Green Scale
Chapter 23 ~ Impending Doom
Rated M
I Don't Own MHA
MIKE202303 Thanks!
Rovsan143 ~ Yep, big fanboy right here lol. I'm addicted to that Manhwa, ngl. No one in the story is having the same abilities as Jin-Woo, but one character can control shadows (though it takes inspiration from Pride in FMAB and Monster King Orochi in One Punch Man). Jin just has too many abilities, and with how busted the shadow character already is; adding more skills and quirks would be severe overkill.
Bio RL ~ I can already feel the pain of waiting for a good fic to update. Happens all the time when I find something and get hooked lol. I do try to update on a schedule, but sometimes chapters are a real pain to write (or my brain just says "lol no" and bails on me), so I may take longer. Regarding the American heroes; they have boosted their quirks through intense training and other methods that will be revealed later, but they are legit. They got all their power from their own strength and had the guidance of the person that knows the most about quirks in the world. I'm looking forward to all the things you have to ask in future chapters!
MumenRideYou ~ Well I was intending for Akira to be EXTRA BUSTED when compared to everyone else but the best of the best, and I guess I succeeded? He's gonna be one of the main forces in the story, both on the frontlines and inside the heads of everyone else… Btw that name is fucking legendary!
Sinister10tails ~ I'm crazy about pokemon too, but I gotta say that the new games are really dropping in quality (starting from gen 6 imo). I love all of them (except SW/SH) but I really wish that game freak tried harder with a series that billions know of. Ngl if you are picking a starter, I'd go straight for Incineroar too. Decidueye would get clapped by literally anything with its slow speed, and that seal one isn't much better. I'd suggest just dropping the starters though, mainly because you can find way better fire/water/grass types in the game. This goes for all Pokemon games, but I really just tend to get the most OP team possible lol.
Guest ~ Thanks a bunch!
(Izuku's POV / The Beast's Forest)
It hasn't been too long since my encounter with the Hero Killer at Hosu, and while most people think it would do me good to just take time off and focus on school; in reality, it's the opposite…
About a week after I brought down Stain in that alley, it was revealed that the armoured truck transporting him had been attacked by a third party that didn't belong to heroes or villains of the Hosu area. Not even the most skilled detection heroes could find out what blew the truck wide open, but it was easy to assume that the projectile had no difficulty ripping through the thick steel and killing everyone inside, because it seemed that the interior had melted from the heat of whatever was hurled at the truck...
The officers manning the transport were both executed instantly with the first apparently being decapitated by some form of blade that sliced through the bullet-proof windshield, and the second being blown up by the thing that destroyed the vehicle...but what really made my skin cold was the information that the Hero Killer had also died in the attack…
Not because a strong villain was brought down, but because of the manner of the murder…
It was planned and executed like some sort of game…
It was a perfect murder...
It seemed like he'd been forcefully ejected from the vehicle mere seconds before it exploded… Judging from his corpse, it wasn't quick, and when the heroes arrived at the scene moments later, they bared witness to only Stain's dying breath…
Even a thorough sweep of the entire area found nothing of the killer...
The attacker slipped through their fingers and didn't seem to leave any evidence behind, but what made me fearful was how Stain died… He had been scorched by some sort of force that burned both flesh and bone, and considering the man was still alive when the heroes showed...it meant that the hitman forced him to stay alive through pain that would kill anyone else…
Yeah, he was tortured…and seemingly for the personal pleasure of the culprit...
This unexpected turn has made me more nervous than ever, all because the threat of danger and violence has only ramped up in recent weeks. I had Hosu and the USJ before today, and on both of those occasions, I felt an ominous feeling wrap around me just before things went to hell…
I'm having that same feeling now, actually…
We are secretly being moved over to a rural woodland to train our quirks, and the catch is that no one else in the school, or the world knows where we are. The area continuously moves thanks to the quirk of one of the pros, and the fact that its on a mountain range only adds to the hidden aspect. We now have bonafide pros and two skilled UA teachers watching our backs now, which means that we're safer than ever…
But still, I don't feel like that today…
I remember sniffing out the trap set for me in Hosu City, and sensing the white light at the top of the USJ that turned out to be Prism...and I had the same shadow looming over me when I did, making me freeze with fear. However, in both those situations, I was vulnerable and outnumbered… We were left to fend for ourselves as a class…
We have pros now, and my class has become stronger since the sports festival a month ago. Theoretically, with the terrain advantage and Class B giving us a big increase in numbers and power...we should stomp any villain group that comes to take me. Class B is arguably on the same level as us when I'm out of the picture, so they would aid us greatly in the fight against villains, and the camp is almost completely hidden from the outside world with no one else knowing about it…
Meaning that the only way villains could find us...is if a mole were present...
