I do not own My Hero Academia.

This story was written with the help of another writer who wishes to remain anonymous, but has done most of the work and wishes for it to be posted here on fanfiction.

"I can't believe that worked," exclaimed Ochaco.

Asui, hopping like a frog next to the brunette, silently nodded. Under her arm was an unconscious Mineta, with blood still rolling down from his scalp. The two girls were wet, tired and, above all, afraid. However, Ochaco would be lying if she said she wasn't a bit exhilarated. Their escape from the villains had worked far better than they had hoped and now their way was almost clear.

To a side, they had the artificial lake. On the other, stood the tall dome of the Downpour Zone. They could see the Central Plaza ahead, or rather the rows of trees and bushes lining up the area, alongside the long stairway out of the USJ. Given how they knew no other exit other than the main one, Ochaco had insisted on going there. Asui had pointed out the obvious: the way had been shut by security measures and it would probably be heavily guarded by villains. Still, Ochaco was mostly hopeful she would meet up with Izumi and others, or find some alternative route. All other zones were bound to be crawling with villains after all.

Speaking of which…

"That isn't good, ribbit," Asui said.

Both Ochaco and Asui froze dead on their feet and stared dead ahead. They had come across the entrance to the Downpour Zone (a large metal gateway that led into a dark corridor) which was guarded by a quartet of thuggish villains. Truly, they might have looked intimidating, but Ochaco had noted they didn't have powerful quirks, or any good fighting skills. Of course, there was always the possibility there was a really dangerous madman amongst them.

"They spotted us!" said Ochaco.

And indeed, the villains had merely glanced to a side, seen them and immediately charged towards them.

Asui and Ochaco braced for a fight. The frog girl unceremoniously dropped the unconscious dwarf and went on all fours, ready to jump. Ochaco, in turn, raised her fists much like a boxer, as she had been taught by Miruko. The villains stopped a few feet away and smirked with confidence. They jeered and sneered at them, cracking knuckles or flexing their arms.

Just as the villains were about to lunge at them, a shadow attacked them. The surprised thugs failed to properly respond to the shadow creature, who grabbed one of them and sent him flying towards the Flood Zone.

Asui and Ochaco saw their chance and charged. The frog girl delivered a powerful kick to one of the startled villains, while Ochaco dodged a punch and executed a perfect quirk-enhanced throw over her shoulder towards the Flood Zone. The villain screamed all the way in its untroubled way upwards. The last villain tried to run away, only for the shadow creature – which happened to be Tokoyami's Dark Shadow - to grab the thug and throw him into the water.

From the Downpour Zone, Tokoyami and Koda hurried out of the entrance, drenched like the girls. Leaning against Koda's shoulder and with his eyes rolled back, Ochaco saw Sato. Drool came off the side of his mouth and he appeared to be mumbling to himself.

"Guys!" Ochaco called, glad to see her classmates. "What happened to him?"

Tokoyami and Koda glanced at Sato, who in turn muttered a garbled mess of words that what sounded like "sweet dreams" and "Made of this".

"He went past his limit," Tokoyami stated matter-of-factly. "I presume the same happened to him?"

His beak was aimed towards Mineta. The little midget was no doubt dreaming about something perverted, for he had one of those creepy smiles of his.

"You could say that," sheepishly replied Ochaco.

She glanced towards the Central Plaza, where she could hear the sound of fighting. Was it the right choice to press forward in that direction? Shouldn't they help the others? They could be in the other Zones, after all. Still, that would be running around the Flood Zone and probably face any lingering villains that had managed to escape from them.

"So… what now, ribbit?" Asui wondered, looking around.

"We should press on. The teachers are engaged in a fearsome battle and we must aid them, before it is too late," Tokoyami hummed in his usual somber voice.

Ochaco wasn't sure that was such a good idea. She was rather apprehensive of the large bird man that was giving All Might a hard time as far as they had seen. Although she was aware that no one could hope to beat All Might, a part of her worried nonetheless. By the looks of it, Koda and Asui shared her opinion on the matter.

"Is that a good idea?" Asui asked. "If there are any villains capable of defeating the teachers, I doubt there is much we can do, ribbit."

