Chapter 28: Wild Encounter

Author's Note: As I said before, this chapter's a bit shorter than the last few. To be fair though, it is longer than I expected. This one was more just a way to wrap up the past few arcs, similar to the episode it's adapting. I'm actually really excited to start Season 3 since I have a lot of plans there! I actually have so many ideas that I'm struggling to put them all in one place. I more or less have everything figured out though, so I hope you look forward to it! Enjoy!

With the final exams over, four students had failed. Denki, Mina, Eijiro, and Rikido all sat in the corner of their classroom moping. "I've been looking forward to camp all year…" Mina said.

"Maybe there'll be a happy ending!" Izuku tried comforting them, but Hanta had to step in and tell him that it was all worthless. They knew Aizawa well enough to know that there wouldn't be a happy ending this time.

"If you think that there's still a chance, then you're dumber than a Slaking!" Denki shouted. Hanta stopped him as well, letting them know that he wasn't sure about himself either. He was essentially knocked out during his entire exam. The only thing he did was have Ariados fling Minoru and Trubbish out of the way.

Aizawa soon entered the classroom and everyone sat silently, knowing that the exam results were upon them. The grading criteria wasn't provided beforehand, so nobody knew if they passed for sure. As far they knew, the only confirmed fails are the four who didn't beat their teachers.

"As many of you know, there are a few of you who failed the practical exam. Therefore, the only members of the class who will attend the forest camp are…" He looked at the class with a happy expression. "All of you!"

"It's a happy ending!" All four of them cheered in unison. "We get to go?!" Eijiro asked. Aizawa nodded his head. "Yeah. None of you failed the written test, so I don't see the need to ban you from going. However, Kirishima, Sato, Ashido, Kaminari, and Sero all failed the practical."

"Huh?!" Hanta shouted. "I knew it…"

"During the exam, we made sure to create openings for you to win. Otherwise, you would feel completely hopeless. Remember, you're still students, and we know that."

"So when you said you'd destroy us…"

"It was to pressure you," Aizawa said. "The training camp is a place to sharpen your skills. Obviously, the ones who failed need it the most. I supposed you could call it 'reasonable falsehood' or something like that."

The five students continued to cheer while Tenya gritted his teeth in the corner. "UA tricked us again…! Amazing! But sir, if you continue doing things like this, you'll lose our trust!"

"Iida, you're putting a damper on things," Ochako said, knowing full well that she and Yuga barely passed.

Aizawa nodded his head. "That's true. We'll reflect on that, but not everything was a lie." He looked at the five students. "Those who failed still failed. You'll be having special cram classes with me at the camp. It's harder than the one you would have taken if you stayed here."

Looking at the guide they were given, a lot of the students didn't have a few things they'd need. Since exams were finished, they decided to go to the mall together the next day on their day off. The only two who didn't go were Katsuki because he didn't wanna hang out with the class, and Shoto, who was visiting his mother.

That day, they all arrived at the mall together. It was their first time gathering outside of school like this, so they enjoyed the experience. "Welcome to the Goldenrod Shopping Mall!"

Looking around, Izuku was astounded. Everyone had their Pokemon out and he excitedly took note of all the different accessories the shops had for all kinds of Pokemon. He pulled out three Pokeballs and sent out his Pokemon.

Riolu, Eevee, and Combusken were all pretty excited to be in a more energetic place than their usual training site. Being able to roam around and see other people's Pokemon was a nice change of pace.

"Hey, aren't those the UA kids?" One man shouted out.

"I saw you guys on TV!"

"Sports Festival, yay!"

Ochako was a little shaken at the fact that people still recognized them. She seemed to be the most overwhelmed by their fame and it was still difficult to handle.

"I still need to find a bigger bag for my stuff," Kyoka said, her Noivern smiled and nodded, getting the attention of Momo and her Aegislash and Kirlia. "I need one too. Let's find one together."

"Where do you find the lockpicks…" Minoru wondered, Bonsly and Trubbish letting out a sigh.

"I need new shoes. Do you know where to find those?" Denki asked, his Pikachu squeaking in delight as he climbed on his shoulder. "Oh, I know! It's near a cute accessory store! I wanna buy something for Kecleon so I'll come with you!" Toru said.

Eijiro smiled as he pet his Druddigon and picked up his Tyrunt in his hands. "Looks like we all need different stuff. Let's split into groups and meet up here. Sound good?"

Everyone agreed and split up, heading wherever they felt like. Everyone was so fast that in only a matter of seconds, only Ochako and Izuku remained at the entrance of the mall. Eevee tried tugging on her trainer's leg to head to a store with a cute ribbon she wanted, but he didn't seem to notice. Her failed efforts managed to get a laugh out of Combusken and Riolu though.

"Everyone moves so fast," Izuku said. "Yeah…" Ochako replied. The young girl had her Clefable out, as well as her Espurr, Whimsicott, and newly caught Emolga. The latter two seemed to be playing around Espurr, only for the cat Pokemon to get slightly annoyed, lifting them both in the air and getting a sigh out of Clefable.

"Anyway, what are you gonna get, Uraraka?" Izuku asked. "I'm gonna get some Power Bracers for training."

