The Cracked Mountain and the Withered Oak

Somewhere… in Japan

February 13th

2148

It's been a little over a month since then, a month since the attack. The deaths of so many people.

Funerals were being held all over the city, for lost loved ones as reconstruction efforts carried on.

The government compensated families that had lost homes and family members during the terrorist attack.

Yu Takeyam, more widely known as the Pro Hero Mt. Lady. Was attending a funeral, The funeral for Death Arms, sitting at one of the many chairs while in her hero costume. The bandages wrapped tightly around her abdomen bulged through the spandex slightly.

It was uncomfortable, but not only that she was… uneasy. Her eyes darted around uneasily as she clenched her fists.

At first, she was proud of the design. It was something she had made herself and it helped kickstart her career instantly. But now? The costume barely felt adequate to actually protect anything vital.

Hell. She knew for a fact that it wouldn't protect her in the worst-case scenario. What if those people attacked again?

Came here to finish the job, kill her. Ripping her apart, explosions all around her. A whistling sound grew closer and tore her in half.

What if! What if…

Closing her eyes she took a deep breath, she was safe here. Opening her eyes she looked around uneasily, her eyes landing on All Might almost immediately. The fear in her heart disappeared almost instantly.

The symbol of peace was here, no one would be dumb enough to attack an event he was at. The thought alone was enough to comfort her.

Holding her hands together she took in another deep breath. Looking around at the other heroes that had gathered here.

Dozens of them, some she heard of. Like Thirteen the Black Hole hero and Endeavor the fire hero. And other's… well… not so much, like that one weird-looking homeless guy wearing all black with a weird white scarf around his neck.

Focusing her attention away she saw many fans of the hero sitting at the back, all wearing Death Arms merchandise and holding what looked like cameras, filming the funeral.

Then there was the news team hiding away in the corner, filming as some lady wearing a pants suit talked about the funeral.

Yu grimaced slightly, the filming just felt like it was… in poor taste in her opinion. Sure this was a hero's funeral, but it was still a funeral.

Looking away she saw the family of Death Arm sitting at the front. His casket laying over an open craze. The casket was closed.

She saw an elderly woman, death arms mother. She looked completely defeated as if she couldn't go on anymore.

The Hero's wife was silently sobbing to herself, trying to stay composed. And next to his mom was a little birl, barely seven years old.

The girl crying at the sight of her father's closed casket.

The sight broke her heart slightly. Even if she didn't know them.

Leaning into her chair she looked away, spotting Kamui Woods. Confined to a wheelchair.

His eyes were dull yet hyper-focused, two small black pin-pricks in a sea of white. His fists clenched tightly. Barely contained rage swirling inside of him.

Rage that chilled to the touch, ice-cold hatred that was focused on one thing only.

Yu Takeyam was unsure of what to do now, the bandages around her stomach were still there, and any strenuous movement would cause the scar to burst open.

Thinking about the events at the apartment building while staring up at the ceiling of her room while in her bed.

Even with some of the best medical equipment in Japan, she would still be out of the field for a while.

Sure she was cleared out of the hospital after the funeral but she couldn't do anything for a while.

But that's not what she was unsure about, no.

She rubbed the bandage in thought, she almost died. If it weren't for some vigilante she would have been a stain on the ground and her guts would have been spilling out of her.

Someone, who she thought was nothing more than a dangerous lunatic that liked beating people close to death. The Wraith saved her life.

It was her job to catch the guy, but… she felt like she owed him somewhat. He saved her life…

But…

People died in that explosion, Death arms died in a gruesome and needlessly brutal way. And the Wraith had disappeared.

A man that while she didn't know long, she still respected greatly. A hero that pushed onwards and kept fighting and saving people. Death Arms death, and the way that he had been killed it…

It impacted her.

She felt like she failed him, that if she had just been better prepared she could have done something more.

If she had just been tougher, maybe.

And the wraith, who knew where he was. Just disappeared right after the explosion at the apartment building. No sighting of him for months.

Considering the people willing to do that to get to him were still on the loose, it was probably the right decision.

She paused in thought, thinking back to Ka- to Shinji. The last time she saw the man was weeks ago. At the funeral.

Looking despondent, confined to a wheelchair.

'Maybe… Maybe I'll go visit him.'

She thought to herself, from when she last saw him he definitely needed some company.

She resolved to visit the pro when she was finished meeting with her costume designers and getting something that was hopefully more… armored.

Nishiya Shinji, pro hero Kamui Woods. Stuck in a wheelchair in some hospital room, looking out of the window. Wearing a brown turtle-neck sweater and black sweat pants, and a pair of worn black sneakers. A worn-down hat covering his head

He sneered slightly.

'Pro… what a fucking joke. You could barely even save your own damn friend.'

He thought bitterly, his eyes bloodshot and with bags under them.

Whenever he closed his eyes he…

Warm blood splattered his mask, an almost demonic figure looming over him. But all he was focused on was-

He clenched his fists, he will have revenge. Against the scum villain and the organization, they worked for.

He'll avenge his friend.

Suddenly the door opened, Shinji was knocked out of his thoughts and turned his head towards the door.

A familiar face there, a warm smile on greeting him along with trusting purple eyes. Her blonde hair swayed softly.

"Hello, Nishya-San! I uh, hope it's not a bad time. I tried knocking but you weren't answering so I was kinda worried." Takeyama said with a small smile, Shinji looking at her with slight surprise.

"I uh, no it's fine. Come in." He said as Yu nodded, entering the room and closing the door behind her. A bag in her hand.

"I got you some Karaage chicken, figured you'd need some hot food after being cooped up for so long." Yu said as she placed the bag on a table in the room, taking out two plastic containers.

