'Do you know my name? Have I become the mask to the passage of time? I did have a name, but I doubt it matters any longer. I am Stormwind, now, and ultimately, I am victorious. Remember my acts as you will, but never forget the endless warzone that was Europe before I restored order. I ended the Second Dark Age and ushered in light over Europe. Listen carefully to my words and tread gently upon my life, dear reader, for you tread upon my thoughts and my failings.'
—Excerpt from 'My Thoughts and My Failings' by Luciana Cisneros, the Stormwind.
Izuku Midoriya spends the weeks after All Might's funeral in obscurity, coalescing with his family. His mother and father are awkwardly working out the boundaries of their marriage once more, and after everything that's happened, staying angry at his father seems too petty to consider. Mikumo, however, constantly urges Izuku to leave the house and just do anything.
"But I'm comfortable," he says from under his blankets.
Just get up and do something. I'm dying of boredom in here. You don't even have ghosts to kill anymore.
Izuku groans and rolls out of bed. "Fine."
His room looks better now that he's spent time fixing it up. He grabs some clothes and takes a shower quickly.
Downstairs, he finds Kouta, the latest addition to the household, doing whatever homework he's been assigned by Shouto's sister. Finding out she is a teacher had been a surprise, more so when she ranted at Izuku for letting Kouta do all of nothing for a few weeks, which he finds unfair since she could have blamed his mother.
Do you really see anyone shouting at your mother?
Izuku concedes that point. Either way, having something to do is better than aimlessly wandering and he feels he should encourage it, regardless of how hypocritical it is to do nothing as well.
"Hey," Izuku says, making Kouta look up from his maths homework. "Just you today?"
"Yeah."
Izuku grins. "Okay. Let's go."
"Where?"
"I don't know. We'll figure it out as we go."
They leave the house together, Kouta rushing out ahead of Izuku.
A shadow flits past his senses. Shuichi. Izuku smiles but gives a signal for the former villain to break off and do something else.
The city still bears the scars of the war. Even with quirks and advanced technology, it will be years, maybe decades, before everything is set to rights. Thankfully, massive industrial and construction companies are charging practically nothing for their work—and though he knows many of them likely belong to the League, Izuku won't fault them—and people with quirks suited to this work have proven invaluable.
Surprisingly, many of the schools are up and running. A joint effort between Shouto's sister, the industrial companies, a legion of parents, and, to his surprise, Endeavour's influence, all working towards the end of keeping kids in school and busy. That's why bus routes are running so quickly instead of the shattered rail system.
It bothers him to see lightning bolts everywhere. Some are spray-painted on walls and in alleys, others are worn proudly by people who stand taller just seeing Izuku. He does his best to make sure Kouta doesn't see, but that's a foolish gambit at best.
"Are ya ever going to do anything about them?"
Izuku rests his hand on Kouta's cap. "Not today. Today it's just us."
"Okay."
They walk, speaking about everything and nothing at the same time. He gets distracted when Kouta mentions having trouble with maths and spends more time than he should on the absolute failings of the schooling system given the way they teach the subject. He may be, mildly speaking, passionate on the subject.
"I'm not saying you need to know how to derive Schrodinger's equation, but you should at least know what a multivariable function is. This is probably why no one's figured out quantum gravity… hmm, I should probably publish that paper. I guess I know what I'm doing tonight."
He has a few dozen notebooks detailing the maths behind the formation of the universe and how the fundamental forces relate to each other. Maybe he can do that as a new hobby. Change his narrative to something other than a violent war.
They pass by a building that makes Izuku slow down.
"Huh, I haven't been here in a while."
He smiles, surprised that it's open and running. Through the glass windows, he can see people training and fighting, more now than ever before. People look for ways to exert control over their lives after a crisis. Learning to fight is just one way.
"Let's go inside."
It looks largely the same he can see the scars of damage. There is no power to this part of the city, so the dojo is using harsh chemical lights instead. The fridge he's used to seeing in one corner is gone, replaced by a cooler box. The front desk is still the same.
The man who taught him form and technique is at the front desk, startled for the first time since Izuku met him.
"Kouta, I'd like you to meet Jin Mo-Ri. Say hi."
"Hi," Kouta says, partially hidden behind Izuku.
"Good to see you, boy. Taking care of self?"
Izuku nods. "Trying to. Are you managing alright?"
The man gestures at the people training in the back. "Not much but honest work."
He feels Ojiro enter the dojo behind him, cognisant of the way his shadow twitches with his tail. Izuku swallows nervously, not turning around yet.
"Hey, Kouta, you ever want to learn how to fight?"
"Not really."
He pats Kouta's shoulder, pushing him forward gently. "You never know. Might as well try."
Kouta glares at him, lips pursed in annoyance. However, something about his expression must give away his nervousness because Kouta merely sighs and heads towards Jin.
"Beginner's class starting in few minutes," the ancient fighter explains. "Come on."
Izuku nods encouragingly as Kouta is led towards the gathering of children and their parents in the back. They've all been watching Izuku since he came in and it bothers him that he can't go anywhere without this happening.
"There's a park nearby."
They both know the one he's talking about. Without saying another word, Izuku and Ojiro walk outside and towards the park. It takes a good fifteen minutes punctuated only by the awkwardness between them.
The park is quiet, only a handful of people walking through it. Izuku stops in the middle of a free patch and shrugs his shoulders, facing his friend and former classmate.
Ojiro slides into a ready stance, not saying a word. Izuku follows suit.
He lets Ojiro attack first, lets him set the pace and tempo. He deflects a punch and twists around a kick, only to have to backpedal hastily away from an elbow.
They reengage, moving faster and faster. No blow is meant to hurt. This is nothing more than a conversation they're having without words. They keep going until Ojiro can't go any faster, until he's at his physical limits. It isn't much more than a fraction of the speed Izuku can reach with One For All.
He stays at that speed, just slightly faster than Ojiro can physically match, so his friend makes do with pure skill. As a contemporary fighter, Ojiro is, and perhaps always will be, more skilled than Izuku. Perhaps that's why, after an hour of careful probing, Ojiro slips past Izuku guard and punches cleanly.
The blow just grazes Izuku's chin and stops there.
Ojiro grins. Izuku grins back.
"Hey," he says, taking a step back.
"Hey," Ojiro says back. "How are you?"
"The honest answer? I don't know. I'm just… so fucking tired. I miss them. I miss all of them."
Ojiro nods. "We all do. I've been worried about you. You just stopped responding."
"I didn't know if you guys still wanted me nearby."
Ojiro pulls him into a hug. Izuku doesn't resist and hugs him back.
"You're an idiot!" Ojiro snaps but there's no heat to it. "But you're our idiot, alright?"
"Yeah."
Izuku's eyes are watery when he pulls back but his grin is still strong. "How is everyone?"
"Coping. Kaminari hasn't said a word and Kirishima's avoiding us. Yayorozu's the only reason we still see Bakaugou and Ashido. We still meet up every week on Wednesday. You should come."
