Every movement Bakugo made was a battle against himself. His muscles screamed in agony, his joints felt as if they were being consumed by flames, and his bones seemed ready to crumble at any second. Everything—absolutely everything—in his body begged him to stop. But he couldn't. Not when so many lives were at stake. Not when the fate of everyone might depend on him holding out for just one more second.
So he forced himself to keep going.
And in that brief moment, Bakugo was beyond himself. His movements grew faster, his thoughts sharper, more precise, almost superhuman. It was as if time itself had slowed around him. Shigaraki's attacks were no longer blurs impossible to follow—he could see them, analyze them, counter them. Every strike he threw was a calculated risk, every explosion shaped not only by his strength but by his unshakable will to win and protect.
And still, his mistake came. Or maybe it hadn't been a mistake at all, but something inevitable given the abyss of power between the two.
As he prepared to unleash another explosion, Shigaraki found the perfect opening and struck with a devastating blow from his arm.
Bakugo felt it instantly. There was no way not to feel it. A sharp, burning, searing pain tore through his chest as the force of the impact hurled him backward, sending him spinning uncontrollably through the air before crashing into the ground.
And then… everything changed. The battlefield vanished in an instant, replaced by an endless, silent white space. Bakugo stood motionless for a few seconds, struggling to grasp what had just happened and how he had ended up there, until something warm and comforting touched his back.
Everything made sense.
"I see…" he murmured, slowly turning around. Before him stood the flaming figure of All Might, watching him with eyes heavy with grief, reflecting countless unspoken words.
Bakugo swallowed hard, a knot forming in his throat. "I… I know I'm a problematic kid," he said, recalling the bursts of arrogance, the harsh words, all the times he had shut himself off and rejected help. "And since the first day we met… I've been a pain in the ass, so I never got the chance to tell you…"
Reaching into his pocket, Bakugo pulled out a little card of All Might—the same one he had gotten as a child and had carried with him ever since. "I… I really wanted your autograph."
********
'Am I… alive?' That was the first thought that crossed Bakugo's mind as he opened his eyes. He blinked several times, trying to get used to the light spilling into the room through the half-open window. 'How is this possible? I'm sure that attack…!'
With a jolt, Bakugo sat up and pulled his shirt up, his fingers trembling with anxiety as he searched for the wound that should have been right above his heart. Yet what he saw left him frozen.
Nothing.
No scar. No mark. In fact, every scar he had accumulated over the past year had vanished. 'What the…?' Bakugo quickly searched for a likely explanation and concluded he must have been taken to Eri. Only that girl could have the power to pull something like this off.
'But how did she do it? Was she able to control her Quirk?' He ran a hand over his face, trying to put his thoughts in order. 'Does this mean we won? Did Izuku… defeat that monster?' Still confused, Bakugo pushed the blankets aside and placed his feet on the floor—only for his confusion to give way to complete shock when he realized where he was.
This wasn't a room at U.A., nor a makeshift medical ward on some battlefield. It was his own room, in his parents' house.
'Why did they bring me here?!' His heart pounded, his mind racing in every direction. Even if the villains had been defeated, the cities should still be in chaos, far too dangerous for civilians to be sent back.
Springing to his feet, Bakugo dashed out of the room, his eyes sweeping the hallway frantically for any irregularity. But everything was exactly as he remembered. Nothing out of place. No strange sounds. Just the old, familiar hallway of his home. 'What the hell is going on?!'
"What are you doing, brat?"
A voice cut through Bakugo's thoughts, and he spun around, startled by the instant recognition. Just a few feet away stood his mother, holding a laundry basket, her eyebrows knitted together.
"...."
Mitsuki frowned even deeper at the sight of her troublemaker standing there in total silence. "What? Still in a bad mood because—" Before she could finish, Bakugo closed the distance between them and hugged her tightly, knocking the basket of clothes to the floor. "K-Katsuki?!"
Tears began streaming uncontrollably down Bakugo's face. Everything he had endured in the last hours—all the humiliation, frustration, and helplessness—came flooding out in that moment. "I COULDN'T DO ANYTHING!" he shouted, his voice raw with pain. "I tried everything! I gave it my all, but… but all my effort, all my training, none of it was enough! Nothing! Absolutely nothing! I… I… I was nothing against him…"
Mitsuki stayed silent for a moment before wrapping her arms around her son, holding him tightly. "Calm down, Katsuki. It's over now. You're here, and you're safe, okay? Breathe with me."
"Haah… haah… haah…" Little by little, Bakugo began to steady his breathing, just as she instructed.
Running her hand through his hair, Mitsuki softened her tone. "I didn't realize it had affected you this much…"
Bakugo froze. There was something off about that sentence. No, not just off—completely disconnected from what everyone had been going through in the last few months. He pulled back slightly, his eyes locked onto hers. "W-what did you say?"
She sighed, as if the situation wasn't serious at all. "I mean… I understand that being attacked by that sludge villain was hard on you, but—"
Bakugo stopped hearing her words as a cold shiver spread through his entire body.
Something was wrong.
Very wrong.
*********
Did you like it? Then take a look at my other two stories: The Scourge Born of Air (Avatar: The Last Airbender) and Stranger Things: Worlds Collide.
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters or songs featured in this fic. Additionally, I do not claim ownership of any products or properties mentioned in this novel. This work is entirely fanfic.