Back with Endeavor
"HAAAAWKS!" Endeavor desperately cried out, flying furiously towards the explosion that had just erupted from one of the many buildings surrounding the plaza. As he soared closer to the destruction, he noticed class 1A caught completely dumbstruck by the chaos and looked to be oblivious to the shattered glass that was falling straight for them, preparing to create a gruesome scene. The number one hero prepared to unleash a massive burst of Hellflame to protect the students to the best of his ability but stopped as he witnessed a massive shield of ice form above the entire class. Shoto's work, no doubt.
In any other situation he probably would've grown a massive grin, overcome by pride at seeing such a display from his youngest son. But this was not any other situation. Right now, chaos was unfolding, and he was left in the unknown as to if his winged friend was even still alive. He didn't even have time to stop and think of a proper course of action to deal with things. Every second wasted was an increase in the chances that Hawks would be dead. And that was something that he would not allow. So, to the blazing inferno he went, to face the crisis head on.
Stopping just a few dozen feet away from the carnage, Endeavor started looking for any signs of the number two hero. It didn't take long for him to realize that he wasn't going to find anything with an outside perspective due to the infernos fierce glow and immense smoke that it was releasing into the outside world. No, he was going to have to make his way inside the hell that stood before him. He also noted that the structure was almost entirely compromised by the looks of it, and the building could collapse on itself at any moment. He was going to have to be fast.
"Endeavor, sir!" right as the number one hero was about to storm his way into the building, a young sounding distressed voice called out from behind him. Turning his head, he saw that it was Tokoyami from class 1A, looking very visibly distraught. "Hawks… was Hawks caught in the explosion?! Tell me he's alright!" Endeavor grit his teeth in exasperation. He had hoped that the students would stay where they were so he wouldn't have to worry about their safety. And time was of the essence, he didn't have any to waste on giving out a bunch of orders.
"Tokoyami, right? I do not know the whereabouts of Hawks… but I do believe there's a strong possibility that he was caught in the explosion. Before you ask any more questions, I need you to stay out here and fly around the perimeter to see if you can spot any signs of Hawks. Under no circumstances are you to enter the building. Understand?" Endeavor ordered sternly, leaving no room for backtalk.
Tokoyami simply nodded and looked as though he was about to say something, but the moment that Endeavor saw the acknowledgement from the young hero he took off into the building, not wasting another precious moment.
Grunting in frustration at basically being sidelined, Fumikage flew off to start working on his assigned task. He understood that Endeavor was only looking out for his safety, but that did little to soften the blow. He wouldn't have been much help anyways, he figured. The light the flames were emitting would have nullified Dark Shadow entirely, which would've left him to be nothing more than but another person in need of saving if he were to enter. If he really wanted to help Endeavor, and more importantly his mentor, then he'd just have to stay back and wait for an opening.
"Damnit Hawks, don't you dare die on us… Endeavor, we're counting on you."
The chaos inside the building was much worse than it appeared on the outside, and that was saying something since it already looked like hell. It was practically impossible to navigate your way around the carnage, as the ceiling had already begun to collapse, leaving dangerous debris to be hidden away in the flames. Endeavor never had to be so aware of his surroundings before. One misstep could lead to even greater disaster. He also had to constantly watch his head lest he wanted to meet an untimely end or best-case scenario a terrible concussion due to falling ceiling tiles and metal beams.
"Hawks! Are you in here?! Say something!" Enji called out, desperately hoping for a miracle in the form of his friend somehow retaining consciousness, and the energy to call back to him if he were in fact inside. Of course, as luck would have it no response came, leaving him to continue his hopeless search among the mayhem. He attempted to communicate through their comms device as well but was met with nothing but static. As strange as he found that to be, he simply chalked it up as something having to do with the explosion and continued on.
"What could have done this?" Endeavor questioned out loud, while he picked up the remains of a burning cubical and chucked it out of his way. He thought Hawks was just being paranoid when he went to investigate this building, that it would just turn out to be nothing but a waste of time. Sure, he was just as on edge as his winged friend had been, but he didn't actually think that there would be anyone working alongside Dictator. And why would they go after Hawks? Without his wings he was likely the least of a threat to a villain out of most of the pro heroes left in the country… so why?
