Amethyst. (Katsuki Bakugo x Reader)

PART 39 - Where Darkness Breaks

Izuku Midoriya POV:

My legs were already moving.

I don't even remember deciding to run. The second Mandalay relayed my message, the second her voice echoed "Kacchan is one of their targets!", something inside me snapped forward, faster than thought.

Kota was with Aizawa-sensei now. Safe. Out of the fight.

But Kacchan wasn't. Y/N wasn't. Shoto wasn't.

And the villains knew exactly who they wanted.

Branches slapped against my face as I forced myself deeper into the forest. My arms hung at my sides, broken and useless, each step sending white-hot pain through my shoulders. But I couldn't stop. Not when I'd just sent the entire villain squad straight toward him.

Please... please let me reach them in time...

The forest was alive, screams, explosions, cracking wood, the distant roar of fire and quirks clashing in every direction. I tried to focus on Katsuki's blasts, on Y/N's ice-flames, anything that could guide me.

Kacchan, where are you?!
Y/N... Shoto... hang on, please, hang on-

Then-

A violent crash tore through the darkness.

I skidded to a stop, breathing hard, dirt spraying under my shoes.

Something huge moved between the trees.
Shadows twisted unnaturally, surging in jagged shapes that didn't match any villain I'd seen tonight.

My heartbeat stalled.

No...
No, that couldn't be-

"D-Dark Shadow...?!"

Before I could blink, another figure leapt into view, landing hard enough to shake the ground.

Wide shoulders. Bandaged arms. Multiple eyes.

"Shoji!"

He whipped around, his eyes widening when he saw me.

"Midoriya?! Stay back!"

Dark Shadow roared, a deep, warped, out-of-control sound that made the air itself vibrate. The creature lunged at us, claws tearing through the trees, stronger and more violent than anything I'd ever felt from Tokoyami's Quirk.

Shoji grabbed me instantly and dragged me behind a trunk, shielding me as the monster shredded the ground where I'd stood seconds before.

"Shoji, what happened?!"

Shoji kept me pressed against the tree, his breathing tight but controlled. Dark Shadow tore across the clearing again, a violent mess of claws and shrieks that didn't sound anything like the partner I knew Tokoyami trusted.

Shoji's voice was steady, but the strain behind it was obvious. "A villain attacked us," he said. "Tall. Restrained. Teeth everywhere, stretching, snapping. He came at us from every direction."

I felt my heartbeat spike. Tokoyami had trained for darkness. He and Y/N learned to control their Quirks in the cave, even when the environment made everything worse.

"But Fumikage and Y/N were able to handle it in the cave," I whispered, breath tight. "They learned to control their Quirks even under those conditions. So... what made him lose it here?"

Shoji's eyes lowered. "Me," he said quietly.

Dark Shadow slammed into another tree, splitting it clean in half. The ground trembled beneath us.

"He went for me first," Shoji continued. "One of those... things caught one of my replicated arms. Tore it off. And he ate it."

A cold shiver crawled down my spine. I'm used to fear but that felt different.