Kaori stared at her hero costume with a sad expression for a few moments before carefully packing it back into its unique storage to take back to school. She really had screwed up by poking at the buttons she should have known better than to push. Now her chances at being a Pro like her father were going up in smoke, only this time it was because she had pushed too hard rather than shying away from the entire thing. Apparently life didn't know how to ruin her dreams in half measures. Her head turned ever so slightly at the sound of the door to her room opening, but not enough to see who it was that had entered. It really didn't matter in the end, after all.

"I'm just finishing packing my things. I'll be out of your hair shortly, no need to rush me." Kaori said with a defeated tone as she finished retrieving a pair of exercise clothes from a nearby closet and stuffed them into the suitcase as well.

"She really up and canned you, huh?" A more masculine voice than she had been expecting sounded from behind her. Apparently Blink was so done with her she wasn't even the one checking to make sure she had left yet. Instead she had either sent Bulkhead or he had chosen on his own to see her off.

"Yep." Kaori stated plainly without turning around. "I was an idiot and asked about something I shouldn't have. And now my chances at being a Hero are pretty much screwed." Her shoulders sank as she closed the suitcase on the final piece of clothing as things finally sank in. Tears welled up in her eyes as her voice cracked from the emotions now threatening to spill forth. "I guess that's just how my life is. Every time I get close to something I'm aiming for, it gets ripped out from underneath me and leaves me cold and afraid." Kaori nearly yelped in shock as she felt a strong hand spin her around before a large, but gentle pair of arms wrap around her in a warm hug.

"Now you listen here, kid." Bulkhead's voice rang in her ear as his tone went from his casual tone she was already familiar with to a more focused and strong tone that reminded her of Maki. "You can't let things like that get you down. I can guarantee that no matter what happens from here that you WILL be able to reach your dream of being a Hero. Maybe it isn't today, maybe it isn't in the next few years, but you have a fire inside of you that I wish some of the other Heroes and Sidekicks I've met would have. You say that life has beaten you around and tossed you aside, but I say that it's made you stronger for it."

"…Maybe one day I'll believe that. But I don't think I can after what's happened today." Kaori pulled away from the hug with a smile that didn't reach her eyes as she gave the man a thankful nod. "But thanks anyways, Bulk. I hope I'll get to see you guys again someday."

"…Me too, kid. Me too." Bulkhead gave Kaori a single nod as he turned to leave the room with a sad look on his face. Kaori watched in silence before she turned back to pick up her suitcase and walked out of the room and towards the entrance to the building. So focused on trying not to openly cry as she left, she barely registered the sound of someone yelling as they punched a solid object somewhere behind her. Her mind simply passed it off as someone getting worked up inn exercise routine, something she was more than familiar with back at Maki's dojo.

However, she was so caught up with trying to sort out where her life would now be going...that she didn't realize that the noise had come from the entirely opposite direction of the training rooms.

Kaori walked in silence towards the train station as she tried to figure out how she was going to break the news to her mother. Then her mind began to wander to what others might think of her situation. What of her mentor, Maki, who had taken her in to try and train her once again even after what had happened years ago? What about the friends she had made at U.A. and all of the moments they had shared together? It may not have been very long in the grand scheme of things, but after fighting actual Villains and thugs as well as competing with the others, Kaori felt like she was truly close to the people she had met since arriving at the prestigious school. Would she even really see any of them anymore? Or was that another thing she was doomed to lose after everything else that had happened?

On the bright side, at least she hadn't lost any of them because they had died. That was a small grace in some way.

"Where do you think you're going with that sad look on your face?" A voice Kaori hadn't expected to hear came from off to her side. Her head whirled to face a figure she hadn't expected to see so soon on her way back home. The #6 Hero gave her a look with one eyebrow raised before slowly walking towards the girl as she stood frozen to the spot in surprise. "I know I said to get out of my office, but I never said where you were supposed to go. So I'll ask again since your tongue seems to have stopped working. Where do you think you're going?"

"I…I'm going home. I thought we were done?" Kaori stammered out, her brain trying to reorient itself as it had been severely derailed at the sight of the Pro standing here.

"There you go, jumping to conclusions again. I said we were done and I wanted you out of my Hero Office. I never said that we were done with your internship." Blink stated matter-of-factly like it was common knowledge. Kaori's mouth flapped for a few moments before she felt a feeling she had never felt this strongly before.

Rage.