Concluding that he wouldn't be able to figure such things out with the limited information that was present, he dropped the subject, and prepared to move another burning cubicle. As he did however, he started coughing hoarsely, feeling his throat run dry and his body begin to ache.
"Shit, I'm overheating!"
Endeavor knew he wouldn't have much time prior to entering the inferno inside the building, and not just because of the threat of its collapse or because of how long Hawks would have before perishing under these conditions. There was also the problem of how rapidly his body would start to deteriorate due to his lifelong problem of overheating. While he was pretty much immune to any kind of fire or burn, he was still susceptible to having his body temperature going to high even for him to handle. He must've only been in there for around two minutes by now, but he was already reaching his limit.
No, he was much past his limit, he just had failed to realize it.
"Ha-… HAWKS!" Endeavor cried out, coughing in between attempts of shouting his friend's name. His muscles were starting to cramp and spasm with each step he took now, indicating that if he didn't leave it could prove to be fatal. But how could he leave? If Hawks was still alive and trapped somewhere in here, how could he bring himself to leave just to save himself? If there was even the smallest fraction of a chance of success left for him then he would cling to it. He would never give up; he was too damned stubborn to.
As the beads of sweat that trickled down his face steamed away from the impossible heat his body temperature was emitting, Endeavor continued down the treacherous path, discarding multiple more cubicles and other pieces of debris in his way. His movements becoming visibly more sluggish as time went on.
Suddenly, static filled the number one hero's ear as if someone were trying to communicate to him through their comms device but couldn't quite get patched through. Feeling hope ignite in his racing heart, Endeavor struggled to lift his hand to his ear to respond.
"…Hawks… Hawks, is that… you? Where… are you?" he panted heavily, almost incapable of speaking at all. He wasn't sure if his message was getting sent through as static as well, but at least whoever was on the other end would know that he was trying to communicate. A few seconds which felt like an eternity passed, causing him to worry that he was going to be left in silence again.
When sound filled Endeavor's ears again it wasn't at all what he had been waiting to hear. Violent cracks and thuds from dropping concrete could be heard simultaneously from all around him, as he turned to find that the structure that had barely been holding the building together after the explosion was finally giving out. He let out one last deep breath, realizing that the entire building was about to come down on him. He had taken too long.
Looking towards where he'd entered from, he realized that with the condition he was in there would be no way he'd have the mobility required to escape in time. He could attempt to use the same move he used to destroy the falling building back during his fight with the hooded Nomu, Hell Spider, but with how much he was already overheating he couldn't be sure that he could properly slice and burn away the whole structure. Using that move with such uncertainties could even put Shoto and the other students in danger with how chaotic the debris could become, not to mention Tokoyami who was most likely still flying around just outside the building.
There was no clear course of action to protect himself without putting others at risk.
"This can't be how it ends!" Endeavor thought to himself, refusing to accept defeat. Looking up at the broken and collapsing ceiling, he took a defiant stance and prepared for the worst. He didn't know exactly what he was going to do, but he did know that this wouldn't kill him, because he wouldn't allow it to. The vivid image of Shoto and the rest of his family burning in his mind gave him the strength to keep going as he clenched his fists tightly, drawing on his power.
Then it happened; he watched as everything came tumbling down promising to crush him under its immeasurable weight. Endeavor let out a fierce roar, just as static filled his ear once again. Only this time he could've sworn he could make out what sounded like his name being shouted. Right before the weight of the entire building came careening down upon him, several small needle thin threads emerged from the smoke that clouded the man, tightly gripping his right forearm with several loops as it rapidly pulled him towards the opening he had entered from with impressive strength.
Endeavor only managed to grunt in response as he was quickly pulled to the outside of the building, where he felt the pull of gravity overtake him threatening to make him fall. Everything was happening too fast for him to process, and things certainly weren't slowing down from there.
