" Team Seijin and Shirogane, practical exam. Ready, go!"
As soon as the siren sounded, the doors of the whirlwind zone in USJ opened, leading in Yuu and Sora. The girl had to stop herself from flinching as memories from the villains' attack on them flooded her mind upon entering. She quickly shook her head, she needed to focus to pass, and dwelling on what happened in there weeks ago wouldn't help her do so.
The boy and the ghost before her swapped nods before the white creature left his usual place, vanishing into thin air. " Sora, let's find a good hideout for starter." The girl nodded as they fought against the wind to a narrow alley.
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"They're hiding?" Yaoyorozu questioned, an eyebrow raised in puzzlement. " If they do that, they'll run out of time."
" From another point of view, they don't know much about Vlad King, so it's the best choice to avoid battle." Asui had a finger to her jawbone.
Iida crossed his arms in front of his chest as he focused back on the screen. " Still, they need to get a move soon or..."
" Hold on." Midoriya tapped his chin in thought." Maybe that's a part of their plan..."
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Sora and Yuu found a well-concealed place behind a building. The raging wind around them didn't stop, but Yuu thought it was to their favor. It will cover for any small noise their opponent could pick. Though it was doing the same for them, compared to Vlad King, their hearing was ultra strong.
" Everything seems fine," Sora said as she confirmed the coast was clear. Her voice was very low in case Vlad was somewhere nearby.
" We have to wait for Whisper to come back," Yuu said, peering from behind the wall. " Be always on guard."
" Roger."
" There is no need to be very cautious." Whisper's face phased through the wall in between them. " I've confirmed it. He is around four blocks away from here. I've located the escape gate too."
" Well done Whisper!" Sora smiled at him.
Whisper flattered, rubbed his inexistent nose proudly. " Well, that was nothing for me. Follow me, soldiers! I will navigate you to safety!" He said wringing himself around Yuu's shoulders once again.
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" As I thought, Whisper left them to scout the area." Midoriya pointed.
" Huh?"
" Whisper can phase through things and become invisible. We've seen him do that quite a few times. If they wanted to find the safest route, their best choice was for Whisper to scout it for them." Midoriya murmured. " So Vlad-sensei wouldn't notice him. He could confirm the location of the escape gate easily and navigate them with little risk. The storm is working to their advantage, hiding the smallest noise or smell. And with Whisper's flexible body, he can keep watch for them-"
" Midoriya-kun... Midoriya-kun!" Midoriya didn't realize he was addressed until then, clapping his hands around his mouth and looking back at Iida. " Wouldn't you rather watch it?"
" Uh... Yeah..."
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" Easy, easy," Sora singsonged as they made it through another block without encountering their enemy. " If we continue it like this, it will be a piece of cake."
" Don't let your guard down." Yuu strained his ears, feeling uneasy. We're advancing steadily and we will be there soon. But what's it, this unnerving silence?
They rounded another corner, still no trace of the supposed villain. Normally, wouldn't he be searching for us desperately? After all, they're diligently trying to stop us. But there is nothing, nothing at all.
They stopped again, letting Whisper explore the path ahead. Why... Why...
" Why is it too calm..." Their eyes widened in fear. Their bodies froze in place. The voice that spoke belonged to neither of them, nor did it belong to Whisper.
Terrified as he was, Yuu whirled his head back and up at the buildings flanking them, eyes still wide. A bolt of lightning brightened at that moment, illuminating him. There, perched on the ledge, crouching and peering down at them was none other than Vlad King. " You were thinking so right."
Sora and Yuu took a step back as the hero hopped off the roof, landing unscathed in front of them. " Just to tell you, you were trying hard to conceal yourselves in between buildings that you forgot I could follow you from above." He cracked his neck, ready to fight.
" Guys the vicinity is clear-" When Whisper returned, his eyes fell upon the outlines of the teacher. " Forget about it." He groaned, promptly approaching Yuu. " How did he follow us?"
" From above." Said Yuu. " We were focusing too much on the surrounding area we completely forgot about it."
" I've been following you for a while you know. You should keep your guard." His tall bulky body towered above them. " Then, who is it gonna be then, the chibi or the scaredy cat?"
" Sora!"
" Roger!"
In a flash of blue fire, Yuu was riding on Kyubi's back while Sora had her wings stretched out. " Whisper! Lead her!"
" All right!"
The girl flew away, following the ghost. " Not that fast!"
" Fox Tail Inferno!" Vlad had to retreat when balls of flames were pelted at him. " Your opponent is me!" Said the fox.
" We won't let you go near Sora!" Yuu's eyes glowed as he poured from his energy into Kyubi...
...
" We will try to navigate through the buildings to hide ourselves." The purple head explained when they sat to discuss a plan. " Our area is the whirlwind zone, so that will be helpful to have a storm covering for us."
" No flying or jumping on the roofs?" Sora tilted her head. She knew Yuu and Kyubi preferred that way.
Yuu shook his head. " Remember what Aizawa-sensei said. They most likely expect us to do so. We will try to stay on the ground this time."
" Still Yuu, I doubt it will be easy. Your opponent is a pro hero. You won't slip under his nose that way." Whisper pointed, his arms folded.
