Akane… Not too surprisingly, stomped up to her room, not seeing anyone on the way.

Not Nabiki, not her father, and not Kasumi.

That was… Probably for the best.

As for Izuku himself… He first headed over to his room, a rather spartan place, with few things but his bed, tv, and a desk he usually used for schoolwork.

Now though, he removed absolutely everything else from it, and after cleaning it… Well, as best as he could, he splayed out a long, blue mane of hair and a rather bloodstained yellow ribbon.

He sighed… Then felt a stab of pain, immediately making him regret doing so.

However, the fact was, the ribbon was the easier thing.

The hair was… Quite a bigger problem.

He removed it, with as much care as his hands allowed… Then he headed down, and before throwing it into the washer, he rinsed it as best he could of blood and grime.

He doubted it would be enough on its own… But it would be a start.

With all of that settled… He finally let his shoulders slump, and began the painful slinking through the house to find Kasumi.

Thankfully, all their parents seemed to be doing something in the main living room… Meaning he was able to avoid them by just going outside along the walls.

Kasum, as he had expected even before coming home and feeling her Massive Ki reserves, was in the kitchen… She was not cooking though, instead reading a book of some kind.

As he opened the door, she turned to look at him.

She did not smile, but neither did she show any immediate distress at his rather pitiful state.

Instead of saying anything, she instead put down the book, and raised herself from her chair, before walking over to him, and grabbing him wordlessly by the hand.

She then, using the path he'd just come, led him around the outside, and up the secondary entrance by the training room, up to the second floor.

He… Had honestly thought she was going to lead him to the bathing room, but instead she took him to a place he hadn't been before, though he immediately recognized it.

The first door by the main stairs on the second floor.

Her room.

It was just beside Nabiki's room, and he felt her presence there, but at the moment, Izuku didn't really think too much about it.

He had much bigger concerns at the moment.

Kasumi's room was quite a bit different from Nabiki's.

Nabiki's was full of things, nicknacks of obvious use or value of some kind, along with several posters of her favorite bands.

Kasumi's was more like his, far more simple. But it was also much, much more homely, with clear love an attention given to it's drawers(Compared to Izuku's simple bag for his clothing it was quite the contrast) that was topped with a basic, if large, mirrored armoire, some plants, and on the wall a picture of a beautiful woman surrounded by 3 girls Izuku recognized as younger versions of the three Tendo sisters.

It was… Honestly kinda hard to believe Kasumi wasn't a full decade older than her sisters given how massive she had been compared to Nabiki and Akane as Kids.

The most extravagant feature of the room though, was a massive, fluffy bed.

It was very, very clearly the centerpiece of the room, with the entire aesthetics being built around it, and Izuku could tell it was something her father had bought when he was at the peak of his wealth.

However, there was also something else in the room that he doubted was there normally.

A rather large section of the floor was covered with unfolded towels.

And there were two, large medical kits, as well as several bottles of disinfectants… Also, a small tub with steaming water, and lesser towels at the sides.

She had… Really gone all out with this.

He sat down beside it without prompting.

Kasumi did the same, and with both a delicate, yet deft touch, and yet surprising speed, she began taking off his shirt.

She immediately spotted the bandage under it.

"This is Akane's dress isn't it? It's from a female Furinkan school uniform at least."

"Yes…"

She didn't press further, instead beginning by putting his hand in the water, sharply decreasing the size.

He immediately winched as the makeshift bandage came loose… Then winched further as Kasumi began to work.

She took off the bandage entirely immediately, then in rapid succession, she cleaned it free of grime and blood, and before the blood could pool forth again, she sprayed it with disinfectant which made Izuku hiss and grit his teeth, but he remained still, as she finished up by applying some sort of thick, goey salve.

"That will stop the bleeding. And it won't leave a scar. It's a mixture specifically for Ki users."

He nodded… Though that too hurt a bit.

Everywhere hurt.

After that… She began cleaning his upper body off, and applying balms after disinfecting his bruises.

For the cut over his cheek, she used the salve as well.

They didn't speak further as she worked.

Izuku couldn't help but feel… Like she was utterly in control.

Her touch was, for the most part… Gentle. She put great care into mixing how much she had to work on each part to be effective, while not hurting him and his bruised body further.

But there was no denying that she was, utterly, totally in control here. She dictated the terms, not him.

It was a… Strange feeling.

So unlike what he'd come to expect from Kasumi usual gentle, but more subtly firm touch.

"You don't have any big wounds on your legs do you?"

It was not a question of curiosity, but instead one asking for confirmation.

"N-no… How could you tell?"

"Ryoga… Uses a fist based fighting style. I can tell that much. Those generally do not lend themselves well to hurting the enemy's legs. They were the only parts that are mostly unharmed on you. Meaning so long as you get out of those wet clothes, you should be fine on that account."

He understood her words, and again, he felt… Utterly in her control.

He did not miss the implication that if they had been hurt, she would have looked them over, whether he wanted to or not.

As she worked on him, Kasumi suddenly seemed… So strong to him.

"You… You thought I'd come back like this?"

"I believe that I told you that I understood what it means when Men fight."

She had.

"...Your dad?"

She nodded.

"Yes. Among others. Myself included."

She did not elaborate.

"You're… Not mad… Are you?"

In a mirror to her own, it was not an actual question of facts, just one of confirmation.

"No. As I said. I understood. And you kept your promise to me."

He opened his mouth to reply… But then, she said something that made him feel incredibly guilty.

"Thank you."

