[Revision of The Chapter Published – June 23rd, 2023]
"Yoshi-chan! You got a letter in the mail! The front desk worker came up to give it to me!" Nemuri shouted up the stairs as Yoshihara stepped out of her room, closing the door behind her as the blonde yawned, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. She grumbled, blinking a few times as she stretched.
"This had better be important…" Yoshihara thought, a grimace taking up her face as she sauntered her way down the stairs. The reason why she was so groggy was because she had been asleep, and that was further compounded by the fact that she was wearing her pyjamas; that being a pink undershirt and a pair of black pyjama pants.
After the meeting with the Midoriya, Inko, Kujo, and Sakunami, Kira decided that it would be worth trying to catch up on the sleep she had missed from waking up so early this morning. If there was one thing she valued more than her life, it was her sleep schedule. And if anyone messed with it, she'd have a few words to say to them about it. A few very pointed, violent words.
What made the whole thing even worse was that she had actually been sleeping soundly, which was a much-welcomed change after how the last two days had been nothing but stressful. Nothing bad had happened today to warrant her being stressed out, and now, just as she was getting some decent rest, someone had decided it was a good idea to send her mail.
Yoshihara's only question right now was why Kayama-san had decided it was a good idea to wake her up over an envelope with a piece of paper shoved inside of it. Unless it was from someone like The Principal of U.A. saying she got accepted early for some stupid reason or another, Yoshihara didn't quite care what the letter was about.
She wasn't particularly in the mood to read whatever letter had awaited her at the bottom of the stairs, so much so that she was actively dragging her feet, hoping that she could just return to bed. If it wasn't important, she would ignore it and go back to sleep. Or, perhaps she'd read it, feign concern, then go back to bed. Either way, she'd be going back to bed no matter what was inside that letter.
"Who's it from?" Yoshihara asked, her tone of voice rough as she yawned yet again into her hand. Kayama shrugged, outstretching her arm and passing the letter to the blonde, who was still a few steps from being on the main floor.
"It doesn't say who's it from. It just says "urgent" on the front. It's also sloppily written. Whoever wrote it is bad at writing," Nemuri quipped, causing Yoshihara to snap awake. That… was strange. Why would she be getting a letter labelled urgent? What was the point of that? Was it from the Speedwagon Foundation? If so, why would they send her a letter?
"Urgent?" the blonde muttered, confusion in her tone of voice as an unsettling feeling began to form in her stomach. Was this connected to the feeling that had come over her after the meeting? Was it possible that someone had been listening in on the meeting? Was this a letter from Kujo telling them that they had been compromised?
Once the blonde had made it to the main floor, Yoshihara moved over to the counter and proceeded to rip the top off of the envelope. Within the piece of mail addressed to her was a singular piece of paper, which she unfolded. When her eyes hit the paper, and when she finished reading what the letter had said, she seethed in rage.
I know who you are, Kira Yoshihara and I also know what the name Midoriya Izuku means to you. If you don't meet me in the forest just outside of Musutafu by midnight tonight, I will kill him, and I know where he lives. Tell me, does the address 1967 Tattoine Street, Apartment number 16 on the twelfth floor of the Chewbacca Apartment Complex sound familiar to you? In case you doubted me for even a second, there is your proof that I know where it is your friend is located. If you truly care about him, and truly see him as a friend, then you will do as I say. Consider this your only warning. I'll be waiting for you – yours truly: Anon.
Yoshihara's grip on the piece of paper tightened as her expression shifted into one of anger. Someone had been spying on her, someone who knew about Midoriya. Someone who was actively threatening Midoriya in front of Yoshihara's face, and all behind a piece of paper. She'd call them a coward if they weren't openly inviting her to go look for them, as well as giving her the direct location of where the person would be.
"This bastard has balls, I'll give them that," Yoshihara thought, glaring at the piece of paper as Killer Queen appeared behind her. The cat-like humanoid Stand ripped the letter to shreds, the pieces of paper hitting the countertop. As it turned out, she was not going to be going back to bed. This was too much to ignore, and it was pissing her off something fierce for two reasons.
1: How dare this piece of shit threaten her friend directly to her face, and even go as far as to send her a letter about it.
2: This bastard had dared to get in the way of her sleep schedule, and while it was a petty reason, no one—and she meant no one—got in the way of her schedule or her daily routine. That was a crime in and of itself.
She knew what she had to do, but getting to the location in under six hours would be impossible without some help. That walk alone would only leave her with a handful of minutes to deal with the bastard, and there were no trains that stopped at the outskirts of the city, only to another city's station, and that would take hours.
That was when she had an idea, as the blonde looked over to Nemuri, whose expression had been overshadowed by concern and worry, most likely due to her reaction to the letter.
"Yoshi-chan? Is everything alright?" The pro hero asked, raising an eyebrow as Yoshihara composed herself, taking in a deep breath. The last thing she wanted to do was act solely based on her rage. She had seen far too many anime and read far too many Manga that showed the adverse effects of thinking with one's heart instead of their head.
But, unfortunately, she was going to allow her anger to control her. Just this once. No one threatened her friends and got to live to see another day. Not unless there was a damned good reason to keep them alive. Case-in-point, Inko. The only reason she was still alive today was because she was Midoriya-kun's mother. If it wasn't for that, she would be dead.
And so, running on that logic, Yoshihara looked over at her foster mother and spoke. "Kayama-san, can you drive me to the forest at the edge of Musutafu?" Yoshihara asked as Nemuri bobbed her head ever-so-slightly to the left, her expression going from concerned to confused.
"Whatever for? Just curious of course. If you don't want to tell me, you don't have to," Nemuri said, crossing her arms with a raised eyebrow as Yoshihara cursed under her breath. Of course, she'd hit her with that question.
"It's important, okay? I—" Yoshihara paused, huffing. She didn't want to tell Kayama about Stands, but at the same time, it was looking like she was going to have to. Granted, she didn't have to, but it was better to be open and honest about the situation. Pro Heroes wouldn't be worth jack shit if the person that Yoshihara was about to go after was a Stand User.
Well… that wasn't entirely true. If Kayama-san used her Quirk… "No, because what if their ability is anything like Kujo's? He could steal away an aspect of a person, and that could potentially include someone's Quirk. What if this person has something similar? There's no way to conclude that for sure, and while they could have a Quirk, Stand Users attract other Stand Users… going off by that logic, there is a higher chance that it's a Stand User who's threatening Midoriya's life to get at me. The only question is why?" Yoshihara reasoned with herself, a frown making its way to her face.
