The trio- -Izuku, Tsu, and Mineta- -splashed down in the lake next to the central concrete area, where the remaining villains were amassed. They swam to the shore and held on to the edge, eyes barely above the water, watching. Villains swarmed, were tossed aside and beaten down, as Shouta Aizawa tore through them, adding them to the dozens-strong trail of unconscious bodies behind him. Away from all the action were two villains- -one was at least nine feet tall, with rubbery-looking skin covering rippling muscles, bulging eyes, a toothy beak, and…was his brain sticking from his skull? Jesus. Izuku shuddered. The other was a tall, wiry guy, wearing a black sweater, ragged red sneakers- -like mine- -and torn jeans. Disembodied hands clasped his neck, elbows, knees, and head- -one on the back of his scalp, one covering his face.
The smoke-man appeared, heralded by the usual crackling sound. "Shigaraki," he said, his booming voice barely audible over the din, "one of the students escaped. The staff will be here soon."
Next to Izuku, Tsu laughed quietly. "Gotcha."
Izuku stared at the trio, waiting for a response. The hand-covered one- -Shigaraki- -was shaking violently, and as Izuku watched, horrified, he reached up and started to scratch his neck.
"Kurogiri," Shigaraki snarled, his voice a sandpaper rasp, "I'd kill you if you weren't our way out, you useless sack of shit. Now we'll never get to kill All Might."
A stab of terror ran through Izuku. Kill All Might? He's crazy!
"Ah well," Shigaraki said, blood running down his hands and neck, "at least- -at least we can make this hurt." The villain lowered his hands, as Aizawa knocked down another villain and the two suddenly came face to face.
"Final boss," the teacher said, hair standing on end, grabbing his scarf.
"Twelve," Shigaraki whispered, barely audible.
Aizawa charged, his scarf flying out. It wrapped around Shigaraki's ankles- -the villain twisted, narrowly escaping capture- -Aizawa got within arm's reach of his opponent and flung out a foot- -Shigaraki went tumbling but quickly got to his feet- -Aizawa's hair fell as he swung at Shigaraki- -who caught his arm at the elbow and squeezed.
Izuku gasped as Aizawa jerked his arm away and jumped back. His elbow was gone- -the sleeve dissolved, skin burnt away, blood gushing from the wound with bits of bone poking free and viscera falling out.
"Oh god," Tsu breathed. Mineta made a choking sound- -he may've thrown up in the water.
A villain jumped at Aizawa, who spun and throat-punched him with his good hand. The villain collapsed, but Shigaraki rushed the teacher- -reached out a long-fingered hand- -and grabbed nothing. Aizawa ducked under the villain and lashed out, kicking him dead in the stomach. Shigaraki stumbled away- -Aizawa pursued him, wrapping his scarf around Shigaraki's legs and flinging the villain into the air- -Shigaraki landed hard on his back. He disappeared with a sound like thunder, and reappeared behind Aizawa, who barely evaded his attack- -Shigaraki vanished again, and a purple wormhole opened directly above Aizawa- -the teacher's hair flew up as Shigaraki landed on him.
"Kick his ass!" Mineta hissed, and Tsu smacked him upside the head.
"Shhh!"
Izuku watched, enraptured. For everything the villains threw at him, Aizawa was adapting, never giving up, always fighting.
Aizawa threw Shigaraki off and regained his feet.
"Kurogiri!" Shigaraki said, "Stop that! You're throwing me off!"
"Sorry for trying to help." Kurogiri responded, deep voice dripping with sarcasm. "I'll just let you get your ass kicked."
"Are you two done with your lover's spat?" Aizawa asked, swaying slightly, clutching his destroyed elbow. "We're having a fight here."
Shigaraki laughed at that, a horrid sound, nails on a chalkboard. "Oh, don't worry, I haven't forgotten about you, Eraser Head."
"Good," Aizawa gripped his scarf again, ready for a fight, "I'd hate for you to not remember this."
He charged Shigaraki again. The villain remained still.
"But I want you to know something," Shigaraki said, hands loose at his sides, "I'm not the final boss."
