It was dark.
It wasn't dark.
Wait, no, it was dark. Just not where he was.
Where both his knees touched the ground, a circle of light surrounded him in this abyss. Barely enough to keep him out of the shadows that swallowed all life.
And the darkness?
Why was it here? Where did it come from? What monster lurked in those lightless fields that chilled his skin down to the very bone?
And then the hole…
No, not a hole, not quite.
A fall.
A… rapid descension. A ramp?
Just steep enough to climb down if you risked it.
It remained silent… Looming in front of him like a ghost.
Where did it go?
What lay at the end?
Did it end?
…
Was he alone?
A whisper.
Desperate and afraid, the cry for help slithered out of the darkness.
"H-h…heelp… m-meee."
The whisper, while nearly silent, it was able to scream into his ears.
Despite it sounding so far away…
A hand.
Thin and frail, a hand slowly emerged from the curtain of black that hid the rest of the world.
Instinctively, he reached out to grab and help the plea. It was in his rush to help that he did not realize the wet crimson that spilled from his own hand.
He reached as far as he could. Their hands were merely inches apart.
However, the moment he brought his fingers together to grip it, the other hand simply disappeared back into the void.
The void that made him feel uncomfortable.
The void that he knew was unsafe and would swallow him whole without a moment's hesitation.
The void that hid what lurked out of the light.
But… how did he know that?
What is it? The cold breeze that made his eyes water? The stench of death that made him gag?
"Help"
The voice.
It was back… and… wrong.
He knew this for sure, he knew because of the way the word was spoken. It was different. Too flat. No emotion. A mimic.
Then what-
"Meeee…"
Not a voice.
…
A growl.
His eyes stared into the darkness.
It didn't matter where he looked.
It felt like it was always staring back.
And then it struck.
"Aah!" Yagi jerked up in bed faster than he had in years. So much that a sting of pain ripped through his side. He grit his teeth until the pain faded which, thankfully, didn't take long at all. There was no time to even calm his nerves before flashbacks of the dream flooded back.
He was afraid. Especially of whatever that was that had jumped out at him just before he woke up. It wasn't something he saw, but something he felt. It wouldn't leave him be, ever since that event at the USJ. That terrible feeling of dread haunted him just like the thing that had haunted him for these past few nights.
All of this was really starting to weigh down on him.
Yagi let out a deep sigh before he laid his head down in one hand. He used his fingers to rub his head as he thought. Despite his best attempts, he couldn't manage to calmly think. His mind swarmed, the man's mental state in disarray.
He just… couldn't get the image of all those bodies out of his mind. In his entire life of heroism, he had never seen such carnage take place in such a short amount of time.
And still… still, no one knows what happened.
Yagi gave another exhale to drive the thoughts away. He turned to look at his clock. Guess it was a good thing his nightmare woke him up. He would be meeting with Midoriya on the beach in less than an hour.
Time to go see how that boy is doing.
..............................…
The drive wasn't long.
Or, at least, not supposed to be long.
Yagi still found himself thinking back to everything he saw in the USJ. However, he was finally able to arrive at the familiar scene of the beach. Well, what he could see of the beach anyway.
Better than last time though.
The mounds of trash were still the main thing he saw as he walked down the path to reach the stairway that led him down to the sandy dump. Yagi took the usual walkway to the spot where Midoriya and he had been working for the past few weeks.
Once he arrived, Yagi was a little surprised to not see the young greenette in sight. He usually would already be working on moving the piles for transport. But… no black-eyed boy around.
Suppose that might be because he was early. But that also didn't explain it as Midoriya was also early more often than not. Yagi nearly settled on just finding a comfy spot to wait. However, just before he could, a trail of footprints revealed themselves going down a different path.
A fresh trail.
Naturally, he followed it.
It didn't go as far as he expected, but he did expect to find who he was looking for at the end.
Yagi walked into a clearing. One that wasn't surrounded by trash, but actually had a clear view of the beach.
Midoriya sat on the inside of a bulldozer shovel. He faced towards the ocean that began to light up with the morning sun behind them. His black eyes were out of focus, looking lost in deep thought.
