A Bolt of Hope

Chapter 19 - Running on Hope -

[A/N]

Hey everyone! Sorry for the wait but the new chapter is finally here! This one is a bit longer than usual but  I hope you enjoy it!

"Ahhhhh, what the fuck?!"

Leizcio's mind was finally not foggy anymore. He was able to tell more or less what was happening but he couldn't break out of it. He doesn't remember who he was talking to before his mind had gone blank but he could've sworn it was someone with purple hair.

"Esperanza are you awake?" A distressed Ojiro called out to him.

"Yeah! What's happening though??"

"We got brainwashed by this guy!" Ojiro said looking upward towards the person they're carrying.

Leizcio's assumptions were right, it was some purple-haired person, but before Leizcio could say another thing, Mic had announced that the time was up. The teams that had won had announced and the person who was "leading" their team was Shinso, and they ended up getting 3rd place.

"Thanks for your hard work." was all that Shinso said as he walked away leaving Leizcio and the others extremely confused as to whatever happened during all of that. Looking around the field, Leizcio saw a huge... fountain? Wait no, that's just Midoriya crying.

"Wait Ojiro, were we brainwashed the whole time?"

"Yeah, he just used us to get into the final round. I don't think I'm going to be moving on though."

"Wait why not?"

"Well, everyone else was able to give it their all out there but I wasn't able to do so. It may seem dumb considering all the pros watching us but it hurts my dignity as well if I were to go up there."

Leizcio was understanding the words he said but he knew that it was also not the best idea to not continue into the final round. He lets out a small sigh, respecting Ojiro's decision.

"I understand Ojiro, but I'm going to be moving forward. But I'll also be fighting for you because there's no way I'm letting Shinso get away with using us." Leizcio said trusting Ojiro's decision.

"Thank you Esperanza. Now let's go get something to eat."

As the two headed to get something to eat, Leizcio felt a bit fired up for the final round now that he has to prove himself after being used as fodder for some dude who brainwashed him. He went on to get several servings of food. His classmates are used to it more or less due to his quirk, however, some people do tend to stare and Leizcio can't blame them. Not every day someone of his stature eats that much unless they were some sort of competitive eater.

Shortly after, they returned to the field and something was genuinely confusing Leizcio. Why were the girls in cheerleader outfits? Unsure, Leizcio goes up to Ochaco to ask her what's going on.

"Ochaco, why are you guys dressed up like this?"

"It was Mineta and Kaminari, they tricked us into wearing this." Ochaco said with a sigh.

"I'm not surprised it's those two, to be honest." Leizcio said in a sigh of disappointment. Looks like he had to go do something really quick.

On the lookout, he spots Kaminari and Mineta. Walking up to them, Mineta is just standing there but Kaminari has a look of worry on his face.

"Mineta, were you the one that tricked the girls into wearing the outfits?"

"Yeah, pretty genius huh?" Mineta said with a smirk.

Tired of it Leizcio just rushes him out of the stadium and leaves him there, giving Mineta time to think about what he did as he walks back. Taking a look at Kaminari, he had a look of fear in his eyes. Leizcio didn't do anything to him but just a look of disappointment. Heading back to the stage, a large screen had now displayed a tournament bracket with the combatants yet to be decided. Leizcio was a tad bit worried, mostly because he never really had much of a "friendly" competition. Mostly because he's beaten up villains and thugs during his patrols. Maybe he should view his opponents as thugs and that'd make it easier? Either way, Leizcio was a bit nervous but also pumped for the tournament.