All For One towered over Shirakumo, who was still cradling Eri in his arms. He had hunched himself slightly, shielding her with his own body, but he kept his head turned upwards, refusing to cower.

But, instead of staring up at All For One, he had locked eyes with Izuku, his pale blue meeting the boy's green. There was understanding and care in the man's eyes as he gave Izuku the smallest of smiles.

"It's okay, Izuku," Shirakumo said, his voice gentle. "Don't feel bad. You're being a hero."

Shigaraki, who was helping Spinner to drag Nighteye over to the wall beside Toga, shot Shirakumo a glare. "Shut up, asshole."

Shirakumo ignored him, still focusing on Izuku. "You're saving everyone. It's okay. Use my quirk well, okay?"

Shakily, Izuku nodded, unable to pull his eyes away from Shirakumo. Hitoshi was struggling in his bonds, trying to say something from behind his muzzle. Himiko was openly sobbing, begging Izuku not to do it, not to give himself back to the League. When Shigaraki took a step too close to her, she lunged out, trying to bite a chunk from his leg and earning herself a kick.

"If you get the chance," Shirakumo continued, "Could you tell Sho and Hizashi that I love them? That I loved them until the end. I know… I know it will hurt them. But I need them to know that no matter what I did as Kurogiri, I still loved them, deep down, buried beneath all that Nomu programming. And tell them that I hope they still have each other. That they still love each other and are happy. Because… I would give anything for them to be happy, even if it's without me."

Izuku let out a strangled, choking noise, his eyes growing watery. "I understand."

Shirakumo's brows furrowed slightly. His gaze shifted, glancing to Hitoshi, who was staring at Izuku with a pleading expression. Shirakumo looked back to Izuku, an even deeper understanding in his eyes.

"Yeah. Yeah, you do, don't you? I'm sorry."

"Don't say sorry," Izuku said, sniffling.

All For One took another step forward, ushering Izuku closer to Shirakumo.

"This is all very touching, but I would like to complete the transference so we can move on to awakening Eri. Now, Deku, this will hurt, but when it is complete, you'll finally have a quirk, just like you've always wanted. Hold still now," All For One said, raising one hand to hover over Izuku's head and the other reaching out towards Shirakumo.

Shirakumo and Izuku kept their eyes locked.

"I'm sorry," Izuku said, taking a shaky breath.

"Don't say sorry, kid. Just tell my boys that I love them and we'll be square."

"No, I wasn't talking about that. I was talking about this."

With a surprising fast leap, Izuku knocked both Hitoshi and Shirakumo backwards, causing them to sprawl across the floor. Eri was safely sandwiched between Shirakumo and Izuku, the latter having wrapped himself protectively around her.

As the four hit the ground, Izuku pressed the button of the detonator hidden in his hand, sending the signal to the two grenades that he had secretly slipped into All For One's pocket.

Izuku hoped that the resounding explosion would be enough to finally kill the man.

--

Hawks knew he was going to die.

He had been told since he was 6 years old that he would most likely die in the field, saving people, like a true hero.

Back then, he thought he would still get to live a nice, long life. Grow up, see the world. Maybe get married, have a couple kids. He thought that when he was older, close to retirement age, that he would go out in a blaze of glory, saving countless lives. People would make statues of him and mourn the loss of a fallen hero.

As he got older, that dream changed. It went from a spouse and kids to just a spouse. From just a spouse to a long term partner. From a long term partner to at least someone who loved him. Retirement age turned to at least 50, then to 40, then to 30. Eventually, Hawks stopped having any dream and just wished to make it to his next birthday without dying or losing the last shred of himself to the Commission.

But now, ever since he met Izuku, Hawks had dared to dream again. Now, he thought that maybe he could have people in his life that cared. Maybe he could have a family. Maybe he would make it to his 25th birthday.

And then the League had to fuck it all up. Again .

Slashing at another flying Nomu with one of his feathers, Hawks narrowly avoided the talons of another, spiraling and spinning through the air as he tried to keep himself from being slaughtered.

Hawks was going to die. Probably within the next 20 to 30 minutes. And that was okay. As long as he lived long enough for the kids to escape. That's all he wanted. He wanted his new found brother and sister to live, along with their friends. He wanted them to have long lives, filled with joy and love. He didn't care if the world remembered him after this. He didn't care if there were monuments dedicated to him, immortalizing his success as a hero. Hawks would be happy with a small photo, tucked away on a shelf somewhere in his new family's home.

Hawks didn't need to be heralded as Japan's finest hero. He just wanted to be a hero to those that he loved.

Down below, he could see Shoto fighting for his life. Smoke and steam radiated off the boy's body, his quirk running rampant as he slaughtered Nomu left and right, keeping them from escaping out into the city to kill innocents. Hawks thought about Endeavor, and how the man had abused Shoto in an attempt to make him into what Endeavor thought was the perfect hero: a miniature version of him.

