The Symbol of Peace and Justice
Chapter 8 – Complications
The atmosphere was thick with tension as the small army of villains encroached towards Class 1A, their slow, stilted movements only serving to ramp up the pressure that was present. To the students' credit, none of them looked overly distraught or terrified. Instead, they simply stared straight ahead with a sort of nervous fascination.
Whether that was down to a show of courage, or a result of them not registering the kind of danger they were in, Gohan didn't have a clue. All he knew was that he'd been around these kinds of scumbags long enough to know what they represented. Now, all he saw was an intrusion of cockroaches that needed to be exterminated.
"These louts must have been responsible for the break-in at school yesterday," Aizawa noted grimly.
All Might clenched a shaking fist. "To think they would have the audacity to attack a school full of children… how rotten can you be?!"
"What about the trespasser sensors?" Yaoyorozu asked anxiously, having pushed her way to the head of the group to speak with the teachers.
"Well, we do have them set up, but…" Thirteen trailed off, although the implication was clear.
"So, it's a calculated attack," Todoroki observed, not a trace of fear in his tone. "The question is, are they attacking the whole school, or just this part of campus? If it's just here that's under attack, then they must have a motive of some sort."
A fleeting thought crossed Gohan's mind that he was the reason his classmates were being attacked; that his identity was uncovered and that the villains were banding together to take him down. However, that thought went as quickly as it came. He'd done far too good a job of keeping his identity a secret for that to be a possibility. Still, Todoroki did raise a good point. Just what was the motive behind this ambush?
"Thirteen, start the evacuation and try calling the school. Kaminari, you try doing the same with your Quirk," Aizawa ordered, loosening the wrappings around his neck. "There's a chance someone in their ranks has an electromagnetic-type Quirk that's interfering with our sensors."
"Got it," Kaminari replied, while Thirteen nodded in affirmation.
"These villains don't stand a chance against All Might and Aizawa-sensei!" Midoriya exclaimed confidently, his eyes brimming with admiration.
"A hero should never allow themselves to get too cocky, my boy," All Might chided as he went through a few basic stretches. "Villains are a tricky bunch; you never know what kind of nefarious schemes they might have up their sleeves for when things go south."
Midoriya blushed and averted his gaze. "G-got it. Sorry, sensei."
Knowing that conflict was about to start caused a surge of adrenaline to course through Gohan, and he took an anxious step forward. "All Might-sensei, Aizawa-sensei, please let me fight alongside you!"
All Might stopped his stretching and gave Gohan a sad smile. "I appreciate your enthusiasm, young Son, but I cannot, in good conscience, allow you to do that. As teachers it is our job to protect our students, not the other way around."
Gohan fought down his frustration and refused to back down. "I get where you're coming from, but I'll be fine! I can help!" he pleaded. "You saw what I can do during the battle trial, sensei! I can handle this!"
"That's enough out of you, Son!" Aizawa bellowed, fixing the demi-Saiyan with his most no-nonsense glare. "We don't have time for this. It's true that you're capable of extraordinary things, but fighting in a supervised simulation with your classmates is a lot different to fighting against remorseless killers who would murder a child without hesitation. This is a matter of life or death, and you're not prepared for that just yet. None of you are."
Gohan gritted his teeth, the vein on his forehead throbbing. He wanted to tell Aizawa just how wrong he was. He wanted to let his teacher know that he'd been training to fight genocidal aliens at an age where regular children were still going to day-care, and that he'd witnessed death first-hand before he even knew what living was. He wanted to scream that he'd been battling against evil his entire life, and that he was better prepared than anyone here to handle what was happening.
But he wouldn't. He couldn't. Even if he charged ahead without saying anything, he didn't know how dire the punishment of directly disobeying his teachers would be, and he wasn't prepared to take that risk. He had way too much to lose.
So he backed down and rejoined the rest of his class, ignoring the stunned stares his peers were giving him. He would follow orders for now… but if things got too hairy, he would step in, consequences be damned. If there was one thing he wasn't, it was a coward. Piccolo had stamped that out of him long ago.
All Might was the first to leap into action, lunging off the top of the stairs and crashing like a meteor among the collection of villains. Before the dust generated from his landing had even started to clear, he came out swinging in a flurry of blinding-fast fists, knocking away any unfortunate souls close enough to get hit. The few crooks that did manage to put some distance between them and the legendary hero weren't spared from the onslaught either, as they were sent flying by the shockwaves generated from his punches.
To the side, a few villains with weapon-like Quirks were primed to fire at the preoccupied All Might, but their attempts were ultimately rendered fruitless when Aizawa swung onto the scene. In the few moments it took them to realise their powers had been erased, he had bound them with his neck wrappings, launched them into the air like some unholy tentacle monster, and smashed them against one another. Without waiting for their unconscious bodies to hit the ground, Aizawa swiftly moved on to another handful of criminals, ruthlessly incapacitating them with a barrage of precise close quarter strikes.
"Damn, our teachers are badasses!" Kirishima gasped, awestruck by the sight. Blasty was grinning sadistically beside him, clearly itching to get in on the action.
"I had no idea Aizawa-sensei was so good at fighting large groups of people," Midoriya commented, equally as surprised.
"You won't get very far as a hero if you're a one-trick pony," Gohan remarked, a bit calmer now that he'd seen his teachers were capable of handling themselves.
"Y-yeah, I figured," Midoriya muttered.
Gohan shifted his attention from the beatdown to the hulking black monster standing off to the side, watching the proceedings without making a move of his own. The demi-Saiyan frowned, briefly contemplating disobeying instructions and getting involved himself. He couldn't explain why, but that guy was giving off some seriously bad vibes.
"Son, we have to go," Midoriya's pleading voice broke Gohan from his musing. He turned towards the green-haired boy and saw that the rest of the class had already started evacuating. "There's nothing else we can do here."