Apparently Yagi wasn't the only one. It made perfect sense considering what the boy went through. Perhaps some small talk to lighten things up first.
"Looks like you did find one." Yagi called out as he walked over. He stifled a chuckle when he saw Midoriya slightly jump in place, obviously frightened out of his stupor.
His irises, stark green dots, turned to look at him, filled with surprise and confusion. Then he looked down at the large yellow shovel he sat in and his eyes softened.
"Oh, hah. Yeah. Figured there would have to be one around here somewhere." Midoriya responded. He turned back to the ocean mid sentence and appeared quite keen on staying there. So Yagi took the initiative of joining him in his makeshift seat.
He mustn't have prepared for it very well, because he ended up landing on the metal surface a bit harder than he anticipated. Yagi groaned, but it was nothing serious. He settled himself in and tried to make himself comfortable.
"Yeah, definitely not my first choice." Yagi joked, the hard metal didn't do kindly to his thin frame. Midoriya grew a small smile but didn't avert his gaze from the ocean. Yagi did the same. He knew that there must be much going through the greenette's head. He needed to remind himself that he was not All Might. He was Toshinori Yagi, a regular civilian. "So…" He started slowly. "You said you wanted to talk?" Yagi trailed at the end to see Midoriya's reaction. He dropped his dark eyes to the ground with a light sigh. Guess the answer was obvious.
"…Y-yeah. Sorry, it's just… I didn't really feel like talking to anyone else right now." The boy hesitated in his response. Yagi could understand what he meant by this. Sometimes, there were certain things that could only be told to certain people. Guess Yagi was that certain person this time.
Yagi hummed in consideration. "I'm assuming it has to do what happened at USJ? Confronting over a hundred villains must have been frightening." Yagi spoke from a perspective of someone outside of UA. He saw Midoriya react in the corner of his eye. At first, he looked shocked, then understandable.
"O-oh. Yes. It was for all of us. Thankfully, the rest of the heroes showed up, and they were arrested." Midoriya answered slowly. Even having a moment of hesitation before he said the fate of the criminals.
"Good." Yagi said aloud as he did in his head.
It was a coverup they had decided upon. Perhaps UA's darkest one.
They were all shocked when Nezu confessed his plan to them.
..............................…
"Nezu, you can't be serious about this." All Might, along with the rest of the school staff, minus Eraserhead and Thirteen, stood in the principal's office. What their supervisor had just told them had all of their jaws dropped and their eyes wide.
"I'm afraid so. But no matter how much I despise this as much as you all do, it would appear that no matter how I look at this, there is no other way. A cover up… is the best choice." Nezu spoke in a low tone that stayed true to his words. He sat in his chair that was turned around to have his back towards the heroes.
"I know you aren't the kind to keep secrets unless it's necessary." Vlad King spoke up. His eyes were low to the ground before they locked onto the back of Nezu's chair. "So… why?
There was a pause of silence amongst them all as they waited for the principal's answer.
The overly sized chair slowly spun. Nezu faced them. His head was low, and his eyes were closed. The creature was in deep thought. He opened his eyes, looking at those who stood before him.
"To protect, of course." Nezu concluded with a sternness. "Every day, villains are getting stronger. The more we push them, the harder they shove back. That's just how nature works. There is only so long until someone, or something arises to face either the villains or us." Another short pause fell. "And… I do believe that force has shown itself in the USJ." That statement made the teachers feel anxious.
"What do you mean, Nezu?" Midnight asked, feeling that there were still too many questions unanswered.
"Right now, we are the only ones who know of its existence. The public does not. The public knows that they have a hero that can protect them. Their Symbol of Peace." Nezu gestured to All Might. "What they do not know is that there exists a being that has the capability to end the lives of one hundred and thirty two villains under such a situation without leaving so much as a clue as to who they were or where they went. This… this is not the work of some ordinary person. Not even a vigilante with no mercy." Nezu let out a sigh. All of the teachers could tell that the highly intelligent animal was stressed about the matter. It greatly troubled them. "If the public learned of this, then it would not just be us who are affected. There would be panic. Chaos perhaps. We need to tread carefully and make every move count. This time, our students came out alive. But how can we be so sure for next time?"
