Tsuyu stood there in the bathroom in shock...
The feeling of remembrance began flooding her with emotions...and memories...
"...There's no way..."
But...why? Why is Shigaraki letting me...remember that? Why is he letting me remember...her?
...There was a blip sound coming from Ochako's phone.
Looking down at the phone in her hand, she raised the phone up to her face.
There was a text...it said:
Don't forget the reason(s) why you're here.
"..." Tsuyu closed the flip phone and put it in her right pocket. "...That's right..."
She also put the hospital ID card in her right pocket. Directing her gaze at her knife on the counter, she stared at it for a second until she reached for it, grabbing the handle. Needing to clean the blade, she turned on the sink to let the water clean off the residue on the knife.
Once she did, she got a paper towel from a paper towel dispenser and cleaned off the blade...she looked at the paper towel dispenser for a moment.
"...Why is everything...set up here?"
There's even working water...
"..." she looked at the mirror that was above the sink.
Looking at her reflection, she sees herself...
...She raised a hand toward the mirror...and stopped her hand, her digits close to the glass.
...Rearing back her hand, Tsuyu turned it around to let her palm face her.
...Letting her hand come close to her face she let her long five digits touch her face...she then lets her fingers slowly come down onto her face.
...Tsuyu didn't really get why she was doing this...maybe she wanted to know if this was all...
Real?
...I mean, there are lights on here, working water, and there's food here...how is that even...wait-
Tsuyu eyes widened, "Eda!"
Oh man, I forgot about him!
She put her knife in her left pocket and left the chicken nuggets behind, as well as the dead toad in the sink. Dashing out of the bathroom, she exited and saw that Eda was still in his seat eating.
Eda stopped mid-bite and turned his attention to Tsuyu.
"Oh, uh, Tsu! Hey, um...everything okay?" he asked.
"Uh...I-I don't know," Tsuyu answered honestly, her expression full of uncertainty.
"Huh? You don't know?" Eda asked her in concern. Upon seeing her stance and unsure face, he also asked, "Hey...wh-what happened? You look like you saw a ghost."
"...I..." Tsuyu shook her head, "I-I'm sorry, Eda, but I got to go."
"You do?" Eda blinked, "Uh...it-it isn't something I did or said, is it?"
"N-No, no, Eda, it's just..."
Wait...I can't leave Eda alone here! He might need someone to look after him!
"...Eda, I think you should come with me. Someone's here, and I don't know if it's Stain or someone else, but there seem to be monsters here that are being commanded by whomever."
Eda's eyes widened, stammering as he said, "U-Uh, I-well-I-"
"Don't worry, I think I'm pretty capable of handling some small-time Villains," Tsuyu came up to their table to get her flashlight, which was at the right end of it. She went on the seat and slid over there to grab her flashlight, saying to Eda, "I think it'll be wise if we stick together and-"
Then, when she glanced to her left to look at Eda, she noticed something resting on the seat next to Eda's left side of the seat...
...It was a handgun.
Eda followed her gaze to the gun that was resting next to him, and jumped in his seat, now in a panic as he looked at Tsuyu while covering the gun with his hand and raising a hand in front of him to defend himself, "I-It's not mine! I found it...uh, a-at a convenience store in this town!"
Tsuyu's eyes widened in shock at the weapon that was with Eda. "...Oh...you found it at a convenience store in this...abandoned town?"
"Y-Yeah! I-I know, I didn't think a gun would even be there! I mean, our country is strict in our gun laws! I was being chased by a monster there, and I had to find something to defend myself with! I-I found this gun behind the counter and I used it on the thing!" Eda looked really worried now, "Oh man, I hope no one knows that I fired a gun. That's like life in prison stuff right there."
"Hey, Eda, it's okay," Tsuyu told him, "Don't worry, I believe you. And really...I don't think these monsters are even human..." she then muttered, "Not anymore, at least."
Are they like those Nomus? I heard from the news that they were once people...
"Huh? Not anymore? What do you mean?" Eda asked in wonder.
"It's...kind of a long story," Tsuyu said, "But don't worry, I think we can take them."
"Wait, you mean, y-you aren't going to like...tell people that I shot a gun and whatnot?" Eda asked in surprise.
