After Kirishima's defeat at the hands of the local explosion enthusiast, everyone was glued to the screens soon after. After the short break dedicated to the usual maintenance, the semifinals were about to transpire. Nobody appeared surprised that the trio of high-scorers: Fenton, Todoroki and Bakugo, made it this far. Iida was not exactly the centrepiece of attention, aside from the initial humiliation he sustained at the hands of Hatsume. But he had performed outstandingly against Yanagi, and was now this high up. That, and the heroic heritage of his family, which was a new piece of information for Danny, did garner him points. And he would be the first combatant of that round, alongside the wielder of fire and ice.

And while the halfa could feel the intense hatred practically radiating in waves from one particular blonde, he promptly chose to ignore him. Danny had anticipated that matchup in one way or another, so he already had a semblance of a plan. Sitting at the last moment and making last-second changes was not going to alter the result in any way. Was Phantom underestimating him? Well, he never doubted the power and a high degree of planning. And Bakugo was not stupid, he too knew exactly how the halfa always chose to play. To invoke anger and irrationality when it could make all the difference. Bakugo was yet to convince Danny that a proper fit of anger was not going to throw all that out of the window.

"What's your forecast, oh mighty class rep?" Mina asked dramatically.

Danny hummed. "Well, dear friend," he played along with dramatics. "Iida meets his worst match to date. Todoroki can just freeze the whole ground and strip all mobility. Unless Iida dares it, of course. Still, my money is on Scarface."

"Why not freeze him instead?"

"For that Todoroki-san will actually have to aim," commented Midoriya. "But Iida-san is too quick."

Danny clicked his tongue. "Pretty much. If Iida manages to avoid ground as much as possible, it will be a more even field."

"But he uses fire now, too, doesn't he, kero?" Asked Tsu.

"I...I don't know if he will do it again," Midoriya admitted. "There's a reason he doesn't use it much."

Danny raised an eyebrow. "And that reason is physical or mental?"

"The latter," the green-haired hero trainee did not wish to divulge anything private.

Phantom would have argued that it was pointless to run from your own power, but Todoroki was not there. And it would be hypocritical of him to say so, because Danny could throw electricity, too. And there was a reason he did not do that often. But for Danny it was one power out of many. In Shoto's case, it was the denial of an entire half of his being. Perhaps a more fitting analogy would be for Fenton to loathe his ghost part in its entirety. Danny looked at Midoriya, who had taken heavy damage while trying to break that shell of the usually reclusive classmate. It was rather selfless of him, reckless, as their homeroom teacher was undoubtedly thinking. But Danny could respect that effort. And perhaps, albeit inadvertently, help him with that in case Todoroki triumphed then.

The forecast turned out to be accurate enough. Todoroki indeed attacked first. Without delay, he launched a line of ice that blocked the way to his right. Iida quickly reacted and ran another way, utilising his engines. His opponent, however, swiftly blocked that way as well, trapping the bespectacled teen. Todoroki then attempted to capitalize with another freezing attack, but this time Iida avoided the strike with a standing long jump. While in mid-air, Iida activated his brand-new Recipro Burst technique once more.

It came as a no surprise for Todoroki, as he actually managed to duck the initial kick. However, Iida quickly lands and immediately follows up with a second powerful kick that slammed Shoto into the ground. It was a major surprise to the audience, and certainly an exciting one. Without hesitation Iida followed this up by leaping over the downed opponent and grabbing the back of his shirt before sprinting towards the edge of the arena. Believing the remaining time of his engines, that spurned out the powerful flames, will be sufficient, he nonetheless understood how helpless he would be after such a daring act.

When, all of a sudden, the engine stopped prematurely, and the teen came to a screeching halt. Upon looking down, Tenya immediately realised with horror that his mufflers had been frozen shut. In the end, Todoroki quickly froze the ground and grabbed Iida's arm as he encased most of his body in ice. It took the watchers some time to realise what happened.

"When did he even do that?" Asked Kirishima, scratching his temple. "Iida was careful not to let Todoroki touch him."

"He did it when Iida's boot was introduced to Todoroki's spine," Danny shrugged, scratching his cheek. "It just took Iida some time to realise that it was only him running forward. Well," he leaned back and his seat. "Guess now it's gonna be our turn, eh, Num...oh, he left," he said with disappointment, not seeing Bakugo.

The blonde boy in question was indeed anxious from anticipation. It was not an anxiety synonymous to fear, but rather the desire to finally face the extra that wanted to upstage him at every turn. The spook mocked him, never took him seriously, always residing on his throne above the rest. That rather skewed, but not entirely untrue image was still burned into the back of his head. Few would notice that Bakugo could recognise the effort put up against him, or anywhere near him, for that matter. Kirishima and Uraraka both were a tier above the absolute trash in his eyes. Granted, it did not concern the nerd, who always had that staple and it alone. And as for Fenton, the amount of said effort he displayed was absolutely insulting. And irritating to no end.

