Author Notes:
I've been writing this for a while, so I've got another chapter ready and I'll just post it because what the heck why not. Don't expect updates every hour for the rest of your life, I've got no time for that. Generally, I'll try to do one every month, but it's hard to balance that when I want to write so many different stories at once. I am so bad at commitments to my creative side of life :(
Anyways enjoy the story,
HailToTheSnail
Chapter 2 - The God of Hero Academia
"This will be your new home for the next couple of weeks. So get used to it, alright?" Rumi said as she opened the door to her place.
The rabbit hero lived near the heart of the Musutafu. In the penthouse of a complex that overlooked the entire city. It was rather luxurious and befitting of someone of her stature. It made Mori wonder why she was ladened down with him. And not some rookie professional hero right out of hero school, if that was even a thing.
Following Rumi into her apartment, Mori looked in awe at his surroundings. The place was big and quite well decorated… well, at least to his standards. Hell, all he had back at his place was a drawer.
The whole place was of open concept with a large living room area off to the left. It was adorned with a soft furry rug on which two large white leather sofas sat across from each other. A glass coffee table rested between the two. And a rather modern fireplace with a grand flat screen TV was built into the wall to complete it.
To his right rested the kitchen area, where sat many different appliances, some of which included, a fridge, a microwave, an oven, and many more that Mori couldn't even fathom to name. Aside from that, there were cupboards built above these appliances that no doubt held many cooking instruments.
Separating the two areas, there was an island with a sink built into the side near the kitchen. The counter was made of marble and three lamp lights hung low. There also rested three black leather stools on the side opposite the sink.
Further past these two areas rested a spiralling staircase of metal and glass leading up to the bedrooms and past that was a wall of glass with twin doors leading out to a terrace, filtering in light from the setting sun.
"You must make a lot of money for this place," Mori commented off-handedly.
Rumi looked around unimpressed. "I suppose so, but I don't really care much for stuff like this," she said, grinning suddenly. "I'd give all this up for a good fight any day."
Mori smiled. They were more alike than he had originally thought.
"Bedrooms are upstairs," Rumi said. "The second door on the left when you go up the stairs is the guest bedroom that you'll be using."
Mori nodded and watched as Rumi walked up the staircase to rest in her own room. When she was out of view, he again lightly propped Yeoui up against the wall before finding the most open space in the large room. He then started to go through the motions of Renewal Taekwondo, finding the effects of doing so soothing. He didn't know how much time passed but he kept at it, hoping to forget all about what had happened earlier today. Or whenever the War with the Heaven's had happened.
"I've never seen martial arts like that," Rumi said, drawing Mori out of his trance. "Where'd you learn it?"
The Monkey King looked over to the stairs which Rumi had just descended. She'd changed out of her hero costume and was now wearing an oversized white blouse with a carrot printed on the front and bright blue jean shorts. It also looked as if the rabbit ears and tail were a permanent part of her.
Mori stopped in his motions. "My grandpa," he said quickly.
It remained quiet for a moment before Rumi changed the subject. "Do you want dinner?" she asked.
Dinner? Mori looked out the glass wall and past the terrace to see that the sun had set already. He'd been training for an hour or so by the looks of it.
"Dinner sounds nice," Mori admitted, his stomach growling in agreement.
Rumi laughed. "Take-out or home cooked?" she asked. "I've been told I make a killer katsudon."
Mori smiled. "Home cooked," he replied. He always liked home cooked meals the best. "I'll help as well. If you don't mind," he said, following Rumi over to the kitchen.
The rabbit hero didn't question Mori's willingness to help and instead just let him. Even though he was a guest here, it'd be rude to turn him down when he seemed so adamant on assisting her. Besides, not many boys his age liked to cook. If anything this practice would help him get a head start on girls whenever he developed an interest.
They quickly got to work cooking, with Mori following every instruction that Rumi gave him to a tee. Which impressed her greatly and let her focus more on her part of the meal that she was cooking.
This continued for the next hour before they were both planted on a leather sofa with a bowl of hot katsudon in hand, watching the first few episodes of Dragon Ball. Something which had peaked Mori's attention when he saw that the protagonist was loosely based off of him. He found it quite amusing.
"I've got to admit, kid. You're better at cooking than I thought you'd be. Did anyone ever teach you?" Rumi asked curiously.
Mori smiled fondly, thinking back on his clone, Mori Hui. "Yeah, a friend of mine once did," he said, remembering the things his other self had taught him when their consciousness had returned to the Monkey King. "And the things he did, the lengths he went, the people he fought for… I'm eternally grateful for all of it."
Rumi returned the smile, finding the kid's own to be rather contagious. "Sounds like he's a great friend," she commented.
Mori continued to smile. "He was," he said happily.
Rumi recognized the signs that Mori was displaying. She knew that whoever he was talking about was no longer with them and didn't push the subject any further. Opting for the amicable silence that had happened upon them.
Honestly, she was just glad that the kid assigned to her was rather easy going and not too difficult to deal with. He was kind of growing on her too. He wasn't bad company at all.
When they'd finished the sixth episode of the Dragon Ball series, Rumi stood up and stretched. "I'm going to hit the sack," she said, walking over to the staircase. "You're welcome to stay up and watch more, but we'll be heading down to my hero office tomorrow morning. I've got a few things I've got to wrap up there before I can just take a two-week long break. So try to get some rest tonight, alright?"
Mori nodded his head. It was still kind of strange for him to suddenly be living with another person, but somewhere deep within him, it felt refreshing.
Rumi smiled and left up the staircase, leaving Mori by himself again. He watched a couple more episodes before his eyes started to close and his mind drifted into obliviousness.
"Wake up, kid!"
Mori groaned as he opened his eyes blearily and took in the ceiling above him. It took him a moment to remember just where he was. "Ms. Usagiyama?" Mori said.
"I told you to call me, Rumi," she pointed out.
He ignored that for now. "What time is it?" he asked. He could see it was still dark outside as he had fallen asleep on the couch and could see out the glass wall.
Rumi looked at the clock in the kitchen as she checked that her hero costume was in order. "Six-fifteen in the morning if that clock's set properly," she announced.
"Too early," Mori grumbled, closing his eyes and trying to go back to bed. "It's only been eight hours since I fell asleep," he pointed out.
"And that's the ideal amount of time to sleep," the rabbit hero countered.
"Honestly, I think it should be ten," Mori grumbled, though he sat up from his position on the couch to wake up.
"Any breakfast?" Mori asked.
Rumi waved away his concerns. "We'll grab a bite on the way there," she said, walking out the door. She probably expected him to follow her.
Mori complied with her unspoken wishes and followed her out of the apartment. Not before remembering to grab Yeoui.
Rumi looked at the staff in his hands and frowned. "Do you really have to carry that around?" she asked. "It's going to draw unneeded attention."
Mori quirked a brow. "There are heroes out there that have machine guns on their arms," he said realistically, remembering some hero on TV named Gunhead. "Do you really think this," he gestured to the weapon in his hand. "is going to scare anyone?"
Rumi made to argue but stopped herself. "Point taken," she conceded.
They then took the elevator down and started on their way to Rumi's hero office. Grabbing a bite to eat on the way there from WcDonald's. At least the fast food places would always remain the same no matter where he went.
