All for One sat in his room and tugged his guitar strings. Twice was huddled in the corner hugging his knees. The man was constantly on the verge of a breakdown but there was still something oddly endearing about him. He was like a retarded puppy. All for One kept playing and tried to drown out the humming of his life-support system. After five years he should have gotten used to it, but… he never had. It still drove him insane and every peep and hum made him hate All Might more.

Black mist started forming around him and Twice looked up.

"Kurogiri. Status report." All for One said.

"We lost Magne and Rappa. They were apprehended by the hero Tiger. Muscular is dead." Kurogiri said.

"Dead?" All for One said.

"Mr. Midoriya removed his head." Kurogiri said.

All for One whistled.

"And here I though that lass was the scary one."

"What about Toga?" Twice said.

"Ms. Toga… I am so sorry Mr. Twice. We lost her. She was eaten by a monster." Kurogiri said.

Twice started crying. He tore off his mask and revealed an old scar on his forehead. Snot ran down his nose and mixed with the tears. Suddenly he was a lot less endearing.

"Twice. Out." All for One said.

"But…" Twice said between his sobs.

"Now!"

Twice was crazy but not crazy enough to ignore a direct order.

"Continue." All for One said to Kurogiri.

"Beside Rappa, we also lost two other members of Shi Hassaikai to that monster."

"I see. Well, you win some, you lose some." All for One said and smiled: "Do we have the boy?"

"Yes, but our losses…"

"Are meaningless." All for One said.

"Meaningless? They were our comrades."

"They knew the risks. Besides, I still have Gigantomachia." All for One said.

Stomping footsteps echoed in the mansion and All for One sensed Overhaul's heat signature and someone else's. Overhaul's Quirk obliterated the doors to All for One's room. Overhaul walked in followed by one of his goons.

"Cripple!" Overhaul growled.

Overhaul's condescending self-control was gone, and he foamed like a mad dog. A wave of joy washed over All for One. He kept on playing his guitar.

"Kurogiri, give us a moment. Our host seems to have some grievances."

Kurogiri bowed before vanishing. Blindness didn't stop All for One from sensing Kurogiri's sullen mood. These days he was slow to obey his orders and far too quick to argue. Some discipline was in order.

"What can I do for you, Overhaul?" All for One said.

"You think you haven't done enough?! I lost three of my best fighters! Because of you!"

"If your best fighters were beaten by students, you're better off without them." All for One said and tugged a few notes out of his guitar.

Overhaul fell quiet and then turned to his lackey.

"Shin." Overhaul said with barely contained rage.

The man called Shin yanked the guitar out of All for One's hands and smashed it to a wall.

"Never ignore me, cripple." Overhaul said.

"You broke my guitar." All for One said softly.

"You almost ruined me! I will not…"

"You broke my guitar!"

All for One put some force behind his words and was able to make Overhaul back away. Shin almost wet his pants. It was good to know he still could make men soil themselves.

"Are we calm? Good. Fix my guitar and we'll forget about this." All for One said.

Overhaul's expression was blank. He had gone beyond foaming rage and broken back to calmness.

"Fix your guitar? I'm not your servant… and you're not much of an ally." Overhaul said.

Shin finally spoke up.

"We're starting to wonder if you have our best interests at heart. Do you have anything to say for yourself?"

"What can I say? This has all been just one long con to steal your organization for myself. I still can't believe you actually thought I'd make you my heir." All for One said and almost swallowed his tongue: "What… I… Would you believe that was meant as a joke?"

"Too late for that. My Quirk can force the truth out of anyone." Shin said.

"I think we're done, cripple." Overhaul said.

"Is this the point where you double-cross me? Well, I suppose it was inevitable. Go ahead. Give me your best shot." All for One said.

Overhaul lunged at him and tried to grab him. All for One flicked his fingers and a razor-sharp wind struck Overhaul in the chest. The cut was shallow, but it bled. A lot. Blood flew into All for One's open month. Overhaul's blood tasted of… greed and arrogance.

Long fingers took hold of All for One's face. Overhaul's fury was replaced by… confusion. And fear. He stepped away and looked at his hands. Terror made Shin's heart beat faster. Too fast.

"What… what is going on?"

"Something wrong, Overhaul? Weren't you going to kill me? Poor show so far." All for One said.

"What… did you do to me?" Overhaul said.

All for One just laughed and grabbed Overhaul's hand. The heat signature when Overhaul exploded looked like a blooming rose. It was beautiful. Reassembling him was sublime. Overhaul fell on his knees and tried to remember how to breathe. Poor boy was in too much pain to even speak. Or at least the memory of pain was too much to bear.

Shin screamed like the coward he was and tried to escape. All for One touched the wall and sealed off all he exits. Shin banged the wall impotently.

"Overhaul? You okay? Stay with me, my boy. This is going to get much worse before it can get any better." All for One said and then exploded Overhaul again.