"One man can tip the scales of destiny," Tokoyami rebutted. "We might not have the power to face powerful villains, but we might offer assistance in other ways. Moreover, if any villains do defeat the teachers, our classmates we'll be next."

Ochaco felt a knot form on her neck. Tokoyami was right on that last part. Odds were that their classmates were at the other zones, and they might still be fighting. If the teachers failed to contain the situation, then there was no telling what could happen to their fellow students, especially if the villain succeeded in beating All Might. Ochaco shuddered at the thought of facing the bird man.

"You do understand we could make matters worse, don't you? We should try to find a way to get help instead, ribbit," Asui said.

Koda nodded, agreeing with the frog girl. Ochaco, on the other hand, grimaced. In her opinion, it wasn't a better idea than Tokoyami's. The USJ was a bit isolated, and whoever had to go help would no doubt need to go far and that alone would be time consuming (unless they got the likes of Iida, Izumi or even Bakugo). Additionally, in the time someone left and actually found help, it would take time to muster a large enough force to deal with so many villains.

What truly concerned Ochaco was another matter altogether, or rather one particular individual: the mist villain. Even if they did get help and it organized quickly enough, the mist villain could easily just take his comrades away, and maybe drag with them students. Perhaps it would be best to make sure no student was captured. Given how lackluster the villains proved to be in regards to fighting, maybe there was a good chance they could actually fight back and help their peers. The problem was, Ochaco got the impression that the villains facing off against their teachers were on an entire level of their own.

"What do you think, Ochaco?" Asui asked.

Ochaco looked at her classmates, staring straight at her. Tokoyami and Asui's gazes were sharp and penetrating, filled with determination and a level of stoicism that Ochaco could only envy. Koda, on the other hand, looked panicky and terrified. Sato and Mineta… well, they were lost in their own worlds.

"W-well…" Ochaco mumbled, unsure what to reply.

Think, Ochaco, what should we do? She told herself. If only we knew more about the situation…

She blinked. That was it, wasn't it?

"I say we get close and check how things are going," Ochaco finally said. "For all we know All Might cleaned house and he dealt with all villains…" She grimaced "…or they might desperately need at least some form of distraction. If it is the worst case scenario" (and she prayed it wasn't) "we can run back here and go help the others."

Tokoyami hummed, stroking his beak, before nodding.

"That sounds wise," he said.

"I agree, ribbit," Asui added.

Koda, on the other hand, looked miserable at the idea of approaching the Central Plaza.

With a decision made, the group moved towards the Central Plaza. The sounds of fighting got stronger and they started to make out movement behind the bushes and trees. They didn't get far, however, before a massive pillar of ice rose high into the air and split the Central Plaza in half. The USJ shook under the glacier that formed.

"That must have been Todoroki!" Shouted Ochaco.

At once, all sense of care disappeared and they run forward. Finally, they made it around a corner and froze at what they saw. Their blood run cold by what they witnessed.

On one knee and blood streaming down his mouth, was an impossible sight: an injured and weakened All Might. In fact, the Number One Hero looked in pain, holding a side of his body and gritting his teeth. His breath was heavy, and his eyes looked unfocused. Never before had Ochaco ever seen the hero in such a state. She didn't think it was possible. On each side, a sweaty Aizawa and a panting Miruko were trying to help All Might up.

In front of the trio, at a fair distance, Todoroki's glacier had managed to separate the villains (at least the ones still standing) from the heroes. Coming from the Landslide Zone, Todoroki, Shoji and Aoyoma sprinted towards the heroes, looking winded and worried. The once pristine white ground was all broken and cracked, and the students had to circle around various fallen villains, some of who appeared still conscious and groaning.

"Come on, Old Man," Miruko wheezed. "We need to move!"

Ochaco was snapped out of her shock by Tokoyami and Asui (with Mineta in her arms) moving forward. The brunette followed after, hanging a bit slower to accompany Koda carrying the still mumbling Sato.

"What are you lot doing here?" Aizawa asked.

It really showed the severity of the situation when Aizawa couldn't manage his usual glares.

"The mist villain, he spread across the USJ Zones," said Todoroki.

He stood there, gritting his teeth and staring at All Might.

"I apologize for not intervening sooner. I just didn't see an opening to-"

"No," said All Might, before breaking into a bloody cough that made everyone wince.

