My Hero Academia: Lion of Courage
Chapter 17: Recovery and Failure
Disclaimer: I do not own My Hero Academia. All rights go to Kohei Horikoshi.
Victory was all but assured when the U.A. Teachers arrived. The remaining villains were no match for U.A.'s veteran Pro Heroes, taking them down easily while securing the safety of the students and the injured teachers. The attack on the USJ had been a complete failure on the part of the villains, forcing Shigaraki, Bloodmoon, Kurogiri and Talos to retreat and leaving the goons behind to fend for themselves. Shortly after, ambulances and police arrived on the scene to take care of the injured and arrest the criminals.
As Bakugo was helped to the ambulances by Kirishima, much to his annoyance, he grumbled to himself about how he had failed to defeat Talos. He had been unable to determine how his Quirk worked, but however it did, it clearly worked well against him. Within mere minutes, Talos had defeated him and Kirishima and then moved onto his next target. His classmates would undoubtedly say he should just focus on recovering, but he couldn't, not when his pride had been smashed to pieces. He easily took down street thugs, but when he went up against a veteran villain, he was beaten.
First, he lost to Deku, someone he considered a worthless insect he could crush beneath his foot. Somehow, he had gotten a Quirk and had beaten him in the Combat Training, leaving him unsure and confused. Then as he watched the other matches unfold, he was forced to face the reality that he was no longer top dog; everyone was just as strong or stronger than he was. So he had resolved to grow stronger and prove himself the best while also trying to figure out how his lifelong enemy got his Quirk.
Now, he had lost to Talos. With this loss, Bakugo was left unable to believe that he was as strong as he wanted to believe he was. If he was as strong as he wanted to believe, he would've mopped the floor with Talos. But he wasn't about to take this lying down; it wasn't in his nature to back down from a challenge. Instead, it strengthened his resolve to become stronger and prove himself the best in Class 1-A.
But something else was on Bakugo's mind: Talos knew how to counter his Explosion Quirk, knowing that he struggled to secrete nitroglycerin when he was in colder temperatures. How did he know that? Was he able to determine that on his own...or did someone tip him off? Unfortunately, it was only a suspicion and he lacked solid proof about how Talos could've known to counter his Quirk. For now, he had nothing to go on...and reluctantly got into the ambulance.
Todoroki, Ashido, Eraser Head and Thirteen were also placed in ambulances while Kirishima and Razor Shell opted to walk back, Kirishima due to his injury being limited to his hand that was touched by Shigaraki and Razor Shell due to claiming his injuries weren't terrible thanks to his dermal armor. While everyone who was injured went to U.A. to be treated, the rest of the students were accounted for to make sure no one had been abducted or killed. Much to everyone's relief, none of the students were killed, though they did find the remains of the villains killed by Talos and Bloodmoon.
Everyone in Class 1-A kept asking about how their classmates would recover, but the answer remained the same: until they were taken to Recovery Girl and Sunhealer, they wouldn't know how bad their injuries were. They were most fearful for Todoroki and Ashido since Todoroki was beaten to unconsciousness and Ashido had lost a lot of blood from Bloodmoon's wound.
"This was clearly not a well-thought out plan," Iida commented. "Their numbers were numerous, but only a few of them were a true threat."
"They underestimated us," Yukine replied. "They must've done so because we're students."
"What short-sightedness," Tokoyami commented. "To underestimate your opponent due to their age…this plan was doomed to fail from the start."
While everyone else discussed how the attack went, ignoring Aoyama asking them where he was, Raionhato looked out at the ambulances driving towards the main U.A. building. He hoped his classmates and the teachers would be okay, especially Todoroki and Ashido as they seemed to have gotten the worst injuries.
"You okay?" Ojiro asked Raionhato.
"I'm fine," he assured with a smile. "Where were you transported to?"
"The Conflagration Zone," Ojiro answered. "I was there by myself so I had to rely on hit-and-run tactics. Luckily, Open Palm came in the nick of time to help me. I've never seen martial arts skills before."