"I think I'd like that. Next time."
"Next time." He cocks his head. "Are you thinking of going back to a hero school later? When things are working better."
Ojiro shakes his head. "No, I think I'd just like to start my own dojo later. Maybe the others do but we're fifteen and half our friends are dead. I don't know if I'm ready to lose anyone else."
In the distance, he spots two figures. He waves at Kouta approaching behind Jin Mo-Ri. Kouta looks exhausted and about ready to fall.
"What's the story with the kid?"
"He's got no one else. I can't help everyone, but I made a promise to keep him safe."
Ojiro claps him on the shoulder. "You keep that promise. It's gonna be hard with what you plan on doing?"
Izuku raises his brow. "I don't plan on doing anything?"
"I know you better than you know yourself. And you've got that look in your eye. It's that same look that made you save Todoroki. The same look you had when you went to Hokkaido. The same look you had at the funeral." Ojiro squeezes his shoulder. "Stay safe."
He says goodbye to his friend and his former teacher, glad that they're safe and making something out of their lives. He's not disappointed that Ojiro wants to do something other than being a hero. In fact, he's joyous his friend wants to do something as noble as running a dojo. It means he'll be safe and not in the line of fire.
The consequences of fighting have become apparent now. No one ever expected war to come and no one expected to lose their friends and family. If his friends choose to avoid heroics, it means there won't be another person he loses before their time.
Later, Izuku is enjoying the warmth of the sun.
He glances down at Kouta who dozes. They're sitting on a park bench, watching a group of kids play football amongst themselves. Kouta leans against him using his side as a pillow. His head is closer to Izuku's liver than it is to his chest, right where his second heart resides.
Izuku sighs fondly and lifts him up gently, carrying him over his shoulders.
Kouta is light on his back, easy to carry. He doesn't notice the weight as he makes the long walk home. Shuichi is somewhere nearby, observing Kouta. Knowing that, knowing that Kouta will always have a guardian, sets his hearts at ease. It had been a dangerous gamble, one that hadn't fully succeeded, but the outcome is worth it.
He shifts Kouta once the boy starts slipping off his back. That startles Kouta awake and he yawns.
"What do you want to do when you're older?"
"Be a hero like my big brother."
That hits Izuku right in the heart. Kouta might be half asleep and barely aware of his words, but it doesn't change what it means, doesn't change the responsibility he has over Kouta now.
Am I just being casually replaced? Okay, cool.
Izuku swallows. "I'm not a hero. I just want to help people. You can do that without being a hero."
"But I want to be like you."
"Okay, but what else would you be if you could?"
"I don't know… wait, maybe a history guy."
"What?"
"You know, those guys that record stuff that happens."
"Oh. Why that?"
"You said they didn't remember Nana Shimura. And she was All Might's mentor. Well, if I write down your story then everyone will remember, right?"
Izuku laughs gently. "Yes. I suppose so. I think you'll be a great historian if you put your mind to it."
His mother berates them for being gone the whole day without saying a word. He understands her worry and bears it gracefully, only mildly entertained when his father tries to defend his actions. That ends as well as can be expected and somehow, it is Hisashi who winds up being grounded.
They eat dinner together as a family, arguing over everything. It's comfortable and peaceful, not a single worry amongst them.
She pulls him aside when they're done. Kouta and his father are struggling to clean the dishes, both too busy snapping at each other. At least there aren't any punches being thrown around. The last one had left Hisashi limping for a week.
"There's something I need to tell you, but I wasn't ready to," she says, making sure they aren't heard. "It's from All Might."
His heart stutters. "Oh?"
"Before he died, he came to our house. To apologise to me and promise to get you back. I can't forgive him for putting that target on your back, but I've moved on enough to tell you this."
He forces a smile. "Tell me."
"He said he always knew your greatest fear and that it doesn't matter. He said you should keep walking towards the future you want to see and that all you need is to try your hardest."
Izuku shudders, throat tight. "Yeah."
He says nothing more and retreats to his room, crushed by those words. Once more, All Might is there to absolve him of his worries before they even manifest. Those gnawing concerns he's been hiding from, the responsibility he'll have to bear by being All Might's successor, aren't gone, but they settle.
That is the power of All Might and his legacy. Even gone, his smile brings peace to Izuku's heart.
-TDB-
The rest of Izuku's evening is spent finding software robust enough for writing out a Theory of Everything. After a while, he realises that there isn't a single package with the features he needs, so the next few weeks are spent recoding the software to have the functions he needs. Because after a while, he realises there's no real framework in place to describe what happens within a singularity, and quantum gravity alone only gets you so far.
A lot of what he does is done through instinct and memory. He isn't Shouto who can simply decide which laws work and where, given that they're borne of the godflame, but though his powers are of true darkness, his human form was born just like every other human. He can feel out the limits where certain things break down, and when that stops being viable, he calls Shouto over and gets him to simulate those events.
"You're really stupid," Izuku says after Shouto stares blankly at him for the fourth time that day. "It's simple. You're the one writing the laws."
Shouto rolls his eyes. "At least I'm pretty."
"Whatever you say. Now, all I need is for you to make a Dirac sea with finite particles and matter-antimatter annihilation. That should deal with negative energy… oh, I need to deal with entropy at some point. Please tell me you know how that actually works."
"It just does."
Eventually, he manages to dumb things down enough for Shouto to understand. And though he pokes fun at Shouto, he does appreciate having someone to replicate any framework for the universe as he pleases. He also has his father requisition a massive bank of quantum computers to generate results since, whilst he can do that maths in his head, no one will believe results unless they're backed by something they understand.
Before he knows it, an entire month has passed before he's ready to break the scientific community. He at least has the decency to provide clear, simple explanations of each assumption, model, and simple guides to understanding quantum gravity which serves as the foundation for a dozen other breakthroughs he's casually adding.
You're a troll, Mikumo says after Izuku has uploaded the massive files and software packages necessary to open those files.
Izuku shrugs. "I spent an entire year in the abyss just proofreading the files. I lost track of how many years it took just to write out everything."
You haven't grown much older.
In the mirror is the same face he's used to seeing. Maybe he's lost a bit of baby fat, but otherwise, he looks identical to when he left. He doesn't feel much older though that might be due to his perception of time stretching, a year only feeling like a few days at most.
"I guess I will see eternity's end."
Those years of work haven't translated to more than a few weeks in the real world. During the day, he takes Kouta to the dojo after he's done his schoolwork so than Izuku can ignore him for a few hours and picks up whatever homework Fuyumi has for Kouta that week.
One time, a crow with glass feather lands on Izuku shoulder. He stares at its three eyes, bemused for a few minutes.
"Tell him I'm doing fine and to take care of himself."
The crow flaps its wings and leaves. He watches it go; certain it will relay his message to Fumikage. They will talk one day and discuss everything that has happened between them, but not today. Maybe not even this month.
A few days later, he's lying on his couch and reading a book when he gets a new guest.