We should be safe…but we aren't…
That voice in my head gets louder as the days go by, and my body has been going through more changes recently...but those aren't issues for me…
I have the class to protect from danger, my own quirk to hone...and even a girlfriend to care for…
But…
They aren't my main worry…
Bakugou is…
(The Training Camp)
It was nearing the end of the day, and this was the second of many in the remote training camp that spanned miles. The whole class were training their quirks and making sure that they bolstered their physical abilities before the provisional licence exams turned their ugly heads, and now even class B was joining them in the fun.
Whether they be weak or strong; the students would physically and mentally strain themselves to improve the power they'd been blessed with. For Class A - the class with the most time in the spotlight - they had faced deadly threats in the space of 3 months and made a name for themselves by adapting to the situation and taking full advantage of what was in front of them, but that came at a cost. They had honed their instincts and understanding of the hero world to the level of some second years, but they had missed out on the physical growth thanks to all the disasters erupting around them.
These disasters didn't seem to be stopping anytime soon, so Aizawa and Vlad took the initiative and pushed their classes out into a boot camp for a week to harden their bodies and the powers that enhanced them…
The power types were making all kinds of noise while adapting to the heavy strain that their abilities gave them, and the more technical ones were improving their powers in more unique ways, like constant overuse and training of the human body.
It was really interesting for you to see, but there was someone missing from this group…
"Hey Aizawa… You sure we made the right call by letting Midoriya go up on that mountain by himself? For what we know, he could be the hidden mole that we're looking for, and he could use that solitude to alert the villains…"
"Come off it…" Eraserhead flatly replied. "Even though I didn't suspect him at all...I shook him down just to make sure he wasn't bugged, so don't go accusing my students…"
"No, that isn't it. I'm just concerned about what that mighty quirk could do up there. Hasn't it crossed your mind that he could bring down that entire cliff face?"
Aizawa nodded. "That's true, but we both know that he's more intelligent than that. He'd know where to aim if anything…"
Vlad just had to agree, but this feeling didn't go away…
He still didn't trust the boy entirely like most of the staff did now...but he was leaving that to the side for now, because there were bigger fish to fry tonight…
This entire outing was just to stall…
They knew that the Fangs would attack the kid soon, so they had the idea to hide him away in the training camp for a week, allowing his family time to come to Japan and offer reinforcements…
In other words…
It was all for Izuku Midoriya's safety…
But that safety was not guaranteed...
(Mountain Range)
Izuku scowled as he melted down another boulder in seconds, feeling his hand slowly slip from his control and droop to his side. It seemed that if he used his fire much more than his scales, it would overheat his body and cause it to weaken for a short period. It was troublesome as a drawback, but it was nothing but an annoyance if he was able to balance the use of both abilities.
Though even that would prove to be hard…
It was like frying two different foods simultaneously. If your attention was taken for even a moment, one dish could burn up into char while the other remained intact, and if you were really sloppy, both could become mush by the end of your endeavor. If he used his fire too much, he'd weaken his body, and if he used his scales too much, he'd rip up his muscles…
There was one single silver lining though…
That was that when he mastered the two abilities in tandem, he would become twice as strong as he was now… It was kinda like Todoroki's fire and ice, except with lethal consequences if he fucked up…
He knew next to nothing about how Red Scale fought, and what level of mastery he held over his fire and scales, but for him to be so strong that even All Might froze at his name, he would have been miles ahead of the student… Apparently, he could destroy entire countries with his fire and generate earthquakes by just walking, like a natural calamity...so it was safe to assume that Izuku was hot garbage in comparison…
