Chapter Two:

Yoichi lurked in the hallway, holding a cup of tea and pretending not to be eavesdropping. In his early twenties he felt embarrassed to act like this, but he had no choice. Hisashi dared to keep secrets from his own twin! By pressing his ear close to the office door, Yoichi caught a few snippets of his brother's voice: "…more important…our forces could be wiped out without me…can't reschedule the rally…perfect chance for a trap…" Dr. Garaki's replies were in a softer tone, making them harder to hear.

When Yoichi heard footsteps, he retreated to the other end of the hallway and walked slowly, pretending to be just coming from the kitchen.

Dr. Garaki opened the office door. He nodded and smiled at Yoichi as he passed. "How have you been feeling?"

"Better than ever, thanks to your care," Yoichi said cheerfully. He liked the doctor, who had treated his injuries after the first day of riots all those years ago. The doctor's improvements in Yoichi's medicine regime had greatly helped his breathing. "Your skill is unparalleled, and I wish the Japan Medical Association would see it."

"As long as your brother appreciates me, that's all I need," Dr. Garaki said.

Yoichi stepped through the half-open door. As usual, Hisashi's office was a jumble of papers spreading over the chairs and stacked up on the floor. There were no windows, because they lived in an underground bunker. The bombing of their last house had made Hisashi take precautions. The air always smelled a bit stale. Wearing a wool vest and dress pants, Hisashi sat in front of his dual monitor computer.

Setting down the cup of tea, Yoichi said, "For you. Two sugars, no milk, just the way we both like it."

Hisashi smiled. "You know me as myself."

Yoichi took a seat across from the desk. "Then tell me what's wrong. I want to help." They'd always shared everything, so it frustrated Yoichi that his brother didn't want him involved in his metahuman rights movement. Hisashi insisted it was too dangerous. Yoichi knew his brother had his fingers deep in the criminal underworld and didn't care. He still wanted to be involved. If the government wouldn't protect metahumans and people with mutations, then they had to take matters into their own hands. Yoichi reached over and touched his brother's face, meeting his eyes. "Please share your burdens with me."

As usual, that old trick from their childhood worked even when rational arguments didn't. Hisashi sighed and relaxed into Yoichi's palm. "According to my spies, several different meta gangs are planning to attack my main office at the same time as the March for Meta Merit tomorrow. They believe that I'll be gone because I'm leading the march on the Diet building."

Yoichi nodded. He knew that his twin was trying to consolidate power over all the metahuman gangs in the area. He thought it a good thing. Some metahumans weren't interested in using their powers for the greater good or to protect each other. Once Hisashi had control, he would ensure that everyone worked as vigilantes to protect their fellow metahumans, not just looters and robbers. At the exact same time, Hisashi and Yoichi said, "This is a chance to set a trap for our enemies."

"Exactly." Hisashi smiled. "I hate to miss the protest march, but it can continue without me. It's far more important that I take control of the warring factions."

Yoichi tilted his head. "Do you think there's a risk the police will get violent at the march?" When they'd spoken at dinner last night, Hisashi had been confident his presence would deter violence. Last time there had been a protest, Hisashi had used his powers to blow tear gas back at the police and stop bullets. He'd single-handedly ensured that the protesters won for the first time. The March for Meta Merit would be a peaceful protest, and Hisashi's presence at the head would ensure that it stayed that way. The police didn't want the humiliation of losing again. So soon after last time, Hisashi did not believe they had any new tricks planned. He thought that they would back down.

Hisashi sighed. "If I send out word that I'm among the crowd, I'm hopeful the bluff may work. It's too late to reschedule. But if the police realize that I'm gone, they're likely to get more…aggressive. However, for the sake of our long-run goals, it's more important that I win the gang war. Police violence at the protest might even help attract more sympathy for our cause."

If his brother said beating the gangs was more important for the greater good, then Yoichi believed it. But he was a troubled at his twin's lack of concern for the peaceful protestors. Hisashi had always been pragmatic. Yoichi understood that pragmatism was necessary to win, but he tried to balance it out with compassion when he could. "Is there any way I could help with the protest?"

