Sussy Baka in MHA

Chapter 71 - New Moves

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|The third day of internships...|

...

-Yawn...-

"You're yawning?!"

"Man, it's like seven in the morning. What did you expect?"

"You've been this close to dying at least five times during our fight! How can you yawn despite that?!"

"Bruh, it's seven in the morning. Didn't I just say that?"

—BAM!!!

"—Ugh!"

"Besides, the only time I've been close to dying today was from the headache I got after waking up so early. So don't flatter yourse—"

-Thud-

"...What? You're down already?"

"..."

"Come on man, that was just one hit to the stomach. How can you get knocked out from that?"

"..."

"... Never mind. Guess you can."

Sighing at the lack of a proper warm-up, Suzaku let out an even bigger yawn, scratching the back of his head.

As the momentary drowsiness faded, he looked up at the faintly orange morning sky with a pensive expression, shivering slightly as the cold air brushed against his skin.

"Maybe I should be like Batman and only work at night. That way, I can sleep in as much as I want."

"What are you mumbling about over there?"

As Suzaku contemplated his future career choices, Mirko appeared beside him, dragging two guys in black ski masks by their collars.

Suzaku shook his head and responded in a tone dripping with intellectualism.

"I was merely conducting a profound analysis of the underlying societal conditions that compel certain individuals toward criminality, seeking to identify and conceptualize an effective framework for addressing such systemic issues at their root."

Mirko stared at him blankly. "...Pretty sure I heard something about wanting to wake up late."

Suzaku nodded without a hint of shame. "Yes. That too."

As Mirko snorted in amusement, Suzaku picked up the unconscious guy he had beaten earlier and began walking away with Mirko, who carried the other two.

Soon after, the police arrived to take over, and while Mirko gave a brief report, Suzaku stood on the sidelines, watching what would likely be his job in the future.

'Hopefully, heroes don't have to do taxes...'

Once that was done, they were free to leave and continued their patrol.

...

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|An hour later...|

...

Despite what TV and the internet might suggest, the life of a hero wasn't nearly as exciting as it seemed.

"100th alleyway ... No suspicious activity detected," Suzaku muttered in an unimpressed tone, his gaze shifting lazily between a few trash containers and piles of garbage bags inside the alleyway.

Epic battles against terrifying villains? Yeah, no, that wasn't happening any time soon.

The fights from the first day and earlier this morning, among others off-camera, had actually been rare occurrences. Something he and Mirko only came across every now and then.

Of course, crime did exist—it's just that they weren't the only heroes around. More often than not, by the time they stumbled upon something, another hero was already dealing with it.

What about the epic battles of Evil vs Good, you ask?

Most of the time, being a hero meant handling hooligans and thugs who didn't like the fact that they weren't allowed to use their Quirks whenever they pleased, helping grannies to cross the road, or doing community work.

Facing city-level threats? That was a one-in-a-million chance.

Finding them casually in the middle of the street? Even less.

As such, most days passed without anything interesting happening. And when something did happen, it was usually just dealing with some punks causing disturbances or some petty thieves.

"...101st alleyway..."

Honestly, though? It could've been way worse. If he had chosen a different hero to intern under, his days would've been even more boring. At least Mirko was one hyperactive rabbit, making him run through the whole city again and again, only taking rests every once in a while.

But even she couldn't make twelve hours of wandering the city with nothing happening feel exciting.

-Yawn...-

"What's up, kid? You're lagging behind," Mirko called out as she ran, glancing back just in time to see Suzaku let out yet another yawn.

"Waking up early is my kryptonite, so I'm nerfed."

"Well, you're gonna have to unnerf yourself, or I'm leaving you behind."

With those words, Mirko kicked off the ground even harder and rocketed ahead, leaving a slightly annoyed Suzaku in the dust.

'She sure talks big for someone with a Quirk that lets her run faster... If I had her physiology, keeping up wouldn't be a problem either—pause.'

Suzaku's expression suddenly turned pensive.

His transformation ability basically allowed him to copy-paste someone's appearance onto himself. He could Ctrl+C a person's looks—storing them as long as his memory allowed—and then Ctrl+V them onto himself whenever he wanted.

He could also copy specific body parts instead of the whole appearance. It was just a tad harder, as it required more steps than just pressing Ctrl+V... Metaphorically speaking.

And among the things he could copy were physical traits product of people's Quirks, be it horns, heightened musculature, or other similar physical changes brought by their Quirk. However, that didn't mean he could copy their whole Quirk.