The walk didn't take long, as Rumi's hero office was also in the heart of Musutafu. As was to be expected of the number five hero in Japan. Mori would be honestly surprised if her office was anywhere but at the heart of all crime.
When they'd reached the front, Mori was even more impressed than he'd been with her apartment. It was at least a five-story-tall building made of glass and concrete. With a large golden crescent moon emblazoned on the side of the structure.
"Don't look too impressed," Rumi said, stepping through the front door and into her hero firm. "You still haven't seen the inside."
Walking in, Mori gazed at his surroundings. It was a rather large area with many accommodations. The place was littered with greenery; almost like a little part of a forest that was grown indoors. It was breathtaking.
Rumi glanced at Mori's stunned expression and grinned. "You like it?" she asked, knowing what his answer would be. "I based the whole inside of the building on a forest that I used to visit a lot."
"It's amazing," Mori said.
"Yeah, well, I didn't do it all by myself," Rumi admitted, honest as always. "I had some help from a rookie hero named Kamui Woods, I believe. He helped me recreate the place with his quirk. He's got a pretty neat power."
Mori absentmindedly nodded his head, as his eyes explored the more normal aspects of the entrance. To the left of where he stood there were a few small food shops selling breakfast at the time. While to his right lay a lounging area decorated with many modern pieces of furniture. At the center of all that was around reception desk standing right before the elevators.
Sitting there, taking a call, sat a young red-head in her work clothes. She also wore a tag with her name on it. Though Mori couldn't read it from that distance. Fortunately for him, they walked over there anyway and he discerned the name. Rachel, it read.
"Ms. Usagiyama," the secretary, Rachel said, startled by her boss' surprise visit. "I thought you were going on break for the next couple weeks."
Mori snorted, earning Rumi's ire. He knew she hated being referred to as Ms. Usagiyama and found it rather amusing at how frustrated she seemed to get.
"And who's this?" Rachel asked, looking towards Mori.
Rumi returned her attention to Rachel, explaining herself. "Oh, this is Mori," she introduced. "And Mori, this is Rachel, my secretary."
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Mori," Rachel said, waving at the Monkey King.
He smiled and waved back. "It's a pleasure to meet you too, Ms. Rachel," he replied in kind.
With the pleasantries out of the way, Rumi returned her gaze to her secretary to explain herself. "I just came by to grab a few reports here before I head out, Rachel. I won't be back for a couple of weeks after that. So hold down the fort for me, alright?" she asked.
The secretary nodded and pressed a button at her desk. One of the elevators behind her opened up. "I will, Ms. Usagiyama," she said cheerfully. She then smiled. "You deserve this break."
Mori couldn't help but smile. It was nice to see that Rumi's employees cared this much for her well being. It meant that they had a rather good rapport.
They stepped into the elevator at the back and took it to the top floor, listening to some rather tactless elevator music on the way up.
When they exited the elevator, this one seemed to lead straight into Rumi's office. It was a comfortable looking space with a nice view of the city. Littering the outskirts of the room were numerous bookcases and filing cabinets. And at the center stood her desk with a little plaque engraved with her name in big bold letters.
Off to the side, there were two doors. With one leading off to a private bathroom, while the other led off to a lounging area with a small kitchen of sorts.
Rumi walked over to one of the many filing cabinets and started to skim through its content, searching for the particular reports she mentioned to Rachel earlier.
While she did so, Mori walked over to a wall of photos that he hadn't seen when he first entered the room. One, in particular, caught his attention. It was a newspaper article highlighting a man that had saved over a hundred people in less than ten minutes.
It wasn't really the article that drew his attention though, it was the photograph of a man in the picture with eight people held in his arms and on his back. He was climbing over the wreckage of a burnt down building.
"All Might?" Mori mused, reading the name from the headline.
"Pretty impressive, isn't he?" Rumi said, having grabbed the files she needed and snuck up on the Monkey King. "He's the reason I became a hero in the first place," she admitted.
Mori looked at the picture again, the time to study the man's features. He was a rather tanned and muscular figure, who wore his blonde hair back, save for two thick strands that stood up at the front like antennae. His hero costume consisted of a skin-tight blue bodysuit decorated with red and white highlights. His arm braces and boots were a rather bright sheen of yellow. And his belt was of steel painted gray and gold.
What really made something fester inside Mori's body though was the smile he wore. It was as if it was trying to tell him that he was safe. That there was nothing in the world that he couldn't defeat to protect the peace.
"C'mon, kid," Rumi said, making for the elevator. "I got what I came here for. No point in wasting any more time in this cramped office space."
Mori was drawn from the picture as he made his way back to Rumi's side. They took the elevator back down to the ground floor and said their goodbyes to Rachel before being back on the streets once more. It was only seven thirty in the morning.
Mori yawned. "Tell me again why we had to do this so early in the morning?" he asked.
"Because I'm a morning girl," Rumi admitted, stretching as they got outside. "You learn to adapt when fans hound your every action."
Mori could see her point. Nobody would be awake willingly right now.
"Plus," Rumi added, drawing Mori's attention again. "We've got the whole day ahead of us now to do whatever you want. So what do you want to do?"
Mori thought about it for a moment before something came to mind. "Is there anywhere that I can practice my martial arts?" he asked.
Although it didn't come as a surprise for Rumi as she saw that the kid really loved his martial arts. She still found it odd that he'd rather be practicing his skills than be fooling around, but in a way, she respected it. "We have a training facility in the basement of my hero firm. If that's what you want?" she asked, still wondering what was up with the kid.
Mori nodded. "Yes, please," he said.
They both returned into the hero firm, startling Rachel once more. Rumi explained what Mori wanted and the secretary giggled before calling an elevator for them.
They both entered the elevator and it started going down. Again, that same tactless music came upon the speaker. He found it irritating.
When the doors opened, he was awed once again. He was beginning to wonder how many times that had happened today. Anyhow, the facility was expansive. A plethora of training equipment was spread across the entirety of the place and a large open area sat near the center for actual combat training. Above all that was a railed balcony running the length of the gym for running and endurance.
It was impressive sure, but something that Mori noticed was that the equipment was hardly touched. "This place hardly seems used," Mori mentioned.
Rumi shrugged. "I don't get down here much," she admitted. "Too many crimes happening around the city to really get any training done. Plus fighting villains is training in and of itself," she grinned.
"What about sidekicks?" Mori asked, again having referred to knowledge from TV. He'd learnt that most new heroes tended to work at another heroes agency for experience before venturing off to make their own hero firm.
Rumi shrugged once more. "I'm more of a solo hero," she said honestly. "Every time I do work with others, they always get in my way," she said.
Although Mori had no reason to doubt her words, he doubted them here. The reason for that was her eyes. He had seen them on his grandpa all the time before he'd decided to take up Renewal Taekwondo. They were the eyes of someone who hadn't found someone worthy enough to pass on their teachings.
Mori didn't bring it up though, choosing to head towards a corner with a few colourful punching bags. He'd practice his martial arts with those.
While he started up with his usual exercises, his mind blanked and a familiar calmness took over. To Mori, this was his way of meditating. Going through the motions of his and his grandpa's taekwondo put him at ease.
After a couple of hours or so, he felt eyes on him and stopped what he was doing. He looked up to see that Rumi had stopped in her running and was watching him. She seemed like she wanted to say something.
"What is it, Ms. Usagiyama?" he asked curiously.
