A/N: Well guys, I did a big oopsie. I fully forgot until a couple of days ago that this week marks the third-year anniversary of Your Hero Academia's release! So here's the extra chapter celebrating the fact, with another one on the way for this weekend!
As always, I do hope that you enjoy the story!
Paying Respects
Kurai's funeral was set to be held at UA as soon as his body was transported home, so that his loved ones back on the mainland would be able to attend the event. However, the residents of Nabu also wished to pay their respects, so the teachers and students of UA agreed to hold a memorial service for the boy the night before they were to leave the island. His body was being preserved by the quirk of a resident whose power allowed her to halt the aging process of anything inanimate. Since Kurai's body and cells were all dead by this point, apparently his corpse was among the things that she could affect.
His classmates were not required to attend the memorial service since there would be a proper funeral later on, and the professors were unsure how their charges would handle such an event twice over. Once it was noted that they would be permitted to speak in their friend's honor if they so desired, and since his family would be mostly present for his burial, some of the other heroes decided that this would be their best chance to say something for him.
In the end, the entirety of the class decided to attend- after all that Kurai had done, paying their respects just once didn't seem like it would be enough. Yaoyorozu had created clothes for everyone in their class that didn't have an appropriate outfit for a mourning period, so when they were all ready to go, the heroes had each donned some shade of black or another. So the night before they were set to head back for the mainland, the whole island's population made the trek to the temple ruins in order to gather in the place where Kurai had breathed his last. The weather was as pleasant as it always was on Nabu, with hardly a cloud in sight and sky full of stars, though they seemed just a bit dimmer than they normally did during the late evening, as if even the heavens had decided to mourn with them.
When they reached the spot, Class 1-A was surprised to see a polished stone sculpture in Kai's likeness being lit by a handful of torches that had been planted in the ground around it. "Some of the construction teams put this together for him," the mayor explained to the staring teenagers. "We know it's not the prettiest job, but the boys gave it their best. We thought it best if we put it here, so he can keep watching over us, as it were."
"It's perfect, Mister Mayor," Iida said gratefully with a deep bow toward the older man. "I know I speak for my class when I say that this honors our friend's sacrifice to its fullest. You have our deepest gratitude for this."
"It was the least we could do." With a bow of his own, the mayor stepped back to join the head of the column that had followed the heroes out to the ruins.
For a moment, all was silent among the people, save for the sounds of the wind brushing through the mountain, and the waves washing the beach down below. When he felt that the silence had gone on for long enough, Aizawa stirred and moved to stand in front of the statue before he surprised everyone by kneeling in front of the stone with his head bowed. "You were a foolish hero, Hikari," they heard him say. Before any of his students could react with outrage, he added, "But you were a hero, regardless. Others whom I've taught should do so well to look inevitable death in the face and confront it with the resolve that you did. I hope that you're resting easy- you earned it." With that, he stood up and moved away, his eyes cast toward the ground with his face buried in his scarf, making it all but impossible for anyone else to read his expression. This was how he normally walked, but today he was just a little slower in his movements, and what little was visible of his eyes seemed to be afflicted with genuine sorrow.
Before another long pause could ensue, one of Kurai's classmates stepped up to stand in front of the statue, though unlike their teacher, he did not kneel. Rather, Kirishima turned around to look out at the crowd of hundreds of people and drew in a deep breath. "Kai wasn't just any hero," he began, his words loud enough to be heard by most of the people in attendance. "He was everything that I want to be, not just as a hero, but as a man! He was a hard worker, a great classmate, and an even better friend! He never gave up, even under what most people could call the worst possible situations, and when it was over, he was always the first person to laugh about it!" The redhead smiled through the first hint of tears in his eyes as he added, "I remember that the day after he lost his arm, he kept asking for hi-fives, and he did it with the straightest face. It made me and a bunch of us laugh, which we really needed back then." In spite of themselves, several of his classmates were chuckling quietly among themselves, or at least smiling at the memory.
Kirishima's face became more somber as he went on to say, "I know he was dealing with a lot underneath those smiles and laughter- more than anyone should ever have to handle on their own. But to him, giving his friends the time to smile and laugh was more important than his own happiness, though I'd like to think that he had plenty of that surrounding him, too." The boy clenched his rock-hard fist and slammed it to his breast before he concluded, "Kai was my hero, and I'm proud to say that Kurai Hogo-sha was my friend! From now on, whenever I see someone in need, I'm gonna do my best to remember how he made sure that others could laugh along with him!"
As he stepped away, he was passed by Iida, who turned around to address his comrades and the islanders while saying, "Well spoken, Kirishima. I've known Kurai the longest, and while we didn't always get along, I can safely say that I have always admired the principles and integrity that he maintained while he strove to become the best hero that he possibly could have been. He was a diligent student, hero, friend, and brother, always remembering that he fought for a picture so much bigger than himself. I honestly believe that he was never able to see a picture with just himself in it, because there was always someone else on his mind whenever he acted as a hero. I hope that as I work toward becoming a hero myself, that I will be able to keep my eyes wide open like he did. I will miss him dearly, but I will not let his sacrifice for us be in vain." It was at that point that he bowed to the statue, and moved to join his classmates, his glasses having been removed so that he could wipe away the moisture running down his face.
