Eat, drink, sleep, medicate... you know what to do. Please stay safe!! I'm proud of you (:

And OOO boy this is the first of two events I was super excited to include in this arc of TO. I had so much fun writing it, no matter how hard it was to put together!! Also I listened to Angel with a Shotgun on loop the entire time I wrote the Chisaki fight,,, and uh,,,,, y e ah it was an experience for sure. Hope you enjoy :D

Discord server, if you're ready to go absolutely batshit feral at any given moment: https://discord.gg/DSBF4dP

~

He jolted into a run, lightly grabbing his teacher's unscarred elbow and urging him into a sprint. Nighteye dashed up alongside them and the multitudes of echoing footsteps indicated the remaining police officers were tailing them. They weren't moving fast enough, and Izuku gritted his teeth and upped his Quirk, flashing ahead of the group. The hollowed chamber changed back into ordinary corridors, and it wasn't long before he saw the first signs of Togata passing through in the form of an unconscious yakuza member sprawled on the ground.

He lifted his radioactive gaze, locking onto a solid wall, dead ahead, and then promptly careened straight through it, leaping into the room just in time to-

...watch hopelessly as the bullet plunged into Togata's shoulder-blade. Togata slumped onto his hands and knees in front of where Eri sat in the ripped red cape. Even from this distance, it was clear that both were trembling.

A snarl rumbled in Izuku's throat as he whipped around to face Chisaki, wanting to tear him limb from limb but instead settling for flicking his fingers in that direction to wrench up a whirlwind of dust and force the villains back. He slammed his foot into the ground to displace the concrete into a small wall between them, then spun around and flashed to Togata's side, hesitantly placing a delicate palm over the wound. The muscle twitched under his touch and Togata let out a shaky breath, turning his dipped head to meet the boy's eyes, looking like the frightened barely-adult he was as opposed to the unfaltering hero he tried to be. Izuku's gaze softened sympathetically, then he lifted his head to look at Eri.

She sat in a nest of red fabric, hand clutched to her chest and crimson eyes wide in horror. He slowly reached out and clasped her tiny arm, offering the brightest, most reassuring smile he could muster in spite of the situation.

Just because he knew lots of people learnt important lessons from Togata's Quirklessness didn't mean Izuku was okay with being unable to change it.

"It'll be okay, Eri-chan," he promised earnestly, deliberately moving so he blocked his friend's distress from sight until he could pull himself together again. "Lemillion-san-"

"I'm fine, it's fine," Togata rushed out, hauling himself back to his feet. "Just- I just-"

"The others are on their way. Take a moment if you need it; I can cover you," Izuku assured, remaining crouched.

"R-right. Yeah. You're strong. Y-you can- You're-"

The boy reluctantly let go of Eri and stood up, poking his friend in the chest and using the moment of surprise to interject the rambling. "The Quirk does not make the person, Lemillion-san: take it from someone who was Quirkless for fourteen years. Your true strength lies in your determination – now, come on! Let's take this guy down together!"

Togata's bright blue eyes lit up with rekindled hope, and he clenched a fist, swinging around to glare across the room. "Yeah! I'm still Lemillion! Let's go, Deku!"

"Be back soon, Eri-chan!" Izuku winked over his shoulder at her, then shot off.

Chisaki shifted into a cautious stance, Chronostasis lying prone at his feet. He was so focused on Izuku's blatant approach that he didn't think to check and see if his previous opponent was still in the fight. Togata snuck up behind the man, who just barely reacted in time to block a punch with his forearm and stumble back, irritated spots popping up all over his face at the skin-to-skin contact.

Right – germaphobe. That makes things so much easier.

Togata slammed a punch into Chisaki's gut, sending him tumbling backwards into Izuku, who drew up as much phlegm and saliva as possible, then spat it directly onto the villain's face. Chisaki screamed in disgust, both eyes squeezing shut as he desperately scrubbed at his face with one glove. His bare hand flexed blindly as he clumsily lunged in the direction of Izuku, blind with rage – and Izuku's bodily fluids! The boy smoothly dodged backwards, kicking up his leg and pushing the villain away.

One yellow eye squinted open, burning with rage. Chisaki dropped into a crouch and slammed his bare palm down, causing spikes of concrete to shoot up from the ground. Togata twisted aside and aimed another punch, face contorted in determination, but the villain was too alert now despite stumbling around with a face full of chicken pox and wouldn't let either of them get a surprise attack on him. Izuku's speed was countered by walls of rock thrown at him, forcing him to halt and reorient himself in a way that took enough time for Chisaki to recover.

