- Chapter Thirteen -

Izuku hadn't been certain how the League would handle the injury he'd taken, but it didn't seem to be much of an issue.

Toga had more or less said that she had expected Izuku to get hurt worse than that by Shigaraki at some point or another to the agreement of Dabi, and Kurogiri had expressed his inability to do much more about the encounter than help Izuku heal.

For the more serious areas of injury Kurogiri had enlisted the help of a black market healing quirk user, but because of the already exorbitant price Izuku had been forced to let the more superficial parts of his injury heal the old fashioned way.

Luckily after the initial healing help the injury was hardly debilitating, and Izuku was still able to train and exercise effectively with only minor pain. In the past an injury like that would've slowed him down, but after his meeting with Shigaraki he was extremely driven to plan and execute his next attack. The sooner those he cared about were safe the better.

Since Izuku had dedicated himself so entirely to the analysis of fitting targets upon his arrival, the task of finding his next target was hardly taxing. The most difficult part was singling out a hero who both fit his criteria, and was set to have a public appearance in the near future. Similarly to his last excursion, Izuku needed to make a public statement in a manner that was both effective and powerful, which meant that simply leaving a message behind at the crime scene was unacceptable.

Without access to the internet, planning was near impossible, and so Izuku was forced to turn to Toga for help. Not that it was necessarily a chore at this point. While he'd been unnerved by Toga's erratic personality upon first meeting her, he found himself more or less inured to it at that point. Though talking to her in her more energetic states was difficult, her rare moments of clarity had shown him that there was a reasonable person underneath the eccentric facade, and that had been enough to dispel most of his fears.

Now he was even beginning to admit to himself that he enjoyed talking to her at least a bit, as was becoming the same with the others he regularly interacted with. While Toga's volatile and intense emotions were off-putting, Izuku had eventually figured out how to navigate around them. Though more difficult than a regular conversation, the challenge of getting Toga to focus on a single subject was somewhat fun in a similar way to listening to Dabi's sarcastic backlash or Twice's internal banter. He was finally starting to consider them to be friends, or at least acquaintances.

That didn't mean, of course, that he was never angered or annoyed by the villains, and he still found their actions to be generally deplorable, but he supposed that it wasn't really wrong to understand them on some level, especially since Shigaraki had implied that he wouldn't be able to get away from them anytime soon.

Besides creating the need to protect his mother, Shigaraki's threats had also forced Izuku to reconsider his plan to die to a much greater degree. If he did so in a way that made it appear purposeful, or possibly regardless or the perceived intentions, Shigaraki could go through with the threats he had made as a sort of revenge. Based on his illogical and petty behavior in the past, Izuku couldn't out rule the possibility at least.

Before he did anything risky he would have to ensure that his loved ones were safe, and he figured he may even need to hold onto caution around the subject afterwards.

When Izuku had asked around for Toga, he'd been directed to her room, a place he'd been careful to avoid in the past due to it being situated so near to Shigaraki. At first he was surprised to hear about Toga hanging around somewhere other than the courtyard or dining hall, but quickly realized how short sighted his assessment was. Since he'd usually only spoken to the villains when forced during mealtimes or training, he'd failed to ever seek them out on their own time. In reality Toga could've spent most of her time in her room or even outside the complex, but Izuku would've had no idea.

In fact she had asked him out on several group trips after his injury had healed sufficiently, but he had turned them all down for fear of encountering another familiar face. He hoped that once things got a bit calmer, he'd be able to take her up on the offer.

When Izuku arrived at Toga's room, the door was closed and loud, upbeat music could be heard on the other side. Izuku knocked twice, making sure to hit the door hard enough that the motion could be heard above the din.

"It's Midoriya. I wanted to use your internet for a bit if it's okay?" He announced courteously. "I need to do some research on my next target."

There were sounds of shifting from the room before the music cut off completely and Toga's voice issued a response.

"No problem Izu-kun, the door is unlocked!"

