Love Like You (KatsukixOC)

9.What's Important

"That's all of em," Katsuki said, shaking his hand. "Buncha mooks."

"Great, now let's hurry and help the others," Eijirou said, wiping his cheek. "Kurage-san ran off, so we should go find her first. If we're here, I bet everyone else is still in USJ. I'm worried about the guys who really don't have a way of attacking!" He turned to Katsuki, saying, "Thirteen-sensei's probably got his hands full since we rushed ahead like that. None of this would have happened if we'd let him suck in that mist man. As men we gotta take responsibility!"

Katsuki snorted and said, "If that's what you want to do go on alone. I'm gonna beat that Warp Gate Guy to a pulp."

Gotta find Wanko first, he thought, looking toward the direction she ran off in. God, why couldn't she just stay put and let him protect her? He balled his hands into fists. She could be so fucking dense sometimes.

"Are you still pulling that immature crap at a time like this? Besides normal attacks don't work on him-"

"Shut up!" Katsuki snipped, running a hand through his blond spikes. Sweat slid down his temple as his thoughts settled. She'll be fine, he told himself. She always turns out fine.

"He's how these punks are getting around. Bring him down and they'll have nowhere to run," he said, turning back to Eijirou. "It's not like I don't have a way to beat him,"

Just then a villain lunged at the both of them, just in time for Katsuki to catch him and slam his head into the ground with an explosion.

"If all they're sending to us are these idiots, we'll be fine."

She'll be fine.

~

Awako steeled herself, her back to a wall. She had backed up against it, pressing herself to it as she kept her gaze focused on her brother. He hadn't seemed to change in all the years he was gone. She gritted her teeth in a snarl at him, water slithering from her bag and around her body.

He laughed, sliding his hands from his pockets as he took a few steps towards her.

"Never back yourself into a wall, sweetheart," he said, dangerously sweet. "It's never a good idea. Now you have nowhere to run. That should be rule number one that they teach you."

He whipped his arm out, a long tentacle shooting out from his wrist towards her. She scampered out of the way, tripping over herself but catching herself on the wall before running.

"Oh! So they do teach you something! Running away!" he exclaimed, pushing up his glasses and smiling. "Not a very good school if all they teach is-"

He was silenced by a shot of water to his face, his glasses clattering to the floor a few feet away. Awako was already exhausted from fighting alongside Katsuki and Eijriou. Now this. But she didn't falter. Wave after wave of water slammed into him, making him stumble backwards. She looked like a deadly dancer with every move of her wrists and hips. Every twirl and step she made sent him reeling back farther and farther.

Then Awako felt nothing but pain shooting through her legs. A scream ripped from her body, loud and blood-curdling. She collapsed, gasping for air.

Naota pushed his soaking wet hair back, a bleeding cut across his face where she had hit him. His left arm was stretched out, three stringy tentacles connecting to Awako's leg. They let go, slithering back into his arm.

"You always gave it your all, Awako-chan," he said with a laugh, seeming unfazed by the welts forming on his skin. Awako's socks were ripped where the tentacles had injected their poison, stinging marks beginning to form. He started to walk towards her and she dragged herself away from him, bringing her arm up to block another tentacle coming for her neck. It wrapped around her arm and she gritted her teeth to muffle her screams. She wrapped it around her arm a few times before grabbing it, yanking it with all of her strength.