Aizawa was feeling on edge as he ran alongside Water Hose and Izuka. Their patrol had been going so well for the last couple of hours, with nothing but a few old ladies or little kids stopping to talk to them. That had all changed moments before, when a distant explosion caught the attention of the whole village and a plume of black smoke could be seen coming from the road that led down the mountain. Aizawa had wanted to bundle Izuka up and hide her back at the Agency while the Pros handled it, but Taka had been certain it was a car accident, in which case it would be helpful to have a fireproof healer on hand.

Eraserhead was torn from his thoughts when his phone began to ring. Without losing pace, he took the device from his pocket, noticing Nezu's name as the caller. Putting it to his ear, he was immediately met with the Principal practically screaming his name down the phone "Aizawa!"

That certainly didn't improve his mood; if something got Nezu that worried, it must be bad. "What is it?" he asked tiredly. He was NOT in the mood for this shit...

"A Villain is heading your way. He is highly dangerous and is associated with All for One; keep Izuka away from him at all costs." Nezu ordered.

Aizawa's eyes widened. If a Villain was here, was he hunting for Izuka? Which one was it; Kurogiri? Tomura? Whoever it was almost certainly responsible for the accident. He just hoped no one had died; he really didn't want to deal with that, and he REALLY didn't want Izuka to see that. Just as he was about to demand details, the building they were running past suddenly exploded, blown apart by a powerful blow that sent dust and chunks of brick and mortar flying in all directions. "SHIT!" Aizawa swore, losing his phone in the chaos. The force of the explosion sent Aizawa and the Pros flying into the building across the street, with Aizawa only barely having the time to grab Izuka in his capture weapon and cradle her against his chest cushioning her as they slammed into the hard wall. Aizawa felt his head smack into the wall hard, followed by the descent into darkness.

Izuka coughed, winded by the impact. "What happened...?" she said, dazed and scared by the sudden explosion. As her mind cleared and she regained her senses, Izuka observed the area and immediately began implementing her lessons. First, observe your surroundings for immediate threats. Izuka scanned the area carefully, but saw very little through the dust and rubble. She could hear screams of panic in the distance, but no immediate danger, only the lingering threat of whatever had caused the explosion. Certain she would not be immediately attacked, Izuka began searching for the injured.

Engine Red and Aquine were both to Izuka's right and were dizzy but had no serious injuries. Engine Red had struck a window and shattered it, receiving a few shallow cuts to his arms, while Aquine had hit a thin chain link fence that had bent, but not broken from her hitting it, as a result, she was shaken but unhurt. Then there was Aizawa, who had saved her from serious injury by taking the brunt of the collision. The man was unconscious and Izuka desperately wanted to apologise and thank him, but there would be time for that when the emergency was resolved.

"Aquine, please cover me while I heal Eraserhead and Engine Red!" Izuka shouted, conjuring her pink flames and pressing them to the bleeding wound on Aizawa's head. Izuka felt the flames carefully, relaxing only a little when she sensed the swelling of Aizawa's brain go down and the crack in his skull healing. Not wanting to risk using more blood, Izuka pulled her first aid kit from her pocket and patched up the cut. It would be annoying for Aizawa, but not dangerous. Water Hose watched her with mild awe, impressed by how well she'd adopted Recovery Girl's training. Izuka was just about to finish healing the last of Taka's wounds when a sinister laugh sounded from across the slowly settling dust cloud.

"So... we've got a little medic running around do we?" the voice sneered. The figure stepped out of the dust, revealing a tall and buff blond man with hair that was the same shade and style as Katsuki's, though shorter. He wore plain black pants and boots with a dark green jacket tied around his waist and a tight dark blue tank top that showed off his rippling muscles. The man's expression was sinister, his smirk clearly showing how much he enjoyed the destruction and pain he inflicted while his eyes shone with the desire to cause more.

"A Villain!? Is he responsible for the incident on the road as well!?" Engine Red growled, getting to his feet and gently pushing Izuka behind him.

