Opening

Seeing Jilan charging towards him with a smile on his face, Shoto Todoroki felt a chill run down his spine for no apparent reason, but he didn't pay it any mind. After all, he saw that villainous face roaring at Midoriya almost every day, assuming that Jilan was like that when he was in battle.

Moreover, compared to that face with flames on it that Todoroki loathed, Jilan was far inferior.

Jilan Jiyu casually pulled out a block of ice from the arena full of icicles, shaped it into an ice gun, and threw it at Shoto Todoroki without aiming. However, Todoroki instinctively felt that the gun would definitely hit him!

Shoto Todoroki instinctively tried to shield himself with ice, but as he twitched his fingers, he suddenly realized his right hand was covered in frost.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we witnessed Jilan's true strength in this match. He truly deserves to be the class president of the Hero Course; even someone as strong as Todoroki was chased all over the place!" Mic, noticing the disapproving looks from the Endeavor, quickly corrected himself, "But now, Todoroki has once again used the flames that shattered the stage in the previous match! Will the final victor be Todoroki, who can skillfully wield both ice and fire, or Jilan, who will surprise us? Let's wait and see!"

At this moment, Bakugo clenched his fists tightly, his face showing a mixture of excitement and agitation. "As expected, Jilan is really strong, and Todoroki is even stronger!"

Just as Kirishima was about to comfort Bakugo, he heard him continue laughing maniacally, "Only in this way will the two of you be worth killing!"

Kirishima was ashamed; as expected, this guy was a complete battle maniac.

Whether intentionally or unintentionally, Jilan Jiyu Bakugo the only one in the class who didn't have a nickname.

Seeing the ice spear approaching him, Shoto Todoroki could even feel the cold light piercing his eyelids. Instinctively, Shoto Todoroki stretched out his left hand, which instantly burst into flames, melting the ice spear thrown by Yoshiyuki Jilan Jiyu like an invincible little fire dragon!

They used fire instead.

Shoto Todoroki didn't even know what emotions he was feeling right now. It was as if the membrane in his heart had been pierced and could never be closed again. Even the flames that he had always resisted were now easy to use, as if they had never left him.

Jilan Jiyu paused for a moment, dodging the sharp edge of the flames in front of her, and charged towards Shoto Todoroki from the right.

However, Shoto Todoroki wasn't limited to unleashing flames at the five squares in front of him, nor was he limited to using only flames. He swung his right arm upwards, instantly conjuring up an ancient, unyielding ice, and thrust it towards Jilan Jiyu!

After forcing Jilan Jiyu back, Shoto Todoroki steadied himself and said calmly, "Jilan, you said before that I would become weaker when using fire, right? I don't think so. I accept your bet."

While Shoto Todoroki didn't agree with Endeavor's ideology, he couldn't deny the power of his own Quirk —it had no weaknesses and could perfectly handle any combat situation. (35xs)

"Todoroki, it seems you still don't understand," Jilan Jiyu bit his tongue to keep himself calm. He licked the blood from the corner of his mouth, his pupils turning bloodshot, and with a smile on his face, he suddenly charged towards Todoroki. "The weakness I'm talking about is yourself!"

Shoto Todoroki instantly erected an ice wall in front of him, blocking Jilan's view. He then quickly built a high ice platform beneath himself, allowing him to look down at Jilan from a superior position. With his right hand gripping his left wrist, he unleashed flames at Jilan!

Jilan remained expressionless, accurately calculating the timing of Shoto Todoroki's attack. He rolled over and landed where the flames were no longer burning, his entire body wreathed in Hamon as he charged towards Shoto Todoroki, braving the heat of the flames.

Wow, so fast!

Shoto Todoroki could see every move Jilan Jiyu made, but whenever he raised his hand to release flames or ice, he always felt that he was a step too slow. Not only did he not stop Jilan Jiyu's advance, but he also blocked his own vision.

What's wrong with me? I should have no weakness after using fire! Shoto Todoroki watched as Jilan Jiyu approached him, gritted his teeth, and unleashed a wall of fire to block his path. At the same time, a vertical wall of ice spread out from his feet, cutting into the flames like a sharp knife!

Before Todoroki could even Shoto Todoroki relief, a golden figure burst out of the flames, its Hamon arm pressing down on Todoroki's neck and slamming him hard to the ground!

Jilan keenly noticed that Todoroki's fingers were still trying to move. With her other hand, her palm Hamon and rotated, forming a round spiral ball, which she then smashed towards the rock next to Shoto Todoroki's face!

"Hamon Rasengan!"

Debris flew everywhere, leaving several streaks of blood on Shoto Todoroki's face. His face twitched a few times as he realized that Jilan Jiyu were warning him that if he didn't admit defeat, Ji Lan would punch him in the face in the next moment.

I surrender.

The Mic rang out in real time. "What a fantastic duel! Jilan wins and advances to the finals!"

Hearing this voice, surprisingly, Shoto Todoroki didn't feel particularly resentful. Instead, he seemed relieved. After Jilan Jiyu released his grip, he rubbed his neck and said coldly, "I admit you won, but can you tell me where I went wrong? I don't think I'm that much weaker than you."

After letting go Jilan Jiyu immediately turned around, but with his back to Shoto Todoroki. His voice was weak, but still calm, as if it were just a normal battle with nothing special about it.

"I told you, your biggest weakness after using fire is yourself." Jilan Jiyu didn't say much more, dragging himself towards the edge of the arena. A weary voice reached Shoto Todoroki's ears, "Remember, you owe me ten thousand yen."

Shoto Todoroki stood there, stunned, when he suddenly remembered the scene of Jilan defeating him in the simulation exercise. At that time, Yoshiaki had done the same thing, leaving behind only one sentence after his victory.

"The moment closest to victory is also the moment most vulnerable to defeat."

Suddenly, Shoto Todoroki felt the air around him become hot. A pair of strong legs appeared before his eyes. He looked up and saw his father, Endeavor, whom he had once hated.

"Do you know why you lost?" Endeavor continued without waiting for his answer, "Because your mastery of fire was too superficial. Although you didn't realize it when you were switching between fire and ice, anyone with some experience could see that your switching movements were completely disjointed. Your opponent simply seized that opportunity."

"So if I had used fire earlier, we wouldn't have lost this match." Boom's eyes were expressionless as he coldly said, "Is that what you're trying to say to me?"

Shoto Todoroki had expected a positive answer from his emotionless father, but instead, he looked at Jilan's retreating figure and said gravely, "I might say that to any other opponent, but your classmate seems to be tainted with something he shouldn't have touched."

"Things we shouldn't have gotten involved in," Shoto Todoroki repeated unexpectedly, turning his gaze to Jilan.

Despite the fervent noise from the arena, all he could see when he looked at Jilan's back was a jumble of black lines. Shoto Todoroki suddenly felt as if his body had fallen into an ice cellar.