If someone, say, All Might, had a Quirk that granted him super strength, even if Suzaku copied his appearance, along with his musculature and all, he only gained the strength proportional to someone of that appearance, not the cataclysmic strength that the real All Might flaunted.

The same went for people with like horns that shoot lasers, only copying the horns but not the lasers, people with big noses that shot super snot, where he'd copy only their big nose and not the super snot, etc...

However, for someone like Mirko, whose Quirk changed her physiology, if he copied her appearance, gaining her leg strength shouldn't be a pipe dream.

Unless that strength of hers was magically augmented, of course, like All Might.

"Well, now I'm curious..." Suzaku muttered, glancing down at his own legs and squinting behind his glasses.

Until now, besides the basic function of copying someone's appearance, he hadn't actively tried many new things with his transformation ability. All he had done apart from that was alter faintly his vocal cords to sound like others, or to make himself louder. He hadn't gone beyond that as he always preferred to lay low, and never explored much his divine gifted abilities as a result.

That, and the fact that with a literal one-shotting ability in his arsenal, it wasn't like he felt pressured to become stronger.

Plus, he was lazy.

"..."

Falling silent, Suzaku became lost in thought as Mirko widened the gap between them.

Then—

-THUD!-

—Suzaku faceplanted onto the pavement.

Mirko skidded to a stop, turning back with a bewildered look. She hadn't expected him to just collapse like that—at least not so ungracefully. He looked like an athletic guy, after all.

However, seeing him stand up without much problem after that proved that he wasn't actually hurt, making her let out a sigh of relief. Still, it wouldn't hurt to ask.

"You good, kid?"

Suzaku nodded stoically, wiping the dirt off his face with his wrist.

"I merely wanted to check on the floor. It was very floor-ish, as expected."

"..."

Baffled by his answer, Mirko stared at him for a moment before snorting in amusement. Without another word, she turned and shot ahead again.

She was already getting accustomed to Suzaku spewing nonsense.

As she moved away, Suzaku glanced down at his legs. "...Well, maybe I shouldn't do that while I'm mid-running."

Since they were under the hero suit, it was hard to notice, but in reality, he had modified them, shifting their structure to mimic Mirko's.

It wasn't a perfect copy—some of his original traits remained due to this being the first time he was attempting this—but the changes closely resembled the physiological enhancements granted by her Bunny Quirk. Giving him a feeling of untapped strength in his modified legs.

So, taking a few cautious steps, then testing some small hops, he adjusted to the new legs.

Then—

-BANG!-

—Suzaku shot forward like a cannon, closing the distance with Mirko in the blink of an eye.

"...?!"

Sensing the change and hearing the loud sound Suzaku's acceleration had caused, Mirko turned to look back at the rapidly approaching Suzaku with shock.

"Kid, how did you—?!"

Suzaku took out his phone before she could finish her question and showed it to her mid-sprint.

"It's, uh... 8:31, which means morning ended and I am now unnerfed."

She deadpanned. "You weren't this fast before, despite not being morning."

Suzaku snorted. "I was merely using a fraction of my power back then, now I've added another fraction, making it two fractions."

"..." Mirko's mouth twitched. Still, it wasn't long before her mouth turned into a full-on grin. "Is that so? Then let's see what your new fraction can do!"

Without waiting a second, she kicked the ground, accelerating even further.

She wasn't the type to pry into others' business, but when it came to a challenge, she was all in!

"I suppose we are doing this now..."

In front of her competitive taunt, Suzaku smiled wryly, but didn't hesitate to begin accelerating as well.

At first, the difference in speed was obvious. Suzaku wasn't accustomed to the new legs completely, and they weren't exactly a carbon copy of Mirko's, so they lacked a bit when comparing them to hers.

But as they moved more and more through the city, it wasn't long before Suzaku began getting the hang of them, making his traverse through the city much smoother and quicker.

However, before the competition could escalate, both of them had to come to a halt—stopping right a square away from a perimeter surrounded by police cars.

"Seems we ran right into the fun." Mirko smirked as her ears twitched along with the faraway sounds of a battle. She turned to Suzaku after. "Come on, kid. We've got work to do."

Suzaku didn't say anything and simply nodded, his mind still partially on his new discovery and the possible applications of his transformation ability.

"AAAAARGH!!!"

As they sprinted onto the crime scene, they finally saw the culprit of all this chaos—a gigantic woman with lava-like veins spreading across her entire body as she roared into the air; whether from pain or fury, it was unknown.

"Well, at least this time it isn't a guy that stole an old woman's purse..." Suzaku muttered, sweatdropping a bit as he observed the destruction the woman was causing.