The invitation to enter made Izuku a bit nervous. Despite the fact that his recent interactions with Toga had been overwhelmingly positive, he was still a bit afraid of how Toga's room might be decorated, and though he knew he wasn't in the dorms anymore it still felt rude entering a girl's room. He'd expected her to come outside with her phone, not call him in, but he really didn't have the power to decline if he was the one asking for help.

After biting down his initial misgivings, Izuku plucked up his courage to open the door and reveal... A surprisingly normal bedroom.

Pastel seemed to be the main theme of the room, with each wall being a varying shade of light, desaturated pink. Posters of what Izuku assumed to be different band logos were pasted neatly to the walls, and a string of fairy lights ran across the place where wall met ceiling in neat arcs. A small and outdated television sat in one corner of the room near a fluffy beanbag, playing muted cartoons. A small closet boasted an array of clothing options, and was positioned next to one closed door which he assumed led to a bathroom. In the middle of the area, Toga was sitting on a wire framed bed atop a white comforter, a laptop nestled against the pillow she was arched over.

Aside from the sparsity of the decorations, Izuku guessed that the place looked like what one could expect from an average teenager. Though he knew it shouldn't at that point, the normality of the girl surprised him. Sure she was a villain, but when it boiled down to it she was still her own person with independent interests and hobbies. It was a bit startling to realize how often heroes tended to dehumanize their adversaries.

"Welcome to my place! I know it isn't much but you can't really blame me with how often I've had to move. Besides, I don't make enough to buy much in the way of decoration." Toga shifted a bit on the bed, turning to face Izuku. "You okay with sitting over here with me to share the computer? Unless you're still worried I'll bite of course."

"No, It's fine. I doubt you'd be able to make me look any worse than I do right now anyways."

Izuku had meant for the reply to sound friendly and teasing, but instead it came out as bland and disinterested. In retrospect it had been such a long time since he'd really been happy or motivated enough about anything to try to put any emotion into his voice other than anger or passive annoyance that he wasn't certain he could use a sympathetic tone anymore.

"Well what are you waiting for? Don't just stand there staring at me like a space cadet." Toga patted the area on the bed next to her, grinning a somewhat menacing grin that Izuku had found to reflect amicability in Toga despite it's objectionable appearance. "I like hanging out with you when we're talking or doing stuff, but that doesn't mean I enjoy watching you breathe."

"Oh. Sorry."

Izuku walked over to the bed with a few quick strides, trying to mask the feeling of vague unease that had enveloped him with the arrival of his recent epiphany. Only a short time ago he'd been desperate to feel anything at all, but here he was entirely unshaken by the idea that he was now unable to emote.

Maybe it had been a result of recent developments, but at this point Izuku wasn't even sure if clinging to humanity was worth the effort. Things were so much easier to face if he just bottled up his feelings and ignored them rather than face them. If he couldn't feel, then he couldn't feel guilty. He couldn't be kept up for numerous sleepless nights thinking about hi affliction. He couldn't blame himself for things, or wait until he was on the brink to perform a kill due to empathy to only worsen the end result, or want to die more and more with every passing breath because of the crushing weight of what he'd done, and was still doing, bearing down on him relentlessly.

If he had to live on, then maybe it was best to stop caring. That's what Toga did, and Dabi, and Kurogiri. But they did still care in a way. They were devoted to a cause they thought was right. Since Izuku didn't think anything he was doing was redeemable, he might as well stop caring entirely.

But then again, there was the rush he felt during a kill. He doubted he'd ever stop feeling that now. And he had to care, at least a bit, to keep his loved ones safe. The ones he refused to ever stop caring about no matter what, and always would care about until he died.

Izuku shook his head lightly as if to dispel his more macabre thoughts, focusing instead on the computer screen as he lowered himself to sit beside the blond girl. As he looked at the currently open Youtube tab, Izuku's eyes met with something he hazily recalled, but couldn't quite place.

"Party Blitz by Miss Meow?" He observed, reading the video's title aloud. "Why do I recognize that from somewhere? Not the song title but the artist I think."

Toga cast Izuku a confused glance.

