Bearticguy7: That would be fun!
DeathlyJazzHands55: Yup, I've been planning this fight, and the ramifications it would have, for a very long time. Big things are happening.
Euphoria: Heheheh...also nice Stand!
Jpx0999: I haven't really read Jorge Joestar, but as I explain below, Kars having a Stand is a bit overkill, he's already invincible after all.
Guest: Yep, I just did that. Have been planning it for a long time. Also, great Stand idea! I live it!
Kasumi Kenshiro: Things are going down in the MVA arc, that's for sure.
Dumpstertrashfire123: Funny you should mention turning into a Super Aja...
Alexander Lawliet: It's fucking Kars, there's no way I'm wasting him! I actually decided to bring Kars back around the Yakuza Raid arc!
BryanTF2: Oh it's going down, and I'm yelling timber!
Kyeo307: We'll see...
Death Omen Star: DIO's fate is set on stone in my stories.
I had always intended Kars to be the true main antagonist of the MVA arc, AFO was a red herring, since he actively tries to act like a main antagonist, he was perfect for it. I made this decision around the Yakuza Raid Arc, so this has actually been a long time coming.
Kars is the polar opposite to Santana's ideology, hence why this will be his toughest battle yet.
Not to mention the guy is invincible.
Also, no, I'm not giving Kars a Stand, because in all honesty he doesn't need one. It's overkill. Plus...I'm not sure him copying Stand Abilities is a good idea. Stands are souls after all, not biology.
Maybe he'll still be able to see them? He is the Ultimate Lifeform after all.
My name is Santana...and this is how I became the greatest villain.
...
Well, "villain" is subjective...some would call me a hero, a champion for the disenfranchised and the discriminated. Others...a terrorist.
I started this journey when I woke up in Mexico, and faced off against Joseph Joestar. At that point in time, I was indoctrinated by Kars' ideals, and considered humans to be below me, and nothing more than food.
He was the first human that ever challenged that belief...he...kicked my ass.
Apparently after losing consciousness, I had been put back into hibernation by the Speedwagon Foundation, and when Tomura Shigaraki attacked the facility and broke me free per his pathetic master's orders, I only wanted revenge once I found out about the fate of my masters.
Joseph kicked my ass again on I-Island, and it only strengthened my rage.
I took over the LOV from Tomura, humiliating them all with my supposed superiority. I gradually turned it into an empire, intending to rule over the world as Kars would have. I retrieved him from space once I got my Stand, Genesis.
I was fully prepared to enslave this world...but something stopped me, caused me to think...
That was Himiko Toga, a teenaged girl with a somewhat murderous dispostion and a flawed perception of love. She suddenly started looking up to me, this human child...
She even lost an eye fighting for my honor in the Yakuza Raid.
Looking at her troubled past, I began to see just how unfortunate she was...and it awakened my sympathy, and later empathy. I began treating her a little better...
Eventually, this caused me to realize that I was being too hard on the humans, that I could afford to be understanding, and I could be gentle while still remaining strong. I treated them fairly, accepting failures, encouraging success...
They started following me out of loyalty rather than fear.
Then, my fated encounter with Gyro Zeppeli changed everything. His is a name I hold in high regard, due to the fact that he did permanent damage to my lung, and forced me to retreat. I had gone after him and the Joestar group alone...and paid for it.
It was that battle that truly switched my perspective on things.
After that fight...Himiko offered to be my friend rather than my subordinate. I realized that doing things alone was not my style, so I accepted. I warmed up to humanity, and I grew to love my new position.
She became a daughter to me.
Through her and others, I came to realize that I was a victim. Kars had turned me into a child soldier for his cause, and I had faithfully carried out his wishes regardless of his opinion of me. I was used, made to do things against my nature...
So my goals changed. I no longer sought revenge against Joseph and his family, because I came to accept that they were in the right. Instead, I wished to create a world in which no one was an outcast, or a pawn. Where everyone is treated fairly regardless of what they look like, or what their power is.
My new cause inspired more to join me, those who wished for reform. I welcomed them, and together we worked to expand our influence, destroying AFO's plans with every action I took...
It was only a matter of time before he worked up the nerve to retaliate hinself.
Despite his best attempts, I overcame him. Victory was in sight...
I never should have retrieved Kars.
Here he was, after playing statue and fooling me into helping him rise to power. Standing before me with Tenko Shimura as a hostage, threatening to tear it all down. My sentimentality for him had come back to bite me in the ass.
