Written by Aduubo, Buckichamp, and PikachuSpartan.
I OWN NOTHING. KILL LA KILL IS OWNED BY STUDIO TRIGGER AND KAZUKI NAKASHIMA. MHA IS OWNED BY TOHO ANIMATION AND KOHEI HORIKOSHI.
—
"Hold on… MAKO?!" Ryuko exclaimed.
"HOLY COW, IT REALLY IS YOU! HEY RYUKOOO!" Mako cheered over the phone.
"Holy crap, Mako! H-how did you get my number?"
"Oh! I just called any possible number I could find in the phone book, slash, think of! I went through hundreds of numbers before finding this one."
"Wait, Ryuko, your number hasn't even appeared in the phone book yet…" Izuku addressed with both a sense of concern and confusion. He didn't know which he felt more of.
"Oooh! Who's that, Ryuko?" Mako asked.
"Oh yeah. Let me put you on speaker. This is Izuku Midoriya. He's the old friend I mailed you about," Ryuko answered.
"Hi Izuku! I hope you've been taking good care of Ryuko!"
"Taking care? Hold on, what do you mean by-"
"-Gasp- Is that Mako? Hi Mako!" Ochako hopped in while cutting off Izuku.
"Oh yeah, these are my other friends too. That was Ochako Uraraka who just said hi," Ryuko began the introductions.
"It's great to meet you! Matoi said that we're a lot alike!"
"Next is Tenya Iida."
"Hello!"
"Then Kyouka Jirou."
"Hey there."
"Then there's my classmates, Denki Kaminari,"
"Classmate? After all we've been through!" Kaminari mulled half-jokingly.
"And…uh… I don't remember your name."
"MY NAME IS MINORU MINETA! C'MON, WE FOUGHT DURING THE BATTLE TRIAL!" Mineta cried out with a stream of tears.
"And everyone, this is Mako Mankanshoku. She's one of my friends back at Honnōji Academy," Ryuko said, pointing back at the phone.
"Hey guys! Wow, it makes me so happy that Ryuko has new friends! I was worried that she wouldn't since she gets mad very easily, but she's super nice once you get to know her! She saved my butt a million times!"
"Aw shucks, Mako… you don't have to pamper me up like that."
"And I was the first one to see her in the buff!"
Ryuko snapped her neck back to the phone screen, red in the face."
"WHY DID YOU SAY THAT?!"
"Oh sorry, I didn't know you weren't that close to each other yet!"
"Our "closeness" isn't the issue, Mako!"
While the two girls argued, the rest of the group looked on in utter disbelief at the current situation. While most of them were confused, the resident perverts could only look on with VERY red faces while fantasizing how such an exchange would occur.
Izuku, seeing the two fantasizing about his best friend, elbowed the pervs to keep some level of dignity for Ryuko.
"Haha… Sorry Ryuko! Didn't mean to say that in front of your friends! I can't wait to meet them when I come to UA!"
"Wait, what? You're coming to UA?" Ryuko asked.
"Yeah! You know that Sports Festival thing that's going on? Satsuki's letting me come watch!" Mako announced.
"Huh? Why would she do that?"
"No idea! She just gave me a letter that gave me permission. So I'll be at the pier where you were dropped off!"
"Really? That's awesome! You can stay at my place during that time!"
The others began to rally around a sense of excitement with Mako's upcoming arrival. Things have definitely taken a very interesting turn as of late; with the surge of villains, along with the presence of Ryuko's transfer, and now the arrival of one of her close friends? The more the merrier, I guess.
"Another girl?! And she's a ditzy one?! THIS IS MY MOMENT!"
-WHAM-
A thud could be heard as the grape-beaned teen was knocked out by Ryuko's now smoking fist, silencing him.
"Anyway, just let me know when you come by! I'll come pick you up!" Ryuko followed up.
"We'll all come! Can't wait to finally meet you!" Ochako assured her.
"Yayy! Next week can't come any sooner! I'll call you ASAP when I-"
-BZZT-
The audio soon cut off, followed up with surges of electricity which startled everyone.