Pursing his lips, Gohan gave the black monster one final, frustrated look before relenting. Letting out a sigh, he nodded at Midoriya. "Alright. Let's get moving."
The pair quickly fell in step with the rest of the class and were halfway to the exit when a pitch-black portal spiralled to life in front of them. Startled, they came to a screeching halt, then gasped when a tall figure wreathed in shadow sprang forth from it.
"I'm afraid I can't let you leave," the wispy figure spoke, his deep voice and gleaming yellow eyes giving him a most imposing visage. "Greetings. We are the League of Villains. I apologise for the presumption, but we have invited ourselves to U.A., the home of the heroes, in order to have All Might, the Symbol of Peace, take his last breath."
That was all Gohan needed to hear. Without so much as a whisper, he darted forward and buried his fist in the shadowy figure's face. To his immense surprise, however, his fist slipped clean through.
"Oh my, how dangerous," the shadowy figure taunted, completely unphased. "But I would expect nothing less from th-"
Unperturbed by his earlier failure, Gohan attacked once more, this time aiming for the only thing on the shadowy figure's body that looked tangible: the metallic plates around his neck. The demi-Saiyan dug his fingers into the solid material, feeling it creak and earning a cry of shock from the villain.
Pleased that he'd found a weak point, Gohan tightened his grip and lifted the shadowy figure with one hand before mercilessly slamming him onto his back.
"Wh-what are you?" the villain choked out, his wispy limbs flailing about.
Gohan felt a wave of shadows swarm his body but he blew them away with a simple flare of his ki. The attempted counter attack dealt with, he narrowed his onyx eyes at the one responsible and responded with one simple word. "Justice."
The shadowy figure was silent for a few seconds, but eventually barked out a strained laugh. "This isn't a comic book, boy. You're out of your league. I suggest you let go before things get nasty."
"I don't think you're in a position to bargain," Gohan seethed, tightening his grip and forcing out another pained cry from his captive.
"Is that so?" the villain taunted, mustering enough strength to let out a sardonic laugh. "I wonder if your classmates share that sentiment…"
Gohan's blood ran cold at the statement, and he swivelled his head around to see a huge dome of wispy black and lavender encompassing the area his classmates were standing. His heart skipped a beat, and a faint gasp slipped from his mouth.
Fighting down the urge to explode, Gohan shot the shadowy figure a downright venomous glare and squeezed the metal even harder, making the captive villain sputter helplessly. "What did you do to them?" he whispered in barely suppressed rage, tightening his grip with each word.
"Still alive… let me go or… they… die," the shadowy figure ground out, barely able to speak.
Gohan let go. He rose to his feet and took a step back, panting heavily as sweat poured off him in droves. "I've done what you asked. Now let them go," he begged, straining to calm down his racing heartbeat.
The shadowy figure floated to his feet and wheezed, the formerly pristine metal plates under his eyes now dented with finger-sized imprints. The dome then vanished, revealing a few people outside its radius but nothing within it. "Oops."
Gohan instantly saw red. He pointed a trembling hand at the shadowy figure's centre, then fired off a devastating kiai wave that sent the villain shooting through the wall of the building like a wispy cannonball and flying out of sight.
He didn't know where the man had ended up, nor did he care. He just wanted the bastard gone. Right now, the most important thing on his mind was finding out what happened to his classmates.
Suppressing the dark thoughts that tried to surface, Gohan trudged over to the people who had managed to escape from the villain's shadowy dome. As relieved as he was that Sato, Iida, Uraraka, Ashido, Shoji, Sero and Thirteen were safe, he couldn't find it in him to muster a smile, nor was he bothered by the awestruck stares they were giving him.
Instead, he got straight to the point. "Did you guys see what happened to the rest of the class?" he questioned.
Shoji's extra hands extended outwards and morphed into a pair of eyes and ears. After a few tense seconds of silence, he spoke. "Everyone's scattered, but they're all still in the building."
Gohan let out a massive sigh of relief and sunk to his knees. "Thank God…"
"S-Son…" Iida stammered. "I knew you were far stronger than me, but I didn't think the gap between us was this big."
"Yeah, dude. You just took out a legit villain on your own like it was nothing," Ashido added, her eyes sparkling.
"And he did it in style, too," Sato remarked with a chuckle. "That was a perfect chokeslam if I've ever seen one. I knew making you watch pro wrestling with me was a good idea."
Gohan allowed a small smile to grace his lips, but before he could say something back, his view was blocked by Thirteen's rotund figure. "Young man… I can honestly say I'm at a loss for words over what I've just seen," the pro hero remarked. She nervously adjusted their collar. "About that villain… did you…"
Gohan's eyes widened and he quickly shook his head. "No, that guy's still alive. I just blew him away, that's all." He may have loathed the shadowy villain's guts, but he wasn't a murderer.
Thirteen exhaled audibly. "Thank goodness. We already have enough problems on our plate."
"Do you have a plan, Thirteen-sensei?" Iida inquired, his expression hardening.
"We need to send a runner to the school to let them know what's happening here," she explained. "They need to be aware that the alarms haven't been triggered and that our phones have lost reception. Our alarms operate by infrared rays, and despite Eraserhead cancelling Quirks left and right, they're still not working. That is most likely the doing of someone with an interference-type Quirk who is currently in hiding. Instead of us wasting what little time we have trying to smoke that person out, the best thing to do would be to call for reinforcements."
The Space Hero then shifted her attention to Gohan. "Vice President, I saw from Aizawa's test results that you're the fastest person in the class. Would you be up to the task?"
Gohan frowned at the request. He was about to decline, but Iida intervened on his behalf. "Thirteen-sensei, I must ask you to reconsider. Out of everyone in our class, Son here is by far the most combat-savvy. I have the utmost faith in his abilities, and firmly believe the best thing for him to do would be to stay here and make sure our classmates are alright." He gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. "As much as it pains me to have to leave my peers in such peril, I realise this is the best course of action. I may not be as fast as Son, but my speed is still nothing to scoff at."
