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Izuku's head snapped back at the sight of another medical team carrying a new hero on a stretcher. He wobbled to his feet from where he had been tending to another wounded person, a young hero—no, a kid around his age, tasked with responsibilities the adults had failed to manage.
"He's in critical condition," one of the medics declared urgently.
They're all in critical condition, Izuku thought sarcastically, but he changed his gloves anyway. "Denki," he murmured, recognizing the boy by his distinctive hair. They had been in the same class as Kacch-. "What happened to him?"
"Ambush," the medic pushing the stretcher replied, breathless. "Multiple injuries. We couldn't stabilize him completely in the field."
Izuku nodded, leaning over Kaminari, his hands glowing faintly green as he activated his healing quirk. The initial scan provided a flood of information.
"Heart rate erratic, approximately 120 beats per minute—tachycardia. His blood pressure is dangerously low, suggesting hypovolemia. Breathing rapid and shallow—possible pneumothorax or hemothorax. Pupils equal and reactive, good sign there..."
His hands moved over Denki's torso, and he winced as he felt the jagged edges of broken ribs. "Fractured ribs on the left side, likely punctured lung. Internal bleeding confirmed..."
Izuku continued his assessment, too tired and weak to panic, too exhausted to let his mind race. He had been healing people non-stop for the past few days. Those brought in with healing quirks couldn't handle the blood and pain and always left him alone to deal with this.
The only people he has working on healing heroes are him and some medics who focus on patching people in the trenches or bringing them to him
The only rest he had gotten was a few hours into the night when pure exhaustion forced his body to shut down no matter how much he tried to fight it. But he knew he shouldn't push himself too far. If something happened to him, many more would suffer.
"Left arm, compound fracture. Clavicle, dislocated. Abdominal swelling—possible damage to spleen or liver."
He glanced at the holographic green pop-up that appeared thanks to his quirk, confirming his suspicions. "Oxygen saturation dropping—82%. We need to intubate. Prepare a chest tube for the pneumothorax."
The others sprang into action, handing Izuku the necessary equipment. "Hang in there," he told the unconscious boy, even though Denki couldn't hear him.
With precise movements, Izuku made an incision between Denki's ribs and inserted the chest tube. A rush of air escaped, and Denki's breathing began to stabilize.
"Good, that's one issue resolved," Izuku muttered, wiping sweat from his brow. "Now for the internal bleeding..."
He focused his quirk on Denki's abdomen, seeking the source of the bleeding. His quirk allowed him to see the damaged blood vessels as if illuminated. "Found it—spleen is ruptured. We'll need to stop the bleeding and repair the tissue."
Izuku's hands glowed brighter as he directed his healing energy into the damaged organ. The process was meticulous-a bother..., requiring intense concentration which he only liked to do sometimes. Sure, his quirk was useful for diagnosing and healing damage, but if he did this for everyone who came in, he would be worn thin.
He could feel his life force flickering.
Gradually, the bleeding slowed and finally stopped. Izuku breathed a sigh of relief, but his work was far from over. He moved to Denki's broken arm, carefully realigning the bones before using his quirk to accelerate the healing process. The dislocated clavicle was next, and he maneuvered it back into place with a practiced hand.
"Vitals stabilizing," one of the medics reported, glancing at the pop-up. "Heart rate and blood pressure improving."
Izuku allowed himself a brief smile, but it quickly faded. He staggered, exhaustion making his steps unsteady. He took a moment to wipe his hands and catch his breath. He was tired, oh so tired. His skin ached and burned, his fingers were worn out, and he had lost feeling in the tips a long time ago. He was saving everyone, but who would /save him?/ His vision became blurry, but he blinked and just dried it enough with his sleeve before changing gloves again.
Doesn't matter. Can't be thinking about himself in a war. He got the good end of the deal, to be honest. He was inside his makeshift tent instead of out fighting a war with kids his age and villains twice his size.
"Midoriya," another medic called. Izuku turned his tired face to them, seeing Todoroki, another kid from that 1-A class Shinsou talked about often.
"Not as critical as others," the medic reassured him as he helped Todoroki lay down on a mat on the floor since they had run out of beds a long time ago. He was out just as quickly.
"Okay," Izuku said as he got on his burning knees that begged him to rest. He placed his hands on Shoto's chest, trying to get a reading. His quirk flickered green. "Focus... focus!!" Tears streamed down, and he didn't know why maybe because his brain was close to being mush.
"Everything seems normal..." he whispered as he saw something blurry on his readings. "Now what... what does this mean?" He stumbled again. Even the ground felt just as comfortable as his bed in Sensei's apartment back at the teachers' dorm.
"Midoriya," another voice called him, deep and familiar.
"In a minute..." he trailed off. "Put them in the corner where there's space," he waved off whoever was calling him.
Aizawa blinked, looking around the makeshift clinic tent, seeing so many injured, bandaged heroes and the one who had helped them all in the corner. "I'm not here to bring you any more heroes. You can rest now," he said, taking a step closer to the middle.
"What's wrong with this wound?" Izuku mumbled to himself as he tapped his belt to find the tape.
"Kid—did you not hear what I said? You can stop now, help is coming."
Izuku took out a roll of tape from one of his pockets and opened it, breaking it away with his teeth. "Maybe more bandages? I can't do a good reading, my quirk isn't—"
"Izuku," Aizawa pressed, his voice becoming louder. He grabbed Izuku by each shoulder, forcing him to look up. Aizawa noticed how hazy Izuku's green eyes were. Izuku blinked tiredly at him.
"The. war. is. over."
Izuku blinked at him, his eyes widening, revealing how deep his eye bags were. "The war is over?! Sensei is that you?!"
Aizawa couldn't help but chuckle. It took the poor kid a while to realize it was him talking. "It's over. Everything is over. The heroes won," he said with a breath. "Help is on the way. You've done enough, more than enough." He opened his arms, and Izuku fell right into them.
"But—"
"It's okay to rest now. You're okay. Everything's good."
Izuku's eyes felt heavy as he felt Aizawa's hands support him. He leaned tiredly on the man's chest. "You've looked after others for quite a while. Now let someone look after you."
As much as Izuku wanted to protest, it didn't sound like a bad idea. "Hot coffee at home?"
Aizawa chuckled. "After your check-up with another medical member, yes. Hot coffee at home with Shinsou and Hizashi," he said as he walked, and Izuku yawned.
That didn't sound bad. That didn't sound bad at all.
He felt a deep sense of relief wash over him as he leaned into Aizawa's clothes. The older man’s arms wrapped around him firmly, a silent promise of protection and comfort. He had been running on fumes for so long that he had forgotten what it felt like to relax, to let someone else take the weight off his shoulders.
Aizawa guided him gently to a corner of a new tent where a few makeshift beds had been set up. “Just lie down for a bit,” he urged softly. “You’ve earned it.”
“But Sensei, there are still—” Izuku began, his voice weak and trembling.
Aizawa shook his head, cutting him off. “There are other heroes here now. They’ll take over. You need to take care of yourself for once.”
Izuku nodded, his eyelids heavy. He lay down on the bed, and Aizawa draped a blanket over him. The moment his head hit the pillow, he felt exhaustion crash over him.
“You did good, kid,” Aizawa whispered, sitting beside him and brushing a stray lock of hair from Izuku’s forehead. “You did more than anyone could’ve asked for. Now, rest.”
Izuku's eyes fluttered shut, his breathing evening out as he slipped into a much-needed sleep.
The end