The cough sounded awful. The hero glanced at his hand, tainted red, and tried to hide it and pull a confident smile. However, the students were far from convinced.

"It wasn't your duty to intervene…" All Might said.

"Where is Thirteen? You should have left this place already," Aizawa said.

"She was taken with the others. She must be in one of the Zones," said Shoji.

"Enough chit-chat!" Miruko exclaimed. "We need to get out of here before-"

But it was too late.

"Leaving already?"

Everyone felt their blood freeze in their veins as behind them, cutting them off from their escape, appeared a dark portal. Ochaco and the others stepped back, stricken by a sense of Deja vu, as the Bird Man stomped out, its blank stupid face fixed towards All Might. Behind the dark skinned creature appeared the leader with the hand-shaped mask. The dark portal shrunk back into the form of the mist villain.

Oh no, if he is here… then what happened to Izumi? Ochaco wondered, staring at the mist villain.

Ochaco then realized than in trying to save Izumi, she might have doomed her to a worse fate. With perhaps only Iida and Izumi against the teleporting villain, there was no telling what had happened.

"Shigaraki, we should attempt to finish this quickly," the mist villain said. "The other students are probably overwhelming what remains of our forces. It won't take long until they come here."

"Those damn pathetic mobs," scoffed the other villain, the one called Shigaraki apparently.

He started scratching his neck.

"Damn you, Kurogiri. If you hadn't failed and gotten yourself captured like a pathetic nweeb…" growled the villain.

For a moment, the villain didn't say anything. He kept scratching himself over and over, each time harder and faster. Ochaco felt the hair on her neck stand on end at the creepiness of it all.

"Fine! I guess we should wrap this up," spat the villain, finally ceasing his scratching.

Everyone stiffened at that.

"However," Shigaraki grinned, earning what appeared to be a glare from Kurogiri. "I think we can play a bit more…"

He raised a hand towards All Might.

"Nomu, finish Miruko and Eraserhead," Shigaraki commanded. "Make it painful, but keep them alive!"

The creature didn't say anything. Instead, it kneeled forward and vanished in one leap. The students gasped and watched, wide-eyed. Adrenaline pumped into their veins and braced for the worse. The Pro-Heroes, on the other hand, moved away, preparing for an attack. Unfortunately, there was nothing that could be done.

Nomu almost materialized in front of a shocked Aizawa and, before the Homeroom teacher could react, grabbed the Pro-Hero by the head and slammed Aizawa's face into the ground. There was horrible crunching sound of something breaking. Nomu released the unmoving teacher and turned towards Miruko. A pool of blood spread beneath Aizawa's face.

"Not so fast!" Shouted All Might, charging at Nomu.

The Dark-skinned creature turned towards the Number One Hero, only to receive one of Might's punch straight to the face. To All Might's credit, the punch did push Nomu a few feet back. Heck, the creatures entire face looked disfigured by the punch. All Might, however, wasn't done. He gritted his teeth and kept punching, each punch sending the Bird man back further and further. The creature tried to block and deflect, but his attempts were clumsy and unrefined. It had power, but it lacked proper training and fighting skills.

Ochaco felt her hopes lifting. The Nomu was being pushed back and All Might, with a furious glare, looked unbeatable. Finally, All Might reared one fist and Ochaco swore she saw the same energy veins that covered Izumi when she powered up. There were even faint hints of lightning bolts. However, the glow of the veins and skin were far weaker than Izumi's.

When All Might punched, Nomu failed to block and was sent backwards, straight towards the glacier Todoroki had built. The monster was clearly heavy, for it barely rose from the ground. It struck the ice like a cannon ball, and made the Central Plaza shake.

For a brief moment, there was only silence. Ochaco and the others would have cheered, hadn't All Might proceeded to kneel over and cough violent. Worse, steam was starting to rise from his back. Thus, the students watched, paralyzed, as the Number One Hero retched and coughed blood on the ground.

There was a loud crash, and everyone snapped their heads towards the ice. Ochaco, and everyone else watching, stared in disbelief and with mounting horror as the dark silhouette of Nomu stomped forward. A series of creaking sounds ensued as the monster's face readjusted back to its former self all on its own. Bones of the arms, chest and neck clicked and cracked back into position, and whatever patches of skin had been torn off grew back.

