CHAPTER 7: CROSS FIRE
DISCLAIMER: NOPE, I STILL DO NOT OWN BNHA/MHA, JUST MY STORY. HOWEVER, I WILL NEVER GIVE UP, BELIEVE IT!
She's Kerosene by The Interrupters
A/N: Sorry, for the long wait! I would like to blame my lack of motivation and procrastination, but that's just excuses for my bad habits. I really dislike when I don't update, and I'll try to be a bit more consistent.
Chapter 7: Cross Fire
KASAI's POV
FALLING ON THE ground with a thump, I bite my tongue at the blooming pain. Sitting up, I ignore the scent of dust, caramel, and humidity as warmth comes from my left side. Clenching my jaw, I open my eyes and finally release the groan I've been holding. Around me I'm completely surrounded by dark walls of the collapsed buildings.
The scent of dust gives me unease especially so, when I notice that I'm alone. Darting my eyes around for a landscape, I find none when I'm only surrounded by dimmed darkness. The only light source I have is from the broken wall to my left.
However, that quickly changes when I ignite my hair to flames, giving me visibility.
Gritting my teeth, I take a quick inhale and collect myself. With a steady heart, I grasp at the hilts of my dual swords. Once in my hands, I use my quirk and immediately ignite two equal blades of white, blazing, fire at my sides. Spinning them in my hands a couple of times to adjust at the feeling, I smirk, ready for my incoming challenge.
No time to panic, I remind myself.
Running forward, I quickly take a glance outside the broken wall and sigh in frustration. From my spot, I can see that I'm on the upper floors of the collapsed building. Which means I have to travel through the multiple levels to finally reach the bottom. Levels of unknown.
This is looking a lot like the Battle Trial from earlier this week. At least, I have some familiarity on what to do. Lucky me, I think, grimacing.
Turning on my heel, I dart away from the wall and deeper into the building. I can feel my heart thudding in my chest, but I tighten my grasp on the handles of my swords, reminding myself to keep calm. I know the situation is unfortunate, but I'm a hero in training. I can't afford to panic. Especially when I know there's villains out there fighting against my fellow classmates. Be calm, and stay in control.
With my flaming locks of hair, I illuminate the dark halls, giving me the proper visibility. Turning to the right at a crossroads, I immediately flinch when I come in contact with a villain. Gritting my teeth, I glare at the duo that stand at the end of the hall.
They smirk at the sight of me being alone.
"Well, well, well. If isn't a pipsqueak who thinks they're a hero," the villain with steel toned skin grins at me. He practically leers at me.
I scowl, but I say nothing. I have to play it smart. Which means I can't allow myself to get distracted.
Tightly gripping my swords, I assess the situation. There's one of me, two of them. This building, the walls are made of cement, or something similar which means that they won't burn with my quirk. Smirking, I step forward and urge them to attack. If they attack first, I can see what quirks they have and build my strategy from there.
"Not so fast, brat," the steel toned man is quick to intercept my movements.
As he raises his hands, I watch as his arms, from his elbows to the tips of his fingers, turn into weapons. His right arm turns to a broadsword whilst his left turns to a spiked club. I narrow my turquoise gaze, interesting.
The other villain who has yet to speak, his eyes glow a bright red as his hands gain a glowing red light around them. The light forms into laser discs. Now, that makes me falter in my confidence. Lasers can practically cut through anything. Though, it is possible to beat.
"Well, I guess I can't back out now," I smirk, making the flames of my swords grow larger.
With a final breath, I immediately charge towards them. No hesitation. I reach the steel toned villain first and collide my flaming swords with his formed weapons. I smirk as he winces at the heat contacting his skin, but I continue my attack with a kick, fire trailing the movement. That makes him step back, wanting to avoid the flames.
Twisting on my heel, I turn my attention on the other villain. My heart stutters as I notice one of his laser discs flying in my direction. Quickly stepping back, I watch as it whizzes by my head, barely missing my nose by a mere inch. Biting my lip, I glare at the villain and throttle the flames of my swords towards him like whips of molten fire. They act like whips, made of pure liquid fire, but they still do their job of hitting the enemy. He hisses and steps back with a wince, glaring at me, but I stand in my place.
Turning off the flames from my swords, I quickly holster the thin hilt of my right sword back to my belt. With the steel toned villain standing farther from me, I use my free hand to send a wave of flames to the laser making villain. It's enough to burn him, but not enough to kill him. As he struggles with the attack, I quickly move towards the weapon making villain. Running up to him, I meet him halfway as he also moves forward. I instantly step back when he swipes the arm with a newly made chainsaw at me. I flinch when the rotating blades almost kiss my face, though, that buys him enough time to swipe the broadsword at me. Spinning on my heel, I dodge the blade perfectly, but he keeps his attacks consistent.
Gritting my teeth at the building pressure of the fight, I hastily move my sword forwards and use it to block his quick movements. Just as he swipes again, the broadsword meets the white flares of my blade and I take in the satisfaction when his face cringes in pain. Using this opportunity, I slam my free hand on his chest and shoot a wave of flames into his torso. Not only does the momentum of my attack send his crashing to the wall of the hallway, but it burns him severely - enough to knock him unconscious.