This was to be my greatest challenge, and my greatest battle yet. I had to beat the Ultimate Lifeform, someone who was by all accounts invincible...and I had to do it right there and then. There wouldn't be another chance, there wouldn't be any hope, if I did not win that battle...
"You're not going to say anything?" Kars asked, still grinning. "It's been thousands of years since we last officially spoke after all."
"I...have no words." Santana managed to reply, his eyes drifting towards a tearful Tenko, before going back to Kars.
"Really? Nothing at all?"
"I..."
Kars slowly took off the rags, aside from the few draped around his neck like a scarf. His chiseled, perfect body was on full display, he didn't need armor after all. With his guise of The Stranger removed, he wore no shirt, black and gold embroidened jeans with an ornate gold belt with a replica of the stone mask as a belt buckle. The remainder of his rags blew behind him like a cape.
The head wrappings behind The Stranger's mask had been blown off by AFO's attack, thus Kars' mane of violet hair was also on full display. His three horns never looked more prominent.
His appearance was both elegant and terrifying.
"I suppose there isn't much to say from your end, I did surprise you. I thought you'd be a little happier to see me."
"I don't know what to feel about you anymore."
Kars closed his eyes and frowned.
"Yes...I suppose that's fair. I'm sure you have a lot of grievances with me and my actions. However, I have always acted in the best interest of our species."
"The species that you exterminated?"
"They were fools! They couldn't see how we had the potential to sit at the top, and attacked me! Called me a monster simply because I wanted our species to thrive!" Kars snapped. "Of course I killed them...they didn't give me a choice. That's why I spared you and Wammu, and raised you both as my own."
"Yet I remain a 'guard dog.'" Santana said, glaring at his former master.
"Use your brain, if I admitted to the humans that your defeat bothered me, that would be showing weakness!" Kars responded. "I lied."
Santana blinked. Kars had a regretful expression on his face, a genuine one.
"You...lied..."
"I did...I never thought that old man would write it down...and I didn't know that it would hurt you. For that, I sincerely apologize." The ultimate lifeform said. "It is true that I underestimated your abilities, and I still believe your compassion will be your downfall...but I do care for you."
"Then why isolate me in Mexico? Why make moves against me now?" Santana replied.
"I told you, you're too soft. I always knew you would develop compassion for these humans...I always knew that you didn't have the heart to do what needed to be done. You have already strayed from the path!" Kars gestured to a flag bearing the symbol on Genesis' chest. "You're leading the humans on some meaningless crusade, abandoning the path towards GODHOOD!"
"Maybe I don't want to be a god. Maybe I'm content with what I am." Santana responded. "If you were always afraid of me straying from the path...perhaps it was never one I was meant to walk."
Kars shook his head. "Everything I have done since I awakened has been for your sake, Santana. Manipulating AFO and Tomura Shigaraki, breaking him out of prison, equipping them with the means to fight you. This was a battle you were supposed to lose. That way you would be snapped out of this."
"No...I will win this battle, I have to." Santana replied. "You aren't the only one here with ambitions that they must fulfill...I will see to it that my cause succeeds! Even if I have to go through you..."
"You don't want to do this Santana. Just surrender...for both of our sakes." Kars warned, a familiar blade popping out of his arm. "Please...try to see reason."
"My mind has never been clearer."
Kars sighed.
"So be it..."
The ultimate lifeform raised a hand, and Tenko/Tomura began screaming in agony. Bones pierced through his flesh, and his face caved in on itself, being replaced by a large skull with hands over it's eyes.
"HEEELP MEEEEEE! PLEEEASE! IT HURTS! SOMEONE SAVE ME!" The voice of a terrified Tenko Shimura, a child, screamed from the monster as it continued it's transformation, before shifting to guttural roars.
Santana could only stare in horror as the monstrosity mutated beyond recognition, growing ever larger as several finger, vines, and eyeballs formed all over it's body. Flesh fell to a heap at the feet of the two Pillar Men...
Revealing a massive monstrosity of muscle, bone, and decay.
All of that from ONE of Kars' bones.
"I have recently read the works of H.P Lovecraft. His mind was quite...bizarre for a human. I actually found it quite fascinating. Tomura Shigaraki and Tenko Shimura are both gone, this new being is a monster of pure chaos and malice...I shall call it the Shoggoth, after one of the monsters he wrote." Kars said, lowering his hand. "Now...it shall wreak havoc upon all who oppose me!"