While Izuku and Ochaco moved to comfort their friend, Todoroki took his turn to speak, his normally stone-faced expression having given way to a look of profound sadness that surprised his friends. Still, they supposed that if there was ever a day for him to break character, this would be it. "I'm not one for big speeches, so I'll keep this brief," he began, looking down at his left hand as he did. He quickly brought his heterochromic gaze back up to the quiet crowd while saying, "Hikari was one of my best friends, and I'll miss him more than I thought it was possible to miss a person. He helped me overcome so much simply by showing his own determination to succeed in spite of astronomical odds that were stacked against him. This will probably surprise many of you, but the truth is that I've… been deprived of a lot, growing up the way that I did. But I've also never really felt a sense of loss like this one. It's an experience that I hope never befalls any of us, ever again, and I'll do what I can to make sure that doesn't happen. I suppose all I can really say in the way of making that happen is that like the others, I'll keep Hikari in my heart as I continue my journey to become a hero."
Next to speak was Ochaco, who could barely keep her eyes dry as she looked up at the statue of her dead friend. "Kurai always had a way of bringing the truth out of you," she sniffled. "Maybe that's because he always made it easy for others to see what he was feeling when it mattered… I always felt like I could talk to him about anything, and if I just needed someone to listen, then he'd lend an ear, and… when I needed some advice, he had plenty to give, even when I didn't realize that I needed it, myself. We've lost a great friend, and I… I'll miss him so much!" She broke down in front of the statue, crying as Izuku and Iida went to console her as best they could while also moving her away so that she could try to recover outside of everyone's line of sight.
In an attempt to draw attention away from the crying girl, Yaoyorozu took her turn at the place beneath Kai's statue that had unofficially become the place to farewell the boy with their words of respect. "What always impressed me the most about Hikari was not his power or his instincts as a hero course student," she said while dabbing at her eyes. "I learned after we had all been accepted into the hero course that he chose to forego his chance to get in on recommendations, and instead chose to take the standardized test, which significantly decreased his chances of being accepted into our academy. I had originally been furious with him, thinking that he was arrogant for wasting such an opportunity that many would have given everything to have, but as I went on to learn more about him and his ideals, I realized that it was not arrogance that had driven him to compete in the standardized tests- far from it. He simply wanted to prove that he had earned his place at the hero academia by his own efforts, and not because of who he was related to- a trait that I was envious of, and even admonished him for, only for me to realize that I possessed the very arrogance that I was accusing him of. I was ashamed of myself, and even began to question my place at our school, but Hikari told me that I had done nothing that shamed me. He said that even if we had different methods of achieving our goals, that was the way it should be, because we were different people. I will be forever grateful to him for reminding me that there are many different kinds of heroes in this world, and confirming to me that my path was not an invalid one. Even so, I will remember that his path was of the highest integrity, and that anyone who seeks the title of 'hero' should aspire to be like him." Done with her piece, she now stepped away, moving to help calm Ochaco, who was still trying to ease her body's quaking.
The next speaker was no small surprise, but the attendants remained quiet as they watched Blake bow to the statue before turning to address all of them. "Hikari was the kindest person I've ever known," she began without preamble, her voice quavering as she spoke. "I haven't known him as long as most of my classmates, and I didn't know him nearly as well as those who have already spoken, but I already miss him enough that I know I need to say some things. There was a time when I was going to walk away from being a hero because of a mistake I made, but he wouldn't let me do it. He made it clear that quitting would be the real mistake, because I haven't gotten to where I am on my own. I owe it to the people who supported my decision to become a hero, and now I owe it to the guy who gave his life to protect ours'." She drew in a deep breath while tears leaked out of her golden eyes before adding, "I learned from Hikari to never take anything that someone does for you for granted, whether it's something as small as taking the time to smile at your friend to brighten their day, or saving their life, no matter the cost to you. He taught me that you can't keep your friends close enough, because you never know when they might be taken from your life, so just… appreciate all of it as much as you can, for as long as you can." She turned to look back over her shoulder and up at the statue before she finished in a softer tone, "Thank you, Kurai, for everything you did, and everything you taught me."
Her teammates moved to gather her into a group hug as soon as she rejoined the crowd, many of whom by this point had knelt in the grass and dirt out of respect for the dead hero and the words of his friends. Many of those same people were crying, but there was only one set of dry eyes among the members of class 1-A as their owner moved to stand and scowl at the statue with grit teeth.
Before anyone could stop him, Bakugo muttered just loud enough for his classmates and teachers to hear the words, "You did right by your hero name, Kai. That's more than most pros can say for themselves." He then kind of ruined his farewell to the boy by adding, "I hope you've got a good view from those clouds up there, cos I want you to see it plain as day when I become the hero who surpassed everyone, even you."
With that, he stomped off, ignoring the surprised looks of his classmates in favor of trudging by Izuku and grunting, "You're up, nerd."
"Yeah…" The green-haired boy swallowed past the stone in his throat as best he could while he moved away from the crowd to look up at the statue of his dead friend, his legs feeling like they had been weighed down with lead. Seeing the cold, lifeless stone in place of Kurai's snarky smile made the knife lodged in his heart twist just a little deeper than it had already been. There's so much I want to say that I can't, he thought as his eyes burned and his vision became cloudy. I want to thank you for giving me another chance at becoming a hero- for entrusting me with your amazing powers and the will to use them against the dark forces of this world. I want to say how much I admired your strength of will to become a hero, even after learning how your powers came to you, and everything that happened to you because of that. I wish that the whole world could know the true depth of your bravery and self-sacrifice…
He had informed All Might and Aizawa about his discovery that somehow Kurai's powers now resided in his body, following his talk with Bakugo at the school. He told his mentor the full story, but to his homeroom teacher and those unaware of One For All's unique properties (as well as being under the impression that Nine had stolen his powers during the final moments of the battle), he had fed a half-truth. He told them of supposition that because Kurai had only ever given portions of his power to others, they didn't really know what might happen if he could manage to give up all of his strength to a single target. To them, it made sense that if Kurai had been aware of Izuku's quirk being stolen by Nine right before his death, he would certainly do everything his in his power to make sure that his friend could continue on his journey to become a hero.