Huffing at my small victory, I walk forward to the other villain who is groaning at the minor burns on his body. With him lying on the ground in pain, I stalk up next to him. Deciding not to risk it, I swiftly, and harshly, kick him upside the head to knock him out cold.
¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤
WITH KASAI MAKING her way through the collapsed building, she comes across several villains and she easily disposes them like her first encounters. So, as she continues to stalk down through the many levels of the building - with her hair fully ignited and eyes blazing with blue like flames - her flaming appearance makes the few villains she encounters scurry away with fright. Though, just as Bakugou and Kirishima finish with their handful of villains, they get startled when three villains come running down the hallway with fear on their faces.
"She's a monster!"
"A demon straight from hell!"
"She's going to kill us! Her eyes marked my death!"
As they continue running, they suddenly stop at the sight of the heroes-to-be duo, seeming to be trapped and no where to go. Before the pair can question what's wrong with them, Kasai enters their sight. Her body is ignited with small flares, her hair raised like an ethereal flame of pure white, and her eyes glowing with sinister embers of icy blue. It's true what the villains say, she looks like a demon, if one where to fall from the flames of heaven. She's a warrior, especially with her ignited dual swords in her hands, made and born from the celestial flares.
She gives a malicious smirk, "There's no where left to run. It's the end of the line for you."
Quickly twisting her body to the left, Kasai joins her swords and simultaneously shoots a torrent of fire to a villain. The woman gets thrown to the wall and collapses to the floor, groaning at the burns she received as her clothes singe. Standing up, the Todoroki turns her head and smirks at the remaining two villains. With no way out, the closest villain to her tries to attack her, but Kasai immediately puts a stop to it as she swiftly twists her body and delivers a flaming high kick to his unprotected face. Kirishima winces at the sound of the villain dropping to the floor, completely knocked out.
The last villain steps back, his eyes darting around the room for an escape, but he quickly finds none. However, he looks between the three heroes-to-be and chooses the easier route. Taking his chances, he immediately activates his quirk and rushes towards the boy duo. Unfortunately, for him, they're just as ruthless as Kasai when it comes to taking down enemies. In a combo blitz attack, Bakugou and Kirishima finish the job by knocking him out.
Kasai watched the villain drop with a satisfied smile, sighing with relief. Twirling her swords, she extinguishes the white flames and holsters them on her belt, all while she extinguishes her hair to return to normal. Turning off her quirk with a tired look, Kasai lets her long hair drape down her back as she looks at her fellow classmates.
"I cleared the upper levels to this building. The villains I encountered are all unconscious, there wasn't a lot, but still a handful. How did you two fair? Any of them give you a good fight, or were they also weak," Kasai huffs, crossing her now free arms.
"Of course they were weak, you useless White-out," Bakugou huffs, glaring at her.
"They weren't much, but Bakugou and I handled them like men," Kirishima clarifies with a content smile, raising his fists.
Kasai raises her eyebrows, but nods. "Alright, now that we're done here, what next?"
"We can regroup with the rest of the class," Kirishima offers with a shrug.
The Todoroki releases a sarcastic laugh. "Yeah, we can do that, because you idiots were the cause of this! Rushing to fight a villain with no plan! You can't just blow them up and expect everything to be okay! Didn't you learn anything in the Battle Trial, you shitty sparkler," she states, narrowing her icy eyes on the ashy blond.
"Of course I did! Are you saying this is my fault, you extra?!" Bakugou yells, glaring at her.
"Well," Kasai shrugs nonchalantly. "Who's the one who rushed in, not me."
"You're right here with us! That means you rushed after us!"
"Yeah, to stop you from doing anything stupid! Not that you didn't already do that," Kasai scoffs, raising her hand to wave around her.
"Nobody asked you to come after us! We don't need your help, you useless extra! We could have handled this ourselves! No need for your flashy quir-"
Kasai laughs sardonically, cutting him off. "Oh, get over yourself, you idiot! I didn't mean it that way! You're perfectly capable of taking down villains! I'm just saying that you tend to rush right in with your hot headed attitude! I'm saying is what if the villain attacked you? What if he did something worse than send us away, separating us from our class? What if he decided to kill us? What then, huh? What would you have done? I'm just saying, that you at least need a strategy, a simple one, before rushing in next time. that's all," Kasai informs with a sigh. Though she turns away to hide the fact that she actually worries.
Katsuki scoffs and turns away, but the the tips of his ears betray him when they flush red. To him, it seems that she cares for him - Well, from what he got by her harsh words.
"Tch, what now," he questions gruffly.
The Todoroki smirks, "As Kirishima stated, we try to regroup with the rest of the class. Probably save them in the process," she informs.
The redhead nods. "Yeah, since we got warped here, that must mean the others are also inside the USJ! I'm worried for the people without many battle experience. As Kasai said, we rushed ahead to attack and Number 13 Sensei was forced to hang back and play rear guard. If sensei had been able to suck that mist, things wouldn't have turned out like this! As men, we need to take responsibility," he tells the two hot heads. Kasai nods, agreeing with he said because she basically said the same. Bakugou though, he just stares blankly at him, scoffing.
