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Lemillion

Back near the surface, Izuku and the others were struggling to find a way out of Irinaka's trap as the walls continued to close in around them. In a flash, Rock Lock moved forward and placed his hands on one of the walls. A red flash shimmered through the wall as it went rigid, holding in place. He did the same thing to the wall on the other side of him.

"This way, hurry!" He shouted. "I can't hold this forever!"

The heroes and police began making their way towards the opening provided by Rock Lock. Izuku looked back as he felt the ground rumble, and saw that Irinaka wasn't giving up without a fight. A large barrage of cement pillars were quickly making their way towards them. It would be upon them in seconds, and crush them like grapes.

But not if Izuku had anything to say about it.

In an instant, he used his quirk to propel himself towards the oncoming pillars. Once he was close enough, he threw his hands out before him, shouting as the explosions erupted from his palms. The blast destroyed the pillars in an instant, but Irinaka wasn't done. He continued to build more pillars, but Izuku continued his assault. The longer he could keep it up, the more time he could buy for his colleagues to escape.

Suddenly, the walls began to open up around them. Izuku stopped his attack as he and the other heroes looked around. "What is he planning now?" Shouted the police chief in confusion. As if in answer to his question, several walls rose out of the ground, separating the heroes into several groups. Izuku felt something grab onto him and pull him out of the way of the wall. He looked up to see Oliver and Eraserhead standing over him.

"Great," said Oliver exasperatedly. He walked over to the wall and struck it with his hand. "This wall isn't very thick. We could probably smash through with enough force."

"Be careful," came Nighteye's voice from the other side of the wall. "It's no accident that they did this."

"What do you mean?" Came Rock Lock's voice from the wall to the right.

"What I mean is this is the second wave," said Nighteye. "They're going to come at us with everything they got."

Rock lock growled in frustration as he surveyed his surroundings. Things were falling apart. They were getting separated, and the plan was going to pieces. Even after all his meticulous planning and calling in the Justice League, Nighteye wasn't able to keep up with these mobsters.

He was shaken out of his thoughts when he heard a sound behind him. It sounded like shoes clapping against the floor. The same sound someone makes when they are skipping. He turned sharply to the source of the noise to see a young woman in a school girl uniform lunging towards him, brandishing a knife. He only managed to get his hand up to block the attack in time, but the knife plunged through the palm of his hand. He ignored the pain and delivered a powerful uppercut to the girl's abdomen. To his shock, the girl exploded in a mass of clay.

Before he had time to recover, he felt a hand grasp his mouth from behind him. And after that, searing pain.

A loud scream emanated from the walls around them. They immediately knew that it belonged to Rock Lock. "Rock!" Shouted Eraserhead. "What happened?"

"Out of the way, Eraser!" Shouted Izuku. He lifted his hands and blasted the wall down, allowing them to walk through. They stopped and stared in horror at the scene before them: two Rock Locks, one of them on the floor on his stomach with a large knife wound in the back, and another standing over him.

"Quick, help!" Shouted the Rock Lock that was standing. "This fake appeared out of nowhere and jumped me!" Eraserhead and Arrow quickly ran to the fallen Rock Lock to inspect him. As the other Rock Lock began to approach him, Izuku had a bad feeling well up in his chest.

"Izuku!" said Rock Lock. "Are you okay—"

"What was your first impression of me?" Said Izuku sharply.

Rock Lock paused. "What?" He asked, confused.

"When we first met," Izuku told him. "What was your first impression of me?"

Rock Lock was silent for a few moments before a smile broke out across his face. "I thought you were a nice young man, why?"

Izuku lifted his hands immediately and blasted Rock Lock across the room. "Wrong," said Izuku.

Aizawa and Oliver immediately stood, the former using his quirk on the other Rock Lock while the latter leveled an arrow at him. Immediately, the fake Rock Lock's skin seemed to melt off of him, revealing a young woman underneath that Izuku recognized all too well.

"Himiko Toga," he said.