"You don't know about Miss Meow? I guess it kinda makes sense if you aren't into pop idols, but I thought you'd hear about her for her hero work at least. She's pretty popular but low in the rankings because she devotes a lot of time to her pop group too. Apparently her dream was to always be a singer but she was pushed into heroics or something? When she was first out she was really talented and ranked up quick, but then she used the fame to moonlight in the music business. Eventually she got so far into the industry that heroics became her secondary job instead. She thinks that heroics really ins't the path for her but keeps it up because of the money and prestige. There are loads of interviews about it."

"Yeah, I think I remember now. I can't believe I forgot about her, especially since she seems like she'd be such an ideal target. Her quirk had something to do with probability manipulation, right?"

A jokingly pouting look fell over Toga's face as she clicked her mouse, exiting out of the tab before crossing her arms agressively.

"Oh come on, you're not really considering killing her are you? I like her music you know, I even invested in tickets for her upcoming tour. At least wait until then to do it if you have to!"

"Wait upcoming tour? How soon?"

Izuku's brain was already flying into a frenzy of analytics, trying to consider what he could recall of her quirk and fighting style. Miss Meow, or MM as she was often nicknamed, was a cheerful and generally outgoing individual. Her quirk, known as misfortune, caused those in her line of sight to have a higher probability of encountering unfavorable circumstances based on the intensity of her emotions. Paired with her considerable agility and combat skills, Meow's quirk would make her a formidable hero, and it was no wonder that she was pushed in that direction for her career.

While Izuku couldn't imagine anyone having such a well rounded quirk and not wanting to go into the field of heroics, he had no personal vendetta against the pop star. Nonetheless, an upcoming concert would pose a perfect opportunity to deliver his message, and the star's reluctance to use her training to help others did fit his previously stated ideals for the unforgivable hero.

"My ticket is for three days from now, but... You're not really considering attacking her at the concert right? You got lucky with Daystar since his house was so far out from the city and heroes never go to his parties, but that won't be the case with MM. The venue is pretty accessible by heroes and police, and I'm sure she's got fans in the profession who'll be in the crowd. Then again if anyone could pull it off it's be you, and you know I'd never pass up a chance to see you bloodied up onstage."

Toga made valid points. Izuku wasn't sure whether or not he'd be able to pull of something so risky, and now that more than his own life hung in the balance it probably was best not to shake the boat. But still, the higher the risk the higher the reward. Izuku was sure he could make his point without pulling off such a dangerous stunt considering how popular a topic of conversation Toga told him he was.

But still, he needed to attack a hero who he knew the location of, and one who was in a position to be recorded. Fighting a hero on patrol would work, but would have a similar, if not higher, risk factor to attacking someone at the concert anyways. Heroes on duty were known to be pretty trigger happy when it came to calling for backup, and since they were already suited up ready to fight it was impossible to have the same element of surprise that attacking a hero at liberty did.

All things considered he'd been very lucky that his debut had been set up as perfectly as it had. Since he was unlikely to find such an ideal situation again anyways, he might as well try for the concert. He was sure he could pull it off with his new abilities as long as he had a plan, and possibly some outside help.

"You're doing it again." Toga commented bluntly, tilting her head to look Izuku in the eyes. "You have that weird glazed look on your face that tells me you're thinking something complicated over. Care to explain?"

"I was just thinking that I'm fairly certain I can make this scenario work as long as a few conditions are met." Izuku met Toga's gaze with one of his own. "One of them is that you agree to help me. While I don't exactly have things planned out yet I do have an idea of how they could go, and you wouldn't be doing anything especially difficult or strenuous. If you want I can even wait until the last song to make a move, since you said you enjoy the music and all."

"Sure, I'll take you up on that offer. I haven't done anything fun in awhile." The girl responded easily, smiling from ear to ear. "But if I'm going to help you, I have a question to ask first."

Izuku raised an eyebrow in suspicion.

"Sure, I don't see why not."

"Good." Toga's eyes narrowed, her gaze becoming more intense as it met Izuku's. "Why are you so insistent on making such a public appearance? It made sense last time since we more or less made you, but now you have the option to be as covert as you want. Why disregard it? You hardly seem like the type to hog the spotlight or revel in attention, you're too modest, and I know it isn't to spread your earlier imposed ideals since they seem to be a facade for you, at least in the way that you presented them. If you were going to turn yourself in or reveal our location on live television, we'd pretty much be wrecked. I'm not saying I think you're going to turn traitor necessarily, but I've always found it hard to trust a person who's actions I can't logically justify. So, what's your game?"

