Chapter 36: Ashes and Pride
Age: 15
Musutafu General Hospital smelled different from Toga's house. Toga's house smelled of cleaning to hide filth. The hospital smelled of cleaning to fight death. It was an honest smell.
I was sitting in the emergency waiting room, head in my hands. My elbows dug into my thighs. My right leg bounced with that nervous tic I couldn't control.
Beside me, Toga was asleep. She had curled up on the hard plastic chairs, using my jacket as a blanket. She had soot smudges on her face and dirty hands from dragging rubble, but she slept with the peace of someone who had accomplished her mission.
The treatment room door opened.
A doctor came out, pulling down his mask. I jumped to my feet, waking Toga in the process.
"Family of Midoriya Izuku?"
"We're his team," I said, stepping forward. My voice sounded raspy.
The doctor looked at me over his glasses, evaluating my dirty uniform and aggressive attitude, but he nodded.
"Alright. He has first-degree chemical burns on his neck and arms, and mild intoxication from propylene inhalation. We've cleaned his eyes and administered oxygen. He'll have to use drops and creams for a few weeks, but there won't be permanent damage."
I let out the breath I didn't know I was holding. My knees almost gave out from relief.
"Can we see him?" Toga asked, rubbing her eyes.
"Five minutes. Then he needs to rest. His mother is on her way."
We entered the room.
Izuku was sitting on the stretcher, shirtless and bandaged. He had a clear oxygen mask over his mouth and nose, which he pulled off when he saw us enter. His eyes were red and swollen, but when he saw us, he tried to smile.
"You look like a mummy, Deku," I said, standing at the foot of the bed. I didn't know what to do with my hands, so I crossed them over my chest.
"And you look like a zombie, Kacchan," he replied, his voice weak and hoarse.
Toga ran to him and hugged his legs (the only part not bandaged).
"You scared us!" she squealed. "It smelled horrible! I thought you were going to melt!"
"I'm fine, Toga-chan." Izuku patted her hair. "Thanks for guarding the perimeter. I heard your voice giving orders to people. You were great."
Toga smiled, hiding her face in the sheets so we wouldn't see her flush with pride.
Then, Izuku looked at me. The room fell silent. The hum of the medical machines seemed very loud.
There were so many things I wanted to tell him. «I'm sorry.» «You were right.» «You were incredible.» But my throat was closed by a knot of pride and guilt.
Izuku broke the silence first.
"The briefcase," he said. "Did you get it back?"
I blinked, surprised.
"What?"
"The gloves. Project Atlas." He pointed to himself. "You said they were expensive. Did you pick them up off the ground?"
I looked toward the corner of the room, where Toga had left the dented and dirty metal case. She had rescued it from the chaos before getting into the ambulance.
"Yeah. It's there." I looked at him, confused. "But you said you didn't want them. You said they were charity."
Izuku shook his head slowly. He winced in pain as he moved his burned neck.
"I said I didn't want your charity. But..." He sighed, looking at his bandaged hands. "Today, when I was climbing that pipe, I felt my fingers slipping. I lacked grip. I lacked the strength to break the glass faster. If I had those gloves... I would have gotten the driver out ten seconds sooner."
He looked me in the eye.
"You were right about one thing, Kacchan. I am human. I have limits. And if I want to save everyone, I need help." He extended his bandaged hand toward me. "I don't need you to build me armor to hide. I need you to build me tools to fight."
I felt a pressure in my chest. It wasn't pain. It was something breaking and reassembling into a better shape.
I walked over to the briefcase. Opened it. The titanium gloves shone under the fluorescent light, a bit scratched from the fall, but intact.
I took one out. It was heavy. It was cold.
I went back to the stretcher and set it on his lap.
"They have a flaw in the cooling system," I said, my voice returning to its usual analytical tone to hide the emotion. "And the weight is excessive for your current muscle mass. I have to redesign the alloy."
Izuku touched the cold metal of the glove. He smiled.
"I trust you. You're the best engineer."
"I'm the best hero," I corrected automatically. "Engineering is just a hobby."
"Sure, sure."
Toga lifted her head from the sheets.
"Does that mean Delta Squad is back online?" she asked. "Because I hated eating alone at lunch. People taste bad when I'm sad."
"Yes," Izuku said. "Back online."
I walked up to Izuku and flicked him gently on the forehead, careful not to touch the burns.
"Next time you jump into a toxic gas cloud without gear, I'll kill you myself to save the villain the trouble."
"Understood, leader."
The door burst open. Inko Midoriya entered like a hurricane of tears and worry.
"IZUKU! MY BABY!"
We stepped aside to let the mother do her job. Watching Inko cry and hug her son, checking every bandage, made me feel a pang of nostalgia for my own loud mother.
"Let's go, Toga," I said, grabbing her by the collar of her jacket. "Let's leave them alone."
We walked out into the hallway.
The hospital still smelled of antiseptic, but it didn't bother me anymore.
We walked toward the exit. Night had fallen over Musutafu. The city lights flickered, indifferent to the drama we had just lived through.
"Hey, Katsuki-kun," Toga said as the automatic doors slid open. "Did you see the Skeleton?"
I stopped dead.
"What skeleton?"