"If you wanna go, go by yourself. I'm just gonna go murder that Warp Gate motherfucker," he states, making the white haired girl literally facepalm.
"You idiot, what did I just say about rushing in with no plan! Are you really that stupid," Kasai growls at her rival.
"Now of all times, you come out with lines a little kid would say? Plus, physical attacks against that guy are-"
"He's the enemies' escape and entrance hatch, their revolving door," Bakugou explains. Kasai raises her brows, surprised, she hadn't thought of that. The ash blond acknowledges her look, and nods. "So, when the chips are down, I'll pin him down! So he can't escape! There's no way there isn't some way to counter him!"
The Todoroki nods, "Yeah, no matter what quirk they have, everyone has a weakness. A chink in the armor," she says, agreeing with him.
Though, before anyone can say anything else, the three are startled when a villain appears from no where and rushes towards them. Kasai and Kirishima who are actually facing the villain tense, preparing themselves to use their quirks. However, it's Bakugou who calmly and quickly takes down the enemy with a concentrated blitz attack - simply grabbing the villain's head and using his explosive quirk to slam their head to the ground, successfully knocking him out.
Damn, that was hot, Kasai muses with a marveled and stunned look.
"I mean, if he assigned these useless mooks to us, it oughta be fine," Bakugou huffs out some common sense.
"Now, that you're mentioning it, these guys were pretty easy to take down. Sure, there were a few who had strong quirks, but they didn't really know how to use them. But, that's just us. The others aren't as combat ready as we are, so they might be overwhelmed with the numbers," Kasai shrugs before crossing her arms.
Kirishima grins. "No wonder you two were so calm," he laughs, thinking how these two are always hot headed and yelling.
"I'm always calm, you fucking shit for hair," Bakugou yells, flipping the redhead off.
Kasai shakes her head, "Idiots." She sighs.
"Just fuck off, already! Seeya later," Bakugou scoffs, turning to initiate his plan on attacking the warp gate villain.
"Wait, we need a strategy! At least an idea on what you're going to do," Kasai calls out, walking after him.
"Hold up!" Kirishima says, making both of them stop. They turn to face him. "I believe in my buddies! And you're starting to sound real manly, Bakugou! I'm with you now!"
The girls sighs, "Well, if he's in, then count me in as well." She agrees, but then she points a finger at them. "But we still need a plan of attack because you idiots will just rush in and ruin things!"
"Whatever! Just hurry up and tell us, you shitty White-out," the ash blond tells her.
She smirks, her icy eyes glimmering.
¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤
WITH A PLAN in place, Kasai, Bakugou, and Kirishima all made their way towards the center plaza. On their way there, they took care of any lingering villains with ease. Especially, when their small trio had Kasai who was a master of flames, Bakugou who was just as lethal as his explosions, and Kirishima who was perfect for offense and defense at the same time. The weak villains didn't stand a chance against them.
It seems by the time they reached the plaza, their timing was impeccable because when they arrived they were witnessing Midoriya, aka Deku, running straight towards the conflict. A match between All Might and that big buff looking villain - Nomu. Gritting her teeth, Kasai unsheathes her dual swords, igniting them with flames, before looking at her two fellow comrades.
"Alright, just as we planned! Bakugou, you take that misty guy, your quirk has the most offensive impact! Kirishima, you back him up in case anyone tries to attack him, you work well as a defense but you can also do some pretty impressive power attacks. I'll take the rear and provide any supportive help if necessary. We close in on them and take them out, got it?" Kasai explains, giving them the go.
They smirk, confident with the summed up plan, and instantly move to take action.
Bakugou is the first to reach his targeted opponent. He immediately interferes between Midoriya and the Warp Gate villain, punching the latter with an explosive blow. With impact, the villain stops his actions of trying to warp both All Might and the Nomu. However, when Kasai switches gaze to assess the situation, she immediately recognizes the blue opalescent crystals of ice encasing the large villain. Her gaze then switches and spots her twin brother.
"Outta the fucking way, Deku," Bakugou yells, making the girl snap her focus to the situation.
"I heard about you bastards' plan. About each of your roles in your scheme to kill All Might," Shoto announces towards the pale villain.
Kasai then focuses on Kirishima, who moves to attack the said villain. Unfortunately, the latter moves, stepping back from the redhead's attack. She grips her swords tighter and jumps forward, between them, and directs a flaming kick to the villain in order to push him back. Not risking it, Kasai joins her swords together and swings it at him, while simultaneously sending a wave of flames at him. She won't allow him to get anywhere near them.
Standing straight, she directs a flaming blade at him. "Did you really think that you can overwhelm us with these petty villains!? Tch, you must be an idiot if you're really underestimating UA," Kasai scoff, narrowing her fiery blue gaze at the pale man.
"Shit! I had him," Kirishima yells, frowning that he missed his attack.
"No funny business out of you, you shadow ass mobling," Bakugou insults with a satisfied smirk.
