Chapter 16: Let Yourself Heal!
"The devastation is immense here in Kamino Ward. The two hideouts of the League of Villains were hit late last night by a group of top heroes including Best Jeanist, Endeavor and All Might. Much of the surrounding blocks were leveled as fighting broke out between the heroes and the League as well as the Nomu, which we are being told are genetically engineered creatures under the League's control. Thankfully both locations were in the less populated sections of Kamino, but as you can see no buildings were left standing after All Might took on the League's leader. Little is known about the mysterious mastermind behind one of the most dangerous groups of villains Japan has seen in decades."
"Rescue operations are ongoing, but current statistics have the death toll at over fifty and hundreds more were injured leaving local hospitals overwhelmed. Staff from larger nearby hospitals have been called in to assist and patients with minor injuries are being transferred out to help keep space for the more grievously wounded. The city has come to a halt and public transportation has stopped for the first time in over six years as the fallout from the Kamino Ward Incident continues to ravage the people of Japan. In this time of crisis many are looking to our nation's heroes for guidance. The Symbol of Peace is currently undergoing treatment for the injuries he sustained during the fight and the hashtag Still Our Symbol is trending on social media to show support for the injured Number One -"
"Well, Takashi, to be honest I'm not sure we've seen a villain attack of this scope since All Might debuted. It begs the question what are we to do now that our nation's symbol will likely be forced to retire. Can we really survive without him-"
"Three members of the League of Villains along with dozens of the Nomu creatures were captured yesterday. The villain known as Shigaraki Tomura, who was involved in the original attack by the League at U.A.'s campus, the villain known as Mr. Compress, and the as of yet unidentified leader of the League were all escorted to Tartarus early this morning where they will be held until trial dates are announced. Heroes Edgeshot and Endeavor were-"
"Initial estimates from city officials put the property damage in the hundreds of millions of Yen-"
"Who was the boy that fought alongside All Might? Why was he there?"
"All Might's mysterious successor-"
"And where is U.A. during all this? They had two students kidnapped by the league! All Might is being forced into retirement because of their negligence! How can anyone support them after all this sh-"
"Shouldn't the students of U.A. been allowed to use their quirks in self-defense in the first place? Why are we restricting their quirks at all? These are our future saviors. If they had been allowed to use their quirks from the get-go would All Might have retired? This is Takako Honda of Shoowaysha Publishing, live from Kamino."
Izuku turned off the television and leaned back in his hospital bed. His mom was asleep in the chair at his side, hand still clutching at his leg. She hadn't left his side since she had arrived at the hospital and Izuku couldn't be more thankful for it. His mom just had a way of making him feel better. She called it a mother's secret quirk, but Izuku thought it was all her.
A quiet knock at the door roused Inko from her sleep. A tall man with black hair and a pair of glasses entered the room dressed in a pair of scrubs with a white coat thrown over them.
"Pardon the intrusion. Is now a good time for us to speak?" Inko sat up and rubbed her eyes.
"Yes, doctor. Now is fine."
"Excellent. It's good to see you awake Midoriya-kun. My name is Dr. Kyoya Otori, I'm the head of orthopedic surgery here at Central Hospital. I was the surgeon in charge of your recovery along with Recovery Girl. You are a very lucky man, Midoriya-kun." Inko bristled.
"My son had to fight for his life before and after being kidnapped by villains, Doctor. I would hardly classify that as lucky."
"My apologies, ma'am," he dropped into a quick bow. "I did not mean to offend. What I mean is that your son is lucky he got to us when he did. My understanding of the quirk that the villain Mr. Compress used is that it placed Midoriya-kun in a state of suspended animation while imprisoned. Because of that, his body was able to receive medical attention sooner relative to the time that passed out here. Effectively, if he had spent as much time outside of the quirk as he did inside his prognosis would look much worse than it does now. That is not to say you are out of the woods yet, Midoriya-kun." The man adjusted his glasses and fixed Izuku with a piercing stare.
"Simply put, you cannot allow such an injury to occur again. You broke your arm in sixteen places in addition to the severe dislocation and damage to the joints and ligaments. Recovery Girl managed to heal most of the actual breaks themselves as well as the major structural damage to the muscles, but the tendons and ligaments were weakened significantly. If you had injured it any further we would have had to amputate it."