'At my level now, I'm probably stronger than most of the Japanese pro heroes, but there are a few near and above the top 20 that could still kick my ass without much effort. Sure, I could just melt them to ash with my fire, but I would have to control said flame, make sure to manage the output, account for the opponent's speed and power...and obviously not even use it because heroes can't kill…'
It was quite the troublesome quirk he had…
He'd mysteriously obtained the power of a natural disaster...and yet he couldn't use said power because it would harm those around him and inspire fear…
Ǐ̶̝̰̜̳̤̺̿͌f̸̗̗̯͈̲͓̘̈́ ̴͉͐̽͝h̷͉͆è̷̢͉̄̾̂̕͜ ̵̝͎͕̼͒́͗͛̽w̸̧̯̺͚̬̹̐̎a̷̛̜̩̔̾̿̍̚͝s̶͍̻͎̳̀͌̍͠͝ ̸̭̄̓̀͝͝ä̶̜̖̯̟́̋̔̄̂̍ͅ ̸͕̳͇͍̰̋̀̈́̎͗͘v̸͎̩̰̳̿̚i̴̥̹̘͔͈͂̉̏̕̕l̸͚̟̮̳͛̈̐̓͋̕ļ̷̡̼͚̘̪̙̋́́̚a̷̠͉̬̐̿́̈́͠í̵̩͕̬̰͕̖̅̋n̷͓̟͓̩̈̀,̵̫̊̾̽̾̄ ̴̺́̾͒̊̓h̷̢͓̭̪̬͆̉͗̎̐͋ẻ̷̬͖̖͓̆̍̈́̔̉̚ ̸̱̬̦̼̋ẘ̸̧͙͙͙̺o̶͕̐̄̈́͝͝͝͝u̵͖̼̣͎̗̇l̶͇̭̊̒͗͊͠ḍ̴̻̉̆͛͗̿͝ņ̶̩̣̰͊͆ͅͅ'̶͉̝̻̻͔͛͊́̇͑̅ţ̷̹͍̫̬͋̌̔̈̈́̈́ ̷̝̹̩̀̆͑̅̓͘h̴̭̗̟͛͗͜͝á̸̎͜v̵̧̱͚̪̀͂̔̄́̽̍͜ȅ̷̩̲̍̅͒̓̉͝ ̷͎̜̮̇͌͘t̵̬̺̱̗̆ơ̸̧̱̰̘͒̏ ̸͉̠̯̓̈́̌̽͛͝w̸̢̧͎̩̳͖̯͛̈́̅̆o̷̤̪͙͌r̵̨̬͔̦̼̯̈́̊̅̋͊̿ŕ̶̨̦͔͉̬̼̘̈͌ỳ̴̺̦̫̱̀̓͊̏̍ ̵͍̅ȃ̶̧̋̊͘̚͜͝b̸̢̞͍̮̗̫́͊͒͗͘o̴̜̮̺̹̪̐͜u̶͔̽ţ̶̜͇̺̋̅͋͛͛͊͝ ̸̮̩̹̣̬̓͛̊͛͠ͅt̴̰̘̮̉͒̈́ẖ̴͎̖͚̲̊̃͜a̵̡̭͂̈́̾t̵͍̻̳́̃̍̆.̶̧̨̛̬̹̤̘̣̐́̉̽͂͘.̵͉̻͒̈́̓͜
It was hard for the boy not to pity himself in times like these…
But there was something bothering him…
"Kota…"
(Last Evening)
"Hey Midoriya! The hell did you leave us behind for!?" Kaminari screeched from the last area of trees.
The last of the class...or the less capable...as Izuku has mentally classed them, all made it out of the forest and were riddled with bruises and dirt…
"Midoriya… How did you get here so fast?" Iida asked in bewilderment, slightly ashamed that he'd lost in a contest of speed. "You were only walking...the last time I saw you…"
"My fire comes in handy when I'm faced with these things, you know?" the boy smiled. "It may be hard to traverse when you're flying around the trees at top speed, but just burning the entire pathway down was enough for me. I scouted ahead and saw that no one would be in the line of fire, and then just shot out the required amount of flame."
"I-I thought you couldn't control it."
Izuku showed him his shaking arm. "I can't, but shooting it in a straight line is easier than you think. It takes a toll on my body every time I use it, and even when I pair it up with my accumulated scales, the effects are still rough for me. It's why I limit myself all the time and just use short bursts of it."
"I see…" Iida felt his arm and could feel the vibration in it. "Does your flames sap your energy, like Yaoyorozu and Sato's quirks? I can see how difficult it must be to balance control and strength like that…"
"It's a small price to pay for salvation... If I'm able to use this amount of power as a first year student, I can make up for the drawbacks by just limiting myself." said Izuku as he looked around in boredom…
This was supposed to be a camp to test your quirks and make them stronger, but all he was seeing was some sort of field trip…
'This is already getting stale… I should go and survey the area...check for places that villains could enter fr-' His thoughts suddenly came to a halt when he saw a child nearby.
There was a small boy, probably under the age of 6 still, and he had this nasty scowl on his face as he watched him. Izuku was quite impressed that the boy had enough resentment not to fear him, but that stare was troubling when it came from someone so young.
Mandalay could see the most famous student in the school looking her way, and when she realised that the interest was directed to her cousin, she became worried. 'That boy is known for his anger… Did Kota upset him with his behaviour?'
Normally, she wouldn't associate her close relative with someone that could do them harm, but this was a different case. This guy could go on to be a great hero, so having him form somewhat of a friendly relationship with Kota could go a long way in the small child's development.
"Hey Iida, I'm gonna introduce myself to the kid. It's best if we make a good impression early on."
The engine user looked around in confusion. "They brought a child to a training camp? Just what are UA thinking?"
"Who knows? I have nothing better to do though~" He laughed to himself as he walked away, leaving Iida to the rest of the class.
