Hey y'all, thanks for coming to check out my latest story! I was inspired to make this after reading through a bunch of old, discontinued fics the other day, when I stumbled across one where a Villainous Izuku kidnapped Kyoka and turned her to the dark side! While I disliked it because within like, a single chapter she went from a Hero-in-training to a gleeful murderer, and there was little to no character development (for example, at one point Izuku straight-up tortures her and puts her in more pain than she'd ever been in for several continuous hours, and in the next chapter she just magically gets over it and starts thinking he's not all that bad while admiring the Villain costume he makes her). Still, I found the idea of Kyoka falling in love with her captor to be rather cute. Also Eri, because Eri is an adorable little cutie pie and the world needs more of Dad!Zuku. That being said, this fic bears zero resemblance to the one I read, beyond Izuku kidnapping Jiro and having Daughter!Eri. I hope y'all like my story here, and if you're interested in reading through the fic that inspired this (be warned, its not been updated since 2018 so if you get invested or want to just skip to the end you'll be sorely dissapointed) its called Fear Incarnate, and revolves around Izuku becoming The Scarecrow. This fic, contains none of that. The only torture Jiro's going to go through is whatever embarrasment Eri causes the poor rocker. Additionally, Izuku's his own mad scientist in this, as y'all will readily see. I hope you enjoy!
DISCLAIMER: I own nothing in the fic below, and all the rights to the characters within go to their respective creators.
Stockholm Syndrome: Kyoka Jiro
Chapter 1
Attack on USJ
Tomura Shigiraki was the first person to step through Kurogiri's Warp Gate, ragged black shoes transitioning from the warm hardwood floor of their bar onto the cold, cracked concrete of UA's Unexpected Simulation Joint. A crazed, red eye swept across the landscape, studying the various simulated disasters the place was known for. Shigiraki had seen a few pictures of the expansive structure their associate had provided from his various drones, but to see it in person… well his cold black heart was certainly pumping blood faster than it had in quite some time. The time to kill All Might, so early into his career as a Villain he might add, was finally at hand.
Heh…
At hand.
Sensei was going to be so proud that in his first real fight against Heroes… Shigiraki would emerge victorious!
The grotesquely large form of Nomu stepped through after Tomura, taking its rightful place behind and to the side of its Master, ready to protect him from harm even as more and more of the various NPC's Shigiraki had acquired for this fight filed out of the Warp Gates. That cannon fodder would be good for weakening all the enemies he'd soon face, and if he got lucky, their A.I. may even take out a few of the lower-level bastards that dared call themselves 'future heroes'.
His manic grin only increased in size, the corners of his mouth peeking up from around his father's hand placed snugly across his face as Shigiraki heard the low buzzing of his associate's drone. Tearing his gaze away from the scowl cast down at him from atop the large staircase ahead by Eraserhead, Thirteen, and those students cowering behind the two, the villain felt an odd mix of trepidation and satisfaction by the Roomba-like device he found hovering behind his right side, taking its place opposite Nomu.
It was pretty much exactly as he'd previously described it, a bulky, Roomba-like shape that was about the size of a large bookbag, with two propellers attached to the sides for speed and maneuverability. This particular drone had been modified specifically to assist the hand-covered Villain and was armed with a high-powered taser and an advanced targeting system to immobilize any foes that got close to him so Shigiraki could disintegrate the stunned individual.
The machine's chassis was rusty, covered in scratches, barbed wire, and messy welding marks, exposed copper wiring connecting the body of the drone to the propellers which appeared to be made from the rims of tires. What the propeller blade itself was cobbled together from, Shigiraki couldn't say. But, that's what you got when working with the Villain Jury Rigg, his contraptions looked like utter garbage, yet functioned far better than their appearances would suggest.
Kurogiri had found the drone's creator, at the time a diminutive teen named Izuku, in a landfill masquerading itself as a beach disassembling any marginally functional technology he could get his pale hands upon. He was emotionally distraught about something, and normally Kurogiri would've just passed on by, but the Villain heard something he knew would interest Shigiraki.
The boy was muttering something about proving All Might wrong.
The misty form of Kurogiri talking to a young teenager on the beach may have made for an unusual sight, but no one seemed to ever be around the area. Apparently, Izuku was a Quirkless kid who wanted to be a Hero, but was never believed in. He said even All Might told him he couldn't become a Hero without a Quirk… and promptly decided to make his own Support Gear so he could compete with individuals who did have powers.
It took several days' worth of prodding, but when promised higher-quality materials, the boy readily agreed to manufacture gear to support Shigiraki's cause, even though the green-haired, hero-loving boy didn't realize he was assisting Villains. Kurogiri had no difficulty passing himself and Shigiraki off as Vigilantes with dark Quirks (at the time deemed a necessary deception to see if the child held any value, no one willingly assists Villains after all). Izuku didn't seem to care how dangerous someone's Quirk was, nor its potential for evil, it was all 'cool' to him. Sensei readily supplied the boy with higher-quality materials at Kurogiri's request to see what he was capable of and wasn't disappointed with his analytical mind.
Kurogiri however, was exceptionally distraught after the boy turned his blender and the League's vacuum cleaner into a robot but was successfully able to convince the teen not to touch anything else he wasn't given by the League in exchange for providing the child with private tutoring; apparently the teen was upset with the lackluster education his middle school was providing him with.
Izuku could consistently be found at the bar soon after, surrounded by no less than two separate textbooks or laptops at a time, constantly jotting down an endless number of notes in those notepads he always carried about in his yellow bag. If he wasn't taking notes, he was building something at Tomura or Kurogiri's bidding.
Kurogiri's requests mostly amounted to asking Izuku not to build something however, since the number of household appliances the League owned seemed to mysteriously dwindle when Izuku was around.
The gear he made always looked like utter garbage and was clearly cobbled together with duct tape, hope and Kurogiri's latest toaster oven… but they worked. They worked exceptionally well, despite oft having the appearance of a computer left out in the rain for five months; Sensei himself decided to sell anything Shigiraki didn't want off on the black market to secure some extra funds for the League. That was probably the least fun thing that had occurred in the past ten months, learning to manage his own finances, which was made infinitely more difficult thanks to the inherently illegal nature of everything he did. Still, Sensei said it was important to be able to fend for yourself in the world, and Tomura readily agreed.
In any case, the boy vastly expanded the League's influence in a few short months thanks to their new business of manufacturing illegal Support Equipment. Kurogiri would provide the child a notebook not unlike the ones the boy himself seemed to have an unhealthy habit of writing inside, its pages filled with notes and observations on a Villain (or as Kurogiri referred to them, fellow Vigilantes). He'd give the boy the simple task of assisting the individual and without fail, he'd magically conjure up some sort of device or occasionally a highly-detailed guide on how to properly utilize the individual's Quirk, which was then sold to said individual for profit.
The child didn't even get suspicious when any Villains he had knowledge of were brought before him in notebook form, Kurogiri disguising the slip-up as a test designed to ensure the gadget maker didn't sell anything dangerous to actual criminals.
Shigiraki's twisted smile was a poor reflection of the bright, sunny one emanating from the child's own face upon hearing the explanation, pleased he had passed. It was far, far too easy to manipulate a child that was unwilling to see the darkness lurking in society's shadows. The illusion of being Vigilantes wouldn't last forever, he could tell Izuku had his suspicions… but he kept making gear for them even so. Shigiraki quietly suspected that the child knew they were Villains… but was refusing to acknowledge such information himself. As if facing the truth would be some mortal sin.
To be fair, it would be.
If the child wanted to keep up his flimsy excuse of plausible deniability, Shigiraki didn't care. So long as the devices kept coming, the boy could keep living and believing whatever he wanted to.
