The matchups were decided by drawing lots. As every finalist drew a number, I took note of everyone who had managed to make it to the last round.
Excluding myself, there was Katsuki whose quirk allowed him to create explosions. His only weakness was that he was quick to anger. Todoroki, his quirk was ice and fire. But he could only create ice or fire from their respective sides of his body. He hadn't used his fire in any situation to date, a fact which I could exploit. Next was Tokoyami, who had a sentient dark shadow residing in his body. Since it was a shadow, light was the only possible weakness I could think of.
Looking to my left, I saw Kendo as she waved to me. I nodded and smiled in response. Her quirk was 'Big fist'. So, a close combat type fighter. Iida with his quirk engine, using it for too long he could overheat the exhausts. So a battle of attrition was a probable choice. Uraraka had the quirk Zero Gravity. 'Maintain distance and do not let her touch me.'
Ashido, her quirk was acid. A potentially dangerous quirk. She was among the more physically fit in my class. But I could defeat her with speed. Kaminari, just make him short circuit himself or defeat him by overpowering his will. Although, I didn't want to use that aspect of my quirk too many times. It was a kind of a trump card of mine.
Yaoyorozu, I have been observing her throughout the sports festival. One thing I had noticed was that she was a little insecure and doubted herself a lot. Quick action and not to let her think was the way to defeat her. Kirishima, I could only duke it out with him and tire him to defeat.
Then there were the other students from class 1-B. I was pretty pissed off at two of them, both boys who I wanted to face and beat the shit out of. The girl with thorny vines as hair seemed way too pure to show any kind of resentment. Another girl had goggles resting on her head. She was a support student.
Last but not least was the dude who made his so-called declaration of war a week ago. I couldn't discern what his quirk was. It had to be something effective if he made it to the third event.
As I drew my lot, I was paired up with the student from general ed.
The way he looked at me put me on the edge. What was the guy's problem?
My classmates wished me luck as I made my way to the fighting stage and Present Mic introduced us... after his signature 'YEAAHHH'.
"The first match!! Dominating the sports festival with his speed and his overpowering abilities, it's Midoriya Izuku from hero course!!"
"Versus..."
"Sorry but this guy hasn't done anything to stand out yet! But he survived the battle royale so he must be good! It's Shinso Hitoshi, from general course!!"
"The rules are simple! Win by knocking you opponent out of the ring, immobilizing them or getting them to say 'I give up'! Bring the pain! We've got good old Recovery Girl on standby!"
I don't know if I was hallucinating, but I definitely heard a 'Who's old?! Old your mother!'
Present Mic just ignored it and continued, "And fight dirty if you must! 'Ethics' have no meaning here!! Well, of course, going for the kill is a no-no, you'll be disqualified! Because a true hero's fists fly only when facing villains!!"
"Now let's get this thing started!! START!!!"
Shinso began just as Present Mic ended explaining the rules, "'I give up', huh? Get it, Midoriya Izuku? This battle's going to test the strength of your will. If you've got any kind of vision for your future, there's no sense in worrying about how you got there. Like that gorilla-hands wench who took advantage of you to win the cavalry battle without even trying."
I don't know what happened inside my brain, but something snapped as I lashed out, "What the fuck did you say?!"
In the very next moment, I sensed someone invading my mind and trying to overpower my will.
I stood frozen in my place... I couldn't believe it...
"It's... my win," Shinso said.
As Present Mic was praising Shinso and Aizawa-sensei explained the irrationality of the entrance exam, Shinso continued, "It must be nice to have everything handed to you, Midoriya Izuku. Now turn around, and walk out of the ring."
I did as I was told, only to stop right at the edge of the ring. With a mighty roar, I released my will and shattered the concrete below me.
I was way too shocked to even get angry at Shinso.
His will...
Was pathetically weak!
How could someone have such a weak will? I took pity on him and decided to play along. His quirk was strong and could really be a boon during perilous situations. He deserved a chance, even though I disliked him for his bratty attitude.
Using some of my conqueror's will, I spoke loudly for the whole stadium to hear, "You're quirk is strong! What the heck are you doing in general course? Ah, I get it. The entrance exam was really irrational for people like you whose quirks don't offer physical enhancement. But you could have trained your body to perform better. My friend Hagakure Tooru's quirk is invisibility. She still managed to get into hero course. Perhaps after this sports festival, you would learn what you are lacking."
Saying so, I even helped Hagakure get some recognition. The girl deserved it as her quirk makes her pretty unnoticeable.
In the very next moment, I dashed towards him and before he could even react, I smacked his face hard. So hard that he was sent spinning into the air and out of the ring. The sound of the slap echoed throughout the stadium. I hoped I broke some of his teeth.
Even though I did want to help him, it didn't mean I couldn't take some of my frustration out. Yeah, I was petty that way, still am.
He looked at me in shock as Present Mic announced my win.
I walked towards him and spoke in an intimidating voice, "Testing the strength of my will? My will is pretty strong. But yours, is weak, pathetically so. Train hard, Shinso. You have it in you to be a hero. You have an amazing quirk. Perhaps you should also work on your attitude. I'm not sorry for breaking some of your teeth. Your attitude needed some adjustment. You resent everyone who has a powerful quirk because you couldn't make it in the hero course. You don't need to be an ass to show your conviction. Hope I'll see you in one of the hero training sessions."
After that, I walked away as the crowd cheered for my win. Sports Festival was just a show. I'll give them a show to remember.