Desolation: A Tomura Shigaraki SI-OC
Chapter Two: Leveling Up
After the encounter in the store, I began to wander outside more often. I needed to observe the way this society functioned, how it worked. I also needed to memorize the patrol routes of heroes and police officers. Most importantly, I needed to keep an eye on Izuku Midoriya.
Why, you ask? He was the center point. The main character. The apprentice and heir of the Symbol of Peace. If I watched him, I could discover any anomalies in the timeline. I could track whether this was the canon-verse or somewhere else.
There was of course, something else I had to do. Shigaraki was experienced in combat. I wasn't. If I was going to go toe-to-toe with the likes of Bakugou, Eraserhead, and other members of the cast, I would have to change that very quickly.
I could just piece together memories of Tomura's combat training, but that by itself wouldn't work. I would have to build up muscle memory, instinct, and actual combat experience.
Time to return to the bar…
When I returned via portal, Kurogiri was still standing behind the bar counter, his stillness frightfully inhuman.
I let out a slightly nervous huff. "Kurogiri."
He turned towards me, his yellow eyes meeting my own. "Yes, master Tomura?"
"I need to train. Test my reflexes. Build up experience."
"And how do you wish to do this?"
I blinked. I…had not planned this far ahead. Best ask the Nomu in charge of taking care of me.
"I want to learn some counter-attacks. Something that might be fitting for my quirk, rather than just random instincts."
"So, some form of martial arts then, such as Aikido."
"Yes."
Kurogiri hummed. It sounded like the wind rushing outside of an airplane, or the hum of a car engine. Then, he turned to a small monitor that sat at the end of the counter. "Sensei."
A dark voice answered.
"Yes, Kurogiri?"
Shit. All For One. I had forgotten about him.
"Tomura wishes to train himself."
"In what manner?"
"Martial Arts, Sensei." I spoke, injecting as much respect and admiration into my voice as I could.
"And why do you wish to do this, Tomura?" All For One asked, his voice cold and unwavering.
"I…" For a moment I lost confidence, feeling something unpleasant build up in my stomach. The manga had not exaggerated the man's presence. Even from miles away and through the monitor, I could still feel the same fear that Midoriya, Iida, Shoto, and the others felt in his presence. To calm myself, I took a few deep breaths and finally spoke, mustering any courage that remained. "I was hoping that I could create a fighting style that best suited my quirk…along with learning some combos in case that I had to fight quirkless."
"Fight quirkless, young Tomura?"
"…Eraserhead."
"…I see. Kurogiri."
The misty man stood at attention.
"Insure that Tomura finds a place that can train him."
The monitor turns off and I let out a breath that I didn't know I was holding.
Kurogiri turned towards me. "I will get started on finding a place that can train you."
Then he is gone, the smell of sulfur accompanying his disappearance as the portal closed behind him.
Two weeks passed. I followed a strict routine of wandering the streets, watching hero fights, shopping for clothes and hair dye, and learning more about the world that surrounded me.
The Sludge Villain hit a few more stores and mugged a few more people. Kai Chisaki was recruiting more members for the Shie Hassaikai. Several vigilantes had been sighted somewhere in Fukuoka.
I wrote this down in a notebook that I titled Heroes and Villains, similar to Izuku's own Hero Analysis notebooks. Shigaraki was always a dark reflection of the hero named Deku. I suppose now they—and by extension me—had more in common now.
"Tomura Shigaraki."
Kurogiri's voice pulled me out of my thoughts. "Yes, Kurogiri."
"I have found an institution willing to train you." He said, his voice never changing from those fatherly tones. "Do you wish to enroll under an alias?"
Here was the moment. Who would be the villain, and who the civilian? Who would be the heir of All For One, and who would be the nameless face in the crowd?
I made my decision.
"No."
Forgive me, Nana Shimura…
The police had no record of a 'Tenko Shimura'. As far as anyone knew, the family had mysteriously died during a villain attack nearly twelve-thirteen years ago, making me—as Tomura Shigaraki—at least seventeen or eighteen as of the current time.
Luckily, the police also didn't seem to have any records concerning a 'Tomura Shigaraki either, so my current identity was safe. As 'Tomura Shigaraki'—a young blue-haired college student who was incredibly cheery and a people-person—I would train in this 'Oguro Dojo' to level up my supervillain identity, Tenko Shimura—a white-haired supervillain who hid his face behind his hand-mask and had a raspier voice than Tomura.
The dojo itself didn't look like anything special, just an out of the way place for young people to practice and learn martial arts. I—dressed in a hoodie shirt and jeans—would fit right in.
When I entered, there were only a few other people in the dojo. Of the maybe ten or so people, two stood out to me. One was a very large dark-haired man with a stubble and a very neat scar across his left cheek, and a blond kid with a large tail.
I recognized the first as a U.A student, but the second's identity eluded me.
Then the large man turned towards me. "Ah, you must be that new student! Tomura, right?
I smiled and spoke, employing my 'civilian' voice, which was a much less raspy and whiny sounding version of Tomura's own voice. "Yes sir! Tomura Shigaraki, at your service!" I stuck out a gloved hand, and the man—whom I suspected was the dojo master—shook it.
