"Where are we?" Dabi asked as he looked around the dirty apartment, yanking a sheet off a beaten-up couch.
"A safe house prepared by Sensei," Kurogiri answered, pulling out his washcloth and starting to wipe down the dusty table.
"Kurogiri," Tomura hissed, "Take me to Sensei."
"No."
The word hung in the air for what felt like an eternity as the pale-haired man stared wide-eyed at the mist Villain, his mouth flapping open and closed as he seemed at a loss for words.
"No? NO?!" Tomura screeched, "What the fuck do you mean "no"? Take me to Sensei now!"
"No," Kurogiri repeated, "Sensei gave me strict orders that if anything were to happen, that I would bring and keep you here."
"FUCK THAT!" Tomura screamed, leaping towards the man, a portal opening in front of him and dropping him painfully to the floor, "TAKE ME TO SENSEI NOW, OR I'LL KILL YOU!"
"No," Kurogiri repeated, finishing cleaning the table, and moving onto one of the chairs, apparently unperturbed by the man's screaming.
"Jesus," Dabi grunted as he watched Tomura flail on the ground like a spoilt toddler, "Is he always like this?"
"Sometimes," Kurogiri answered, "Don't worry. He'll tire himself out soon enough."
"Whatever," Dabi sighed, "I'm going back to sleep."
"My, how much you've damaged my property," the voice said as the figure emerged from the wreckage of the building, the heroes freezing under the weight of the words, feeling like a chain was wrapped around their throats, "I may just have to punish you all for this."
"YOU!" All Might howled, stomping his foot into the ground as he stepped forwards, "WHERE IS YOUNG MIDORIYA?!"
"Young Midoriya?" the unknown figure chuckled, the sound reverberating strangely as he stepped out of the shadows, All Might freezing as another figure walked out behind him, "Why, he is right here."
"YOUNG MIDORIYA! QUICKLY! RUN!"
"Oh, I don't think he will, All Might," the man spat the name, "After all, he has learned the actual truth of your power. Now, watch carefully young man."
There was an almighty crash, the Heroes barely having time to blink before the massive force slammed into them. All Might swung his fist, smashing it into the blast of air, the force splitting around him as it ripped through buildings and the street alike. The destruction settled, revealing the blond standing on a small cliff of dirt and tarmac, his face twisted in rage as he stared down the featureless mask. Behind him, the other Heroes stood stunned, looking at the massive destruction around them in awe. Even Endeavor seemed taken aback.
"My, still quite strong, aren't you?" the man laughed, "Still haven't found your successor, I suppose?"
"SILENCE VILLAIN!" All Might yelled as he shot forwards, swinging both his arms as he slammed into the man.
All for One caught the punches, a shockwave blasting out from the pair as they wrestled for dominance. All for One twisted his body slightly, suddenly hurling All Might to the side, the Hero smashing through a building, the already weakened structure starting to collapse down on top of him.
"How disappointing," All for One hummed, lifting a hand as a blast of flame shot towards him, sending out his own blast of air to scatter the fire, "And how annoying. Did nobody ever teach you it's rude to interrupt someone else's conversations?"
"Silence Villain!" Endeavor shouted, preparing another blast, "I'll defeat you here and now!"
"Well, that won't do," All for One replied, lifting his hand and pointing the palm at the ground, "Nomu, wake up."
The creatures that had been scattered across the battlefield suddenly twitched, letting out an unearthly howl as they began to rise to their feet, attacking the nearest people. All for One smiled under his mask as he activated another quirk, balls of black goo appearing around him and amongst the Heroes as more Nomu began to pour out of them. Endeavor growled as he slammed a fist into the nearest monster, snapping its neck before he tried to turn back to the Villain in front of him.
"STOP VILLAIN!" He roared, flames exploding outwards as he launched himself towards the suited man, "YOU ARE SURROUNDED!"
"Am I?" All for One laughed as the Nomu slammed into Endeavor, throwing him off course to crash into the ground, "Or are you?"
"ALL FOR ONE!" the shout echoed over the destruction; All Might leaping from the collapsed building as he charged towards the man.
"About time, All Might," the Villain laughed, "I was worried you'd died on me already!"
Izuku watched the fight with interest, observing the ways the stars glittered and shone inside All for One as he used each quirk. The teen was amazed at how the man could seemingly use multiple quirks at will, using them in tandem to enhance their strengths and mitigate the weaknesses. If only he could do that, he could think of so many combinations that would be amazing!
"There has to be one," he muttered quietly to himself as he stared at the man's back, "Maybe…maybe even two."
"Oh no," the woman gasped as she watched the screen, the blond beside her gripping onto her shirt tightly as they stared at the television, "Izuku."
"Inko-san," Himiko muttered, trying to blink away the tears in her eyes, "Izu-kun…he's going to be okay, right?"
"O-of course!" the woman said nervously, wrapping an arm around the girl as she looked down into the honey-coloured eyes, "All Might is there, he'll be sure to save Izuku!"
"He has to," Himiko whispered, turning back to the screen as she fought back another wave of tears.
"He's there!" Mina shouted as the six students crowded around her in the back of the van, Aizawa glancing over his shoulder from the driver's seat to look at them as they all stared at her phone, "Izuku's there! He's okay!"
"And All Might's there as well!" Kirishima said excitedly, "That Villain is going to be taken out right away!"