"I'm gonna get some anti-" For some reason, looking at Izuku made Ochako remember Yuga's question. "Do you like him?"

"anti… anti… I n-n-need antidotes!" She shouted as she ran off. Izuku and both of their Pokemon were so startled by her that they all visibly flinched. "I'm the poison?!" Ochako's Pokemon quickly followed their trainer as she continued running. "Stupid Aoyama… it's not like that!" She said to herself.

She eventually reached another floor and leaned against the wall. She got so worked up that she ran until she got exhausted. She felt a little guilt. Izuku must have been so confused. Her random outburst came pretty much out of nowhere. Okay, she was gonna go back and apologize.

She turned to her Pokemon and nodded confidently. "Let's go back. I have to say sorry to Deku." She said, with only Clefable getting her trainer's strange behavior. Plus, it's not like she was going back JUST to apologize.

Yes, that's it. It's not like she wants to go shopping with him. He's just her friend who she happens to look up to very much. Yes, that's correct. Just go back and tell him that's not how it is. Yuga is so ridiculous!

"We're… alone," Izuku said. Combusken let out a sigh and patted his trainer on the leg. Suddenly, a hooded man came in and wrapped his arm around Izuku's shoulder. "Hey, you're the kid at the Sports Festival, right? The one who hurt himself a bunch."

Izuku was immediately uncomfortable. "Y-Yeah, that's me." He said. UA's Sports Festival was more influential than he thought… "If I remember, you also met the Hero Killer in Hosu, right?"

"W-Wow… you know a lot."

"That's so cool! I didn't think I'd meet you again in a place like this."

That immediately alerted Izuku. "I'm starting to feel like something is connecting us. Like fate or destiny… but I guess to you, the last time we met was the USJ attack, right?" Izuku knew who that voice was… Tomura Shigaraki!

He looked up and saw the pale face of the man behind the attack. "Why don't we have a chat, Izuku Midoriya?"

Izuku tried motioning to his Pokemon that they were in a bad situation, but Tomura saw this and grabbed his arm. "Don't make a scene. Just calm down and take a deep breath. I just wanna talk."

"Y-You know that as soon as you do anything to me, the Heroes will come and arrest you," Izuku said, trying to find a way out. "Sure, maybe. But I've got my Pokemon in the area ready to kill on my orders. You wouldn't wanna be responsible for the death of a family, would you?"

"Plus, look around us. Everyone has their Pokemon out. In theory, anyone could attack right now. That just means that this society is built on the assumption of morals. They just believe that people won't do things like that, even if they can."

Izuku relaxed his body and looked at Tomura. "What do you want?" He asked. The man smiled and held Izuku closer. "That's more like it. Since we're here, why don't we find a nice place to sit and talk, huh?"

He pulled Izuku over to a nearby bench and sat him down, making sure that Izuku kept all three of his Pokemon in sight. "I don't like most things, generally speaking. But what's got me fired up right now is all this Hero Killer bullshit."

"You aren't working together?"

"Nah, I hate the guy. That's just what the public believes. That's where my problem is though. Most people are paying so much attention to him that both of our attacks, on the USJ and Hosu, aren't getting any recognition at all. No one's paying attention to me. No matter how much he preaches that shit, he was just getting rid of something he didn't like. How's that any different than you or me, Midoriya?" He asked.

Izuku took a deep breath before explaining. "I don't agree with the Hero Killer's actions or motives, but I do understand him… because both Stain and I… All Might was our Hero." That is what Stain said before he passed out.

"He saved my life back there. To give him some credit, he wasn't just getting rid of the things he didn't like. He didn't give up so easily like you did! I don't like what he did, but at least he lived up to his standards. That's what I think."

Izuku looked up and his heart sank as he saw Tomura's angry eyes looking back. He had just made a huge mistake trying to provoke this dangerous Villain in the middle of a shopping mall.

"I feel so refreshed," Tomura said. "I finally get it! Why the Hero Killer makes me angry and why I think you're the annoying kid you are… it's because of All Might! It all… it all comes back to All Might!" He began laughing maniacally. "How did I not think of this before! The people around us are laughing so carelessly because All Might is laughing so carelessly!"

He gripped onto Izuku's neck tighter as his voice grew from one that sounded amused to one that radiated anger. "It's because that motherfucker is always laughing and smiling like there isn't a person he can't save!"

Despite Tomura's warnings, Izuku's Pokemon were ready to pounce. If you looked closely, you could see them preparing attacks in case things got messy. "I'm so glad we had this talk, Midoriya! I don't have to be upset over this anymore!" Izuku tried grabbing onto Tomura's hand to make him let go, but his grip only grew tighter. "Stop struggling." He said. "Do you wanna die? Do you want these people to die?"

How ironic… the Hero Killer, the man Tomura grew to despise so much… his reasoning for not killing him, for not killing Izuku… his ideals! They'd be his stepping stones.

"Deku?"

They both heard a voice from behind them. Turning their heads, they saw Ochako and her Pokemon. The four seemed ready to fight at a moment's notice, recognizing quickly that Izuku was in danger.