"Oh, Izuku, darling, you remember me?!" She said, smiling maniacally. "I'm so happy to see you again. So, so happy!" She threw the knife she was carrying towards Izuku, who deftly deflected it with his armored wrist bracers. Oliver fired his arrow, and the head erupted into a mesh net, wrapping itself around Toga. She glared at Oliver and Aizawa.

"Trying to spoil our moment," she said. She produced another knife and cut herself free from the binding before doing a back handspring away from them. As she did, a wall came from the ceiling and closed between them.

"This teamwork," said Aizawa. "This is bad. The League and the Hissaikai have a framework for cooperation set up. But he didn't have time to worry about that. Rock Lock was in trouble. If they didn't stop the bleeding soon, he would –

Aizawa paused as he turned to face Rock Lock, only to see Izuku standing over him, injecting him with the same medical foam that Bruce had used on him back at the training camp. Immediately the bleeding halted. Next, Izuku pulled out a syringe and injected it into Rock Lock's arm, causing him to stir from his unconscious state.

"What happened?" He said. "What did you give me?"

"Morphine," said Izuku. "And coagulation foam to stop the bleeding. It should keep you alive until you reach a hospital."

"Izuku, are you all right?" Said Oliver, sidling up to him. "How did you see through her?"

"Because I fought her back at the licensing test," said Izuku.

"What?" Said Aizawa. "What do you mean?"

"Shapeshifting quirks aren't that common," said Izuku. "Upon seeing two Rock Locks, I knew something was wrong, so I decided to test him. My suspicions were confirmed after I saw Toga change. It was the exact same quirk as the girl I fought back at the licensing exam. She was Himiko Toga all along."

This was disturbing news. It meant that the League of Villains was watching Izuku. Oliver knew that Shigaraki had a sick fixation on Izuku since the incident at the USJ. He had seen first hand the damage that a shape-shifter can do, considering he was good friends with one. If they had a shapeshifter on their side, then who knows where they may have been able to infiltrate.

"We have to get back to the others," said Oliver. "If the Hissaikai has sided with the League of Villains, who knows how many of them are here. Shigaraki himself might be here."

Twice stumbled throughout the empty hallway of the Hissaikai base. He had taken the Rappa clone and engaged Sir Nighteye and the officers. Even though it was just a copy, he expected Rappa to be more than enough to handle some businessman in a suit and his team of government lackeys.

He couldn't have been more wrong.

Nighteye had taken down the Rappa clone with impressive speed and accuracy, only earning a tear in his suit for his efforts. In a flash, he had thrown one of those heavy seals at his face, tearing his mask. Without backup, Twice knew it was foolish to continue the attack and ran for his life. Now, with his mask torn, he felt as if his head was going to split in two. He had to cover his face, somehow. If he let this continue, he would be broken in twain, and never be whole again —

He felt something wrap around his face, looking up to see Himiko standing over him, having covered the tear in his mask with a pink cloth. "It's okay," she said, kneeling down and holding his face. "You're whole again."

"Himiko. . ." Twice said softly.

"It's okay," she said again. "I know you carry the most blame for what happened to Big Sis Mag. But you shouldn't carry it alone. But don't worry. Everything is going according to plan."

A few days earlier.

"I want Kurogiri or Toga. And maybe Bubaigawara."

Chisaki and Shigaraki were sitting in the conference room, playing a game of Shogi. It was Chisaki's favorite pastime to play with the boss when he was well, and he didn't get to play it that much anymore. Shigaraki didn't seem to have the patience for it and was hesitant to play, but Chisaki wanted to make a point. In Shogi, you could steal pieces from your opponent, and he knew he couldn't trust Shigaraki as far as he could throw him, and needed to clip his wings. He would feel much more at ease having two or three of Shigaraki's strongest players taking orders from him.

"And why should I give them to you?" Said Shigaraki lazily.

"Think reasonably, Shigaraki," said Chisaki. "Your members are important to you, aren't they? Right now, there is ill will between us, despite me being forthcoming with my plan. Now you must offer something important to me in return, if we are to build trust between us."

