It was very early in the morning when Kimitsuki found herself waking up, and as her eyes adjusted to the meagre light in the room, she found herself bound. She was bound in a hug that she had not expected yet it was too warm to depart from. Katsuki had not pressed her against the wall, but he was still wrapped around her. Kimitsuki turned her head to look at the boy sleeping next to her.
Katsuki was still very deep in his sleep, and it was during such occasions that Kimitsuki enjoyed looking at him the most. His expression was completely clear of everything, and the gentleness of his pretty features made her smile inexplicably. She wished that he would keep such an expression.
From the sparse morning light, it was clearly too early in the morning – it was too early and too cold for Kimitsuki to want to leave the warmth of the bed. She did not even bother to heat her skin up as she usually would – instead, she sunk deeper into Katsuki's arms, hugging him back in return.
Thinking back to the events of yesterday was something that Kimitsuki often did inexplicitly when she was laid in bed so early in the morning. But today, she wanted to do nothing of such sort. Today, she simply wanted to lay in the comfort that persisted. There was no hurry for anything.
When Kimitsuki returned back to the world of consciousness, she felt a gentle gaze on her face. She blinked slowly, stifling her yawn as she turned her head to look at Katsuki. He was awake now, and he was looking at her with the same quiet expression that had persisted on his face.
"Ka-Chan, good morning," greeted Kimitsuki with a smile, and his eyes refocused as he was brought back to reality. "You're awake now? I didn't keep you in, did I?"
"Good morning," Katsuki replied, and he stuffed his head into the pillow next to hers. "No, you didn't," His voice was muffled. "I didn't want to leave,"
These words only made Kimitsuki smile even more, and she responded to his words positively, wrapping her arms back around him with meaning. She needed no warmth as long as she could feel Katsuki. He was warmer than the comfort of a Kotatsu in the depth of winter.
"Thank you for offering me to stay the night with you," Kimitsuki spoke, smiling in contentment. "I did feel a bit unnerved being alone by myself in the girls' wing... you understand me better than myself at times,"
"You don't need my permission to come here," muttered Katsuki, avoiding meeting eyes with her but Kimitsuki reached out to set her hand on his cheek. "What?"
"Look at me when you speak," Kimitsuki requested, turning his head to face hers. "I like looking at you when you talk to me. It makes me happy... I want you to see how happy you make me,"
Katsuki felt his cheeks burn at her words. His eyes fell onto the smile that had spread across her lips – and it was something that kept him tethered to the earth. His head flooded with the thoughts that had persisted in his mind the previous night – of his presence in the life of someone like Kimitsuki.
Kimitsuki was someone pure. She was someone who was loved by everyone, she had a way of reaching out to others that no one else did. She was so lovingly pure that it had even brought the smudge of villains to come after her. Katsuki felt his body tense up at the thought of it. He could never allow them to even look in her direction, much less get the opportunity to ever touch her.
But how could Katsuki look at her in the eyes when he was the complete opposite of her? He was not liked by their peers or beyond. He was someone who appeared so vile in the eyes of others that the same heinous group that aimed to hurt her had sought him out. They, who wanted to ruin Kimitsuki, had thought of Katsuki to be someone who would agree to their evil ideals.
It was true that if he continued to persist on the path that he was on, Kimitsuki may regret being so close to him. He could become like Endeavor – prideful, callous and uncaring. And Kimitsuki may very well become like any other member of the Todoroki family – hurt, fearful and mistreated. The thought of that burned Katsuki uncomfortably. He could not even dwell on such a thought.
Yet at the same time, when Kimitsuki smiled at him with that lovely smile, her beautiful lilac eyes singing his praises to him, how could he not accept himself? Katsuki wanted to improve himself in her gaze. It was the only safety netting that kept him afloat. She trusted him with her happiness.