"Huh? I mean, I feel like this calls for us to use a gun here at this point. And no way, Eda, I won't tell anyone. Even then, we're all trying to defend ourselves."
"Uh...y-yeah! R-Right...defending ourselves...self-defense..." Eda felt at ease upon remembering that, "Uh, yeah..."
"Yeah, so maybe we can watch each other's backs or something?" Tsuyu suggested.
"Watch each other's...backs?" Now Eda felt slightly nervous, "I mean, I'm...I'm not exactly a fighter."
"Hey, I'm training to be a Hero, so I'm not exactly a fighter myself," Tsuyu shrugged, "But you got a gun, and I got...well, a knife in my pocket. Either way, our Quirks are all animal-based, and we can't really use them, except to maybe just evade any enemies that come our way."
"...Well, uh..." Eda looked out the window next to him and saw that it was getting darker outside, along with the fog still going, and the streetlights still being turned on around the streets. "...I...I mean, yeah, I...I guess we can do that. You know, watch each other's backs."
Tsuyu nodded with a smile, "Yeah. It's okay, Eda, we'll get through this."
"Uh...r-right," Eda nodded also, feeling a little comforted.
It was then Tsuyu thought of something...
Wait...if there's a gun in this abandoned town...then...is someone giving us guns? Is...Is Shigaraki giving us-
Cha-ching!
"Ah!" Tsuyu exclaimed.
"Ack!" Eda jumped in his seat.
Tsuyu turned around to the source of the sound.
...It came from a cash register on the counter. This was evident when they saw that the slot compartment on the cash register was opened.
Curious, Tsuyu got out of the booth seat, the flashlight now in her right hand as she walked over to the counter. Once she neared the counter, she crouched and jumped over it like a frog.
Eda blinked at the feat, impressed.
The Frog Girl stood up and approached the cash register...
...Tsuyu eyes widened.
...Inside the register's slot...was a small handgun.
"..." A little bit in shock, Tsuyu stared at it for a moment...shaking her head to clear it once she saw what she was seeing, she raised her free hand (her left) and lowered her hand to the gun...
...She wrapped her long fingers around the handle, careful not to touch the trigger...she then lifted it up and got it out of the register...
Seeing what the thing she pulled out was, Eda's eyes widened in shock as well, surprised at the weapon that Tsuyu had in her hand.
"A...A gun? In the...the cash register?" he asked in confusion.
"...Eda...I think you should know that..." Tsuyu turned her attention to him, "There's probably another Villain here."
"Huh?" Eda looked at her, startled.
"...His name is Shigaraki, and..." Tsuyu paused in her speech. Lowering her head down to look at the gun in her hand, she thought about what to say next...
"Uh...what about this Shiga-...raki?" asked Eda, a little concerned.
"..." Tsuyu was silent for a moment.
Should...I tell Eda about Shigaraki? About my brother and sister being held captive?
...
"...Uh, Tsu?" Eda asked her, confused.
Tsuyu snapped out of her thoughts and said, "Um...actually...Eda, maybe you shouldn't go with me."
I don't want to drag him into all of this...Shigaraki from what I saw and experienced...he's really scary and has a dangerous Quirk.
"Huh? W-Why?" Eda wondered, almost a little offended.
"...I...I'm dealing with something very personal...there's this Villain, like I said, named Shigaraki, and...he has some very important people that he's holding hostage...important to me," she looked at Eda, "They're my siblings, and...well, I'm actually here because of a clue sent out by this Villain. And that clue was...that toad in those...chicken nuggets..." she shivered a little, "Either way, I don't want...I don't want you to be involved with this. This Shigaraki guy has a very strong Quirk, and he's pretty fast on his feet, so...I-I just don't want you to be hurt because of my affairs."
"...Oh..." Eda's expression turned soft, seemingly understanding where she was coming from, "Well...I-I mean..." he sat there for a moment to think, "...I mean...yeah, I understand that."
"Really? Cause I did say we were going to watch each other's backs, so..." Tsuyu faltered there, feeling bad for not keeping that promise.
"Oh, hey, no, don't worry about it. I-I totally understand. I mean...I-I honestly hope I don't sound cowardly saying this, but...well, like I said, I can't fight, and I'm not exactly the bravest person there is. And...if you're facing this Villain with a strong Quirk, then..." Eda paused as he thought of something else, "Oh! Hey, maybe you should look for your friends to help you! I mean...d-do you have a phone?"