"The road? Oh! Those pussy cops that tried to stop me! I just smashed up their car and sent 'em flying! It worked out well actually, now I've blocked the road, I can rampage as much as I want in this backwater village. You guys Heroes?" the man asked.

"We are Water Hose! We protect this village!" Konako shouted, taking a combat stance along side her husband.

"Oh ho! That's just great! The name's Muscular and I..." muscle fibres began to emerge from all over Muscular's torso and wrap around him, making him appear as though his body was made of massive, exposed muscle tissue. "...am going to kill you!"

Without another word, Muscular leapt at the Heroes, aiming a punch at both. Neither Hero could take a punch capable of levelling buildings, so they dodged away, Aquine holding Izuka tightly as she jumped. Muscular turned his attention on the two females and began to charge them, only for a powerful water jet to slice into his left arm. Muscular barely flinched, manipulating his muscles to repair the damaged section as his attention shifted to Engine Red, whom was trying to lead the villain back towards the building he'd already broken.

Using the Link's Telepathy, he relayed his plan; "Aquine, I'm going to keep slicing at this guy, I need you to stay behind him and prevent my attacks from causing collateral damage! Izuka, when he's distracted, grab Aizawa and fly to Mari Town. Call for Reinforcements and then stay there!" Engine ordered.

"I've got it!" Izuka thought back. Aquine nodded and put Izuka down, patting her cheek with a comforting smile before running to join her husband. She immediately took up a position behind Muscular and whenever he turned to face her, she'd use her superior speed to get behind him while her husband peppered the Villain with razor sharp jets of water. As each jet sliced through Muscular, Aquine would manipulate the water, creating a cloud of mist to obscure his vision or freezing his legs. Water Hose were doing well, dodging around Muscular's wild blows and keeping all damage limited to the area that the villain had already levelled.

The Villain barely seemed bothered, laughing and restoring his damaged muscles; as long as no attack hit his original body within the muscles, he could fix the damage easily, and the freezing of his legs did little more than slow him down as he easily shattered the ice. The mist was more of a problem though, and Izuka took it as an opportunity to make her move, conjuring her fire wings and darting at Aizawa before picking him up and flying as fast as she could towards the town, doing her best not to think about the sounds of battle happening behind her.

As she flew over the road leading to the town, Izuka noticed the car wreck that blocked the narrow road. An Ambulance, several police cars and a tow truck were already surrounding the wreck, trying to move it so the authorities could get to the Village. Spotting Nezu with them, Izuka flew down and landed beside the ambulance, carefully laying Aizawa down.

"I need help! Eraserhead hit the back of his head against a wall. I healed the swelling and cracked skull, but he still has a bad cut and hasn't regained consciousness." Izuka explained as the Paramedics took Aizawa into the ambulance.

"Good work Izuka. What is happening in the village?" Nezu asked urgently.

"A Villain named Muscular has attacked. He's levelled a building and is fighting Water Hose. I escaped with Eraserhead after Aquine gave me some cover." Izuka reported, "The Villain's quirk seems to be a powerful form of Muscle Augmentation, Generation and Control."

"Damn, how can we deal with that!? With Eraserhead unconscious, we've lost our only counter!" one of the Police Officers said angrily.

"How are Water Hose handling it?" another asked.

Izuka explained their tactics, clearly showing how impressed she was with the Heroes, but the odd look in Nezu's eyes unsettled her. It was true that Muscular wasn't really losing, but they were evenly matched and...

Izuka went pale.

Water Hose was evenly matched, but they were using the empowered versions of their quirks. The empowered versions they only received hours before. Their stamina wouldn't last until reinforcements came... they'd lose their strength and then Muscular would...

"I need to go!" Izuka declared, flying back up.

"Izuka! No, it's too dangerous!" Nezu shouted, but it was too late; Izuka was already gone, using her flames to speed up her flight and rocketing her towards the enemy.

As she flew, Izuka tried to contact the two heroes over the link, but found it hard to get through. Their thoughts were jumbled and erratic, but a clear feeling made it's way through the link.