"The Symbol of Peace won't go down as easy as you clowns," Shoto calmly states.
Midoriya stands behind them, marveling at their sudden appearances with wide eyes. "Kacchan! Everyone," he breathes.
Kasai stood in her spot between Kirishima and Shoto, watching as All Might moves away from the frozen Nomu and stands up. Sure, the hero wasn't exactly her favorite, but there was always something that made her awe in his presence. She didn't have a favorite hero, but if she were to choose in this exact moment, Kasia would definitely pick All Might.
"If you were only smoke and immune to physical attacks, you would've never said 'that's dangerous'," Bakugou scoffs as he smirks down at the warp villain, holding him against the ground. "Don't move! If I get the feeling that you have some kind of hidden trick up your sleeve, I'll blow you up on the spot, you hear that!?"
Kasai rolls her eyes at the blond, hearing Kirishima state how that's not hero-like.
"They not only made it, but technically none of them are injured. The kids today really are formidable. It's clear that we're at a disadvantage," the pale villain, Shigaraki, states out loud.
The white haired Todoroki narrows her eyes at him, the sound of his voice making her cringe. If she were to hate a certain sound, it would be his voice.
"Nomu, get rid of the explosive kid and reconquer the exit," Shigaraki orders.
Kasai, along with Kirishima, Midoriya, Shoto, All Might, and Bakugou all watch as the large villain breaks out of the ice. However, doing that leads to the Nomu ripping off its frozen limbs, completely severing them. Though, they quickly watch with fearful awe as the limbs regenerate, like nothing happened.
Anyhow, before they can do anything and are still comprehending what happened not a second ago, the Nomu rushes forward with daunting speed. Kasai feels her eyes widen and parts her lips in a breathless gasp when she realizes what's happening. She feels useless as she watches the Nomu close in on Bakugou. She can hear Midoriya scream for the blond. It feels like forever, but it's milliseconds.
As a second passed by, the next thing she knows is that a strong current of wind crashes against her. Her body stumbles back at the sheer force, Kirishima yells at the sudden wind, and she almost crashes against her brother. With this, her flames die out, leaving her momentarily blinded as her hair whips across her face.
Finally, another second passes and the current dies out.
"K-Kacchan!" Midoriya yells in worry. Though, that immediately changes when they notice blond sitting next to them, stunned. "Kacchan?! You dodged, amazing."
"Shut up! I didn't do anything," Bakugou huffs.
"Then, how," Kirishima questions, confused.
The Todorokis realize, and they gasp simultaneously. "Then, that was..." They start in synch before focusing at the sight of the impact.
Kasai then quickly gazes to the right at her brother, who's now standing next to her. She says nothing about them speaking in synch, it just reminds her of when they were younger and how they spoke at the same time, or finished each other's sentences. Shaking the thought away, she focuses on the smoke that is now revealing All Might.
He managed to speed his way in front of Bakugou, pushing him away before taking the Nomu's hit.
Panting, All Might looks up towards Shigaraki. "Do you not know how to hold back," he questions incredulous. The thought of a villain easily killing off a kid, it sickens him.
"It was to rescue my companions," Shigaraki simply explains. "I had no choice. I mean, earlier, that plain looking one. He was about to punch me with everything he had, you know."
As he continues speaking, Kasai finds herself agreeing to the justification of his actions. By means, say if someone punched her, she would react by punching them too. What goes around comes around, whatever. She's now thinking of all the crimes she's read about, her mind opening, expanding with questions. How many laws get broken because villains want to retaliate? How many criminals find their actions to be justified? Her mind is whirling at the realization. His simple words are causing a crisis in her morality. Heck, she was a rule breaker for the longest time, her peers in middle school even said that she had the potential to become a villain! What does that say about her?
Kasai swallows, looking back on her life she could have easily been standing on the opposite side if she took different routes in her choices. If she decided earlier that she's had enough of her father's neglect. It could have ended so differently, and that alone scares her.
"Kurogiri, Nomu. Get him. I'll handle the children," Shigaraki orders before glancing at the students.
Kasai barely has enough time to comprehend what he said before he rushes towards them. Gritting her teeth, she tightens her grip on her dual swords, and in synch she ignites her hair and weapons. She glares, and her icy gaze turns even colder with a deadly calm as she steps in front of the group, prepared to protect them if necessary.
Though, before the two pale opponents can meet in a fight, everyone's focus shifts to All Might as he steps forward. Immediately, they see as he rushes towards Nomu with blinding speed. Both the sheer force and velocity manages to create a whipping current that crashes into them.
Shigaraki is sent flying back since he was in movement. The students are merely pushed back, but still enough to make them stumble a few feet. Kirishima yells as he's forced backwards. Kasai's fire dies out again as she's pushed back. Though before can go any further, Shoto takes a hold of her upper arm, keeping her in place by his side. For this once, she allows it as she interlocks her elbow with his, keeping each other steady.
