A/N: Last time was quite the show, I honestly think it's my best work yet, I hope it was. Still, to those that like my Indomitable series it'll be back for Vol. 2 next week now that I got the rest of Perfected Season 3 mostly wrapped up. Review Time!

To Murtaito: I expected this reaction, but hey, all that pain led to 100% and Vosik's downfall (Again) so a win-win!

Enjoy.


Chapter 46 - Without That Perfect Smile

"Now... It's Your Turn."

All Might's message wasn't long, his finger pointed toward the camera, to the world that watched on with many emotions. The whole country cheered for their Symbol of Peace, not seeing the real picture. Izuku wept a little, realizing the burden he now held, and... the loss of the hero that offered his hand, or atleast the end of his legacy.

However, the worst was yet to come. A sharp gasp flooded the screen, the camera blurring as it whipped around and away from All Might, focusing on something laying in the ground beside it. Heads rose, and Izuku's heart froze and snapped while his eyes jittered slightly.

It was unnatural, pure instinct on Bakugo and Izuku's part; Yet when they saw the bluette's body topple to the ground they tore away from the horrified crowd, refusing to listen to a word that Iida or Kirishima said as they shoved and sped through the gridlocked traffic and idle citizens. Nothing matters, only a single thought of needing to run with every last bit of strength they could afford to reach the fallen machinist.

~S-She's just collapsed! Yuki Azuru has collapsed and is completely unresponsive!~

The man tried to get a closer look as gasps of terror ran through the streets. Back at the ruins, he couldn't get closer due to the police moving everyone aside, obscuring the world's view of the girl while an officer reluctantly held back All Might, his own frantic cry stretching across the gap between him and his student.

"YUKI!" No one had ever heard such an anguished tone draw from the Symbol's throat, face plastered in terror

A roar of metallic wings swept down from the sky as Valstrax reached the scene first, having heard All Might's scream of terror. Then she saw it, her heart falling apart like her armor, revealing her tear-stained as she stormed through the crowd. Everyone watching couldn't bear the sight of the hero as she crumbled to her knees, trying to gently shake her awake, listening closer only to tear up further. There was nothing. "C-Come on, Y-Yuki! P-please wake up!" She held her head low to the girl's motionless body. "PLEASE!"

Thankfully, several paramedics arrived, many having to force some room between the girl and her hysterical mother as they quickly got to work on attempting to resuscitate the mute with CPR, one checking her pulse after a dozen pumps, there was nothing. "Keep trying!"

~The paramedics are performing CPR, but... i-it doesn't look like she's responding at all~ The female reporter also choked up herself

Seeing the medical team working from afar sunk a pit further into Bakugo's chest, he and Izuku speeding up and zipping through the crowd, shoving them aside to reach her as the next words stretched out for all to hear, both their bodies licked with a harrowing chill. "Still no pulse!" The medics kept trying, the crowd seeing the girl's lifeless gaze fall toward them, a mortifying sight that most couldn't face.

Eventually, the police had to move fast, keeping Bakugo and a frantic Izuku from getting close, holding Izuku back as his hand reached out tearfully. "YUKI!"

"Kid, stay back!" One yelled, but Izuku wasn't listening, he had to reach her, he had to, he had to!

"YUKI!" Each time he screamed made Bakugo shiver, he was frozen, utterly devoid of movement as his blank eyes followed Yuki's form, eventually they yelled for her to be taken to the hospital immediately, rushing franticly to move her. He could see from the side as All Might put his hands on Valstrax's shoulders, himself bowing his head as he bit his lip, the woman beneath him covering her face as she cried

His eyes continued to follow the girl's, those hollow eyes a faded blue, her mouth ajar without a breath. Izuku kept trying to reach her as they rolled her into the EM vehicle on a stretcher. All those present from UA watched this too.

Shoto and Yaoyorozu couldn't peel their eyes from the screen, Yaoyorozu covering her mouth, refusing to believe what she was seeing. Shoto couldn't move an inch, his hand twisting at where his heart was, seeing her hollow eyes fade of color shook him beyond measure, he felt colder than his body could ever feel.

Kirishima and Iida arrived on the scene too, seeing their distraught friends, one painfully crying out, and the other completely rigid on the spot. Kirishima put his hand on Bakugo's shoulder, trying to gauge his attention but nothing worked, the blonde's eyes never left Yuki while the doors to the vehicle slammed shut, followed by the deafening wail of the siren as it sped off, leaving him to just stand and stare until it vanished from sight, his stomach sinking to unreachable levels.