The kid glared at him as he walked over, and it seemed to be almost bitter hatred behind his eyes, which made him question what the kid had experienced in the past. 'Rough upbringing, or perhaps a grudge against hero schools...or maybe against heroes in general… Curious…'
He'd have liked to help the kid out of whatever notion he had about the protectors of peace in Japan, but he looked far too stubborn to allow that right now. He knew enough to realise that a stranger trying to sway him would be annoying. "Is he yours?" he asked Mandalay.
The neko blinked slightly at his current question. "My cousin's. He's staying with us for now…"
The boy picked up some sorrow in her tone and then looked to the kid, seeing him react slightly to it. Izuku stepped closer to the child and knelt down. "What's your name?"
He didn't reply, only strengthening the glare he had.
'There's some sort of problem I haven't picked up on…' He thought to himself as he watched the boy keenly. He was an average build and didn't look like some prodigy in anything. He assumed that the child was of average intelligence and his quirk wasn't strong enough to make the pussycats cautious...but his attitude was the problem. 'What's his deal anyway? Did his parents die or something? Or did they abandon him?'
He pondered this for a while, knowing that he would have resented his father if not for the man's moving words in their last moments together. He could see how that would affect a kid of this age, and he could relate to that in a way, because he replaced anger with sadness at his brother and father's absence…
Anyway, he needed to set an example and represent the class while Iida organised them from behind. "My name's Izuku Midoriya...and I'm a first year at UA. This is my class, and we'll be staying here for a while." he gestured to the students behind him with a welcoming smile while secretly scanning the kid for any underlying emotions. "I hope you don't mind us staying here. The whole load of us are here to get stronger and develop our quirks, so we'll be in your way for a couple days. Sorry if it's an inconvenience."
He said this just to quickly check if this anger was just petty towards all of them intruding on his turf, but the guy's scowl didn't cease.
Mandalay watched the two and knew that her second cousin wouldn't stand for a rising star of the hero world talking to him, even if the kid was being surprisingly nice. It was best to separate the two of them… "Hey Ko-"
"You like heroes?" Izuku asked honestly.
Something seemed to snap in the child as he heard those words, and his face contorted in anger as he threw a punch…
"Kota!" Pixie-bob shouted in surprise as she rushed over to them.
The shout garnered the attention of the rest of the class and Mr Aizawa, who was over by the entrance of the building.
The child growled in a feral way and put all his power into that punch, but all he felt was something soft receiving it…
"So you hit the people that try to help you?"
He was sure that he'd aimed right for the neck when the guy crouched down...so how could he speak? He'd learned that from Tiger, and wanted to test it out on someone that annoyed him...but did it not work?
"I barely felt it...but that wasn't bad for someone of your size." Izuku smiled.
Kota looked up to see his fist swallowed by the older boy's palm.
He'd just punched him, so why was there no anger in those eyes?
The two pro heroes dragged the child away, but the boy's expression was now one of shock as he looked Izuku dead in the eyes and wondered why the kid didn't even flinch…
"You alright Midoriya?" Todoroki came and asked, fearing that he would have retaliated.
"I'm fine…" was all he said as he watched the boy stop resisting and make his way inside…
He stood there for a while and let the rest of the class go into the building without him…
It was then, when he was alone, that he sighed sadly.
"Could I have been like that...if you didn't say those words to me?"
He'd learned the kid's name was Kota, and that he was the son of the Water Hose heroes that were viciously slaughtered by a nameless villain in the recent past. It made him pity the boy for having that loss at such a young age and drew the conclusion that he'd taken a dislike to heroes because of what happened to his parents…
Was it out of concern, or perhaps frustration in his parents?
The kid probably didn't understand why heroes put their lives on the line to save others...and that got him confused and angered by his parent's passing…
Izuku didn't have any electronic devices or access to the internet because the school feared that this "traitor" would use such things to contact outside forces, so he couldn't research the crime and how Kota's parents died. He wanted to press Mandalay for info and know more about his parents and the person that attacked them, but he also didn't want to open up old wounds and upset the group of heroes protecting the boy…
All he had figured out was that the villain had a muscle augmentation quirk…
He'd remember that…
Izuku was now atop one of the tallest trees in the beast forest and overlooking the entire training camp. He knew that no one would be able to find him if they didn't know where to look, and he thought that just fooling around inside would be detrimental to his growth…
And there was also the threat of villains…
He would have used the mountainside as a vantage point earlier, but Mandalay had informed him that it was normally used as Kota's area of solitude. The poor guy would hide away on that cliffside for hours on end and it must have been his only way of coping with the loss of his parents, so Izuku thought it would be wise not to melt down any more boulders.
'This place seems like the only safe spot I have in Japan. I'm almost certain that at least one of the fangs are here in this country, and I really can't hide anywhere from them, but because of a threat that big, I've forgotten about the league of villains…'
It was true that he'd looked down on Tomura Shigaraki because of the villain's performance in the USJ and the fear he showed at the sight of the green dragon's power, but that disintegration quirk was lethal like Izuku's fire and could turn any of his close friends into dust before his eyes. Combat prowess and courage aside; he was still very dangerous in almost anyone's eyes, and he knew that the league wouldn't be above using hostages and meat shields…
If they really did attack...then he'd be focusing on keeping Momo and the others safe, along with Kota if he could.