"Oh! Um...y-yeah, I-I do," Tsuyu then set the gun and flashlight down on the counter and got Ochako's phone out of her right back pocket. Since it was a flip phone, it was easily accessible, so she went and searched for her own phone number on Ochako's phone. Looking up from the phone, she sees Eda looking at the phone a little oddly. "Oh, this isn't my phone. I mean, well, it's...it's a long story. Simply put, my friend borrowed my phone to text a guy classmate of ours. Oh, uh, you know him, Midoriya. Anyway, she saw some texts that were supposedly from him, which, um, I would think they weren't, so she misunderstood them when they came to my phone..." Tsuyu frowned at the thought of that scenario, "They must be from Shigaraki..."
"Oh...what, uh, what kind of texts were they?" Eda had to ask.
Tsuyu blushed as she went silent for a moment. "...Just some...uh, stuff..."
Upon seeing her expression, Eda grimaced and blushed at the implication. "Oh...s-sorry, I was just...uh, curious."
"Oh, nah, you're good," Tsuyu said as she waved dismissively at Eda. "I just know that wasn't from Midoriya. My friend, whose name is Uraraka Ochako, got mad at me and ran off..." Lowering her head as she looked concerned, Tsuyu mumbled, "I really hope she's okay..."
"Oh..." Eda frowned, "Uh, I'm sorry to hear that."
"..." Tsuyu sighed, "It's fine. I just hope she saw through those texts..."
Actually...maybe I shouldn't call Ochako right now...she could still be mad at me. I don't know...I did hear she has Yaoyorozu's number, so maybe I should call Yaoyorozu instead.
While Tsuyu was thinking, Eda spoke up again due to the silence, "Uh...this Midoriya guy..."
The Frog Girl turned her attention to Eda to listen.
"...Do you...kind of have a thing for him?" Eda asked her, almost a little hesitant-looking.
Tsuyu blinked and looked at Eda, a little surprised as she said, "Huh? Wha-...uh, why would you ask me that?"
Eda's eyes widened in a panic as he stuttered, "U-Uh, I-I'm sorry, I-I was just curious!"
"..." Tsuyu lowered her gaze as she slightly blushed, "I mean...he's a nice guy, but...I don't know too much about him though..." she faltered there.
Although, he did try to save me from Shigaraki...that was admirable...
That's kind of cute actually.
"..." she shook her head to clear any thoughts about Midoriya, "I-I don't...really know. He's honestly just a friend at this point..."
"...Um, okay..." Eda awkwardly shuffled in his seat, "Uh, sorry again, I-I was just...you know, curious."
Tsuyu looked at Eda with a small smile, "Hey, it's no problem. Although, if I'm being real, I don't think any normal guy would want me as a girlfriend."
"Huh?" Eda blinked, "Why's that?"
Looking at him oddly, Tsuyu answered, "Cause...I'm a frog person?"
Raising an eyebrow at the girl, Eda said to her, "Wha? That...I don't think that's a good reason."
Surprised once more, Tsuyu blinked again at that response, "You don't?"
"I mean, yeah. You said that you didn't care about looks, including mine, so...I mean if you...uh, you know, don't think I'm weird-looking because of my Quirk, then really...I don't think you're weird-looking..." he turned his face to the food on the table and mumbled, "Besides, you're selling yourself too short. You're actually pretty..."
"...I'm pretty?" Tsuyu asked, a little confused by that comment.
Eda whipped his head back at Tsuyu as his eyes widened in shock. "Huh!? W-Wait, you weren't supposed to...y-you weren't supposed to hear that!"
"...Wow...thanks, Eda..." Tsuyu looked down with a blush.
Blinking at the frog girl, Eda cleared his throat and turned back to the food on the table, meekly saying, "Uh...n-no problem..."
Tsuyu stood there with Ochako's phone in her right hand...she lifted the phone up to her face and stared at the screen, not saying anything else about what Eda said. However, she felt a little...hopeful...
So...I guess I'm...pretty? ...Does Midoriya think-
Shaking her head again to clear it, she concentrated on the task at hand.
"Um, I'll...call one of my friends," Tsuyu announced.