"Huh? Mako? Mako?"
Ryuko began pressing buttons in an attempt to get her device to respond before it was soon engulfed in bolts before exploding in her hand.
"AHH!" The students screamed as the phone's pieces splattered all over the table.
"MAKO? OH GOD NO! I DIDN'T EVEN GET TO WRITE HER NUMBER DOWN!" Ryuko fretted as she scrambled in a futile attempt to piece the phone back together.
"Have no fear! I've got it right here!" Mineta slapped a piece of paper onto the table, with Mako's full phone number written down, whilst Izuku gently laid his written piece out.
"Oh! I was just about to do that too," Izuku chimed in.
"Wha? How did you…?"
"I have trained myself to memorize any girl's phone number I see within a second," Mineta spoke with more intensive focus than he ever put into his training.
The group stared in dismay, unsure of whether to be concerned, or just disappointed. They then turned their eyes towards Izuku, questioning him.
"T-The number is labeled on the screen of the phone. Did you guys not see it?" Izuku raised his hands defensively.
"You never cease to amaze me. And you just continue to disappoint me," Ryuko pointed to Izuku first, and then directed her finger at Mineta.
"WHY THE HELL IS HE BEING PRAISED?! I KNEW YOU TWO WERE FU-"
Minoru's incessant shouting was once again cut short, this time by an earphone jack lodging into his ear. The boy fell onto the floor once more from yet another assault.
"That's enough out of you," Jirou sighed.
"Thank you, Jirou," Ryuko smiled.
..~~~HLK~~~..
Later, Ryuko and the gang marched back to the shop to get a full refund.
"Yes, how may I be of assistance?
"Cut the fan fair, Circuit City. I want you to get me another phone, but this time it's on the house. The last one you gave me, in case you didn't know, LITERALLY blew up in my hand!"
"How about we get you a separate model with a 10% discount?
"Uh, no. I want a new phone since you gave me a shit one to begin with."
"Can I interest you with one of our current models, 5% discount?"
"Did you not hear me? I said I wanted a new version of the model you gave me. Also, you just gave me a pricier phone with a weaker discount."
"How about a newer model with a 15% discount-"
Before the clerk could finish that sentence, Ryuko slammed her scissor blade onto the counter with a look that would make any Pro Hero shit their pants.
"OUR BAD! FREE PHONE ON THE HOUSE!"
"WELL, AREN'T YOU A DEAR?!"
With Izuku and the others managing to keep her from skewering the clerk for scamming them, the transaction was successful, with a full refund as a bonus. Now the red highlighted girl walked out with a proper cell phone that still resembled the ideal model she was looking for.
..~~~HLK~~~..
-Dagobah Municipal Beach Park, six days before the Sports Festival-
Fists and kicks flew in the mid-afternoon sun. The sky was a pitch perfect blue, and the sun beat down on the ocean waters, glistening off it's smooth surface. The tide came in a bit before being pulled back out, taking and replacing the grains of sand with each pass.
That didn't matter to Ryuko and Izuku. It might be a nice backdrop, sure. But they weren't there to observe the waves and go for a swim.
Practically everyone else was at work while they had the beach to themselves. With Midoriya's discovery of Full Cowling, his movements were faster, sharper, and packed a punch if you weren't careful. Still, he wasn't completely flexible.
As he fought, he analyzed how rigid he still was while trying to fight with the continuous flow of One For All coursing through his body. It was getting better though, with slow, yet marked improvement day by day.
Matoi meanwhile had started to notice her ability to stay synced up with Senketsu for longer periods of time. The near-constant training seemed to increase the time she could hold the synchronization.
Both of them were glistening with sweat, huffing as they both tried to refocus and keep themselves going. Izuku was wearing a gray "T-shirt" t-shirt and navy blue shorts, sporting his signature red tennis shoes while Ryuko remained synced up.
"How long have we been at this?" the girl asked. She smiled a little, enjoying the time she had sparring with her close friend.
"If I actually go and check, you better not deck me like you did last night after we got back from the mall," Midoriya said, half-joking.