"The skinny man. The one who smells like old blood and medicine." Toga pointed toward a dark corner of the hospital parking lot, near the vending machines. "He was there when the ambulance arrived. And he's still there. Like an ugly gargoyle."
I followed her finger.
Under the flickering light of a distant streetlamp, a tall, hunched figure stood. He wore a yellow trench coat that was too big for him, flapping in the night wind.
My heart, which had just calmed down, gave a painful lurch.
I recognized him instantly. I didn't need to see him transformed. I knew who he was by his posture, by the energy he radiated even in his weakest form.
Toshinori Yagi. All Might.
He was watching Izuku.
"Toga," I said, my voice tense and low. "Go home. Tell the Old Hag I'll be late."
"Why?" She looked at the man, then at me, her eyes narrowing with suspicion. "Is he a pervert? Want me to scare him?"
"No. He's... an acquaintance of Izuku's." It wasn't a lie, technically. "I need to talk to him. Alone."
Toga stared at me, evaluating my body language. She saw I wasn't scared, but on guard.
"Okay. But if he tries to kidnap you, scream. I'll come running and gouge his eyes out."
"Deal."
She skipped away toward the bus stop, humming an off-key tune.
I was left alone. I took a deep breath of the cold night air to cool my head. I knew what I had to do. I couldn't act like a fanboy. I couldn't act like I knew his secret. I had to be Bakugou Katsuki.
I walked toward him.
The skeletal man saw me approaching. He didn't move. His eyes, sunken in dark sockets, shone with an electric blue that was unsettling in such a gaunt face.
I stopped three paces away. I shoved my hands in my pockets.
"You're watching him," I said. It wasn't a question.
The man coughed into his fist and offered me a tired smile.
"You're the friend. The 'genius.' Young Midoriya talks a lot about you during his morning workouts."
"Morning workouts?" I arched an eyebrow, feigning ignorance. "So you're the one filling his head with ideas about 'breaking ceilings.'"
"I only give him water and conversation. He breaks the ceilings on his own." The man took a step forward, stepping out of the shadow. "I saw what happened today at the fire."
I tensed.
"I saw young Midoriya throw himself into danger without hesitation," he continued, his voice becoming a little deeper, more authoritative. "And I saw you. Standing on the sidewalk."
His eyes locked onto mine. It was a test. I knew it. He was judging me.
"You have a powerful Quirk, young Bakugou. I smell it in your sweat. Nitroglycerin, right?" He tilted his head. "You could have blown that door open in a second. But you didn't. You let your Quirkless friend go in alone. Why? Fear?"
I felt anger bubble in my stomach. How dare he?
"Chemistry," I spat.
The man blinked.
"Pardon?"
"Propylene," I said, taking an aggressive step toward him. "The truck was carrying liquid propylene. The tank ruptured. The gas is denser than air and highly flammable. The concentration on that street was at 40%. If I had released a single spark..." I snapped my fingers in front of his face. "Boom. Thermobaric explosion. The building, the truck, the civilians, and my friend... all vaporized."
The skeletal man fell silent. His expression of judgment slowly transformed into surprise.
"I didn't stop out of fear, old man. I stopped because I know how to add two plus two. A hero who doesn't think before shooting is just a killer with a cape."
There was a long silence. The wind moved his trench coat.
Then, the man started to laugh. A soft, dry laugh.
"'A killer with a cape'..." He repeated, shaking his head. "You're right. I apologize. I misjudged the situation. And I misjudged you."
He looked at me again, but this time with newfound respect.
"Young Midoriya has the heart to act without thinking. But you have the head to know when not to act." He rubbed his chin. "You are an interesting pair. An engine and a steering wheel."
"We are heroes," I corrected. "Or we will be."
"You will be," he nodded. His tone held a certainty that made the hair on my arms stand up.
The man turned around, preparing to leave.
"Take care of him, young Bakugou. He has a spirit that... is sometimes too big for his own body. He's going to need someone who understands 'chemistry' so he doesn't explode."
He started walking away, limping slightly.
I stared at his back. I knew he was dying. I knew he was looking for a successor. And I knew he had just found him in room 304 of this hospital.
"Hey," I called out.
He stopped, but didn't turn around.
"I don't know who you are," I lied, "and I don't care what interest you have in Deku. But if you're going to get involved in his life..."
I paused, choosing my words carefully.
"Make sure it's worth it. He's broken his bones to get here. Don't give him false hope if you're not going to follow through."
The skeletal man turned his head slightly. I saw All Might's smile on his gaunt face.
"It's not false hope, young man. It's the future."
He walked away, disappearing into the darkness.
I stood alone in the parking lot.
My heart was beating fast. The main gear of the story had just started turning. All Might had chosen. Izuku was going to receive One For All.
And I... I had just passed the Number One Hero's character test, even if he didn't know that I knew who he was.
I looked back at the hospital one last time.
"Get ready, Deku," I muttered. "Because what comes next is going to be a lot harder than picking up trash on a beach."
I turned and walked toward home. I had to redesign the gauntlets. And I had to prepare. Because soon, my rival wouldn't be a Quirkless boy anymore. He would be the wielder of the greatest power in the world.
And I planned to surpass him anyway.