A portal opened in the air, above and in front of Shigaraki.
"This beautiful boy is."
Just as Aizawa passed under the portal, the rubbery-skinned monster-man fell through it. Aizawa jumped away, but it was no use- -the creature swung out with a massive, clawed hand and snatched his arm- -flung him on the ground- -Aizawa got to his feet but the beast backhanded his torso and sent him sprawling, then jumped a solid twenty feet, landed inches from the teacher's head, and ripped his goggles off. Aizawa wrapped his scarf about the thing's neck, but it just grabbed him by the throat, flipped him over, and slammed his face into the ground.
"Oh no," Tsu said, voice full of terror, "oh god."
Izuku stared at the scene before him- -his teacher broken, his friends scattered, evil victorious.
Something redhot rose up in his heart.
It can't end like this!
He clenched his fist.
I won't let it!
He sprang out of the water, channeling One for All through his toes, his jump carrying him into the air. "Get away from him!"
The villains turned to face him. Shigaraki laughed again. "Oh look, he's suicidal!"
Izuku landed hard and ran at the monster holding his teacher- -Shigaraki moved to intercept him- -the two collided feet from the monster and teacher- -Shigaraki took hold of Izuku's arm.
Izuku braced himself.
But nothing happened.
The two of them stood stock-still for just a moment, and then Shigaraki chuckled dryly and said, voice full of genuine admiration, "You really are so cool, Eraser Head."
Izuku peered around the villain- -Aizawa had wrenched his head up and was glaring at Shigaraki, his eyes red. He turned his attention back his opponent and wrenched his arm away, stepping away from Shigaraki.
"Leave, now," Izuku said, voice shaking as he tried to sound brave, "or-or else!"
Shigaraki's cold eyes narrowed behind his hideous hand-mask. "Or else what? You'll jump at me? Face it, kid. You've got until Nomu deals with Eraser Head to live."
Slam!
"Say your prayers!" Shigaraki said, rushing Izuku- -One for All rushed into Izuku's arm- -and Shigaraki stopped in place, his feet held by a low wall of ice.
"Midoriya-kun!" Todoroki called, strolling over from the other side of the area. "These idiots think they have a way to kill All Might!"
"I-I-I heard," Izuku said, putting more distance between himself and Shigaraki, who was decaying the ice around his feet. The villain freed himself and stepped back, as Tsu and Mineta got out of the water and joined Izuku and Todoroki.
"Well well well," Shigaraki said quietly, "look at all the lovely soon-to-be corpses."
The students bunched together, preparing for battle.
Shigaraki seemed to smile behind the hand.
"Nomu. Destroy them."
The monster called Nomu stood up, leaving Aizawa bleeding on the shattered concrete. It slowly turned to face the students.
Then, it rushed, screaming like a stuck pig. Todoroki slammed his foot on the ground, sending a wall of ice rushing at Nomu. Moments before the ice and monster collided, one of Kurogiri's portals crashed open, swallowing Nomu. Izuku whirled, searching for the monster- -behind him! Another portal opened, Nomu ran out of it, swerved, and charged him.
One for All flooded into his left middle finger- -"Smash!"- -and was released with a flick. The shockwave caught Nomu across the face- -and did nothing to stop the onrushing beast. Izuku hurled himself out of the way, his friends scattered, and nearby, something exploded.
"TRY ANYTHING AND I'LL BLOW YOUR SMOKEY ASS UP, FUCKFACE! I FUCKIN' DARE YOU!"
Kacchan!
Izuku whirled around, and sure enough, Bakugou Katsuki had somehow managed to find Kurogiri's physical body and pin him to the ground. Shigaraki rushed to save his comrade- -or to get his escape route open- -but a red blur slammed into him and sent him tumbling.
"Hell yeah!" Kirishima shouted, chasing Shigaraki. From behind him, Izuku heard another scream- -he whipped around- -Yaoyorozu had come from behind Nomu and slammed a large hammer into the beast's side, knocking it off-balance. The creature whirled, swinging a massive, clawed hand at her- -she narrowly evaded- -Todoroki called up another wall of ice between Nomu and Yaoyorozu, but the beast smashed the wall in a single hit and spun, chasing Todoroki. The scarred boy tried to evade, but Nomu's claw snagged his shoulder and tossed him into the air. He hit the ground with a cry of pain.
