"WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING, IZUKU!?"

Peter stared at the screen in a mixture of shock and horror. He couldn't believe it. He honestly didn't think it was possible for anyone, even a teenager, to be this goddamn stupid and reckless!

"He did it! He actually did it! He went and shouted his identity to the whole goddamn world!"

"Now, now." Gentle laid a placating hand on Peter's shoulder. "There's no need to shout like that. Allow the boy to have his fun!"

"Fun?!" He looked up at the grey-haired man incredulously. "Fun?! That kid doesn't know what he just did to himself! Now everyone knows who he is!" Well, who he was going to be. But that was beside the point.

"Wait, so was that the kid in the Spider-Man mask that visited?" La Brava blinked as she stared at the screen. She tilted her head slightly as the camera zoomed in on Izuku's face as the boy put his hands on his knees to catch his breath. The caption running on the bottom simply read 'SPIDER-MAN? THE EFFECTS OF VIGILANTES ON THE NEXT GENERATION'. "Huh. You know, now I can totally see it. He didn't do that bad either…"

"This is bad…" Peter got up from the couch and ignored the dull pain in his still healing stitches.. He began pacing around while muttering to himself. "This is bad… Quentin's going to begin looking him and his family up! And all those Villains are going to know who to attack once he gets his license and busts them! Damn it, kid! What the hell were you thinking?!"

"Sir!" Gentle hardly raised his voice, and him doing so made Peter pause. The man didn't seem angry, but he didn't look particularly sympathetic either. He pointed at the couch and said, "Sit down. Now's not the time for you to injure yourself again."

"Now's not the time to be sitting on my ass either!" He retorted. "That kid just gave away his secret identity to the world! He has no idea the amount of shit he's gotten himself into because…!"

"Secret identity? What are you talking about?" La Brava, rather than being angry at Peter for arguing with her crush, seemed confused. "He's not a Villain. What would he need a secret identity for?"

Peter opened his mouth… then closed it again. "Wait. Don't tell me…"

He remembered the brief rundown Izuku gave him about the superheroes of this world. How their system operated as a much less insane version of the Superhuman Registration Act and how all of them were government employees. He had always assumed that meant that the kids would attend their hero school, get their identities, and the government would keep the code names and personal information on some super secret database.

"You mean that all superheroes have their secret identities out in the open?"

"Indeed!" Gentle sighed. "It gets rid of the mystique and wonder of the world of Heroes, but once a Hero gets their license their identity is available for all to see!"

"So… they just give away their cell phone and address?"

La Brava gave him a look as if he were crazy. "What? No! They're not insane!" She coughed and sgood up straight as if she were giving some lecture. "Once a Hero obtains their license, the Hero Association grants them with a work number and email address. Anyone can call them for emergencies, but their calls are filtered through a call center that separates calls depending on severity. And like any federal employee, it is illegal to call a Hero for anything besides an emergency. And they will post the office address of every Hero agency should the Heroes get one." She looked Peter up and down. "Did you seriously think that their identities were a secret?"

"Kind of, yeah." But it did make a strange sort of sense. Every government website laid out the contact information for the administration and employees. If the superheroes of this world were basically just cops wearing masks, then they would follow that same precedent. "But what's to stop the Villains from trying to find them?" He pointed right at Gentle. "Like, say he wanted to go and make the kid do a video…"

"Hey! Don't accuse Gentle of being some glorified stalker!" The diminutive woman looked like she was ready to pounce and even Gentle looked aghast.

"My word! Do you think so lowly of me!?" Gentle made an overdramatic show of wiping away… okay, Peter didn't expect actual tears. "After all my politeness and behavior, worthy of a true gentleman, is that what you think of me?!"

"Come on man, you're embarrassing the both of us…" Great, now he felt like the asshole!

Gentle, however, recovered remarkably fast. "In any case, while I admit that there are unsavory characters out there most have enough sense to never attack a Hero at something such as their own home. To attack one is to attack them all."

"Cop killers and all that…" Peter muttered. He'd known more than a few policeman and even superheroes that treated supervillains and regular criminals roughly for brutalizing one of their own. He heard that the Hood spent a pretty long time eating from a tube after he thought attacking Tigra in her own home was a good idea once some former Avengers got wind of it. Then there was that whole Arcade business and the less he thought about that the better. "Okay, I think I got it. But still…" Peter found himself sitting down on the couch again. "It wasn't a good idea."

Not all supervillains were rational people. Some cared far more for revenge and self-satisfaction than any consequences that might arise from their actions. His mind briefly flashed to Gwen before he clenched his fists and put that memory back in the dark recesses of his mind.

What was stopping Quentin from going after Izuku?