Shigaraki didn't answer, only staring at Chisaki through his hand-mask attached to his face. Only one eye was visible, but Chisaki could almost see the analysis going through his mind as he stared back into his lifeless red iris. A second later, Shigaraki began to chuckle lightly.

"You think too highly of yourself," He said. "You have offered me nothing tangible to earn my trust. I am interested in this 'quirk cure.' I want to know how it works. And I want to see it in action."

"Then perhaps I should use it on you," said Chisaki. He snapped his fingers and his white-robed henchman drew a pistol, pointing it squarely at Shigaraki, who looked unphased. "Perhaps experiencing its effects first hand will convince you of its worth."

"It's not only me that you have to convince," said Shigaraki.

"What are you talking about," said Chisaki.

"For as mighty as you make your little gang seem, there is one thing that is obvious that you lack," said Shigaraki smugly. "Money. You lack the capital to fund your war machine. The drugs you produce are barely enough to keep this operation of yours afloat. You need a sponsor."

Chisaki said nothing. It was true, the rise of heroes in the world put a strong halt in Yakuza operations. What was once among the most feared names in the criminal underworld was reduced to nothing but petty theft and drug trafficking, and Chisaki was desperate to see them restored to their former glory, by any means necessary. But in order to do that, they needed to eliminate the heroes that stood in their way, and his research could do just that. But he needed money to further his research to mass produce the cure.

"What is your point?" Asked Chisaki.

"My master had many friends," said Shigaraki. "The day he was captured, he sent the League away to escape custody of the police, but he didn't just send us anywhere. Once we had arrived on the other side of Kurogiri's warp gate, someone was waiting for us….."

After the Kamino Ward Incident.

Shigaraki hit the ground hard and watched as the warp gate disappeared before his eyes. He rushed over to Kurogiri, desperate for him to open another warp gate, but it was no use, as he was still unconscious. His master was fighting All Might, their greatest enemy, and there was nothing he could do to help him.

And it was all Midoriya's doing.

"That brat…." snarled Shigaraki. "That damn brat! I'll kill him. I'll kill him, the Bat, and everyone they care about. I'll –"

"I love your enthusiasm."

Shigaraki turned suddenly as he heard a voice speak beside him. He had been so caught up in the fight that he failed to notice that he had no idea where his master had sent them. All he could see was that he was in a large office of some kind, with fine and intricate paintings and antiques lining the room. There was a large desk in front of a large window that was overlooking the city below, but he was unsure what city he was looking at, as it did not look familiar to him. His comrades were strewn in various places across the office, with a few of them still unconscious, but others, like Toga, rousing their faculties.

Sitting in a chair behind the desk was a man that Shigaraki did not recognize. He wore what looked to be an expensive black suit and red tie, and gazed at them with piercing green eyes. His elbows were resting on the desk, his fingers interlocked with a pondering expression on his face. He wore a large green ring on his finger that looked as if it was radiating its own light source. Shigaraki could tell that this man was not Japanese. If he had to guess, he could peg this man as either American or European. Despite this, he spoke impeccable Japanese.

"You must be Tomura shigaraki," said the man. "I've heard a lot about you."

"Who the hell are you?" Shigaraki snapped. "Give me one reason why I shouldn't kill you."

"You're not very bright, are you?" Said the man. "You really think that it's a good idea to kill the man your master sent you to see?"

Shigaraki paused. The man had a point. "You still haven't answered my question."

The man smiled. "I'm a man who knows many things," he said. "I know that All For One has been raising you to take his place. I know that right now he is fighting for his life against his arch enemy, the Japanese Symbol of Peace, All Might. And I know that he is going to lose."

"What did you say?!" Snarled Shigaraki, finally standing. "How dare you say that. What the hell gives you the right to say such a thing?!"

"Common sense," said the man plainly. "Your master sent you away because he knows that he cannot win against All Might. He has no intention of winning. He knows there is no escape for him. He just wants the world to see that their Symbol is broken beyond repair."

"How do you know that?"

"It's like I told you before, I know many things," the man said impatiently. "Do try to keep up, will you? This is getting tiresome."