Together, they watch how All Might enters a fist fight with Nomu, equally matched. Or it seems. All Might swiftly targets a collection of punches onto the muscled torso of the Nomu, pushing him back. Kasai watches in awe as their fight moves all over the place. Punches that force the other back to a lengthy distance. Punches that throw the opponent into the air, fighting and twisting as gravity suspends them in mid air. That make them crash down with a great force, breaking the ground. The sheer intensity of the fight sends shockwaves of air back to them.
The girl can feel goosebumps rise in her skin, chills of fascination down her spine, her heart stutters in amazement. If All Might wasn't her favorite hero by the end of today, she wouldn't know what to do.
"Hey, villain, have you ever heard these words? Go beyond! Plus Ultra," All Might says with one final punch.
A punch so great, so powerful, that it causes the Nomu to fly upwards at the great impact. It sends him rocketing into the USJ's ceiling, crashing through and soaring into the sky like a racing missile. Up into the clouds, up until he's no longer seen by the human eye, disappearing.
Kasai stares, completely stunned. Her mind is in literal awe with what she just witnessed. In all her life she's never seen anything so amazing. Sure, her father is a hero, the number two hero, but compared to All Might, there's really no comparison. It's so mind blowing that Kasai doesn't even care that she's still holding on to her brother.
"I really have gotten weaker," All Might chuckles. "In my prime, five hits would've been enough, but it took more than three-hundred hits."
"Wow," Kasai manages to breathe out.
"Now, villains. I'm sure we'd like to end this as soon as possible," All Might informs, turning to the remaining two villains. Well, the more at-risk ones.
Kasai turns her attention on the pale villain, watching as he mumbles under his breath. She also notices that he scratches at his neck, something that he does a lot of. A nervous tick, a habit, of some sort. The girl also acknowledges the behavior change. Before the Nomu was defeated, the former was confident in their presence, now he's shaky, nervous. It's as if the Nomu were their key to whatever plan they hatched for this attack. She remembers her brother mentioning something about their plan for killing All Might, which went out the window when he defeated Nomu - quite literally.
She focuses again when she feels Shoto step away from her, stepping back. The girl barely pays attention as All Might tells them that he can handle this, that they should meet up with the rest of class. She doesn't fight it, he's the number one hero after all, and what damage can she do? Give them severe burns? That worked against the low level villains, but she doubts it would work against the Warp Gate villain. Shaking her head, Kasai looks up at the scene, and her turquoise eyes widen when she notices Midoriya flying towards the now rushing villains and a standstill All Might.
"What the fuck, Midoriya," she yells out at how rash he's being.
Kasai silently curses when she sees his plan failing as Shigaraki reaches through a portal, his palm facing Midoriya. She's not exactly sure what an open palm can do damage wise, but she has an inkling that it's related to his quirk. Which could be very, and ultimately, bad. That she's sure of.
It seems like time slows down as she watches the distance between Midoriya and Shigaraki's hand close. Though, just as they're about to make contact, Kasai jumps - startled - when a gunshot rings through the air. The bullet bullseyes into the pale wrist of the villain, successfully making him pull back.
Instantly, Midoriya falls to the ground since his legs are now, and currently, broken to even support him. Kasai scoffs at her green haired peer, mentally cursing his lack of plan. He could have died with how reckless he acted. She doesn't focus much on it as her attention is bought by something else.
"President of Class 1-A, Tenya Iida, reporting for duty," she hears her classmate yell out from the top of the stairs.
The girl smiles when her icy gaze sees that UA's teachers stand proudly behind him. Back up. Her body visibly relaxes at the thought of no longer fighting, that their class is saved. Kasai knew she couldn't afford to panic when this whole ordeal started, but now, she could afford to be relieved.
As the villains try to retreat, more gunshots fire into Shigaraki's body causing him to fall. Kasai ignores the very loud and amplified yell of Present Mic, watching as the villain turns to All Might.
"I failed this time, but I'll definitely kill you next time, All Might! Symbol of Peace," he threatens as Kurogiri escapes Thirteens attempt, successfully disappearing in a warp gate.
"It's over," the pale Todoroki states in a huff.
¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤
KASAI SIGHS AS she stands outside the USJ building with the rest of her class. There's two detectives taking count that they're all there, present and unharmed. Crossing her arms, she stands next to the ravenette who she recalls as Yaoyorozu. Looking her over, Kasai shudders at the amount of revealing skin, but she says nothing. Probably has to do with the girl's quirk, but the Todoroki's sure there could've been a more strategic choice of outfit - like a two piece suit of a crop top and shorts.
Looking away, she glances at her brother, who's looking slightly shocked at the revelation that Hagakure - the invisible girl - was with him in the Landslide Zone. Though, Kasai is impressed after learning that Ojiro - the tail guy - fought alone in the Fire Zone with simple hand combat. Overall, she's impressed with her classmates, they fought with their all and in the end they came out victoriously.
The bus ride back to the school was relaxing, but Kasai was mentally exhausted with today's events. So, she didn't care that she was practically leaning against Shoto as her eyes dropped. It was even worse when the side she leaned against was his fire side, the warmth lulling her to sleep. He didn't show it, but Shoto was happy at her actions. The action is small, and nothing major, but it meant a lot to him.
