Chapter 22: Stain Removal
Himiko Toga couldn't believe her luck.
It was that boy! From the Sports Festival! She didn't care much about that festival until she saw the images from the final fight, with the green-haired boy sporting a broken arm from his punch. Once she saw that, it opened her eyes. Made her see with new eyes what a tantalizing treat he was.
The boy was so much like Saito. Her first love. Her first real meal. Would he taste as good?
She saw him with another Hero. She wanted to talk to him, to see if he was as perfect as he seemed. She kept hidden, watching them. Every so often, it felt like he flinched, looking where she was and finding nothing.
Oh, he was clever, too! She'd chosen a good one!
Finally, she saw an opportunity. The Hero he was with had to take a bathroom break. Toga went into an alleyway and concentrated on one of her latest catches. A girl about their age. Such a pretty face. Too bad she was an utter bitch! Oh well, her blood tasted fine, and at least she'd do well for her purposes now.
A brunette girl with a pixie cut walked over to the cafe where the green haired boy was waiting for his mentor. Or was she his girlfriend? Oh, if she was, she could share. She just had to know more about him.
"Oh, it's you!" she said to him. "The boy who won the Sports Festival! Izuku Midoriya, right?"
The boy blushed, bringing some of that wonderful red to his face (though not enough for her tastes). "Um, yes, that's me, but while on patrol, please refer to me as Kyuseishu."
Savior. That was an interesting name. She licked her lips, "Well, Kyuseishu, you looked really nice in your last fight… How did you break your arm like that?"
"My Quirk is v-volatile. If I use too much of it, my b-body breaks," Kyuseishu replied, stammering a little. She must have gotten too close.
"Kyu-sei-shu," Toga rolled each syllable around. "Pretty kyu-te." His blush deepend (still not red enough). "So, besides him, you trounced your competition, especially the purple kid with the villainous Quirk."
It hurt her to say that, but all of a sudden, he looked angry, "His Quirk isn't villainous, and neither is he. There's no such thing as a villainous Quirk."
Her heart skipped a beat. She looked at him, eyes wide, and asked hopefully, "Really?! You think so?! You don't think someone's Quirk makes them a demon?!"
Kyuseishu's jaw dropped in shock, "Of course not! Did… did someone tell you that?!"
Toga couldn't do anything but look down in shame as she nodded.
"They're wrong! Your Quirk doesn't automatically make you heroic or villainous," Kyuseishu said protectively.
And there it was. She had found him. Her love. The one she wanted to drink dry, to fully become.
And, as if to commemorate the occasion, she heard an odd sound in her head.
Thump-thump-thump-CLICK.
Tenya sped down the streets. He may have lived in the Hosu ward of Tokyo his entire life, but he didn't know it by heart. Still, he zoomed as fast as possible as he could through the streets, checking the alleyways for any sign of the Hero Killer.
He was thankful for Gran Torino's tutelage. He was now better at using his engines to cancel his momentum and the act of kicking himself off of walls allowed him to corner better than he ever had before.
Tenya was starting to despair that he'd ever find his target, and that he could have been using his time to aid those affected by the Nomu, when he stopped and saw what was needed.
Stain, the Hero Killer, was standing over the Hero Native, sword at the ready.
As he saw this, Tenya pressed the panic button on his belt and raced down the alleyway. He could see Stain anticipate his move and began to swing his katana.
The Hero Killer was fast, but Gran Torino was faster. Tenya managed to just miss the blade catching on his helmet as he ducked under the blade, his arm outstretched, grabbing the Hero from Stain's grasp. Unfortunately, Stain managed to trip Tenya, sending him and Native flying.
Still, Tenya's mentor had managed to get some of his maneuvers through Tenya's regulation-obsessed head. As he moved through the air, Tenya threw a bunch of garbage cans in Stain's direction. One of them managed to clock the Hero Killer in the head and send him backwards.
"Native! Are you able to move?" Tenya asked as he righted himself.
"No… His Quirk… I'm paralyzed…" Native choked out.
"Very well, then!" Tenya stated, watching as the Hero Killer turned his fall into a tumble and righted himself.