"Endeavor!" the voice of Tokoyami shouted as Enji felt the arms of the young hero grab him tightly. Fumikage used Dark Shadow to fly them as swiftly as possible to a safe distance from the collapse, gritting his teeth and slightly wheezing from the strain his muscles were going through from having to carry someone as heavy as Endeavor. Loud crashes and bangs could be heard from behind the duo as Tokoyami couldn't fly any further, landing in barely controlled fashion just beside the All Might statue in the center of the plaza.
They both turned back around to look upon what the result of the collapse was but could see nothing more than massive dark clouds of debris overtaking where the building had once stood tall. They had narrowly escaped.
While Tokoyami knelt over to catch his breath, Endeavor dropped his shoulders in shame, shadows forming over his eyes as he stared at the ground, thinking of his winged friend and his failure to save him. If he had not died from the explosion itself, then he had certainly perished from being crushed.
"That's quite the uncharacteristic expression for you, what's with that?" The number one hero turned around vigorously to see the calm form of Best Jeanist standing just a few feet away from him with his arms crossed. Seeing that he had his attention, Jeanist proceeded to take a step aside and reveal the unconscious form of Hawks laying against the base of the statue, drawing a bewildered gasp from Endeavor.
"I arrived at the scene just a few minutes ago. I tried to contact you through the comms, but all I was receiving was interference. That's when I spotted Tokoyami here flying around the building, looking rather panicked. He informed me of what was going on, and how you entered the building to search for Hawks. Honestly Endeavor, you need to be more careful with your decisions. You're the number one hero, you need to be setting a proper example for these young heroes about taking logical approaches to these kinds of crisis. If I had not been here, you likely would have gotten yourself killed." Jeanist lectured in an unapproving tone, shaking his head.
Endeavor cared not for being scolded however, as his attention was almost entirely on Hawks, who appeared to be surprisingly not baring any serious injuries other than a few minor burns and bruises here and there. "How did… how did you find him? I searched all over for him and couldn't find anything. How does he have such minor injuries for being caught in that explosion?" He questioned; disbelief engraved in his widened eyes.
"The same way I found you, with my quirk Fiber Master. I make it a priority to familiarize the fibers of the hero costumes that my close allies wear for the event that I need to perform evasive maneuvers or rescue missions. Once Tokoyami informed me that you two were in the building I searched for the fibers of your costumes so I could pull you out. I'm not sure exactly where Hawks was in the building since, I didn't actually enter myself, but I'm quite certain he was buried under some rubble near what was the second floors windows." Jeanist explained, while fashionably combing his blonde hair.
"You were much more difficult to extract than Hawks was, due to how deep in the building you were. Getting my threads through to attach to you was no simple task. The fires inside had gotten so intense that I had to make multiple attempts to send enough threads to pull you out without burning them away before they could reach you."
Endeavor continued to stare at the winged hero incredulously. He was close to the windows? So, he passed him during his search? How could he be so blind, he could've died due to his inefficiency! "Wait, you didn't explain how he managed to sustain these minor injuries for such a devastating explosion." He questioned again, to which Jeanist rubbed the back of his long neck with a somewhat puzzled expression.
"I'm not entirely sure. If I had to guess I'd say that he was making his way out of the building by the time that the explosion went off. Perhaps the blast was concentrated on the opposite side of the building he was on? It's even possible that he knew of the explosion and was attempting to escape and braced himself for the blow. There's no way to be certain. We can put more pieces together when he awakens. But before that… did he tell you anything before the blast? Any indication that something was going on?" The Fiber Master hero questioned after his explanation, crossing his arms and looking as though he was posing, much like he always did.
"ENDEAVOR! GET MID-!"
Enji's eyes widened in shock at the recollection of Hawks words before everything went wrong. He hadn't even thought about what his friend was trying to say before now! Everything had happened so quickly that he was never given a moment to stop and think about the bigger picture of what was going on. If it were a villain attack, then of course there was a bigger motive than simply bombing a building! At the time he had just figured that it must've been an assassination attempt of Hawks' life, but that wouldn't have made sense either. Hawks wasn't a significant enough target for a villain to take such a risk with so many heroes present. Someone had tricked them; someone had tricked him.
