Sussy Baka in MHA-Chapter 77: Escape

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|Suzaku's POV:|

...

'So this is the last of my Impostor abilities, huh?'

I knew this was a dangerous ability to use... The last time I was able to feel it for a moment—that something wasn't right—but since I canceled it before it could fully complete and never used it again, I was never able to know what.

But this... this was more than I expected.

Right now, I could feel myself brimming with strength.

Power beyond anything I've had in all my life.

I felt like I could erase buildings with a single punch. Like not even a missile could damage me.

Even the dozens of tons of flaming debris resting on my shoulders felt no different than carrying a little piece of cardboard on my back... and it only felt lighter as seconds went by. Like I was growing stronger.

I felt... invincible.

—Growl...—

I glanced down at the nearly dozen people lying unconscious on the floor beneath me, surrounded by raging flames.

With each second that passed and I did nothing, their deaths grew nearer.

Children, adults, teenagers, all of them could cease right in this moment.

All these feeble lives...

I could kill every single one of them.

It wouldn't even take a second.

And besides, would it really matter if I killed them myself?

They were about to die from the flames anyway.

At least under my hand, it'd be an instant and painless death.

'Hah.'

My body shifted, and suddenly, dozens of tendrils extended from me, pointing at the group.

Then, blades began sprouting from them—tips just centimeters away from touching them... From killing them the instant they punctured them, just like everyone I've killed until now.

But just as I was about to finish the job—

'Hold on, why am I—?'

The tendrils froze, and my head tilted, not in horror, but in mere puzzlement about what I was doing.

'Why the hell am I trying to kill them?'

After all, I'd been trying to save them until I transformed, so why was I suddenly considering killing them as an option?

It would betray the only reason I risked my hide by entering this hellhole.

It didn't make any sense.

Well, I mean, it kinda made sense—

...did it?

No. Wait.

I swear it made sense a second ago.

'Huh?'

The next instant, the tendrils retracted, and so did the blades, returning to my body as if they had never been there. Thus, stopping me from killing innocent people for no reason at all.

But as I looked at their still-breathing figures—as I heard their still-beating hearts—the feeling remained.

Unsatisfied.

Like I was leaving something undone.

Something unchecked.

Something that needed to be... fixed.

And with it came the anger.

Anger at what? I didn't know.

But I could feel it. Intense. Consuming. Blinding rage—directed at something.

Perhaps at not ending them right here, perhaps at the people outside, perhaps at something else.

Perhaps at nothing. Maybe I had just gained some kind of super psychotic autism, and killing them was like my new way of making things feel okay.

I squinted my eye, trying to know what it was.

Then, it came to me as I stared at my new blood-like body, constantly shifting, no longer human-looking in any form.

'Of course this comes with the classical side-effect.'

I almost laughed, except I didn't feel like I could nor need to do so in this form.

It was like the typical edgy protagonist ass-pull when things got rough. More power, in exchange for becoming some sort of unconscious monster thirsty for blood.

Except, in this case, there was no monster. Only me.

Not a voice whispering in my ear, no secret demon resting within me awaiting to be unleashed.

No.

Only me.

I was still thinking, still controlling myself.

The strength and power were all mine to wield.

The only difference was the instinctual response I now had to seeing alive people.

A kind of instinct that made me crave to kill the same way it made anyone crave junk food, or shopping, or punching someone who deserves it.

A completely innocent urge, born not from malice nor hate, but simply... Well, I don't know where it came from, but it certainly wasn't something evil controlling me.

The anger only made it harder to ignore.

But, unfortunately for it, I was still me.

The great Suzaku.

And some random temptation and primal urges weren't nearly enough to convince me to kill people just 'cause.

'Even though those necks of theirs are looking mighty fine... for slicing, I mean.'

Still, regardless of what I thought, I had a job to do.

—Growl...—

As a low groan escaped from my giant mouth, I got to work.

My size—already ten times my original—started increasing even more uncontrolled. Almost unlimited.

The debris began sliding off me, pushed back as my form expanded monstrously.

Soon, I started outgrowing the building itself.

The wreckage resting on my back got crushed against the ceiling—until the ceiling too gave up and collapsed entirely.

The change spread like a ripple through the structure. Cracks raced along the walls, and within seconds, the whole thing began to fall apart.

And yet, as the whole building came down, I remained there, unmoved by the tons of debris hitting my body and crashing down around my feet, which prevented the unconscious people from getting buried in the process.

