Chapter 3: Boiling blister red

"Why do you want to learn to fight?"

"So in a way, I'm not helpless."

"People will always think of you as helpless."

"Then at least, I can lessen her burden."

"Will it be enough?"

"It will never be enough…but I will never go anywhere without trying."

"Ha! I like your answer, kid! Now, welcome to my self-defense class!"


The maniac runs forward with all her might, taking in every shred of freedom seeping through the air.

The night sky was beautiful, filled to the brim with glittering stars. Literature hasn't been her strong suit, so she could only say that she liked the feeling. It was enjoyable, to say the least.

Comes to think of it, she was enjoying everything to the maximum.

She can feel the rasp sensation of sand against her bare feet, the wind hugging her body as her hair sways in it.

She feels like she is her own person.

No.

She has always been her own person, and she wouldn't hesitate to punch anyone that thought otherwise.

If anyone sees her now, they would think she is crazy. A little girl, alone by the beach, cackling madly as she runs around. A maniac, so to say.

Not like she gives a shit about what others think. In fact, she doesn't even understand why some people were so affected by it.

But that doesn't matter right now. She is just glad to see the outside world, to explore everything that she hasn't seen.

She was so immersed in her sightseeing that she would lose track of time.

But she had restraint.

Eventually, after enough time exploring that junkyard of a beach, the maniac decided that she should move her attention elsewhere.

Not that she has grown bored of it, but rather she was afraid.

All her life has been spent in that defense class, learning everything she could about how to protect herself, and her teacher even showed her his accumulating tricks to take people down effortlessly.

Point is, she doesn't know how long this moment will last.

Will she wake up once again in that confined space, practicing her moves all day long? After tasting freedom for the first time, she was afraid she would go mad if she went back once again.

Sad as it is, this starry night and the sandy ground was the first taste of the outside world for her, and she would be a fool to give it up.

And so this night, desperate to clutch on to the feeling of freedom in her chest, the maniac began to roam around just for the thrill of it.

Knowing her luck, it won't be that simple.


The maniac has never seen these colorful lights before, brimming the streets as the cacophony of noise never stopped buzzing. There were a lot of people she didn't recognize.

She never knew the world is so large.

As she loitered around a clothing store, she saw her reflection in the glass staring back at her.

Messy blond hair, and red eyes with yellow rings around her irises. Amused, she smiled at the glass to see her sharp teeth.

Did that perhaps look a little bit too intimidating?

Annoyingly, she spotted familiar freckles littering her cheek...rubbing it brought her a sense of nostalgia.

A memory that wasn't her own, helpless and painful.

She shrugged it off.

It doesn't matter now. It hasn't been for a long time.

Deciding that she has messed around enough, the maniac continued her journey in the city.

'Ouch.'

...and not forget to scoff as she walked straight into a streetlight.

Okay, what is the deal between her and iron?!


Okay. This is so not going according to her plan.

Comes to think of it, she didn't have a plan at all!

Oops.

Maybe exploring the alleyway which literally everyone else tried to avoid is not a good idea, but she herself wasn't the brightest person alive.

And apparently, not brightest meant walking into a dark alleyway, where lowlifes such as criminals, thugs, or even villains resided. Because for all it was worth, she saw a person lying on the ground, bleeding a copious amount of blood as six people with knives surrounded him.

Not the ideal scenario for a going-out night. At all.

Okay, they haven't noticed her yet, maybe she could slip away quietly. Just need to close her eyes and left this man to die.

As brutal as it sounded, this was the most logical course of action.


"I want to become strong."

"Strong? Hmm, an admirable goal, indeed. But people can become strong too with only their minds. You're a smart kid, I'm sure you will manage nonetheless."

"Perhaps. But my mind can't bring me what I want. It's not enough."

"Is that so? What kind of strength do you have in mind, then?"

"I want to become strong. I don't want the kind of superiority that you have to stomp at people around you to boost your ego. I want to be someone that's strong enough to protect the one I love."

"What about a complete stranger, then? Will you save them, too?"

"I-"

It's not logical to-


Well, who was she kidding…SCREW IT!

"Hey, assholes, look over here!" She shouted, as her body shifted into a fighting stance

It wasn't professional, but at least it looked cool!

These thugs looked back with surprised expressions, which soon melt into vicious snarls.

Okay, taking 6 armed people at one probably wasn't a good idea.

