MANIA - Katsuki Bakugou

good match ━

chapter 51

2 MONTHS LATER

Almost all of Class 2-A was sitting and/or lounging on the benches after training themselves till their energy reserves were bone dry. It was a hot afternoon day here at U.A., and the students were definitely feeling said heat. Gym Gamma's air conditioning was either not working or simply didn't exist so you can bet that the students were practically dying.

Uraraka and Asui leaned against each other's backs on the bench and Momo was leaning on their shoulders, practically falling asleep. Midoriya sat criss cross on the floor, slowly sipping on a cold water bottle, and looking as if he was contemplating existence as he stared at the ground. Todoroki stood trying to cool everybody down with his ice quirk but it wasn't helping much. Simultaneously, Uchiha was hugging Todoroki's cold side in an attempt to feel something other than the sticky hot humidity of the room.

Uchiha's occasional sighs clued in on the fact that she was the only one getting relief from the heat. Meanwhile, everyone else was either lying flat on the ground or sitting somewhere around them. Everyone except for two.

Despite having been training for the past hour and a half in this sickening heat, there were two students still sparring and training on the mats in front of them. Kirishima's gaze drifted back and forth as he watched the two students parry each other from one side of the mat to the other.

He shook his head and said to his classmates, "They have too much energy."

Midoriya's head peeked up from his existential crisis to watch the sparrers. "I think the right word for them is 'overly competitive.'"

"That's two words."

The green haired boy shrugged. "I dunno. I think I'm dying."

No one paid his comment any mind. They were all dying from heat exhaustion, to be fair. Ashido fanned herself with her hand as she lay on the bench. She didn't even have to look up to know that the two students were still relentlessly fighting each other with no end or victor in sight.

"They'll go at this for hours on end. It's annoying, really."

"Wrong! It's inspiring! They have ambition we can only dream to achieve in these conditions!" Iida rang out triumphantly. Everyone groaned at his volume so he sat back down.

"Hey," Uchiha said from Todoroki's side, "They make it work. Give them some credit."

She would've put more energy into her semi-threat, but she didn't have the willpower at the moment. She mentally criticized the sun for being so gosh darn hot.

The class mumbled in agreement and turned either their heads or rolled onto their sides to watch the sparring match continue. And who was sparring?

Tikki Shimamura and Katsuki Bakugou, of course.

The alabaster haired student swung her leg around her and jabbed forward with the heel of her foot, aiming for her competitor's side. Bakugou dipped down, narrowly missing her blow. He reached forward with both hands and latched onto her opposite knee, pulling. Her knee gave out but she was quick to step back onto her other leg to regain her balance.

She shifted her weight and swung her upperbody downwards, kicking with the leg he was currently latched onto. His hands slipped and she managed to kick him in the chin on the release. He staggered backwards and groaned. But it didn't take long for him to charge at her again with his fists punching in every direction towards her face.

Despite having just been kicked in the chin, he had a massive grin on his face. It was debatable whether it was just his competitive nature shining through or that he was actually enjoying himself. The most likely answer was that it was both.