After all, Fenton met a proper match only against Nomu so far. And even then the beast went down the second its main weakness was exposed. He wasn't really trying, and that infuriated Bakugo more than anything else. Occasionally, a thought was flashing through his head also, something he refused to accept. When he was watching Todoroki or Fenton, occasionally doubt rose in him. Doubt that he could not win in a fight against them. That foreign feeling was painful and impossible to accept. Yet, like an insect that wakes you in the morning, knowing that your groggy self would not rise to squash it, that thought was impossible to get rid of. That duel was bound to happen. And if so, Bakugo would expect to not lose to a half-hearted attempt.

After a while of sitting around, and seeing the arena cleaned up soon, Danny finally rose from his seat.

"Well then, guess it's my cue," he said and went to leave.

"Break a leg, man!" Kirishima called after him.

"Whose exactly?" Danny asked sarcastically and exited.

After two matches and occasional visit to the nurse, he found the way around with relative ease. However, as he went down the corridor, he heard an unmistakable shout directed right at him.

"Stop right there, spook!"

Danny turned around to face Bakugo.

"Can I help you?" He grinned.

So the game had already started. Its only rule was evident to both and simple to no end — that the last straw in Bakugo's head had to snap. Within limits, of course. Danny didn't want to stoop so low and outright insult someone who, to be perfectly honest, did not deserve it.

"I know what you are trying to pull off," The blonde growled.

"Really? Well, whatcha planning to do about that?" Asked Danny, putting a hand on his belt.

"I'm saying that it won't work, you extra bastard," Bakugo responded. "Your sorry ass is not gonna win."

Someone was being unintentionally vague. To the point it appeared like self-conditioning. But that wasn't the case obviously, it was a way to vent out some frustration. And to set forward a certain demand.

"You think that this stupid handicap is something noble, don't ya?!"

Danny blinked. That wasn't exactly what he had expected. "You mean why I don't turn into a ghost? I just wanted to let everyone shine, is all."

"So you do think that way!" Bakugo exclaimed and hit the nearest wall with his hand, blowing it up in a small fiery cloud. Danny didn't flinch. "Listen here, spook, I want ya to show what you can do!"

"Jeez, you sound like Aizawa," The halfa rubbed the back of his neck. "Tell ya what, Number two. Make me."

Fury was evident on the blonde's face, but Danny ignored that and continued.

"If you manage to force me to that limit, then so be it. But I'm not playing along just because you tell me. We good?"

Bakugo did not respond, instead passing Phantom by, but not without nudging into the latter's shoulder. Suddenly, Danny began to chuckle.

"Whatcha laughing about, spook?!"

"I just realised that Midoriya isn't the only one asking to let go of reservations here."

"You compare me to that nerd?!"

Danny rubbed his ear, leaning against the wall. "Volume, please. If I remember correctly, you two were friends way back, no?"

Bakugo's fists clenched as he looked away. "Shut up, spook. Nobody asked your opinion!"

"Well, I didn't ask you about how I should fight," Fenton retorted. "But as you wish. I am not my sister to analyse you or Midoriya."

"Who even cares about that nerd?!" The blonde exclaimed, storming away and making more random explosions.

"Apparently you do," Danny mumbled inaudibly. "And not in a healthy way."

Eventually the two made their way to the arena. Cementoss mentally prepared himself to interfere, for the situation between the evidently rivalling students was bound to get heated. The impression was shared by many, but for varying reasons. The audience saw two powerful teenagers, one of whom was showing impressive ferociousness and prowess, and the other possessed overwhelming power.

"There they are!" Present Mic announced. "The class rep Fenton is going to face off against the explosive menace that is Bakugo! This is going to be a fiery experience, if you catch what I mean," he spoke with excitement and nudged his friend, who simply hummed in thought.

He had his suspicion about the two clashing eventually, and it came true, for better or worse. Bakugo was out for blood after all the poking Fenton had done. And as much as the halfa could pretend to be above petty grudges like this, Aizawa was not fooled. Daniel was just as competitive and arrogant, but his saving grace were friendliness and openness. It could be for the better that Fenton was too stubborn to let Bakugo win. Sure, initially Aizawa expected the former to taunt, to play with an opponent and hold back, as that's what Bakugo hated. But that way, facing an enemy who was hellbent on bringing up the other half of the raven-haired teen, Daniel would be one step closer to letting go of his childish reservations. Nomu was the first step, but it was a living human this time, a strong one, and just as unbreakable. Thus, Aizawa was looking forward to that match.

"And begin!" Midnight shouted.

True to his tactics, Bakugo launched himself forward at a neck-breaking speed. Upon getting closer, he immediately released an explosive blast right into the halfa's face. When the smoke cleared, he saw the green barrier that had shielded his enemy. With a smirk, Fenton made a flinging motion with his finger, when the ectoplasm of the shield glow before a spike emerged from it, forcing Bakugo to dodge. It was too slow and telegraphed to actually land a hit, but he jumped exactly where the halfa wanted, landing right where the latter's fist was aimed at. Discarding the shield, Phantom had ended up near the blonde, close enough to land a hit. His victory was incredibly short, for at that very second Bakugo blasted him right into the chest.