The image of Akane crying, screaming, and her shock as her hair was cut in twain danced through his mind.

Kasumi didn't miss what was written in his face.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"I… Kinda have to… I… Screwed up a bit… In a different way, but… Later… I have something I need to do first… Or try anyway…"

"With Akane?"

"...Yes."

For the first time since he came back, Kasumi sighed.

"Alright… But first, I'm going to apply something to that bruise around your eye."

She pulled out a wooden stick with a towel around it from her medical kit, as she also pulled out another balm, this one strangely lime green in color.

"Bite on this. Because this WILL hurt."

The way she said it, with a very, very sad emphasis on "will" sent a shiver down Izuku's spine.

She was right too.

It fucking hurt A LOT.

IT BURNED.

…But it did prevent his eye from swelling up completely the next morning.

I

The lime green balm had one other effect.

It managed to give him another adrenaline rush.

Not… NEARLY as powerful as his actual fight that day had, but at least he was sorta walking decently well now.

Which was good, because as he tiptoed across the roof tiles over floor one, he suddenly felt glad that he actually was feeling something beyond his pain.

Also, Kasumi was right. His legs didn't hurt NEARLY as badly as everywhere else.

It was mostly the lightning at the end, after having pushed them to their limits that had done it, as opposed to everywhere else where there had been genuine damage from Ryoga's blows.

As he reached his destination though, he didn't really think about that, instead, focusing on the task at hand.

As well as what he was holding in his hand.

I

"Allright Akane, that'll patch you up this time."

Tofu looked a bit sad as he looked down on her, but he still looked strong, tall, and as collected as ever.

That mature calmness was what Akane liked so much about him… Well that and the way he always carried around Betty the Human skeleton to mess with people.

She'd always thought that was so cool!

As they were talking, behind her, she heard footsteps, and she turned to look.

"Akane?"

"Kasumi! Hi sis!"

With calm, collected footsteps Kasumi walked, looking so prim and proper… so much taller than Akane's herself, and yet still so regal and beautiful. The very image of womanhood.

Her hair especially, flowing out behind her in the breeze like a brown waterfall.

Akane had always admired her sister so much… But it was the hair she truly envied.

Besides her, Doctor Tofu stiffened, as Kasumi turned to him.

"Thank you for taking care of my sister Doctor Tofu. I'm sure you have a lot to do… And yet you always take care of Akane's injuries. I really appreciate it."

"Oh! Well… Kasumi! That is… Pardon me!"

She felt her heart tighten.

That part, she didn't like.

The way he always got so tongue tied when Kasumi came...

So different from his smiles to her…

"It's no bother miss Tendo."

A deeper voice came from the door entrance.

The older doctor Tofu stepped out, giving a chuckle.

She knew a lot of the patients joked that older Doctor Tofu was just her Doctor Tofu with a mustache, but Akane never understood that.

Their voices, the way they moved and talked… It was so different.

"Having him get more experience with younger patients is always a plus… Even disregarding our family's friendships!"

He laughed, making his son blush even more, as he clapped him on the back.

"I won't always be around to watch over him, you know? Best he gets that experience now while I'm still here!"

Kasumi smiled.

"Oh, I think he has a few more years before that happens."

"We can only hope! Ah, but we have taken enough of your time! Come on lad, say goodbye to the good Miss Tendo, we still have a job to do inside!"

Her doctor Tofu gave a wave with Betty as both her and Kasumi gave a wave of their own.

It was as they were out of hearing range that Kasumi sighed.

"Another fight?"

"I won!"

That was important! Daddy always said so!

Her sister, though, just sighed again.

"Tsk… Do you always have to be so much like a boy Akane?"

That comment kinda stung, but Kasumi continued.

"Doctor Tofu takes time out of his schedule to take care of you, you know. Everytime he patches you up, his family loses money. I would have liked it if he accepted payment from us, but…"

Another sigh.

"Friendship is all well and good, but… Well… Regardless, if you don't start acting like a girl finally, Doctor Tofu will come to dislike you at some point down the line."

Acting like Kasumi… She wondered… If she grew her hair out like Kasumi, would Doctor Tofu like her better? Would he think she was more like Kasumi?"

In her pocket, Kasumi's phone rang, which she deftly fished out, and delicately opened and answered.

"Yes mom? Yes… Yes… No, I still haven't decided on where I'm going… Yes, I'm sure "Izuku" would probably find it better when he comes, if I have gone to an economics based highschool… But personally, I kinda want to go more into your old field, mom."

Kasumi talked about Izuku in such a weird way.

Akane didn't… Quite understand all this about bethroals… But shouldn't she talk about him more warmly? The way Akane… Thought about Tofu? She had decided SHE at least was marrying him after all.

She didn't really understand what had changed, but both Kasumi and Nabiki now thought it would be Nabiki who went to France.

And yet she talked about Izuku like he was some chore she had to plan around.

"Yes… Well, yes that is a given."

She chuckled softly.

"Yes, that is certainly NOT happening. At least Daddy will be happy about that. He's always fretting so much that I would want to go to a Hero school."

She said the last part, like it was the most ridiculous thing ever… But Akane thought that would have been Amazing… Kasumi could be both beautiful AND cool!

Wouldn't that be something?

She was still thinking about Heroes and hair, when Kasumi finished up the phone call.

"Love you too mom. We'll see you at dinner tonight."

Then she hung up.

I

Akane was brought out of her musings about the past, by a knock on the window.

There, the boy… Now substantially older was tapping at the window.

