Idealism

| XVI |

I sat next to Ochaco and Iida, preparing for the first match of the second round. I watched as the two of our classmates stepped onto the playfield. The intensity in their eyes caught me off guard. Ochaco was nervous sitting next to me. I was too. Seeing this event for the first time with my very own eyes. 

As soon as Present Mic cued them to start, Todoroki sent walls of ice at Izuku, but Izuku used his flicker to flick at Todoroki, a mass amount of wind breaking through the ice completely. This pattern went on for a couple more rounds. I could see that Izuku was trying to strategize in his mind, but he was struggling.  

Moments later Kirishima enters the room. "It started?" Kirishima starts. Kaminari congratulated him on his success in getting to the second round of the battles. "Thanks. I'll be up against you next, Bakugo. Let's give it our all." Katsuki only glares. "I'll kill you." Kirishima laughs. "I'd like to see you try," Kirishima continues, "But man, both you and Todoroki both have super flashy Quirks that cover a lot of ground. It's like "Bam!"" 

"They can do it with no time lag too."

"I'm not just shooting them off. Don't underestimate em'."

"Huh?"

"If you overuse your muscles, the fibers start to tear. If you run too much, you run out of breath. Quirks are physical attributes, there will be limits to how much you use it."

"I guess that makes sense. So against Todoroki who acts quick, Midoriya wants to-"

"Have an endurance match."

They all look at me. I continue to look forward. As much as I want to believe in Izuku. This match will be a close one. The only thing that makes me lean towards Izuku, is that Todoroki refuses to use his fire. I continue to watch carefully. 

"What do you think about this match, (Last Name)?"

"I'm on the fence."

"What do you mean?" Kaminari asks. 

"Although, the obvious answer would be that Todoroki would win, there are a couple factors that make me think otherwise."

"Like what?" Tsu interjects. 

"For example, we all know that Todoroki won't use his fire. He refuses to purposely. For this reason, he isn't able to use his full ability. He's only using half of it."

"But he's still very strong without his fire, too." Iida tries. 

"That's where Izuku's recklessness comes in."

"What do you mean?"

"Knowing Izuku, his drive is very strong. Though his hands will be broken, he'd go to great lengths to win. Despite the pain, his adrenaline overpowers that. He thinks he'll just be healed by Recovery Girl. He's abusing that fact, but as any normal person would, if their bones keep breaking over and over again, the bones will weaken, and eventually be rendered useless."

"So you mean-"

At this point in the battle, Izuku has used up all his fingers and his arm. Todoroki attacks him once again, the frost covering up his right side. Another powerful burst of wind is thrown at Todoroki. Everyone is shocked at this. As was I the first time I saw this.

"He's an idiot. Both of them." I whisper.

Todoroki runs at Izuku, but his movements were very clearly slower. I could tell that this was nearing the limit of his ice usage. He was no longer using his ice to propel himself. With a jump at Izuku, Todoroki prepares to attack. But Izuku was quicker. He lands a solid hit on Todoroki. Todoroki gets launched to the other side. 

This battle goes on and on, ice, wind, ice wind. All at the cost of frost and a broken digit. What I never understood, is why he went to such lengths to injure himself greatly. I watch him carefully. I hear it clearly. 

"I to be able to smile and respond to them... To be a cool hero. THAT'S WHAT I WANT TO BE!"

I stand up in my seat suddenly, on impulse. I get goosebumps on my skin. I see it all. 

A little boy, cowering before Endeavor. "Stand up! If you're defeated by this, then forget about beating All Might. You can't even defeat small fry villains like this." The boy was on the floor, puking from what I assumed to be overworking. A woman rushes to the boy's side. "Please stop! He's only five!" The man grows angry. "He's already five! Get out of the way!" Endeavor slaps the woman, and she gets thrown away. "Mom!"

Another image. They were on a futon, and the woman with white hair holds Todoroki in her arms. He was crying. "I don't want to do this anymore! I don't want to become someone that bullies you! I don't want to become like Dad!"

"But you want to be a hero, don't you?"

There was a pause. 

"It's okay for you to be one. As long as you have a future that you feel strongly about."

Another. 

Todoroki watches as other kids, who I presumed were his siblings. Endeavor grabs him by the arm and drags him away from the happy scene. "Don't look at that, Shoto. They are from a different world than you."

A voice. 

"Mother...I'm going crazy, I can't take it anymore. That child is becoming more and more like him Shoto's left side... it has become unsightly to me. I can't raise him anymore. I feel like I shouldn't!"

"M-mom?"

The kettle on the stove emits a loud noise. The mother looks at Todoroki. A horrified look on her face. Then it happens. 

The next is of Todoroki standing in front of a wall, facing outward. His left eye covered with a bandage. "Good grief, at such an important time too." 

"Where's Mom?"

"Oh, she injured you, so I put her in a hospital."

"It's all your fault."

"Hmm?"

I could see the absolute hatred in his eyes. 

"You're the one that made Mom..."

"It's your power isn't it!?"

"Yes, that's right! Quirks are inherited from the parent, however, that connection is not the important one. It's recognizing that it is your blood, recognizing yourself.  That's what I mean to say. "I am here!" you see?"

"You don't have to become a prisoner of your blood. It's okay for you to become who you want to be."

Suddenly, flames fill the stadium. I collapse to the floor. "(Name)! Are you okay?!" Ochaco asks. I shake my head. "I'm fine, I just suddenly got a cramp in my leg." The flames were hot. The ice was coming. The wind building. So many things were going on at once. 

The chaotic scene was so beautiful to me. Seeing it with my own eyes. Understanding the meaning behind it all. I see it. 

'This was class 1-A.'