There were too many outliers to risk Kayama-san getting involved. And so, rather than needlessly endanger the person sheltering her, she neglected that idea completely. She also pushed aside the reason for this person threatening Midoriya to get to her. That didn't matter right now. What mattered was making sure they never had a chance to do that in the first place. Which was the whole point of asking Kayama-san to drive her to the edge of the city.
And so, with a serious expression, Yoshihara sighed. She didn't have to exactly explain what a Stand was, but she still needed to convince Kayama-san to make her stay out of this. And so, with that in mind, she spoke.
"Look, whatever you do, you cannot get involved at all, whatsoever. I know you're a pro hero, but… a villain with a power that isn't that of a Quirk, or at least, I think so anyway, is going to kill my friend if I don't meet my friend's would-be killer in the forest. I need to be there before midnight, lest he kills that friend. So please, can you take me to the edge of the city? I'm kinda in a rush," Yoshihara said as Nemuri recoiled.
"Yoshihara… what do you mean?" Nemuri asked, slowly, looking at her adopted daughter with a hint of worry in her eyes. The blonde looked away, shame on her face as her shoulders slumped.
"Even if I told you, you wouldn't understand. You could try to understand, but the basic concept would illude you," Yoshihara said, walking over to the couch and sitting down.
"Well, you could still try and explain it. If your friend is in danger, I can always get Present Mic and Eraserhead to help me deal with the villain. It's my job, after all," Nemuri said, sitting beside Yoshihara as the blonde shook her head.
"No. You'd be useless against them."
Yoshihara's blunt tone shocked Nemuri, though it wasn't uncommon toward those that she was trying to prove a point to, never in her time knowing the blonde had she been blunt to her. "Useless… why would I be…." "Yoshihara, you aren't making any sense? My Quirk could just knock the guy out, and Eraserhead could erase his Quirk should that fail, and we can get him into a prison cell with Quirk deactivating cuffs. I don't see how I'd—" Without warning, something tapped her on the shoulder, causing her to look over it, only to find nothing. The ravenette paled, looking around her immediate area, only to find nothing. "What was—"
"That was me. Well, no, not really anyway. That… was my Stand. You can't see them, nor can you interact with them. They're ghosts of sorts that are linked to the user's soul. Only Stand Users can fight and beat other Stand Users, while Quirks do not affect Stands, the same can not be said for the other way around," Yoshihara explained, sinking into the couch as Kayama-san looked at Yoshihara with a shocked expression.
"Wait… does that mean the entire time you were training with me and not using a Quirk… you were fighting Quirkless on purpose?" Nemuri asked as Yoshihara did a "so-and-so" motion with her hand.
"Yes, and no. At the time, I only had control over my Stands arms, and even then they came out only when they thought they should. I couldn't summon it fully, and by the time I did, it was around the time when I crashed through the 19th-story window to attack the guy who had been assaulting me with a Stand of his own," Yoshihara explained as Nemuri shook her head in disbelief.
"And that other villain that attacked you yesterday…?"
"Yeah, that was a Stand User as well…." Yoshihara said, shifting her expression to one of upset as she now stared at the floor.
The number of revelations that Yoshihara had dropped on Nemuri caused the pro hero to look at the blonde with concern, and a tad bit of anger seeing as the girl didn't trust her to tell her this information beforehand. However, she had to give the girl the benefit of the doubt, considering that these villains had powers that were supposedly unable to be affected by Quirks, it only made sense for her not to tell her, but at the same time….
"So let me get this straight: For the past week or so you've been dealing with these so-called Stand Users, getting injured to the point of near-death each time, and telling me that these villains had been dealt with by other pro hero's when in reality you've been the one dealing with them, in a sense acting as a vigilante, all under my nose and lying to me about it?" Nemuri asked as Yoshihara shrunk into herself, nodding.
Nemuri let out a long, exaggerated sigh, rubbing the sides of her temple as she contemplated everything that had been said to her. Her adopted daughter had gone out of her way to lie to her about doing vigilante work, got injured to the point that she had come close to death on multiple occasions, and now wanted to do that again to save her friend.
The ravenette had to commend her for her bravery, even if it was vaguely disguised stupidity in Nemuri's eyes. She wanted to tell her no and frankly, she should've. Then she would deal with it on her own with the help of Shouta and Hizashi. She wanted to tell Yoshihara that she was putting her foot down and prevent her from risking her life again. Not until she was a proper pro hero.
She wanted to do all of this, yet she couldn't. Because if even for a second that what Yoshihara said was true, then there was no way she could actually take down the villain and save her adopted daughter's friend's life. And so, even though it was against her better judgment….
"Alright. I'll drive you to that forest. But no more of this nonsense until you at least step foot in U.A., got it? At least then if you get injured you'll have more people to help you out," Nemuri stated, getting up from the couch as Yoshihara snapped her head up to look at the ravenette.
"I thought you were gonna—"
"Punish you? Like hell, I would kiddo. I know it's a bad idea, but if what you say is true about Stands and how Quirks can't fight against them, then it would be impossible for my friends and me to save your friend. Besides, if you've been doing this for the past week now, I think it already goes to show your potential at being a hero in the future," Nemuri said, a soft smile on her face.
The ravenette walked over to the coat rack near the elevator, put on her brown trench coat, and gave the blonde a determined smirk. "Well, you coming or what? I doubt it matters if you get changed into anything, it's not like anyone's gonna see you all that much. Besides, I have a plan."
And with that, Yoshihara's expression switched from shocked to determined and confident. Underneath that confidence and determination, however, was seething rage. It was slowly building. Bubbling and boiling, ready to erupt. And she was going to save it all for this pompous, arrogant, two-timing bastard.
No one messed with her friends. Ever.
xxXXxxXXxx
A black sedan pulled up to the edge of a heavily forested area, the front lights on as Yoshihara stepped out of the car, looking back at Nemuri, who nodded, giving her the all-clear. "Remember, try and be safe. If anything goes wrong, you know what to do," the ravenette said as Yoshihara struck a thumbs up.
The blonde-haired teen turned to face the forest, a chill running down her spine as she stepped into the grassy domain. She glanced at her phone, it was 8:35 PM. Whoever awaited her within the forest was about to get the ass-kicking of a lifetime.
Nemuri provided her with a plan, a plan she wanted to see through to the end. This villain wouldn't know what hit him. And if that plan failed, she was going to do this her way. No matter what, Yoshihara wasn't going to let this piece of shit hurt anyone ever again. He was either going to go away for a long time, or he would never breathe ever again. It was as simple as that.
Stepping deeper into the forest, far enough to where when she looked back, all she could see was more forest, she found herself entering a clearing, a valley of trees surrounding her at all angles. A pit formed in her stomach as the sounds of owls hooting and rustling bushes filled her ears.