But again, she didn't take pride in her ability to reason much.

Fuck logic, anyhow.

"Oh? What do we have here? A little girl trying to be a hero? Why don't you run back to your mother and-"

Well, he didn't get to finish his sentences as his face was met with a lightning-fast round kick to the face. His head snapped to the side as he kissed the earth.

How graceful.

"You bitch!" Another exclaimed in anger as he tried to stab her with his knife.

…Predictable.

She sidestepped, avoiding the attack completely before landing a good punch on his temple, knocking him out cold.

4 left…

It was actually quite easy. These men didn't seem to have any prior martial art skills, likely relying on their quirk too much. And she got the jump on them first.

It would still be difficult to deal with them, but the adrenaline coursing in her vein was exhilarating.

She didn't realize she was grinning, as her eyes widened in manic excitement.

However, all of them decided to attack her at once this time.

She was trained to pick up the slightest clue about her opponent and noticed unusual movement from the two of them.

Quirk incoming!

The maniac rolled away, dodging a handful of glue spraying out, almost restricting her movement. Then a flash of light erupted, blinding her vision.

Realizing the immediate danger, she jumped back just in time to hear a whoosh sound in the air. Look like she got lucky. But being disoriented can be fatal in a fight, so she kept her senses up.

Footsteps coming from-

The maniac ducked, her legs sweeping around, hitting a thug from behind her, and making him lose his balance. Not waiting for him to get back up, she kicked hard in his head, making him down for the count.

Her vision is still a bit fuzzy, but she tried her best to remain still, relying on her ability to discern which targets are needed to be prioritized.

The light guy was doing something suspicious again with his face, covering it. Realizing an opportunity, she doubled back, grabbing a knife on the way, launching it into his shoulder.

Hearing the guy shout in pain was amusing, but she wasted no time as she weaved through two of the guy ahead of her, using her momentum to knock the guy down. With a well-placed punch, he stayed down.

However, she miscalculated as she turned back to a handful of glue sprayed at her as she tries to shield it with her hand. It didn't do anything other than restrict her ability to strike back.

Shit.

The remaining guy sprinted forward, knife aiming high. She decided to meet the attack head-on, taking him by surprise, knocking the knife out of his hand. Before she could celebrate, however, she saw a metallic shine in his hand and she react a bit too late to escape the metal slicing through her skin, drawing blood.

"OH FUC-" She screamed in pain as she tries to untangle herself from him, but he caught on and instead moves to attack her again.

Shit, this situation is not good at all! She doesn't have a back-up plan for this!

'This's gonna hurt!' She thought as she braced herself, preparing a counter when-

BOOM!

An abnormal sound echoed in the middle of the night as the man suddenly stopped in shock, his fingers charred and mangled, dripping with blood.

He couldn't even show surprise fast enough as he was met with a swift kick to the face.

What? She needed to win this fight first. Abnormal events could be left for later.

With the last of his comrade down, glue man seemed to be nervous as he stepped back.

"No, you DON'T!" The maniac snarled as she sprint forward, and the man foolishly used his hand to shield his head.

Only to be met with a devasting kick to the nut.

As he screamed in misery, he was met with another kick to the face as he went limp.

Now the alleyway looks like a massacre has happened. Surprisingly, no one died.

Yet.

Grunting in pain, the maniac tries to get rid of the glue on her hand, shuddering in disgust. Now the adrenaline is wearing off, everything is starting to fucking hurt. Reluctantly, she looks at her bleeding arm.

Only to find no wound at all. Well, it still hurts like hell, and there is actually a line of brighter skin where she has been cut. At least she is not bleeding out. And that's reassuring to know.

Whatever happened, it worked in her favor.

Shrugging off the smell of iron infecting the air, she checked who she tried to save a moment ago.

Lying at the corner of the alley has been him, spiky black hair , and looking quite thin to be honest. There is a slash on his sides, drawing blood.

His face looks kind of unnerving.

At first, she thought that he has been injured by someone with a corrosive quirk, but it seemed that it just scars littering his whole jaw. It looked painful, winkled with a sickening purple, patched together. Whatever happened, she couldn't imagine it to be pleasant.

She doesn't have time to put up with shit like this. And she doesn't even get paid!

Sighing in defeat, she carefully picks him up, bridal style. He seems to be lighter than she thought…and luckily still unconscious.