But looking at the boy now, Hawks knew he was the perfect hero already. Shoto put himself on the line for others, sacrificing his own well being for the sake of others. He could have easily let some of those Nomu slip past him to cause chaos, but instead, Shoto threw himself in the way. He took blows that would fell a larger man, but kept going, pushing his body past its limit.

And that gave Hawks strength. If Shoto, a boy who probably had a similar childhood to Hawks, could find the will to keep fighting, then so could Hawks.

With an ear piercing caw, Hawks dove at a Nomu, his hands out to dig his talons into the exposed brain. The Nomu looked up, letting out an answering roar.

Hawks knew he was going to die.

And it was going to be worth it.

--

Shoto felt two of his ribs break and was barely able to keep himself from screaming in pain.

It was only a matter of time now. He was probably going to get mauled to death by one of these Nomu. But really, that wasn't a horrible way to go. He always thought he was going to burn to death, just like Touya. Figured his father would lose control one day and just burn the house down, with everyone still inside.

He'd decided a long time ago that burning to death was probably his least favorite way to die, but he'd made peace with his destiny.

So really, being pummeled by a genetically modified creature while protecting not only the city, but the ones he loved, wasn't so bad. It'd be better if he could see them all one last time, but beggars couldn't be choosers.

Shoto only regretted two things: he regretted not telling Hitoshi he loved him one last time before leaving and he regretted never confessing his feelings to Izuku.

Another blow sent him reeling, his ribs shifting inside his body.

One more bad hit and he'd end up puncturing something inside his body.

Grimacing, Shoto dodged the next attack and started running through his options. Finally, he remembered something Izuku had suggested to him once.

' You only ever make spikes, chunks, or flat pieces of ice. Never any shapes. You should try that sometime. Imagine if you could make body armor out of ice! It'd have to be super hard ice though, and it might get really cold. Not sure if it would work, but we can test it! '

Considering that he may not live to see the next day, Shoto figured now was as good as any to test it.

Summoning up what little strength he had, Shoto let his ice creep across his body, forming thick plates of overlapping armor. It wasn't until the ice reached the mid way point of his body that he had any issues. The fire half of his body was too warm: the ice melted right off.

That's when, for the first time in a while, Shoto thought about his father's training.

Fire. Fire was something to be feared. It was strong and wild and destructive, but when harnessed correctly, could be used for good.

Without thinking, almost on instinct, Shoto let his flames engulf half his body, dancing across his skin and shielding him.

He stood there, surrounded by the Nomu, half fire and half ice, and ready to fight.

A Nomu screeched as it lunged at him, nails scrabbling across the ice armor, barely leaving a mark. On the other side, a Nomu tried to reach through the flames to strike at him, only to howl in agony as it was burned.

For once in his life, Shoto actually felt like his quirk was protecting him instead of causing him grief.

--

There were Nomu everywhere. They came in waves, crawling out of the large building and converging on the two young heroes. From what Aizawa could see, Hawks seemed to stick to the air, taking out the flying Nomu. Shoto was on the ground, attempting to contain the Nomu there. The boy was staggering as he fought, clearly exhausted and injured. That wasn't holding him back though. Shoto was giving his all, ripping through the Nomu with his flames and his ice.

Without a word, Vlad King, Aizawa, and Mic jumped into the fray. Aizawa lassoed a smaller Nomu, launched it at a larger, sending them both to the ground. Vlad followed up with the attack with a shot of blood from his gauntlet, which he hardened into spikes to stab through the Nomu. Mic kept at their backs, screaming down any Nomu that tried to get close.

The three cut their way through the crowd of Nomu to reach Shoto, who gave them a look of clear relief when he saw them.

"Are you okay?" Vlad shouted, knocking a Nomu away from Shoto.

"Yeah, I'm fine! Where are the other teachers?"

"We broke into groups to do the search!" Mic answered as he grappled with a Nomu. "We must have been the closest! Where are the rest of the kids?"

"Inside! Hawks and I sent them ahead while we held off the Nomu. There is some fighting on one of the upper floors, but I don't know who it is!"

Aizawa nodded, glancing up at the building. He caught a glimpse of Neito, who was creating a matching set of Shoto doubles. The sound of an explosion rang out from somewhere beneath the building, though it sounded faint.

Shoto perked up. "Bakugou is okay! I haven't heard him use his quirk for a while. I was getting worried."

"Must be a bunker underground. Would make sense that they would be holding the hostages there," Aizawa said evenly, pausing only to throw another Nomu using his scarf. "Todoroki, listen carefully. We are going to create an opening. I want you to get inside, grab whoever you can and get them out. Don't fight anyone, especially not All For One, is that clear? None of us are strong enough to take him on. If you can't get everyone, that's fine. Just… save who you can, got it?"

"Yes, Sensei."

"Good. Wait for my signal and then run like hell."

--

The bombs detonated. Izuku could hear them, the sound concussive in the small space. He clenched his jaw and squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the burning of the flames and the bite of shrapnel, but nothing came.

"What a valiant effort. On anyone else, that may have worked," All For One drawled.