Taking in a deep breath, she let a wave of calm blanket over her before. She gave her surroundings a tertiary glance before finally clearing her throat, and speaking out to the forest-like void.
"ALRIGHT, ASSHOLE, I'M HERE! NOW SHOW YOURSELF!" Yoshihara shouted, clenching her fists as, suddenly, without warning, she felt a searing pain in her left shoulder, blood squirting from the sudden wound as she screamed out in pain and shock.
"AAAGGHHHH!"
Clasping her wound with her right hand, she looked around her immediate area as she gritted her teeth. "The fuck was that?!" Yoshihara thought, her eyes darting from place to place. It felt like a bullet had made dug into her skin. Blood trickled down her arm as she gnashed her teeth together.
Unfortunately for her, she wasn't allowed even a moment of downtime, as Kira could hear the sound of something rushing towards her. Instinctively, she dodged out of the way of whatever attack had been thrown or shot at her. When she got out of the way, she glanced over to where she had just been, as three holes appeared in the ground in the spot where she had just stood a few moments ago. Her eyes widened, blinking as she gripped her shoulder.
"If I hadn't moved… those things would've hit me! Where the fuck is this guy?!" Yoshihara thought, sneering as she glared at the trees that were in front of her. "That's where they have to be. They have to be in the trees!" The blonde thought as she snarled. "Enough hiding, show yourself you fucking coward!" the blonde shouted as a burst of demented laughter filled the air.
"Kshshshshsh! And here I thought you wouldn't show up! I guess it goes to show just how gullible you truly are, Kira Yoshihara!" A voice echoed throughout the forest, coming from every possible angle. It sounded young, around about her age to be exact. "This is a kid! The bastard who's threatening me is a kid?! I thought this was some stupid adult! But a kid?! What the hell is this idiot thinking?" Yoshihara thought as she took a step back, the pain in her shoulder getting worse as she winced.
"What the…?" Yoshihara muttered as lifted her hand from her shoulder glancing at her wound as she let go of it. However, as she lifted her hand, her skin around the wound began to peel off of her shoulder, and along with it, a trail of blood as thick as her thumb began to cascade down her arm. Yoshihara felt sick just looking at it, and to make matters worse, the wound was beginning to turn purple, and as it did, the wounded area only seemed to grow and spread, like some sort of disgusting skin-eating virus.
"What the fuck did you do to me?!" Yoshihara shouted as she looked back toward the trees, her eyes narrowing as she scanned the immediate area trying to look for something, anything to tell her where her attacker was hiding.
"Confused, aren't you?! Well, it doesn't matter what you are! I sent you that letter because I knew at the mention of Midoriya Izuku, you'd come running to save his life from certain death! That's what friends are for, right? Well, unfortunately for you, that'll be impossible! You're Quirk could never hold up to what I have! Once I'm done with you, I—"
"So, my assumption was right," Yoshihara interrupted, a pinkish-purple aura forming over her body as the voice sputtered. "You don't have a Quirk. You're a Stand User. Why else would be hiding," the blonde spat, summoning Killer Queen as she sneered. "I don't know where you are, but once I find you, I'm gonna turn you to fucking ash!" Yoshihara roared as the voice went silent.
For a brief moment, an eerie tension filled the surrounding area as Yoshihara's eyes darted from left to right, trying to find where the bastard had been hiding. After a few more moments of tension-filled silence, the voice laughed yet again, only this time it was more subdued than downright psychotic.
"Well, this just got interesting. I look forward to finally meeting you… if you get the chance!" Then, out of nowhere, several objects came flying toward Yoshihara, and as Killer Queen got ready to deflect them, they impacted her body, shooting her in the abdomen, chest, and left leg. The teen stifled a scream of both rage and pain as the wounds began to copiously bleed. The wounds began to grow and spread rapidly, her skin cracking and falling off as she continued to bleed.
"This bastard… he shot me three more times. The damage these things do isn't much, but what concerns me is why the area affected is turning purple…" Yoshihara thought as the pain got far, far worse. So much so that she was forced down onto one knee. Her skin began to fall off at a far more rapid rate and to make matters worse, she was starting to become light-headed from all the blood loss. "His ability… it's eating away at my skin! Not only that, but it's spreading!"
As her skin continued to fall off, pain erupted through her body. It was the kind of pain that got worse and worse as time went on. All the while she could do nothing but panic and look around for where her attacker was coming from. Unfortunately, no matter how hard she looked, she couldn't see a damned thing!
"Damn this bastard! Where the hell is he?!" Yoshihara thought as she continued to look around her surroundings. It was clear that her attacker was in the trees, which put her at a disadvantage. Much like Kujo's Stand, it was seemingly long-ranged. Meaning that he could attack from the safety of the tree tops, while Yoshihara was a sitting duck.
The blonde tried to move, but her wounded leg wouldn't so much as budge. From the looks of things, she had been shot through her thigh, but not anywhere near an artery. In fact, it was just below the kneecap. If her attacker had been just a little higher though, she would've bled out. Not that she wasn't bleeding out already, but it was a far slower process.
Killer Queen, wasn't a long ranged stand by any means. But, that didn't mean she couldn't attack the user. After all, it can turn whatever it touched into a bomb. And so, using that logic, she had an idea. Killer Queen scooped up a ball of dirt and turned it into a compact ball while embuing a bomb into it.
"Now all I have to do is wait until you slip up, fuckface…" Yoshihara thought as she patiently waited. Luckily, it didn't take long for that to happen, as almost immediately there was movement in the branches above. Without hesitation, Killer Queen launched the ball of dirt toward the movement, and as soon as it got closer, the ball fell apart due to a variety of slashes. However, as the ball began to break apart, Killer Queen pressed its thumb down on its hand, causing the ball to blow up in her attacker's face.
"Ack—you asshole!" The voice of the Stand User echoed out as Yoshihara smirked, pumping her fist in front of her as she mouthed 'boo-yaw' under her breath.
"Gotcha, fuckface, now, are ya gonna tell me just what the fuck you want from me, or are you gonna be difficult?!" Yoshihara snarled, attempting once more to stand up, only to fail. Her leg wound had gotten just as bad as the one on her shoulder, and that wasn't to say anything about the one she had under her right breast. It too was starting to get worse, as blood was pouring like a river down her body, pooling around her as a headache began to form.
"Gotta wrap this up as soon as possible… I'm starting to get woozy. Any minute now I could pass out from blood loss… and if I do that, I'm as good as dead…." Yoshihara thought as the voice growled.
"You think that's enough to defeat me?! I won't let some puny explosion even so much graze me! All that did was slightly annoy me, you hear, nothing! Absolutely nothing! DIE!" The voice shouted as several more flying objects came at Kira from two different angles.