"So what the hell do you want with us?" Said Shigaraki.

"I'm here to take over where your master left off," said the man. "Did you really think that you were the only supervillain organization in the world? Did you really think that your master was the only powerful player? Your master and I have known each other for a long time. I believe that he is the key to humanity's survival, the next step in human evolution. An evolution that I will control."

"You?"

"Me and my associates, yes," said the man.

"And who are your associates?" Said Shigaraki.

"Ah-ah-ah, not yet," said the man, waving a disapproving finger at him. "I'm a businessman, boy, and you don't get to be where I am today by revealing trade secrets to just anyone. If you want to join me, first I have to be sure that you're worth my time."

"How dare you!" Snarled Shigaraki, approaching the man. "I could destroy you and this entire building in an instant. You are beneath me, an insignificant speck on the –"

In an instant, two robotic arms appeared from nowhere and grabbed onto Shigaraki's hands, pulling them upward. He looked back to see a large green and purple robotic suit standing over him, its metal hands holding his arms at the wrist, restricting his movements. Shigaraki was stunned, as the suit had no occupant that he could see, and it completely immobilized him. His comrades who were conscious gasped in shock and attempted to come to his aid, but the man at the desk held his hand up to stop them.

"I know how your quirk works, young man," He said. "You have to touch an object with all five fingers for it to activate. If you were to lose your hands, or any one of those fingers, you would be as defenseless as a child.

"You wouldn't dare," said Shigaraki, horrified.

"That depends entirely on your next move," said the man, standing from behind the desk. "Your little band of miscreants, your so-called 'League of Villains,' is small-time compared to the rest of the world. Even your master knew that you had no chance of standing against the Justice League as you currently are. You lack support, you lack funding, and most of all, you lack brains. That's why he sent you to me."

"And what are you going to do to help us?" Asked Shigaraki.

The man smiled. "I'm going to level the playing field."

"So, you already have a sponsor in mind?" Said Chisaki, frustration building in his voice. "Why didn't you say something before?!"

"Our friend is a busy man," said Shigaraki simply. "He has no time to waste on amateurs. However, your next quirk-disabling drug works as well as you claim, he may be interested in funding your research. I'll lend you Toga and Twice. My friend may be a patient man, but I'm not. Try not to waste my time."

Chisaki glared at Shigaraki. He didn't like it one bit, but the latter now held all the cards. Chisaki desperately needed funding to mass-produce the quirk-erasing drug, and it would take precious time to bring in an investor on his own, time that he doesn't have. That was the whole reason he went to the League of Villains in the first place. Their street cred was high in the criminal underground, and he figured it would present them with a greater opportunity for funding if they were involved with the Hissaikai. It appears that not only was his hunch correct, but Shigaraki already has someone who is interested. He needed to play this out right.

"You can tell your friend that he won't be disappointed," he said.

"Excuse me, Gentleman. You and I need to have a talk about Eri."

Lemillion. The name that Mirio Togata hoped would be synonymous with hope. The hero who would save a million people. That was his dream. But how was he supposed to achieve his dream, how was he supposed to save anyone, if he couldn't even save a little girl from the hands of her barbarous captors?

That changes today.

Togata stood before two individuals in one of the hallways. One of them was the source of all the trouble, the quarry the heroes were trying desperately to get to: Kai Chisaki - Overhaul. He had managed to track him down. The other Togata remembered from the briefing as his right-hand man, who was carrying the frightened little girl in his arms. It was obvious that he and his crony in the white cloak were planning on making their escape with Eri during the chaos upstairs. He wasn't about to let that happen.

"I'm surprised you got here so fast," said Chisaki with a bored voice.

"I took a shortcut," said Togata. "Give me the girl."

"So, you've decided to play hero after all, eh, schoolboy?" Said Chisaki. "Unfortunately for you, this girl doesn't want to come with you."

"Perhaps I haven't made myself clear," said Togata. "I'm taking this girl with me, and you're going to jail."

` "Perhaps I haven't made myself clear," said Chisaki. "You're going to die down here."