Though the circumstances weren't ideal, Ojiro was happy to have seen firsthand Open Palm's fighting skills, knowing he could keep up with All Might in his prime. He took out so many villains like it was nothing, barely breaking a sweat as he defeated them one by one. Even blind, he was a powerful martial arts master, one someone would want as an ally and dread as an enemy.
"Guyssss!" Nagami called out to Raionhato and Ojiro, slithering over to them with Sato beside her. She then hugged them both tenderly and tightly, making sure not to hurt them.
"Hey, Kiyama," Raionhato replied. "You alright?"
"I'm fine," she assured. "What happened to you two? After that black fog appeared, you jusssssst disssssappeared."
"I was in the Conflagration Zone," Ojiro repeated to her. "I was on my own, so I had to use hit-and-run tactics. Where were you, Raionhato?"
"The Mountain Zone," Raionhato answered. He then explained how things proceeded for him, from him, Ashido and Zankoku fighting off over several dozen villains to meeting up with Yaoyorozu and their fight with Bloodmoon. As he described how the werewolf behaved and fought, Ojiro, Kiyama and Sato were disturbed by what they heard, especially his cannibalism.
"Ugh," Sato groaned. "That's disgusting."
"You're telling me," Raionhato replied.
Kiyama's scowl was at first one of disgust, but then remembering who he was, she smiled deviously as she saw Yaoyorozu talking with Jiro and Hagakure. She decided to slither away from her male friends to Yaoyorozu.
"Hey, Yaoyorozzzzzu," she greeted.
"Hello, Kiyama," Yaoyorozu responded politely. "I hope you're well."
"I am," she answered. "Ssssso, Raionhato told me he helped you againsssssst that Bloodmoon guy. He said he was rather…disturbing."
"That's an understatement," Jiro responded. "That guy acted more like an animal than a person."
"I do not doubt that, basssssed on what Raionhato sssssaid," Kiyama replied. "But I'm glad you're okay; let'ssssss jussssst hope Assssshido will recover, along with our classsssmatessss-" She shook her head in annoyance.
"Sssssstupid lisssssp!" she groaned in frustration.
"It's okay," Yaoyorozu assured, placing her reassuring hand on Kiyama's shoulder.
Despite her reassuring smile and gesture, Momo Yaoyorozu kept thinking back on the attack, focusing on her mistakes. She felt that she had let her guard down, allowing an electricity-type villain to take Kaminari hostage and might've killed him had Raionhato not intervened. Then she felt her inability to quickly come up with a proper plan nearly got Ashido killed and almost fell into a panic after Hagakure was captured, only breaking out of it when Raionhato helped reassure her.
Sensing Momo's negative feelings, Kiyama returned the gesture of kindness and hugged her.
"Raionhato said you did great today," she spoke softly to assure Yaoyorozu.
"Thank you, Kiyama," Yaoyorozu replied.
Yukine's mind was heavy with what the smoke villain, Haiiro Enmaku, had told her. She couldn't get it out of her head of what he had said about her family being responsible for the downfall of his. Would her family truly stop at nothing to secure their power over Hokkaido, even if it meant destroying the lives of others?
Then again, she shouldn't be surprised, not after what they did to her younger sister, Kori. To them, she was a disappointment, a mistake, an embarrassment to the Kuraokami name. Their mistreatment of her became so bad that she ultimately ran away and never returned home, despite being no older than six. To twist the knife, her parents didn't bother looking for her.
"I'm sorry, Kori," she silently apologized. She then caught sight of Enmaku being pulled away in cuffs along with all the remaining villains. He didn't see her, but she could see the hate in his eyes, the same hate that drove him to try and kill her. But despite that vicious anger, all she could see when she looked at him was a tragic victim of her family's selfishness. Hopefully, she'd get the chance to talk to him later.
"Koda, please don't feel bad," Tokoyami assured the Anivoice Quirk user, which Yukine overheard. He responded to Tokoyami with hand gestures that Yukine didn't understand, but clearly, Tokoyami did.
