It is D-day.

Well, not really but the famous U.A Sports Festival is here. Heroes from all over Japan gathers to witness the freshman class the beats the odd against Villains invasion. Really fun stuff.

At the moment, the class in question, Class1-A is currently inside the waiting room. To level the playing field as much as possible and to show off pure Quirk control over one that have the aid of a gear, everyone is dressed in the gym clothes. Naruto fixes his pants, making sure that his tail in comfortable while Tenya is busy being bossy as usual, "Is everyone ready?! Are your preparation complete! We are set to go out at any moment now!"

Naruto sighs and puts his hand on the wound up boy's shoulder, "Calm down, Tenya. You going to tire yourself out and make everyone nervous if keep on reminding them. Now go take a breather in that corner,"

Tenya robotically agrees, "Yes, sir!"

Mina watch as Tenya moves to a corner and stands there alone, "Naruto really have a way of handling Iida, huh?" She then sighs, "Man. I wish they would let me put on some perfume at least,"

Mashirao looks at her, "You know they won't allow that in case someone decided to be sneaky,"

She pouts, "But I'm an honest girl!"

Naruto looks up as Shoto approaches him, "Yes?"

Shoto frowns, "I believe myself above others in terms of skill. However, you have proven me wrong. You and Izuku somehow have the attention of All Might. Not that I care for the reason why. All I know is that I will beat both of you,"

Denki gawks, "Oh wow! What's this? Class rivalry between two of our strongest?"

Eijiro frowns and reaches out, "Hey, none of that now! Don't just spring this on-,"

Naruto smiles, "Okay, candy cane!"

Shoto's frown turns into a scowl, "I am not here to make nice or befriend anyone,"

Naruto can hear the silence that spreads through the room as everyone looks at the two. He then smiles at Shoto, "Then you have to come after me with everything. No half assing it. Otherwise, I will take this declaration as just talk. You know what I mean, icy-hot,"

Shoto stares at him, refusal on his lips, "No. I'm only going to use my ice-,"

Naruto slaps his lap, "Then you're not serious about beating me. I am aware just how much people are itching to take me down. Anyone who have ever been at the peak know just how much people want to take them down. Envy. Greed. Ambition," He stands up, "But out of everyone, you're the only who think beating me is a game. The others, Katsuki, that annoying Monoma guy from class 1-B, sleepy from General Study, they are all going to come after me with everything they have. But you? You will fail before you can touch my shadow, if you're even that lucky. So grow up. Either you really give your Plus Ultra or just get out of their way," He looks at the others, "I'm going to give my all out of respect for all your hard work. So if you can't give me that same amount of respect, drop out of the competition,"

He needs to break Shoto of whatever funk he's going through, Naruto decided. Call him a hypocrite because once, he didn't want to rely on Kurama. But when the people he cared about were in danger, he realized that he can't just half ass things. And Shoto needs to learn that lesson before he lost everyone like Naruto once did. Though this might not be the Shinobi world, the danger of facing Villains remain the same. They will not hesitate to kill. He can see it in those people's eyes. Can feel it in their presence. And if the old ghost that Yagi is worrying about is still out there, then they can't afford to be weak. Besides, he makes himself their target for a reason. To motivate them to give their all. If they can see the peak that he's standing on, then the strong will climb and the weak will give up. And if they hate him for it, that is fine. He took on Kurama's millenniums of hatred, so what's a few more kids'?

Above all else, he need Izuku to climb the mountain he's on. Because like it or not, the coin have been tossed. The ball have been rolled. Izuku will face the ghost of his legacy or he will have to spend his whole life running and hiding. Or worse...die. And that is not an acceptable result.

The exit of the stadium can be seen just as Present Mic presents them, //THE DEPARTMENT OF HEROICS, FRESHMAN CLASS!! WELCOME, CLASS 1-A!!//

Naruto winces as the loud noises from the spectators shouting their encouragement at them reaches his sensitive fox ears. Besides him, Izuku vibrates with nerves. Tenya is already wondering if they can bring out their best with so many eyes on them. As the other classes and other courses come forward and lines up, Naruto feels like he's back during his first Chuunin Exam Final. It is...nostalgic. But amidst the excitement, he can also hear the resentment of the non-heroic class. Specifically the General Study class who feels like they are used to make the Heroic Course students look good.

A familiar teacher and someone who both reminds him of Anko and questions her qualification of being anywhere near underage minors. She cracks her whip, silencing them as she playfully purrs, "Alright! Now, for the athlete's oath!" Some voiced out Naruto's internal conflict and she cracks her whip again, "Silence!! My tenure here is perfectly acceptable!!" She clears her throat and ignores the doubtful looks sent her way, "Now, your student representative is, with the first record ever for perfect points on both Villain Points and Rescue Points in U.A, Uzumaki Naruto! Come up the stage and give your speech!"