Killer Queen dove in front of her, punching rapidly to knock away as many of them as possible, all the while it bellowed its warcry.
"SHIBOBOBOBOBOBOBOBOBO!"
In the end, Killer Queen was able to deflect three of them, as one was able to slip past the cat-like Stand and pierce Yoshihara in her sternum, just barely missing her heart by a few inches.
"AGGGGHHhhhh!" Yoshihara's scream died out as she coughed up blood, a large pool now surrounding her from the collective blood loss from all of her wounds. She choked ever-so-slightly, coughing more and more as Killer Queen yanked a small purple needle-like object from her neck.
It was small, nearly half the size of an actual nail. It was no wonder why Killer Queen had been having a hard time hitting them away, they were the size of half a peanut!
"Hah! Take that! You'll die for sure now! I outrange you, and because of that, I can continuously take potshots at you until you bleed out! Stand or not, weak vermin like you don't belong in U.A.! And because you're taking up MY spot in the recommendation exam, once I get rid of you, there will be nothing stopping me from becoming the most popular hero to date! I'll surpass All Might, and you'll die here, alone and forgotten!"
Fear and anger flashed through Yoshihara as the boy taunted her. Die alone… Forgotten? Those words… they had been the same ones that she said to her… and those same words were being spoken again, but by someone else. "No…" Yoshihara thought. Back then, back in that hell hole, it would've caused her to give up. It was on that day that she changed. But here? No, that couldn't happen. Not here, not when she was so close to finally digging herself out of the hole she had found herself in.
She refused to die here.
But the enemy, as annoying as he was, was right. They outranged her, and even if she did throw a dirtball in their direction, their Stand would just rip them to shreds before it could explode, making the effort useless. There was no use in wasting her already depleting energy on such a task.
The wounds all around her body had continued to crack and decay, so much so that the areas where the wounds were the skin had deteriorated had gotten so bad that it began to show muscle. Blood continuously seeped from her body as she began to feel even more light-headed than before, resulting in her vision slowly fading. She was running out of time.
"No… I have to… do something…" Yoshihara thought, looking over to Killer Queen.
And then, she remembered the plan and a devilish smirk appeared on her face. "This asshole thinks he has me cornered when in reality it's the other way around!" Yoshihara thought, staring up at the tree line, her expression switching to a neutral one. The last thing she wanted to do was to give her plan away.
"Gone silent on me now? Well then, I guess that means I can just finish you off! Who knew that this would be so easy?!" The voice spat as they laughed. "Heh, since you're dying anyway, I guess it wouldn't hurt to show you who I am. But I'm NOT coming down there, that would be stupid!" The voice said as a boy no older than Yoshihara stepped out from the darkness above within the trees.
A boy that she vaguely recognized. He was from her school, and she had vaguely remembered bumping into him once at the school's entrance.
His grey hair was short, almost in the style of a crewcut and he wore a shit-eating grin on his face. His eyes were bright orange, and he wore a black denim jacket, a spiked collar, and a red v-neck shirt underneath. His pants were a dark grey, and his shoes were pitch black. His hands were stuffed into his pockets, and his posture was lazy, leaned back against the tree as he faced her directly.
Then, there was his Stand.
It was a humanoid Stand, taking the form of a hunched-over, lean, physically boney monster. It had pointed spikes protruding out of its back, and large, five-fingered claws the size of steak knives, with the tips seemingly shaved off, though one of them had been growing back. Its legs were long and spindly, and its feet were completely flat with no toes to speak of.
The stand looked to be the same height as its user, though it had been hunched over, so there was no way of telling. It had a large overbite in terms of its jaw with jagged teeth, and it had no eyes to speak of, only black empty sockets.
"S-So… you're the bastard who threatened to kill my f-friend," Yoshihara stammered, her skin slowly going pale due to blood loss as the Stand User smirked.
"Yup! And to think that was all it took to draw you out was threatening that pathetic, Quirkless loser! You really are a weakling, aren't you? Both in mind and in ability! I mean, who cares about that waste of air? He's gonna kill himself anyway, right? All Quirkless failures kill themselves in the end, so you've been wasting your time!" The teen taunted as Yoshihara felt her blood boil. However, she kept calm. She was waiting for something to happen, and it was taking its sweet ass time to happen.
"Come on now, any day now!" Yoshihara thought as her body began to shake. By her estimation, she only had another minute before she would fall unconscious.
The teen sneered at her silence, and then, he scoffed. "I hadn't expected you to be a Stand User, though. That did genuinely catch me off guard! But, it seems as if my worries were completely unfounded! Your Stand can't hope to hurt me! I outrange you by a decent amount! Even with your stupid little explosion ability, you're nothing compared to my Stand!" The teen boasted, his eyes gaining a demented gleam as he laughed.
"You know what? Because I'm so confident you'll die, I'll tell you my name as well! Hell, maybe you'll recognize my family's name. After all… you did kill my uncle. He followed you to that corner store, and now I know how you killed him. You blew him up using your Stand! So think of this as karmic retribution! So you better remember the name Taro! Taro Tatsugi! My Stand is Renegades! I'm sure you probably don't care, but it doesn't matter, now does it, cause you're gonna die!"
Taro smirked, a silver aura forming around his body as he narrowed his eyes at Yoshihara. "Renegades poison isn't exactly the strongest, but the more of it that's in your body, the more lethal it becomes, so just stand still, all I gotta do is shoot you five more times, and I'll put you out of your misery!" Taro spat as Renegades aimed one of its fingers toward Yoshihara.
Just then, a shadow silently slinked behind both Taro and Renegades. When Yoshihara saw that, a dangerous smile took over her visage as her eyes gleamed with determination. A surge of adrenaline flowed through her body as she slowly began to stand up on shaky legs, blood dripping from her body as Taro recoiled.
"Eh?! How the fuck are you standing up! I hit you in a major tendon! You shouldn't be able to stand up!" Taro shouted, confusion on his face as Yoshihara glared at Taro, rage pouring out of her in the form of killing intent, which caused Taro to pale.
"You know… people like you… piss me off," Yoshihara started, reaching for something in her pocket. Renegades fired off one of its poison-filled nails, aiming directly for her wrist. However, Killer Queen deflected the shot as it bounced harmlessly into the ground, making Taro snarl. It was then that Yoshihara pulled out a walkie-talkie with the receiver end taped down so that it was always captured audio. "So I came prepared."
"W-What?! Who were you talking to?! I told you to come alone!" Taro shouted, taking a step back on the branch he was on as a hand snapped down on his shoulder. The grip was strong enough that it made a cracking sound, causing Taro to wince. The boy spun around, coming face to face with two narrowed, red-glowing eyes.