"Tokoyami, stay here with Jeanist and protect Hawks if anything happens!" Endeavor ordered his two comrades sternly, as he prepared himself to get back into action. He looked back in the direction of Shoto's massive ice shield he had casted earlier to stop the falling glass and found that not a single student remained where they were, which only made his panic worsen.
"What, why?! What's going on?" Fumikage looked back at him with a mixture of fear and confusion at seeing the sudden alarm in Endeavor's eyes. He had just barely caught his breath and now things seemed to be getting crazy again.
Jeanist simply frowned deeply, putting the pieces together of what must've been going through Endeavor's mind. Looking over the number one hero's body, he noted that he had deactivated his flames from the moment he had arrived at the statue with Tokoyami. Jeanist figured that he must've been way past his limit and had been overheating when he was trapped in the inferno earlier. He didn't look ready at all to jump back into action.
"Endeavor, I think you should allow me to take over from here. In your current state you're in no shape to fight any potential villains. Think rationally about this." Jeanist attempted to take charge of the situation, but Endeavor reignited his flames in response, showing his clear opposition.
"I'm in more than good enough shape to burn any villain to cinders. Jeanist, your quirk won't be fast enough to find the rest of the students. Leave this to me, this is my failure. I must correct this and protect them." Tokoyami just looked between the two pro heroes, growing frustrated at being ignored every time he asked them a question. He could tell that something serious was going on but had no way of figuring it out on his own. Judging off the way that Endeavor just mentioned his classmates however, he knew at least that they must've been in some sort of danger.
"Hey! Quit dodging me and tell me what's going on! If my classmates are in danger, then I deserve to know."
Looking at the young hero, Endeavor put on his typical unbothered somewhat pissed off expression to hide how nervous about the situation he really was. It was true, he had been avoiding the young man's questions from the moment he caught up to him before he entered the building earlier, but it wasn't out of cruelty. He just didn't know how to go about handling him. He never was good with other pro heroes, and he was even worse with the young next generation. That and how time sensitive things had been.
"Tokoyami, this may be difficult to hear but… I believe that the explosion that Hawks was caught in was set up as merely a distraction to catch us all off guard so that someone could make a move on Midoriya in his weakened state. I apologize for avoiding your previous questions, but I do not have any more time to waste. I need to go now; I may already be too late. I know you'll want to come with me to aide your classmates, but right now Hawks needs you. Please, stay with Jeanist for the time being. I'll report back to you when the situation becomes known."
The wielder of Dark Shadow felt his heart jump to his throat when he remembered his green haired friend and the condition he had last seen him in. Panic settled in when he realized how vulnerable to an attack his class was when he left them. They were confused and in disarray, it was the perfect opportunity for a villain to make a move.
Looking back at Hawks, Tokoyami felt torn as for what to do. Yes, Hawks was unconscious and defenseless, but so was Midoriya, and he was the villain's target! He needed protecting more than anyone. Surely Jeanist, the number three hero, would be more than enough to protect his mentor on his own.
Settling on the conclusion to defy Endeavor's wishes, Tokoyami prepared to release Dark Shadow and fly away, but stopped when he felt a hand grip his shoulder. Turning his head, he saw Jeanist looking down at him with empathetic eyes, slowly shaking his head telling him to stop. At that he relaxed his shoulders in defeat, resigning to the pro heroes wishes.
Jeanist wanted to protest against Endeavor's actions but knew that there was no chance at changing his mind, no matter how tired he may have been. He would just have to believe in the number one hero, while he protected their injured comrade in the meanwhile.
Watching as Endeavor set off his mighty flames, soaring away to look for Midoriya and class 1A, Jeanist decided he could still make himself useful to the other heroes by making a call. Pulling out his phone from one of the several pockets on his all-denim hero costume, he searched for a specific contact. Once he found what he was looking for, he made a couple clicks, and brought the phone up to his ear as it rung a few times.