Naruto sighs, thinking about all the speeches he had to give as Hokage every time Chuunin Exam was held in Konoha or the beginning of the year speech at the Academy. He slowly makes his way up, listening as students from General Study complains that he's only representative for heroics. But a few remembers him from the Entrance Exam. Standing on the stage before the microphone, he looks at the faces looking at him. From the expectant looks from his own classmates, to the envious scowls from the other classes, to the curious disinterest from other courses.

Clearing his throat, he says with a cheeky grin, "If you really want it, try and steal it from me, cowards," Needless to say, there are a lot of voices booing him and calling him names. He lets them before saying, "What are you angry about? I'm on top so I can say whatever I want. And like I said, if you give it your all, you might just get to kiss my toes, cuties," He ends it with a cheeky wink.

As he steps off the stage, he hears Midnight saying, "I'm already loving your style, pretty boy,"

He whispers back, "I'm a minor and there's someone I like in my class,"

She coos, "Ooh~! Young love~!"

Izuku gulps. Naruto doesn't say that he's going place first like the others. He is confident that he will place first. Nearby, he can hear Katsuki promising to take Naruto down no matter what. He clenches his fists as he hypes himself up while Midnight continues to introduce the first round of the Sports Festival, "This year's first round of destiny is; Obstacle Race! It's a race between all classes with the course built outside the stadium with nearly 4 kilometer of distance! Since here in U.A we believe in freestyle, you get to choose how you go through the obstacle! You can do just about anything, even sabotaging the other students, for as long as you stay on the course!" She leads the to the starting point, "So get set, ready on the mark, and..." She cracks her whip, "GO!!"

Naruto takes note of the narrow gate and smiles. Though he might no longer use chakra, he can still replicate the effect. So the moment Midnight gives the signal, he free run up the side of the wall and uses momentum to hop from one side wall to the other side wall with enough speed that he doesn't fall, completely outrunning the others by going over their heads. He cheekily says, "See ya!"

Present Mic whistles, //Now that's creative// He then continues, //Anyway, cool fox aside, Present Mic broadcasting live here for the commentary with good old pal, Mummy Man! Mummy Man, you're up to comment about what's going on?!//

A familiar tired voice grunts, //Why...did I agree to this?//

He runs ahead and sense the icy touch of moisture touching the tip of his tail. Shoto is chasing right at his heel and the sound of explosions informs him that Katsuki is right behind. He can also hear the rest angrily chasing him. He grins, thinking about the time he have to escape from ANBU as a child as well as angry prank victims before he learn how to stage it without him around to be caught, "This is fun,"

Then, the robots starts appearing. Instead of fighting them, he flashes between their legs before their camera can move and bypasses them that way. Since they missed him, they turns their attention of the people behind him, [Targets detected. Multiple]

Present Mic present, //Missing the fox aside, the first obstacle is here; Robo Inferno!!//

The students shouts in alarm at the sight of the lumbering robots;

"It's the Zero Pointers!"

"There's so many of them! How the hell did that fox get through?!"

"Wait! The Heroic Course have to fight those things?! You're kidding me...right?!"

"So that's the Entrance Exam Yellow Flash?! I thought he's a myth!"

Meanwhile, Naruto is already ahead just as Shoto freezes the robots. Before long, they crashes down just as Present Mic comments, //1-A Todoroki has forged ahead and blocking the others in one fell swoop. But can he unseat 1-A Uzumaki?! And why do some of the students call Uzumaki the Yellow Flash?!//

Aizawa sighs, //Because back during the recent Entrance Exam, he flashes around in great speed, both defeating the Villain bots and helping others. He is so fast that people only notice the yellow flash of his tail and that odd glow he gives out//

Naruto soon comes across the next set of obstacle just as Present Mic says, //Talk about speed. Our favorite fox, Uzumaki the Yellow Flash, is already at the next obstacle; The Fall!! Now how will he – w-wait! Kid! You're too fast! What kind of acrobat is this?!//

Naruto can't even be phased by the tightrope scene before him. Instead of walking the rope, he simply leaps over it and lands where it is the looses to use the recoil tension to launch him to the sky. It is a risky move but he have absolute faith in his landing. So just like a cricket, he hops from one rope to another until he reaches the other side. He then keeps on going.

Present Mic says, //Hot damn kid. You're made of some real tough stuff, aren't ya? Anyway, the others are getting closer to him...or not! Never mind, he's already at the third obstacle; The Landmines!//

Naruto looks at the landmines, clearly hastily placed so that the competitors can see it. But instead of stopping and make it slow, he leaps over the first few rows of landmines only to land short of a few meters to the end line. But instead of just landing, he leaps again and uses his tails to soften his fall as he uses the explosion of the triggered landmine to propel himself to the end line. This being a school event, he already know that the landmines are safe ones and he used to play around with explosive tags for pranks. Something like this is easy.