...But not until Tsuyu told Eda, "But thanks for saying that, Eda. I really appreciate it."
Eda turned his head to glance at Tsuyu, whose face flushed at Tsuyu's compliment, "Um...hey, it's, uh...yeah, it's definitely no problem," He turned his attention back to the table again, feeling shy all of a sudden.
Nodding at the pig man with a smile, Tsuyu then searched the phone screen on where she could find Yaoyorozu's number.
Once she found it, she selected the number and called her. Putting it up to her ear, she listened to the ring...
[Midoriya and Yaoyorozu]
Streets of Chinmoku
10 Minutes Ago
Meanwhile...Midoriya and Yaoyorozu were walking down a street in the fog at night...
Five minutes passed as they trekked their way down the road...
...Midoriya stopped his walk for a moment, sighing as he placed his hands on his knees. "Oh man, this is getting us nowhere. We don't even know where these locations are."
Yaoyorozu, who was right behind her classmate, also paused in her walk. She grasped the front of her shirt where the button once was after the monster pulled it out. Looking down in contemplation, she thought about their situation.
"Hmm...you're right," Yaoyorozu muttered, "We don't even know where to go from here. We're trying to find Iida, and you said whoever is doing this is making us go to these locations," she looked up back at Midoirya, "Did this person even give us a hint as to where Iida would be in these places?"
Standing upright again, Midoriya answered as he turned to Yaoyorozu, "Um...no, not really," he then saw that Yaoyorozu was holding onto the front of her buttoned-up shirt. "Uh...are you okay?"
Yaoyorozu looked confused but glanced down at what she was doing. Blushing at this inconvenience, Yaoyorozu stuttered, "O-Oh, uh, s-sorry, I...well, one of those monsters...um...grabbed my shirt and...pulled a button off."
...Midoriya registered what she meant by that...
"...Oh! Uh..." Now feeling a little nervous, Midoriya turned away from Yaoyorozu to hide his uneasy and blushing face, frozen in his spot. "Uh...o-okay!"
...They stood there for a moment...
...Yaoyorozu frowned in sympathy at Midoriya.
Well, I can't just keep holding my shirt like this...I can only just...
...
...Midoriya is not like...
...
...Yeah. I don't...think he's like that...
"...Uh, Y-Yaoyorozu?" Midoriya's voice rang out.
The young girl snapped her attention back at Midoriya, who still had his back facing her, not looking at her.
"...Um..." Midoriya faltered, not knowing what to say...
...Yaoyorozu sighed, letting go of her shirt.
I mean, I'm not too insecure...I opened my shirt in front of my peers before when I wanted to create something. And back at the Sports Festival, I opened up my tracksuit to do so...
"Um...Midoriya, don't...don't worry about it, okay?" Yaoyorozu reassured.
"Huh?" Midoriya turned his head slightly to Yaoyorozu.
"I mean...I shouldn't worry about it either. You see how I use my Quirk..." Yaoyorozu stated.
"Uh...o-okay...um..." Midoriya slowly and cautiously turned his whole body back to face Yaoyorozu. "I...I-I won't like...stare or anything..."
Yaoyorozu blinked, but couldn't help but smile softly in appreciation. "Thank you, Midoriya. I feel like...you won't..."
Giving her an encouraging, but awkward smile as she stared at only her face, Midoriya smiled, "Yeah! I-I won't!"
...They stood there for a while...
"...Okay, um...well, we should probably...uh, find where we're supposed to go, heh," Midoriya said with a shaky smile.
Nodding to that, Yaoyorozu said with a small smile, "Yeah...we should."
So with that, they went back to walking down their route...and finding wherever these next places would be.
As they walked, Midoriya thought about what they should do and where to find these locations...
Hmm...we need a map of some kind...
"...Hey, Yaoyorozu," Midoriya suddenly said.
Yaoyorozu, who was now next to Midoriya while they walked, glanced at him, "Huh? Yes?"
"Maybe we should recheck our phones?" Midoriya glanced at Yaoyorozu, "I mean, we didn't get to open them, and maybe our apps could still work." He got his phone out of his pocket and checked it. While the lock screen was still white, he tried to swipe the screen up...and then, his home screen came on...with just a map app in the center of the phone.