"Alright, deal."
"By the way, That was a cheap shot."
"No rules when it comes to fighting," Ryuko laughed.
Midoriya still kept up his Full Cowling, staying sharp in case Ryuko decided to pull back on her word. Clicking the power button to his cell phone, a jolt ran up his spine when he looked at the time.
It was now three o'clock in the afternoon. They'd been training since nine in the morning, and only took a thirty minute rest break just before noon. How could they have basically been training for the past three hours non-stop without falling over after their training earlier in the morning?
"I think it's time we took a break, Ryuko," Izuku chuckled, plopping down next to his duffel bag and pulling out some water for the both of them.
"What? Getting soft on me already?" She countered with a laugh, reverting back to normal as she moved next to Midoriya and grabbed her water.
"We've been training non-stop for the last three hours since our lunch break. I'm not sure how we both didn't pass out. It would have been far worse if we were training in the summer heat."
"What!? Holy crap!" Ryuko blurted out. "How the heck did I not desync?"
"Good question. I know I can't hear Senketsu, but does he have any guesses?"
"Well, you haven't been eating as many croquettes lately and your meals have been much healthier. Still, I don't think that alone would be enough to keep us synced for that long," Senketsu said.
Ryuko was taking her first sip of water as her Kamui spoke, putting the cap back on before setting the bottle down into the sand.
"He's honestly not sure, either. I wonder if it could be that we haven't been going all out while sparring?"
"I don't know. But I have other ideas as to why. I just think it's too premature to share them for now until I'm a bit more certain," the Kamui added.
"Geez, you're certainly indecisive," she shot back. If Senketsu could shrug, he would have done so.
It wasn't as if staying synced was the problem. When they first met, she kept rejecting Senketsu, and her blood was consumed at a faster rate out of that conflict. Her powers were more limited until she embraced him fully in her fight against Satsuki Kiryuin.
"Whatever the case, I think you might be onto something about not going all out," Midoriya chimed in, snapping Ryuko back to the present.
"Oh, sorry! Did I zone off for a sec?" Ryuko asked sheepishly, rubbing at the back of her head.
"Hey, no sweat! You've seen me get lost in thought a lot. It happens," Izuku reassured her.
"Well, I was starting to get really tired at the end there. Maybe taking a break isn't such a bad -YAWN- idea."
What happened next, Ryuko did out of instinct. She leaned to her left as her eyes closed a little and her head landed on Izuku's shoulder.
'What the heck! Why did she choose me to be a body pillow?!' The greenette thought as bullets of nervous sweat trickled down his face.
"Umm, Ryu- oh," he said that last part in a hushed voice. He could hear Matoi's light snoring. He didn't want to test what would happen if he scooted away and she woke up with a face full of sand.
Though they were at least up against the stone wall that separated the beach area from the main roadways behind them. He leaned his head back a bit, trying his best to not jostle the girl conveniently taking a nap on his shoulder.
Maybe she had the right idea. He normally would have been more skittish about what was happening right now over a week ago. A pretty girl laying on him and falling fast asleep.
But now? Now, it felt more normal to him. He didn't get to think of how he'd describe this being "normal" as he soon dozed off as well.
-One hour later-
Izuku awoke from his slumber first, feeling the weight of Ryuko's head still resting on his right shoulder. Despite how groggy he was, he rubbed at his eyes with his left hand, trying to not make too many unnecessary movements.
'Now might be a good time to wake her. I just hope I won't end up with a broken nose.'
Senketsu had dozed off as well, only just having woken up a few minutes before Midoriya. It was peaceful as he watched the sky start to turn slightly orange, with shades of blue still visible throughout the horizon.
"I hope this boy doesn't get punched when he tries to wake Ryuko up," he stated.
Hearing her Kamui's voice made the girl groan as her eyelids started to move a bit from their stagnant state.
"Hey, Ryuko. Are you finally waking up?" Izuku spoke in a hushed tone as the weight of her head separated from his upper body.
"What happened?" Ryuko asked, still very much groggy.