Not to mention it helps set up the pressure that he's not playing around. As he rolls to his feet, he looks behind to see Shoto and Katsuki finally reaching the landmines just as Present Mic says, //And...Uzumaki of Class 1-A keeps his crown as the lead! Just what did you feed this kid, Mummy Man?!//

Eraserhead tiredly answers, //Hardly anything that the other teachers didn't do. Everything you see is their very own effort//

Naruto watch on as the two boys racing neck to neck to get second place while he just waits for them at the finish line. They are starting to grow reckless but at the same time figuring out ways to minimize the damage the explosion will have on their body. Picking up cues from his own actions. Just as Katsuki and Shoto are about to reach him, someone flies over them in a piece of metal. Naruto grins as the boy triggers another set of landmines to propel himself forward. However, it is clear that he have no idea how to land safely...

So Naruto grabs him just as he is about to crash, letting the metal plate turned shield crash on the ground for a few more meters while he sets Izuku down. He pats the boy's shoulder, "Good work,"

Izuku gasps for air as he lifts a thumb's up, "T-thanks!"

While Present Mic gives his commentary, Izuku looks up. He is going to push himself and keeps chasing after Naruto. The fox boy have been holding back a lot growing up, always keeping pace with Izuku just enough to motivate him and encourage him. But this time around, he's taken the kiddy gloves off. Growing up, he's so used to seeing Naruto's back but just then at the start, he can't even see Naruto's silhouette. It really drives in just how big the gap between them is. But it also really light a fire under Izuku by burning his laurel and forcing him to move on instead of settling.

As Katsuki and Shoto joins him on the sides, Izuku know that they are really seeing it, just like him. They are strong, true, but Naruto is a different breed of a beast. They can't beat him with only half a heart.

While waiting for the other to finish the obstacle course, Naruto picks up a packet of water from the nearby stall set up just nicely for the competitors to re-hydrate. As he sips his drink, he takes note of the others. Tenya is griping about losing a race of all things despite his Quirk and Izuku is suffering from impostor syndrome. When Hinata arrives, she looks like she's on her last leg. She found him drinking and accepts the packet of offering from him, "T-thank you!"

Naruto nods, "Stay hydrated,"

As more and more students found the stall, he moves away with her sticking close. He found Momo with a scowl on her and easily found the reason why as a familiar small student with balls for hair sticking himself to her ass and looking smug until his big eyes found Naruto glaring at him. At first he doesn't move so Naruto raises a brow with a warning, whipping his tail down with a crack that leaves the ground with a small straight crater. The boy immediately turns pale and pulls himself away from Momo's back.

He glares at the boy, making sure that he removes himself far from Momo and the girls in Class 1-A. He then looks at her, "You okay, peaches?"

Momo blinks as his somewhat sweet nickname, "Y-yeah. Thanks. He have been riding on back from the middle obstacle,"

He nods, "If he comes back or he harass any of the others, you come to me,"

Momo looks at him, "Sure,"

As he turns to move away, she notice Hinata smiling at her but somehow...it doesn't feel friendly. Momo easily gets the message. Not that she think that Hinata have any reason to worry. After all, Naruto already stated not that long ago that she is his type. Not to mention, it's pretty obvious to anyone watching that they are attracted to each other. So she awkwardly smiles back with a thumbs up. Only then did Hinata move.

Midnight finally cracks her whip after the last student passes the finish line and says, "Alright! Let us see the result!" The giant screen of the stadium immediately shows the pictures and names of the people that made it, "The Top 42 from the Qualification Round will move on! But for those who are placed lower, have no fear! We have another way to help you show you stuff!" She cracks her whip again, "And now! The main selection truly begins! The press is going to be hopping out of their seats for this, so give it all you've got!" The screen changes again, "And on to the Second Event! Are you ready?! Are you excited?! Are you dying to know?! Well, here it is! Cavalry Battle!!"

As the crowd buzzes and starts figuring out the point systems, Midnight gets impatient and cracks her whip, "I'm about to explain so shut up already!" She then clears her throat, "Yes! Your individual point value start 5, at the bottom! So the student who took the 42nd place is worth 5 points while student number 41 will worth 10 points," She then grin sadistically, "But get this, our 1st place worth is...10 MILLION POINTS!!!"

Immediately, all eyes turn to him and Naruto sighs, shrugging like it doesn't bother him. He realizes when she mentioned point system. Nearby, Izuku's face is pale as he can feel the pressure of being at the top despite being only in 2nd place. Izuku found his eyes and Naruto smirks, quirking his finger in a come hither motion. He's not afraid. Izuku's eyes widens as he realize this. Even as that simple gesture causes the others to be furious, he stays calm and collected.