And again.

And again.

And again.

Eventually Overhaul was reduced into a crying child. Shin had fallen on his knees and crawled into a corner.

"… please… no more… stop…" Overhaul managed to say between the sobbing.

"This is an excellent Quirk, my boy. I can see why you're so proud of it. Or were. Don't worry. I'll put it to good use, but… I'm afraid more is needed." All for One said and turned to Shin: "Much more. You shouldn't have broken my guitar."

Shin wasn't too far gone to see what was coming. He tried to run and then tear himself free from All for One's iron grip. All for One just laughed and exploded Shin. Along with himself. He tore away everything in his body that was too broken and maimed to fix before replacing it with parts from Shin. The pain was almost too much, but he was a man used to pain. Past five years were nothing but pain. Now it was over.

The light stung All for One's eyes when he opened them for the first time in five years. All he could see were blurry figures. Then they came to focus. A broken shell of a man was laying in his feet. It had no face. No eyes, ears or nose. Everything past the lips was a mess of scars. Only the bird-beak mask revealed it to be Shin. Was that what he had looked like for five years?

Overhaul stared at Shin and then at All for One. The slightest movement from All for One made him flinch.

Shin let out a mute scream when he tried to breathe. His withered hands clawed at his new scarred face and the panic made him trash around but he was too weak to stand. All for One pulled out the tube from his throat that connected him to the life-support system and had allowed him to breathe for the past five years. His healing Quirk quickly sealed the hole.

"You okay, Overhaul? You don't look so good." All for One said and glanced at Shin: "Does that bother you? Seeing your follower in such state? If you want I can use parts from you to fix him."

Overhaul crawled away.

"… mercy." Overhaul whimpered.

All for One chuckled before getting up and walking to the bar-cabinet. He poured himself a drink for the first time in five years. It tasted of hate, blood, pain and sickness. It tasted of victory. All for One looked at his reflection from the side of the glass. The hair and eyes didn't look right. They reminded him too much of their previous owner, but it was still his face. The muscles and bone structure saw to that. All for One spat in his hand and slicked back his new hair.

When All for One used his new Quirk to rebuild his guitar, Shin grabbed his leg. He tried to say something… or beg more likely. Too late for that. No one broke his property. All for One just laughed and remade the rooms entrance.

"Kurogiri! Mr. Compress!"

Both men entered almost immediately…and then stopped. They stared at what was left of Shin and Mr. Compress pulled off his mask quickly to throw up. Overhaul used the chance to escape. Kurogiri looked after him, but All for One just shook his head. Without his Quirk Overhaul was mere cattle.

"Jesus Christ." Mr. Compress muttered.

"Where? Oh, did you mean me? Common mistake. Kurogiri." All for One said.

"… yes, master."

"Aren't you going to tell me how good I look?" All for One said.

"… you… your looks have improved." Kurogiri said.

"I know." All for One said.

Shin's slow death and constant moaning finally got old and All for One crushed his skull with a kick.

"Kurogiri. Start the preparations. I want everything to be perfect when All Might gets here." All for One said.

"Yes, master." Kurogiri said.

"Excellent. Mr. Compress?"

"… yes." Mr. Compress said while wiping the vomit from his lips.

"Secure the albino girl."

"Her name is Eri." Mr. Compress said.

"Her name is whatever I say it is. She's mine now. Secure her and kill everyone who has a problem with that. And should your conscience get the better of you… Well, look at that fool."

Mr. Compress looked ready to throw up again.

"… understood."

"Good." All for One said and emptied his glass: "Now, give me the boy."

Mr. Compress took out one of several marble-balls from his pocket. Izuku Midoriya emerged from the marble and fell into All for One's feet. All for One smiled.

"Hello, Izuku-Izuku. I'm All for One. All Might may have mentioned me. Care for a drink?"


The police headquarters were in complete chaos. Their limited manpower tried their hardest to keep up with the constantly ringing phones while weeding out useful leads and offering reassurances. Toshinori stood in the middle of it all and tried to look like everything he wasn't. Calm. Confident. Strong.

Had he made a mistake by becoming The Symbol of Peace? People looked up to him. Tried to be like him. All of them believed that his presence alone could solve any problem. That he could save them. He gave people hope and security.

But he was still just a man.

A demigod might be able to carry the weight of the entire world on his shoulders but a man… A man would just be crushed. He'd had to leave Inko alone with her fear and anxiety. He could do more by taking part in the search.

"You okay?"

Toshinori looked down. Age had shrunk Gran Torino, but he still had the fire that had made Toshinori consider running for the hills in his youth after his first day of training.

All Toshinori could do was nod.

"We'll find him. We're stronger than ever and he's weak. We'll find him." Gran Torino said.