Izuku hated lying to them after everything that had happened, even by omission, and he was seriously starting to question whether it was really necessary now that One For All no longer existed and All For One had been revealed to the world, but he decided to keep it to himself for the time being. For now, he had more pressing matters to attend to.
Izuku rubbed at his eyes as he tore them away from the stone replica of Kai and turned to face the people of Nabu and his peers. "Most of what can be said of Kurai has already been said," he told them, trying to make his voice as clear as he could in spite of the lump that simply would not dislodge itself. "But I can still say that without him, I wouldn't be the hero I am now. The first day that we met, he saw that I had trouble controlling my powers, and without a second thought, he offered to help me, even knowing how much work we had in store for us as hero course students. As time went on, we started to talk about the kind of future that we were working to create with our actions, and we even decided to put together a hero team with a couple of others once we managed to go pro. He wasn't my first friend at UA, but…" He paused and drew in a steadying breath as he remembered Kurai's last words to him before saying, "He was the only brother I ever needed. And… I'll miss him so much…." He broke down, the lump in his throat having swelled up too much for him to be able to articulate anything more.
He soon felt a familiar lanky arm being placed on his shoulders, leading him away from the statue, along with the words, "Well spoken, my boy. Just keep what you've said today in mind, and I know that you'll live a life that honors him." Unable to speak, Izuku simply nodded as All Might continued to lead him away from the memorial.
Everyone expected Mina to be the next- and likely final- person to speak, but when the spot was cleared, she made no move to take it. After a few seconds, she noticed the expectant looks being pointed her way and simply shook her head in the negative, eyes downcast. Needless to say, there were those among them who were surprised that she wouldn't have something to say, but there were enough of them who understood that it was still too fresh for her to talk about it, especially in front of a crowd of people they barely knew, so they kept the others from pressing the matter.
Instead, Katsuma and Mahoro, along with their dad, came walking up with a large wreath of wildflowers that the two children had spent the day weaving together. They laid the arrangement at the base of the statue and knelt before it, their heads briefly bowed in prayer for their hero in the afterlife before they stood up and turned to face the onlookers. They seemed hesitant, but a quiet word from their father encouraged Mahoro to step up and say, "Kai was a great hero, and I'm gonna make sure that everyone remembers that, no matter how much time passes. He was strong and encouraging, like a hero should be, so… I'll remember him!" Her lip was trembling, but she stayed standing at her father's side, who gave her an approving smile.
Katsuma spoke next, though he was already crying, so it was a little hard to make out the words of the soft-spoken child. "Mister Kai… uh… he told me that even I could be a hero," he managed to get out. "He said that the powers we have don't matter, as long as we stand up to the bad guys when they come. That's just what he did… It didn't matter that the villain was super strong and scary… He faced him anyway. So… I'm gonna be a hero just like him someday! I'll get even stronger so that I can stand up to the bad guys and keep daddy and Mahoro safe!" He looked over his shoulder at the statue as he also said, "And when I do get there, I'll be able to come back to this place and stand tall, so I can show him that it was worth it to save us!" Keeping his watering eyes fixed on the face of the statue, he finished, "I promise, Mister Kai. I'll grow up to protect what you saved."
The statue of course made no reply, but in that moment, the attendants could have sworn that the stars above started to twinkle more brightly, regaining their normal level of luminosity.
The traveler eyed the barrier surrounding UA High School, her eyes narrowed in concentration. It's as ironclad as I remember, she thought with a sigh as she turned to walk away, having done all the reconnaissance that she could without acting suspicious for the day. Even disguised in civilian clothing, she knew that it wouldn't take a genius for whoever was in charge of monitoring security for the campus to recognize that she wasn't a bystander admiring the architecture if she ended walking along the massive, gated walls for hours on end.
She was running out of time- in order for her plan to work, she needed to be on the campus in time for the funeral procession to begin, which was set to occur tomorrow morning. There was going to be an open casket memorial service for Kurai at the school, after which his body would be taken to the graveyard where his father and uncle were buried. He was being afforded a spot next to them, having died in the line of duty as hero. In attendance for the burial would be the remnants of his family, a handful of his classmates who would be allowed to leave campus for the day, and his teachers. While this was happening, the memorial service at UA would continue on in a less formal manner for those who wished to continue reminiscing about their fallen comrade. Once the burial group had returned, things would begin to wind down and eventually the gathering would completely dissipate.
The girl's mouth compressed into a thin line as she thought, It'll be best if I can get to them before the open casket service even begins, but if they're not even back yet, I don't see that happening- not without something going really wrong.
As she passed by an alleyway, her ears picked up the sounds of muffled grunting and what seemed like two or three people struggling against a dumpster. This thought was confirmed when she stopped and listened harder in time for a voice to say, "Shut 'er up! Last thing we need is a pro coming along and ruining this!"
"Believe it or not, pros aren't what should concern you the most in your line of work." Two men dressed in black with ski masks, who were trying to keep a young woman from the nearby fast food joint down and gagged with a ratty cloth, looked up from their activity to see a girl cloaked in red with raven hair and golden brown eyes glaring at them. "Though I will say, you have a lot of nerve to commit a crime less than five minutes away from the world's most esteemed hero school."
"Crap!" one of them swore as he looked to his partner, who hadn't yet moved away from the suffocating woman. "What do we do?!"