He feels the rupture in the fabric of spacetime immediately. He's felt it enough to know who it is. Even then, the fact that it connects two points using endless darkness means it is within his domain. It is his right to know who walks his kingdom.
"I'm going to warn you once that I'll kill you if you're here for a fight," Izuku says, not looking up from his book.
"I'm not here to fight," Kurogiri says, his gas body hissing. The villain walks into view carrying a box. "You're very much your father's son."
Izuku hums. "Why?"
"I had to use every favour I owed to not have the Royal Guard kill me and Tomura. It took finding Guardswoman Izanami for them to calm down."
"I'm in mourning so I'd rather avoid violence. Understood?"
"Yes."
Izuku sets the book aside. "You're being rather docile."
"My revenge is complete. All Might is dead"—don't kill him, don't kill him, don't kill him—"and the weaknesses of this hero industry revealed. Even were you to kill me, you would only reunite me with my family. No mortal prison could hold me."
"I am not listening to your tragic backstory." Izuku gestures for him to sit. He's many things but he won't be rude. "Would it change things if I threatened Tomura?"
"You've become vicious."
"Being kidnapped and taught by Sensei will do that to you."
You idiot, Mikumo says as Kurogiri freezes.
"I see," the villain says. "I had my reservations about this, but I see I was wrong. This is for you."
He places the box on the table and slides it forward. Izuku opens it and is greeted by neat stacks of data drives. On top of them is a letter.
"What is this?"
"Sensei tasked me with ensuring you received this should he die. I believe he altered the contents on the morning of… when he finally fell. I've completed his final order. What do you want to be done?"
Izuku frowns. "I want you out of my life. Out of Japan. Go fucking raise that man-child better. Live a good fucking life. Without the two of you, the League in Japan suffers and will never really reform. Do something decent with your life before the end. And no matter what, the Vanguard won't take another life. If they do, and I find out, I'll hunt them down and them myself."
Kurogiri stands. "As you wish."
The villain leaves through a warp gate. Izuku waits a few minutes before he takes the box and its contents to his bedroom.
The letter is heavy, the pages thick and the writing elegant.
Dear Izuku,
If you are reading this, then I am dead. Perhaps by your hand. Perhaps by someone else's. If you caused my downfall, know that I am proud of you for exceeding all expectations. If you mourn me as a teacher, know that I place the future in your hands.
Contained within is all the data you need to dismantle, reform or continue my empire. It contains every personnel file, every threat assessment, all my plans past and present, the names of my allies, and the location of my bases.
I give you this in good faith. Continue my work. Destroy my legacy. It does not matter to me. This was originally meant to go to Tomura, but I have changed it today. You are the greatest student I have had the pleasure of mentoring. You are strong, brilliant, and motivated. You will change society permanently where I failed. Where my brother and his numerous successors failed.
The burden I place on you is heavy. You are the culmination of centuries of history between one for all and all for one. There is no other person I believe capable of changing this world.
I tried to change it with my strength. I slaughtered soldiers and destroyed much of the government once. Alone, I waged war against Japan after my brother's betrayal and broke it over my knee. A little girl stood against me and drew a line in the sand against me. She was valiant and noble, unafraid of facing the monster that just killed her family. It was then that I understood it could not be by my methods that society changed. I followed that child and generations later, Nana Shimura would be born from her lineage. And from Nana, Tenko Shimura would be born, though you know him better as Tomura Shigaraki.
Everything, I've come to learn, is cyclical and intertwined.
You asked me once why I created a system of ethics to govern my life. The answer is simple. I respect Hawkmoon, so when she called me forth, I answered. Understand that time changes us, and its passage wears us all down. She wished to die. Long ago she attempted to commit suicide. But the bullet was lucky and granted her immortality instead.
I took her quirk and let time affect her once more. It would take nearly a century for her to pass of natural causes. She gave me one simple directive: live life with rules that must never be compromised. Immortals become callous and cruel yet both she and Hinata were kind till their deaths. It is because of a system of ethics they refused to compromise.
I would not dishonour her command. Her words were true. I could destroy society and slaughter civilians without remorse, but my ethics will no longer permit it. Take care to remember that. When you choose a path, set lines you will not cross. Since then, I never killed children. I always treated my subordinates as people. And I chose never to intentionally target civilians. Those were the cornerstones of my ethics.
I worry I must break those vows to wipe the slate clean and set the stage for you. I worry that in the final moments of my life I must once more become the man I abhorred.
I cannot see the future. I cannot tell you what path to take. I offer you no reassurances. Whatever society you build will be yours and yours alone. Perhaps I will see it. Perhaps I will not. It doesn't matter. I saw my shattered faith and broken dreams reborn in you. What more, could I ask for?
I entrust you with creating a paradise.
Sincerely,
Sensei.
"Damn you to hell." Izuku sighs.
He takes the first data drive and connects it to his laptop. There is no password. Anyone, absolutely anyone, could have opened these. It isn't laziness or indifference. All For One had trusted Kurogiri, his most loyal subordinate, to pass these files on to Izuku.
The files date back two centuries from the very beginning, detailing how the Modern Era truly began. They tell the story of Vancouver Island and what became of the vigilantes there. It tells the history of dozens of wars and countless battles, of reshaped landmasses and the arc of world history.
Most importantly, it tells the sins and crimes of everyone. It names their nature but ascribes no judgement. He learns how the military junta in Australia was born and discovers how the rules governing Japan were never passed through the Diet, but are remnants of emergency powers that were never rescinded. He comes to learn the atrocities the military has committed and the various crimes the Public Security Intelligence Agency hid from sight.
The more he learns the sicker he feels.
It takes him days to just skim through the data drives and gain a broad knowledge of every major in the world and their plans. How Nezu sought to control and influence, and what he did to secure that. The length and breadth of quirk marriages and many people killed by the Taiwanese Remnant on their insatiable path for revenge. The massive threat China has always posed to Japan. The tenuous peace in North America that has just been shattered.
He sets the last drive down, sickened and disgusted by what he has learnt. It makes him wonder if there is any good left in this world. But only for a moment before he remembers his friends and all those he helped in Hokkaido, trying their best to survive in a cruel world.
At the bottom is a book, leather-bound and worn. The corners are upturned, and the cover scratched badly. Still, he can make out the title: 'My Thoughts and My Failings' by Stormwind.
"Is this supposed to be your final gift?" he asks bitterly. "I hate you."
And yet, Mikimo says, knowledge is still knowledge, regardless of the source.
He opens the first page and reads.
-TDB-
Fumikage Tokoyami hasn't been home for a very long time. It feels like years, and subjectively speaking, it has been given all the time he spent in the abyss with Hisashi. His home still stands, thankfully, though much of that is because Fumikage used his influence to ensure the neighbourhood was amongst the first to be restored.
To his surprise, Shouto had somehow wrangled the navy into helping. When questioned, he had just shrugged and vanished in a burst of fire. He isn't certain what the signifies, but the chains that bind them together have only become stronger so he assumes only good can come of it.
