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3325 words
The same day, after the ambulance had arrived, we were immediately taken to the Hosu General Hospital, as they treated each of our wounds, and ran several tests to see if we had any other injuries, not on the outside. We all made it out fine of the treatments, and heard later that day, that in that moment, a broken rib had pierced the hero killer's lung. He hadn't licked anyone's blood, but at that place, for that one moment, the hero killer was the only one who stood up to fight against his opponent.
I ended up with bandages over my left thigh and calf, and of course, my worst injury, my right hand. The cut was incredibly deep, and the doctors told me, if the cut would've gone further, it was possible that it could've hit an artery, or worse, even going as far as cutting my fingers off.
But I managed to get lucky.
That day, I was told that I shouldn't be in the same room as the three other men, however I insisted, since I didn't really want to be alone, or end up with strangers in the same room.
So I managed to get a medical bed in the same room as my three classmates, and that day, we were all still incapable to speak.
The last moment with the hero killer, it was something that I'll never forget. The true eyes of a killer. A maniac, even. It was purely terrifying. All four of us felt the same way. It had shaken us to our very core. The pressure we all felt from the culprit was probably his strong ideology... or the intimidation from his obsession.
That night, my 'sleep' consisted of a non-stop tossing and turning in my medical bed, as my mind didn't let me rest, not even a single bit. The heavy thoughts of the hero killer, and the fact that we could've ended up being killed in that very alleyway, it lingered across my mind the entire night, and I was restless.
In the morning, I sat up in my bed, as I rubbed my exhausted eyes, and even if I was given a lot of pills which would make the pain go away, a small sting was still noticeable in my hand.
Examining it, the blood had slightly stained my bandages, and I put it down once again, turning in my bed, as I put my feet on the ground, still deep in thought.
"Did you get any sleep?" I heard Shoto ask from beside me, as I didn't even notice that he was up. He was sitting the same way I was.
"No, I didn't . I assume you didn't get any either." I said in a hushed voice, looking over at Iida and Midoriya who seemed to be asleep, but personally, I didn't think they were.
Shoto shook his head, not a surprise.
And after a few minutes of silence, the both of them sat up in their beds, as Todoroki asked Midoriya.
"Were you able to sleep, Midoriya?"
"No, not really." Midoriya awnsered.
"I didn't think so. Me neither." Todoroki spoke.
I held my head with my hands, as my eyes were shut slightly.
"Thinking about it now, we did something amazing, huh?" Midoriya asked, as his gaze was on the ceiling.
My head followed his voice, as I examined his bandaged left leg and right arm.
"Yeah." Todoroki awnsered plainly, however, it wasn't his usual plainness. He was still shook from the experience.
"Seeing an ending like that really makes you feel like it's a miracle we're alive. With my leg like this, he probably could've killed us if he'd wanted to." Midoriya pointed out, his gaze landing on my injuries.
I examined my right palm again, as Todoroki spoke.
"Yeah. We were obviously left alive on purpose." he pointed out as he examined his injury on his left arm.
"You're amazing to have been able to face him after all the murderous intent directed at you." Shoto slightly praised Iida.
"No, that's not it. I..." he began to speak, however someone opened the slide door, and it was the elderly man, and a young looking guy next to him.
"Oh, are you wounded kids awake?" the elderly said in surprise.
"Gran Torino!" Midoriya said with a small smile.
"Manual..." Iida looked at the pro hero in shock. So was this guy where Iida went for the internship? Now, it all makes sense why he interned at such a small hero agency. Because of the location itself, Hosu City, where his older brother had been severely injured.
"Kid, I've got a lot of complaints for you." Gran Torino announced as he walked over to Midoriya's side quickly.
"S-Sorr—" Midoriya tried apologizing, however he was interrupted by the elderly speaking again.
"But before that, you've got a visitor." the elderly explained, as someone entered the room.
A tall man with a business suit on, and a dog head.
"Hosu's chief of police, Kenji Tsuragamae." Gran Torino introduced him.