"That voice…" Stain said, confused. "A child wearing a suit of armor…"
The words stung at Tenya, but he elected to ignore it.
"Run along. I have standards, but if you interfere with my work, then even a child is an acceptable target," Stain said, brandishing his sword.
Tenya gulped, "Perhaps, but I have standards as well, and I cannot run away when a man's life is on the line." He was trying to think. Was there an opening?
"Your armor's design…" Stain assessed Tenya's costume. "A fan of Ingenium, are you?"
"His younger brother," Tenya hissed out on instinct. He winced internally afterwards.
Stain spat, "So, here for revenge, then?"
Steadying himself, Tenya said, "Well, I don't know how your Quirk works. If I were to kill you, would that resurrect your victims? Would it heal my brother's spine?"
The Hero Killer let out a chuckle, "I wouldn't know. But, I doubt it."
"Then the only thing that matters to me is saving Native's life!" Tenya stated.
"Kid… Ingenium Jr. or whatever, leave me!" Native said. "Your life's worth more than mine is!"
"You are wrong on both counts, Native. I am not yet worthy of the name Ingenium… and no one's life is worth more or less than anyone else's," Tenya stated.
To Tenya's surprise, Stain responded to that with a wide grin. "Well then, young man… your life just might be worth sparing."
Izuku wasn't expecting a second Bond to be formed that day.
Well, truthfully, he never expected any of his Bonds to form. Or to grow in power. And, to be fair, after Nejire, he should have anticipated that someone could bond so easily.
And this did provide him with some useful information about the Bonding Quirk. Apparently, the interest had to be mutual. Izuku supposed it made sense, a cute girl showing any interest in him at all would be enough for him to start crushing on them. He was weak to that, he'd admit it. But this girl got way too close to him way too quickly, and asking him about his injuries didn't exactly endear her to him.
Then, she mentioned people called her a demon for her Quirk, and he felt protective towards her, the way he would for most people who were mistreated for their Quirk status. And it was that feeling of connectedness that facilitated the Bond.
Because the bond was telling him that this girl was obsessed with him since watching the Sports Festival.
And that this wasn't her true face. She'd murdered this girl, drank her blood, and used her Quirk to transform into her. And that she'd done this to many, many people in the past two and a half years.
How did I bond with a serial killer?! Izuku screamed in his head. How did Danger Sense not go off?!
He couldn't hear any replies over the imagery that the girl (Himiko Toga, the Bond was supplying her name) was sending into his mind through the Bond. The scenes of her victims, slit, with her drinking their blood with raw, ecstatic bliss.
And then... then he got the images of her current obsession. Her current fantasy. Of doing the same thing to him.
SNAP!
Suddenly, thankfully, the images stopped with that sound in his head.
Toga put her hands up to her cheeks and gasped, blushing like mad, "Izu-kun! You have so much love to give!"
"You don't get to use that name," Izuku snarled as he pressed his panic button.
"Why not? They do! And we're bound as well!" Toga said.
"Not anymore," Izuku growled, Blackwhip snaking out as he did so. The tendrils surged forwards to grab her.
Deftly, the girl dodged each of the blows. One managed to graze her face, which turned into gray ooze that sloughed off her head, revealing a blond, cat-eyed girl with her hair in buns and a fanged smile.
"Aww, I wanted to save my real face for a special occasion," Toga pouted. "I don't suppose you can tell me who the others were?"
Good, she doesn't know, Izuku said, eyes narrowed. "I wouldn't tell you," he said as he moved to grab her. She dodged easily, letting out a playful giggle.
"No matter. We'll be bound in the best way once I'm through with you…" She licked her lips as she said that. And then, she threw a knife into Izuku's thigh.
Hissing in pain, Izuku sunk to one knee, trying to staunch the bleeding. He used Blackwhip to try and grab her, but she kept dodging out of the way.
"You weren't lying were you? About there being no such thing as a villainous Quirk?" Toga drew another knife.
"Your Quirk doesn't make you a Villain. The murders do," Izuku stated through the pain.