He knocks sharply and waits patiently.
The door opens, revealing his mother. It takes him a moment to process that he stands nearly a full head taller than her now.
"Fumi," his mother says, hawkish featured stunned. "You're—"
"I'm not back," he says, killing her hope. "I came to see how you are."
She deflates, her feathers falling in disappointment. "Oh."
"Where is Father?"
"I don't know. Where have you been? Why didn't you ever call back?"
He bows his head in acknowledgement of that fact. Ever since he walked out that day so many months ago, he hasn't returned their calls even though he has paid attention to them from a distance. He made the choice to stay away and avoid them no matter how much they reached out first.
"I was discovering who I am and who I wish to become. I could not do so here or at UA."
She narrows her eyes. "Who?"
He shrugs and reaches into his coat. He isn't dressed in any ceremonial regalia but simple battle armour beneath a nondescript jacket.
The holographic emitter, his mantle of responsibility, is heavy in his hands. It comes to life, displaying the white chrysanthemum of the Imperial Household.
"You've joined them," she says slowly.
"Yes." He puts the emitter back in his jacket. "I came merely to see how you are. I am glad you are whole and safe."
"Wait," she says before he can take a step back. "You can't just show up and leave. You're my son."
"I want to believe that sentiment has no ulterior motive, mother, but I find it hard to consider. You pushed me away with your words and actions."
"I never wanted you to get hurt."
"And by defying you, I have become stronger than you can imagine."
"Strong?" she asks incredulously. "Two people destroyed a city and you think you're strong? I didn't raise a fool."
He frowns but doesn't let her words affect him. Yes, he may lack the combat experience right now to match All Might and All For One, but he is still a king. One-third part of all reality is his to command. Perhaps they could each battle five dragons, but what does that matter when he has over a dozen.
"I am not… my quirk is not what we thought it was. I don't know how well you remember my fight during the Sports Festival, but Dark Shadow was never my quirk."
He lets Dark Shadow settle around him like a second skin. It comes easily, naturally, as though it was always meant to be. The darkness that makes up Dark Shadow is warm and fills him with strength, fills him with the reassurance that there is no enemy he cannot face.
He extends his shadowed hand and summons a crow with feathers of glass unshattering. It cocks his head and passes on a message from Izuku, surprising him, but he lets none of those feelings show.
"This is my power. I hold dominion over the life from the realm Dark Shadow originates."
His mother simply stares at him as he lets the darkness fade from his body.
"What have you become?"
Fumikage shrugs. "What I was always meant to be. Goodbye, mother. We will see each other again. But not today."
He turns and walks away, not caring if she has anything to say. Everything that needs to be said has been said already. Maybe one day he'll come back, and they will manage to meet each other as equals.
Two roads down, he sees a mountain of a man walking in the opposite direction. They both pause and stare at each other.
Fumikage's father is still a towering presence, a testament to strength and violence drenched in blood. Even from this distance, the man still has a foot of height over Fumikage. Yet, it never feels like he must look up at the man.
They stare at each other for a long moment.
Fumikage walks past his father without a word. His father doesn't say a word, doesn't reach out or even try to meet him halfway.
This isn't his home anymore and maybe never was. He summons Dark Shadows claws and rips a hole in the fabric of reality, stepping into the abyss and journeying to his true home via the abyss.
He steps out into the main square of the Imperial Villa, startling the people milling about. He shrugs but waves peaceably at someone he knows. That is enough for people to go about their day. Given the varied members of the Guard, they are more than used to eccentricity.
He finds the children in a part of the villa built just for them, reinforced walls and floors and even some caretakers who can deal with their abilities. He isn't ready yet to speak to them. Maybe in a few weeks. Instead, he communicates through letters that he sends, claiming that he is busy elsewhere. They accept that reasoning well enough, not asking too many questions.
Two days later, he's busy reading reports of abyssal detection. There seems to be a buildup of incidents, some which he sends people to monitor and observe, hoping it is nothing more than a natural result of mass bloodshed and not mad cultists.
Maya, his friend and handler, enters his office. It had surprised him to find out everyone thought he knew about it and was simply choosing not to use it. He wonders why on earth they think he wouldn't use the office with a massive screen set up and banks of computers capable of running the best games on the absolute best settings. Not that he ever lets anyone knows that's what he uses them for.
"Yo, we have a meeting."
"Hm, I wasn't made aware of one this urgent."
She shrugs. "Well, Hisashi did just barge in and call it."
The meeting is conducted in a sealed meeting room in the palace itself. This is the second time he's had an opportunity to be in the same room as all the members of the Royal Guard, four now due to the losses against the Vancouver Island Villain Association.
He, alongside Hisashi, are the only ones who aren't members of the Guard.
Hisashi is dressed in a bright suit performs a rather shallow and perfunctory bow. "Thanks for being here today. It's nice knowing you jump at my command. Does wonders for the ego."
Itinerant leans forward in his chair. "I could give less than two shits about you. Tell us what you want and stop wasting our time."
"Someone's annoyed."
"Do you really think you're that important now?" Itinerant snaps. "All For One's dead. The League is disbanded. Your role as a deterrent is over. And honestly, you barely helped. I don't know why we even put up with you anymore."
"I think we both know why."
"You think she'll forgive you and let you come back?" Itinerant scoffs. "I don't know why she'd want a broken old thing like you as an attack dog."
"Fuck off."
Fumikage raises a brow, surprised at the enmity between the two. He hadn't known it existed. Maya flicks his thigh beneath the table, a warning to master his body language.
"Hisashi, Itinerant, stop being children," Maya says. "What do you want?"
"Alright, here's what I want. I want UA to burn. I promised my wife they would suffer. I fully intend to see that happen."
"They still possess some modicum of influence," another Guardswoman says, this one a woman with Arabic features. "Too many remaining pro heroes are alumni. Enough to make action against them… more trouble than it's worth."
"I intend to break their power base. Nearly half the students in their heroics course are dead or crippled. Their parents want justice. My wife wants justice. We will help them. I think it is time for UA to be audited to the fullest extent."
"You're talking about all levels. The crown. The government. The UN. You really want to see them burn."
"For my son, I will cleave that institution apart."
Fumikage frowns. "You're making a lot of decisions for Izuku when you barely know him."
Hisashi twitches. "I didn't realise you were allowed to speak."
"He has a greater right to speak as you do," Itinerant says, opposing Hisashi once more. "You aren't of the Guard. You are barely a Special Asset. He has served faithfully and loyally. He returned our ally to us. You bring nothing to this table that we don't already have."
"And honestly," the one known as Ryujin says, "Kurogiri did more to help us this decade than you. I don't care how old he is, he has every right to speak."
Fumikage nods his head, grateful.
"I agree with much of what you say, Hisashi. UA has failed me and my classmates. Heroics society has failed. Who else but us can fill the void left by the deaths of the Kamino Ward War?"
