Timeloop Trouble

Chapter 42 - This is Over

Finally being a pro hero again felt like riding a bike. It had been years and he still got it, although a little out of shape, but with a few fights he was back at his previous height. That, and he went through some rigorous training under the Hero Commission. Still, it felt good to be back in action, jumping from roof to roof as the wind soared in his ears. It didn't stop him from hearing a scream from down below, seeing the front of a bank explode as a gang of villains fled to their car, ready to make a getaway.

It hadn't been called in, so the alarms probably weren't triggered. Huh, strange. Izuku presumed all banks had automated that system by now. Then again, the flow of time could be different from what he remembered, so he shouldn't make assumptions like that.

"Precise shot to the tires should do it," Nana spoke in his ear as Izuku jumped towards his target. "Wrap them up nicely once the vehicle loses control."

Izuku did as she said, using an AP-shot to hit one of the back tires and holding onto the car with Blackwhip afterwards to keep it from crashing into anything or anyone. Yeah, that's another thing that was new in this timeline, Izuku could use Kacchan's explosion quirk now. His spirit had accumulated enough energy for it to manifest.

"Don't let the fuckers get away, Deku," Katsuki told him as the villains tried to evacuate the vehicle.

"I'm on it, Kacchan," Izuku mumbled, already using the black tendrils to wrap them up and put the quirk erasure cuffs on them. The vestiges always talked to him during battle, when their quirks came out the most. Giving him advice or simply voicing Izuku's thoughts out loud. They were a part of him, after all, and their minds had become more attuned to each other as time went on. Perfectly in sync in mind and body. He called in the incident after the takedown, making sure to assess any possible civilian injuries and making sure the villains didn't get away before police arrived. The press arrived quickly after, too.

"Hero Deku! A statement regarding the new move you used just now!" one of the reporters shouted, pushing a microphone in his face as he tried to make them adhere to the police perimeter. "We've never seen you use such a precise energy blast before! How did you come up with it?"

"It looks an awful lot like King Explosion's AP-shot!" another reporter added on, seeing their chance to get answers out of Deku. "Do you know the new explosion hero? Is that where you got your inspiration from?"

"Ah, yes, actually," Izuku smiled, shutting them up in an instant as cameras flashed around him. "When I first saw King Explosion's AP-shot, I was like, wow, that guy is awesome, you know? And I wondered whether I'd be able to do something similar. So yeah, the moves may look similar, but the mechanics behind it are very different! Now if you'll excuse me-"

Izuku ignored their calls as he made his way to the officer in charge, giving him a rundown of what happened. He lied to those reporters just now, but that was something that came so natural to him now. Besides, what was he supposed to say? Oh yeah, the moves look alike because they're the same? Cause I actually have an explosion quirk too? That would cause quite the uproar, for sure. What they didn't know couldn't hurt them, right? And so Izuku continued on with his day, running into some minor villains along his patrol route before returning to his agency, where quite the ruckus was waiting for him.

Seems like King Explosion had decided to pay a visit after the interview he gave this morning...

God, Izuku hadn't seen Kacchan in his physical form in, what, years? Now that he thought about it, he hadn't actually seen him since they were kids. The Hero Commission kept him from the outside world for the most part, although Izuku had been able to watch the UA sportsfestival at times because of...educational purposes. Whatever excuse worked, to be honest. And he hadn't really missed him, either. No, because Kacchan was always with him, in a way. Always there, right by his side.