Pain.

"No! I won't let it happen!" Izuka screamed, applying another burst of speed to her wings. She quickly closed in on the disaster area and saw the Villain and Heroes. Muscular was standing strong, Engine Red was on the ground at his feet and Aquine was held by the throat. Both were bruised and bleeding, Engine's right arm looked badly broken and Aquine's left foot was completely crushed.

Anger filled Izuka and instead of slowing down, she coated herself completely in her fire and slammed into Muscular with all her momentum, releasing it at the last moment to make herself bounce off her own flames and grab Aquine from Muscular's grip as the villain was sent smashing into the ground. Muscular roared in surprise and pain as he hit the ground, the force of the blow making him sink a good two feet into the earth, though his muscles protected him from most of the actual damage. Izuka deposited Aquine on the roof of a nearby building, ignoring her cries for her to stop as she raced to repeat the process with Engine Red. Unfortunately, Muscular read her movements and with a powered up smack from his palm, he swatted Izuka out of the sky and caused her to crash into the ground.

Izuka screamed in pain; her flames had protected her a bit, but her right arm and several ribs were broken from the blow. The girl felt tears pricking at her eyes at the horrid pain, but choked them down and got back to her feet.

"I'm surprised you survived that! I expected to have splattered you like a bug!" Muscular taunted, "But you're about to cry, and you can barely stand. A little girl like you has no place here; so DIE!"

Izuka barely had a chance to dodge the sudden attack. Activating her wings, she dodged backwards and shot a few fireballs at the villain as his fist collided with the ground where she had just been standing, but the flames did little more than damage the surface of the muscles, which was almost immediately repaired. Izuka cursed as she was forced to dodge another swing; her fire couldn't get through him! If she turned up the heat any more, she'd cause collateral damage and might even kill the Villain, something she couldn't bring herself to do.

"Focus Izuka! You've trained with All-Might and he's tougher than this guy!" Izuka thought, ducking and weaving around the blows. She noticed Engine Red was slowly edging himself away from Muscular, aiming to get out of the Villain's range and then strike with his water again. "I need to stop and observe... The only way to damage Muscular is to harm his original body within the muscle mass. The villain can only use close combat, so attacking at range is safest, since no physical blow will get through, but no ranged attack we have is powerful enough! If only I'd linked with Aizawa-Sensei too!" Izuka ducked beneath another swing, taking that opportunity to punch at Muscular's stomach with a flaming fist.

That was her first mistake.

Immediately, the muscle fibres covering Muscular's abdomen stretched out like ropes and wrapped around Izuka's left arm, preventing her from escaping. She twisted and pulled and even coated her body in flame, filling the air with the smell of cooking flesh as Muscular's expanded muscles burned. The Villain smirked; "I've got you now... your arm is caught, but don't worry; I'll fix it!" he said sadistically, before raising his augmented fist and slamming it down on Izuka's forearm.

The pain was blinding and a tortured scream ripped itself from Izuka's throat as the force of Muscular's blow tore through bone, muscle and flesh, causing Izuka's arm to be literally smashed off. The girl stumbled backward, barely coherent from the pain, tears pouring down her face as blood burst from her ripped off arm. Her breathing was ragged and all her senses were dulled by the overwhelming pain, but she was vaguely aware of the screaming of Water Hose, shouting her name and cursing the villain.

"Here's a lesson for you, kid." Muscular said, throwing Izuka's disconnected arm at the Heroes, "Right and Wrong doesn't depend on laws or any of that society shit; it all depends on if you have the guts and power to follow through with your words. I can, so no matter what I do..." he raised his fist, "I am in the right!"

"LIKE HELL!" Izuka roared, rolling away from the attack. "If the one with the most power is the one whose right, then that means All-Might is the only person whose right, and that means..." Izuka silently apologised to her papa; she was about to break her promise. "THAT PEACE IS THE ONLY RIGHT PATH!" she declared, activating One for All.