Little by little, she was warming up to him, and it might be a long time before they return to their former sibling bond. Though, until then, he'll take what he can get.
Though, unbeknownst to them, future events might hinder their chance to reconcile.
Most, if not all, of their chances.
_
Welp! That's Chapter Seven! Sorry, if the chapter missed any major points of the usj fight, the website I usually read the manga had all the pages mixed up and I had to rely on youtube videos of all might's fight.
Again, sorry for the lateness!
Anyways, did you enjoy it?! I sure did, but that's just me being biased!
Oooh! Kasai is a queen in combat! She had those thugs scared of her, fearing her! Did I make her too OP?
I love when Kasai and Bakugou argue! The tension between them is slowly burning! The anticipation, I can't wait for them to initiate something bold!
Oof, Kasai is having a little morality crisis! What will happen? She's scared that her actions seem a bit villainous!
I loved the little Shoto-Kasai moments, they make me soft uwu . But will she fully stop disliking him? Especially with the coming events - the Sports Festival? That's sure to build some likely tension, some drama, releasing major bottled anger! (I got plans *laughs evilly and knowingly*)
Well, that's everything for today, so don't forget to...
COMMENT! VOTE! AND FAN!
HASTE LUEGO, My awesome and amazing friends!
Word Count: 5,486
CHAPTER 8: KINDLING SPARKS
DISCLAIMER: I STILL DON'T OWN MY HERO ACADEMIA, AND MOST LIKELY NEVER WILL.
Red Light by Personal Trainer
CHAPTER 8: KINDLING SPARKS
THIRD POV
KASAI STARES UP at her bedroom ceiling as she lies in bed, listening to her clock ticking every second. It was still dark out, no sign of the rising sun for anytime soon. The school gave an extra day off, making it a three day weekend, as they took action to tighten their security. Most likely not wanting for attack to repeat itself.
When both Shoto and herself arrived home on Friday, Fuyumi was quick to crush them in a hug. The events of the USJ exhausted Kasai so much that she didn't mind traveling with Shoto on the train together. They didn't speak on the ride home, but they knew they were grateful for each other at the moment. So, when their older sister held them in a group hug, Kasai sighed in content.
Though, after their little moment, they returned to their strained silence. The progress of bonding halted, coming to a complete standstill as Kasai closed herself off in her room. She returned to avoiding him now that she wasn't in danger, in a at-risk situation.
The weekend, itself, went by pretty fast as she spent the majority of her time inside her room doing homework for all of her classes. The times she did exit, she only went to the courtyard, sitting in her usual spot under the tree to relax. Of course, Kasai also went to the kitchen to grab some sustenance.
Though, as Monday came, she woke up earlier than usual and laid in bed, staring at the ceiling. Without school, the girl had no plans for today and decided that she'll do something she hasn't done in a long while. Which she was now dreading.
But visiting her mother wouldn't be bad, right?
Kasai had no qualms with the woman, but their relationship was a bit tense. She remembers that her mother - Rei - would always make an effort to avoid making eye contact with her. She can recall that it had to do with her having the same eyes as her father. Kasai didn't blame her mother, her father was a strict man and had a temper as hot as his flames, but his eyes, they could freeze hell several times over.
Kasai knew she looked like a carbon copy of her mother, except she had her father's icy blue eyes, and her facial features were sharper compared to Rei's softer ones. If she really looked at herself, the girl found that she was more like her father than her mother. She had a temper, her gaze can make people freeze in their spots by how cold it was, she had an air of intensity that made people avoid her, and finally, she had a strong fire quirk like him. She found it amusing that her father failed to acknowledge her when she compared to him the most, and she hated it.
It sickened her.
She still yearned for his praise while he could care less about her.
So, Kasai really hoped that she can at least have one parent that was proud of her.
However, when the time to get ready for the day, Kasai procrastinated the effort of getting up. What would she talk about with her mother? Like how much she's a troublemaker, that she had a reputation for breaking the rules whilst growing up? How after all these years she never made a decent friend, at least a friend of normal standards? How she's in UA to become a hero, to prove her father wrong, to spite him? How she doesn't get along with her brother despite them being twins, how she dislikes him for having their father's attention? How about how she finds herself missing her oldest brother, Touya?
None of that will make her mother proud.
Who was she kidding, even she wasn't proud of her life. Her father was right, she is a disappointment. Who in their right mind finds breaking rules as an accomplishment? Also, no normal sibling hates another just because they're favored by their father, sure a little jealously here and there is normal, but to be completely hateful? She has no friends, she has a rival, but there's no genuine friends in her life. And why is she so angry all the time?
But hey, at least she's aware of how much of a disappointment she is, right?
¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤
KASAI STOOD IN the full compartment of the train, her left hand grasping the supporting handle above her as her right hand held a small vase of calla lilies. The white flowers themselves were aesthetically pretty and delicate, but they smelled quite nicely, a scent of sweetness. The train ride wasn't long by the time she reached her stop, a mere twenty minutes, but she was glad to quickly exit the cramped compartment.