Izuku, despite being let go kept his arm out, feeling as though that night played right before his eyes, his fingers so close he could feel the sensitive touch of her own slip away. Even Bakugo's hand was shakily held out toward the horizon, before both old friends screamed out her name, ripping from their throats.

"YUKI!"


The silent, early morning streets echoed with the clap and thud of shoes against the concrete, clanking through the empty streets. Izuku's breathing was completely uneven, panting, and sweating as he saw the vehicle's light vanished from view. The second they did he tore from the police, ignoring everyone, including Kirishima and Iida, as he broke into Full Cowling and sprinted after the EM vehicle without resistance.

One uneven slab tripped him up, causing him to wince as he crashed to the ground, his Quirk cut out as he rubbed his nose, feeling his arms and legs buckle. His forehead shoved into the ground as he forced himself to rise. "Get up! She needs you!" He managed to put his feet under his wobbly legs, grinding his teeth with a furious look in his emerald eyes. "Keep going, Yuki's waiting for you, Izuku Midoriya! Run!"

"Oi, Midoriya, jump!" Hearing a familiar voice, the boy threw himself forward, feeling a sudden rush of hot air and scream of a jet tug him from the concrete, causing him to scream and latch onto the gauntlet that tugged him closer. His eyes broadened with a blink

"M-Miss. Akame!?" Though now he saw it clearly, how frantic and worried she was, eyes bloodshot while tightening her hold on his body

"Like hell I'm going to let you run all the way there, so hold on, I'm about to break several laws," She growled, his arms wrapped around her shoulder and neck as he felt his body compress into her barding, a sudden sonic boom rattling the town below while their bodies made what seemed like minutes narrow into seconds.

The woman stretched out her legs, wings fanned out to slow their sudden slide into the concrete, screeching metal and tile disturbing a few pedestrians while Izuku wobbled, shaking his head to quickly sprint alongside the hero toward the hospital only a few blocks away, they couldn't stop, they had to keep going! Akame quickly suppressing her Quirk.

Izuku's eyes followed the sight of the EM vehicle that brought Yuki here, breaking his limits as he shoved himself through the automatic doors, almost tripping while startling the many nurses and doctors that worked round the clock. All of them surprised by the two panting individuals. "...Yu... ki..." He could hardly breathe, even with Valstrax's aid, even she felt the fatigue of the previous battle weighing down on her lungs

"I-Im sorry?" One nurse approached the two apprehensively, sweat and breathless gasps coming from the duo

"Yu...Ki..." He rasped, trying desperately to look the nurse in the eye

She frowned worryingly at the boy, "Um... Sir, I need a full name to-"

"She's my daughter! Yuki Azuru, where is she!?" Akame had enough prattling, she needed to know her little girl was okay. Many muttered as well as the woman gasping, holding her fingers to her lips

"Did you both run from...?" She trailed off toward the TV broadcasting the disaster, the Villain behind the attack being locked up while the one that attacked a student directly was completely wiped off the face of the earth. Sighing, she turned her gaze back to the two, specifically Izuku. "I'm sorry, but we can only allow family-"

"Like hell he's not!" Akame hissed, glowering at the woman. "He has every right to see her too,"

"I will have to agree ta that," A sharp voice interrupted the trio. Behind the pair, the short, elderly woman strolled in, her face warped with worry herself

"R-Recovery... Girl...?" Izuku panted, exhausted but surprised to see her; Wiping away the sweat from his brow, still unable to remove his hands from his knees while eyeing the woman wearing her casual clothing with a doctor's coat over it

The old lady frowned sadly. "I came as soon as I heard her condition, the poor dear's been through far too much for her age," She shook her head solemnly, directing her gaze to the nurse. "Missy, what's the patient's condition?"

Grimacing, the nurse nodded, "She's currently in ER, surgery is being performed as we speak. Several fractured or broken bones, internal bleeding, ripped muscle fibers, couple this with the many gashes, burns, and infections she's sustained it could all be the very reason for her heart to fail." The words iced a layer of fright through Izuku and Akame. "How could anyone survive that?"

"Her... heart failed..."

Nodding to the news, Recovery Girl waved the nurse on with a steeled professionalism. "Show me to the surgery room."