Thirteen pondered Iida's words, while Gohan gazed at the bespectacled boy in shock. He knew all too well the frustrating feeling of hopeless resignation – of wanting to play an active role in helping others but being unable to do so because you weren't strong enough. He knew how hard it must have been for Iida to admit such a thing, and he felt his already immense respect for his classmate rise even higher.
"Spoken like a true hero," Thirteen praised. "I'm pleased to see you're already taking my earlier lesson to heart. Very well, Iida. I entrust this task to you."
Iida bowed to the teacher. "You can count on me, Thirteen-sensei!"
While he settled himself into a running stance, Gohan walked up and gave the boy his most gracious smile. "Thank you. I promise I won't let you down."
Iida nodded firmly in response. "I know."
With that, he ignited his calf engines and sprinted out of the building, leaving a thin trail of smoke in his wake.
Thirteen faced Gohan once more and sighed. "We're in a real pickle here. While I'm still not comfortable letting a first-year student go up against actual villains, I'm inclined to agree with Iida's assessment of you. Go and make sure your classmates are okay, Son, then send them my way. You have my blessing."
"Thank you, Thirteen-sensei," Gohan replied, giving her a small bow. He turned to his remaining classmates and flashed them a confident thumbs up. "Don't worry, guys. I got this."
Sato crossed his arms and adopted a stern countenance. "You better. I expect nothing less from my sidekick."
"Leave no ass unkicked," Sero added with a smirk.
"Good luck, Son! Although I doubt you need it," Ashido chirped, giving him a thumbs up of her own.
Shoji merely nodded his approval, projecting a vote of confidence without the need to speak.
With one final smile at his classmates, Gohan took to air and dashed towards the lake area, whether conflict was the most open and easy to spot. As he flew, he glanced over to the centre of the U.S.J., where he spotted All Might trading blows with the hulking black monstrosity he'd been so wary of. Worryingly enough, the pair of them appeared to be evenly matched for now, each combatant's heavy swings not having much of an impact on their opponent. Aizawa wasn't far away, the Eraser Quirk user having a far easier time than his colleague cutting through waves of disposable goons.
Gohan shook aside his concerns and continued towards the original destination. All Might and Eraserhead were experienced pros who had been in the business for a long time. He was confident they'd pull off a victory in the end.
After reaching the lake, Gohan's attention was immediately drawn by the sight of Midoriya leaping off the sinking ship in the centre, right where a handful of aquatic-type villains were waiting. Eyes widening in panic, the demi-Saiyan accelerated and swooped into the path of his friend, catching the boy around the waist.
Midoriya yelped in surprise, but Gohan ignored it and hoisted him up until they were both floating in the air, the green-haired boy being supported by a hand around his back. "S-S-Son!" he stammered once he'd gathered his bearings.
"What the hell were you thinking, jumping into the sea like that?" Gohan demanded. "Were you trying to get yourself killed?"
"Of-of course not!" Midoriya responded, his cheeks reddening. "I had a plan! I was going to create a whirlpool to suck all the villains in! If I did nothing, Tsuyu and I would've been dead meat!"
Gohan furrowed his brow and shifted his attention to the ship's deck, where he saw the frog girl waving at him, seemingly unbothered by their predicament. Now that he thought about it, Midoriya looked like he was about to fire off a flick at the water when he'd flown in and picked him up. "Did that plan involve you crippling your arm in the process?" he pressed, having figured out what his friend was trying to accomplish.
"No! Just m-my finger!" Midoriya stuttered. "I couldn't sit back and do nothing, Son!"
Gohan sighed. "Believe me, I get where you're coming from. Just… try not to do anything overly dramatic until we start training, okay?" Midoriya nodded in resignation, making the demi-Saiyan smile. "Good."
"Hey, guy, what's the big idea?!" a shark-faced villain called out from the water.
"Yeah! That little shit was gonna be our lunch!" another villain with red markings on his head chimed in.
Gohan hardened his gaze and glared down at the crooks, to which they just laughed mockingly. Not paying their behaviour any heed, he floated down to the ship's deck and let go of Midoriya.
"Hello, Gohan," Tsuyu greeted in her usual demeanour.
The demi-Saiyan smiled. "Hey there, Tsuyu. I'm glad you're safe."
"I feel a lot safer now that you're here," she admitted.
"G-good to know," Gohan responded with a nervous chuckle. "An-anyway, Thirteen-sensei is looking after a group of our classmates over by the entrance where that shadow guy ambushed us. She sent me to go round up whoever I could find and send them his way."
Midoriya's expression turned serious. "Is the shadow villain still there?"
Gohan shook his head, causing the green-haired boy to sigh in relief. "Tsuyu, think you and Midoriya can make the jump to land, or do you need me to fly you guys there?" he asked. "Things are going to get a bit… messy around here after I'm done."
Tsuyu nodded, her bulbous eyes narrowing a fraction. "I can manage it. Remember our conversation the other day, Gohan. Don't underestimate my jumping."
Gohan raised his hands in a placating manager. "J-just making sure! I didn't mean to imply that you couldn't!"
"I know. I'm just messing with you," Tsuyu reassured, her features softening. "Although you should still take me flying sometime. I wouldn't mind that."
Without waiting to see his reaction, she swiftly wrapped her tongue around Midoriya's waist, eliciting a startled yelp from the green-haired boy, and hopped into the sky.
Gohan shook aside the blush that was starting to form and levitated above the boat, turning his attention to the villains in the water, but struggling to take his mind off Tsuyu's request. How would he even go about taking a girl flying? What would be the appropriate place to hold her? What if his hand slipped and accidentally touched-
"There you are, you pussy!" one of the seafaring crooks taunted, flipping him the bird. "Finally come out of hiding to play with the big boys, huh?"