She had a pretty good look at his worried face, given she was leaning over her own desk by said window as he tapped it.

She opened it by sliding it to the side.

"What do you want?"

"I… I just wanted to ask…"

"What? Did you think I was crying my eyes out?"

The boy flinched.

He had thought that. And yet her eyes were as dry as a desert.

"No, I just wanted to ask if… Do you want me to… Fix your hair?"

She stared at him.

Wondering how anyone alive could EVER possibly be THIS tactless.

"I don't care about my hair Izuku."

She grabbed her lamp… And THREW it in his face, which he barely dodged, but caught, before it went flying off.

Akane didn't care as she grabbed the side of her open window.

"So leave me alone!"

Then she slammed it shut!

I

Well… That… Could have gone better.

Izuku carefully placed the lamp down on the roof tiles so it would be stable, and prayed that it would remain so until Akane calmed down a bit, and fished it in through the cable still sticking out of the closed window.

Then he went back to his room, where he once more unfurled the hair, and considered his next move.

After sitting there a while, he came to a rather sad conclusion: He didn't actually have much he could do other than wait more until Akane calmed down a bit.

Eventually, he went back to the kitchen, where Kasumi was now in the work of preparing dinner.

She did not turn around as she asked:

"How did it go?"

"Not… So well…"

He gave a sound between a sigh and a defeated note.

His body still hurt a lot… Though less so.

"Akane… Is still pissed at me… Not much I can do until she's calmed down a bit."

Kasumi nodded.

"Sometimes… You need to just let people de-wind on their own."

He gave an agreeing sound in reply.

"Dinner's going to be ready in about two hours. If you want to go lie down for a while, now is your chance. Also… We can talk here in depth then, while everyone else eats in the other room."

Again, he felt like Kasumi… Was in total control over how things were unfolding right now.

Though whether that was just her ability to read the flow of how things would go, or he was just so out of it, he wasn't sure.

What he WAS sure about was that he DID need that bit of rest.

"Thanks Kasumi… You're wonderful."

"Thanks dear. Now go get some rest."

I

Had Izuku stuck around for a while longer, his image of Kasumi as being in total absolute control over the situation would have taken a pretty massive, massive dent, as about an hour later, Akane came down to her, holding some scissors, and didn't even attempt to cover up her mangled mane.

The absolute freakout the older Tendo girl had at that, was on the same level of rareness within the household, that Nabiki's reaction to being mistaken as a lady of the night had been.

I

As Izuku got up about 2 hours later, he felt… Both better, and worse.

Worse, in that his wounds were now fully smarting, and hurting like nobody's business… But better, in that his mental batteries had been recharged substantially.

He was still worried about Akane… But suddenly he didn't feel quite as powerless anymore.

That feeling ended as he stepped into the kitchen anew.

The atmosphere could not have been more different.

Kasumi had, as she promised, arranged for the two of them to talk, with their own portion of dinner ready… But he felt her Ki.

The Tendo branch of the school of Anything Goes Martial arts, actual speciality(As opposed to the Umi-Sen Ken, that Izuku had a tendency of associating it with) as Soun himself had no issues showcasing, was battle auras in all their many forms, a more esoteric field of study within the art of Ki manipulation than most arts Izuku had learned, but still full of uses…

One of them, as Kasumi illustrated so well, was letting her powerful emotions permeate through the very air, so one could almost taste it.

He could also see it on her face, which was a mixture of utter stoic emotionlessness… And utter, total disappointment.

He swallowed.

He did not need to be TOLD that she had seen Akane's hair.

She waited until he had actually sat down though, before speaking.

"Tell me everything."

She said in a calm, emotionless voice.

I

As Izuku continued on, Kasumi's expression softened, and the air became less disappointed… But it did not quite go away, either in her face, nor the air.

She let him speak without interruption, from beginning to end… Only then, as he finished talking, did she finally sigh, a sound absolutely filled with understated exasperation, and disappointment.

"It is… Not quite as bad as I had feared… But I supposed It would be hard to be so."

Izuku didn't reply.

He instead waited for her actual assessment.

"Akane… Is not me Izuku. Nor is she you. She has never seen… An actual fight. The kind where even the victor comes home a bloody, beaten mess. Her only experience with "real" fights is her duels with Furinkan boys, and various scraps she has had with other boys over the years."

Her eyes went to the side, where, not too far away, with some walls between them, Soun Tendo sat alongside the rest of their family, all of them making their assumptions about what was going on in the kitchen.

"Akane… Only saw father at the peak. When he had become the strongest martial artist in Japan… But I saw his journey to that mountaintop. I recall times when father came home much worse off than you did… Be it duels, or villain fights. ACTUAL fights… They are so different from Dojo matches it's not even funny."

Izuku nodded slowly, having taken a few spoonfuls of soup as Kasumi talked.

He swallowed before he replied.

"When… When I traveled through Europe, to learn the blade… My master told me that historical sword duels… Were some of the ugliest things imaginable. I… Had a fellow student who scoffed at that. But I didn't. I understood what he meant immediately."

Kasumi nodded.

"Because you had seen actual duels. And if my Father-in-law's stories are on point, actual real combat as well on more than one occasion."

She sighed.

"Akane… Has not. She is… Well, not naive about what can happen in battles… But she simply hasn't directly experienced violence on the same level you and I have. The kind of fights where people don't stop kicking… Just because you're down on the ground."

A bit of awkward silence followed that statement.

"If she wishes to become a Pro-Hero for real… She will have to get over that. Because she will see MUCH worse, if she goes down that path. She will see it happen to friends, to foes, and probably take at least one such beating herself."