"Hope you like sweet and spicy." She said as Shinji rotated around. Wheeling away from the window and up to the table in the middle of the room.

Shinji looked at the plastic container as Yu placed a foam soda cup and chopsticks next to the container. The food itself still looked hot, a mix of sweet and spicy fried chicken thighs and rice.

Sitting down across from him Yu opened her own container and grabbed her chopsticks.

Eating her fried chicken as Shinji just looked at his own container. Takeyama paused and frowned slightly.

"Aren't you going to eat? Uh, if you already ate I'm sorry I just-"

"Why are you here?" Shinji asked bluntly, a little too bluntly it seems as he immediately regretted his words at Yu's somewhat heartbroken face.

"I- I'm not ungrateful you're here of course, and thank you for the food but… we never really talked too much before. I mean… we barely even know each other." Shinji said awkwardly, and really. It was the truth, they had only ever met two or three times before and only knew surface-level details about each other.

Yu mulled his words over and knew that he was right, she looked away slightly.

"You're right, we don't know each other and… I…" She tried to look for the right words, clasping her hands tightly together.

"I don't know a lot of people and I just… I don't want to be alone. I'm trying, but I can't meet new people anymore." Yu admitted to the only person who had any idea what she was going through.

"I can't look them in the eye anymore, all I see now are threats. And… you're the only person I at least have some solid ground in this city. I… even if we're technically just acquaintances. I'd liked to uh, get to know each other better."

Shinji looked at her for a moment, the rage that filled his mind before she entered was quiet. Still there, but not as strong as it used to be.

"I… I'd like that too." Shinji said after a moment, picking up his own chopsticks. Yu smiled slightly.

"Thank you."

Yu walked slowly next to Shinji, the man rolling alongside her in his wheelchair. Both of them traveled down a path in a cemetery that was around the edge of the city.

She found it odd at first, she thought at first that maybe they were going to go for a because the cemetery was next to a nature path but when Shinji strolled into the graveyard she just had to follow.

She hadn't asked why they were there yet, but it was itching at the back of her mind.

"Uh, Nishya-San. I didn't want to ask before but… why are we in a cemetery?"

The wooden pro gave her a pointed look.

"To visit Death Arms." Shinji replied cooly. Yu looked confused at his words.

"What? Wasn't he buried in the cemetery near U.A? Why did they move h-"

"It was a show for the public. He wasn't buried there." Shinji replied with a small shrug, Yu stopping in her stride as she digested the information.

"Wait wait wait. Why was he buried here? And if he was buried here, why go through the whole media bullshit?" Yu asked genuinely confused. Shinji looked at her as if she had just grown a second head before his eyes widened in realization.

"I'm sorry, I forgot that you are still new to the whole superhero scene. The reason for the whole news show and costumes is to draw away attention away from the real funeral. To throw off grave robbers from finding the real burial site."

"G-Grave robbers? People wouldn't…" She trailed off at the pointed look Shinji gave her.

"It's happened so many times, scummy fans wanting to get a souvenir or something worth a lot of money." Shinji said as he continued to wheel forward, Yu standing there in disbelief for a moment.

Shaken from the information she walked slightly behind Shinji, drawing her coat around her tighter.

The mere mental image of people digging up coffins and desecrating dead bodies shook her. It was… wrong.

"We're almost there." Shinji suddenly said as they neared a gravestone.

"Since you were there I figured… I don't know I just figured it'd help maybe." He said with a shrug as the reached the tombstone. A large stone monument with intricate Kanji carved into it, dozens of flowers laying next to the stone. Wooden bamboo sitting behind the tombstone. Dozens of jars sitting in front of small the monument with water sitting in a basin.

It was farther away from the rest of the cemetery.

"But it's a good thing Death Arms doesn't have to worry about grave robbers all too much. This is his family's cemetery, he was uh… Buddhist ya know? Entire family is. Partly why he became a hero in the first place." Shinji said as he looked at the monument, fumbling over himself slightly as an awkward silence overtook the two heroes.

Both of them looked at the tombstone solemnly. A mixture of emotions swirled in both of them.

Yu held her hands tightly together, shame and guilt flooding her body. Guilt at how she had failed as a hero, how dozens of people had died in the attack. How she failed to save a fellow hero as she was knocked out of commission first.

She closed her eyes and took in a shaky breath. Her hands shook slightly as she tried to keep everything in check.

Her first memory of the man was his congratulations on her debut. And his admonishment as well.

"You certainly know how to entrance, and you have an incredibly powerful quirk too. But you need to reign in that showboating attitude of yours, that and your recklessness will not help you in the long term."

"Yeah yeah, whatever."

Guilt worming its way into her tenfold at the memory of her snubbing the man back then.

She had worked with him a few more times after that, he was nice. Even after her debut. He encouraged her to do her best, to be the best hero she could possibly be.

Her grip tightened as she shivered slightly.

'I… I think it'll be a while before I'm back in the field.' She thought to herself.

'Everything has changed.'

She looked to the side, at Shinji. The man's face was like a stone mask, the only emotion visible was his blank almost dead stare. But there was a hidden rage in those eyes. A barely contained tempest of anger. His hands were gripping the rests on his wheelchair with increasing strength.

The knuckles turned white from the pressure, rage building up inside the man. It was obvious to her. She opened her mouth to say something before closing it and looking away. Unable to keep eye contact.

She wanted to say something, anything at all.

But all that came was silence, almost deafening as she tried to look at the tombstone. But found that she couldn't muster up the will.

Alright so... Uh. For those of you that saw the previous AN, you know that I kinda overshared lmao.

Sorry bout that.

But yeah, this is it's own little side story set in the wider universe. Basically what's going on with Mount Lady and Kamui Woods.

Uh, hope you guys have a good one.