The Difference Between Strength & Power ( MHA x Maki Zenin Reader)

The Day They Became Buddies

Maki was about to stand when Kasumi held up a hand to stop her. She approached the front door as quietly as possible, looked through the peephole, then made a circle with her fingers — okay.
Ding, dong. Ding, dong. Ding, dong. The clattering peal of the bell turned insistent.
"What's the plan?" Maki hissed. She suddenly realised that over the past night and day, they hadn't talked about what they were going to do or how they were going to do it. Maybe Kasumi had deliberately kept her in the dark. After all, she didn't want her in the fight. Now all she wanted to know was how Kasumi planned to strike. Whoever the Villain was, they carried a crossbow and knew how to use it. Its M.O. seemed to be to attack the moment the door was opened. Blocking that first strike would be key to the entire battle.
Then, as Maki's jaw dropped in disbelief, Kasumi casually opened the door.
The Villain was exactly as the witnesses had described. Their eyes were hidden in a black hood, but it seemed to be gazing at the ground. Twisted fangs sprouted at wild angles from their mouth. Judging from what she could see of their body, Maki guessed the Villain was around middle aged. And there was the infamous crossbow, clutched in the Villain's right hand. It was loaded with a small, black, very sharp arrow, and it pointed right at Kasumi.
"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?" Maki shouted.
Kasumi didn't even try to dodge. She knew the Villain's reported pattern as well as Maki did, yet she stood still, as if offering herself up. Maki sprang to her feet, ready to run to her, when the Villain chocked out a soft grunt. Their right arm twisted back, dragged by an unseen force. The arrow lodged itself into the ceiling, never coming anywhere near Kasumi. She continued to stand calmly, now grasping the air with her right hand.

"Wha...?" Maki stopped short, astonished. With a flourish, Kasumi thrust out her arm. Her fist stopped well short of the Villain, yet there was an audible thump. With a cry, the Villain bent double and gagged with pain. It was flung backward, striking the door, then pitched forward again.
Maki gasped down at the Villain lying on the ground.
"Was that... your quirk?"
"Bingo." Kasumi glanced back at her with a smirk and gave her a thumbs-up with the and that had just demolished the Villain. "My quirk is called Ghost. I can control a hand that is completely invisible and intangible, way powerful. I can only use it with my right hand, though.  You can say it's a handy thing to have around."
"You could have told me," said Maki, irritated.
"Oh, didn't I?" asked Kasumi innocently.
"No you didn't," Maki snapped. She knew it wasn't advisable for Heroes to go around telling everyone what their powers were, but surely you ought to inform someone when you were going into battle together. Yet more proof that Kasumi still didn't see her as an equal. Kasumi didn't appear to feel so much as a twinge of guilt about it. She turned back to the collapsed Villain.
"Oh, well," she said. "The problem's taken care of. And now we're square for me getting sloppy drunk on you. How about it? Feel like giving me the respect a senior deserves yet?"
Maki paused. "I'm thinking about it."
Kasumi chuckled and nodded. Then she reached out with her invisible hand to grab the Villain by the throat.

Maki's brow furrowed. Something was off. Some tiny detail. What was it? The Villain was still splayed motionless on the floor. Maki dropped into a fighting stance but saw nothing to attack. Kasumi's ghost arm was about to make short work of the Villain.
No. Wait...
"GET DOWN!" Maki grabbed Kasumi's collar and yanked her to the ground. An arrow sliced through the air, grazing her hair before burying itself in the back of the door.
"Wha...?" Kasumi sat up and blinked. "Did that arrow come from the Villain?"
"Yeah."
"No shit? But they never had time to reload."
"I know."
The crossbow had gone off, firing its only arrow, when Kasumi's ghost arm had twisted their arm. That round was buried in the ceiling. Not only had the Villain not had the chance to reload, it had never even moved. Yet a black arrow had remained nicked into the crossbow. That was the errant detail Maki had unconsciously picked up on.
With a groan, the Villain pulled themself up. The hood fell back, revealing thinning hair and a forehead carved with deep lines. But Villain's eyes were their most distinctive feature. They were flat black, like the painted-on eyes of a doll. A dark miasma drifted from the Villain's eyes and mouth, as if their hatred were condensing. The mist curled down their arms, where it solidified into two black crossbows, one in each hand. Each held five rounds.
"Hah! Now I get it." Kasumi jumped to her feet. She put a hand on Maki's shoulder, then backed away. "Guess I should have been more careful..."