Her eyes narrowed then at Izuku.

"That is her mistake. YOURS is the fact that you did not take her concerns, fears and care about you seriously. At all."

He winched at that… But he did not argue.

"Her fears and worries about what might happen to you might have been misguided… But they were very, very real. She cares Izuku. A lot. She is violent, strong-willed, ungentle, careless and clumsy… But she is still a girl, who cares. Very much so. And rather than try to reach out to her, and her concerns… You just stepped over them. Carelessly, and with remarkable unkindness."

She stopped, and it seemed she was waiting for something.

"No reply?"

"No, you… You aren't saying anything I don't agree with… I… Kinda realized I messed up right after it happened. You just… Recontextualized it for me."

She nodded.

"Almost all my old classmates and friends would have argued at some point there. You don't. Instead you take responsibility. That's something I like about you."

It was a statement, not the kind of compliment she had given him before.

Kasumi sighed again, very, very deeply this time, and he felt her disappointment literally fade away in the air.

"You made real, genuine mistakes today… But it seems to me, the bigger issue was terrible timing… Though it could have been worse I suppose…"

She stopped, and clearly focused on some specific thing in her mind.

"Yes… It could have been worse in that regard. For one, you had the good sense to let sleeping dogs lie regarding her thoughts on other girls."

He'd… Almost completely forgotten about that point. It seemed so small in hindsight… Though apparently Kasumi did not think so.

"Why… Was that such a landmine?"

"It should not be so… Akane does not mind lesbians… Or more accurately in this case, girls who like both… But I fear she has far too much personal baggage to explore that part of herself as she is now… And I cannot state this harder… It was remarkably wise of you to let it go as you did."

That… Raised many more questions.

"What… Sort of baggage?"

Kasumi sighed again, though this time there was… Something more annoyed about it than usual.

Not like Kasumi at all.

Then again, this entire talk had been nothing but him seeing new sides of her.

"Izuku… I understand that you, like most Furinkan boys, have an… Unorthodox view of Akane as remarkably cute."

"Um… She is."

"The vast majority of boys Akane has met through the years do not agree with that assessment, I can assure you. Akane has been picking and winning fights with boys since she was the age you got engaged to our family. And they have had very, very unkind things to say to her over the years. Some things that hurt her more than others."

It finally clicked.

"Like…"

"Angry, manhating, macho lesbian, yes. That is one common insult she had heard since childhood… Many more in similar veins, are far more scathing than that. Regardless… It is an insult that has stuck in her mind, more so than most. Her friends don't quite recognize how much it stings when they suggest it… But I do."

He nodded slowly.

"So… It's not something that should hurt…"

"But for Akane, it does. And that is what actually matters here."

He nodded.

He also decided he agreed with Kasumi. He would let that lie as it would.

If one day she wanted to explore that on her own… Well he honestly wasn't quite sure how he felt about it.

The idea of sexuality in his female form was… Weird. That was just the truth of it.

In any case, it was not something he saw as particularly likely to happen in the near future.

"Regardless… You did not truly step on that mine… So you do not have to deal with the aftermath of that… We need to focus on what actually happened."

"Yeah… I have an idea for how to do that… More than just an apology I mean… It's… Not a perfect one… And it will have to wait until she calms down a bit."

Kasumi nodded.

"That is wise of you… Also… I would recommend later today. Akane said she is heading out to visit Doctor Tofu for her hand. I would recommend you try this plan of yours after that."

He nodded.

"It's… It's actually rather Ironic. The thing I was planning to take you to task for… Was the one thing that ironically wasn't your fault… Well… I suppose you set it into motion with a kick… But it really was just an accident, on both yours and Ryoga's part."

Her face suddenly became extremely sad.

"And of course it had to be her hair… I am very glad she didn't get a facial scar instead… But that hair really was her pride and joy."

Izuku wasn't sure how that would have gone actually. He had not seen Akane's durability actually put to the test… But he feared she would probably have gotten far, far worse than a scar.

"She…"

"Do not lie Izuku. This is not the time for it. You cannot possibly claim it was not a massive blow. Both for herself, and objectively speaking… That hair really was beautiful. And she knew it too. That's why it was such a hard blow for her. Losing it… She looks so much worse… You cannot honestly claim otherwise."

"I… I suppose that's right."

When he said it, he did not mean it in the sense that he thought Akane looked horrible now.

Kasumi was right… But that did not mean Akane had suddenly lost her cute face or anything…

But that didn't really matter.

Because that was, of course, the exact moment when the door opened and Akane came in.

He hadn't sensed her at all, with Kasumi's aura dissipating, he'd completely let his guard and senses down.

He froze as stone though, as Akane looked at him with… He wasn't sure.

But she had heard what he just said, he was sure of that.

She had gotten a haircut he immediately saw. That… Complicated things… But right then and there, he couldn't focus on anything but the fact he had just said something she would take the absolutely worst way.

Her gaze went from him to Kasumi.

"I'm heading off to Doctor Tofu's."

Kasumi nodded.

Then, without a further word, she left.

"Bad timing… Seems to be your thing today, dear."

I

Akane was aware that Izuku was following her.

He kept a firm distance, and despite the occasional sounds of pain when he overstretched his battered body, he kept a steady pace behind her.

She wasn't sure how she felt about that.

Part of her was annoyed he was there.

Another part was glad for his silent presence.

One furious that he DARED to try to show he cared, now after everything was too late.

A large part just wanted him to come closer and hug her.