That- that thing can take on All Might AND regenerate? Ochaco thought in disbelief.

All Might glared at the creature, and tried to rise. His legs, however, failed him and he dropped on his knees. He could only helplessly watch as Nomu, finally healed, vanished in a blur of movement.

"No…" weakly wheezed All Might.

Shigaraki cackled.

"Yes, All Might! It is helpless! There is nothing you can do!" Laughed the villain. "What's the matter, All Might? Can't save everyone?"

"Shigaraki, we must hurry," cautioned Kurogiri.

"No, I want to relish this moment," growled Shigaraki, glaring murderously at the mist villain. "There might not be another chance!"

Miruko was jumping towards All Might when Nomu appeared in front of her. She managed to dodge the first punch, and tried to jump away, only for Nomu to re-appear behind her. Caught mid-leap, Miruko could only re-adjust her body a muscular arm slammed against her and sent her flying. Everyone watched as the rabbit hero skipped four times on the hard floor before crashing onto a tree.

"Oy, I said not to kill them yet!" Spat Shigaraki.

"The master warned you not to expect Nomu to follow complex commands," Kurogiri remarked.

"It wasn't a complex order! Damn it, he's ruining all the fun," hissed Shigaraki.

His bad mood, however, was replaced with glee as his red eyes fixated on the students.

"Oh well, guess we move onto the second course." He looked at All Might. "Which student first, All Might? Pick one. Who will you fail to save from me?"

Todoroki reacted by slamming a hand on the ground and forming an ice wall that rushed towards Shigaraki. It sadly had the effect of destroying the stairway towards the exit. To make matters worse, both villains reappeared not far away unscathed.

"Why thank you, brat, for trapping you all here!" Laughed Shigaraki.

Todoroki glared at the villain but didn't say anything. He wasn't dissuaded and kept trying to pin down the villains. Sadly, with someone with Kurogiri pulling the two villains away and even redirecting attacks back at Todoroki, it seemed there wasn't much the young man could do. Ochaco also noticed Todoroki's attacks were getting smaller, and that frost was starting to gather on his right arm. Throughout it all, Shigaraki remained pensive, even as he jumped from portal to portal avoiding Todoroki's charging walls of ice.

"Who should I kill first?" Shigaraki wondered.

Following Todoroki's example, Aoyoma and Tokoyami tried to attack. It ended up with Kurogiri creating a portal that redirected Aoyoma's laser towards Tokoyami's dark shadow. Asui tried to jump towards the villain, only for Shoji to hold her back, warily staring at Shigaraki. Ochaco could almost read Shoji's thoughts. They didn't know Shigaraki's quirk, after all, and something about that guy exuded danger and to keep their distance.

After a few tries, Nomu intervened to protect Shigaraki, taking on the walls of ice, punching one after another. This allowed the white-haired villain to just stand there and ponder on the matter at hand.

Meanwhile, Ochaco could almost feel like she was staring at some petulant child at a store, wondering what toy to demand be bought, only to be discarded after one or two times playing with it. There was an air of immaturity and arrogance that was baffling for a villain, although perhaps not for a madman.

"The frog-girl is too ugly, nobody will care about the midget, the tentacle-boy looks like a freak… forget about the bird…" Shigaraki said to himself.

"Shigaraki, we can't delay any further," Kurogiri interrupted.

"Kurogiri, interrupt me again and I will destroy you," growled Shigaraki.

As the two villains got distracted, Ochaco was startled by someone trying to call her attention. To her surprise, it was the wounded All Might.

"Leave… all of you…" whispered All Might. "I-I will break the ice behind us and- and distract them."

"But All Might…" murmured Ochaco.

"No! I will save you," All Might said, fists clenched. "No matter what."

Ochaco stared at the hero. Could they actually make it far? Should they just abandon All Might? Miruko was still too far away and Aizawa remained in near critical condition. Additionally, Ochaco wasn't sure All Might could pull another beating session on Nomu as he had before. He looked far too weak and injured. How had that happened?

"Nomu, attack All Might," grunted Shigaraki.