"I don't want you anywhere near that." Hisashi shook his head. His gaze went down to his twin's chest where an old scar was hidden under the sweatshirt. "The day I nearly lost you was the worst day of my life. I need you to stay safe. This isn't your fight, that's the one upside that I took your—" He hesitated. "That I took you out of school."

Yoichi withdrew his hand from his brother's cheek and glared. "This is my fight! Look at me, look at us!" He gestured between them. Except for Hisashi's slightly taller height, the twins were identical. Yoichi's hair curled when it was short, and it was currently the same length as his brother's. Hisashi's eyes were green when he wasn't using his power, though the red had been lingering longer lately. "Everyone who looks at me sees a metahuman, just the same as you. I'm just as likely to be murdered in a riot as you. The police don't care that I don't have a power. People with mutations need to stick together. We all just want to live our lives in safety, whether we have a metapower or not."

For years, Yoichi had longed to develop a power. He'd never asked his brother for one because two metapowers in one person could be dangerous, and he'd been convinced he had a hidden power. But at this point he'd given up hope. If only he had a power, then he'd be able to defend himself. His beloved twin brother would take him seriously as an ally. He'd finally be considered a proper metahuman.

There was an increasing tension among the metahuman rights movement between people with powers, people with strange hair and eye colors but no powers, and people with visible (usually animal) mutations. Those with odd hair like Yoichi fell into a strange category: not considered metahuman by metahumans but considered one of the freaks by non-metahumans. Some dyed their hair and tried to fit in with the majority, and some like Yoichi wanted to be considered metahuman. Meanwhile people with animal mutations faced the hardship of having no way to hide and being sometimes rejected even by fellow metahumans as a bit too "freaky."

"No, people with hair color mutations want everything to go back to normal. But people with metapowers realize they can't go back. The world has been changed forever by these new powers." Hisashi shook his head. "There are parts about being metahuman that you can't understand. You could dye your hair and blend in—"

"So could you, but neither of us want to! Besides, it's not so easy with jobs these days checking for dyed roots and contact lenses."

"—but even if I dye my hair, I can't stop my need to use my power."

Before speaking again, Yoichi took a deep breath and thought. One of the biggest source of conflict in the metahuman rights movement was that there were nearly twice as many people with different hair and eye colors as metahumans with powers. The metahumans felt like their voices were being overwhelmed by the majority. Many of the activists without powers supported the laws restricting use of meta abilities as long as the violence would stop. But people with powers didn't agree and resented that those without abilities claimed to speak for them. As a result, pressure had increased to push people with different hair colors but no metapowers out of the movement. Yoichi resented being told that he didn't count as a metahuman when he'd suffered the murder attempts too without even a power to protect himself. At the same time, he understood why people with powers would be more unhappy about the government trying to criminalize their abilities. After all, they were the ones affected.

"I want to understand you, brother." Leaning across the desk, Yoichi placed his forehead against Hisashi's. "Share it with me."

Their eyes locked, and Yoichi fell into those white pupils so similar to his own. Hisashi began: "Imagine that you live in a world where nothing but salt water comes out of the tap or in water bottles. No matter how much you drink, you never stop feeling thirsty. There's one glass of good, pure water in front of you. But if you drink it, the police will shoot you. That's what having metahuman urges feels like."

Yoichi hmmed, absorbing the words. He tried to imagine how he would feel. It was a tormented, awful feeling. As he always did, he took the memory and feelings and made them into his own. "I'm so sorry, Hisashi. Of course you can't support the laws criminalizing powers. As your brother, I'll fight them too."

Hisashi pulled Yoichi into a hug. Patting his hair, he murmured, "You're me, and I'm you. I love you."

"I love you too." Yoichi snuggled into the embrace. "I want to do everything in my power to help you."

"You're helping me right now. Having you at my side is all that I need." Hisashi smiled, satisfied that all was right between them.

But Yoichi did not feel satisfied. That hadn't been what he meant. He wanted to do something to help his brother, not just exist. His concern had not been satiated. It felt very strange, because after a sharing session the two of them were always on the same wavelength. Yoichi glanced up at his brother's happy face, extremely disconcerted that they did not feel the same emotion. Even stranger, Hisashi hadn't even noticed. It was so odd that Yoichi couldn't speak up. He felt like if he admitted the disagreement between them, then it would break something important.