"Of course, right this way," The nurse guided her forward, turning sadly to the two. "Please wait in the waiting room, a doctor will come once we have results," And with that, Izuku finally fell to the floor, breathing heavily while tears and sweat pelted the cold, hard floor. Akame stumbled back, slapping her back against the wall, head low with her own blank stare

Neither moved an inch, Akame shut down, staring down at the floor by her feet, Izuku was a bumbling mess, pulling at his hair while he bowed his body toward his knees, muttering and cursing himself out. Soon a nurse asked them to move to the waiting room, offering the two a sympathetic look while tears fell from the emerald-haired teen's freckled face, hugged close to Akame's side while she fixed her head low, but the nurse could see the tension in her lips that were trying to break.

Hours were drawling by, neither said a word, neither left the other's side, probably because it was all they had before Izuku's Mom came bursting in to find her son weeping silently against the Sky Comet hero's side. Inko attempted to coax her son into telling her what happened but she just received that same, pained look shattered into his emerald eyes. The woman threw her arms around her silent son, but he couldn't return it, just staring straight ahead toward the doorway that led to Yuki.

"Mister. Midoriya?" At his surname, Izuku's eyes focused on... he blinked away tears

"...D-Doctor Yoshiharu...?" His dry voice muttered, seeing him smile a little at his remembrance

"I'd say it was a pleasure to see you again, but given these circumstances, I-" He was cut off as both Izuku and Akame stood before him with desperation in their faces

"What about Yuki!?" "Is she okay!?"

Dr. Yoshiharu sighed gravely, rubbing his beard while motioning for the trio to follow in silence. Once traversing the isolated halls he began. "Little Yuki is a resilient young girl, take away her Quirk and she has an incredible will, however..." He paused, glancing back at the three with worried, green eyes, almost not wanting to believe the words himself. "After extensive work and reviews... I am sorry but..." He sighed at the sorrowful news, knowing what was to come. He stopped them for a moment. "Yuki is currently comatose..."

A hitched sob stung in Izuku's throat, then a cry through his gasps. He didn't... he couldn't believe it, he refused to! The person who mattered most in his life wasn't going to wake up, she was comatose. The nail that drove home was the sudden sobbing from Akame, the strong, boisterous hero he met months ago broke down into her hands.

She fell to her knee, sobbing loudly in horror. "Yuki!" Her cry was soon smothered by her tears, Inko moving quickly to embrace the distraught mother with her own misty eyes. The doctor dipped his head

"I am a professional in the study of biomechanics, Yuki was the first case of such extensive cybernetics that most would see as a goldmine, but that girl... the more I worked with her over the years, even before those selfish thoughts could crop up, I felt compelled to do something to help minimize that pain," He put a hand to his heart, face creased with his own level of grief. "This sweet, witty girl called me her friend... how could I take advantage of that?"

The world was just white noise, static in Izuku's ears as he plucked the metal mask he forgot was still attached to his head down to face him. The grey eyes devoid like Yuki's, the cool metal patched with Shoto's handiwork. It felt so heavy now, nothing held color or clarity anymore. All he knew was that Yuki was in a coma she may never wake up from, just like her little sister.

His body stiffened, chilled to the bone at the sight of the doors to his right parting with three nurses rolling out a bed and equipment. His eyes scanned the bluette resting with a mask over her mouth, faint cloudiness indicating she was breathing, a heart monitor beating gently. Her body without SIVA was bandaged almost entirely, spots tinged with blood that would need replacing soon, underneath her gown her body was the same, mummified beyond recognition.

His sunken eyes managed to catch her face. She slept soundly, eyelashes flush against her paler face, bandages tied around her head, and jaw, a large patch on her left cheek, probably to leave a scar. Her smile was still nonexistent, that alone made his body move on its own, like the day he fought to rescue Kacchan, long before they met.

"Yuki..." He pulled himself up, words meshing together in his frantic mind. "She can't be! Yuki, SIVA, wake up, fix her, save her - PLEASE!" "Yuki!"

Dr. Yoshiharu felt a pang in his chest for the boy, putting his arm out to keep him from proceeding further. It wasn't enough to stop him, and a part of him wanted to just let the boy go, he would. "Izuku, please... honey, calm down... please." Inko soothed her son, embracing him from behind tightly, even Akame lifted her hand to pat the greenette on the head, unable to say a word.

All he could do was stand and watch as they took his best friend, his girlfriend, the most important person in his life away to be monitored day-in and day-out. She'd never wake up. SIVA would never respond and repair her. Machinery would ironically be what kept her alive for the rest of her life...