The fact was… She didn't know what she wanted right then.

Beyond a sense she needed to get doctor Tofu to look at her hand, and…

She would deal with that when she got there.

By the time she got there, the clinic had closed for the day.

That was fine… The door was still unlocked.

She found Tofu a bit further in than usual… Well, that was to say she found him in the clinic's actual living room.

Tofu did live here after all.

It was his home, not just his business.

Tofu, who was currently sitting in a chair, massaging his temples, reacted with great surprise at her presence.

"Hello, Doctor Tofu!"

"Oh… Hello Akane. It's… Quite a bit later than usual for you… Ah… Your hand…"

He rose to his feet.

He looked… Tired.

Dark rings under his bespeckled eyes, and his expression was far more lethargic than usual.

"Oh… You cut it short again I see."

Her hair. He was talking about her hair.

It was like he was taking a bit longer than usual to really see her in full.

"Mhm!"

Her tone was… So happy.

Way happy.

Tofu seemed to notice… But he did not call her out on it.

He guided her over to a sofa beside a table filled with papers, and they sat down as he began inspecting her hand, after unfurling her makeshift bandage.

"This… This is from glass cuts, yes?"

"Yes."

"Hmmm… They're… Not as bad they could be… I have… This bandage… The blood isn't yours is it? The wounds are nowhere near large enough."

"No. They're from Izuku. He had a fight, you see. Duel. Boy stuff."

Tofu raised an eyebrow at that, but again, he didn't question her, instead quickly beginning to disinfect the wounds, then smear them over with a salve.

"He has not come here."

"No. He got treated by Kasumi."

Tofu flinched… But he did not do anything else. Instead, after a short pause, he continued his work.

"I see…"

"Hey Doctor… My hair… Do you think it… Looks good?"

"Oh yes, it's very cute. Short hair always did suit you better."

It was the friendly and genuine smile as he said it.

"Heh heh. Guess so."

Something broke.

She had no idea what it was, but SOMETHING inside of her broke at those words.

That he had always prefered her with short hair.

That he would forever think of her as that cute girl who he had helped patch up, and never as a woman in her own right.

She began to cry.

"Oh! Did that hurt? I'm Sorry."

"Oh… Oh geez… It's not that…"

She began drying her eyes as Tofu sat down beside her, his tall frame like a lean tower next to her shorter frame.

"It's so embarrassing… It won't stop…"

He put an arm around her, as he looked down on her, with a supporting, caring smile.

It was a kind of smile Akane recognized oh so well.

A concerned father, looking down on a crying girl he cared about…

It was the last thing she wanted right now.

"Tell me what's wrong."

She buried her face in his shirt and just began wailing.

She continued for a long, long time, just… Letting out all of her frustrations, her sadness, her worries…

All the while, tofu lent her a strong brotherly… Parental… Arm… As support.

It was so weird.

As she began to finally stop… It was that, more than anything else that really cemented it for her.

She finally did stop.

Not instantly, but more that the sobs ended, and ebbed out.

Tofu clapped her supportingly on the back. Gently, but firmly.

"There there… Let it out… Nothing like a good cry."

"Oh man… I'm Sorry Doctor Tofu… Springing this on you like… Like this…"

She began drying her eyes, and looked away from him.

Eventually, she began taking deep, deep breaths as she finally began calming down.

She felt… She didn't know.

Something had fundamentally changed… She could feel that but… But…

She blinked. She actually began seeing what was in front of her.

What was on the papers on the desk.

Before Tofu could say anything she reached out a hand, and pulled a paper up from the table, showing a woman named Ryuko Tsuchikawa, and… Quite a lot of information about her… Written in a style suggesting it was herself who wrote it.

Her eyes danced to the other papers.

They were similar.

"Doctor Tofu… Who are these women?"

"Ah…"

The good doctor seemed sheepish for a moment.

"It's a… Personal matter. Regarding some problems of my own…"

Suddenly he too seemed very down, but of a different kind than her.

"I'm… Sure you don't want to be bothered with my problems right now… Given your own."

"Oh… No that… We're…"

What? What were they?"

"We're… Friends aren't we?"

The word seemed to make Tofu stiffen… But he nodded slowly.

"Yes… Yes, that you are Akane. You are my friend."

He hesitated a bit before continuing.

"Do you… Really want to hear about my woes?"

She opened her mouth…

Did she?

She didn't know.

She closed her mouth… And nodded anyway.

"Alright… Since you asked… My… Mother has wanted me to get married for a while now. Years actually. Half a decade. No… No, that's not true."

His look became more melancholic as he turned to a photo showcasing himself and his parents.

"When I was younger, I promised my mother I would get married and give her grandchildren… I was… I did not take it as seriously as she did."

Akane actually laughed. A sorta crying laugh.

"Just like my dad…"

"Yes… That's… Not inaccurate… However, she let the matter lie… At least until my father died… After that… She has… Pestered me about it. Every year, every month. It has… Strained our relationship quite a bit."

He became more melancholic.

"However I have… Refused the women she has tried to make me marry… I… I… Had someone… Or… Thought I had…"

"You mean Kasumi?"

She just said it completely blankly… And yet… It didn't hurt as bad as usual… Despite how badly she had been feeling.

Again, he flinched, and this time he actually blushed.

"Ah… So you… Knew about that?"

"Everyone knew. Your patients I mean. Everyone except Kasumi…"

He was suddenly solemn again.

"No… She knew. She… Made that very clear to me the last time we met."

Oh.