Midoriya stopped in surprise, with Yaoyorozu pausing when he stopped.
"Midoriya?" Yaoyorozu asked in question.
"...Um...Yaoyorozu, go to your phone's home screen," Midoriya told her.
"Hm?" Yaoyorozu got her phone out of her skirt pocket and checked her phone. Once she swiped up the white lock screen to unlock it, she saw a map app in the center of her home screen. Blinking at this, Yaoyorozu uttered, "Oh...uh...there's...an app on my phone?"
"..." Midoriya lifted his finger to tap the map app on his phone, and it sent him...a map of the town. However, there was a close-up circle icon on a street, where they are right now. Midoriya used his fingers to enlarge the map to see where they were. It appeared that the map didn't have any indicators of what any locations were. It was just an outline of the whole town, its buildings, and its streets. "...Okay then...this doesn't really help us find our destinations, but it's something."
Yaoyorozu also went to the map app and studied it to see where they are, there also being a circle icon for her as well on the map.
"Hmm..." Yaoyorozu hummed in thought.
But then...her phone screen changed to the call screen, startling Yaoyorozu and Midoriya.
Someone was calling...
"Huh?" Yaoyorozu looked at who was calling. "...Uraraka?"
"Huh?" Midoriya blinked, "Uraraka?"
Not wasting any time, Yaoyorozu tapped the answer icon and put her phone to her ear. "Hello? Uraraka?"
"Uh, hey. No, this is Tsuyu."
Eyes widening in shock, Yaoyorozu asked, "Tsuyu? What are you doing with Uraraka's phone?"
"Huh? Tsu?" Midoriya said in surprise.
"Um...it's a long story. Hey, Yaoyorozu, are you near Midoriya? You might want to put this call on speaker-phone."
"Uh, y-yeah, he's here. And sure thing," Yaoyorozu then tapped 'speaker phone' on her phone. "Okay, we're on speaker."
"Great. Okay, so...simply put, Ochako and I had a...misunderstanding. I really can't tell you what that is, it's, uh, private girl stuff."
Midoriya and Yaoyorozu blinked at that info.
"Either way, we're separated right now. I have her phone, and Ochako has mine. Right now, I'm at a McDonald's with a guy who's as lost as I am."
"Huh? A guy?" Yaoyorozu said in confusion, "Uh...who is this guy?"
"Oh, he's a guy named Eda. He has a Pig Quirk. I think he met you guys before," Tsuyu took a moment to address Eda, "Right, Eda?"
They can hear a faint 'U-Uh, yeah' in the background.
Upon hearing the name, Yaoyorozu and Midoriya froze.
"What?" Midoriya breathlessly said, "Wha...Ts-Tsu?"
"Oh hey, Midoriya! You're getting pretty good at calling me that!"
"...Um, Tsu, are you on...are you on speaker-phone right now?" Midoriya asked her.
"Huh? Uh...Ochako's phone doesn't have that feature on her phone, I think."
"O-Okay..." Midoriya looked at Yaoyorozu, who looked at him, a little worried. "Um...y-yeah, we...we ran into him. Eda, that is. At a convenience store."
"Really? You met him there? Oh, and yeah, he said something about a monster chasing him there! He found a gun at the checkout counter and he used it against it! In fact, I found a gun here in the cash register of this McDonald's!"
That bit of news not only got them alarmed, but slightly confused on the account that Tsuyu was saying about Eda.
Wait...the person we saw dead was a monster? Yaoyorozu thought curiously.
Another gun!? Midoriya thought. He still had his gun, the weapon safely tucked into his jeans.
"Wait, Tsuyu, you have a gun with you!?" Yaoyorozu exclaimed.
"Yeah, but no worries! I haven't used it! Oh, wait! Oh man, that's right, are you guys alright? There's something weird happening in this town!"
"Uh, yeah, w-we know!" said Midoriya, "I got a gun with me as well!"
"Huh? Really? You do?"
Yaoyorozu stayed silent for a moment as she listened while they talked to each other.
"Yeah! We...well, it's a long story, but we've been on a wild goose chase, and we're trying to find two locations as of now, them being a school and a hospital. Right now, I think we're trying to find the school," Midoriya relayed.
"Wait...did you say hospital?"
"Uh...yeah?"