Her priority now is to get out of there first since the thug could wake up at any time, and she doesn't want distractions. One of them even has a quirk that turns his hand into sharp metal, so restraining them is useless.

Okay, at this point, she is just creating more work for herself. Whatever happens tonight, it will hardly be worth it.


If it was unnerving walking in the alleyway before, and that feeling is now doubled with the dead weight in her hand.

After making sure the coast is clear, the maniac puts scar-boy down, and his body leans against the wall. Rolling up his shirt, she begins to apply first aid.

Luckily the cut wasn't that deep, but it probably hurt like hell. There was no disinfectant in sight, so she can only make do. With an overall clean rag ripped from the clothes of the thug, she wrapped it around his waist, stopping the blood. It was not perfect medical skill, but it would keep him alive.

Well, he won't bleed out, but he can still get the wound infected.

And the wound was surprisingly minor, so he will wake up in due time. Come to think of it, how did he even get knocked out in the first place?

Whatever it was, he has been lucky, that's for sure.

But anyway, the problem was solved then…

Now what?

Must she babysit him until he wakes up? This night is still young, and she can think of many places left she hasn't gone to yet.

But she can't actually leave him here, can she?

Damn it.

Oh, she totally can, but she won't be a dick about it. Make sure he's up and running and then they can go their merry way. Who knows, maybe he's under the effect of a quirk or something? She doesn't need that kind of conscience clouding her mind.

Oh! Come to think of it, there was something weird that happens in that alleyway right? An explosion came from nowhere and her skin stitched itself together.

Right! That was definitely a quirk!

How exciting! Does it mean she can blow people up now? And regenerating, too?!

Okay, this will need some testing to be sure.

"EXPLOSION!" She shouted at the air, focusing her mind on making the air before she blew up.

And…

Nothing happens.

It made sense to not be that simple. Exploding air with a thought would be an absolutely broken ability. And she wasn't even that lucky!

"Eh?"

But...that was disappointing. Does it mean that it was just a fluke?

No, it couldn't be. She didn't spot anyone around that might have a quirk like that around, and certainly, the criminal wouldn't go self-destructing like that-

Talk about self-destructing-

"Wait."

Could it be? The maniac remembered the moment when that thug sliced her arm, and succeeded.

His metal arm was covered in her blood, this must have something to do with it, right?

It might sound crazy, but destructive quirks were not rare at all.

Testing out her theory with newfound vigor, the maniac grabbed a knife she stashed away from the fight, squinting her eyes as it cut through her palm, drawing a bit of blood. It dripped into the ground as she felt a burning sensation.

If this is true, it's sure a morbid quirk.

The maniac took a step back, reliving in the feeling of smoothness starting to fill her palm. She then focused on the droplet of blood staining the ground and-

BOOM!

She jumped back in shock, body tensed.

"…holy shit." The maniac exclaimed in shock as a smile slowly plastered across her face

The ground was scorched by a black mark, and it seemed to be strong enough to let lose the cement a bit.

And it's only a few droplets. Imagine how much destruction it can cause with a whole vial of it!

Many interesting scenarios started to overflow her head.

The maniac was resourceful. She would take anything that gave her leverage in a fight, and this was the perfect factor!

This can be devastating! Her quirk can literally make her blood explode, and a side quirk factor to make sure she won't bleed to death. But this means that her current fighting style is-

"Nhg…" A whimper from behind her snapped her out of her though.

Scar-boy is awake.

"It's about time-" She exclaimed as she suddenly ducked to avoid an arc of flame engulfing her face "-ah! WHAT THE FUCK?"

Then she found scar-boy holding out his hand as blue flame danced around it.

Oh…figure.

And she just decided to be a good person, too!

She rolled, dodging the hot searing flame that melt the cement next to her. Thinking quickly, the maniac grabbed her jacket and threw it at scar-boy's face.

It took him off guard as the jacket covered his vision. She took the opportunity to throw the knife in the opposite direction as scar-boy tried to burn it.

Gotcha!

She sprinted forward, grabbing his neck, and pinning him to the ground. He immediately started to struggle.

"Don't move." She ordered in a cold voice, as she felt him twitch under her grasp. "I won't hesitate to defend myself if you have any funny ideas. You aren't at your full strength. You won't even be a threat."

He grunted in response, but feeling her steady grasp on his neck, he had no choice but to drop his hand.

