AN: To address a comment from the reviews to last chapter. No, this isn't going to be a harem. I'm not even sure where they got the idea that the Persona franchise was meant to be a harem game as only one version of game three (which has close to half a dozen variations) doesn't punish you for going the harem route. Typically trying to harem those games results in you getting your shit beat in by the girls you two timed. That being said, I'm thinking of starting an Omake series for this fic of other pairing variations from single to even multi pairings. If you guys would like to see that let me know and I'll start adding them next chapter.

A Fool's Bonds

Chapter 13

-Aizawa-

Hearing the sound of the Hand Villain charging him again, Shota lashed out with one of his now shorter capture scarfs, having had to adapt to the two smaller weapons as the fight went on. Letting the carbon fiber tool wrap around the ankle of a villain covered in rocks, he hurled them at the ringleader only to scowl when the massive figure with the exposed brain intercepted the makeshift projectile.

Every time he'd tried throwing someone, or something, or letting an attack miss him to go towards that hand covered villain the massive figure would move to take the hit. The blows tended to just hit fall to the ground without even staggering the beast. The one time he'd dodged a blast of fire that had hit the bestial villain it had caused burns which rapidly healed before his eyes.

"Tell me Eraserhead." The hand covered villain smirked as he got out from behind the giant, "Do you know what the definition of insanity is? Given you've seen what Nomu here can do several times by now, I'd say you don't. Are you sure you're qualified to be a teacher?" And now he was getting sassed by a murderous man child.

Fucking brilliant.

Rather than retort to the obvious bait, Shota caught a hurled weapon from one of the thugs, throwing it at 'Nomu' with his quirk active so it would actually hit and slow down the beast. Hopefully long enough to take out the hand villain.

"Oho?" the man child seemed excited at seeing that, "Someone's got cheat codes turned on. That's against the rules." The hand covered villain rushed in, disregarding the recovering creature trying to heal around the barbed weapon pinning its arm to its chest.

"You show up to murder children and have the gall to lecture me about rules?!" Aizawa snarled, bloodlust rising and eyes shining red as he glared at the villain who'd made the poor decision to attack students under Shota's care.

"Oh no, not the angry eyes!" the infuriating villain pretended to cower under the weight of Shota's fury. "Whatever will I-" the bastard's taunts were cut off by an echoing boom of thunder filling the USJ. He could see lightning tear through the ceiling over the mountain zone, stone and debris going flying along with countless silhouettes he could tell were bodies. He prayed to any god or power listening that those weren't his students.

As if in answer, the voice of one such student shouted out over the echo of the thunder "Back of out teacher you bastard!" Jiro's shout was accompanied by a thrown hammer crackling with lightning.

"Huh, looks like they're just as dumb as their teac-" the villain's insult to Shota's students was cut off as the hammer didn't just hit Nomu but actually knocked the figure back, the blackened skin having to rapidly heal from the lightning burns.

"THE FUCK?!" the hand villain was hyperventilating upon seeing that although Aizawa could tell it was from frustrated confusion rather than fear, the man scratching raw bloody scratches into his own skin.

"Stay away." With a boom, a massive man landed, cracking the ground beneath his feet. The man had to be pushing at least eight feet, eyes alight with fury while dark red hair and beard billowed in the wind of the storm that was forming inside the building, "From my teacher!" that, plus Jiro securely held in one of the man's arms, clued him in on just who this was.

"Midoriya?" Shota gaped at yet another Arcana form for his student.

"I am the Strength." This new Izuku was glaring at the villain, moving between the man and a stunned Shota "I am THOR!" as he spoke, Thor Izuku held out a hand, the massive hammer, which Shota only now noticed Nomu couldn't even lift, flew back to his student's palm.

"Sensei." Izuku's deep booming voice jerked Shota out of his shock, "Get Jiro back to the others. Her leg is injured."

"Midoriya I'm not letting you fight them on your own!" Shota gave his student a look, still caught off guard by the unshakeable confidence in his student's eyes.

"They have a Giant." Izuku looked over at the healed up Nomu and hand villain who were waiting, the fact that the bastard saw this as a game likely the case "But I'm a fucking Giant slayer." Shota barely had time to catch Jiro as she was dropped into his arms, Midoriya surging forward with a ferocious battle cry.