Huffing, Kasai walked through the city streets towards the hospital. It wasn't exactly a hospital hospital, but more like a mental facility. She walked stiffly since she wanted to look nicely for her mother, which meant she wore a spring dress with stockings underneath. Though since she disliked being girly in any sense, she added her most favored oversized jacket on top of it. Huffing with unease, Kasai instead listens to the squeak of her shoes on the linoleum flooring as she enters the facility.
Walking up to the front desk, the Todoroki girl catches the attention of one of the receptionist who gives her a warm, welcoming smile.
"Hello, how may I help you today? Are you here to visit someone," the woman questions.
Kasai gives a tight smile, stuttering. "I uh, I'm here to visit m-my mother," she offers quietly.
The woman nods, turning to her computer, "Her name?"
The teen clears her throat. "Todoroki Rei."
The seconds that the woman spends typing in information seems to go on forever. Kasai can feel her heart beat erratically in her ears. Her stomach flutters now that she's here, the situation setting in stone, too late to turn back and leave. She's nervous and she hates that.
She hates not feeling confident.
"Ah, here she is. She's in room 1136," the receptionist informs with a small smile.
"Thanks," the pale haired girl nods in stiff appreciation.
With that in mind, Kasai turns on her heel - squeaking - and walks towards the directed room. Pushing her way through a set of double doors, she walks through another door for the stairs. The girl could have taken the elevator, but she's still feeling uneasy and wants to elongate the process of actually meeting her mother.
By means, the girl hasn't seen the woman for years.
However, the usually hot tempered girl eventually reached her mother's room. Inhaling a much needed breath to relax her racing heart, Kasai knocks on the door before sliding it open. Her breath freezes at the sight of her mother, heart stuttering.
"H-hey, mom," Kasai breathes nervously.
The Todoroki woman turns her gaze away from the window at her daughter's greeting. Upon seeing her youngest, the mother gives her a soft smile.
"Kasai, come in. It's nice to see you, you've grown up so beautiful," Rei says with a genuine smile.
The teen breathes out, finally relaxing once she sees the soft features on her mother's face. They're not avoidant, or resenting - it's kind.
"Tell me, how's school? Have you made any friends," the woman continues.
And like that, Kasai immediately tenses. She knows how her school life was and is like. She knows that she's never been friendly. The white haired girl can feel her mouth go dry as she struggles to find a response. She can feel herself becoming disheartened with the lack of what to say - that she was never the model student, the model daughter.
The teen gives a tight smile. "It's okay. My grades are perfect which are a relief. The classes at UA are nice. Everybody there is supportive, they're nice," Kasai informs, cringing a bit at her awkward wording. "For friends, I have only one... I think."
Rei nods at the explanation, but her brows softly furrow. "You think?"
Kasai winces, giving a tense half smile. "Well...to be exact, he's more of a rival, but we're starting to acknowledge each other as friends!" The girl says, quick to explain her situation with the certain ash blond.
There's a pause of awkward silence.
Rei sighs softly, giving her daughter a warm smile. "That's nice. Not everyone needs a whole group of friends, one is enough. Especially if you see each other as equals," the mother reassures.
The pale haired girl nods. "Yeah, we do. Though, that's because we're almost the same," she simply states, placing the small vase of flowers on the counter next to the single window.
"The same, how is that?"
Kasai frowns, turning towards her mother with sad eyes. "We're both hot tempered, angry, and mean. Even if I'm starting to see him as a friend, we still fight a lot. It's natural for us to be at each other's necks," she sighs.
"...Kasai-"
"You can just say it," the girl cuts off her mother, her frown deepening. "I'm too much like him, aren't I? I'm too much like dad? Everyone sees it. I know you're being nice right now, but I bet you can see it too, right? I must be disgusting to you," she responds, her turquoise eyes shining with angry, but also sad, tears.
Rei looks at her daughter, sad to see her in such a struggling state. She remembered Kasai as a happy child, always smiling with her siblings. However, the sight of her daughter right now is so much different, she can see the anger, the sadness, the exhaustion, how closed off she seems, the insecurity and most of it is directed to herself. Of course, Rei can see the similarities between her youngest and her husband.
They're their own enemies. They even deal with it the same way, lashing out on others.
"Kasai...yes, you're the same," Rei tells her daughter, who chokes out a sob. The mother gets up from her spot and towards the girl, placing her hands on her daughter's shoulders. "But you also have his best qualities. You're hardworking, your ambition is bright, you're very passionate and it shows. So, yes, you may be hot tempered and angry, but that just proves on how much you want to be better. And, who cares if you don't have friends, that shows that you don't need anyone, that you're independent and strong, that nobody needs to hold your hand," Rei tells her with a firm tone.
Kasai nods, listening to her mother as she buries herself deeper into the embrace. A much needed hug, to mend her back together, to heal her.