The villain was frenzied in his movements, grazes and cuts over his exposed skin and irritated red spots over his features, but despite his wild reactions, he was still good. He let out a choked breath as Togata landed another hit, sending him to the ground in an explosion of spikes. Both heroes had to rapidly back up to avoid being impaled. A splash of blood splattered onto the ground at Togata's feet and he winced, stepping aside the point that had sliced across his arm.

Izuku whipped around with a kick to shatter the spikes, sending debris flying across the room and unveiling Chisaki crouching inside. The villain's crazed gaze snapped towards the shelf of concrete, and his eyes squinted in a grin before he activated his Quirk. A rush of spikes shot across the chamber, and Izuku launched himself off with his heart pounding in his ears, grabbing onto the points to swing himself forwards faster until a bundle of red came into his vision. He swooped down and scooped up Eri, hopping backwards and turning to see the area enveloped in spikes.

"That was a close one, huh?" He commented with false cheer, clutching the frightened girl close to his torso as he pressed his free hand to the ground and flipped out of the way of another attack.

Rumbling and rushing of moving rocks became a constant background noise. Izuku bounced between them with ease thanks to his speed, but Togata's injuries were wearing on him, patches of blood staining the white of his costume, yet he wasn't giving up and continued to distract Chisaki. The boy leapt in and grabbed his friend's arm, tugging him out of the way of a spike at the last second, getting a grateful look before they were both forced to separate as another barrier of rock surged up between them.

Most of the room was filling up with peaks and points, making it a lot harder to dodge and navigate, especially when Izuku had one arm full of Eri. He crouched on a spike to catch his breath and offer the girl a reassuring smile, but Chisaki's yellow eyes glinted at him from across the room, followed by another attack, spreading out over a large area to block him wherever he tried to avoid it. Izuku skidded to a halt, shifting so Eri was protected by his torso as a wall of spikes crackled upwards. He bent his knees and launched into the air, twisting aside more points that exploded from the wall and catching a glimpse of his friend's bright costume as Togata took advantage of the distraction to try and get another hit on the villain, but-

Eri whimpered. A large spike had jammed into Togata's side, and a huge patch of crimson was blooming out from the deep wound. Izuku cradled the girl and flicked his fingers, sending them flying across the room. He shifted to press his reinforced soles against the opposite wall, spikes breaking under them the second they formed, then flipped off again to drop down to his friend's side, glaring down the villain. Togata wrenched himself off the spike, choking back a scream.

"Take Eri-chan and go, Lemillion-san," Izuku said firmly. "You've done amazing, but you're in no fit state to fight anymore."

"But-"

"I can fight better if I don't have to worry about hurting my friends," he told him, handing over the small girl. "We'll have some back-up soon-"

"Mirio!" Came Nighteye's voice.

Izuku met his friend's eyes, nodding his head towards the man. "Go."

Togata nodded, clutching Eri tighter and limping over to meet his mentor halfway. Nighteye embraced the two of them, brow creased with worry as Togata slumped against the man. Eraserhead hopped into the room, and Izuku grinned, eyes alight with a silent threat as he levelled them on Chisaki. The villain flinched away, uselessly slapping his palm against the ground.

"Disgusting child..." Chisaki snarled, crawling backwards and glancing between them like a cornered animal.

Aizawa and the boy leapt towards him. Capture gear rippled around the teacher's head and his eyes glinted red behind his goggles.

Izuku knew what was going to happen next, and yet... Where was Chrono? He stared around him anxiously for any sight of the yakuza between the clustered spikes, but he couldn't see anything, so he was just going to have to react swiftly enough to keep him and his teacher saf-

"Get up, Chrono!" Chisaki screamed – and where, where, where was-

A rush of air. Izuku twisted mid-jump, gently pressing his boot against his teacher's side to push him away. The grey clock hand shot between them. Thrown off-balance, Aizawa landed in a clumsy roll, and-

"Eraser-san, look o-"