Izuku suddenly realized he was very close to Nomu, running all-out at the monster. "GET AWAY FROM THEM!" He channeled One for All into his right ring finger, raised it, and flicked the shockwave at Nomu's feet- -Nomu collapsed, and Izuku grabbed Todoroki, dragging him away from the beast.
Tsu and Yaoyorozu jumped at Nomu- -Tsu's tongue shot out and wrapped around the creature's arm, while Yaoyorozu swung her hammer into it's side again. Tsu jerked Nomu to the side, throwing it off balance, and Yaoyorozu hit it again. The creature screamed- -wrenched it's arm forward- -sent Tsu flying into the air. She released it's arm and landed on her feet some distance away.
"Let me go!"
Todoroki jerked out of Izuku's grasp and charged Nomu. Mineta, who was hiding in a bush and crying, hit Nomu in the leg with an accidentally well-aimed sticky ball, which accomplished nothing.
Behind him, Izuku heard a cry of pain. He whipped around and saw Shigaraki advancing on a prone Kirishima, who was scuttling away on his butt.
"SMASH!"
Izuku was down to six fingers now, but Shigaraki was thrown into the air, away from his classmates. He charged the hand villain, realizing that the toes on his right foot were broken. Shigaraki regained his feet and ran at Izuku, wildly swinging his open hands- -Izuku closed the distance between them and slammed his foot into Shigaraki's chest, knocking him back. The villain vanished, falling into a portal.
"FUCK DID I SAY, WARPY?!"
Izuku whipped around, just as a portal opened behind Kacchan. Fortunately, Shigaraki was facing the wrong direction, giving Kacchan a second in which to shove Kurogiri away and set off an explosion in Shigaraki's direction. Izuku ran over, ducked under one of Shigaraki's hands, and kicked him in the chest again, as Katsuki made another explosion. The villain flew through the air and into another portal, appearing by Nomu, who was smashing through wall after wall of ice, trying to catch Todoroki and Yaoyorozu.
Kirishima ran over to Izuku and Kacchan. "Thanks for the save, Midoriya-kun!" He said. "What's the plan?"
"Well," Izuku said, starting after the rest of their classmates, "we can't get hit by the raspy one, or we'll die. But the big one is also deadly. Keep at range from hand-guy, and get closer to the monster- -he may not be able to get you if you're in his face."
Tsu had attached herself to Nomu's back, tongue wrapped around his eyeballs, and Yaoyorozu was repeatedly slamming her hammer into the creature, apparently to no effect. The beast screamed and lashed out, knocking the hammer from Yaoyorozu's hands and charging, while reaching behind it. It grabbed Tsu and flung her away as it chased Yaoyorozu- -the girl tripped, nearly fell, and the beast was upon her- -ice raced across the ground, encasing Nomu's left leg and arm, just as Izuku fired off another shot of One for All- -five- -which slammed into the monster.
Izuku watched, horrified- -his blast and Todoroki's ice had somehow combined to shear off most of the left side of Nomu's body, allowing it's bones and organs to protrude, blood to spill on the concrete. Then, as the beast balanced on one leg, a thick white rod grew from the wreck of it's left one- -a bone, it can regenerate- -and nearly made it to the ground before it's growth stopped. The beast screamed in confusion, and somewhere nearby Shigaraki screamed "WHY IS HE NOT FUCKING DEAD YET?!".
"Yaoyorozu," Izuku shouted, "go protect Aizawa-sensei!"
Yaoyorozu nodded and spun, racing to their teacher's side. Kacchan and Kirishima ran ahead as Izuku turned, searching for Kurogiri. If he isn't kept busy, we're fucked.
A portal opened directly in front of Izuku. Shigaraki surged out of it, his open palm striking Izuku in the chest- -Izuku rolled with the blow, but felt the villain's touch burn his chest. Shigaraki struck again, narrowly missing Izuku's face- -Izuku swung his fist upward, knocked the hand off Shigaraki's face. The villain screamed, reeling away from Izuku, hands hovering over his face. "Shit! Fucking shit! FUCK!"
