I'm The True Hero

Chapter 20: The Aftermath

The news of Katsumi Bakugo hit hard on her parents, brother, and Izumi; Katsuki the hardest. They all are devastated that they just lost someone who had a lot of energy, had their backs, and the light of the trio. Toshinori and Inko felt horrible from the news and went down on them as well. They had a funeral with all of class 1a, some pro heroes, and her family. After they lowered the casket, everyone left one by one until Katsuki was the only one there.

Tears streamed down his face and every tear went down faster. His shoulders are moving up and down and his hands are shaking. He just lost his other half and his partner in crimes. As the sadness turned into rage, he placed his hand on top of the tombstone and spoke with a voice of determination.

"I will get my revenge."

Izumi

Izumi is sitting outside of the dormitory with a sandwich in her hand as she stares at the sky. She tries to take a bite, but ishe always ended up putting it down. It didn't feel right for her to eat the sandwich without Katsumi because that's what they together. She really missed her and could not forgive the villain for what he has caused her. She replayed the scene every minute to see other possibilities that she could have done to prevent it from happening.

If I wasn't so weak and did not rely on her for our escape, this wouldn't have happened. If I hadn't jump into battle and never underestimated his skills, this wouldn't have happened.

Izumi said several more statements herself until she heard footsteps come up behind her. She looks back to see her father walking towards her with a cup of water in his hand. "Do you mind if I sit with you?"

"I don't," Izumi replied.

Toshinori sat on the ground next to her and looks at the sky while occasionally looking at Izumi. "How are you holding up?"

"The funeral just happened," Izumi replied.

"That's not an answer."

". . . I'm not doing well. I wish I could have done something different like not relying on her skills and underestimating the villain. I thought I had what it takes and still ended up losing someone I cared."

Toshinori could hear the pain in her voice as she spoke. Her voice got weary over time and her eyes got teary. He placed the water done and gave her a hug.

"The hardest part of doing this job is accepting that you can't save everyone. I lost someone deeply, who played an important role in my life for me to get to where I am now. Sometimes, I wished I did things differently as well, but there is nothing you can do about it. All that matters is that you tried your best. It's okay. You will be okay."

After he gave Izumi the speech, it made the tears fall like a rain stream. The pain she felt was eating her alive but letting it out helped her a lot. Once she finished crying after five minutes, she whispered under her breath. Something she has wanted to say out loud in a long time for someone to hear. "I miss Izuku."

Toshinori's shoulders stiffened and loosened his grip. He swiftly moved away from the hug and drank his water awkwardly. "Don't worry about him, anymore."

Izumi looked at him in anger. "How could I not? He ran away one night and haven't heard from him since. What if he's lost? Or kidnaped. Or . . . dead?"

Toshinori looked at her with stern authority. "He ran away. So what? There are some people who are only meant to stay in our lives for a chapter. He just happened to be one of them." He stands up without breaking eye contact with Izumi. "Stop brining him up. He's out of our lives now. Don't need to worry about him, anymore." Without letting Izumi get another word in, he walked away from her and didn't turn back.