"N-next time…sir?" Present Mic stuttered. He felt a chill at the thought of a 'next time'.
Especially when Nezu didn't answer, simply closing his eyes and turning back around.
"Call it a hunch. But I do not think this is the last time we encounter the cause behind this slaughter."
..............................…
It was a tough decision.
Yagi knew that.
It was even tougher seeing the faces of his students when they were told to keep this event in absolute secrecy. To tell a faux story that no lives were lost on either side. That the heroes had arrived to save the day.
Just as they always did.
"And you're having a difficult time with this?" Yagi finally asked the boy after a long silence. He looked to Midoriya on his left who did not turn to meet his gaze.
"I'm… not sure." Well, that answer wasn't what Yagi expected. "There are a lot of things I'm not sure about right now. I asked you here for a different reason. A reason I don't think I can talk about with anyone else, but…" Midoriya fell quite as his eyes finally swayed in front of him, as if he tried to find an answer that was not there. "I guess some things change faster than we can expect them to."
Yagi was a little stunned at what he heard.
Something only he can talk to about? Why him? Yagi had a very limited amount of time that they have spent together, and most of it was just picking up trash.
"Uuum, young man, may I ask why it is me you must talk with?" Yagi tried to ask it in a way that didn't sound rude. He must have failed in some way as Midoriya looked to him from the corner of his eye like he pondered the question. "Ermm, I mean, there must be plenty of other people that you are more comfortable with." Yagi corrected himself. Midoriya seemed to understand, letting out a soft hum.
"I suppose it does seem strange, doesn't it? Well, I definitely can't talk with my mom about this. She's way too emotional for this kind of stuff. For sure don't have any friends." Yagi noticed how the boy's tone turned a little sour with that last statement. It didn't seem he was upset with the lack of friends, but with something related to the subject as a whole.
"You haven't made friends with anyone in UA?" Yagi questioned. Sure, he didn't see Midoriya hanging out with other classmates, but any interactions he did see between them seemed friendly enough.
He saw Midoriya pause at this. His eyes looked thoughtful before he gave his answer.
"They seem nice enough." He said before he scoffed. "A lot better than my last classmates." The boy said aloud, with memories of his last school. "But I've known you for longer. And you're an adult. You're experienced. I highly doubt other fifteen-year-olds can help me answer questions that I still can't figure out myself."
The statement hung in the air for a few moments.
It ended when Midoriya felt a hand on his shoulder. The boy turned to see Yagi looking at him with a comforting gaze.
It felt… reassuring.
"Then, young Midoriya, what is your question?" The man said with all the gentleness of the world.
Midoriya had an expression of bewilderment. His wide green pupils stared at the man's blue eyes. However the sentimental moment didn't last too long. Midoriya slowly looked away and back to the ground. The same sullen expression came back in a way that almost made him look regretful.
"I… I wish I could tell you. But like I said before. I don't even know anymore." Yagi could tell in his voice that he was just as troubled as he let on. And Yagi felt bad for it. He wanted to help, but that can only go as far as Midoriya would let him. "It just feels like a big part of my life may not be as I thought it was that may have been… partly my fault." Midoriya said, choosing his words carefully.
This was just as complicated as Yagi made it out to be. Perhaps even more so.
"Well, can you fix it?" Yagi made his question sound simple. It must have been simple enough because Midoriya raised an eyebrow in thought.
"I… kind of… don't have a choice." The boy's tone lifted into a pondering attitude. Yagi hummed with amusement at this.
"Then what's the problem?" Yagi felt like he had solved the problem. So long as there was an answer to fix what was broken, then there is a way for the greenette to pass whatever he is struggling with.
"What if it's not the right choice?" Midoriya turned to look back at him. There was a hint of worry in those emerald orbs of his.
Yagi couldn't help but smile. With his hand still on Midoriya's shoulder, he leaned in just a few inches.