"Maybe he'll not even care. He only cares about ruining me, not Izuku." Peter wanted to calm himself down. He let those rational, soothing thoughts pass through his mind as he took deep breaths. "Quentin never made anything personal."

Quentin Beck also never did human trafficking and drug running either. But on this world…

This was the reason why he never revealed his identity when Tony asked. Thoughts like this and his own personal experiences made Peter hesitant with the idea when his colleague made that personal plea, knowing that he was supportive of the idea of the SHRA. And maybe he would've done it, too.

But all it took was the memory of Eddie Brock threatening Mary Jane to make him ask Tony if he would do anything to mitigate the consequences.

Oh, Tony assured him. But he could see from the man's eyes that he hadn't even considered the idea. Not Mr. Stark, who didn't have to worry about shit like his not-so-fortunate family and friends who didn't already have access to their own methods of protection. Not the Iron Man who never really had to worry about stuff like a paycheck or whether he could care for his wife and daughter.

That was what sealed Peter's stance on the whole 'Civil War' debacle.

Peter didn't say anything more as the Sports Festival continued to play on the television.

But the dark feeling in his stomach didn't go away either.

"You really said 'I'm Spider-Man'? That isn't just some bullshit people made up?"

Izuku's cheeks flushed red in embarrassment. "I-It just came out!" He laughed nervously at Jirou's upturned eyebrow. "I didn't think anyone would record it!"

"In this age of cameras being on everyone's phone and social media being king?" Jirou scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Yeah, you could forget about that."

"Hey, I kinda liked it!" Izuku was both happy and embarrassed that Uraraka came to his defense. Despite looking pretty exhausted and having her hands on her knees, she grinned at them both. "It was like something out of a battle manga! Y'know, the old ones where they shout out their convictions and names of attacks?"

"Well, at least he didn't share their tendency to scream while powering up their attack." Sero rubbed his chin in thought. "If you did that, you probably would've been in tenth place instead of second!"

Izuku laughed nervously, but his inner feelings were as different from his outward appearance like night and day.

"I lost."

Intellectually, he knew that he really didn't. He was in second place for crying out loud! The race was so close that the judges had to use slowed-down video to find out who won!

"But I still lost. Kacchan still beat me despite how hard I tried…"

He hated how it sounded like he was whining. Hell, he was pretty sure it was that! But he couldn't help it.

Ever since he'd gotten his powers, everything seemed to get better in his life. He was able to get into the Hero school of his dreams, he got a mentor who was an actual comic book superhero, he got friends, and had beaten Kacchan not once but twice.

For someone like him who had lost in the jackpot of life most of the time, the spider bite resulted in him 'winning' a lot!

Just one loss shouldn't bring him down so much!

"And yet…"

"Midoriya-san!" Izuku turned to see Yaoyorozu waving at him.

"O-Oh! Yaoyorozu-san!" He glanced over to his friends. "I-I need to go, sorry."

"Hey, it's no big deal!" Sero saluted at him. "Do your job, Deputy Class President!"

With a nod and a farewell, Izuku ran over to the tall girl and helped her begin organizing their classmates to prepare for the second phase of the sports festival. Most of the students were now through the entrance to the arena, and stagehands were setting up for the speaker of this round.

But his mind kept drifting back to his loss.

"I'm probably being too hard on myself." He let out a sigh as he waved Hagakure and Ojiro to their spots. "But after all I went through during middle school… no, what I went through since learning I was Quirkless, what did I expect?"

His eye caught onto Todoroki's form. The red and white-haired teenager had his brows furrowed but moved to his spot without complaint. He just occasionally glanced at Kacchan and Izuku himself, but otherwise he turned his attention to the stage.

"Todoroki… now there's someone who has a right to be annoyed." He, after all, lost to Kacchan and him. If Izuku was freaking this much out about being second place, then, Todoroki should be fuming! "But… he just looks annoyed. Nothing more."

It was like his loss didn't even matter all that much.

Come to think of it, none of his classmates or those in Class 1-B seemed to be taking being further away from the top three positions that hard! Sure, they shot Kacchan some dirty looks but otherwise they were talking amongst themselves and laughing.

None of them seemed to care.

"Maybe… maybe they're just focusing on doing better in the next event."

That made Izuku feel ashamed at his attitude. Here he was, moping about not winning the first event when there was a whole festival to look forward to? To do better at?!

"I need to get my head in the game!"

This was just something he had to learn from. It was a bitter reminder that he couldn't just rely on the raw might of his powers. Kacchan and the others had theirs for years and honed them as best as they could. Each one of them had the potential to beat him if they set their mind to it and were smart about it.

"And that's what I need to do. That's the only way I can truly win this thing!"