"What...did you do to him?" Santana said, his eyes wide with horror. "In what world does someone deserve this?!"
"You were fighting to kill him just a second ago." Kars retorted. "I basically did it for you, except I only killed his mind by overwhelming it."
"I was killing him out of MERCY! He was too far gone, too troubled! AFO broke him beyond saving!" Santana yelled, and pulled out his hammer. "YOU'VE GONE TOO FAR!"
"This is what I was talking about! He's your ENEMY!" Kars responded. "Why are you getting mad for your enemy?!"
"I don't know, perhaps it was because he and I were both indoctrinated as CHILD SOLDIERS, and while he was no longer able to be saved, I was. I forge my own path, Kars!" Santana snarled, his red eyes gleaming with fury. "You stand in the way of everything I hold dear! So step aside OLD MAN!"
That was all that was needed for the two to come to blows.
Kars swung a bone blade at Santana's shoulder, but the Pillar Man blocked it with the handle of his hammer, and kicked out at his former master's chest. Kars caught his foot and threw him to the side.
Santana performed a snap roll and got to his feet, only to find a winged Kars hurtling straight towards him. Santana was then thrown through the ceiling of the caves, being carried into the sky by his former master.
The Shoggoth slowly turned it's attention to the rest of the LOV.
Re-Destro couldn't believe it.
AFO had fallen in battle, and Tomura Shigaraki had just transformed into a giant muscley hate monster. The man he had pledged his loyalty to had become something else entirely.
Was the PLF dead? Was everything he worked for nothing but a stain on the ground?
Not to mention Santana's spiked goon was actually beating him.
Penance was slowly walking towards him, his spiked boots thudding against the dirt.
"You gain power from stress...in a way, we're similar. I gain power from pain. However, it's the way we use that power that defines us." Penance said, cracking one of his whips against the ground. "All you ever cared about was liberating Quirks."
"Of course I did! Quirks should be free to cut loose, we shouldn't have to repress them!" Re-Destro said, pointing at Penance. "You're living proof! You have embraced your Quirk, and the problems that come with it! You should be on our-"
"No. Some Quirks are truly dangerous. Some need to be repressed...I support the people who have them. People are not defined by their abilites, but by their hearts." Penance lashed out with a whip, wrapping it around Re-Destro's neck. "Your heart is one of a coward, which is why you're now kissing Shigaraki's ass!"
Penance reeled the terrorist in for a hit, discharging energy into Re-Destro's face.
However, having everything he had ever worked for being torn down all around him was a pretty big source of stress, and Re-Destro had gotten a power boost like he never had before.
Just as he was about to retaliate with a killing blow...
He heard a chattering sound.
"A...platypus?"
The teal platypus suddenly threw on a fedora.
"PERRY THE PLATYPUS?!"
The Cartoonist limped over as Perry began beating the everloving shit out of Re-Destro, and leaned on Penance for support. "Doing great big guy!"
"You're hurt..."
"Not as bad as Compress...the PLF is pretty much finished...where's Santana?"
"No idea, he flew off fighting someone with wings." Penance said. "Why?"
"...because...he'd want to say goodbye."
Penance fell silent.
Their magician friend didn't have much time left.
The Shoggoth roared as it began lumbering towards them, it's body of muscle and fingers forming a worm-like shape, as the remains of Tomura's skull roared in fury.
"W-we should go."
Santana was flung into a busy street, crashing against the concrete. Pedestrians screamed and cars swerved as the Pillar Man rolled to the stop.
Damn it! Why did you take this fight towards civilization?!
The winged Kars began sending sharp objects down at him, firing indiscriminately. Recognizing them as armadillo shells, Santana spun his hammer around in a circle, but several civilians were shredded like paper, blood spraying everywhere.
Stop...
"You see how they fall? They're so fragile, so utterly useless!" Kars said, landing gracefully. "They are nothing more than the dirt beneath our feet, Santana!"
"They have families!"
Kars frowned. "Of course they do, humans breed like rabbits...speaking of rabbits..."
Bunnies had formed from the armadillo shells, and swarmed the streets. They began tearing the throats out of more innocent people, much to Santana's anger. "THIS ISN'T NECESSARY!"
"YES IT IS!"
*CRACK!*
Kars had transformed his fist into that of a gorilla, and had covered it with crab shell. With a mighty blow, he sent Santana flying straight into a bus.