"She… Rejected you?"

"Yes. She was not cruel about it… But… She made it very clear to me that… Well… I have for the last… Ever since Kasumi became 18… I… Thought she was… Giving me signals is one way to put it I suppose… But I was never sure… That was one reason…"

He shook his head.

"No… The truth is, I simply was too cowardly to ask her out. But… I was genuinely not sure if she was serious or… If I was just seeing things."

He sighed, a deep, melancholic sound it was.

"As it turns out… I wasn't… But… That ship has sailed. She made that very clear to me."

He looked so, so sad…

"So… But… What does this have to do with these women?"

"Oh!? Right… Well… I have been thinking… That… Is mostly what I have been doing at night these days. The fact is… I do not have an excuse to not fulfill my promise to my mother anymore."

He motioned with his hand to the table.

"I… Made a deal of sorts. I agreed that if she would give me space to do so and make my own choices regarding it… Then before the end of the year I would accept an arranged marriage she presented before me. These… Are women interested in such a match."

"I… I see… When did…"

She just felt… Confused mostly.

"When did arranged marriages become so…"

"Commonplace?"

He smiled at her, though there was little mirth in it.

"They are not as rare as you might think Akane… We are not alone in such regard. It's just… Not really something much talked about nowadays."

That… Might make logical sense, but…

"You're… Not over Kasumi, are you?"

"No."

He did not deny it.

"I'm not. And frankly… I don't think I will be for a long while… But… I have come to the realization… That I have to move on. Whether I'm fully ready or not. I need to rethink my life. Life… Isn't going to wait for me."

His eyes once more turned to his family picture.

"My father… He was skilled, and he was accomplished… But not old. He died so suddenly… Life ended. My mother is in much worse shape than he was. I don't want there to be regret on either side when it…"

She nodded.

That part… That part she knew.

"Just like my mom…"

He looked at her… Then nodded, slowly.

"Yes."

He sighed.

The conversation continued a bit longer, but… The important parts had been said by then.

I

Izuku walked behind her again, as she began making her way back home.

Much closer this time.

As in, right behind her.

Maybe he felt it. How different her mood was.

She didn't know.

All she knew was that the anger at him for what had happened had suddenly vanished… Well for the most part.

She sighed.

"Ahhhh… Nothing like a good cry."

Izuku was silent for a moment.

Then…

"You're… Not really happier now, are you? The rage is gone, but…"

Perceptive.

"No. But… It doesn't matter anymore."

"Your… Hair… Or Tofu?"

Again… Perceptive wasn't he.

She wondered if this was how he'd seen Kasumi's feelings.

"Tofu still matters… But… As my friend. I guess… I've finally gotten over him."

So strange.

That should have hurt… But it didn't.

"I think… I need to rethink my life. Just like Tofu."

That part was true enough.

She didn't know where she went from here… But she needed to find another course in life.

Pining after Tofu… Was not something that could be part of that.

"You… Didn't say, regarding your hair."

Hadn't she?

No, she guessed not.

"It's alright… I've been thinking… About getting it cut anyway."

She had… She just… Hadn't really had any reason before to do so.

But now that she had finally given up on Tofu…"

"F-For real?"

Suddenly Izuku was beside her, looking her over with a puzzled look.

"I… Guess we won't be needing this then."

He held up… Her severed mane of hair?

It was a bit bloody and dirty, but there was no mistaking it.

She just stared at it.

Then at him.

"Why… Why would we need that? Why do you even have that?"

Now he looked confused.

"I… I did offer to fix your hair before, didn't I? How would I do that without it?"

She stared at him.

"Fix… As in… Reattach it?"

"Yes? What did you think I meant?"

"Fix it up like Kasumi did! Why the Hell didn't you mention you could do that before?"

Suddenly her annoyance at him was back, but in a very different way.

"I… Just assumed. I mean… Actually I don't think I've mended my clothes in front of you guys before… Huh… Yeah actually that… That makes sense. You wouldn't know."

As Akane stared at him, feeling annoyed, but surprisingly not actually angry, he obviously hesitated, before throwing himself into the next part.

"It… Isn't quite a perfect process. For one, the part of this I reattach to your still attached hair will be completely white… So unless you are all right with a white streak through it… Well, we'll need one round of blue dye… Also… It'll be wavy at the connection point. It's… Not that noticeable once dyed… Finally though, it won't be quite as solid as regular hair. The meeting point can break relatively easily, if pulled hard… But it should hold up relatively well, even in a fight."

He looked nervous, as he continued.

"It's… Up to you though. If you really do want to keep your hair short… Well, we don't have to do anything."

She considered that.

Did she… Want her hair long?

She didn't have a wish to look like Kasumi anymore… But did that mean she wanted to go back to the old days?

Then again… Her hair hadn't been quite like this even back then.

She… Genuinely tried to think which she actually wanted of the two options.

Ultimately…

"I think… I'll go with longer hair… For now anyway. I'm… Not sure If I wouldn't rather go with shorter hair in the long run… But I would rather it was a choice if I do… Rather than… well, getting it shorn."

I

It had taken a surprisingly long time to prepare her hair, but as night had come, she now sat on a chair in front of Kasumi's bed, where Izuku was currently sitting.

He said it hurt less sitting on it than hers, or his own.

Kasumi herself had prepared her hair for the event, which had been cleaned as best it could be, and dried off, as if they were going to make a wig out of it.

It felt… Weird, as Izuku began.

She felt a tingle of… What she could only assume was Ki, as he began attaching hair, about a dozen strands at a time.