Her body glowed as her veins were illuminated by red light and green lightning began to spark around her. Izuka only knew the bare essentials on activating One for All, but this was all she could do now! Pouring the power into her legs, Izuka leapt at Muscular, ignoring the blinding pain of her legs snapping. She threw back her broken arm and made a fist, ready to deliver the final blow; "PHOENIX SMASH!" she screamed, throwing the fist with 100% of her power.

That was Izuka's second mistake.

At the apex of her punch, as the full power of One for All coursed through Izuka's weakened arm, the damaged limb burst; exploding into a mess of bone and viscera. Izuka was so stunned, she didn't even feel the pain (or maybe her brain had simply been overloaded with the pain that she'd gone into shock). Her eyes widening, she remembered a conversation with Papa from a few months into her training.

Izuka was panting on the ground, having failed to lift the heavy weights that All-Might had set out for her."S-Sorry All-Might! I'm not strong enough yet..." she whimpered, not wanting to face her hero's disappointment.

All-Might just chuckled, "It's fine; you're only young and your body is fairly frail regardless. This is why we're strengthening it! You can't use One for All like this."

"Because it'll damage me?" she asked with a sniffle, daring to look up at her idol.

All-Might felt arrows striking his heart at the adorable pout and watery eyes on the face of his Successor, "Indeed! Think of One for All as the sum convergence of the peak strength of each of its wielders. A weak and frail body won't be able to handle such power... Your limbs would explode!"

"I can't believe I allowed myself to forget that..." Izuka muttered, falling face down in the dirt. If she had been in good condition, she might have managed it, but with her arm already badly shattered, the power of One for All tore it apart.

"Damn girl, I've got to give you credit!" Muscular laughed, crouching over her fallen form; "You've got a damn fine spirit. But without power, you can't do anything. Don't worry though..." Muscular prepared his biggest blow yet; "You won't be alone in the afterlife for long."

"IZUKA!" Water Hose screamed together, unable to move as Muscular slammed down a fist that was coated with so much muscle, it was larger than his entire body. Izuka's body was completely crushed by the blow, and Izuka felt nothing at all.

"I died..." she thought as she was once again thrust into the empty void she had become so familiar with.

In the void, Izuka could do nothing but think until the resurrection occurred, which left her with 200 seconds until she awoke... but on the bright side, when she was resurrected, her body and stamina would be completely restored. "Water Hose, please hold out for just a little while longer!"

With that, Izuka quickly began focusing on how to defeat Muscular. At first glance, it was damn near impossible; he was physically tougher than anything they could normally dish out. Taka's empowered water shots could pierce his muscles, but not by much and Izuka's flames could do the same. Izuka was certain that if she could get just a single good punch in on his true body, she could end the fight immediately, but she needed to find the proper opening.

"Think Izuka; what did I observe? Taka's water shot caused damage that healed almost instantly, no more than a second delay in Muscular replacing the damaged muscle. Freezing his limbs did nothing but slow him by a second or two, and using water vapour as mist kept him blind, but didn't actually slow him down. My fire did some damage too but..."

Izuka felt a sudden rush of hope, "That's it! My flames damaged him, but he took longer to replace it! It takes a second to restore the muscles that were cut, but the muscles I burned took three seconds! It's not a lot, but every second counts! But where to strike... I need a gut or head strike to knock him out. If I'm fully restored, I can risk using One for All with some fire to burst through, but I need to know where to strike."

The answer came to her as she replayed Muscular's every move in her head; no matter how much he coated himself in muscle, there was always one spot he kept exposed; his left eye! Muscular's quirk could coat his body, but if they covered his head completely, he lost all perception, so he kept his left eye exposed so he could see where he was going and attacking. Izuka internally smiled; she had a plan! Now it was time to implement it!

Back in the world of the living, Engine Red and Aquine were back in the fight, screaming furiously as they used all their power to push Muscular back. The man was laughing, taunting them for failing to protect the girl and every word cut into them, hurting more than any blow. They were both reaching their limit, but they had to keep fighting, or the Villagers would be killed!