"My next destination is the hospital!"
"Your...next destination?" Midoriya asked in confusion.
"Oh, well...I mean...actually, you might need to know who's behind this!"
"Huh? Who?" Midoriya asked in interest, with Yaoyorozu looking intrigued as well.
"I think...I think it might be Shigaraki! The hand villain we saw at the USJ, Midoriya!"
"Wha? Sh-Shigaraki?" Midoriya said in shock.
"I mean...maybe? I don't know for certain, but...it sounded like the guy! And he said his name, but..."
Both teens looked at each other in worry at this development.
Midoriya then said, "Well, whoever it might be, whether it is Shigaraki or Stain, we need to be careful."
"That's right," Yaoyorozu spoke up, "Tsuyu, you said you're at a McDonald's? And the guy known as Eda is there with you?"
"Yeah! I don't know where I am address-wise, so I might need to check the map a bit."
"A map?" Midoriya asked puzzled.
"Oh yeah, I got a map while...uh, it doesn't matter right now! It's too complicated to explain. Either way, I'm glad I found someone who is just as confused as I am!"
"Um, yeah...Tsuyu, you said that...Eda shot a monster?" Yaoyorozu questioned.
Midoriya looked at Yaoyorozu curiously as he thought about what Tsuyu said there.
Oh, wait...yeah...that-that was a person we saw that got shot...
"Yeah. I faced monsters around here too, some of them just...looking weird and grotesque."
"Uh...w-we've seen some monsters as well. We met Eda after he...shot one...um...Tsuyu? How much do you know about...Eda?" Yaoyorozu asked the Frog Girl on the other line.
"Huh? Well...he was eating something here. Which is strange, since there's not supposed to be any food here in this abandoned town."
Blinking at that, Yaoyorozu and Midoriya glanced at each other in confusion.
"But he's really nice." Tsuyu then whispered, "Although, he's kind of self-conscious about himself." she went back to her ordinary talking tone "Why? What happened?"
"..." The taller girl then continued to say, "Tsuyu...um...just be careful when meeting complete strangers. You don't know if they're a threat or not. D-Does he have his gun with him?"
"Um...yeah? And hey, no worries, Eda sounds like a cool guy. He used his gun out of self-defense against this monster he said that was chasing him."
"...Okay..." Yaoyorozu feels conflicted about telling Tsuyu what they really found in the convenience store but she doesn't want her to panic over it.
Midoriya then spoke up, "Uh, I-I agree, Tsu. Just...be careful meeting with new people. And, be careful with the gun you have as well."
"Hey, don't worry guys, I'll be fine! I'm training to be a Hero for a reason, ya know?
"Um...right..." Midoriya said uneasily.
"So, where are you guys right now?"
"We're...trying to figure that out," Midoriya said looking around the area.
"Oh...well, maybe you can go to a street sign and tell me where you guys are so I can find you all through the map I have?"
"Um, yeah, sure. We're on a street right now, and we haven't seen an intersection as of late, so maybe we'll call you back and tell you where we are when we find a street sign?" Midoriya suggested.
"Yeah, that would be good. And I'm going to bring the gun with me just in case after you tell me where you guys are. I also got a knife and a flashlight as well, so I think I'm all set."
"Okay then...just...watch out for any...you know, just watch out for any strange and peculiar stuff that's happening around here," Midoriya told her.
"No problem, I will! I'll see you guys soon. Tsu out."
Both teens said their farewells, with Yaoyorozu putting her phone back into her skirt pocket. She stood there for a second, until asking Midoriya, "We...We saw a person at the convenience store, right? A...A dead person...right?"
"...I think we did..." Midoriya muttered but sounded unsure.
...They were quiet as they thought...
"...I think right now we need to find a street sign," Midoriya said to break the silence.
"Uh, right," Yaoyorozu nodded.
They continued onto the foggy street...
...As they walked, Midoriya asked Yaoyorozu, "You don't think...Tsu is like...in trouble over there, do you? With, uh, that...Eda guy?"
"...I...I don't know..." Yaoyorozu said, looking contemplative.
They kept walking...
...until they met a dead end...
...a gaping...dead end...
The road in front of them...was cut off. It looked like it gave in, like the road suddenly collapsed, not making them have a way to go forward.