"We all have our strengths and weaknesses, Koda," Tokoyami replied. "If we had been in complete darkness, I would've been a threat to you all."
"Koda," Yukine spoke, walking over to them. "Thanks…for saving me from Enmaku. You did great." That was enough to make Koda reluctantly smile, knowing he had helped his classmate. Yukine smiled back and patted his shoulder.
After the students had been taken back to U.A., Nezu had gathered all the teachers for a press conference, excluding Recovery Girl as she was busy healing those injured in the USJ Attack. The police, led by Detective Tsukauchi, had arrested the villains, numbering around 87…but also had to collect the blown up and mauled remains of those killed by Talos and Bloodmoon.
"How could this have happened?" Sunstorm questioned. "We have security cameras and patrols all over U.A. How could the villains have gotten into the USJ?"
"According to the students, they used a Warp Gate," Open Palm answered.
"A Warp Gate?" Sunstorm gasped. "That's a very rare Quirk and if the attackers do have a Warp Gate Quirk user on their side, then this could be repeated."
"I'm already planning for changes to our security to prevent this kind of incident from happening again," Nezu informed. "But we're going to have a mess on our hands and a big one at that."
Word of this would soon get out to the public and U.A.'s management would come into question. The media would look for any kind of info to create potential controversy towards Pro Heroes and this would be a juicy one, especially if they found out four students and three teachers were injured during the attack. Unfortunately, it was very likely they would since Shoto Todoroki, the son of Endeavor, was injured and left unconscious in the aftermath of the attack.
"Endeavor's not going to be happy when he hears about this," All Might brought up.
Sunstorm's lip curled into a frown and his stomach felt as though it was filled with disgusting bugs. He couldn't hide his immense contempt for the Flame Hero from his fellow teachers, his face twisted with hate and disdain.
"Well, better make sure Sunstorm's not in the room if Endeavor comes," Open Palm joked, sensing the overwhelming anger from the sun-powered Pro Hero. "But luckily, we now know who was responsible for destroying the U.A. Barrier. Tomura Shigaraki."
Based on what they found out from those at the USJ, Shigaraki's Quirk allowed him to disintegrate whatever he touched, just as he did to Eraser Head's elbow and Kirishima's fist. And as feared, he wasn't alone. He had at his side someone who could use a Warp Gate Quirk, allowing him to transport dozens of street thugs into the USJ without detection. Along with that were a robot named Talos, who could create weapon-like machinery from his body and a cannibalistic werewolf named Bloodmoon.
"I've already spoken with Detective Tsukauchi," Nezu spoke. "Talos and Shigaraki are unknown in their databases, but Bloodmoon is someone they're familiar with. He's more animal than human and an extremely dangerous individual, acting on nothing but feral instincts and engaging in cannibalism."
"Thank goodness none of our students fell victim to that animal," Ectoplasm responded.
"But do we do now?" Sunstorm questioned. "We cannot just sit on our hands, not after today. And needless to say, those students may need therapeutic aid, especially those who fought or ran into Bloodmoon."
"Hound Dog is already preparing to hold therapy sessions," Open Palm answered. "But what will we do in the meantime, Principal Nezu? I have to agree with Sunstorm; we can't afford to be passive on the matter, not after a direct attack on U.A."
All the teachers present agreed with Open Palm and Sunstorm. Four students and three of their fellow teachers had been injured, especially Todoroki, Ashido and Aizawa. Unlike before, they had to become proactive now that this Tomura Shigaraki had invaded the USJ with the intent to kill All Might, regardless of how many lives were lost.
"We won't," Nezu informed. "We'll act on what we know so far and then decide proper measures from there." He then turned to All Might.
"All Might, you ran into their leader, this Tomura Shigaraki. What make you of him?"
"He's not the brains," All Might replied. "He behaved like a spoiled child and getting angry when things didn't go according to plan while speaking as though it were a game. This plan of his…it was rash, reckless and poorly thought out. If he's the brains behind the team, then we should have no problem capturing him soon." All Might then smiled.