With his opponent seemingly incapacitated, Izuku whirled around and ran to where Todoroki, Tsu, and Kirishima were fighting Nomu. Where's Kacchan?
An explosion off to his left and a deep cry of pain answered his question. Thank God he realized what to do.
Nomu, bereft of a left leg or arm, still had it's trio of opponents fighting hard. Todoroki was taking the brunt of the attack, calling up wall after wall of ice that the beast smashed easily. Tsu was being dragged along by her tongue, which was wrapped around the creature's remaining leg, to little effect.
And Kirishima was flying through the air. He crashed down next to Izuku and immediately struggled out of his crater, laughing somewhat madly.
"Midoriya! This sunnuvabitch's tough!" He said, joining Izuku in dashing at Nomu. "Let's hope someone managed to alert the school!"
Otherwise, we're fucked anyway.
Izuku and Kirishima joined the fray just as Nomu smashed another ice-wall, sending Todoroki sprawling. Izuku released a burst of energy from his finger, knocking the beast over. Tsu unfurled her tongue from about Nomu's leg and regained her feet. "Hey guys," she croaked, blood spilling down her face, "what's the plan?"
"Uhm. Uhm." Izuku's mind raced. "Target the left side. Keep Aizawa-sensei safe, he's cancelling it's regeneration. Hit it as hard as possible."
The monster, which had landed on it's back, flipped like a baby turtle and tried to stand, but a sheet of ice robbed it of mobility. Todoroki stepped up next to Izuku. "That should keep it busy for a moment- -"
Nomu stabbed the spike of bone protruding from it's left shoulder into the ice, which shattered. The creature rose with a howl and rushed the students, eyes bulging, blood streaming from it's exposed innards.
"- -are you shitting me."
Izuku's mind quickly kicked into gear. Left side is weak…
"Stand back!" Izuku shouted, charging up One For All in his left arm. Todoroki grabbed his shoulder.
"Midoriya, you'll break- -"
"Todoroki, I need to to shut the fuck up and step the fuck back. And cover my back when this goes to hell."
Nomu was feet away now. The others backed away, leaving Izuku standing alone in the abomination's path.
Nomu screamed, swinging it's massive right claw at Izuku- -
…and I can't tackle it head on…
"SMASH!"
- -Izuku threw his punch- -
…but I can redirect it.
- -which connected with the back of Nomu's forearm, as Izuku twisted barely out of the way of it's claws. Nomu stumbled, nearly fell. The bones of Izuku's arm shattered like spun sugar. As Nomu spun around to face him again, it exposed it's left side. Izuku quickly channeled One For All into his right arm and swung it several times in quick succession, like a jackhammer, into the exposed bones of Nomu's ribcage, which shattered under the assault.
Blood sprayed across Izuku's face and into his hair, viscera spattering him.
Nomu screamed in pain and lunged at Izuku, toothy beak snapping inches from his face- -he barely managed to lurch away and channel One for All into his left leg- -
Nomu swung a claw at his face, Izuku ducked to the left, whirled, and- -
"SMASH!"
- -his leg shattered just after it made contact with Nomu. Blood fountained from Nomu's side- -Izuku nearly collapsed, using his one functional leg to stagger away. Nomu leapt at him- -
- -the massive claw caught him across the chest- -
- -and Izuku sailed through the air, into darkness.
Y'all should take a look at the stories "Dysfunctional" (by SiNNERTEMTATION), "Icefall" (by ThePenSword), and "Weeds in Concrete" (by Seito), because you deserve nice things.
Check me out on Tumblr at thepicturesgotsmall .
Next chapter is the end of the USJ arc- -'twas meant to be one chapter but it didn't work for me so hey.
I swear, we'll do cute stuff soon. I promise! But also, there's gonna be a lot of sad stuff mixed in, like almonds in a perfectly good chocolate chip cookie, because I am the world's cruelest loving grandma.
Reviews make me feel validated. Even if they're negative. Just sayin'.