Togata fell over as he suddenly felt his head begin to swim. His balance was completely off, and he was seeing double. "What's happening?" He said as he tried to steady himself.

"You feelin' sloshed?!" A voice came from above him. He looked up to see a strange man hanging from the rafters, drinking heavily from a bottle of sake. Togata deduced that he was the source of his sudden vertigo, and had to get away from him quickly. His ears twitched a second later as he heard the sound of a gun clicking, dashing to the side just in the knick of time as a man in a black mask and fedora was standing in front of him. He tried to shoot Togata again, but he dodged it just in time.

"What is your quirk?" Said the man.

"Permeation," said Togata suddenly. "I can pass through anything once it's activated." He placed his hand over his mouth. Why did he tell him that?

"I see," said the man in the fedora. "So, that explains how you were able to get here so soon."

"How could you miss him?!" Said the drinking man. "Are you drunk?!"

"That would be you," said the man in the fedora. "I suggest you stop criticizing and assist your superior in dealing with this interloper."

"I get it," said Togata. "Your quirk must have forced the truth out of me. You're not like the others we fought before. You seem like too important a player to be on the front lines."

"You're right," said the fedora man. "I'm better than those useless pawns above us. I'm the only one who sees the boss' true ambition."

"Torturing his daughter for his experiments is ambition to you?!" Said Togata, disgusted.

"Poor fool," said the fedora man. "You're letting your emotions cloud your judgment. You're no hero. You just want to ease your guilty conscience." He leveled his gun back at Togata. "Now die, you nuisance!"

In a flash, Togata took a breath and melded into the wall next to him, surprising both his attackers. A second later, faster than either of them could see, he was ejected from the wall next to them, where he clotheslined them and knocked them both out in a single hit.

Chisaki turned back to the source of the noise behind him, confused as it sounded like screams from his men. His thoughts were confirmed as both of his men had fallen, and the insipid hero was gone.

"Chisaki!"

The young boss quickly tilted his head, narrowly missing a swift kick to his face. He could feel the blood trail from an open wound where the hero's boot managed to knick him. He was surprised. He managed to get past his men and draw first blood. His surprise continued as he watched, seemingly in slow motion, the hero's foot pass through Eri's face, as if it was simply a hologram, only for it to become solid again upon connecting with Kurono, knocking him aloft and causing him to drop Eri. Immediately, the hero grasped the little girl, holding her away from Chisaki protectively.

"No, don't!" Shouted Eri. "Run away and leave me! He'll kill you if you don't!"

"Not gonna happen, Eri," Said Togata. "I swear he won't ever hurt you again. I'm here now, and I will stop him."

"You touched me. . ." Chisaki said, his voice low and venomous. "You. . .filthy vermin. . . you actually touched me."

Togata stood defiantly as he carried Eri. Chisaki seemed to be having some sort of episode. His voice had changed from the bored drawl he usually spoke with to a deep, guttural growl. "Come back here, Eri," Said Chisaki. "How many times do I have to tell you? It's your fault. It's all your fault! You break people. That's just how you were born."

"Don't listen to him, Eri," said Togata.

"You're a curse, Eri," Said Chisaki. "I always have to get my hands dirty because of you. Every action you take results in people dying." The poor child began to shake and sob uncontrollably in Togata's arms, making his own blood boil with rage and hatred.

"How could you say that about your own daughter?!" Togata shouted.

"Huh?" Said Chisaki, confused. "Oh, yeah, that's the story I told you, isn't it. She's not my daughter." Togata gasped as he saw that Chisaki had removed one of his gloves, placing it on the floor. The structures around him immediately broke down, only to be reformed into sharp spikes, protruding from the ground and rushing towards Togata at alarming speeds. He only just had enough time to activate his quirk, holding Eri above the spikes to keep her from danger. He could have killed her, but he didn't care.

"Please," said Chisaki. "Don't even bother trying to save her. If she got hurt, I could just put her back together and revive her, even if she isn't quite like the way she was before. So long as she's intact she is useful to me."

"You monster," shouted Togata. "I'm going to tear you limb from limb."

