Mina packed a gym bag. It was the color of All Might's first costume. It belonged to Izuku. Of course, she couldn't get rid of it. Not that keeping reminders of him didn't hurt. She couldn't imagine being rid of them though. She placed her Hero costume in the bag, with a small shower kit and a change of clothes. She wore a Black tank top, acid green gym shorts, and Black and green gym shoes with matching socks. She threw a Varsity style jacket over it with Yuuei's colors, then tossed the bag over her shoulders and headed to the door.

"Ok. Let's roll, Hothead. Mina joked through the pain she was in. Humor was all she could do right now to help her through what she was experiencing. Everything was resting on her now, and she still felt a void in her heart without Izuku.

"Fuck off, Pinky." Bakugou scoffed.

"That's Alien Queen, Lord Explosive Diarrhea." She stuck her tongue out and pulled her eyelid down.

"I don't give a shit. And don't fucking call me that! I'll…"

He stopped and reflected, then decided it was a poor choice of words. He growled in visible frustration. "Yeah. Let's roll out."

The two walked in silence to the gym. It wasn't that far away. Eventually, they reached a building owned by two heroes and graduates of Yuuei: Eijiro Kirishima and Tetsutetsu Tetsutetsu. While both were still heroes, they decided to open a gym together for heroes in the area to get some training in. It was a godsend, especially in this situation. It was a moderately sized brick building with stylized images of its owners' heads and a dynamic font. Steel Riot Gym, as it was known, officially closed at 10, but accommodations could be made for afterhours training. Eijiro happened to be good friends with both Mina and Bakugou, so they were welcome to come by. Bakugou came by often, so he was used to it, but he hadn't seen Mina at the gym before.

"Sup Bakugou. Here for the usual my…MINA! WHAT'S UP? How are ya holding up?" The exited redhead leapt forward at the sight of his pink friend, rubbing he back of his head as he calmed down.

She spoke kindly as she rested her arms behind her head and smiled at her old classmate. "Hangin' in there, Kirishima. Me and…" she was cut off.

"Sparring match between me and mop top here." He stated plainly.

"Gotcha. Follow me." Kirishima smiled at the two headed through the main workout area into a room towards the back.

Mina and Bakugou followed him into the backroom, which was set up as a sort of Dojo with reinforced walls, specially equipped to handle quirk use. Eijiro walked in behind them, carrying some snacks. He had a feeling his two friends were going to have quite an intense sparring match.

"Come on, Raccoon eyes. Show me what you got. I know what you can do with your acid quirk. Show me how you handle One-For-All."

Mina took a breath and steeled herself. She skated towards Bakugou on a stream of weak acid and shot off it right before she collided with him, lighting up slightly with electrifying energy. It was impressive enough, but Bakugou managed to dodge. She bobbed and weaved, keeping her distance and flinging acid at her sparring partner, but to no avail. The napalm hero managed to keep her on her toes and landed more hits than he received. Mina managed to get an uppercut in after pirouetting around Bakugou's explosions, but he shepherded her into a feint.

Eijiro sat on the sidelines, a mix of concern for his friends and excitement over the raw fighting energy these two were exhibiting. There was pain in both their fists, but there was purpose as well. This was the kind of pure manliness the hardening hero lived for. Regardless of gender, this was an adrenaline rush of pure heroic spirit that inspired him. It was like a live-action Shonen. He was so glad he had gone to the vending machine before this.

"Fucking pathetic. Goddamn Deku dying like a bitch and leaving his quirk to some big pink airhead. Some goddamn symbol of peace. How did you get his quirk? Bedroom?"

Bakugou was rude and had a temper, though it had been tempered over the years, fueling his fighting style, but having been tamed as he grew into a better hero. Still, with all that growth, he was still known as a bit of a jerk. This, however? He had gone too far. Mina's eyes widened and her hands shook. The power surged through her body and acid dripped from her fingers.

"Shut…. your…fucking…. mouth…" she hissed, pain and venom in her eyes.

Bakugou hadn't just touched a nerve. He had smacked all of them at once, like a kid dragging a stick along a fence. Even he was shocked by how it came out and regretted what he said. He knew he had to get her angry. More than that, he had to get her focused.

Bakugou had pushed Mina to the brink. She had made peace with him years ago, as had Izuku, but he was always kind of an asshole and right now, she wasn't in the best of states, Izuku's death fresh in her mind.

"Now we're fucking TALKING! GIVE IT TO ME, RACCOON EYES! EVERYTHING YOU CAN MUSTER! PLUS GODDAMN ULTRA!" He said, winding up a punch, fist sparking with explosive energy. Mina dashed forward too, on a stream of weak acid, while her most potent formed in her palm as she activated One-for all. She hadn't been that used to it, only having it for a couple months, but she did her best to emulate what Izuku had told her about his quirk a while back. She imagined an on switch and skated closer, acid dripping from her hand and sizzling as it hit the floor. An explosion clouded the area when both attacks clashed: acid vs nitro, explosive punch vs burning finger. Their muscles flexed as they struggled against each other. Bakugou had a free hand and prepared to fire at Mina, but she had a split second to grab his arm with her free hand and flip him over her shoulder. The explosive man wasn't the only one with instincts here. They both graduated Yuuei, they both became heroes, and they both learned alongside and sparred with Izuku Midoriya.