"YOU BITCH!" Kaori yelled out as she marched towards the Pro whilst simultaneously gripping the handle of her suitcase even harder. "I came to you asking for help in trying to get better at being a Hero! Imagine my surprise when I find out you used to work with my dad before he died! I actually looked up to you for a little bit because of that! Then you make it sound like I'm kicked out on the second day just because I asked a pushed a few buttons you didn't like being nudged! How can you call yourself a Hero after all of that!"

Blink simply stood and stared at the girl as she stood seething in front of her. It was taking everything in her power not to swing her suitcase like a weapon at the Pro, knowing that assaulting someone like that would get her in serious trouble both with the authorities as well as Aizawa back at U.A. for using school property in such a careless way. But she was just…so…MAD. Here was this woman that was ranked as one of the best Heroes in Japan, and she was just acting like this was some sort of little thing!

Then Blink began to slowly clap, once again throwing Kaori's train of thought careening into the abyss in a heartbeat.

"…There's that fire I knew you had in you. I knew that despite how much like your mother you look, there had to be something of your father in you for you to want to be a Hero." Blink stated with a small smile before stepping forward and firmly resting a hand on Kaori's shoulder. "You might want to brace yourself, this is always awkward for first timers."

"Wait, wh-"

Then everything around Kaori shifted in a flash of white.

"-at do you mean?"

Kaori's senses clashed as she felt herself land on solid ground a moment later after feeling like floating as she fell to her knees with the taste of bile strong in her mouth. Her stomach heaved as the lunch only a couple of hours ago was forcefully expelled from her body and onto the concrete beneath her.

"Egh, didn't think you'd be one of the ones that loses it when I do that. Guess that's one thing you definitely didn't get from either of your parents."

Kaori gave the woman a sick look of disdain, not feeling sorry or even feeling altogether pleasant thoughts about the woman following their…confrontation back where they had previously been. Speaking of which…where had she even taken the two of them?

"Where are we?" Kaori weakly asked as she stumbled to her feet and avoided coming into direct contact with her own sick.

"I can't imagine you'd likely recognize the place." Blink replied as she looked around the neighborhood she had transported the two of them to. "It's changed a bit since you were last here, after all. I'm only able to come here because I choose to come back every once in a while to remember what the place looks like now in case I ever want to visit for the sake of old memories."

"I don't understand, what are you talking about?" The younger girl continued to look around with a confused expression as she tried to figure out what was going on.

"This was the street you used to grow up on, Kaori. Even you should be able to remember that much after everything's that happened."

Kaori's eyes widened as she looked around and took in the sight of the street she had used to grow up on. No longer were the roads torn up and destroyed with vehicles thrown about like she could remember. No buildings half-demolished with fire and debris lying about. Only a peaceful street with people minding their own business as they walked to and fro. A few turned their heads and gave the two of them light nods to which Blink would always respond with a nod of her own and a gentle smile on her face. It wasn't until an older lady began to walk up to them and wrapped her arms gently around Kaori that she was able to snap back to her immediate proximity rather than the street and houses around her.

"It's good to see you here again, young lady." The woman spoke slowly as she stepped away to give Blink a hug as well. "It's good to see you here as well, Nozomi. I understand that you're busy being a big Hero and all, but I appreciate you taking the time to visit every once in a while."

"It's good to see you too, Ayeka. I see that memory of yours is still sharp as ever."

"Thank heavens I was born with a memory Quirk. No old age is ruining my memory, thank goodness."

Kaori shook her head slightly to shake off the oddness of the situation before she began to speak. "I'm sorry, I don't mean to sound rude but…who are you?"

The old lady burst out laughing as she turned to face Kaori with a knowing look in her eye. "Oh, forgive me. I forgot that it's been some time since you last lived on this street. It's understandable of course, given what happened. There are days that I wish I COULD forget despite my Perfect Memory Quirk. But we have to have the bad with the good."

"So…you were there the night that…my dad died?" Kaori asked with a weaker voice as she had momentarily forgotten that other people would have had to be there that night even as she witnessed her father's own murder.

The older lady, Ayeka, nodded slowly before turning to face the street along with the other two. "I'm one of the only people that willingly came back after what happened. Most of the people that lived here at that time chose to not come back to what had been the site of a major attack, believing that it was possible that it could happen again. I knew better, though. After what happened that night, the person responsible wasn't going to be coming back."

Kaori turned to face the woman out of confusion. "What do you mean? How could you tell they weren't coming back?"