Toga squealed and clapped her hands, "I knew you were the one!" She looked like she was about to lunge, until a shower of bubbles smacked her in the face, nearly making her retch from the foul smells.
Bubble Girl rushed to Izuku's side as Toga went, "Phooey, this'll have to wait until next time, Izuku-chan!" and ran out of the place.
Izuku said, "Go get her!" as he took out his first aid kit and began to bandage his wound.
Tenya made for Native, only to just barely dodge a thrown knife. Then another. Then a third.
Tenya winced. He was wearing a suit of armor, but it wasn't made strictly for protection. It was designed to increase his Quirk's effectiveness by reducing air resistance and increasing cooling to his legs. Essentially, he was wearing a race car chassis rather than a suit of plate mail.
Finally, he seemed to have an opening, and Tenya grabbed Native and sped away. He weaved through the projectiles Stain was throwing. Eventually, one nicked him, but it didn't matter. By now, he was far away from Stain and running at top speed.
At least, he was until the muscles in his arms and legs stopped and he fell to the ground.
Luckily, Tenya had training in what to do, and his armor had precautions to cushion his frame against such collisions, crumpling in such a way to absorb the impact.
Tenya was facedown on the pavement. His helmet and glasses were no longer on his head. Luckily, he'd landed on his panic button, so it should have transmitted his new location. Still, would that be effective with the other Heroes engaged with the Nomu?
He could see the prone form of the Hero he tried to save ahead of him. "Native! Status!" Tenya asked, distraught
"Hurting, but not as bad as I would be if you hadn't shown up," Native said.
Tenya's mind raced. He'd discussed the various pros stationed in Hosu with Izuku (he suspected that his friend had uncovered his original plot and was trying to dissuade him), and had received an infodump on Native, among others. "Your Quirk, Totem, allows you to conjure animalistic energy projections, correct? Can you do so?"
"Unfortunately, no," Native replied. "Generate them from my hands and feet."
Tenya cursed. His Engines also weren't working. "It appears to affect the voluntary muscles below the neck. What did he do before you were paralyzed."
"Cut me," Native said, seeming weaker. "Licked blade."
"Stay conscious, Native, please!" Tenya begged.
"It's of little consequence," came Stain's cruel voice from behind him. "He'll be dead soon, anyway."
Tenya growled, unable to look the Villain in the eyes, "What could he have possibly done to earn your ire?"
"The word 'hero' has been corrupted by filth like him," Stain replied. "The allure of fame and fortune has tainted the pure altruism that should be the only motivation for any true Hero. Only men like All Might, who stand above such petty motivations, can be worthy of the title."
"How has Native 'corrupted' the title?!" Tenya roared. "How did my brother?!"
Seemingly magnanimous in victory, Stain stopped in front of Tenya, "Your brother has a decent record of saving people, hence why I allowed him to live. However, he was tainted by materialism. Sponsorship deals and commercial appearances that detract from the goal. As for this one? He doesn't even bother unless it's a high-profile Villain. One who chases the limelight to the exclusion of all else. Not to mention that his entire gimmick is cultural appropriation."
Tenya saw red. "My brother employs sixty-five sidekicks! People who he relies on to save others! Those deals were to keep his employees cared for! And Native is the son of diplomats for the League of Indigenous Nations! He's half-Ainu and half-Ojibwe! He seeks the limelight to inspire his people and to combat prejudices! Not to mention that All Might has sponsorship deals and tons of merchandise!"
Stain stopped, then quickly said, "Irrelevant. Leeches have latched onto All Might's image, but his altruism shines through. And even if they had decent intentions, their actions still are a blemish on the name of Hero."
Tenya realized that, at the very least, he could perhaps stall the Hero Killer, "So with that, you condemn every life lost because those Heroes you killed or crippled weren't there to save them. All Might can't be everywhere."
Stain grinned as he knelt down to Tenya, "No, he can't. And he won't be around forever. But there is at least one other who will take his place. Another true Hero in the making. The winner of the First-Year U.A. Sports Festival…" As Tenya's eyes widened, Stain's grin did as well. "You know him."
"Midori- Kyuseishu is my best friend," Tenya stated. "And if he were here, he would try and stop you."