"We stepped away from the light because of the Heir," Ryuujin says, fingers crackling with electricity. "One does not simply return to the spotlight after that."
"What choice do we have? Only Endeavour remains. Outside of Shouto and Izuku, we represent the most powerful quirks in Japan. Perhaps there are others as powerful, but only we believe in protecting the people."
"We do that by battling the abyss," Maya adds softly. "We do that by protecting Japan from invasion."
"I have seen the depths of the abyss," Fumikage says. "I know its power because it permeates my very soul. There is no one more suited to battling the abyss than I. All I ask is that we stand against villainy as well."
"You don't care about being a hero," Hisashi says.
"No. But Izuku does. He will change society and I will support him." He meets their gazes. "I am loyal to him."
"And I will support my Inquisitor," Maya says, stunning them all, including Fumikage.
"This isn't our mandate. We can't—"
"The Emperor will permit it," she says. "I've seen to it."
He looks at her, startled. She merely squeezes his hand beneath the table where the others can't see.
Ryujin sighs, standing up in annoyance. "I don't care what you choose. I need to deal with stalling China's next imminent invasion and whatever the fuck Australia is planning. Do what you want so long as it doesn't stop me."
"Are we agreed then?" Itinerant asks. "We launch an investigation to see UA shut down and step into the light once more."
"I can live with this," Hisashi says.
Fumikage nods. "As can I."
-TDB-
Izuku Midoriya decides he likes being famous for something other than the war that ended nearly three months ago or his fight against Stain. Being hailed as a visionary in the scientific community is a lovely feeling. Yes, every theoretical physicist in the world is examining his data and reviewing it, because the idea of one person completely upending their understanding of the world is insane. Sadly, Izuku's life has been marked by insanity for a long time.
Even then, the very best can't find fault in his explanation for quantum gravity. That, alone, is enough to have him shortlisted for a Nobel if the rumours are true. Izuku could care less. He just wants to direct attention to other things.
He sees Crawler once nearing the end of the third month.
The man is wearing an All Might hoodie, a new one this time. It depicts the great hero as he approaches his final battle, eyes burning blue and indifferent to the lava around him. An armband with a lightning bolt draws Izuku's attention, but he says nothing about it.
"I thought you were staying low," Crawler says whilst they're in the cat café. "Then you're on the news for things I barely even understand. I guess you are special."
Izuku shrugs, glancing around the café. Entering it had brought back every ounce of grief he thought he had dealt with.
Pinned to one wall are pictures of couples and families. In one unobtrusive corner, there is a picture of Ochaco and Shinsou on their first and only date, a black cat in Shinsou's arms reaching towards Ochaco who grins and there is nothing vicious about it. It hurts so fucking much to look at because it feels like a lifetime ago.
Still, he lets Crawler see none of those feelings. They belong only to him and his friends, those who still talk to him. He only lets Ojiro and Ashido see his grief when he sees them every Wednesday, only talks to Momo in quiet tones about the captivity only they will understand. Katsuki is the one who surprises him the most each time they meet. There is something intensely quiet about who he is now, his anger and bluster tempered by loss and failure. He'll make a good hero one day.
"I'd rather not be," Izuku says. "I'd rather people didn't wear Lightning Bolts and say they follow me when I've done nothing to earn it."
"That's just how eras change. I had to do a paper on the start of the Modern Hero Age, everything from how vigilantes were labelled villains and the VIVA rose. It's always like this. Someone inspires a group and they follow them, regardless of your feelings. You can't stop being an idea, all you can do is control the shape of that idea."
"And you're just fine with trusting me? You don't even know me."
"Out of everyone, at the very least, you're the lesser evil. That's the nature of things, really. You just choose the lesser evil. But I think you care about people. I think you're a good person trying to do the right thing even when it's hard. You didn't use All Might's funeral to push an agenda or take control of his mythos. You just talked about the flawed man beneath the legend. You broke his myth and showed us a human, someone we could be like, not a demigod beyond us. That's enough for a lot of people."
"That shouldn't be all it takes."
"Of course not," Crawler agrees, "but you stand at the confluence of so many events. Standing against Stain and then your interview that started this whole thing. You were there when the war started and you're the one who ended it."
"I didn't. That was All Might."
"And you carried his body. You carried the body of the Pillar of Society out of the rubble you left the greatest villain behind. The symbolism there is rather profound. And then at All Might's funeral, you say, 'You're next' as if he was talking about anyone but you."
"He was talking about everyone."
"That's not what people believe." Crawler stands. "We'll wait until you're ready. Just, don't make us wait too long. And stay out of trouble."
The vigilante lifts his hood and walks out, leaving Izuku behind. He sighs because it's becoming harder and harder to just avoid everything. Even now, with the café mostly empty, he knows the patrons in it are just spies for one organisation or another. He can see it in the way they walk, the way their shadows shift as they react to each word spoken during the conversation.
He finishes his tea and leaves, frustrated with everyone just waiting for him to do something. The last time he did nothing, a war started. What happens now if he actively makes a choice? How many will die because of it?
You can't choose how people will react to you. All you can choose are the decisions you make now. The future is promised to no one.
Izuku shakes his head, walking out. "It's promised to those who are free. And you can only be free by being strong and determined."
You sound like him more and more.
"Not every lesson he taught was horrible." He looks to the bright sky. "And not every lesson All Might taught was perfect. They're two extremes, the two ends of the scales when hero society is involved. And maybe the scale itself is the problem."
He walks through his hometown for weeks on ends, wandering aimlessly. It's something he's grown accustomed to and so have the people. They know him by name, know the boy who lifts entire buildings in showers of green lightning, the boy who leaves shadows to support collapsed structures and bridges so construction can occur safely.
It's better than doing nothing even if he could be doing more. He nods to those he's met before, especially the roving bands Shouto hires to help with the reconstruction. He's surprised by the number of navy men, but they are efficient and diligent in their work.
As the sun sets, he hears the sirens long before he sees the police barriers. He walks faster and faster, seeing the large crowd behind the row of policemen.
"Move," Izuku says, shoving past them gently but insistently.
The moment he sees the officers he knows exactly what's going on. They have anti-quirk gear on, guns that fire rubber bullets, tasers, tranquillizers, and containment foam.
They're focused on one of the collapsed buildings. Through the windows, he can see a line of hostages and knows that this isn't something he can ignore. Not anymore.
"What's going on?" he asks strongly, his voice carrying across the street.
"Villain," someone answers immediately. "Got a quirk that lets them retrofit anything to a bomb. Took some hostage."
"He's not a villain," someone only a bit older than Izuku says.
"You think this shit ain't a villain's work. Fuck you."
"He's a kid. An angry and stupid kid, but a kid. This shouldn't happen."
Izuku is tired right down to the bone. He wants to walk away and pretend this isn't happening. He's not ready. He knows that if he interferes, he will have to stand against everything he hates and bear the consequences.