"But I must say…I was impressed with Class 1-A today. They proved themselves brave, strong, and able to work well together. I believe they will make great heroes one day."
"Ever the optimist, All Might," Open Palm spoke with a smile. "But for now, let's focus on making sure they're okay….and preparing for some calls from very angry parents."
"Oh, goodness!" Himari gasped when all of the injured from the USJ were brought to the U.A. Infirmary. Luckily, the medical staff who arrived on the scene offered their help to heal those who were hurt.
"Thank you all," Recovery Girl replied with great gratitude. "Now let us get to work!"
As soon as Recovery Girl said that, the medical staff quickly got to checking the injuries on the students and teachers brought from the USJ. Todoroki, Ashido and Aizawa were the ones Sunhealer and Recovery Girl focused on the most due to them having the more life-threatening injuries. But Himari Kataiya was left wondering where her adoptive father, Razor Shell, was since she heard he was among the injured.
"Where's Dad…Razor Shell?" she questioned the medical staff. "And the fourth student?"
"He said his injuries weren't that bad due to his dermal armor, so he's walking with Kirishima back to U.A.," one of the medical staff informed. "As for Kirishima, he insisted on walking since-"
"I won't have it!" Sunhealer snapped, a complete contrast to her usual shy and meek side. "I read the reports and their injuries need to be looked at and treated! Prepare two more beds for them!"
She couldn't believe that Razor Shell and Kirishima decided not to go in ambulances due to deeming their injuries not as bad. According to the medical reports, Razor Shell had been beaten bloody by a foe All Might had defeated and Kirishima's right hand had skin decayed, leaving it bare and torn. Their injuries needed to be checked as soon as possible or else the damage could be worse than before.
"Sunhealer!" Recovery Girl addressed. "I need you on Todoroki. We'll need to give him medication and potentially do surgery on him."
"Yes, ma'am!" Himari obeyed and quickly went to Todoroki.
On the medical report, his injuries were quite numerous: broken right arm and right leg, terrible head trauma from excessive blunt force, potential internal bleeding in his head…from the looks of it, surgery would probably have to be performed on him. Whoever fought Todoroki had done a serious number on him, leaving him at death's door if he didn't receive the medical attention he needed.
Healing his broken limbs was easy; Himari Kataiya held her hands over Todoroki's right arm first and used her Quirk to start healing the broken bones. Since it was very sunny outside, Kataiya's Quirk was well-powered and healed the broken limb in a short time, followed by healing his broken leg. As for his head injury, she felt her Healing Light Quirk would at the least stabilize him, but he'd probably still need surgery if there was internal bleeding.
She placed both of her hands on Todoroki's face and then activated her Quirk, healing his bloodied and battered face. When she was done, she took a sanitized towel and gently wiped the dried blood from his face, then threw it away.
"Alright, let's check for internal bleeding now that I've used my Quirk," Himari spoke as she grabbed a nearby device resembling an ultraviolet baton connected to a small monitor and held it close to Todoroki's head. She scanned for internal bleeding, but the result came up negative, meaning either her Quirk had healed it or he didn't have it in the first place.
"There's no internal bleeding, Recovery Girl," Kataiya addressed. "Todoroki won't need surgery, I believe."
"That's good to know," Recovery Girl replied as she cleaned up Ashido's wounds in her torso and stitched them up. The elderly U.A. nurse wondered who or what did this to Ashido, her wounds resembling like she had been bitten down on. Luckily, her internal organs were fine and her bones had received minimal damage, allowing the nurse to heal them easily.
The door opened to the infirmary opened and Razor Shell and Kirishima walked in. As soon as Himari saw their injuries, her scowl soured as she marched over to them and pulled on their arms, taking them to the medical beds set up for them. They didn't even get a chance to explain before she sternly gestured for them to sit down so she could examine their injuries.
"What were you two thinking?" she scolded.
"Himari-" Razor Shell tried to talk, but she held up her hand and refused to let him continue.