With that in mind, and the last of his classmates in their spots, he and Yaoyorozu ran to their positions and waited for their speaker to arrive.

"HAHAHAHA!"

All Might's laughter rang out, silencing everyone in the stadium. Izuku gaped and looked up, watching the human shape leap from the roof of the stadium before landing on top of the stage. The metal and wood creeped and groaned, but it held.

Izuku wondered briefly if there was some sort of shock-absorbing material underneath.

"Students…" All Might rose up, dramatically flourished his cape, and pointed out to them. "I AM HERE… To announce your second event!"

All those watching, save for the students themselves, erupted into cheers. Everyone was glad to see the Number One again. None of them could get enough of All Might. He just had a presence that made everything he said seem like some sort of amazing proclamation.

"So glad I didn't start cheering, too…" Izuku thought to himself. He bit his bottom lip and clenched his hands into fists. "But I want to so bad…!"

It was almost like a physical blow to his identity as an All Might fanboy!

"All of you have done extremely well during your race." All Might scanned Izuku and the other assembled students. "Each of you have displayed not just your physical abilities, but the skills of your Quirks and your drive! However, that will now be put to the test!"

All Might pointed up, and the spinning wheel graphic appeared once again. After a few seconds, it began to slow and then stopped on two words written out in kanji.

POLE TOPPLING

"This event will put your cooperation skills to the test as well!" The Number One Hero bellowed out, his perpetual grin growing even wider as they all stared at the event. Memories of middle school sports festival events flooded back into Izuku's mind and how he was always the weak link in his classroom's chain. "Teams shall be formed, but only one team shall have the burden of being associated with those on top!" He then pointed at the students. "And the one on top… is you, Katsuki Bakugou-kun!"

Everyone turned their heads, Izuku included, towards Kacchan. He said nothing and instead started right back at All Might who continued.

"To be above your peers, to be at the top, is a burden one must face both in U.A and as a Hero!" The Hero shouted. "And it is one you shall face, Bakugou-kun, as you will be targeted! For capturing your team's pole earns your competition ten million extra points!"

All Might didn't even explain the rules yet, or mentioned how this would differ from the ordinary pole toppling sport, but Izuku knew that to beat Kacchan meant that victory was assured.

"And if I get it, then that means I'll be able to make up for losing the race!"

Despite himself, despite how it wasn't in his nature, Izuku found himself glaring at Kacchan with a burning greed. He wanted it. He wanted it so bad he could almost taste it!

Kacchan, however, took one look around and grinned. "Heh. You think that'll scare me?" He lifted his right hand and brought his thumb up. "I'll crush you all, just like I did before!" He turned his thumbs up into a thumbs down and brought it low. "I wouldn't have it any other way! Hell, I wouldn't deserve to be the Number One if I was chickenshit about some competition!

Izuku couldn't help but be impressed by Kacchan's brashness. He really thought that he could win, despite everyone gunning for him? Before, it was just a race between equals. Everyone is just trying to beat everyone else. But now he's the focus of that drive to win. The opponent needs to put all their effort into beating…

...and Kacchan met it all with a cocky grin.

"Guess you'll never change, no matter what."

"Well, I wouldn't have put it like that, Bakugou-kun… But I appreciate your spirit!" All Might then gave Kacchan a thumbs-up and shouted, "Now, everyone, pick teams of five! Once that is done, I shall explain the rules to you!"

Everyone began gravitating towards their friends and classmates. Izuku just spotted Sero and was about to wave to him before he felt a hand grip his shoulder.

"Hey, Midoriya-san!"

He glanced at his shoulder and gasped as he saw a very female right hand not connected to anything on top of it. "W-What?! What in the…?!"

It tapped with its index finger before swiveling around and pointing back. Izuku followed the finger with his eyes and saw a girl he didn't recognize waving at him with an arm that had a stump where the hand should be. She had green hair and mischievous eyes. Her pointy teeth glittered in the sunlight as she walked up to him.

"Nice to meet ya!" The hand floated back to the girl and attached itself to the stump without any issue. "The name's Setsuna Tokage of Class 1-B. Got a sec to talk about teams?"

"ALRIGHT, BOYS AND GIRLS!" Present Mic's voice echoed through the stadium. "This little Pole Toppling exercise is going to be a bit different! We're splitting the entire grade into two sides with teams split into five! I know you were all expecting a free-for all, but that just won't fly!"

"Mostly because just allowing each team to be independent from each other with an exercise like this would be a headache." Aizawa put in his two cents.

"Right you are, Eraserhead! Now, onto the specifics…" Present Mic seemed to giggle evilly. "It's pretty simple! Each group will have an equal number of poles split between teams and those without. Each team needs to get their pole to the other side of the field, and the team that gets the most poles on the other side wins!"