"I told you not to call me that," she mentioned off-handedly. "And I was wondering if you were going to keep hitting that bag over and over again or if you'd like to spar with me?" she asked.
Mori thought about it. What could be the harm in a little spar? Plus he could gauge how strong Power Borrowers of this generation were. He couldn't see any downside really. He nodded his head. "Alright, sure," he said, accepting her offer.
Rumi grinned and hopped over the railing, landing gracefully on the gym floor. She then walked over to the center of the facility with Mori in tow.
The rabbit hero was interested in the kid's martial arts and wanted to see how they'd hold up against her own self taught fighting style. She'd go a lot easier on him because he was a kid, but she didn't plan on losing either.
Before the match began, Mori set his staff aside, knowing that with it he'd have an unfair advantage. He wanted it to be a fight with pure martial arts. Nothing more.
They stood across from each other, a couple of meters apart. Waiting for one or the other to make the first move. It turned out Rumi would be doing so, as she hadn't the patience to wait any longer. She darted towards Mori and threw a high kick towards his head with twenty percent of her strength.
He took the brunt of it and grimaced at the pain that shot up his arm. She was strong and he could tell that she wasn't even close to using her full strength. He'd have to be careful about taking any more hits like that. It seemed that the Holy Grail had done more damage to his body that he'd originally thought it had.
Using the momentum of her kick, Mori spun around and threw his own towards her head. "Renewal Rising Back Kick," he said. It missed completely.
Mori frowned. I don't have the reach I used to, he noted, jumping back a few steps. He'd have to adjust to that.
Luckily, he was a quick learner and it only took a light punishment from Rumi to re-adjust his reach before he hit her. "Renewal Halla," he said, throwing a strong upwards kick that connected with the rabbit hero's jaw.
She stumbled back a few steps but righted herself just as quickly, giving Mori no time to continue his assault. That didn't stop him though.
Something that he realized in his many years of fighting was that the opponent never expected for the other to keep pushing when they had already been repelled once. "Renewal Baekdu," he said, ramming a knee into Rumi's stomach.
To his surprise, she was ready for it and stopped his knee attack with a palm, pushing it to her left and effectively rendering his attack obsolete. He then felt something slam into his back and he tumbled a bit away. He got up quickly though, enough so that he rolled out of the way of the rabbit hero's follow up.
The fight dragged on as they went back and forth, exchanging blows and seeing what each other could do before they pulled out any of their bigger moves. It was exhausting, but they both still didn't have a good feel for each other's martial arts.
A few more moments passed, before once again, Rumi made her move. She lunged at Mori at a ferocious speed and aimed a kick towards his midsection.
Mori countered. "Renewal Lowest Hoechook," he said, falling beneath her attack and sweeping his leg, kicking hers out from beneath her. "Renewal Arang," he continued, as his elbow connected and Rumi fell to the floor. It was an opportunity.
He went in for the finisher, jumping high and bringing a leg down. "Renewal Axe."
And although he thought he had won, Mori saw the ghost of a smile playing on Rumi's lips. He saw no way for her to dodge out of his attack, but he was concerned. He couldn't stop himself now though, he'd already committed.
Before he got any closer, Rumi slammed the heel of her foot into the ground, lightly embedding it into the ground. She used this as leverage to push herself out of the way of the attack and clear of danger.
Mori swore under his breath as he looked towards where she had moved, but she was no longer there. Which meant…
He looked up and saw Rumi coming down towards him from the ceiling, having pushed off of it to increase her speed. He raised his arms instinctively, knowing it would do him no good, but holding them up anyways.
Rumi collided with him, knocking up a cloud of dust and obscuring both their visions. When it had settled, the rabbit hero was crouched over Mori, her leg mere inches away from his face. It was apparent what the end results were. Mori had lost.
The rabbit hero stood up and offered the Monkey King a hand. He took it, accepting his loss. "Wow, you're really strong, kid," she said, panting slightly. "I didn't think you'd make me use more than thirty percent of my strength, but you made me use at least half. That's no easy feat," she complimented.
Mori frowned at that. He'd only made her use fifty percent? How weak had he gotten? Before he could continue on that line of thoughts, the ground shook at the magnitude of a small earthquake.
They stopped. "What was that?" Rumi asked.
As if to answer her question, the intercom went off. "Ms. Usagiyama, a villain is rampaging just outside the hero firm," Rachel called. "The police are on the way, but there have already been five reported casualties."
Hearing the secretary's words, Rumi turned to the Mori. "Go upstairs and stay with Rachel," she ordered. "Unless you want the risk of imprisonment, you better stay as far away from the fight as possible. You got that, kid?"
Mori could see Rumi was genuinely worried for him. He nodded reluctantly.
The rabbit hero nodded. Having said what she needed to say to her charge, she raced to one of the side doors that held an emergency staircase for fires. It would be faster than the elevator. She raced up them at speeds unimaginable to a human.
Mori watched her go before taking the elevator up to meet with Rachel.
When he exited, he saw that thick metal shutters were coming down around the building's glass doors and windows. The whole place was going on lockdown.
"Mr. Mori, over here," Rachel called from the reception desk. She seemed rather focused on something at her desk.
He jogged over to her to satisfy his curiosity. On the computer screen at her desk was a live feed of what was going on just outside. Rumi had just engaged with the villains.
The villains seemed to both have borrowed powers of sea gods as they each had an uncanny resemblance to a lobster and an octopus. The woman that resembled a lobster was rather lean and had two lobster claws coming out of her back, while the man that resembled an octopus was rather short and had six tentacles for arms.
"Keep your eyes open," Rachel said, watching the screen with ill-concealed excitement. "You don't want to miss Ms. Usagiyama beating these villains. It's going to be quite the sight."
Mori nodded his head and looked at the screen, seeing the confident smile that Rumi wore. If Rachel had this much confidence in her boss, maybe he should too.
"Is that all you got villain?" Rumi asked, sidestepping the quick punch thrown by the lobster villain. The rabbit hero punished her by kicking her in the side.
One thing Rumi noticed about these villains was that they weren't ordinary. They had experience in combat. They weren't pushovers. She'd have to treat them as such and not as the ordinary street thug.
Rumi jumped back when a tentacle shot towards her, aiming to grab one of her limbs. She turned to the other villain. "Wait your turn," she said, taking off towards the octopus villain with unparalleled speed. They exchanged blows for a bit before she kicked through his defences, disorienting him and forcing him back.
The rabbit hero followed it up with a knee to the guts and a double elbow slam, copying the techniques that Mori had performed on the gorilla yesterday. The rabbit hero had to say, they were effective and very much so dangerous.
Dropping the villain, she dodged out of the way of a powerful claw from the lobster villain from behind. Though she didn't let up in her attacks, throwing a constant barrage of punches from her four arms. It left not a single opening.
"This is troublesome," Rumi said, waiting for a slip up by the female evildoer.
A few moments later, that opening showed when she paused for a moment to catch her breath. Now, Rumi thought, as she countered a strike from one of the lobster arms and ducked underneath one of the regular ones. She then kicked the villain thrice. Twice aimed at the guts and the third aimed at the head.
The lobster villain fell to the ground, rendered incapacitated by Rumi's powerful legs.
She turned to the octopus villain and grinned. "You're up next."