"Relax, she's probably just one of those student heroes from up the road," the apparent leader snorted. "My quirk'll make short work of her."
"Dude, have you seen what some of these guys can do?!" his partner asked as he started to back away, fear in his brown eyes. "No way we can take her on if we was having trouble with skimpy here!"
"I wanted this chick alive," the leader shrugged as his fists transformed into living metal with spiked knuckles. "The do-gooder can serve as an example to her school that just cos they got a big fancy wall, it ain't a safe world to be in once you call yourself a hero."
"You should pay attention to what people tell you," the girl in question replied, her tone unconcerned and unhurried. "Like I said, a hero shouldn't worry you right now. See, heroes have to worry about their public image with every rescue and arrest that they make. As you're about to discover firsthand, that concern doesn't apply to me."
There was a rush of wind and a flash of light that scattered garbage across the alleyway, and when it settled, the two thugs were unconscious and bleeding with over a hundred broken bones between the two of them. The gagged woman looked up, suddenly terrified to see the girl with blood splattered on her hands reaching down for her, causing her to try and scream and wriggle away again, only to have a firm grip applied to her shoulder while the girl locked eyes with her.
"I'm not going to hurt you," she assured the captive. "Just stay still and I'll get you out of that." With a series of quick movements, the rags that had been used to tie the worker up were pulled apart and the gag was removed, allowing the woman to breathe more easily.
"Thank you," she coughed as she rubbed her arms uncomfortably. "I thought-"
"Don't mention it," the raven-haired girl interrupted as she glanced over her shoulder. "Do you need a hospital, miss?"
"N-No, but-"
"Then I'm calling in the heroes," she said as she stood up while holding the woman's phone- not that she had any idea of how the mysterious girl had gotten it. "I'd do it, but I don't have a phone, and I don't feel like explaining what just happened here." She hit a button on the device that triggered an automatic alert for any nearby agencies that a crime was taking place at the phone's location.
"Wait, are you some kind of vigilante?" the worker asked as her rescuer began to walk away after depositing the phone on her lap. "Why did you help me?"
"You were in trouble," the girl shrugged over her shoulder. "And I'm just nobody."
"But what do I tell the police?!"
"The truth- you were being assaulted, a stranger comes out of nowhere and saves you, then leaves without giving her name. There's cameras in the area that'll support your claim, even if they won't get a clear look at my face from these angles."
"But what do I call you?! I won't tell, I promise!"
The girl glanced over her shoulder as she reached the end of the alley before answering, "If you need to know, you can call me 'Lamillion'." Then she was gone, and the woman she had saved was left with far more questions than when her rescuer had appeared.
The following morning, the students of class 1-A were all dressed in the appropriate mourning attire and sitting in the dim quiet of the common space, waiting for the teachers to come and get them so that they could attend the official ceremony for their friend.
They had returned from Nabu Island the previous evening, nearly all of them looking forward to having their own rooms again. Mina had actually roomed with Ochaco, apparently unwilling to go back to either her or Kurai's empty rooms, nor did she wish to sleep alone. Ochaco wasn't entirely sure that the pink girl had slept anyway, but she was so tired that she hadn't managed to even try to stay awake with her mourning friend, and when she awoke, Mina was already downstairs in a black dress suit that Yaoyorozu had gifted her.
The sky was overcast and snowing, lending an extra impact to the silence permeating the atmosphere. Many of the students could see Kurai laughing in reflections of the windows as he pelted them with snowballs during the season's first snowfall. Others saw him rounding the corner to the fridge, on the hunt for one of his favorite orange sodas. Iida had come down first and turned on the lights to see him playing solo mode on Smash Bros. while waiting for the others to come down and give him a real challenge. Izuku even passed him by in the open door to his vacant room, where he would no doubt be working on his arm in anticipation of a hard day of training.
No one could even look at the Christmas tree in the corner of the room with a massive pile of gifts waiting for each of them, now knowing that one of those clusters was destined to remain unappreciated. Some had the thought that the gifts should go to Akarui so they wouldn't go to total waste, but no one had the courage to suggest it out loud, especially with Mina in the room.
As the silence wore on, some of the students congregated in smaller groups and began to murmur quietly among themselves, trying desperately to escape the suffocating quiet that was beginning to deafen them. Some of them talked about Kurai, others about what school was going to look like during the coming semester, and some just discussed adjusting back to dorm life after living on Nabu for half a month. Of course, there were still those who weren't talking at all: Bakugo, Blake, and Todoroki had said nothing other than the last two greeting their friends over tea and coffee, and Mina hadn't spoken more than twenty words since the class had listened to Kurai's farewell messages, though it seemed as if she planned to speak at the funeral later that day.
It felt like hours before All Might and Aizawa showed up on their doorstep, with their homeroom teacher informing them that it was time to proceed to the gym, which was the only facility large enough to house everyone who wished to attend during the cold of winter. Iida and Yaoyorozu led the way behind the two heroes, the vice representative holding a large flower arrangement in her arms that she had commissioned in honor of her friend. She wasn't the only one carrying a bouquet, but hers' was admittedly the most impressive of the bunch. There would also be flowers to lay on the coffin that had been provided by the school, but of course there were those who still wished to give their own offerings.
It didn't take long for them to reach the gym structure, and when they did, the sounds of the murmuring crowds within drew their attention to the platform that had been provided for the event, where they could all see Kurai, grinning as he danced to the music show that they had created together for the school festival. Then the class' eyes dropped to see the small sea of black-clad students and faculty, all of them looking somber if not downright weepy. Feeling the burdens weighing them down suddenly double in their hearts, the weary students trudged onward, toward the stage where the coffin was already open, a large hologram of Kurai in his hero gear was shimmering, and a podium with a microphone had been set up.