Just as hope was about to run out, a bright flash of light shone from one of the craters from Muscular's earlier punches. "What the hell?" the Villain muttered, when a burst of fire suddenly erupted from the crater and smashed into him, making him wince and growl from the pain. "No way...!?"

Exploding out from the crater, Izuka rose into the air, coated in fire and with her wings fully extended, creating the image of a Flaming Angel. Taka and Konako gaped at the sudden appearance of the girl and Izuka winced at the looks in their eyes; she thought that since they'd been told of her Link Quirk, they'd also be told about her Resurrection one! Izuka would be having words with Nezu later... after she stopped being scolded by her mentors and parents.

"Engine Red, Aquine, I have a plan!" she sent over the link.

"I-Izuka!? How is this possible!?" Engine shot back.

"There's no time! I'll explain later, I promise, but for now please listen!" Izuka said, before explaining her plan. Water Hose was at the limit, so they only had one shot at this, and if Izuka died again, it would be almost three and a half minutes before she revived; more than enough time for Muscular to kill the Heroes and secure her body if he started being serious.

As for Muscular, he looked at the girl with awe and a slowly growing evil grin. "OH HO! You're that brat from Project Phoenix! The one that the boss was always going on about! Shit, if I drag you back to Misty and the Hand Guy, I'll be fucking set for life! COME HERE!" he roared, leaping at her.

That was the moment she needed. Izuka immediately began the plan by shooting as much water as she could from her left hand (using Taka's Linked Quirk) and manipulated it towards Aquine while her other hand shot flames at Muscular to force him to heal and stop his attack. She needed to generate the water herself, as she needed Taka to save all of his remaining strength for one final shot. Aquine used the provided water to immediately create a massive veil of mist over both Muscular and Izuka, blinding them both, then tightened her grip, causing all the mist to concentrate itself on the Villain while Izuka used her flames to warm herself. The mist gathered around Muscular and froze, leaving him momentarily immobilised. Taka took that moment and made his shot, using Izuka's flames as a guiding light. Izuka dodged at the exact perfect moment, causing Muscular to be unable to see and defend in time and allowing the water shot to slice into his unprotected face. It cut upward from his upper lip, up his left cheek and continuing on to his hair line, destroying his left eye as it went.

Muscular screamed and recoiled in pain, no longer focused on breaking the ice and instead on protecting his injured face. Izuka stopped this with a flash of her fire, burning the muscles that had begun moving to cover the area, providing Izuka with the three second window she needed to conjure up as much flame as she could in her right arm, empowered with the full force of One for All.

Izuka gambled everything on this one strike, offering a prayer that her arm wouldn't be destroyed before delivering the blow. Her prayer was answered; "PHOENIX SMASH!" she roared, driving her fist into Muscular's exposed face.

The girl ignored the shattering of her bones. She ignored the feeling of Muscular's jaw breaking and his cheekbone snapping. She ignored the sizzling sound of her flames touching Muscular's blood and the disgusting smell it produced. She ignored it all, focusing solely on the one thing that always drove her; she needed to protect someone!

Muscular crashed into the ground, sinking at least a foot into the earth from the sheer force of the blow. He lay there, battered, bleeding and broken and within a second, he passed out.

"We did it..." Izuka grinned, before the pain of her arm caught up with her. With what strength she still had, she flew over to Aquine, whom had been joined by Engine Red. "Sorry, Senseis. I'm going to make you mad again..." she whispered, no more strength for words. She summoned up her pink flames and pushed them against Taka's broken arm and Konako's crushed foot, before feeling the last of her energy fade, though this time, Izuka welcomed the comforting embrace of unconsciousness.

Izuka slept soundly for 24 hours after that. When she finally regained consciousness, she was in an unfamiliar hospital room. "Ah..." she whined, feeling pain shoot up her right arm. Sitting up as gently as she dared, Izuka looked down at herself; her arm was in a cast, it didn't appear to be broken any more, just tender.

"You're awake!" shouted a voice, startling Izuka.