"Of course he would," Stain replied. "He is worthy of the title. Worthy of one day killing me, should All Might fail. You shall be worthy, too, once your training is complete. But the filth of this generation would stain you, him, and all of your cohort. So I will stain my own hands to keep yours clean."
And with that, Stain stood up, and began to walk towards Native.
Only to whip his head around and duck out of the way of a massive wall of flames. As Stain rolled away, a face with split hair and a scar on his left eye turned to Tenya.
"Iida-kun, right?" Shouto Todoroki asked. "Sorry, things were a bit busy. The pros are on their way, I managed to slip ahead."
Tenya never felt such relief before.
"No patrols for the rest of the Internship," Nighteye sighed. "We'll focus on Quirk mastery, investigation, and other parts of the job."
"That's more than fair," Izuku said, his thigh bandaged as he was laying in the Agency's infirmary. "Two villain attacks in one day is enough."
Toga had managed to evade Bubble Girl and disappear extremely quickly. The materials Mei had used for his outfit stopped the knife from reaching too deep. And, thankfully, it missed hitting an artery. The wound still hurt, but it wasn't life threatening.
"Two villain attacks in one week is usually enough," Nighteye shook his head. "Are you certain you were Quirkless? No danger-attraction Quirk?"
"At this point, I wonder…" Izuku replied, deadpan. Nighteye managed to chuckle.
"Huh," En said in response to the laugh. "Guess you won the internship, then."
Nighteye noticed Izuku's smile in response. "Something funny?"
"Just something En-nii-san said," Izuku replied, blushing slightly.
Nighteye paused, "You're really attached to them." He said this very softly.
"Before meeting All Might, the only person who supported me in any way was my mother," Izuku said firmly. "The previous users stepped in and helped me before anyone else."
Nighteye looked apologetic, before he sat down and took out a notepad, "So, we have the police report, but what else can you tell me about your assailant?"
"Himiko Toga took the eighth Bond I had, through the second user, Ryouji Futatsuya. I'm not sure why, they're typically Quirk-based, and her blood-drinking transformation Quirk doesn't match Laser Disc in any way," Izuku explained.
"I think I know why," Ryouji replied. "We've both got a large body count. And we don't regret it."
Izuku nodded, then relayed that to a shocked Nighteye. Izuku shook his head at the pro's response, "What, did you think that all of the previous users were like All Might? Ryouji and Isamu only begrudgingly tolerated All Might, and he had to pulp All for One's face in order for them to do so."
Nighteye took a second to regain his composure, "Continue."
He did, explaining the images he saw. Her memories. Her… fantasies. It was gruesome. "It didn't take long for the bond to be severed after that."
"It's a good thing that they're not permanent," Nighteye nodded.
"She… she said she was called a demon for her Quirk," Izuku said. "I… She's awful, she murders people without a second thought. But it's clear that she's been messed up. She said people called her a demon because of her Quirk… and her memories, it's reminiscent of a starving person who's finally seen a three course meal. So, I feel a little sorry for her. Is that messed up?"
Nighteye paused. He gave the slightest smile, "To some, perhaps. But All Might always felt that the worst villains to fight were those he knew had been wronged somehow. You saw her thoughts, it makes sense that you can empathize with her."
"She's obsessed with me," Izuku said, fear in his eyes. "Moreso after the bonding. And she knows I have relationships with others. She said she didn't know who they were, but she could easily find out…"
"Nezu informed me that he had been taking precautions, given the threat of the Shie Hassaikai. We'll see if he can be more thorough," Nighteye said.
"Danger Sense failed to detect her. I could sense threatening presences before. Endeavor managed to ping Danger Sense," Izuku said. "She didn't register, not until she started actively attacking me." Hikage-ji-san, any ideas? He asked the vestige.
"Something like this never happened to me," Hikage replied.
"Hikage doesn't know, either," Izuku relayed. "It's possible that proper stealth training could overcome Danger Sense the same way other mundane senses might. Or it's a minor manifestation of her Quirk that hasn't been recorded. Or, since Danger Sense doesn't alert me to people who mean me no harm, her mental state affected it. She seems to view the act of killing someone, drinking their blood, and becoming them as a form of love, maybe that fooled Danger Sense?"