Kurogiri obviously had the teen tailed by contacts and hired thugs, but none of them reported him traveling anywhere except the apartment he lived in with his Mother, school, and occasionally he went back to the beach he was found upon to scavenge for parts if Kurogiri couldn't requisition what he wanted in time. He didn't even mind when Shigiraki ranted about killing All Might, Izuku just politely listened and nodded occasionally. He'd often reiterate that he didn't care much for All Might but would never go so far as to outright express hatred. The teen never expanded much upon that notion, only cryptically mentioning All Might had crushed his dreams with careless words.
Tomura would always leave the room shortly after that occurred, because he'd get a disgustingly bright smile upon his face and talk about how he'd become the world's first Quirkless Hero with his gadgets. Said it was his new dream to pass the UA entrance exam and make All Might admit that he was wrong.
Shigiraki developed his first plot to kill All Might armed with that information, asking Sensei if they could turn Izuku into a living bomb with the capability of getting close enough to All Might before detonating. He received a modicum of praise for his plan but was informed that while such Quirks did exist and could be utilized to force the boy to explode, none of them would be strong enough to harm the so-called Symbol of Peace.
So, while Shigiraki was forced to ditch plan A and create a secondary means of attack… the teen suddenly stopped showing up. Tomura would've gone to his apartment and slaughtered his Mother as punishment for ditching the League, but when he arrived in the neighborhood Izuku's face was plastered on every pole in the area upon a missing person's flyer.
Sensei was able to quickly uncover the truth of what happened, apparently the Yakuza had gotten wind that they were being denied access to the new analytical powerhouse that small-time crooks were utilizing to go toe-to-toe with fish bigger than they were. That was purposely done however, Sensei didn't want to give the Yakuza's current boss, Overhaul, any advantage whatsoever over Shigiraki's League of Villains.
Tomura had etched several new scars into the flesh of his neck when Sensei declined his request to re-capture the inventor, apparently his doctor had yet to construct any form of portable life-support device to sustain himself with. For two months, Shigiraki and Kurogiri had hired thug after thug, paid off moles, and even tipped off the police on Yakuza operations in an attempt to draw out any information about the location of their personal equipment designer, but Overhaul didn't bite.
Whatever he was forcing the teen to do, it was important, and he was unwilling to lose that advantage.
Just when the misty Villain and the Decay Quirk user were getting ready to cut their losses and throw in the proverbial towel… one of their informants called and said he found the kid. Apparently, Izuku looked worse for wear and was hauling some small child with a horn away from a Yakuza stronghold he somehow busted out of, which had been conveniently set on fire. Shigiraki didn't care about the girl and told the NPC in no uncertain terms to kill the kid and drag the teen back down to their base.
Tomura's orders were the last thing the thug heard beyond a single gunshot, after he tried to separate Izuku from the mysterious child.
The various news channels picked up by their television were watched intently in the following days by Tomura, Kurogiri, and even Sensei himself, all wondering what the teen was going to do. He hadn't gone to any hospital or the police, Sensei's informants had never reported any two individuals matching their descriptions anywhere in the city. The shadow Kurogiri had placed on the boy's Mother never reported anything back either, only mentioning that she occasionally went to visit the empty coffin that had been buried in place of her son when the police informed her it was unlikely the boy was still alive.
Tomura was already packed and ready to abandon the bar in favor of a new one, entirely expecting that the boy had or would shortly be selling the League out to some form of authority. Kurogiri himself believed that the boy finally died, as he found it unlikely he would be capable of escaping the Yakuza without mortally wounding himself. Sensei however… was firmly allied with Tomura in the sense that he believed the boy to be alive, but unlike his future successor, Sensei believed the boy had suffered through something that finally broke down the remaining barriers keeping him from descending into villainy.
They got their answer after a final month of silence.
A small, rusted, spider-like robot no bigger than a drink coaster crawled into the League's bar one night, a USB stick taped to its back with the words 'from Izuku' sharpie'd onto it. Despite Kurogiri's misgivings, Tomura had eagerly shoved it into a laptop and played the only video file on it.
He still liked to watch the video occasionally, it was nice to see the once bright and nervous child reduced to a mere husk of his former self, now far colder. He was obviously malnourished in the video; his previously skinny and non-muscular form had transitioned into something just above a walking skeleton. A timestamp in the top right had confirmed that the teen recorded this shortly after his escape from the Yakuza. Why he waited so long after recording it to send the video in, the League didn't know.
Oh, and the fact that Izuku was limply holding onto the remains of Overhaul's signature mask, which was now torn beyond repair and coated in dried blood tipped Shigiraki off, too.
Someone small was recording the footage if Shigiraki had to hazard a guess, judging by the way the camera was peering upwards at him and from how it shook. It was probably being held by that child the former thug had mentioned, but even now, Shigiraki had never seen hide nor tail of the mysterious girl and through the short communications he'd had with Izuku since then, he'd made no mention of her.
Anyways, the video. Right.
Izuku's weak and trembling form described how Overhaul's men kidnapped the teen on his way to school, and the subsequent imprisonment and beatings he was forced to endure until he agreed to assist Chisaki in his endeavors. He went on to describe some strange invention he'd been manufacturing, something about bullets with the capability of erasing Quirks, but Shigiraki barely paid attention to the video even when he watched it now. He only liked to stare into the boy's eyes.
They were like his now, haunted. What was once bright green and vibrant seemed dull, glassy, and lifeless. The boy had clearly killed in his efforts to escape and broke down emotionally.
Just like Shigiraki had.
He couldn't really remember the rest of the video and didn't particularly care too. He said a few things about All Might failing to save someone named 'Eri', and how Chisaki had several Heroes on his payroll to ensure that his operation was never discovered, which explained why word of his stronghold never reached the League's nor the police's ears. Izuku didn't describe how he managed to kill the Yakuza boss much to Shigiraki's dismay, but it was messy, judging by the remains of his signature mask.
The ten-minute video finished with Izuku explaining his new 'terms of service' to the League's members, detailing locations Kurogiri could drop off notebooks on Villains seeking his equipment, and an additional list of locations where Izuku would leave behind any products he finished for them. For the first time in the League's history, Izuku demanded he receive payment for his services and not only that, he expected his money in advance, to be delivered with the notebooks. It was made quite clear that failure to comply with his demands would result in the teen going solo and selling his services to whomever requested it. The threat left unspoken was quite clear to the three League members, there was a reason the boy had never gone solo before.
He had no idea what to do, or how to make contacts within the criminal underworld.
The way Izuku spoke made it clear he understood this and didn't care. Either the League could lose a cut of their profits in exchange for keeping Izuku's brilliant mind around, or he'd go off on his own, get himself caught, and sell out the League without a second thought.
Kurogiri had rapidly warped anything remotely valuable away from Tomura, fully expecting half his bar to disintegrate within five minutes. Even Sensei was surprised by Shigiraki's reaction, something which pleased the man-child internally.
Surprising Sensei… it was rare for that to occur.
The fact of the matter was, Tomura wasn't angry. In fact… he laughed. For the longest time after he first saw the video, he simply sat in his barstool and cackled madly, much to Kurogiri's obvious confusion, and Sensei's silent puzzlement. How could Tomura be mad as such a turn of events though?
His favorite game had been stagnating for months, turned into fetch quests that led to dead ends with no real rewards as he searched for his missing party member. He was ready to decay the game disk into nothing, and then this wonderful new DLC became available for free! His once temporary party member turned into an essential NPC, acting as a shopkeeper of rare, valuable goods! He'd not experienced a mechanic like this before, and it was an exhilarating feeling.
The League found one final demand attached to an armored fist that was left behind at one of Izuku's drop sites, a small slip of paper taped to the dilapidated-looking device. It simply requested that Izuku be allowed to participate in Shigiraki's eventual plot to attack All Might, and he'd lend his technical expertise in exchange for being allowed to accompany him.
All of that history led Shigiraki to this moment in time, standing in the USJ with Kurogiri behind him, Nomu off to his left, a ramshackle drone on his right, and last but not least, Izuku himself finally stepping through the portal, with four more similarly-designed drones following the teen obediently as he stood next to Shigiraki's personal protection bot.