Izuku kept one ear to the announcers, but all his attention was on the green-haired girl that had just walked up to her. The girl that without any warning just suddenly wanted to talk with him about teams. Teams. With him! He blinked at her. "Y-You mean… you want to be on a team with me?"

Tokage rolled her eyes. "Well, yeah! I mean, why else would I be here!"

"B-But wouldn't you be happier with members of your own class?"

"Well, if you listened to Monoma then sure. He's basically chomping at the bit for class solidarity against you guys." She sighed. "I mean, I get that Bakugou guy in your class is an ass but come on."

"S-Sorry…" He felt he was going to be doing that a lot for Kacchan during this festival.

"But it did get me thinkin'… You don't like how he beat you earlier, right? And I've seen how you move."

He let out a squeak when Tokage poked his abdomen.

"And those muscles aren't just for show! You've got a hell of a grab bag of powers with your Quirk!" She crossed her arms and gave him a toothy grin. "So, since you're the second or third strongest guy in our age group I figured it'd be a good idea to get on your team before anyone else claimed ya! Plus, we get to teach that Bakugou guy a lesson! What'd ya say?"

"You are not allowed to try and claim a pole from a member of your group." Aizawa added dryly, continuing with his instructions. "Doing so will incur a penalty of five minutes off the field."

"So if you wanna keep yourselves in the game, then play nice!"

"Figures." It made sense. Someone would've noticed how powerful his abilities were and would get on his team because of the almost guaranteed victory. People did that all the time to get ahead. "But at least she's honest about it."

"I-I guess that makes sense…" Izuku admitted with a frown. "But… do you think I'm going to be carrying this team?"

"Hell no! It's a group activity, after all!" Tokage's eye and part of the side of her face dislodged and floated up. "My Quirk will let us see which teams have poles and aren't experiencing any opposition by our group."

"So, it's like a reconnaissance Quirk!" He said in awe. "And you can control where they go?"

"Yup! But I can't do it for long." The girl grabbed the piece and reattached it back into her head. "Otherwise I'll get exhausted."

Izuku had to admit, it was impressive! And it came as a relief that Tokage wasn't expecting him to do all of the work. While he wanted to help others and would gladly put his all into this exercise, he also didn't want to be the one to carry an entire team.

"I wonder if thinking that makes me a bad person…"

"But that's not all." Izuku's teacher continued. "We will reward each team points based on their performance."

"And if you manage to get Bakugou-kun's pole…" Present Mic held for dramatic effect. "Your team is guaranteed to make it into the third round! No questions asked!"

Izuku turned his head to Kacchan, who was already talking with Ashido and Kirishima. The announcement didn't so much as phase him. In fact, that grin on his face grew even wider.

"Yeah, we're going to be avoiding his team."

He looked back at Tokage, who was frowning. "What? Why?"

"Think about it. Everyone is going to want to get at him. The moment his team isn't facing someone, it'll be a free-for-all to see who can get to him first. It'll be a mess, and the last thing we need is to distract ourselves from trying to secure a win."

Well, when she put it like that Izuku had to admit going after Kacchan would be pretty dumb.

She grinned. "Instead, we're going to be focusing on everyone else!" She slammed her fist into her hand. "Okay, so who are we going to pick first!?"

Before Izuku could suggest one of his friends, he heard a shout.

"MIDORIYA-KUN!"

He turned his head and blurted out, "Iida-san?!"

The tall bespectacled teen walked over to them, his face grim and serious. He looked down at Izuku, and before Izuku could wonder what was the guy's problem this time Iida gave a stiff and deep bow. "Please… allow me to participate as a member of your team!"

A second of silence went by. Finally, Izuku asked, "What?"

Iida didn't move. Instead, he simply said, "I have been acting rather unbecoming both as your classmate and as a member of the Iida family to you! I wish to make up for my behavior by using my abilities to secure victory in this exercise!"

"Heh. Inter-Class drama, huh?!" Tokage chuckled. "Monoma's gonna love this."

Izuku didn't know what to say. Iida was… apologizing to him? Here and now of all places?!

"Nobody's ever apologized to me before."

It was true that he and Iida didn't have a great first impression. But he sort of just chalked it up to the reality that he wouldn't get along with all his classmates. It was shocking to see Iida saying that what he did deserves an apology this big!

"And all my classmates in my old school… they never apologized or came even close to it. They just pretended that how they treated me before didn't happen."

What else could he do but accept it?!

"G-Get up, Iida-san! You don't need to bow!" Izuku looked around frantically. "Everyone's watching!"

"So will you accept me as a member of your team?!"

"Yes, yes! Fine! But you didn't need to bow and say all that stuff to get on it!"