Right now, he could probably take the two members that showed up months ago, but Izuku wasn't naive enough to believe that it was all the league had to offer… They sent out over 100 Nomu in Hosu, and that was probably because they had way more in reserve, and the head of the league - the dark overlord All For One - once ruled Japan with an iron fist and an army of followers, so it was easy to assume that the villains had even more members that UA didn't know about…
Stronger members…
"If they were to make a move tonight, I could probably hold out against anything they throw at me...but if they have half a brain and stake me out for a day or two...then we're in trouble. My body's already feeling a fraction of the quirk's drawbacks, and by the end of our time here, I'll be beat...and maybe even one of my classmates could beat me…"
He wasn't prioritizing his own safety, but the safety of those around him… Momo was still vulnerable to attacks and most of the class would lose to villains of Kurogiri's level, so protecting them was the main goal… People like Todoroki and Bakugou could be left alone right now…
And on the topic of Bakugou…
Izuku suspected that he held all the answers he needed about this attack…
(A Mountain Range Near The Camp)
"I thought you said the kid had insane detection. We're right here and he doesn't feel a thing?" Mustard commented in an almost mocking way.
He was standing at the top of a hill and used his binoculars to watch the teenager above the forest. While you would believe them to be hundreds of miles away to avoid his senses, they were all actually within walking distance of the camp, and could come down to the main area in less than a minute without much trouble…
It was past midnight and most of the students were in their beds...utterly defenceless and open to attack…
Dabi sent a warning glance at the highschooler. "Watch your mouth, brat. That kid could probably take a good number of us before exhausting himself…"
"Then let me loose… I wanna crush him myself!" Muscular grinned as his hand cracked menacingly.
"Not yet. We wait until the lot of us are ready, and then we strike…"
"And who made you the boss? Wanna see who's stronger?" the huge man threatened with a cruel laugh…
Dabi seemed to almost debate melting away the meathead's arm, but resisted the urge…
"We've picked the perfect time to strike… There are only a handful of pros, and we have hard counters for all the strong students… Butchering them while they sleep would be childsplay with that warping guy around, and even if we did run into the kid, there's nothing he can do against all 10 of us…"
"Yeah, just match him against me and I'll break him to pieces!"
"No, you won't…" Compress sighed. "You could be incinerated by his fire, and even if you do beat him, those fang hooligans would just come for you."
"Ugh…" Muscular growled in annoyance as he clipped his mask back on.
Dabi looked across to the forest and watched what he thought was Izuku jump deeper into the woods. 'That kid is trouble… Even I can't kill people that fast with my fire, and when you add his combat ability that could beat even Stain, it'd be an almost unwinnable fight for most of us…'
He glanced back at the barely contained Muscular. 'With his speed and power probably being greater than the kid's...there's a good chance that the crazy bastard would win, and he's probably the only one with those odds...but if he kills him…'
The villains all knew what would happen if the kid died, as they'd seen what was happening to Shigaraki at the hideout…
They didn't want any part of that nightmare…
But something told them that Muscular wouldn't care…
Compress watched Dabi and knew he was thinking the same thing… He too could feel that monster breathing down their necks as they thought about how they would begin the attack, and they could even tell where he was in the camp…
That guy was the only reason that they were concealed, and the only reason why that kid hadn't alerted the pros and ran after them yet…
But he was also the reason why someone as insane as Muscular was hesitating…
{Dabi… With the tools at your disposal, you should be able to eliminate every student in the camp, but only stick to the target list. Deviations from this order will upset our guests, and I'm sure we don't want that.} Ujiko spoke through the com.
"Yeah, I'll only wipe out the ones that get in the way. Do you have anyone you wanna exclude or keep safe? Cause I'm not a fan of killing innocents."
{No, your goal isn't to attack the school, but Izuku Midoriya himself. Everyone else is just a bonus for us, and killing those on the list will eliminate future threats.}
"The kids on this list could barely be considered good enough for UA, except one or two, so how would they be threats? Seems kinda sketchy…"
{Think as you please, as this isn't my predictions, but someone that knows your foes very well…}
"The mole?"
{Someone else…}
Dabi's eyes narrowed at the doctor's cryptic way of speaking. "Well we'll do what you want for now, but don't hide anything important from me. I'll kill you if lack of info leads to the attack's failure…"
{Lack of ability is the only thing that would factor into your defeat Dabi… For your sake, I suggest you collect the child and bring him back here-}
And the transmission was cut off…
Dr Ujiko…
That slimy scumbag was the only other person besides the League's boss that knew anything about the kid they came here for, and for some reason or another, neither of them would reveal a thing about why this guy was so useful. He could melt anything down in seconds and had power that already came close to Muscular, so that level of power coupled with his desire to be a hero made him a threat to them. He didn't like the idea of killing innocents, much less children, but if this kid could grow up to be just as strong as Red Scale, he needed to die.