To her surprise, the short man shot ink out of his tentacles, forcing her to close her eyes, lest she wished for the ink to get in them.
Unfortunately for him, although he was quiet, it wasn't quiet enough. Rumi's bunny ears could pick up his footsteps and she reacted accordingly. She threw her leg out and felt it connect, hearing the villain groan in pain.
Rumi wiped the ink from her eyes, seeing the octopus man retreat a few steps.
"This is the end of the line for you," the rabbit hero said, grinning and crouching low, digging her feet into the cement. She pushed off of it, creating a gust of wind and a massive web of cracks where she'd just shot off from.
Rumi bounced around the surrounding area, building up speed and staying out of the octopus' line of sight. Soon enough, she was nothing more than a blur that the villain could no longer follow with his eyes.
The rabbit hero grinned as she went in for her finishing move. "Ballistic Crescent Crash!" she cried, as she pushed off from the side of a building and down towards the octopus villain at incredible speeds. Her leg connected with his head and she pushed him to the ground, burying him at least five meters from the original impact.
After the dust had settled, Rumi stood victorious. "It's unfortunate that you decided to rampage outside my hero firm of all them," she said, her grin still present. "Otherwise, you might not have been taken out so quickly."
The lobster villain, not yet unconscious, laid sprawled out on the ground, a lopsided grin gracing her features. "You think we'd be stupid enough to start a fight outside your hero firm for no reason?" she asked.
"Well, you just did," Rumi mentioned offhandedly. "So, yeah. Yeah, I do."
The villain chuckled. "There's only one reason we chose to start rampaging outside your firm," she said. "And that's to take you out."
"Yeah, well look at how that turned out for you," Rumi snarked.
The lobster villain continued to chuckle for a while before growing dead serious. "Who said it was just the two of us?" she asked, casually.
Before Rumi could even process those words, something slammed into her from behind, hitting her like a truck. She gasped for air as she was flung across the street and crashed into the side of a building. She grimaced as pain shot up throughout her entire body and she opened her eyes blearily to see what hit her.
A large muscular man, standing over three meters tall. He was dressed like any other businessman with a full three-piece navy blue suit and a dark red tie. He also wore black loafers and heavy steel handcuffs around either leg, broken at the chains. Though what really drew her attention was his head. Instead of seeing the average ugly thug's face, she saw rows upon rows of large jagged teeth. The man had the head of a great white shark.
Rumi stood up weakly, her legs wobbly from that last hit.
The other two villains that she had subdued were now standing up, rallied by their leader's arrival. "Took you long enough, boss," the lobster villain said.
"Yeah, we thought you were just going to let us get captured," the octopus villain agreed, wincing from the wounds he sustained.
The shark villain grunted. "I wanted to see your potential," he explained before shaking his head. "But I was sorely disappointed by the results."
Both the lobster and the octopus hung their heads in shame at realizing that they'd failed their boss. He sighed. "But perhaps I'll give you two another chance if you bring that rabbit back to me," he rumbled, watching Rumi struggle to stand.
They both nodded their heads vigorously and turned towards the injured hero, a newfound purpose to fulfill. "We've got her from here, boss," they said.
Rumi bit her bottom lip, realizing how bad of a situation she was in. It sure as hell wasn't good. She'd just taken a huge blow and now she had to worry about three of them? Where were the other heroes? Why hadn't they shown up yet?
Fighting and shouting could be heard nearby and the shark man smiled, or at least the rabbit hero assumed it was a smile. "If you're wondering why none of the other heroes have shown up, it's because my other underlings are keeping them busy," he said. "You see, you're the biggest thorn in our side in this city. You've caused our company a great deal of losses over the years and we want compensation."
Rumi cursed as her situation seemed to be getting worse and worse. She could only hope to stall for time. She put on her most confident smile. "Aren't you that shark villain that owns most of the black market trade in Musutafu" she asked, snapping as she tried to remember his name. "King Shark, wasn't it?"
King Shark continued to smile politely. "I'm glad you know of me," he said. "That means you know what losses I'm talking about, don't you?"
"You mean the countless shipments of drugs, organs, and weapon coming from the docks and subway tunnels?" Rumi asked innocently. A smirk graced her features. "Yeah, I think I know what you're talking about."
King Shark quirked a brow. "I'm touched you remember," he said, all mirth leaving his eyes. "It'll make killing you all the better. So if you're done trying to stall for time," he let it hang, having her know that he knew her plan the entire time. "I'd really love to get to that part already," he said, giving his two underlings the go ahead.
Rumi tsked. So much for stalling. She raised her arms above her head and got into a defensive position. She couldn't go on the offensive, especially with King Shark here now. She knew how dangerous he was now.
Both the lobster and octopus villains charged at her and the rabbit hero met them with closed fists. She was now just barely able to keep up with the two villains after the blow she'd taken from King Shark.
Pain arced through Rumi's body every time she blocked a strike, biting her lips to stop from screaming. She ignored the pain and pushed herself to her limits, increasing the speed of her punches and the power behind each kick.
Her vision got hazy but she fought through it, letting out a roar as pure adrenaline fueled her strikes. Left hook. Countered. Reverse kick. Parried. Elbow attack. Resisted. Right jab. Dodged. Knee strike. Contact…
Rumi grabbed the octopus villain by the head and brought a knee up into his face, making him stumble back. This gave her time to focus solely on the other with a barrage of blows, aiming to incapacitate her as quickly as possible.
At first, they played a rather gruesome game of patty cake with closed fists and legs, but that quickly wrapped up when Rumi managed to land a blow to the lobster's side with a strong kick when her guard was at her head. She keeled over from the blow and the rabbit hero turned to where she'd stumbled the other villain.
All she saw was a shark head before she was tackled once again, making her heave the little she had had for breakfast. It didn't stop there though, as King Shark continued his charge and buried her in the side of a building.
Rumi coughed violently. "You bastard," she said through gritted teeth. "What kind of coward attacks his opponent when their guard is down?"
King Shark grabbed Rumi by her throat. "The kind of coward that wants you dead," he rumbled, throwing her into the nearest car.
The rabbit hero gasped in pain and struggled to stand.
A clawed appendage stopped her when it impacted Rumi's stomach, causing her to yell. "How's that feel, bitch?" the lobster villain asked.
A tentacle whipped the rabbit hero's midsection, further intensifying her screams. "Don't fuck with us, you whore!" the octopus villain shouted, enjoying the hero's pain greatly.
They both continued to harass the hero for a moment until their leader walked over, holding up a hand to get them to stop. He then crouched in front of her, holding her gaze. "Have you had enough yet?" he asked tauntingly.
Rumi took a deep breath before she mustered up the rest of her energy to glare at the villain in front of her. "I will never give in to you," she said stubbornly.
King Shark huffed. "So be it," he replied, lifting her by her throat. "Let's see how much pain you can take before I break you," he said. Hoping to enjoy his time toying with the number five hero.
Rachel held a hand to her mouth as tears slowly fell down her face. She couldn't believe what she was seeing right now. "Ms. Usagiyama," she whimpered.
Mori continued to watch the screen with intense focus. Every punch, every kick that the rabbit hero took, further fueled the Monkey King's anger. And although it was hard to discern his darker emotions, anyone who knew him for long enough knew that he was indeed angry. He stepped away from the reception desk.
"Where do you think you're going?" Rachel asked, grabbing his shoulder.