Kimitsuki looked at Katsuki in surprise when he suddenly pulled her closer, moving her on top of his body. Her wide lilac eyes looked at him in the sparse morning light, taken aback, but Katsuki simply wrapped his arms around her and got comfortable in his spot.
"Go to sleep, it's still early," Katsuki murmured, and he heard Kimitsuki let out a surprised laugh. "What? It's not funny – you should have at least eight to ten hours of sleep as a teenager,"
"Is that why Ka-Chan goes to sleep so early in the evening?" asked Kimitsuki teasingly. She chuckled again when he cracked one of his eyes open. "Alright, alright, I will sleep a little more,"
Katsuki felt Kimitsuki set her head against his chest, and he wished that he was taller than her and much bigger so he could completely hide her away. But he let himself not get out of hand right now.
"... I think I can sleep well when I am so close to you, Katsuki-Chan," admitted Kimitsuki quietly, and Katsuki could feel the smile in her words.
The level of comfort that Kimitsuki and Katsuki had reached with one another was something completely unexpected. Katsuki had never thought that Kimitsuki would come to him over Izuku when she felt unsafe. That she was share the bed with him, and not Izuku. It felt... good to be prioritised on certain aspects of her life.
It was a shame, however, that they could not share that bed every night, Katsuki felt. The thought of it made his skin burn but he tried to reason logically – he simply remained assured of her safety as long as her skin touched his skin. It made his sleep easier.
But Katsuki did not have the nerve to even suggest this idea to the girl. Kimitsuki couldn't just leave her entire dorm room up to come and spend the night with him. He was sure that Aizawa wouldn't approve of this behaviour either. Their teacher was a bit too protective over his student. All Might may not really like the idea of it either. And Izuku would be an annoyance.
The idiot would probably beg them to include him, too.
That was a shame, too, because there was only space for Kimitsuki in his bed. Katsuki didn't want to embarrass Kimitsuki, either. He knew that the girls teased her too much, with the biggest culprit being Mina. Even Katsuki wasn't spared of that girl's weird wiggling eyebrows.
However, the biggest shame was that with their first week of Work Studies completed, the remaining of the Class 1-A had returned to the dormitory to begin their third term. Kimitsuki was completely hoarded by others during the weekend, including during the mealtimes. Katsuki did not get to see much of her, especially of her alone, in their dormitory building – until he took his time to head to their first homeroom back that term.
It had been a normal routine and Katsuki had avoided Eijirou and Denki, taking his time to shower and change before he set off to the school. Everyone had already left, putting a good foot forward for their first day back, and the silence had been nice to witness.
Until Katsuki ran into none other than Kimitsuki, who appeared to be travelling from the staffroom to their classroom. It should have been a normal sight – but it wasn't. Not entirely, that is.
For there was a certain change in Kimitsuki. It wasn't her appearance – she was still beautiful as always – nor in the way she carried herself – which was elegant and poised. No, it was her tights.
Every day since the start of their high school journey, Kimitsuki had worn black tights. But not today. Today, they were completely white, and something about them made Katsuki's head spin.
"Good morning, Ka-Chan, are you heading to class now?" Kimitsuki said, happily greeting him as she came jogging over to him. Katsuki averted his eyes, trying to calm himself down. "You're looking away again now,"
"Yeah," Katsuki answered shortly, trying to be tough but it did not help when Kimitsuki caught his hand, pulling him along with herself. "What are you doing?"
"Come on, we have to hurry to class," Kimitsuki replied. "I have an important announcement to make in accordance to Aizawa Sensei's orders. I want us all to have a good impression back!"
Everyone was chatting eagerly in the classroom when they arrived, and they mostly continued to do so – except for Eijirou. He smirked an annoyingly smirky smirk at him and Katsuki wanted to do things to him in return with his fist that he shouldn't think of while that hand was in the gentle hold of Kimitsuki.
"Good morning, Kuroyanagi-Chan," greeted Eijirou as he walked up to them. "Did you catch the wayward puppy on the way back from staffroom?"