Another clock hand grazed over the back of the man's wrist, and he moved in slow motion. Izuku gritted his teeth into a smile, knowing that he would only have a few more moments before Aizawa had to blink. One for All glittered green over his body as he shot towards Chisaki, who was raising a bare hand in anticipation. He had to stop this next attack, or else the fight would worsen and Nighteye would die, and he amped his Quirk higher despite the pain, ducking and weaving between the spikes and blasting through them when he couldn't, until he burst into the open area where Chisaki was crouching, and it was just a few more feet between them so Izuku reeled back an arm, seeing his glowing reflection in the villain's wide eyes and he-

Slammed into the ground. Everything was suddenly darker. The room rumbled and dislodged pebbles that clattered down around him. He looked up, seeing a forest of spikes surrounding him. Two of them had shot up on either side, crushing him between them and cutting through his costume. He winced when he moved, but the pain didn't matter because oh god he hadn't been fast enough and the plan he had been following revolved around him stopping that attack, and it was crumbling before his eyes, but-

But. It wasn't time to panic. The plan had changed. All he had to do was take down Chisaki swiftly to make sure Nighteye and no-one else got hurt.

Alright. That was simple enough. He could do that.

He picked himself up with aching ribs, bracing himself against a spike and drawing both of his legs to his chest before kicking them out and loudly shattering a clean path for himself. Izuku shot forwards before the peaks had even finished collapsing, rapidly dodging between falling debris and grabbing one of the broken points to wield like a dagger. It grew lighter as he approached the edge of the cluster.

As long as Chisaki didn't have a chance to get to Nemoto and fuse, then everything would be f-

Chisaki had a hand clamped around Nemoto's face, the other pressed to his own.

Say something, do something, distract him-

"Hey, have you heard the joke about the conductor?" Izuku called out in a panic, causing the villain's sharp eyes to snap up to him, glaring between spotted fingers. "It's pretty funny – well, I like it, at least, I don't know what sort of jokes yakuza members like, um-"

A cloud of smoke and steam and energy exploded out from the villain, followed by a second burst that crackled electric over Izuku's skin as it roared past, then rapidly withdrew into a twisting column that surrounded Chisaki, and through the haze the boy could make out the silhouette warping and reforming, building into something grotesque, not quite Chisaki but not quite Nemoto. Huge arms snaked out from the man's back, all four clawed fists clenching. His whole posture was slightly hunched, ready to pounce.

"I'll acknowledge with dignity that you were stronger than me, Lemillion... But that other wannabe hero who came to help... A Quirk that powerful is wasted upon him..."

Good. He was underestimating Izuku. The boy tucked his make-shift dagger into his utility belt.

The smoke cleared with a swipe of his arms. Black lines tainted Chisaki's face and his eyes were wholly white. His beaked mask ripped in half like a mouth, ragged with string crossing in the open space.

"But in the end," Chisaki's voice was slightly strained, "it all comes to nothing." He spread his arms, tearing the fabric of his jacket. "Now! I'll have you return Eri!"

The boy glanced around briefly to assess the situation. Aizawa was nowhere in sight, but he wouldn't die. Nighteye, Togata, and Eri were huddled together across the room, just barely visible through the spikes.

Izuku hopped off the pillar he was crouching on, clapping his hands together with a bright laugh. "Wow! That's a cool party trick! Can you fuse with anyone? Do me next!"

Chisaki blinked, then his gaze narrowed into a glare. "While you're no threat, I'll gladly dispose of you, stupid hero."

He lunged forwards, but Izuku calmly flashed aside, arms folded neatly behind his back. The villain glowered harder and whipped around, pressing down his monstrous hands and activating his Quirk, only for Izuku to dodge and shatter them with ease, all the while exaggerating his awed child persona. Another flurry of spines shot up from the ground, and Izuku let himself get nicked by one of them and fall down, as if defeated.

"Strength and speed, and yet you're all flashiness and no talent." Chisaki stalked back to his original position and flicked open the small red case containing Quirk-destroying bullets. "I'm obsessive about cleanliness, so when someone touches me, it makes my blood boil. This is the first time it's reached this point. What a sad life you had, Lemillion. If you hadn't gotten involved with Eri – with me – then your Quirk wouldn't be lost forever. If you hadn't gotten involved, you could've kept holding onto your dream. You lost your Quirk and persevered, and as a result, your friends got caught up in this, and now you're all just going to die."