"You both dozed off for the past hour," Senketsu noted.
"An hour, huh?" She yawned and stretched her limbs, getting some feeling back into her arms and legs. "Though why is my neck so stiff?"
"Yeah. You kind of… well… used my shoulder as your personal pillow," Midoriya scratched lightly at his cheek, a slight blush adorning his features.
Matoi's face turned red, not realizing what she'd done.
"Oh geez! I'm so sor-"
"It's okay," Izuku cut her off. "We both needed the rest and your head didn't end up in the sand, so I guess it worked out."
Ryuko blinked at her friend's reassurance. This was awfully forward of him, but she smiled anyway.
"Heh, thanks," she replied.
"Do you want to eat some of the packed bento before we get back to training?" the boy inquired.
She was about to say yes, but a sudden chill ran down her spine. A pit formed in her stomach as a shadow cascaded over the railing above, with heavy footsteps approaching them.
"You kids can do all the training you want. That is, after I strip that Kamui off her."
Both of them jumped away from the wall, looking up to find the mysterious assailant from a few weeks ago stopping at the top of the wall, his boots resting in the grass.
"You're the damn pervert that Mikisugi said was an ally," Ryuko growled as she wasted no time going into Sync Mode.
"So he said that, huh? Girl, there's two things you need to know."
"One: My name is Tsumugu, not pervert."
Jumping over the railing, his combat boots landed in the sand with a soft thud, cracking his neck as he paced forward a few steps.
"And two: This is your last chance to hand it over, or you'll die."
"Hold on! Please wait! We don't have to fight! Can't we just talk this out?" Izuku protested, attempting to reason with Tsumugu.
"Sorry kid. I can't take any chances."
This was bad. Why did he have to show up here of all times? The beach area isn't widely patrolled, so it would be a while before a pro showed up. Plus, both of their cell phones were in the duffel bag against the wall.
While Midoriya tried to think of a solution, Ryuko caught his attention with a faint whistle.
"Izuku, listen. I'll be okay. With your new speed, go and grab a hero if you can. There's no way we'll be able to get to our phones, so run while I keep him distracted," Ryuko whispered as she drew her scissor blade in front of her. She knew that Nezu wouldn't be happy if she didn't make some attempt to get help, even if she did have to fight.
"But-"
"Please! Just do it!" her voice carried a sense of urgency and panic. She needed to hope she'd improved enough from her last encounter with Tsumugu to hold out for backup.
Midoriya looked at her worryingly and nodded. Without another second passing, he powered up One For All and dashed towards the stairs to the main road. He wouldn't let himself be useless like last time.
"No chance," Tsumugu said aloud, flipping a trigger switch he had in his hand and pressing the button.
With the greenette almost at the stairs, he was thrown backward by blasts of sand shooting up with a ton of force in front of him. Their attacker had planted landmines while they slept!
Midoriya hadn't gotten his power fully flowing, so he couldn't get through. But the fact any power had been flowing before the triggered blasts were set off at least left him conscious, but trying to regain his equilibrium and not give up on finding help.
"YOU FUCKING BASTARD!"
Ryuko charged in at Tsumugu, her blade ready to knock him back to yesteryear.
"I don't think so," he taunted, pulling out both of his sewing needle guns. For a brief second, the twin firearms were directed at her.
"I doubt you'll attack me when your friend is also a target," he sneered as he whipped his right gun toward a groggy Izuku, causing her to gasp.
That was all he needed, landing a direct kick to her abdomen with enough force to send her skidding through the warm sand and close to the water's edge.
"Now, you're going to be a good little hero and do-"
He dodged to his left, seeing Ryuko throw her scissor blade, aiming for the head and missing.
"A bad throw. Did you expect…" he stopped talking as he saw the girl smirk before yanking back on a thread. The blade was now whipping back toward the combatant as he kicked himself for not being ready for that.
Still, he wasn't a fighter for nothing. He timed it up as best as he could, jumping above the blade and clamping it's flat sides in his hands.