"Damnit Midoriya!" Shota snarled, staggering from force of the fight as Midoriya let loose with his new form.

"He can fry those bastards if we get far enough away teach." Jiro urged him up, the girl having complete faith in her classmate.

"I'm getting you to your classmates and then heading straight back down here." Shota glanced back to where Izuku was slamming Nomu through the plaza fountain, steam rising from his skin.

-Izuku-

Roaring in challenge, Izuku swung his hammer into the face of the giant with the exposed brain, sending the beast flying once more. "It's like a damned punching bag that hits back." Izuku spat out a bit of blood, his face throbbing from getting punched by that thing.

"He's not the most talkative, I'll admit." The hand villain, who apparently had a complete inability to shut up, commented as he worked to try and disintegrate Izuku again. After seeing what the villain's quirk had done to his armor, he'd been sure to avoid contact as much as possible. "You though, little cheater, you have my attention." The hand villain laughed maniacally "I shouldn't be surprised you'd show up to stop me! It was fucking fate!"

"I don't know what you're talking about!" Izuku snarled, his body screaming even as he continued to fight. He should have transformed back already, just transforming into a form this strong and this new was exhausting but continuing to fight in it? Every cell in his body was screaming as he held tight to the transformation.

"Don't lie to m-" hand villain was cut off by the giant intercepting again, Izuku trying to drive the beast into the ground with fury of Mjolnir.

Tried.

Staggering as he swung, Izuku felt his transformation fade away in a swirl of cerulean flames.

And then he screamed.

Every inch of his skin felt raw and burnt, steam rising from the bright red flesh as he thrashed on the ground.

"Oho?" the hand villain smirked, "Looks like you aren't quite built for that quirk just yet. Too bad, so sad, you won't live long enough to master it. Sensei will be eager to meet you." As the hand villain spoke, he reached for Izuku's red wrist "Well…most of you." Trying to grab his sword, Izuku grit his teeth, his body refusing to move the way he wanted to from the pain.

And then he was somewhere else.

"W-what?" Izuku tried not to scream yet again as he found himself on the ground of the steps beside his classmates. Down in the square where he'd just been he saw All Might and Aizawa fighting together against the villains who were being overwhelmed.

The warper villain, unfortunately, was smart enough to stay out of Aizawa's sight and provided a convenient escape route for the Hand villain while All Might and Aizawa took down the giant he'd failed to stop completely.

Feeling the adrenaline leaving his system, and hearing his friend's start to panic, Izuku slumped over as he finally blacked out from the pain.

-Shigaraki-

"Fucking damnit!" slamming his fist down onto the bar, Shigaraki shook with unrepressed rage.

"I can assume that the plan did not go as intended then?" the calm voice of Sensei spoke up from a monitor, Shigaraki jumping startled, having not realized Sensei was already watching and waiting.

"And where is my Nomu?!" the damned Doctor spoke up where he wasn't needed.

"Be at ease Doctor." Sensei's tone was cordial, but Shigaraki knew that the man expected a damned good explanation, "I'm sure Tomura has a valid reason for coming back with just Kurogiri. Was All Might not as weakened as we'd hoped?"

"All Might only showed up at the end." Shigaraki scowled, "He worked with that Hero Eraserhead and turned off Nomu's quirk."

"Ah, I'd heard rumors that Eraserhead was a teacher at that school but hadn't been able to confirm it before now. Let alone what class he had." Sensei nodded, "Yes, that combination would do it."

"There's more though." Shigaraki thought back to the power that boy had shown, "A student was able to overpower Shock Absorption."

"Impossible." The Doctor scoffed before Sensei raised a hand for the man to be silent.

"A student you say?" Sensei looked intrigued.

"Exactly!" Shigaraki nodded eagerly, "Master, I think All Might passed his quirk on to this boy! He transformed and called himself 'Thor'. He had this hammer and lightning and was strong enough to overpower Nomu with each hit!...Well, for a bit. He collapsed partway through the fight and turned back into a regular first year. But what else could that be but One for All!"

"Quite possible." Sensei mused contemplatively "But also not necessarily guaranteed. There are other quirks out there. And if he had One for All I doubt he would have run out of steam as quickly as you implied. Either way, you've done well Tomura. You've struck a first blow, shaken foundations, and gathered important information. Now is the time to gather stronger allies and make plans. I look forward to seeing what you can do."