His emerald gaze blurred with tears he didn't know he could still shed, his heart collapsed as he hunched toward the floor, hiccuping with his frantic sobs. "Why... why her, why did they have to hurt her... she did nothing wrong!? Dammit!?" His fist punched the tiles. Kovik and Dren brought back a hideous beast that took her life away where years of pursuit and the League could not. "GRAAAAAAAAH!" His bloodcurdling scream made it all the more clear, how shattered his world had become.


Three days passed by since that day, now referred to as the 'Camino Disaster'. The reports following the massive event were discussing all the latest instances, from casualty reports, missing people, and the loss of many. All Might, the Symbol of Peace decided to retire shortly after though no one knew the real reason as to why. The leader of the League of Villains was apprehended, and the one known as Vosik was gone, having been obliterated by one of the kidnapped students in a momentousbattle alongside the Symbol of Peace.

Many heroes knew Yuki or had been there to see her heroics come by to visit, offering gifts and condolences to Azuru and the silent girl. Edgeshot came by once, bowing alongside his side-kick, Jin, herself respectful to the girl that was her friend's daughter. A bundle of light-blue roses were left by another hero, one no one realized came by, leaving only a note of his visit, 'Rest Well' signed with a 'Sir. N'.

All Might, Gran Torino, and Eraserhead all visited also, the Symbol of Peace sat there, apologizing to the girl he saw more than just his student, ashamed for not saving her sooner while he held her hand close to his tearful face. "I should have done more, instead I let my own anger get the better of me! Why, why couldn't I save them both!?"

Gran Torino stared at the girl, thanking her silently for her courage. Eraserhead stared silently at the girl, she was a serious issue alongside UA's Problem Child, but to see her so... lifeless made his anger simmer, even as the others left he stuck by Akame, allowing her to practically sob into his shoulder for an hour, just seeing his best friend fall apart like this only made his hatred for Kovik grow.

The Pussycats and Kota came by, the boy's eyes caught sight of the motionless girl and immediately couldn't restrain tears from breaking at the sight that was awfully reminiscent of his parents' deaths. Mandalay picked him up to leave the room for her partners, biting her lip angrily at seeing the sweet little girl she watched train with all her heart reduced to such a state.

Practically all of Class 1-A visited Yuki, all bringing get-well cards and the like; A few from Class 1-B too, those being Kendo, Tetsutetsu, and the absent Jura who couldn't go to the camp due to family matters, only he regretted not being there when she needed it, bowing his head angrily at himself for being oblivious to it. Kendo came mainly because Tetsutetsu asked her, himself just wanting to check on the girl, though she definitely didn't mind, the sight itself was almost too much for her, even Tetsutetsu couldn't handle it.

Ochaco visited with her parents alongside Iida and even his recovering brother, the man wanting to join them in thanking the mute girl he had heard so much about and to thank her directly for protecting those at Hosu and his younger brother. Once the brothers were alone, Iida just broke down and yelled at himself for not doing more to save her, he wanted to fight like Izuku but he knew he had to protect the majority, even if it hurt so much that he couldn't stop thinking about it.

Kyoka and her parents, including Akio and Viral all came too. The Nightmare staring silently at the girl, her soul flickering weakly, infuriating him at his lack of abilities to heal her. Kyoka's parents felt heartbroken as their daughter fell apart in Akio's arms, the green-eyed boy bearing his teeth to keep himself from breaking down, eyes shadowed by his bangs while feeling Kyoka tremble. He may have avenged those hurt by a Nightmare that night, but he couldn't save Yuki when she needed it most.

Shoto and his sister visited regularly, the times Yuki unexpectedly appeared at his home always made things so much brighter, and for Fuyumi, to see her trapped in an endless sleep caused her to cry as she embraced her younger brother. Shoto reciprocated the hug, biting his cheek to keep from tearing up for Yuki's sake, though he knew she'd just flick his forehead telling him it was alright to cry and for him to stop being so uptight.

Izuku took it far worse than anyone else. If it wasn't Akame by her daughter's side, Izuku would be, visiting every day without question. When he entered there was a devoid look in his eyes every time, like the colors in his world were pulled from his body, that alone earned many pitied looks from the hospital staff while he passed, only ever speaking when they asked him questions, but even his voice was hoarse and emotionless.