"I'm just so tired," Kasai softly cries, her hands clutching tightly to her mother's sweater. "I'm constantly overworking myself and it's still not enough to get noticed by him! I'm angry that he only has Shoto in his best interests, that he's always ignoring me and my efforts! I'm angry at myself because even when I know that he only cares about Shoto, I still try to get his approval! His attention! His praise! I have a strong quirk, too! I worked my ass off to get into UA and he still doesn't acknowledge me! I'm furious at Shoto and it disgusts me that I hate him! He's my brother for Kami's sake, my twin, but I still loathe him. It's always him! He gets the praise, he gets the attention, he got the recommendation to UA, a-and I get nothing," Kasai's voice breaks as tears stream down her face, finally letting everything out. "I-it hurts, it hurts to be constantly ignored and I'm tired of trying so hard for nothing."
"And I-I miss Touya! A-at least he would have never ignored me. He was always there for me and now he's gone," Kasai whimpers, not caring that she's freely expressing herself.
It's therapeutic to let everything out. She doesn't care that it took a short conversation with her mother to make her break down and cry. After all, she's held it in for years, the emotions bottling and simmering until they burst.
"That's because you're driving yourself insane for his approval when you don't need it. You don't need Enji's praise. You're perfectly fine without it. Kasai, if you want to be a hero, you can make that happen on your own," the mother tries to reassure, but Kasai has none of it.
"Of course, I need his praise and approval! He's the number two hero, he has the most crime arrests! He can help me further my skills for my quirk. You don't understand, he's literally one of the best heroes out there," Kasai yells, pulling back from her mother's embrace.
Her turquoise eyes narrow. "You don't get to say that I don't need his approval. You've been gone for years! I had to grow up alone with no parents supporting me! You're not a hero, you don't understand the stress of becoming one, but he does! He can make or break my future career, so you don't get to say that I don't need his approval," she seethes, her white hair flaring. "I know he's not the best person, but I modeled myself after him! You were gone! I don't even know what happened to Touya! Fuyumi and Natsuo had school! Shoto had his attention, but me, I was alone! I had no one! He was the only parent I had around! But I don't blame you, I can never blame you. I blame him, and I hate myself that I still look for his praise, his approval. It makes me sick."
Rei frowns at the realization. The truth in Kasai's life. It's true that everyone in their family had something, or had left, but the girl had nobody and nothing which allowed her to feel the heavy loneliness in her life. The emptiness. The mother wanted to hug and heal her daughter from all the scars she carried, but she can't. Especially when she had her own scarred soul to heal.
Rei reached out for her youngest child, but the girl stepped back, shaking her head - scolding herself.
"Kasai," the pale haired woman softly said.
The teen furiously shakes her head. "No, I- it was mistake coming here. I shouldn't have come here, I shouldn't have opened up. This messed things up even more, I-I can't do this. I can't rely on you! I can't rely on anyone because they always leave," Kasai turns away from her mother, heading for the door.
"Kasai, wait-"
"Enjoy the flowers, mom. They're your favorite," the girl says stiffly, eyes shining with angry tears.
With that done, the white haired teen walks out of the room, ignoring her mother's calls. She made a mistake in coming here, she can't trust on people to be there for her. She's made it this far on her own, why would she want to change that? Kasai hates herself for opening up, for being emotional, for being weak!
Why did she think seeing her mother was a good idea? Why would she open old wounds?
She set herself up for disappointment.
¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤
KASAI FINDS HERSELF sitting in a lone park bench, watching people stroll past her with no care in the world. The girl wishes she could be that nonchalant and carefree, but that's not her anymore. Not after Touya.
She truly misses her older brother and often finds herself wondering what ever happened to him. All she knows is that one day he was there in the house and the next he was gone, without a single trace. Did he get sick and no one noticed? Did he move away? Run away? Did he get in some sort of trouble? Did he die?
I can't think like that, she shakes her head. She can't even think about her role model, her idol, like that. It upsets her too much to even question it. Of course, Kasai loves her older siblings, but Touya was always much more. To her, he was the best. Her hero.
She sighs, feeling dejected.
As far as Kasai knows, today is a bad day for her. She woke up too early. There was no school. She visited her mother and saw for the first time in years, only for it to go badly. She's an emotional mess. She's thinking back to her early memories which only leaves her feeling sour. Especially, when it's about her brother.
She's exhausted. Mentally and emotionally drained.
And unbeknownst to her, the next coming days will be so much more to handle.
_
Well, here's Chapter 8, a short update I know! But it was just a filler chapter for Kasai. Also, sorry for the prolonged wait.
Oop, Kasai went to see her mother! What did you think?
Kasai finally opened up, but she broke down. Does her anger/hot temper make sense now? How she's overworking herself and for nothing?
She knows Enji is not the best person but she still wants approval! I sense Kasai finally snapping at him in the future! You know what they say about applying too much pressure - they eventually snap!
I seriously need to add some Touya/Kasai memories, or flashbacks. I need the content! Oooh, I can't wait to write the Dabi/Touya scenes! 'Cause drama!
Anyways, don't forget to COMMENT! VOTE! AND FAN!
SAYONARA, My awesome and incredible readers! (Please take care of yourselves ?).
Word Count: 2,955
A/N: Please don't ask for updates, that only stresses me out more than I usually do. I know I take longer than other authors to update, but please be patient with me. That's all I ask. I know it comes from a good place, but the constant reminder to 'update' doesn't help.