"Great to see you here Shigaraki-san! I am Iwao Oguro, the instructor of this proud dojo!"
Ah, so that's why he seemed so familiar.
This was gonna hurt, wasn't it?
It did, as it turned out. Oguro-Sensei—who was also known as the vigilante Knuckleduster—was a very sink or swim teacher. Either you learned quickly, or the waves swallowed you. I had returned to the bar most days with bruises from sparring with other students in the dojo, and my body was often sore and tired.
But I was not ungrateful for this harsh training, for it had allowed me to get more in-tune with Tomura's own natural speed. It also served to hone my instincts, quicken my reactions, and build up my body somewhat. I was still very lanky, but in the passing month-and-a-half, I had a noticeable increase in my muscle strength.
During the time I spent going to the dojo, I had increased my activities to include internet forums. Most of them—unsurprisingly—were dedicated to heroes and quirks, but there were a few others for things like video games, movies, and politics, along with conspiracy theories.
I had made an account for one such website, and was currently scouring the posts for a more accurate take on the latest news…
SmallMight: Did anyone see that villain fight with Endeavor?! The one in Eshua?!
DeathlyJazzHands55: You mean the one against those bank robbers?
Poormansmidnight: The one that's probably gonna cost at least 700,000 Yen in property damage?
SmallMight: Well, I mean, yeah, but did anyone get a look at the quirks used?
DeathlyJazzHands55: If I remember correctly, there was an electricity quirk, some kind of mutant that shot spikes or spines, and a third guy who shot water out of his eyes.
KINGEXPLOSIONMURDER: You mean the guy cries to use his power? That's weak.
Poormansmidnight: Like you would stand a chance against someone like Endeavor.
SmallMight: Thanks JazzHands! But how did you know their quirks?
KINGEXPLOSIONMURDER: THE FUCK'D YOU SAY!?
DeathlyJazzHands: I was there. Watching the fight. Almost got a bit crispy when Endeavor threw a flashfire fist.
SmallMight: Wait, are you okay!?
Poormansmidnight: I'm saying that you won't be able to beat someone like Endeavor no matter what quirk you've got or how good it is, so maybe you should stop ripping into people for their quirks, or lack thereof.
DeathlyJazzHands55: I'm good. Martial arts classes and parkour training taught me how to dodge. Maybe you should consider taking them, being an aspiring hero yourself.
KINGEXPLOSIONMURDER: THE HELL ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT!? I'M GONNA BE THE NUMBER ONE HERO! WAY BETTER THAN YOU EXTRA'S CAN HOPE TO BE!
SmallMight: I think I'm just gonna stick to my studies for now.
DeathlyJazzHands55: Suit yourself. Just know that getting into prestigious academies like UA is not gonna be easy, even with a strong quirk. Ya gotta consider all avenues and ways of making yourself better, cause if you don't, all you'll do is fail.
SmallMight: I'll consider your advice, Jazzhands.
[SmallMight has left the chat]
DeathlyJazzHands55: As for you, 'King'…
KINGEXPLOSIONMURDER: What do you want you nosy extra.
DeathlyJazzHands55: You may be the next numero uno…but are you the grand king of Pen Island?
KINGEXPLOSIONMURDER: The fuck are you talking about?
[Acido1979 has joined the chat]
[ThatGurlMiko has joined the chat]
[Crispy60crew has joined the chat]
ThatGurlMiko: Yeah, splosion kid, do you have the balls to become the king of Pen Island?
DeathlyJazzHands55: Well splosion kid, do you?!
Crispy60crew: What is even going on here?
Acido1979: Trolling, I think. But does he have the balls?
KINGEXPLOSIONMURDER: SHUT UP! I HAVE THE BALLS TO BE ANYTHING I WANT! AND NONE OF YOU EXTRAS CAN STOP ME!
[KingofPenisland69 has joined the chat]
KingofPenisland69: I heard someone wants my throne.
KINGEXPLOSIONMURDER: oh my god
DeathlyJazzhands55: Dear lord, HE EXISTS!
ThatGurlMiko: I WILL HAVE YOUR CROWN, PENISLANDMAN!
[Poormansmidnight has left the chat]
KingofPenisland69: COME AND TAKE IT BITCH! MY SWORD IS THE MIND!
Crispy60crew: Why are we still here, just to suffer?
Acido1979: Mood.
KINGEXPLOSIONMURDER: That's it. I'm leaving, you filthy extras.
I let out a snort as the chat devolved into memery, and soon afterwards, left the chat myself.
It would be time for my routine soon, after all.
And today might be the day.
AN: Next time, There will be canon, starting with the first appearance of Mt. Lady!
There are references to other fanfics in here. If you can find them, and point them out to me, you get imaginary cookies.
Next chapter, there will be an omake. Prepare your funny bone.
I might update this more frequently depending on how much people like it. But for now, every month or whenever life isn't kicking my ass.
You will also receive imaginary cookies if you can guess the identities of the posters. As a hint, there are 3 LOV members and 4 UA students...my thinking is that you viewers and reviewers may be able to guess at least 4 or 5 right away.
Until next time...PEACE!