"You're kidding!" Ryuko exclaimed solemnly as Tsumugu's feet touched back down, cutting the thread connected to the blade handle.
"I think this is yours," he threw the red blade back at her with a ton of force, managing to have the blunt side land a hit to her left shoulder as it sent her back down to the ground again as she yelped.
'Dammit. I'm so tired from the training earlier. I can tell Senketsu isn't going to last much longer.'
"Ryuko," Izuku tried to get up. He was gaining feeling in his body again, but it still was going to take him another minute to fully gain his bearings. The assailant noticed this and pointed his right gun back at Midoriya.
"Stay down if you know what's good for you, boy."
Izuku clenched his teeth, knowing acupuncture needles awaited him if he tried to move.
Ryuko breathed heavily. Her shoulder hurt like hell and now Izuku couldn't even get up unless he wanted a face full of needles.
"Why you!" She growled through bared teeth. "Leave him out of this!"
"He's the key to getting my job done. You clearly care enough about him that you hesitated when you charged me, and that weakness is something I'm ready to exploit," Tsumugu walked closer to the girl, his eyes wandering over to Midoriya to make sure he kept his distance.
Matoi steadied herself enough to stand up and try to fend off the attacker, trying to land a few right and left hooks. He simply was too nimble in that moment for her to connect. The mohawk man grabbed her by the hair as she tried to hold back howls of pain.
"You think this Kamui's your friend?!" He launched an uppercut into her ribs, causing her to gasp from the sudden loss of air.
"They're nothing but monsters trying to use people like you!"
He landed another punch to Ryuko's stomach, as he let her go, her face halfway into the grainy sand. Tsumugu stomped down hard on her head, eliciting a wail from Ryuko. That last attack prompted Senketsu to fall out of sync mode.
"I'm done trying to reason with you."
The fighter backed up as Ryuko sat up shakily.
"I'm… not... done yet!" she gasped out, trying to stand before falling back down.
Midoriya was on the verge of tears. He felt useless… again! Why couldn't he be fucking helpful for once!? His friend was hurt and possibly about to die, and this stranger was holding him hostage to get exactly what he wanted.
"Ryuko," Senketsu spoke, drawing her attention to his left eye.
"Senketsu?" she responded softly, battered and bruised.
"Get Midoriya and run. I'll try to distract him."
"You can't…"
"It's our only choice. Now go!"
The Kamui leapt off Ryuko, leaving her sitting in her undergarments and shoes. Ryuko sat there silently, unable to move as Tsumugu fired a round of needles into the airborne clothing, as Senketsu landed face-down in the sand.
"Point proven," Tsumugu scoffed, throwing weighted bindings over the Kamui to prevent it's escape.
"It was only trying to use you, girl. Now that I have your Kamui-"
"You're wrong," she spoke up in a daze, her body shaking.
"What?" his brow furrowed at Ryuko's suggestion.
"He's my friend!"
"People and clothing can't be friends," Tsumugu's scowl deepened further.
"He was protecting me!" Ryuko was on the verge of tears, angry that this grown-ass man would insult her friend.
"IT'S A PARASITE!"
Izuku, within the blink of an eye, stomped up close and personal against Tsumugu. The barrel of his gun was held captive by the teen's iron grip that didn't seem to let up.
'I didn't even see him move. He's different. He's faster than he was earlier," Tsumugu noticed that his hand trembled a bit, being intimidated by the sudden shift in this teen's power. What followed next was a bright green glow that surfaced from his hair, revealing an unnerving sight; blistering cold rage.
"Why are you doing this? She did absolutely nothing to you, and you're trying to shoot her and Senketsu! What kind of sick monster are you?"
"I'm not the monster here. Those things wear people like human skins, and then dump them off once they become husks. That thing never cared about her," Tsumugu forcibly swatted Izuku's hand away and took a few steps back before pointing his gun again.
"You don't know that," Izuku spoke coldly, further putting the Life Fiber hunter on edge.
"I've been around her long enough to know that's the opposite. They talk together on the battlefield, or whenever she's just doing everyday things. So you're wrong, this Kamui is more than just a piece of clothing. It's her friend."