The chief?
Me, Todoroki and Iida immediately stood up, to show our respects to the chief. My steps were still a bit sloppy, due to my injuries on my left leg, but it was bearable.
Midoriya tried to stand up, as he saw all of us standing, however, the chief dismissed it.
"Oh, you can just stay seated, woof."
Woof...?
"You must be the U.A. students who brought down the hero killer, right?" the chief asked.
"Yes." Todoroki awnsered him.
But if the chief himself is here, that means he can only have bad news with himself. He came all this way, just to speak to us.
"Regarding the hero killer we arrested... He had fairly serious injuries, with burns, and broken bones, and is receiving treatment under strict guard, woof." the chief went on, as he looked each of us in the eyes.
"Since you are U.A. students, I'm sure you already know that when superpowers were still becoming the norm, the police attached high importance to leadership and standards, and made sure Quirks were not used as weapons. And then, the profession of 'hero' emerged to fill that gap, woof. For an individual's use of force and power that can easily kill others - Actions that normally would be appropriate to denounce - to be accepted officially is thanks to early heroes who followed the ethics and rules of profession, woof. Even up against the hero killer, for uncertified individuals to cause injury with their Quirks without specific instruction from their guardians or supervisors is a clear violation of the rules." he explained, as me and Shoto looked over at him, slightly agitated.
"The four of you, and the pro heroes Endeavor, Manual, and Gran Torino must receive strict punishment."
Finally deciding to speak up, Shoto spoke the truth.
"If Iida hadn't done anything, Native would've been killed. If Midoriya hadn't come, the two of them would've been killed. No one realized that the hero killer had appeared." he spoke, as his fists balled up slightly.
"Are you saying, we should've followed the rules and watched the people get killed?" I added on, my blood boiling slightly.
Midoriya looked at us with shocked eyes, as he tried to stop Shoto who had taken a step forward. "W-W-Wait!"
"Are you two saying that as long as it turns out all right, it's okay to bend the rules?" the chief spoke in a sharp tone.
The both of us grit our teeth, as my fists pressed together tightly.
"Isn't it a hero's job to save people?" Shoto questioned him in a slight yell.
Even if the chief is right, we couldn't just leave those two on their own.
"That is why you are not full-fledged heroes yet. Goodness. What are you two being taught by U.A and your parents, woof?" the chief questioned, as it was the last string for the both of us.
I contained it, however, Shoto wasn't capable of doing so, as he started taking threatening steps towards the chief.
"You dog!" Todoroki exclaimed in an agitated way, as he passed by me.
"Stop it. He is absolutely right." Iida tried to stop him, however, it didn't.
I reached out towards his hand, my grip only tightening in his, in an attempt to calm him down, stopping him in his tracks, as his deadly eyes were fixed onto the chief.
"Hang on a minute. Hear him out until the end." Gran Torino stopped us as he extended his arm towards us.
"That was the official opinion of the police. And the punishment and such would only happen if this were all made public, woof. If this were made public, you would probably be applauded by the public, but you would not be able to escape the punishment. On the other hand, this is a bit underhanded, but if it is not made public, the burn scars would support Endeavor being the hero who saved the day, and it would end there, woof." the chief explained, I pulled back Todoroki, as he stood next to me.
I was just as mad about this whole situation as he was, however, we shouldn't act disrespectfully towards the chief.
"Thankfully, there were very few witnesses. This violation could be crushed here, woof. But this would also mean no one would know about your good judgement or achievements." the chief added on, as my facial muscles relaxed a bit.
"Which do you prefer?" he asked us, as all four of us remained silent.
"Personally, I don't want to be the one to find fault with promising young ones because of one big mistake, woof." the chief explained, as he stuck out a thumbs us towards us, his tongue hanging out of its rightful place slightly.
"Either way, we will need to take responsibility for being negligent in our supervisory duties." Manual sad with small tears at his eyes.
Iida walked to the front, bowing in front of Manual, as he apologized.
"I am truly sorry."
