Bakugo vs. Izuku

Everyone else went to the monitoring room, leaving only the four of them standing there.

"The villain team goes in first to prepare. The hero team infiltrates five minutes later, and the battle officially begins!"

Jilan Jiyu and the others gathered in the monitoring room. Cameras had been installed at key locations and hallway corners, enough to let them see every move the people being tested made.

At the moment, the villain team had made no moves, while the hero team was studying a floor plan of the building and discussing their attack strategy. Everyone could clearly see Katsuki Bakugo's impatience and Izuku Midoriya's nervousness.

"Now, the indoor combat training between team A and team D begins!"

All Might stood in front of the large screen and said without turning around, "You should observe and think, too. What would you do in a situation like this? It might become your chance to win."

"Hey, Jilan, I didn't expect you to know so much about games." Denki Kaminari came over to Jilan Jiyu and nudged him with his elbow, speaking as if they were already friends. "This test feels more and more like Rainbow Six. Wouldn't it be fairer to give the villain team access to the monitors? Haven't they already taken control of the building?"

"If they did that, the hero team would be at an overwhelming disadvantage." Jilan Jiyu glanced at Kaminari, then continued watching Midoriya's team on the large screen as they climbed in through a window and carefully explored the building. "Don't forget, in the game, the defenders can't use high-performance attachments so both sides are as evenly matched as possible. Sometimes, if someone gets the chance, you can be killed with a single headshot. But here, all they have to work with are their individual Quirks, with no outside factors interfering."

Besides... the strength of the two teams' Quirks was completely unbalanced. Izuku Midoriya could only put up a fight, and Ochaco Uraraka could only use her Quirk if she got close enough when there was nothing around for her to use. Their opponents, meanwhile, were Tenya Iida, who had extremely high mobility, and Katsuki Bakugo, who was highly aggressive and had an expert command of his Quirk.

Jilan Jiyu considered how he would deal with that combination himself... His conclusion was that he couldn't let them wait for his team to attack in the room containing the "nuclear weapon." He had to separate them and take them down one at a time, two against one. But... given Bakugo's personality, he would definitely do that.

"Ah, Bakugo's charging out of the stronghold!"

As the screen showed, Tenya Iida stayed behind for the villain team while Katsuki Bakugo quickly left the stronghold on the fifth floor and charged straight down the stairs toward Midoriya and Uraraka on the second floor. Midoriya and Uraraka were still completely unaware!

Perhaps he had heard Midoriya and Uraraka talking. Katsuki Bakugo quickly located his targets, seized an opportunity, and suddenly appeared around a corner, swinging his charged-up right hand straight at them!

But the attack failed. As though he had anticipated it, Midoriya lunged at the stunned Uraraka and dodged Bakugo's attack. His head was only grazed, leaving half his face exposed through his mask.

"A surprise attack? What kind of man is Bakugo?!" With the muscles of his entire body exposed, Eijiro Kirishima looked on angrily, deeply contemptuous of such behavior.

All Might showed no sign of emotion and said calmly, "A surprise attack is a strategy too. They're still in the middle of a real battle."

Jilan Jiyu had no objection to that either. Why face an enemy head-on when you could take them down with a surprise attack? He was somewhat surprised by Izuku Midoriya's striking performance. As he saw it, Izuku Midoriya wasn't particularly strong in his own right and couldn't possibly beat Bakugo head-on, but what Izuku Midoriya did next changed his assessment even further.

Katsuki Bakugo quickly recovered after missing his first strike. The two grenades on his arms weren't just for show; they were blunt weapons! He swung his right arm in a heavy, powerful strike. In his view, this blow was bound to finish Midoriya off.

"What? Midoriya actually blocked Bakugo's attack!"

Katsuki Bakugo hadn't expected Izuku Midoriya to advance instead of retreating. Midoriya closed in, clamped hold of his arm, and then... spun his body and slammed Bakugo to the ground with a shoulder throw!

Midoriya had completely anticipated Katsuki Bakugo's actions! Jilan Jiyu was a little surprised as he watched Bakugo stand there, apparently speaking to the air and cursing furiously.

"Teacher, what's Bakugo saying? The cameras don't transmit sound at all."