"That's the guy that makes those Nomu things? Is he gonna dissect that kid or something?" Asked Toga.
"Who knows…" Dabi didn't bother passing on any info to the psycho. The reason he alone knew the doctor's name and voice was because Shigaraki and his master thought that the rest of them were at risk of being captured. If the location of their Nomu labs was revealed to the heroes, they could take out the most powerful element of their current strength and stop those freakishly strong monsters from multiplying.
Looking at the group now, he could tell that they were all far above the average pro in either power or technique, but they still had their individual problems. Whether it be their toxic egos or their quirk's crippling weaknesses, they were all vulnerable under certain circumstances and Dabi was the only member of the squad that had the smallest amount of faults. Sure his quirk had a major drawback, but that was the total of his weaknesses, and he had nothing else holding him back. If push came to shove and they were actually facing people that could do damage, he'd have the best chance of making it out or defeating them all.
Of course, the secret boss of the league had sent someone else to ensure that the child comes with them, but Dabi was sure that they'd be able to completely wipe these students and pros out before the sun rose…
(The Beast's Forest)
Bakugou's fist hit the trunk of a tree with a thump as he slumped down on the floor of the woods…
He was sweating buckets and his shirt was drenched from all of it…
His hands and arms were shaking from the fear in him, and his breathing was erratic as he looked up to the full moon.
"Fuck...this…" he panted as he slammed his fist down on the ground weakly…
All his strength was gone and he was utterly exhausted, but that wasn't due to overuse of his quirk or the interference of someone else, but because of the crippling terror that was overtaking every inch of his body right now…
When Volt Break beat him down and put him in his place, he felt like the weakest person in the world and knew that he could do nothing but sit back and take damage as the fists flew into him at speeds far surpassing mach 1… The fear that consumed him made him weak and pathetic, and even with his huge ego normally cancelling out any wounds to his pride, he'd been scarred that day…
There had not been someone in his entire life - not even All Might - that had strength he considered unfair… The foreign hero's movements were faster than the naked eye could follow and the power of each attack was easily enough to break bones like they were flimsy hollow sticks...but even then, it looked like he was holding back almost everything he had… It humiliated him when he realised that the hero didn't even need a drop of his real strength to overwhelm and utterly crush him, and when he realised that the yellow haired menace was only rank 3...he shuddered to think what 2 and 1 would be like…
Apparently, the ten best heroes of America were detached from all others in the world and held strength that was unnatural even for the best on the planet, and yet the 3 best were considered strong even among them. Knowing that these guys held strength he couldn't even comprehend, it shook his very core to think what they could do to the world with that…
He needed to get way stronger to deal with those people, but he had no clue how he'd get there. He was in UA - the top hero school in Japan - and yet he felt like he'd still not even be a blimp on the radar when in his final year…
And then there was Izuku…
The nerd he'd always thought was powerless had now risen to a level he couldn't hope to match. Maybe with just his scales he'd be able to do something, but now the guy had fire that could reduce him to atoms, so he could lose his life if he tried to fight him again. It was just impossible for him to even try to surpass that right now, and it didn't help that Deku now suspected him of something.
This wasn't the time to be jealous, because he knew that his former friend was in danger, and that he was the only one that could save him… Before he vanished from the city, Hoshino told him that the fangs were getting impatient and had stopped waiting to lure the boy out. They were going to find him soon, and this camp could possibly be the battlefield where he sees his only real friend taken before his eyes…
As much as he detested Izuku for hiding his strength and becoming arrogant like himself, he never wanted the guy to become a villain. Sure, he knew that if Izuku ever turned bad in the future, there would be no one to stop him committing atrocities, and if he was in league with his counterpart, the world was doomed; but above all, he just didn't want to lose his friend…
They'd never been that close after his explosion quirk came to be, and he could tell that Izuku now hated him more than anyone else, but with the time he had as a student and a peer of the green dragon, he wanted to rekindle the friendship that he washed away as a kid…
But there was one thing stopping all that from happening…
One thing that would lead to Izuku's capture and the deaths of every last student here…
One thing that silenced Bakugou…
And that was the parting words of the lightning hero that hung a shadow of death over his family…
…
…
...
"You know of my power, and now of what will become of your former friend, but you're not gonna say a word…" Volt Break said in a serious tone.
"Those fangs are gonna come for your friend...and the next time they do, you'll know all about it. They're cooperating with the League of Villains and using their hideout as a base of operations, but because of this, they also have access to any members of this organisation, and can use whoever they want to carry out a task. What I'm saying is that you are not safe, and they will choose the next possible moment to snatch away the kid."