The combatants launched each other meters away from each other. Bakugo did not hesitate, he continued his relentless assault. An explosion behind his back propelled him forward, and he had to dodge the green blasts fired his way. It held him off long enough for Danny to summon an ice wall before him. At the last second Bakugo had to move his arms forward not to fly into it. The explosions sent him flying back, and blew the wall up in a blue mist, smoke, and sharp shards. And from that improvised smokescreen Danny emerged, having pushed himself forward with full force, his eyes and fist blazing with death energy. Bakugo made a blast below and flew higher, right above the half-ghost, from where he released another explosion, blocked by a green shield once more.

"These two are not giving each other a second of rest!" Present Mic spoke excitedly.

"Bakugo is a quick-thinker," Aizawa spoke, "He can plan an attack while under the assault, but Fenton's reaction time is twice as fast as normal human's."

"So they nicely complement each other," the commenter concluded.

Danny laughed as he dodged another explosive attack and landed a kick, once more pushing the blonde away. It was better to keep distance, for the halfa held an advantage at a long distance. To achieve the same feat Bakugo would have to make an extraordinarily big boom. Something that would put a strain on him.

"You hear that, Number two?" Fenton grinned. "We make a nice match."

"Shut up and fight, spook!" Bakugo yelled and ran at him once more.

He was yet to make significant damage to the opponent's exterior, while Fenton's smug face continuously mocked him. The spook was a tough opponent that worked by his own rules that he imposed on others. A big explosion could break through the shield, or the fiery blast wave could go under. That left the prospect of the last-second intangibility, something that would render moot all the effort. He had to find a way around it, somehow.

As Bakugo flew towards him, Danny conjured a myriad of ice spheres that were flung in his direction. Upon making contact with the out of bounds walls or the ground, they blew up and covered all surrounding surfaces in a thin glacier, but Bakugo managed to either dodge or blow up the projectiles coming his way. The halfa jumped forward and sunk into the ground as if jumping into a pool of water. The surprised blonde immediately blasted himself higher in the air, where Danny couldn't grab or attack him from below. Small explosions kept him away from the ground, breaking the silence that settled after the contestant's disappearance.

"Looks like our resident spectre decided to take his time," Present Mic grumbled.

Bakugo's red eyes scanned his surroundings. Fenton's attack could come from anywhere. He could swear that something flashed in the corner of his eye for a fraction of a second, and released an explosion in that direction, but immediately he felt the scorching heat of ectoplasm on the back of his head that shot him down. Fenton dropped invisibility, grinning triumphantly as his hand was still smoking with the residual energy. As Bakugo landed on his feet, he tried to grasp what had just happened. Had he been seeing things? How did he get behind his back so quickly? Danny landed back on the ground, casually approaching his opponent, his look and stance daring the blonde to attack again and receive the same beating.

"You know, I guess it should be quite refreshing," he spoke. "With how much of a shit you are to everyone."

"What did you just say?!" Bakugo yelled.

"You heard me, Number two. Everyone tolerates your obnoxious bull because you have something to compensate it with. But I just don't like you."

With a loud roar Bakugo blasted himself forward, once again going for a frontal assault. The halfa put a dome-like shield once again to meet the onslaught. This time however, the explosion carried enough power to envelop the surroundings in a sea of fire, shattering the defence. Danny was caught off-guard, and was blasted into the face with another explosion. Flying backwards, he stopped the momentum by blowing up a weaker ball of ectoplasm behind his back and landed on the ground. Bakugo was infuriated at what he had just seen.

"Bakugo broke through Fenton's defence!" Present Mic exclaimed through the noise of the crowd. "But it looks like the spectre ripped a page out of Bakugo's book when it comes to flight!"

The halfa huffed upon hearing this and fixed his spine that didn't take too kindly to such moves. How Bakugo handled such strain was quite impressive. The battle was not over yet, but he was dangerously close to the boundary of the arena. And his face was covered in first degree burns that would take some time to heal.

"What's wrong, spook?!" Bakugo laughed. "Not much of a show without your flashy side, huh?!"

He exclaimed this and came to finish the job, seeing Fenton's unamused look.

"Hmm, let me think," he said and lazily outstretched his palm.

Immediately incased in a prison of green aura, Bakugo was violently tossed away and ran through the cement ground, away from where Fenton stood.

"I still do have a few tricks," Danny commented, neglecting the burning feeling on his face.

Needless to say that Aizawa was not satisfied with what he was seeing from the two of his students. Fenton was too stubborn to use his power on someone he despised and who was asking for that very same thing. It just got him wounded harder than the entirety of the tournament beforehand, yet he still refused to release his pent-up power in full. Bakugo in the meantime would not be satisfied with anything but bringing up the full might of the enemy, and even if Fenton lied on the ground, helpless, he would not finish the fight until then. That big explosion was but him being angered. And that meant that more injuries would ensue. Perhaps not to the degree of Midoriya, whose were more of a self-harm than anything, for Fenton was holding back and could take the damage and heal it.