For a moment, he feels two strong hands rest on his shoulders, the hands of the two people who defined this era. He feels the weight of their legacy now more than ever. One for All and All For One. The greatest hero and the greatest villain. The Perfect Fighter and the Strongest Man Alive.
His teacher of a few days, Sensei: You wish to see society change but you fear that staying true to yourself is to betray your mentor.
His hero, his father, Toshinori: I know the greatest fear you hold and still entrust the future to you.
Theirs is a legacy that spans two centuries, a legacy that saw the end of Hero's Golden Age and birthed the Modern Hero Age. One that saw the rise and fall of empires. It is a legacy that shaped two centuries of history.
If either saw him hesitate, they would both be disappointed. In this one moment, stopping this is something All For One and Toshinori Yagi would both agree on. And if those two could ever find common ground, it would be right now, in this very moment. They laid the path. All that remains is for Izuku to walk it.
With confidence he doesn't feel, Izuku walks forward.
"Stop," he declares in a voice that pauses everyone in their tracks.
Everyone, that is, except for the lead officer.
He meets those grey eyes for the second time and feels no fear. He isn't the boy terrified of his own reflection or the one shaken by Stain. He is a child in many regards, but in this, he holds more maturity than any other person.
No matter what, there will never be another girl in a sunflower dress that can't grow old and happy.
He lets the darkness that permeates his soul, the crystal shrieks of the dreaming dead and the chilly grasp of old gods, fill his grin that is less teeth than it is a maw with endless fangs that will tear through all hope and light and joy. Every step he takes trails green lightning, a declaration of power so great that it threatens to sunder the world in a god's judgement.
"Stand aside," Izuku says, channelling All Might. Then, with Sensei's contempt, he says, "You have no use here."
"Kid, go home before you get people killed."
Izuku levels the full force of his glare at the man. "No. This won't happen. I'll fight through every single one of you before I let this happen. You think your violence will save anyone? No. I refuse that world. Let me through. Let me save everyone in that building."
Without turning back, Izuku continues walking. The officer reaches towards him but a vicious spark of lightning slaps him back.
One officer raises his gun, but another stops him. "Do you know who that is?" he whispers furiously even as Izuku keeps on walking, indifferent to the muttering of gnats.
He enters the collapsed building confidently. Much of the ground level is ruined and the second floor has caved in, making a natural ramp to the second floor.
"Stay back!" It sounds like a boy no older than Kouta. "I said stay back."
Izuku lets his powers fade away and raises his hands peaceably, scanning the area for the boy. He's not with the hostages on the second floor currently cowering for their lives. He certainly isn't hiding behind one of the desks.
The bomb right in the middle is as good a place as any. It's a towering thing taller than All Might, jury-rigged and scrappy. It barely looks stable, but it hums audibly, grating at Izuku's jaw. The frequency is close enough to the natural resonance frequency of the crystals in Izuku's bones that they hurt.
"My name's Izuku," he says. "And I'm here to save everyone in this building."
"Get back before I set this off," the boy shouts from his spot behind the bomb. "It'll take out half the city."
"Okay, then take me hostage as well because I'm not leaving without everyone."
"What?"
"Yeah, it sounds crazy, doesn't it? Just as crazy as a six-year-old destroying half the city."
"I'm ten," the kid snaps back, peeking his head out.
Izuku raises his hand instantly, noting how there's a red dot on the back of his hand. It would be on the boy's forehead if not for that one action.
"They would have shot you right then," Izuku says, stepping in the line of the shot. "Now, there's a red dot behind my neck. If they have a high enough calibre, they could shoot through my neck and hit you as well."
The kid scuttles back to safety. "Fuck."
"Cursing's bad for a boy your age. So, now that I've saved you once, will you let me come closer?"
For a long moment, the boy stays silent, weighing his options. Izuku is surprised that the kid is this level-headed in a life or death situation. Or maybe he just doesn't understand the repercussions of this path.
"What's your name?"
"Izuku like I said. Izuku MIdoriya."
"No way."
"Yes, the very same. I'm the one who carried All Might's body. He was my teacher at UA and a close friend. Right now, he'd be doing everything to save you and the hostages as well. You might not know me, but I'm not here to hurt you."
Izuku takes one step forward, then another when nothing comes from it.
"Stop."
He takes another step forward. "This is a good setup you've got here."
"I said stay back."
"You know, I respect what you're doing. It must have taken a lot of cunning to get all this equipment."
With every step, he becomes more confident that this isn't a villain. Hesitating like this means that the kid doesn't really want to hurt anyone.
"I think you're a good kid at heart," Izuku says, taking the final step and seeing the kid. "I just think you've made a bad decision that you think is the only option. I think you've been wronged and you're trying to find justice."
The kid is tall, all things considered and comes up to Izuku's shoulder. He's in scuffed up clothes with sweat stains and grease marks. His hair is pale but there are more than enough grease streaks that it takes a moment to identify that.
"You don't know shit."
"Well, I did slit my wrist to get an answer, so I think I know a bit about bad decisions." Izuku shrugs despite the kid's horror. "The answer wasn't worth it. Tell me your story. Tell me why you're here."
"Do you know who runs the construction companies? It's the villains. The same villains that started the war. They're being paid by the government to fix the mess they made."
Izuku nods. "I know."
"What?" the boy asks, scrambling back. "You know?"
"Yes, I do. I also know that the war wasn't started by everyone. I know the story isn't as simple as you think it." He speaks as All Might would, calm and gentle but undeniably strong. "The same way I know you're not a villain. The same way I know you think this is the right decision."
Izuku slouches his back so that they are eye-level. The kid has lavender eyes, odd, but not as odd as any of the things Izuku has seen.
"But," he continues, tone darkening and taking on Sensei's profound disappointment, "What do you think this will change?"
The child pales for a moment and takes an unconscious step back. "Th-they'll pay for what they've done. You're fighting for the same thing as me."
"I'm fighting to change society for the better. You're just going to kill some innocent bystanders. Do you know what they'll do to you? They'll throw you in a hole without trial and you'll die forgotten and unloved. This isn't the way."
"At least my death will mean something. They're watching right now. They let a corrupt government rule. They let the imperial family murder as they please. They killed my parents."
Izuku smiles, honest as the greatest villain.
"I'm sorry that I couldn't change things fast enough. But look at me. Your life will mean more than your death ever will. Things will change. I promise you this. And the last time I made a promise, the greatest villain of Japan died. Let me help you."
"You promise."
Bold as his mentor, he says, "Yes," with a promise that permeates the air. "You're fighting for the right reasons."
Izuku extends his hand, an offer to be saved. "But the way you fight is just as important. If you murder innocents, then you aren't any better than the people you're fighting. Take my hand and let me save you."
"They'll just lock me up." The boy places his hand, his trust, in Izuku.
Izuku pulls him up and out of what might have been his greatest mistake. "You broke the laws. You'll stand trial, yes, but it will be a fair trial. And maybe, if the laws are illegal, then the trial is also illegal."