Instead, Yoichi remained silent.

That night, Yoichi tossed and turned. His failure to completely connect with his twin had left him in a maddened state. Even worse, he was all alone. The twins had always slept in the same bed since early childhood. Yoichi didn't sleep well when he was alone. It brought back bad memories of the hospital, the only time in their childhood when they'd ever been apart. After Hisashi rose extremely early in the morning and left on a train to the location of the coming gang war, Yoichi lost all ability to sleep.

Lately Hisashi had been so busy that they hadn't even swapped places in over a year. It made Yoichi feel desperately lonely. Now that his health had improved so much, it should be even easier to pass as his twin. But he was no longer needed to give his brother a day off. His greatest use had vanished.

Suddenly, Yoichi had an idea. He stood up and went to the closet he shared with his brother. The clothes were all paired in twos, because the twins had identical matching outfits in everything they owned. Yoichi pulled out the black suit that his brother typically used for public-facing business. He put on a pair of boots with high heels to disguise his shorter height. In his brother's style, he left off the tie and unbuttoned the top of his white shirt. Finally, he slid a knife into the hidden holster on his wrist.

In the bathroom, Yoichi analyzed his appearance. The twins had always looked very similar. It was close, good enough to fool a casual observer, but not quite perfect. He added three layers of shirts to make his chest thicker. The suit jacket already made his shoulders broader, and an extra shoulder pad helped even more. Yoichi used a bit of eyeshadow to make his eyes seem smaller. Then he powdered over a mole his twin didn't have. As the finishing touch, he splashed on a bit of his brother's favorite oakmoss and sandalwood cologne.

Finally, Yoichi sneered at the mirror. It was his twin brother's expression, and Hisashi's face stared back at him. Yoichi doubted if anyone except his own brother would be able to tell the difference between them now. His heart galloped, sending spurts of excitement up his body. He could do this.

Yoichi borrowed the keys to his brother's spare Mercedes-Benz and drove to the rally. When he got out of the car, he fell into his brother's long, confident stride. As he approached the white tent, the two metahumans standing guard immediately stepped aside to make way for their leader.

Dr. Garaki sat at a folding table inside, pouring over a paper with a frown. He'd been selected to give Hisashi's speech in his absence. Yoichi's heart beat faster. This would be the real test. Dr. Garaki probably knew the twins better than their own parents (which, admittedly, wasn't saying much given the quality of their parenting.)

What would Hisashi do in this situation? Probably act like a child. While the doctor was engrossed in reading, Yoichi crept up behind him and laid his hands on his shoulders. "Boo!"

Dr. Garaki jumped. "Master! What are you doing here?"

"The attack came early, so I made it back in time." Yoichi chuckled in his twin's dark fashion. "Those fools underestimated me. They were no challenge at all."

"I'm relieved." Dr. Garaki shuffled his papers. "I've never been fond of speech-giving. Now we can have it both ways, a successful trap and a successful rally. You arrived just before I was about to leave."

Yoichi knew that—he'd planned to arrive at the last minute so there would be less chance for anyone to get suspicious. "Did the foreign journalists arrive in time?" Yoichi threw in that question just to prove he knew about all of Hisashi's plans. Most people didn't realize that Hisashi told Yoichi everything. At the same time, Yoichi used a sleight of hand to slip his phone from his sleeve. "I haven't heard back yet," he said, pretending to check his phone. The question had been an excuse to use his little magic trick to make it look like he'd pulled his phone from nowhere, imitating a metapower his brother used to transport small objects.

However, the act hadn't been necessary since Dr. Garaki didn't seem suspicious at all. "Yes, including that Pulitzer Prize winner who owes you a favor." He stood up. "I'll introduce you before your speech as we originally planned."

It had worked. Part of Yoichi hadn't believed it would work. He was seriously doing this. He swallowed a lump in his throat.

Yoichi followed Dr. Garaki out into the sunshine, past the protest marshals with their armbands, and climbed the metals stairs onto the temporary stage. A massive crowd of thousands stared back at him, all manner of hair colors and mutations. The murmur from so many people sounded like a rumbling building up into a hurricane. The mood in the air was intoxicating.