"All right. You'll cause trouble for others! If you understand, then don't do it again!" Manual explained to Iida, as he hit Iida's head playfully.
"I won't!" Iida responded.
"I-I'm sorry." Midoriya lowered his head.
"Please take care of it." Todoroki and I said, as we bowed forward slightly.
"Because of the unfairness of the adults, you will not be able to receive the praise you would probably have gotten, but at least, as someone who also protects the peace, I can say thank you." the chief thanked us, as he bowed too, showing his respect.
My nerves eased up, as I exhaled quietly.
"Please start with that next time." Todoroki looked away, slightly embarrassed with himself, as this act made me smile.
"Todoroki..." Midoriya trailed off, as his lips curved into a small smile.
— — — — — — — —
Midoriya came into our hospital room, his phone in his hand, as he seemed to be especially happy. I was looking out of the window, looking around. Well, actually, nothing in particular.
However, Iida didn't have the best news for him.
"Oh, Iida, just now, Uraraka said..." he began speaking, however he was interrupted by Todoroki calling his name.
"Midoriya. Iida just finished getting examined." Shoto stated, as the atmosphere slightly dropped.
Midoriya's worried gaze fell onto Iida, as I watched them in the reflection of the window, my crutches in my hands, as I needed them for support, to not put any further pressure onto my left leg.
"My left hand might have long-term damage..." Iida admitted.
"Long-term... damage...?!" Midoriya questioned back, visibly shocked.
"Both of my arms were pretty beat up, but it looks like the damage to my left arm was especially severe. There was damage to my brachial plexus." Iida began explaining, as he rubbed his left arm slightly.
I turned around, as I made my way towards Todoroki, sitting down next to him, letting my left leg stretched out.
"But it just means that I'll have trouble moving my hand and fingers and experience numbness. Apparently, there's a possibility that it can be healed with nerve transplant surgery." Iida continued, as his small smile faded.
It was hard seeing him like this, and the guilt of knowing that I could've done something to prevent this from happening, it didn't leave my mind. I sort of blamed myself for it.
"When I found the hero killer, I stopped being able to think. The first thing I should've done was tell Manual. But I forgot myself in my anger." he carried on speaking, as my head turned in his direction.
"I hate him, but he spoke the truth. That's why, until I become a true hero, I think I want to leave my left hand as it is." he explained, as this caused mine and Todoroki's eyes to widen slightly, as Shoto called his name.
"Iida..."
However, it seems that Iida has already accepted it, so I shouldn't blame myself for anything... Right?
"Iida, I feel the same way." Midoriya said in a serious manner, as he stuck out his fist towards Iida.
"Let's become stronger... together." Midoriya called it final, as Iida nodded, agreeing with him.
Todoroki looked at Midoriya's hands, afterwards at Iida's, lastly diverting his gaze to mine, he took my right hand carefully, as he ran a few of his fingers over the bandages, examining it for a split second, before he spoke, his gaze dropping on the ground.
"What's wrong, Shoto?" I questioned him, as I was confused by his behavior.
"I feel... kind of bad..." he admitted, as my eyes widened slightly.
"About what?" I questioned him in confusion, as all of our eyes were locked onto him.
"I feel like if I get involved... other people mess up their hands..." he spoke, as he examined his right hand, sweat running across his face, and he was completely serious about it.
I cracked a smile, turning away, trying not to laugh at his behavior.
"Is it a curse?" he questioned, still completely serious about the entire thing.
This was my breaking point, as I laughed out loud, not expecting words like this to come out of his mouth.
Not only I found this hilarious, but my other two classmates too, as we all laughed at what Todoroki has just said.
"Todoroki, I didn't know you could make jokes!" Midoriya said between his laughter.
"No, I'm not joking. I'm like 'The Hand Crusher' or something." he said in all seriousness, as his gaze was locked onto my laughing form, and he got even more confused.
This comment only made us burst out more in laughter, as I held my stomach, feeling the muscles getting sore from all the laughter.
God, this truly was something.