"I caught about half of that," Nighteye said, miffed.
"Sorry, Sir," Izuku said. "Force of habit. I'll write it down for you."
Nighteye nodded, "Well, luckily, your injury will heal with a night of bedrest, thanks to your treatment." While not at Recovery Girl's level, the EMT that treated him had a Quirk capable of speeding up the healing process. "Please try and take it easy until tomorrow."
Izuku nodded. When Nighteye left the room, Izuku realized that he'd turned his phone's notifications off. He'd reassured Ochako through the bond, but needed to reassure the others. So, he took out his phone.
His eyes widened as he saw the texts he missed, "Oh, no! Iida!"
"So, a second-generation false hero enters the fray," Stain snarled.
"No one could be spared from the front lines just yet," Shouto replied, sending out a wave of ice as cold as his tone.
"Todoroki-kun! He paralyzed us by ingesting our blood!" Tenya yelled out. "Do not let him cut you, and if he does, do not allow him near the blood!"
Shouto grunted in acknowledgement, creating a wall of ice around himself, Tenya, and Native. Stain, surprisingly, managed to break through it, making the boy wince before sending out another wave of ice to block him.
"So, you're here seeking glory?" Stain sneered.
"Answering a distress call," Shouto said simply, sending forth a gout of flames.
"Feh, blood will tell. And your father is a disgrace to the word Hero," Stain threw a knife.
Shouto managed to dodge, "Huh, never expected to agree with a mass murderer, but today is full of surprises."
"Todoroki-kun!" Tenya may have only just been taken back from the edge of vengeance-driven monomania, but he was still utterly shocked by impropriety.
"What? The old man drove my mother insane and killed my eldest brother through overtraining," Shouto explained as though he was discussing the weather, and not actively dodging a serial killer's slashes.
"WHAT?!" Tenya cried out. Stain apparently stopped as well, allowing Shouto to freeze him to the ground.
"I was under the impression the entire first-year Hero Course was eavesdropping on my fight with Izuku-nii," Shouto said flatly, watching to see if Stain would move. The Hero Killer struggled to get loose, but was not successful.
"I was not present for that," Tenya replied. "My brother had been hospitalized and I rushed out of the stadium upon learning that."
"Ah," Shouto nodded. "Your silence would be appreciated. Nezu is currently investigating him, and we would not want to compromise it."
Tenya nodded, "I shall not!"
"As if we can trust the corrupt system to-" Stain began, before he was cut off.
"Hero Killer-san," Shouto interrupted, "I am already risking serious legal consequences by acting to answer my comrade's distress signal. As it stands, you risk injury by frostbite and hypothermia. Please do not aggravate any potential charges against me by forcing me to freeze your mouth shut."
It was at that point that Tenya managed to move, slightly at first, then fully. He crawled towards Native, disbelieving, "I… the paralysis is wearing off… But… Native, speak to me!"
"Still alive, still can't move, don't think my injuries from the crash were paralyzing, but can't be sure," Native said, still managing to remain conscious.
Tenya managed to get to his feet and checked on Native, "If we are no longer in danger of the Hero Killer, then I shall not move you, to prevent myself from accidentally injuring you! But, how are you still paralyzed while I am not? Did he ingest more of your blood?"
"Don't think it was more," Native said. "Can't be sure. Maybe something else."
"Blood type, then, perhaps?" Tenya posited. "I'm type A."
"B," Native responded.
"O," Todoroki chimed in, unnecessarily.
"That would explain your quick recovery," Stain offered. As the Heroes stared, Stain scoffed, "He has proven himself worthy in my eyes."
"Your approval fills me with shame, murderer," Tenya spat out.
Any rebuttal the Hero Killer might have had was drowned out by the arrival of Endeavor, blazing with fury and smelling of charred flesh. The villain's eyes narrowed at the sight as he hissed, "Endeavor… you fake ."