"They really hold no bars," Present Mic commented with diminished enthusiasm.

Bakugo growled with an animal-like rage as he was getting up, feeling the pain from impacting the cement floor not once but twice by now. Danny shortened the distance as fast as he could, and the blonde turned to face him, releasing another explosion. Fenton released a crescent-shaped blast, using the temporary blind zone the explosions created. Bakugo got a burning feeling as it hit him, burned him and left a huge tear in his uniform. The blonde hissed in pain, before seeing that Fenton went for a physical strike. Bakugo dodged it at the last second. Danny turned towards him, saw the damage he had dealt and smirked. Seeing this, Bakugo, growled once more.

"You piece of shit..."

"That's what you wanted, didn't you," Danny responded, the ectoplasm around his arm dissipating, but his eyes emitting the same deathly glow. "To give you more and more until one of us breaks. But there's a hard to swallow truth — compared to the usual guys I used to fight, you are just a Saturday morning baddie."

Bakugo was about to retort, saying that the halfa was far from unharmed, but then noticed that the burns he had inflicted looked less severe. He was already healing, and it was grinding his gears.

"Shut up. You are nothing but an extra," he instead responded, with explosions cracking around his fingers.

Here it was. Something Danny had sought to bring out from the start.

"Then you will be beaten by an EXTRA," Fenton assumed the stance. "By the way. This loss will make you Number three by default, won't it?"

And that was a final straw. Without thinking, without a plan, Bakugo rushed forward, blowing apart everything in his path, ripping even the concrete beneath. Getting caught up in this was going to be nasty. Still, the rage left him open. And susceptible to what the halfa was about to do. Without moving an inch, even going so far as to let the flame of the explosion touch him once more, holding out against the pain, he turned intangible and vanished. The furious Bakugo came to a halt, frantically looking around.

"He isn't going to try and pull the same trick twice, is he?" Asked Present Mic.

"I have a feeling I know what he is planning," Aizawa mumbled without enthusiasm.

Suddenly Bakugo felt it. A tugging feeling in the back of his head, followed by a haunting realisation of what was happening. Then he felt the cold wash over his body, as he felt his knees buckle. The show caught everyone by surprise, as Bakugo let out a yell.

"What's happening?" Present Mic asked in shock.

"Fenton decided to use his another power, something he used to defeat Nomu," Aizawa explained. "As every ghost, he can take over someone's body."

And as if to confirm his words, Bakugo continued to yell.

"Get out of my head!" He exclaimed and made a blast into the air.

"He actually did this," Kirishima breathed out, uncomfortable about what he was seeing. "But I thought Bakugo would be strong enough to force him out."

"So that's why he was angering Kacchan," Midoriya spoke with realisation. "He is too consumed by anger to bring out his willpower."

"You mean that's what Fenton-san was planning from the start?" Iida asked with wide eyes.

Perhaps one of the more surprised people was Shinso, who had long since started watching the battles from the sidelines. Among other powers, he also had the one akin to his. The teen also could hear the whispers travel around the crowd. Yes, Shinso's ability was less...graphic. And the audience obviously wasn't excited about this. Fenton, however, was obviously going for the win. Bakugo saw how one of his arms shakily turned in direction opposite from the nearest arena boundary. A single blast — and he would fly there and lose pathetically.

"For all your planning," he could hear a voice in his head. "You are sometimes an open book. Don't worry. I'm not digging into your memory."

"Just you try to do this, spook," Bakugo furiously hissed.

And yet, he was smart enough to understand what was preventing him from pushing that parasite off.

"I read your thoughts, Number two. You aren't getting away from me that easily."

And they thought him to be the most villain-like in the group. Bakugo saw the sparks appearing in his palm. Fenton was obviously trying to figure out how to set the foreign Quirk off. It was more complicated than the brute force of Nomu. Bakugo had to stop it, so he tried to muster all the willpower that he could. And ironically, his burning hatred, initially the very reason he lost the authority over his own body, was aiding him now. Danny could feel his control slipping, so he tried to concentrate on the explosion. But that also meant that the control over the rest was lost even quicker. Then, he finally figured it out and the explosion finally took place.

But it was also when the halfa lost all semblance of control and was pushed out of the blonde's body. Danny landed on his feet and pulled back the messy hair as Bakugo flew away. The latter, realising what he had to do, created another blast that kept him within the arena.

"Would you look at that! Bakugo managed to resist the possession!" Present Mic said through the cheers of the fickle crowd.

Danny himself smirked as he saw Bakugo land.

"Looks like I underestimated you," he commented. "Good job, Number two," the halfa clapped slowly. "So far only my father managed to do that to my memory."

That sounded a lot more sinister than it should have.

"Shut up," Bakugo growled, ignoring the sore pain in his hands. The overuse of his Quirk was showing the effects. "I don't need your crap. Just stand and fight!" He yelled, lunging forward once more.

