'

He could somehow feel the mob boss flinch, if that was even possible.

Never mind that, you fool! Victory is slipping away as we speak! Don't you want to attain success? Don't you want to make All Might proud? Look inwards and ask yourself who is truly worthy of the position!

Izuku shook the hesitation he had and leapt. Diavolo was right; he did want to succeed. As he declared to the mob boss all those weeks ago, he kept on living to prove everyone wrong. Kacchan, his bullies, his mother, everyone. He wanted to show the world that he too can become a hero.

Just as his foot landed on the soft gravel, he called upon his Stand once more and the world turned red.

Izuku could see everyone's fated actions for the next ten seconds, their motions leaving afterimages that trailed behind. The explosion by his feet passed through him as though he did not exist. The clouds in the sky would never notice they had blocked out the sun and the flames of a candle will never know it has been snuffed out.

This was King Crimson.

Izuku used the ten 'seconds' he had within the realm of skipped time to sprint through the minefield. Despite 'feeling' that his time was almost up and he was still some ways away from either Todoroki or Bakugou, Izuku felt assured.

"Eat shit, Half-and-Half, your ice ain't nothing against me!" taunted Bakugou with a feral grin.

Todoroki said nothing, his focus solely on gliding across the minefield on his trail of ice. The tell-tale chills of overuse were beginning to numb his fingers. He paid it no mind as he was almost there. That Bakugou was a persistent one. They had been neck and neck for the most part and the wild blonde made sure to keep it up. He could not risk using his ice pillars as he feared the downward force could trigger the landmines beneath.

"LOOK, DEAR LISTENERS! WE'RE APPROACHING THE END OF THE RACE! AFTER BLITZING THROUGH THE ROBOTS, SOARING PAST THE CHASM, IT SEEMS NOT EVEN THE MINEFIELD IS A CHALLENGE FOR THESE STUDENTS!" echoed Present Mic's voice through the multitude of speakers stationed throughout the course. "IT LOOKS LIKE WE HAVE A FIERY COMPETITION HERE, LISTENERS! WHO MIGHT FINISH WITH VICTORY IN THEIR HANDS? COULD IT BE ENDEAVOUR'S SHOTO TODOROKI OR COULD IT BE THE EXPLOSIVE KATSUKI BAKUGOU? BRACE YOURSELVES! THINGS MAY GET SPICY AS THESE AMBITIOUS FIRST YEARS COMPETE FOR FIRST PLACE! PLUS ULTRA!"

Stoic though he may be Todoroki was still a young boy. Even he could not help joining Bakugou in smirking as Present Mic's announcement filled the airwaves. This was it, his moment to shine. Today will be the day he proved his father wrong once and for all.

Just as he thought that, the world shifted. In what seemed like an instant, both he and Bakugou found themselves mid-air, their minds stuck in the past while their bodies were already in the present, suddenly found themselves at the mouth of the tunnel leading to the finish line.

At the same time, an orchestra of explosions went off by the minefield as many contestants got blown away almost simultaneously. Some were even in the air, unable to comprehend how they got there. Those that weren't chose not to question it, unnerved by the ordeal.

Todoroki and Bakugou knew that they had to correct themselves to avoid tumbling onto the ground. It would only take a moment to do, a moment that they need to sacrifice to maintain their momentum.

Unfortunately for them, this moment of thinking, this moment of hesitation, this moment of confusion was exactly what Izuku was banking on as he ran between the two. His legs, honed with training and brimming with energy, carried him in quick long strides.

"You fucking DEKU!" Bakugou roared.

Todoroki followed suit with his cold glare as he launched himself with an ice ramp.

But it ultimately did not matter as the buzzer rang out and the stadium buzzing with the crowd's electric uproar.

"ONCE AGAIN, SNATCHING THE LEAD FROM THE JAWS OF OUR LEADING TWO CONTENDERS, IZUKU MIDORIYA IN FIRST PLACE!" yelled Present Mic.

Izuku panted and huffed heavily. His lungs were on fire, his legs burned. However, knowing that All Might was watching him, and his mother too, he stood proud. One raised fist in the air with a bright smile. The crowd cheered louder.

Impressive performance, I daresay. Who knew that all you needed to push yourself was to remember the things that helped you get to where you are? Here I thought that it was will and determination to keep true to yourself that fuelled your desire but I suppose even clichés have their place.

Izuku frowned, a slight blush on his cheeks. 'Shut it, you. It was my idea to get over your massacre and you agreed to it. You can stop acting so negative towards me now.'