To both of their relief, Iida stood tall and gave a satisfied smile. "I look forward to working with you both!"

"Great! So we've got our third member down." Tokage looked around the crowd of students. "I'm going to get someone from my class that can probably help. You can choose whoever. I think that makes this team pretty even, all things considered. But try to get someone with muscle." With that, the girl ran off shouting, "Oi! Pony! Are you still free?!"

"So, do you wish to pick someone out of your friend group?" Iida asked, and that caused Izuku to frown.

"I-I don't know…"

He saw Uraraka already talking with Asui and Jirou with both Yaoyorozu and Sero. They were already forming their own teams.

"Without me…"

But it made sense. They wanted to make their own marks as Heroes, to show that they could shine without him. It made sense, but it still hurt a little.

He clenched his fists. "That just means I have to think about my own path."

His eyes scanned the field before they narrowed in on a single figure.

A heavily muscled, silver-haired, and masked classmate of his.

Possibilities flooded into Izuku's head and he smiled. "Shoji-san!" He shouted, running to his classmate before anyone else could reach him. "Have you chosen a team yet?"

A tentacle of flesh erupted from the boy's shoulder and formed a mouth that said, "Not yet. Why? Do you have an opening?"

Izuku smiled.

The team was now assembled!

Katsuki tied the red headband around his head and grimaced. "I feel so fuckin' stupid with this thing."

But it was what was being used to differentiate his team and group from the other pack of losers on the opposite side of the field.

"Alright! It's about time!" Spiky Hair thrust his right arm in the air while his left kept hold of the heavy wooden pole, marked with the single English word 'WINNER' along its side, and weighed it on his left shoulder. "I'm so pumped for this!"

"Figures you are." Racoon Eyes groaned, both her hands on the pole and looking at it with dismayed eyes. She never had to use her arm and glute muscles for anything besides keeping in shape before this, probably. Katsuki could tell that the poke weighed about a hundred and fifty pounds, at least. "Why did you pick me for this again…?"

"Well, Bakugou seemed pretty sure that you'd be useful to the team." Big Lips replied, finally using his muscles for something useful today. Like Spiky Hair, he didn't seem to have much difficulty with sharing the weight. But he assured Katsuki that he had some sugary shit if the need arose. "And having him admit that says a lot!"

"Oh fuck off, Big Lips!" That was what he wanted to shout, but he would keep his mouth shut for now. He needed this team if he wanted to make it through this stupid exercise.

"Comrades brought together through necessity…" Bird Boy spouted, his shadow thing nowhere to be seen with his hands on the pole next to Racoon Eyes. "Truly, a worthy team for me to call my own."

"…How long did it take for you to come up with that one?" Racoon Eyes asked in a complete monotone. Bird Boy merely chuckled, but Katsuki could already tell the guy was embarrassed.

He let out a breath and looked across the field. He could see Deku talking to his team with one hand on top of the pole helping to keep it upright. Tentacles was next to him with his hand on it, but if Katsuki had to guess it was Deku doing most of the work.

"I don't know about those two Extras from the other class, but if I had to guess they're going to be doing the defense work with Tentacles watching the rear while Glasses takes point. Deku will be the main muscle and he'll be moving the pole."

His eyes looked toward his second biggest problem. Unfortunately, the bastard was a part of his group. Icy-Hot had with him Pink Cheeks, Frog, Dunce Face, and Rock Face. And from the way Icy-Hot kept shooting him looks, he wasn't a fan of the idea either.

Oh well. At least he'll be the one to keep Deku away.

Let the two duke it out. Katsuki didn't have time to deal with them right now.

"ALRIGHT STUDENTS!" Present Mic's voice echoed from the speakers. "ARE YOU READY?!"

A counter then appeared on the Jumbotron, and Katsuki looked at his team. "Alright. Remember! We're just going to get this stupid thing to the other side of the stage! Everyone is your enemy, so we've gotta just keep pounding them into the dirt until that happens! Got it?!"

"Right!" His team shouted back as one, and a grin found itself on his lips.

Yeah, that bullshit during the Hero versus Villain exercise taught him something important.

The first was that he needed to stop focusing on Deku. If it wasn't the objective, then he couldn't waste time on that shit.

The second was that no matter what, he's gotta help out his team if he found himself in one.

He couldn't be dragged down if teamwork was shitty, and he'd be damned if he was going to be the main cause for it.

"Things will go differently this time."

"OKAY!" Present Mic shouted in English as the three on the screen turned into two. "Then get set…!"

"I'll crush the competition… I'll fix that mistake that made me lose to Deku… and become the Number One!"

"GO!"

