Sparks (Katsuki Bakugou X Reader)

Chapter 36: Brain vs. Brawn

(A/n: omg they're holding hands<3 hope you like the cute drawing I made just for this chapter. ALSO! YES THIS IS THE NEWEST CHAPTER OF THE BOOK!! IVE JUST BEEN HEAVILY EDITING AND MERGING CHAPTERS TO MAKE THE STORY MORE COMPACT AND FLUID, SO THAT'S WHY THE CHAPTER NUMBERS HAVE CHANGED A BIT!!)

You had made it into the top four. It was inevitable; you always excelled in what you did. Although, the stakes were different here. UA brought in kids from all across the country, so you were up against the best of the best. Regardless of the challenges, you arose from your seat to make your way to the waiting room and prepare for your next battle. The action was met with a collection of "Good lucks!" And even a "Put that asshole in his place!" from your classmates. You smiled, thanking them as you waved back at them before heading to your waiting room.

You stopped by the vending machine on your way there to collect a few water bottles to stock up your quirk. Once you made it to your waiting room, you plopped down into the chair and opened the first water bottle. For some reason, your gulps seemed to echo throughout the room. It was strange for them to seem so loud, but you soon came to the realization that for once, you were alone in the room. Katsuki usually found some way into your waiting room, but even after leisurely finishing your first bottle, he still hadn't busted down the door. Although the two of you didn't talk when together, you just felt more alone without his presence and that made the room seem so much more empty. You sighed at the realization and slumped down in your seat before pressing another water bottle against your lips. It would be a lie to say that the realization didn't surprise you. You held a lot of pressure from your parents and from being at the top, so being independent and by yourself wasn't unfamiliar to you. But this feeling, being alone, was different. It implied that you relied on someone else's company to bring you comfort, which was false. You didn't need anyone else to feel comforted. You'd always done everything by yourself and flawlessly. The only reason you'd need someone else was when you'd use them to reach the top. You quickly brushed away those thoughts, realizing that your wandering mind was distracting you from focusing on your battle against Katsuki.

You didn't have much time after that to come up with any useful battle strategies for your match. It wasn't a surprise to you considering Iida's quirk was centered around speed while Todoroki was practically a child prodigy. You got up, discarding all your bottles into the recycle on your way out.

As you walked towards the entrance of the battle field, you tried to convince yourself that the lump in your throat was from not drinking enough water instead of your nerves actually getting to you. It's not that you were never nervous, you were just good at lying to yourself and others to make it seem like all was well. To be fair, you were going up against one of your strongest classmates whose glare alone made people to tremble. His raw power was seemingly unlimited, he had incredible techniques, and insanely fast reflexes. You'd have to really be on your toes for this one. For your current set of abilities, it all came down to speed here. You just had to outthink him and dodge his blasts fast enough; that was a good enough start. You'd go on from there once you formulated a decent plan. Finally reaching the end of the hallway, you took a deep breath before stepping out into the light.

You stood at one end of the battle field and looked at the opposite side. There was Katsuki, his gaze locked on you.

"Here are the last competitors of the semifinals! She's certainly got the brains since she demonstrated her quick wits last round, (Y/n) (L/n)!" Present Mic announced, "And on the other side, his brutal attacks definitely make him the brawn, Katsuki Bakugou! Match start!!"

Without a moment to waste, Katsuki blasted towards you. In order to not be close to the end of the bounds, you also launched towards him, jetting water from your boots. As you flew at him, Deku's words echoed in your mind from the combat training.