"Who are you calling a 'puppy'?!" demanded Katsuki at once.
"Hey, no need to yell so loud," Denki complained, trying to unclog his ear. "Kuroyanagi-Chan likes puppies,"
Before Katsuki could start screaming at the boys, Kimitsuki calmed them all down and sent them to their benches. She walked over to the front of the class to explain everything that was in schedule for them today.
Since everyone had been working hard, Aizawa had decided that it was time for them to have a look at how they had improved. They were going to head outside for a practical briefing to demonstrate what they had learned during their winter break. Katsuki wasn't very happy to see Tenya stand at the front of the class with her.
"Class!" greeted Tenya with a renewed sense of energy and excitement for his position as one of the two Class Representatives. "Happy New Year from Kuroyanagi-Kun and I!"
"We've got a very important task today," Kimitsuki spoke up. "We will be having a practical briefing session to share our accomplishments, challenges, and experience from over winter break,"
"So, everyone," added Tenya. "Suit up, and head over to Ground Alpha!"
The rest of the class had just picked out their costumes when the door to the classroom slid open with a smack, revealing Aizawa, "Hey! Quit chatting, and –" He halted, seeing them all ready to go.
"Happy New Year, Aizawa Sensei!" Tenya said. "We've finished telling them about today, as you requested Kuroyanagi-Kun this morning,"
"Oh," Aizawa said and Kimitsuki smiled at him.
"Kuroyanagi-Chan's always in an earnest but look at you!" Denki commented as he and Hanta walked past them out the door. "You're really in the zone, Iida,"
"Yeah," Tenya agreed. "Manual, the Hero at my Work Study, is a leader in Hosu. It was just one week, but I learned: How to be gentle in manner. Yeah!" He spun his hips around. "That's the way!"
"So much for the zone," Denki said. "He's like a bike where the chain keeps coming off,"
"Wouldn't Iida be a motorcycle?" asked Hanta. "He's got engines,"
"Tsuki-Chan, let's go together," said Izuku eagerly as he walked over to her in the front of the classroom. He carried along her costume case. "I got yours, too,"
"Oh, thank you so much, Izu-Chan," Kimitsuki replied happily, taking it from him. "Yes, let's go together! I'm glad to be back with everyone... and I can't wait to see how everyone's improved!"
"I bet you've improved the most and kept all of them in check!" Eijirou said, grinning as he and Katsuki came to the front, too. "Especially our good ol' Bakugo here,"
"Who're you calling our?" retorted Katsuki, glaring at him. "And what do you mean old?!"
"The same dude who's been staring the skin off Kuroyanagi-Chan throughout class," Eijirou replied in pseudo-ignorance. "Especially seeing how the white –"
"Shut up!" Katsuki burst out, grabbing the redhead from the ear and throwing him out of the classroom.
"What's up with them?" Izuku asked, confused and Kimitsuki shrugged, unsure.
"You always like it when Kuroyanagi-Chan dresses up differently," Eijirou teased Katsuki, playing with fire. "Yet you don't want to share any of it with us!"
Unaware of the conversation between the two as they headed down the hallway, Kimitsuki turned to look at their teacher. She was about to speak to him when the intercom above their heads jingled to life and the voice of Principal Nezu came through the speaker with a surprising message –
"Aizawa Sensei. Please come immediately to the staff room.
Bring Kuroyanagi Kimitsuki-San along as well,"
🤍
Kimitsuki had followed her homeroom teacher all the way to the principal's office, and she had dreaded the entire journey there. Yet what awaited her was shocking – not the news itself as much as it was the reaction that her calm, cool-headed teacher had given to that news.
"Can't we go any faster?" Aizawa spoke, and his voice was loud and angry, and the look in his eyes was intense as he looked at Present Mic in the driver's seat.
