Chapter 263: Damn It, Deku! Hold On!

"What do I do… what do I do? What can I do now? How do I break free from Aizawa sensei's hold…?"

Midoriya struggled desperately, his thoughts racing. His hands, though weak, grasped at the wrist that was choking him, his face turning red from lack of air.

He was furious—furious at his own powerlessness, at his inability to fight back, and most of all, at the fact that Bakugo was still missing.

"Well? Ready to admit defeat?"

Aizawa peered at him with narrowed eyes, his voice calm and quiet. He loosened his grip slightly, allowing Midoriya to breathe easier. But as soon as those words reached his ears, Midoriya's pupils shrank in shock.

"Admit defeat?"

"Yeah… I don't have any way to break free. Kacchan still hasn't shown up, which means he must have been taken down too…"

"That means we lost. There's no other possibility. The only thing I can do is surrender…"

His mind raced, analyzing every scenario in rapid succession. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't think of a way out.

By all logic, this exam was a failure. But even so… he just couldn't say those words. He couldn't accept losing, not just because of his own pride, but because it would mean throwing away all of Bakugo's efforts.

"Kacchan… what do I do? What am I supposed to do now…?"

---

In the monitoring room, the students watching the exam each had their own reactions.

Recovery Girl sat in front of the screens with her usual gentle smile. Kyoka and Koji Koda, on the other hand, were both silent, their brows furrowed.

As for Uraraka, she looked completely torn. Her short brown eyebrows were scrunched together tightly, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. Her hands anxiously clenched at her chest, twisting her fingers together.

She wanted nothing more than for Midoriya to just surrender and stop suffering… but at the same time, she prayed for a miracle, anything that would let him win.

---

"So that's it…"

Aizawa let out a quiet sigh, slightly disappointed. He had waited long enough, but the expected interruption never came. That silence was enough to tell him everything.

Even though he wanted to see Midoriya and Bakugo succeed, he couldn't just let them win out of sympathy. As their teacher, it was his responsibility to judge them fairly.

"Then… I declare that Midoriya and Bakugo's team has—"

BOOM!

Just as the final word left his mouth, a massive explosion erupted from behind him. A scorching heatwave blasted through the air, ruffling his hair and Midoriya's.

Then—

A voice, loud and defiant, rang out.

"You're calling me a failure?! Keep dreaming, Teach!"

Midoriya's eyes widened in shock. Then, seizing the moment, he gritted his teeth and twisted his right wrist against Aizawa's grip.

Instinctively, Aizawa turned his head toward the source of the explosion, ready to erase Bakugo's Quirk again.

Midoriya was still bound tightly in his capture weapon, he wouldn't be able to land a punch even if his Quirk was restored. That meant Aizawa didn't need to worry about him.

"What—?!"

"Take a good look, Teach! Flashbang!"

The moment Aizawa laid eyes on Bakugo, a blinding burst of white light exploded from the latter's palms.

Even though Aizawa successfully erased Bakugo's Quirk for a split second, the light had already done its job, it struck his eyes directly, leaving him momentarily blinded.

But Aizawa wasn't the only one affected.

Because Midoriya had also been facing Bakugo at that moment and of course, Bakugo hadn't given him any warning to close his eyes, he was now suffering just as much from the sudden blinding effect.

With Aizawa temporarily unable to see, his Quirk naturally deactivated.

Which meant Bakugo's Quirk was back.

And he wasted no time taking advantage of it.

"You're done for!!"

Even while blinded, Aizawa instinctively tried to retreat but Bakugo was already on him.

A savage grin spread across Bakugo's face as he clamped his left hand around Aizawa's right arm. Then, his right palm pressed directly against the man's abdomen.

BOOM!

A deafening explosion erupted between them. Flames and smoke billowed through the air as Aizawa's body jerked from the impact.

A wave of searing heat flooded his senses, and for a moment, his mind blanked out. It felt like his stomach had just been punched by a molten fist.

"This kid… he's really holding a grudge, huh?"

Aizawa recalled how he had struck Bakugo in the abdomen earlier. And now, Bakugo had returned the favor same spot, same intensity.

His vision was still a blurry mess, but even as his eyesight started to recover, the pain kept his body paralyzed for a full three seconds.

And those three seconds?

That was all Bakugo needed.

SNAP!

The sound of handcuffs clicking into place echoed through the training ground.

---

Silence.

In the monitoring room, everyone sat frozen, staring at the screen.

At that moment, it was as if time itself had stopped.

And on the screen—Bakugo Katsuki stood victorious, wearing that familiar smug, almost villainous smirk.

"So… so cool…" Uraraka murmured under her breath, breaking the silence.

Her quiet words seemed to snap the others out of their daze.

"What an amazing young man," Recovery Girl finally spoke, her eyes showing a rare flicker of surprise.

Koda, though speechless, nodded rapidly in agreement. His eyes burned with admiration, how he wished he could be that brave, that fearless.

After all, he had entered U.A. High School with the dream of becoming a Hero!

Curiously, Jiro was the calmest among them. She was definitely impressed by Bakugo's performance, but she wasn't awestruck like the others.

Because in her mind, no matter how strong Bakugo was, he still didn't compare to her boyfriend, Kaminari Denki.

---

Back on the battlefield, Bakugo stood tall, exuding his usual arrogance.

But deep down, he knew, he had barely pulled this off.

After Aizawa knocked him down earlier, it had taken him a while to get back up. Longer than Aizawa probably expected.

Not because Aizawa had miscalculated the strength of his hit.

But because he had underestimated Bakugo's sheer stubbornness.

Even as he clutched his stomach and dry-heaved from the pain, Bakugo had refused to stay down.

Step by step, he had forced himself to move forward. His entire body had been wracked with agony, his expression twisted from the sheer effort of pushing through it.

But he endured.

And once the pain dulled enough for him to use his Quirk again, he hadn't rushed straight in.

If he had used his explosions to fly, he would have reached Midoriya faster but the sound would have given him away instantly.

So despite his impatience, he had suppressed his impulses and taken the longer route, running in from the side.

Why?

Because he was worried.

Worried that that idiot Deku would lose or give up before he got there.

So the whole time, as he ran, one thought kept repeating in his mind.

"Deku! Just hold on!"

***

For every 200 PS = 1 extra chapter. Support me on patreon to read 50+ advanced chapters: patreon.com/Blownleaves.