Yoichi knew his brother's speech by heart. He'd helped write it, after all. Opening his mouth, he began.

Shooting a thick sweet-smelling ooze from his hands, Hisashi blasted down the last handful of gang members still standing. Currently, he wasn't planning to kill them since they'd probably become his future subordinates, but he kicked the closest man's head on the way down. He was in a bad mood over missing his rally. It was likely to turn violent without him there as a deterrent, far more likely than he'd admitted to his twin. He'd already instructed Dr. Garaki to sneak off after the speech, since his doctor wasn't replaceable. Unless he came up with a good enough cover story to explain his absence, he would lose reputation among his civilian followers. It had been worth it to solidify his control over the criminal elements, but he was displeased he'd needed to make the tradeoff.

Early rays of sun fell across the stacked bodies, looking like blood. It mingled with the very real blood. Hisashi's people cuffed prisoners and sorted them. Hisashi had given them a list of whose abilities he wanted to steal. Other than cleanup, his followers hadn't been much use. Hisashi had defeated nearly a hundred enemies single-handedly. After he acquired more powerful meta abilities, he would be able to distribute them among his followers and gain more useful allies that way.

There had been one man among the group who'd been tricky to take down: a tall, muscular brute who arrogantly called himself Gigantomachia. The spiky-haired, craggy-jawed man had charged forward with a declaration about how only the strongest could rule. Hisashi had been a bit interested after seeing Gigantomachia throw a man hard enough to knock down a steel pillar. So Hisashi had taken Gigantomachia's punch on the jaw, letting a shock absorption power catch most of the damage, and then knocked the giant man down with one blow. As Gigantomachia fell, he'd muttered something about swearing his undying loyalty to the first man who'd defeated him. Hisashi had been planning to steal that strength ability, but since the man who had it seemed interesting, perhaps he'd take him up on that offer of service. It would be an amusing game.

Thinking of which minions might get which power brought Hisashi back to an uncomfortable dilemma: should he give Yoichi an ability?

For years, Yoichi had never asked for a power because he'd (futilely) believed he would develop his own. But Hisashi knew his brother well enough to know that Yoichi was on the cusp of giving up hope. And after he gave up, he'd expect a metapower. It was an understandable assumption. If even these lowly and useless fools were getting new metapowers, why shouldn't Hisashi's own beloved twin? Hisashi disliked losing powers but for Yoichi he'd even give up a good one. But there was a catch. Through experimentation, Hisashi had learned that not everyone was compatible with every power. Those born without an ability were blank slates. But metahumans struggled more to adapt to a power too different from their birthright. Hisashi had accidentally stolen Yoichi's power as a child and had no idea what it might be. It would be dangerous to give a metapower to Yoichi without knowing.

Yoichi would not understand why he couldn't have a metapower. The twins had always shared everything. The truth was out of the question. Hisashi could not explain why he hadn't told his brother sooner about accidentally taking his power. At the time he'd believed he'd be able to quickly figure out what it had been and give it back with no harm done. Now it would be impossible to justify why he'd kept it secret for years. His lie had spun out of control.

Fortunately Dr. Garaki had been making great progress on identifying hidden metapowers. Hisashi would have the doctor examine his brother under the guise of a typical medical exam. If he could figure out Yoichi's original power then this problem would be solved.

Hisashi wanted his twin to be happy. Everything Hisashi did, he did for Yoichi's sake. He'd carefully formed his long-term plans to take over all of Japan so that Yoichi could be safe anywhere in this country. He filled their home with security. He'd been desperately searching for a metapower to track people, so far without luck. Never again did he want to be helpless as that day he'd arrived at the burning art studio to find his brother missing. Hisashi had always believed that he would know if Yoichi died, that their lives were so bound together that their hearts would stop beating at the same time. On that horrible day, he'd realized that he had no such power among his multitude. His twin could have been murdered without him ever knowing it.

Just thinking about it made tension tighten Hisashi's entire body. He had a sudden urge to see his twin. He let his minions finish the rest while he headed to his car.