He appeared livelier than he had in the video, nursing himself back up to some semblance of health. He was still a bit skinny, and seemed to wobble slightly on his feet, but likely bore a determined expression upon his face.
He said likely because Izuku's face was largely obscured by the Villain costume he had designed for himself, something fitting of the name he had chosen to go by.
Jury Rigg.
It was rather apt, as every one of his inventions looked like they were cobbled together in under five minutes, much like his costume did. It was a simple, generic green mechanic jumpsuit, its pockets filled with a variety of tools and small devices. He wore a dented grey miner's helmet upon his head, its central light sporting a large crack across the lens, a paint respirator he seemed to have acquired from a hardware shop that obscured most of his face, and a pair of clear, plastic safety glasses. Said glasses looked like the most unsafe pair of safety glasses in existence, thanks to the various strips of rusted metal, exposed wiring, and an entire D-cell battery hooked up to one of the arms of the eyewear with what appeared to be twist ties and bent paperclips.
Shigiraki could see various numbers and what appeared to be words flashing by on the lenses of the eye protection, so he assumed the modification provided the teen with some form of a heads-up display.
Damn, he wanted a pair now. He could really use a minimap that displayed the position of his enemies…
The red shoes the teen always used to wear had been swapped for a pair of brown combat boots, and he had a pair of thin, black nylon gloves upon his hands that did very little to provide protection, but barely impeded his dexterity like a thicker pair of leather gloves would've.
The final piece of equipment Izuku wore, and really the only piece of equipment that didn't make him look like a low-wage laborer that got lost on the way to work, was the large radio-like device strapped onto his back with a satellite dish jutting out from the top, slowly spinning around behind Izuku's left shoulder. Shigiraki's best guess as to its purpose was to assist in controlling his various combat drones, but he didn't particularly care what its true purpose was. Izuku's radio had a few more pouches on its side and a red bag with a cross on it, the unmistakable sign of a med-kit.
Izuku wasn't the party's healer, in fact Shigiraki had forgone healers entirely in favor of overwhelming offensive capabilities, but it was good to see some of his party brought health potions. Izuku would certainly need it after him and Kurogiri abandoned the problematic inventor and the rest of those NPC's inside the USJ upon killing All Might.
Speaking of which…
His fingers twitched, shooting up to his neck to scratch at that ever-present wriggling underneath his skin in an effort to acquire some relief from the discomfort.
"Where… where is he?" the villain rasped, his eyes scanning back over his prey atop the staircase, searching for the larger-than-life figure of All Might. The sound of crinkling paper drew his attention back to Jury Rigg, who had pulled out a crumbled yellow sheet from one of his various pockets.
"Hrm… according to this schedule you acquired, it says that All Might should be here by now… but that's odd. Its barely 10 AM, I can't imagine All Might would've wasted his Hero-time for today already…" he frowned, adjusting the glasses sat upon his face as he attempted to discern any secrets the schedule may have held. The drones flittering around his diminutive form seemed to become unsettled, bumping into each other and jerking around angrily in the sky as if reflecting his agitated mental state.
Shigiraki's eyes widened at the teen's proclamation, remembering what Izuku had shared to the League after his descent into true villainy.
"When All Might crushed my dreams… I saw something I wasn't supposed to. He's weak, far weaker than you can possibly imagine. The only reason he appears healthy at all is because of his Quirk, he can somehow force his body to appear healthy with it! He's… he's got a huge, nasty wound on his left side, just below his ribcage. Says he can't be a Hero for much longer than three hours a day, now. I think… if your Nomu attacks that weak point of his, you may just be able to physically harm All Might."
Of course, the main plan for today would be to allow Tomura to finish off All Might, as nothing could withstand the Decay effect of his Quirk. If Nomu could just restrain him long enough for Shigiraki to get close, he'd slap a hand across the big man's face and end it all.
Still, since he armed a few of the NPC's with the knowledge he'd gained, perhaps they'd have a chance of getting in a critical strike against All Might… IF HE WERE ACTUALLY HERE!
"Argh… c'mon, we come all this way to fight the boss and he can't even be bothered to swig a potion and show up for his own level? That's just not fair…" Tomura lamented, casting his one-eyed gaze downwards. Still… an evil grin came across his face. "Guess we'll just have to kill some time while we wait for his mana to recharge."
While Shigiraki couldn't see it, Kurogiri and Jury Rigg both rolled their eyes at the man-child's comments. His constant video game references and puns got tiring after a while. Izuku snapped his fingers, drawing the attention of Shigiraki even as he walked away from the central plaza.
"Have Kurogiri warp me back to the plaza if you need backup or a replacement drone, I'll do my best to keep anyone in the Mountain Zone off of you. If I neutralize all the threats in the area, I'll move onto the next until I get your signal." He called back, two of his drones dropping down rusty hooks attached to similarly oxidized chains that he stepped onto, allowing the devices to lift up and ferry Izuku through the sky towards his destination at a fast pace.
Shigiraki found himself scratching his neck all the harder, not just because the essential NPC barely seemed to pay him any attention, but because he said the word 'neutralized'. That sentimental idiot still refused to kill anyone despite the fact that he himself had admitted to doing so after being pressed by Sensei.
Said it 'wasn't right', and 'never again'.
A villain with morals… how insane.
Shigiraki's hand shot down to his pocket even as Eraserhead jumped down into the plaza, smashing Villains upside the head and flinging them about with his capture tool. His thumb rolled over the pen detonator he demanded Izuku hand to him before they arrived, the bomb it was connected to hooked up to his personal protection drone.
Tomura wasn't an idiot. A Villain who refused to kill, coming along on a mission to kill All Might? Those two things didn't add up. What his goal was, he wasn't sure, even Sensei admitted himself puzzled by the Quirkless teen's intentions. His original indifference to All Might seemingly transitioned into true hatred, but he refused to ever go so far as to say he'd kill him, just that he wanted to 'crush his hopes like he crushed mine and Eri's'.
The best the League had gotten was an assurance that he'd not stop any attempts to kill the Symbol of Peace, even if he himself refused to participate. That brought Shigiraki to his current predicament.
He'd been assured by Izuku that his personal drone would follow any order it was given to the best of its admittedly large capabilities, beyond being ordered to attack Izuku himself. Shigiraki still wanted that detonator as insurance however, 'cause there was no way in hell he'd trust a flying tetanus delivery system created by someone who refused to fully participate in an attack to back him up. He was certain it'd fulfill its function until All Might showed up… but after that all bets were off. He'd keep it around until then and then blow it to kingdom come.
The bot suddenly adjusted itself in the air, aiming the high-powered taser ahead of Shigiraki as he refocused his attention. Two barbs shot out from the device as Eraserhead lunged at the hand-covered Villain, which unfortunately embedded themselves into the Pro's capture tool. The barbs unable to reach his skin, the discharged electricity was rendered ineffective. A strip of the capture tool was thrown at Shigiraki as the Hero advanced, seeking to land a decisive kick to the Villain's throat. Right before Shigiraki could grab onto the weapon, Jury Rigg's drone dove in front of the fabric and took the blow itself, momentarily distracting the teacher.
Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, Tomura quickly reached out to grab the Pro's shoe, succeeding in disintegrating the sole before an elbow was shoved into his face. Or would've been, had Shigiraki not succeeded in grabbing onto the limb, slowly turning it into ash as he taunted the Hero.
All Might needed to hurry… this cannon fodder wouldn't entertain him forever.
"Break off and head to the entrance; stay far enough away not to be targeted, but keep close enough for your cameras to pick up whoever comes in. I need to know if the Heroes get backup."
As soon as the command was issued, one of Izuku's four drones broke off from formation and flew away to fulfill his bidding. Izuku had built that one specifically for reconnaissance, cobbling it together with a stolen news camera to provide him with fairly high-quality live footage of whatever he pointed it at.