All Might pointed to the radio in his ear. "He's talking to his partner over the radio. Besides that, they're carrying a floor plan of the building and capture tape. Wrap the tape around your opponent, and it counts as a successful capture. Incidentally, I can hear both teams' conversations through my earpiece."

Momo Yaoyorozu noticed something and spoke up. "Mr. All Might, the time limit for the battle is fifteen minutes, and the heroes aren't told the nuclear weapon's location in advance, right?"

After receiving an affirmative answer from All Might, Mina Ashido said worriedly, "That puts the heroes at an overwhelming disadvantage."

All Might turned his head to one side. "A hero is someone who gradually turns a crisis around!"

Perhaps he felt that wasn't convincing either, because he hurriedly moved on. "Do you remember the U.A. High School motto Mr. Aizawa told you about? One, two..."

"Plus Ultra!"

Suddenly, someone cried out, "Everyone, look!"

On the screen, Izuku Midoriya blocked another attack from Katsuki Bakugo, giving Ochaco Uraraka a chance to break away and search for the nuclear weapon.

Seeing that Uraraka had run off, Midoriya ducked under a side kick from Bakugo, pulled out his capture tape, and tried to loop it around Bakugo's leg! Bakugo noticed at once and triggered an explosion against the wall with one hand, forcibly twisting his body away from Midoriya's tape.

"Both of them are amazing!"

"Especially Midoriya! He's holding his own against the guy who ranked first in practical combat without even using his Quirk!"

Seeing that his attack hadn't worked, Midoriya decisively ran off to another part of the floor, and Bakugo chased after him without hesitation.

Before long, Bakugo lost track of Midoriya among the many corridors. He grew impatient and began launching pointless attacks everywhere.

Meanwhile, Ochaco Uraraka had found the stronghold, but she soon gave herself away by giggling. She decided to attack head-on, using her Zero Gravity Quirk to make herself float and trying to retrieve the nuclear weapon directly. She meant to win using the rule that allowed the heroes to claim victory by touching the nuclear weapon.

Although Jilan Jiyu thought Tenya Iida could have simply attacked Ochaco Uraraka, perhaps his chivalry was at work. He merely used his mobility to carry the target nuclear weapon around, keeping Uraraka from touching it.

"There's not much time left, and Bakugo's found Midoriya too. Looks like Bakugo's team should win this round," Denki Kaminari said, analyzing the situation as though he knew exactly what he was talking about.

Katsuki Bakugo had found Midoriya. He gave him a vicious grin and slowly raised his right hand, taking aim. Steam rose from the grenade-like device, which seemed to have stored a considerable amount of energy.

All Might's expression suddenly changed, and he shouted into the microphone, "Young Bakugo, stop! Are you trying to kill him?!"

But Bakugo didn't stop. A roaring jet of flame shot from the opening at the top of the grenade, destroying everything in its path!

"This is only a class! Is Bakugo trying to kill someone?!"

The powerful energy was felt even in the monitoring room. The ceiling shook, and All Might anxiously called out to Midoriya.

The smoke and dust gradually cleared. The second floor's outer wall had been completely destroyed, exposing the street. Izuku Midoriya lay on the ground and struggled to sit up. It seemed Bakugo had deliberately aimed his attack off target and hadn't hurt Midoriya too badly.

Katsuki Bakugo walked toward Midoriya like a real criminal, a victorious smile on his face, as though he were thinking about how to torture Midoriya to death.

"Teacher, stop it, quickly! Bakugo's acting really crazy right now. Someone could get killed!" Eijiro Kirishima urged.

"No." Although All Might was anxious too, he refused his request. "Young Bakugo may look crazy, but he's still keeping his cool."

Even so... All Might spoke into the microphone. "If you use that move again, I'll end the battle by force and declare your team defeated."

Perhaps Katsuki Bakugo also knew he had gone too far. After that, he displayed the full extent of his technique, using his Explosion Quirk to beat Midoriya until he was covered in wounds.

"I know they're allowed to injure each other, but isn't this just one-sided slaughter? He could easily capture Midoriya with the tape!"

"This is not the act of a hero," the crow-headed boy said in a low voice, his arms folded.

Was it too much for him after all...? Jilan Jiyu watched Midoriya, who had begun to flee, and glanced at the little time remaining.

Midoriya, I don't know why you still aren't using your Quirk, but... if there's a miracle, show it to me—the moment when you turn the situation around as a hero!