Izuku vanished into the forest of spikes, wrenching off one of the peaks to use as a huge weapon. He reappeared right next to Chisaki, slamming the spike into his palm and distracting him from using his Quirk to attack Togata. The rock shattered into shards, and Izuku flicked up a gust of wind to direct them all towards Chisaki, then withdrew his make-shift dagger and lunged in closer, managing to dig it into the man's thigh before hastily leaping away and tucking himself into a ball. A cluster of spikes burst from Chisaki's palm, intending to impale the boy who was protected by his iron soles. His radioactive gaze flitted down to the other monstrous hand still grasping the ground.

Right. Chisaki needed to touch the object to manipulate it. So all Izuku needed to do was-

A stamp nailed the villain in the face, and Nighteye dashed into the fray. Izuku pushed off the rocks and landed a safe distance away, stuffing handfuls of pebbles into his utility belt but never taking his eyes off the fight. Nighteye continued to fling the stamps at the villain, forcing him to continually focus on dodging and reforming himself instead of attacking.

"Go to Mirio and Eri!" Nighteye barked.

"No," Izuku said quietly, but still firm enough to be heard. "I'm not leaving you."

Nighteye folded backwards under a deadly swipe. "Leave, Deku! Saving Eri is your priority!"

Saving both of you is my priority, Izuku thought venomously, but stood up anyway and turned away.

As long as he was quick, it would be fine. He flashed across the battlefield and landed by Togata's side, gently placing one palm on Eri's head and giving a firmer pat to his friend as he assessed both of them and offered some soft words of reassurance. The worst injury was the deep wound on Togata's side, but unlike in the last timeline, his leg was fine. Izuku got out some medical supplies and carefully wrapped it up, whispering his apologies whenever his friend winced. He surveyed his work before hopping over to the nearest wall and crashing through it, opening up a route to the corridor.

"This is where we came from. Both of you, get to safety," he told them sternly, although not without comforting warmth. "Nighteye-san and I can handle it from here, okay?"

"Okay," Togata responded thickly, lightly grabbing the girl's hand and hauling both of them through the hole. He turned back and they locked eyes. "Be careful, Deku."

"Careful is my middle name!" He exclaimed cheerfully, beaming at them and offering a jaunty wave, then leaping away again to help the hero.

Izuku returned just in time to see a spike pierce through Nighteye's arm, tearing it completely clean of the torso in a spray of blood. His radioactive eyes widened in horror – there was a second spear rising up towards the hero's abdomen, and that would be fatal.

He... He couldn't let that happen again. He would not let Nighteye die. He will twist fate and change the future!

Just who the fuck did Chisaki think he was?

One for All crackled violently over his skin, rising beyond safe levels and burning beneath his skin, but he needed to move fast to save Nighteye, who was just staying there and accepting his fate – as if he couldn't do anything! There was always another option, and Izuku would tear apart reality to find it. He shot in like a bullet, a mere flash of green across the battlefield. Every piece of rock in his vicinity shattered as he rocketed past, flinging up galaxies of debris that turned to dust against his skin. His teeth were bared in a threatening grin that didn't waver, even as his bones creaked and ached ominously, but the spike was mere inches from piercing Nighteye's back, and for as long as Izuku was alive, he would not let anyone die before him.

Toxic green reflected in Nighteye's glasses. Chisaki was turning in slow motion towards the movement. Izuku stretched out his arms, ducking beneath the blood-soaked spike that promptly disintegrated, then he slammed into Nighteye at full speed, clutching him close and closing his eyes and feeling hot blood seep through his costume and hot pain sear over his body and hot tears burn behind his eyelids and – fuck, had he been hit with Chisaki's Quirk, why did he hurt so-

Izuku slammed, shoulder-first, into a wall. He gasped in a breath of dust – why was the air so fresh – and opened his eyes against the sudden bright lights. His feet scrambled for hold against the- the carpet? And- and-

Nighteye gave a pained whine. Izuku's head snapped down to look at him. The man was half-sprawled in his lap, still firmly wrapped in the safety of Izuku's arms. Huge patches of red had turned the green of his costume into a dirty brown hue. Blood was spilling from the wound where Nighteye's arm used to be. Lots of blood. It was dripping onto the carpet. That was bad.