All Might's eyes widened, before a shadow fell on him. Nomu appeared right in front of the Number One Hero and punched. All Might blocked and managed to divert the hit from reaching his old injury, but he was unable to block the second punch, which sent him skidding backwards against the ice that blocked the path towards the stairway.

"No one is leaving, All Might," tutted Shigaraki, before his eyes gleamed with delight. "I have it! You!"

Ochaco snapped her face towards Shigaraki, only to step back, horrified. The villain was pointing straight at her.

"Your face will look good in the news," Shigaraki cackled. "The girl All Might failed to save before he died… yes, I love the ring of it!"

"Shigaraki," warned Kurogiri.

But Shigaraki was in a world of his own.

"I actually wanted to get that stupid bunny… your daughter All Might… but someone had to fail at capturing her," growled Shigaraki glaring at his companion.

Kurogiri merely squinted back at his leader. Shigaraki smirked as he turned to a furious looking All Might.

"Oh, don't give me that face All Might! I don't plan to kill her now! Oh no, I have far better plans…"

Shigaraki turned to the unmoving form of Miruko, smirking.

"…she could be just as your slut of a secretary, eh Miruko?" Laughed Shigaraki. "What was her name these days? Ah, yes, Z was it?"

Ochaco's dread swell in her chest. Izumi. The villains wanted to capture her, and to do horrible things to her. She was a bit confused about the mention of Z, but something told the brunette that whatever it was, it was a bad history she wouldn't wish on Izumi. It was with thoughts of the rabbit girl that Ochaco felt something snap in her. She clenched her fists, and gritted her teeth. No, she wouldn't allow it. She would fight to the end if she had to.

"I won't…"

Ochaco and the others watched in amazement as Miruko moved, looking straight at Shigaraki. She slowly turned her head towards Shigaraki. She had one eye closed, perhaps injured, and could barely move. Regardless, Miruko smirked at the villain with dauntless confidence, all while trying to push herself off the ground with trembling arms.

"I am not done, you freak," spat Miruko.

Shigaraki squinted angrily at her, but instead focused on Ochaco once again. The brunette, in turn, glared back.

"I guess I will be taking two bunnies back with me," huffed Shigaraki. "Where were we? Ah yes…" he grinned, red eyes burning with malice and sadism "…your death!"

For someone who looked thin and feeble, the villain moved far too quickly. In fact, he became a blur of movement that startled Ochaco. However it wasn't so much his speed that concerned her; it was the fact he had vanished within one of Kurogiri's portals.

"Uraraka!" "Ochaco!" "Behind you!" Exclaimed her classmates.

A Ochaco turned her head back. Her chocolate eyes widened. There, with that horrible smile of his, was Shigaraki, a pale hand hovering over her. She had no time to react. There was nothing she could do. It was obvious that whatever Shigaraki's quirk did, it probably wouldn't be anything nice and it required a mere touch.

Is this it? Ochaco thought.

She wanted to fight still, to make sure Izumi and the others made it to safety. And yet it seemed it was the end. The villain's hand reached her, and Ochaco closed her eyes. His disgusting dry fingers reached her face…

…and nothing happened.

The villain blinked. Ochaco blinked. Everyone stared, dumbfounded. The villain's surprise, however, was short-lived, as a cruel smile stretched on his face.

"Good to see you are still breathing…" Shigaraki looked behind Ochaco "…Eraserhead."

From the corner of her eyes, Ochaco saw the homeroom teacher struggling to keep his quirk activated. The brunette decided not to stick around. Ochaco sprinted away, only to find the villain porting out of a dark gate in front.

"Nomu, take care of Eraserhead!" Shigaraki cackled, rushing towards Ochaco.

Todoroki and Aoyoma tried shooting at a laughing Shigaraki, but their attempts failed. The villain would just jump to a side, straight into a dark portal, before reappearing closer to Ochaco. Tokoyami and Asui tried to attack Kurogiri, but the mist villain merely teleported away to a safe distance. Meanwhile, Shoji was working on moving the bleeding Aizawa away from the stomping behemoth, all while Hagakure (who Ochaco had failed to notice the first time around) sneakily went to help Miruko, who was struggling to get back on her feet. Somewhere through all of the chaos, Sato and Mineta were slowly recovering and trying to make heads and tails of what they were seeing… and All Might watched, helpless to do anything.

