Please forgive my poor usage of MMORPG terminology; as I mentioned back in the Q&A, I am very much not a gamer and have no idea if I'm saying things correctly. Thanks downix for helping me find an article about jargon! Also yes, I did increase the chapter count. I miscalculated how many specials I was posting… I will adjust further if necessary, but here's the new estimate!

Tomura was ready to murder someone.

He was usually ready to murder someone, but at the moment he was ready to murder several highly specific someones.

Starting with a certain broccoli-haired bastard that was too damn smug for his own damn good and a knife-wielding bitch that would not shut up! And that wasn't even mentioning the oversized lizard that had turned up yesterday ranting about Stain and how damn right he was and how heroes are corrupt and need to be purged, looking like some kinda mob with a bad hair day in that damn tacky polka-dot armor and-

"Deku-chan, are you going out~?"

"Yes."

"Ooh! I wanna come too~!"

"You're not coming."

"Whaa'?! Wait, Deku-chan! Deku-chan, open the door! Deku-chan, this isn't faaaaair! I wanna come tooooo!"

Tomura's glass shattered as his fingers closed around it, spilling his beer across the bar, the glass shards clattering against the wood before his quirk finished its work and caused the pieces to disintegrate the rest of the way.

Still more musical to his ears than Toga's incessant whining.

"Shigaraki Tomura," Kurogiri sighed wearily, approaching with a clean rag to mop up the mess, "I understand your frustration. But you must try to remain calm."

"Everything was perfect before that brat showed up," Tomura snarled, instinctively reaching towards his own throat now that he no longer had anything to hold. "If I wanted something, I took it. If I hated something, I destroyed it. Then he joined the party shaking like a leaf, and before I knew it he was suddenly calling the shots, and even Sensei expects me to listen to him!"

"Now now, Shigaraki Tomura, Deku has proven to be a valuable asset. His analytical skills have strengthened many of the subgroups Master keeps tabs on, and his work in capitalizing on the attention brought to us by Stain has brought the numbers we need for your desire to be realized."

"Stain, Stain, Stain," Tomura growled under his breath, his rough-edged fingernails scratching at his neck. All the attention that bastard was getting was pissing him off, and that wasn't even mentioning the stupid vigilante bastard that was pulling the media's attention away from the League. Honestly though, not even Stain nor the vigilante punk could infuriate him as much as all the attention Deku seemed to be getting. Deku wasn't the leader of the League of Villains, he was! So why was the stupid media ignoring everything that he had done at Hosu, ignoring the fact that he had been the one to lead the League to the USJ, that it had been his desire to destroy All Might!?

"Besides, you know that Master has a special task for him," Kurogiri reminded him, rinsing out the rag he'd been using to clean up the beer.

"Yeah, but what?" Tomura hissed, his fingernails scratching at his neck with increasing franticness as he grew more agitated. "Why won't Sensei fill me in on the plan?! He promised me that I would be able to do whatever I wanted, destroy anything I hated, and create a world that suited me best, and now that bastard is taking everything that rightfully belongs to me!"

"Perhaps the Master is simply waiting for you to demonstrate your dedication to your goals, Shigaraki Tomura," Kurogiri suggested, pouring Tomura a new glass.

Tomura scowled, snatching the cup from the misty man and downing half of it in one gulp. It always came back to that idiocy about convictions and plans and… Ugh! He was just itching to close his fingers around somebody's throat! Why should it matter that it's 'bad for the League's image'? It would keep order in the ranks, wouldn't it? To kill a few upstarts. If only he could get his hands around Deku's neck, but that damn quirk of his, the damn quirk Sensei gave-!

"Deku-chaaaaaaan~!"

Tomura abruptly rose to his feet, the second glass shattering in his grip as well. "Kurogiri, get me out of here," he snarled, his neck scratched raw and his chest heaving with his shallow, furious breaths.

"Where would you like to go, Shigaraki Tomura?"

"I don't give a damn; I just can't be around that bitch anymore!"

Kurogiri obeyed, as he always did, creating a portal for the blue-haired young man to step through. He removed Father from his face before he went, tucking him into his jacket pocket and pulling the hood low to hide his eyes; it wouldn't do to have people recognize him on the street.

The sun was disgustingly bright when Tomura stepped out of the alleyway Kurogiri had warped him to. He didn't know exactly where he was and he didn't particularly care. It didn't matter anyway; the moment he paged Kurogiri with his loc, the man would warp him back to the bar. He wandered aimlessly, grinding his teeth in frustration as he passed person after person smiling cheerfully on the street.