"Boo," the man spoke as a strange bandage-like material wrapped around Taro, squeezing and restraining him, forcing the boy to put away his Stand as it sucked the air out of him. The man's long black hair rose high, and the stubble on his chin seemed to have the same effect, though not as badly. The man wore a black bodysuit, along with a grey utility belt that matched his scarf. Not only that, but he also wore a pair of black sneakers, which completed his look.
The man glared daggers at Taro, who began to sweat bullets. "W-What the fuck?! H-How did you—"
"Shut up," The man interrupted, his tone blunt and dry, just like his eyes. "It's people like you, who do whatever they possibly can to attempt to be heroes that sicken me. Especially if they resort to means like this. I have to hand it to the problem child, when I first heard her explanation, I was worried I would be dealing with a crazy kid, alongside a crazy woman that I call a friend. But from what I've seen today? And considering I've had my Quirk directed on you the entire time, with nothing happening? I was wrong about that. So now, you're going to jail for the attempted murder of a minor," the pro hero Eraserhead said, taking Taro's spot on the branch as the boy dangled, all the while he stared in horror.
"WHAT!?"
[2 and a half hours ago…]
Nemuri and Yoshihara pulled up to a bar near the outskirts of Musutafu where a man in a black tracksuit and a massive scarf stood, leaning against the building. Nemuri and the blonde stepped out of the car as the man let out a sigh.
"Alright, Nemuri, this better be good, otherwise I'm going back to bed. My patrol doesn't start for another few hours, so dragging me out here better be worth it." the man said as Nemuri waved him off dismissively.
"Oh Shouta, you know full well that I would never call you during your little nap time with your boyfriend~," Nemuri said as the man coughed into his hand.
"Nemuri, please, no teasing right now. Tell me, what is it that you want?" Shouta bit out, glaring at the woman.
"Okay, okay, jeez. You see, Yoshihara's friend is in danger. Someone wants her to go to the woods alone for whatever reason they may have. If she doesn't her friend will die. However, this guy apparently has a power that Quirks can't affect. Then, I thought of you. With your binding cloth style of attacking, once the guy reveals themselves from their hiding spot, you can wrap 'em up and prevent them from attacking. And if they turn out to have a Quirk, you can erase it to make them harmless. So… what do you say?" Nemuri asked as Shouta looked over at Yoshihara.
"And what makes you think I believe that? What other powers out there exist that aren't Quirks? Unless you can prove it, don't waste my time with bullshit. I'll help you two anyway, if you can't prove it, don't get in my way," Shouta stated before looking over to the blonde. "Unless you can prove it, that is?" Shouta asked as Yoshihara rubbed the back of her neck.
"Well, the thing is, people without these abilities can't see them. But, they can feel them," Yoshihara said as, suddenly, Shouta felt something tug on his hair. He looked up, then back to the girl, who had a smirk on her face.
"Alright, try that again," Shouta said, his eyes blaring red. "My Quirk negates other Quirks, so—" Before he could finish, something closed one of his eyes by force, which caused him to shake his head and deactivate his Quirk, all the while the girl still smirking. Shouta sighed, having seen enough. "Alright, I believe you. Can't exactly use a psychic Quirk when I'm looking at you with my Quirk turned on, so you gotta be telling me the truth." Shouta said, sighing, rubbing at his eyes. "Let's go save your friend."
[Current time]
"Y-You!" Taro choked out, all before the silver aura appeared around Taro yet again. "You think this stops me! Ha! You're stupid, you really are daft! And you call yourself a pro hero!? Don't make me laugh!" Taro spat, a strained sneer on his face as Renegades loomed over Shouta, its right hand raised to the side of the black-haired man's head, fingers pointed out in a stabbing gesture.
"Eraserhead! You're going to be an example as to just how strong Renegades is!" Taro declared as the Stand reared its arm back, unbeknownst to the pro. Then, before Yoshihara could warn the pro hero, the Stand dug its claws into the man's head, blood spewing out of the wounds as his head was slammed against the tree trunk.
The pro hero choked on his breath, his eyes rolling into the back of his head as he slid against the bark, blood staining the tree. Renegades removed its claws from Eraserheads head, shaking the blood off of them.
Yoshihara's eyes widened as the man fell unconscious, the bindings unfurling, letting go of the enemy Stand user. The boy was moments away from falling to the ground, However, Taro grabbed onto the tree branch, dangling freely as he took in deep breaths.
Shouta fell, hitting the ground with a sickening crack echoing out throughout the forest. Yoshihara coughed up blood, her pupils shrinking in response. Despite it only having been a few seconds ago, her body felt weak as the adrenaline slowly began to fade away. Just like that, the plan crumbled apart, all because Taro didn't feel threatened by Eraserhead's appearance to back down, nor had Eraserhead squeezed hard enough to suck the wind out of his body.
As a result, the man was now potentially dead, and she was dying from the poison in her body that was slowly eating away her skin, making the bleeding worse. Yoshihara fell back to her knees as her legs gave out on her, pain soaring throughout her body. She shook violently, as she felt her breathing become shakier. "No! No, not now! I-I can't die here!"
"I have to say, you scared me for a second," Taro said, a hint of respect in his tone of voice. "I truly thought you had me beat, bringing a pro hero into restraining me was a smart move, I'll give you that! Now, he's out of the picture, all because, yet again, like a fool, you underestimated me and Renegades! You see, my Stand's poison attacks your red blood cells, which causes your body to decay! At least, where it shoots anyway. But like any good poison, it'll spread! And since you've lost so much blood…. Maybe I should just leave you here to die a slow and painful death?"
Yoshihara snarled, trying to stand up again, failing as she did so. In the corner of her eye, she saw Killer Queen begin to fade away, flickering in and out of reality as it began to crack. "W-What…?" Yoshihara muttered as Taro snorted.
"You're dying, and because of that your Stand is dying with you! Once that happens, I'll win! And seeing as that's happening, it means this battle is over!" Taro shouted, pointing at Yoshihara as his expression became manic. "I win! You lose! Dynamite and a Laserbeam is over!" Taro shouted, laughing manically as Yoshihara clenched her hand into a fist, her energy slowly draining from her body.
She felt pain all over. Blood drenched her once clean pyjamas, and the wounds on her shoulder, chest, left thigh, and sternum had decayed to the point where all you could see was muscle. She should be dead. She should've died by now, and yet her heart continued to pump. The only thing keeping her going, at least in her opinion, was her rage.
She looked at the ground, shadow covering her eyes as Killer Queen continued to crack. Although, it was no longer fading in and out of existence. Rather, it had become more ethereal than materialized, bordering between life and death.