He goes about releasing the hostages, sparring the time to reassure them. When one tries to attack the boy, Izuku stops him with a firm grip.
"Not like this," Izuku says softly. "A grown man should never hurt a child. What example are you trying to set? Is violence the only way you can move forward? Be better. I know you can."
He glares the man down, only satisfied one he looks away, shamed. Izuku leads them towards the front door.
"All of you can leave."
He grips the boy's hands tightly as the hostages flee past them, streaming down from the second floor. He waits a few minutes until he is certain everyone is gone and safe. Then he covers every door and window in a film of shadow.
"Dismantle the bomb." It isn't a suggestion but a command he expects to be followed through without issue.
The child may be nervous, but he works with deft fingers. Those fingers strip actuators and power cells easily, cutting through wires and rendering the explosive inert.
"What else can you make?"
"Just about anything that goes boom, really," the kid says. "I like building engines a lot. Those are fun. Still trying to get more than ninety percent Carnot."
Izuku shakes his head. How many people have been locked up without their talents being used? How many were driven to villainy by circumstance and misunderstanding? The answer is more than one and one is too many.
When the bomb has been defused, Izuku takes the boy's hand once more. He doesn't care about the grime or sweat because it means the boy trusts him, trusts Izuku to protect him.
"I have a little brother. Adopted, I guess. He's a little shit but I still love him. It's going to be scary facing the world. I would know, I've been putting this off for a long time. Just trust that no matter what happens, I'll make sure you won't get hurt."
The kid nods, terrified. "This was a mistake, wasn't it?"
"Yes, but I'm going to save you from it."
With that, he turns around and lets the shadows fade. With even steps, he walks out of the collapsed building with a little boy hiding behind him. The crowd's gotten significantly larger and he knows it is only because of his presence.
He faces the officers and reporters and the world itself. He wonders what he must look like. Does he look like a hero? Would his mother be proud of him? Would his father? Would Aizawa?
I am proud of you, Mikumo says.
That reassurance gives him the strength to step forward, regardless of the consequences. He shields the child with his body. If his words are to incite violence, then he will take the first blow.
If he must fight to change society, then let him walk enter the battlefield first and leave it last.
"Give us the villain," the lead officer says.
Izuku cocks his head as though considering that option.
"No. Do you know why I'm going to refuse? Just now, you called a scared little boy a villain."
The officer grits his teeth. "I'll call you a villain as well if you resist. You think we don't know everything about you?"
"He committed a crime," Izuku says loudly, unafraid of the possible consequences. "But this society drove him to it. We drove him to it. We permit the excesses of the Emperor. We support a government built on illegal systems. We let officers incarcerate children without trial under the guise of them being villains."
He points at the officer, regardless of the hate in those steel-grey eyes. This is a confrontation a year in the making, a remnant from Izuku's time as a weak and defenceless child.
"That man took down a girl who had a bad quirk activation. A girl in a sunflower dress who was terrified and had no idea what was going on. She should have been helped, no—"
"Shut him down," the officer orders.
A crack like a gunshot. Izuku's shadows rise to protect him, batting away the rubber bullet.
"Even now they seek to hide their skeletons. I ask you, all of you listening, how long will you permit"—crack—"injustice to continue? Taiwan sunk, and we ignored the millions who died."
Crack.
"How many lives will we ignore?"
Crack. Bang. Crack.
"What value is there to human life if we let these things go? Every life is precious and priceless!"
Crack. Crack. Crack.
A dozen rubber bullets all lay on the ground a metre away from Izuku, nowhere close to harming him. There are snipers with deadly weapons trained on his position, ready to execute him if given the order.
"We let heroes and soldiers fight our family in Hokkaido without question. We let thousands perish in Shikoku and never once asked why. It was the villain Shinobu who vowed to save the people of those regions. Why didn't we ask why a villain had to fight that fight? I may not have been born, but I bear responsibility every day I let these atrocities be forgotten. Every day I choose to support this system. Every day I let this system protect me."
The police move forward, weapons raised. Izuku lets go of the child and takes a step forward, hands raised.
"I won't fight you," Izuku says, walking confidently. "I refuse to let there be violence. Take me down if you must, but I will not stay silent. I will admit my crimes because I refuse to hide them. I killed the villain Muscular. I had won, and yet I still chose to commit that crime."
Two officers move forward, guns at the ready. Izuku raises a brow in amusement and that stops them in their tracks.
"Here's the truth about All Might. His quirk is called One For All. The man One For All was one of Japan's first heroes. You know his brother as All For One, the villain All Might died defeating."
"Get on your knees!"
Izuku does so, kneeling in kiza. He is stillness and calm personified, an unmovable rock in the chaos. He is peace and serenity, indifferent to outside interference.
"One For All was passed down for nine generations. Like a mutation, it can be inherited. Nana Shimura the Brave was the seventh. The great All Might was the eighth. I am the ninth." That makes the officers pause in their slow approach. "All Might chose me as his successor. He chose me knowing I did not agree with this society. Your Pillar chose me because he could not change society. He had one mission. To free us from the grip of All For One's influence. He died doing so. "
"Shut him down."
The containment foam they use is chilly. But they make the mistake of leaving his head untouched. He knows they do it as a safety precaution.
"We must be worthy of his sacrifice," he shouts. "There will only be dawn if we fight for it. If we let this happen, we'll start another Dark Age."
"Secondary threat contained. Capturing the primary target."
Izuku glances and sees their weapons pointed at the boy. The boy is terrified, staring at Izuku. There is a plea in his gaze, a call for salvation. And there is no version of this where he will let this boy suffer as the girl in the sunflower dress.
One For All fills his body. The moment he hears the first crack of a bullet, he flexes. The containment foam is designed to hold the strongest of villains.
But it is not prepared for One For All.
In a burst of white liquid, Izuku is free. He moves like lightning, running past the rubber bullet. He places himself in front of the boy and outstretches his arm. The bullet hits him right in the chest, where the child's head would be. He forces his rage down as more bullets are fired.
They hurt but he has suffered through much worse. He has shattered bones and traversed the abyss with a broken spine. To stand aside is to betray the legacy of All Might who is the legacy of Hero who is the legacy of Hawkmoon who is a product of Stormwind.
And he refuses to betray the memory of any of them.
"You're firing at two children who aren't fighting back," he says once the bullets have stopped, green lightning arcing across his body. "This is the society you live in. This is a society your heroes fought and died for. A society where children are labelled as villains for the sake of convenience."
"Jesus, someone tranq the kid."
He bats aside the dart with a tendril of darkness. It lands needle first in the ground.
"What is a hero?!" he roars suddenly.
A wave of green lightning surges out from his feet. It doesn't go very far, but instead stays close to him, a terrifying reminder of the electric potential he holds.
He points at the camera, at everyone watching this with an arm engulfed in lightning.
He calls them all out. A boy of sixteen standing against a system that is centuries old. A boy who is scarred horribly and whose eyes burn with old knowledge stands tall under the weight of the world.
