Secrets [Todoroki]

*Chapter Forty*

The next morning, it was an early rise for our heroes in training. Everyone was sleepy and looked a little worse for wear.

Miri's hair was thrown up on top of her head in a massive messy bun. Her half-lidded eyes made her look dead and she couldn't stop yawning. She forced herself to stretch.

"Good morning, everyone." Aizawa had made his way to the clearing. "Your official training starts today. By the end of this trip, you would have hopefully emerged stronger, so much so you can gain your provisional licenses with ease. There's also the new instances we've had with others. It's no secret we want you to be prepared for them should more problems arise." He held up two softballs, much like that one they had at the very beginning. "To start off, Bakugo and Mirianne, please step forward. I want you each to throw your balls." There was an immature snicker in the crowd of students. "Mirianne, your throw was 984 meters, correct? Bakugo, yours was 705.2?"

The drastic distance gap between their abilities was apparent to the both of them since the first day of school. Having it laid out in front of them? A chance to prove who was better right now? The opportunity was too good to pass up. Miri and Bakugo sized one another up.

Bakugo would never admit it, but he had always wondered who was stronger between the two of them. Miri's quirk is very similar to Midoriya's, but it's obvious she's a lot more disciplined. By beating her, it was almost a guarantee he would always be better than his childhood rival. On top of it, he could lay waste to two annoying thorns in his side.

'Bakugo has many admirable qualities, as much as it pains me to admit it. He's intelligent and strong, a dangerous combination. I know his competitiveness is a powerful attribute of his, but it's also reckless for him. He stops at nothing to win, even if it means tearing himself apart in the process.' Miri narrowed her eyes. 'He and Midoriya are similar in that regard, and I suppose that makes me no better.'

"So much has happened since the first day of school." Uraraka remarked. "The both of them were already ridiculously powerful in the very beginning. Seeing what they'd be capable of now?"

"Miri has seen a lot of up and downs these past few months. Her quirk also makes this even more interesting because she can fire on really any gear she wants." Midoriya was muttering. "I imagine she could have done the same at the beginning of the school year too, but held back for safety reasons."

Miri was lost in her thoughts, looking down at her softball. In the very beginning of the school year, using just 50% of her quirk was a strain to her body. Anything beyond that broke her bones or shattered them in some cases. Now using 50% was just natural. It was her default setting. Had she grown since then?

Using 100% was still out of the question. Adrenaline rushes were still out of her control and would put her out of commission.

Would pushing to 60% be okay?

She and Bakugo met each other's eyes.

"No more holding back like you have been." His gruff voice filled the silence. "When I prove I'm better than you, I want it to be real."

Miri sighed. "Sometimes you say some meaningful stuff in such a dick-ish way."

He growled and arched back his arm. "GO TO HELL!" He roared, letting the ball fly through the sky.

"709.6" Aizawa read.

Miri looked at Bakugo in surprise, who had an unreadable look on his face.

'Does this mean I haven't got any stronger either?' She thought to herself. 'No. 60%. I told myself I'll try it. I owe it to Bakugo too. Well, not really. But I still want to rub it in his face.'