"These injuries could be worse than you think! Razor Shell, your dermal armor doesn't make you invincible…and I'd say your injuries look as bad as the report said. And you, Kirishima; just because you're training to become a Pro doesn't mean you should neglect your own well-being. When you are injured, you need to be checked on immediately because there might be underlying symptoms! Now hold still!"
Himari then held up Kirishima's hand, most of the skin gone and the edges cracked like dry, broken soil. The doctor-in-training held her free hand above Kirishima's, then activated her Quirk to start healing him. Though his right hand healed up nicely, it still left a scar where Shigaraki had decayed Kirishima's fist.
As for Razor Shell, his dermal armor had prevented any internal damage despite his brutal beating by the Nomu. While he wasn't wrong that his Quirk had prevented his injuries from being too severe, he was still in need of medical attention, which Himari saw to immediately.
"Grrrr…." Tomura growled in frustration after Kurogiri teleported him, Talos and Bloodmoon to their hideout bar. There, they were greeted by Seika Shigaraki looking with a smug grin, having expected the plan to fail.
"So…we lost all our goons, we lost Nomu, All Might is still alive and your plan was a failure…correct?" she questioned, much to Tomura's frustration.
"Our information only said that All Might and Thirteen would be there," Talos informed. "We didn't expect Eraser Head and Razor Shell as well. Things quickly became complicated from there."
"Don't sugarcoat it," Seika demanded, dropping her smug grin. "That plan was doomed to fail from the start. If my dear brother, Tomura, hadn't destroyed the U.A. barrier out of spite, then maybe U.A. wouldn't have sent more teachers or even better, if you had waited like I suggested-"
"It was a perfect opportunity," Tomura interrupted. "But the students…they beat the underlings so easily."
Seika facepalmed and shook her head in annoyance. As she stated, they were HERO COURSE students, students training to become Pro Heroes. They had been training all their lives to enter U.A.'s Hero Course, so while they wouldn't be veterans, they would have at least some kind of expertise using their Quirks. There was no way a bunch of street thugs without proper combat experience stood a chance against students who learned to use their Quirks.
"Not to mention, I didn't get to eat Bakugo or Todoroki," Bloodmoon snarled.
"Perhaps if you had focused on the task at hand, you would've," Talos responded. "Instead, you chose to attack a group of students, one of which had a Quirk extremely effective against you. And eating those who agreed to help us won't encourage others to join us."
"I was hungry," Bloodmoon sadistically responded, bearing his blood-soaked and flesh-ridden fangs. "Besides, even if we did succeed, we wouldn't have had the means to pay those who demanded money. Hate to let such tender meat go to waste; if anything, I did you a favor."
"Enough," a voice calmly spoke from a TV monitor reading 'Sound Only' in purple.
"Master," Tomura, Seika, Talos and Kurogiri acknowledged. Bloodmoon was the only one who didn't respond, instead tilting his head in confusion.
"Is this the head of your pack?" he questioned.
"I am," the voice replied. "Seika, you shouldn't be so hard on Tomura. How can he grow and learn if he's constantly being put down by his own sister?"
"Master," Seika Shigaraki addressed. "I warned Tomura that this plan would be rash and reckless, but he wouldn't listen to me."
"We underestimated them," the voice answered. "But that does not mean we should give up. It just means we'll have to do better next time. Mistakes give you the chance to learn so you can improve yourself. You should understand that, Seika." Seika paused and then bowed her head in acknowledgment.
"I understand, Master. However, we will need to shore up our numbers…and this time, I'll handle it. We need trained fighters, not street trash." A slight chuckle came from the voice on the screen.
"My dear Seika, even street trash have their uses. I'd recommend you change that belief of yours; even the lowliest can be of use to us. Let the heroes enjoy their temporary victory…I do underline 'temporary'."
None of the villains present understood what the leader had in mind, but whatever it was, he seemed very confident that it would work in the long run despite the recent failure of the USJ Attack. Bloodmoon was unsure of what to expect from the unseen leader of the League of Villains, but the rest of them intended on following whatever plan he had in mind.