Fenton prepared to shield himself as he concocted another plan, but something seemed different. Had he created a plan this fast? He hadn't seen that in Bakugo's mind. Danny saw how instead of making an explosion, his palms were simply glowing with bright yellow light. Since Bakugo's hands were too occupied to let him fly, Fenton attempted to shoot at him, and even grazed the blonde's shoulder, but once Bakugo got close enough, he suddenly let loose of what he was holding. The shield did not help the halfa, because the explosion was not meant for damage in the first place.

Instead, it created a blinding flash of light, something like a stun grenade. Caught off-guard, Danny shielded his eyes. And Bakugo took the moment of weakness to the fullest. Immediately he followed the explosion with another, whose purpose was only destruction. The entire arena was enveloped in a large, damage-heavy inferno, which clouded everyone's view of the contestants. When the smoke dissipated, the audience saw that both fighters were still standing, albeit at the opposite ends of the arena. Fenton had had no choice but to meet the blast head on and it showed.

His left arm looked limp and bleeding, and the upper part of the gym uniform was all but burned off. Bakugo himself looked a little better, for the explosion was not directed his way. The blonde started approaching his opponent, and saw how the halfa took off the shredded rags. Surprised Bakugo and everyone else bore witness to something unexpected. Fenton's upper body was almost entirely covered in one enormous and horrid Lichtenberg scar, seemingly originating where his heart was located, spreading in a myriad of branches across the entire chest. Noticing Bakugo's surprise, Fenton chuckled sadly.

"I did tell you guys how my Quirk awakened. In an electric trap with the power of a nuclear reactor. No need to act so surprised," he said, looking at his wounded arm. Healing that in human form would take a while. "Guess that explains why I don't like being shocked."

He sighed and looked at Bakugo. "I really did misjudge you, Number two. Should have known that you are a more than a match for my human form," he added, his eyes glowing green. "I guess, I don't have any choice."

He said this as the pearly white rings enveloped his body, casting aside the damaged human form and letting the white-haired ghost prince take over. Putting the now healing hand to his forehead, Danny gave a small smirk.

"Now let's see how long you last."

It was Fenton's time to make an advance. Once again he was surrounded by the spheres of ice that flew towards Bakugo. The boy began to dodge, but his stamina was not a bottomless tank. By that time he had grown sloppy, and while he was able to dodge the spheres, he blinked, and Phantom was already near him, his gloved hand enveloped in ectoenergy. It happened so quick, that Bakugo could not avoid a hit to the chest. The blonde flew away, and Fenton caught up with him with the use of portals and kicked him from above into the ground. Bakugo tried to punch him with an explosive fist, but found that his hand was simply sucked into the opponent's chest, and the small explosion simply died off within. Phantom grabbed that arm and lifted Bakugo into the air, before throwing him even closer to the bounds.

"Looks like the shift gave Fenton one hell of a second breath!" The announcer spoke.

Aizawa was satisfied that the halfa decided to finally give it his all. It should serve as a valuable lesson for him. And Bakugo had to learn that there would be obstacles too hard for him to overcome. And that such demanding tactics could end poorly for him.

Danny turned intangible to avoid another explosion. Then, he lazily raised his palm and lifted Bakugo in the air.

"It was a very good fight. Maybe one day."

And with a flick of his finger, the blonde finally left the boundary, flung forward with enough force.

"Bakugo is out of bounds!" Midnight declared. "Fenton wins!"

The audience cheered in excitement, while Fenton mustered the adrenaline-filled strength to salute them. He opted to stay in that form, to let the injuries heal faster, even if it costed him energy. The next fight was also his, so he had no time for it otherwise. As he left the fighting ground, he could hear Bakugo shouting after him. Danny turned to face him, the blonde was shaking from rage, as his hands were still ready to make another explosion.

"Come back here, spook, we are not done yet!" He exclaimed.

"Yes, we are," Danny sighed, stretching his neck. "Admit your defeat and move on, Bakugo," he used the boy's actual name for the first time in a while.

"I can still fight, these rules are..."

He didn't finish his sentence, as he was hit by the fumes Midnight's skin could let out. They knocked him out immediately. The teacher sighed and shook her head.

"Go on and rest, Fenton. Oh, could you carry him to the nurse? If you are fine with your injuries."

Danny sighed, picking the unconscious opponent up and putting Bakugo on his shoulder. "I'm fine, ma'am. Regeneration and all that."

"Thank you."

The fight was a grand spectacle for sure, and perhaps the most vigilant viewer of them all was Todoroki. He had watched the whole fight from his own preparation room, and tried to come up with a proper plan to go against the most dangerous of his opponents to date. Fenton had spent some of his energy by now, but it didn't mean that their battle would be a ride in the park. Still, he could notice the parallel between his flames and Fenton's own reluctance. Come to think of it, Danny wasn't afraid to claim someone's power as his own, was he? His frivolous use of portals was a pretty good testament to that. Their approach was different. And it rang with Midoriya's words that the latter had said to him. Claiming that the flames were his own and not his father's.