Izuku looked down at the cast covered arm. The third's quirk was that powerful? He would have to use it sparingly. He would also need a way to protect his arm. Maybe he could- "You'll retain full use of the limb after some physical therapy. We'd like to keep you for the next few days in case there are any lingering complications from Mr. Compress' quirk. The majority of your physical therapy can be handled at U.A. after you return so this will just be a precaution. You'll regain full function of your right hand after a few sessions with Recovery Girl, but I urge you to take this seriously, young man. Far too often we see young heroes with bright futures cut tragically short because they didn't take care of their bodies well enough. I'm sure the people who care about you don't want the same thing to happen to you."
"Thank you, Dr. Otori. I truly appreciate everything you've done for me."
"It was my pleasure, Midoriya-kun. Hopefully the next time I see you will be a social visit rather than having you as my patient again."
"I'll do my best, sir."
"See to it that you do, young man. A nurse should be by in a few minutes to get you a solid meal, you used up a lot of your stamina from Recovery Girl's quirk so it will be important you for to eat well and rest over the next few days. There are a few visitors here who would like to speak with you if you're feeling up for it?"
"Yeah, I feel up for it."
"Excellent. I'll send them in then. Rest well Midoriya-kun. And you as well, Midoriya-san." With that the doctor left the mother and son alone in the hospital room. Inko balled up the sheets in her fists.
"Izuku… I-" another knock interrupted her. She sighed. "We'll talk later, darling. Come in!" The door slid to the side to reveal Nemuri, casually dressed in sweatpants and an oversized knit sweater, with Principal Nezu riding her shoulder. The principal had a somewhat more serious expression than he was used to seeing on his face.
"Ah, Midoriya-san, Midoriya-kun. What a pleasure to see both of you. Before we get down to business I would first like to apologize on behalf of U.A. high school that this incident came to pass. We have failed you for a second time."
"I appreciate your apology, Nezu-san. I would like to know, however, how it has come to be that my son has twice been forced to fight for his life at a school-sanctioned event."
"We are investigating at the moment, though the most distressing theory is that there may be a traitor within U.A. I will be personally conducting a full review of all staff and student backgrounds as well as tearing into the records and information left behind by All for One to determine the identity of this person."
"We thought," Nemuri said as she sat down next to Inko. "that if we kept the number of people who knew the location of the summer camp small then we would be able to keep them better hidden." She took his mom's hand in hers and rubbed soothing circles into it. "I wish that I was there, that I could have done something. But we never thought that they were in any danger, I promise you that." Inko sighed and leaned into Nemuri's side.
"I don't blame either of you personally. I know you all did your best but…"
"But your son still got hurt because our best wasn't enough." Nezu finished for her. "I do not disagree with your sentiment, Midoriya-san. There must be drastic changes to our school." A somewhat tense silence stretched over the room after that statement. Izuku wasn't sure he wanted to know what changes Nezu was thinking of making.
"How are you feeling, Izuku?" Nemuri asked from her place at Inko's side.
"I feel a little sore. My arm doesn't hurt but it feels pretty tender, I guess. Can you tell me how everyone else is doing? Where's Kacchan?"
"Bakugou is currently being treated on another floor." Midnight cracked her knuckles once before looking to the floor. "I was part of the team that picked him up and he was pretty out of it. It seems like he'd been drugged and from what we could make out of what he was saying they tried to convince him to turn villain. He kept muttering "stupid shitty scarecrows" as they carted him out. Once we got him secure, I hopped a ride with Kamui Woods to make it to you."
"The rest of my class? Kota?"
"Izumi Kota had a sprained wrist and a minor case of dehydration but was overall quite healthy." Nezu answered. "You did quite an amazing job protecting him. The rest of 1-A and B managed to escape with minor injuries. Anyone who was put to sleep by Mustard's quirk has woken up with no lingering complications.
"That's good. That's really good." Izuku felt his mouth dry up. "And the villain? Muscular? What happened to him?"
"That is part of why we are here." Nezu adjusted his tie. "The villain known as Muscular was sent to the hospital with a severe concussion, three broken vertebrae, several broken ribs and significant internal bleeding. He is currently in a medically induced coma but is expected to wake up within the next two days. They are unsure if there will be long lasting effects at the moment."