"Excuse me, everyone," Iida addressed his classmates alongside Yaoyorozu in the 1-A Homeroom, having just returned from the infirmary. He stood at the podium with a paper, most likely a list of things he wanted to go over.
"I know many of you are worried about our classmates and the teachers who were injured during the attack, so as Class Representative and Vice President, Yaoyorozu and I went down to know how they're recovering." He then took a deep breath.
"Kirishima and Razor Shell are walking with minimal injuries and will be released from the infirmary today. Bakugo is also healing up well and will likely be released tomorrow. As for Todoroki and Ashido, they're expected to be unconscious for several days, but are receiving the treatment they require. Mr. Aizawa and Thirteen are stabilizing and are expected to recover, though they won't be returning for a while."
The students of Class 1-A were somewhat relieved that none of those injured had died, but would remain unconscious. Raionhato, having seen the states Todoroki and Ashido were in, quietly gave thanks to God for keeping his classmates and the teachers alive.
"Second item, Principal Nezu would like each of us to see Hound Dog at scheduled times to provide therapy and ensure none of us have any lasting psychological damage," Iida continued. "Though this is optional, I insist you do not disregard the chance to talk to Hound Dog as he is a trained therapist. I myself will speak to Hound Dog and I hope you choose to do the same for your sake and for the sake of everyone else here."
Some of the students were hesitant about going to therapy while others were thankful for the opportunity. Some of the students had watched their teachers be beaten bloody, saw Bloodmoon devour human flesh, were nearly killed themselves or were feeling guilt for perceived inability to do anything while the lives of their classmates were at risk.
Raionhato looked at Yaoyorozu, wondering how she felt in the wake of the event. When she saw him looking at her, she smiled, a gesture which Takeo reciprocated. However, having seen her nearly fall into an indecisive panic had left him worried, though he hadn't had the opportunity to ask her if she was okay.
"Third item," Iida continued. "Besides our scheduled sessions with Hound Dog, U.A. will be closed for the next week. Principal Nezu has asked that we not share any details about the attack with the public. He fears doing so while an investigation is going on will lead to misunderstanding and confusion between U.A. and the public. But please do not neglect your studying or training during this week: the Sports Festival is a month away and, despite this attack, the event must go on."
"What about our classmates who were injured?" Raionhato asked. "Will they be able to participate?"
"Recovery Girl will check them several times before the event to ensure they're in good shape," Yaoyorozu answered. "If our teachers fear that the recovering students haven't recovered enough, they'll be pulled from the Festival."
"Talk about tough luck," Zankoku spoke. "The big event to show yourself to Pro Heroes and they may have to miss it."
"Let's just hope they recover soon," Raionhato spoke up. "That's all that matters right now."
After Iida had concluded what he wanted to address with his classmates, the bell rang and the students packed up to leave. Raionhato hoped to talk to Yaoyorozu and see if she was okay, but in the mass of students leaving, he lost her in the crowd. He sighed and hoped Yaoyorozu would be fine before making his way out of school.
"Takeo!" Satoshi called out as he ran up to him.
"Hey, Satoshi," he greeted.
"I heard about what happened," Satoshi brought up. "You alright?"
"I'm fine," Takeo assured. "I just hope everyone else is as well, including those who were injured."
"Once word gets out, the media's going to have a field day," Satoshi spoke as they started walking. "Many media outlets just wait for the opportunity to make U.A. look incompetent."
"Of course they will," Takeo groaned.
Sooner or later, the public would know about the USJ Attack and, as Satoshi said, several media outlets will do whatever they can to trash U.A.'s leadership. As the most sought after Hero School in Japan, U.A. was prone to being attacked by the media time and time again, but most times, it was just nonsense used to cause trouble. They'd look for any reason to cause controversy, from Midnight being allowed as a teacher to how U.A. being accused of showing favoritism towards those with flashy Quirks.
But the USJ Attack, an incident where villains managed to get onto U.A. Property and injure four students and three teachers, was the opportunity of a lifetime for the media. Some would try to defend U.A. and rightly pin the blame on the villains while others would accuse U.A.'s management of being weak and incompetent.
