A/N: Short disclaimer, for anyone reading not to be sad (yeah, those comments from the first 5 chapters have stuck with me, although I doubt anyone who made it here thinks like that), this chapter is quite sad. Read till the end, before deciding to drop or not... please?
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(Todoroki POV – Hosu Streets)
I race through the streets, checking my phone every few seconds as I home in on the location Deku sent.
I exhale a foggy breath as I flash-freeze a Nomu that lunges at me, leaving it encased in ice as I rush past it. 'He wouldn't have sent his location to everyone unless he was in trouble... much less asked us to send heroes.'
I push myself to run faster knowing there are no free heroes in Hosu right now.
Some Nomu slowed me down, but I finally make it—rounding a sharp corner into the alley—
And I freeze.
My eyes widen in disbelief.
A pro hero is slumped against the wall like discarded trash. Deku lies on the ground, eyes wide in horror as he stares helplessly at the unfolding scene.
And then I see him.
Stain.
Standing over Ida's body.
The sword in his hand descends, merciless and final, aimed for Ida's neck.
Time seem to slow.
I see Ida's legs, detached and lying a few feet away. Even worse, there's blood...everywhere.
My gut twists violently.
'I'm too late.'
The thought crushes the air from my lungs. My right arm ignites on instinct as I launch it forward and fire a torrent of flames I know won't reach Stain in time.
They won't save Ida...
'But I still have to try.'
The blade falls undeterred by our anguish, and my fire is only halfway there.
'It's over.'
I failed.
I couldn't protect my classmate. I wasn't fast enough. I wasn't strong enough. Even after embracing my fire...
It still wasn't enough.
But then the sword stops.
It just grazes the skin of Ida's neck, leaving a shallow cut.
And then—Stain vanishes.
"Wha—?"
I don't get to finish. There's a deafening crash to my right. I hear stone crack and feel a rush of air... then I see it.
Stain, embedded in the side of a building. A crater radiates around him as he head hangs back, completely unmoving.
I stare.
Then Deku gasps. I turn to him and see his gaze directly behind me. I turn, and we both look up.
Hundreds of Nomu are floating high above the city, helplessly flailing against some invisible force.
'Could it be...'
And then, without warning, a dome of pure fire consumes the skyline. It stretches far beyond what I can comprehend, engulfing the creatures in an instant.
Everything vanishes soon after, as though an illusion. No heat, no sound, and not even ashes remain.
I snap out of it and sprint to Ida's side.
"Damn it!" I curse, nearly slipping in the blood pooling around him as I slide onto my knees beside to him, blood sticking to my pants.
He's lost too much blood. His legs are severed, the stumps ragged and soaking the torn fabric of his hero costume.
'He's unconscious.'
I hope that's all.
There's no time to wrap the wounds properly. Nor do I have the materials. So I do the only thing I can.
I press my right hand against the bleeding stumps and freeze them solid, biting down a curse as I watch the flesh become encased in ice.
I know I'm hurting him.
But it's the only way to stop the bleeding.
Then comes the part I've been dreading.
'I need to check... if he's still alive.'
I lean close and place my hand under his nose.
Nothing... he's not breathing.
I press my fingers against his neck and... There's no pulse.
'No... no, no, no—'
My chest constricts. My vision blurs. 'I can't—I can't let this happen.'
I force myself to move and rip open his hero costume, exposing his chest. His skin is still warm, so it can't have been long.
"Deku!" I shout, desperation lacing my voice. "How long has it been since he started bleeding?!"
He flinches, like he's just woken from whatever nightmare he's drowning in. His voice cracks. "I-It's been about... four minutes…"
Four minutes.
I start CPR—rhythmic compressions, counting under my breath even though my hands are trembling.
I know CPR isn't a solution. Not for this.
The only way he lives is if a paramedic team shows up right now, with everything they'd need. And even then...it'd be a miracle if he survives.
My mind races.
I could freeze his whole body. Slow the cellular death. It's a terrible gamble. At best, it delays the inevitable and gives him a better chance of survival.
At worst...
'I kill him...'