Mori looked back at her. She was still crying, but had gained enough sense see the kid trying to leave. "To save her," he said easily.
Rachel shook her head. "I can't let you do that," she said. "Ms. Usagiyama ordered me to make sure that you don't leave this building until the villains are dealt with."
"She's gonna die if I don't go out there," Mori countered. He stared at the octopus man with a cold eye, seeing the way the molusca looked over the rabbit hero's form. Or far worse, he thought with a shiver.
Rachel stumbled over her words. "Other pros will be here soon," she said, trying to deter the kid from his suicidal mission. "You just have to wait and trust them."
"I can't do that," Mori said, remembering having this same talk with the detective yesterday. "She's going to die if I don't go now."
Maybe the detective was right in the fact that he should trust the professional heroes to do what they do best, and the fact that self-sacrifice inspired self-sacrifice. But right now, he didn't care for any of that. Damn be the consequences if he could save her life. Especially after all she'd done for him already.
The Monkey King looked at the screen once more and watched as the octopus villain held her down, getting ready to do whatever sick shit he'd thought up. He looked into Rumi's eyes and saw fear held in them. His eyes grew colder.
Mori shrugged off Rachel's hand. "I'm not going to sit here and let them do whatever they want to her," he said, his conviction now set in stone. "So open that door before I break it down myself!"
Rachel was stumped. She knew what the kid was capable of, having been informed of his fight with the B-Rank villain, Grodd, and admittedly, sneaking a peak on his and her boss' sparring session downstairs. But why was she hesitating? Was it because of the fact that he was only fifteen? She didn't know what to do here. If he got himself caught and killed, she might as well tell the police that she was the one that killed the kid.
While this dilemma continued in Rachel's head, she looked around frantically for anything to calm her nerves. The chairs. The trees. The shops. Anything at all. Her eyes finally fell back to the kid standing before her. What did she do?
Mori returned her stare, his fiery eyes and golden pupils showing, brimming with his godlike power. "I will save her," he said with finality.
And just like that, Rachel moved without a thought, believing in the small kid and his gaze that held his conviction. With the click of a button, the metal shutters started to retract.
Mori smiled thankfully and ran towards the exit, Rumi and the villains coming into his line of sight. "Return, Yeoui," he called, outstretching his arm.
The building shook a few times before a part of the ground beneath him erupted and his hand firmly grasped around the smooth surface of his staff. He lifted it up and aimed it towards the villain pinning Rumi down. "Expand," he said.
Obeying it's master's command, Yeoui shot forwards, traveling a dozen meters in a matter of seconds and slamming into the octopus villain with enough force to send him flying back and knocked out cold.
This alerted the other two villains to his presence, and to his relief, they jumped away from Rumi, focusing solely on the kid before them.
This gave him enough time to get between them and his current guardian.
"What the hell was that boss?" the lobster villain asked.
King Shark looked at where their target lay, squinting to see if his eyes were playing a joke on him. "A kid," he replied with certainty.
Under the shark villain's scrutiny, Mori made sure Rumi was alright. "Ms. Usagiyama? Are you alright?" he asked, not taking his eyes of the villains
Rumi groaned and tried to look up from where she was. The action seemed to make her wince in pain. "Kid, is that you?" she asked, confirming it with her eyes. "You know you're most likely going to get into a load of shit for this, right?"
Mori sighed. She was doing much better than he'd thought if she was readily cussing. "Can you fight?" he asked, glancing down at her. He winced at what he saw.
She could definitely stand but she was bruised and cut all across her body. The cuts weren't deep but the bruises were on another level. While they didn't cover a whole lot of her body, they were of varying shades of blue and purple. He didn't think she would be able to fight, but he needed to know for sure. Whether he could rely on her, or if he was completely alone in this upcoming fight.
"I think so," she said, coughing slightly. She was banged up and she was currently coming off her adrenaline high, but that didn't mean she wouldn't continue fighting. "Can you give me a minute to recover?"
Mori nodded his head, focusing his attention on the two conscious villains. He wouldn't let King Shark get the drop on him as he had on Rumi.
"So they now let kids become professional heroes?" King Shark mused. "How far hero society has fallen," he looked at the Monkey King curiously. "But pray tell me, how did you get past my underlings? There were at least a hundred of them milling around the streets near here. And none of them are pushovers."
Mori went with a bluff. "Hardly a threat," he said confidently.
This made the crime lord pause in his advances alongside his conscious underling. "Is that so?" he asked. He looked over at his unconscious underling near the hero and the kid. "I guess I'm not too surprised with that fact."
He stared at Mori evenly. "But that doesn't change the fact that you're stopping us from achieving our goal for today," he admitted. "I don't have any grudge with you, so I'll give you a chance to walk away from this. You're still a kid but if you don't accept my kindness right now, I won't hesitate to tear you into pieces."
Mori smiled. "While I do appreciate it, I'll pass," he declined, looking at the struggling woman behind him. "I owe a lot to Ms. Usagiyama here. I won't just stand here and watch you kill her," he stood at the ready.
"Then you've decided your fate," King Shark roared, lowering himself closer to the ground. "You will die here," he said calmly as he charged Mori.
The Monkey King stood there quietly as the large shark villain ran at him. His eyes narrowed, showing only the barest hint of his fiery eyes and golden pupils. He was serious right now and wasn't going give the luxury of an easy beatdown like he had the gorilla villain, Grodd. King Shark was going to pay dearly.
Mori aimed his staff at the shark villain. "Expand, Yeoui," he said.
Yeoui shot off towards its target, but King Shark ducked underneath it, having already seen that trick once and not willing to fall for it again.
That was alright with Mori, he hadn't expected that to hit. Though he didn't retract Yeoui. "Grow thicker," he added.
His staff obeyed once more, rapidly thickening and crushing King Shark underneath its weight. He held it there for a few seconds. "Revert," he said.
Yeoui returned to its original state and Mori glared down at the villain bitterly.
"Got you now!" the lobster villain shouted, having snuck up to left his side while he'd been dealing with her leader.
Just as she was about to strike the Monkey King, a blur rammed into the female villain, knocking her off of her trajectory. "Did you forget about me," Rumi panted, still grinning through this somehow. "I still have to pay you back."
Rumi gave Mori a nod, signaling that she could deal with the lobster villain. And as much as she hated to let the kid do it, she was going to have to rely on him to defeat King Shark. She just didn't have the stamina to deal with him. "Kid, you better not die here!" she shouted. "I've still got two weeks more weeks to take care of you!"
Mori scoffed at that. "I think I'm going to have to be the one to take care of you with all those injuries," he said with a smile. He'd missed playful banter like this. "Besides, you should be more worried about yourself."
She just continued to grin before following after the lobster villain with renewed vigor.
Mori turned back to his opponent, who had managed to finally stand.
"I have to admit, that actually kind of hurt," King Shark said, cracking his neck. "You're stronger than you look, kid."
If it were any other time or place, King Shark probably would have invited the Monkey King to his organization, but right now, he knew that the kid wasn't up for negotiation.
Mori didn't reply, instead, waiting patiently for King Shark to attack again.
It didn't take long. The shark villain rushed the Monkey King once more, planning to tackle the kid with his full weight.
Mori was prepared for this and maneuvered himself around the shark villain with quick footwork, leaving him confused to where his opponent had disappeared to.