"Well, whatever happens, U.A. is going to have a mess to deal with," Raionhato spoke. "Let's just head home; it's been a long day."
"No kidding," Satoshi replied.
Sunhealer and Recovery Girl worked all day to attend to the injuries of the students and teachers. Kirishima and Razor Shell were able to leave the infirmary, but the rest were required to stay, Bakugo so they could monitor his injuries and the others due to unconsciousness.
"Take care, you two," Himari told Kirishima and Razor Shell after they were cleared to leave the infirmary. "Come back if there are any side effects."
"We will," Kirishima assured. He then turned to Bakugo and hoped him a speedy recovery, but Bakugo simply gave out a small huff.
"A-are you okay, Bakugo?" Kataiya asked the Explosion Quirk user timidly. "C-can I get you something to eat or drink?"
"Don't baby me!" Bakugo rebuffed. "I can get it myself when I leave! But why can't I leave now? My arm's feeling fine!" Kataiya slowly backed away from Bakugo's small outburst.
"We just need you to stay until t-tomorrow as a precaution. You were injured rather badly, Bakugo-"
"You already used your Quirks on me, didn't you?" Bakugo interrupted. "My arm's feeling-ugh!" As he moved his arm, he suddenly felt a sharp pain where Talos had broken his limb. To his annoyance, his arm still needed time to heal.
"Bakugo, please calm down and take time to rest-"
"Don't you tell me what to do!" Bakugo barked angrily, causing Himari to back away from him quickly.
"Bakugo!" Recovery Girl snapped at him with an annoyed scowl. "There is no need for such rudeness towards Sunhealer! She has helped me all day tend to your injuries! The least you can do is show some gratitude and not behave so angrily towards her when all she wants to do is help you! You better watch that temper of yours, young man, or you won't be here at U.A. for long."
Bakugo groaned and slouched back onto his bed. He wanted to tell Recovery Girl to back off, but Eraser Head had made it clear what would happen if he continued to show disrespectful behavior to his teachers. This was a complete contrast to his time at Aldera Junior High, where he was treated as their pride and joy, regardless of how badly he acted. While he thought of it as a garbage school, he enjoyed being their top student and bragging about how great he was. He could destroy property, bully and attack people, even outright tell Midoriya to kill himself and no one would care or dare to challenge him.
Now that he was in U.A., he and Midoriya had switched positions. Midoriya was a punching bag, a liability, a nobody at Aldera Junior High. His classmates bullied and harassed him, his teachers openly doubted him and treated him as a joke, and viewed by everyone as a failure. Now he was one of Class 1-A's most popular students and viewed as a great role model for the other students. Bakugo, on the other hand, was always praised by his teachers and always turned a blind eye to his misbehavior, his classmates either feared him or praised him and was seen as a natural winner. Now he was disdained by his classmates for his poor behavior, something he blamed Midoriya for.
"This is all Deku's fault," he growled under his breath. "I was supposed to be the only one from Aldera to join U.A. But then he got that damn Quirk...he didn't deserve that praise, I did! He doesn't deserve to be here, I do! But ever since he's come here, he's taken everything that was important to me! The damn nerd always did look down on me!"
"Stop mumbling under your breath," Recovery Girl spoke with an annoyed tone. "Now...Sunhealer?"
Himari looked outside and saw that the sun was starting to set. Her eyes widened in horror at the thought of nighttime. She quickly checked to make sure all the injured were stabilized and received the necessary treatment before packing up her belongings, including a lantern and made for the exit.
"Sorry, ma'am, but I have to go!" she apologized before running out to go home.
"What was that all about?" Bakugo asked, confused by what just happened. Recovery Girl, on the other hand, sighed in sympathy for her apprentice.
"I really wish she'd see Hound Dog about this," Recovery Girl said as she filled out the medical reports.
"Find that escapee!" the police officer told his comrades as they looked for the escaped villain, Smokescreen…or Haiiro Enmaku. While being taken to jail for questioning, Enmaku activated his Quirk, which gave him the chance to escape and run from the cops. This chase had lasted to the point where it was already nighttime.