The tension in the room had increased dramatically at those words, though Izuku felt almost as much anxiety on Toga's part as he did on his own at the words. She might be trying to intimidate him, but on at least some level she was terrified by the thought of being betrayed. The reaction made Izuku wonder what kind of past Toga had lived, and whether or not her lack of trust was a reflection of it.

She was showing a bit of vulnerability as well by revealing her thoughts on him, something he was sure she was aware of. Her question was designed to test the waters of Izuku's loyalty, and a threat was implied in the case that he didn't tell the truth.

Once again he doubted lying would do him any good, especially considering how adept at reading people Toga obviously was. Besides, this truth was hardly a dangerous one as long as long as she kept it to herself.

"Shigaraki threatened some people I care about so I want to do the same publicly in order to incite law enforcement to protect them." He fiddled with his fingers as he spoke, though his gaze never dropped from Toga's. "If he figures out about it he obviously won't be very happy, so I'd appreciate it if you kept this between us."

Toga seemed to visibly relax as Izuku explained himself, her smile turning from a tight smirk back to a natural grin.

"No problem. I wouldn't want to get you in trouble for no reason, and from what I know about you your reply seems pretty valid. Just don't say anything stupid enough to make me look bad for believing you."

"I can't make any promises, but I'll try."

Izuku attempted to smile back reassuringly, but was fairly certain that it didn't reach his eyes.

"I guess with that out of the way, the next step is planning." He announced, shaking off the lingering oddity of the motion. "Are you willing to spitball some ideas with me? With whats at stake I need this to be as full proof as possible."

"Sure thing, it'd be my pleasure Izu-kun!"

Aizawa Shota was having an even more difficult time than usual of staying awake as he graded the manifold of assignments on the desk in front of him, and it wasn't just due to the bland and often repetitive responses that his students had been inclined to produce in recent weeks.

Or, well, he supposed that was part of the issue, or at least a result of it. Nothing had been the same around UA after the Midoriya incident's initial occurrence, and things only seemed to worsen with each new development.

Before the lost student had reveled himself, the school had at least been capable of pretending they had control of the matter. Despite the popular media outlet's best efforts to the contrary the general public had always widely approved of UA, even after the public knowledge of a student's kidnapping was leaked. When the staff had made promises that the problem would be easily fixed, most people hadn't batted an eyelash. As far as their expectations were concerned, the story of Izuku Midoriya was likely to end happily with some popular hero or another arriving just in time to save the day, all while providing them with an entertaining story to balk at over dinner.

Of course there were still skeptics and naysayers, but even the majority of them had been inured to the threat of real danger or tragedy by the ever present security put in place by heroes. Even as a hero it was hard to blame them for complacency. When casualties occurred in the field, they were often covered up or ignored by the government in favor of maintaining positive public opinion. The speed and ease of information sped up the process, allowing only days to focus on a sob story before another uplifting one appeared to steal the spotlight, and people were normally far too ready to accept an easy platitude over a harsh truth.

The only time a more depressing story ever took the spotlight for long was when it was left inconclusive, or when it was so unprecedented that it couldn't help but draw attention to itself.

While the Midoriya case had been filed under the former category in the public eye for majority of it's beginning, recent developments had shifted it to the latter one. A UA student disappearing and turning traitor had never happened before, and morbidly enough the citizens of Japan seemed far more interested in making a show of the situation than trying to fix it.

Though some lamented the sorrow of the whole thing on social media in attempts to garner attention, others still agreed with or admired Midoriya's newly stated stance on heroics, professing their support for his actions and their proportional hatred of UA. While most pretended to care, people treated the whole thing as a fad or interesting fiction, choosing to place the blame for what had happened in the easiest and most obvious place possible, heroics courses.