"Hello, Edgeshot? We have a situation down here. I need you to assemble the others and get here immediately."
Landing at Shoto's ice seemed like it was going to be a dead-end as there was no clear indication as for where the class had gone; that was at first glance at least. With closer inspection Endeavor was able to spot what looked to be scorched marks on the walls and ground of a nearby alleyway which seemed to have no pattern. But he recognized them all to well from the time he had spent with Bakugo during his time at his agency. Thinking back to those days seemed like a lifetime ago. It was practically an entirely different world now, and every passing day made it seem less and less likely that things would ever go back to normal.
But now was no time to dwell on the past. With another burst of flames, Endeavor launched himself down the alleyway in a flash. Once he made it to the other side, he found that his luck had run out, the brief scorched tracks faded away giving no clue whether they had gone left or right. Not willing to waste time on indecisiveness, he took to the skies for an aerial view to widen his field of vision.
He didn't even have to take his time to look around once he ascended however, as a massive explosion from the next city block over immediately caught his attention.
"That explosion… there's no mistaking it, that was Bakugo's doing!"
Readjusting his feet and hands so he could properly propel himself towards his destination, he braced for the worst possible scenario. There was no way of knowing just what kind of villain the students must've been facing, or if there were multiple. For all he knew Shigaraki and All for One himself could be waiting for him. And the kids were currently facing that threat alone. The very thought of that possibility was enough to spark yet another dose of adrenaline to shoot through his veins, giving him the strength he needed to increase the output of his Hellflame and maximize his speed.
Best Jeanists words of how he was in no shape to engage with any villains rang through his mind, causing a low growl to escape through his gritted teeth. Deep down, he knew that the number three hero was right. His prolonged exposure to overheating greatly expended most of his energy. He could even feel that he must've had numerous internal injuries that would likely require recovery girls' assistance in healing properly. The only thing keeping him going was the endorphins pumping through his body. The moment he started to calm down he'd likely lose the strength to move altogether. But that wasn't a problem, so long as the threat of Midoriya being taken and Shoto being in danger was present, he'd be far from relaxing.
"Shoto, everyone! I'm coming, hang on!"
The scene he was greeted with spawned more questions than answers, however. Down on the city street he could clearly see class 1A gathering around what looked to be a bloody collapsing Bakugo. Seeing the state he was in suggested that there had definitely been some sort of battle, but with who? He scanned the entire surrounding area but found no sign of any villains. Perhaps Midoriya had started putting up a fight again? No, he wouldn't be willing to injure his former classmates like that.
Figuring there was only one way to find the answers to his questions, he descended to the street and landed behind the group with a rather audile THUD, causing multiple students to yelp in surprise. Some, like Kirishima, turned around with their quirks activated as if they were expecting a fight, but just as quickly deactivated them when they saw it was just him. Yeah, something definitely happened to put them on edge like that.
"Endeavor!" multiple students voices cried out, flocking to him like they were desperately seeking something to protect them, or maybe fix something. Whatever it was, their youth was really showing.
"You there, Ida, you're the class representative, right? What has happened here?" Endeavor questioned when he finally spotted someone amongst the students who looked to be somewhat composed. Surprisingly, the engine quirk user barely met his gaze before quickly averting away and seemed as though he was fighting to find the courage to speak.
"Okay… maybe he isn't as composed as I had thought…"
"Sir… please forgive our failure!" Ida shouted, looking at the ground, drawing bewildered attention from a few of his classmates at his apology.
"Hey man! What are you doing?! If it weren't for him, we wouldn't have been in this mess at all!" Kirishima exclaimed, walking up to the class rep and grabbing him by the shoulders. "If they would've just left Midoriya with us then everything would be fine right now!"
Endeavor narrowed his eyes at the red head's anger. It would seem that some of the students were still upset with him and his fellow top heroes for their decisions regarding Izuku.
"Huh? That may be true, but it was us who meddled and messed everything up. Show some respect, Kirishima!" Ida retorted, pushing him away. Students like Mina, Kaminari, and Asui had to separate the two as their argument continued. Tensions were running uncomfortably high in the class; anyone could feel it just by being there.
