Chapter 20 : Mind Games and a Lightning Storm

After a brief intermission that felt far too short, we, the finalists, were called back to the field. The air was filled with an anticipation so thick it felt like static electricity. The one-on-one fighting tournament was about to begin. We stood before the main stage as Midnight announced the tournament bracket. My eyes quickly scanned the names, mapping out potential paths and possible opponents. My main focus, however, was on the opening fight.

"FIRST MATCH!" Present Mic screamed from the commentary booth, his voice making the entire stadium vibrate. "FROM THE HERO COURSE, A WARRIOR WITH A SPIRIT OF STEEL DESPITE HIS TEARS, IZUKU MIDORIYA! VERSUS, FROM THE GENERAL COURSE, A MAN WHO MADE A SURPRISING SHOWING IN THE PREVIOUS ROUND, HITOSHI SHINSO!"

I watched as the two contestants entered the arena. Midoriya looked incredibly tense, while Shinso walked with a casual, almost arrogant confidence. I recognized the danger immediately. This wasn't a battle of strength. It was a battle of wills. Shinso's brainwashing Quirk was a psychological weapon, and I knew from my memories that its trigger was a verbal response.

"Aizawa-sensei," I said quietly to myself, "you must be smiling behind those bandages of yours." This fight was the very definition of the underground hero style.

Sure enough, as the match began, Shinso didn't move. He began to taunt Midoriya, provoking him about Ojiro having withdrawn from the tournament. "He had some pride," Shinso said condescendingly. "Something you might not understand."

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" Midoriya roared, and in that instant, he froze. His eyes went blank, and his body became rigid. He had fallen into the trap.

Our entire class gasped in horror. "Midoriya!" Iida shouted. Beside me, Uraraka watched with wide, worried eyes. I remained silent, analyzing. 'Just as I thought. The trigger is his voice. Now he's under his complete control. How do you break free? A strong external stimulus? Or... an equally strong internal one?'

Shinso ordered Midoriya to turn around and walk out of the arena. And Midoriya, like a puppet, complied. He walked slowly, step by step, toward defeat. I could feel the desperation from my classmates. But just as Midoriya was about to reach the boundary line, something incredible happened. I saw it. For a split second, I felt a massive, ancient wave of energy erupt from within Midoriya. Around his fingers, a multi-colored light pulsed, and I swore I saw faint, shadowy silhouettes swirl around him, whispering in voices I couldn't hear.

With a violent jolt, Midoriya flicked his fingers, breaking two of them with a sickening snap. The small shockwave from the motion was enough to jolt him from his brainwashed state. He gasped, his eyes refocusing. He had broken free. I stared in awe. One For All wasn't just a simple strengthening Quirk. It was something more. Something alive. Midoriya, with his incredible willpower and the help of his predecessors, managed to turn the tables and quickly push the shocked Shinso out of the ring. He had won. Not with power, but with an unbreakable spirit.

The second match was the complete opposite. It was a brutal and swift display of absolute power. Shoto Todoroki versus Hanta Sero. Sero attempted a surprise attack, using his tape to ensnare and try to throw Todoroki out of the ring. But Todoroki didn't even flinch. With a cold expression on his face, he unleashed a gigantic wave of ice that not only froze Sero in place but also created a towering, glacial mountain of ice that reached nearly to the top of the stadium. It was immense, overwhelming, and utterly excessive.

"Don't move," Todoroki said coldly to the frozen Sero. "I'd rather not kill you."

The entire stadium fell silent, intimidated by such an overwhelming show of force. 'That wasn't a fight,' I thought to myself. 'That was a statement. A message to his father, Endeavor. He's showing the world how powerful he is using only his mother's power.' I knew that if I had to fight him, strategy alone would not be enough. I would need my dragon.

Several other fights passed quickly, and then, my name was called. "NEXT MATCH! IN THE RED CORNER, WITH A THUNDEROUS ELECTRIFICATION QUIRK, KAMINARI DENKI! AND IN THE BLUE CORNER, THE MAN OF MYSTERY, THE FIRST-RANKED STUDENT WHO RELIES ON BRAINS AND BRAWN, TATSUMI!"

I rose from my seat. As I walked toward the tunnel, Toru and Tokoyami stopped me. "Be careful of his sparks, Tatsumi-kun!" Toru said in a cheerfully anxious tone. "Don't let your hair get all frizzy!"