The gathering of people opened up to make way for the class, many of them murmuring their condolences as they passed. Most of the faces that they passed were unfamiliar, but once they got to the front, there were many members from class 1-B, UA's Big Three, and little Eri, who was already crying quietly in Togata's arms. She had been told what had happened by Aizawa and Togata after the teacher had gotten home, and she had been distraught ever since. They would have told her sooner, but they feared that if she learned the truth and Aizawa was not around to cancel out her powers, she might have accidentally rewound somebody out of existence. So far her ability had not acted out, but the man was keeping a close eye on her, regardless.
As soon as they had all filed into their appropriate spots, Nezu walked forward and clambered onto a stool that stood behind the podium, which would allow him to look out across the gymnasium and speak clearly into the mic. He cleared his throat and waited for the auditorium to fall completely quiet before saying, "I wish that I could bid you all a good morning, but that would be a lie. This is not the first time that one of our students has met an untimely death at the hands of villainy, but that does not lessen its impact on us today. It is with great sorrow that I must say that we are here in remembrance of Kurai 'Hikari' Hogo-sha, also known as Kai, the Guardian Hero.
"He was a fine student who did our academy proud not only with his power, but also with his heart and actions. He acted with even more courage than many of the teachers of our fine establishment, and certainly with the integrity of a hero that we strive to produce. He faced much adversity in his young life, and unfortunately not all of it came from outside of these walls. I remember receiving many petitions earlier in the year to have him ejected from the school, for a reason that was beyond his control, no less. I'm told that in spite of that fact, he never once complained or made a move to retaliate against his tormentors, and instead continued to work hard and persevere until he became a hero in his own right, and he did not stop there. He lived as a hero, and though it is sad to say, it should also be noted that he died as a hero, saving the lives of hundreds, even knowing what could befall him."
Glancing to his left, the white animal then said, "There are a few people who knew him well who will speak in his honor. All Might, if you would?"
Nobody spoke, but there were certainly stirrings of interest as the former number one hero stepped up to the podium while Midnight took away the stool so that he could stand properly without obstruction. As soon as he was in place, the lanky man swept his eyes across the gym while saying, "Young Hikari was a great student, and it was my genuine honor to have had the chance to teach him, though if I'm being honest, I didn't have to do much more than point him in the right direction every now and again. What always stood out the most to me was his sense of honor, something that I feel is lacking in many people these days. There are many who have clear ideas about what is right and wrong, but Hikari always did what he did in a way that respected those who came before him, like his late uncle and his longtime friend, Ingenium. He never wanted them to see him and be disappointed in what he had accomplished and how he had done it. He was a good kid, and an honorable hero, and his sacrifice should never be forgotten.
"To that end, we are renaming Gym Gamma into Gym Kai, so that all who walk into these halls to train their powers in the pursuit of being heroes might remember the one who gave his life to secure a world where they could have a chance to become even half the hero he was." All Might sighed heavily before saying, "Rest in peace, Young Hikari." With that, he walked to the left, where the coffin containing the body was, having been repaired and kept preserved with various quirks so that it would be presentable for the funeral. With his thin fingers, the former hero picked up a white rose from a nearby table and laid it on the bottom half of the coffin, which was shut over the body's legs.
Next to speak was Aizawa. Given that he had already said a few words at the memorial service on Nabu, his students had to wonder what he would say this time around. The weary-looking man began to speak as soon as he came within range of the mic, sounding as tired as he looked. "The rising heroes of Japan have suffered a tremendous loss," he began, stunning the onlookers- after all, Aizawa never spoke highly about anyone, much less in public about one of his students. Undeterred by their reactions, the homeroom teacher went on to say, "Hikari had the makings of a great pro- talent, confidence, humility, and a desire to go above and beyond the call of duty. When he first came to my class, he showed a lot of promise, but I had no idea that beneath all that potential was a will as strong as any I have ever seen, one that allowed him to endure more suffering- both body and mind- than any student I've ever had. He set the standard high for his generation, even without the events leading up to his final days, but I still encourage all of my students- as well as those outside of my class- to strive to be as devoted and selfless as he was. If you can do that, then this world truly will become a better place for it."
With that, he turned and walked away. He did not leave a flower on the coffin as he passed it by, though he did appear to say a few inaudible words over the body before he moved on.
While that was happening, Gang Orca- who had been invited to the event as one of Kurai's instructors- stepped up to the podium to take his turn. It was hard to tell what the big man was thinking since his facial features were vastly different than the average person, but he seemed even more grave than normal. "Hikari came to my agency as an intern following the Sport's Festival, and I remember liking him well enough," he rumbled. "But as the week went on, one thing stood out to me in particular; the fact that he took every criticism to heart and used it to improve himself. He never made the same mistake twice under my tutelage, and he helped to even save my life while we fought villains together. He showed an impressive level of restraint in a moment that would have proved too much to handle for even seasoned heroes, much less a juvenile one. While I am sad that his path led him to this, I am glad to know that even at the end, he never stopped improving himself in pursuit of his goal to become a great hero- and in my opinion, he was one of the greatest of our time." There was a lot of murmuring that echoed in the packed hall as the large hero walked away to make room for the next speaker, many of the students impressed with the regard that Gang Orca seemed to hold their late peer in.