Then, as the cloud of dust dissipated, and the disaster came to an end, the smoke and heat finally started to dissipate,

The crumbling walls and collapsing beams buried some of the worst flames, and the smoke was swept upward into the air. Letting the people bellow me finally able to breathe properly, even if still unconscious.

However, as I looked down at them, I noticed something else in the corner of my sight.

I wasn't alone anymore.

My single eye glanced around.

Several heroes stood there, surrounding the building—each one staring at me in shock.

And it wasn't just them.

Dozens of people had gathered at a distance, recording with their phones—well, the ones who still had the strength to lift their hands, anyway—the rest looked like they were about to fall to their knees or pee on themselves.

They looked terrified.

For a moment, I wondered why that might be.

But then I followed their gazes.

All of them... locked onto me.

'Do I look that scary...?'

I looked down at myself—

And paused.

Right in the center of my torso was a gaping, tooth-lined mouth.

A massive, writhing, serpentine tongue slithered out of it, razor-sharp and swaying wildly in the air.

Combined with my size and my... disturbing color palette...

Yeah.

They didn't make for a very calming appearance, I guess.

Fortunately, they didn't seem to be planning on attacking me for now, despite the fact that I looked pretty much like a classic villain right now.

Which was for the better, honestly. Wouldn't want to kill one of them... At least my logical side did not.

Although I could control myself right now, I did feel like I might slip unconsciously at some point if I were to engage in combat.

The urge to kill still remained within me, after all. One moment of frustration or annoyance during a fight, and I might just hit them too hard.

Villains and stuff is fine, but adding a hero to my list of corpses? I'd prefer to avoid that.

'Hmm?'

As I scanned the area, mentally noting how many heroes surrounded the scene—and estimating how many I'd have to fight if things did go south—I saw a figure approaching in the distance.

Mirko.

Her expression was urgent, but as she caught sight of me, she slowed down, her eyes widening in terror like everyone else.

For a moment, I thought she might recklessly jump at me. She did seem like she'd consider this a proper fight or some nonsense like that.

Luckily, I was wrong. She just looked repeatedly between me, the unconscious bunch at my feet, the collapsed building, and the countless people around the area, but never jumped at me.

What she was thinking, I had no idea, nor did I care.

I had a more pressing concern at the moment: Getting the hell out of here.

Whatever the hero protocol was for dealing with a giant, monstrous guy with a mouth in his stomach, I definitely wasn't interested in finding out.

So, I moved.

—BOOM!—

My steps made the ground quake.

The instant I began moving, all the heroes flinched, faces turning pale.

But I simply ignored them. I just kept walking, my massive feet crushing debris beneath me—until I began shrinking.

If I wanted to escape, being a giant monster wasn't exactly ideal for a stealthy exit, so I eventually reverted back to a more manageable size.

However, as I stepped off the rubble and onto solid concrete, someone moved to block my way, causing me to stop my advance, and glance curiously at who was making this harder than it should be.

Mirko, again.

If I could sigh, I'd have done it right now.

She stood there, cracking her knuckles, clearly preparing for a fight. However, her cocky and challenging grin didn't quite hide the sweat pouring down her forehead... Or the way her face had lost color.

I could feel it, she was just as scared as everyone else. Though, whether that made her more excited or not, I didn't know.

I wasn't exactly versed in Battle Junkie Bunny Hero psychology.

As I continued with my sarcastic comments inside my mind, she spoke up, squinting her eyes at my still figure.

"... I don't know where you came from, or if you have anything to do with all this mess... But I can't just let you leave like nothing, there's a protocol for this kind of stuff."

I didn't reply.

For a moment, I considered going invisible, it'd save me the trouble of getting chased, or followed, but as soon as I tried, I felt it—nothing.

Same with most of my other powers. They were just gone... or blocked maybe.

My ability to place vents was gone, my shapeshifting had been reduced to just altering my current shape, not taking the appearance of others.

The only ability that I could still feel whole and fully functional was Kill.

Which meant that there was no stealthy way out of this.

As that fact dawned on me, I felt the urge to sigh.

'Hah, I guess I'll have to make my way through.'

My single eye scanned the surrounding area.

Despite Mirko stepping up, the other heroes were still frozen in place—paralyzed by fear.

That made things easier.

So, I returned my gaze to Mirko, who readied herself for a fight the instant she sensed my gaze, flinching at every movement I made.

'Hah.'

Seeing her so enthusiastic, I began to prepare too.