"Where did you learn to do this anyway?"

"The Andes. Or more specifically, Peru. Once we left Japan… The goal my parents and I had was to travel to the lands of the old Inca empire, and try to learn the secrets of Pachakutiy, the Earthshaker."

"Never heard of him."

"Yeah… I would be rather surprised if you had. He was the man who formed the Inca empire… The largest indigenous empire of the Americas. He was also the strongest Ki user the two continents ever produced, bar none. None before, or after has come close to his level."

"You mean… Like Susanoo was for Japan?"

She had never actually studied the old tales… But Akane understood the idea he was talking about.

A warrior who had achieved what her father called being "Unrivaled under the heavens".

Japan had had one of those once.

…Though the exact details she wasn't particularly familiar with, beyond the fact the legend of Susanno, who slew the Yamata no Orochi was an image of him.

Izuku was more informed though.

"Yeah… It's a good comparison actually… Our first Emperor, Jimmu was the man who killed the Orochi in those early days over two thousand years ago. He was a warrior of such unrivaled power, that he became known after his death, as the "God' Susanoo, to differentiate him from the monarch Jimmu…"

He paused for a second, before continuing.

"Then again, according to my father, Jimmu actually did have some connection to Amaterasu, a spirit who may, or may have been an actual god. So take that as you will… But… To get back to the point, the Earth shaker was to the Americas what Jimmu was to us. The absolute peak of the Human condition."

She nodded, slowly, so as to not disturb his work with her hair.

"Makes sense… You guys traveled all around the world to learn all you could about Ki. I hadn't really thought about what determined where you went, beyond seeking out old masters."

"Yeah… Those tended to be more productive too. The fact was… We didn't actually learn much of the Earthshaker's powers and secrets. He had great trouble passing on his Ki capacity to his heirs… But the trip wasn't worthless by any means. I grew a lot in the Andes… I mastered the art of assimilating poison from the folk living in a hidden cliff city overlooking the Amazon… And I learned this technique of merging fibers together from a kind old man in the Peru mountains, who had passed it on all the way from the time of the Incas."

He sounded so wistful while he explained, obviously thinking back on his journeys.

She had to admit… They… Did sound romantic in their own way.

"Admittingly… It was more meant for Llama wool clothing, but it does work on Human hair as well… If you're careful… And knows its limits…"

"It's not… Quite how I imagined your trips. I… Kinda thought it was all, one big training journey, all about fighting."

Izuku actually chuckled at that, suddenly sounding like the schoolboy he'd been when first seeing Ryoga again.

"Oh there was plenty of that too… But our School is anything goes. It's about absorbing everything we learn, to make a greater whole."

He paused for a while, as he just continued on her hair.

"We did learn a bit about Earthshaker's powers though… But it wasn't as useful as We had hoped. As it turned out… He knew the secrets of the "Breaking Point" found in all non-living things."

"I've… Never heard of that."

"It's a Chinese Ki discovery… Though the Inca Emperor discovered it on his own. Basically, every non living thing that exists has a breaking point. If you push it, as you infuse it with Ki, it will shatter."

"That sounds… Powerful."

"It is… Though as I said, this technique only really works on non living things. Stone and the like. Perfect for constructing roads in an empire on the mountain sides and tops… But my father long ago learned all there was to know about it… He even discovered the location of the breaking point of the Human body."

That was…

"Really? That sounds terrifying."

"I-It is…"

Izuku admitted.

"It's… Not quite as deadly as you can imagine though. People aren't like rocks. We have Ki, soul, flesh, and blood in our veins. My father had learned of the idea of the breaking point early in life… But he also had heard many, many stories of living things also having these points. Which in turn contradicted what he had been told by those who actually knew the technique. He realized there was probably some truth to both."

"So… He experimented then, until he found it?"

"Kinda… No, he actually stumbled upon the point in the Human body when Perfecting the Yama-Sen Ken. One of its most terrifying techniques hit the point completely unintentionally... Hence why it's so dangerous. You… Won't find that detail in the original Yama-Sen Ken scroll your father won though. He didn't realize the point was actually there until LONG after the duel where he lost the scroll."

Akane had never read the scroll in question, but she knew where it was.

She suddenly found herself curious about it… So… She just asked.

"What technique is that?"

"The Kaichu Hoju Satsu. The crushing embrace of the killer grip."

"That's quite the name there… Your dad really likes those kinds of names huh?"

"Yeah… He does. In any case… It's actually a stupidly simple technique. Just… A superpowered bear hug using Ki, but with enough strength to break the Human spine."

"...Seriously? He gave that name… To a bearhug?"

"Yeah…"

Izuku sounded a bit embarrassed as he replied.

"As I said though, he realized he had stumbled onto something special with that technique… Because sometimes it worked ridiculously well… Even against enemies with seemingly unbreakable defenses. As he later discovered, that was because it 1. Could and often did hit the breaking point of the Human body… And secondly, because the way the breaking point of Living things work is… Very different from the one on non-living things."

"How so? There has to be a catch to it. Otherwise someone else would have found it ages ago."

"Yeah… As it turns out, it's not instantaneous. You need to apply pressure and Ki continuously over time for it to work. So… Provided you can keep the hold, and the enemy cannot break free… And you can effectively do the technique unchallenged even as you can do nothing else you can force them into submission, by breaking their bones… Or their spirit through sheer pain. People generally black out from the pain long before they actually hit the critical point where it all breaks down."

"So in other words… It's not useful for you… But would be far more suited for someone like Ryoga."