Why? he hissed. Why can they be so damn thoughtless? Why didn't my attack mean anything to them? Why don't they realize just how worthless and fragile their pitiful lives are? Don't these damn sheep know that anyone here could kill them in an instant?!

'What meaning is there to killing if you don't have real convictions?'

That's what the Hero Killer had said. What's wrong with his convictions being to do as he pleased? That's essentially what Toga and Magne had said they wanted to do, and they both claimed to be inspired by Stain. What made them so different from him? Why the hell was he not considered worthy, when that vigilante bastard had been? When Deku had been? What the hell was it that the Hero Killer had seen in Deku, that he hadn't seen in him?

What the hell did Sensei see in Deku that he didn't see in him?!

Shit, he needed to kill someone!

There was a lot more foot traffic around Tomura than he remembered noticing before when he glanced up again. Curious, he turned his gaze higher, reading the sickeningly cheerful sign, announcing in bright, bold colors, Kiyashi Ward Shopping Mall: Wookiees.

A slow, cruel grin spread across Tomura's lips.

This would be as good a place as any to go on a rampage. Kurogiri wouldn't be happy having to warp him away so suddenly, but it would be worth it.

The people inside were all smiling and happy too. Tomura didn't know if they were naive or just ignorant; someone somewhere was getting killed at this very moment, and yet they acted like nothing could harm them.

"Oookay! We got duffle bags, flashlights, and I found an adorable new swimsuit~!"

"Ooh, trying to impress your beaux, are you?"

Tomura ground his teeth together in disgust and frustration.

"S-Sachi!"

"You're blushing~! Aww, it is love!"

"It's not like that!"

What fools.

He had no intention of letting their sense of security last for much longer.

As he prepared to move on to a more central location to begin his massacre, Tomura heard a light, infuriatingly familiar voice laugh, "When are you gonna stop denying it, Mina? It's totally obvious that you and Kirishima are on your way to being an item!"

Tomura froze, then turned slowly, eyes wide and heart fluttering almost hopefully.

"'Chaco, stoooop!"

There stood the brown-haired girl that had humiliated him during his debut at the USJ, surrounded by her friends: a pink-skinned girl, a girl with a frog's face, and a third girl with ridiculous fox ears and a stupid tail.

"Aww, such pure, innocent love! Anyway, what else is on your list?"

He'd almost forgotten about her in his fury towards Deku and the Hero Killer. His hand twitched around Father in his pocket and he began to make his way towards the small group.

"I think I've got all I need. What about you, Ochaco? Kero. You haven't bought anything yet."

It wouldn't be the same as killing Deku or Stain, but it might soothe his need to kill them for a little while, at least.

"Oh, that's 'cause I mostly just needed bug spray."

This was his chance to gank that bitch once and for all.

"Oh, then let's swing by the sports outlet! I need to pick up some heavier-duty hiking socks anyway; don't wanna get blisters!"

He slowly reached his hand towards the girl as they began to move away, backs towards him.

"So what exactly is this training camp a-? Gah!"

The fox girl yelped, tripping over her own feet and falling sideways into the brown-haired bitch, knocking her aside just before Tomura's fingers closed around the back of her neck.

"Easy there Sach- Ohmygod!" the pink-haired girl suddenly shrieked as she caught sight of his face.

Damn!

"Sensei!" the frog girl yelled, grabbing all three of her friends with a pink rope that he abruptly realized was her tongue and leaping backwards, instantly removing all four of them from his range. "Aithawa-thenthei!"

Shigaraki spun around to see a familiar figure with scraggly black hair and an oversized white scarf charging straight towards him.

DAMMIT!

The underground hero wasn't even taking the time to put on his crazy yellow goggles; Tomura had a full view of the man's enraged, blazing, brilliant red eyes. His scarf flew out to grab him, and though he leaped away, the villain felt a cold pit in his stomach, knowing that he didn't have a Nomu or even Kurogiri on hand to bail him out this time.

But the scarf didn't reach him. Instead, it was deflected away a matter of centimeters away from his face, an instant before a sharp, invisible force slammed into Tomura's body, throwing him backwards and away from the underground hero.

"Kurogiri-san!" another familiar voice shouted, much less pleasant to hear.

No!

"Do it now!"

No, not him!

