U.A. Festival (1)

- Whip!

On the stage, Midnight, the R-rated hero, whipped the ground as she held the mic.

"Now, for the athlete's oath. From Class 1-A, Anzai Masato."

A slight smirk graced my lips, which made Aizawa, who was with Present Mic, twitch a bit.

"He's definitely going to do something crazy."

"Yep, it's going to cause a controversy."

Unlike their thoughts, I knew that many people were putting up their hopes on this festival. I couldn't blow it up by speaking some non-sense.

Himiko believed that. Hence, she was waving her hand towards me, without any shame. If not for the others, I should be cool for her at least.

- Tak! Tak! Tak!

Standing on the stage, many people became visible. Those who wanted to prove their grit, their strength and their will. Those who wanted just a mere chance to be a hero. And many more.

"Ah~ Right..."

I searched my pockets to no avail.

'Damn, where did my speech go?'

This was definitely not cool.

"Ahem! Sorry but my speech is missing so I'm going to wing it. Today is not about winning, it's about showing the world a single special thing about us. Our ace in the hole.

I don't know about you but I will show you my will. Throughout this festival, I won't use my quirk. I will accept defeat but I refuse to back down. You may try and beat me up me if you want. But I would rather have my head cut off than have it bow!"

That was my pride.

Surprisingly cool, ain't it? It's definitely not because I don't have permission to open the gates or anything. Sure, the system didn't give out a quest but... Yeah, I can't use 'Hachimon Tonkou'.

I stepped down the stage, earning some cold looks but Himiko seemed to cheer for me.

"That was so manly!"

Eijiro slammed his chest as he said that. Did he go from punching fists to slamming chests?

"Oi, you extra, you better go all-out! Don't you dare go easy on me!!"

With his exploding arms, Katsuki tried to intimidate me.

"Moving on, we should get ready for our first task."

Midnight already moved on. On a screen, the next match would be decided and the match was....

Obstacle race.

The students had to leave the stadium as the race started from the entrance of the stadium taking a whole round around it before entering the stadium again.

All of them were lined up while someone was fiddling with a small key.

"Hey, is that guy really not going to use quirks?"

"Yeah, he said that he won't use quirks. Is he playing around?"

"I think he's just looking down on us!?"

Many were angry at my words. And they should have been since from their eyes, they weren't worth making me use my powers.

Honestly, without permission from the system, I couldn't even unlock the first gate.

- Click!

- Poong~

As soon as the horn rang, I ran forward. A small trace of ice tried to bind me but I was faster.

- Boom!

When I reached a few meters ahead, the bracelets finally fell to the ground, causing a loud noise.

But I wasn't the main hero of this show. It was surprisingly Deku.

Using OFA at 5%, he was dashing forward at unforeseen speed. Because of the small amount of advice and the [Quirk Inhibitor], he found a way to use his powers faster than the original work.

I leaned closer to the ground, feeling something above my head.

- Boom!

It was an explosion.

"Hey, extra! Go all out!!"

Katsuki just screamed that while passing me by. Shoto passed by as well, after trying to freeze me. Sadly, there was no ice that could hold me.

At least, 5 people passed me by when the robots showed up. Unlike others, it was fairly easy to cross.

That put me in the lead again with only 2 guys ahead of me. Izuku was right next to me. The 5% power of OFA wasn't that faster than my base speed.

"Yo! You have gotten stronger since I last saw you."

"We just met yesterday for training!"

Izuku would be lying if he wasn't holding a grudge but his development was also because of me so he couldn't do anything.

"I will be winning this!"

Of course, other than beating me in a fair match.

"Hehe, go ahead."

Since the start I didn't want too fight but these guys are getting on my nerves now.

'I wonder what faces they will make if I beat them without quirks.'

It was hard but not impossible. In the normal state, my powers were similar to Deku's 5% OFA. Other than Shoto and Katsuki, there wasn't anybody couldn't be defeated.

'That's it. I have decided.'

"I'm winning this, you brats!"

A sadistic smirk rose up on my lips as I announced that. Slowly, Izuku started to move ahead. There was a Fall. Covered in rocky steps and unending falls.

I zoomed in towards the fall, calculating the fastest method across. The rocks were honestly hard to trust as they could fall but what if I just jumped before it could?

I dashed faster and jumped from rock to rock. Izuku followed the same idea, putting him a step back.

After crossing the Fall, it was time for the landmines.

Using the same trick, I dashed through it.

- Boom! Boom! Boom!

The landmines exploded but they were a step too slow. And became the problems of the people who was right behind me.