"Then I'll still be here to help you." Yagi nodded reassuringly to the boy. He saw the smile that made its way into the corner's of Midoriya's lips. The greenette turned back with a single laugh through his nose.
It was good enough for Yagi.
"Thanks." Midoriya said just loud enough for the man to hear.
With that, Yagi felt accomplished.
"Now, what do ya say that we make use of this lovely morning to get some work done?" Yagi said as he hoisted himself up from the shovel. He turned to hold out his hand to the boy. It didn't take Midoriya long to find his answer as he took the hand without much hesitation.
It took even less time for them to get back into their usual rhythm. It was like nothing had ever happened.
But that didn't stop Yagi from still worrying. There was something greatly troubling the boy. Whether it had something to do with the USJ, he wasn't sure. However, that didn't keep the thought despite his heroic actions, Midoriya must have been frightened by the villains. Or possibly something else.
For now, Yagi can only say that he's glad for Midoriya's strong regenerative abilities. Otherwise, he may not be on this beach with him.
Yagi still felt his insides wrench when he thought back to when he found him unconscious in the dome.
..............................…
The bodies.
God, the bodies.
They were everywhere. And with it came the putrid thick hot smell of blood from the remains of practically every part of the human anatomy.
All Might stood with a group of his fellow heroes. They all stood together at the bottom of the stairs, each with a strong flashlight in hand. Despite their tools, they were not enough to fully capture the grotesque scene of the massacre that stretched far into the darkness.
Never in their lives had any of them seen an aftermath such as this. Not even the experienced All Might, who still found it hard to believe that all this really happened in this short of time.
"We need to spread out. Cover as much ground as quickly as possible. Time is of the essence. Be prepared for a fight. We don't know if there are any villains still around." Although he didn't say it, Nezu wondered if there were even any villains alive to confront them. "You all know what to do." The principle commanded in a serious voice.
Each of the heroes spread out across the USJ to find the missing students.
Each hero had their own reaction to this slaughter.
Midnight quickly covered her hand over her mouth. A gag pushed against her tightly shut lips, but she held strong. Midnight moved her flashlight away from the body ,the woman's entire front torso had been ripped out, only revealing the flesh of her back and her spine as she lay there lifelessly.
"O-o-okay Midnight. You got this. For your students." She composed herself and moved on, completely ignoring the squish under her foot when she passed the body.
The direction she chose eventually led her to the landslide zone.
It was there that the hero noticed an abundance of more villains here. And something else. Her flashlight caught something that glimmered back to her. It flashed her eyes for a moment before she was able to make it out.
"Ice…" There was a small pile of ice that had a puddle forming around it. That meant. "Todoroki." That must mean he's around here. "Todoroki!" Midnight shouted the name into the darkness.
"Over here!"
A voice she recognized to be that of the boy himself echoed not too far away. Midnight hurried along the rocky ground while she made sure not to step on any loose surfaces. Someone could end up with a broken ankle in this place.
"Midnight!" A new voice, Hagakure this time, close to her. Close enough that Midnight stopped to point her flashlight upwards to see Todoroki at the end of the beam.
He was a bit further up on an edge with a wall behind him. There was a long spear of ice that trembled slightly in his hand.
"Are you two hurt!?" Midnight asked with urgency as she carefully made her way up to them.
"I think I sprained my ankle." Midnight heard Hagakure speak up from somewhere next to Todoroki.
"That's okay. I'm gonna get you both out of here." The hero was finally able to get up to them. She angled her flashlight up to show her face and the reassuring smile she worked herself up to make.
Todoroki must not have cared for it because he didn't drop his guard at all.
"Midnight." He said sternly enough to get her attention. That was when she realized it. Midnight couldn't have seen it earlier from how far away she was, but now? There was no way to deny that hidden fear in the boy's eyes. "There's something out there." That fear made its way into Midnight.
It greatly worried the woman about what he meant. He didn't say 'someone'. He said 'something.'