"The Hand Crusher!" Midoriya and Iida repeated what he had just said, their laughter continuing, as I settled down slowly but surely, wiping the tears of laughter from my eyes.
"I'm confused..." he said, his gaze on the ground, as Iida and Midoriya were still laughing about it.
"Goodness, Shoto. You really do blame yourself for everything, don't you?" I asked him with a small crack of laughter.
"But it's true." he argued, as he looked at my right hand.
"So you're saying you'd rather have your arm cut off? Wouldn't that make me the 'Arm Crusher'?" I asked him, as another huff of laugh made its way out of my mouth.
This caused him to smile slightly, his gaze switching to my eyes.
"Thank you."
— — — — — — — —
It's been two days since the Hosu incident, and both me and Todoroki came to the conclusion, to return to our internships. Due to the sole reason, of the both of us wanting to learn what we can from Endeavor.
Iida went home the same day his arm was examined.
Midoriya had to further stay in the hospital, since his injuries still haven't healed completely.
And as expected, the entire media was talking about the hero killer. When seven pro heroes and four high school students came across the hero killer, Endeavor rushed over and took care of the situation. That was the official story released by the police.
Just as the Hosu Police Chief said, Iida, Todoroki, Midoriya and my names were not made public, and our injuries were explained away as accidents that happened during our internships.
As for me and Shoto, we didn't do anything specific for the rest of our remaining days. We did some basic training, especially with our fire. Endeavor gave me a few pointers, and corrected some of my mistakes, and taught me how to direct my flames more accurately, and even with a less radius. This is needed for example when I'm surrounded by some comrades of mine, or citizens, so I don't set them ablaze.
I definitely learnt how to have more control over my hot-half. Even if Endeavor is a huge prick, the way he works as a hero is admirable.
Endeavor also said something with 'Going beyond our limits', if needed. But was reaching such lengths really necessary?
Since I'm also able to do close combat well, I learned how to use my flames in that as well. This can cause more damage to my opponents.
However, as for my shadow-half, I didn't really get to exercise with it. The only thing I was able to do, is when Endeavor fired his flames at me, I had to prevent them from tearing through.
His flames did tear through a lot of times, and when it reached me, even if I shouldn't be affected by the heat like any other human being, but, I did, and it was almost painful.
But I insisted on continuing on with it. I was there to learn.
Shoto argued several times with his father, about the fact that he should hold back against me, but I dismissed his requests.
I know he was worried about me, but it was my learning opportunity.
As for Shoto, he still had the same mindset. He was only here for the experience, and to witness how a real hero works.
The air between him and his father was very thin, which was understandable. And it felt like sometimes, I wasn't meant to be there when I was.
Those few days passed by in a blink of an eye, and it was time to say our farewells to Endeavor.
"You two, great work. You learnt new stuff from the number two hero, didn't the both of you?" Endeavor asked, as he looked at me, before locking his eyes with Shoto.
"We did. Thank you for your time, Endeavor." I said as I bowed slightly, as Shoto just stood next to me.
Even if I didn't like Endeavor, I didn't mean to be disrespectful. That's the last thing I'd want to be. I might've given a false first impression of myself back in the school festival, but I'm trying my best to work on it.
"Son. You are on the right track of becoming the perfect copy of myself. Or should I say, the advanced version? All your training as a kid is finally paying off. You'll surpass me one day, and become the greatest hero!" Endeavor said, his crossed arms unfolding as he spoke.
"Let's go." Shoto announced, not listening to a word his father was saying, as he turned around. My eyes watched after him in worry, but it wasn't shown in my expression.
My gaze returned to Endeavor, only to find him staring at me with a frown on his face.
"Shoto." Endeavor said in a sharp tone, stopping Shoto in his tracks, as his gaze was fixed forwards.
"Keep your promise." Endeavor said, as he walked away from the two of us, entering his agency, disappearing from my sight of vision.
A promise? What kind of promise?
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End of chapter eleven, season two
Next chapter: The Upcoming Trouble...
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