Finally, the chase came to an end. Ochaco was running away, when Shigaraki appeared in front of her. She tried to jump away, but the inertia carried her forward, straight towards Shigaraki's hand. This time, with all the confusion going all around her and with Eraserhead clearly unconscious from his last ditch effort, no one could save her. The villain, his upper body coming off a portal, smirked in triumph.

Aoyoma tried to shoot at Shigaraki and, to his credit, he might have had hit him… hadn't a black mist suddenly shielded Shigaraki. The laser bolt did found a target, but it was Todoroki's back, thanks to one of Kurogiri's tiny black mist portals. Todoroki hissed and dropped to a knee, a black burn on his back, all while Aoyoma gasped, horrified about what he had unwillingly done.

Shigaraki was truly enjoying himself, and was about to slap his hand on Ochaco, who gritted her teeth and prepared to grab the limb, when a bright light intervened.

"Hands off!"

Shigaraki didn't how it happened. One moment he was about to give the touch of death to the brunette, the next he was staring at furious emerald eyes. He would later recall seeing a grey blur give its back towards him as his hand was caught by a pair of furry arms. They were rather small, and it probably would have been impossible for a puny thing to do much against him. And yet, next thing Shigaraki knew, he was pulled out of the portal and over the newcomer's shoulder and up into the air. It was one hell of a throw, one that sent him flying away from his target. To think a tiny rabbit girl had executed it.

He was sent straight towards the ice glacier Todoroki had first created. He would have crushed against the ice, were it not for Nomu intercepting the young man in the blink of an eye. Of course, the creature being such a dolt, it failed to properly grab Shigaraki and he slammed against the creature's chest instead.

Ochaco knew exactly who had come to her rescue and yet she couldn't believe it.

"Izumi!" Ochaco cried, tears brimming in her eyes.

Izumi dropped in front of the brunette and grinned. Her form appeared to deflated, all while her emerald eyes gave way to amethyst eyes shining with glee. In an instant, Ochaco had her arms wrapped around the rabbit girl and held her tightly.

"Good to see you in one piece, Infinity Girl," came Izumi's muffled voice against Ochaco's chest.

"I was so worried!" Ochaco said, tightening her hold on Izumi. "I thought you might have-"

Before she could continue pouring her heart out, Shigaraki interrupted them with a loud scream of pain. Ochaco and Izumi stepped apart and snapped their heads to the villain. Shigaraki was no longer smile or enjoying himself. In fact, he had a strange look of indignant anger. Without the hand-mask, his face was entirely visible, and Ochaco had to handed it to Shigaraki, that mask sure was making him a favor.

"No! No!" Shigaraki screeched and screamed, all while held by Nomu. He kept scratching his face. "No!"

"Ochaco, we need to take down the bird thing," Izumi whispered.

Ochaco nodded, only to frown.

"It's called a Nomu," she whispered back. "And it has a powerful regeneration ability. Not only that, but it can take All Might's punches!"

"Strong, resistant and with fast healing… just great," grumbled Izumi.

"What's the plan?" Ochaco asked.

Izumi scrunched her face in a frown, and looked at Ochaco.

"I don't know if we could pull it off but…" she trailed off, unsure. "How about a special combo?"

Izumi smiled and a sense of hope swelled in Ochaco's gut.

"You give him a lift off and I give him a push?" Joked Izumi.

Ochaco frowned back at the rabbit girl, confused. She was going to understand one hell of a lot more than that if they were going to defeat the same villain that had put All Might to his knees. However, it seemed their time had run out.

"Kill them! Kill them both, Nomu!" Screeched Shigaraki, pointing a finger at Ochaco and Izumi.

Nomu didn't even hesitate or stall. It dropped Shigaraki and rushed towards the girls. Todoroki, wounded and gritting his teeth in pain, tried to slow the creature down, only for his ice to be broken to smithereens.

"What's the plan?!" Ochaco exclaimed.

"Just prepare to use your quirk that thing," Izumi said. She leaned forward, her body glowing with power and lighting cracking around her. "Get ready, here it comes!"