To avoid the cops, Enmaku had avoided using his Quirk so as to not draw attention to himself. The police and Pro Heroes pursuing him were undoubtedly informed about how his Quirk worked, so he had to rely on his wits and smarts to avoid getting caught.
But this wasn't new to him, unfortunately. Ever since his family collapsed, he had lived on the run, branded an evil man after his family was destroyed by claims of corruption. He knew the claims by the Kuraokamis were false and had done so only to keep their power at the expense of the Enmakus. This would cause him to go down a villainous path, fueled by his desire for vengeance against the Kuraokami family for destroying everything he loved.
But for now, his only job was to elude his pursuers…unaware that another was starting to pursue him.
Enmaku knew a district where he could lose them, but it was several miles away and he didn't know how they were continuing to pursue him. He didn't have time to waste; he had to get to the district where he could take a train to the Kamino Prefecture. If he got there, he'd be home free.
But as he started to move, he couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching him. He looked around to see if someone was indeed following him, but saw no one. He couldn't afford to use his Quirk to hide himself or else he'd give away his position to Law Enforcement, which made it all the more difficult for him if someone else was indeed following him.
He had to stay in the alleyways and away from the streets where the police were looking for him, which also meant he was isolated, vulnerable and on his own. Again, he felt a presence nearby, but couldn't see anyone, though he did manage to catch a quiet sinister chuckle. By now, Enmaku's heart was starting to pound with terror, so much so that he almost felt like he'd rather be caught by the police than continue being around whoever was following him.
"Okay, the train station's only a few miles away," Enmaku told himself. "I have to get there and get onto a train heading for Kamino. If I get there-"
Again, he heard the quiet chuckle, but didn't see anyone. Whoever was following him wouldn't show themselves, making Enmaku slowly start to panic. He was almost tempted to go near the streets and risk being caught by the police rather than remain with his stalker. He moved at a fast pace to make sure he could get to the train station.
For a third time, he heard the sinister chuckle and finally, terror caused him to toss reasoning to the wind and sprinted in a frenzy. He didn't care about how much noise he created as he ran from the dark presence, all he cared about was making sure to get away to safety. Even though his legs were aching and his heart felt like it could run out of his chest, he continued to run, fueled by pure terror. All that mattered was reaching the train station and getting to the Kamino Prefecture.
"There it is!" Enmaku gasped when the train station came into view. "I need to-AAHH!"
He yelled in pain after feeling a blast of what felt like burning ice on his torso, so cold it burned. He looked down on where he had been hit and to his horror, it looked as though all his skin had been burned off. His fear only worsened when he heard a sinister laugh from above; reluctantly he looked up…and saw a female figure surrounded in what appeared to be burning white ice
Her hair was black as the night without the light of the moon or the stars. Her eyes were a blood red color, filled with malice, sadism and bloodlust. Her lips were curved into a smile, her teeth bared with joy.
"Holy shit…" Enmaku gasped after realizing who he had run into.
"Hello," Nightshade greeted as she leapt down onto the ground near Enmaku. Before he could respond, she used her Quirk on his leg. Enmaku screamed in agony as Nightshade used her Quirk to sever his leg from his body with her burning ice. Just when he thought he had seen the worst, Nightshade dipped two of her fingers into the pool of blood seeping from his leg like cookie dough and licked them.
"What the hell are you!?" Enmaku screamed in horror. Nightshade simply smiled at him, blood dripping her lips that she licked up with her tongue.
"Delicious," she spoke. "I want more…more blood…and more screaming."
In pure panic, Enmaku activated his Quirk and released a thick fog of smoke so he could escape by crawling. He hoped Nightshade would lose him in the smoke, but instead, she jumped out and landed on him. She grabbed the back of his head with her hand coated in burning ice and smiled sadistically.
"Let's have some fun," she spoke.
"AAAAAHHHHH!"
Author's Note: Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Remember, if you have any criticism or ideas to share, leave a review or message me! Keep reading and writing, my fellow writers!