Izuku maneuvered through the field like he knew where the mines were. He had learned to calculate while fighting and gotten used to it.

It made any tricks such as landmines fail before him. Though he could just use my trick, he probably didn't want to disturb the people who were following him.

At the end of the race, only Katsuki and Shoto were competing for the first place.... At least, that's what they thought when a black bird swooped in and took the win.

It was Tokoyami Fumikage and his [Dark Shadow]. Perhaps someone gave him pointers on how to use his quirk better.

I regret doing that. My fourth place went down to fifth because of that. The race ended with Katsuki being second and Shoto being third while Izuku was fourth.

There was a slight interval for rest, granting those who used too much of their quirks to rest for a bit.

Tenya was in the worst shape. Like he had just been though hell. His naturally set hair were blown up. But then again, who asked him to follow the devil so closely?

Thankfully, Tenya wasn't harmed that badly and could continue. He did glare at me but that was something I became long used to.

'I really can't lose here. I will win this!'

Tenya looked at the boy before him. Honestly, he was the faster one than any of the top 5. But his quirk didn't actually grant him elasticity to use it freely. Like a bullet, he could only run fast but not cruise through obstacles.

'Should I ask him for advice? He was helpful to our classmates.'

The desire to improve clashed with the pride that he had. But there was nothing that pride could help him in. So he decided to let go of it.

"We're showing the world our ace in the hole, huh?"

What could Tenya show? Speed? His brother was faster. Smarts? Momo was smarter. Leadership? Was it really the place for it? At least, he should the will to grow.

No matter what, he's going to show his pride. But unlike a certain someone, he would bow his head if it meant that his abilities could grow. His pride to grow.

That was Tenya's speciality.

"Excuse me-"

"Now, on to the next event!!"

Present Mic interrupted Tenya who looked sad but didn't give it. There was still time.

"The Cavalry Match!! The first rank had the highest points available. 1 Million!!"

Soon, Fumikage became the public enemy.

"Shadows are destined to be alone."

He spoke so depressingly.

"5th place earns me just 50 points. There's a lot of difference between the top and me, huh?"

"Masato-kun~"

"Oi, can you not say my name like that?"

Himiko's voice gave me trauma. A PTSD from her bladeworks.

"Wanna join in?"

There was a blond boy behind her, Monoma Neito, owner of the [Copy] quirk. A badass and broken quirk. Shinso Hitoshi was also present with them.

"You sure?"

"Honestly, I don't like you. But I also want to declare something in this place."

Hitoshi stepped forward and said so. He seemed an awful similar to my older sibling. But they weren't related, other than the same first name.

"I see. And how about you?"

"I just want to beat up Class 1-A. It doesn't matter if I join hands with those trash if that's what it takes!"

Neito was the sincere type. Spilling his heart out.

".... Yeah, I really wish to meet you in the third contest."

And so, the team was formed.

'Should I check my stats? Fighting the villains increased it faster than usual.'

_________________

Host: Anzai Masato

Age: 16

Condition: Healthy

⟨Attributes⟩

- Physique: 78 -> 86

- Agility: 81 -> 94

- Stamina: 92 -> 98

- Senses: 64 -> 69

Note: Average attribute of an adult is 10.

⌈Skills⌋: ⟪Hachimon Tonkou(5/8); Rank S⟫ ; ⟪Taekwondo; Rank B (Growth)⟫ ; ⟪Blood Recovery; Rank C⟫ ; ⟪Ally Hunt; Rank D⟫ ; ⟪Calming Aura; Rank D⟫

⌈Items⌋: ⟬Personalized Training Module⟭ ; ⟬Elixir⟭ ; ⟬Super Eye Drop⟭ ; ⟬Pure Protein Powder⟭*7 ; ⟬Tracksuit⟭ ; ⟬Quirk Enhancer⟭ ; ⟬Healing Syringe⟭ ; ⟬Stamina Pops⟭*4

⌈Quests(2)⌋

_______________________________

The [Ally Hunt], [Tracksuit] and [Stamina Pops] were a reward for ranking first in the entrance exam while the rest are from the 'USJ' incident.

The [Tracksuit] is my hero costume. Unlike Himiko's, it doesn't grow but is self-mending and auto-cleaning. While [Ally Hunt] lets one know the location of the allies.

[Ally Hunt] was going to be useful what I was going to do.

"I have a crazy plan. Would you like to hear it?"

The smile on my face gave Himiko delight. She was a bit crazy too. So it only felt right that our plans would be similar.

Hitoshi and Neito looked at each other, doubting previous their decisions.