Nevertheless…
"All the more reason to leave as soon as possible." Yes, she was afraid. But she was also a hero. And right now, she needed to be their hero. Todoroki looked at her for a moment until he finally gave a nod. "Alright. Come on. Hagakure, give me your hand. Todoroki, take this and stick close to me." Midnight handed Todoroki her flashlight before she worked to get the younger girl in her arms bridal style. "Let's get a move-on."
Together, the three of them made it to the entrance unharmed.
At least, physically unharmed.
The things they saw on the way back will never leave them.
Meanwhile…
Ectoplasm made his way to what he knew to be the Conflagration zone. It was the only other source of light in this place. The orange glow of the distant flames through the open gate acted as his guide.
By the time he approached the doors of the miniature dome, he could already feel the intense heat. He'll need to make several clones to search the area at a quick pace in order to find those trapped inside. They couldn't last much longer in there.
Ectoplasm took a deep breath and prepared to use his quirk.
"E-Ectoplasm."
The hero cut himself short of the execution of his idea and spun to his left where he heard the voice. It was difficult to make it out, but the light from the flames just barely illuminated a figure sitting against the wall of the dome several feet down from the entrance.
"Ojiro." He exclaimed as he recognized the shape of the teen. Ectoplasm made his way over to crouch before him. He couldn't even get a word out before he already saw the problem. Ojiro's clothes were red with blood. The boy held his hand tightly against the side of his waist. "No time to lose. Climb on." A few seconds of struggling eventually led to Ectoplasm giving Ojiro a piggyback ride.
Despite how warm it was, Ectoplasm could feel the boy's body shiver against his. He needed to get him back to the USJ entrance for treatment. Fast.
He took a step, and only a step.
A gasp managed to escape the hero's mouth when he saw the body in front of him, which he had somehow missed seeing upon arrival. It was one of the many he saw, and it wouldn't be the last. The last body he saw was one folded in half, to the point where the spine was sticking out.
"Th-that wasn't there w-when I came o-out." Ectoplasm inwardly shivered at the terrified whisper of Ojiro behind his right shoulder.
He said nothing.
He merely went around and back to the entrance without a single word.
In the mountain zone…
It was an easy task for Power Loader to traverse his way over the mountainous heights and steep cliffs. His mechanical suit proved especially useful when rock and dirt was in the picture.
The only downside was that he had no intentions of getting fresh human remains all over himself. Power Loader leaned more into the rescuing part of heroism, he preferred not to fight, much less see people dead. Even if these villains were already dead, the man did not want to mash the corpses any further with his heavy machine.
Seeing so many bodies around him did a number to his emotions. All he could do was ignore them and continue his search for the missing students.
Thankfully, he had built in some overhead lights into his mechanical suit. Power Loader was able to see a greater distance across the mountain range.
Because of it, the hero was able to find something other than a dead villain.
"Is that a… tent?" Power Loader had to stop to think it over, making sure that was what he saw in the small clearing surrounded by bodies, and not something else. It didn't look like a traditional tent. More like a makeshift one made out of the fewest resources possible. The strange thing about it was that a thin trail of blood rose up on one side until it reached all the way up to the tip to coat it in a large stain. Like a mountain top with snow.
It was worth checking out, the only thing other than the countless torn villains littering the ground.
Power Loader made his way over. He was only able to take a couple steps before he almost lost his balance when his right foot fell much further than he anticipated. When he looked down, he found the reason for this.
A hole.
A big hole that looked freshly dug. At the bottom was a corpse lying in a pool of blood that was just as fresh.
Power Loader quickly moved away and set his eyes back on the tent.
"Is there someone in there?" He called out as he hurried out. The hero was keen on leaving this place, but not before he made sure there weren't any of the students around here. Relief filled him when the edge of the tent flipped up to reveal Yaoyorozu, a hopeful look on her face.
"Power Loader!" Kaminari popped up next to her, not hesitating to run towards the hero. Or at least, he would have if he didn't stop out of shock. Kaminari froze in front of the tent, looking over the several bodies in the area. The blood reflected a bright crimson from Power Loader's flashlight.
Behind Kaminari, Jiro appeared next to Yaoyorozu to look over the aftermath of what they had heard some time ago.
