One By Millions

chapter 37

"Ladies and gentlemen, it is finally up to the last round. We have five finalist and because of the uneven number we have something special planned today" pure mischief. That's what Shino could detect in Midnight's voice.

Five of them remained. Izuku. Katsuki. Sora. Shoto and Shino herself. An interesting group if you asked her. A lot had happened up until that moment. The fights went in until they were the last standing. Shino was faced with Tokoyami and came out the victor. After that she just relaxed and watched everything unfold. She occupied herself with a conversation involving Momo. They weren't discussing anything special. Just idle chats.

And now she was standing in the familiar arena along with her five fellow finalist. She could already see where this is going. Midnight didn't even need to finish her commentary. Shino could tell by the different looks on everyone's faces that they had the same idea as her.

"We'll be having a small battle royal. The last one standing in the arena is the victor"

Yup. Exactly as she thought. A battle royal. A promising start. Will teams be formed? If so how many? Who would team up with who?

Shino didn't know that yet, not completely. What she did know was that she would be the target of all four boys.

She chuckled, seemingly embarrassed or bashful at the realization. Shino is never embarrassed. Bashfulness is well something she experiences however. But it was neither of those. Her chuckle was pure amusement.

She was in trouble.

The match officially started and the first one coming at her was none other that Katsuki himself. Shino easily side stepped him, gripping his arm and pushing him past her. Next up was Izuku from the sky. A quickly roll and she avoided a boot to the face. Sora came reeling from her left sending a psionic wave towards her, effectively pushing her back a few feet. And to top it all off Ice soon covered half her body.

"Four against one is hardly fair" Shino said casually even as the four started approaching her.

"It is when you're practically unbeatable " Sora quipped.

"I don't think I'm that impressive" Shino rolled her eyes as she freed her arm from the rapidly melting ice. She flexed her wrist testing her spinnerets. Fully functioning and full.

"You never do. You're too modest"

Air flew past Shino's cheek as she merely tilted her head away from Sora's attack. She kicked free from the ice holding her captive and wielded a pretty impressive icicle . A bit blunt but sharp enough to cause minor damage. She twisted it in her hand experimentally. A grin spread across her face as she moved forward at a rapid pace. She just loved the excitement of battle.

Hey if she was unlucky enough she could have been a saiyan.

Her first target was Izuku. Shino's movements were graceful and easy. She practiced for years and developed her own style over time. She moved purely on muscle memory. She didn't need to think about her movements. Her mind wasn't inactive however. She was working up multiple strategies. What could work what would fail. How to use everyone's weaknesses against them. Break the teamwork they had formed on the spot.

With an amazing show of athletics Shino dodged a flaming attack from Izuku. Countered another from Shoto. Completely shut Katsuki down and threw him into Sora's winding psionic force.

The piece of ice she wielded was discarded. She stood a few paces away from the boys. She was bouncing from one foot to another. The thrill she was feeling at the moment sent adrenaline pumping through her.

"I'm starting to think that four against one is pretty fair after all"

Shiro smiled proudly as he watched his daughter dance circles around the boys. She was something else. She wasn't even using her webs. She depended solely on her natural abilities. He noted the excitement she was letting out. He chuckled. She always got excited during a good fight. Must be something she inherited from him. Nico was always calm. Something that was passed onto Shino as well. Shiro knew his daughter would win this match. She would stand proud with the golden medal, having conquered the entire event. He could already see the impossibly long list of internships lined up for her. He would be one of them. As would his wife. It was up to Shino to decide who to intern with.