To not kill her on accident.

—BOOM!—

After that, it all passed in a flash—faster than I had ever been.

My feet kicked the floor beneath me, and I moved so fast the concrete only cracked apart once I was already standing in front of Mirko, who, like the ground, only realized I had moved once I was standing before her, staring at her down, as I was now a head or two taller than her.

"Y-you...!"

Her eyes widened, and acting almost instinctively, she sent a kick toward me—one aimed directly at my neck.

—BAM!—

But my palm shot up faster than her leg and caught it mid-swing, so easily it almost felt like catching a paper ball.

It felt so weak that, for a moment, I squeezed my grip. Wondering whether I was just imagining it.

-Crack!-

Then, I felt the bones in her leg snap.

Immediately, I released her, something she instantly used to jump back, her face contorted in pain—but her gaze never left me.

I blinked, glancing at her purple-turning leg, then at my hand.

I didn't feel regret, or even sorry for it. Just... astounded at how fragile everything had become.

Someone who could've likely matched me, maybe even overwhelmed me with her fighting skills in my normal state, was now so frail I broke her leg without even intending to.

One of the best heroes in the country—and all it took was a tightened grip.

My eye returned to her. Pity filled my gaze.

She was so frail. They all were.

I could end them all in an instant. With this speed and strength, I didn't even need to use Kill.

I could snap their necks in a blink.

'Then again, I should not.'

I shook my head, brushing off the strange urges crawling up from within me.

Then, I moved again.

This time, Mirko was at least able to predict I was coming. She had already started to block by the time I appeared in front of her.

-Swoosh!-

"...!"

Her eyes widened as she registered my presence—but by then, it was too late.

Keeping the thought of killing tucked at the back of my mind, I flicked my hand at her, keeping my posture relaxed, and evidently barely trying.

—Bang!—

Instants later, she was sent flying away like a blur, crashing straight into a building and creating a small explosion.

-Boom!-

'Did I hold back enough...?' As the sound of the explosion settling down reached my ears—or whatever I was using to hear now—I tilted my head in her direction with curiosity—maybe even a bit of anticipation.

Anticipation of seeing her dead.

Sadly—or rather, luckily—once the dust settled, I saw her sitting in the middle of a mountain of rubble, coughing blood, but still alive.

'Good.' I thought, half relieved, half disappointed.

In that state, even if she tried to chase me, she wouldn't be able to keep up.

So, disregarding her now that she was no longer a threat—or rather, an annoyance—I turned to the rest of the heroes, wondering who would be the brave one to take a step forward now.

'...'

But it seemed I worried needlessly.

They all still stood frozen in fear. Some looked frustrated, glancing at themselves, punching their calves, biting their lips—but none moved.

I guess I didn't need to worry about them.

So, with no one left to stand in my way, I turned my head to where I had been heading originally, prepared to run off—somewhere I could hide until I undid this transformation and returned to normal.

But just as I was about to take off, someone blocked my path again.

Mirko.

Bloodied, bones clearly broken, and barely standing—yet there she made her way to block me as she limped, grinning wide.

"Going somewhere?"

'Damn woman. Just stay down.'

Annoyance creeping in, my hand shot out, grabbing her neck at blinding speed.

"Ack—"

She didn't even have time to react before I lifted her a few centimeters off the ground.

My hand held her still, and whatever I was made of now—muscles, steel, or something else—trembled in anticipation. Like an itch screaming to be scratched.

Like a primal urge.

Twist. Snap. That's all it would take.

And my mind whispered it to me, over and over. Urging me. Pleading me.

Like some twisted puberty, this transformation was giving me some sort of killing fetish.

And I was drowning in it.

With just the slightest twitch, her life would be gone.

With just a flick, she'd stop getting up and I wouldn't waste more time here.

'... I'm really going psycho with this thing.'

With a sharp shake of my head, I let go.

She dropped to her knees, gasping for the air like there was no tomorrow.

I watched her for a second... then remembered my training with Tatsuo.

I needed to stop her from getting up again—but without killing her.

Things like knocking someone out with a karate chop to the neck were mostly fiction. Still, there were other options.

Like a strike to the head with controlled force—but given how bad my control was right now, that didn't seem wise. Her head would most likely explode like a watermelon if failed to hold back enough.

So, I went for the safer route.

The liver.

It wouldn't knock her unconscious, but it'd definitely take her out of the fight.

So, without even thinking it twice—

—Bam!—

"Uck—!"