All the while the news was blaming UA as well, going so far as to challenge it's authority as an institution. A couple of students from general studies had already unenrolled, leaving vacancies that couldn't be filled readily so late in the year. Even parents who had left their children at the school called often to check on security, worried that the newly arisen villain might return for revenge in some capacity.

Dealing with Inko Midoriya had been especially stressful. She wasn't any less livid now than she had been when the school had initially informed her of the kidnapping, dealing a few surprisingly choice words about having allowed he son to attend in the first place. She was certain that something unspeakable had happened to him based on his recent actions, insisting over and over again that whoever she'd seen on television wasn't Izuku, or at least not her Izuku.

Despite her strong insistence that UA should've prevented the issue originally or saved Izuku before whatever had happened to him had, it was fairly obvious that her anger was an outlet for worry and distress as much as it was genuine. When Aizawa had entered her apartment to talk to her, her face had been red and puffy, indicating tears, while her eyes had sported dark circles to rival his own.

Still, all he could do in the way of fixing the issue was ensure that the school, as well as unaffiliated pro heroes, would do their best to resolve it, which he was certain would never be enough for anyone at this point.

Even the usually unshakable All Might seemed to be concerned, more so, maybe, than even Aizawa. Despite his retirement he'd involved himself in the planning for the earlier false alarm search, and checked up regularly to see how things were proceeding. Aizawa supposed it wasn't odd considering that he had served as a teacher to 1-A as well, and even he cared about the well being of the students though he wouldn't admit it.

While Aizawa was capable of dodging reporters and ignoring negative feedback from the media, the most current main concern that he actually had any power to affect was for the performance of his class.

Though it was understandable that the students would be distracted by their peer's kidnapping and reappearance, Aizawa couldn't condone the drop in grades, focus, and sleep that the stress was creating. Though he felt it was likely better for the student's mental health to have time to process what was happening, they couldn't really take time off for risk of falling behind other hero schools. Decline in grades would stick with them for life, especially in such a competitive setting.

Midoriya Izuku had not only brought the school's reputation down, but might as well be pulling the other students along with him. While more reliable students maintained high enough marks, slackers could not, and even Momo, who was top of the class, was falling behind in physical training due to evident lack of rest.

At one point Aizawa had appointed Iida to ensure that the school's curfew was being upheld, but even he had been unreliable in the task.

Focusing back on the papers in front of him rather than on his thoughts, Aizawa continued grading, sighing as red marks began to pile up on the current paper. Though he wasn't anywhere near done, he decided to take a short break. He didn't know if he could handle reading any more spelling mistakes for the day before giving up and taking a nap, so it was probably better to find some sort of distraction first.

He dropped his pen lightly back onto the desk before heading over to his apartment's single couch. Though he normally didn't watch cable often, he wasn't in the mood to view anything that might make him disregard the ungraded papers in the long term. Without sitting down, he picked up the television remote off his coffee table and turned on the box.

His television, which had apparently last been some news channel or another, was displaying a headline similar to the one it had boasted during Izuku's visit to the party four or five days ago, but this time in a different location. A fight seemed to have ensued involving a boy with green hair as expected, and the footage was supposedly pretty fresh. Aizawa fished his cell phone out of his pocket, set to silent so he could grade papers in peace. Naturally there were over twenty missed calls.

"Shit."

There went any hope of being productive for the day.

Izuku struggled to keep his breathing inaudible as he crouched on the catwalk above the stage. Though he could've had Kurogiri transport him in further along in the concert, he'd made the decision to arrive earlier to scope out his environment, a choice he was quick to regret.

Everything about the performance from the songs to the audience felt trivial and fake. While at one time he might've enjoyed the frenzied excitement of the environment, now it only gave him the impression of emptiness. So many people dedicated to something so pointless and ineffectual simply for the sake of entertainment felt like nothing but a complete waste of time. Nothing about the event was thought provoking, or life changing, or meaningful in any way. It was all just mindless escapism.

The worst part about it all was how badly he wanted to be able to relate to these people but couldn't. He would give anything to have a life so ordinary that something so vapid could feel exciting and moving, not to mention how the people gathered were at liberty to forget their troubles and be swept up in the thrill of the moment. Any negative feelings he had about their enjoyment stemmed from jealously, and the fact that he was aware of it didn't make things any more bearable.