Blinking at this odd obstacle, both teens walked toward the gaping dead-end cliff that appeared out of nowhere on the road and in between buildings...
Midoriya walked up to the edge of the road, looked down, and saw...nothing but an endless bottom of darkness...
It was like a hole...
Looking ahead of this obstacle, Midoriya tried to see if he could spot the other side of the road, but he couldn't see the other side thanks to the fog.
"...This...isn't natural..." Midoriya decided to state the obvious.
Yaoyorozu came up to the cliff next to Midoriya, looking down at the gaping hole that was made.
"...This is...very odd," Yaoyorozu muttered, "Since when did this town have...an earthquake?"
"...I don't think an earthquake did this...I mean, we would've known in the news, right?" Midoriya asked in wonder.
"Yeah..." Yaoyorozu looked ahead at the gaping hole that stretched further in the distance.
Midoriya backed away from the cliff and stood there, thinking what to do next...
...Until little beeping noises were coming from their phones.
"Hm?" Midoriya looked down at the source in his pocket. Yaoyorozu also looked down at her phone, and they got them out to see what was on the screen.
The lock screen said...
CHECK THE MAP.
Blinking at that, both teens glanced at each other in query and glanced back at their phones to check the map app that suddenly appeared on their home screen.
The map on their phones...changed.
The map showed an 'x' in front of them where their blue circled icons were, indicating that they reached a roadblock.
There was also something else that looked new...
A red arrow behind their indicator icons was stretching downward...almost like it was directing them where to go.
They looked behind themselves, gazing at the road they went from.
"...Maybe we should...follow this path by whoever is...doing this?" Yaoyorozu asked her classmate, a little uncertain.
"...I...don't think we have a choice," Midoriya stated.
They turned around and walked back the way they came, glancing down at their phones every once in a while to see where this path would lead them...
Back to Tsuyu
Tsuyu hung up Ochako's flip phone, pocketing it in her right pocket. Getting the map out of her left back shorts pocket, she opened it and looked at its contents.
Hmm...a school and a hospital? I'm said to go to a hospital, but I need to regroup back with Midoriya and Yaoyorozu...as well as Ochako...
"Uh, hey..." said Eda's voice.
"Hm?" Tsuyu looked up at Eda, who was still sitting in the booth seat, looking...nervous? "Yeah, Eda?"
"...Was that...uh, was that your friends, Yaoyorozu and Midoriya?" he asked a little uneasily.
"Oh, yeah, that's them," Tsuyu said with a nod.
"...They didn't...say anything...bad about me, did they?" Eda asked her.
Raising a confused eyebrow, Tsuyu said, "What? No, they wouldn't do that. I mean, I know them a little bit, but I don't think Yaoyorozu and even Midoriya would make fun of people."
"...Oh...u-uh, okay..." Eda looked down at the food at the table, "...S-Sorry, I'm...kind of..." he turned his head to Tsuyu, "Well, I heard you whispering, and yeah, I am a little self-conscious."
Eyes widened at that, Tsuyu said, "Oh! I mean, well, I...I didn't mean it bad or anything."
"I-I know, I was...kind of agreeing with you," Eda said with a hand behind his neck as he rubbed it.
Tsuyu frowned, "Hey, don't worry about what other people say. That's their problem if they-"
...Tsuyu spots something to her left outside of the long window of the restaurant...
...No...it was someone...and they were walking by the McDonalds...
The night fog was obscuring the person that was walking...
"...if...they..." Tsuyu looked to her left a bit and her eyes followed that person.
The person...the outline looked like a girl...she may be around Tsuyu's age...
She had brown hair that was stylized into two large broom-like pigtails...
Her eyes widened when she recognized those pigtails...
"...if..." Tsuyu's sentence trailed off.
Eda, seeing Tsuyu's expression and where she was looking, turned her body to the left to see where her gaze was.
"...Uh, Tsu?" Eda turned back to her in confusion.
"...I-I'm sorry, Eda, I..." Tsuyu then grabbed the gun and the flashlight, climbed the counter, and jumped off of it, landing on the floor.
"Huh?" Eda blinked puzzled.
"I-I'm sorry, I-I think I need to go. I mean, I'll-I'll be back!" Tsuyu said as she made her way out of the McDonald's.