So potent was the killing intent radiating from Stain that even Endeavor flinched. Still, the number two Hero managed to recover quickly. In five seconds, the ice began to melt, but before Stain could move from his weakened prison, Endeavor grabbed the Hero Killer's face, slammed him into the ground, and stood with his knee on the Hero Killer's back. Within thirty seconds, Stain had cuffs around his arms and legs, and his mouth was gagged. The ice surrounding the battlefield had vanished, and the water left behind was evaporating due to the Flame Hero's intense heat.
"Good work, Shouto," Endeavor stated. "Unfortunately, you did not secure my permission before acting, so we cannot advertise your involvement here. The laws against vigilantism are clear. Speaking of which, you," he turned to Tenya, "I hope you did have permission from your own mentor."
"Gran Torino explicitly gave me permission to use my Quirk for the purposes of rescue," Tenya replied. "At no point did I engage Stain in combat."
"I can vouch for that," Native replied from his position on the ground. He started to twitch, "Huh, it's wearing off…"
It was at that point that Gran Torino flew in. "Iida! You okay?"
Tenya sighed in relief, "I did crash at high velocity, and thus I should be checked for injuries, but for the moment, I feel relatively well."
"Good," Gran Torino said. And took that opportunity to kick Tenya in the face.
As Tenya convalesced in his hospital bed, he reflected on the events of that night.
Shouto was given a clean bill of health, but Tenya had sustained injuries from his collision. As such, he was laid up in a hospital bed with a neck brace. Shouto came in to wish Tenya well, before the chief of Hosu's police arrived to officially reprimand the boys and unofficially thank them.
And now, Gran Torino had entered, "So, kid. You obeyed my instructions to the letter, but you twisted them to your own benefit. You toed the line of breaking the rules without doing anything explicitly forbidden, either by me or the law."
Tenya's stomach dropped, "Sensei, I-"
Gran Torino grinned, "I couldn't be happier."
Tenya's mind went blank as he heard that, before finally settling on, "What."
"Now, I should clarify that I'm not even slightly happy that you went after Stain, after the vast amount of effort we went through to keep you from doing just that. But, you finally learned to think outside the regulations you're so obsessed with," Gran Torino said. "You've got potential, zygote. Now you've just got some growing to do. And maybe next time, don't try and face a serial killer, even if your plan is to grab his victim and run?"
Tenya soaked in the praise. This was perhaps the first time he'd ever been praised for not following the rules entirely. It was an interesting feeling. "I will try not to, Gran Torino-sensei!" Tenya responded. "In my defense, I may not have been in my right mind. I had taken a number of blows to the head prior to my actions…"
Gran Torino paused, then began to laugh, long and loud, deep from his gut. When he finally subsided, he wiped a tear from his eyes, "Oh, kid. That was a good one. Rest up, 'cause once you get a clean bill of health, I'm going to absolutely destroy you."
Tenya stiffened in fear as the elder Hero left.
Izuku finally breathed a sigh of relief when Tenya had responded and said that he was well and resting following a difficult encounter. Shouto had offered Endeavor's assistance, which made Izuku wince, but he would be grateful to anyone for his friend still being alive and well.
Eri was sleeping at his side. The girl had latched onto him and Mirio like a life preserver on the open sea. He'd provided pictures of her to his classmates, all of whom found her precious.
Shortly after that, Izuku heard a sound he dreaded and loved.
DING!
Okay, this is new. Guess that the bonds reaching a second stage can be done no matter the range, Izuku thought to himself. Outwardly, he asked, " Another bond went to stage two. Who's in range?"
"I'm here," Ochako replied. "And could you have at least gone a day between attacks?"
"I'll try and keep to a schedule," Izuku replied. "Anyone else?"
"I'm here, ribbit," Tsu replied.
"Me, too!" Mei added.
"Hey," came the teary-sounding voice of Toru.
Instantly, Izuku became protective. " Is everything all right, Toru-chan?"
