Chapter 227 : Echoes on the Chessboard

The silence that followed the announcement of Team Bravo's victory was absolute. Inside the ruined control room, amidst the plumes of dust and the howling wind, time seemed to stop. The attackers—Todoroki, Bakugo, and Mine—could only stare in shock, not at Tatsumi, but at Seiji Shishikura who now stood tall holding the objective flag, his haughty expression now colored with undeniable satisfaction.

They hadn't just been defeated. They had been deceived, manipulated, and executed with the cold precision of a chess grandmaster. All of their heroic battles, the massive explosions, the giant ice walls, and the ground-shaking energy shots—all of it was just a diversion, a magnificent puppet show while the puppet master worked in silence to achieve the real goal.

Momo was the first to break the silence. She didn't feel angry. She felt a wave of incredible intellectual admiration, so strong it made her tremble slightly. She replayed the entire battle in her mind, but this time with a new, clear understanding. Every one of Tatsumi's moves now seemed so obvious. His guerrilla attacks that divided her forces. His perfect use of Inasa as a diversionary storm. And most brilliantly, the sacrifice of himself as the ultimate bait. He had made himself, his strongest asset, the most enticing target, knowing full well that the egos and power of Team Alpha's best fighters couldn't resist the temptation to fight him directly.

Bakugo, on the other hand, felt a different kind of anger. This was no longer the hot roar of a rival defeated in a contest of strength. This was the cold, simmering rage of someone who realized he had been a stupid pawn in someone else's game. Every explosion he had unleashed, every war cry he had shouted, had been anticipated and used by Tatsumi to his advantage. He hadn't been defeated; he had been used. And for Katsuki Bakugo, there was no greater insult. He looked at Tatsumi, who was now retracting his armor, with a new and dangerous gaze, a promise of future retribution.

Todoroki could only let out a soft sigh, cold vapor escaping his mouth. He had fought well. Momo had planned well. But they had been up against a commander who was thinking on a completely different level. He looked at Tatsumi, and for the first time, he saw him not just as a strong classmate, but as a strategist who was his equal, or perhaps even surpassed, himself and Yaoyorozu.

In the middle of it all, Tatsumi stepped forward through the broken glass, ignoring the sharp glares from Bakugo and Mine. He stopped in front of Momo and, in the awkward silence, held out his hand. "You fought very well, Commander," he said, his voice sincere and full of respect. "Your defense was almost perfect."

Momo looked at his outstretched hand, then into Tatsumi's tired yet clear green eyes. She accepted the handshake, feeling a warmth that contrasted with the cold defeat she had just experienced. "Your strategy... was incredible, Tatsumi-san," she replied, her voice trembling slightly.

In the Observation Room

The debriefing session this time felt like a military strategy lecture. Aizawa stood in front of the main screen, which now displayed the battle footage from various angles with layers of arrows and tactical diagrams. His usually bored face now showed a faint, barely visible smile, a sign of the highest satisfaction from a logical teacher like him.

"Let's dissect today's lesson," he said, his flat voice grabbing every student's attention. "Team Alpha, you had greater power, stronger defenses, and a superior position. On paper, you should have won. But you lost. Why?"

He replayed the footage of Tatsumi's first guerrilla attack. "Because your commander focused on the objective, while the opposing commander focused on you."

He continued, dissecting each step of Tatsumi's strategy with a surgeon's precision. "Step one: cutting off information and mobility paths. Tatsumi knew Uraraka and Asui were your best reconnaissance and support team. By disabling them first, he not only reduced your numbers, but he also blinded your eyes in the western sector, creating an opening for his next attack."

Then he showed the battles between Inasa against Bakugo and Mine. "Step two: locking down your 'queens' and 'rooks'. He never intended to defeat Bakugo or Mine. That would have been a waste of time and resources. Instead, he gave them the target they wanted most: a big, noisy fight. He used their aggressive natures against them, locking your two strongest fighters in an indecisive battle far from the main objective."

Finally, he showed the final assault on the tower. "And this was the most brilliant final step: the sacrifice of the 'king'. Tatsumi made himself the bait. He knew that the chance to defeat the opposing commander directly was something you couldn't resist. He deliberately drew Todoroki, Bakugo, and Mine—three of your four strongest members—to a single point on the chessboard."

The screen now showed footage from a hidden camera near the tower, where Seiji Shishikura casually walked out of a drainpipe, disabled a few final traps, and captured the objective flag while everyone was busy upstairs.

"While you were all busy trying to checkmate his king," Aizawa concluded, "his most unexpected pawn had walked across the chessboard and captured your throne. This was a lesson in diversion, in tactical sacrifice, and in understanding the psychology of your opponent. An excellent lesson."

The entire room, both U.A. and Shiketsu students, was silent, completely mesmerized by the strategic genius they had just witnessed. Inasa Yoarashi, who had been skeptical, now looked at Tatsumi with overflowing admiration. "TATSUMI-DONO!" he shouted, breaking the silence. "YOUR STRATEGY WAS HOTTER THAN FIRE AND STRONGER THAN A STORM! IT WAS AN HONOR TO FIGHT UNDER YOUR COMMAND!"

Impact and a New Alliance

After the long debriefing session, the students were finally dismissed. The atmosphere had completely changed. There was no longer any hostility between U..A. and Shiketsu; there was only a newfound respect. The Shiketsu students crowded around Tatsumi, congratulating him and asking tactical questions.

In the midst of the crowd, Momo managed to get close to Tatsumi. "I... I'm still trying to process it all," she said, a small, sincere smile on her face. "You took our personalities into account, not just our Quirks. That was... brilliant. And a little scary."

Tatsumi felt a pang of guilt. He had used his knowledge of his friends to defeat them. "I'm sorry if I was too... ruthless," he said. "I just used all the information I had to achieve victory."

"Never apologize for being a better strategist," Momo replied firmly, her eyes shining with a new spirit. "You didn't embarrass me. You taught me a very valuable lesson. I was too focused on a theoretically perfect defense that I didn't see the psychological attack coming from a completely different angle." She looked at him with a gaze full of appreciation. "I... I have much to learn from you."

That moment of intellectual connection and deep respect felt more real and more powerful than any victory.

Elsewhere, in the now-empty training facility, two figures were letting out their frustration. Bakugo was blowing up training mannequins one by one, while Mine, at the firing range, was vaporizing steel targets with precise energy shots.

They trained in silence for several minutes, before Bakugo finally broke it. "He played all of us," he growled, without looking at Mine.

"He'll pay for it," Mine replied, her voice as cold as ice.

Bakugo stopped and glanced at her. "That shot of yours... it's powerful. But slow."

Mine stopped firing and looked back at him. "And those explosions of yours... they're powerful. But brainless."

A tense silence. Then, for the first time, a small, fierce smirk appeared on Bakugo's face. "Teach me how to focus my explosions into a faster beam."

Mine was surprised for a moment, then she smirked back. "Alright. As long as you teach me how to make my attacks... more explosive."

The strangest and most dangerous alliance had been born, united by a shared shame and a shared hatred for the young man who had defeated them both.

Tatsumi, who saw their interaction from his dorm window, could only sigh. This Joint Training was supposed to be a break for him. Instead, it had turned him into the primary target for the most explosive fighters of his generation. The echo of his hero soul felt the challenge, his analytical mind saw the future tactical complexities, and his dragon instinct felt the thrill of the coming hunt.

Good, he thought with a faint smile. This will keep me sharp.