Endeavor moved aside, mostly uninterested in the altercation. He didn't have time to handle them, he still needed more answers, and he wasn't getting any progress from them. Moving past the rest of the class he found his son, Shoto, kneeling beside a now unconscious Bakugo. Standing next to him was a young girl who he believed was called Uravity for her hero name.
Looking between the pair he noted that Uraraka wore a dark expression with tears freely streaming down her face, while Shoto merely spared him a side glance; clearly indicating that he was not happy to see him. Great, the animosity the class held for the nations top three heroes for teaming up with Midoriya was more widespread than just Kirishima, it was also his own son. Heading into today's mission most of the students had seemed as though they'd forgiven them but standing before them now, he could feel it even stronger than before.
It wasn't lost on Endeavor that Midoriya wasn't present with the class. He figured that the failure that Ida had apologized for earlier involved the wielder of One for All's absence. He had just been holding out hope that it was because Deku somehow managed to escape. That he was able to scrap together enough power to get away from his classmates and hideout somewhere away from them. However, the cold feeling tugging at the bottom of his heart was telling him that something much worse had occurred.
Halting on questioning his son, Endeavor was about to call Jeanist and inform him that he had found the class but was interrupted when he heard the sound of a vehicle closing in on them. Dropping his hand from his ear, he turned around to see a pitch-black familiar supercar fast approaching his position. Endeavor knew the vehicle as the Hercules, and that told him exactly who was approaching them. If the situation was as bad as the number one hero was fearing it to be, then he was not looking forward to this interaction.
Drifting to a stop about a few meters away from the top hero, everyone watched as the driver side door of the car flung open wildly, as the frail form of All Might exited in a hurry. Seeing who had emerged from the vehicle, a deafly silence fell over the class; not a soul wanting to speak. Toshinori Yagi hardly noticed, immediately approaching Endeavor's side once he made eye contact with him.
"Endeavor, it's so relieving to see you. I was tracking young Midoriya's location when it suddenly went dead in this area. When I wasn't able to track him anymore, I started fearing the worst. But seeing that you're all here reminded me that you agreed on a mission to bring the boy back to U.A." All Might started, coughing up a small amount of blood as he tried to calm his racing heart from how panicked he had been during his drive. "So, where is young Midoriya?
If the silence felt horrible before, it felt like it could kill now. Numerous students started silently crying, turning away to pathetically hide their tears from the skeletal man before them.
All Endeavor could do was return the former symbol of peace's gaze.
"All Might… I do not know where Midoriya is. I arrived here just a few moments before you. I was just about to question Shoto about the matter…" as soon as the words left his mouth, he regretted them, feeling as though he had just unintentionally given the mantle of an enormous responsibility to his son. He was about to try and fix his mistake, to advert the attention away from Shoto, but it was too late. All Might had already turned his focus to him.
"Young Todoroki, what has happened? Is that… oh no young Bakugo!" rushing past the top hero, All Might moved to kneel beside his unconscious student, who was laying flat on the ground. Scooping his head gently in his hand, he carefully lifted the boy partially up to inspect his wounds. "What did this to him? What's happened here?"
Shoto felt as though he had the courage to speak, until he looked into Yagi's eyes. The moment he did he choked on his words and became a mumbling mess. It didn't help when Toshinori reacted by growing a concerned but gentle expression. The older man reached out to put a comforting hand on his quivering shoulder, but Shoto jerked away, afraid of falling apart altogether.
"All Might… sir… there was an explosion… then, we… I…" for the first time in he didn't know how long, he felt tears threaten to form in his eyes. There was something about All Might's warm and gentle presence that just drew out your emotions in their rawest forms. He couldn't stop himself. Why did it have to be him? Why did he have to be the one to tell All Might that they had let Midoriya get kidnapped by a psychotic villain? It was already weighing on him enough that it had happened at all, but this was too much.