"Yes! It's great! Everything's wonderful!" Toru replied, and they could tell she was sincere. "It's a good thing that happened. I want to let everyone know at once and in person, though, so you'll have to be patient…" she seemed to get shyer as she said, "Thank you, Izu-kun! You've helped me so much…"
Izuku instinctively wanted to downplay his involvement, but the outpouring of love and gratitude he got from Toru was enough to silence his denials before he could voice them. He smiled and began to tear up. " You're welcome, Toru-chan," he told them.
"So Momo's out of range," Mei said. "Melissa, too, but she hasn't dinged yet."
"Neither has Nejire-senpai," Ochako said.
"Oh, we got a seventh already?" Mei asked curiously.
"We also got an eighth for about forty-five seconds," Izuku added.
"Wait, what?!" everyone yelled, Tsu adding a "ribbit" afterwards.
"Yeah, it turns out that I have a stalker after the Sports Festival," Izuku said angrily. "She said something that made me feel protective of her, and that was enough for a Bond to form. Unfortunately, she bonded with Ryouji-ji-san and their common element was having a rather large body count and not regretting it."
"Oh, hell," Toru said, shocked.
"Yeah, the bond snapped after she sent out images of the things she'd done, and of the things she wanted to do to me. Her version of loving someone is killing them, drinking their blood, and using her Quirk to transform into them. I don't know how much information she got, but it seems that she knows I have others bound to me, but doesn't know who," Izuku explained.
"It wouldn't be too hard for her to find out, though, ribbit," Tsu replied.
"Nope," Izuku said. "We're going to have to be careful."
"And here I was thinking Nejire-senpai was going to be a handful," Ochako said, shocked.
"Does this mean I get to make us all subdermal tracking chips?!" Mei asked, not even hiding her excitement.
"... At this point, I'm not saying no," Izuku replied. "At least, not yet."
"I'll take that as a win for now!" Mei replied.
"On a less disturbing topic, ribbit, how's the narwhal child doing?" Tsu asked.
Izuku smiled, "She's sleeping at my side. Like a little barnacle."
"I'm so glad they shipped that monster who tortured her off to Tartarus," Ochako said, anger leaking. "That poor sweet little girl needs as many hugs as you can give her, Izu-kun."
"Why a narwhal? I thought she looked like a unicorn," Toru asked.
"I'm working with Gang Orca, ribbit. It's rubbing off on me," Tsu responded. "Besides, a narwhal's just an underwater unicorn."
"She's not aquatic," Mei chimed in.
"Until I teach her to swim, ribbit!" Tsu countered.
"Isn't a narwhal's 'horn' just a modified tooth?" Izuku asked rhetorically.
"Yeah, ribbit. And a unicorn is just a rhinoceros drawn by a European from a bad description, ribbit," Tsu continued.
"That's fair," Izuku said. "Maybe we can buy her a narwhal onesie?"
Mei gasped in delight, "Forget that! I'll MAKE her one!"
"Make a unicorn one, too!" Toru said.
"Narwhal first. I have dibs, ribbit," Tsu said smugly.
"Okay, I think it's odd that this conversation hasn't been interrupted by any of Izuku's ghost family yet," Ochako said.
"Oh, we're listening," En replied.
"We wouldn't interrupt this for the world," Nana added.
"Also, we had to wall off Yoichi because mentioning narwhals made him think of some ancient song that's annoying the hell out of us," Daigoro said with exasperation.
"It's been stuck in my head for centuries, how do you think I feel?!" Yoichi said, sounding like he was yelling at them from behind a wall.
"By the way, anyone who hasn't been in the One for All dreamscape, be prepared for horror cause you're in range now," Ochako warned.
"It's not that bad," Mei scoffed.
"It's basically total body paralysis!" Ochako said. "It's pretty bad!"
"C'mon, Izuku, tell them it's fine," Mei requested.
"Sorry, Mei, but my version of normal is pretty warped," Izuku said. "Momo-chan was also disturbed, and she was prepared."
"Well, ribbit, at least if this is the straw that breaks the camel's back, we have concrete proof that the bonds don't have to be permanent," Tsu added.
"Look, it sounds bad, but at this point, I'm pretty ride or die," Toru said. "You're stuck with me."
"Oh, no!" Izuku said sarcastically. "How will I ever cope?"