Ultra Responsibility (My Hero Academia X Spider-Man Reader)

Issue 8 - Zap the Bug

Dark clouds churned over the shrine, thunder cracking like war drums. The weather forecast had promised clear skies, sunny with a high of fourteen. That was the plan.

Reality had other ideas.

Electric bolts carved through the treeline, each one scorching bark into ash. I leapt between branches, webbing low, dodging blast after blast as Shiraishi tore through the forest like a storm given flesh.

Most people had already fled the shrine grounds in terror. The pros would arrive soon. But if they got here before I did something, Shiraishi was as good as dead.

Launching off a branch, I spun midair, firing webs, only to watch them dissolve, sizzling uselessly before they could even touch him. My heart sank. I landed crouched on a thick branch, hands raised.

"Wait, Shiraishi!"

He froze, electricity crackling off his body, his face twisted with anger and pain.

"...How do you know that name?!" he roared. "How do you know who I am?!"

"I know what happened to you!" I shouted over the thunder, voice raw. "I know about the experiments, how they lied to you! But I want to help. I know people who can help you, Shiraishi. If not for you... Then for Rumi."

That name hit him like a blade. He staggered, clutching his head as arcs of wild lightning ripped out in every direction.

"Rumi..." His voice cracked, then twisted into fury. "Keep my sister out of your damn mouth!"

I swung hard, barely dodging another storm of bolts that split trees clean in half. Bark rained down as I zipped away, my chest aching. He wasn't listening—but I couldn't give up.

"You miss her, don't you?" I yelled, desperation leaking into every word. "You want to see her again, more than anything! You can! It doesn't have to end this way, Shiraishi. You don't have to be the villain!"

He blinked out of sight, reappearing beside me in a burst of light. Before I could react, a massive surge ripped through my body. My web-shooters sparked, frying instantly, and I was hurled back, smashing into a tree. My bag split open, notebooks and cards scattering in the mud.

Shiraishi's eyes burned with betrayal. "You LIAR! Osborn said the same thing! He promised me freedom, he promised me a cure! But he used me. Just like you. I'm DONE being hunted like a monster!"

He turned into pure light, vanishing into the storm.

I groaned, clutching my side, forcing myself upright. I couldn't win this, not now, not against raw lightning in human form. I needed time, strategy, and science. Running after him would get me killed.

I bolted instead, vaulting the shrine wall and clawing up a nearby building. I didn't stop until I'd put blocks between us, collapsing onto a rooftop.

Panting, I ripped off my mask, sweat-soaked hair sticking up in every direction. My web-shooters smoked, useless junk now.

Flat on my back, I muttered to the sky, "I need a way to keep my webbing from frying. Maybe Peni can help me brainstorm something... insulation, counter-voltage, anything. But I need to move fast. If Osborn's men get to Shiraishi first..." My fists clenched. "I don't think curing him was ever their plan."

I pulled out my phone, intending to call Peni, but froze. My eyes widened.

"Oh crap."

The clock glared back at me. I was already late.

"Doctor Connors is going to kill me!"

Scrambling to my feet, I shoved my gear back into my bag, yanked the mask down, and sprinted for the edge of the building. One deep breath, then I leapt, vanishing into the city below.