Upon arriving back at his bunker/home, Hisashi stripped off his bloodstained coat and left it on the floor. He'd have the staff clean it later. He wanted a shower. But first, he wanted his twin.

As Hisashi passed Dr. Garaki in the hallway, the doctor frowned. "Master? Weren't you just in your office? Is that blood on your face?"

"It's not mine, it's from the fight with the gangs," Hisashi said dismissively. "Where's Yoichi?"

"I'm not sure, I'll look for him." As the doctor walked away, he muttered, "But I didn't notice blood on your face at the rally…"

The rally? What did that mean? Hisashi wanted to demand answers but he hated to look foolish. Following a strange hunch, he power-walked to his office and flung open the door.

The perfect image of Hisashi sat smirking with his feet up on his desk.

For a split second, Hisashi imagined an enemy sneaking into his stronghold in disguise. Then Yoichi laughed and said, "You should see the look on your face, little brother."

"Did you attend the rally as me, little brother?" Hisashi demanded. He ought to be angry. He ought to be furious, at his precious twin doing something so foolish and dangerous. But instead elation and pride filled him at the sight of such a flawless copy of himself, better than his childhood efforts. Perfect enough to even fool Garaki and all of Japan. Hisashi had always wanted this.

Rising, Yoichi held up a newspaper. "The good foreign publicity you wanted, hot off the press. I made your plan a success. I did this for you." Tossing aside the paper, Yoichi hugged his twin brother and whispered into his ear, "I might not have a metapower but I can become you. That's valuable. Just think about it."

Yes, Hisashi was thinking about it. It would be so very useful to be able to be in two places at once. This lure had been well-thought-out. Hisashi had always been stronger, but Yoichi better at persuasion.

"I'm proud of you." Hisashi ruffled Yoichi's hair. "You did well."

Pleasure filled Yoichi's face at the praise. "You're not angry?" he asked cautiously.

"How could I be angry, when you did exactly what I would have done?" How could Hisashi possibly be angry when his adorable twin was trying so hard to make them one again? Yoichi was simply being too loveable to get angry at.

Crooning with pleasure, Yoichi pressed their cheeks together. "I'm glad I made you proud. I'm going to tell you all about what happened at the March for Meta Merit, until you can convince everyone that they're your own memories."

"And I'll share my battle and the interesting giant man I met," Hisashi said. "Together, we're going to take Japan. You're me."

"And I'm you," Yoichi echoed. The twins basked together in their mutual happiness at once again being on the same wavelength.

Lying sprawled on their shared bed, his white hair spread out like a halo, Yoichi said, "We're going to need a villain name. And a costume."

Hisashi nodded. "You've always been the superior at fashion. I defer to your judgement."

Yoichi felt a thrill that his twin had accepted the "we" and acknowledged his abilities. That was all he'd wanted when he'd started his masquerade—to be included and valued. And if it bugged him a little to be valued only as his brother's shadow, at least he knew that Hisashi would never look down on him for it. They were united as one, as they'd always been. "I have a few designs already." Yoichi sat up and pulled out his notebook. Flipping through the pages, he opened to a drawing of a black silk coat. "I thought this would go best with a white or grey shirt. You can totally use an ability to make the tails flutter."

"Mmm, I like that." Hisashi peered over, resting his chin on his twin's shoulder. "I'm thinking sunglasses, too."

"It's got obvious pockets, but those are a decoy." Yoichi turned the page to show the next drawing. "I filled the inside with hidden pockets for weapons and poisons. That will also let me use sleight of hand to pretend that I have your powers when I'm wearing the coat."

Hisashi nodded. "We'll have two coats custom-made. I can ask the doctor to create a smoke bomb that looks like one of my abilities, and I'll make a point of using that ability more frequently so people know about it."

"Excellent." Yoichi kissed his brother's cheek. "Let's order boots, too. Mine need platforms to compensate for our different heights. Also, I plan to have a retractable knife in my heel."

"While we're talking about designs, let me show you something." Hisashi pulled up a blueprint on his phone. "I've been working on designing a safehouse for our basement."