"Ignore them. Just come to me." Power Loader extended his hand to the trio. Kaminari only hesitated for a moment longer before he made the rest of the way to the adult.
Yaoyorozu did the same who was quickly followed by Jiro.
"Glad to see you're all still alive." Power Loader allowed himself to ease up slightly. "Let's get back to the others." He commanded. He didn't have to ask the teens twice. They did as he said, practically holding onto the robotic arms of Power Loader's suit.
They were able to get there safely.
There was only one student missing.
And it was All Might's mission to find that missing student.
With his limited time, the hero sprinted across the USJ. No matter where he went, the stench of death followed. All Might only wished he could find someone, anyone in this graveyard.
Even a living villain would be better than every single one killed by that thing that roamed this darkness. Because his only source of light was the flashlight given to him, he could only search a small area at a time.
Thankfully, what he found wasn't so small to miss.
"What the?" All Might voiced his confusion before he skidded to a stop. He turned and ran back a few meters.
There it was. A strange erosion of rock that came from the flat ground. It was set in a curved line that left the range of his flashlight on both sides. All Might's first thought that is made a circle.
So, what was in the center?
He moved forward, slowly and carefully. The sound of crunching rock and glass could be heard when his right foot stepped over the buildup of crushed dirt. From there, it only took him a second to find that there was a center.
What was when All Might realized he was standing in a small crater. The ground was full of cracks that broke the ground. And in the center was a small shape, barely illuminated.
Just enough for the hero to identify the figure.
"Midoriya!"
All Might rushed forward without a second thought. He crouched low over the form of the greenette, who lay motionless on the ground. His body was slightly caved into another hole; mainly around his head, where rock almost buried his hair.
With his experience, All Might could have only guessed that he fell from such a massive height or … something put him there.
But… the boy was completely unscathed.
No mark, no wound, no blood.
His body was clean of the environment around him. The only thing that stood out were the torn pieces of cloth scattered around on him. It must have been whatever was leftover from Midoriya's hero costume, as the boy lay there naked.
All Might opted to take off his suit jacket and carefully wrap it around Midoriya. He didn't even stir as he was picked up off the ground.
Once All Might made sure he had a good hold, he made pace towards the light of the front entrance.
..............................…
"Yagi?"
The man shook his head out of surprise. Yagi hadn't realized just how much he had gotten lost in his own thoughts. He still stood at the back of his truck. His eyes refocused on the few pipes in the trunk that Yagi vaguely remembered he hauled from the beach.
"Yagi?" This time, the man turned to his left to see Midoriya standing there with a concerned expression. "Are you alright?"
"Oh. Haha, yeah. Sorry for worrying you. Just a lot on my mind." Yagi played it off with a laugh. Midoriya thought it to be strange but shrugged it off.
"Maybe we should stop for today. We managed to get a decent load." Midoriya gestured over to the large pile of trash stacked in the back of Yagi's truck.
"No, no. I'm fine. Just zoned out a little is all." Yagi reassured the boy upon his request.
"I insist. Plus, I need to get going soon anyway. A teacher of mine was wanting to see me sometime today anyway. I wouldn't want to keep him waiting for too long. He's not the type to be very patient." Midoriya took on a different expression like he wasn't looking forward to the visit.
"Yeah, you got that right." Yagi sighed out when he also remembered how Aizawa could be difficult to deal with sometimes. Shouldn't be too hard though. Last time he heard; the underground hero was still bed- ridden.
"Huh?" Midoriya hummed out of confusion of the blond's words. Yagi sucked in his lips when he realized his small mistake.
"Nothing." Yagi quickly responded. Thankfully, Midoriya wasn't the type to push, so he left it alone. Yagi did let out a sigh however when he knew that the boy was right. "Well then, I guess I should go if that's the case." He said as he walked around to the driver's said while he fished his pocket for his keys.
Only… they weren't there.
"Uh oh." He mumbled.
"Uh oh, what?" Midoriya repeated with furrowed eyebrows.