He'd sit by her side, head low, fists clenched on his lap while remaining silent, regret, self-loathing, anguish, all negatives were swirling in his heart, mind, and soul, if not for Viral's training and subsequent draining of his darker emotions buried from his past he might have gone crazy. Only one thought cropped into his mind when he visited, watching her chest rise and fall with hollowed eyes. "I couldn't reach her..."

Sometimes he'd visit Yuki's sister, Nana, who was in another hospital during all of this, he had never seen Yuki's sister before but Dr. Yoshiharu allowed him permission to see her. Much to Izuku's surprise, the girl looked just like Yuki, younger by a few years and she had pointer ears compared to Yuki, though he learned it was due to her Quirk. Even for the brief moments, he visited the young girl all he did was murmured apologies for failing to protect Yuki.

Despair was his punishment for days, he could barely sleep, and when he did it was in fits of tears, feeling isolated without her. Nightmares of her death stung through his mind, some of her bloodied body strapped to a chair, body pale and lifeless. Others of Vosik impaling her from his arm, cackling while the blood sprayed and her eyes lost their glow. Some he could imagine her screaming, a voice he pinned to compensate for her lack of vocals, that alone drew him to wake in a cold sweat, sobbing under the moonlight as he continued to clutch her mask dearly. Another thing, he'd never let anyone touch her mask, and he got defensive when some motioned to it, the first glimpse of emotion other than sorrow.

'Don't die for me, live for me, please :)'

He'd do it anyway, he'd do it all over again if that could change this fate. Izuku bit his lip, hunched over in his bed.

'Izuku... how can someone as nervous as you be so... damn sweet... to someone like me...'

But she was sweeter, kinder, open, and honest to everyone she met, saw the good in the most complex of hearts. His hand tightened around the mask close to his chest.

'-The way I see it, the law is there to keep order and peace, but the definition of a hero is to not break the law but to uphold the peace built atop their foundations. That's the moral reasoning alot of heroes today have forgotten'

She held those values through and through, risked her life to put a stop to the pain and torment that Vosik could inflict on others, she sacrificed herself for that safer future. His lips started to mutter out her name, pathetic and weak.

'Izuku... Thank you... for being my hero,'

How can someone like him... possibly be her hero... when all he did was nothing? Fresh tears steadily rolled down his face for the rest of the night.


It was just another day at the hospital, the nurses that strolled down the halls took note of the gloomy teen that strolled by, head to the floor. "Poor Midoriya... he's been visiting every day," One whispered

"He looks really restless," Another pointed out, noting the dark circles under his eyes while he stumbled up the steps

Due to his routine, he'd pass familiar faces, some greeted him kindly but knew he wouldn't speak up, though his hand did move in a subtle wave to acknowledge them in passing. Once he followed his path like second nature he stared back at the plate with the name 'Azuru' on it. His hand reached for the door the second someone else yanked it back, to his surprise, it was the Bakugos.

Having opened the door, Mitsuki blinked then offered the greenette a small smile. "Hey there, Izuku... no surprise you'd be here," She spoke, stepping out alongside her husband, the man giving the young man a smile

"How have you been?" He asked, and that got a small reply from Izuku who did his best to seem a little less down

"F-fine, I... just haven't gotten much sleep... so, yeah..." They knew better than to pry into the subject, even though Katsuki's rants and furious shouting they knew from Inko about Izuku and Yuki's relationship, so between everyone, he, Katsuki, and Akame were hit the worst

Mitsuki reached down to ruffle his curly hair, trying to keep her own grief in check, mainly for her son who hasn't spoken a word since the incident. Both her and Masaru were completely taken back when he returned home after giving a police report on his ordeal, he just walked up to them, for the first time since he was younger, and hugged them tightly. Of course, they ensured he got help for whatever he had to witness during those days and he thankfully complied.

"Go on, kiddo, maybe... you can get something out of Katsuki," She murmured to Izuku while the two wandered back to the waiting room, holding each other close and leaving Izuku to stand by the doorway, staring in with blank eyes directed at the ash-blonde who hadn't moved from Yuki's side, staring back at her probably

"Hurry up and get in... Deku." He snapped, causing Izuku to flinch, stepping inside and shutting the door. He felt his throat clench at the continuous beep of the heart monitor and the hum of machinery, it felt so cold and lifeless inside. All of it led to connect to Yuki's comatose body, her chest still rising and falling.