A hand seized the back of Tomura's hoodie, dragging him backwards into the familiar, inky blackness of one of Kurogiri's warpgates. It opened up over an unfamiliar rooftop, spilling them both across the gravel-covered surface. Tomura ground his teeth harder, grabbing handfuls of rocks too small for all his fingers to touch, and thus too small to destroy.

Damn DAMN DAMN!

"God dammit Tenko! Are you seriously this desperate for attention?!"

"Deku you bastard!" Tomura roared, fury twisting his chapped lips so far that they cracked, beads of blood pooling at the edge of his mouth as he launched himself towards the green-haired boy, all reason stripped away by his savage desire to destroy, hands flexed and frantic to latch around the arrogant brat's throat, only to be pushed back mere millimeters away. Deku's eyes were blazing a brilliant shade of acid green as he seized Tomura by the wrist, pulled him off balance, braced his arm, and slammed his palm against the back of his elbow, eliciting a shriek of pain from the blue-haired young man and a loud pop from the joint itself, leaving it hanging, useless, by Tomura's side.

"Must we do this every time you decide to throw a temper tantrum?" Deku growled, glowering at him with that unimpressed glint in his eye that Tomura absolutely loathed.

"Damn you Deku!" Tomura shrieked as he stumbled back, drawing the limb against his torso, his other hand scrabbling agitatedly at his throat. "The hell kind of right did you have to butt in where you weren't invited, you kill stealer?!"

"Oh I don't know, maybe my right as the League's analyst to stop you from being a frickin' idiot?"

"I didn't ask for your shitty help Deku! Why the hell were you following me anyway?!"

"Why the hell would I want to follow you around?!"

"Stop dodging my damn questions and give me a straight answer you shitty Deku!"

"Fine. I wasn't following you. We were at the same mall at the same time by mere coincidence. Happy?"

"Don't lie to me!"

"You should know better than anyone that I can't lie, Tenko!" Deku spat, the anger gaining a sharp edge of bitterness. "Now why don't you answer my question: were you seriously gonna try to start something with a UA student in such a public location? Didn't it even occur to you that after bringing their student body on campus, the school might send a chaperone with a group that large?! I thought you were supposed to be smarter than that!"

"I can handle one stupid miniboss with no more than a stupid debuff ability!"

"And you wonder why I call you a child?! This isn't a video game, Tenko! This is real life, where you would have been facing off against an underground hero with an Erasure quirk that specializes in capture and containment if I hadn't stepped in!"

"Shut up! Just shut the hell up, Deku!" Tomura roared, a surge of bitterness mixing with the fury already raging in his chest, blood spilling over his collarbone as his scratching grew more frantic. "What the hell is it that Sensei even sees in a brat like you!? What is this big important secret that he entrusted to you and not me? What is it about a stupid, worthless, Deku like you, that Sensei would even think to trust you with something so important?! What makes you so much better than me!?"

Surprise flashed through Deku's eyes before something like disgust twisted the bastard's face. "Is that seriously what you're running around bitching about?" he scoffed. "That's what you were willing to risk your safety and the future of the entire League and even Sensei on?! Because you believe I think I'm better than you!?"

"Don't act like it isn't true, damn arrogant bastard! Why else would you have weaseled your way into the League like the damn rat you are?!" Tomura accused.

"Good God, use your head, Tenko!" Deku shouted back. "I didn't ask to be brought into the League! I didn't ask for Sensei to recruit me, or to train me, or to give me this mission! Although seeing the way that you're behaving, I might have a theory or two as to why he did it!"

"What the hell is that supposed to mean!?"

"It means you let your emotions take over your sense of reason!" Deku snapped. "If you'd taken even two minutes to glance around the Kiyashi Mall, you would've seen Eraserhead there! If you'd stop clinging to your damn pride, maybe you'd see the opportunity Stain's publicity brought the League! Hell, maybe even defeating All Might wouldn't be such a pipe dream!"

"A pipe dream?! A pipe dream!?" Tomura screeched at the stupid, broccoli-haired upstart, advancing on him, his own blood dripping from his fingertips, ignoring the pain in his elbow as he went. "Mark my words Deku! I will destroy this rotten world's Symbol of Peace, and I will prove to all those damn useless sheep how fragile and worthless that peace really is!"

The moment he said the words, they felt right. Some of the fury actually faded from Tomura's chest, a crazed grin stretching across his face, blood welling anew from the cracks in his lips. "Yes. Yes, that's what I'll do! From this day forward, I'll even call it my conviction! I don't care what it takes; I'll use the Hero Killer's own ideology for my springboard to rip this society apart, destroy everything that he wanted to protect! Hell, I'll even use you and your worthless ideals if it will further my goals, create a world that I desire-a world without All Might!"

