"You guys... can't keep up!" Breaking out of the ice, I felt my foot get snagged by something right as I took off. Danger Sense didn't react and I wasn't in pain. Peeking over my shoulder, I could see a line of Pop Off balls connecting back to the source of the one who released them.
It was Mineta, with Tsu sticking onto the building above him. Her tongue lashed out through the rain, tugging on the broken iron over my soles. They were saying things to me with urgent faces, but I could hardly make the words out over the sounds of splashing water which soaked through my clothes into my very soul. My hero clothing should have been able to protect me well against rain, but the ugly, decayed rags across my body could hardly be called such anymore.
I didn't pay them any mind. I had already tuned them out after I broke out of Todoroki's ice.
Forcing Blackwhip to come to life, the sickly strand of darkness seeped through the very same spot on my foot grappled by Pop Off balls and roughly pushed them off. Mineta may be able to stick them to me, but if I alter the surface onto Blackwhip and have it dissipate, they'll fall right off.
With Mineta disconnected, I began pulling against Tsu, feeling her tongue desperately try to hold on as I tugged away. I could feel the powerful appendage crawl upward over my leg across the black iron. What had latched onto me as a gentle embrace now pulled back with more and more strength before reaching its limit. She was trying with everything she had to pull me back as my floating body strained against her through the air.
Refusing to look back at her and be met with a pitiful face, I snapped a single finger. Even as her tongue immediately loosened and the sounds of glass shattering struck my ears, I refused to look back at her.
I couldn't.
Propelled forward by the releasing wind, I flicked a second time to narrowly avoid a pillar of ice reaching me. My perception has been off, but that one might've looked faster than the previous, I'm not sure. Maybe my actions really angered him.
It didn't matter. I could live with making him angry - making them all angry. That was fine. I had to do this.
Flicking my fingers a few more times, I soared and curved past several decrepit buildings before noticing that my mask had slipped off. I'm not sure when, but it must've been before I was trapped by the ice. Couldn't go back for it now. Didn't have another one, either.
That's fine. I had a Quirk that could conceal my presence. I'm still not that good with it, but I can get better. I needed to be better and I would be. I'll use the opportunity to improve my control.
Even if my control slipped and my identity was fully exposed, it didn't change anything. The villains I'm searching for already know who I am, and the civilians usually ran away. I'm sure I'll be reported as a criminal for doing Hero work out of my jurisdiction, but with other Heroes and police being stretched thin, they wouldn't come after me.
They couldn't stop me even if they did.
Turning down another street, I avoided more of my former classmates. They launched their Quirks at me, but not a single one could land. At this rate, we would be at this all day. I needed to end this now.
Pushing my aching body to its limit, I forced Blackwhip to come alive once more. Shooting out two strands from both hands and latching onto one of the nearby buildings, the elastic tether stretched as it arced me back around for maximum buildup of centrifugal force. My legs kicked out as rapidly as I could make them move, and as I reached the apex of the swing, I launched myself forward kicking both feet backwards behind me.
I could barely hear the feminine scream underneath the booming power released from Fa Jin. It was a voice I knew very well and I felt an incredibly strong urge to look back. My heart pulsed painfully in my chest and the sinking sickness I felt made me loss of breath.
She was hurt. I had hurt her.
...But I ignored her like everyone else.
I flew through the air at rapid speeds so quick I could no longer feel the rain. I had only done this a couple times - each time barely keeping my presence of mind. I wasn't used to moving so quickly just yet. There was no time to adapt. My evolving Quirk left no room for schooltime training, only cold hard experience. The other time I had accessed such speeds, I had a young girl strapped to my back with her Quirk dealing me immense pain.
With my condition worse than all times prior, my mind felt delirious. I could hardly think, much less open my eyes into the world of cold grayness surrounding me. My eyes clenched shut as the freezing winds pierced my limp body, trusting my overwhelming power to send me far, far away.
I'm tired. I just want to sleep.
...
...
..?
My arm. Something had grabbed my hand and yanked my arm.
Opening my eyes, I could see someone wearing metal armor - or at least that's how it appeared. The lightweight, flexible gear only belonged to a single person I knew.
"...I am always ready... to challenge you!"
...Iida?
But... how? He wasn't this fast. I know he isn't.
His engines... they look completely burned out. His glasses were gone and his armor... burn marks, and the fading signs of a viscous material...
I see. The others must've helped him. They all worked together so he could catch up to me. With how impossibly light he weighed in my hand, Zero Gravity must've also been applied to him.
Good. She was still okay.
I stared Iida in the eye, immediately regretting it.
No. This isn't what I wanted. Not like this.
I'm sorry. Really, I am. But I can't deal with this right now.
Clenching my hand around his with all of the remaining strength, I raised his weightless body up along with my arm. I heard him gasp and attempt to call out, but it was too late. I threw him down towards the ground as hard as I could.
He would be okay. I knew he would be. My grip was nowhere near as strong as it should be and my muscles were tremoring with pain. Despite shouting desperately as he fell downwards, it wasn't out of fear of dying. Rather, it was out of fear for me.
Sorry, Iida. You don't have to be afraid. I'll fix everything and come back. I promise.
My body continued to soar - Float keeping me in midair as momentum of my powerful launch carried me. I had slowed down considerably after he had grabbed on. I was a good distance away from everyone else, nearly on the edge of the destroyed city.
Not enough. I needed to cover more distance so they couldn't hope to catch me. Not them, not All Might, not even Endeavor or Hawks. I couldn't involve them anymore than I already had. This was enough. I could take over from here.
Working my screaming legs into overtime, I began pumping them through the air again. I was too high up to grab onto any building with Blackwhip - if I even could at this point. I could barely summon and stretch it to hold me up now. I'd have to rely solely on Fa Jin.
But that should be enough. They couldn't put together another move like that a second time. With the distance cleared and Fa Jin still having the capability to blow past all of them individually, they wouldn't reach me again.
With a final double kick, I launched myself flying in the same aimless direction. Red kinetic energy blossomed out into circular shapes behind me as I disappeared outside of the city, far beyond the sights of my old friends. Lost in the darkness of the dreary, rainy sky.