Big Lips grunted as he used his muscles to bring the pole up. But Katsuki didn't let go. Rather, he used the explosions coming from his hands to propel himself up with the pole before using his left foot to kick the pole down.

They couldn't waste a second with everyone gunning for them.

Speaking of which…

"Racoon Eyes! We've got extras heading towards us from the front! Eyes up!"

It was a group of extras from Class 1-B. They were being led by the silver-haired one that looked like Spiky Hair, and he was glad that Spiky-Hair died his otherwise he wouldn't be able to tell them apart.

"There's that jackass!" Spiky Hair Two shouted as he pointed at Katsuki. "Let's take him out and show him Class 1-B…!"

"Splash ahead of them!"

"Right!" Racoon Eyes flicked her arms forward and acid sprayed out. Spiky Hair Two shouted in alarm as he found the ground head of his basically mud.

In another time and place, he would've stopped and laughed at the loser.

Not today.

Instead, when his feet touched the ground, he helped Big Lips and the others bring up the pole.

"Bird Boy! Keep us covered with Ink Stain!"

"My name…!" Bird Boy summoned his Ink Stain and it grew from the accumulated shadows of their team plus the pole. It was why he asked Bird Boy to stay behind them. The guy had told him that his powers increased with the more shadow he had. "Is Tokoyami!"

"And I'm Dark Shadow!" The Ink Stain shouted as well as its arm shot out and smacked away the big hairy guy that was a part of this pack of Class 1-B extras. "It's not that hard to remember!"

"Ah, put a sock in it!" Katsuki shouted as he used his thrusters to get back to the top of the pillar. "Just stick to the plan! "

But as he tried to bring the pillar down with a well-timed kick, green vines wrapped around it.

"What the shit?!" He turned his head to the right and saw some girl with green vines coming out of her head. She was running in the opposite direction with the hairy guy pulling on them with her.

And to his shock and amazement, the damn thing was actually moving with them!

"Push harder!" Katsuki shouted down, only to see what was preventing that from happening.

Some fish-eyed bastard had run directly underneath the pillar and was breathing out, a semi-transparent wall of material stopping the piece of wood's descent in its tracks.

"Need to think fast!"

Thinking about his teammates, a plan did spring into mind.

"I can take out some sugar!" Big Lips suggested. "A mouthful should do the trick!"

"Screw that!" He pointed at the vines. "Let them take it for a bit!"

"What?!" But Big Lips complied and did as he said.

"Bird Boy, take out the extra making that wall!"

Fish Eyes soon found Ink Stain wrapped around him, and the bastard only had a second to scream before he was flung to the side like a piece of trash. As soon as the pillar was standing upright, Katsuki decided to start the second part of his plan.

"Racoon Eyes! Melt that shit!"

"Sorry!" She apologized as she squirted her acid from her hands and it splashed against Viny's vines. The material began to bubble and hiss before breaking apart one by one. "I hope this doesn't actually screw up your hair!"

"Spiky Hair…!"

"You don't have to tell me, dude!" He had to admit, Spiky Hair impressed him the most out of the group. He wasn't dumb all the time and knew what Katsuki had hin mind right away. He laid on his back against the transparent wall and put his knees to his chest as the pillar came down.

"Oh no you don't!" Spiky Hair's clone, who he decided to call Stupid Hair, was back on his feet and rushing towards Spiky Hair. He was leading with his left shoulder, his skin turning as smooth and reflective as actual steel, and he could tell that the guy was intending to just ram into Spiky Hair

Too bad he forgot about the fifth member of the team.

"Big Lips!"

A big, meaty hand grabbed onto Stupid Hair's shoulder. Big Lips, with a spoon full of sugar still stuck in his mouth, began to twist with the Class 1-Be extra while turning to his right. He was using the metal-skinned guy's momentum against him, and before Stupid Hair even realized it he was being thrown the opposite way he came.

Katsuki couldn't help but notice that Stupid Hair was being flung towards Deku, who was busy avoiding some inky black tendrils that a dark-skinned guy on an opposite team was likely the cause of. Deku inclined his head towards Stupid Hair and grabbed him, doing a couple of backflips before both landed safely on their feet onto the ground.

"Tch. Show off." Still, he kept himself focused on his own team and shouted, "PUSH!"

Spiky Hair let out a grunt of exertion as his feet came up and used both his thigh muscles and glutes to push. The speed at which the pillar came down was impressive, but Spiky Hair's push allowed for the top to tip over the wall and only barely missed the top of the redhead's head.

"WHOO!" Spiky Hair shouted, throwing both hands into the air and flashing peace signs on both. "I knew that stupid machine would pay off!"

"No time for rest!" Katsuki snaked his left arm around the new top of the pole and had his right hand face behind him. He put his all into the explosion he erupted from there, and the pole came tumbling down with him. "We've got five seconds before those other bastards try to get us!