"They would have taken him already if there was no chance of being seen, but such an opportunity hasn't yet presented itself, and now that our master's arrival is within the next month...they have drastically changed their movements. If we were to arrive before or during Izuku's capture, then there would have been a battle, and such a conflict would demolish any chance of Izuku joining them…"
The hero pointed straight at him. "Normally telling this to anyone would mean that I'm about to execute them...but you are a special case…"
Bakugou felt his blood run cold…
"Don't worry so much. Your life is perfectly safe if you play your cards right, and the only people who would perish if you defy me are those close to you…" a thin smile spread across Hoshino's face, knowing that the boy would never deviate from his orders…
"W-What are you talking about!? I haven't even done anything-"
"I couldn't care less about what you've done at this moment in time. If I cared so much, I would have killed you during that sparring session, but I didn't, so you should have expected something like this…" His eyes danced with amusement. "You have quite the ego, but I've practically castrated you now...so you could perhaps rat me out...and that's where your family comes in..."
Katsuki's eyes widened… "Leave them out of this! You only need me right? So why go after them!?"
The 3rd strongest hero in the west only laughed icily at his plea. "To ensure that you don't betray me. I couldn't care less about your emotions, and I've never had morals in my life, so you should probably be thankful that I haven't already slaughtered every last person you've ever met. That's an alternative I can organise if you wish~"
"Don't hurt them…"
"I won't, unless you say something you're not supposed to…" Minoru said without even a hint of pity in his inhuman yellow eyes. "If you stick to the plan and tell no one about the coming villain attack that will doom your friend...then you'll come back to a loving family...but if you don't…
"Then I'll make sure to give you a front row seat as I slowly crush them down to the bone…"
…
…
…
His parents would die if he told anyone…
That bastard had probably bugged him with some sort of recorder that monitored his movements and audio… he didn't know where it was...and he couldn't even risk trying to take it off…
He could tell that it would be tonight...and if he didn't spill what he knew, those villains would probably convert Deku into a villain…
His brother wasn't in Japan to protect him, and those heroes from the states wouldn't make it in time if the attack happened tonight…
If he told anyone...he'd watch his mother and father die...and if he kept his mouth shut...he'd watch his only friend be taken away and turned into an unstoppable villain that could destroy all order in the world…
"Dammit… What the hell do I do…?"
He couldn't think of any way he could bypass this, and his mother and father were the people he cherished the most in the world…
He hit the tree again, but this time the blow could barely make a sound…
His heart was hammering and he didn't know what choice to make…
Either option would destroy him with guilt, and both would lead to his world crashing down…
"Ah… This is where you've been hiding…"
Bakugou spun around quickly as he felt all his senses scream out to him…
He'd recognise that voice anywhere...
"Deku…"
Izuku dropped down from a tree branch and glared at the blonde with hatred bubbling inside those green eyes… "Care to clue me in on why you're like this?"
"Shut up… Just go away…" He didn't want anything to do with him right now… It was for the best that the two just didn't see each other again.
In a moment's notice, Izuku's afterimage flashed before Bakugou and he felt a claw grip his neck as he was pinned onto the tree. "That wasn't a question… Tell me what you know…"
"I don't...know anything you bastard!" he tried to light an explosion under the kid's arm, but his wrist was grabbed.
"That won't work a third time...and you're lying through your teeth." His gaze intensified. "I watched you since I got back from Hosu, and no one was oblivious enough not to notice the sudden change in an obnoxious ass like you."
His grip tightened as Bakugou felt the air in his lungs disappear. "It was straight after I got back from defeating Stain, and you weren't listed for a pro in any other area, so I don't even need any proof to know that you were in the same place I was…"
"Dammit! Just let go!" he could barely manage to get sound out of the grip.
"Not a chance." Izuku scowled. "I've been around you for over 10 years, so identifying your wretched stench is almost second nature, and yet I couldn't catch a single glimpse of you when I was travelling to Stain, so you must not have seen Todoroki or Iida… Wanna know what that means?"
…
"It means you saw something else...didn't you…"
Bakugou was about to use his other hand to charge up an explosion, but Izuku suddenly dropped him down on the ground with his back firmly against the tree, and his boot was shoved straight into the blonde's chest, and that's where it stayed; pinning him down completely.
"What was it? One of the fangs?"
Bakugou flinched…
"Judging from your reaction, it seems like I hit the nail on the head...but surely the power of one of them wasn't enough to convert you into this sorry state. Every time we lock eyes, you seem to almost become worried about me. That look of concern pisses me off…"
"You wouldn't understand Deku… Just walk away…" Bakugou spat out, but he then felt the weight of Izuku's boot increase.