Unfortunately, Mina let her guard down as well, Bakugou taking a moment to launch himself upward with a kick. Mina dodged, but tripped a little. That was the lack of balance Bakugou needed to knock her down. He put her in a submission hold, but she could feel the power surging through her body. It hurt like hell. Even knowing that Izuku had to use it bit by bit. Even trying to only activate 10% of it to be cautious, she could still feel her bones ache as the power built up. She shook Bakugou off by doing what looked like "the worm", then transferring into a backspin and spraying Acid around the arena. She was already feeling exhausted, and she had barely gotten started. She knew Izuku had trouble with it at first, but she had been so used to her acid quirk and controlling that.

She had heard and even witnessed Izuku's growth when dealing with his quirk. And yet, it was so much harder to put all that into practice. It was like Izuku's quirk was a barbell, and that, when he passed it to her, he added extra weight. Bakugou charged forward, faster than before. Mina would be ready for him this time. At least, she thought so. Instead, he used the inertia of his movement to drift to her side, avoiding the acid terrain. and deliver a backhand. Mina blocked, but just barely. He flipped over her and shot off a blast at her, sending her backwards and singing her costume. She got careless. She hissed at herself, but smiled with determination. Too much was on the line, even if this was just training.

"Good thing I have a spare." She sighed and panted to herself. Her arm burned and her bones ached, but she wasn't going to give up yet.

"Pretty damn impressive, Raccoon eyes, but you're not used to that power yet. It's mixed with your quirk, but"

"It stockpiles power." She pouted. Getting it in the end.

"Also, going in for vengeance is going to get you fucking killed. What use is a dead symbol of pea." Bakugou had meant that merely as a warning, but, just like his quirk, his words burned. Mina punched him square in the jaw, breaking her arm and sending Bakugou flying against the wall.

"HOW FUCKING DARE, YOU!"

Mina's eyes had widened again, both at Bakugou's words and how she had sent him against a wall. Eijiro had panicked and went to go see if Bakugou was ok, but he recovered quickly and came rocketing towards Mina. He didn't say a word. He had a look of death on his face as he closed in, propelling himself with his quirk. Mina held her arm, tears streaming down her face as she clutched her arm in pain, bracing for Bakugou's attack.

What happened next took all three by surprise. Bakugou had stopped himself in front of Mina, grabbed her and pulled her into a hug.

"I'm fucking sorry…. I know you miss him."

Mina wanted to shout at him but she was so stunned. She could have sworn she felt a single tear from him, but she just thought she was imagining it. She knew she was imagining it when she heard a low, growly "me too."

Bakugou et go and started walking away. "Spike head clean this shit up. Your gym's a mess…Ashido…. rest your damn arm and take some fucking baby steps. We'll resume when you're healed. Go see Recovery Girl or some shit. You have a job to do."

With that, Bakugou stormed silently out of the gym and into the night. Eijiro and Mina looked at each other in astonishment. She was still angry at Bakugou. His verbal attacks were as potent as his physical one, but she nodded. He was right. She had a job to do.

In a hidden warehouse, in parts unknown, a faint light was shining. Two figures walked through a hallway, towards their main destination. They eventually arrived in a makeshift laboratory. The centerpiece of this room was a large tank, housing what appeared to be a nomu, but with its features hard to make out. Somehow, this one was different, in that its brain was not visible. It wore goggles and a breathing mask, as well as various censors and probes. In the corner, a desk filled with books and papers in various states of disarray sat, barely touched by the light emitted by the tank.

A laptop lit up on a lab bench closer to the tank. The bench was covered with binders full of genetic information, quirk stats, and some recovered notebooks that seemed to be over a decade old. The voice emanated from the laptop, strained and impatient, yet masked by aloofness delivered by a masked figure with visible scars.

"You guys are taking way too long. How is our coming along?" the laptop man asked, scratching at his neck as if he had fallen into a batch of poison ivy.

"Nearly there. He should be ready to debut soon, sir." The one figure spoke, a man in his thirties wearing goggles and a cloak. The other figure, a young woman dressed similarly to her partner, but with a mask, tapped her foot impatiently while gripping a clipboard and going over data.

The two scientists looked upon the tank, labeled "Project -9" as its inhabitant stirred slightly in his sterile womb of glass. His fist seemed to clench and glow slightly, but soon rested again.

"Keep me up to speed. I'm getting anxious over this." The laptop man smiled before fading out.

Mina Ashido had been having a rough few months. She would look at them more fondly soon enough, as things were about to get worse.