"Alright everyone! Time for the final match of the first round, and boy, is it a doozy!" Present Mic's voice boomed over the roar of the crowd. "In this matchup, we have two of the victors of the Cavalry Battle. Both from Class 1-A, give it up for Shion Nusumute and Sachi Seiryoku!"
The crowd erupted in applause as Sachi walked out into the stadium. She slowly made her way up the stairs and into the ring, only to be met by Shion's face across from her. She seemed . . . off. She was clearly trying to put on an air of her usual confidence, but her expression was plagued with uncertainty. "I need to do something to help get her in the zone. That's what a good class rep would do."
Sachi stepped forward to the middle of the ring, and Shion followed suit. When they arrived, the two bowed respectfully toward each other. As they stood up, Sachi gave Shion a reassuring smile. "I know we still have a lot to work through, but let's try to put that aside and do our best, okay?"
Shion forced a shaky smile and nodded half-heartedly. "Y-yeah, of course." The two returned to their sides and took on a fighting position. "Now, don't go easy on me just to be nice, okay?"
"That wouldn't be fair to either of us, would it? Besides, Hiroto's counting on me- I mean us- to give it our all." Sachi grimaced at her own mistake. As Mt. Lady raised her arm, Sachi gave Shion a panicked and apologetic look, but it was too late. Shion's face darkened, her head turned down, and her fists clenched.
"I knew it," Shion hissed as Mt. Lady's hand dropped. Instantly, Shion lunged at Sachi, forcing her onto the defensive. Sachi shot energy beams out of her hands to move out of the way, only for one of the beams to extinguish completely, stolen by Shion's Quirk. Sachi lost control and flailed into the ground. "I gave Hiroto the benefit of the doubt, thinking he wouldn't visit either of us to keep it impartial," Shion said as she walked closer to Sachi, a sad smile on her face. "That would be like him, wouldn't it? He's thoughtful like that." Her smile faded as she glared at Sachi. "But I was wrong, wasn't I?"
"Shion, it's not like-"
"WASN'T I?!" Shion reactivated her Quirk, sending the collected energy shooting back out at Sachi, who barely had time to dodge before her own attack made impact. "He came to talk to you instead of me, right?!"
Sachi scrambled to her feet, wanting to be ready for anything. "He said that Terra wanted to talk to you, so he decided to meet me." Sachi quickly shook her head, hearing what she had just said. "Why is that a problem anyway?! Hiroto's allowed to talk to whoever he wants!" She quickly shot another beam at Shion, trying to get back to the task at hand.
Shion deftly dodged the attack, managing to syphon off some more of the energy. "So that's it, huh? I start to have a change of heart, you see an opening, and you just swoop in while my guard is down?"
"I didn't ask for him to come!" Sachi shouted as another returned attack grazed her arm. "He wanted to make sure I didn't hold back. He didn't want me focusing on him or you or anything. He said I need to focus on being the best me that I can be!"
"Oh, sure. Because you've never had a problem with that!" Shion unleashed a little more of the stored-up energy, apparently trying to ration the stockpile. "'Oh, look at me! I'm Miss Sugar & Spice, and I'm so prim and proper! I'm the class rep and everyone loves me! I know what's best for everyone, and I'm gonna let everyone know!"
Sachi grit her teeth and unleashed a massive wave of energy at Shion, catching the girl off-guard and sending her on the defensive. "Oh yeah?! What about you?! You've been acting like you own this place since Day 1, treating everyone like garbage while you basically claim Hiroto as your own. You say you're turning over a new leaf, but look at you! You haven't changed a bit!"
YOU ARE READING
Hiro Rising
Fanfiction"A young boy sets out to prove that he has what it takes to be a hero on his own, but even in an era of peace, he's about to learn that, sometimes, having people by your side is the only way to succeed."