And came it did, appearing right in front of the two with an arm reared back. Izumi had clearly predicted the monster's movement, for she shot off and struck Nomu's head, kicking the villain's eyes before it could act. Wounded, the creature didn't appear to know what to do next and punched the air.

"Now!" Izumi shouted.

Ochaco still had no idea what the rabbit girl meant, until it suddenly clicked. She found herself grinning before she jumped forward. Perhaps it was Izumi's presence, but at the moment, the brunette was sure they could pull it off… whatever it was Izumi was planning that is. Ochaco slammed her hands on Nomu's stomach and give it a might push upwards.

The black-skinned villain tried to blindly grab onto the brunette, but missed by an inch. He remained still afterwards, as he floated upwards. Beneath him, a furious Izumi started glowing once again, lightning bolts racing around her.

All Might would later tell Izumi what he saw that day: all over the little bunny, All Might saw lightning bolts of different colors racing around her body. There were eight colors that jumped around her, all of which coalesced in one final bright light. The rabbit girl shone like a small sun and, then, she kicked off.

All eyes stared, barely comprehending what was happening as the tiny rabbit disappeared from the ground. For a brief moment, there was no cute fluffy bunny. Instead, there was an actual lightning smashing against the helpless Nomu.

"Infinity…" Izumi's voice echoed across the USJ "…KICK!"

Jaws dropped, eyes widened, and more than one person released a string of colorful words. Nomu had no such reaction. The big creature was propelled like a cannon ball towards the USJ ceiling and slammed into it. However, mortar and stone couldn't hope to stop the force of such accelerated mass and Nomu burst right out of the USJ, leaving a huge gaping hole.

Off to the sky went Nomu, up and up he flew without gravity to slow him down. And that was how Nomu, the weapon that would allegedly bring All Might down, was sent straight to infinity and beyond.

Back inside the USJ, Izumi fell from high above, swearing at the pain in her legs. They were broken, and they burned like crazy. In fact, it felt as if her muscles were on fire. She couldn't think of anything as she fell.

Izumi was about to crash on the USJ floor, only for someone to intervene. A pair of arms caught her, and a sense of weightlessness flooded her senses. Izumi blinked before she looked up at the face of her savior. Chocolate eyes shone with happiness and Izumi's own amethyst eyes glimmered with joy.

"You should stop dropping off the sky, y'know?" Joke Ochaco. "I don't think it's a good habit."

Cradled in the brunette's arms and against Ochaco's rather comfortable bosom, Izumi chuckled. Yeah, she wasn't the only one remembering the Entrance Exam. Any other moment Izumi would have blushed at being held so intimately by Ochaco, but at the moment, Izumi couldn't be any happier, pained legs notwithstanding.

"Well, there is someone who will always catch me," rebutted Izumi.

She winced at the pain of her legs, but kept smiling. Yep, it hurt like hell… but then again, Izumi really wanted to enjoy the moment. Izumi then buried her head against Ochaco's neck, enjoying the brunette's warm. Ochaco, in turn, placed her own head against Izumi.

Not far from the pair, a certain villain was dumbstruck staring at the girls.

"No… no… NO!" Screeched Shigaraki.

He glared at the stupid bubbly girl and the ridiculously stupid rabbit girl. His plans… destroyed by those girls. The shame… how was he supposed to ever speak to the Master after his failure? No, not failure. All Might would have to wait. Those two girls… those two girls were going down right away!

Without thinking, he rose and shot straight towards Ochaco and Izumi. They failed to notice him at first, before Shigaraki noticed the rabbit girl's ears perk up and her head immediately snap towards her. He smirked. Too late. The other students were shouting and moving, trying to help, but again, it was too late.

Shigaraki raised his hands, a long creepy smile baring his teeth. His eyes shone with malicious mirth. Vengeance was at the tip of his hands. He was there, hands looming over their stupid faces…

Suddenly, Izumi's form shifted and morphed. Ochaco didn't let go of the rabbit girl but she did stare, confused. Shigaraki's eyes widened. Such was the surprise to what he was seeing, that he almost stopped his charge right then at there to stare like an idiot. Almost. Still, how could he not be surprised? A mere feet away, instead of the stupid rabbit girl, there was a… boy? Well, a furious angry boy that was raising a hand towards him, a hand that was glowing with bright veins as a matter of fact.