A swift, tightly controlled jab slammed into her liver. Her eyes went wide from the pain before she collapsed to the ground, clutching her side.

I gave her felled body a satisfied glance. 'That should do.'

Now that she was finally down for real, I turned to leave.

Though, just before that...

I glanced at the civilians watching and recording from a distance.

With one burst of speed, I snatched every phone and crushed them in my grip.

Then, reappearing where I started, I casually dusted off my hands from the technological remains and looked back at the crowd.

Only then did they realize what had happened.

They turned toward me with expressions twisted by a mix of fear and defiance—

—HOOOOOWWWL!!!—

But before any could protest, I opened my mouth wide and let out a deep, monstrous roar.

The sound echoed across the entire area.

The next instant, most of them dropped to their knees on the spot. A few even pissed themselves.

Not even the heroes remained indifferent. Their legs buckled, and their bodies shook uncontrollably.

If I could have sneered at that moment, I'd have done it.

'Just wanted to scare them a bit... Maybe I went a little overboard.'

Amused by the sight, I kicked the ground and vanished in a blink, taking turns every now and then to make sure no one would be able to follow me.

And while I did that, I began thinking up a plan to fix this whole mess, and to make sure this form wouldn't be associated with my normal self.

...

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|Half an hour later...|

...

After the fire was put out, the entire zone descended into chaos.

Press and police swarmed the area, demanding answers and collecting testimonies from anyone who had been present.

It wasn't easy. Most of the witnesses were in shock—muttering incoherently or too terrified to speak properly.

The only ones who could offer a clear explanation were the heroes, though even they looked shaken and out of sorts.

Still, when the news spread about some mysterious individual—or creature—that had emerged from the burning building and saved over a dozen people, the media went wild, prowling the area like vultures in search of scraps.

Meanwhile, the heroes had to deal with the aftermath.

Multiple squads were mobilized to search for survivors—especially anyone buried under the rubble.

One squad in particular had a very specific person as its primary objective.

Mirko stood nearby, silently watching them dig.

"Miss Mirko, you should receive medical treatment right away. Your injuries are too severe to ignore," a policeman said, approaching her as she observed the team work.

"I'm fine," she replied curtly, eyes narrowing as she scanned the disaster site. "That kid was supposed to be under my supervision. I'm not leaving while he's still missing."

"The hero squad is doing everything they can. You'll be notified the moment he's found—"

"I said no," she snapped, shooting him an irritated glance.

"...Understood," the policeman muttered, falling silent as he turned to watch the hero squad like she was.

After a few seconds, Mirko spoke again. "What about the people that were beside that thing when it came out? Have they woken up yet?"

The policeman shook his head. "Unfortunately, no. They're still unconscious, and it's likely they'll stay that way for at least another day or two."

Mirko clicked her tongue in frustration and tapped her one good leg against the ground, the rhythmic sound echoing softly as she stared at the rubble.

Eventually, she stopped tapping and began limping toward the search team.

Her patience had run dry.

"These punks are too slow. At this rate, the kid's gonna die before they even find him."

The policeman immediately moved to stop her.

But just as he reached out—

"We found him!"

The hero squad called out the good news.

Without hesitation, Mirko quickened her pace, pushing past everyone as she made her way to the scene.

There, she saw the heroes working quickly, clearing away chunks of debris.

And finally—beneath it all—they uncovered a seemingly unconscious Suzaku.

His skin showed visible signs of burning, and parts of his suit were melted.

Despite her condition being far from ideal for that kind of work, Mirko immediately began helping push away the remaining chunks of concrete.

As a result, soon enough, Suzaku was freed and carried to a nearby rescue zone.

As he was placed on a stretcher and medical personnel began preparing to examine him, his eyes slowly fluttered open.

Mirko rushed to his side, her face tense with worry.

"Damn kid, I told you to stay put—not throw yourself into certain death!"

Suzaku blinked a few times and slowly pushed himself up, wincing. He gave her a wry smile. "Sorry."

-Clang!-

Mirko promptly smacked him on the head, making Suzaku flinch and grab at the sore spot.

He shot her an indignant glare. "Damn woman! What did you expect me to do?!"

"What did I expect?" she snapped. "Stay. Put."

Suzaku clicked his tongue, still rubbing his head. "Not my fault the rest of the heroes acted like pussies just because the building started collapsing a bit."

Mirko raised an eyebrow and glanced over at the nearby heroes who had been stationed in the same area as Suzaku.