A hand grabbed the back of Izuku's shirt and hauled him up, his feet dangling off the ground. Opening his eyes, he found All For One was holding him up. In the man's other hand were the remains of the grenade, all encased inside a forcefield.

"Shit," Izuku hissed just as All For One flung him across the room. Izuku hit the ground in a heap.

"I'll admit," All For One said, letting the pieces of the bombs drop to the floor. "I didn't notice when you slipped them into my pocket. All that pickpocket training with Toga must have paid off. If you hadn't given any sort of warning, you might have actually managed to injure me. But, your hero's heart is what did you in. You had to save your friends, giving me time to use one of my speed quirks to fish the bombs out of my pocket and place a forcefield around them. I'm curious, did you make these yourself? Or were these from UA's support department?"

Izuku pushed himself up, struggling to his feet. "Modified them off of what support made. They're actually Kacchan's."

"Ah, nitroglycerin bombs. Interesting. An explosion that size may actually have been able to be heard outside. Do you think the heroes have arrived yet? Do you think All Might has?"

"I don't particularly give a fuck where All Might is, to be perfectly honest."

"Yes, that makes sense. All Might is getting weaker. You know his successor, don't you?" All For One asked with a dangerous grin. "Lemillion. A boy who already had a powerful quirk. How did it make you feel, when you discovered that All Might, a man who you once idolized, could have ended your suffering? He could have given you his quirk. He was once quirkless, you know. He should have been sympathetic to your plight, as I am. Or I was, until you tried to blow me up."

Izuku searched his pockets, finding one of his tools. He pulled a screwdriver from his pocket and brandished it like a knife. "Yeah, you're really kind to quirkless people. Isn't that right, Shigaraki?"

All For One's smile flickered, nearly falling from his face. He quickly schooled his expression, quick enough that probably no one besides Izuku noticed.

"Sensei has given quirkless freaks like you quirks plenty of times," Shigaraki snarled before looking up at All For One. "Can I kill him now?"

"No, we need him alive if we want to use his mind for a Nomu. I'll handle him, Tomura."

"Aw, is Daddy doing the hard stuff for you again, Shigaraki?" Izuku said, laughing darkly. "No, not Daddy. He's not your dad. What ever happened to your parents, huh? Have you ever wondered?"

"Silence!" All For One snapped, his arm expanding to swing at Izuku.

Izuku dodged, ducking to run forward and grab the back of Hitoshi's shirt. He pulled the boy to the side, getting him out of the way. Shirakumo was using the last of his strength to push him and Eri closer to the wall, his legs shaking with the effort. Spinner stayed where he was, keeping himself out of the way of the fighting.

"Worried I'll say something you don't want him to know?" Izuku asked. He sneered at All For One, pushing his hair out of his eyes. "What are you hiding?"

Shigaraki glanced between his teacher and his old analyst, his eyes narrowing. "What is he talking about, Sensei?"

"Nothing. He's lying."

"I haven't even said anything yet! All I've done is ask questions! That seems like a suspicious thing for you to say, All For One."

"Sensei, he's never lied to me before."

"And now he's hero scum!" All For One growled. "Ignore anything he says, Tomura!"

Izuku cocked his head, feigning curiosity. "Is Tomura really his name? Because I found some interesting photos while researching All Might's quirk. Have either of you ever heard about Tenko Shimura? Cute little kid. Looked shy. He was quirkless, just like me."

All For One lashed out again, his aim true. He struck Izuku across the front, grabbing him and pinning him to a wall. Without hesitation, Izuku drove his screwdriver into All For One's hand, repeatedly stabbing all the way down to the handle, blood spray out across Izuku's face. All For One hissed in pain but didn't let go. His grip tightened, making Izuku gasp, his bones grinding under All For One's hand.

"Sensei, you said we needed him alive. If you're just going to kill him, then why can't I do it?"

"Alive, yes, but I didn't say he needed to be unharmed." All For One's grip tightened again.

Izuku gasped again, struggling to catch his breath. "Hana," he said, barely audible.

Shigaraki froze, his eyes going wide. "What did you say?"

"Ignore him, Tomura."

"Sensei, release him. Just for a moment."

"Tomura -"

"No! You always say this is all for me, right? You tell me that if I want something, to say it. I'm saying it now. I want you to drop him."

"Now is not the time -"

"Drop him! Now! You said! You said!" Shigaraki was screaming, scratching at his neck feverishly. Fresh trails of blood dripped down his skin as he broke open old scars.

All For One let Izuku go, letting the boy fall to the ground. He turned to look at Shigaraki, frowning and tutting. "Tomura, you're hurting yourself. Stop, please. I need you healthy."

Coughing, Izuku raised his head. "Yeah, he needs you healthy so he can rub you in All Might's face."

"Quiet, Deku," All For One said.

"That's not my fucking name."

"Stop it!" Shigaraki said, sounding more and more hysterically by the second. "Just explain what you're talking about! Why did you say that name?!"