For a moment Toshinori didn't know which of them Gran Torino was trying to assure. Gran Torino had gone through this once already. With Nana. Toshinori would never forget how that had ended. But… he was right. They were stronger and wiser than last time. It would not end like it had last time. It couldn't.

Sir Nighteye was going through all his contacts in the criminal underworld with the police. When their eyes met, Sir Nighteye nodded. For the time being the argument that had destroyed their partnership had been forgotten. He'd missed this. Having friends and allies he could put his faith into.

Toshinori's phone started ringing. The call came… from Izuku's phone! Toshinori answered it quickly. Had… had Izuku done it? Had he escaped and was now calling to tell them he was okay? Please God. Let it be so.

"Izuku?!"

"Not quite. Have you missed me, Toshinori?"

The polite voice layered with sadism sent shivers down Toshinori's spine.

"… All for One."

"You remembered. I'm flattered." All for One said.

The room fell quiet. Gran Torino and Sir Nighteye pushed people out of the way so they could listen. Toshinori put the call on loudspeaker so others could hear it and placed the phone on a table. His hands were shaking so badly.

It was the hardest thing he'd ever done but he managed to keep his voice calm. Somehow, he was able to sound strong. Bluffing might be the only thing that stood between Izuku and a slow death. All for One had to remember that Toshinori could hurt him.

"Where's Izuku Midoriya?" Toshinori said.

"Right here. Say hi to Toshinori, Izuku-Izuku." All for One said.

He could hear Izuku's voice. The boy sounded scared but unhurt.

"… All Might?"

"Are you okay?" Toshinori said.

There was a scream that turned into quiet whimpering. Toshinori's eyes started to sting. Every face in the police headquarters had turned pale. Toshinori had to lean into a table for support to keep himself standing.

"He was. Until I broke his arm." All for One said.

"Just… just let him go. I'll do whatever you want." Toshinori said.

"I know you will, Toshinori. You have half an hour to get to the Shi Hassaikai residence. Come alone or… Wait. Is Gran Torino there? Or Nighteye?"

"We're here." Gran Torino said behind clenched teeth.

"You gents can join us. You've earned the honor. You get to see your idol die. If any uninvited guests spoil the fun… I guess I'll escape and use Izuku-Izuku's limbs as breadcrumbs."

"We'll be there." Toshinori said.

"Great to hear, Toshinori. Call me back when you're driving here. And Toshinori?"

"Yes?"

"I've missed you." All for One said before hanging up.

The police… started nodding and smiling amongst themselves. For a moment Toshinori thought he had gone mad. Then he realized that to them this was just another standard kidnapping and All for One was just a run of the mill villain. Nothing they hadn't seen a dozen times. Toshinori felt sick. Only Tsukauchi understood.

"Go show that arrogant bastard what's what."

"Pay him back for the boy's arm."

"You've got this All Might."

All Toshinori could do was nod. Sir Nighteye led him to the car. Gran Torino sat in the backseat and began grinding his teeth. Toshinori called All for One back and put the call back on loudspeaker.

"Is the whole gang there? Just like old times?" All for One said.

"What do you want?" Gran Torino said.

All for One laughed.

"You sound tense, Gran Torino. Would a story help you relax?"

"There's time for that when you're in handcuffs." Sir Nighteye said.

"Don't spoil the mood, Nighteye. You're going to love this. It's a story of Nana's grandchild. Did you tell them about Nana's son, Gran Torino?"

For the first time Gran Torino sounded his age.

"… you… you monster."

All for One laughed again.

"Wasn't me. Unfortunately. I would have loved to complete the set. But Nana's grandchild beat me to it. That poor boy's Quirk awakened at the worst possible moment. Whatever he touched rotted away."

Toshinori couldn't breathe.

"… no."

"Yes. Glad to hear you're as sharp as ever, Toshinori." All for One said.

Sir Nighteye's stoic reservation was gone and Gan Torino's grim determination vanished. They looked as hopeless and broken as Toshinori felt.

"I did what I could for poor Tomura, but the damage was already done. If only there had been heroes protecting him… Well, who knows. See you boys soon." All for One said and hung up.

Rest of the way was driven in silence. When they arrived at the Shi Hassaikai mansion, Toshinori heard music. Sympathy for the Devil was being blasted at full force. The song still made his stomach turn. Toshinori stepped out of the car and broke the gates with one punch.

All for One stepped out of the mansion and dragged Izuku behind him. It wasn't just Izuku's arm that was broken. All his limbs were twisted in unnatural directions.

All for One looked different. His face and eyes weren't quite how he remembered them. He'd also lost quite a bit of muscle mass, but All for One was still the same old monster hiding behind a handsome face.

"I'm here. Let the boy go." Toshinori said.

"Sure. Just tell me one thing first." All for One said.

"What?"

All for One tore Izuku's head off.

"How many of your loved ones have I killed now?"