The vehicle fell over onto it's side from the impact, and the people inside screamed. Santana attempted to pry himself from a seat, but Kars had already closed the distance.
A woman attempted to escape, only to meet an abrupt end as Kars merely walked right through her.
"I'll make you see just how pointless everything you have done is...even if I have to BEAT IT INTO YOU!"
Santana proceeded to drive his fist into Kars's stomach, causing the ultimate lifeform to spit in surprise.
"You may be unkillable, but you still take damage!"
Santana pivoted his foot and tossed Kars clean out of the bus, pausing to look at the bloody carnage inside. He had landed on a few people...
He shouldn't have checked.
Not only because it was unfortunate, but because Kars was already on him.
A gorilla fist clamped around his body, and Kars lifted him up into the air. "You always were quite skilled Santana, a pity you always chose to waste your talent! It's no...ow...owowowowowowowowowowow!"
Santana had turned a portion of his body into gasoline just before he was grabbed, and used the tip of his golden boot to create a spark. His whole right side erupted into flames, singing the fur off of Kars' hand.
While it regenerated instantly, it still pissed Kars off.
Just as he was about to retaliate, a wave of fire washed over both Pillar Men. Looking up, Kars saw a glowing orange dot approaching them...
"Ah...the humans have sent their 'heroes' after us."
Endeavor, the number one hero, had entered the battle with an enraged look on his face. "SANTANAAAAA!"
"DON'T ATTACK ME YOU FUCKING IDIOT!" Santana hollered back as he got to his feet. "I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS!"
"He doesn't care." Kars replied as the air got hotter around them. "Pillar Men are villains after all. Our mere existence is enough to warrant fear for them. Pity...he looks quite strong for their kind."
"What is he supposed to think after that bloodbath?!" Santana responded angrily. That's when Ryukyu the Dragon Hero appeared from around the corner, bashing Santana with her tail. "OOof!"
"So, the leader of the LOV finally shows himself!"
"Stop this!" Santana yelled. "I do not wish to fight you at the moment!"
Kars smirked as he avoided a punch from Endeavor, and the number one's eye's widened. "You...you're a Pillar Man like him! The horns..."
"Wrong, I was a Pillar Man...now I am above all life!" Kars said, grinning as a part of his body began evolving into what looked to be snail. "Including your silly little hero rankings. Maybe I'll keep you alive as a pet."
"ENDEAVOR, GET AWAY!" Santana screamed as he avoided Ryukyu, causing the dragon hero to hesitate. "HE ISN'T LYING! THAT IS KARS!"
Enji Todoroki, having been informed about the history of the Pillar Men so he'd be better prepared to fight Santana, quickly realized how utterly fucked he was if he kept pressing the attack against an invincible being. The true gravity of the situation had hit him, and he rocketed backwards just as Kars took a swipe at him.
"The Ultimate Lifeform...I was told you...weren't capable of thought..."
"I have Santana to thank for that. His voice is what jogged my consciousness!" Kars said with a grin, simply standing there amid the bloodshed, unbothered by the flames. "In many ways, my return is entirely his fault."
Santana closed his eyes.
It's true...this is my fault. All of these people have died thanks to my foolishness. If only I had come to a realization sooner, if only I hadn't been so naive as to rescue him from space!
Everything and everyone is in danger...I won't stand for this!
"OUTTA MY WAY!"
Santana grabbed Ryukyu by the tail and swung her like a bat, smacking Endeavor aside like a ragdoll. They were only going to impede him after all. He then charged Kars, transforming.
"Santana, enough of thi-"
*CLANG!*
Santana had turned into lead, and a fucking machine gun popped out of his shoulder. In fact, several more were popping out of his back as a lead punch sent Kars reeling.
"Lead Form: ...I think you know what I'm about to do..."
"Wai-"
*RATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATAT!*
The Ultimate Lifeform was lit up like the 4th of July.
It didn't kill him of course, and it was really more of an annoyance than anything, but against a lesser being it would have been 100% lethal, no matter who it was.
As the bullets passed through his body, Kars angrily popped out a bone blade and began slicing, cutting through the hailstorm of bullets with ease. "Enough of this nonsense Santana!"
Flames slammed into Kars' side, and the Ultimate Lifeform blinked in surprise as Endeavor suddenly slammed into him full force.