That brought Gohan back to his senses. Shrugging off the insult, he pointed his palm at the water.
"Think you're hot shit just because you can fly, freak?" another villain called out. "What are you going to do from up there? Wave us to death?"
"Come down and join us, you shitty-haired retard!" someone else added.
"Yeah, the water's a bit too blue for my liking! Let's make it prettier by spilling your blood!"
"I'm gonna smother you with that cape and finish what your mother failed to do when you were born, you inbred turd!"
"I bet you don't even have a mother! I bet you're just some bastard who was shat out and left to die behind a dumpster!"
"No wonder you smell so bad!"
"Stinky and shitty-haired freak!"
"Loser!"
"Asshole!"
"Mummy's boy!"
Midoriya had the right idea, but he didn't have the tools to carry out his plan without harming himself in the process. Gohan, however, had no such handicap. Ignoring the obscenities being hurled his way, he launched a focused kiai wave that split the sea like a spear. The effect was instantaneous.
A roaring whirlpool swirled into existence, trapping the hapless villains around it in its crushing tides. Screams of abject terror chorused through the air but were drowned out one by one as the cold-hearted crooks were dragged beneath the depths. For a few seconds, there was silence, and then a massive geyser of water shot into the sky, mercilessly expelling the captive criminals.
Not caring enough to admire his handiwork, Gohan took off towards the fire zone north of the lake. The villains he'd just defeated would live thanks to their Quirks, but hopefully they'd think twice about attacking children should they ever be released from prison.
Upon reaching the dome, Gohan swooped through the entrance and found himself inside a city set ablaze. Buildings burned with no sign of stopping, lines of flames danced across the streets and the sky was clouded by a thick, black smoke. To top it all off, the heat in the area was sweltering.
"Hey, we got another little shit who wants in on the fun!"
Gohan snapped his attention to the source of the voice: a grotesque villain with a hatchet for an arm who was charging at him with a sickening smirk on his scaly face. Beside him were four similarly hideous crooks, each one looking as bloodthirsty as the first.
Unwilling to waste time playing their games, Gohan pointed his index finger at the onrushing criminals and vanished from view. Less than a second later, the five villains slumped into unconsciousness while the demi-Saiyan nonchalantly appeared behind them. All it took to knock out the weaklings was a simple poke to their chests.
Now that he was free to search the city, Gohan took to the skies. He didn't know who he was looking for, but the hatchet-armed dumbass he'd just incapacitated had confirmed that one of his classmates was in the area.
Not long after he'd begun his search, Gohan caught wind of some commotion towards the middle of the city. Flaring his ki, he sped to his destination, where he was greeted with the sight of Ojiro locked in close-quarters-combat with a handful of villains, the lot of them trapped by a ring of fire. It was like a scene out of a cheesy martial arts movie.
To his credit, Ojiro was doing an outstanding job batting aside his opponents with ease, showcasing the gulf in class between a trained martial artist and simple street thugs. Gohan nodded in approval as his classmate easily countered an overhead swing and followed through with a punch to the nose, before firing off a mule kick at a sneaky villain who was approaching him from behind. He then lashed out with a tail whip that floored three crooks at once.
Had Gohan stood aside and watched, he was positive Ojiro would handily come out on top in this fight. Unfortunately, time wasn't a luxury he had right now.
Knowing he had to act fast, he dropped down from the sky and landed with a thud beside Ojiro, startling both him and the remaining villains. "Yo."
"S-Son! What are you doing here?" Ojiro exclaimed.
"Thirteen-sensei asked me to gather up anyone I could find and send them his way. She's at the U.S.J.'s entrance," Gohan answered, shooting a glare at the remaining villains. "Sorry to butt in on your fight, by the way."
"Don't worry about it, I appreciate for the help," Ojiro stated. "So, how do you want to do this? I take half and you take half?"
Gohan responded with a sheepish smile. "Normally I'd say that's fair, but I'm kinda pressed for time right now."
Before Ojiro could ask him to elaborate, the demi-Saiyan waved his hand and generated a gust of wind strong enough to blow away what was left of the villains and forge a path through the ring of fire.
Ojiro's jaw dropped. "Holy crap! I knew you were a monster, but… damn!"
Gohan scratched the back of his head and let out a nervous chuckle. "Yeah… anyway, are you alright to get out of here yourself, or do you want me to fly you out?"
"Thanks for the offer, but I'll be fine," Ojiro replied, shooting Gohan a smile. "Go and make sure the others are alright. Thanks again for the help."
Gohan gave his classmate a wave before taking to the sky and swiftly exiting the fire zone. His next destination was the storm zone on the other side of the lake, which he reached within seconds.
The interior of this new dome was structured similarly to that of the fire zone, only with heavy rain and winds instead of flames, and a chilling cold instead of scorching heat. There were also significantly fewer destroyed buildings.
Gohan's cape fluttered wildly in the brutal breeze as he carefully surveyed his surroundings. He could barely hear a thing over the roaring windstorm, which meant he'd have to search the city with just his eyes. Hopefully any conflict that was taking place wouldn't be hidden away in some dingy alley that was impossible to find.
So, without much of a plan in mind, he took to the sky and began his search. Fortunately, it didn't take him too long to stumble across a brawl taking place on an open street, the team of Tokoyami and Koda facing off against a sizeable number of villains.
The two U.A. students seemed to be having a relatively easy time of things; Koda baiting crooks with a frightened demeanour, while Tokoyami knocked them aside with his Dark Shadow Quirk. Much like Ojiro, they clearly didn't need any help, but Gohan didn't have a choice.
He quickly descended from the sky and effortlessly incapacitated whatever villains were still standing by blowing them away with a gust of wind of his own making. With that taken care of, he turned to his classmates and smiled. "You guys okay?"
"Yes. Your assistance was unneeded, but nonetheless appreciated," Tokoyami answered, while Koda stared at him in shock.