"Ridiculous. People and clothing can't communicate. And they certainly can't be friends, either. It's imposs-"
"SHUT THE HELL UP! I. Am. TIRED of hearing that word. So many people told me how things were impossible. Or that there's no way. All too damn often. I hate how it's used just to put people down! When I wanted to be a hero, I...I had a power I couldn't even control. They told me I couldn't do it, that I couldn't be a hero. For eleven long years," Izuku crouched down and grabbed Senketsu.
"You're never gonna beat me, Deku!"
"Sorry kid, it's not gonna happen."
"Some villains just can't be beaten without powers. I'm sorry young man, but it's impossible without a quirk."
"With your power, there's no way you can become a hero."
'My world was crumbling. There was only one thing I needed to hear.'
"W-Well, Quirk or no quirk, I know you're still going to be an awesome hero! You can do it!" A flashback of a young Ryuko cheering him on manifested, which made his eyes continue to shine a bright green.
"Because of Ryuko, I am enrolled in UA, training with the best of the best, training with HER. We have a chance to achieve our dream, to be heroes. She was the only one who believed in me, so I believe that people and clothing CAN be friends. I believe that it is possible!"
With one swift pull, Izuku yanked Senketsu from the binds and the needles. Ryuko watched with wide eyes as Senketsu flowed freely in Izuku's hand, before he held onto the Kamui with care. He then turned around and crouched in front of her.
"Here Ryuko. I'll try to see if we can get him fixed. But for now, take care of him, alright?"
Midoriya's cold glare had softened, turning back into the warm smile that would bring comfort to Matoi. Her eyes began to well with tears as Midoriya slowly lent the Kamui back to her.
"Izuku...Thank you…" Her voice cracked as she clutched onto Senketsu tightly, holding on for dear life.
Izuku then turned towards Tsumugu, his feet planted firmly as his unnerving gaze had returned.
"Ryuko," The greenette called to the girl's attention.
"Take Senketsu and get out of here. Get help. No matter what you might hear, keep moving. I will not let him hurt you again."
"No."
Izuku inwardly gasped before looking back to find Ryuko looking right up at him with a fierce gaze.
"I'm not running away. We've been in this together ever since we were kids. Life took you away from me once. I'm not letting it happen again. I'm staying here with you, Izuku."
"Me too," Senketsu assured proudly.
"Both of us. Me AND Senketsu."
As much as he wanted to argue against it, he knew there was no budging Matoi when she set her mind to something. Midoriya nodded with a smile before turning his attention back to Tsumugu.
"Now do you see? Even with all of the bad in the world, there's still good. There's enough good to dream for a better world. Or, are you still willing to kill and take that away from her?"
Tsumugu clenched the gun, nearly breaking the handle with his grip. Just like with Mikisugi, this boy said something that struck a chord with him. He began to tremble in rage, yet also in despair. He shook his head and asserted himself, keeping the aim locked on Izuku.
"If you still plan on taking the Kamui, you'll have to try and kill me first. And I do mean try," Izuku threatened, which alarmed the armed man.
"Fine. Then you give me no other option," Tsumugu began to clench on the trigger, but found himself hesitating. Just a little more pressure, and his mission would be complete. But… Why did it feel wrong?
"Don't you touch them."
Kinagase had suddenly frozen as he was now face to face with the clothing he perceived as a monster. It stared into his eyes with a glare that practically pierced his soul.
"If you do, I'll make you pay."
"Huh?!" Tsumugu gasped before he had snapped back into reality. Izuku still stood in front of him while Ryuko held onto Senketsu.
"Wait…it…talks?" He muttered out in disbelief, being rendered speechless.
Midoriya's curiosity piqued as he glanced over to Senketsu as well. Up until now, he believed that only Ryuko could communicate with Senketsu. Was it possible for him to talk to others?
For now, he seized the window of opportunity.
-WHAM-
Tsumugu grunted in pain as he was laid out by a sucker punch to his right cheek that sent him flying a few meters from the two teens.