"No…I don't think I will… Someone or something obviously gave you info concerning me, and that was enough to make even the king of all assholes fear for my safety...so now I wonder what that was…"
The boy's eyes turned draconic as a black slit parted the green iris… "Could you please tell me? Kacchan?"
Bakugou gathered what little strength he had left and pushed Izuku's boot off his chest, rising to meet him.
"If you think fighting me will solve your problem, you're even more braindead than I first thought…" a small streak of green fire slowly trailed down his arm.
"I can't…"
"You can't?"
"I can't tell you anything!" Bakugou shouted back at him.
Izuku's eyes narrowed when he heard his tone. Clearly there was something else at play, but he couldn't care less at this moment. "What's stopping you? Are you really gonna put us all in danger because you're too scared to fess up to something? Don't be so pathetic!"
"You don't understand a damn thing, so stop threatening me and back off!"
"That so? I understand that I'm in danger, and by extension, so is everyone else here...and that's a problem."
Bakugou could almost feel Izuku anger, and he understood it, but there was no way he could tell him. "If I tell you then other people will die! Don't you get it!?"
"And if you don't, I'm not gonna spare you…"
Bakugou's eyes widened…
He was serious about that…
Was his childhood friend really going to murder him if he didn't get what he wanted?
What happened to him?
"Dek-"
"Shut up… I'm tired of your whining…" the student snapped. "These villains could attack us at any second, and I don't have time to care about our feelings… Each second I waste is another that they could show up and start taking the heads off the people we care about…"
The blonde gritted his teeth.
"There is an orphaned kid here, and those villains will probably kill him if they attack this place. Do you want the blood of a child on your hands?"
"No! Just listen to me!"
"And then what? We have a hug or some tea? There are people's lives on the line, and it saves me time if I just off you and move onto the next person…"
"For fuck sake just listen to me!" Kasuki grabbed Izuku's collar and met no resistance. He had no idea what the boundaries of what he could say were, but he really would die if he didn't give a reason for his silence… "My family!"
This caught Izuku's attention, because he lowered the one talon that was about to pierce Bakugou's gut… "What about them?"
"They…" He struggled…
Izuku's eyes flashed. "Hurry… I'm about done with you…"
Bakugou glared at his friend as he thought carefully about what he was about to say…
"They're gonna die…"
Izuku stopped. "How?"
"..." Bakugou felt sweat roll down his cheek as he noticed Izuku hesitate.
"How…" Izuku pressed.
"Someone in Hosu told me that the fangs were gonna attack you again…" His heart pounded as he thought about what wouldn't alarm Hoshino. "They said that people were gonna come for you soon, and that they'd be stronger than us…"
"Keep going…" Izuku said coldly, but at the back of his mind, he was thinking about how Masaru and Mitsuki related to this… Those two were good people, and deep down he knew that Bakugou wasn't totally terrible...so he'd try and protect them from whatever was threatening them. "Who told you this?"
"I...can't say…"
"Why?" the student extended his claw further.
"Because they'll kill my parents!"
Midoriya scowled. "They wired you...didn't they…"
Bakugou nodded.
"If you can't tell me who these people are, and how they're gonna get to me...then you could be putting mine and my family's lives at risk...and I can't allow that…"
"But what if my mom and dad get killed!? Aren't you bothered about me!?"
"And what if these people attack the training camp? How many people would die? What would happen to me? What would happen to the world?"
Bakugou stepped back in shock… He should have known it would have gone this way…
"You wanna know how many people would die if Red Scale had me with him? Your family you protect will perish, the classmates we have will die, and so will you…"
"Y-You don't know that!"
"Yes I do...which is why I'm prepared to cut down my oldest friend just so I have a chance at escaping them… This may be the only chance they have...and if I evade them now, then my brother and his allies will come to defend me…"
Bakugou fell down onto the tree again, and he saw Izuku's eyes flash with black as a small flame began to grow in his palm…
He was actually going to do it…
So then...are you going to tell me the man that provided you with that information...or not?"
Bakugou was almost white with fear, but he knew the right choice…
"No…"
…
"Fine, then die…"
…
…
…
Bakugou waited for that green light to embrace him…
But nothing came…
He hesitantly opened his eyes to see what happened, but all he saw was Izuku standing there...his eyes wide with shock and dread…
"H-Hey… What is it?"
…
Izuku sniffed the air one last time to confirm it, but it wasn't a mistake…
"Smoke…"
And that was the chapter!
This one is just a prelude to the real conflict, and the start of the arc, but the next chapter will be the real fights and the climax of the attack.
Probably gonna start doing responses at the top now so that more people know they're there and don't skip them.
Side note: just to cover up any plot holes; Hoshino tells all these things to Bakugou for the sole reason of making him suffer. This isn't just some stupid mistake made by an intelligent character.