"Glad to hear it," Gohan stated. "You guys should head over to the U.S.J.'s entrance. Thirteen-sensei is waiting there with a bunch of our classmates."
Tokoyami stroked his chin. "That must mean the shadow villain has been disposed of. I'm pleased to hear things aren't as dire as I initially feared."
"If you guys want, I can give you a lift there," Gohan offered, scanning over their stormy surroundings in disdain. "I'm headed that way myself, so it won't be a problem."
"Very well then, I accept your offer," Tokoyami replied almost immediately.
Koda seemed to hesitate for a few seconds, his eyes shifting between his peers, but eventually he too nodded in agreement.
Gohan grinned. "Cool. Ahh… I think the best way to do this would be for the both of you to turn around and raise one hand in the air."
Koda and Tokoyami did just that, so he grabbed a hold of each student's arm and slowly levitated into the sky. A faint gasp slipped from Koda's mouth as his feet left the ground, giving Gohan pause. It was the first time he'd ever heard his reserved classmate's voice. Hopefully in time Koda would open up more, as he would love to have an in-depth conversation with the rock-headed boy about his Quirk.
In the meantime, Gohan kept a relatively low altitude and speed as they flew through the city, not wanting to startle his passengers. Even then, Tokoyami still couldn't contain his excitement.
"Astounding! Simply magnificent!" the birdlike boy exclaimed in a rare show of emotion. "I didn't think such a thing was possible without wings… how on Earth are you doing this?"
"Energy manipulation," Gohan explained, glad his classmate was enjoying the experience. "I never really thought about why manipulating my energy allows me to fly. It's just been something I could always do."
"Yours is a most impressive Quirk," Tokoyami remarked. "I'm just glad it belongs to you instead of someone more nefarious."
'If only,' Gohan mused inwardly, unable to keep the frown off his face.
The trip was a short one, and upon reaching the building's entrance, Gohan dropped off Tokoyami and Koda. He took a quick look around and saw that Midoriya and Tsuyu had managed to meet up with Thirteen and the rest of the class, while Ojiro still hadn't arrived.
"All good, Son?" the teacher asked.
"All good, sensei," Gohan replied. "Halfway there."
Thirteen nodded in approval. "Excellent. Keep up the good work."
Not wanting to dawdle, Gohan waved goodbye to his classmates and took off once more. This time, his destination was the ruined city directly opposite the storm zone.
As he flew above the crumbling streets and dilapidated buildings, he kept both an eye and ear out for any sign of action. However, scouring the skies proved fruitless, so he lowered his altitude and started slaloming through the city with even more urgency.
This new approach quickly paid off, as he soon caught wind of a faint yet undeniable familiar explosion somewhere in the distance. Casting aside his personal biases, he accelerated towards the source of the noise, which was coming from a derelict house. Swooping in through the window, he came upon the sight of Blasty and Kirishima standing next to a pile of unconscious bodies, the former of the pair clutching a frog-faced villain by the head.
Upon noticing Gohan's arrival, Kirishima grinned while Bakugo mustered a scowl. "Gym teacher bastard…" the blond growled, dropping his victim.
"Nice to see you too, Blasty," Gohan greeted with an amicable smile, hoping his sudden show of kindness would get under his classmate's skin. If the glower he received was any indication, his plan was a success.
"I get that Bakugo's whole shtick is giving people nicknames, but what's the context behind the 'gym teacher' thing?" Kirishima inquired.
Blastly let out a mocking chuckle. "During the entrance exam, this guy rocked up wearing this hideous green tracksuit, the kind you'd see overenthusiastic substitute gym teachers wear. It was both sad and fucking hilarious."
Gohan glowered at the insult. "You know what else was both sad and hilarious? You getting owned by the zero-pointer."
Blasty's eyes bulged and his jaw dropped. Faint explosions crackled in his palms and a most venomous glare found its way to his features. "You bastard… you cheeky, fucking bastard! I'll fucking murder you!"
"Just like Midoriya murdered you in All Might's battle trial?" Gohan quipped, unable to resist another jab. This guy's attitude was really grinding his gears.
Blasty's face turned ashen and his body started shaking. The explosions around his hands magnified in volume, and for a second, Gohan was worried the volatile blond was going to erupt like a volcano.
While this was happening, Kirishima guffawed like a maniac. "Holy shit, Son! I didn't know you were such a savage!" he cried, wiping tears from his eyes.
"Me neither," Gohan realised to his shock – and subsequent disgust. He'd fallen victim to his anger and allowed himself to be sucked into a petty verbal dispute when there were far more important matters to worry about. He'd even dragged poor Midoriya's name into it, which was low on his part.
Shaking aside his shame for now, the demi-Saiyan frowned. "Anyway, I just wanted to let you guys know to head to the building's entrance to meet up with Thirteen-sensei and the rest of the class."
"Thanks for the heads up, bro. You coming too?" Kirishima asked, having mostly recovered from his earlier bout of hysterics.
Gohan shook his head. "Not yet. I need to go round up whoever's still out there and let them know."
Kirishima nodded, a determined gleam in his crimson eyes, "Fair enough, man. Well, good luck!"
Gohan waved to the redhead and took to the sky. Before departing to the landslide zone, he cast one final look at his two classmates and saw Kirishima hesitatingly patting Blasty on the back, probably trying to calm him down.
The sight caused Gohan's earlier guilt to resurface and he inwardly scolded himself. Yeah, Blasty was an ass, but he should've been better. He should've known better than to sink to that level. He wasn't at a crummy, run-down elementary school anymore; he was at U.A., the most prestigious hero school in the country. What would Piccolo say? What would his mother say?
The thought made him shudder, so he quickly cast it from his mind. Refocusing on his current objective, he raced towards the landslide zone and immediately spotted an icy field with several frozen villains stuck within.