Besides, the obnoxiously loud music blaring around him made it difficult to concentrate on anything at all, much less his strategy.

When Izuku and Toga had run their idea by Kurogiri, he'd agreed to allow them to execute it on the condition that he would be quickly alerted were any of it's steps to fail. Though he'd seemed surprised by the fact that the two were working together, he hadn't objected to Toga's involvement either, and had even provided the two with the equipment they'd needed.

There was the issue of Shigaraki being unaware of the exploit, but Izuku figured that whatever reaction he had after the plan was through would be worth the ability to operate without being in a later stage of the command's effects. It seemed as though Kurogiri had purposefully kept the plan a secret from the other villain to help Izuku, and he couldn't help but be grateful. What he had planned would take much more clarity to carry out than his last endeavor, and he was certain it wouldn't work were he in a more desperate state.

To pass the time until his cue, Izuku decided to study his target onstage, but quickly gave up. Just as Miss Meow's hero and idol names were the same, so were the themes of her outfits. While both resembled back cats with their fake ears and tails, the idol dress was much less practical and more decorative. The distinction did little other than make him realize how unfair a fight he was going to initiate even considering how much better backed his opponent was sure to be, which served no real purpose in the long run. It would be more useful to watch Toga at work.

As per his instructions, Toga would currently be weaving through the crowd planting covert smoke bombs at different locations. Though she'd gotten in with a ticket, Izuku had had to carry her bag for her through one of Kurogiri's portals to avoid the discovery of the devices, handing the supplies to her at a rendezvous point before the show began.

If at any point security became suspicious of Toga, she had been instructed to use her quirk to prevent her capture and keep up anonymity. From what Izuku could tell it hadn't come to that yet though.

Toga was surprisingly talented at staying hidden, even with her attention drawing appearance. Her disguise for the outing wasn't even too varied from her regular appearance, just a floral dress paired with a cat themed surgical mask and pink glasses. It seemed as though what really sold the whole thing was her drastic change in mannerism, both vocally and physically. Then again, her hair was down as well, which could've contributed quite a bit to the ensemble.

She had already successfully planted the majority of the smoke bombs, and there was only one more left until they would be ready to detonate at the show's finale, which, Izuku realized with a start, wasn't really too far off based on the current music. Toga had given him a rundown of the songs that would be playing so he could keep track of the time, and if he was correct this was the second to last number, which meant that prepping would have to begin on his end as well.

Since MM's quirk activated on a sight basis, only effecting targets that were visible to her, Izuku would have to stay a safe distance away until he was sure he could end things quickly. If that method failed, then he would risk close combat, but he didn't want to resort to that unless absolutely necessary.

Hopefully the distraction of the smoke bombs in the crowd would confuse the women enough to render her emotion-based quirk ineffective in that case, but there was no guarantee. The plan also largely banked off the idea that the crowd would either assume the smoke bombs were a part of the show upon their activation, or be too distracted to realize what was happening until it was too late.

It was both a blessing and a curse that the stage was high enough above the crowd that the smoke wouldn't obscure visibility atop it, since both parties would be able to see clearly in the event of a fight. If security came to help before Izuku could finish the job and say what he needed to, then it was Toga's duty to fend them off. When everything was done, the two would call up a portal and escape together or separately depending on where they ended up.

As the final song began, Izuku started making his way down a ladder leading backstage, receding back into more shady areas when crew members and performers passed by. Most people were too busy or focused to even look in his direction as they passed by, and he had made his way behind a stage prop near enough to his target to attack, but far enough away to avoid notice from the crowd.

After the song's final line rang out across the stage, he heard a surprised din of yells accompany it in the crowd. Peering around the side of the prop, he saw that the smoke bombs had detonated and were beginning to quickly permeate the large room. While some people looked a bit confused, others seemed excited, expectant of the event foreshadowing another number or encore.

When the tendrils of smoke finally reached the foot of the stage, Izuku leaped out towards his bemused target. If he could get there soon enough without being seen, he could probably finish things quickly with a blow to the head or spine.