The girl turned and saw there were two other beds across the room, occupied by Taka and Konako. Izuka looked at them guiltily; Taka's arm was still in a sling and Konako's foot was heavily bandaged. "Senseis..."

"Thank goodness you're alright! What possessed you to use the last of your strength to heal us? We would have been fine!" Taka asked worriedly.

Izuka looked at her hands sadly, "It was my fault... I didn't warn you that your improved quirks took more energy. If I had, you might not have been hurt!"

"Don't be stupid." came a new voice. Izuka looked up and saw a whole crowd of people coming into the room. Her Mom and Papa, Aizawa, Nezu, Recovery Girl, a woman she didn't recognise, a little boy, and Katsuki had all come in. It had been Aizawa-Sensei who spoke, and he continued; "Izuka, I know you don't have as much experience with your quirks, but Pros like us have had years. We notice every little detail about them."

Inko and Toshinori went to hug their injured daughter as Aquine spoke, "Shota's right." Konako said, "We noticed the increased energy requirement immediately. We still fought that way because we had to. Izuka, if you hadn't given us those improvements, we would have died."

Taka nodded, "You saved our lives twice. You also saved my wife's Hero Career."

"Huh?"

Recovery Girl stepped forward; "Konako's foot was utterly destroyed. There was nothing I or any doctor could have done to restore it, and so Konako would have had to have it amputated and then retire. Your healing quirk was able to reverse the damage enough that I could perform surgery and save the limb."

Izuka's eyes widened. It was true that her healing was different from Recovery Girl's; the latter's power worked by using the patient's stamina to rapidly speed up the healing process, while Izuka's power worked by literally burning away the injury and rebuilding the damaged area according to the biological blueprints in the patient's DNA, hence why it always needed at least a single drop of the patient's blood. It was the same basis as her Resurrection, rebuilding Izuka's body from even the smallest, most damaged cell.

At that moment, the little boy shyly approached Izuka, looking at her nervously, "Hey, Big Sis? Did you really save my Mommy and Daddy?"

Izuka looked at the boy, recognising some of the features of Water Hose. This was undoubtedly their son; "You're Kota, right? Your Mommy and Daddy told me about you! I did help them, but really, we saved each other. It was their hard work that stopped the bad guy from destroying the village."

Kota looked up at her with awe and the adults in the room, plus Katsuki, all shared a knowing smirk. That was the exact same face that Izuka herself wore when talking to All-Might. Toshinori smiled warmly; his little successor had gained her first fan. "T-Thank you, Big Sis!" Kota cried, jumping onto Izuka's bed and hugging her. Izuka flinched a bit when he touched her wounded arm, but she grinned widely and hugged him back regardless. "You're my favourite Hero!"

Izuka felt like her heart would burst; "R-Really? What about your Mommy, Daddy and Aunt? They're all amazing heroes too! And All-Might and Eraserhead too! There are a ton of better Heroes than me!" she said embarrassedly.

"Nuh uh! They didn't save my parents! You did! Phoenix is the best Hero!" Kota argued, looking very serious despite his adorable three year old face.

Shino Sosaki, AKA Mandalay of the Pussycats picked Kota up, smiling and bowing as she did so. "You saved my sister and her husband, as well as saved Kota from being an orphan. Thank you so much. If there is anything I can do for you, I will!"

"Um... the is something..." Izuka blushed, "Could you sign my notebook?"

The adults all laughed and Aizawa handed the notebook to Mandalay, opening it to the page devoted to her. The Hero looked at the picture of herself and smiled, but it was the notes that were impressive. "Wow, you're really observant. No wonder you came up with such an amazing plan..." Mandalay signed her name beneath her picture and handed the book to Izuka, whom hugged it like a priceless treasure.

"Sorry to ask this, but we need to discuss some secret information with Izuka. Do you mind taking Young Kota to another room for a bit?" All-Might asked.

Mandalay nodded with a wink to Izuka, before walking away, Kota enthusiastically waving to Izuka as they left. Izuka waved back, then turned to her papa, "I'm in trouble, aren't I?" she asked guiltily.