The teen still could not make up his mind about all of this. Midoriya had given him a good lesson, but the years-long reservations did not just vanish like this, no matter how convincing the green-haired teen had been. But if he looked at this from pragmatic standpoint, there was little chance against Fenton if he utilised solely the ice. They had fought before in the battle trial, after all. And it was Todoroki who had lost, utilising the very tactic he really wanted to fall back to. Now they were not even limited by the environment. The odds were hardly in Todoroki's favour. As he thought about this, the door suddenly opened, revealing the very object of his pondering, looking surprised to see him.

"Ehm...what are you..." he began, before looking at the door sign. "Huh, I really thought it was room twelve."

"You are already back from the hospital?" Todoroki asked calmly.

"Yeah, going through walls and all — shortens the distance," responded Danny in his echoing voice. "Anyway, sorry for disturbing, you do you."

"Wait..." Todoroki said, making the halfa stop. "I have a question."

As if nothing had been going on, the halfa grinned and summoned a chair to sit on by the teen's side.

"What can your diligent class rep help you with?" Phantom tilted his head.

Looks like he was back to his sarcastic personality.

"I have a question for you."

"Shoot."

"How do you... feel about the powers you have?"

The question wasn't perfect, too general perhaps, but it was the best Todoroki could come up with at the moment. Danny didn't show it, but he knew exactly what the teen was alluding towards.

"Heh. Can't say I asked for them," he began. "I mean, you know I got them only a year ago. And by that time I basically dealt with being a nobody. And they sure got me in a lot of trouble, hell, my parents decided that I became a mistake of nature that can't share the same roof with them."

Danny shifted in his seat, the hefty amount of additions on his suit jumping around as well.

"Perhaps the greater issue here is...I know what I can do with it. Believe it or not, I once met a guy who can look into the future. And... he showed it to me. Showed me the monster that carried my name and face and who was a genocidal machine. It was one hell of a wake up call."

Todoroki was surprised to hear it, but then again...sometimes Fenton was borderline villainous by the world's standards.

"But you are still fine with relying on your powers."

Danny chuckled. "I have one hell of a scream, you know? One that can destroy a city block if I put my everything on it. I learned it from looking at my future self."

Todoroki blinked. "You decided to use the power of that monster?"

"It was the thing that saved my loved ones...and my teacher from death," Danny kept smiling. "So no, I don't have any problem with that. Or the portals. Or anything else I learn for that matter. After all, if you take your father's screwdriver to fix your own toy, it is your achievement. The screwdriver is only an instrument. Just like hero powers."

"That's...an oddly specific example."

"Best I could come up with," Danny shrugged innocently. "Not the best, I admit. But that's what I think. We are our own people, it doesn't matter where we take our powers, knowledge or advice, even if it is the most frootloopish person in the world. We all make mistakes and carry stuff. What's the point of needlessly taking someone else's?"

Todoroki turned away in thought. "Midoriya said the same things."

"Sure," Danny got up. "Although the situation didn't let him explain this in much detail, I bet."

"He simply rushed in to destroy all the problems I've been carrying," Todoroki mumbled. "Thank you, too, Fenton."

The halfa turned to leave and waved his hand, "But don't you think I forgot who was giving orders to Kaminari, Todoroki," he smirked. "I still hold a grudge."

-Linebreak-

"It's finally the last battle of the U.A. High School sport festival!" Present Mic joyously announced. "The top of the first years will be decided in this match! The final, so to speak!"

The audience around the world was glued to their screens to witness the final confrontation as the two contestants made their way to the arena.

"From the hero course: Todoroki Shoto! Versus also from the hero course: Fenton Daniel!"

The opponents took their places at the opposite ends of the arena. Danny still had not let go of his ghost form, despite his injuries having healed by then. To many it was a clear sign that he meant business that time.

"And now...Begin!"

Fenton once again was the defender at the start — Todoroki immediately released the titanic amount of ice, like during his fight against Sero at the very start. And Danny responded to this by firing an enormously sized blast of ectoplasm that simply melted a corridor through the giant ice structure. Fenton went through the dark corridor he had created without care in the world, a smug smirk on his face, unseen, unlike his glowing eyes.

"Tsk, tsk," Danny spoke. "Thinking to avoid a fight like that? That's some wishful thinking."

(A.N. A little illustration I made before coming up with the cover)

It was wishful, that's why the amount of ice was smaller than in a fight against Sero. Precisely not to remain defenceless if the attack failed. It was Phantom's time to attack. He waved his gloved palm, releasing more crescent shaped blasts, and each time Todoroki summoned a wall of ice that was crushed by the energy of death. Yet each time the wall broke, Todoroki could see Phantom being closer and closer to him. The halfa was not in any hurry, but he could change that any second, keeping the enemy on edge. And once the distance was meagre enough, Fenton did just that, flying forward at a neck-breaking speed.