Acting? I was supposed to act?

'What?'

Nothing. Still, forcing yourself to confront a traumatic experience in the middle of a life-changing event is irrational and counter-intuitive. Be grateful that you already possess a strong will to succeed.

'This was something I needed to confront sooner or later, Diavolo. It just happened that there wasn't enough time before the Sports Festival started,' Izuku reasoned.

Are you sure you aren't a masochist?

'Shut up.'

Somewhere in an old bar, Shigaraki Tomura watched the live broadcast with Kurogiri, manic glee evident in the former's mannerisms.

"Kurogiri! There's no mistaking it, that's the student!" Tomura exclaimed.

"It appears so, Tomura. The footage aligns with our own experience at the USJ." Kurogiri continued to watch as he wiped down a glass. "Still, we must not be hasty, Tomura. Your wounds have yet to fully heal."

Tomura clicked his tongue. "I know that, Kurogiri. What do you take me for? A child?"

The black mist paused his wiping for a brief second before continuing as though nothing was said.

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean, Kurogiri?!"

"I don't know what you're talking about," said Kurogiri.

"Tch, fine, be that way! See if I care! But think of the possibilities, Kurogiri! With someone like him on our side, who knows what heights the League could reach! It also helps that he punches like All Might too. We need a high damage-dealer in our party to take down All Might."

"Right."

From the other side of the screen, another man agreed with Tomura's assessment. While his eyes were no longer available to him, the information being shouted through the television speakers painted a clear picture.

Izuku Midoriya was the boy he needed. The other piece of information that his protégé blurted out told him that obtaining the power for himself was out of the question. He was not even sure if he could. However, Stand users were still people, their minds malleable.

She could not believe it. Gulping proved to be a difficult task at the moment. Glancing over at her comrades hidden amongst the crowd, she knew they thought the same too.

This power, this terrifying ability, was much more than they had anticipated. This was what the original GangStars had to deal with?

She could not even tell when it activated! The only thing she could perceive was the aftermath, the utter confusion the Devil's power left in its wake.

For the longest time, she had faith in herself and in her comrades' abilities. They were strong and their teamwork made them a downright formidable force to deal with. But experiencing the helplessness that came with the skipped time made that faith waver for the first time in years.

She was lucky that it's been confirmed that the Devil was taking refuge in the body of a child. This meant that dispatching him was potentially made simpler. However, the agreement the Family with the Foundation meant that they could not take action now.

Her focus shifted towards the VIP box where a prominent pompadour stood out. The current generation of a long line of law-enforcing citizens, the Higashikata that sat there got on her nerves. Technically it was her fault that Nezu decided to reach out to him but having the Foundation interfere with Family business was annoying. It was all because of the agreement that the two organisations had many years ago that assured their cooperation.

Then again, nowhere was it said that they could not do anything after the Festival, right?

A/N: Hey there, KobeNiku here! Sorry for the hiatus, a lot of things have been going on in my life as of late. I'll break my usual character here for a bit to say a few things. First off, I cannot guarantee that I'll be able to continue the schedule that I promised to keep up from before the hiatus. As I've said earlier, life's been changing a lot for me and I'm currently at that point in life where I need to make my priorities clear. Unfortunately, fanfiction writing happens to be one of the things that need to be put aside. I'll try and update whenever I can but if the updates cease to come in, I am sorry.

Secondly, I'd like to take a moment to thank everyone that's reading this story. I know, I usually do this nearly every other chapter but hear me out. We've come a long way since the story first saw the light of day in 2017, the word salad of a fledgling student conjured up at three in the morning. I'll be the first to come out and say that the first few chapters were nothing to write home about. It pains me to read through them every time. But, you guys kept coming. And you never left. Even when I haven't published anything in months, the views and the follows kept coming. Heck, I only found out recently from a friend that we've made it to Tv Tropes. Sure it's bare bones, but the fact one of you thought this story merited a page on there... It's a humbling experience.

With that being said, do enjoy this chapter of Verdant Hero. It took quite a while to come up with, being away for months does that to you. But, the Festival finally begins in earnest! I'd also like to announce that a new story is coming around soon. I've been working closely with my beta reader (bless his soul) for weeks on it. In a nutshell of what to expect from it, everyone's favorite mafia boss finds himself becoming our resident green fluffball's inner voice from the moment he is born. It might sound a bit similar in concept to this story but that is where the similarities end.

That's all I have to say. As always, have a nice day.

Sincerely,
KobeNiku