Izuku felt his vision blur with tears. He did that to another person? The third's quirk pulverized his own arm and almost killed the person he used it against? Fa Jin was too dangerous. He had to find a way to regulate it. Until he did, the third's quirk would stay locked away.
"Neither the HPSC nor police will be pursuing charges of excessive force given the circumstances. You will likely have to give a statement later on, but Kota's testimony of the events will absolve you."
"Thank you." Izuku whispered. The tears he had held back now ran freely down his face. "I'm so sorry." Both Inko and Nemuri moved to embrace Izuku. He buried his face between them and let the sobs take him.
"You did nothing wrong, Izuku." Nemuri whispered fiercely. "You saved Kota. You protected both him and you from someone who wanted to kill you. You were a hero." Eventually his tears abated and his mother and mentor pulled back. After Izuku took a moment to clean up his face and pull himself together, Nezu spoke.
"There is one more matter we should discuss, Midoriya-kun, before we let you get your rest. You were seen during the fight flying and producing smoke. You awakened two more quirks, didn't you?"
"Three, sir. The seventh, sixth and third users'. Float, Smokescreen and Fa Jin. Fa Jin is an energy storer, it's what let me do that to…"
"Well, our response is going to hinge on one important question. Do you still want to keep One for All hidden?" Izuku looked up in confusion to his principal. Nezu gave him a small smile and explained. "All for One is locked away. You could go public with your quirk if you would like. I do not think it wise, but you have that option and I will not take it away from you without even offering it."
"Wouldn't that still put people in danger though? All for One probably still has allies."
"There is another dimension to it as well. If the world knows that you could transfer your quirk, a villain may take measures to attempt to force you to transfer it to them. Like I said, I do not believe it is the wisest option. One for All was kept a secret for a very long time for good reasons beyond just All for One."
"I'd like it to stay secret. Maybe one day I could share it, but definitely not now." Nezu gave him a nod.
"Very well then. I believe the best lie is one with some semblance of truth then. You had a quirk awakening due to the stress of attempting to save Izumi Kota. Your quirk is a rare but not unheard of triple aspect involving both Float and Blackwhip that requires your base musculature to be at a sufficient level before activation. Smokescreen can be explained as a quirk that All for One forced onto you during your captivity. Because your body is naturally adjusted to having more disparate power sets because of your original quirk, you managed to adjust to the new quirk rather than the quirk breaking your mind."
"This is just for your classmates and the official police report," Nemuri added. "Because of the highly restricted status of the villain as well as the fact that you're a minor, the press can print your name and some basic facts that you got taken, but any report of your involvement is confidential."
"I think that makes sense to me. Mom? Do you have any questions?" Inko blinked back at the group, taken aback at the decisiveness.
"I… no, I don't think so."
"If you do," Nezu said, handing her a business card. "Feel free to reach out to me. Or ask Yagi to get into contact with me."
"Thank you, Nezu, sir. I think I just need to take some time to process all of this."
"Of course, take all the time you need."
Eventually, Midnight managed to convince Inko to head home and shower and get some proper sleep. Shortly after she had left, Izuku's door burst open, causing him to startle up in bed and Nemuri to flick open the collapsible whip she kept disguised as a bracelet on her wrist. A jumble of limbs fell into the room, accompanied by the sounds of bickering.
"I told you I wanted to be the one to see him first!" "We should have knocked, what if he was asleep?!" "Well then he's definitely awake now, kero." "We currently have a weapon pointed at us and you are worried about whether we woke up our friend or not?" "This seems to be a bit much, does it not?"
"Well, isn't this just adorable? You're like a bunch of puppies climbing over one another to get attention." Ochako, Tenya, Tsu and Shoto looked up at Midnight from the floor where they had all crashed together in a dogpile. Ochako had her leg tangled in Tsu's and an elbow pushing Tenya's glasses up above his forehead. Iida had an arm around each of Shoto and Ochako. Tsu managed to be pressed between Shoto and Tenya though she seemed mostly nonplussed about the situation. An amused Momo stood behind them, badly disguising her laughter behind a hand over her mouth. Nemuri curled her whip around her arm again with a smirk.