Izuku climbed to his feet again, still clutching his screwdriver. "Hana Shimura. She was Tenko Shimura's older sister. She died. So did the rest of his family. The cops believe that Tenko died too."

"What does that have to do with me? Or All Might?"

"Deku…"

"Not my name, bastard. Shigaraki, do you remember being little? Do you remember your parents?"

"No. No, all I know is that I killed them. My quirk did. I was left homeless. I starved on the streets and no one helped me! No one but Sensei!"

"Did you ever wonder if there was a reason for that? Nana Shimura was All Might's mentor. She fought All For One and died. Before that, she put her son up for adoption to protect him and he later was married and had kids. Those kids were Hana and Tenko. One day, the family was found dead and the house destroyed. The cops assumed that Tenko was among them, but I know they were wrong. Shigaraki, you're Tenko Shimura. All For One took you so he could raise you and break All Might's heart. He's just been using you."

Shigaraki shook his head, still scratching at his neck. His red eyes were distant, as though he was seeing something no one else could see. "No. No, you said Tenko was quirkless. I have a quirk."

"Yeah, a quirk that is destroying your body. A quirk that is too overpowered. A quirk that you weren't made to hold. A quirk that is impossible to control. He gave you that quirk so that you'd kill your family! He's using you!"

"No! He helps me! He had the doctor strengthen my body so I could strengthen my quirk! I'm not quirkless! You're wrong!"

"Deku! Stop spreading these lies this instant!"

"Look at your shoes, Shigaraki!" Izuku yelled, gesturing to the young man's bright red shoes. "They look exactly like mine! They are quirkless shoes! They are designed for people who have an extra joint in their little toe! If you have that, then you're quirkless! All For One doesn't give a shit about you, he's just using you as a big surprise to ruin All Might! But jokes on him! I already told All Might!"

" You did what? " All For One said dangerously, a dark, suffocating aura radiating off of him. Without warning, multiple quirks flared to life from his body, launching themselves at Izuku, trying to attack him. Izuku was able to dodge the first few projectiles, only to be caught by a set of tentacles made of what looked like smoke. He was pinned to the ground, his arms pressed to his sides. As he hit the ground, his head struck the floor, making his vision swim for a moment.

" You told All Might? " All For One growled, looming over Izuku. "How dare you!?"

"What? You wanted to keep it a secret or something? Angry I ruined your big surprise? Or was there more to the plan? Huh? What else did you want with Tenko Shimura?"

"What I do with the boy is none of your business. He is mine ."

"You think he's still going to be loyal now that he knows you ruined his life?"

All For One scoffed. "I don't think, I know. I could beat him with an inch of his life and he would thank me every step of the way. And if he knows what's good for him, he'll start towing the line. He'll stop his tantrums, now that his use has run its course. With Eri here to restore my body, I don't even need the boy as a vessel anymore! If he wants to survive to see tomorrow, he'll fall in line with the rest of the quirkless rejects that I gifted quirks to and he'll do as he's told! Which is what you should have done, but here we are. I'm really going to enjoy hurting you, Deku, I hope you know that."

Izuku spat at All For One, teeth bared and a ferocious glint in his green eyes. "That's not my fucking name! I'm not useless! I am worth something! I am Dekiru: the hero who can do anything!"

"To be honest, Deku, I really don't give a damn. Tomura, kill all of them but Eri. I think Deku needs a reminder of just how powerful quirks are," All For One said, grinning that twisted and disgusting smile of his.

Izuku started thrashing in All For One's grip, eyes wide with desperation. "No! No, don't kill them! Don't! Please!"

"You had your chance, boy. Tomura, do it!"

Then, the sound of crackling, decaying flesh could be heard, making Izuku's stomach twist dangerously. He turned to look at his friends, only to see that they all were fine. Each of them had their eyes fixed on All For One, each with varying degrees of shock on their faces.

Looking back, Izuku found All For One's expression frozen, cracks spreading across his face, his skin graying. Pieces of him fell away bit by bit, until suddenly, his body collapsed inwards into a pile of ash and dust. A plume shot into the air in a mushroom shaped cloud as the ash hit the ground, sending a dusting of the decayed flesh across Izuku and Shigaraki, the two having been closest to All For One when he decayed.

Shigaraki's arm was still stretched out in front of him, his fingers splayed. His red eyes stared ahead at where All For One had just been standing, a lost look on his face.

"That's not my name," Shigaraki whispered.

"Shig- I mean… Shimura? Are… Are you okay?" Izuku asked, sitting up now that he was free. He tightened his grip on his screwdriver, unsure of what was going to happen next.

Shigaraki blinked, letting his arm fall to his side as he looked over at Izuku. For a moment, neither moved. Then, Shigaraki let out a heart wrenching, broken scream as he threw himself at Izuku, hand out.

All five of his fingers landed on the top of Izuku's head.

--

They'd seen the Nomu flooding the sky, just as everyone else had. Together, Mirio, Tamaki, Nejire, and All Might had started to head that direction, only to be cut off by a second wave of Nomu, flooding the streets from what appeared to be a secondary location. A man in a doctor's jacket with thick goggles and a wiry mustache was directing the Nomu to attack, screaming orders at them.