Sure enough, there were two other teams rushing towards them. From the distance between where the closest one was and the finish line, it would take only a couple of seconds before they were intercepted.

Well, he had no intention of giving them that long.

"BIG LIPS! USE THE BAG!"

"Right!" The muscle of the team spat out his spook and began just wolfing down an entire bag of sugar. Despite picking up his slack by moving the pole, Katsuki and his team couldn't help but watch the guy in amazement.

"If he didn't have that Quirk he'd probably have diabetes or something."

But the last gulp was made and Big Lips dropped the bag to his side. A slightly crazed look came to his eyes and his muscles seemed to bulge more. "GRAAH!" Big Lips grabbed the middle of the pole, one arm on top of the left side while the right snaked under it. "RIKIDO MOVE STUPID STICK!"

The big man then began to spin the pole as if it were some overgrown stick. While his body kept moving to the side, the pole kept spinning faster and faster to the point it was practically a wheel.

Until…

"AND WE HAVE OUR FIRST WINNER!" Present Mic shouted from the speakers when one end of the pole touched on the other side of the field. "KATSUKI BAKUGOU'S TEAM NOW HAS A SECURE SPOT IN THE NEXT EXERCISE! SORRY KIDDOS!"

Cheers erupted from the stadium while curses came from the other extras. Katsuki didn't care though. Why would he? He'd…

"No. My team!"

…now had their places in the next exercise in the bag!

"Sweet!" Spiky Hair laughed as he ran up to Katsuki with his right hand up. "We made it, man! That whole thing was hella manly!"

Normally, he wouldn't even bother with this kind of thing. His victory was all that mattered. He didn't need anyone's help.

But what the hell? He actually couldn't have pulled this off without Spiky Hair.

So, reluctantly, he high-fives the stupid bastard.

Spiky Hair blinked in surprise before bursting out laughing. "HA! I knew you'd turn around!"

"Whatever."

He glanced over to Big Lips, who was now beating his chest like a gorilla to the onlookers' amusement. He was probably going to crash soon and feel completely embarrassed. Meanwhile, Spiky Hair was being hugged by Racoon Eyes while Bird Boy tried to act like he was too cool for celebrating.

As he and his team got off the field, he glanced behind him and watched as Deku and his team got a pillar on the opposite side's end.

"You better not lose this, Deku. I want that rematch."

"YES!" Mitsuki Bakugou shouted as she pumped her fist into the air. "Now that's what I'm talking about!"

"Phew!" Masaru wiped his brow as he laid back on the couch. "For a moment there, I was worried!"

She turned her head and grinned. "What the hell was there to be worried about, Masaru?! We both knew our kid would win this thing!"

He brought up his hands defensively. "I know, I know! But I still can't help but feel nervous! Things were getting a bit tense there for a second."

She let out a barking laugh at that. "Come on, Masaru! If Villains couldn't kick Katsuki's ass then I doubt his fellow students will!"

But saying that brought a pang of guilt into her heart. And why wouldn't it? "The only reason the Villains got into the school was because I helped them get in there."

God, she had wanted to kill Mysterio and the brat in equal measure for that. She had the chance…

"Then that bastard would've exposed me. Everything I done when I was young and stupid… all that I had to do to build this life. Masaru and Katsuki's reputations would be ruined because of me…"

All For One had her by the balls. There was no other way of looking at it.

Masaru's face grew dark for a second before sagging. "I… I know, Mitsuki. But after hearing what those Villains tried to do… what they were planning… and now actually seeing Katsuki fighting…"

She sat back down on the couch and put her arm around his shoulders. "Hey, come on. I know." Her husband turned his face to her and she smiled at him. "You're just being a father, dear. I would be lying if I said I wasn't worried about him."

Or terrified.

"But… he's going to be a Hero. The one thing he wanted to be even before he got his Quirk." She pointed at the screen. "And now he's showing us and the world that he's got the stuff. So try and focus on that, okay?" She grinned and flexed her other arm. "Besides, I taught him how to fight! And with my kickass genes in that kid he's going to be a great damn Hero!"

To her relief, Masaru began to smile again. "Well, when you say it like that…" He chuckled a bit. "I must've sounded so lame."

"Oh please." Mitsuki leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. "You care and you're sweet. That's why I fell in love with you in the first place." She got up and with a sway of her hips that she knew he saw she went to the kitchen. "I'm going to get us some more popcorn and get us some beers!"

"This early?!"

She let out a laugh. "It's the first time in forever that we got a day off, Masaru! And with the kid gone, we've got to live a little!"

As she hummed in the kitchen and placed the bag of popcorn in the microwave, she felt the phone in the left pocket of her cardigan begin to hum.

