Bonds - The Past Echoes | MHA Reader-Insert

Revelation of Soul

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With the warper's defeat on the fifty-fifth story, the chances of running into larger groups of Psycher's mind-controlled puppets was practically zero. Clearing thirty floors in an instant was a pace those in the lower floors couldn't possibly match, catching up was impossible. Class 1A was in the clear, but what they've already survived was beginning to take its toll.

They may have entered the staircase as a class united, but they would not emerge from it together. It was a miracle that half of them made it to the heights they did, but expecting them to reach the roof was little more than a pipe dream.

It was at the flight of stairs before the fifty-seventh floor door, not two minutes after they began to restart their climb of Near Shadow that the first student fell.

"I'm sorry about this...But I truly can't go any farther." Aoyama intended only for his helper Tsuyu to hear his whisper, but Koda managed to pick out his voice from beneath their echoing steps.

"What?" He let out, at a volume that was loud by his standards. It came about so rarely, that the class immediately stopped to look over at him, alerted by his "outburst". Their gaze quickly shifted towards Aoyama after observing he was the center of attention.

"What are you talking about? You can hardly even stand!" Tsuyu tried to make sense of his decision, especially after he pulled himself away from her support just to lean against railing.

"That's exactly my point. I have no business being here with you all. My presence is only slowing you down. And don't try to deny it." He threw in quickly, as he watched Midoriya begin to open his mouth. With his free hand, he motioned to himself to point out his slow slide downward caused by his inability to support himself.

"Besides, it's for the best if someone stayed behind to guard the stairwell." The faintest smile was on his face as he said this, but it was mostly obscured by the blood running from both his busted lip and internal bleeding.

It was less reassuring than he would've liked, but it was comforting nonetheless. The fact that one of the most injured among them still had the strength to pull a smile from the deep pain he was in was encouraging. Of course, Aoyama had classmates that were more injured than he was, and one of them in particular shared in his sentiments.

"If that's the case, then I think I'll stay behind as well." Hagakure said, slowly drifting away from the rest of the class to join Aoyama.

"You too? What for?" Mina asked in disbelief.

"Did you forget already? I don't see how you could, it's one of the parts of me that you can see." She motioned to the set of floating stitches at what might've been her side. If one was close enough, they'd be able to see the trace amount of red that lined the wound.

"I don't think I should test this by continuing to run around. Going up all these stairs has been even worse. I think staying here with Aoyama is for the best." Hagakure explained how unreasonable it was to push her luck. If she died on the way to certain death, that would've been a waste.

"Are you sure? I can't ask you to do this." Aoyama said to her.

"Good thing I wasn't asking." She responded with an imperceptable smile on her face, as she lifted him up to his feet.