"Huh!? Wha? Hey, uh, Ts-Tsu!" Eda called out to her.
But Tsuyu ran out of the restaurant, through the doors and out into the foggy street to find this girl...
She brought the gun with her just in case...there could be more monsters...
...And if she saw who she thinks she saw...
...Then she has to protect her...
...and tell her...
...Tsuyu ran through the fog, trying to find where that girl was...
She ran...
...until she found a silhouette of the girl.
There!
But then, the girl turned to an alleyway...
The Frog Girl followed that person's lead as she came up to the alleyway.
Tsuyu ran through the alley...the fog wasn't as present.
At the end of the alley, she saw the same figure take a left turn, probably running like Tsuyu is now.
She turned on her flashlight just in case so she could see if it was really...
She followed her and took a left at the alleyway.
She went straight...soon there was a right turn...she took it...
She went straight once more...she kept going, and there was a left turn...she went left.
She kept going...going...going further down the alley...
...All she could hear...are her footsteps...as well as another pair of footsteps.
...Straight through the alleyway she goes...
...There was a right turn.
She took it and kept running...
...until she was out of the alleyway.
As soon as she got out, Tsuyu flashed her light around wherever she was.
Flashing her light forward, she sees an outline of...a particularly large building.
...Tsuyu walked cautiously forward.
As she got closer, there was a sign in front of the building.
It read...
BURUKEN HOSPITAL
...It was the place where she needed to go.
She heard a heavy door opening and closing by itself with a slam.
Startled, Tsuyu went around the sign and ran to the front of the hospital.
Soon, the fog was clear as she went up the steps and came up to the front entrance.
As soon as she came up to the doors, she paused...
...That couldn't be...
...Then, Ochako's airy ringtone on her phone rang.
Once again startled, Tsuyu placed her gun down on the ground and got the phone out of her pocket. She answered it and instantly asked the question:
"What's going on here!?" Tsuyu exclaimed to Shigaraki, "Who is doing this? There's no way you can somehow-"
"GO IN."
Tsuyu gasped.
...This...didn't sound like Shigaraki...
"HERE'S A LITTLE SOMETHING YOU SHOULD KNOW. YOUR BROTHER AND SISTER ARE NOT HERE. THEY WERE NEVER HERE."
"...What?"
"IT'S ALL SET UP FOR YOU TO FACE THE TRUTH. NOW YOU HAVE TO GO IN...GO IN AND FACE HER."
"...You're...You're not Shigaraki..."
"CORRECT. DECIDED TO DROP THE CHARADE NOW THAT YOU'RE NEAR YOUR DESTINATION. I ONLY TRICKED YOU BECAUSE THAT WAS THE ONLY WAY FOR YOU TO GET GOING."
"...Going...going for what?"
"...YOU KNOW WHAT."
And that's when Tsuyu snapped.
"NO! NO, I DON'T! YOU LIED ABOUT MY BROTHER AND SISTER BEING HERE, YOU TRICKED MY FRIEND INTO THINKING I LIKED A GUY SHE LIKES, AND YOU'RE SENDING ME ON SOME SCAVENGER HUNT! I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU MEAN, SO WHAT DO YOU MEAN I FREAKING KNOW!?"
...
"...WELL!?"
"...WATCH OUT. THE ONLY YOU IS YOU...BUT ARE YOU SURE YOU'RE THE ONLY YOU?"
And then, the person hung up.
...Tsuyu let her arm drop helplessly to her side with the phone in her hand.
"...What is...going on?" Tsuyu asked herself in a breathless whisper.
How...How is...How is Mosa involved?
...
...She...She can't be here...
...She...
...
...She died.
Okay! That's it for this chapter! Got this out before the month ended! :)
Sorry it's so short, I was kind of beating the clock a bit. And I know I said we were going to go back to Ochako, Kyouka, Shoto, and Iida in the last chapter, but again, I don't think I can write that when it's close to the end of the month here. XP
But yeah, tell me if you're interested in what's happening! :D I love to hear feedback! I know nothing is happening too much as of right now, but do stick around! I think I got a layout of what to do in the story and what locations should be used here. :)
Until then, give me a review, follow, and a fave! I love them all! :D
Thank you all for reading and keep on rocking everybody! :)
-TSP