Eyes widening at the macabre sight, Gohan descended to where Todoroki had his palm pointed at a trapped and trembling villain, an icy mist wafting off his fingers. "On what basis do you think you can kill All Might?" the heterochromic boy interrogated, his frosty tone in perfect sync with the setting.
"Take it easy, Todoroki," Gohan demanded after landing, furrowing his brow at his stoic classmate. "You don't want to kill these guys, do you?"
"Of course not. I'm just trying to extract as much information from them as I can," Todoroki revealed. "Fear is an excellent tactic in that regard."
"Perhaps, but push too hard and you'll wind up doing something you regret," Gohan scolded, walking over to stand beside the ice user.
"Cut it out with the preaching, Son. I know my limits," Todoroki fired back with a scowl.
Gohan grimaced. Perhaps he did come off a bit too pontifical there. "I'll take your word for it. What have you found out?"
"Nothing concrete," Todoroki replied. "All I know is these goons are far too weak to be a threat to All Might. Whatever the villains' leaders are planning, they're probably meant to be a distraction at best."
Gohan frowned. "Makes sense. All Might is currently fighting that huge, black monstrous-looking guy. Last I checked, they were pretty evenly matched."
Todoroki crossed his arms. "That confirms my earlier suspicions. Perhaps the villains' secondary objective was to kill us off by overwhelming us with sheer numbers. After all, we are the most promising hero prospects in the country."
Gohan clenched his fist. "It wouldn't surprise me. Villains can be rotten to the core."
"That we can agree on."
"Who'd have thought?" Gohan exclaimed, letting out a light chuckle. "In any case, since you're done here, you should head back to the entrance and check in with Thirteen-sensei."
Todoroki turned towards him. "I take it that means the shadow villain is indisposed of?" At the demi-Saiyan's nod, he pursed his lips. "Let me guess, you had a hand in that?"
"Something like that," Gohan admitted reluctantly.
To his surprise, Todoroki actually smirked. "Figures."
Gohan didn't know what to make of that reaction, so he decided to leave before things got weirder. Before departing, however, he stamped his foot on the ground, breaking apart the surrounding ice and letting the trapped villains slump to the ground, unconscious. "By the way, if you're going to interrogate someone by torturing them to near-death, don't take your eyes off them," he chided.
In a rare show of emotion, Todoroki gave an almost imperceptible grimace. "I'll keep that in mind."
With that, Gohan lifted into the air and hurried towards the last area left to search: the mountain zone. From what he could recall, Yaoyorozu, Kaminari, Jiro, Aoyama and Hagakure were unaccounted for – a sizeable number. He fought down the fear welling up in the pit of his stomach; he'd done a great job of rounding up his classmates so far. There was no reason to believe he'd fail just yet.
Gohan's attention was suddenly drawn to a blindingly bright discharge of electricity. Instantly attributing it to Kaminari, he picked up speed and sped towards the source of conflict. Within seconds he caught sight of said lightning user standing atop a flat part of the mountain, multiple villains surrounding him. The criminals' clothes seemed to be smoking, indicating that they'd been struck by his attack, but Kaminari himself remained immobile, looking like he was out of it.
Alarmed, Gohan swooped down and landed beside the blond with a thud, leaving a noticeable crater in the rock. One swift sweep of his hand later, all the villains still standing had been knocked down by a gust of wind.
With the coast now clear, Gohan turned to his classmate. "Hey, Kami-"
Before he could pose his question, his eyes locked onto a familiar pair of wide onyx orbs staring at him in shock. However, stumbling across Yaoyorozu wasn't what made his jaw drop. The source of his astonishment was the fact that his partner from the battle trial, and fellow class president, was currently missing the front part of her costume as she huddled underneath a large blanket, a dumbstruck Jiro by her side.
When Gohan came to his senses, a burst of blood spurted from his nose and his hands immediately few to his eyes. "Shit! Sorry! I didn't mean to-" As he was stumbling back, he tripped over Kaminari's foot and fell to the ground, the back of his head hitting the hard rock below. "Ouch!"
To further compound his sorry state, Kaminari toppled over and landed on top of Gohan, who was cognisant enough to raise a hand and stop his classmate's descent before they could butt heads…or worse. "Whee! Whee! Whee!" the blond chirped, a frighteningly bizarre grin on his face as his glazed eyes bored into the demi-Saiyan's.
"Gah!" Gohan gasped, caught off guard as his mind was sent spinning. "Wh-wh-what the hell are you doing?"
"Whee!"
"Son! You pervert! How dare you?!" Jiro screamed at him.
"I'm s-sorry! It was an ac-accident!" Gohan wailed, his hand still on Kaminari's chest.
"I-I believe Son when he said it wasn't intentional," Yaoyorozu stammered, although he didn't dare look her way to see if she meant it.
Jiro huffed in disapproval. "Still! He should've known better!"
"How the hell was I supposed to know?!" Gohan questioned, his cheeks the shade as a tomato. "The only thing on my mind was sav-"
This time, Gohan's eyes bulged for a completely different reason as he felt something he hadn't experienced since his fight against Cell. A foreign ki signature – a faint, feeble, but clearly distinguishable ki signature that wasn't his own – pricked at the edge of his senses.
He threw Kaminari off him and leapt to his feet, staring in dismay at the centre of the U.S.J.
"S-Son? What's wrong?"
Without giving Yaoyorozu a response, Gohan vanished from view. The world shifted into slow motion and his perspective changed to literal tunnel vision, the only objective on his mind being to get to where All Might was fighting and figure out what the hell was going on.
In less than a second he reached his destination, where he was greeted by the sight of a grimacing All Might. The legendary hero's arms were crossed in front of him, the sleeves of his costume completely torn to reveal raw, red blisters trailing down his skin, all the way to the elbows.
