You don't have to read this if you don't want to.
We are about to reach the point where the story started. It will still take a couple of chapters to reach there but I wanted to ask you all -
Should I wrap this up? Is this enough? Or should I add more adventure for my favourite duo?
If you have read this far, please help me by sharing your thoughts
Chapter 14: Kacchan...Where are you?
The search for the twin Hoesiacnea shrub became a harrowing ordeal as the slippery, rocky terrain and my depleting energy took a toll. The rugged terrain made the task arduous, with each step requiring careful placement to avoid treacherous footing. The increase in altitude only exacerbated the challenge, the thin air biting at my lungs as I climbed higher. Dark clouds still lingered overhead, a remnant of the previous night's rainstorm, ready to unleash their icy payload at any moment.
I scanned the craggy mountainside, my eyes darted from one crevice to the next, desperately searching for the elusive twin Hoesiacnea shrub. I was so excited and thrilled when I found the first Hoesiacnea shrub just as I started my search. But then, it was not bent and was not the twin one I was looking for. With each laboured step, I pushed forward, determined to complete the assignment and retrieve the item from the summit.
Suddenly, I heard a series of powerful explosions. Kacchan - I murmured. I decided to close the distance between us so that we could search for it together. As I made my way across the uneven terrain, the explosions grew louder and more frequent, signalling Kacchan's approach.
I strained to catch a glimpse of Kacchan, desperate to locate him as the explosions grew louder, when suddenly, a massive white blur came barreling towards me from the same direction. At first, I thought it might be Kacchan himself, but as the creature drew nearer, I realized it was no human - it was a colossal white tiger, sprinting towards me with surprising speed, its powerful muscles rippling beneath its pristine coat. I froze, heart pounding, as the ferocious feline approached with a fierce, angry glint in its eyes.
Without warning, the tiger leapt at me, its massive jaws gaping wide. In a split-second reaction, I crouched low and rolled swiftly to the right, narrowly avoiding the creature's powerful pounce. But as I moved, a searing pain shot through my right arm, a painful reminder of the injury that still lingered.
Shakily, I rose to my feet, adrenaline coursing through my veins, as the tiger reared back and charged at me once more. Determined to defend myself, I formulated a plan - I would try to grab the beast's paws and hurl it away from me. Yet, the sheer speed, weight, and impact of the tiger's onslaught proved too much for my weakened right arm to handle, and my grip faltered. The tiger's razor-sharp claws slashed across my chest, sending me tumbling backwards. As it pounced on me again, ready to sink its teeth into my flesh, I knew I had to act fast. Summoning every ounce of my strength, I unleashed my powerful quirk, delivering a forceful kick to the tiger's side.
With great effort, I then managed to get back on my feet and, using 20% of my quirk, I broke a nearby tree and hurled it towards the beast. The massive projectile swept the tiger a great distance across the ground before it finally came to a halt, prompting the frightened animal to turn and flee in the opposite direction. But it started running in the same direction as Kacchan is. I quickly activated my Full Cowling and rushed to position myself directly in the tiger's path, blocking it's escape. The frightened animal had no choice but to turn and flee into the woods, away from the threat I presented.
As the adrenaline subsided, I felt the world spinning around me, my entire body wracked with agony from the encounter. I felt myself begin to sway and tumbled down the rocky incline, my body rolling and colliding with the jagged landscape. Just as I thought all was lost, a sharp, jagged tree branch, protruding from the base of a tree, suddenly pierced into my side, the searing, agonizing sensation stealing the breath from my lungs. Though the tree had halted my descent, the torturous pain it inflicted was almost more than I could bear. I tried to scream but no sound escaped my lips - my voice had been stolen by the sheer shock of the injury.
Forcing myself to focus, I tried to slow my ragged breathing, but the simple act of drawing air into my battered body only amplified the excruciating pain radiating from the wound. I struggled to shift my position, desperate to free myself from the branch's grip, but each movement sent waves of agony through my body. As I was about to lose consciousness, faint explosions in the distance suddenly caught my attention, and with a monumental effort, I mustered what little strength remained to call out for help. What came out was nothing but a hoarse whisper.
I couldn't recall how long I spent in that position, weakly calling out to Kacchan before I saw him crouched in front of me, urgently telling me to stay awake. I don't know when I closed my eyes but I woke up with a jolt and screamed like all hell broke lose as someone grabbed my waist, aggravating the pain. Kacchan was speaking, but his words were muffled and distorted, as if I am submerged underwater and someone was desperately trying to pull me back up to the surface, only to let me sink back down again.
This time, I mustered every last bit of my strength to stay afloat and focus on deciphering what Kacchan was saying, but just as I was about to make sense of it all, Kacchan left. All I could think about was the searing, debilitating pain that wracked my body, and a overwhelming sense of loneliness and fear. Had Kacchan abandoned me? Was he coming back, or had he decided to go on without me?
The overwhelming emotions had become too much to bear any longer and I sobbed uncontrollable, my cries echoing through the deafening silence. I could feel the tightness constricting my chest, making it increasingly difficult to draw each breath. Desperately, I strained to regain control, to slow my ragged breathing, but the torment was all-consuming.
Gritting my teeth, I began to shift my position to remove the branch and free myself. Steeling myself, I tried to scoot backwards inch by agonizing inch, white-hot flashes of pain lancing through me with every minuscule movement. I could feel the jagged wood shifting and grinding against my tender flesh with every minuscule motion. But I didn't even manage to budge a single centimeter before the sheer intensity of the pain shattered my resolve, my body going limp as I resigned myself to my wretched fate.