I smiled faintly. "I'll try my best."

"Remember his weakness," Tokoyami added with a short nod. "Don't play his game."

I nodded to him, appreciating the solid advice. As I passed through the hallway, I crossed paths with Momo. She looked at me, her analytical eyes seeming to scan my entire strategy. "Your plan is solid," she said quietly, just enough for me to hear. "Bait him, make him overuse his power, and exploit his weakness. Don't let him dictate the range of the fight."

I was surprised for a moment that she had thought about my fight in such detail. "Thanks, Yaoyorozu," I replied with a respectful nod. Knowing that a mind as brilliant as hers was on my side gave me an unexpected boost of confidence.

I stepped out into the bright arena. The roar of the crowd felt like a physical pressure. Across the concrete stage, Kaminari stood with a confident smile, sparks of electricity dancing between his fingers. He looked ready to end this quickly. I, on the other hand, calmed my breathing. The heat in my chest remained quiet. The dragon was still asleep. I was on my own for this one.

"ARE BOTH FIGHTERS READY?!" Present Mic yelled. "BEGIN!"

Kaminari wasted no time. "Take this!" he shouted, slamming his hands on the ground. A yellow wave of electricity spread across the concrete surface, shooting towards me. Just as I expected. I leaped high into the air, performing a clean somersault, and landed lightly several feet to the side.

"Is that all you've got, Kaminari?" I said, my voice intentionally calm and slightly mocking. "Attacking the floor? Your opponent is up here."

Kaminari's confident face tightened slightly with annoyance. "Shut up, you pretty boy! Try this then!" He fired several more directed arcs of lightning at me.

I began to move. I didn't run frantically. I moved with a calculated rhythm, using the agility and speed I had trained, making each of his shots miss by mere inches. I made it look like luck, when in reality, it was careful calculation. I was letting him feel like he was almost hitting me.

"You can't hit me if you can't aim," I said, dodging another blast. "Is your Quirk only good for charging phones?"

"SHUT UP!" he roared, his frustration now obvious. He started firing his electricity more wildly, his breathing becoming labored. He was draining his energy, just as I wanted.

"Is that really the extent of your power?" I continued, giving one final push. "I'm a little disappointed. I thought a hero course student would be stronger than this."

That was the trigger. Kaminari lost it. His eyes widened with rage, and his whole body began to crackle with unstable energy. "ALRIGHT! YOU ASKED FOR IT! YOU WANT TO SEE POWER, HUH?! I'LL GIVE YOU POWER! I'LL FRY YOU AND THIS WHOLE ARENA!"

He raised both hands to the sky, drawing all the ambient electricity to him. "INDISCRIMINATE SHOCK... 1.3 MILLION VOLTS!"

A massive, blinding dome of electricity exploded from his body, shooting out in every direction. The crowd screamed in surprise. The entire arena was enveloped in a raging thunderstorm. I stood in the middle of it all, unmoving. I didn't need to move. Because just before he unleashed his attack, I had done the one thing I had planned from the start. I had tossed a small, shiny object into the air, directly above my head. A small ceramic insulator that Momo had made for me days ago, after we had discussed potential opponents. It now acted as a makeshift lightning rod, drawing the vast majority of the electrical charge up and away from me.

I still felt a massive jolt run through me as the residual electricity hit, enough to knock a normal person out cold. But thanks to my physical conditioning, I managed to endure it, albeit through gritted teeth. As the dome of electricity subsided, I was still standing, though slightly smoking and trembling.

Across from me, Kaminari stood frozen, a dopey grin on his face, both thumbs pointing up. "Wheyyy..." he mumbled. He had short-circuited.

I calmly walked over to him and gently pushed his shoulder. He fell backward with a soft 'thud', out cold.

I turned to Midnight. "The opponent is unable to continue."

The stunned silence in the stadium broke into confused but enthusiastic cheers. Midnight cracked her whip. "The winner... is Tatsumi!"

I walked out of the arena, ignoring the shocked stares of my classmates. I had won my first fight. Not with the power of a dragon, but with mind games, a little preparation, and the help of a brilliant friend. But as I walked down the tunnel, I knew the next fight wouldn't be this easy. I glanced at the tournament bracket. My next opponent was the winner of... Todoroki and Sero. I knew exactly who was going to win. And I knew, against that monster of ice, I wouldn't be able to win with just tricks.