"You've caused enough damage today!" Endeavor snarled, blasting Kars aside with a Flashfire Fist. Dodging a swipe from a bone blade, which ended up slicing into the hero's side regardless, and used flames to propel himself around and behind Kars, he slammed a fist into the godlike being's back.
Kars turned his head a whole 180 degrees, startling Endeavor as his wounds immediately healed. "Aww, how cute. You think you have a chance."
Kars was then peppered by Santana.
"STOP THAT!"
Himiko could only stare in horror as the Shoggoth, formerly Tomura/Tenko, slithered towards them.
She had just slipped on her clothes after taking time to bandage her remaining wounds, only to find that their enemy had turned into a giant death worm, with no Santana in sight...
What the hell happened in the short time she was getting Compress to safety?
Kars slammed Santana through the ground, punching him straight into a subway station. People who were taking shelter below screamed in terror as the two struggled for dominance.
"You're weak Santana! The humans have made you soft!"
Santana attempted to unload another clip into Kars' chest, but the ultimate lifeform's bone blades sliced his guns off. Kars picked him up, and slammed him onto the tracks...
Right into an incoming train's path.
With a flash of light and the grinding of metal, Kars had cut the tracks in an instant.
"NO! STOP!"
It was too late, the train conductor couldn't pull the brakes in time, and the train derailed straight into Santana and several civilians. Covered in innocent blood, Santana shed his lead form with a roar, and tackled Kars, turning the bottom of his feet into rocket fuel to fly Kars out of there.
I'm a villain, I've accepted that. I have taken innocent lives...but it has always been with A PURPOSE!
Valuing life is NOT A WEAKNESS!
The two hurtled through the sky, smashing through a skyscraper as they tustled. Heroes from all over were attempting to save as many people as they could from the destructive one-on-one that was currently spanning Japan.
Kars turned his hand into a crab claw and grabbed ahold of Santana's neck, attempting to steer his flight path in a different direction. When that didn't work, he unfurled his wings from his back, and began flapping, steering towards a tall H-shaped building...
Oh...
That's not good.
"Oh my God..." Mina Ashido breathed out, staring at her phone with a horrified expression. "Over 20 people were just killed..."
"What?!" Kaminari leaned over her shoulder, to find a picture of a destroyed city block. "What the hell happened?!"
"They're saying some new villain just attacked...and...Endeavor is already on the scene...some people are saying it's the new Kamino Incident." Mina responded. "Not even two days after Jiro left...why is everything bad happening all at once?"
Kaminari bit his lip, not sure what to say.
"I don't know."
"Yeah..it's just really strange. Look, they even got a picture of the guy!"
It was edited to remove the blood and gore all around him, but the picture of a muscular man with a mane of purple hair, enjoying the battle, was clear as day.
"Huh...there's something familiar about this guy..."
"Yeah...did...did we learn about him in class or something? He looks like a cave painting Dr. Kujo showed us in Paranormal Studies..."
The two class idiots pondered for a moment.
"Oh my God."
"What?! You recognize him?!"
"No...WHY CAN'T I HAVE A MUSCULAR BODY LIKE THAT?!" Kaminari exclaimed, tears leaking out of the corners of his eyes. "JOJO DOES! THAT'S WHY HE GETS ALL THE GIRLS! THAT'S SO UNFAAIIR!"
"Aww, poor baby." Mina patted Kaminari's cheek. "It's just JoJo's genes. This guy is pretty ripped though...and hot. I'd totally start crushing on him if he wasn't a mass murderer."
"Any info on what he might be doing?"
"No...he might have a similar Quirk to Koda...they're saying he can command and transform into animals...dammit, that sounds familiar!" Mina waved her fist in the air, frustrated. "I swear we learned about someone like this!"
"Is it even a Quirk?!"
"I don't know!" Mina began punching her head, trying to think of a solution. "Why don't I pay attention in class?!"
*BOOM!*
Something slammed through the wall right next to them, and that something happened to be a bloodied Santana.
The fight had reached UA.
Santana got to his feet, coughing, and glanced at the two, before realizing where he was. "The Heights Alliance...he hit me into the dorms...GET OUT OF HERE!"
"Wait..." Kaminari turned pale.
Of course he recognized Santana, Kyoka had described their battle with the Pillar Man in detail, and even warned him to stay away from the villain at all costs.
"He almost took us all out by himself Kami. If he ever returns to UA...stay the fuck away." Kyoka's voice warned him in his head. "He probably won't attack you unless you provoke him, since he's honorable...but I guarantee that a Non-Spin User won't stand much of a chance. He ripped off my ear in a matter of seconds."