I stare at my hand.
What the hell am I supposed to do?
I feel like I'm splintering apart. I'm supposed to be calm in a crisis and save people. It's what I wanted. It's what I'm training for.
But theory is different from the reality.
'My actions determine whether he dies or potentially survives... I can't hesitate.'
I close my eyes, press harder on his chest, even as tears prick at the edge of my eyes.
"Come on, Ida. Don't you dare die."
I steel myself, as icy fog begins to form on my arm as my quirk activates.
(Izuku POV – Hosu Alleyway)
'It's all my fault.'
The words echo again and again, louder than the chaos ringing from the city, louder than the blood rushing in my ears or the pounding of my heart.
I scream at my body to move. To stand. To crawl. To do something. Anything!
But nothing works.
Stain's quirk… it paralyses anyone whose blood he tastes.
And I was careless.
I watch helplessly as Stain reaches Ida, sword raised high above his head.
'If I hadn't tried to buy time.'
'If I had run for help.'
'If I had just been smarter.'
The thoughts won't stop. Each one drives deeper than the last. But one pierces through all the others, sharper than the blade threatening Ida's life.
'If I had reached out to him that day... none of this would've happened.'
If I had just asked—just once more—how he was really feeling. If I'd been the friend he needed… maybe he wouldn't have gone after Stain. Maybe he wouldn't have ended up like this.
My eyes fall to his body. The blood soaking into the pavement. His legs amputated and discarded...
My chest tightens. My heart beats erratically. Even the air feels heavy.
And then I see the sword begin to fall.
I catch a blur as Todoroki dashes into the alley, a pillar of flame bursting from his arm towards Stain.
But it's not fast enough.
And I still can't move. Still can't fight. Still can't do anything.
All I can do is watch. Watch as one of my closest friends dies...
'Because of me.'
I want to close my eyes. Pretend it isn't real. Pretend everything's fine. Pretend everyone is fine.
But I can't. That would be abandoning him all over again.
The blade drops—
And stops just as it nicks his neck.
My breath catches as my eyes widen.
And then Stain is just gone.
A crash tears through the alley like thunder. Wind slams into me, tossing dust and blood into the air.
I turn and see him.
Stain, embedded in a wall, like a ragdoll. His head slumped and his body unmoving.
'What just happened…?' I wonder, feeling slight relief.
But the thought dies before I can finish it—because the sky shifts.
Nomu. Hundreds of them. Rising into the air like broken corpses, writhing helplessly.
And then—
A dome of fire sparks into existence.
Massive, silent, and all-consuming.
It erases everything and leaves nothing behind.
And still...
None of that matters.
Because when the light fades, my eyes fall again.
Back to Iida.
Still bleeding. Still dying.
And Todoroki has already reached him, rushing to his side, even as the blood soaks his costume.
And I'm just lying here.
Useless.
Worthless.
I finally feel something—my finger twitching weaking. The paralysis is finally fading.
'But it's too late.'
Todoroki is shouting at me for a time estimate. His voice hoarse and his hands are shaking. He's just as scared as me, but he's not as helpless.
I give him an answer. I don't even know if it's right.
My voice sounds distant, weak... fragile.
'Like me.'
I try to push myself up. My body's still numb. But I need to help. I have to.
Even with One for All. Even with All Might's trust.
'I'm still a failure.'
But that's not what hurts the most.
Ida's dying not just because I wasn't fast enough.
He's dying because I ignored his pain. Because I saw something was wrong—and still looked away.
I thought… maybe he'd talk to someone. That he'd ask for help if he needed it.
But I should've known better.
I did know better.
I just didn't want to push him. I didn't want to overstep.
So I did nothing.
And now Todoroki is doing everything—hands coated in blood, freezing the stumps, doing compressions, shouting his name over and over.
And I just watch.
I can't stop my tears. I don't even try.
Even if Todoroki doesn't say it—I already know.
Ida's dead.
He was my friend.
And I let him die.
Because I was afraid to ask.
Because I wasn't strong enough to reach out.
I hate this.
'I hate myself.'