"And what happens if Eri gets hurt?" Said Chisaki as he continued his attack. "Only I can heal her. You can't escape through permeation with her in your arms, and I've sealed off your escape. There's nothing you can do, hero. Give up."

Togata looked to the right and saw that Kurono was standing, leveling a gun at him. He knew that Kurono's quirk was powerful, and he needed to be careful to make sure Eri didn't get hurt. As Kurono fired, Togata turned his back and covered shielded Eri, using his billowing cape to obscure his vision.

"And here I thought heroes only wore capes because they looked cool," said Kurono.

Chisaki watched as the red blob that was his cape got smaller. His eyes widened in realization. "Kurono!" He shouted to his aide, but it was too late. Togata had already permeated through the floor and got the drop on them, knocking the gun out of Kurono's hand. That was unexpected. He is strong, but he also just put Eri down. This was his chance to get her back.

He reached down and placed his hand on the floor, ready to break the ground and kill Eri. Once she was broken, he would kill this interloper and revive her. But before he could use his quirk, he saw Togata arise from the ground out of the corner of his eye. He raised his hand to protect himself from Togata's punch, but his fist went right through his hand and connected hard with his face, sending Chisaki hard to the ground.

"A hero wears a cape to comfort those in need," said Togata. "You may be good, Overhaul. You are strong. But at the end of the day, you're just a yakuza thug, and I'm stronger than you!"

Togata's onslaught continued, knocking Chisaki and Kurono around like bowling pins. He was too fast, Chisaki couldn't hope to use his quirk at this rate. He had to do something, something to put the odds back in his favor. The boss, the Hissaikai, everyone was depending on him. He will not fail them.

"MASTER!"

Togata paused to see the man in the fedora was conscious, having crawled through the cracks in the wall to get to Chisaki. In an instant, Chisaki threw a small case towards him. "Nemoto! Shoot now!" He shouted.

Nemoto took the case and drew a large revolver. He placed a large red cartridge with a small needle at the end in the gun and leveled it at Eri. Togata's eyes widened with horror. This poor girl, who he failed to rescue the first time he met her, who suffered so much at the hands of a sadistic madman, who held every death at the hands of Chisaki on her shoulders, was in trouble. Togata acted on instinct, leaping in front of her as the gun fired. He will never let her be hurt again. He will never fail her again.

He felt the needle embed into his back, and a strange sensation pulsed throughout his body. He felt as if a part of him was dying, being drained from his body like a stopper had been pulled from his very soul. He fell to the earth, still holding Eri. Overhaul began to laugh maniacally as Togata struggled to get to his feet.

"Do you know how quirks came to be?" Said Chisaki. "Quirks are not natural. They are an illness. In my research I have found and isolated the cells that are responsible for the manifestation of quirks. Cells that only appeared 100 years ago. They are not native to the human body. That means, there is only one logical conclusion. They are a disease. A disease that has spread to most of the people of the world. Some of its symptoms are beneficial, some of them are not. People think it is the next stage of evolution, but all they are is sick people, and I. Am. The. Cure!"

Eri held onto Togata, checking him worriedly as he sat on all fours, breathing heavily. Chisaki began to approach them. "It's ironic, isn't it?" He said. "You came here to save this girl, and she will be the end of everything. All quirks will be cured, starting with yours. You have lost. You're powerless!" He thrust his hand to the floor, ready to use his quirk, but was forced back as the unconscious body of Kurono was thrown at him. As he dodged it, he felt a heavy punch connect with his face.

Togata was on his feet. Dodging every attack thrown by Chisaki, while every blow of his was connecting with the yakuza boss. With each blow he grew angrier and angrier. This couldn't be happening. Togata's quirk was gone! How could he possibly still be stronger than him?!

"I am not powerless!" Shouted Togata. "I. Am. Still. Lemillion!"

Author's note: Sorry about the delay. I know its been a while, but things are super hectic. Even though there is long space between my updates, I have no plans to abandon them, and will eventually update them. I'll keep trying to update them sooner. Thank you for reading and your patience.