"A little bit." Toshinori admitted. "Let me fill you in on what happened..."

Toshinori began explaining what had happened after Izuka passed out. Only a minute or two later, Aizawa and the Police had arrived on the scene, having cleared the wreckage only a few minutes after Izuka had flown back into the fray. Aizawa had regained consciousness literally seconds before Izuka flew off and would have used his quirk to stop her if she hadn't been so high and flying so fast. When the Emergency Services arrived, Izuka and Water Hose had been taken to the Mari Town Hospital, while Muscular had been taken to Tartarus Prison after receiving enough medical care to ensure he wouldn't die in transit. Apparently, the Villain has just wanted to rampage and kill with his quirk and thought the isolated village would be a good place to do it with minimal interruptions. He hadn't known about Izuka until she resurrected, when he decided to try and take her to All for One's men. Unfortunately, Muscular was able to improve every muscle except his brain and didn't actually know how he'd have made contact with them, leaving the Police with no clues on how to find the other villains. In the grand scheme of things, they were back to square one in their hunt, but on the bright side, a very dangerous person had been captured.

Inko, Toshinori and Recovery Girl had been called by Nezu as soon as Izuka flew off and had arrived while Water Hose was in surgery to repair their damaged limbs, Mandalay and Kota arriving moments after. Katsuki had been brought the next day and arrived only a little while before Izuka woke up. His parents were currently in Mari Town, securing a hotel room for the night. When Taka and Konako had gotten out of surgery and woken up, they had reported the battle with Muscular from their point of view, including Izuka's death and revival. They had been upset that they hadn't been warned, though this anger was aimed more at Nezu and Aizawa than Izuka herself, though they ultimately accepted it was important to keep it secret. All-Might whispered that they didn't know about One for All though.

Ultimately, the whole incident had ended with only six injuries; Izuka, the three Pro Heroes and the two police officers whose car was wrecked. None would have injuries lasting more than a week (thanks to Izuka and Recovery Girl) and the destroyed building was only a storehouse containing defunct radio equipment from WW2, when the village was a communication post for the Japanese Army. All in all, it handed ended very well.

"Izuka, I'm a little upset that you jumped into the fray despite not being a full-fledged Hero yet, as well as breaking your promise not to use your Strength Quirk." Toshinori began, "But I truly can't fault you for it... if you hadn't, Engine Red and Aquine would have died, along with who knows how many civilians and police officers. Still, I want you to think on how you could have done things better."

Izuka nodded sadly. Despite doing so well, she knew it was sloppy. How was she going to keep her Quirk secret if she got herself killed in every battle? She thought back over what happened in the battle, and with the benefit of hindsight and a clear mind, she could see several mistakes. She could have escaped with the injured Heroes. She could have flown around, getting civilians out of the combat zone. She could have stayed out of Muscular's range and peppered him with fireballs until the back up arrived. She could have forced a link with the unconscious Aizawa to nullify the Villain's quirk. She could have used One for All in her legs, as opposed to her arms, which might have saved her from dying since her legs were stronger and uninjured (at least until she foolishly jumped with One for All instead of using her wings), plus the three and a half minutes it took her to revive could have been all it took for Muscular to kill the Heroes. As each mistake came to mind, Izuka's grimace grew and her hands gripped the bed sheets in a white knuckled grip. She could have done so much better; sure she had won, but it had been a lucky victory.

"It's frustrating, right? To have your failures right in front of you." Aizawa said, his voice neutral but his eyes showing sympathy, "Use this frustration to improve yourself. You weren't the only one to screw up. I should have been more observant."

"We should have used our improved Quirks more conservatively." Konako said, gesturing to Taka and herself.

"I should have realised the enemy's identity sooner." Nezu added.

"No one is perfect Izuka. Every Hero has made mistakes; what matters is the will to learn from them." Toshinori finished, cupping the girl's cheek in one hand and rubbing softly with his thumb.