And so, the four fought. They tore through the Nomu, knowing they only had so much time before All Might's quirk would run out. They had to hurry: he and Mirio working together were their only hope against All For One.

They had managed to stop the Nomu and tie up the doctor, who was babbling something about his experiments. Tamaki agreed to stay with the doctor until someone arrived, sending the rest ahead.

The three got maybe a block before everything went wrong. All Might and Mirio had both been using high powered jumps to cover more ground, Nejire keeping up by flying. Both Mirio and All Might were at the height of their jump when something shifted inside them. A flame, that burned brightly in Mirio and just barely inside of All Might, suddenly snuffed out in them both. The pair could hear, just barely, the sound of seven voices breathe a sigh of relief before drifting away into oblivion.

All Might shrunk. Not in a puff of smoke, like normal, but all at once. The crackling of blue lightning that typically surrounded Mirio when he used One For All disappeared. All Might let out a startled yelp, pinwheeling his arms as he continued to fly through the air, quickly losing altitude.

Nejire shrieked and dove after him, just barely catching him and lowering him to the ground. Mirio instinctually activated his permeation quirk and let himself pass through the asphalt as he hit the ground. A second later, he popped back up, unhurt.

"What just happened?" Nejire asked, glancing between the two men. "I thought we had at least another hour."

"We did," Mirio said, looking down at his hands in confusion. He tried activating One For All again, but nothing happened.

All Might coughed, blood dribbling down his chin. He bore a grief stricken expression on his gaunt face. "It's gone. One For All is gone. From the both of us."

--

"Todoroki! Now!" Aizawa shouted, giving the boy a push toward the building.

The pros had finally managed to clear a path for him to get in, but it wouldn't last long. Shoto took off at a dead sprint, melting off his ice and snuffing his fire as he went, making himself lighter so he could move faster. He had to drop and slide between the legs of one looming Nomu to get past, but he managed to scramble up quickly and keep running. When he reached the building, he punched out a window on the first floor and lugged himself inside, ignoring the cuts on his hand.

Shoto knew he needed to get to the basement. He wasn't sure how to get there, but he knew he had to move fast. There had been no more explosions since that first one a few minutes ago, and he was getting nervous. After a second of running through the halls, he managed to find an open door that led to stairs going downwards. He heard a loud, raw scream from the bottom of the stairs and knew he found the right place.

He took the stairs two at a time, ignoring the way his legs protested and screamed in pain. At the bottom of the stairs he had to sprint down another hall, turn a corner, and then he was running straight through a massive door, which was standing wide open.

What he saw almost made his tired legs collapse out from underneath him.

There was Izuku, sitting on the ground in the middle of the dirty, bare floor. And standing over him was Shigaraki, whose hand was firmly pressed to the top of Izuku's head.

Shoto didn't have time to think. He knew he only had seconds before Izuku was dead. Sending flame or ice at Shigaraki could possibly mean hurting Izuku, so that left one option.

With a yell, Shoto ran and threw himself at Shigaraki, tackling him to the ground. He felt the man's hands scrabble at his back and he closed his eyes tightly, waiting for the pain of Shigaraki's decay quirk.

But nothing came.

After a moment of struggling, Shigaraki let out a broken sob before going limp beneath Shoto.

"Gone. Everything's gone," the man whimpered, his red eyes welling with tears.

Gently, a pair of strong, steady hands touched Shoto's shoulders, prying him off of Shigaraki. As Shoto stood, he finally looked to see who was touching him and was met with brilliant green eyes.

"Did you seriously just tackle Shigaraki for me?" Izuku asked in a soft voice.

"I thought he was going to decay you."

"He's not going to be decaying anyone anytime soon," Izuku said, turning his focus to Shigaraki, who was still lying on the ground. "He killed All For One. And when he did that, all the quirks that All For One had given away disappeared. That included Shigaraki's. I'm going to see if I can get him up. Do you think you can get everyone free? And check on Kacchan? He got knocked out."

Shoto nodded and moved away, going to Bakugou first, since he was the one who was injured. Spinner was standing, watching Shoto walk, but made no move to attack. Instead, Spinner reached into his pocket and pulled out sets of keys for the various cuffs they had used on the hostages. Tossing the keys towards Shoto, Spinner sat back down, content with waiting for one of the heroes in the room to arrest him.

Izuku crouched beside Shigaraki and placed a hand on his shoulder. The man flinched, but didn't try to knock Izuku's hand away.

"Are you hurt?" Izuku asked gently.

"Why do you care? I just tried to dust you."

"Natural reaction to having your world turned upside down. I'll forgive you this time."

Shigaraki snorted wetly. "Did you always know? That I was born quirkless?"

"No," Izuku said, shaking his head. "I always thought your quirk was weird, but I didn't put all the pieces together until I saw photos of you and your family."