Blink was the one to speak up this time, though it was with a hardened edge to her tone as she spoke. "Because they were here with only one purpose in mind. To kill your father or die trying."

"But that's what I don't get." Kaori replied as she turned to face the Pro. "That's what everyone else made it seem like whenever it was brought up when I was younger. Why were they targeting my dad? He wasn't one of the Top 10 at the time, so why was he the one singled out?"

"Wait…" Blink turned to look at Kaori with a look of shock before turning to look at Ayeka for a moment as she too gave Kaori a surprised look. "You mean you really don't know?"

"Know what?! No one ever talked about it and whenever I asked my mom she said it wasn't something I needed to know!" Kaori was beginning to grow increasingly exasperated at the vagueness of the conversation that she was only marginally a part of despite being a major focus of it simultaneously.

"…Hannei, you fool…" The older lady muttered under her breath as Blink gently placed a hand on each of Kaori's shoulders.

"Kaori…the man that killed your father…he worked with your father and I before he betrayed us. I thought you knew."

"No, I…I didn't…I never…" Kaori's mind reeled as she stumbled backwards and fell to her rear as she tripped over part of the curb. "No one ever told me…A Hero killed him…but I don't…why did no one tell me?!" Her voice screeched out as she stared at the two woman pleadingly, hoping for some sort of answer.

"I figured that my now your mother would have already told you, especially what with you wanting to be a Hero since you were just a little one." Ayeka chimed in as the two woman stood awkwardly in front of Kaori's shocked form. "But it seems like she didn't, likely out of fear or concern for you."

Kaori struggled to calm herself down as she tried to puzzle it out amidst her other wild thoughts while simultaneously getting to her feet and brushing off any dirt that had ended up on her clothing from her tumble. "I...didn't always want to be a Hero…not after dad died." Kaori began as Ayeka gave her a surprised look. "After dad died…I was too scared of the risk Heroes put themselves in. So I gave up. I stopped wanting to be a Hero because I was too scared of losing my own life despite the fact that I could have the power to protect so many people like my dad. But then I was there when a Villain was attacking a boy that was the same age as me. He was trying to free himself using his Quirk, but it was making it impossible for the Heroes on the scene to jump in and save him given the damage his Quirk was doing to the area. Then another boy ran in without any concern for himself and risked everything to try and free the first boy even though he didn't realistically stand a chance. The only reason they both survived was because All Might showed up and saved the two of them before it was too late. But it was that drive to save someone no matter what that reminded me of something dad used to always say when I was younger. A mantra he swore by to keep himself humble, I remember him saying."

"It doesn't matter who you are or what you're capable of. If you see someone in danger you should do everything you can to help them, no matter what anyone says. A Hero is made by what they choose to do, not by what they're capable of." Blink stated as she gave Kaori a proud smile.

"There was also something about it not mattering about Quirks, but that was pretty much it." Kaori stated as she gave the woman a look filled with awe at the near perfect recollection from someone she barely knew once again.

"Probably something your father added in for using himself. The rest of it was something we came up with as a group when we were all starting out. Sort of our call-to-arms in a way." Her face took on a more serious expression as the moment passed, however. "You're still sure about doing this, even knowing what you know about your father's death?"

"I won't lie, knowing that someone that's supposed to protect people was responsible for killing the man I looked up to the most has me terrified. But I can't let that stop me from keeping people safe." Kaori put on a strong face to hide the fears and worries she had inside. "I'll have questions to ask my mom when I see her again, but that's not important right now. I'm still in the middle of an internship for the rest of the week after all and I've barely learned anything I can actually make use of."

Blink nodded in acknowledgement before she turned to give Ayeka a light bow and simple farewell before Kaori did the same. Then the Pro planted one hand firmly on her shoulder once again before the two disappeared in a flash of light and reappeared in front of the Hero Office that Kaori had walked out of not long ago. This time she only stumbled slightly when they appeared, not throwing up or falling over immediately.

The extra knowledge surrounding her father's murder was still fresh in her mind, and trying to figure it out would keep her awake for long periods of time for days to come. But what mattered was that she was still training to be a Hero and she was determined to see that through, both for her father's sake, and for the sake of the conviction that she knew that she and her classmates shared when it came to their path in life.

And she wasn't going to let anything stop her.

More secrets of the past come to light! Don't worry, there will still be some stuff surrounding the internships after this, I'm not just using it as an exposition dump. The characters I've introduced have more purpose than just "random character made for sake of history". They actually have jobs to do and we will see that in action next time. But until then, you'll just have to wait.