It was on the tip of Yoichi's tongue to ask why they needed another one when they already had three doomsday bunkers in three separate locations. However, he did not. He knew his twin was still deeply traumatized from the day he'd returned home to find his house aflame and his brother's location unknown. Hisashi had always craved stability in this mixed-up world. Yoichi partly blamed himself, for putting a constant burden on his twin by needing protection. If having even more safe rooms would make Hisashi feel secure, then it was money well-spent.

"Let me take a look." Yoichi zoomed in on the picture. "A smaller room this time, I see. Why completely metal?" He kept his tone neutral but he didn't think this one looked very practical. They already had a bunker large enough to fit far more supplies.

Hisashi said, "I stole a special alloy from a government facility. I only have enough to build one room, but the walls would be resistant to radiation in event of a nuclear explosion."

"How would we breathe? Oh, I see you have a ventilator. And a composting toilet." After the shelves of food, there wasn't room for any furniture except a single bed. However Yoichi didn't anticipate ever needing to use the room for anything except calming his twin's absurd paranoia. Maybe Hisashi would let him store his old comics and merch in there to keep them safe. That gave Yoichi an idea. "Hey, what if we designed the door to look like a bank vault? Then no one would anticipate people hiding inside."

"A bank vault?" Hisashi blinked. "That's a bit silly. People would still realize there would be valuables."

Yoichi waved his hands. "Yeah, but if they aren't expecting a person then we can leap out and surprise any intruders."

"Hmm, interesting."

"You know I have the best taste. You said so yourself, and you're always right." Yoichi nudged his twin.

Hisashi laughed. "Flattery will get you everywhere! Sure, why not. A bank vault door would look cool."

"And it could be a spare place to store my comic books."

"Ah-ha! Now I see what you're after, you rascal! Don't you have enough rooms overflowing with comic books already?" Hisashi lunged at his twin and tickled his sides.

"Ha-ha! It was just a suggestion! Ha-ha!" Yoichi gasped for air. "Knock it off or I'll bite you."

Knowing this wasn't a bluff, Hisashi raised his hands and backed away. "Fine, you can pick some comic books to save from the end of the world if I can have my demon king figurines in there."

Yoichi shuddered to imagine being stuck in that small room with dozens of demon king figurines, but a compromise was necessary to save his first edition comics. "Deal."

"Okay, how about a villain name?"

"I've already got ideas there too! I thought a literary reference would be fun for a name."

"Seriously? Something from Captain Hero?" Hisashi rolled his eyes.

"I considered that but I realized we'd want something more serious. We both love the Three Musketeers. How about One for All?" Yoichi smiled as he warmed to his topic. "Because we're fighting for the sake of the world."

"Not bad…but a bit too heroic." Hisashi tapped his chin. "I prefer All for One. The world will bow before us."

It was a good compromise, and Yoichi understood that villains needed to strike fear in the hearts of their enemies. "I like that. From now on, we're All for One!"

Hisashi hugged his twin. "It's the perfect name for us," he murmured. "After all, you and I together are one."

Gigantomachia lived to serve his lord, but he was not pleased with today's task. After six months of service, Gigantomachia had been deeply honored to become the Lord's bodyguard. But today, he'd been assigned to bodyguard Yoichi Shigaraki instead.

It made sense. Yoichi, as the Lord's twin brother, would be pretending to be Lord in order to serve as a decoy while All for One sprang a trap on their enemies. The Preserve Japan militia was a hate group that had been murdering metahumans under the guise of keeping the peace. They'd been canny about avoiding All for One, but Yoichi planned to trick them into coming out by publicly appearing across the city. As the Lord's bodyguard, Gigantomachia's presence would make the act more convincing. But Gigantomachia burned with longing to be at his master's side during his time of danger. Not protecting the mere shadow.

