Sparks (Katsuki Bakugou X Reader)

Chapter 33: Todoroki Vs. Midoriya

The two of you found the rest of the bakusquad and made your way to your seats.

"Oh, hey Bakugou, hey (L/n)," Kaminari said. "Man, you were pretty scary out there."
"Yeah you were a pretty convincing bad guy going so hard against a girl." Sero commented as the two of you sat down.
"Shut up you idiots! Or else!!" Katsuki snapped in response.
"Seriously dude, I can't believe you shot such a crazy blast at such a frail girl," Kaminari said, "Like, even I held back against Shiozaki."
You giggled, "Kaminari, Shiozaki totally had you beat from the very beginning."
"Just let me have this!" Kaminari whined.
Katsuki scoffed and muttered under his breath. "She's not as frail as you think."

Your eyes narrowed as you heard that. Was he complimenting her strength? Or did he actually care about her enough to correct what others thought about her? A strange feeling formed in your gut. It was weird. You've never felt anything like it before. Something about Katsuki's comment just made you uneasy for some reason, but you couldn't quite place a finger on why.

Then, Midoriya and Todoroki took to the stage. Seeing them enter the battlefield snapped you out of your head and you forgot about the feeling in your stomach.

"These two students have been the front runners in today's festival, but who will advance to the semifinals? It's Todoroki versus Midoriya! Match Start!!" Present Mic announced.

You saw Katsuki lean in. It was clear that he was very interested in how the battle would play it. Of course, who wouldn't be interested? It's the strongest kid in class against the kid who can't even control his quirk. Anyway, you watched them battle. Todoroki shot out ice towards Midoriya who didn't hesitate countering with a huge gust of wind, even though he broke his finger in the process.

You winced, "Ouch, I don't get how deku can just use his quirk like that. Eventually he'll end up destroying his entire body."
"Yeah he's being an idiot." Katsuki grumbled. "But in order to win, you have to push yourself to the edge."
"Hm, I suppose you're right Katuski. The adrenaline will keep him running for a little bit too. after that though, I can't imagine the pain he'll be in."
Katsuki scoffed, "Don't pity him. He's doing it to himself."

You rolled your eyes and smiled. When it comes to Midoriya, Katsuki always turned sour. You were so intrigued by their relationship. It was definitely toxic and complicated, but there was just so much to unpack. Maybe figuring it out would help you figure out Katsuki, too. You knew there was so much more to him than what meets the eye. He always makes such a strong and violent impression that no one ever sees past that. The only other people you think saw Katsuki like you did was probably Midoriya and Kirishima. Speaking of Kirishima, you heard him come running down the steps.

"Aw I missed the start!" He exclaimed.
"Hey, congrats on making it to the next round Kirishima!" You chimed.
"Thanks (Y/n)!" He replied. "It looks like I'll be taking down bakugou next."
"I'll kill you." Katsuki blatantly stated.
"Katsuki!!" You half scolded and half laughed. He turned his head away from you as you laughed at him. He didn't want you to see that he liked making you laugh or whatever. His statement was so in character for him, but the way he just blurted it out was so funny to you.
"Hey man, are you... blushing?" Kirishima said, looking at him, "You're cheeks are as red as my hair!"
"SHUT UP!!" Katsuki shouted which only made you laugh even more.

Katsuki pouted and crossed his arms, trying to maintain his aggressive persona. But you and Kirishima knew better. He was just flustered from you laughing at him, that was all.

"You know, I'm jealous of you, (Y/n), and Todoroki," Kirishima started, "You all have such flashy quirks."
"Yeah, and you don't have to pause in between attacks!" Sero chimed in.
"Or have any limits that leave you incapacitated!" Kaminari grumbled.
"It's not that simple, you morons." Katsuki stated.
"Yeah, it's like, when you overuse your muscles, they tear, or when you sprint too much, you run out of breath." You explained.
"Quirks are physical abilities too," Katsuki said, finishing your thought, "They get worn out too. You can't just use it non-stop."

Katsuki's eyes fall to his arm. It's clear from his furrowed brows that he's thinking further about the topic. Your eyes glance at his arm too, wondering what he could be thinking. But your mind wanders, looking at his rough, calloused fingers, to the veins in his forearm, and finally the muscle definition of his biceps. It's unbelievable to think about how much power those hands and arms held. It made you imagine how incredible it would be to fight against him during the tournament to see how strong they were while on the other hand, how gentle and caring those hands could also be.

Eventually, everyone's focus returned to the battle. The first half of the battle was repetitive; Todoroki would shoot out ice, and Midoriya would break one of his fingers to combat it. But soon you realized something.

"Are his movements slower?" You quietly mutter to yourself.
Katsuki glances at you out of the corner of his eye. He was impressed that you noticed it too; it's as if you had just read his mind. He placed his hand over his mouth, deep in thought. But then, Midoriya landed a hit on Todoroki and that snapped Katsuki out of his thoughts. Midoriya's punch landed straight into Todoroki's gut and sent him flying. You and Katsuki were both shocked at seeing Deku's astounding demonstration of control over his quirk. Yet all of a sudden, the action stopped. Midoriya and Todoroki were at a stand still. They just stood opposing each other. Perhaps they were exchanging words, but since the stadium was so large, you couldn't exactly hear what was going on. But suddenly, you heard Midoriya's cry loud and clear.

"It's yours!" He shouted, "IT'S YOUR POWER, NOT HIS!!"

And after a moment of everyone holding their breath, Todoroki erupted into flames, engulfing the whole field into fire.

"I cant believe it... There's no way," You breathed.
"He got him to use his left side. That damned nerd, what does he think he's doing?" Katsuki grumbled.
A loud, hearty laugh echoed across the arena, "Yes Shoto! With this new step and my blood in you, you'll finally achieve the purpose of which I created you!!"

You looked to see where the voice was coming from and it was from... Endeavor??

"And with Todoroki's flame ability unlocked, Endeavor shouts words of... encouragement?" Present Mic commentated.

The rest of the match played out so fast. Midoriya and Todoroki powered up and lunged at each other. Their power was unfiltered and apparently unlimited. And out of no where, huge cement walls were erected in between them to prevent their collision, but that didn't stop them. You felt the air around you shift from being both cold and hot to suddenly it blowing you away as your classmates smashed through the cement walls and unleased their power at each other. Suddenly, chunks of cement were flying towards you, away from the collision. Instinctively, you turned your head away and raise your hand up in front of you to protect yourself. Although, when you lifted your hand, it bumped into something. You looked to see what you could've possibly hit and you were met with Katsuki's large hand also shielding you from the debris. It made you smile a little. The debris quickly settled and Katsuki soon realized you noticed his action, he swatted your hand away and retracted his hand.

"Y-You're hand was blocking my view." He grumbled, quickly turning his head away.
You smiled, "Sure Katsuki, my bad."

You two then turned towards the smoke-filled battlefield wondering what happened. It was impossible to see anything.

Present Mic seemed to agree when he announced, "Geez, what happened? It's so smokey; I can't see a thing! Is the battle still going on or what?"

But soon enough, the smoke and dust cleared, revealing a very beat up Midoriya collapsing to the ground on the opposite end of the arena while Todoroki stood slumped over with heavy breaths.

"There," Midnight spoke. "Midoriya is out of bounds, Todoroki wins the match!!"

(A/N: Note to self- listening to YUZUYA's Bakugou audios on youtube do wonders for curing a 3 year writers block!)