"Expand, Yeoui," Mori said. His staff expanded, sending King Shark airborne. "Renewal Scissors," Mori comboed, kicking the shark villain across the face when he came closer to the ground.
King Shark was pushed back and Mori put some distance between them. He was airing on the side of caution since Rumi had lost to the guy and he'd lost to her.
It was a poor choice though as the shark villain soon started throwing whatever he could get his hands on at the Monkey King. He was forced to play dodgeball.
Seeing as this was getting ridiculous, Mori decided to close the gap between them.
King Shark was ready for that, throwing a punch as soon as Mori was close. He held up Yeoui and blocked the blow, though the force of the impact was jarring.
He didn't hesitate and counterattacked "Renewal-" he started, causing King Shark to raise his guard. "Hoe Grab," he finished, pulling down the shark villain's guard.
"Renewal Three Stage Hoechook," Mori said, throwing three kicks from three different directions. Unfortunately for him, it didn't have much effect on the thick-headed shark villain. He jumped back out of grabbing range.
That didn't stop King Shark from following, hardly fazed by Mori's last attack. He defended from the shark villain's attack to the best of his ability, letting not a single strike through as he looked for an opening.
He found it in the next wave of strikes right when King Shark drew back for a heavy strike, he moved slightly to the left and let it breeze past his face.
Mori then swept King Shark's legs from beneath him while he was off-balance.
"Renewal Baekdu," Mori said, crashing into the shark villain with a knee strike to the guts. He followed it up with another knee strike with his other leg. "Double Renewal Baekdu," he comboed.
"Renewal Baek Rok," Mori added, kicking King Shark in the chin and stumbling him back. He jumped into the air. "Renewal Axe," he continued, coming down with a falling kick to the shark villain's head.
Mori didn't let up in his attacks, hitting King Shark with everything in his arsenal. From Arang to Taebaek. And when he'd sent the shark villain flying with a quick expand from his Yeoui, he drew his leg across the ground beside him in a semicircle. "Renewal," he started, sweeping his leg forward and producing a bright wind that replicated an eastern dragon. "Blue Dragon's Kick," he finished.
The bright wind rushed upwards before descending towards King Shark, engulfing him in the light. It lasted a moment before dispersing and revealing the shark villain in a crater of the Monkey King's making, defeated.
Mori, seeing that the fight was over, turned around in search of Rumi, to see if she needed help. That was his fatal mistake.
A shadow descended on Mori and he quickly turned around, realizing his slip up. It was too late though, as King Shark slammed a fist into the Monkey King's guts.
He heaved as his body was sent flying, losing his grip on Yeoui. He crashed into a railing on the side of the road.
"That was a mistake to take your eyes off of me without confirming whether I was conscious or not," King Shark educated. "Though that was an impressive attack. Your Quirk perhaps?"
There it was again. Someone else mentioned that word again.
Mori was drawn away from that thought when King Shark stomped on his stomach. "Answer the question, boy," he rumbled.
The Monkey King wouldn't give him that satisfaction, struggling under the bigger man's weight. This stupid kid's body was hindering him from escaping.
King Shark picked Mori up and righted him on his feet before delivering a nasty punch to his stomach. "You think you can just ignore an adult, boy?" he asked. "You kids and your silly belief that all adults are evil!"
King Shark started to pummel the Monkey King's body. If it weren't for his god powers, he wasn't sure he could take these blows and live. As it was now, they were suppressing and whittling him down bit by bit.
"This will teach you to pretend to play hero in an adult's game!" King Shark roared, enjoying his sadistic side.
Mori's breath grew ragged with every strike he took and his mind was starting to go blank on him. Was this how it ended? Was he going to die to this nobody? He who had defeated gods themselves.
The Monkey King's thoughts drifted to his current guardian and he looked over to see her staring back with wide eyes at what played out before her, her foe already unconscious at her feet. Would she be able to deal with King Shark?
His eyes widened as a sudden realization dawned on him. If he was to die now, there would be nothing stopping King Shark from killing Rumi. He said he'd save her to Rachel, and after everything she'd done for him already. He planned on doing just that even if it cost him his life.
And for some reason, that didn't scare Mori. In fact, it gave him a sense of tranquility that he hadn't thought would be possible after his grandpa's brutal death.
His right leg moved on its own, drawing back, even through King Shark's barrage of strikes. He didn't flinch away, instead, focusing all of his remaining energy into a single point in his foot.
All that was on Mori's mind right now was defeating this villain and keeping Rumi safe. The rest was meaningless and only served to deter his focus.
Then, he unleashed it. "Renewal Recoilless Kick," he said, watching as his leg connected with King Shark's face. Not a single wasted movement. The pinnacle of Renewal Taekwondo. A peak on his long journey to overcome his grandpa.
The results were astounding. When Mori threw the kick, the space between them warped and his strike reached King Shark instantaneously and without resistance.
Everything was still in that one moment… before everything rushed back to the present time. The ground beneath them cracked open, the cement was reduced to rubble and the small fissures created were of at least a foot in width. It didn't stop there though as the cracks scaled up the side of a few of the closer buildings and a typhoon of wind shattered all the windows in the immediate vicinity. The effectiveness scared even the Monkey King.
King Shark still stood where he had been when hit by the Recoilless Kick, and Mori held his stance in case the shark villain tried to attack. Nothing like that happened. Instead, he toppled over having fallen unconscious from the attack.
Mori sighed and his body tightened from the strain that the Recoilless Kick put on him. It was heavy but manageable if he only used it once at a time. It was extremely taxing though. That fight had taken a lot more energy than he'd expected it would.
The Monkey King remembered about Rumi and looked around for her. He found her not long after, having been blown away by his attack. She was resting on the ground, propped up against the side of a minivan. To his surprise, Rachel had made her way outside and was looking over her wounds. Hopefully, she had some medical training.
Seeing as the one he'd wanted to save was alright, he turned to the downed villains. He needed to know something. He needed an answer.
Mori walked over to where King Shark had fallen and straddled his back, slapping the side of his face humiliatingly until he stirred. When the villain was awake, the Monkey King pushed his face into the ground. "How did you get your borrowed powers?" he asked.
The villain cringed in pain before looking up at the Monkey King. "You surprised me with that last kick. Such power," he said greedily. He stopped when Mori applied more pressure.
"I don't care about that," Mori said seriously. "Where did you get your borrowed powers?" he enunciated, so that King Shark could tell he was serious.
"Where did we get our-" he stopped and started to laugh deeply. "Kid, these are Quirks. Not some borrowed powers. We were born with them. They're a part of us."
Mori pushed the villains face further into the ground. "Liar!" he shouted venomously. "Borrowed powers were only known to a few before the War with the Heavens."
The villain paused. "What War with the Heavens?" he asked. "I don't know what you speak of, boy," he admitted calmly. It bothered the Monkey King.
Mori frowned. Did this guy really not know about the War with the Heavens? Or… he needed to see something. "What's the largest war Earth has ever had?"
"The largest war?" the villain asked. His head started to hurt again when Mori started applying more pressure to that limb. "There's no reason to harm me further. I know when I've been defeated, and I will answer your questions."