"Enough already," Present Mic replied, which surprised her all the more. He was sweating and gripping onto the steering wheel as he tried to keep himself in check. "Calm down,"
"We fought at USJ," Aizawa said suddenly. "He didn't act like that one bit,"
"This is taking poor taste too far," Present Mic responded, the conversation in a strange loop. "I don't believe it. I'm betting Tsukauchi-San and the others got it wrong,"
Before Kimitsuki had realised it, she had been sitting at the back of Present Mic's car as it hurtled toward Tartarus. Kimitsuki had never wanted to return to that place since her interaction with All for One. But the situation was dire, and it appeared that they wanted to utilise her Quirk to further observe the prisoner they had on hand. She wished they would locate someone else with her Quirk.
It was Tsukauchi Naomasa who came to greet them at the front of the Tartarus prison. They were made to sign through the process, and Kimitsuki felt her hands shake as she filled out the form for minor, non-relative visitors. She held her wits as she handed it in, looking toward the elders.
"As you're both aware, especially with Nightshade's insight," Officer Tsukauchi spoke. "Nomus are humans whose bodies have been bioengineered to withstand multiple Quirks. However... they're not living humans. They're a complete mess, from their brains to their hearts,"
The four of them were travelling through the dark corridor that Kimitsuki knew led to the special ward of the Tartarus prison. Kimitsuki looked toward Aizawa with worry, seeing her teachers in distress was something that she hoped never to see like this.
"Nomus truly are puppets," came Gran Torino's voice as he appeared ahead of them. "Marionettes, with no will of their own. Or so we thought,"
"Gran Torino, we skipped our classes to come here, and I've brought my student here," Aizawa spoke up. "Please keep this short,"
"Aizawa," Present Mic said, setting his hand onto his shoulder. It shook as it sat there. "Calm down,"
"It needs to be said," said Officer Tsukauchi as he led them further and further into the prison. He typed in the passcodes to the monitoring room. "Let's not skip any steps. It's also so we can be in a proper state of mind,"
"This guy's a core member of the League of Villains," added Gran Torino.
"If we could get him to talk, we could hit them hard," Officer Tsukauchi explained. "But sadly, he makes no attempt to tell us anything important. He'll talk about trivial things, but when it comes to info that would put the League at a disadvantage, he suddenly goes non-responsive, as if he's been switched off,"
"In other words?" Present Mic pressed.
"It's so elaborate, it took us time to realize what it was," Officer Tsukauchi answered. "When I first met Nightshade following the attack at USJ, I had her make a long list of her experience. She had mentioned every single Quirk that she had witnessed and their coherence levels. This individual was the only one she mentioned as having intelligence and a singular Quirk yet also having the internal attributes of a Nomu.
"Multiple factors have been combined to form a single new Quirk. And the factor that served as its base belonged to the man with whom you shared joys and sorrows at U.A. High School. The one who – as far as we know – lost his life at a young age. We've deduced it's exceedingly similar to the Quirk of Shirakumo Oboro,"
They stood in the monitor room, facing the Wrap Gate Villain Kurogiri as he sat completely bound in his prison. Kimitsuki clutched and unclutched her hands – Present Mic was shaking slightly but Aizawa had gone completely still, his hand covering his entire face save for his eye.
"Once, we were trying to become Heroes together," Aizawa spoke up. "Shirakumo Oboro died while doing our Work Studies together. He got caught in a collapsing building. Such an abrupt death. He wanted the three of us to start an agency. It happened just after he said that,"
"In other words, as Kuroyanagi-Chan had mentioned– Kurogiri is a Nomu," Gran Torino confirmed. "And there's a high probability that Shirakumo Oboro's remains served as his base,"
"They used to call us the Three Dumbingos of Class A," burst Present Mic in his disbelief. "It doesn't make any sense!"
"Apparently, it's like 'inconspicuously scrounging for scraps at a three-star restaurant'," Gran Torino explained. "I imagine they swapped out Shirakumo Oboro's body at his cremation and turned him into a mad plaything called Nomu. You mustn't go looking for it to make any sense, DJ. All there is there is malice,"
"I don't get it," responded Officer Tsukauchi.