All I could do now was lie there, heart pounding, breath ragged, teeth clattering, waiting desperately for the merciful darkness to finally overcome me. I welcomed the dizziness that only got worse when I closed my eyes. But sleep was impossible and with each passing second I felt considerably worse.
At some point, I felt a presence behind me. I could only pray it wasn't the white tiger, come to finish the job it had started. I felt fingers pressing my neck for a pulse. When I opened my eyes to look, Kacchan's face was leaning over mine, trying to talk to me. I don't even remember when I closed my eyes. When I tried to explain what I want, he just stared at me as if he didn't understand. He moved behind me and ripped open my shirt, exposing the angry, ragged wound. I shivered involuntarily as he began poking and prodding the tender, inflamed skin.
"Please," I mumbled. "Please Stop. Stop it" He appeared and said something about it will only take a minute. That he will remove it as fast as he can. That didn't matter. I could hardly feel my middle section anymore. All I wanted was to sleep.
I awoke next to a sensation in my stomach so fierce that I shot up and screamed. I activated my quirk subconsciously and pushed it away from me. I heard a grunt and a thud. My back arched as white hot pain radiated from my abdomen. The nausea was overwhelming, and I barely had time to turn my head before vomiting violently. Each retching contraction felt like it was tearing me apart from the inside. Someone started rubbing my back in slow, calming circles, and told me to calm down. When the heaving finally subsided, someone tried to offer me a drink - first just water, mercifully bland, but the second attempt was something so horrible that I spat it out and lost consciousness again.
The next time I awoke, things were beginning to make more sense. The cloud cover overhead had deepened to a shade of charcoal and the damp, earthy scent indicated that it recently rained. I groaned as I tried to roll over, and the next face I saw was Kacchan's. His usually vibrant eyes were rimmed with exhaustion, and his entire body was soaked through, droplets of water still clinging to his skin and clothes. "You okay?" he asked.
"You stayed." It was not a question. And I wasn't expecting an answer either. His presence alone was a great relief.
"No. I am a fucking villain impersonating Kacchan. The real Katsuki is resting peacefully at home. Of course, I stayed. What did you expect nerd? We need to complete it together or we both fail. Did you hit your head too?"
I small smile crept across my face as I lay there shivering. I took a note of my injuries. My head was throbbing in rhythm of my heartbeat, my right side was still burning but it was somewhat bearable now while my legs felt completely detached. Curling my toes, I let out a sigh of relief to find they were still responsive. Gazing down, I could see I was messily wrapped in the tent and knew that under this tangled cocoon, there is a tight bandage in place. Despite all the layers, the cold seeped through, a bitter chill that seemed to seep into my very bones.
"What the fuck happened?" he asked.
"I heard some explosions and thought you were nearby" I started with a sigh. "I started making my way towards you when.. cough" God, it hurts so much. I winced at the searing pain that shot through my body.
"Hey, here, drink some water" he helped me sit against a tree and take a few sips. "At this rate, we will both end up catching pneumonia. Can you move?"
"Yeah...I think I can try." I nodded.
He raised an eyebrow, as if questioning the words I think, and said "We should head west, towards that stream, away from this rocky surface after changing into some dry clothes."
"But we haven't found the twin Hoesiacnea shrub yet."
"Oh We did." he said, turning his head away.
"We did?" I exclaimed, my eyes widening.
"There is no doubt now that you have a concussion too." I frowned at that.
When I just scowled at him for an answer, he got frustrated and said "Tch Alright, I found it." averting his gaze again. "There were two scrolls and before you ask, No. I haven't read them yet. I was...you know... sort of...busy."
I bowed my head, unable to meet his eyes. I knew he was busy taking care of me. I have become a burden for him. He is right. If he had continued without me, he could've been resting peacefully at home by now. This is just because of Aizawa sensei's rules that he had to stick with me. "We could read them now" I mumbled quietly.
"No. Its freezing out here and the rain didn't help in the least. I tried setting up the tent but this damn rocky surface didn't let me. We are leaving this place right now and that is final."
He helped me untangle myself from the tent and rummaged through my bag. I felt like I should not let him do this but the weariness in my bones made it impossible for me to protest. He handed me dry shirt and pants, then helped me change my shirt. I tracked his movements as he disappeared in the woods and started undressing. It was a torturous process but as I was about to complete it, I spotted him returning with a long and sturdy branch. I was completely spent, huffing and puffing, when he approached and silently worked on packing everything up.
Grasping his outstretched hand, I slowly pulled myself up, wincing with every movement. Both my legs were trembling violently. As I stood, a sudden wave of dizziness overcame me, and I leaned heavily against the tree for support. Tears of pain pricked my eyes. It was even more painful to stay upright, but I was determined to complete this assignment and stop being a burden on Kacchan.
"Take this" he handed me the branch. I eyed the makeshift walking stick with a furrowed brow, silently questioning its purpose. "Tch. I can't carry you and your feather-light bag together. This will support you while walking."
Though Kacchan's words were laced with sarcasm, the subtle gesture of helping me touched my heart more deeply than I expected. I could see the underlying concern in his eyes, even if he would never admit it outright. He knew I would likely struggle to complete the assignment on my own, but also recognized my stubborn pride would prevent me from directly asking for his assistance. I was touched by this small, considerate gesture, even as I bristled at the sarcastic barbs he threw my way.
I am determined not to be a burden on him, to complete this assignment on my own two feet if possible. But the simple presence of that walking stick, a tangible sign that he has my back, has bolstered my resolve and my confidence that I can see this through.