Izuku gulps, but this time his heart is once more ablaze with ambition. He can tell that Naruto wants him to come after him. To break away from the crowd and reach for the peak. Even if he will only touch Naruto's toes, he will still be closest to the peak. And he will still have his chances to shorten the gap between them. But even to reach those toes will be a battle against others and himself.

Midnight cackles, "The higher ranked students are the one to aim for. This survival game is a chance for a comeback. It is a free for all kind of game!!"

As she continues to make plans, Naruto is already grabbing who he wants to work with his tails. First, he grab Hinata who placed in 15th. Then, he grab Mashirao who placed 11th. And finally, he grab Tokoyami who placed 7th. The reason he grabbed the two boys are because they have some ability to defend themselves. Naruto doesn't really need to fight and take the other's bands to accumulate points. But he need good defenses.

Hinata looks at him, "W-what?"

Tokoyami stares at the tail around his waist, "It seems...that the sun have spoken..."

Mashirao frets, "E-eh?! Why me?!"

Naruto smiles, "Because I need good defenses and you guys are some of the best. Mashirao, you can use your tail to trip anyone that come close. Tokoyami, your buddy can go for ranged defenses...or attacks if you want. Hinata, I just need you to be the rider and cut at any possible attack coming our way. I will be the horse,"

Mashirao blinks, "You mean...you're not going to be the rider?"

Naruto nods, "You guys have some of the best defensive abilities. And Dark Shadow, if you feel like going for the bands of those coming for us, go play crow. Personally, I could just defend myself with my tails. But this is a team play and I need teammates. So I already decided that the 3 of you will be the best choices!"

Mashirao hums, "I'm surprised. As the lead, I would think that you want to be a the rider,"

Naruto scrunches his nose, "I'm not going to make Hinata carry my weight. She might be strong but my muscle and bone density's weight will beyond her,"

Mashirao shakes his head, "Not that. I mean...Todoroki and Bakugo are all riders. I'm surprised that the you wanted to be the horse,"

Naruto smiles, "That's is because leading isn't just about being on top of everyone else. Leading is about adapting your position to suite the situation. If it will be better to let others lead because you lack the knowledge or the ability, you do it. But at the same time, you must be able to defend not just yourself but your team leader,"

Tokoyami hums, "Even though you and I are opposites as I live in the shadows and you are a child of the sun, I will do my best so that we may survive the coming storm,"

Naruto grins, "Tokoyami, the shadow cannot exist without the sun. But at the same time, the sun needs the shadow to prove to others that it is there!"

Dark Shadow squawks, "I like you! Tokoyami, let's do out best to defend our leader!!"

Naruto then turns to Hinata, "Will you be okay with this, Hinata?"

Hinata smiles, "Of course! I'll do my best to keep the band away from the others!" She then asks, "How many points do we have as a team?" She says, "My points are 140,"

Mashirao counts with his fingers, "Mine are 160,"

Tokoyami nods, "180 points,"

Naruto smiles, "Adding that with my 10, 000, 000 points, that will be 10, 000, 480 points,"

As they take their formation, Hinata ties the headband of their points around her temple. She then climbs onto Naruto's back. Tokoyami and Mashirao taking the back part of the 'horse'. She feels a little embarrassed by the position and Naruto's giant ears are distracting. She then checks her nails. She have been keeping them long and healthy for a reason. After all, she isn't always carrying her knife, even though she do carry a pocket knife around for self defense purposes. Even so, there are situations where she can carry anything. Like in this sports festival. So her best choice to inflict damages without her knives?

Her sharp nails. Part of her Quirk gifted her with really strong nails. When she was younger, she kept them short and trimmed even though cutting them was hard. But in preparation for U.A, she grew them out and have been maintaining them at a practical length. It was how she pass the Entrance Exam since even though Present Mix said she can bring anything with her, she doubted that they'll let her carry a knife. Still, her nails are enough to inflict damages. Though that was only after several scratches on the Villain Bots' body that quickly wear out her nails. She accumulated most of her points helping people get out of the way of friendly fire. Not that she know about the Rescue Points. Though it surprised her when U.A talked about Naruto's perfect Rescue Points and wondered if they were no longer planning to keep it quiet.

Now, once again armed with only her longer nails, Hinata activates her Quirk that makes her eyes sparkles like diamonds. She will keep her eyes open. She will not let anyone touch her headband. Naruto trusted her with his points. Their points. Her nails might not be enough to cut through a person's body, but she could still inflict enough debilitating damages that will force her opponents to stop and keep away from her. That is the upside of using her nails instead of a knife. She clenches her fists before turning them into claws just as Midnight say GO!