"Right now, we have him asleep," explained Officer Tsukauchi. "Because he'll try to use his Quirk. It may even be dangerous for us to have Nightshade try and interact with him with her Quirk,"
"Why did you bring us here?" Aizawa questioned. "If you're counting on some miracle due to our connection, perhaps you've been watching too many movies?"
"If there's a basis, miracles become possibilities," Gran Torino replied. "The Nomu that Endeavor defeated in Kyushu. I'm sure Kuroyanagi-Chan remembers him. On the report derived with her help, it says it had a distinct personality, and it displayed a fixation on strong people. DNA analysis revealed that its original body was that of a hoodlum who made his living as an underground street fighter,"
It was starting to become obvious to Kimitsuki the reason why they had called Aizawa and Present Mic here. But she did not like the thought of what her presence meant here. It was a bit of a relief that they were not going to randomly ask her to force out information through her Coercion Quirk. Gran Torino and Officer Tsukauchi led them down another corridor.
"Meaning, its pre-death personality was still there?" Aizawa asked. "Sorry, but I already fought Kurogiri at U.A. He spoke differently, and he showed no reaction to me,"
"They could have been performing an experiment," replied Officer Tsukauchi. "To see how his altered, or perhaps erased, memories would impact how he carries out orders. I'll say it again. If he talks, it would mean considerable progress. And while you do so, I would ask Nightshade to have a closer look at him through a special designated spot to observe him with her Quirk. Present Mic. Eraser Head. I want you to reawaken Shirakumo Oboro's attachments,"
Kimitsuki felt her nervousness begin to work up once more when she was parted away from Aizawa. They led her down to the other side of the observational room, seating her at an angle that allowed her to be in direct eyesight of Kurogiri – yet there was a mirror between the two of them.
"This is a special one-way mirror," Officer Tsukauchi explained. "You will be able to look through it. Your Quirk will be able to work through it. But Kurogiri can have no interaction from the other side,"
The thought of it was a relieving one but Kimitsuki felt herself starting to feel hot as she sat in the chair, facing Kurogiri. It was hard to locate his eyes in his shadowy head, but she also felt nervous about possibly disappointing them when they had put such a trust into her.
Using her Soul Searching would work the best at this moment – as long as there were not heavy memories within that body that may render her unable to use her Quirk for the time-being. She waited for them to wake Kurogiri up once Aizawa and Present Mic sat down in their places.
"Hah!" said Present Mic, not very eager with the activity at hand. "Reawaken Shirakumo's attachments?! Talk about old times, or something?"
"Please try," urged Officer Tsukauchi.
"What about his family?" Aizawa inquired.
"If you two and Nightshade can't manage it, we plan to ask them to see him," replied Officer Tsukauchi hesitantly, and Kimitsuki did not like the thought of it.
Aizawa tensed up and activated his Quirk with a flash, "As if I'd let his parents find out about this disgusting mess,"
"He's awake," announced Officer Tsukauchi. "Go ahead and start,"
Everyone were in their places and ready to go: the moment that Kurogiri opened his eyes, Aizawa halted his Quirk from being used, his eyes glowing red. Kimitsuki herself activated her Quirk, her illuminated violet eyes boring into Kurogiri's – she was inside his mind before she realised it.
"Oh?" spoke Kurogiri. "An unusual guest. I don't think I've seen you since the U.A. raid,"
Although Aizawa was looking at him head on and Kimitsuki could see Kurogiri's Quirk halted in place, the haze on that head did not vanish. It was a complete transformation. But it did help her in getting past other aspects of those strangely mutated Quirks.
There was nothing inside of that mind even as KImitsuki had been provided a free pass throughout it. Kimitsuki searched and searched, and only located short-term memories – memories that Kurogiri was undergoing right now. There was only Shigaraki and darkness.