As both Suzaku and Mirko assessed the situation, a policeman approached Mirko.

"Mirko-san, thank god you're here!"

"What's with the big-ass woman?" The bunny hero pointed at the rampaging woman with a raised eyebrow.

The officer quickly glanced at his notepad before reporting.

"Suspect has been identified as Saeki Amaya, 35 years old. Works as a secretary at a nearby company. Her Quirk should only allow her to raise the temperature of her blood, but based on the extreme increase in body mass and power output, we suspect she may have taken a Quirk-enhancing substance. Likely one of the variants of Trigger."

Mirko scratched the back of her head with a complex expression. "That stuff was a huge problem years ago... Thought they had cleaned it up by now."

The officer sighed. "Mostly, but cases like this still pop up from time to time. Some of these variants are still circulating underground."

Mirko clicked her tongue, looking at the giant woman with clear annoyance. She had been hoping for a proper fight—not to put down a crazed office worker who'd messed with dangerous drugs.

"Well, work is work." Mirko let out a disappointed sigh, but her smirk quickly returned as she slammed a fist against her palm. "Alright, let's get this over with!"

She bent her knees, ready to kick off the ground and launch herself at the woman—only to pause mid-movement. Blinking as if she had just remembered something, she turned to Suzaku.

"Oh, right. Kid, you're staying put. This one's not your average thug, so I'll handle it."

Suzaku gave her a thumbs-up. If he had to sit this one out, there wasn't much he could do about it.

"What a tragedy," he muttered before leaning against a police car and pulling out his phone.

"Tsk." Mirko clicked her tongue at the sight of him immediately slacking off. "Shouldn't you at least help evacuate any remaining civilians?"

Suzaku glanced around. Aside from the police officers, there was no one else in sight.

"If anyone's still hanging around despite the giant woman setting everything on fire... I'd call that natural selection."

Mirko shot him a sharp look.

"...But I guess I can check if anyone's trapped."

"Good." With a nod, she turned away and finally launched herself forward, kicking off the ground like a bullet aimed straight at the giant woman.

The battle erupted in an instant. The lava woman swung wildly, her massive hands clawing at Mirko while waves of heat radiated from her body, melting the ground beneath her. But Mirko was too fast, leaping left and right, striking once before retreating, repeating the process over and over in an attempt to wear the woman down.

Meanwhile, Suzaku hopped off the police car and made his way toward the ruined buildings, surveying the wreckage left in the giant woman's wake.

"Hello? Anyone here? If you need help, just say pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis."

Silence.

He sighed. "Or, y'know... "Help" works too."

No response.

"Guess there's no one here." He scanned the area with a lazy gaze—then suddenly stiffened. His eyes widened slightly.

He looked around. The police were too busy securing the perimeter. No one was paying attention to him.

"...Well, no reason not to."

Suddenly, his ears began to shift, stretching upward and morphing into a pair of rabbit-like ears identical to Mirko's. He reached up, brushing his fingers over one of them and chuckling.

"Man, I really hope no one sees me like this..."

He turned his attention back to the rubble, his new ears twitching.

"Help..."

It was barely a whisper, muffled beneath layers of collapsed concrete.

"Damn."

Suzaku didn't waste a second. He jumped to the wreckage, tearing through it piece by piece, tossing aside debris with precise movements. He worked quickly, clearing a path until, finally, figures came into view.

A woman. And a child.

The woman's back was covered in deep gashes, blood staining her clothes and pooling beneath her. She must have shielded the child from the falling debris at her own expense.

"Thank God..." she whispered upon seeing Suzaku's face—then, just as quickly, her eyes rolled back, and she collapsed. Blood poured from her wounds.

The child was unconscious too, their small body still and unmoving. Lack of oxygen? Panic? Maybe both. She wasn't dead, though.

Suzaku winced but didn't hesitate. He crouched, carefully lifting them in the proper rescue carry he had learned at school.

With both in his arms, he made his way toward safety, already thinking about how to get medical help. As he stepped out of the building, he muttered under his breath, wearing a slightly awkward expression.

"...Now I feel bad for almost checking my phone and cracking jokes."

As soon as Suzaku stepped out of the ruined building, a few police officers spotted him and immediately called for medical assistance.

Paramedics who had been on standby rushed in, carefully taking the injured woman and child from his arms. Suzaku watched in silence as they were carried away, his expression unreadable.

Without a word, he turned and headed toward the next damaged building.