The villain from the news landed in the common room soon after, also glancing at them. "Are these the kids that embarrassed you, Santana?"
"No, they have nothing to do with any of this!"
"Too bad."
The man bolted straight towards them, and at that moment, both Mina and Kaminari c felt nothing but pure terror. It was like staring death in the face...
Images of their own slaughter played through their minds...
Yet, Kaminari still acted.
He didn't exactly know why, he should've froze...but he didn't. He discharged electricity at that moment, surprising his attacker.
What was even more surprising was that Santana's gold armor turned a shiny brown.
Wait...no, that's copper!
*CRACK!*
Like a clap of thunder, the Pillar Man punched their attacker away from them, traveling at an unparalleled speed. He slammed into the ground, dragging their attacker through the dirt, screaming.
"I WON'T LET YOU WIN, KARS!"
Mina and Kaminari were frozen for a moment, before they both looked at each other.
"Ooooooh, Kars!" They both said.
...
...
...
...
"KARS?!"
Endeavor crashed into the ground, wheezing.
Kars had outclassed him immediately, and had hit him with a bunch of piranhas. It had taken him awhile to burn them all off, but now he was suffering blood loss from the several lacerations the carnivorous fish had given him.
It didn't matter, he had to keep going.
Kars had punched Santana into UA, and his son was in there. If Shoto was hurt...or worse...
That's when a bunch of dirt was kicked up, heading away from the dorm building. Santana had retaliated, and was dragging Kars along the ground at the speed of lightning.
Reaching up to his earpiece, Endeavor took a deep breath.
"If anyone can hear me, protect UA. I'll handle Kars..."
"What about Santana?" Edgeshot's voice responded.
"He is on our side...for the moment. It appears that he and and his old master had a disagreement." The number one hero slowly got to his feet, blood dripping to the ground from his wounds.
"Reports of villains engaging a giant monster near the caverns...dear God, WHAT IS THAT THING?!"
"Can you take it out Thirteen?"
"I-I can try...I've never seen something like that..."
"Your black holes might just do the job with Kars too, but until I can't handle him anymore..."
"We're really working with villains?"
"We don't have a choice..."
Endeavor once again flew into the sky, chasing after the brawl in an effort to keep up.
I wonder...did All Might have to make hard decisions like this? Santana is a terroist, one of the biggest threats to Japan's safety...and yet here I am, helping him because of a much larger threat.
I wonder...
Izuku grabbed Katsuki by the collar.
The crashing and banging coming from the school had told Izuku what he needed to know, and judging from the terrified expression on Katsuki's normally grumpy face...
"WHAT THE HELL DID YOU TAKE ME AWAY FROM?!" Izuku screamed, shaking his childhood friend with an enraged expression. "WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON OVER THERE?!"
"I-I uh..."
"ARE PEOPLE GETTING HURT FOR ME?!"
"Izuku!"
Momo grabbed her friend by the shoulder and pulled him away from Katsuki, looking him dead in the eye.
"We were acting purely on speculation...we don't really know what it is..." The ravenette said in a shaky voice. "I sent out a message to the B team to begin evacuating our classmates...this was planned."
"Who is it?" Izuku asked, quieter, but still quite angry. "What is it?"
"We...have reason to believe...it...might be All For One." Momo responded with a wince, bracing for the inevitable.
"...WHAT?!"
"Izuku, liste-"
"All For One?! Are you trying to tell me that all that crashing is ALL FOR ONE?! PROBABLY SLAUGHTERING OUR FRIENDS?!"
"Izuku, there's an evacu-"
"I DON'T CARE!" Izuku shouted, and took his Air Force gloves from a nearby desk. "I'm not just going to stand by if it's AFO, he's after me."
"You better not be going alone Deku!" Katsuki snarled, attempting to grab Izuku's shoulder, but his childhood friend smacked his hand aside.
"I think you've helped enough today, Kacchan."
"Izuku, please see reason!" Momo pleaded. "AFO is obsessed with your Quirk, dangerously so. This group was formed around it...it is our sworn duty to protect OFA...and you're not ready to face him, not alone."
"Assist me with a drone then."
"Izuku."
"It's also MY sworn duty to fight him, it's why my Quirk was created!"
"It's purpose it what you make it! Izuku, please! We have a plan!"