But of course he was never so lucky. The hero turned around midway, her mouth open as if about to ask what was going on, before her eyes met with Izuku's and her expression changed from perplexity to a mix of determination and fear. She reacted surprisingly fast, eyes turning from their natural dark brown to a glowing yellow to signify the activation of her quirk as she shifted into a fighting stance.

Just before Izuku's leg swung out for a kick, something collided jarringly with his torso, pinning him down against the stage. He reached out to push off the weight as quickly as possible, coming to find out it was a stage light as his hand connected with sharp, shattered glass.

Though he winced, he still managed to rid himself of the object and roll out of the way of MM's oncoming attack, though his actions sent him closer to the stage's edge than he was comfortable with.

"You! You're that kid from the news, aren't you?" The idol hissed, advancing once more to attack. "I don't know what you think you're doing, but you aren't going to get away with it!"

Once again Izuku got himself to his feet in time to sidestep the women's first punch, but they didn't seem to be stopping. The more he back stepped to avoid the attacks the closer he became to the precariously tall drop at the stage's edge, a fall he wasn't eager to experience. noticing a weak spot in the women's guard, Izuku attempted to exploit it, but once again was met with the same awful luck as before.

The microphone and it's stand, which had fallen in the earlier chaos, were now directly in his path, and he tripped over them as he went in to punch. As an upside the fall did throw his opponent off balance enough to stumble back however, and Izuku was able to make a mad scramble to the other end of the stage as she regained her balance, though not before picking up the microphone to take with him.

After he was sure he was a safe distance away, Izuku stopped, holding the item above his head as his opponent approached. Based on how loud the music had been playing earlier during the performance, the microphone would've had to have been set to amplify noise by an obnoxious amount. When MM was just out of combat range, Izuku yelled into the microphone as loud as he could. Though the noise wasn't pretty, it was extremely jarring, echoing across the room from numerous speakers at what sounded like full volume.

The unanticipated sound caused the hero across from Izuku to cringe, covering her ears and closing her eyes in surprise. He didn't waste the presented opportunity, using the opening to deliver a quick, quirk boosted kick to the women's head.

Unlike with Daystar, the first hit was fatal, and as soon as Izuku saw the women's neck snap back he was met with the familiar feeling of a kill. It wasn't until the adrenaline wore off that he realized with a jolt of discomfort that he hadn't hesitated at all when landing the blow.

Regardless though, he had to make his announcement while he could. He took the microphone he had used seconds before, turning down the volume to a point that he thought would carry well without being accompanied by music, and turned to look into a camera rigged on a platform in the crowd. The smoke was finally clearing, so he knew he'd have to be quick.

"Hello everyone. Though I'm sure you all know me by now, I'd like to introduce myself just in case you're a bit behind on the news. My name is Midoriya Izuku, and if my actions are any indicator, I'm a villain." As soon as he began speaking, Izuku saw people in the audience begin to flee towards exits or scramble to pull out their cell phones. "I'm sorry to ruin tonight's show, but I have some important information I'd like to impart before I leave. While it's true that my current attacks are going to continue, I'd urge whatever heroes are listening to consider that from now on they will be more varied. In our society, heroes aren't the only ones with flaws, and this is something I experienced myself. While heroes will remain my main targets, you can also expect me to go after those who have wronged me in the past regardless of civilian or in-training status. Thank you for your time. Please don't make the mistake of taking my warning lightly."

With that Izuku turned the mic off before tossing it away, hitting a button on his communicator.

"Hey Toga, you ready to go?" He asked, partially focusing on the panic ensuing below. "It'd probably be best if we could meet to leave onstage."

"Way ahead of you!" A voice answered across the feed. "I'm coming on right now!"

Toga entered from the right wing, bounding over to join Izuku in the middle of the stage. Based on the amount of blood on her hands and clothing, she had needed to hold off security at at least some point during his fight.

As soon as Toga was close, Izuku buzzed the button on his transceiver that alerted Kurogiri, and a portal appeared for the two to walk through.

They were only just gone when reinforcements began to fill the stage.

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