"I can remember them now. At least a little. Hana had black hair, didn't she?"

"Yeah, she did. And brown eyes. Same as you. The quirk All For One gave you was destroying you. It… well, it's basically been turning you albino. Sorry."

"You didn't do it," Shigaraki said, starting to sit up. "Fuck. What am I supposed to do now?"

"Well, my suggestion would be to turn yourself in. I think you need some help. Help that you won't find on the streets. And I think… I think it's what Hana would have wanted. She would have wanted you somewhere warm and safe and where you can be given the help you need," Izuku said carefully.

"You can say it. I'm crazy. You think I need to be locked in a mental institution."

"I think you've been abused for a really long time and could use help sorting through who you truly are and who All For One tried to make you."

Shiagraki shrugged Izuku's hand off his shoulder. "Pass. I'm not going to be locked up in some fucking loony bin."

Izuku bit his lip nervously and stood. "Remember what you said to me after my mom died? The streets aren't a good place for quirkless people, not without help, which you don't have anymore. That only leaves the system. It's not ideal, but you'd have advocates and people paying attention to make sure you don't fall through the cracks. I know you hate All Might, but he feels indebted to your grandmother. He'll make sure you're safe. And if he can't, I'll dig up dirt on high ranking government officials and blackmail them for you. It'll be just like the old days."

Shigaraki shook his head. "No. No, I won't let you help me."

"Why not?"

"I killed your mom," Shigaraki said, not looking at Izuku. "Not directly. I sent the villain there to destroy your apartment and kill her. Then I had him killed in police custody so he couldn't talk. I wanted you on my team and that was the only thing I could think of. I'm responsible for the death of the last of your family. You should hate me and should never want to help me."

Neither said anything. After a beat of silence, Shigaraki found Izuku's hand coming into his line of vision, palm up and hand open, inviting Shigaraki to take it.

"I know. All For One told me, remember?

"Yes, but -"

"But nothing. Back when I left the League, even though I did bad things, and was quirkless, and hated myself, people still helped me when I needed it. They got me help so I could become a hero. So, I'll do the same for you. Besides, I feel a little responsible here for causing you to kill your only father figure. I guess we're even, huh?"

Shigaraki let out a dark chuckle before taking Izuku's hand, letting him pull him to his feet. "You're all about being even, Dekiru."

"Izuku!" Himiko yelled, sprinting across the room, finally free from her restraints. She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. "You're so, so, so stupid but I'm so happy to see you!"

"Thanks, Himi. Come on, let's help Shoto get everyone else free."

Once everyone's hands and legs were freed, Izuku began working on the muzzle locked on Hitoshi's face.

"Sorry, Hitoshi," Izuku said, eyes fixed on the lock as he tried to get it undone. "I know this probably hurts, with me pulling on it and stuff. I know you'd prefer Shoto, but his fingers are a little numb from quirk overuse and this is tricky so I figured it was best I do it."

As the muzzle fell away, Hitoshi opened and closed his mouth a few times, working the kinks from his jaw before turning to look at Izuku, a fond smile on his face.

"I swear, you are the dumbest smart person I've ever met," Hitoshi said before leaning down, lips pressed to Izuku's and hands cradling the shorter boy's head gently.

Izuku let out a startled noise and tried to pull away, making Hitoshi tighten his hold for just a second before releasing him. He stared up at Hitoshi in shock before he turned to look at Shoto, panic flooding his veins.

Shoto was staring at the two of them, his signature impartial expression on his face.

"Shoto, I'm so sorry -" Izuku started only for Shoto to take a few steps forward, closing the gap between them and kissing him as well. When he pulled away, leaving Izuku in a state of shock, Shoto turned to Hitoshi and planted a kiss on his lips.

"I'm so glad I can do that now," Shoto said, the barest hint of a smile on his face.

"I feel like I've missed something here," Izuku said, his voice faint.

"Did you like the kisses?"

"I mean, yeah, Hitoshi, I did but you two are dating and -"

"Then that's all that matters. We'll figure out the details later."

A scream rang out from somewhere above them, breaking them from their moment.

"Shit, we need to get out of here," Hitoshi said, turning to look at Shirakumo and Eri, who were both still sitting on the ground. "Shirakumo, can you walk?"

"Shirakumo?" Shoto asked in surprise.

"Later, babe, I promise. You look like you're dead on your feet, so you carry Eri; she's the smallest. Shirakumo, walking? Can you do it?"

Shirakumo shook his head. "Not without help."

"Got it. Himiko, you and Izuku are going to support him out of here. I'll carry Bakugou. Shigaraki, Spinner, can we trust you two to carry Sir Nighteye?"

The two villains nodded, refusing to verbally answer Hitoshi. None of the teens seemed to notice or care. Shoto was crouching beside Shirakumo to scoop Eri up, wincing at the pain in his ribs. Once he had Eri, Himiko and Izuku moved in to lift Shirakumo to his feet. Each took one side, his arms draped over each of their shoulders. Shigaraki and Spinner were doing the same with Nighteye, carrying the unconscious man between the two of them. Hitoshi had managed to lift Bakugou into a fireman's carry, hoisting the other boy fully horizontal across his shoulders.