Their deathly silence was broken by a dry chuckle, empty and fake. "...this damn Mute... kept on smiling at that bastard... she kept smiling for my wellbeing..." Confused by his words, it wasn't until Bakugo turned to address his childhood friend directly did Izuku's orbs shoot open, startled by the look in Bakugo's eyes

His piercing scarlet eyes were bloodshot and rimmed with dark crescents from clear lack of sleep, his tensed muscles holding back tears while knitting his teeth together to aid in that crumbling front. He looked pale, having not eaten much since then. Every time he heard the monitor beep his nails dug into his palms. As if to taunt him of his failure.

"Kacchan..." Izuku's voice croaked, startled as Bakugo snapped, bowing his head in frustration

"I couldn't do a damn thing... I should have dragged her back... and now she's in a fucking COMA! I should have saved her!" He slammed a fist against the wall, fury directed at the distant reflection in the window

"Calm down, Kacchan, it wasn't your fa-"

"You weren't fucking there, Deku! You didn't have to sit and watch every waking hour as that sick bastard made her cry, beating her senselessly, bleeding her, burning her until she passed out! Every punch! Stab! Slash! And silent scream he drew from her throat!" His eyes lost their hold on his tears, hand pulling at his shirt. "And at the end of the day, they had her face ME like I did this to HER! But she just kept that stupid smile and glare, she never lost and kept fighting while I was forced to watch until I was SICK! Do you have any fucking idea what that's like!? To see her smile back at you like everything was OKAY as she bled in front of you!?"

Now Izuku was tearing up, feeling guilt warp around him. Bakugo had never expected this to happen once in his life, to be strapped down and forced to endure watching a girl that never once hated him, who just taunted and butted heads with him suffer all for his sake. She kept all the attention to herself, when Bakugo snapped and Vosik turned to silence him it was Yuki who would kick, punch, even spit more blood in the bastard's deranged mask, forcing countless hours of beatings to occur until she was barely conscious at all. He never felt... such pure hatred for one being in his whole life... the first time he'd truly wish to kill someone with his bare hands.

Izuku lifted his head, staring directly at his friend, his fists were shaking, and his eyes almost failing to meet Bakugo's. "You're right, I don't, and I might not ever know, Kacchan!" He yelled back. "Yuki's been there for me when I never deserved it, she always fought until she was broken, she gave her all to win, to save people and support me! Why, why someone like me who was never worth a damn, because I was a 'Quirkless nobody', right!?" He asked Bakugo who looked through his bangs back at the trembling freckled boy

"She made me want to grow stronger! She's everything to me, Kacchan! I wanted to break myself if that meant I could save you both, I'd die for her if I could just reach her! And now... now I failed; If anyone should be hated it's me because I did exactly what you said... I was useless to do anything..."

Bakugo could recall it, when he boiled with frustration at never breaking free to save her as she had her head stomped into the floor, shoved against the wall as the blade sliced along her back with a hiss of heated blood. He wanted to move, to be faster at saving her from another waking moment in hell, but his eyes could recall the words she mouthed when she was delirious. A single name he could read through his blurry vision. "She kept mouthing your name, Deku."

That snapped him from his trance, looking up at Bakugo who had turned around to face Yuki once more, his eyes swam with fury but his mouth moved of its own accord. "...stop fucking blaming yourself... because you're the damn reason she held on," He turned, marching over to the frightened fanboy to jab him in the chest, seething words into his face. "So you fucking dare give up now, forget what she's done for you... and I'll kill you!"

Despite the harsh tone of his words, he was right, Izuku had been drowning in so much despair he forgot the reason she stuck by him, it wasn't because he was All Might's successor or the fact he had a powerful Quirk. He was the first real friend she's had in years, a person to spend time with and to experience things she had neglected or forgot. He was the reason she had more than just the desire to save her sister. "I'm an idiot..." He wiped away his tears, facing Bakugo directly. "You're right... if I just forget that then I have no right to even be her friend."

"Tch, dumbass." Bakugo chuffed, turning to eye the many monitors before his eyes stuck themselves to the heart monitor, or rather, the sudden lack of lines jutting skyward. Then the machine blared with an ear-raking tone. "CRAP!"