If I'd just been braver. If I'd just tried harder...
I could've saved him.
I could've stopped all of this.
'But I didn't.'
And now all I can do is lie here.
Watching one of my closest friends slip away—
Because I wasn't a hero.
Because I wasn't strong enough.
'Because I wasn't enough.'
Then—
"What a mess."
A voice cuts through the silence.
I twist my head, and through teary eyes I see it's source as two figures step into the alley.
(Kata POV – Hosu Alleyway)
"What a mess."
I hear Mirko's words before I even round the corner.
'Even if it's true, you don't have to say it out loud.' I sigh as I step into the alley.
The smell of blood hits me first. Then the dust still floating in the air. And finally, the sight.
Todoroki on his knees, hands trembling, still pumping Ida's chest. Izuku's trying to move and failing. Stain's unconscious body, buried in the wall like he got backhanded by a god. And Ida...
'Yeah. This is a mess.'
I walk deeper into the alley, my steps calm, steady and unhurried.
The moment the duo sees me, their expressions shift.
Izuku's eyes widen. There's a flicker of bright, desperate, hope in his eyes. He looks to me like I'll be some last-minute miracle.
Todoroki glances up too. But his gaze is colder, almost empty. He sees more clearly. He knows that tere's no hope.
"...Ida's dead." He declares slowly, as though to come to terms with it himself.
And just like that, all hope cracks and falls apart.
I ignore it and step closer to Ida.
His body is a mess. His legs are gone. His blood is everywhere, and he's got no pulse. He's effectively dead.
But he's not completely gone yet.
'Tch.' I click my tongue quietly as I crouch down next to him.
'This wasn't courage. It wasn't heroism... It was weakness.'
He ran here chasing vengeance with no concern for the consequences. Just blind, impulsive, selfish rage.
If he succeeded, he'd become a criminal, and a murderer.
'At the very least, attack him somewhere you wouldn't get caught.'
Anger makes you stupid. And stupid gets you killed.
I place a hand over his chest.
Todoroki blinks, startled. "What are you doing—?"
"I'm trying to heal him." I say calmly.
Todoroki's lips part, but nothing comes out. He just stares at me. Numb. Tired.
I glance over at Izuku, whose eyes are shining with renewed hope.
Then I focus.
'His consciousness is still here, so it's possible to revive him.'
The brain hosts consciousness, so of it survives, the consciousness, which makes the person, survives too.
I activate my quirk.
Cell by cell. Nerve by nerve. I revive them. Resume their metabolic processes manually while fixing any damage. I restart his heart and refill his veins with the blood that spilled on the ground, after cleaning it.
I reattach his legs, perfectly fixing the wounds, as well as any other injuries he sustained.
Finally, I jump start his brain, causing impulses to be fired across neurons, as his body hums to life once more.
Ida gasps and starts breathing again.
Todoroki lets out a sigh of relief, his tense body relaxing. Izuku starts crying in relief as he lays on the floor.
'I don't know how Ida's going to take this.' I muse internally.
He might hate me for taking down Stain and robbing him of his revenge. He might internalize his hate for Stain, and make more dumb decisions. He might even let it all go and ask me to heal his brother...
'But that's his business. As long as he doesn't bother me, it doesn't matter. I'm not a charity here to fix or tolerate his problems.'
As for the reason I saved him?
Nezu's probably already piecing together that I can heal permanent injuries after I fixed my scars. There's no point pretending anymore. It would also be hard to explain why I didn't help when I could've.
But honestly...
Momo and Mina would've cried. Kaminari, Kirishima, and Sero would've been sad too.
I don't get it.
Why I care. Why it bothers me.
But it does.
So here I am.
I stand and glance over at Mirko. She's standing there, arms crossed, eyebrow raised.
I nod toward the unconscious Hero Killer embedded in the wall.
"Stain," I say casually. "You'll want to take credit for him, right?"
She snorts. "Tch. Sure. I'll cover for you."
I smile. "Thanks. I owe you one."
She wide, wild grin spreads across her face. "Damn right you do!"
And just like that, the alley falls quiet again, save for the choked sobs from Izuku.