Being snapped out of his trance, the man looked on to see that Izuku was not backing down. He was prepared to fight till the end of the line for the girl and her clothing.
Right after Izuku connected on Tsumugu, Ryuko began to lose consciousness as her body tipped over and fell onto the sand. She had completely exhausted all of her energy.
"Ryuko? Ryuko!" Izuku dropped to his knees to tend to his fallen friend.
"You'd better get her somewhere to rest. Her Kamui mostly shielded her from my attacks, so nothing lethal was inflicted on her," Tsumugu suggested as he lowered his weapon.
"What, did you change your mind about killing them?"
Tsumugu turned away, giving only silence as a response before he began to head off elsewhere.
'That boy…what he said about dreams…'
..~~~HLK~~~..
"Are you sure, Kinue?"
"Yes. Kinagase, I don't think I could keep living with myself knowing that I helped Revocs get one step closer to enslaving people."
"But it's dangerous. I don't know if this is a good idea."
"That may be, but we have to see it through. With this research, there's no limit to what we can do. Think of how advanced civilization will be, or how we can help the quirkless kids keep up. We can help people. That's my dream."
..~~~HLK~~~..
'That Kamui took away her dream… And I was about to do the same to those kids.'
Kinagase mulled as he walked up the steps, soon disappearing into the nearby forest out of Midoriya's sight.
Even though he was bewildered by what just happened, his priorities were set in stone with helping Ryuko. He held her up in a bridal position with Senketsu covering her near-naked form. Where could he go? Not the apartment; his mother would get worried. For some reason, his options all lined up to UA being the safe haven for her.
Based on what he knew about the transfer, this conclusion made the most sense. He turned to the stairs before closing his eyes, focusing on his very being to activate Full Cowling one more time. Once the spark of green luminated around him, he began jogging to UA. The power gave him a slight boost in speed, getting him to the campus a lot sooner than expected.
..~~~HLK~~~..
Later, Kinagase roamed in the forest to get out of sight, but also as a way to clear his mind. He still couldn't get over the thought of nearly killing two kids, having to prop his hand against a nearby tree to catch himself.
"So, why'd ya let the little sprout go, tough guy?" A voice called out from the trees, catching Tsumugu by surprise. The source of the question walked out of the shadow's, revealing it to be the No. 3 Hero, Hawks. And for some reason, he looked absolutely annoyed.
"What's with the look, pigeon? You'd rather I shoot the boy and his girlfriend?"
"I'd rather have you NOT attack them in the first place. The commission already has me breathing down your neck. Do you want UA of all places to come for you, too?" Hawks pressed, growing even more annoyed at the would-be assassin's careless nature.
"Please, it's not like the commission can do anything to stop me. Powers or not, your society was raised in a completely different manner than I was. You know nothing of real conflict, how you have to beat a man half to death just to make it through the day. What it's like to look over your shoulder every second of the day-"
"You didn't answer my question," Hawks interrupted.
Tsumugu raised an eyebrow, curious on why the avian hero was pressing for an answer.
"Diamond in the rough."
"What?"
Tsumugu makes eye contact with Hawks, wanting to make his answer absolutely known to the hero.
"Do you know where that phrase came from, Diamond in the rough?"
"Yeah, kinda. It was some prophecy thing that was in that kids movie two lifetimes ago. What was it...uh, Allada? No, that's not it. Or was it-"
"Aladdin," Tsumugu answered.
"Yeah that! Wait, what does a kid's movie have to do with what happened?" Hawks asked, completely lost.
"The concept of the phrase, hero. The meaning it plays from the setting of the story itself. That in spite of all the bile, the trash in the world, there is something inside worth finding. In the story, Aladdin was a thief, but a thief who wanted better, who dreamed of better. Unlike the other thieves in the story, who wanted for wanting's sake. There was no purpose for their wants, it was just them feeding their bottomless greed and nothing more."
Hawks looked on, growing slightly interested at the mohawk man's analogy.
"What does this have to do with the kid? I don't see how he plays into this story. What, is he supposed to be Aladdin in a sense? That I can kinda get… but what's with the thieves nonsense?"