The quiet talk stopped as another large man took the stand, though this one was far more rotund than the previous hero, giving him a much more comical appearance. "Kai and one of his classmates signed on for the work study program under my tutelage," Fat Gum said with a friendly- yet still sad- smile. "I remember thinking how crazy it was that a hero prospect like him would have anything to learn from a guy like me when he clearly coulda been chumming it up with higher-ranking heroes. When I asked him about why he wanted to work for me, he answered that while I probably couldn't teach him as much as some of the other pros could, he felt that I could teach what he really needed to know. So I taught him what I could, and he performed in all of his duties above what I would have expected from such a bright young man. Even when he got tangled up in the yakuza business, I knew that he would be all right, and even better, that he would do exactly what we needed him to do in order to shut down the Hassaikai, which he and his friends did. I wish that I'd had more time with him, but I know that I need to be content with the time we did have together." He looked upwards as he finished, "Kai, buddy, I just wanna say 'thanks' for all that you did for the people counting on us. You did a lot of us real proud." As the hefty man walked away, he could be seen wiping at his large eyes.
Next up was Kurai's aunt, Sakura, who was accompanied by Akarui on the left in his wheelchair, and her son Shukin on her right. The woman was trembling a little bit as she unfolded a paper and looked down at it, seemingly hesitant to speak. When she opened and closed her mouth a few times without any sound coming out, Shukin leaned over and spoke something in her ear, to which she nodded and the two swapped places.
"Hello, UA," the boy began, his voice unsteady, but still coming through clearly through the delivery system. "I'm Shukin, Kurai and Akarui's cousin, and I'll be speaking on behalf of his remaining family members. Uh… This is a lot harder than I thought it was going to be, honestly. I've lost my dad, and more recently my uncle, so I'd have thought that I would be used to this stuff by now, but they never tell you that the more times you see your family members die, the harder it gets to see." The boy let out a dry chuckle and wiped at his eyes before sniffling and saying, "Sorry, I'll try to stick to what we came up with."
He breathed deeply a few times before Akarui reached over and put a shaky hand on his cousin's back in a show of support, which seemed to help steady the skinny teenager. "Kurai, Akarui, and I all grew up together, and when my dad died, I learned to rely on them like they were my own brothers. To lose him like I lost my father is just… It sucks. Part of me wants to blame heroism for his fate, but I know that's not fair to you guys, nor would it be what he wanted. My family and I know that if we're gonna be able to cope with what's happened, we have to remember that he did what he did for us, his loved ones." He glanced at Akarui again before he went on to say, "On behalf of Kurai's brother, I'll read a statement that he prepared. …My brother and I were both cursed with our powers, in a way, but that never stopped us from trying to beat the odds. Mine risked destroying my body as the cost of advancing my mind beyond that of normal human limitations, and his risked destroying his mind as the cost of giving his body the power to protect those near him. By all accounts, we should have both given into our fates long ago, but neither of us were raised to do so. I gave up my health in exchange for being able to make my brother well so that he could accomplish his dream of becoming a hero, and that's exactly what he did. I wondered if I should regret doing what I did to help heal his broken body, because maybe if I hadn't, then he would have had to quit the fight much earlier, and then maybe he'd still be alive. But the truth is that it doesn't matter what either of us should have done, because neither of us could have done anything less than we did, especially since it was in his nature to act with the welfare of those around him in mind- to behave as a true hero. So even though I find myself bereft of both my brother and father, I find myself without regret, because I helped my brother to achieve his goal of being a hero- a dream that he fought tooth and nail to make a reality, even at the cost of his own life. Even if people call him foolish for seemingly throwing his life away, I want to make sure that people know that Kai wasn't just a hero. He was my hero." Shukin paused, wiped at his eyes, and then looked up from the paper to say, "Thank you all for coming out to honor my cousin today. I'm glad to know that he has so many peers who respected him after what happened with his dad, so just… Thank you." Stepping away from the podium, he bowed to the crowd, his mother patting his back as he straightened his spine and wiped at his eyes before moving to select a flower to place on Kurai's coffin, Akarui and his mother following him close behind.
As this was happening, Izuku felt an extra pang of sadness in his heart, seeing that Kurai and Akarui's mother was unable to attend the event. I know she's a criminal who has to serve time, but it seems unfair on some level that she can't be here to gain the closure that a funeral is supposed to bring, he thought morosely. Worse still, her jail sentence wouldn't expire until she was in her nineties, so the grim truth was that she might never even see her son's grave. She committed the crime she did for the sake of the same son who died. That's just all kinds of cruel.
Last to speak was Mina, having been invited to do so by Kurai's family, who had insisted that their engagement- unofficial though it may have been- made her as close to him as any of them, if not closer. So it was that the girl moved up the stairs, her eyes just as dead as they had been since she had awoken to see her boyfriend's ruined body in the Hospital of Nabu Island. The auditorium was especially quiet now, as most of the students wondered who was this peer of theirs', while the small number familiar with Mina and Kurai's relationship waited with baited breath to see what she would say about her dearly departed.
Once she had taken her place at the podium, she blinked her hollow eyes a couple of times, surprising her friends as the light began to return to them. "For those of you who don't know me, my name is Mina Ashido," she began in a stronger tone than the others would have expected her to have. "I was Kurai's girlfriend, pretty much since the start of the year, and I loved him very much. We met at the testing grounds on the day of the entrance exam, and when I found out that we were in the same class together, it seemed like the start of a great school year." A weak little grin worked its way onto her face as she continued to say, "In some ways, I was right, because my time with Kurai was the best in my life. Even though we had a bunch of crazy stuff happen, like with the USJ attack and the summer camp, I was able to be happy because he would always be there to make me smile as soon as the dust settled. He wasn't perfect, neither as a hero nor as a person, but I like to think that he was perfect for me. He… He once told me that to him, falling in love wasn't all about finding out how compatible your strengths are, but also about learning how to compliment one another's flaws so that you become better people together. I know that I have a lot of flaws, and now that he's not here to… help me overcome them… I just hope that I can still be someone he'd be proud of."