Sure, it looked kind of dumb having the skeletal remains of a gutted camera welded onto the drone's body with an antenna or three speared through the whole invention, but it got the job done. If Izuku learned one thing from All Might, it was function over form. He didn't have any advanced machinery to build his devices with, so nothing he made was going to look high-quality. So long as it worked, and didn't fail in its task, it was plenty good.
The HUD he rigged into his safety glasses quickly turned into a live camera feed from the drone flying above the action, out of range from any attackers. Or at least, he hoped it was out of range.
Shigiraki was unable to provide Izuku with a list of the students who'd be participating in the USJ training today, if that was because he didn't care to acquire the information or was unable to, Izuku wasn't sure. He found himself regretting his decision to remain 'dead' to the world after escaping Chisaki's clutches, it meant he couldn't even text Bakugo to bother his childhood bully for information.
Not that he'd readily give up that kind of information, but if Izuku pestered him about it enough he'd probably end up spitting out the basics of several of his classmates Quirks. Of course, there was the possibility that Bakugo wasn't in class 1-A, but Izuku severely doubted that. Yeah, Bakugo was a loudmouthed bully that acted less heroic than the villainous Izuku did some days, but he was powerful. It made perfect sense for the explosive blond to end up in UA's first Hero class.
Just as his drone had flown close enough towards the staircase to get a clear image of the students he'd soon be fighting, Kurogiri made his move. It was originally Shigiraki's plan to drop the entirety of the League's forces directly atop the class and let everyone fight to the death in the chaotic mosh pit that'd create, but Kurogiri himself vetoed the plan.
Warping that close to the Heroes may allow some of them to vault into his warp gate, either on purpose or by accident. Giving away the League's hideout wasn't something he was looking forward too, he'd stressed enough about Izuku potentially selling out the League already to lose his bar now to crazed students. Secondly, Eraserhead would be close enough that his Quirk could affect Kurogiri, and the Villain wasn't keen on being left powerless and alone in the USJ.
He didn't think angry Pro's, students, and severed limbs caused by his Quirk shutting off would make good company.
The bartender's own plan was much better, he wanted to keep the students preoccupied as long as possible in their group while he warped their own forces around the USJ to divide and conquer. He'd separate All Might and the other teachers from the students, forcing them to split away in an effort to save their lives.
The Symbol of Peace would undoubtedly send Thirteen and Eraserhead off to save the students and insist that he'd take on the leaders himself. Separated from any support, Kurogiri was confident that Nomu, himself, and Shigiraki could easily end the Symbol of Peace once and for all.
At least, that was the original plan. With All Might being a no-show, the bartender was forced to interrogate the students for answers, but they didn't appear to be in a very talkative mood. Izuku only noticed Kurogiri warping away the various students, but if his narrowed yellow eyes were any indication, it didn't seem like he'd acquired the answers he wanted.
Izuku sighed, the sound being slightly muffled by his mask and the wind billowing past his face as he flew forward. It looked like they'd be sticking with Shigiraki's improvised plan of… waiting.
Truly, that man was a criminal mastermind.
Izuku could've radioed out of the facility and demanded All Might march himself over to the USJ alone, but no. Total radio silence was 'necessary', forcing Izuku to use his tech to jam any and all frequencies in the surrounding area, in addition to killing the facility's alarm systems. If All Might wasn't showing up, why wouldn't you call for backup and demand he show?
Izuku didn't understand. Sure, more Pro's may have come with him, but he felt threatening a few students would be enough to ensure they wouldn't interfere.
Then again, Izuku was flittering about a soon-to-be battlefield with Villains who didn't hold his twisted, hypocritical moral compass, so they'd probably readily slaughter the students the second they felt they'd be able to get away with it.
Izuku winked, and the camera feed turned off as he focused his attention on the rapidly approaching Mountain Zone, where he felt the various rock formations would be the perfect hiding spot to set up ambushes with his drones. Plus, he could quickly jury-rig up some traps and tripwires around corners and crevices, turning the place into a veritable maze. He'd need every advantage he could get to fight the super-powered students.
He only brought two drones that were suited for actual combat, and one of them was back in the plaza acting as Shigiraki's secondary bodyguard. His other combat drone flew behind his makeshift transportation system, ready to leap into action should its creator come across danger. It was much the same as Shigiraki's drone, covered in spiky, barbed wire for ramming into people, armed with a high-powered taser, and a small shotgun that fired beanbag shells.
That sounds kind of weak, but it'd easily shatter bone upon impact. Izuku would know, he'd been shot with them during his time as Overhaul's prisoner.
The third drone he'd brought along was strictly for reconnaissance, and he'd already sent that towards the entrance to alert him when backup of any sort arrived. His remaining two transportation drones could be used for combat in a pinch, but they were mostly Izuku's GTFO plan.
He held no illusions regarding how Shigiraki felt about him nowadays. He remained peacefully oblivious before Overhaul opened his eyes to the realities of this world, but now he understood exactly what kind of person Tomura was.
Insane, psychopathic, and ready to murder at a moment's notice. He'd always given off that vibe to Izuku, even before he accepted it, but he'd succeeded in convincing himself that the obvious villain wasn't all that bad. After all, he wanted to make All Might eat his own words too, and he gave Izuku pretty much anything he wanted. In the past, Izuku bent to his every whim to curry favor, but now Izuku just kept himself marginally useful and forced Shigiraki to restrain himself from doing anything rash. The League was his only source of reliable income, so he couldn't just get out of dodge and set up shop somewhere else. He spent most of his income on specialty parts for his inventions, at a premium price of course, since he was having them illegally shipped from questionable dealers who didn't record their purchases. The rest of his money was spent on taking care of Eri and himself to the best of his abilities, but he was happy to say he'd been doing that fairly well.
Or at least, he thought he was doing a good job.
She smiled whenever Izuku was around, that was something she'd never done back when they were held prisoner, and she really, really didn't like it when Izuku had to leave her alone for any length of time.
To recap, he bought her toys, the pair were well fed, and she seemed happy. Oh, and she kept referring to him as her father now, so that was… something. It at least meant that she was happy to be around him, he figured.
Oh! Right, his escape drones. He felt it was a good bet to take that Shigiraki would ditch everybody he brought into the USJ if anything went south, and Izuku was certain this wouldn't turn out like Tomura wanted. He had added several tanks of chemicals into one of his transport drones, with the purpose of turning it into a portable smokescreen generator. His secondary transport drone was equipped with a laser cutter of Izuku's own design, which he'd utilize to cut through the USJ's dome and fly away once Shigiraki's plans collapsed upon themselves.
Yeah, All Might was severely weakened, Izuku had seen it himself on the rooftop the same day that sludge Villain had attacked him, but he was still the Symbol of Peace. He didn't keep that title by half-assing things and not pushing himself at every opportunity.
Izuku's goals for today were far simpler, and more easily attainable than Shigiraki's ambitions. He'd wait for Shigiraki to run away after smacking All Might around for a while, then swoop in, smash a drone or two into All Might's side, do that gloating thing Villains seemed to love doing so he could finally figure out what was so great about monologuing to your enemies, and then humiliate the Symbol of Peace.
He knew just how to do it, he'd grab one of these students and keep them around for a bit as a hostage and would only release them after All Might gave a live television interview admitting that a Quirkless Villain had been his undoing.
If he was hesitant, well, a beanbag shotgun blast to All Might's weak point would get the point across, he felt. Of course, he wouldn't be doing that in person. He built speakers into all his drones for the express purpose of communicating with allies even when he wasn't near the area.
Izuku had his… daughter… to care for now. The bond the pair created while imprisoned by the Yakuza was forged in blood, quite literally, and Izuku made a promise to the small girl. Unlike his promise to Bakugo that the pair would become great Heroes when they grew up, he intended to keep this one.
