They're three," Izuku whispered, peeking through the leaves. "We're five. Why don't we just jump them?"
"Jump what?!" Tenya hissed back. "If you're not seeing the guns, let me remind you—they're carrying weapons!"
His voice rose a little too much.
"Voice down, guys," Mirko said quickly. "Let's just take another route. These guys aren't our problem right now."
Anna was about to reply when she suddenly lifted a hand.
"Wait… keep quiet."
They all froze.
From somewhere deeper in the trees came a heavy rustling sound. Branches cracking. Leaves shifting.
One of the soldiers ahead frowned.
"Did you guys hear that?"
Another one shrugged. "Probably just animals."
The sound came again.
Mirko's eyes widened slightly.
"Oh," he whispered.
"I know that sound."
"What sound?" Tenya asked.
Mirko smiled a little.
"That's my bear."
Before anyone could ask what he meant—
A massive shape burst out of the bushes.
"WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!" one soldier screamed.
"BEAR!" another shouted, raising his rifle.
Gunshots exploded through the forest.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
The bear roared, a deep, terrifying sound that shook the trees. It charged straight into them before they could even react.
One soldier fired wildly before the bear slammed into him, knocking him to the ground.
The other two tried to run.
They didn't get far.
Screaming echoed through the woods. Branches snapped. More gunshots rang out, then suddenly stopped.
A few seconds later…
Silence.
Back behind the fallen tree, Anna's face had turned completely pale.
"Oh my god," she whispered. "It's a bear. It's a bear! We're gonna die!"
Mirko, however, calmly stepped out from behind the tree.
"Mirko!" Aiko whispered urgently.
But he just walked forward.
"Hell yeah!" he shouted happily. "That's my boy!"
The huge bear turned its head toward him.
For a moment everyone held their breath.
Then the bear let out a softer grunt and lumbered toward Mirko, lowering its head.
Mirko laughed and rubbed its fur.
"There you go, Ben," he said. "Good job."
Behind him, the others stared in complete disbelief.
Tenya leaned toward Izuku and whispered, "What… what is happening right now?"
Mirko turned around with a proud grin.
"Guys," he said, patting the giant animal beside him, "meet Ben."
Aiko slowly stepped closer, eyes wide. "That's the bear who attacked you?"
"Yup," Mirko said casually. "And now he's with me."
Anna blinked. "You… befriended the bear that tried to kill you?"
Mirko shrugged. "Long story. He actually helped me a lot."
Ben let out a low rumble and nudged Mirko's shoulder like a giant dog.
Tenya rubbed his forehead. "…We escaped a war, almost got caught by soldiers, and now we're traveling with a bear."
Izuku slowly nodded.
"Honestly," he said, "that's the least weird thing that's happened today.
They stood there in the quiet forest for a moment.
The smoke from the burning base was still rising behind the trees, dark clouds slowly spreading across the sky.
Anna looked around nervously.
"So… now what?" she asked.
No one answered at first.
The forest suddenly felt very big.
And very uncertain.
"You know we can't go back to the treehouse," Anna added quietly. "They know about it now."
Tenya nodded slowly, wiping sweat and dirt from his face.
"She's right," he said. "If the soldiers survive the attack, the first place they'll search is the treehouse."
Izuku kicked a small rock in frustration.
"So what, we just live in the woods forever now?"
Mirko crossed his arms, thinking.
Then Tenya spoke again.
"We're going to have to find another home," he said. "Somewhere deeper in the jungle. Somewhere no one will find us."
Aiko looked around at the endless forest stretching in every direction.
"…Umm," she said slowly. "What if we go back to the treehouse just once?"
Everyone looked at her.
"Just to grab our stuff," she continued. "Food, tools… blankets… anything useful. Then we leave and find a new place out here."
Mirko nodded slowly.
"That actually makes sense."
Anna sighed. "Yeah… I guess we can't start a new life with nothing."
Izuku shrugged. "And I left my good knife there."
Tenya adjusted his glasses.
"Alright. We go back, take what we need, and leave before anyone shows up."
"Sounds great," Aiko said, though she kept glancing nervously at the massive bear standing beside Mirko.
Ben.
The bear sniffed the air and let out a low grunt.
Anna pointed at it.
"Okay but… are we seriously just walking around with a bear now?"
Mirko patted Ben proudly.
"Yeah."
Tenya rubbed his forehead again. "I'm still trying to process that."
Ben suddenly flopped down on the grass like a giant lazy dog.
Izuku blinked.
"…That thing just laid down."
Mirko laughed. "He likes resting after fights."
Anna folded her arms.
"Well good, because we also need rest."
They had run, fought, escaped a prison camp, and watched a war break out behind them.
Everyone looked exhausted.
Mirko glanced at the sky.
"We should move before it gets dark," he said. "Treehouse is about two hours from here if we cut through the hills."
Aiko looked back one last time toward the smoke rising in the distance.
"So… we're really free now," she whispered.
Yup we are.
Mirko smirk