The volume in the stadium was deafening, all Peter could hear were the cheers and shouts of thousands of people being jumbled together into an incoherent mess.
Man, was he glad he had his face covered.
While the goggles did help him not be overwhelmed by visual input, the sound was a whole other problem.
And from Rumi's annoyed expression as her ears twitched, he wasn't the only one who had the same problem.
She met his gaze and shot him a knowing smirk, he playfully rolled his eyes, his goggles portraying the motion.
"Now, for the 1st year representative! The 3rd placer in the entrance exam, Katsuki Bakugo!" Midnight cracked her whip to reinforce the announcement, Peter winced.
Not at the sound.
But at what was about to come.
"WHAT?!" Bakugo screeched from the crowd, the stadium broke into confused murmurs as the heroine took him to the stage
Did they seriously not tell him?
Alright, let's catch you up.
Today was a day that everyone in the nation looked forward to all year long, some even longer than that.
The UA sports festival, the equivalent of the Olympics in this day and age.
Understandably, Peter was nervous for multiple reasons.
One for having to broadcast his abilities in front of the whole world in an Olympic-level event, the other for the whole Rumi thing he had going on.
So imagine his face when Midnight pulled him aside right before they were taken to the stadium and told him he'd have to do a speech, one that he had no idea he had to do, in front of all of Japan, and who knows who else was watching.
Wanna know what he said?
No.
He said no, they weren't setting him up like that.
Surprisingly enough, Midnight took it super well, simply saying it was alright and going to plan B.
Which was the 2nd placer in the exam, none other than Rumi Usagiyama.
Peter tagged along with Midnight to see how it went down, and the response she gave wasn't something he expected.
Turns out, Rumi also said no to doing the speech.
Although it wasn't for the same reasons Peter said no.
Midnight ended up just shrugging and walking away, going to plan C, leaving Peter to ask Rumi why she didn't do the speech.
Apparently, she only said no cause making Bakugo be reminded of not getting 1st place was a great way to mess with him.
Peter was inclined to agree.
But couldn't they at least have given the dude a heads up? Maybe then he wouldn't be having a fit on stage as the crowd looked on in astonishment.
Peter watched as Bakugo stepped up to the mic and yanked it from the stand. His crimson eyes narrowed as they looked through the crowd of students before landing on Peter.
Oh no.
"You think you're fucking funny, Parker? Looking down on me and making a fool out of me in front of everyone?!" The blond yelled, Peter felt the hatred behind those eyes.
The crowd gasped, most students looking around in confusion while Rumi held in her laughter.
She knew this was gonna happen, didn't she?
"Well, guess what?! You're just a fucking stepping stone on my path to being number one, just like the rest of these shitty extras! I will fucking beat you, got it?!" Bakugo screamed, using his quirk to blow up the mic and stomping off the stage as the crowd booed him.
Yikes.
That could've gone better, huh?
Maybe he should've done the speech.
...
"Alright! Welcome, everybody! To UA's sports festival! Can I get a plus ultra!?" The booming voice of Present Mic sounded across the stadium, the crowd shouting back at the same volume.
This guy was gonna be loud the rest of the day, wasn't he?
Peter stood at the starting line of the preliminary event to the festival, an obstacle race across every single first-year class. He stood off to the left side of the group, his spider-sense had told him to not stand near Todoroki for some reason.
He hopped from foot to foot, rolling his wrist to try and get ready for the race. His eyes trailed down to his web-shooter only to see that it was currently 8:00 AM.
Way too early for this.
But whatever, Peter didn't care about that.
He had to win today.
As he took a deep breath, he focused on what was ahead. A simple area you had to run through until you got to a tunnel that you'd need to squeeze through.
Easy enough, but he'd have to adapt to whatever comes after that on the fly.
Good thing that was his style.
"On your marks!"
His lenses narrowed as his fingers inched towards the trigger, his spider-sense told him how everyone near him tensed at the sound.
"Go Go Go!"
Time seemed to stand still as Peter heard those words, Todoroki unleashed a barrage of ice that trapped anyone around him, Bakugo and Nejire blasted forward, Rumi bounced away.
Peter sprinted ahead of the crowd, his fingers tapping the trigger.
*TWHIP!*
And he's off!
With a pull of the line that stuck to the top of the tunnel, Peter was off the ground with a whoop of pure adrenaline and excitement.
Showtime!
The masked teen flew ahead of the crowd, he turned to look back to see Bakugo and Nejire were gaining on him a good amount. At the back of the crowd, he could see Shinso, wearing Aizawa's scarf, being carried by six people.
Wait, did that mean they could mess with other people?
Peter smirked under his mask and reached into his jacket.
Perfect.
As he hit the ground running, he tossed back a web grenade that exploded and covered nearly half the path in the silk, making everyone on the ground momentarily pause before changing direction to avoid it.
"Woah! We just saw Peter Parker from the hero course use some support gear! Can he do that, mummy man?!" Present Mic yelled just as Peter reached the tunnel, the boy jumping up to the top and running on the ceiling to avoid having to squeeze through the choke.
"All students are allowed to use support gear as long as they submit the paperwork and are approved. Parker mostly designs his own gear, such as the wrist devices he wears, the jacket, and the goggles, so he has an edge in the festival. It is simply a student doing everything in their power to take the advantage."
"Well said, mummy man! You must really care about him to know all of this stuff!"
"Shut up."
Peter chuckled at that.
The masses of students started to squeeze through the choke of the tunnel, the brunette watched as everyone with some sort of mobility quirk rushed past the crowd from his spot halfway through the tunnel.
Man, he was losing his lead quick.
He had to go faster.
Peter sprinted on the roof, quickly leaping forwards once he reached the end of the tunnel and landing on the ground.
The sound of groaning metal and low beeping filled his ears, his lenses widened as they saw the first obstacle of the race.
"Oh, yeah! Looks like Parker has reached the first obstacle! Let's see how he does!"
Dozens of the robots from the entrance exam blocked his path, he could count at least seven 0-Ps he would have to get through.
"The robo inferno!"
Why couldn't he catch a break?
Ignoring how his ears rung at the sound of groaning metal and screaming crowds and the discomfort it brought him, Peter shot a web at the shoulder of the nearest 0-P and pulled with all his strength.
He grinned as the feeling of flying came over him, he flipped in the air and swung past the robot's first flying at him.
Man, web-swinging was awesome.
The crowd roared as he reached shot another web and swung in an arc, he let go of the line and so a completely unnecessary twirl as he reached the apex of the swung and shot another web to pull himself forward.
He did say he was a showman, right? He had to look good in front of the country!
"Amazing! Sensational! Spectacular! Uh… I ran out of words to describe Parker swinging through the robo inferno like it's nothing! Can you tell us how Parker is in class, mummy man?"
Aizawa grunted, and Peter could feel the man rolling his eyes even from his place in the air.
"Annoying."