Gigantomachia had never particularly liked Yoichi. At his core, Gigantomachia believed the strongest should rule. He'd sworn his undying loyalty to his lord after being defeated in battle. Unlike his magnificent twin, Yoichi was weak and sickly. Apparently his body wasn't even strong enough to be given a metapower. He wasn't good for anything except serving as a body double. Yet in spite of that, Yoichi held influence in the organization second to only the Lord himself. Lord was proud, arrogant, and listened to no one, as befitted the strongest. Only Yoichi was permitted to argue with the Lord and even sometimes get his own way. Gigantomachia felt annoyed that Yoichi possessed such undeserved authority and influence, apparently just for being the Lord's brother. Yoichi was pitiful, a mere shadow of his brother, and perhaps for that reason the Lord cossetted and indulged him. But Gigantomachia feared this weakling had the potential to become a weakness for his perfect master.

Before the mission, Lord had taken Gigantomachia aside and ordered him to protect Yoichi with his own life. That would have been tolerable, since a good servant would treat even his master's belongings as sacred. But the Lord had also ordered Gigantomachia to obey Yoichi like himself. That was simply absurd. Gigantomachia only obeyed those whom he respected. Yet for the sake of his most beloved Lord, he'd even set aside his principles and agreed.

Yoichi currently sat at an expensive restaurant, cutting up a New York strip steak. Gigantomachia stood at his shoulder, a silent and watchful presence. He did not show any sign of his dissatisfaction, for fear of ruining the masquerade. If this mission failed, it would certainly not be because of Gigantomachia.

Lord and his twin looked very similar. Gigantomachia could tell them apart because he had a supernaturally keen nose and he'd always identified people by their scent. But with Yoichi slathered in cologne, even Gigantomachia would find it difficult to tell them apart without standing very close together. Yoichi swirled his wineglass with a flawless copy of Lord's smirk, confident and a little playful. Even if being a decoy was the only use Yoichi had, Gigantomachia had to give him credit for being very good at it.

No matter how boring the mission, Gigantomachia stayed alert at all times. He noticed a flash of light through the window and a telltale scent. Lunging, Gigantomachia knocked Yoichi down and covered him with his own body. No matter his feelings on the weakling, he acted without hesitation to follow the Lord's orders. The bullet whizzed over Yoichi's seat and shattered a flower vase on the neighboring table. Screams rose from the diners.

Gigantomachia grabbed a shard of glass, then hurled it through the broken window. It struck the gunman in the neck, slitting his throat.

In event of any danger, Lord's instructions had been very clear. Gigantomachia picked up Yoichi by his collar like a kitten and carried him out to their car. Without even giving Yoichi time to fasten his seatbelt, Gigantomachia took off at top speed.

Yoichi sat up and straightened his collar. "Thank you. I'll make sure to tell my brother you did an amazing job."

Gigantomachia grunted, not interested in the praise of weaklings.

"There was only one gunman," Yoichi muttered. "They knew I wasn't Hisashi. The trap failed." He tapped Gigantomachia on the shoulder. "We have to go to my brother."

"No, Lord's instructions were quite clear. I'm to take you back to the base." There was no ability to communicate with the Lord currently because the militia base had a signal jammer. Thus, Gigantomachia could only obey his orders to prioritize Yoichi's safety.

"Situations change," Yoichi snapped. "My brother can handle the militia whether they see him coming or not, but he might need us to finish the secondary objective. More importantly, my brother would want me to come to his side right now. If he realizes that I could be endangered by the failed trap, then he'll be distracted and might abandon the mission. He needs me."

That seemed dreadfully unlikely to Gigantomachia. He grunted and kept driving.

Yoichi took a deep breath. "Did my brother order you to obey me or not? Are you going to fail him?"

The hair stood up on Gigantomachia's arms. How dare a weakling accuse him of failing his precious Lord? Growling, he turned the steering wheel and changed directions. If the mission failed as a result of Yoichi's stupidity, then perhaps the Lord would finally see his uselessness.

They pulled down a side street. Yoichi ordered, "Stop here. They'll be coming out the side exit any second now."

"They?" Gigantomachia asked.

"Probably only one person of unknown gender," Yoichi said, which clarified nothing.

But the strange words proved prophetic. A woman dashed out the rear door, eyes darting in all directions as she reached for her cell phone.

"That phone has the proof we need that the Preserve Japan Militia has been colluding with the military," Yoichi said. "We need it intact."

Gigantomachia was already leaping out of the car. The woman's eyes widened at the sight of him. Then her face contorted into a very familiar expression of hatred as she took in the rocky crags of his face. He'd seen that look many times when people realized he was metahuman.