No one would ever take Izuku away from her, nor would he allow anyone to take Eri away from himself. Shigiraki's 'rescue party' found that out the hard way the second he said he was going to kill the kid and take him back to the League.
That was the second reason he wanted to be in the Mountain Zone, it was pointed in the opposite direction of UA, giving him a clear escape route. He'd fly to the trash heap that was Dagobah beach, hide his gear in a shopping cart, cover it up and then casually meander his way down towards the abandoned warehouse that served as his and Eri's home. She'd probably demand he cook katsudon when he got back since he'd be gone nearly all day today, ensuring he'd be the recipient of a pouty face upon his return.
Izuku figured he could live with that.
Just as Izuku's drones began their descent onto the rocky landscape of the Mountain Zone to let their creator off, Kurogiri's warp gate appeared out of the thin air, depositing two girls down in his landing space.
"Relocate!" he shouted, drawing the dazed pair's eyes to follow Izuku as his drone's propellers roared back to life, providing more lift and ferrying him a safe distance away. Several smaller Warp Gates had begun to open up all around Izuku, and his villainous allies began to shuffle out, searching for their quarry.
"The targets are two girls!" he shouted out, one of his drones automatically picking up and amplifying his voice across the mountainous region, drawing the gaze of his allies and enemies alike. "Both targets have black hair, one of average height, the other exceptionally tall. Tall girl's in a skimpy red suit and the average one's got some kind of Punk Rock aesthetic!"
From his vantage point in the sky, he could practically see the outrage on the tall one's face at calling her outfit skimpy… but it was skimpy. He was just stating facts. Around him, the Villains began murmuring amongst themselves and started nodding, fanning out and quickly zeroing in on the outed pair.
The Villains had gone through an exceptionally fast meet and greet, but it was unreasonable to assume they'd know who their targets instantly were, nor who all of their immediate allies were, and Izuku wanted to prevent in-fighting. The Heroes in training appeared to be wearing their costumes and not any sort of identifying logos, so calling them out to his group seemed strategic.
A flash of light and distant screaming drew his attention away from the battle about to begin before him, as he witnessed the Flood Zone spark and crackle with unrestrained electricity. Presumably, one of the students caused the massive discharge, it'd make sense for class 1-A to have all the powerhouses. Izuku made a mental note to avoid going anywhere near that area, his drones wouldn't be able to handle such high voltages.
Turning his attention back to the battlefield… Izuku was met with the sight of a giant red boxing glove launching towards his face at high speeds. His personal protection drone dove forward to block the blow but was too slow to stop the impact from occurring. Izuku's boots slid out of the rusty hooks he stood upon, and he promptly crashed against the cold, unforgiving ground about five feet beneath him. Thankfully, he hadn't been hovering high off the rocky surface.
"Urgh… w-what kind of Quirk shoots out boxing gloves…?" he asked no one in particular, his head still spinning slightly from the impact. Still, he wore that helmet for a reason. Never want to bust your noggin open on a rock or anything, it was literally Izuku's only strength; his mind. His brain needed to be properly protected.
His transportation drones immediately retracted their hooks, zooming down to float protectively around their creator as he gathered his bearings. His combat drone flew above the other two, shotgun and taser aiming at anyone who approached Izuku's incapacitated form. Wisely, the Villains decided to give their downed comrade a wide berth until he got up of his own accord.
Pushing himself into a sitting position, Izuku was greeted by the sight of the… well-proportioned heroine in training pulling a long, steel bō staff out of her abdomen, quickly assuming what he assumed to be a fairly competent defensive stance. She additionally conjured a machete out of her leg and tossed the blade to the punk rocker beside her.
Wait a second…
There was an abandoned crossbow that had been unceremoniously dropped onto the ground near the scantily clad woman, and what appeared to be a boxing glove affixed to the front of an arrow. Searching the ground around him, Izuku quickly found an identical projectile nearby, no doubt the one that had smashed into his face.
Alright… so the skimpy lady was going to be more of a problem than he thought. Whatever her Quirk was, she was pulling useful items out of literal thin air, using her body as some sort of portal. Perhaps she had some sort of pocket dimension Quirk that allowed her to store an unknown number of items within? If her pulling the weapons out of her skin was any indication, it appeared her skimpy costume may be slightly more practical than he'd originally figured.
But only marginally.
The punk rocker seemed to be holding her own pretty well as his villainous allies charged ahead in an attempt to… well in an attempt to kill them, in all honesty. Judging by the way some of the men around him were eagerly licking their lips like a kid in a candy store however… perhaps going for the kill was a mercy.
Izuku silently ordered his drones to target a few of the more lecherous looking individuals, flagging them in their programming as potential enemies. He'd hold back for now, but he'd step in to save them if he felt things were about to take a turn for the worse.
He'd continue to ignore the attempted murder right in front of him, though. Got to keep that cognitive dissonance out of his head, after all. Being a villain with a moral compass was hard.
Pushing himself up to his feet, Izuku backed away behind the ring of villains that surrounded the two students, the transport drones orbiting around his body in a protective circle while his combat drone continued to fly above his head, guns still at the ready. Feeling moderately safe with several meat-shields and his drones in front of himself, Izuku toggled his HUD once more, jacking back into the signal broadcast from his camera drone.
The lobby of the building was noticeably lacking the smoky form of Kurogiri at this point in time, and the few students that somehow avoided or were spared from his Warp gates… weren't making their way towards the exit.
His eyes narrowed.
Someone had probably already gotten out. But, that was good, he considered. They'd call for the help Izuku wanted to radio for earlier, and All Might would show. Unfortunately, he understood the student would be arriving with far more than just All Might.
That blue-eyed buffoon would've readily come alone if the League promised not to harm any students, but Shigiraki rejected Izuku's plan outright. Now, their timeframe to attack the Symbol of Peace would be severely limited… if not gone completely.
Of course, Izuku was assuming that All Might would show up at all. If his time was up, what hope would the Hero have of fighting? He'd probably stay back and let those more capable deal with the crisis, even if it killed him to know he was useless.
Heh…
Maybe that wasn't so bad after all.
To borrow mannerisms from Shigiraki, Izuku knew he'd not be passing Go again. He'd need to land on a Chance space and acquire himself a get out of jail free card, soon.
Wait, Shigiraki referenced video games, not board games… whatever, Izuku would just stick to robot puns and pointing out the obvious. Those skills were about the extent of his bantering abilities.
In any case, Izuku's camera feed picked up on a round-faced girl with a brown bob-cut shakily tending to the still form of the Rescue Hero Thirteen.
He frowned a bit at that, firstly at Thirteen who looked like they'd disintegrated themselves, which Izuku noted was a distinct possibility considering how Kurogiri's Warp Gates functioned. He was also upset with the girl 'tending' to her wounds, which really just amounted to rubbing her suit's arms and shaking her around a little bit.
Izuku did admit to being slightly puzzled at the situation before him, he couldn't see a body inside the suit, so he didn't blame the girl for not quite knowing what to do. Still, there was a far more obvious thing to do besides just rubbing her suit…
"Approach Thirteen and the girl but maintain a respectable distance. Open voice coms as well." He drawled, silently wishing he had a bit more time to prepare for this assault. Izuku had been working on a wrist-mounted keypad that he'd be able to use to control his various drones, but he didn't have enough time to debug the code before the attack. Unfortunately, that left him forced to use voice commands to control his armada, which while not terrible, compelled Izuku to rely on his drone's AI more than he would've liked. If he had direct control he'd be able to micromanage their movements with far more precision than he was currently working with.
The brunette suddenly jerked her head up, tear-filled eyes staring down the drone with obvious fright… but with a fierce determination as well.
"S-stay back! I'll protect Thirteen, no matter what! Just like she protected us!" the girl shouted, rising and getting into a shaky fighting position.