"Looks like they got it wrong after all!" spoke up Present Mic. "He and Shirakumo have nothing in com –"
"How is Shigaraki Tomura?" inquired Kurogiri, cutting into the conversation without a care with what they were saying. "Has he been caught, or anything?"
"I dunno!" Present Mic retorted.
"I see," Kurogiri replied. "That's too bad,"
"Are you concerned about Shigaraki?" questioned Aizawa.
"Yes, looking after him is my duty," Kurogiri answered.
"What a crappy duty that is!" Present Mic shouted. "I can't believe your duty is to take care of that gloomy little stalker boy..." He trailed off as he looked at Aizawa.
"It is no trouble," Kurogiri said. "I'm not the type to neglect someone. His interest in chasing after your student is only boyish in nature,"
"Maliciously boyish," muttered Present Mic but he halted when he saw Aizawa rubbing his face.
"He was..." spoke Aizawa, appearing to be holding back tears. "... the kind of guy who wouldn't hesitate to take in a kitten I pointedly ignored,"
"I don't know what you're talking about," Kurogiri said. "What are you here to accomplish?"
"Back then, I was half-hearted and had second thoughts about everything," Aizawa said, reminiscing back to his boyhood. "That's how I was, and you always pulled me along,"
"Is this a confession?" Kurogiri questioned. "You're mistaken, if you think this is a church or something,"
"You were always cheerful and looking ever ahead," Aizawa told him, an edge of suppressed anger in his voice. "Not thinking about consequences. Even though it would all be over if you died,"
Where there had been nothing inside the head of Kurogiri, Kimitsuki felt it – something that was foreign, strangely warm yet also cold. She tried to follow after it, hoping to locate a pocket or anything where she could find some semblance of human memories within this mind.
"Yamada and I are teachers," continued Aizawa. "I've been strict with my students,"
"I hear you expel quite a few of them," came Gran Torino's voice on the intercom.
"On paper, that is," Present Mic replied.
"Huh?" inquired Gran Torino.
"I didn't want the students to turn out like you!" Aizawa spoke angrily. "Not a Hero who devalues his own life for the sake of justice! I wanted them to turn out like you! A Hero who can motivate others! Because I want the greatest Heroes... to live a long time!"
The turmoil that began within the mind of Kurogiri was unlike anything that Kimitsuki had ever seen before. She struggled to get past not because of Quirk barriers or mental aptitude – but rather, the severe anguish that was arising inside the mind.
"Shirakumo!" shouted Aizawa as he jumped to his feet, holding out his yellow goggles up. His eyes were tearing up. "But if you're still in there... ... then let's become Heroes! All three of us!"
"Who makes the Nomus?!
Where is Shigaraki?!"
All the years that Kimitsuki had lived with her Quirk, she had known that it would be futile to look for memories inside a dead man. Never had she anticipated that she would one day be using her Quirk to look inside the mind of a man who ought to be resting yet was being puppeteered around as a heinous marionette. Kimitsuki had long behind the brain, she was deep within the mind.
"Tell me!" yelled Aizawa. "Who altered you?! Where did they tinker with your brain?!"
"I-I have..." stammered out Kurogiri.
"When you saw me that time, did you feel nothing?!" demanded Aizawa.
"I have... no idea... what you're... talking about!" Kurogiri forced out.
"Shirakumo!" Aizawa shouted.
"Answer him, Shirakumo!" Present Mic urged.
"I... am..." struggled Kurogiri. "Kurogi –"
"You were in Class 2-A at U.A. High School!" Aizawa interjected before he could finish the thought.
"We were all going to become Heroes!" added Present Mic.
"You're Shirakumo Oboro!" Aizawa told him.
Everything was coming crashing down all around her and Kimitsuki struggled to get through the maze of Kurogiri's mind. She knew where she was headed – the spot was calling out to her, and she needed to get to it so that her teachers' efforts were not in vain.