"Okay, that's no way to treat the one saving your ass." She sighed, annoyed at the sudden attack.

"What?" He asked, his hand still holding up, confused.

"What do you think?" She rolled her eyes "You were like, surrounded by 6 guys or so, unconscious and bleeding. You might have been dead if not for me. Show some gratitude."

Recognizing that he wouldn't try to attack anymore, she released him while keeping her attention intact.

It seems that he has realized she wasn't hostile.

"Oh." He said, rubbing the sides of his stomach "Thanks. I guess?"

She snorted, a bored look on her face.

"Now, scar-boy, you caused me a lot of trouble, you know?" She squinted her eyes, moving closer to him "I had to fight off 6 people bigger than me, with quirks causing me a lot of inconveniences. Then after saving you, the first thing you do was attack me. I need compensation."

Well, did that sound gang-like at all? She didn't know enough about social interaction, but it was sure intimidating enough, right?

"Uh…" He looked away from her scrutinizing gaze

"You own me." She said simply

"What?"

"I won't say it twice, scar-boy." She snorted, her posture lax

"Uh…don't you think you're-um...too young to ask me such a favor?" He asked, flabbergasted.

The maniac swore she could choke this son of a bitch right now, right here.

But she wants to see her good deed come to fruition so.

"Not that kind of favor." She scoffed, annoyed at the implications "And I'm not the one getting babysitted here."

He mumbled something in frustration but eventually stopped.

"I experienced how powerful your quirk was. How did these lowlifes get you anyway?" She asked, narrowing her eyes. Now looking back at it, she can see the skin on his hand blister, probably a drawback of that powerful quirk.

She can still feel the heat creeping above her head.

"I answered a question and my body felt hard to move. One of them bound my hand with his quirk, and one caught me off guard with his metal quirk." He answered, obviously displeased with the predicament "Everything after then was a blur..."

A paralysis, with verbal activation requirement? Dangerous indeed. Anyone can be caught in it by surprise.

They seemed to have a dream team for as long as someone answered a question, it would be a free win for them.

Lucky for her that she seemed to take out the paralysis guy first.

Provocation and intimidation are tactics that sensei taught her, too. Shit would hit the fan if she knocked out literally anyone else first.

That was something to remember for later. She won't be so lucky next time.

But she had a reputation to keep-

"You are lucky this time, scar-boy-"

"Dabi. Call me Dabi."

"Loud and clear, scar-boy." She laughed, earning a glare directed at her face

"Anyway, what's the favor you asked? I'm an informant, but since you saved my life, I can offer information for free." He has said, but to be blunt, she didn't really care about information at this point.

Besides, he was acting so high and mighty, so she'd better rub it right back at his face.

"Hm…I don't know any about that. Frankly, I can't think of anything yet. But I will surely come back if I thought of one." She said, rubbing her chin

"Wait. So does that means you save me…without knowing who I am?" He sounded surprised, and she was taken aback

Shouldn't you be glad that you stay alive? What's the point of asking pointless questions?

"Um…yeah? You are not a pop star, you know?" Sarcasm must be dripping off her voice right now as he looked like he was about to burn her to a crisp at any given time.

"...sorry. That was uncalled for. I guess I'm used to ulterior motives when dealing with people."

"You still owe me a favor, you know?"

"I could tell that you were clueless about that. You don't know anything, do you?"

"I know that I will cave your head in if you continue to probe for more information from me." She snarled

Getting the hint, scar-boy kept his head down. He probably didn't want to pick a fight when he was so vulnerable.

Good.

"If that's all, see ya later, scar-boy. I'm very busy, you see?" She said, standing up "You should probably see a doctor. I'm not an expert, so you might get an infection. Better be safe than sorry."

Just as she's about to go, he asked one again

"Can I know what your name is? We will meet each other again, after all."

"…"

Now that was surprising, but she could get behind that. And 'little girl' was getting a bit too annoying for a nickname.

After thinking for a moment, she opened her mouth.

"Call me Kakiru." She said as she took off sprinting, madly cackling as she continued her rampage. Which probably left the whole street concerned for their lives, but who cares?

The fun is not over yet! She has already wasted enough time.

Although, he was amusing. If she can come back, she will look for him again.


The next morning, Mikumo woke up in an abandoned building, bare-footed, his entire body aching and blood-stained on his dusty jacket.

"Damn it." Was all he managed to utter