To Gohan's utter astonishment, the hulking villain he was fighting opened its mouth and spat out a bonafide ki blast, the glimmering yellow energy ball speeding towards All Might at great speed. Unwilling to let his teacher take a potentially lethal attack, Gohan zipped in front of him and backhanded the incoming ki blast into the air, where it smashed through the roof of the building and exploded in the sky.
"Y-young Son! What are you doing here?" All Might stuttered.
Gohan said nothing, his body moving on autopilot as he fired a ki blast of his own at the monstrous brute. The searing hot energy accelerated towards its target, who didn't even move out of the way, and tore a hole through his chest.
Gohan would've felt sick to his stomach and cursed himself for going overboard had the sinewy flesh around the hole not started stitching itself together. His jaw dropped in immense bewilderment as all traces of damage slowly disappeared, eventually leaving the villain looking as good as new. Furthermore, he seemed completely nonplussed about the situation.
"What… what the hell is that thing?" Gohan whispered in abject horror.
He was wholly unprepared for a freakish head of messy greyish hair, its face covered by a disembodied hand, to pop up in front of him. "Who the fuck do you think you are, attacking Nomu like-"
Whoever this new villain was, he didn't get a chance to finish his sentence, as Gohan instinctively raised his hand and smacked the man across the cheek. He briefly registered the villain's body sailing across the room, but the bulk of his attention was on the monster in front of him.
As though prompted by the demi-Saiyan's quick dismissal of his comrade, the one now identified as Nomu charged forward, but was quickly repelled by a kiai wave that sent him tumbling backwards.
"All Might… what on Earth is going on?" Gohan pressed once more in desperation.
"I believe I should be asking you that, young man!" the pro hero scolded. "What are you doing here? Did I not tell you to stay away?!"
"That… thing has my power," Gohan stated heatedly, his anger slowly rising. "I sensed it – it's the first time I've sensed a ki other than my own! This creature can somehow manipulate its energy just like I can!"
All Might exhaled heavily and placed two gentle hands on his student's shoulders. "I see. Forgive my brashness; I can certainly understand your alarm. From what I understand, that creature is an artificial being imbued with multiple Quirks. Thus far it's demonstrated super strength, super speed, shock nullification, regeneration and, as we've just seen, energy manipulation."
"But that's impossible!" Gohan yelled as his rage plateaued, a chill running down his spine at the uncanny similarities to Cell. "There's no way it can have my power! It's just not possible!"
"Calm yourself, my boy!" All Might exclaimed. "I sympathise with your plight and understand your concerns, but you must keep it together! We're not in the clear just yet!"
Gohan took numerous deep breaths, in through the nose and out through the mouth, trying to calm his rapid heartbeat. All Might was right. He could freak out later. For now, there was still the matter of Nomu to deal with, as the monster had recovered from being knocked back and was now encroaching towards them, his hunched gate and silent demeanour belying how ferocious he actually was.
"All Might-sensei," Gohan said, hardening his features and steeling his resolve. "Please let me fight with you. You've seen what that thing is capable of. Please… let me help you just this once. I promise I won't let you down."
After a few moments of tense silence, broken only by Nomu's heavy footsteps and the sound of Aizawa fighting nearby, All Might sighed. "Your conviction rings loud and clear, and I can feel the honesty in your words." Gohan felt the legendary hero's hands slide off his shoulders as he moved to stand beside him. "As much as it pains me to admit it, I do not know if I can defeat this foe on my own. Yours is a formidable Quirk, and in the hands of evil, it is truly something to be feared. So, just this once, I will accept your request. You have my faith, young Son! Let us join fists together and vanquish this vile villain!"
Gohan allowed a small smile to grace his lips. "Thank you."
The student-teacher pair charged forward in perfect sync, each with a fist pulled back. Upon reaching Nomu's range, they lashed out with two meaty punches that struck the monster on either side of his face, sending him flying backwards.
Gohan accelerated and dashed behind Nomu, brutally burying a knee into the base of his spine and shooting him high into the sky. Not yet finished with his assault, the demi-Saiyan rocketed upwards until he was above his foe, then unloaded a devastating double hammerfist blow that knocked the airborne monstrosity towards All Might.
Without missing a beat, All Might unleashed two crunching uppercuts into Nomu's gut, making the monster hunch over in mid-air, then followed through with a deadly right cross that knocked him onto his back.
Gohan propelled himself headfirst towards the downed villain with his fists pulled back, and struck out with a merciless barrage of gattling gun-like punches to the torso, each one driving Nomu deeper into the ground. A few seconds later, the demi-Saiyan ceased his vicious pummelling and stared sombrely at his stunned foe.
Nomu's muscular body was littered with fist-shaped indents, his black skin torn and bleeding as it tried to sew itself back together, albeit far slower than before. Gohan pursed his lips at the sight; that meant the creature's Quirk wasn't shock nullification, but shock absorption – and there was a limit to how much damage he could take.
Regardless, he reached down and wrapped a calloused hand around Nomu's neck, squeezing slightly and lifting the bruised villain out of the hole he'd made. He then flung the monster at All Might, who sent him spinning with a savage clothesline. Not to be outdone by Gohan's earlier attack, the pro hero latched on to his opponent's leg, leapt up while spinning him like a top, then hurled him downwards.
Yet again, Nomu's body made a crater in the earth, only this time it bounced a few metres off the ground. All Might quickly dropped to the floor, then cocked back his right arm and landed a monstrous punch to the creature's stomach, the air itself distorting around his fist as his foe was launched upwards.
Seeing an end to the battle in sight, Gohan flared his ki and ascended to the sky in a burst of untraceable speed, spearing Nomu's body and rocketing him through the ceiling, never once letting go. He tightened his grip around the monster's waist and kept on rising, paying no heed to the shrinking buildings below.
Once they'd reached below the clouds, Gohan let go and shimmied behind Nomu, trapping the creature's arms by his sides and wrapping him in a crushing bearhug. With his opponent incapable of escaping, he took a moment to admire the breathtaking view of the city beneath him and let out a weary sigh, taking comfort in the tranquil atmosphere.