At that moment, for just a split second, she saw someone out of the corner of her eye. She couldn't make out many details, but the figure was a man. A man just as bloodied as she was, though, like Killer Queen, he was ethereal. Like a ghost.
In a faint, almost whisper-like voice, the ghost spoke.
"You will not die. It is not your time. Get up, now."
At that moment, a wave of adrenaline that came out of absolutely nowhere hit her like a truck, and she felt completely energized once again. The ghost was now gone, but whatever it had done, it had given her the boost she needed. A small, barely noticeable smirk took up her visage as she spoke. "You made… one fatal mistake… Taro…" Yoshihara managed to spit out between heavy breaths. Taro raised an eyebrow, a smirk on his face.
"Oh really, and how exactly did I make a mistake, eh?" Taro spat, Renegades aiming a shot for her head. "It doesn't matter what mistake I might have made in the past, I got a shot lined up for your head, and when it hits, you'll drop dead. But, cause I'm so nice, I'll let you speak. C'mon, what're your last words? I'll make sure I'll tell them to that Quirkless loser right before I kill him too ~!" The grey-haired boy taunted as Killer Queen came to Yoshihara's side, raising its right arm, confusing Taro.
"Eh, what are you doing, dipshit? Are you going to waste the last moments of your life looking like a goof?!" Taro spat, glaring down at Yoshihara. Killer Queen extended its index finger, and when it did, Taro raised an eyebrow. "Oh! You're going to mock me, aren't you?! Ha! Not happening, Renegades, Fi—"
Before Taro could finish, a bubble appeared on Killer Queen's finger. The bubble in question had a skull insignia on it with stars in its eyes, which wasn't too dissimilar to that of the skulls on the sides of its shoulders, minus the stars in its eyes. The bubble began to Spin, golden energy sparking off of it, though it was invisible to the naked eye, and as Yoshihara looked up at Taro, the boy flinched upon seeing her face.
"You, like a fool, underestimated me and Killer Queen," Yoshihara said, her eyes devoid of life and emotion as Killer Queen launched the bubble off its fingers. Taro's eyes went wide, fear marring his expression.
"WHAT THE HE—"
As soon as the bubble made contact with Taro and his Stand, the bubble exploded, releasing loud shockwaves that blew leaves off of trees and the branch off of that particular tree that Taro had been hanging onto.
Suddenly, the pain that she had felt from the poison in her system faded away, and the purplish hue around the wounds went away as well, though the actual wounds themselves didn't disappear.
Yoshihara watched as a singular, bloodied hand fell from the area where the tree branch was. Moments after it hit the ground, it slowly began to disintegrate away into nothingness. Her eyes were stone cold, no emotion to be seen lurking within.
There was no sadness, no rage, no joy, no remorse. All that was there was pure nothingness.
The blonde-haired girl began to slowly pick herself up, Killer Queen helping her as she limped over to Shouta, inspecting him. Placing two fingers on his neck, she breathed a sigh of relief as blood continued to drip from her wounds. He was alive, at least for now. They both needed to get medical attention, fast. She had no idea when that ghost's extra boost of energy was going to fade away, so she had to make it count.
"Have to… get to… Nemuri…" Yoshihara thought, adrenaline controlling her every move as she used Killer Queen to drag Shouta out of the clearing. Pain seared through all Yoshihara's body as tears fell down her cheeks.
A part of her brain screamed at her to stop moving, but another part screamed at her to keep moving. She was scared. The last thing Yoshihara wanted to do was to close her eyes, fearing that if she did, she'd die. Her eyes trailed to Shouta, who had a broken leg, and maybe a fractured skull. There were five holes in the side of his head though the wounds didn't look too deep, but deep enough to where they could be fatal.
Only one thought pounded against her head, and that thought was to get to safety, to get to Nemuri, to get someone to help them.
Her limp kept getting worse as she walked, but no matter how much it hurt, she kept walking. She had to get out of the forest and come hell or high water, she wasn't going to let anyone or anything stop her. Eventually, after what felt like a literal hour of walking, Yoshihara could see the entrance to the forest, and when she did, relief washed over her.
She didn't know how long she had walked, but as soon as she felt that sense of relief, she felt her adrenaline spike, and she picked up speed. She was so close, she couldn't stop now. She was right there. In the distance, she could see Nemuri, who was seconds away from entering the forest.
Nemuri most likely heard the explosion, and with that look on her face, she was probably contemplating entering the forest to go see if everything was all right.
When Yoshihara came out of the forest, Nemuri nearly screamed bloody murder. "YOSHIHARA!" Nemuri screamed as the blonde smiled, blood still dripping from her wounds. She looked like she had been in a gunfight with all of the holes in her body, and yet despite that, she was still standing.
She was still alive, and better yet, she was not alone.
"I… I did it… Midoriya is now… safe…" And then, without any warning, the blonde fell to the ground as her eyes slowly drifted shut, her Stand disappearing entirely, followed by the sound of it shattering to pieces, all the while the pro hero rushed over to her adopted daughter, screaming profanities as she dug her phone out to call the emergency services.
After a few moments of her phone ringing, the emergency services picked up. "Hello, emergency hotline speaking, how may we direct your call?"
"This is the Pro Hero Midnight, off duty. Send an ambulance to the southern road exit of Musutafu City! I have two gravely wounded individuals with a possible third within in the forest, one confirmed minor and the other a fellow pro hero Eraserhead, who is on duty! They'll both die without immediate medical attention!" Nemuri said, trying to keep her composure while on the phone.
"Alright, ma'am, we're sending one now! It should be arriving in three minutes from now, I have another call coming in, and because we're extremely busy tonight, I'm going to have to cut the line. I wish you the best of luck, Midnight-sama."
With that, the phone operator hung up, leaving Nemuri by herself as she ran over to Yoshihara, kneeling on the floor as the ravenette cradled the teen's upper body in her arms.
"Yoshi-chan… c'mon, please, don't die on me, please!" Nemuri cried, holding the blond's body up to hers as she could feel her soft, gentle breathing on her chin. Tears freely fell from her eyes. She didn't care that Yoshihara was bleeding, or if it would stain her clothes. All she cared about at that moment was ensuring that Yoshihara was safe.
Nemuri ripped parts of her clothing apart to stop the bleeding, doing all that she could keep Yoshihara alive until the ambulances arrived. She looked over in the distance and saw Shouta. He was still breathing, and he appeared to be in better condition than Yoshihara. The ravenette picked up Yoshihara, grunting with slight effort as she walked over to Shouta.
