The last two days were boring for Terumi Mei. She had been rudely received by Shoto's daddy and immediately dismissed by the same man, cast aside and thrown into Burnin's lap.
It was the best decision, in Mei's opinion. She liked Burnin.
Although that girl appeared to be a Bakugo with breasts, she was much more mature than she seemed, professional, and really took her job seriously when it came to guiding her in the matters she deemed competent.
Mei went over the rules and regulations related to Hero work, studied how the agencies' call-and-response service worked, and generally, did paperwork to make life easier for some Senpai. She didn't complain about that.
She worked diligently, carried coffee diligently, made copies, and carried folders and folders of documents diligently, all with a polite and charming smile that eased the hearts of the exhausted heroes.
Due to her good performance and having improved the work environment, Endeavor wrinkled his face and snorted while approving Burnin's request to take Mei out into the field and patrol a bit on the second day.
Mei had lunged at the hero in a surprise attack and gave him a hug, telling him he wasn't a hopeless piece of shit at the end of the day, which provoked a small explosion in the Flame Hero's office.
—Bwahahaha! You are truly crazy, girl!! — Burnin fell to her knees laughing when Mei told her the reason for her soaked uniform. She had had to lock herself in a water prison to evade Endeavor's tantrum.
—Hmph! That old man is quite the Tsundere— Mei complained.
The two girls continued their patrols after that, with Burnin explaining the important matters regarding the use of her Quirk, the level of force, and paying attention not only to battles but to the welfare of the people.
She emphasized that last point due to Mei's Boiling Element, a rather dangerous application that, if not handled correctly, could harm civilians in the middle of a fight.
—I know you think the boss dismissed you because of his son, but he knew what he was doing when he put you in my care— Burnin had mentioned. Mei raised an eyebrow curiously and Burnin explained Endeavor's motivations.
—Look, even though it seems like you handle things well, the truth is that nobody is sure of your true control over your Quirk. After all, you didn't use that steam until you faced Shoto-Kun's ice. If you ask me, I think you did that because you would have seriously hurt anyone else. Am I right?
Mei nodded awkwardly. There was some truth to that statement, but not for the reason Burnin imagined.
Although it was her Kekkei Genkai and of course she had trained it, it was not easy to measure the corrosiveness of the mist. She didn't possess Tetsumaru's mastery over his elements, since his other half only had to concentrate on one thing: the Satetsu, while she had to deal with water, steam, and Lava.
Without Ninjutsu and only with a superior manipulation level and some basic concept of how to move chakra to obtain any of those three elements, Mei couldn't adequately measure the steam output.
There wasn't much problem with water, neither from her seals nor the one she could generate herself. She couldn't do much with the Yôton either, neither from her seal nor the one she generated. Her lowest performance was with Futton and adjusting its lethality.
Reflecting in her room after the day of patrolling and learning, Mei found herself agreeing with Endeavor's choice.
Burnin seemed like the type of heroine who would cause trouble, given her fiery and aggressive personality, but it turned out that wasn't the case. She could really manage things well despite having such a volatile temperament and a destructive Quirk.
The woman gave her good advice on how to use her Boiling Element without lethal consequences and, unknowingly, also gave her a new perspective for when she uses her lava.
There were more applications than just spitting steam and lava in her enemies' faces, especially since most of her combats would not happen in rural and secluded areas, as in the world these powers came from.
—Fufufu, not bad... Using the abilities of assassins from a world of assassins not to assassinate? That God really has strange ideas— the kunoichi muttered to herself.
Meanwhile, in Endeavor's office, the Flame Hero was organizing an operation with his Flaming Sidekicks.
—It will be a valuable experience for Shoto and we will be able to capture that maniac once and for all— Endeavor said confidently, while a holographic map of Hosu city displayed the spots where the Hero Killer had attacked.
Burnin frowned and stepped forward to speak.
—You mean for our interns, boss. Or do you plan to leave the girl behind?
—...
Endeavor stared blankly at the girl with green, flaming hair. She stared back, not backing down on this matter.
—We can't look after that brat. Unlike Shoto, she's not capable enough.
—She reached the final and beat your son, boss— Burnin retorted.
—Hmph, that was with tricks and deception, and because Shoto was obtuse about the idea of using his full power. When he doesn't limit himself, the girl won't stand a chance— Endeavor snorted.
—Regardless of that, Terumi Mei is capable. She knows how to fight, can defend herself, and is fast enough to get out of there if something goes wrong.
Endeavor's eyelids twitched. Personally, he didn't much care for the girl. He was observant and had noticed the girl's disdain for him, as well as the disrespect with which she treated him.
And besides, Shoto seemed to avert his gaze toward her too much every time she entered his field of vision. If something happened in battle, his son would definitely make a mistake by paying so much attention to the girl.
But Burnin had no intention of backing down. Taking her boss's son to gain valuable experience, but leaving behind the intern she was entrusted with just because the boss didn't like her? What a joke!
With a sigh, Endeavor shook his head.
—If she goes, you take charge. Any blunder will be your responsibility. After all, she's your intern— the Flame Hero ruled.
The next day, Endeavor, the Flaming Sidekicks, and the interns, Todoroki Shoto and Terumi Mei, departed for Hosu city, in search of the Hero Killer and unaware of the small disaster they were about to get into.
The only one who had an idea was Terumi Mei and it was the reason why she joined this agency.
Neither Tetsumaru nor Mei knew when or where the Hero Killer arc would happen. They didn't remember so many details from a work they didn't like.
They simply remembered that Todoroki, Midoriya, and Iida faced the guy in an alley, nothing more. Because of that, and since everything turns out fine in that fight, Tetsumaru saw no need to pursue Iida during the internships and give him the redemption talk.
Besides, he didn't receive a request from Endeavor's agency, and he was too lazy to investigate if there was one close to Iida's that might have done so. Thus, they agreed that Mei alone would be enough to help in that arc, if it even happened during that week.
Upon receiving a basic report of what they would do and their reasons, Mei sighed in relief. It seemed she hadn't been wrong.
But she didn't have much interest in the Hero Killer himself. In the original work, everything turned out fine, so she wasn't worried about that fight.
What she wanted was to test herself against a Nomu that wouldn't turn her into paste with a slap. And the creatures that were going to appear here were not intended to kill All Might, so they would be more manageable.