"I know you probably can't understand me, but I just wanted to say you have my sympathy," he told Nomu, his being words met with an unnatural silence. "To be turned into a mindless husk of a monster and used as a puppet by a madman, whether by choice or not… I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy. Even if you're too far gone, I sincerely hope you can regain your humanity someday. No one deserves to live like a slave."
His piece said, Gohan fell backwards. He tightened his grip once more and started spinning like a propeller, relishing the feel of the breeze brushing against his skin. His speed rapidly picked up and a bright, white light cloaked him and his passenger, giving them the appearance of a comet descending from the heavens. His vision blurred just a bit, but he was observant enough to remain aware of his goal.
With a serene expression on his face, Gohan expertly manoeuvred himself so that he fell through the hole in the U.S.J.'s roof he'd created moments earlier, leaving him plummeting towards the ground. The world shifted into slow motion yet again, and mere millimetres before colliding with the hard dirt below, he let go.
The earth split in two, a thunderous tremor shaking the very foundations of the building and a deafening rumble assaulting the ears of everyone in the vicinity. Gohan rubbed his temples in an attempt to clear the dizziness he was feeling, then gently landed on his feet and surveyed the aftermath of the crash.
A sizeable chasm marred the ground, the epicentre of which was Nomu himself. The artificial being's head was embedded in the ground, his body resting upright and one of his legs twitching. Gohan let out a relieved breath and plopped on his backside, wiping away the sweat from his forehead.
"W-well, you certainly know how to finish things in style!" All Might stammered, taking a seat beside the demi-Saiyan. "Very Plus Ultra of you… and very scary, too! Don't make me worry like that again!"
"I'll try, sensei," Gohan reassured, too mentally exhausted to respond differently.
A line of grey tape suddenly flew in front of his face, wrapping around Nomu's body and lifting him out of the ground. "Tch. Brawling has never been my forte," Aizawa huffed tiredly, stepping into view. "Had there not been so many villains to deal with, I would've been here much earlier." Once he had tightened the wrappings around their captive, he regarded Gohan and All Might with a neutral countenance. "Nice job by the way, you two. You've caused millions of yen worth of property damage and undoubtedly traumatised a class full of children."
"Ahh, don't be such a stick-in-the-mud, Aizawa!" All Might chided, clapping a sheepish Gohan on the back. "Don't pay any attention to him, my boy! He's overexaggerating just to scare you! We have heroes who can fix this place up in a jiffy!"
"You completely ignored my other point," Aizawa grumbled.
"Sorry, everyone! Sorry we're late!" a calming voice called from the building's entrance before pausing momentarily. "Wait… where are all the bad guys?"
All Might chuckled at the confusion in the newcomer's voice. "I guess we didn't need reinforcements after all, huh?"
"By some miracle," Aizawa added, sounding genuinely relieved.
Seeing that the villain attack was now well and truly over, Gohan laid back on the rough dirt and closed his eyes. As he ran through the day's events in his head, a steadily deepening frown found its way to his face. Despite the overwhelming victory in U.A.'s favour, he couldn't bring himself to rejoice.
Tokoyami was correct in his earlier assertions that it was fortunate no one nefarious had a Quirk like Gohan's.
Where he came from, a moderately proficient ki user was the equivalent of a nuclear weapon. A talented martial artist dedicated enough to their training could wipe out a planet if they so chose. A megalomaniacal freak of nature with a power beyond even that was a galactic-level threat. Add to that the unpredictability of Quirks, and you'd have a truly horrifying menace on your hands.
Whatever the deal behind this Nomu creature who could mimic his powers was, Gohan knew he had to put a stop to it before something disastrous happened. He didn't know how such a thing was possible, nor did he have an inkling of which sick bastard was behind it, but it couldn't be allowed to continue. The more time passed, the more chance there was that the twisted melding of ki and Quirks would be perfected, and the higher the likelihood of a genuinely threatening foe emerging would be.
For the first time in five years, Gohan legitimately feared for the Earth – and by extension, his own life.
AN: Sorry about the cliffhanger last chapter. Having been in that situation myself many times as a reader, I know exactly what you guys were going through. Unfortunately, these things have to be done sometimes. Hopefully this chapter lived up to expectations. I know how hyped people were for it.
I also hope the twist with Nomu somehow being able to use ki came as a surprise. If you'll remember back to the first chapter, I made it clear that Gohan couldn't sense anyone else's ki, because ki as a concept doesn't exist in the canon MHA world. Some people didn't like that decision, but I'm glad I went that route. Had Gohan been able to sense everyone's ki, it would've made things way too easy, and there would've been no tension whatsoever. It also would've made it possible for Gohan to teach his classmates how to fly and shoot energy blasts, which I didn't want… not to mention opening up the can of worms that is power level debates, which I definitely don't want to touch.
Lastly, handicapping Gohan in such a way made for a much more interesting story, and it led to the revelation in this chapter, which I'd been planning from the very beginning. How and why does Nomu have ki? I know the answer, but I'd love to hear your speculations.
Anyway, thanks again to everyone who's favourited, followed and reviewed this story. I'm always happy to receive feedback so that I can keep improving, so please keep it up. I'm especially curious to hear what you thought of this chapter, as it's without a doubt the biggest (not in terms of word count) one in the story to date. Also, if you pick up on any typos or other spelling mistakes, please let me know. I ended up finishing this chapter at 5am, and was way too tired to properly proofread it.
Next chapter deals with the immediate aftermath of the U.S.J. attack, and touches upon the wider ramifications this event will have on the world. Look forward to it.
PS: The word count I reached after the last update, 66,666, was completely unintentional. Pretty interesting coincidence though, even if it the Satanic implications are somewhat concerning. Still, it's a shame it couldn't last longer.