"It would seem I have lost my keys." Yagi slowly answered with a dread in his tone. He tilted his head towards the large expanse of sand cover's trash that took the center of Yagi's glare. "Oh boy."
At his side, Midoriya looked thoughtful for a moment before he decided.
"I'll find them." The boy said as he hurried towards the edge of the beach wall. Yagi was bewildered at the optimism of this kid.
"Midoriya, you don't have to. I'll look for them myself." Yagi called out to the greenette who either ignored Yagi or didn't hear him. Midoriya stopped at the edge and stood there for a long moment. He swung his head back and forth and he eventually locked onto something. "Huh?" Yagi tilted his neck at this strange process of basically finding a needle in a haystack.
The next thing Yagi knew, Midoriya was leaping back onto the beach, in the direction he had turned. Even though Midoriya looked so confident, Yagi slowly trekked to the beach's edge to start looking for himself.
"Found them!"
Yagi stopped dead in his tracks when he heard the voice of Midoriya in the distance behind the horizon of garbage.
A few seconds later, the teen emerged around a corner with a satisfied look on his face. He jogged over to Yagi who stood there dumbfounded when he heard the identifiable sound of jingling keys coming from Midoriya's direction.
"Told ya." Midoriya said with a small smirk, holding out the keys in his hand.
"Ha. Well I'll be-whoa!" Yagi recoiled in surprise. When he took the keys from Midoriya, he looked up to meet the boy's gaze, only to see that his green pupils were a fraction of the size they were before. Yagi was used to how small they were to begin with, but now, it was like looking at tiny green embers.
"Oh, sorry." Midoriya apologized before he squinted his eyes for a second that must have been him concentrating. Right after, his pupils returned to their normal size.
"What was that? And… how did you do that?" Yagi questioned, both the fact that Midoriya was able to alter his eyes and somehow find his singular set of keys on a trash-filled beach.
Midoriya fidgeted slightly like he wasn't used to the question, which he wasn't.
"Just some odd-ball ability to go with my quirk. Whenever my pupils dilate, my vision changes and makes it a lot easier to find things." Midoriya explained. Although, not very well, considering Yagi still looked confused.
"Like…eagle vision?" Yagi thought of another hero that had a heightened sense of sight. Could that be what Midoriya referred to?
"Nnnno." Guess not. "It doesn't enhance my vision. It completely changes it. The easiest way I can describe it is like an x-ray vision. Everything goes black and objects are outlined by white. I can also see through things. Such as your keys that I found all the way back near the bulldozer shovel." This time, it made much more sense to Yagi.
And by the amazed look on his face, Yagi understood perfectly.
"You found my keys from all the way over here?" Yagi referred to when Midoriya stood on the beach's edge. From here all the way over to where they sat had to be at least sixty five feet.
"Yeah. It comes in handy whenever I lose something too. I just don't use it too often otherwise as I can basically spy on my neighbors through the walls." Midoriya rubbed the back of neck as he said this. Yagi had the assumption that Midoriya may have accidentally seen something he wasn't supposed to.
He couldn't help but give a small laugh at the thought, causing Midoriya to join in with a nervous chuckle.
And then, that laughter died in Yagi's throat.
He thought of something else.
Something else that… frightened him.
"Midoriya?"
The boy noticed Yagi's sudden change in attitude. He looked worried. So, in return, Midoriya grew concerned.
"Yeah?" He asked.
"Could this ability of yours… could it be used to see… in the dark?"
Midoriya blinked at this. It was such a normal question, so it was strange that Yagi acted this way. Even so, he had the answer.
"Y-yeah. It doesn't really depend on light to function." Midoriya answered honestly.
Whether Yagi liked his answer or not, the boy did not know.
"I see." From there, it quickly transitioned into an awkward silence. "Well, don't let me hold you up any longer. I'll be going now." Yagi broke that silence before he turned back to his truck. Without another word, he hopped into the driver's side. He put in the key, started it up, and drove off.
Only five seconds after he had his foot on the gas pedal, Yagi looked in his rear-view mirror.
There stood the lone figure of Midoriya gradually getting smaller in the distance.
It couldn't be…