'Still... Actions have consequences. I wonder if Ida's prepared to face his.'
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A/N: Hello Everyone. I hope you enjoyed the chapter and if you did, please consider leaving me some comments, reviews, or powerstones.
Some admin first, I guess. I finally created a Patreon (please don't boo). All chapters will eventually be posted here. Patreon is just for anyone who wants to support me from the goodness of their heart ❤️. (Unlike Kata, I accept charity) There's be a few benefits for supporters, like early access to chaoters, call outs in chapters, and a few other things that are listed on the page.
The page is currently under review, but I'll leave the link, and feel free to check it out when it's up. (I guess I'll update this chapter when it is).
It's Patreon. com/AMV_WEAKLY
I'll leave it at the bottom of newer chapter. It's purely for supporting me if you wish, and there's no need if you're not able. I'm still setting it up and making adjustments, along with a discord, which I'll complete after my exams, so let me know if anyone has any suggestions, additions, subtractions and so on.
Now, on to my favourite part, discussing the chapter (I don't know if I should still do this to be fair to those on Patreon, but I'll take it one step at a time).
So yeah, the Hosu arc is almost over. Maybe there's one or 2 more chapters, I guess. In this chapter, I didn't put much dialogue. 1, I wasn't feeling it, and 2, it wasn't really necessary, in my opinion. I know the plot didn't progress much, but I think these kinds of chaoters really flesh out the story and bring life to the characters and book, as well as explains and gives foundations for some of their later actions.
Deku's self-blame, Todoroki's desperation and hesitance highlighting his experience with a tual life and death. Wonderful stuff.
As for Mirko, she dislikes weak people who rely on others, which is the category Ida and Deku are falling into at this moment. I wasn't sure if she'd feel sad for them, or show concern, but she doesn't strike me as the type to show sympathy for people who charged to their deaths and couldn't back it up with strength.
Kata might seem cold in this chapter, maybe even like an edgelord (I hope not, since I don't want that), but that's genuinely the way he is. As of this point in time, he's had little to no interactions with Ida or Deku, hence he's got no reason to care for them. Todoroki is a bit better, since the sports festival happened.
He cares about Momo, Mina, Kaminari, Kirishima, and Sero, the former being people he's bonded with, and the later being friends he's actually hung out with. Everyone else is currently a classmate, and his care extends only that far (yes, even Jiro, for now at least).
He's confused in how he views people, and his actions aren't governed by the strict, friends must be helped, everyone else doesn't matter. He takes consequences of his actions to those he cares about into account, as well as potential fallout. If he healed Ida, but didn't fix his legs and so on, it'd be a question of why didn't he? The blame would quickly turn on him and resentment and doubt would build. Hence he does it. But he's not the kind of person to let people use that against him to manipulate him.
It's complicated I guess. But Nah, I'm not sure (and neither are any of you) if Ida's brother would be healed. It's really none of Kata's business. And, do you think that Ida should be punished for his actions? Unlike canon, he did dumb shit, and lost. It's like gentle criminal. (But his family is quite influential, so it's a bit hard to say for certain)
And I've got good news, or bad news, idk. Within like 5 chapters... I'm planning the first ever lemon scene! But I'm not sure if I'll go through with it. Kinda feels too soon, but makes it makes sense even if I push it a bit. I've been making plans, hypothesizing, and I'm excited.
The next arc will also be the weeks before the final exams, where I plan to develop their relationships. I clouding Jiro, Momo, Mina, Midnight, Rumi and Toga, even Nejire. I feel like I should space it out. Or should I make them side chapters? I don't know if it's better to focus on plot, or if I should slow it down for these details for a bit. It'd be like 10 chapters total,maybe more. Or I could just make the entire volume skipable for anyone who doesn't want it. Let me know.
I'll also have a like 2 week break from exams in a few days, and will speed up releases for that duration, so yeah. But I'm not sure if I should fill up advanced chapters on Patreon first. I'm so confused. (And would appreciate advice and guidance)
Anyway, I've talked too much (again). So I hope you all have a wonderful day.