Chapter 59: Meisei Hibiki
Not long after, Momo Yaoyorozu happened to glance at the time, bowed apologetically to them, and hurried off.
It might be a little uncharitable to say, but after Yaoyorozu left, Kira could feel both teachers visibly relax, their nerves no longer on edge.
"Kira-kun, I have an old friend being treated downstairs. I'm going to go see him. You can keep Aizawa company!"
Thirteen-sensei said as he skillfully spun the wheels of his wheelchair with his thickly gloved hands, made a wide drift to turn around, and headed out the door toward the elevator.
"Sensei, would you like an apple?" Kira asked, silently peeling an apple, the skin coming off in a single, perfect spiral. After he said it, he realized, "Oh, you can't eat anything."
It was obvious that Aizawa was currently being sustained by the glucose in his IV drip. He probably hadn't eaten anything all day.
"..."
An awkward silence fell between them, broken only by the ticking of the alarm clock on the bedside table.
"Kira, would you mind pushing me downstairs to get some sun?" Aizawa suddenly said. "The doctor said I stay up too late and need some sun to maintain the balance of trace elements in my body."
Hearing this from the mummy-wrapped Aizawa, Kira naturally had no reason to refuse. Although Aizawa's legs weren't injured, in his current state of being unable to see, he did need someone with him.
Kira ran to the service desk on that floor and, after a brief explanation, borrowed a wheelchair from the hospital.
"Sensei, if you please." As Kira helped Aizawa out of bed, he saw his sunken eye sockets and the faint bloodstains on the white bandages. He pushed aside his inner questions, helped him into the wheelchair, and hung the IV bag on the pole.
Kira pushed him out of the room and to the elevator. There, a man in a hospital gown was also waiting for the elevator.
"Well, well, if it isn't our brave Pro Hero, 'Eraser Head'! The news said you and All Might repelled the invading enemies without a scratch... I never thought I'd see you here!" the man said, leaning in with a playful, exaggeratedly confused expression. "I wonder why that is..."
"..." Aizawa didn't speak. Kira also silently pushed the wheelchair, waiting for the elevator.
As far as he knew, this place was only open to those with hero licenses. In other words, everyone being treated here was a Pro Hero. The man in front of him was naturally no exception. He couldn't yet determine the man's intentions, so he didn't speak rashly.
The man didn't seem to be ready to let them go just because of their silence. He continued to point at Aizawa. "I remember your weapon is a special kind of scarf. I wonder why you've tied it around your face to look like you're injured. Is it some kind of cosplay? You're quite the enthusiast!"
Seeing that the two of them were still ignoring him, he shamelessly leaned his face in front of Kira, who was behind the wheelchair. "Are you Eraser Head's student? You're not bad looking. I've always had a thing for boys like you." He reached out his hand, as if to touch Kira's face.
Although the other person was of the same gender, Kira felt he had the right to fight back against such obvious harassment.
To prevent any follow-up moves, he decisively used Hamon to slap the man's hand away and said with a frown, "As a senior, is this how you treat a minor? Are you even qualified to be called a Pro Hero?"
The man rotated his wrist, which had been hurt by Kira's slap. He didn't seem to be angry at Kira's insubordinate tone. Instead, he was excited that someone had finally talked to him.
"Aizawa, did you hear that? Your student is questioning my identity! Are you going to tell him my identity is fake? I graduated in the same class as you! You can't say you don't remember me, can you?"
In response to his urgent tone, Aizawa just said to Kira flatly, "The elevator is here. Let's go." He didn't seem to intend to hold Kira responsible for his actions, nor did he have any desire to agree with the man.
Ding—
The elevator doors opened. Kira pushed Aizawa into the elevator and turned the wheelchair around so he could face the door.
"Hey, Aizawa! Are you going to give me that attitude again?!" The man seemed to be enraged and was about to step into the elevator to punch him. "It's always like this! Every time I talk to you, you're so cold! Who do you think you are?!"
Suddenly, he froze—
Aizawa's right hand was bandaged, and his left hand had an IV. His face was wrapped tightly in bandages, but the man felt as if he could see those blood-red eyes that shouldn't have been there.
"If I were you, I wouldn't come any closer. We're not the same anymore, Class President—Meisei Hibiki."
The man stood frozen in place, not taking another step forward. He just watched as the elevator doors closed, completely concealing Aizawa's figure.
"...We're not the same anymore?"
Meisei Hibiki looked at his own bandaged hand, leaned against the wall next to the elevator, and slowly unwrapped the bandages—on his palm was only a scabbed-over wound, looking like the most common of cuts.
Kira pushed the wheelchair through the back door of the hospital and into the spacious inner garden.
It was only April or May, the time when the cherry blossoms were in full bloom. This garden was no exception. The cherry blossom petals were scattered on the ground, forming a natural pink tablecloth. Here and there, people in hospital gowns could be seen sitting on the ground with people in hero costumes, enjoying the cherry blossoms and eating the bento boxes their visitors had brought.
"Kira, you know, for a hero, rest is a very rare thing," Aizawa suddenly said as Kira pushed the wheelchair to a bench by the central fountain. "Every day, you're either at a disaster site or on your way to one. Being able to enjoy the cherry blossoms and have a meal with a friend is a great luxury."
"It's a Pro Hero's duty, and his responsibility. Because they shoulder an important mission, when they get sick or injured and are hospitalized, they can rightfully enjoy privileges that civilians can't," Aizawa said with a sigh. "All their medical expenses are covered, they can take leave from their agencies unconditionally, and they even have social security and a generous compensation during their rest period."
"So... some people started to get crooked ideas?" Kira was beginning to understand what Aizawa wanted to talk about and proactively continued the topic.
"Yes. To gain rights, you must fulfill your responsibilities. That's a fact that even children understand. But some people don't think so," he said after a pause. "They find all sorts of ways to slack off. Every time they get a small injury, they'll cry out as if their main artery has burst... They occupy the collective's shared resources and refuse to leave the hospital. To them, feigning illness is a common occurrence, and shirking their duties is a matter of course. As long as they can live an easy life, who cares about the storms raging outside."
"...Are you talking about that man just now?"
"Maybe."
"Aizawa-sensei, are you really okay with your injuries not being known to the public?" Kira suddenly asked.
Aizawa didn't answer directly. He just said, "Kira, it's a bit noisy here. Let's go to the gazebo."