"Advance two feet." He ordered, the drone rapidly complying with the request. The fighting stance he observed the girl getting into was a standard one, likely derived from boxing. Arms raised, fists curled and protecting her face. Izuku didn't particularly care about any of that, all he knew was she wasn't pointing her palms at the drone or getting ready to fire anything out of her mouth. Whatever her Quirk was, it was probably close-range.
"I mean you no harm, I have simply come down to observe Thirteen." He pleaded, hoping his voice sounded disarming. The glare he could feel even through the camera proved him wrong.
"Like I'd believe that! You Villains came here to kill us!"
Oh, right!
He did come for that, didn't he? Odd how easily he forgot he was a Villain now.
Well… he wasn't here for the killing, but he was definitely assisting with it. That's accessory to murder in a court of law, yeah?
Izuku shook his head and addressed the girl once more. Obviously, he'd not be able to get a closer look without risking his drone.
"T-that's a… a-a valid p-point." He stuttered, before wincing in pain as he felt his ribs crack, and the slap of a hand across his face. They were phantom pains, Izuku knew… the Yakuza lackies decided Izuku's stuttering was annoying and sought to correct that behavior through negative reinforcement. Even now, just the act of stuttering made him recoil and flinch as he remembered the torture he'd been subjected too. Shaking his head again to dispel the thoughts, he decided to just cut to the chase and get ready to make his escape.
"Look, Thirteen's body isn't visible, all we can see is darkness inside that suit. You need to figure out some way of sealing that thing back up, it's probably the best first-aid you'll be able to administer. Cut the coms and revert to previous instructions."
His piece said, the drone backed up into the sky, repositioning itself high above the plaza and training its camera back on the USJ's entrance. He didn't have the chance to observe the girl's reaction, but hopefully she took his advice to heart.
The Rescue Hero had saved countless people's lives with her Quirk, to see her get snuffed out here… it'd be a shame.
BOOM!
Izuku's train of thought was halted as his combat drone fired off a shotgun shell, the beanbag round colliding against the ribcage of one of the more lecherous individuals' he'd marked as enemies earlier. Apparently while he was distracted with the brunette and Thirteen, one of them had advanced upon the girls and was getting ready to stab them with his knife-like fingertips.
He'd have to fiddle with his AI's targeting priorities later, he didn't expect the machine to fire upon the villain when… oh.
All around Izuku, there were very few Villains that remained standing, a majority of them apparently having been beat down by the two training heroines. In fact, the only ones who still remained were the ones he'd marked as potential threats, it seemed they'd decided to wait for the other Villains to weaken the pair before making their move.
The two students looked a bit worse for wear, tears across their clothes, various cuts, scrapes, and bruises adorning their body along their legs and arms, but it didn't look like any of the Villain's had ever gotten in a solid hit.
That… that definitely wasn't good for Izuku. Not to mention, the few Villains who still remained standing had directed their ire towards the drone user himself.
"I uh… m-missed?" he offered with a shrug, doing his best to hide his trembling form. Thankfully, the mask Izuku wore hid most of his terrified expression from the Heroes-in-training and Villains, but he knew his eyes were probably as wide as saucers right now.
"You little— GAH!" one of the Villains, a muscular man wearing a skull-like mask, pants, and a black ballistic vest shouted, before a bright red boxing glove was launched into the back of his head.
The man growled and whirled around on the scantily clad woman holding the crossbow once more, electricity arcing across his fingertips. Before he could press any sort of attack against the two, the punk rocker's earlobes shot down towards her boots, plugged into something on the sides and released a truly impressive shockwave of pure sound, sending the Villain flying backwards.
The sonic attack reminded Izuku of Present Mic, the Voice Hero, and he made a mental note to jot down the young woman's Quirk later when he got out of here. There were about three remaining adversaries in the area, but after taking a few glances at the largely unscathed woman, and the drone-protected form of Jury Rigg, they apparently decided to cut their losses and promptly bailed, jogging back down towards the plaza.
Izuku thought he could hear the sound of a door being slammed open in the distance, and his glasses started automatically playing live footage broadcast from the camera-bot.
All Might had arrived!
The sheer elation and happiness Izuku felt at the sight of his once-idol coming to save the day was quickly crushed under the heel of his boot as he reminded himself that saving the day involved pounding himself into dust. Unless he wanted to be on the receiving end of another Detroit Smash, this time directed at his face rather than a Villain holding him hostage, he'd need to be careful.
Flipping off the news feed, Izuku directed his full attention towards the battlefield in front of him.
Bodies littered the ground and Izuku could tell by the oddly bent limbs of most of the downed Villains, these girls were no pushovers. They weren't just flailing about their weapons with reckless abandon, they clearly knew how to use them, too. Still… he needed to attack them. Either Shigiraki was about to succeed in his mission, which was extremely unlikely, or he was about to beat a hasty retreat and abandon Izuku. With other Pro's no doubt on the way to assist All Might… he needed a hostage if he was going to get out of here and humiliate the Symbol of Peace
Right now.
He sent one final command to the reconnaissance drone, ordering it to trail the Hero so he could keep tabs on the unstoppable force of All Might colliding with the immovable object that was Nomu.
No one made a move, both parties unsure of how to proceed. For the girls… they found themselves in an awkward position. The guy with scalpels for fingers managed to sneak up behind Jiro and was just about to stab her when another Villain they were fighting made his drone shoot his own ally.
They'd been helped… but why? Was he secretly a Hero, or maybe even a Vigilante that had infiltrated the assault? Then again, this was the same guy Momo had to blast off his literal high horse because he was barking out tactical information to the Villains about their appearances, and Momo was still clearly peeved at her outfit being called skimpy.
Despite the inherent truth in the Villain's words…
In either case, the girls were at a loss. They recognized that the time they could be spending attacking the Villain was being wasted with their internal debating, but he made no moves to assault the pair either. It seemed he was undergoing his own silent conundrum underneath that mining helmet.
He was too far away for either of the girls to rush with their melee weapons, and Momo's crossbow was currently out of ammo; she wasn't sure if she should be making more with the potential Villain in front of them. Even if she did make more, it'd take far too long to load it back into the crossbow before those hideous metal deathtraps that somehow managed to fly did something to stop her.
It'd be fairly easy for Jiro to simply blast the foe away with her sonic attack, but she wasn't certain she could hit both him and all three of his drones in a single blast. No doubt those things would retaliate if he was harmed, unless he was mentally manipulating them with his Quirk. If that was the case, knocking him unconscious was the best outcome right now.
Before anything could happen, the scrap mechanic snapped his fingers, and those drones he was using to fly around with earlier dropped two rusty hooks down from their chassis. He stepped onto the metal and was soon hovering above the battlefield once more as he stared the pair of girls down.
"I don't suppose we could convince you to surrender?" Momo chimed, drawing a questioning glare from Jiro. Villains didn't surrender when they were backed into a corner, they struggled like wild animals.
"Target the tall one."
The pair of students took a step back at the declaration, noticing with slight apprehension the gun attached to one of his drones zeroed in on Yaoyorozu's form, ready to fire. Jiro subtly shifted her stance, trying to line up the speaker in her boot with the airborne form of the mechanic. Her footware wasn't designed to attack aerial targets, they were designed to attack against whoever was directly in front of her. Hopefully, the recoil caused by her sonic attack wouldn't break her leg or anything. The cleats on the bottom of her boots assisted in absorbing the recoil her equipment caused, but now that her sole was wasn't firmly planted into the ground…
"Don't try anything, punk rock. I've go—"
BWOOM
Whatever the Villain was about to say, he never got a chance to finish as Jiro did exactly what she planned to do, managing to capture both the Villain and his three drones in her sonic assault. He immediately lost his footing on the hooks his boots stood upon and started falling back down to the ground. Unfortunately, his gloved hand succeeded in grabbing onto one of the rusted chains dangling off his invention's body before he hit the dirt, killing Jiro's plan of knocking him unconscious upon impact with the ground. He was still pushed respectably far away from the girls, the drones frantically rotating their propellers and wrenching about in the sky as they sought to correct their flight-patterns.