Shoto led the way out of the building, having been one of the few to actually be awake when walking through. Izuku, Himiko, and Shirakumo followed him. Behind them was Shigaraki, Spinner, and Sir Nighteye. Hitoshi brought up the rear with Bakugou, keeping an eye on the villains to make sure they didn't try to pull anything.

When they got to the window that Shoto had broken in through, Shirakumo leaned against the wall to let Izuku hold Eri so Shoto could climb out of the building. Eri was then passed through and Izuku followed. Himiko helped Shirakumo through and then helped to pass Sir Nighteye through. Shigaraki and Spinner followed him out, with Himiko climbing out after them. Shinsou passed Bakugou through and took him back once he was through. The group hurried away from the building, trying to avoid the last of the Nomu, which seemed disoriented and weak, likely from All For One's death.

Hawks, Aizawa, Mic, and Vlad were finishing off the last of them, not even noticing the people leaving the building. Himiko looked around, clearly confused.

"Where's Neito?"

"He was fighting Twice and Compress on the upper floor," Izuku said. "We should go back to help him."

She turned and looked up, seeing Neito outlined in the hole in the side of the building. His back was to them, but standing just a few feet in front of him were Twice and Mr. Compress. All three looked exhausted, but none seemed ready to give up the fight.

"Neito!" Himiko screamed, dropping Shirakumo's arm as she started to run towards the building.

Neito glanced over his shoulder. He locked eyes with Toga, giving the smallest smile before turning to look at the villains again. He raised one hand, brandishing the detonator for the bombs Izuku had given him. His other hand was wrapped around his wrist, bracing himself.

And then he pressed the button.

The sky lit up orange as the flames of the explosion soared upwards, destroying the entire building.

--

Neito was so tired. His body was battered and bruised and he probably had broken at least a couple bones. As fast as he made doubles, they were killed. He and Twice were racing each other, it seemed, to create doubles to fight each other. All while dodging one another. Mr. Compress kept his distance, throwing marbles that would explode knives or rocks. Occasionally, one of Neito's doubles would attack, distracting Compress long enough for Neito to dash forward and touch Twice again, re-borrowing his quirk. The ground was covered in sludge, so thick and goopy that it was running out of the hole in the wall. Neito's pants and shoes were ruined beyond repair, but at that point, he couldn't bring himself to care.

The only time he allowed himself to be distracted was when an explosion sounded from below, giving him hope that Bakugou was still fighting. It gave Neito the boost he needed to keep going, to keep pushing himself.

"Give up, young man!" Mr. Compress yelled, clearly exhausted from the fight. "You can't defeat us both."

"I don't have to! I just have to keep you from hurting my friends!"

"Lame! How admirable! "

As Twice punched through one of the double's Neito had made, Neito saw an opportunity. Lunging forward, he grabbed Twice's wrist and drove his forearm into Twice's elbow, bending it the wrong direction and breaking the joint.

Twice howled in pain, stumbling backwards. In his distraction, his doubles failed, melting into goo. Spinning away, Neito landed a solid punch across Compress' face, knocking his white mask off. Neito immediately followed it up with a hook punch, striking Compress again and splitting the man's bottom lip.

Compress grunted once before backhanding Neito with his robot arm, sending Neito flying backwards and landing in a heap in the muck. Struggling, Neito managed to pull himself up, backing up so he was facing the villains, blocking the hole in the wall so they couldn't escape that way.

"What are you going to do?" Compress asked, licking at the blood that dripped from his lip. "You can't keep this up."

" Neito! " a voice screamed from the ground behind him.

He looked over his shoulder, just barely glancing.

Down below were all of his friends. They all looked hurt to some degree, but they were alive. They were out of the building, finally, and alive. And that's all that mattered.

Neito smiled as he reached into his pocket. Then, he turned back to look at the villains and raised the detonator from the bombs Izuku had given him. He wrapped his other hand around his bare wrist and gave the villains a dangerous, half crazed smile.

"I'm going to do this," Neito said, and pressed the button, detonating the three grenades that Neito had been hiding in the sludge during the fight.

And then his world went dark.

--

As soon as the explosion stopped, Hitoshi, Shoto, Izuku, and Himiko were running to the wreckage of where the building had once been. Shigaraki and Spinner were hot on their heels, leaving Sir Nighteye, Shirakumo, Bakugou, and Eri safely tucked to the side, away from the wreckage. The six dove into the rubble, calling for their friends.

"Twice! Compress!"

"How could those fucking bastards not handle an NPC hero!?"

"Neito! Where are you?!"

Hawks landed beside Izuku, grabbing his shoulders and yanking him up from where he was hunched, digging through the mess, and hugged the boy to his chest.

"You're alive. Oh, fuck, I was so worried about you," Hawks breathed, squeezing him tightly.

"Hawks! Not now! Neito was in the explosion!"

