Those first few minutes after the announcement, shit started getting crazy.
There were loud explosions coming from the cliffside followed by the sounds of tumbling rocks. A fight was clearly going on up there and there were few people who could make an impact loud enough like that without any flashy bright lights. Midoriya was likely the one up there and Niwa prayed for his safety as they ran through the woods.
Kyoka and Niwa had decided to move off the track and into the cover of the trees. The fire was licking at their left and pushing them more and more closer to the pink gas slowly moving through the forest. They had no choice but to keep running. Dodging between trees and leaping over roots, Niwa could tell the task was taking the breath from Kyoka.
That invasive feeling in her head drew Niwa to an immediate stop, Kyoka quickly halting beside her as they waited the second it took for Mandalay's voice to flood their mind.
"Everyone in Class A and B! In the name of the pro hero, Eraser Head, you are granted permission to engage in combat! I repeat, everyone is granted permission to engage in combat!"
Niwa and Kyoka exchanged glances first before Niwa grinned and crouched down, "Get on."
"R-Right!"
Once again, that feeling coursed through her mind, "We have discovered one of the villain's targets. It is one of the students—Kacchan!"
"Bakugou?!" Niwa and Kyoka yelled in surprise.
"Kacchan should avoid combat and acting independently. Understand, Kacchan?" The connection canceled and Niwa stared at the ground, her mind tumbling in turmoil.
"What the hell! Why are they after Bakugou?" Kyoka questioned loudly.
It didn't make sense in Niwa's head which only added to the pooling dread flooding her stomach. Bakugou was in danger and Niwa wanted nothing more than to rush to his side.
"What do we do?" Kyoka asked with a shaky voice.
Niwa was a person who strived to protect others.
That was the meaning she had given her life. Bakugou was strong and he had been paired up with Todoroki, they would be alright, they'd hold out. At least, Niwa was trying desperately to convince herself that. What mattered most right now was the person she could protect now. Kyoka wasn't a front lines fighter, a lot of her class wasn't yet suited for going face to face with villains. The ones who couldn't protect themselves came first.
"Kyoka, hurry up." Niwa growled.
Kyoka's hands rested against Niwa's shoulders, and the magenta-haired girl grabbed at the back of the girl's legs. She stood with her friend on her back and crouched low to the ground as every cell buzzed alive in her body.
Good. If her Quirk didn't fully kick in now, Niwa wouldn't have been sure if it ever would again. She really needed to get this fucking thing under control.
Her thoughts were clear, she noticed as she launched into a full-powered sprint. Ducking and weaving through trees was a pain in the ass, but the dark forest That was illuminated by the faint glow of blue flames appeared crystal clear. Her vision had warped again. She no longer saw normally. Like every other time, Niwa could see and understand things differently. The passage of time, her perception of depth, and approaching obstacles. Everything was much clearer, only now was she able to comprehend her thoughts. Was she getting used to this ability?
A gunshot rang through the air, catching the girl's attention.
"What the hell is going on!?" Kyoka yelled into Niwa's shoulder, grip locked tight around her shoulders to keep from falling off.
Another shot fired, coming from the direction of the gas. Another. And another. The shots fired loudly. Niwa grit her teeth as over and over, the sound reached her ears. Who the hell was being shot at? A group? Or just one person who could deal with bullets, there weren't many who could defend against something like a damn bullet.
Niwa pushed her legs harder and focused on her movements, desperately trying to drown out the sound of gunfire as she moved adjacent to the edge of the gas. It was rounding, moving in a swirling motion. A villain that could produce gas? Niwa jumped up into a tall tree and landed on a thick branch.
Everything was happening so fast that it was hard to keep up with. There were so many unknown variables…
Kyoka was doing well not to hinder any of Niwa's movements. Sticking close and holding on tightly. At this rate, Kyoka couldn't do much. It must have been frustrating.
"The gas and fire are in two separate areas," Niwa observed, coaxing Kyoka to glance around at the view.
"We're still a distance from the camp…"
Niwa clicked her teeth in annoyance, "This stupid ass gas. We have to go all the way around it?"
"Wait, look!" Jiro cheered, "It's disappearing!"
Niwa sighed in relief, there were no more gunshots fired and the gas was quickly disappearing from the area. Someone had taken out the cause.
"Let's go check in on the situation!" Niwa launched from the tree, snapping the branch off with the force.
"Wait!" Jiro called out
Niwa quickly skidded to a stop and turned back to look at her friend who quickly shoved her earphone jack into the ground. Niwa waited, time was passing much too slowly, but Kyoka soon snapped her eyes wide open.
"There's someone still in the fire!"
That was all Niwa needed to hear as she turned tail and bolted back. "Where?"
"Two o'clock, about five hundred meters!" Jiro directed and Niwa adjusted her course accordingly.
The forest bent and twisted in all directions and Niwa knew she was wasting precious time dodging in between trees, but there was nothing she could do about that. Her reason faded while she jumped into the burning forest, taking extra care to avoid the fire for Kyoka's sake.
She had an instant to react as she burst out from between the foliage, less than an instant but her body still moved.
She ignored the pair of strangers, darting right in between them, and instantly saw the blonde hair peeking from the bushes. Niwa launched at her classmate, scorching hot flames chasing at her heels. She grabbed Aoyama by the arm and launched further into the firelit forest, dragging the boy along with her momentum. She carried on for a minute before something went flying through the sky overhead. Another villain? Niwa skidded to a stop for a few meters and watched in disbelief as three of her classmates followed quickly behind before crashing into the villain and disappearing from view with a loud crash.
"Kyoka, Aoyama! You two head back, see if you can find anyone else as well!" Niwa instructed forcefully and Kyoka climbed off her back and Aoyama stared up at them with fearful eyes.
"You're going back?!" Kyoka said in shock.
"We're out of the fire's range. Go, damn it!" Niwa glared at the pair, hoping they'd take her advice and get themselves to safety.
Aoyama was the first to move, climbing onto shaky legs and tugging her friend's arm. Niwa watched them go before quickly springing off again. Her body was still a little tired from training all day, but she was nowhere near the limit she had reached last night.
She could still do this!
Her feet pounded against the ground quickly, bouncing through trees and straight through the blue flames that blocked her quickest path.
Niwa lept out from the bushes at full speed and twisted her body.
Her heel landed on the side of the villain's head and shattered his mask with the impact. She sailed on past and reangled her body to come to a sliding stop on all fours. Two small beads flew from the villain's mouth and Niwa watched wide-eyed as Shoji and Todoroki desperately grabbed for the little blue beads. Shoji's hand wrapped around one but…
Right before Todoroki could grab the other, the black-haired villain snatched the little ball and Todoroki crashed to the ground empty-handed.
With a snap of his fingers, the villain she had just kicked disappeared into the black mist warp gate and Tokoyami and Bakugou appeared in place of the beads.
Everything clicked in that instant as she watched Bakugou stand with the villain's hand wrapped around the back of his neck, drawing him into the black mist. Midoriya raced forward and Niwa moved with explosive force.
"Don't come, Deku." Her ears could pick up the strangled voice of Bakugou who disappeared into the mist.
And everything around her was suddenly dark, agonizing, and suffocating.