It didn't look as though any of his classmates were coming to his rescue either, as they all bore similar but much more severe expressions. None of them had the will to break the news. But someone had to tell All Might, he deserved to know.
It was painfully obvious what had occurred to Endeavor now. Though of course he did not know the specifics, the pieces fell together all too fittingly, causing the top hero to clench his fists so tightly that it threatened to draw blood, his knuckles going white. He had failed.
"Young Todoroki, take your time it's alright. Take some deep breaths and tell me what happened when you're ready-"
"He's gone."
All Might's gaze shot down to the boy who he was holding in his arms, with a shocked expression.
"Bakugo…? What do you mean he's…"
"Himiko Toga took Izuku." Answering the old man bluntly, Bakugo ungracefully sat himself up, struggling through his injuries to remove himself from All Might's hold before turning to look him dead in the eye. "Like Todoroki said, there was an explosion which caught all of us off guard. During the confusion Toga blindsided me and took off with Izuku. We chased after her, but she completely kicked my ass and escaped."
Endeavor's eyes widened in shock at the revelation about who the villain that was behind the attack was. Himiko Toga? From what he'd heard that psychotic girl had never displayed anything even close to something like this before. He'd assumed that she was just another pawn in All for One's massive army. One that could be taken care of by a smaller named pro. He had heavily underestimated her if she truly pulled this off on her own.
Compared to All Might however, Endeavor's shock seemed like a normal expression. The former top hero's mouth hung open wordlessly, as he fell back from his kneeling position into a barely sitting one. Color drained from his skeletal face, as his sunken blue eyes stayed locked on Bakugo. There as no way he'd heard him right. There was no way the boy that Yagi thought of as a son had been taken, right?
He had already been suffering from the thought that he had failed Midoriya as a teacher from back when he left him behind. But he figured that he was so strong that he'd be fine on his own for just a little while longer. At least until he managed to catch up to him and apologize for everything. Then they would both go back to U.A. together, where they could continue his training and finish preparing for the eventual battle against Shigaraki… together.
Endeavor wanted to approach his former rival but had no idea what he'd even say. He wasn't even good with his own family how the hell was he supposed to comfort someone he practically didn't even have basic friendship established with? Sighing in defeat, he simply stayed back and allowed the man to have his moment alone with the other students.
Feeling the adrenaline that'd been coursing through his veins finally die down after what had felt like hours, Endeavor shivered as the flames covering his body involuntarily shut off, leaving him in a cold sweat. Just before he could fall over however, he felt the weight of another person's body push up against him from under his arm, supporting him so he could continue standing.
"Edgeshot? Where did you come from?" Endeavor questioned in a hushed tone, as to not disturb the others who hadn't noticed the new hero's entrance.
"I got word from Jeanist that something with Midoriya was going on, so I gathered the team and came as fast as I could. We thought you might've been in combat with Shigaraki so we really hauled ass, but I can see that that isn't the case. What's the situation, Endeavor?" Edgeshot questioned in his own quiet tone, picking up on the hint that he should remain unnoticed.
Endeavor looked beyond the Ninja hero and noticed the other heroes that he had mentioned. Slowly approaching the duo was Kamui Woods, Mount Lady, Lemillion, and Suneater. They too seemed to read the room and stayed relatively silent.
Relieved would be an understatement for what Endeavor was feeling when he saw the team. Under the conditions that they had previously been in, they were severely undermanned. If another villain had decided to attack then it would basically be up to Jeanist alone to protect the class, since Hawks and himself were incapacitated and unable to fight. But with reinforcements now available he could give out a proper plan and set of orders.
"According to Bakugo from class 1A, Midoriya was captured by the villain Himiko Toga." Endeavor started, and cringed when Mirio and Mount Lady both audibly gasped at the news but didn't bother to turn around to see if the students had noticed.
"Quiet." He hissed before they could start asking questions.