"Found someone!" Hitoshi yelled, pulling a wooden beam out of the way. "The guy with the hat!"

"Compress!" Spinner shouted excitedly, running over and helping to pull the man out of the wreckage. They quickly checked for a pulse.

"He's alright," Spinner said, breathing a sigh of relief. "Hurt, but alive."

"I've got the other guy over here!" Shoto called. With Himiko's help, they pulled him out. "I still don't see Neito."

Izuku gave Hawks a pleading look. Without having to actually be asked, Hawks detached some of his feathers and sent them through the wreckage, searching for any sign of the other boy. After a moment, Hawks frowned. "I can't find him. Not even his body."

"Izuku? Izuku!" Mic shouted, climbing over the rubble with Aizawa just behind him, the pair tumbling to get to their son. Mic immediately bundled Izuku into his arms before pressing a kiss to the boy's forehead. Vlad King appeared a moment later, scooping Himiko into a tight hug. Aizawa whipped his capture weapon at the two standing villains, tying them up before he went to check on Shoto and Hitoshi.

"Where's Eri? Bakugou?" Aizawa asked, looking stricken. "What happened to All For One?"

"All For One is dead," Hitoshi explained. "Eri and Bakugou are unconscious and fine. They're with… someone we can trust. But we need to find Neito."

Suddenly, just behind Izuku, there was a popping sound. Pieces of the wreckage shifted, falling away as Neito expanded back into existence in a sparkle of blue. He was coughing and rubbing at his eyes, trying to clear the smoke and dust from his senses.

"Fuck, that was the worst. Hated that," Neito grumbled.

Izuku let out a happy sob, breaking free from Mic's grip to throw himself at Neito, hugging the other boy.

"We thought you were dead, asshole! What the fuck!"

"Oh, sorry. I used Compress' quirk to put myself in a marble so I wouldn't get hurt in the explosion. I purposefully dropped the grenades around the room so that once I knew you guys were out, I could just blow up the building. Figured if I dropped a warehouse on All For One and whatever other Nomu were down there, it might give us time to run. What happened to Twice and Compress?"

"They're alive," Izuku said, sitting back and wiping his eyes. "They'll need medical help, but they'll live. All For One is dead though. I told Shigaraki the truth about his past and he killed him. Everyone got out and is safe, Neito. We did it!"

Neito sighed, letting his head fall back and his eyes close. "Oh thank fuck. I thought I was going to have help fight that old ass mother fucker and I wasn't looking forward to it."

"We could have tested what happens when you copy his quirk. Could have been interesting."

"Pass."

Mic put his hand on Izuku's shoulder, giving it a light squeeze. "Izuku, kiddo, can you show us where you left Eri? I don't want her to be alone for long."

Nodding, Izuku got to his feet and put a hand out for Neito, who immediately took it. Once he was on his feet, Himiko broke free from Vlad King to run to Neito, hugging him tightly.

The group made their way out of the rubble, following where Izuku, Shoto, and Hitoshi led, the three boys holding hands with Izuku in the middle, the taller boys bracketing him in.

Hitoshi shot Mic and Aizawa a look. "I should probably warn you guys. The person we left Eri with is someone you know but haven't seen in a while. I don't really know how to explain everything without you seeing first, but Kurogiri was -"

Aizawa made a choking noise, stopping in his tracks.

"O… Oboro?" he whispered, staring at the blue haired man.

Shirakumo looked up from where he sat, both Bakugou and Eri's heads cradled in his lap and Nighteye lying beside him. His eyes went wide and a look of wonder took over his face.

"Sho… Zashi…" he said, seeming to savor the words on his tongue.

Mic let out a strangled noise before he broke into a run. Shirakumo gently began moving Eri and Bakugou off his lap. Just as he laid Eri down, Mic dropped to his knees beside him and wrapped him tightly in his arms, burying his face into Shirakumo's shoulder and sobbing. Aizawa followed at a much slower pace, his steps unsteady. When he stood at Shirakumo's feet, Shirakumo looked up at him and gave him a crooked smile. He held out the arm Mic wasn't crying on, opening himself up for Aizawa to hug him. Aizawa suppressed a sob just before collapsing into Shirakumo's side, wrapping him in a hug.

After a moment of the three hugging, Mic pulled away, letting Aizawa remain with Shirakumo, hiding his face in the blue haired man's shoulder. Mic turned to scoop up Eri, cradling her close to his chest.

"We're all okay," Mic said, tears running down his cheeks. "We're okay."

"Yeah," Izuku said quietly, smiling at the scene before him. "We're all okay."

"Speak for yourself," Neito grumbled. "I feel like I'm going to pass out."

"Oh, no, I'm 100% about to pass out. But we're alive so, you know, better than we could have been."

Hitoshi frowned. "Wait, did you just say you were going to pass out?"

"Oh yeah, for sure. I'm pretty sure I have a bad concussion. Don't let Aizawa and Mic kill Hawks while I'm out."

And then Izuku collapsed.