"You're… not his friend," Ochako said, her body freezing as he looked into her eyes. She was filled with a sense of fear, one of which she couldn't explain. "Let… go of him…"

The young boy noticed Tomura's hand moving in his pocket. "N-No, don't come closer! It's okay!" Izuku shouted. However, the Villain simply held his hands in the air and smiled. "Sorry, sorry. I guess I'll be on my way now!" Tomura said happily. As he stood up, he lowered his head and whispered to his newly found rival. "Follow me and the girl gets it."

"Okay, guys! Let's head out!" Tomura called out to his Pokemon. Cofagrigus, Drapion, and Grimmsnarl all came to his side and accompanied him out.

Ochako and her Pokemon, as well as Izuku's Pokemon, ran up to the coughing trainer to help him. "Deku!"

"Wait, Tomura Shigaraki!" Izuku shouted. "Huh?! Tomura Shigaraki?!" Ochako knew that name! That was him?! "What is All for One trying to do?"

Tomura shrugged and continued walking. "I don't know. But more than that, be careful where you walk, Hero. Next time we meet, I'll probably kill you."

Now, the head of the League of Villains had a goal. He had conviction. Now, he knew what to work toward. He was going to create a world without All Might! A world of nothing but despair!

Uraraka made sure to report the incident as fast as possible. Because of that, the police shut down the mall. They conducted an emergency investigation, but Tomura couldn't be found. Izuku was taken to the police station that day and was interviewed by All Might's friend: Detective Tsukauchi. He knew that Tsukauchi was in charge of the current investigation of the League of Villains so he relayed all the information he had gathered. Everything he knew about Tomura Shigaraki as well as their conversation.

The Detective looked over his notes and let out a sigh. "From what I'm getting, they aren't a monolithic organization yet. And nothing's changed either. They're still after All Might, no different than their goal at the USJ…" He smiled and turned to Izuku. "Alright, thank you, Midoriya."

"N-No, don't thank me. I should've tried to stop him…"

"No, don't say that. You did well in a situation where a lot of lives were on the line. It was a stressful situation, and you should be proud that you didn't panic. Be proud of your Pokemon too, they recognized the situation right away and acted accordingly."

He escorted Izuku out the back entrance where All Might was waiting for them in his deflated form. "Midoriya!"

"All Might?" Izuku asked. "Why are you here?"

"I had to talk to him," Tsukauchi said. "Thank Arceus you're okay." All Might placed his hand over Izuku's head and let out a sigh of relief. "I'm sorry I couldn't help you out there."

"No, not at all," Izuku said. He knew that everything happened too fast for even All Might to arrive. Still, he couldn't get Tomura out of his mind. "Um, All Might…? Was there ever a time you couldn't save someone?"

All Might looked at the boy and nodded. "Yes. There have been many times." Izuku was surprised by how easily he answered the question. "Even right now, there's probably someone out there who needs saving, yet I can't do it. It's frustrating, but I'm only human at the end of the day. My Pokemon and I have our limits. We can't save people out of our reach."

He looked back at Midoriya and smiled. "That's why… you stand strong and smile. That way, the 'Symbol of Peace' will always burn in the hearts of everyone. Heroes, Villains, even civilians."

Tsukauchi smiled and nodded his head. "The kid's been bothered by what Shigaraki said. It's probably out of resentment. I mean, we all know that there hasn't been a single person All Might hasn't been able to save after he arrived at the scene."

All Might knew in his heart that wasn't true. There was one… one single person he failed to save. The one person who was closest to him…

"It's getting late." The Detective said. "Someone's here to pick you up."

"Izuku!" Inko cried out. "M-Mom?!" Her eyes were red from crying all this time. She walked up to her son and held his hand tight. "Izuku, my heart can't take this anymore!" The boy smiled and placed his hands on her shoulder. "Don't worry, mom. I'm okay. It's fine. Please don't cry." He said. "The Heroes and police have been protecting me!"

The two were given a ride home by the police. All Might and Tsukauchi watched as the car drove away from the station. "So, it looks like they ran into each other by chance today." The detective said. "But I've got a feeling that in the future, he and his classmates will be the League's targets. We'll be on guard, but you and the rest of the school should be ready as well. Maybe consider leaving UA?"

"But I've only been a teacher for three months."

Tsukauchi smiled and shook his head. "That's why I told you not to go in the first place. You're not cut out for this kind of stuff." Both he and All Might let out a laugh. After a few moments, the detective crossed his arms and looked to the sky. "All for One… we'll get him this time."

All Might nodded and looked at his Pokeballs. "Yes. This time for sure. We need to… for them."

The entrance exam, fitness test, combat training, League of Villains attack, catching test, Sports Festival, the internships, the Hosu incident, the final exams… the action-packed first semester of the UA students had finally come to a close, and their break was about to begin.

However, Izuku and the others knew that they couldn't relax just yet. They had to prepare. He continued his training on the beach, he and his Pokemon constantly pushing themselves to the limit. However, they knew they always had one person backing them up. All Might was always there by his side, encouraging them to push further and further. They knew that evil had something in store for them, and they still had a long way to go before they could call themselves Heroes. There was no time to waste.