"What... you're... talking... about!" shouted Kurogiri in return. "I am Kurogiri, the protector of Shigaraki Tomura. I have no idea what you're talking about..."
And then, just like that, everything suddenly went deathly calm inside of the head. Kimitsuki hit the wall, unable to go any further. She felt helpless, knowing only darkness stood between her and her destination. She banged against the last line of defence, trying to tear through it, re-enforcing from within the brain everything that Aizawa had narrated when –
There was an intense surge of... something, and it happened so quickly that it blinded Kimitsuki completely as Kurogiri's brain went completely out of order, rushing to gather yet tear itself apart –
"Sh-Sh... Sho..."
"You can do it, Shirakumo!"
"Shirakumo!"
"H-H-Hospital...!"
Everything went dead as Kurogiri shut down once more and Kimitsuki was thrown so roughly out of his body that she fell back onto the ground. Her head was pounding, and she could feel the liquid trailing down her cheeks – it was not tears like her teacher, but rather the thick blood that flowed.
"Eraser Head, Present Mic, Nightshade.
It's over. You did well,"
Evening had fallen by the time that Kimitsuki, Aizawa and Present Mic stepped out of the Tartarus prison. Kimitsuki had not listened to anyone except demanding a notebook and pen so that she could note down everything that she had witnessed when the face of Shirakumo Oboro had manifested. She had stopped until she wrote down everything.
Aizawa had not been very happy with her behaviour of not putting her eyes above others, and Kimitsuki apologised to him. In retrospect, it was stupid to showcase that behaviour after everything that her teacher had spoken about in regard to his students.
"Tilt your head backward," Aizawa told her, and Kimitsuki followed his instructions, allowing him to put her eyedrops in her eyes for her. "I want this to be the last time of this behaviour,"
"Yes, Sensei," Kimitsuki replied, blinking as the liquid spread across her eyes. "I will be careful,"
"Here, have your phone," Aizawa said, holding it out to her. "I took it from the locker while you were finishing up the paperwork,"
"Thank you, Sensei," Kimitsuki said, taking it from him gently.
The conversation changed gears when Gran Torino joined them outside in the private parking lot of the Tartarus Prison. They went over what had happened earlier, "Hospital, huh?"
"It seemed like we were close to getting something more concrete," Aizawa replied. "But I'm sorry we weren't of any use,"
"Far from it!" spoke Officer Tsukauchi as he walked over to them as well.
"How is Kurogiri?" Aizawa inquired.
"He stopped, as if he shorted out or something," replied Officer Tsukauchi. "Anyhow, this was considerable progress. We will further look into Nightshade's insight,"
"You guys were students once, too, and you chased your dreams," Gran Torino said. "I made you bring up some painful stuff. I'll be sure to make it up to you,"
"Just what is a Nomu?" Aizawa asked. "What's the point of making such a thing?"
"I don't know," Gran Torino replied. "We just... have to keep there from being any more victims. We'll do everything in our power,"
"I hope there's progress," Aizawa said.
With that, it was time for them to return back to their school. Kimitsuki took her place at the backseat once more, and as Present Mic began to drive, her eyes trailed off to the skies above, smeared in the shades of purple as dusk descended upon them. The phone in her pocket vibrated, and Kimitsuki remembered that she had not seen it for such a long time.
As they had been leaving in a hurry, Kimitsuki had sent a text that she was going on an urgent business with Aizawa and Present Mic. There was a barrage of messages waiting for her, and a long list of calls – all from one and only Bakugo Katsuki, questioning where she had left so suddenly.
The thought of a worried Katsuki was heartwarming. He was worried about her, but she also felt like she needed to let him know not to panic this much. Izuku was much more used to these sudden disappearances with Aizawa, and thus, his messages were milder but also of slight concern.
Kimitsuki opened her phone, wanting to text them all back but before she could quite get to their window on time, a notification popped up, showing an unknown number as a text came through –
Kuroyanagi Kimitsuki
🤍