They quickly looked away—scratching their heads or rubbing the backs of their necks in shame.

When none of them denied it, Mirko clicked her tongue and turned back to Suzaku, sighing as she massaged her temples in frustration.

"I'm never offering internships again..."

A few seconds of silence passed before she spoke again, her gaze softening—if only slightly.

"So? What happened inside? How did you end up buried under all that rubble?"

Seeing she had calmed down, Suzaku let out a deep sigh and closed his eyes, like he was replaying the moment in his head.

"Well, I was being a hero—saving people left and right—when the ceiling decided to drop on us. So, like the valiant and incredible hero I am, I jumped in and stopped it from crushing the folks that were following me."

Mirko instantly knew who he meant—the people who had been at the monster's feet when the building collapsed. Her eyes narrowed.

"Continue."

"Since I'm so damn strong and fit, the weight wasn't much to handle at first. But when the rest of the building started collapsing, even my mighty strength wasn't enough."

"Stop the self-glazing already."

"I was already finishing," he shot back with a frown, before wrapping up. "After that, I remember holding on a few more seconds before blacking out. No clue what happened after. Did someone finally grow a pair and come help?"

Mirko squinted slightly, her mind connecting dots.

The monster had saved the same people Suzaku had been protecting before he passed out—albeit whether intentionally or not, that remained a mystery.

And it had emerged pretty close to the location where they found Suzaku buried.

So that begged the question, did the red-haired kid have something to do with the monster?

Mirko frowned.

She'd assumed as such—if it wasn't for the fact that the creature had vanished into the distance before anyone could catch it.

And Suzaku had just been pulled from the rubble. So unless he had some weird teleportation or cloning Quirk, it seemed unlikely that he was the monster.

Maybe someone he saved had turned into it?

"How many people did you save?" she asked.

"Hmm, about ten."

'Same number. So it's unlikely it was any of them.'

Of course, with how versatile Quirks were, the creature could've been a summon or some kind of artificial creation. Still, for now, she preferred to believe it was someone real. At least, her instincts told her so.

Something so dangerous—to the point her own bunny instincts went in alarm as if she was facing some kind of personified death—couldn't simply be the product of a creation Quirk.

It was on a whole another level from anything she'd have fought before. It wasn't a matter of a gap in strength anymore, when she stood before it, she felt as if she was facing a force of nature rather than something alive.

She refused to believe that something on that level was some kind of summon and not someone or something alive on their own.

However, whether that belief would hold up once the investigation began was another matter entirely.

Letting out a heavy sigh, Mirko sat down in a nearby chair.

As she settled in, Suzaku gave her a curious look, noticing her injuries.

"What about those bruises? Don't tell me the fire punched you?"

Mirko grinned.

"After you passed out, some huge monster burst out of the flames and brought the building down. Luckily, it helped save the people you'd been protecting... but when I tried to stop it from escaping, I got my ass kicked."

"Damn," Suzaku muttered, falling into silence for a few seconds before asking, "So... was it their fault the fire started?"

Mirko shook her head and shrugged. "No one knows. It appeared as randomly as it vanished. Could've been the cause, or maybe it was just a coincidence."

"Damn," Suzaku repeated with a nod, though his expression remained impassive. What he was thinking at that moment, no one knew.

As he remained pensive in his spot, a group of paramedics approached Mirko, murmuring something to her.

After a bit, she nodded and stood up with a limp.

"Well, kid. Since you're safe and all, I'll be going to get patched up."

Suzaku nodded, his face unreadable.

As she turned to leave, Mirko gave him one last look.

"By the way, since I'll probably be stuck in the hospital for more than a day, your internship under me is officially over. So once you get checked out, you're free to go home."

Suzaku gave another nod. "Got it."

She stood there for a few seconds, staring at Suzaku with a raised eyebrow.

In the end, though, she shook her head with a displeased expression and turned around. "Tsk. What a cold kid."

After that, she began limping away towards an ambulance.

As she walked away, Suzaku glanced in her direction, a faint flicker of worry and regret passing through his eyes.

Once she boarded the vehicle and was carried away, he let out a quiet sigh and rested his head back on the stretcher, staring up at the sky with a pensive expression.

'What a day.'

...

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-To be Continued...-

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(A/N: I'm getting gangbanged by my teachers, SOMEONE HELP ME, WHEN ARE THE WINTER HOLIDAYS COMING? I CAN'T TAKE HAVING TO WRITE ANOTHER DOCUMENT)

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