"I'll give you some time to yourselves. I'll be back in fifteen." She stopped at the door and turned back to Izuku with a teasing glint in her eyes. "Oh, and Izuku? Group play can be very entertaining but you did just get out of surgery so try not to get too excited now, hm?" All six of the teenagers blushed as Nemuri exited, laughing to herself. Ochako managed to extricate herself from the pile first and pounce onto his left side.
"Deku! How are you feeling?" Her voice was slightly muffled by his hospital gown as she attempted to burrow into his chest. She started rubbing her head against him like a cat as the others picked themselves up off the floor.
"I'm alright. Pretty sore, but happy to be in one piece. How are you guys doing?"
"We were not the ones who got kidnapped by villains and shattered our arms." Shoto gave him a dry look. "Please worry about yourself more and the rest of us less. We're fine."
"I think what Shoto means is that the rest of the class is alright. Bakugou's family is with him but we're not allowed to visit him yet." Tenya broke in gently. "Truth be told the only reason we were allowed to come see you is that… ah, well-"
"Your mom texted me," Ochako finished for him. "She was sending me updates throughout the night."
"My mom has your phone number?"
"Yeah. We talk sometimes." Izuku shuddered at the idea. His mom was great but if the two most stubborn women in his life teamed up he would stand no chance in any argument for the rest of his life. "She's really cool."
"Y-yeah, she's awesome."
"I am glad to see you are well, Izuku-kun." Momo saved him from thinking about the Inko-Ochako Alliance. "We were all greatly concerned."
"We had a rescue plan in place," Shoto offered. "If no one had news within two days we were going to move in on our own."
"Well, I'm glad you guys didn't have to resort to that," Izuku said with a laugh. "And I think that I owe a lot of that to you, Momo. You were the one who placed the tracker on the Nomu, right?"
"Yes, that was me, but really you were the one who inspired me to do it."
"I wouldn't have had the ability to think that far ahead though. I would have ended up just fighting the thing head on and then letting it get away."
"Before I did it was your words that allowed me to take action at all, otherwise I would have simply stood by."
"Don't say that, Momo! You would have figured something out. You're far too clever to ever just give up."
"That is kind of you to say, Izuku, but-" "How long do you think they're going to keep doing that, kero?" "I give it five minutes." Momo and Izuku blushed from embarrassment. "My apologies."
"Nah you're all good." Ochako had managed to worm her way underneath Izuku's unbroken arm and laid fully on the bed next to him at this point. "It's kind of adorable how you guys get into these like compliment battles." She let out a yawn. "Y'all're so polite." Izuku's brow furrowed at his girlfriend's slip of accent. She must have been more exhausted than he thought if she was speaking naturally in front of their friends. He leaned down to whisper in her ear.
"You okay?" She let out a sleepy mmm and mumbled something that sounded vaguely like 'tired'. If his mom was sending her periodic updates throughout the night then how much sleep had Ochako gotten? He pressed a kiss to her forehead and earned a pleased hum as she snuggled in closer. Tenya noticed the two of them beginning to drift off and cleared his throat.
"We should probably let Izuku get his rest. We can let Midnight-sensei know that Ochako will stay here."
"A good idea." Momo echoed.
"I do think there is something that needs to be addressed with the group before we leave." Shoto looked down at his hands with a desolate expression. "You should probably all stay away from me for the foreseeable future."
"What why?!" "Shoto?" "Kero?"
"I'm cursed. I really am the hand-crusher." Laughter filled the room. Izuku felt like his lungs were going to burst. The stress of the past days melted into his slightly manic giggles. And if a few tears fell as the outpouring of emotion came, everyone was too overcome by the sheer relief of being alive to comment.
Something was wrong with him. The quacks and nurses didn't find anything in any of the tests they had run. Everyone from his parents to the doctors was insisting he just needed time to adjust but Katsuki knew the truth. There was something wrong.
It was hard for him to describe. A subtle weight in his chest that had never been there before. Shadows flickered in the corners of his vision. His fingers would twitch, heartbeat pick up, he even felt his quirk spark once without his input. Every so often someone would play piano against his spine, a tapping against his vertebrae that could only be a product of his overstressed mind.