Immediately he approached Todoroki's mostly blind zone — the boy's left, landing a hit on the stomach. The downside to him controlling the strength of the punches was that the opponents always flew away instead of buckling in pain. It was actually more of a push than a hit. And it was getting annoying at this point. Ghosts didn't do that. Still, Todoroki managed to create an ice slide to prevent himself from being tossed out of bounds. Sliding around the arena, Todoroki created more ice to attack.

An ice blade also appeared in Phantom's hands. A single powerful slash was enough to break any glacial wave coming to consume him. The difference in composition made sure that the blade itself did not receive a single scratch.

"Fenton decided to get fancy all of a sudden," Present Mic commented. "I'd call him a show off, but this kid has style, too."

In the meantime, the halfa decided that it was the time to reveal another of his cards. He sure held Todoroki off. If only there was someone to attack his defenceless self.

Then, all of a sudden, Todoroki felt like something punched him into the face. The invisible force pushed him off the slide and made him land on the ground.

"Wait a second, what just happened?!" Asked the announcer, and everyone had the same question. There had been no light around Todoroki to indicate the use of telekinesis. But then, the halfa came with answer.

"This is not against the rules to enlist some help, is it?" He asked.

And then, floating above the spot Todoroki had been pushed off the slide, another Danny was seen, lazily waving.

"Does...is this a duplicate?!" Asked Present Mic, glancing at Aizawa, who looked surprised himself.

"He hasn't shown that power before," the teacher explained, wondering just how much the boy had not shown yet.

And back with the students, Midoriya was furiously scribbling in his journal, while the rest of the classmates were just as surprised.

"So that's how he always has time for everything," Kirishima realised.

That brought a sudden change to Todoroki's plans. He saw how the two Phantoms fist-pumped, and the teen didn't know how that part of the Quirk functioned. Was one of them the original? Or were they a part of the single being? He had no time to find out, for the onslaught was doubled from then on. No matter what the duplicate was, it spelled trouble. The amount of green blasts increased, so that Todoroki had no choice but to duck behind an ice wall and take cover. But it was soon blown up as well. Humming under his nose, Danny snapped his fingers, and the duplicate vanished. Too much firepower could prove fatal. He approached Todoroki's position, readying an ectoplasm just in case.

"Whatever it is you are thinking about, Todoroki," he spoke. "You better come up and solve now. This dilemma makes you sloppier than before."

"Todoroki!" A sudden shout came from the audience, and to be particular, the seat of class 1-A. "Don't lose! Do your best!"

"Midoriya," both contestants mumbled at the same time. One with surprise, and another with amusement.

And then, as if finally coming to a decision, Todoroki let his left side be engulfed in fire. With a smirk, Fenton switched to his power over ice, as it could also defend himself if the attack failed. Then, bringing out contents of his very core, he unleashed the blizzard. The snow and ice were so blindingly white under the bright sun, that Danny had to shut his eyes. Unlike the ice of his opponent, Phantom's beam covered the entire arena and the area around it in a thin layer of either ice or frost. And while the blizzard was dissipating, Fenton began to notice the abnormality. That went...perhaps too smooth. And when the area was freed from the clutches of cold fog, he and the audience saw how Todoroki was left frozen to the wall, out of bounds.

"What?" Danny whispered.

"Todoroki is out of bounds!" Midnight exclaimed and shivered. "Fenton wins!"

And in spite of the thunderously cheering crowd, several people were left puzzled, confused and shocked at Todoroki's behaviour.

"And-d-d-d now all of the events have been concluded!" Present Mic spoke, his teeth chattering. "The winner of this year's first-year U.A. sports festival is Fenton Daniel from class 1-A!"

-Linebreak-

With the preparations over and with the ice melted by the one who had left it, it was finally the time for ceremonies. With the students gathered in the centre of the stadium, Midnight spoke up.

"Now, we will begin the award ceremony!" She said and then came the fanfares and fireworks.

During the light show an award podium emerged from under the ground, presenting a very bizarre sight. The first and second places were occupied by Danny and Todoroki respectively, but Bakugo with his third place was in fact shackled to a concrete pole, with his mouth and hands chained up like he was a criminal on his way to a death sentence. The measures were not unjust, for ever since waking up he was like a rabid animal trying to rip apart the winner. Danny himself seemed very uncomfortable near him. But he also wondered where Iida, the other third place winner, was.

Midnight came to the rescue.

"There is also Iida in the third place, but he had to leave early due to family reasons. The presentation of medals will, of course, be done by this man!"

Everyone heard the heroic laughter that could only belong to one hero. And true enough, from the roof of the stadium jumped none other than All Might.

"Our own hero All Might!"

"I have brought the medals!" He exclaimed as he landed.

"Now, please, award the finalists going from the third place to the first."

And the one All Might approached initially, broke his elated mood just a little.

"That's a bit excessive," he mumbled as he started undoing the iron muzzle. "Congratulations on making it this far..."

"THIS DOESN'T MEAN SHIT!" Bakugo yelled at the top of his lungs. "IF I DON'T RECOGNISE VICTORY, IT DOESN'T MATTER!"