"I don't know," Shinso muttered, the students' eyes going wide as the image suddenly shook, a shockwave knocking the news helicopter back as the Villain and All Might clashed, before refocusing, the Villain holding both of the Hero's fists before hurling him sideways, "That guy seems way too strong."
"But All Might has to win!" Mina gasped, "He has to save Izuku! He has to!"
All Might roared as he slammed another punch into All for One, grimacing as the force was reflected back at him again.
"Is that truly all you can do?" The masked man laughed, "Just swing like a wild animal and hope for the best?"
"I don't need anything else to defeat you!" All Might shouted, "I did it once before! And I'll do it again!"
"And where has that gotten you, All Might?" All for One asked, shrugging his shoulders as he laughed, "Look around you. Hundreds, if not thousands are probably dead or dying. I wonder just how many of those are unintentionally by your own hand? You couldn't save them this time, All Might. Just like you couldn't save that bitch, Shimura."
"DON'T YOU DARE TALK ABOUT HER!" All Might howled as he leapt forwards again, slamming the Villain with a tackle, All for One barely moving as All Might was launched back.
"Impact Reversal is such a useful quirk," All for One chuckled, "Wouldn't you agree, young man?"
"Yeah," Izuku replied, smiling at the man, "It's a great quirk that makes you immune to almost any physical damage! Though it does have a glaring weakness."
"Young Midoriya?" All Might gasped as he staggered to his feet, flinching at the pain that wracked his body, "What are you doing? Why are you helping this man?"
"No reason," Izuku shrugged, "He just has so many amazing quirks that I can't help but be interested! I mean, Air Canon is so cool! A quirk that fires a blast of air that gets stronger with the strength of the user! Coupled with at least four strength enhancing quirks and three kinetic enhancing quirks, it becomes almost unstoppable!"
"I think that's quite enough, young man," All for One hummed, "I wouldn't want you giving away all my secrets."
"Oh?" Izuku chuckled, "Like how Tomura Shigaraki's real name is Tenko Shimura?"
"W-what?" All Might blinked as he stared at the boy, shock plastering his face as All for One made a sound like the quick in-take of breath.
"Oh! Sorry!" Izuku called, "Were you saving that for a climactic moment, All for One? I didn't mean to ruin the surprise!"
"That is quite alright, young man," All for One sighed as he turned to look at Izuku, "I had hoped to use it to break All Might's spirit, but it seems you've done that for me."
The fist slammed into the side of his mask, throwing the Villain to the ground as he let out a surprised cough.
"YOU BASTARD!" All Might howled, "HOW DARE YOU!"
All for One shot off the ground, barely managing to catch the fist that shot towards him, the other slamming into his side, his ribs cracking under the pressure. All Might glared at the featureless mask, swinging his free hand down again, only for it to also be caught. The two struggled for dominance, All for One actually beginning to struggle against the strength of the Hero.
"Is that all you've got?" All for One growled, starting to push back, "I could go for hours! How long do you have left in this pathetic muscle-bound form?"
"I wouldn't count him out just yet!" Izuku called, a shit eating grin on his face, "I mean…he still has me!"
The words rang out over the strangely silent battlefield, the reporter staring at the young man standing in the middle of the destruction.
"W-what does he mean by that?" She asked her camera man, the image jumping slightly as he shrugged.
"What does he mean by that?" Inko asked quietly, staring at the screen in shock.
"What's he saying?" Neito gasped, "What does that idiot think he's doing?!"
Izuku reached inside himself.
The familiar light of his quirk glowed within him, amorphous, ever shifting, malleable. He grabbed at it, twisting and stretching it in a way so familiar, yet trying something new. He knew that this was going to hurt. Hell, it may irreparably damage his quirk. But he had to try. He had to help All Might. He had to help the people that All for One put at risk. He had to be a Hero.
He pulled. Harder and harder, stretching his quirk, forming two balls of energy, separate yet still linked. It wasn't enough, they were still too connected. He pulled harder. The link thinned, stretching more and more as it became thinner and thinner, until it was little more than a gossamer thread stretched taught, threatening to break at any moment.
Izuku reached out, grabbing the quirk he needed, shaping the first ball into its form. He could feel the man in front of him move, the galaxy of quirks shifting as he did. He was reaching out, a quirk activating inside him. The exact quirk Izuku needed.
The metal spines erupted from All for One's fingers, shooting towards Izuku as the teen stood silent.
"Stop this insolence at once!" the Villain shouted.
"HAVE YOU FORGOTTEN ABOUT ME?" All Might cried, appearing beside him and grabbing a hold of the metal rods, crushing them in his hand.
"You fool!" All for One shouted, swinging his arm back as his sleeve began to rip, the flesh on his arm twisting and expanding as he drew his fist back, "I have no time to play with you anymore!"
The pain came as a shock to All for One. It felt like barely more than a pinprick at first, his super regeneration already healing the small wound as he looked down in surprise. There was a metal rod, thin and brittle, sticking out of his stomach. He followed it with his infrared quirk, the world filled with hues of green and blue as he focused on the teen that had been standing behind him, one finger pointing at him, the origin of the spike.
"Checkmate, you potato looking fuck!" the boy shouted, "FORCED QUIRK ACTIVATION: PLUS ULTRA!"