Okay, okay, focus – Izuku tentatively shifted the man enough to snatch medical supplies from a pouch in his utility belt with shaking hands. He applied pressure to Nighteye's wound and muttered an apology at the hazy moan of pain. Blood was still flowing too fast, so he needed to-

The door slammed open and Izuku leapt into a protective stance in front of Nighteye. His gaze locked onto the gun pointed towards them and drew back a fist and-

"Midoriya-kun?" Tsukauchi breathed, eyes widening in horror as he took in the scene. "A-are you hurt - you're covered in blood, I'll call-"

Izuku cautiously leaned to one side, and the man fell silent, mouth agape at the sight of Nighteye. Now that he knew there was no threat, he turned back around and returned to his original task, absently noting that he'd accidentally made an Izuku-sized dent in the wall of Tsukauchi's office. He tugged off his glove and shoved it into Nighteye's mouth before stretching bandages tight over his wound. The cry of pain was muffled, and a hand clamped onto the boy's side.

"It's okay, Nighteye-san. Sorry, I had to make sure it was tight enough to staunch the bleeding a little until help arrives, okay?" He said soothingly, tying off the fabric, removing the glove from his mouth and leaning back, leaving his hands steadyingly on the man's shoulders. "How do you feel? Are you hurt anywhere else?"

"Mid-ori-ya... Where..." Nighteye's voice was raspy and slurred, and his gaze sluggishly shifted to look over Izuku's shoulder. "Tsu-kau-chi...? I thought... busy... Why..."

"I've called for Shuzenji-san and-" Tsukauchi hesitated- "...Tennyo-san. Midoriya-kun, what-"

"I- I don't know. I don't know. I- I didn't even use Hitoshi-kun's Quirk, I'm just suddenly here, and I don't- I needed to save Nighteye, I couldn't-" Izuku scrunched up his face and heaved in a breath, activating his Quirk and feeling the familiar pain come with it. "I need to get back. Eri-chan needs me. I can't let Chisaki hurt her again. Nighteye-san is safe now so I- I can- I just need to focus on saving Eri-chan. I can do this. Please, t-take care of him."

Izuku dropped to his knees and gritted his teeth, and when he opened his eyes-

Eri was flung into the air like a ragdoll. A huge pillar was rising up towards a hole in the ceiling – that meant Ryuku had come down with- with Ochako and Tsu. Yeah – he could hear his friends calling after him as he ran, and although they were clearly worried, he couldn't focus on what they were saying. Aizawa was nowhere in sight, but he would be okay as long as things stayed the same, and if he wasn't okay, then Izuku would unleash hell on whoever hurt him. A quick assessment of himself showed that, although he had a few injuries on his arms and legs that were making it a little harder to move, his teenage self had clearly handled the unexpected control shift very well.

Chisaki was- The ground was rumbling. Izuku whipped around to watch as – Chisaki, there he was – lifted himself on another concrete pillar. Dust clouds were billowing out from the base as uneven chunks rose and toppled around him.

"Everything's messed up. You pieces of garbage!" Chisaki snarled, and he was-

He was going to grab Eri.

Izuku's mind blanked of all panic and pain. She was his sister. That monster would not touch her!

He crouched down, and the ground shattered under his boots, rubble and grit bursting up in his wake as he launched upwards, green lightning sparking off his body and fizzing through the dust cloud with the promise of an imminent storm brought by the harbinger of hope. Chisaki's yellow eyes widened and his visible face was contorted in furious fear, and his hand was reaching out towards the helpless girl who remained suspended in the air like an angel, illuminated in the watery sunlight casting from above.

Izuku planted his feet on a floating rock and shot higher, both arms extended towards the girl he would never abandon, his face bright with a determined smile. He grabbed her sides with infinite gentleness, feeling her tense under his touch as he brought her closer. Her eyes snapped open, staring at him, and for a moment there was peace. She glanced sideways in horror, and he automatically shifted her into his other arm as Chisaki's twisted hand stretched into view, so dangerously close to the girl, and Izuku reoriented himself in the air and-

Chisaki's clawed fingers gazed over Izuku's arm, and he flinched away, but-

Blood exploded out from- from where his arm... used to be...

"That's okay..." He heard himself saying faintly. "I've got another one..."

Eri whimpered and buried her face into his shoulder. He held her tighter, twisted around and kicking off the side of the podium to sent himself into a head-first free-fall away from Chisaki's outstretched hand and towards the ground. Droplets of red glittered like rubies in the sunlight, cascading upwards. Wind tore through their hair and Eri's gown fluttered violently.

A rippling red cape arose on a rock. The girl took in a shaky breath, eyes going wide at the sight of the fabric, and her hand seemed to reach out on its own accord. She stretched away from him to clasp the cape before it could be ripped away, and she met his gaze with an awed expression. Izuku smiled at her, squeezing her impossibly closer and twisting in the air again to catch a glimpse at the ground. It was mostly concealed by the dust cloud, so he angled his legs downwards, amped up his Quirk, and hoped for the best.