Katsuki knew that whatever tests they were doing weren't accurate but what could he do? If he told them what was wrong they'd say it was just stress and trauma from being kidnapped. At best no one would take him seriously and at worst they would assume he snapped and keep him in this hospital forever. Maybe they're right, a voice whispered. Maybe you're crazy and this is all in your head.
He needed to figure this out but he had to do it on his own. The first step to doing that was getting out of this damn hospital. Katsuki pulled the napkin Scar-face had written on from his pocket. He should've given it to the police when they picked him up. He should've exploded into scraps or stuffed it down a toilet.
But he didn't do any of that. Katsuki returned the napkin back to his pockets. I can do this on my own. I don't need their help. I'm strong enough to figure this out by myself.
His own clothes had never felt quite as comfortable as they did when Izuku finally was able to change out of the hospital gown. His mom had brought a change of clothes with her when she came to check him out and Izuku gratefully put them on. A relaxed pair of jeans, limited edition All Might 35th anniversary socks based on his bronze age costume, his favorite red sneakers and a plain white shirt that said 'Winter Hat' in bold black font. He tossed the jacket she had brought into the bag with the workout gear he had been wearing during the training camp. His mom had gone ahead to the car, but Izuku had one more stop to make before he left.
At his knock a voice called out from inside, "Come in, my boy!" He pushed open the door to see his mentor resting on his own hospital bed. Bandages wrapped around his head and snaked up from underneath the hospital gown, peeking out from the collar and the right arm hole. His arm itself was casted and tucked into a sling.
"Young Midoriya, it's good to see you!"
"It's good to see you too, All Might. Pardon the intrusion."
"Nonsense, my boy. I'm happy you would visit a wizened old man like me."
"Gran Torino is old, All Might. You're experienced." All Might let out a wet barking laugh that transitioned quickly into a coughing fit. Izuku poured a glass of water for his mentor while his coughing settled.
"Ah, thank you my boy. Just don't let Gran hear you saying that." He took a drink from the cup before putting it back on the tray. "So what can I do for you, Izuku?"
"One for All." He said simply. The upbeat energy of the room dimmed a little at the mention of their quirk. "It's gone from you now, right?"
"Ah, one moment my boy." All Might leaned over to the table next to him and pressed a button on a small silver disk. It looked similar to the hologram disk that had been sent in his U.A. acceptance letter all those months ago. The disk let out a soft orange glow. "There we are. You can speak freely now."
"Err, right. You used up the last of One for All in your fight, didn't you?"
"I'm afraid so. The power is yours completely now."
"I could feel it when One for All started to fade in you. It felt like a star going out."
"There's no need for gloom, my boy. This was always going to happen at one point or another. You are the ninth bearer. You are my successor. You're going to do far more good for this world than I ever did."
"I just keep thinking that if I hadn't been there, if I had been strong enough to get Kacchan out without getting captured as well or if you hadn't saved me under that bridge maybe you would still have One for All." He glanced down at his hands, crumpled into fists. "Did I kill the Symbol of Peace just to become a hero?"
"Young Midoriya," the tone of All Might's voice brooked no argument. Izuku looked up into his mentor's steely blue gaze. "There was no way that this could be avoided. I'm almost sixty years old, my boy. Not even I can be a hero forever. The Symbol of Peace would fall eventually with or without you."
"But-" "But nothing, Izuku. Do not place this burden on yourself. Sons are meant to surpass their fathers, and you will do so many amazing things in your life, my boy."
"Please don't let Shoto hear you say things like that," Izuku said with a watery laugh. He wiped at the tears that trailed down his face. "He's already convinced that you're my dad."
"I may not be your father, my boy, but I do see you as my son. The bond we share is unbreakable and irrevocable." Toshinori pressed a bony hand into Izuku's hair and ruffled the curls. "My master told me that we would always meet again inside of One for All. I will always be a part of you, Izuku, just like I will always carry a part of you with me."
"Oh, that reminds me. I think I spoke to Nana." A surprised burst of blood shot from All Might's mouth at the statement. Once he had cleaned himself up, he asked.
"Ah, what do you mean my boy?"
"Well, you know how I spoke to Daigoro when I awakened Blackwhip?" Toshinori nodded. "When I awakened Float and Fa Jin I saw two more vestiges. One of Nana and one of the third. And then when I gained access to Smokescreen, I think I met the sixth as well."