Tears were building up in the corners of her eyes, but she kept going, seemingly determined not to break down until she had finished paying tribute to the dead. "One of the things I loved most about him was that he always had time for his friends, no matter how busy his own day had been. Whether it was a crappy homework assignment that we needed help with, a training partner after a hard day of work had already gone by, or we wanted to do something goofy, he made time for us. Even on days when he was subjected to shame and ridicule because of other people's fear of him, he was there for us. I'm ashamed to say that I didn't always appreciate his resolve to never strike back at the people who wronged him the way they did, and I know it's too late… but I'm really proud of him… for being the hero he was." Her shoulders started to shake while her voice started to crumble, so All Might quickly moved over and put his hand in front of the microphone while speaking softly to his student, who shook her head in the negative while she wiped at her eyes.
Once her teacher had moved away, she sniffed and said, "Sorry, I'm almost done." After taking a few calming breaths, she managed to say, "I'll miss Kurai for the rest of my life, but I'm glad that I got to know him at all, much less be with him for as long as I was. Kurai was the best friend I ever had; the best hero to ever walk these halls, and no one will ever convince me otherwise." Finished speaking, Mina left to place the bouquet that Yaoyorozu had given her on Kurai's coffin before bowing her head over his chest and letting her tears fall onto the fabric of his hero costume.
Normally students were buried in a formal outfit, but since Kurai had died in the line of duty, he had been afforded the honor of being laid to rest in his hero gear, which had been repaired for the occasion. Seeing him with snowy hair was still unnerving for those who had been close to him, as it made him appear even more like a shade of himself when he was alive, and the thought tore at Mina's heart all over again. His sword was beneath his hand on his chest, as befitting a warrior slain in battle, and his wounds had all been cleaned and sealed. Thanks to that and the preservation quirks that had been applied to his body, he looked as though he were sleeping, but there was no rising and falling from his chest, and no blood suffused his cheeks.
"Goodbye, Kurai," Mina whispered as she forced herself to pull away from the coffin, unable to stop the tears from falling down her cheeks. Someone, she wasn't sure who, led her away and into a warm embrace while she started to cry in earnest.
The principal was then telling students that those who wished to do so could come by the coffin to pay their last respects, but she just tuned it out as background noise. She had forced herself to speak in order for her Kurai to be remembered as he should be, and now it was all she could do to suffer in the grayed world that had replaced the bright colors that had once surrounded her.
An alarm blared throughout the gym, startling everyone in it as the defense system alerted them to a level three security breach, which meant only one thing. "Someone's broken onto the campus!" Ectoplasm shouted from further up the stage, confirming their fears. "Cameras have them headed this way from the south!"
"All students, save for those with hero licenses, evacuate to your dorms!" Aizawa ordered into the microphone. "Those of you with them, come with us and prepare to fight!"
"Yes sir!"
The gym quickly descended into chaos after that. The hero course students from all three years made for the back exit of the gymnasium in order to avoid the throng of general education, support course, and business class students trying to get out the larger main entrance. Those who had been crying recently did their best to wipe away their tears as adrenaline pumped through their bodies, erasing their need for sorrow and replacing it with a desire to defend their home and peers.
As soon as they cleared the exits, Bakugo snarled, "Whoever decided to attack picked the wrong day to mess with us!" His hands were already sparking while Izuku led the charge alongside him and Iida, energon flowing into his body to give him superhuman speed and strength. He wasn't as good at controlling it as One For All, but the fact that he didn't risk breaking his bones every time he overexerted himself helped him to be a little more confident in his use of it.
I just wish that I'd had more time to practice with it before something like this happened! he thought as his eyes scanned the snow-covered campus, on the watch for anything or anyone who might come out of the trees.
"There!" Izuku was surprised to see Amajiki running a little behind him, pointing at the tree line to the southeast, where something was disturbing the greenery enough for the snow to be thrown off the frozen branches. Before anyone could say anything else, the gathering of heroes skidded to a stop as something large came flying out of the foliage and crashed into the snow not ten feet in front of them.
The 'something' turned out to be Hound Dog, unconscious and severely bruised, though from what was not yet clear. "Get ready, people!" Snipe said as he loaded his guns and aimed at the trees. Behind him and the other teachers who had followed, the hero students of UA prepared to go to work, the tension in the air growing thicker by the second.
The tension was broken when a slightly built girl approximately the age of the younger students walked out of the trees, her hands raised in a gesture of surrender. "I'm not here to hurt anyone," she called across the ground that separated her from the heroes. She was clothed in a somewhat short blue dress with black tights and dark green sleeves separate from the azure fabric. A tattered scarlet cape that rippled in the brisk winter wind completed the outfit.
"Is that what you told Hound Dog?" Aizawa said as he prepared his capture scarf. His eyes weren't glowing, which meant that he had yet to nullify the intruder's quirk, but everyone knew that he could do it in an instant if he desired.
"He didn't give me a chance to talk," the girl replied calmly as the cold breeze stirred her raven tresses. "I need to get to the funeral you're holding."
"I don't think so," Aizawa replied flatly. "You're trespassing on private property, and you've assaulted a member of our staff. Stand down before we add resisting arrest to the charges we'll be pressing."