The impact rumbled like thunder, shaking the room.

Izuku's injured leg gave way and he dropped onto one knee, hugging Eri close. "I'll never... let you go again..."

"Give her back!" Chisaki roared, shattering the top of his tower and lunging towards them.

There was no time to rest. Pillars of rock slammed down towards them, and he was forced to leap back up and ignore how imbalanced he felt without his right arm. He twisted between attacks like it was a dangerous dance, not even needing to look where he put his feet to throw himself in a different direction. Izuku rocketed fearlessly towards his enemy, bulldozing through any attempted attack on him and flipping over a hit, then righting himself with the help of the pillar. He dropped down, plummeting between two monstrous hands and whipping around to slam his heel solidly into the man's side, taking a grim sort of satisfaction in feeling his ribs shatter under the kick.

Chisaki let out a garbled screech of pain, lashing out with three of his arms whilst the other pressed to his side and hastily reformed it, although the blood remained. Izuku kicked his legs again to send himself shooting away with a burst of air pressure, hearing little but the howl of wind in his ears and focusing on nothing but the desperation to keep the girl completely safe. Her body was so small and delicate in his arm, and he doubted it was pleasant to be a passenger in such a disorienting fight, but he selfishly refused to let her go.

He glanced sideways to check on her as they flew past Chisaki harmlessly again, easily destroying anything that came to close and dodging anything he couldn't. Eri's arms were tight around his throat and her face was buried in his shoulder, but he could glimpse the glow of her horn when her long hair blew out of the way.

Her Quirk was active, and it was only going to get stronger. He could use that to his advantage.

"Eri-chan," he whispered urgently to her as they spun away from another rock. "When we get close, I need you to use your Quirk on Chisaki, okay? Can you do that for me?"

She didn't respond, but clutched him and the cape a little tighter. He hopped off a pillar, breaking it beneath him when he launched himself directly into danger. Izuku dodged under Chisaki's outstretched arms, pausing as long as he dared and-

With a hissing rip, Chisaki and Nemoto were separated. Nemoto tumbled off into the dust cloud, and Chisaki shakily picked himself up with a scream, instantly retaliating with more curving pillars that snaked around the room, chasing after the boy. Izuku rolled in the air, feeling the burn in his bones as his power rose. Tentacles of rock writhed down towards him and the girl, looping around his small form. Chisaki was falling down towards them, hand outstretched and eyes aflame with mania.

Izuku met his gaze, and grinned.

Air pulsed, rock shattered, and Izuku was skybound with an angel in his grasp.

Golden light glittered off Eri's horn, intertwining with his emerald electricity. He glanced sideways, feeling the tingle of his arm reforming and watching in amazement as it condensed back into shape. Izuku flexed his hand experimentally, letting out a heavy sigh of relief. The entire sleeve of his costume had been ripped off and that whole side of his body was still drenched in his own blood as well as Nighteye's, but... he was unharmed, and his sister was safe in both his arms once more.

"Eri-chan, look," he said excitedly, showing off his new arm. "Your Quirk did this! Isn't that incredible?"

"My... Quirk..." She mumbled, staring in disbelief and reaching out to hesitantly touch it. "Your... arm..."

"I guess your Quirk rewinds things, right? That means you rewound all my injuries so I'm totally healed now!" He beamed at her, utterly enamoured, but quickly sobered at the ominous rumbling from the pit far below. "Ah. Chisaki's still in the fight. Let's get you secured, then, Eri-chan!"

He kicked his legs and pushed himself higher, using the short period of weightlessness to wrap her up in the red cape, then shift her onto his back and tie the ripped corners of the fabric together so she was safely cocooned into an Eri backpack. Being able to use 100% of his power felt so good, despite the rapid switches between hot pain and cold cure – he couldn't help but let out a loud, delighted laugh, turning his face towards the warmth of the sun and taking a moment to just breathe.

But, the moment was over. He let himself drop back to the street in measured bursts, then landed lightly, accidentally cracking the road beneath his boots – although, in comparison to the giant sinkhole down into the labyrinthine tunnels of a yakuza base, he supposed a small crack wasn't really a big deal. The fight was far from done, and he couldn't wait to make Chisaki regret ever being born.