"Well this is certainly news. We have a little information on the fifth and sixth wielders and more on Nana, but we know very little about those prior to Daigoro. If we can find a way for you to intentionally communicate with the vestiges, maybe you can ask him to share information with you."
"Yeah." Thinking about the third user and his quirk redirected Izuku's thoughts back toward the original reason he had wanted to speak with his mentor. "All Might? Did you ever want to kill All for One?"
"To be honest, I already thought that I had six years ago. I didn't know he was alive until after the USJ attack."
"But going into this fight. Did you think about killing him?"
"What is this really about Izuku?" He thought back to Muscular and the feeling of his fist against yielding flesh. The echoing boom of a body hitting a mountain.
"When the third spoke to me he asked me if I was willing to do whatever it took to stop Muscular. If I was willing to kill to stop him."
"And you're worried that by saying yes it makes you a worse person," his mentor finished for him. Izuku didn't answer. He stared at the floor until he felt shifting from the man next to him and a warm hand rub circles against his back.
"We are called to a violent profession, my boy. If diplomacy could stop every villain there would be no need for heroes."
"But I almost killed a man, All Might. That's a little more than just the regular duties of heroics. Even villains don't deserve to be murdered."
"There are many reasons why someone might become a villain, young Midoriya. Out of necessity, a lack of better options, or just plain bad luck sometimes. The worst of the worst though, the true monsters that haunt our world, they do bad things because they enjoy it. They love to cause chaos and destruction and pain. I do not condone killing; it's the job of heroes to stop them from causing more violence not to escalate it. I truly hope it does not come to pass for you again, but sometimes the only way to ensure that others do not suffer for the actions of monsters is to stop them however you can by whatever means necessary.
"Let's do a thought exercise. If you hadn't used that level of force against Muscular, could you have stopped him from killing you or Kota?"
"No, probably not."
"Did you try first?"
"Of course. He was just too strong."
"Last one. If you were forced to do it all again, would you change your actions?"
Izuku was forced to think about it for a long moment. He turned the problem every which way, but any solution he could come up with probably ended with one or both of them dead. Maybe he could have led Muscular off toward Aizawa but what would have stopped him from killing Kota first? He had already proven that he could handle one hundred percent of One for All so anything less than maximum force wouldn't have done anything.
"No." He decided. "No, I would do it again if I had to."
"Then I think you have your answer. You did what you had to. Don't let your doubts detract from that."
"Thank you, All Might."
"Of course, my boy."
As Izuku left the room a faint sense of approval radiated from the back of his mind. Heavy lies the head that wears the crown, Midoriya Izuku. A familiar voice spoke. Don't take this power lightly and you'll be fine.
Can you hear me? He thought back. When nothing but silence returned, he sighed. Damn cryptic ghosts.
Protect Tomura Shigaraki. He had a purpose. A mission. But how could he fulfill it? His ward was gone, taken by his enemies. His master was gone as well. The doctor was in the wind and without the coordinates to his location he would remain there. Tomura's associates were beginning to panic. The one had already stormed off, footsteps charred into the concrete of the warehouse in his wake. The others scattered as well. All that was left of the League of Villains was the masked man and himself. The other man pulled up his mask and spoke. The words themselves swam in and out, competing with the instinctive drive to protect and nurture his missing ward.
"You don't even know who you are, do you?" The blonde man's voice was kind and soft. It resonated with something, deep inside. "I hope you find something that reminds you of that. Or someone." He placed a phone on the table, a video playing on the screen. "In case you want to know what's happening with Shigaraki."
The blonde man left. His eyes were dragged to the screen. Flashes of rescue efforts in the destruction left behind by All for One. A woman appeared on it. Dark hair and bright blue eyes. Familiar blue eyes. Protect Tomura Shigaraki. The angle changed and again showed that woman, escorting Tomura's rival away from the battle zone. Protect everyone Tomura Shigaraki. Flashes of a younger woman, with those same haunting eyes, on a rooftop. The sky stretched out behind her but no star shone brighter than her. Protect Tomura Shigaraki Everyone. He had to know who that woman was. She was a hero. She could have a clue about who he is where Tomura Shigaraki is.