Mori relented and the villain seemed to be thinking about it. "I believe the largest war we've ever faced was the one with North Korea," he said, certainty becoming evident. "They were against people with Quirks and putting them to death as soon as they manifested in a person. A video was leaked soon after and presented to the United Nations in which they demanded that North Korea put a stop to such inhumanity."
"Of course, they disagreed with the rest of the world's views with only a few other countries siding with them," he continued. "That was the beginning of the War for Quirk Rights, which was eventually won by the rest of the world that hadn't sided with North Korea."
Mori paused, unsure of what to make of this information. There had been no War with the Heavens, just a War for Quirk Rights. It didn't make any sense.
Sirens wailed as they neared and Mori remained still and quiet.
"You still there, boy?" the villain asked.
Mori swiftly knocked the crime lord out. He needed time to think. He recalled Yeoui to his side and fled from the scene of the crime, remaining unaware of Rumi's cries for him to wait. Too deep in thought to hear.
Mori sat on a bench in the park, deep in thought over what that villain had said. He'd revealed things that confirmed something that Mori knew was a possibility but didn't want to accept.
He looked up at the beige sky. The sun starting to set. It was apparently the first sunset he'd seen here. After all, he was in an entirely different universe.
"How did this happen?" he asked himself, not really expecting an answer.
He knew it was somehow the Holy Grail's doing, but these were now more of an existential question more than anything else. They were nothing more than a way to relieve himself of such scary thoughts.
His mind drifted to his friends he'd left back in his universe and wondered how they were doing. Whether they missed him? Or if they moved on already… It was probably for the best if they moved on to be honest. He didn't know how long it would take for him to get back, or if he could get back. Now that was a scary thought.
Mori paused in his musing, feeling a familiar presence nearby. They seemed hesitant to approach but seemed to have made up their mind. They walked over to him and sat themselves down on the bench.
Both of them sat there silently, unsure of what to say to each other. It was Mori who broke the silence. "I'm sorry for running off, Ms. Usagiyama," he apologized. "I needed some time alone. It's just… It's just something," he finished lamely.
Rumi scrunched her brows in worry. "That's alright. I understand," she said. "Just don't try to make a habit of it," she added.
Mori nodded and they returned to their silence. It wasn't quite amicable, nor was it awkward. It was just there. It was just silence.
Mori looked up at Rumi and noticed that she'd changed clothes. She was now wearing a gray t-shirt, blue jean shorts, and a pair of brown leather ankle boots. Casual attire, he supposed. Though what really drew his attention were the countless bandages covering her body. A few lengths of gauze were wrapped around her arms, and a bit of it could be seen peeking out beneath her shirt. Her legs seemed to only have a couple of wrappings, while another piece of gauze was taped to her cheek.
He could tell that she wanted to say something but didn't press the matter any further. If she wanted to speak, she would tell him whenever she was ready.
Rumi, on the other hand, frowned as she glanced down at the kid. It was apparent to her that he was under a great deal of stress, but she didn't know how to help him. She wished she knew what the villain had said to him.
While Rumi had this dilemma, Mori went back to his thoughts. How could he get home? The only way he knew of so far was the Holy Grail, and as far as he knew that was still back in his universe.
That made him wonder what made the Holy Grail capable of bringing him to a different universe. Was it the fact that it was one of the few mortal instruments that would let humans fight a god on equal footing. If that were the case, then it simply meant that the Monkey King needed to find a relic on this planet that could kill a god.
So where on this planet could he find a divine relic like the Holy Grail? It didn't even seem like the people of this planet knew about borrowed powers. Much less divine relics. And most definitely not any gods.
Which brought him back to the only divine relic that he knew of, the Holy Grail… He'd just gone in a circle, didn't he? He growled in frustration.
Hearing the growl, Rumi watched Mori as he struggled to come to terms with his situation. She didn't know what was going on in his head right now, but it bothered her to see him in such a state. She didn't know why, but it did.
The rabbit hero bit her bottom lip as she continued to watch the Monkey King's internal struggle. She wanted to help him, she really did. She just didn't know how to. While she thought of a way to help, an idea came to mind. One she quickly dismissed, but it kept coming back, urging her that it was the right call.
Mori froze when felt strong arms wrap around him, drawing him in. They were tentative at first but slowly warmed up to the idea, holding the Monkey King more firmly. "Ms. Usagiyama?" he asked, startled by her sudden display of affection.
Rumi's face was red. "Shh, don't speak," she whispered as she pulled him closer to her body. She'd never done this for anyone. Honestly, it was a bit embarrassing. She didn't really understand it, but it just felt right to her.
Mori was complacent with her demand, though a frown marred his childish face.
It wasn't to say that Mori disliked the hug. To be honest, it was just a feeling he hadn't had the pleasure of experiencing before. He'd grown up with just his grandpa… he never had a mother or a father. Not even when he was born a Mount Hwagwa Monkey. He'd been an orphan back then as well. His father having been killed in a war with the Oxen Kingdom and his mother having been killed when giving birth to him.
"I don't know what's quite gotten you so rattled," Rumi admitted, her fingers having started brushing through Mori's hair idly. "And I can't just say that I can help you without knowing what the problem is," she added.
"But I want you to know that I'm here for you," she said comfortingly. "If you ever do want to talk about it, I'll be here to listen to your problems."
Mori felt tears well up in his eyes and they fell silent. The Monkey King not making a sound as he cried. This strange feeling in his heart. It was something he'd never felt before. And to him, it felt… nice.
They stayed like that for that until the sun had truly set and Mori's tears were nothing more than a damp spot on Rumi's t-shirt. She pulled away from him when he'd finished with his waterworks and looked him in the eyes. "Are you alright now?" she asked cautiously.
Mori nodded his head shakily and took a deep breath. He smiled weakly. "I'm better," he admitted. "Thanks for that. I really needed it."
Rumi returned the smile. "Don't mention it," she replied.
The rabbit hero then stood up abruptly, looking up at the darkening sky. "It's getting late now. Let's go home, kid," she said, offering Mori a hand. He took it. "I've got a legitimate reason to be away from work for two weeks now… I think I want my vacation," she added, giving the Monkey King a goofy grin.
Mori chuckled but agreed wholeheartedly. His body could use a rest.
They left the bench in the park and started their silent, yet amicable walk back to Rumi's place. Hoping to fall asleep as soon as possible.
The Monkey King was always a few steps behind Rumi, and he watched her with a small smile. She was the first person he'd really met in this new world, and he felt a connection with her not unlike the ones he'd felt when he'd first met his best friends, Daewi and Mira. They were people that he would hold dearly, and he knew she'd become one of them. Someone that he would be in his heart forever.
By the time they arrived back at the apartment, it was late, and neither of them felt up for making dinner or even ordering it. They just bid each other good night and dragged themselves into their rooms.
Mori found the guest room and stumbled into it, the fighting from today having worn him out to the point of where his eyelids were drooping. He didn't bother taking in his surroundings either, his curiosity being trumped by drowsiness.
He flopped to the bed and let the sweet embrace of darkness take him.
Mori opened his eyes blearily when the sun made its way into the guest room he was sleeping in. He tried to fall back asleep, but it was to no avail. He slowly lifted the sheets and stood up, stretching his aching limbs.
When he was done with that, he finally took in his surroundings, not having seen it last night because of his drowsiness. It was rather standard with a queen-sized bed taking up the center of the room. A desk sat in the corner, housing a few unused books. A closet beside the door with coat hangers and nothing more. And a three-piece bathroom with all the amenities.