Tsumugu stared back at the No. 3 hero, somewhat not satisfied with his questions.
"As the No. 3 hero, I was hoping you would understand the situation much deeper than those below you. It appears I was wrong. Then again, you're still young. You still have the look of a novice in your eyes. Even after all you've seen and done… Keigo."
The sudden mention of his first name startled the winged hero as the Life Fiber Hunter walked away into the shadows of the forest.
"Wait just a second! How did you-? I never told you my name. Tch. Fine. Answer me this at least: What's this got to do with Midoriya? Why Aladdin of all things?"
Tsumugu looked back toward the confused hero.
"There are two things you need to know…"
Hawks perked up, hoping to get some kind of answer from him.
"One: Your people are not prepared for what's coming, and stand no chance against the Kiriuyins…"
Tsumugu reached into his back pocket, pulling out a flash grenade. He pulled the pin, with Hawks backing up with anticipation.
"Two: Out of every hero I've seen in this damn society…"
The man paused as he remembered the look on Izuku's face when they clashed, that look of determination. A look that would make someone like HER tremble. God, he would kill to see that.
"...He's the only one who wants it the most."
And with that, Tsumugu threw the grenade toward Hawks and it exploded mere seconds later. The bright light and piercing sound of the flashbang sent the hero backward, leaving the assassin to make his exit.
Hawks caught his bearings, looking up to see that his target had escaped into the woods. This wouldn't bode well for the hero, knowing that the commission would want to know why he let the assassin leave for the SECOND TIME.
"Seriously… these Nudist Beach folks are downright crazy."
Hawks looked towards the sky, mulling over the complete info dump that Tsumugu laid down for him.
"If the kid is Aladdin, then who are the thieves? Man, don't tell me I gotta watch an old ass twenty first century movie just to get his cryptic message. I got stuff to do."
…
"Oh, who am I kidding! I've got too much time on my hands right now. Plus I'm way too curious to NOT find out. Still, it's gonna be one hell of a lecture when I gotta talk to the old lady. Geez, what a day."
Keigo massaged his temples, lamenting on the upcoming talking to he was going to get from his superiors.
To Be Continued…
Aduubo A/N: This chapter is on par with chapter 14 in terms of favorites for me. I tried to change up Izuku's scene a bit so that it doesn't seem like it's copying Mako. Because he isn't Mako. But honestly, they both would have said the same thing since they're both the direct image of positivity in Ryuko's eyes. So I decided to implement some personal stuff from Izuku to help differentiate him.
I think I pulled it off well!
Buckichamp A/N: I think I was the only one of us three who underestimated how many folks were waiting for Mako based on the Chapter 16 reviews… hehe… Yeah, Mako is a wild card.
As to how she found a phone to call from? That is up for debate. She's a Mankanshoku, so take a guess.
Pikachu A/N: GOD, I loved the Hawks and Tsumugu talk. All me, by the way! I wanted this confrontation to be a personal one between the two due to the similar upbringings.
Tsumugu probably saw a good chunk of himself in Hawks and wants to at least give him something to think about. The Hero Society is a very fucked mess as it is right now, and Hawks's nonchalant attitude to that reality REALLY bit him in the ass later on(*cough*cough*Endeavor).
Plus the Aladdin analogy is something I came up with while I was at work, seeing the movie with that sort of thing in mind really played well with this scene. The thieves stole for stealing sake, Aladdin stole to find something better. That and he only stole ENOUGH, not more than he should.
And Izuku being the "Aladdin" in this tale hammers this home here and in Canon. Heroes are just fighting villains for the sake of it, trying to be glorified police officers. Izuku wants to SAVE people, villains are just part of a larger issue. He isn't there for the money, or the fame. He is there to save people, because it's the right thing to do.
Aduubo A/N: Also fun fact: as I was writing Izuku's whole section with Tsumugu, I realized I did a "call forward" to something Pikachu wrote later in the chapter since he wrote that before me. If you guys pay attention, you'll see where it happened hehe