Roaring Sports Festival

**Roaring Sports Festival** (うなれ体育祭 *Unare Taiikusai*?) is the fifteenth episode of the My Hero Academia anime and the second episode of the second season.

## Summary

All Mightinstructs Izuku Midoriya to use the Sports Festival as a chance to debut as the new Symbol of Peace. However, Izuku is skeptical about his ability to fulfill All Might's request. All Might encourages his protégé to aim for the top, never settle, and remember the emotions he felt while training at Takoba Municipal Beach Park.

Once the school day ends, Class 1-A's students are unable to leave class because the exit is blocked and crowded by students from other classes. Katsuki Bakugo says they're there to scout out the competition and then instructs them to move out of his way. A student from the general studies course confronts Katsuki and issues a declaration of war to him and his class. The boy explains that if students from other courses do well in the exam, they can be moved into the hero course. He declares war on Class 1-A because he plans on taking their place in the Hero Course.

Next, a student from the Class 1-B abruptly arrives claiming he wanted to see the class that defeated real villains but is annoyed to find a bunch of condescending brats. Many of the students in Class 1-A worry that Katsuki has ruined their reputation and caused all the other classes to hate them.

Katsuki tells them that it doesn't matter and it's only important that he beats them in the festival. Izuku notices Katsuki's ambition and recalls the conviction of both Tenya Lida and Ochaco Uraraka as well. He is ashamed to have doubted his own convictions and decides to devote himself to training for the next few days. While he trains seaside, his fellow classmates train at the Replica City District and their own homes.

Two weeks later the day of the U.A. Sports Festival finally arrives. Izuku is encouraged by his mother to do his best as he leaves for school. The school has increased security and has the festival broadcasted live. Mt. Lady, Kamui Woods, and Death Arms are employed as security. After Mount Lady seduces her way to lunch, they talk briefly about how the school has employed Pro Heroes to secure the facility.

In the Class 1-A waiting room, students change into their P.E. uniforms for the festival, making it fair for everyone since they won't be wearing costumes. Tenya enters the room and warns his peers that they are about to enter the arena. Before they do, however, Shoto Todoroki approaches Izuku.

With the entire class listening, Shoto explains that although he is stronger than Izuku, the latter has the number one hero in his corner. Shoto continues by telling Izuku that he will defeat him at the festival. Eijiro Kirishima tries to diffuse the situation, but Shoto refuses him and moves to leave the room. Izuku stops him and admits that although Shoto has more potential than anyone in the hero course, Izuku says he will be aiming for the top just like all the other students in the school.

Class 1-A walks out to the Freshmen Stage of the Festival Stadium and the U.A. Sports Festival officially begins. The other freshmen classes also arrive. The Chief Referee for the Festival: Midnight, asks for the student representative, Katsuki Bakugo to lead the pledge. Instead, Katsuki takes the stage and announces to everyone that he will win the Festival, garnering boos from all the students. Izuku notices that Katsuki is pushing himself while making targets of Class 1-A at the same time.

After the so-called pledge, Midnight announces the preliminaries of the Festival will be an Obstacle Race 4 kilometers around the stadium. The race immediately begins and all the participants struggle to exit through the stadium door. They get packed into a mob by the narrow corridor as their first obstacle. Shoto realizes this and makes his move by freezing the pathway and racing ahead of all the others.

Even though many contestants are frozen in place, Katsuki, Momo Yaoyorozu, Yuga Aoyama, and Eijiro Kirishima avoid the ice and stay on Shoto's back. Many other students remain close behind them and Shoto's surprised to see that so many were able to avoid his attack. Minoru Mineta manages to reach Shoto and tries to attack him, but is knocked away by a villain bot.

Many villain bots suddenly reveal themselves as the second obstacle, blocking the path of the participants. Some of the villain bots are the Zero-point robots from the U.A.'s Entrance Exam that cause many students to panic, but not Shoto. He remains calm and expresses his desire to face a more difficult obstacle and proceeds to freeze an entire giant villain bot solid with ease. Shoto immobilizes the giant robot off balance and runs underneath it before it falls into the path of the remaining students.

Other villain bots confront Izuku, and instead of quaking in fear like at the entrance exam, he decides to commit himself devising a strategy.