Also unfortunate, was Jiro's leg.
Her bones were most definitely snapped right above the ankle, her boot's recoil kicking back with more force than either her tibia or fibula could handle. Momo cried out and bent down by the rocker's prone form, rapidly yanking a splint and a pair of heavy-duty cutters out of her abdomen.
"K-Kyoka, I-I need to remove your boot to set the bone in place before we can get out of here…"
The punk rocker's face was twisted into an expression of pain, her calloused fingers clawing at the rocky terrain underneath them. She knew removing that boot wasn't going to feel good. Even so, she nodded wordlessly to her new friend, not quite trusting herself to speak at this moment in time. She failed to take the Villain out of the picture, and as soon as his drones regained stability, she was certain they'd be coming back to finish them off.
Their team had made the first move, now it was time to prepare for the retaliatory strike.
Momo had already started tearing through Kyoka's boot with her cutters, doing her very best not to jostle her broken leg. The flesh already looked discolored and was jutting outwards from the bone's awkward positions inside, but it hadn't pierced through her flesh.
Just as she finally made a decent cut through the side of the footwear… the drones were back.
More specifically, a single drone was back, the one armed with the shotgun. Momo and Jiro could see the villain controlling them hovering away in the distance, once more standing on the two rusted hooks that supported his weight. Clearly, he wasn't going to get involved directly in the fight this time.
Momo kept flickering her gaze between the distant figure of the Villain, and the barbed wire-encased drone hovering a few feet in front of the pair of students. He wasn't pressing his attack, so he was waiting for something. But what?
A crackling sound emanated from the body of the drone itself, like an old speaker being turned on after a long period of unuse. The unmistakable voice of their adversary poured out from the speakers, filled with static, yet still soft and firm.
"I'm going to knock you out, skimpy, that's simply a fact. However, I'll let you patch up your friend first if neither of you try anything Heroic again." The speaker roared, doing very little to quell the fears inside either of the two. If Momo was incapacitated, the pair would be completely at the mercy of whatever the crazed mechanic had planned for them. Jiro wouldn't be able to fight that drone off with a single leg, and any attack she could land on it would probably result in another broken leg.
"Your hesitance bores me, I have a schedule to keep. Fix your friend, and let's get on with it. I won't kill either of you, but I'm not going to stick around so All Might can smash me into dirt. Either you set your friend's leg in place, or I just drag her around the battlefield and let the bones tear up her flesh from the inside. Your call."
Momo scowled at the drone but got back to work. Jiro winced as the boot was finally removed from her broken limb, but her mind couldn't focus much on the pain right now.
He said he wasn't going to kill them, and while she didn't believe such an assertion, combining that with the threat of being dragged around the battlefield have her a pretty good idea of what was about to happen.
She was going to be used as a hostage.
Momo had managed to slide the splint into place, securing it as best she could. Kyoka's other boot was similarly slipped off her foot and tossed aside, while Momo stood up and faced their mechanical enemy.
"Good. Will her leg be alright for now?" it sputtered, a spark flying off of one if its propellers.
"She needs a hospital, her bones are broken," The heiress scowled, glaring down at the Mad Max-esque Roomba.
"I have a medic back at my base, she'll be well taken care of." The drone shot back, and in the distance, Momo noticed one of his transportation bots had flown away from the Villain, leaving him dangling off of a single rusted hook suspended from his robot. As it got closer, she noticed the exceptionally bulky chrome gauntlets hanging off of the hook as it zoomed forwards, the same kind of gauntlets used by police to neutralize the powers of captured Villains.
Quickly piecing together his intentions, Momo let out a low growl, standing protectively in front of her new friend. Before any retorts or threats could come from her mouth however, the combat drone finally made its move, taser barbs embedding directly into the tall girl's chest. Her muscles locked up as she grimaced in pain for a few seconds, before the voltage cut out and she slumped to the ground out cold.
"Momo!" Kyoka's jerk reaction to stand up and assist her friend was met with a surge of pain when she tried bending her ankle, forcing the girl to remain seated on the ground as the drone with the hook hovered ominously closer to her.
"Put these on and loop your arms over the hook. The drone can easily support your weight, so have no fear of falling." The device droned, the static filled voice of the villain spewing out from his inventions. What should she do!?
Kyoka's eyes widened as the taser-armed bot swiveled in the air, its sights firmly set upon herself.
She needed to think fast.
"O-only if you get Momo away from these Villains!" she shouted, more out of a knee-jerk reaction than any sort of thought-out plan. Still, if she was going to be taken hostage, she wasn't going to be leaving her friend alone with all of these criminals still around, that was just asking for trouble.
"Deal." the drone immediately proclaimed.
Kyoka's eyes shrunk down to pinpricks. She didn't expect her demand to even be considered by the criminal, she just wanted to buy time. Her gaze shot across the battlefield, searching for anything she could use to even the odds or escape from her apparent fate. It seemed that nothing escaped the Villain's observant eyes, however.
Seemingly fed up with her indecision, two more barbs rocketed out from the combat robot, embedding themselves into Kyoka's ribs. Much like Momo, her body seized up as the electricity coursed through her body, passing out as soon as the electricity was cut off.
The single drone Izuku was utilizing to fly across the battlefield puttered its way over towards the downed forms of his two adversaries, the drone unable to achieve the same speeds it had been capable of achieving earlier now that he wasn't using two of them to attain flight. A single drone could still easily support his weight, but it was far slower and less responsive than when he utilized two.
Setting himself down near the girls, Izuku hopped off his hook and pulled a pair of standard handcuffs from one of his many pockets, locking them onto the girl now identified as Momo's wrists.
Looping the chain connecting the cuffs together across his rusty transportation hook, Izuku snapped his fingers and pointed the drone back towards the entrance. Its orders clear, the drone ferried Momo's unconscious body away from the fight.
Bending down to the unmoving punk rocker's level, Izuku got to work affixing the power-suppressant cuffs across the girl's wrists. Much like Momo had been ferried away suspended by the cuffs on her wrists, this girl would soon share the same fate. Unlike Momo however, this one would be taking a small vacation from school in his warehouse abode, locked in a shipping crate he'd turned into a cell.
This wasn't kidnapping. This was… a nonconsensual, mandatory vacation.
Yeah, that sounded good.
Satisfied that the bracers wouldn't be coming off of the rocker without Izuku's key, Izuku activated their maglocks, watching as the two bracers readily snapped together with surprising force. She definitely wouldn't be able to pull those apart. He tossed her hands over his remaining transportation drone's hook, and a small alert popped up upon his glasses.
Izuku turned around and was greeting with the sight of his other transportation drone flying back towards him, its payload of Momo having been safely deposited near the entrance of the USJ.
He would've stuck to his original plan of beating down All Might a bit and threatening him… but the sight of Shigiraki's Nomu being launched through the air and out of the USJ was quite a sight to behold.
The trepidation Izuku felt at Shigiraki's bio-weapon being utterly defeated was slightly relieved by the large hole his body created in the USJ's dome, providing Izuku with the perfect exit. He wouldn't need to cut his way out of the USJ anymore, he'd just fly out of Nomu's exit point.
"New exit point located, reprioritize escape route." He said, pointing a gloved hand at the newly created hole, his drones quickly regrouping and preparing themselves to fly through it. As soon as his secondary transport drone got within range, Izuku leapt onto the rusted hook, jostling its flight pattern slightly as the device sought to correct its course. Even so, it diligently continued the upwards flight, followed closely by Izuku's combat drone and the rocker's own transport.
Izuku wasn't receiving any signal from the drone he assigned to protect Shigiraki, but he didn't really expect to anyways. As soon as Tomura demanded an explosive be planted into his drone, and he receive the detonator, he knew its warranty was expired.
