Beauty vs the Beast (Katsuki Bakugo fanfic)

14:「 Drastic Measures 」

Carine stayed in the prep room while the other matches took place. She was both excited and nervous for her match in the 2nd round, and used the silence to clear her mind. That is, until the door opened and all of her thoughts whisked away in a split second.

 "Hi, Minazuki!" Uraraka greeted. Carine smiled back at her.

"You were amazing in that match! You truly are, one of the best." Uraraka looked a little solemn as she sat down in front of Carine.

"Your match is up next, right?" Carine asked her. She nodded slowly. The door opened once again as Iida walked in.

"Good work out there, Ida..." Uraraka told him. 

"Oh, Uraraka, and Minazuki..." he looked at the two of them. 

"You don't look quite so well, Uraraka," Iida noticed.

 "Ah...I'm just a little nervous. It probably shows on my face." The brunette rubbed the back of her head.

"Right." Iida rested his hand on his chin, contemplating. "Your opponent is Bakugo..."

"Yeah. I'm really scared." Uraraka held her face down and stared at the table. "But seeing you and Minazuki out there, I--"

"Uraraka!!" The door opened yet again to reveal Midoriya standing in front of them. 

"Deku!" Uraraka exclaimed in surprise. "Shouldn't you be watching the other matches?"

"Kirishima and some class B guy are fighting. Ashido knocked out Aoyama, and Tokoyami won in a flash," Deku replied.

"So...I'm up soon," Uraraka said with a stern look on her face. 

"Would Bakugo really give it his explosive all against a female opponent?" Iida asked. 

"Yeah he will," Midoriya answered without hesitation. "Everyone's competing with the dream of becoming number one. No one's holding back."

"But, you've done so much for me already, Uraraka, so I thought I'd return the favor." Midoriya reached behind his back and pulled out a book. 

 "You need a counter-strategy for Kaachan. One that uses your quirk. I just came up with this, but it might work!" he held up the book in front of her.

"Thanks Deku, but that's okay," Uraraka smiled up at him. 

"You guys do amazing things all the time," she said, looking at Carine and then back at Iida and Deku. 

"During the cavalry battle, I thought the easiest strategy would be to team up with friends, but when I think about it, I was actually just putting my faith in you, Deku." Uraraka's solemn expression reappeared. 

"When I saw Iida and Minazuki succeed with their own strength, it made me feel embarrassed," she said as she stood up from her seat. 

"That's why...thanks, but no thanks! Everyone here is fighting for their futures! Doesn't that make us rivals?" Uraraka walked to the exit and gave her classmates a thumbs up. "I'll see you guys in the finals!"

Once they were back on the bleachers, Carine, Midoriya, and Iida stared down at the arena in suspense.

"This is one match I honestly don't want to watch," Jirou said from behind them. 

"I'm mostly worried about this one," Tsuyu added.

"For the last match of the first round, he was a hotshot in middle school, Katsuki Bakugo of the hero course! versus... my personal pick! Ochaco Uraraka, also from the hero course!"

"You said earlier you had a counter-strategy for her against Bakugo. What was it?" Iida asked Midoriya.

"Oh! It's nothing special. Kaachan can maneuver midair, but if Uraraka can get him to float, she'll have the advantage," he replied.

"Staaaarrrtttt!!"

Just as the loudspeaker announced the beginning of the match, Uraraka charged toward Bakugo. 

With his right hand, Bakugo let out an explosion, covering Uraraka with puffs of smoke. The crowd gasped at his abrasiveness. 

Uraraka jumped from the smoke and appeared behind Bakugo, using her jacket as a decoy. Bakugo's reflexes, however, were far quicker.

 He blasted Uraraka once again, sending her flying.

Again and again Uraraka attempted to touch Bakugo, but Bakugo bombed her with his quirk every time. Even the students had lost count on how many times Uraraka had been hit.

"Hey! That's not the way a hero acts!" a person in the crowd yelled. "If you're so much stronger than her, then throw her out of the ring and finish it! Stop toying with the poor girl!" Numerous individuals booed at Bakugo in agreement.

"What's the big idea?" Aizawa-sensei's voice suddenly appeared on the loudspeaker.

"The one who said he's toying with her; are you a pro hero? If that's what you're taking from this, then leave. Go home and look for another job. She's come this far, and he's acknowledging her strength. He recognizes her as a worthy opponent. It's because he wants to win, that he's not holding back."

Uraraka stood up from Bakugo's last attack. With a confident look her face, she joined her fingertips. 

"I'm gonna win!" she shouted as the rocks that were flying above them suddenly started dropping at a high velocity.

Carine just now realized what Uraraka's plan was. Every time Bakugo blasted her, she make sure that there were rocks to take the damage. With every attack, the number off rocks would multiply, and she would use that to her advantage.

 Uraraka charged towards her opponent once again. 

Bakugo, though, held his palms face up towards the sky, and in one move, he let out an enormous explosion; one that obliterated the rocks falling toward him, as well as hurl Uraraka away from him. 

The attack left almost the whole stadium in sheer shock. Bakugo glared at Uraraka, who stood up yet again. 

She tried to run at him once more, but fell to the ground in exhaustion. 

Midnight motioned Bakugo to stop, and leapt down next to Uraraka.

"Uraraka is unable to continue. Bakugo moves on to the second round!"

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✧✧ Quick Author's Notes ✧✧

- Hi Guys! Sorry for such late notice, but I'm taking a summer class that's been very demanding. I have a final coming up, so the next update will be in two weeks as well!