The girl sighed before muttering, "It was worth a shot." Her body then erupted into a blur of motion, too fast for the heroes to see what she was doing, but Aizawa wasn't about to wait and find out. He engaged his power, nullifying the girl's quirk that seemed to enhance her speed, but then let out a grunt of pain as his head jerked back and he fell over in the snow, clutching at his face, where the remnants of a hard-packed snowball could be seen.
"Did she just-?!"
"Don't let her get away!" Snipe shouted as he opened fire with his revolvers, aiming to cripple the girl's legs. Apparently she had hurled a snowball at Aizawa's face in the instant before he had nullified her powers, which cut off his vision and made him incapable of stopping her with his usual methods. Since he wasn't getting up, it also seemed that she had hit him hard enough to knock him out, which was worrying for a number of reasons.
The girl's eyes narrowed before she disappeared into a red streak that evaded all of the man's bullets before heading right for the gathering of heroes. "Sorry about this!" she called just before another crimson blur crashed into her, halting her progress amid a storm of scarlet flower petals.
"You're not the only one with speed here," Ruby said as she managed to twist the other girl's arm behind her back. "Give it up- it's over a hundred to one."
"Not quite," the intruder grunted as she glanced over her shoulder. "And no offense, but numbers don't win a fight." Without another word, she flexed her lean muscles and overpowered Ruby's grip, slipping free before spinning all the way around and delivering a knockout punch to her jaw, sending her sprawling in the snow.
Things only got worse for the heroes from there on. The mysterious girl moved fast to take down the more experienced teachers, even using them like batons to knock out their colleagues and students as she bowled her way through the heroes with seemingly little effort. Seeing that attacking at close range was getting them nowhere, the students spread out and let the long-range fighters go to work.
"Tape Shot: Trident!"
"Crucifixion!" Sero's tape wound itself around the girl, restricting her movements in time for Shiozaki from class B to ensnare her in a thick tangle of vines that bound her even more tightly and suspended her in the air, leaving her no purchase for her feet to use.
"Outta the way, losers!" Bakugo roared as he barreled toward the trapped girl in a whirlwind of fire and smoke. "Howitzer…!
He didn't get the chance to strike. The girl's mouth set into a thin line before a violent blast of light and wind pressure tore the bindings to shreds, and she shot toward Bakugo in the air, her fist drawn back. "What the-?!"
"Hya!" the girl shouted as she slugged him in the stomach, killing his momentum and giving her time to kick him into a group of second-year students, knocking the lot of them out with the violent impact. She landed and found herself face-to-face with Amajiki and Hado, both of them looking determined as they began to exercise their powers.
"You made a mistake coming today, of all days," Amajiki said as transformed his hands into hard shells while wings sprouted from his back.
"Yeah, why'd ya have to ruin today, huh?" Hado added as she started to float up in the air. "It's already sad, why make it worse? And who are you?"
"You could say that I'm here to pay my respects to the dead," the girl answered as white energy crackled along her fists. "And even if I told you who I was, you wouldn't believe it- not yet, anyhow. I'm making it to Kai today, and no one, not even the Big Three of UA are going to stop me."
Deku: Wow. Have we really been doing this for three years?
Litrosh: This might be the longest Mataras has worked on a project without some kind of hiatus crippling production.
Mataras: I'd call it a personal best, though I have to say, I wish I'd timed this chapter's release better.
Litrosh: What, you're irritated that the next chapter comes out in a few days instead of a fortnight, so that you don't get to leave your readers in suspense for that much longer?
Mataras: Again with calling me out? Really?
Litrosh: Again with you getting off on torturing the imagination of your readers? Really?
Mataras: Stop that!
Deku: Both of you, cut it out! Mataras, who is that girl, and how is she ripping through the entire hero course and our teachers like we're nothing?!
Mataras: That will be (partially) revealed this coming weekend.
Deku: Partially?!
Mataras: Look, it's kind of a complicated deal.
Litrosh: You just want to see what theories everyone manages to come up with.
Mataras: I'm not doing this with you right now. Next time- Soul Restoration
Litrosh: Lamillion hasn't gotten through everyone just yet. If she wants to get past the best, she'll have to Go Beyond!
Lamillion: Plus Ultra!
Deku: How'd you get in here?!
Lamillion: Sorry! I just wanted a chance to say it, myself!
Next time on Your Hero Academia: Renewal...
Dark Shadow was on her again, so she evaded its claws and kicked up snow in the face of Kirishima, who had arrived in time to try and get a sneak attack on the girl, to no avail. Tetsutetsu almost got her from the opposite direction, but his metallic form glinted even in the dim light, so his approach had not been the stealthiest one, which she turned into her advantage when she grabbed him by the foot and swung him like an oversized bat to knock Dark Shadow away, followed by a devastating blow to Kirishima's head that knocked both him and his rival out cold on the snow among their beaten allies.
"She's persistent," Tokoyami muttered as his quirk's manifestation returned to him. "I don't have much left in me, so I hope you're ready, Midoriya."
"I am," he nodded as the gold-white hex that Weiss had created disappeared from beneath his feet, a bright green orb shining between his palms as he sighted the intruder, who was now making short work of a group of sophomores that had tried to coordinate against her speed by cornering her with some kind of electrical quirk in tandem with a crystal barrier, which she promptly shattered with a swing of her arm.
"I've set up some redirecting hexes, but you have to maintain concentration on the power," Weiss warned him as sweat beaded on her brow. "If you slip up, the attack will fizzle out, and then there's nothing I can do for you."
"I appreciate it," Izuku nodded as the verdant orb flared brighter. "Let's go, Schnee!