She pulled out her gun and fired at his head. He ducked and ran straight at her, throwing her through the wall. He made sure to grab the cell phone before the bricks came tumbling down to smash her body.

Yoichi stepped out of the car. "Phone?" he asked with an eyebrow raised.

Gigantomachia tossed it over. He had been just impressed enough by the clever intercept to want to impress in return. He was rewarded with a small smile.

Yoichi stepped through the still-open door. Gigantomachia quickly followed, determined not to let the charge under his protection get out of sight.

The safehouse was the sight of a massacre. Blood spray covered the boxes of ammunition and the gun racks. Bullet holes riddled the walls. But not a single drop of blood had touched the man standing in the middle, with his hands in his pockets. Hisashi Shigaraki's pure white hair and light grey suit blazed in the semi-darkness. Nearly a hundred bodies spread out at his feet. It didn't matter that they'd known he was coming and planned—they'd still done nothing against him. Gigantomachia's heart soared. This was the Lord he'd chosen to follow.

Looking up, Hisashi grinned. "Yoichi! I was just going to check if you were safe."

"I know, that's why I came." Yoichi stepped around the corpses, into his brother's embrace. "You had nothing to worry about. Gigantomachia kept me safe. And we retrieved this." He handed over the cell phone. "I thought you might be too distracted by the failed trap to grab the rat."

"How well you know me," Hisashi murmured.

"Of course I do." The brothers' eyes met, and something seemed to telepathically pass between them.

As he headed for the door, Hisashi clasped Gigantomachia on the arm. "Well-done. You obeyed my instructions perfectly."

"We worked well together," Yoichi said with a smile and a wink at Gigantomachia. "Thanks for trusting me."

Gigantomachia burned with shame that it was not entirely true, that Yoichi was clearly covering for him. It should have been the truth. Gigantomachia should have trusted his Lord and understood that any authority that Yoichi had was for a good reason.

Because Yoichi had a unique ability that no one else had. The ability to perfectly predict Hisashi's actions and know what he would have wanted done without any communication between them. Yoichi was the most perfect reflection of Lord's will, and that made him worthy of Gigantomachia's worship.

Hisashi reached out to muss his twin's hair. Yoichi ducked, protesting, "Ew, you have blood all over your hands."

"What does it matter?" Hisashi laughed carelessly. "If I'm bloody then you are too. We can both wash it off together."

"Ah, that's true." Yoichi placed his palm against his brother's, soaking in the blood. Then he drew his finger across his cheek, leaving a bloodstain in the exact same place where his twin had one. "Identical again!"

Linking arms, Hisashi and Yoichi stepped over the dead bodies together, two perfect gods standing above the chaos. And Gigantomachia followed them.

OMAKE TIME!

Omake: Oppression Olympics

People with mutated hair and eye colors: We're the most oppressed because we get attacked and don't even have powers to protect ourselves.

Metahumans: Excuse me, we're the most oppressed and you have no idea what it's like to deal with quirk urges.

Animal mutants: WE DON'T EVEN HAVE A VOICE IN THIS CONVERSATION BECAUSE MOST OF US ARE DEAD. And guess what? We're going to keep dealing with discrimination even a century later after people with quirks are the majority!

#

Omake: Incorrect Quotes, Meme Edition

Hisashi & Yoichi: We're intensely and unhealthily codependent!

Gigantomachia: This red flag won't stop me because I'm color blind.

#

Omake: Undeniable Proof

Hisashi: Yes, I love this coat. I'm glad that I designed it personally.

Yoichi: Because of all the memory sharing we do, I can't even tell if you actually believe that or not. However I'd like to point out that you are indisputably the younger sibling because you STEAL MY CLOTHES.

Author's Note: I commissioned thefruitloop-chan to draw the cover art for this fic with the villain brothers chilling together. Yoichi is sitting on the arm of the throne to symbolize his role in All for One's shadow. It came out beautifully, I love the shadows around All for One's face and his pose. Delete the spaces to get the link:
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aimportantdragoncollector/717044532415479808/thefruitloop-chan-commissioned