A strange, stunned silence fell between as Deku stared almost straight up at him, wide-eyed, an emotion that the blue-haired young man wasn't certain how to name swimming in those brilliant green pools before they darkened, unreadable. Had it been… fear?

Tomura hoped it was.

"If you really mean that," he scoffed, his quiet tone a stark, almost unsettling contrast to their screaming match only moments before, "then I suppose I'll be awaiting your orders, oh great leader."

Tomura seethed at the parting shot as the bastard turned on his heel and stalked away, his chest still heaving, his heartbeat pulsing once again in his ears, but for once he didn't feel an immediate need to disintegrate Deku the moment his back was turned. In some ways, he almost felt grateful to the brat, for helping him come to a realization of his true conviction.

Gross.

Maybe he should kill him just for that.

Before he could decide, Deku reached the edge of the rooftop, stepped up, then dropped off and disappeared from view. On an impulse, Tomura walked towards the edge as well, frowning down at the hooded figure walking out of the alleyway two stories below him.

It was… strange, seeing the way that Deku walked around. Whenever he went out in public, Tomura always kept his head bowed, hiding his face so that he wouldn't be recognized. Deku didn't do that. Oh sure, he kept his hood up, hiding that stupid broccoli-shaped mop of hair, but he kept his head held high and his stride resolute. There were even a couple of people that appeared to make eye contact with him, yet all of them seemed to dismiss him, never drawing the connection to the famed villain Deku. Was it because of his plain face? Was he using his quirk to conceal his features somehow?

Is this what makes him different?

"Shigaraki Tomura."

"What Kurogiri?" Tomura growled back, glowering over his shoulder as the mist-man took shape behind him.

"The Master wishes to see you."

Tomura's heart leaped as he spun towards the other man, eyes wide. "Sensei?!" he breathed hopefully.

"Yes," Kurogiri confirmed, his form dispersing to some extent to create the appropriate warpgate.

Tomura didn't hesitate. He stepped straight into the inky blackness, a shiver of anticipation traveling down his spine as the cold, almost wet sensation gave way to a room always kept at a perfect temperature, filled with a steady, rhythmical beeping and the constant dragging of air through plastic tubes. The only lights in the room came from a heavy-looking desk in the corner, where a small lamp had been set up over a pile of neatly-placed papers beside a rolling office chair, and a TV screen displaying various camera angles of the bar, situated in front of a well-padded armchair from which numerous wires and tubes were strung.

"Sensei," the blue-haired young man whispered reverently. It had been months since he'd last seen his mentor in person, months since he'd last felt his presence.

"Tomura, my child," the man's smooth voice replied from the chair, a hand appearing to beckon him closer. The boy went willingly, carefully ducking under the wires connected to his Sensei's heart monitor and kneeling before him, head bowed respectfully. A brief flash of warmth curled in his chest as his master's hand fell gently on his head.

"Dear oh dear," Sensei sighed. "Your elbow is dislocated. I was afraid something like this may have happened. You two boys always take your roughhousing too far. Here, allow me to fix that for you, my child."

Tomura cringed briefly at the unpleasant sensation of his joints sliding back into place under the influence of one of Sensei's many quirks, but it did feel a lot better once it had been fixed. "Thank you, Sensei," he murmured.

"It's not a problem, my child. Know that I will always be there to help you if you ask. Whatever you need to fulfill your desires and convictions, as your mentor and guide, I will always offer you my assistance. Now, as I understand it, you had an encounter with some of UA's students and faculty today. May I ask what you learned?"

"Nothing, Sensei," Tomura growled bitterly. "That shitty Deku pulled me away before I could learn anything."

"Oh?" Sensei hummed, prompting Tomura to glance up at him. "Surely there was something, even if you don't realize it just yet. Think, my child. What happened today? Think through every detail."

Tomura thought, a frown pulling at his lips. "They… they were shopping for some kind of… trip," he said slowly. "They mentioned flashlights and… bug spray? Hiking socks? And one of the girls said something about a… training camp?"

"Indeed?" Sensei grinned. "How interesting. Now tell me: what will you do with this information?"

"…I'm going to break them," Tomura whispered firmly, and Sensei's smile stretched wider. "I'll destroy society's trust in the Symbol of Peace, starting by destroying its trust in that damn school."