The OFA user proceeded to jump out of Exodus without saying so much as a word, and Momo swore under her breath, tearing her school uniform off to reveal her hero costume underneath. Throwing on her cape, she bolted after him, still muttering incomprehensible curses.
Katsuki began throwing his own gear on. "Fuck you Deku...you're too fucking stupid to know when someone is trying to protect you..."
What would Johnny have done? Would he have been honest and told Izuku about All For One? Or would he have kept it under wraps too?
He had spent so many years as Izuku's bully, it made it all the harder trying to be his friend.
Also...he was getting this weird feeling in his chest...as if...something bad was happening...
Not just here, somehow...in his gut...
He knew that Johnny, Kyoka, Gyro and Ochako were struggling too. Somehow he could tell that they were being put through the wringer at the exact same moment...
Like it was all connected.
Are we gonna make it?
They were afraid to turn on the cameras, fearing that AFO could track them down somehow if they did it...but since Izuku was no longer in the room, Katsuki figured it was worth the risk.
As soon as he opened the cameras, his eyes widened in pure terror.
THAT'S NOT ALL FOR ONE!
It was worse, MUCH worse.
Santana, Kars, and a wounded Endeavor were battling through each frame of the cameras. Injured or dead pros littered the ground at their feet, and it looked like Endeavor wasn't going to last much longer.
Hell, he had probably lasted longer than most.
Izuku was heading straight towards the Ultimate Lifeform, without any clue as to how utterly fucked he was.
HOW IS KARS HERE?! MOVING?!
"Izuku..." Katsuki breathed out, and bolted up the ladder.
Momo was strapped to her drone, which had been modified to carry her around, as she flew after Izuku, who was jumping through the forest towards UA.
"PONYTAIL! GET DEKU TO STOP!" Katsuki's voice screamed through her earpiece.
"What do you think I'm trying to do?! We aren't prepared for a fight with AFO, our team spread too thin!"
"IT'S NOT AFO! IT'S KARS!"
Momo blinked. "Pardon me?"
"KARS! YOU KNOW?! THE INVINCIBLE GUY?! I checked the cameras! You have to let him know!"
If Momo was scared before, now she was horrified.
"IZUKU! STOP! PLEASE!"
"IT'S MY DUTY!"
"IT'S NOT-"
At that moment, Izuku was blindsided by two Pillar Men. His eyes widened in shock as they met a pair of red ones, and what looked to be the familiar, but slightly different skull-esque mask of Santana.
One figure began to glow with energy that shone with the colors of the rainbow, combined with blood red sparks. Santana appeared to be screaming something, but Izuku couldn't hear him.
All he could see, and think about, was this Angel of Death that was about to throw a punch at him.
He's...using...Hamon?!
A primal fear took over his body, the fear of death. Death itself was getting ready to smite him from existence, and all he could do was watch.
No...PLEASE!
Thoughts of his mother, All Might, Johnny, Katsuki, Ochako...all of them played in his mind as his doom drew closer. Time had slowed down, as all he could think about was the people he cared about most...
He didn't want to die.
At that single moment, he wasn't Deku, All Might's successor...
He was Izuku Midoriya, the terrified sixteen-year old kid.
*CRACK!*
He was hit right in the face, but not by Kars...
By Katsuki.
The face of his childhood bully was a mask of pure terror, and tears were forming in the corners of his eyes. The same face that used to snarl at him in anger, that sneered at his dreams of becoming a hero...
The same face that told him to kill himself.
The face that opened it's mouth to scream as Kars took a chunk out of his side.
Katsuki's flesh around the area that wasn't blown away by the impact bubbled and evaporated, and the blond hurtled towards the ground, before being caught by Momo. Izuku was still in midair, frozen, the whole world had come to a complete stop.
Momo appeared to be screaming Katsuki's name, as the blond coughed up blood all over her.
That's when everything came rushing at him at full force, and all the fear, the rage, the sorrow, came out of Izuku's mouth with one word:
"KAAAACCHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!"
Once more, Kars looks to be on top!
With Katsuki greviously wounded, Santana struggling, and Endeavor on his last legs...all hope truly seems lost for our heroes.
Not to mention there are other arcs happening at THE EXACT SAME TIME. The battles with the Rake, The Barge, and the mysterious page are happening at the same time as Kars' massacre!
If only there was someone who had an absurd amount of luck, an affinity for thinking on the fly, and had encounter Kars before nearby...