Her brow furrowed and her jaw clenched.

It was the work phone for her other job.

Without giving any verbal sign of displeasure, she reached in and flipped open the burner phone.

One message was written on it.

M: FIND OUT WHO THE SPIDER-MAN KID IS

Mitsuki Bakugou froze and to stop a gasp from escaping her throat, she put her hand over her mouth.

"Oh God… Oh God no!"

She had been shocked and surprised when Izuku Midoriya appeared on the television and began showing off his moves, nearly beating Katsuki in the race and declaring herself to be Spider-Man. She knew that Katsuki had been upset that 'Deku' wasn't a weak Quirkless boy anymore, and a part of her had been ashamed that she never noticed how their relationship had degraded. And she had first-hand experience with some of Izuku's powers when he helped to foil her attempt at killing that Spider-Man asshole.

But seeing those powers to their fullest extent… hearing that declaration…

"I know Mysterio is nuts. That he has it out with that Spider-Man guy… but he wants to find a kid that just called himself that?!"

But knowing who Mysterio is… what he had already done… what she had been the unwilling party to…

Thoughts of Izuku Midoriya, Katsuki's childhood friend and the kid who told her he wouldn't give up on her son, being tortured and killed filled her mind.

"He would do it. Oh God, he would do it!"

"Mitsuki?"

Her head snapped to the right and she saw Masaru's concerned look. "I-I'm fine!" She let out a laugh that she hoped didn't sound too desperate. "Just had a light head for a second! It's nothing!"

"Are you sure? Maybe you should lie down…"

"Nah! I just need to go to the bathroom real quick!" Without another word, Mitsuki rushed to the bathroom and closed it behind her.

"What can I do?! What the hell can I do?!"

Mitsuki's hands gripped the edge of the sink as she let in and out deep breaths. She needed to calm down and she needed to think.

"I can stall him. Say that I am looking and do jack shit. Hell, I can lead them to the wrong areas…"

But no. While most of Mysterio's crew may fall for that, some were smart like that Clash girl and the brat. They would figure out she's hiding something, maybe do some independent snooping…

"I have to keep an eye on Izuku-kun and his mom…"

His mom!

She took out her regular cell phone and went down the contact list until she found the name she was looking for. She pressed on it and brought the phone up to her ear.

After a few rings, the person on the other end picked up. The voice, sounding choked, let out a few sniffles before asking, "Hello?"

"Hi, Inko! It's Mitsuki! You know, Katsuki's mom?" She tried to sound as casual and lighthearted as possible. "How are ya?"

"M-Mitsuki-san?!" Inko Midoriya sounded shocked that she was even hearing her voice. "It has been a while! Are you… are you watching the sports festival?"

"You know it! Katsuki and little Izuku seem to be kicking all sorts of butt!" She forced a smile on her lips. "And seeing them side by side had me thinking… We haven't hung out in years! I was wondering if maybe you were free to hang out this week? Just a couple of girlfriends hanging out and talking about our kickass sons? Maybe even catch up a bit!"

"U-Um… This… this is pretty sudden, Mitsuki-san!" Inko sounded flustered and Mitsuki couldn't blame her. This was pretty short notice under normal circumstances. "But… But I might be free tomorrow or the day after… I have had a lot of spare time ever since I became a housewife."

"Ugh. I envy you! Lemme tell you that work sucks, but hey you gotta do what you gotta do! Anyways, I'll see you tomorrow for that date, okay?!"

"Wait, Mitsuki-san…!"

But she hung up, cutting off whatever last minute apprehensions Inko might have had.

"There. I'll just keep a close eye on them by hanging out with Inko. And Masaru will be fine with it! He was telling me that I should talk to my friends more often rather than just go out drinking with either him or my co-workers."

Everything would be fine. She would stop anything from happening before Izuku or Inko even noticed something was up. Mysterio would even be in deep shit, because there was no way in hell All For One sanctioned this.

Maybe she would even get the opportunity to kill the bastard.

With a sigh of relief, Mitsuki flushed the toilet and put her phone back in her pocket. She stared at her reflection and noticed that she looked a shade or two paler, but the color was returning.

Mitsuki Bakugou had this handled.

To be Continued…

Note: Now how was that for a chapter, betaed and signed off in record time by Saint Danielle?!

This chapter turned out to be a bit harder to put out than I thought. Five on five battles that give everyone something to do has a lot of juggling parts that make it difficult to write, so I decided to put out the first one in this chapter to give you all a little taste.

Anyways, I hope you all liked it and the character interactions, plus some character development for Bakugou!

Please be sure to leave a review and tell me what I did right or what I did wrong! There are no wrong answers here!