In an additional stroke of bad luck, he wasn't receiving any signal from his camera-bot either and while it was hard to make out whatever was occurring on the ground beneath him in the plaza, he believed he saw the remains of his robot near the edge of the flood zone next to a frog-like girl, a blond, and some small purple-haired midget. It looked half-decayed, so he presumed the students used his device as protection from Shigiraki.
He would've applauded the student's cleverness, if he wasn't upset at losing two drones in one day. These things weren't exactly easy to make, despite their ramshackle appearance.
Izuku wasn't about to risk losing a third drone by sending one down to talk to All Might, who looked exceptionally distraught at the sight of one of his students dangling limply by her wrists from Izuku's transportation system. He'd have to make his demands in a day or two with an anonymous letter, or something like that.
All Might was clearly incapacitated however, if the steam pouring off his body was any indication of his limits. He must've pushed himself hard just to get here. It was likely that he was simply struggling to maintain his muscle form even now, so Shigiraki and Kurogiri didn't see the full extent of his weakness.
Allowing himself this small amount of satisfaction, Izuku shot the enraged Shigiraki a lazy, two fingered salute as he soared out of the USJ's dome, and just in time, too. He could make out the figures of what Izuku presumed to be the rest of the school's staff barge in through the main doors right before he was welcomed back into the sunlight outside, his drones immediately moving as fast as they could to carry their cargo to Dagobah beach.
It took about five minutes before Izuku escaped the tree line surrounding the USJ and he entered into the city proper, his drones still carrying him and the rocker high above the ground. While he was no doubt little more than a spec to many, he was sure the internet would be filled with grainy footage of his flight, and the news would no doubt be speculating about his obvious captive.
No Heroes or police cars appeared to be following him on the ground, not that Izuku could see much of anything down there as high up as he was, but by the time he reached the beach 10 minutes later and started to descend down towards the sandy, trash covered shore, he felt assured that he had flew high enough to evade the authorities for the time being.
Touching down onto the shores, Izuku quickly hopped off his perch on the rusty hook that suspended him in air, digging around in his landing zone for the wheelchair he'd set aside earlier. The green-haired teen unfolded it as fast as he could before depositing the rocker's still form into the chair. He tossed a blanket over her body to hide the cuffed wrists and threw a pair of large sunglasses over her eyes and plopped a sunhat atop her head.
The teen commanded his drones to nestle themselves amongst the mountains of trash that still littered the beach, his ramshackle inventions perfectly camouflaging with the mounds of rubbish. One of his transports sought to bury itself inside various pieces of discarded furniture, the other utilized its hook to pull open a discarded fridge and hide inside, and his combat bot shoved itself inside the shattered remains of an old, large tube television.
Walking over to the fridge one of his transports had sought refuge inside, Izuku slammed the door shut as he stripped off his radio pack, and removed the jumpsuit and gloves from his body. Various scars ranging from blunt force trauma, stabbings, and brands littered his torso, arms, and legs, a testament to his time spent with Overhaul. His body would've been covered in far more markings if the boss didn't occasionally tear him apart with his Quirk and then piece him back together, fresh as the day he was born.
He never got a chance to fix the latest damaged he caused before Izuku escaped with Eri.
Distant sirens snapped Izuku out of his musings, and he frantically searched around for the yellow bag he left at the beach last night. Spotting his pack near a rotten cabinet, Izuku yanked out his old school uniform from within, and rapidly stuffed Jury Rigg's outfit inside.
He must've set new records for dressing in school uniform's that day, because in a few seconds he was already powerwalking away from his landing zone, confident the cops wouldn't be able to find his drones amongst the trash. They'd simply assume that the villain had wandered off and gone elsewhere.
To be fair, that assumption was correct.
Izuku had already pushed the girl up the beach ramp and was walking towards the closest sidewalk, making sure to keep one hand on the taser in his pocket in case she woke up and needed to be… gently encouraged to go back to sleep. Even as police cruisers careened past Izuku as he traveled down the street, they didn't pay any attention to the green-haired, brightly smiling teen with a skip in his step as he strolled down to Mustafu's industrial district, the location of his base.
It took a solid thirty minutes to reach the abandoned warehouse he called home, and Izuku felt beyond tired both from the brisk pace he walked with and from forcing himself to smile and wave at anybody he passed by in the city as he approached.
No one suspected the bright, happy child pushing the sleeping form of what many likely assumed to be his sister could be the villainous Jury Rigg, or even that such a young man could be capable of harming anybody in the slightest.
Approaching the dilapidated remains of the building's loading dock, Izuku's cast his gaze suspiciously around the area, searching for any and all potential witnesses. Satisfied that he saw no one nearby, Izuku snapped his fingers, summoning another drone that burst forth from a nearby dumpster. This drone was one of his first designs and had a very singular purpose.
It rammed things.
It was essentially his base drone chassis with extra armor plating on the front, for the sole purpose of smashing any intruders that got too close to his hideout. It'd be a good distraction if he ever needed to relocate due to Heroes.
Today though, Izuku simply instructed the drone to push the girl's wheelchair forward, so he could have his hands free to fiddle with the keypad he'd installed into the warehouse's door. It required two hands to use, one hand that entered the simple code to get into the building, but in order for the code to work, one would need to use their second hand to press down on a disguised button built into the surface of the wall itself, appearing for all intents and purposes like a small chunk of concrete that had decayed from the main structure itself.
Even if someone guessed the code or spied Izuku keying it in, it'd be unlikely they understood the significance of Izuku pressing his other hand against the wall while he did so.
The door unlocked, the several automatic deadbolts he hastily welded to the other side readily opened up, allowing Izuku to enter his abode. Its job fulfilled, the drone Izuku summoned earlier re-entered its dumpster, closing the lid as it settled in with a simple, robotic claw Izuku attached to its chassis for that exact purpose.
"Urrgh…"
Taking the taser out of his pocket, Izuku leveled the black and yellow device against the girl's shoulder, just in case she decided to try anything once she regained her bearings. With that broken leg though, she wouldn't be going anywhere without assistance and with those Quirk-suppressing gauntlets, she stood no chance against the various derelict drones and other robots littering the concrete floor of his warehouse, all appearing to be in various stages of completion.
Glancing down at his captive, Izuku was glad to see the rocker understood the situation she was currently in, if the lack of struggling and death-glare being sent at him from behind those shades were any indication. Since his face was currently uncovered, he simply showed off that bright, reassuring smile he always equipped when someone was questioning him.
He was excited! Izuku would be keeping this girl as a captive for at least a week or two, and he could grill her for all the information on 1-A's students, plus her own Quirk! He couldn't wait to start up his next Hero analysis notebook!
"Daddy?" a small voice called out from within the warehouse, a small, white-haired child with a single horn skipping out from around a shipping crate to greet the visitor she was told Izuku'd be bringing to their home. The sight of his surrogate daughter eased Izuku's tensions slightly, it was good to see everything remained alright in his absence.
Meanwhile…
Kyoka couldn't believe her eyes!
She must've still been reeling from that taser, because there was no way in hell that this… this teenager that apparently kidnapped her had a young, adorable looking daughter. He was far, far too young for that. The little girl appeared to be around four or five years old, and there was a tall looking robot next to her that appeared to be some nightmarish fusion of a trashcan and various other household appliances. It wore a tie around what she presumed was its neck, and had plush looking white gloves attached to the rusty, chain covered appendages that seemed to serve as its arms. She could only guess what its 'hands' looked like under the fabric.
"Did you finally bring home a Mommy like you promised?!" she asked with the innocence only a child could possess, bright red eyes gleaming with joy and her radiant smile rivaling the luminosity of the sun itself.
While Kyoka's mouth had dropped open in shock and a light blush dusted across her cheeks, she retained enough brain function to bend her head to glance at her freckled captor under the brim of the sunhat she wore, his previously pale face now redder than a tomato as his mouth opened and closed. No sounds came out, but he did seem to occasionally squeak or stutter a bit.
Just what kind of Villain was she dealing with here?