" I know and that's when our plan B comes."
" Plan B?"
...
" Keep attacking! Kyubi! Don't let him go!"
Kyubi was throwing waves of fire one after the other continuously.
...
" If we're to be discovered. I will face off against him."
" Eh! Yuu?!" Both of them were surprised to hear him say that.
...
Sora and Whisper sailed above high buildings on their way to the escape gate. Hurry up! Hurry up! Dang it! The wind up here is too strong! She gritted her teeth as the rain droplets batted on her face.
...
" Sora is the fastest among us and can reach high altitudes, making it impossible for him to reach her. So she has to be the one who goes to ask for help. I will hold him back for her."
...
Vlad pursed his lips at the boy desperately attacking him. It's just as you said, Eraser.
" You're naïf!" He shouted, jumping over the next wave of flames and bouncing from one wall to another in the narrow alley till he reached the top.
" Impossible! Do you want to say he is faster than me even with Yuu's energy!" Kyubi couldn't believe he slipped past her.
He is after Sora! Yuu's eyes flicked back fretfully at the man rushing in the direction of the large white wings. " Kyubi!"
The white fox followed after him, doing the same trick to clamber up. Even though, she couldn't catch up with him even as Yuu gave her more energy. That's the speed of a pro. And with the weights!
" Sora! He's coming! Fly higher!" Warned the wraith upon glimpsing the figure of Vlad. Sora clicked her tongue as she tried to raise her altitude.
" It won't work!" He jumped as high as he could, closing half the distance between them. Lots of blood came gushing out of his gauntlet and aimed at the girl. It splashed on her back and wings. Before she knew it, she felt a force pulling her downward when the teacher swung his arm. He then jumped on her, speeding the fall up and knocking her forcefully on the paved street. She felt a sharp pain in her chest and heard a muffled crack as the man used his weight to pin her down.
Beneath her, the asphalt gave to the impact, fracturing. " You're the most troublesome one. I'm not letting you go chibi." Sora fought the pain in her side to reel her head at him, her eye twitching.
" Let go of her!" Whisper tried to attack, but what could he do against Vlad? His punches held no weight not even a hair had budged the slightest. This is... A pro... Sora though. Todoroki was right... Endeavor's beating through the training wasn't half of this...
" Fox Tail Inferno!"
Vlad let go of her as he was attacked by the fox's fire. But as soon as he turned around, they weren't there, nor even Sora.
" So he took her and ran," Vlad murmured. " Given their situation, they wouldn't be heading for the gate just yet." He rubbed the back of his head. " That girl, I heard an awful sound when I slammed her down. Maybe I overdid it." He looked at the cuffs on his arm. " Though... They're very heavy. It's hard to move around."
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Sora embarked in a fit of coughing before wiping the blood from her face. Her left hand clutched her right side tightly. Breathing alone was painful she felt her lungs burning.
" Whisper, keep watch over the vicinity."
" Roger." The ghost vanished as he floated away. Yuu's attention went back to his friend.
" Feeling better?"
" Ah... Who could have thought he was that strong," Sora said teetering to her feet.
" I'm sorry. If I could share energy with humans..." His tone was full of regret at his inability to help her out.
" Don't worry about it... More importantly..." She pivoted around as to show him her back. Yuu's eyes widened when he saw the red liquid had solidified around the wings, making it all but impossible to move them or even pull them back. " I won't be able to fly anymore. We're running out of time, we need a change of plan." She turned around so her red eyes were locked upon purple ones. " And I have the perfect one this time..."
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" Everything went silent," Yaoyorozu noted.
" They had to pull back after that attack. Most likely they're trying to come up with another plan," Midoriya commented.
Uraraka made noises of worry. " Sora-chan and Seijin-kun's time is almost out..."
" They have to hurry ribbit."
Iida's eyes widened when he glimpsed a movement on the screen. " They're attacking..."
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Like before, Vlad was trying to locate them from above, jumping from one roof to another and checking every alleyway beneath him. " Tsk, where did they go-"
His eyes widened upon feeling a movement behind him. As he looked back, he saw Sora launching at him. He tried to back, but he was late, she managed to nick his right jaw with her claws.
Both of them landed down in an alley, Sora with her narrowed pupils and feather-covered arms. Vald smirked as he wiped the blood leaking from the small scratch. " So you're facing me this time."
" So it's." Sora returned the smirk and leapt at him, brandishing her claws and trying to slash at the man. Vlad managed to dodge, though with difficulty.
Her speed matches mine. He wondered if he could not put a distance between them. He tried to grab her by the neck but she limply used his swung arm as a lever and tumbled behind him, delivering a strong kick to the knee joint.
Vlad winced and backed from her. While she regained her balance. This girl is strong and fast. Not bad.
Sora panted heavily. The pain in her side was getting worse and her vision became blurry. With her clipped wings which she couldn't move or pull back, her balance was awful. It was a matter of time before she was down, she knew that very well. Still. I will hold him back. For Yuu's sake... " I'll do my best too!"
She rushed at him, completely ignoring the feathers growing out of her jaw. " Because I'm a hero too!"