Blossoms of the Dark

XL Selene: Emotions

Bloody saints of hell! That was quite the spectacle!

I should be thinking about how shocking and frightening the battle was. I should be thinking about how terribly injured Midoriya-san is. I should be thinking about how bestial Bakugou-san is. However, I do none of those things. Instead, I feel entertained. So much action, so much passion, so much spirit. So much drama that I relished it rather than feared it. I should feel guilty about that, but I don't. I simply can't.

I watch as Bakugou-san stands over Midoriya-san's limp body in shock. Given their conversations, I assume it's because he didn't expect Midoriya-san to put up such a fight and win. All Might-sensei enters the scene with two medical robots. The robots carry Midoriya-san away on a gurney, and All Might-sensei walks behind Bakugou-san and places a hand on his shoulder.

He tries to comfort him. "Let's go back, Bakugou my boy. It's time for your critique. No matter whether you won or lost, you take one look back, you reflect on the experience, and you move on with your life." But it doesn't seem Sensei's words reach his ears. All the while, Bakugou-san stands there in utter silence and astonishment.

A short while later, Bakugou-san, Iida-san, and Uraraka-san enter the surveillance room. Sensei shouts, "THE BEST IN THIS MATCH WAS YOUNG IIDA!"

Iida-san and most of the class are confused as to why. But it's Yaoyorozu-san who answers why. "It's because Iida was the one who adapted the most to the situation. Having watched the fight, Bakugou's behavior was clearly driven by some personal grudge, and thus totally arbitrary. Furthermore, just as you told us earlier, Sensei, a large-range attack in an indoor arena is just idiotic. The same reasoning goes for Midoriya. Uraraka's game got loose halfway through, and her final attack was too restless. We were treating that papier-mâché thing as an actual nuclear weapon, so that kind of attack wouldn't have flown.

"Iida devised a counter-strategy against an opponent because he correctly supposed the match would revolve around the core. While he was too slow in reacting to that last attack, I believe the hero team's so-called 'victory' is being too nice in calling this 'just training.' And that gets dangerously close to skirting the spirit of the rules."

I like this Yaoyorozu girl. She makes accurate judgments. She's an analyst, a schemer, and that makes her intelligent. Now I understand why she was at the entrance exam. A powerful quirk and a smart brain. That's a very good combination. She'll make a skilled hero in the future. Maybe she is worth acquainting ...

Sensei looks taken aback by her assessment but agrees with her nonetheless.

Sometime later, it is time for the other trials of battle to take place. Todoroki-kun's is first. He is teamed as "HERO" with the boy with the tentacle quirk. His opponent is Hagakure-san and the boy with the tail quirk.

I watch his battle with keen interest.

The boy with the tentacle quirk replicates ears and mouths on the tips of his tentacles. He's surveying the building. "One of them's on the north side of the fourth floor. The other's somewhere on the same floor. Yes, barefoot ... Is the invisible one planning to ambush us for the capture?" he says in a deep, clear voice.

But Todoroki-kun's confidence doesn't fade. "This'll get messy, so go outside. If they intend to make this a defensive game ... then this won't be much for me." He proceeds to freeze the entire building, from the bottom to the top. He even freezes the feet of his opponents in the room where the weapon is stored. I can't help release a small snort of amused laughter.

He enters the room as if he's taking a stroll in the park. Looking at the boy with the tail quirk, he says, "You can take a step if you like. Do be aware, however, that peeling the skin off the sole of your foot doesn't look good for your ability to fight." With that, he walks to the papier-mâché weapon and touches it.

I'm impressed, and so is All Might-sensei. "He made sure his comrade didn't get caught in the attack, and he refrained from damaging the core. He even weakened his enemies' position! HE'S SOMETHING ELSE, THIS ONE!"

I cover my ears but silently agree with Sensei. Yes. He is indeed something else. Someone special with plenty of potential.

With his left hand, Todoroki-kun melts the ice. "My fault ... The gap between us is just too big."

I smile a little with pride and sadness at that. Proud that my friend won a match so quickly and efficiently. Sad that I understand the hidden meaning behind his statement.

We're both suffering, Todoroki-kun, in our own ways. I wish we didn't have to.

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Image URL: https://images.fineartamerica.com/images/artworkimages/mediumlarge/2/a-lotus-flower-bud-tom-bonaventure.jpg

Note: I have copied some dialogue from one of the English-translated versions of the manga. The link to the chapter is here: https://bokunohero.online/manga/boku-no-hero-academia-chapter-11/