But All Might was not shaken by a furious teen. He kept smiling, as he fruitlessly tried to put a bronze medal over the teen's neck. "Then, think of it as a reminder to try your best in the future."

"I DON'T WANT THA..."

If the neck didn't work, then he would hold it with his mouth, All Might decided. Danny tried his best to resist a laugh, knowing it would worsen the situation. All Might then proceeded to Shoto, who was silent all the time ever since the end of the match.

"Young Todoroki," All Might greeted as he put the silver medal on him. "Congratulations."

And then, he lowered his voice. And yet, Danny was near, and his hearing was top notch.

"I suppose there is a reason you did not use your left."

"I had my opportunity against Midoriya. After that, I was unsure of what to do. I think...I understand what you saw in him. I wanted to become a hero like you. But I don't think it would be the right thing for me to be the only one to break away. There's still something I must settle."

He said this and glanced at Danny as well. He must have realised that the sheepish halfa was listening.

"Thank you too for an advice, Fenton-san."

"I'm your rep, that's kinda my job," Danny shrugged and smiled.

All Might nodded, glad to see the sense of camaraderie that had grown a bit since the start. After the fury of the cavalry battle, the hero expected Danny to repeat the thing with Kaminari. Yet, there was an obvious sense of respect. And in fact, two of the other people on the podium have grown in the halfa's eyes. And he also opened up to Todoroki, who now saw him as something more than an arrogant and powerful classmate. Ultimately, it did everyone good. As much as Bakugo would deny it.

"The look on your face is different from before," All Might told Todoroki and enveloped the relatively tiny teen in a hug. "I'm sure that you will achieve what you are trying to do."

"Yes," came a brief response.

Then, All Might approached the smiling halfa.

"Now then, Young Fenton!" The hero spoke. "Your performance today was nothing short of outstanding. You have shown excellent teamwork, battle prowess and cunning. And also a hefty amount of conceit."

The halfa blushed in embarrassment. "Uh...thanks."

All Might bellowed with laughter. "Stand proud, Young Fenton! Show confidence not only as a hero, but as a person, too! And do further great things not only as a defender of justice, but as a classmate and a man."

With this being said, All Might put the golden medal on the neck of the chuckling halfa.

"Not something I expected when coming here," he mumbled.

"Happens to the best of us!" All Might laughed. "You know," he whispered. "You remind me of one person."

"Really?" The halfa tilted his head.

"Or, rather, something he is not. In a very positive way."

Danny raised his eyebrow, making All Might make a loud cough.

"Well!" He spoke to the crowd. "They were the winners today! But listen here! Anyone could end up on these podiums! It's just as you saw. Competing! Improving each other! And climbing even further! The next generation of heroes is definitely sprouting!"

'Wish my speech was like that,' Danny thought to himself.

"So, I have only one more thing to say that I want you to say with me!" All Might shouted and raised his hand. "Thank you for your hard work!"

"Plus Ultra..."

The crowd was left befuddled as to why the top hero neglected the school motto. Which made for a good laugh for someone.

-Linebreak-

It was true that the tournament was a launchpad for many aspiring heroes. And it served the purpose well. Already the agencies were in a rush to prepare proper invitations to the promising ones, those that impressed them, those whose Quirks could see their uses. But aside from those usual observers, there were others. Already the criminal world, some members of it, could recognise the move set of one particular contestant. They didn't know what they would do with that information, so for the time being it was just a topic for private talks. But what of the opposite end of the spectrum? Well, their interest was piqued as well.

"You have brought the papers, correct?"

The question was asked by a stern-looking middle-aged woman to her subordinate, standing at the opposite end of the office desk.

"Yes. The school has sent us the information we requested, but, admittedly, not much to go by."

"I am aware of that fact. That Fenton kid just popped out of nowhere and made a stir."

"Then you won't be surprised by what I have to report," receiving a nod, the man continued. "We have run the names, and it turns out that the boy's hometown is a ruse. It does not exist."

"How did his papers were even considered legal, then?"

"We have no idea. That and his nonexistent documents should have been a problem to the MIC, yet it's as if something or someone decided to...influence them. We have asked the people who were responsible for approving the kid's papers, but they don't even remember it."

"This does sound suspicious. Anything else?"

"We have a suspicion that he may be one of the American government's pet projects. Big powers are not beyond this."

"True. But don't you think that they would have come for their runaway toy? We have received no requests. But now this will be more problematic."

"Indeed. If he receives an internship abroad, we may never see him again."

"True. We would not want to lose such a valuable asset. The many Quirks of his are also an issue. Anything on that front?"

"From what the school told us, he so far refused the medical tests. It's not obligatory, so it's not something we usually demand."

"We know only of one person capable of that feat. And appearance-wise, it's something to consider. We need a tighter leash until we know everything. You know what to do in such cases. Arrange us a meeting, Yamato."

A.N. Finally we are done with this ark. And we move on to something juicy and full of internecine conflicts. As to the internships...where would it be, I wonder.