"Ask yourselves, what is a hero? A hero is someone who sees injustice and says no. Where is the justice here? I say no. This is the line and I refuse to be moved! Call me a villain, but I will not stand for this. Even Stormwind would be disgusted by you."
The officer steps forward. The hate is palpable and entirely reciprocated. The enmity between them is old and bitter.
"Comparing yourself to Stormwind won't win you any favours. Stand the fuck down before we use lethal force."
"Kill me if you must, but know you stand against All Might's legacy." He spreads his arms wide and arcs of lightning strike the ground. "This lightning is his legacy and it stands against you. Know you stand against Hero whose compassion brought freedom. Know you stand against Yui Ikari whom Hawkmoon eclipsed."
The officer merely glares at Izuku.
"Fucking fire."
It's real bullets this time, the sort that can kill him. And whilst he might hate the person who gives the order, he's not willing to be responsible for his death. Not when he knows the devastation the monster he will become can cause.
He inhales and gives life to Sensei's dead heart once more.
The spark of power within it comes to life and Izuku feels power the likes of which astounds him because it means All For One willingly chose to die, chose to finally rest and entrust Izuku with the future. This man who was the great villain of Japan chose to leave his power with All Might's successor.
The power is colossal, a great mountain that even One For All failed to scale over two centuries. He feels the weight of it, the crushing burden of raw power All For One held every day of his life and it chokes Izuku with the magnitude of it all.
He feels the winds as a seventh sense, feels every current and zephyr, and knows they are his to control. Just like the shadows, the roaring winds belong to him.
And he feels how One For All supercharges his abilities. The potential of One For All, magnified by the dying flames of the last torchbearers, empowers this gift from his last teacher. What may once have been a passably strong wind quirk expands exponentially, fed by the power of One For All. The reach of the quirk leaves him breathless as he feels the sky itself bow to his control.
At his fingertips is the power to control the weather itself. The wind for miles around, the atmospheric pressure and even the temperature of the wind are his to decide.
This is the power to surpass the greatest wind quirks in history. Perhaps, this is the power to become a god of storms, Susanoo, as Fumikage suggested so long ago. Three sibling gods for three young kings, the domains of wind and lightning his to control.
He feels the way the bullets slice through the air and knows their flight paths. Of them all, only two won't hit centre mass. Only two aren't a threat.
One For All increases his perception enough to see the bullets in flight but it is Sensei's final gift that lets him silence the world.
He surrounds the bullets in cocoons of wind and diverts their course around his body. The currents carry them around his body and then over his shoulder, back into his hand.
The world is silent. No one makes a single sound.
They are too terrified. They know this quirk, this indomitable wind that the greatest villain wielded during the final battle of the Kamino Ward War. A battle a single man fought against the greatest heroes of Japan and very nearly won.
He opens his hand and lets the bullets fall to the ground. They clatter to the ground, one dull thud after another. One reminder of the futility of standing against him after another.
The sky above churns with currents of wind and streaks of green lightning, the great declaration of the stage he now stands upon. He waits a moment, letting them truly understand the power they now face. Letting them know that the howling storm and raging lighting belong to Izuku Midoriya to use as he pleases.
Izuku holds out both arms in supplication to the law, an invitation to handcuff him.
"Arrest me if you must but let there be no more violence."
It is also a taunt for the world now knows simple cuffs can't hold him. Simple steel won't make him any less lethal, not when the shadows and wind belong to him. Not when All Might's power runs through his veins. Not when the heart of the Strongest Man Alive beats strongly in his body, a sharp staccato running counter to the heart he was born with.
To the world, he is the most powerful quirk user by virtue of his quirks alone. One boy with the power to face the world and possibly win.
"In the words of the Great Tyrant Stormwind, where there is good, uplift it."
Sensei once created a hurricane a paltry five kilometres. Nothing special and nothing of note.
Right now, without thought, a violent storm brews in the sky for hundreds, maybe thousands, of kilometres. People from different cities will look to the sky and see a raging storm. And through it all, the only constants are the streaks of lightning and the layer of impenetrable darkness above it, blocking out the promise of a brighter future.
This is the power he holds now, the power to control the weather itself, the power to cleave a mountain with a kick. Most of all, it is his right to drown the world in darkness should he choose it.
"I see no good here to uplift."
The winds calm, the roiling stormfront dissipating. It takes with it the chaotic storm of green lightning. Finally, light returns as the darkness fades.
He doesn't wince when they tighten the cuffs. Doesn't show weakness when they shove him forward. No, he walks with his head high, back straight and a small smile on his face.
Whatever comes of this, he will face it and accept the consequences.
-TDB-
This is how it feels to be alive today.
You are Crawler, a vigilante and one of the few keeping the peace now that the war is over. You wear a lightning bolt and are considered a leader amongst the fledgling group. You wonder what you will become now that your rallying symbol has revealed the truth of his power. And you know you will be helpless to influence the future.
You are Kohei Horikoshi, exalted of your order. On a little island off the coast of Japan, your experimentations have finally borne fruit. A thousand sacrifices over centuries have weakened the barriers between real and abyss. Now, you have a memetic nightmare trapped to use as a beacon for something greater, a true god. You laugh, surrounded by the corpses of those forgotten by war. Soon, your gods will arrive and oh, how they will sing.
You are Vice Admiral Yosuke Kadomatsu of the Japanese 2nd Fleet. You have ascended in rank through the death of your commanders and now stand at the ultimate realm of power. Now you have learnt the secret laws that kept Japan at peace, the accords that bound the ultimate powers and now bind you. You swallow nervously. All For One broke those accords and his acts led to an unprecedented war. Now, a boy with a power greater or equal is unbound by the accords. You make contingencies. You are a navy man through and through. If the navy must flee Japan to survive, you will order it if only for the sake of your marines. If you and yours must become pirates to survive a new ear, then you will.
You are Ghost Fox, one of the few remaining members of the Great Ten. You are struck by terror at the idea that this one boy wields the power of All Might, greater than you will ever be, and All For One who personally killed three of your seniors, your lover included. You do not know what counsel to give the Premier. How do you decide to attack a walking disaster? Yes, Japan has been weakened by the last war. But so has your nation and you know Russia is still a threat. No, stand down, you tell the Premier. Consolidate what remains and prepare for Japan's future aggression.
You are Ejirou Kirishima. All you can see is the power of the villain that killed your closest friends. You see the power of the villain who killed your family in a landslide when they should have been safe. All you can hear are the words of Stormwind echoed in someone you called a friend. How much of this is your fault? Can you trust Izuku Midoriya to be a friend once more? Deep in your heart, you know your paths have diverged.
A/N:
I know I haven't been super responsive recently but IRL problems hit and sometimes they hit hard.
Anyway, this is the end of Season IV. It is not the end of the story. This story will end on chapter 75. I'll resume posting in December but until then, take care and goodnight.