The Pro Hero set Yoshihara down, tearing more off of her shirt and pressing the rags against the five holes on the pros head. A small pool had begun to form under his head, and while his skin was paling, his breathing was clearer than Yoshihara's, meaning he would recover better than Yoshihara would have.
And so, Nemuri focused all of her attention on Yoshihara. She couldn't lose her. If she did, she would never forgive herself.
By the time the ambulances arrived, the bleeding had mostly stopped, but the paramedics weren't taking any precautions. Both Eraserhead and Yoshihara were loaded into separate ambulances while Nemuri sat in her car, fear coating her bones and soul as she gripped at her chest.
"Stupid! Stupid Nemuri! Why did I let her do this!? I should've just gotten my friends together to deal with the villain, not let her do it! Stupid, dumb, idiotic, moronic dumbass!" Nemuri thought, tears still falling from her eyes as she watched the ambulances speed away.
Turning on the engine of her car, she followed them to the hospital, the only thing on her mind being: "Please, please be safe Yoshihara… Don't die on me."
xxXXxxXXxx
Stand: Renegades
User: Taro Tatsugi
Ability: Renegades Can fire rotating nails out of their hands that cause a skin-eating virus to plague the victim's body. The more of these nails that hit the victim's body, the worse it gets. If ten nails get shot at the victim, the virus will eat away at every bit of flesh it can until the person is nothing more than a skeleton. The less the victim is shot, the slower the process is, but if it's the other way around, then the process is almost instant. The Poison can only enter the body through ranged attacks, not close range, as it requires the speed and rotation that flying through the air causes the poison to activate in the nails.
Stats:
Destructive Power: A
Range: A
Speed: A
Persistence: C
Precision: B
Developmental Potential: E
Status: Utterly Defeated
xxXXxxXXxx
When Josefumi had heard about what had happened to Yoshihara, he was none too pleased with the fact she hadn't called him, or Karera for help. If she lived this, she was going to get an earful from him. The pompadour-haired teen sat in the waiting room, tapping his foot on the floor waiting to see the doctor.
"That damn idiot! She could've gotten herself killed!" Josefumi thought, growling under his breath as he glanced over to Nemuri, who had also been waiting for the doctor to come out to tell them the news.
"Why didn't you try and stop her?" Josefumi asked, a snark to his voice as Nemuri snapped her attention over to the boy. The woman looked at him, fury in her eyes as Josefumi nearly recoiled.
"What does it matter to you?" Nemuri snapped back. "You were the first person to ever attack my daughter, right? I saw you on the cameras when I looked over the footage after the attack. I don't know how you became her friend, but I don't care. I don't even want to talk to you, but let it be known that I didn't know how dangerous these Stand things were until she came out of that forest. Now mind your own business." And with that, the black-haired woman returned to staring down the emergency room doors.
Yoshihara had been put into critical condition by whomever she had fought, and it was a miracle she was still alive and breathing by the time she got to the hospital. Karera was going to come with Josefumi, but she didn't because she had other stuff she had to do, i.e. more research into the bullet that they had gotten their hands on.
Josefumi went to get up to go to the front desk to ask if Yoshihara was okay when the waiting room doors burst open.
"Kira-san!" Izuku cried, looking over at Josefumi before rushing over to him and grabbing his shoulders. "Where is she?! I-Is she okay?!" Izuku said, staring into Josefumi's eyes as the teen gently pushed the boy off of him.
"I don't know. She's been in surgery for over an hour now. The Stand that attacked her had some kind of skin decay ability. From what I saw was shot in the sternum, thigh, chest, and shoulder. She's lucky to have even survived the trip to the hospital," Josefumi said, remorse in his voice as Izuku tried to hold back tears.
Inko stood in the doorway, worry on her face as she looked at Nemuri. She walked over to the woman and sat beside her, who merely glanced at her.
"Are you Midoriya's mother?" Nemuri asked as Inko nodded silently. "I see… did you know that the person who attacked my daughter had threatened to kill your son if she didn't go in and stop him?" Nemuri continued as Inko bit back a gasp.
"No…." Inko replied softly. "O-Oh, my god… I'm… well, thank you… I hope she's okay," Inko said as the ravenette smiled.
"Thank you. And from the looks of it, you weren't even aware of it, so at least you aren't stressed out like I am. It seems the villain didn't send you a letter either, which is good! I can only imagine what that would've done to you…." Nemuri said, the smile fading as she looked at the tile floor.
"For all I know, my daughter is dying in there, surrounded by strangers and medical equipment. I'm scared out of my mind for her safety, and I'm not even her biological mom. Speaking of which, I wonder why I've never met her…? She should be here, right? The receptionist told me that she had contacted everyone on her contacts list and who share a last name with her. So why isn't she…? Oh, fuck it, who cares, she's probably a deadbeat, which explains where I found her... Ugh, here I go rambling to get my mind off of things. I'm sorry about that, truly," Nemuri said, rubbing her eyes as Inko smiled softly.
"No, no. We all have our ways of dealing with stress. Mine just so happens to be stress-eating. At least your habit doesn't hurt you directly," Inko said, suppressing a laugh.
The pro hero spaced out, looking at the doors intently. She wanted to just run in there and see what was happening to her adopted daughter, to know if she was alright. Instinctively, she knew she'd be okay, mostly because Medi-lady was there, as well as a few other people with healing Quirks. Hell, the head doctor had even taken interest in her and decided to go pitch in a helping hand, too! So Nemuri knew she was in safe hands.
However, that didn't change the fact that there was a chance that Yoshihara could be dead… and that scared Nemuri the most.
Everyone sat in the waiting room as patient after patient came and went, some also staying for surgery, families crying about the loss of loved ones, while at the same time, anxious would-be fathers sat, waiting for their babies to be born happen. It was all a rush of emotions.
But out of everyone in that room, Izuku was feeling it the most. Yoshihara Kira was a close friend to Izuku, even though they had only known each other for three and a half days. When Izuku found out she had to go to the hospital for emergency surgery through Kujo, he leapt out of bed and dragged his mother to the train to see his friend.
"Can Stands really be that strong that they can just decay people like that? Can Quirks do that as well? Is there a Quirk that exists out there like that?" Izuku pondered to himself, staring at the floor. Two hours had passed since he had arrived, and still not a word from the doctors or the surgeons.
"Do you think she'll be okay?" Izuku asked the pompadour-haired teen beside him as Josefumi shrugged.
"I don't know. I've dealt with my fair share of Stand Users that had been strong enough to put me in the hospital for months. She could be here for months for all we know, but I—"
Josefumi wasn't able to finish his sentence as, right before their eyes, Yoshihara walked out of the double doors that separated the waiting room and the rows upon rows of surgery rooms, wearing a hospital gown. She was using a cane to walk most likely because of the limp she had.