"Delaware…" growled the green-haired boy. Ochaco held him, glancing between the two unsure what was about to happen "…SMASH!"

It was a hand flicker. A small simple flicker of his fingers. And yet, it was somehow enough to produce a gust of wind that lifted Shigaraki off his feet and backwards. Perhaps it was the shock, or maybe his second flight experience had come a tad too sudden for him, but Shigaraki couldn't help but release a pitiful screech of fear as his body rose high into the ground and spun under the strong wind. His dread rose as he saw the incoming ground.

Shigaraki never made it the floor, however. A pillar of ice shot off from a side and caught him mid-air, mere inches from the floor. Shigaraki blinked, momentarily dumbfounded, before he discovered that most of his body had been incased in ice, his hands and head being the sole exception. To make matters worse, he saw people starting to surround him.

Tokoyami, Koda and Shoji kept an eye on him, glaring at the villain. Shigaraki glared back at them, before releasing one helpless scream of fury. He had been, unfortunately, captured by the snot-nosed brats.

Not far from them, Kurogiri would have moved to assist his charge hadn't he been interrupted by a loud explosion behind him and something crash straight onto him. Kurogiri groaned as he was slammed onto the ground. With a strange feeling of Déjà vu, he glanced up, only to find the choleric form of Bakugo.

"Go on, motherfucker, make my day," growled the blond. "I had one fucking hell of day, so don't tempt me or I'll blow you to fucking pieces!"

As if to make a point, Kurogiri saw how Bakugo's hands sizzled. The villain glanced at the captured Shigaraki before slumping down on the ground. Just as he had feared, they had been beaten.

The now recovering villains watched in abject horror. Their means of escape had been neutralized, their leader had been beaten and the one thing that was promised to defeat All Might himself had been sent into infinity and beyond. Yep, they were screwed.

"Let's bolt!" One of the villains said.

However, a powerful gust of wind pulled them all back. It was a brief moment, but enough to make the running villains stop dead on their feet and turn to the source. To their horror, a furious Pro-Hero Thirteen (who had a limp and was being helped by Sero), looked at them, accompanied by a small army of Class 1-A students. The wall of ice that Todoroki had first created had been swallowed whole by the Pro-Hero's Black Hole, making all the villains far wearier of her power.

"Oh no, you won't," growled Thirteen. "Stay where you are or I swear I will swallow you to oblivion!"

The villains did the smart thing and raised their hands in surrender.

Ochaco and Izuku grinned, only for Izuku to wince, his legs and now finger hurting. He reverted back to his Izumi form. The brunette looked worriedly at Izumi, but the bunny girl replied with a bright smile.

Before long, the two grinned, relief once again seeping in their blood. They couldn't believe it. After what looked like a disastrous day, they had endured and prevailed. Not only that, but the two had succeeded in raising up to the challenge. They looked at each other, basking on the other's joy.

The euphoria of the moment filled their vessels. It was in the passion of victory that Izumi failed to react. She stared at Ochaco, Ochaco stared back at her, and, before they knew it, they faces moved towards each other. Their lips met and their heads, once drumming with the exhilaration of triumph, pumped harder the ecstasy.

Of all things, Izumi didn't expect her first kiss to happen in her rabbit form… but she really didn't mind that much. Izumi felt her ears drop down as she felt her body melt in the moment. Ochaco, on the other hand, moved a hand down her waist. Izumi might have squeaked at feeling hands grasping her so intimately, were it not for Ochaco who deepen then the kiss.

Izumi wrapped her own arms around Ochaco's neck and, locked in each other's embrace, the two forgot all around them. Heck, Izumi forgot all about her tattered limbs. They ignored the whistling and cheering from their fellow classmates (even a suffering Miruko had enough strength to add a whistle of her own).

The rabbit girl had never been happier than in that moment…

POOF.

And just like that, the moment was broken, and both kissing girls pried their faces from each other and snapped their heads to a side. They weren't the only one. Watching with gaping jaws and wide eyes, Class 1-A could only stare at the man that knelt where All Might used to be.

"Eh…" Toshinori Yagi, in all of skeletal decrepit form, managed to say.

He glanced around, before sheepishly scratching his neck.

"…Well, this is awkward."