"Excellently said," he chuckled. "My child, I believe it is time I told you about Deku's special task, beginning with the story of One for All, and my dear, misguided little brother."

Outtake:

The Kiyashi Ward Mall had been evacuated within minutes of Aizawa-sensei sounding the alarm. Each and every person was checked on their way out the door, in the hopes of preventing any other villains from escaping, but there was no sign of any more members of the League of Villains.

So why wouldn't Ochaco's hands stop shaking?

That's probably why one of the paramedics had given her a shock blanket, honestly. She was grateful for it; it was admittedly comforting, to pull the soft weight tight around her.

Shigaraki had almost killed her.

Shigaraki. Almost. Killed her.

She should have been more aware.

If it hadn't been for Sachi and her Serendipity quirk, he would have killed her. And he would have killed One for All, too.

She should have stopped him.

It was probably a silly thing to be so worried about when compared to the fact that she had almost lost her life, not to mention all the other lives that might have been lost before Aizawa-sensei could take that villain down.

She put everyone in danger.

Her shaking hands curled into tight fists, instinctively leaving only her thumbs outward so that she wouldn't send herself floating.

This is stupid; I'm being so stupid!

There was no way of knowing if she'd actually been the League's target or if it was sheer dumb luck that she had been the one attacked; she really shouldn't be beating herself up about it! There was no way that she could've known they were there; heck, even Aizawa-sensei had been caught off-guard-it was obvious in the way that his dark eyes kept sweeping over the crowd of her classmates, taking a headcount for the umpteenth time.

But what were the chances? What were the chances that Shigaraki would target her, the new holder of One for All?

Ochaco kept trying to put it out of her head, but she couldn't stop thinking about it.

She almost died today, and One for All with her.

And Deku…

Deku…

There had been something strange about the moment when he dragged Shigaraki through the portal with him-beyond just the fact that Aizawa-sensei's quirk didn't seem to have any effect on him. Something in his eyes.

His glowing, green, eyes.

"U-Um."

Ochaco flinched, turning with no small amount of surprise towards the source of the small noise.

There was a boy standing beside the (thankfully not needed) ambulance, head bowed, fidgeting anxiously, hands hidden behind his back. He looked younger than her, though he would be just the slightest bit taller if Ochaco were standing, with dark red hair styled forward, not unlike Kirishima-kun's but much shorter and half-hidden by a dark gray beanie. He wore jeans and a thin, long-sleeved, blue turtleneck in spite of the heat, so that only the pale skin of his face was exposed.

He looked about as terrified as she had felt mere minutes ago.

"Hey there," the young hero smiled up at him, some of her own anxiety receding now that she had a chance to focus on someone else. "Are you alright? Do you need help of some kind?"

"U-u-um!" he squeaked back, wide golden eyes darting up to look at her. He was practically shaking in his bright red tennis, lips moving soundlessly, swallowing hard against some lump in his throat. "I-I-I-! Y-you-! Th-This… This is f-for you!"

Ochaco blinked in surprise and confusion as the boy suddenly thrust his hands towards her, shoving something into her arms. She barely had time to grab it, vaguely registering that he was wearing white gloves in addition to the turtle-neck, before he turned and bolted, his face a bright shade of red.

"Ochaco? Tsukauchi-keiji's ready to take us to the police station. Kero."

"Huh?" Ochaco twisted back, blinking almost dazedly towards Tsu-chan and Mina as her friends walked towards her, glancing curiously at the boy's receding back.

"Who was that? Your secret boyfriend?" Mina grinned, although the expression seemed more than a little strained after everything that had happened today. It was obviously just a bad attempt at lightening the mood.

"U-Uh, I honestly don't know," Ochaco admitted, scratching at her cheek. "He just kind of shoved this at me and ran off?"

"What is it?" Tsu-chan frowned curiously, leaning a little closer with one finger resting on her cheek.

"I don't know that either," the girl frowned, staring at the slightly-crumpled notebook in her lap, flipping it over to read the untidily-scrawled title.

Ochaco felt her body stiffen at the same moment that Mina loudly gasped and Tsu-chan released a low, shaky breath.

Analysis No. 44: The League of Villains.

And with that, we are sliding into the endgame of Liar Liar! Next chapter comes out January 17th, narrated by Izumi Kouta! (The best part about using our hero-hating sweetheart to narrate the training camp? He doesn't give two figs about the training camp, so I can just gloss over it! Heheh…)