Beside her was the head doctor, who had a hand on her back. His hair was bushy, very bushy, it almost looked like a hat in some regards. He had very pale skin, and his eyes were blue. He wore a white doctor's coat with blue surgical clothes underneath with a bear pin on the right lapel.
"Yoshihara!" Izuku shouted, jumping up from his chair as the doctor put a hand up.
"Hold on, stop! Don't touch her. She's very, very fragile right now!" The doctor said, sighing. "My name is Dr. Tomioka, full name Tooru Tomioka if you needed to know," Tooru said, taking his hand off of the blonde as she walked over to Nemuri, who met her halfway. The ravenette wrapped Yoshiara into a gentle, but firm hug. For her part, Yoshihara wrapped a single arm over Nemuri's back, resting her head on Nemuri's shoulder as Tooru smiled at the heartwarming reunion.
After a few moments, the two parted as Tooru stepped up, nodding at Nemuri, who looked at him with a thankful gleam in her eyes.
"Ms. Kayama, just so that you are aware, she has a bottle of pills in her pocket that she must take for the next week if she is to heal fully. She has to take two a day for a week until the bottle is empty. If you require a refill, depending on if the pain is still intolerable, you have one refill prescription," Tooru explained, passing the bottle to the pro hero.
"Thank you, Dr. Tomioka," Nemuri said, bowing.
"Oh, it's no problem. To be fair, had it not been for my… ability, she would be dead," Tooru said, a blue aura surrounding him as he rubbed the back of his neck. A metallic figure appeared behind him, its head looking like a microphone with a bowler hat atop it. It wore what looked like a button-up jacket and a pair of black jeans. It had a cane in its left hand with small bear-like markings lining the cane. It also wore a strange scarf around its neck with a strange, swirly pattern.
"Wait, you're a Stand User?" Josefumi asked, raising his eyebrow as Tooru shrugged.
"Honestly, Wonder Of U is a Stand that only really works when other people are in danger. It misdirects Calamities away from other people and directs them toward animals like birds or bears. There were several times during the surgery that Wonder Of U activated to prevent her from dying," Toru said as Nemuri's eyes widened.
Had it not been for the fact that the doctor had been a Stand User with such an incredible ability, Yoshihara would've died, multiple times over, according to Tooru. Nemuri looked at Yoshihara, the urge to put her into a bear hug was unnerving. She'd have to do that when she was fully healed.
"Thank you, Dr. Tomioka, seriously. You have no idea how relieved I am to finally have a Stand User actually help this time instead of hurt," Yoshihara said as Tooru smiled.
"Ah, It's no biggy. I've always wanted to be a doctor. That, and my Stand doesn't have many offensive capabilities. It's not physically strong and its ability is more defensive than offensive. So helping people just seemed like a better idea than hurting," Tooru explained, looking at the time. "As much as I would like to stick around and chat, I'm a busy man, and I have more patients to tend to. I hope we never meet again, you know, 'cause that would mean you'd have to have another surgery," Tooru said, a joking tone to his voice as everyone waved goodbye.
When Yoshihara felt the cold breeze of the night hit her skin, she shivered. The hospital was warm, and a part of her just wanted to stay there overnight so she didn't have to deal with the cold. She turned to Izuku, who looked at her with a lost puppy expression.
"I'm so glad you're okay, Kira-san," Midoriya said, no stutter in his voice at all, which made Yoshihara smile. He was growing a backbone, good.
"Thank you, Midoriya-kun," Yoshihara said, before her smile turned into a smirk. "You can call me Yoshihara if you want. I think we're past the point for formalities, yeah? Friends address one another by their first name and or nickname, and I hate my nickname," the blonde said, her tone of voice slightly teasing as Izuku's face flushed.
"I-I mean…! Sure, I-I guess… uh… Yoshihara…. Uh, c-call me… uh… Izuku, then," the green-haired teen replied, his stutter back in full force as Yoshihara couldn't help but snicker to herself. At least his stammer was getting better, and not worse.
"Heh, it's kinda cute, actually," Yoshihara thought, before a hand clasped on her shoulder. Looking up, Yoshihara was met with a smirk from Kujo.
"Next time, don't hesitate to call me if you need back up. I've got your back if you've got mine, yeah? We're allies, so don't be afraid to use me as such," Kujo said as the blonde nodded. With that, he let go of her shoulder, nodded at Midoriya, then walked away.
In the distance, Yoshihara saw a black car with tinted windows from all sides. A single flag with a wheel logo on it was tagged on the back, meaning it belonged to some rich company. At the same time, Kujo was walking toward it, meaning that it was from The Speedwagon Foundation. That explained how he got here, and despite the fact she expected nothing less, it was still a little shocking to see that he had a personal chauffeur.
"Izuku! We gotta go!" Inko called out to the boy's right, as Izuku looked over his shoulder. For a split second, Izuku frowned, before sighing.
"See you at school, Kira—I mean, uh… Y-Yoshihara," Izuku stammered, clearing his throat as he walked over to where his mother was. They had come to the hospital in a small but effective red Voltzwagon Beetle. It was a vintage car, and considering it was no longer being made, seeing one was quite rare.
Nemuri walked up to Yoshihara, looking down at her with a gleam of worry in her eyes. "You are incredibly lucky, Yoshihara. I hope you understand that until you get into U.A., outside of school, you're grounded from leaving the suite, right?"
"What!? Why!" Yoshihara balked as Nemuri gave her the "Are you serious" look.
"One, you scared me half to death. Two, I need to monitor your recovery. And three, vigilantism is no joke. Whether or not you weren't given a choice in the matter, I still need to reel you in somehow. Now stop arguing with me, you need to get home and get some rest."
And so, with a resigned sigh, Yoshihara followed Nemuri back to their car. She would need to change out of the hospital gown when she got home and have it returned later. Her pyjama's had been totalled with her fight against Taro, meaning she'd need to get a new pair of pyjamas as well.
"Oh well, you win some, you lose some I guess." And with that thought, Yoshihara entered the car, closed the door, and buckled herself in. She placed her cane on the floor of the car and relaxed into her seat. She dozed off, which earned a chuckle from Nemuri.
Today had been a stressful day, but despite that, Kira Yoshihara slept peacefully knowing that Izuku was fine and that the bastard Taro would never so much as breathe ever again.
Standing on the rooftop of the hospital, a certain blond-haired ghost wearing a purple suit and black tie smirked, fading away, content that his descendant was alive. He might be forced to wander the earth as punishment for what he did, but he would do so watching over his family, much like his father before him.
And thusly, The Ghost of Yoshikage Kira vanished.
-To Be Continued in – Recommendation Exam-