"Yeah, pretty much…"

Both of them shivered at the thought of someone so indestructible and strong having such a terrifying technique.

"It's… So weird to talk about it with someone… The Yama-Sen Ken… I… Have shared a lot of martial arts knowledge with other people over the years… Ryoga, other students under the masters I have trained with… Sometimes even those masters themselves… But never the Yama-Sen Ken… I have never talked about it with anyone but my parents…"

"Why not?"

"Because it's our art. We made it. It belongs to us… Our family."

Akane felt her cheeks suddenly blush at that implication.

Behind her, Izuku did the exact same thing as he suddenly seemed to fully realize the full weight of what he'd just said.

She'd… Kinda forgotten it, as they talked.

That they were a boy and girl… And… Might become something more.

The irony of a martial arts school, all based on taking all the best parts of everything else, also teaching its members to jealously guard its own secrets was lost on its two youngest practitioners, in favor of far, far more important, personal matters.

For a while, as Izuku continued his work in silence, Akane thought about those personal matters.

Then, she finally asked.

"You… Said to Kasumi… That you thought I looked so much worse without long hair."

She felt fingers freeze.

"Ah… That… Well…"

He stopped working for a while as he seemed to try to find the words.

"Do you… Want me to be completely honest?"

"So long as you're not a total jerk about it… Yeah."

"Allright…"

He slowly began working again.

"I… Like girls with long hair. That's… Just what it is. It's… Kinda… shallow… I know… But I do think it looks… Better than short hair… In general I mean. Nabiki… Doesn't have long hair… But she still looks great."

She had a sneaking suspicion of where this was heading.

"She can pull it off you mean? But I can't?"

She… Wasn't sure she disagreed with that assessment.

Of either Nabiki, or herself.

She was far, far too proud to EVER admit that fact out loud though.

"Well… No, that's… Not quite where I was going with it… Your clothing…"

"My… My clothing? What about my clothes?"

"Well… All your clothing… You bought it to look good with your long hair didn't you?"

She froze… Then suddenly with a start, realized he was right.

It was so obvious, but… She hadn't even considered that angle.

"Huh… That's actually a good point… I… wouldn't look that… good in those, would I? With short hair…"

She hadn't even considered that as a thing… And yet when he said it out loud, it was stupidly obvious.

"I… Wouldn't really go that far… I mean… You still have a cute… And… B-beautiful face… But it would not be as… Complimentary no."

She blushed again when he called her pretty… But there was something else that bothered her.

"You… Have thought about this way too much."

"Not… Exactly…"

His voice got stupidly flustered.

"Yeah? How so?"

"Well… It's kinda an… Embarrassing story… But when I was younger… We were staying with this older man I trained under that had what I thought was a supercool hairstyle… And… It was… So… Since he knew how to cut someone's hair… I asked him if he could give me that hairstyle…"

She realized immediately where he was going with it.

"...You didn't consider how it would look with your training clothing, at all, did you?"

"...nooo…"

He said in the most mousy way possible.

"...I looked… so dumb… and since it was a really short haircut… It took months to grow out again…"

She actually smiled at that… Then remembered how she herself had looked earlier before asking Kasumi to cut it.

She suddenly felt a bit guilty for having some fun imagining younger Izuku's hair woes.

"So… If I do go with shorter hair… I'm gonna have to rethink my wardrobe."

"It's… Well… One of the nice things about longer hair… Is that it goes much easier with most clothing… Shorter hair… You can mess up your looks so bad… so easy with those…"

He must have REALLY hated that hairstyle he'd had, judging by his tone.

But… She actually agreed with his thoughts on the matter. There was actual logic in it… Even if, as he admitted, he did prefer girls with longer hair.

The irony, that she was technically once again competing with Kasumi for their long hair, suddenly hit her… But… It didn't quite have the same sting as if once had.

Right now she just… Wanted to figure she was going from here.

"We're… Done by the way."

She blinked.

Then, slowly got up, and went over to Kasumi's mirror.

She looked… Better in her own opinion.

That was to say, better than either of her shorter hairstyles from earlier today.

She still looked nowhere as good as she had before the big cut though.

As Izuku had warned, there was a clear white line running through it… And it looked… Weird, the way the hair was incredibly wavy on one spot.

It just… Didn't look natural.

"That's… Gonna look much better when it's all blue. Mom… My mother has agreed she'll help you out with that tomorrow."

Tomorrow was thankfully Sunday.

So… Plenty of time to get used to this she supposed.

Izuku, finally having finished, now shook surprisingly hard.

His arms especially.

"You… You okay Izuku?"

"Hurts a bit… A lot… But… I'm gonna head to bed now."

He yawned.

"I'm… Gonna go sleep this off… Finally…"

He suddenly seemed… Incredibly tired.

Suddenly, it came back to her, as she looked over his bruised face.

What had started all this… She'd… Kinda forgotten.

"I… Forgot… That you really got beat up earlier…"

Izuku looked away.

"I… It's… Gonna be more times like this in the future… That's… Kinda unavoidable… If we're gonna be Pro-Heroes… But… I'm sorry. Back then… You were worried sick about me… And… I didn't really take what you said seriously. At all…"

Neither spoke further, instead just… Kinda standing there in silence.

Then Kasumi opened the door, and walked in, and suddenly both of them remembered they were NOT in Akane's or Izuku's room, but instead were occupying someone else's room.

And as midnight came, all 3 of them eventually began moving to their own rooms, and their own beds.

The moment, as they said, was gone.