Inko hugged her daughter, whom was bawling at this point. "We love you Sweetheart. You are our little hero; don't forget that."

"If you do, I'll kick your ass!" Kacchan growled, his feral smirk not matching his worried eyes.

"I'm sorry for worrying you Kacchan..." Izuka said with a sad smile.

"Tch, you didn't..." Kacchan blushed at the sceptical looks from the adults, "Okay, fine, I was worried. But I still knew you'd win. But seriously, next time you freak me out like that, I'm locking you in my house and making you become a Housewife!"

Izuka giggled. She knew Katsuki well enough to know he'd never do such a thing. The very idea of Izuka being a dutiful housewife was repulsive to the boy... a kick ass Hero Partner wife was a much more appealing idea, especially for a 13 year old boy that was just starting to really notice girls (or one specific girl) in a different way.

"Still, it's pretty fucking unfair that you have a Villain capture before even getting to High School! When you're healed, we're sparring to make up for it, got it Deku!?"

"Sure thing, Lil Baku." Izuka smirked. Katsuki growled, but kissed Izuka's cheek, not wanting to kiss her lips with her mother and super intimidating Pro Hero father in the room.

After another treatment from Recovery Girl, Water Hose and Izuka were both healed enough to leave the hospital and return to Moncalama Village for the remainder of Saturday, with the agreement that they'd return home on Sunday morning. Kota was completely infatuated with Izuka and eagerly followed her about, insisting her Hero Name was Phoenix because of her Quirk's name and powers, as well as her Phoenix Smash move. The little boy was a bit intimidated by Katsuki, but the older boy just smirked and ruffled his hair whenever Kota got too close or looked afraid of him. Izuka gave her phone number and address to Water Hose, so Kota could call or write whenever he wanted, after all, Kota was her Number One Fan. For some reason, that statement had made Toshinori look a bit jealous. Mandalay left that evening, taking Izuka's notebook with her and promising to have the other Pussycats sign their pages before she mailed it back, though before she left, Izuka performed a link with her, evolving her quirk. Mandalay's Telepathy grew more powerful, allowing those she connected to to communicate back, and if she really strained herself, she became able to momentarily read a target's thoughts.

When Izuka broke the Link with Mandalay, as well as Taka and Konako, all three felt a bit sad, as if separating from a friend, though that had only lasted a few seconds. Since the Evolution occurred so quickly now, as opposed to when she was a captive of All for One, Izuka offered to Link with everyone present.

All three Bakugous had refused; Mitsuki and Masaru because they felt no need to evolve their quirks, since they rarely ever used them, while Katsuki wanted to go as far as possible relying on his own strength, though a cute pout from Izuka made him promise to link with her if he ever found himself in a situation when he needed the boost. Toshinori, Nezu and Aizawa had all refused the Link as well; Toshi because he feared what an improved One for All would do to his slightly weakened body, Nezu because he was happy as he was, and Aizawa because he didn't want Izuka using her quirk on him until they had learned by exactly how much the stamina requirement of the improved Quirk increased. He already suffered from Dry Eye and insomnia, he didn't want to risk adding to the exhaustion!

Only Inko and Recovery Girl accepted the link. Recovery Girl's improved Quirk made her healing more efficient, allowing her to heal more damage at the cost of less stamina. It also carried an anti-bacteria and anti-virus component, curing minor illnesses and improving a patient's resistance to infection for a few days after treatment. Inko's quirk was improved from Small Object Attraction to a weak form of telekinesis, allowing her to fully manipulate objects without touching them, but only those items that are light enough that she could theoretically lift them with her body. Inko promptly used the power to lift Izuka into the air and toss her at Toshinori, resulting in happy squeals and giggling.

In the end, Izuka's First Junior Hero Internship had been a success. Izuka had faced a Villain, saved several lives and come away stronger, and with her first fan. Despite all the pain she'd endured in the fight, Izuka couldn't help but smile as they drove back home; it had all been more than worth it, just to see the smile on Kota's face when he got to hug his parents again.

That was what being a Hero was all about!