At first, he found nothing—just empty rooms and dust-covered halls. But as he pushed deeper into the wreckage, venturing into collapsing structures and even ones still burning, more and more survivors began emerging from the debris.

For a while, he was the only one pulling people out. Then, more heroes arrived, joining the rescue efforts. The operation took around ten minutes in total, the tense atmosphere finally breaking when a loud rumble shook the ground.

Everyone turned toward the source of the noise.

Mirko stood over the unconscious form of the giant woman, now significantly smaller as her boiling blood finally cooled. The fight was over.

As the police and paramedics moved in to secure and transport the subdued villain, Mirko walked toward Suzaku. He was sitting nearby, leaning against a piece of rubble, catching his breath after the last building had been cleared.

"You look like you went through hell, kid." She smirked, eyeing his dust-covered, slightly singed state.

"It wasn't exactly pleasant," Suzaku muttered, his gaze drifting to the injured civilians being treated and loaded into ambulances.

"Yeah, well, this job ain't all glory and fame. It gets ugly too. You just gotta deal with it." She gave him a firm slap on the back before jerking her head toward the street. "C'mon, let's take a break. We'll pick up patrol later."

Suzaku gave a quiet nod, pushing himself up and following her.

As they walked away from the scene—before the press could swarm in—Suzaku glanced down at his hands, still stained with traces of blood. The remnants of those he had pulled from the rubble.

It was almost funny.

Just days ago, he had been taking lives like it was nothing. Cutting people down as easily as pulling weeds. And now? Now he had been struggling to do the opposite.

He'd barely avoided missing people who needed help just because he had been distracted or didn't take things seriously.

And even then, all he had done was pull them out. Whether they lived or not... that was up to someone else.

He had no abilities that could heal. No way to stop people from bleeding out. No way to save them.

He could kill as easily as breathing. But when it came to doing the opposite... he struggled.

"Hah." Suzaku let out a quiet snort. He wasn't exactly laughing, but the irony of it all was just absurd enough to amuse him. At least a little.

Still, this was probably just another one of those moral dilemmas he had every now and then. He'd probably forget about it before the day was over.

"Yeah..." With a faint nod, Suzaku pushed aside his lingering thoughts, shifting his focus to something else—like what kind of super gaming PC he'd buy once the internships were over and he was back in Tokyo, for example.

After a few more hours of patrolling and nothing crazy happening, Mirko and Suzaku made a quick stop at the hotel where both were staying to change clothes. Their lunch break had arrived, and both wanted to wear comfortable clothes during it.

Before long, they arrived at BurgerQuirk, picking a table and ordering the exact same meals they had on the day they first met.

As they ate, Mirko's ears suddenly twitched. She perked up slightly, as if remembering something important.

"Ah, right. I forgot to tell you—we're leaving the city soon."

"Huh? When?" Suzaku blinked, caught off guard by the sudden announcement.

"Tonight."

Suzaku nearly tripped—despite still being seated.

He took a slow, deliberate bite of his burger, chewing with obvious resentment. "A heads-up would've been nice."

"This is a heads-up," Mirko smirked.

Suzaku exhaled through his nose, deciding it wasn't worth the argument. "So? Where are we going now?"

"Hosu City." Mirko replied casually, still focused on her food.

Suzaku nodded with an understanding expression. "I see."

He had no idea where that was.

He wasn't exactly a geography expert, but it probably didn't matter.

'Tonight, huh? Guess I'll have to pack my stuff...' He glanced down at his clothes before deadpanning. His hero suit was still a mess. 'Can I even get it cleaned in time?'

"I take bids for using the washing machine!" Mirko suddenly declared.

Suzaku's deadpan intensified.

So much for that.

"Seriously, this day just keeps getting worse..." He sighed, tilting his head back to stare at the ceiling, his expression vaguely melancholic. 'Please let Hosu or whatever be better.'

It wasn't going to be better.

...

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-To be Continued...-

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(A/N: What did you think of the Chapter? I finally made Suzaku progress a bit. His progress had been stale for quite a while, so I figured it was time to let him improve a bit, even if not in combat skill.

Of course, this progress ain't stopping here, he'll be checking a few more things during this arc, especially at the end, where... let's just say he'll be shocking most of Japan.

Of course, before that, Suzaku has to meet Stain and give him some nice physical therapy. Otherwise this wouldn't be the Hero Killer Arc.

How will this sociopathic individual react when he sees Suzaku and his not-really heroic reasons for being a hero? And more importantly... How will he fare against him?

Discover it in the next episode of Sussy Baka in MHA!)

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