"Yuki!" Izuku yelled, rushing to her side as he pressed his ear to her chest, almost choking as he heard nothing beat within. "No-no-no, Yuki, come on, don't go!" He begged while Bakugo slammed his thumb into the emergency call button

"GET SOMEONE IN HERE, DAMMIT, SHE'S FLAT-LINED!" His voice practically tore through the coms, snapping back to the pair as Izuku froze up, unable to do a thing but watch, shaking her arm to get a reaction. "OI, perform CPR already, Deku!" He snapped at the greenette who panicked

"But if we do that we could kill her outright due to her fractured ribs!?" Much as he hated it, Deku was right, if they messed up it could put a permanent end to the Mute especially given their strength compared to the average person, too little force would do nothing, too much and they could snap bone

"Move aside lads, quickly!" Dr. Yoshiharu and a few other nurses stormed in, the boys dragged back, though it was Izuku who had to be pulled away by them mostly, his cries stretching over the monitors blaring sound. With his sleeves rolled up the Doctor got to work on CPR, applying his Quirk to aid in the restoration of the young girl. "Come now, Little One, this is no place to die." He grunted, getting to work without question

While outside, Bakugo put his back to the wall, unable to look down as he kept his head toward the ceiling, listening to the mocking tone of the machine behind the door. Izuku bent down at the knees, head low in his hands as he wept, the sound was haunting him, tearing him apart as he heard her heart, Yuki's heart, stop beating, a harrowing sensation of dread crawling through him as he listened.

"Please... please save her, someone... please save her...!" He was begging the staff, SIVA, God himself, anyone to let her live, to just end this nightmare he was trapped within. From the side, Kirishima and Shoto had arrived on the scene, seeing their friends and their distraught expressions coupled with the noise

The two rushed to ask what happened, Bakugo held his hand over his eyes, barely able to look at anything or anyone. Izuku felt Shoto's hand on his shoulder but he was still weeping, trying to pray under his breath for someone to save her. He did this for a painful eight minutes. Kirishima kept pacing, frantically running his hands through his hair, Shoto put his fingertips together, bowing his head against them to keep himself calm, his own heard racing at the frustration of uselessness.

After the eight minutes passed, Dr. Yoshiharu smiled at the lot, nodding. "Worry not, this old man still has some tricks up his sleeve, she's fine," That brought a round of relief, but his expression turned stern. "Now, we'll need to cut back on her visiting hours, primarily to monitor her and her Quirk's state,"

"That's okay... so long as she's okay..." Izuku breathed, standing up while the Doctor nodded

"Now, if you want to say anything before we proceed with her check-up, best say it now," He motioned for one of them

"Go on, Midoriya, we'll just hang 'till the checks are done," Kirishima grinned, nudging Shoto's side as he nodded in agreement. Bakugo was already walking away to be by himself for a moment

"Thanks, guys..." Bowing he quickly entered the room, not seeing the worried and sad stares from the two and the doctor

The room felt colder now, just him alone with Yuki who looked paler, probably due to her second close call with death, it stung, seeing her look so frail, that wasn't Yuki, it made a tiny crack of smile form. Yuki would be hitting him on the head until he stopped crying, giving off about him constantly worrying when he shouldn't, but it just wasn't enough, when she was like this, there's wasn't anything he could do to stop himself.

Cupping her hand, careful and tenderly, he pressed his head against its cold surface, tears leaking down to stain the edge of the bed. "Yuki... please... you have to wake up..." His heart was tearing itself apart, forcing out the words. "...I miss you..." He felt the rim of the mask tap to its owner's hand once again. "...I need you..." His soft eyes lifted themselves to her still face, wishing to see her eyes again... anything to end this nightmare and see her smile. "...I want you to come home to us..."

...

...

...

...

...

The brittle wind howled across the ruined remains of a wasteland frozen by arctic weather and snowfall. Large spires of black rectangular pyramids bound in red wire that strung across gaps and buildings like rope painted a crooked image of vibrant red across the winter dead zone.

The rusted, withered remains of a massive complex that groaned against the strain of the wind, a circular object fitting as an eye of a titan shadowed two figures that observed from an abandoned building, a large slab of concrete jutting from the wall out into the world.

To Be Continued...


I can feel the hatred coming my way, yeah, had this planned since I started working on the Sports Festival, man it was hard to write. But, seems things are not as they seem. I hope you enjoyed, appreciate the support as always, seeya in the next chapter heroes.

Next Chapter: Find Your Perfection, Aksis!

Yuki: Why are we here?

Aksis: To finish what we started.

Yuki: What exactly is down there?

Aksis: The darkest manifestation of SIVA's power.

Yuki: Next up! Find Your Perfection, Aksis!

Aksis: Rise Up-!

Yuki: -And Fight On!