"I understand that you're shocked. I'm sure that I don't need to explain to you the gravity of this situation. This all happened relatively recently, so there's still a chance that we can fix this. I need you all to go out and search the entire city before it's too late. We cannot allow the villains to get away with Midoriya, or it spells the end for us all. Go, find the boy." Endeavor ordered, trying his best to make the situation seem as hopeful as possible, which seemed to work somewhat as the squad of heroes before him gave him determined nods of acknowledgement before moving out in different directions of the city. He could answer their questions later, when they were away from the students. Endeavor was grateful to see that the other heroes understood that.
He couldn't help but frown to himself, however. He knew better. He knew that there was no hope in this situation. Toga was more than a master of stealth, that was the one aspect of her that he wouldn't underestimate. The moment that Bakugo and the rest of class 1A lost sight of her, it was over. She might as well have been on the other side of the country for all they knew by now.
Edgeshot, wanting to join the search with his squad, carefully led the worn-out number one hero to the closest wall of a nearby building to set him up against. Endeavor sluggishly slid down the cracked concrete to a sitting position and groaned at the easing sensation of finally resting.
"What will you do, Endeavor?" The Ninja hero questioned, taking a knee, and gazing at his comrade.
"I'll contact Jeanist and inform him that I met up with you and sent you out to search for the boy… after that… I'll have to rest for a while to regain my energy. In the meanwhile, I'll make sure the students get back to U.A safely. Then I'll join you on your search alongside Jeanist, and hopefully Hawks too." Endeavor hated admitting the fact that he needed to rest while the other heroes went out on their missions, but he had no other choice. He didn't even have the strength to stand on his own anymore.
"Understood, rest well my friend. I hope to see you out there soon." Edgeshot stated in a hushed tone, giving Endeavor a reassuring pat on the shoulder before disappearing into the city.
Releasing a deep breath he didn't know he'd been holding, he looked back over to the group of students; pain swelling in his heart.
"Please, forgive me…"
All Might didn't know how much time had passed since Bakugo had told him of Midoriya's kidnapping, but it certainly felt like hours. He was so in shock over the news, tears wouldn't even fall from his eyes. He just bore this emotionless shocked stare focusing on nothing in particular. Because no matter what he looked at, all he could see was the smiling face of the boy he had failed to protect.
He had promised his mother that he would protect him, that he would give his life before he let anything happen to that boy. But here he was completely fine, while Midoriya was taken. He had failed Inko Midoriya, he had broken his promise. And by doing so he had failed the entire world. But that part didn't matter to him. No, because more importantly he had failed the boy who had deserved the entire world.
"…Oh, Midoriya…"
A/N: I know this isn't exactly the most exciting chapter that people were probably hoping for, but it didn't feel right to move on with the story until I wrapped up what was going on with Endeavor during chapter one. And just for the record, I don't enjoy writing the type of story where characters are just miserable and crying all the time, so don't worry that's not going to be a reoccurring theme. But it was the most realistic way everyone would be feeling after Midoriya literally got kidnapped by a murderous villain, lol.
Sorry for keeping y'all waiting another chapter for Toga and Izuku's story, but it's important to setup the world around them as well since all these characters are going to play a role in the story as a whole.
Next chapter however is where we'll get into some Toga content, and I'm really looking forward to writing it.
You may have noticed that this chapter is decently shorter than the first. That's because there wasn't that much content that I had to include. Fitting anything else in would've just felt forced and wouldn't have fit well together. This'll probably be the case for a few chapters in the future, so just be warned.
Oh yeah, I know I said I wouldn't promise a schedule or anything like that, but I decided to do something close to one on my profile. How it works is once I start writing the next chapter and get a feel for what kind of timeframe I'll have it done by, I'll update the bottom of the 'about me' section on my profile with the expected date I think I can have the chapter out by. Of course, it won't be perfect. There'll be times when it may take longer than expected, or even shorter than expected, but that's just life.
Lastly, I want to thank everyone for the follows and reviews! I really appreciate it. I was only expecting to get a handful of people to follow this story, but as of the time I'm writing this we've got 49 followers after just the first chapter. That may not sound like anything special, but that's crazy me. So again, thanks a lot everyone! I hope y'all continue to enjoy!