Mori found an unused toothbrush and toothpaste and brushed his teeth before taking a quick shower. He stepped out and quickly realized that all he had to wear was his dirty clothes. He'd have to ask Rumi about that, and possibly get her to buy him new ones. For now, he threw on his dirty clothes, having nothing else to wear.
The Monkey King then stepped out of the room, heading downstairs to see if Rumi was awake. He looked over to the living room area and saw Rumi sitting on one of the white leather sofas, holding a cup of hot coffee.
Her eyes locked with his and he knew she had something to discuss with him if the way her eyes flitted between him and the ground was any indication
"Come sit over here, Mori," Rumi gestured, motioning to the sofa across from her.
He paused for a moment before taking the seat across from her. He wondered if this was about the villain attack yesterday. Was she going to scold him? She hadn't done it in the park. Maybe she forgot about it then?
The two remained quiet for a few agonizing minutes, in which Mori decided to lean back and count the number of light fixtures in the room.
Rumi, on the other hand, studied Mori quietly. She'd learned a lot about the boy in front of her in the last couple days, and had to say that she had judged him wrongly. He wasn't just some foolish kid throwing himself into danger, but a strong and just kid throwing himself into danger. It was a little better.
Rumi placed her cup of hot coffee down on a coaster on the table between them, getting Mori's attention back from counting the light fixtures in the room.
"I let the police know that I was the one who defeated the villains in the square yesterday," she said, covering for his vigilantism.
Mori let out a sigh he didn't know he was holding. He was glad he wouldn't have more time added to his probation. "Thanks, Ms. Usagiyama," he said gratefully.
Rumi bit back her reply to get him to call her by her first name and instead pushed the conversation towards what she wanted to speak about. "I wanted to talk to you about something," she said, hesitating slightly.
Mori nodded, encouraging her to continue.
"It's about the orphanage and the fact that you have no guardian," she added, hoping Mori would come to the conclusion she was trying to draw.
He didn't. In fact, the Monkey King motioned for her to continue.
"With the way things stand, you're most likely to be sent to one," she added. "I know you don't want that, but that seems like the only option you have."
Mori agreed with her. He didn't want to be sent to an orphanage. He had enough to deal with as it was. So many questions were still unanswered. How did he get here? Where was here? Why was he here?
He was drawn from his thoughts when Rumi tried to speak again. She seemed to be having trouble discerning her thoughts from her words.
"Yesterday, you saved my life. From more than just death," Rumi said quietly, shuddering at what that octopus villain had wanted to do to her. She moved past it. "I owe you a life's debt. And that's something I plan on paying back."
Rumi continued. "Before I do anything irrational though. I need to know," she looked him straight in the eyes. Crimson red on jade green. "What does the word hero mean to you?"
Mori took a moment to think about it. When he was satisfied with what he thought up, he steeled his nerves. "A hero is someone that follows their nose," he started, making Rumi already question his sanity.
He continued though, unperturbed by her accusatory stare. "Someone that will stand up to a villain even though they know that they have little chance of victory."
Daewi came to the Monkey King's mind. Oh, how he missed the guy. He was the one who'd stood up to the Jade Emperor and a few of the other gods just because he knew it was the right thing to do. He was awesome like that.
"Someone that'll protect others when they can't protect themselves," he added.
Mori remembered the time, through Mori Hui, that he'd stumbled upon Mira training extremely hard for the G.O.H Tournament. He didn't understand why at first, but now he understood that it was to protect a crippled Daewi from harm and his other self from being exposed.
"Someone that'll be greater than what they are," he said.
His thoughts fell on Mori Hui and how he was only a fraction of their full power, but still strived to be better than that. His other self finally attained that when he became his own person and became the true Monkey King's Charyeok.
"Someone-" he paused, hating to admit it, but… "-that'll do everything in their power to make sure that the world is a better place for the next generation."
The Monkey King thought of a time when Mubong was still on their side and admitted the reason that he had allied with them was to make the world a better place for all of humanity. Even when he'd killed his grandpa, it was all for humanity.
"And finally," Mori had a hard time saying this last one. "Someone that would sacrifice themselves to give even a chance to save just one other person," he finished.
Mori thought of the last memory he had of his home before he was brought here. Of how his grandpa had sacrificed himself just to try and save his grandson. It had slowly come back to him of what had happened and it pained him to remember.
It was silent again after Mori had given his thoughts on what a hero should embody as he wiped away a few stray tears that had trickled down his face. It didn't last long though.
"You're very talented, Mori," Rumi said, using his name for the first time. It felt strange on her tongue. "And after hearing what you think a hero embodies, I believe I was right about you. So I want to make you an offer?"
Mori perked up at that. What kind of offer was she talking about?
Rumi took a deep breath before revealing what she'd been holding back all this time. "I want to adopt you," she said briskly. "In return, you'll go to hero school so that you won't get into trouble when you try and help someone. And after you graduate, I also expect you to work at my hero firm for a year."
While Rumi rambled on about the specifics, Mori remained stunned by her offer. There was no other way he could put it. Sure, he'd saved her life, but did that really warrant her offering to be his new mother? Was this because she felt she needed to repay a life debt to him or something?
"If you're thinking that this is because of that debt I owe you," Rumi said, as if reading his mind. "No, this has nothing to do with it. I will find a way to repay you for that later. But for now," she outstretched one of her arms. "Will you accept my offer?" she asked.
Mori frowned. If that wasn't the case, then… "Why?" he asked.
"Why?" Rumi parroted, faltering slightly. She didn't seem to know herself. "I guess because I see something in you that I grew to like and care about. I see someone that just wants to do good in this world. That just wants to make it a better place. That cares so much for the sake of others, that he'd risk life and limb for anybody," she said earnestly. She then laughed dryly "Or maybe I really am just making up excuses for what I owe you."
Mori thought about what the rabbit hero said, but found that he embodied none of those noble traits. He wasn't deserving of such kind words. "I'm sorry, Ms. Usagiyama," he said, prepared to say no. "But I can't-"
Don't hate people too much.
Mori's eyes widened as he heard these words in his head. Though he wasn't quite sure where they came from, they felt familiar. Like they were from someone very important to him.
He looked at Rumi's outstretched hand once more and then saw the way she was looking away and shaking. She seemed afraid of his answer. He stared at her hand for a moment longer, wondering about the decision he had to make here.
Rumi wasn't sure what she was expecting either. She wasn't sure if she feared that Mori would reject her or if she would be happy if he didn't. She also didn't know what was expected of her as a mother. But right now, right here. This was her decision and nothing could change her mind on the matter.
After a moment, Rumi felt a warm touch in her hand and looked back to see Mori's own held in hers.
He smiled warmly. "I will, Rumi."
Isn't that sweet? I really think that Rumi and Mori would be like the perfect mother and son. I don't really have any reasoning, I just like the dynamic. Plus I feel like their personalities don't clash with each other but bring a sense of unity. Rumi isn't really touched upon in the Hero Academia story as much as I would like and hope that they bring her back into the story in a prominent arc later on.
I got the idea for Rumi's signature move from Bellamy from One Piece as she doesn't have any signature moves :/
If you'd like more of this fanfiction let me know with a review or something. Maybe a favourite and follow, if you'd be so kind. Please?