CHAPTER 14: USJ SURVIVAL

I noticed the black fog before everyone else did, and ran towards Iida. Kurogiri formed before I could reach him, towering over us. I reached the speedster, pulling my mask down like a helmet's visor. It was time to act. Clenching my fists twice, I expanded both halves of Ember Vindicta to full gauntlet form and reached Iida. Placing a hand on his shoulder, I spoke.

"Iida. Once I attack this guy, his attention will be on me. That will be your cue to run for the doors. Take a wide route around him so he won't be so quick to catch you."

He looked at me like I was crazy, which I suppose I was to attempt something like this. Kirishima overheard and caught my eye, nodding at the Villain. I nodded in return and flexed my fingers, ready to attack.

"Greetings. We are the League of Villains. Forgive our uninvited appearance, but today, we've come here to U.A. High School—this bastion of heroism… to end the life of All Might, the Symbol of Peace."

He glanced around. "He was supposed to be here today and yet I cannot see him. There must have been a change in plans we could not have forseen. No matter."

"NOW!" I blasted off, throwing a full force explosion. Kirishima leapt after me as well, swinging a hardened arm while the blue-haired speedster took off, giving Kurogiri a wide berth as he ran for the door. In the main timeline, Bakugo's blast was smaller than his other big attacks, meaning he didn't go all out. This time, you bet your 100% cotton turtleneck I went all out.

A grunt of pain could be heard from within the bowels of the darkness before I launched back to avoid the gate. Another warp portal opened beside me, the armoured engine user tumbling out and crashing into m- OW!

"You live up to your school's reputation. But you should be careful children, otherwise someone might get hurt."

Dang, forgot about his reaction time. I stood, offering Iida a hand up as I heard something like a cork coming out of a bottle.

"You three, get out of the way now!" We looked back to see the Space Hero aiming an uncovered finger at us. I snapped my head back to look at the mist man, who seemed to be contorting and expanding. I shoved Iida at Uraraka in time to hear the reanimated warper speak again.

"I'll scatter you across this facility to meet my comrades, and your death!"

I had no idea how specific Warp Gates worked, so if I went charging ahead, this power might put me in a different zone and leave Kirishima alone.

"Grab on to someone!" I shouted, hoping to be heard over the roaring cloud that washed over us. I saw Iida out of the corner of my eye grab Uraraka and Sato, shooting out of the Warp Prison. Grabbing Kirishima's arm, it would appear I wasn't a moment too late as we were sucked out of the area and towards the Collapse Zone.

Deku POV

It seems like that guy has a warping Quirk, which explains his speed and how they got in, so-

I exited the portal in mid-air, falling towards the water.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" I struck the water's surface, creating a splash loud enough to alert anyone as I went under. I looked towards the surface and swam as fast as I could with my clothes. It's a good thing All Might isn't here, otherwise we would be in the middle of a huge battle. Not to mention, Thirteen mentioned he used up most of his power. He still must have some left, but based on how she sounded, I dunno if that bit of power would be enough.

I turned, hearing motion in the water. A shark-like Villain was swimming straight towards me, faster than I could move underwater. "Nothing personal kid, but you gotta die!"

Flinching, I held up my arms. My axes were in my Hero Costume, so there's nothing I can-

*BAM!* Asui shot out of nowhere and kicked the guy in the face, disorienting him. That's right, sharks rely on their sense of smell and their ability to sense tiny magnetic fields to detect prey. That kick must have taken those senses out for a moment.

"Hey, Midoriya!" Shooting her tongue around my midsection, Asui leapt off the Villain's face and shot for the surface, hoisting me onto the false ship. I stood in time to see her throw Mineta onto the ship as well, though I noticed it was rougher than my drop-off. Seeing her climbing the ship, I smiled.

"You saved my life, Asui."

"I told you to call me Tsu."

"Oh, right, sorry!" I waved around for a moment before a grim expression settled on my face.

"This is turning out to be a terrible day of class." The amphibious girl put a hand on her head for a moment staring out over the water.

I nodded in agreement. "Agreed. I keep thinking about what that Villain said. They must have used the media breakin to sneak onto school grounds and look at the lesson plans to find out when All Might would be here. From that point, it was just a matter of waiting for the right time, like Todoroki said."

The purple-haired midget interjected, bravado written all over his face. "Hey, it's not like they can kill All Might, right?"

Tsu looked down for a moment. "Think about it though. If the Villains came here, they probably figured out a way to kill him."

"A possible way at best. All Might isn't going to fall to some crowd of punks. He's gone up against way worse and gotten out just fine. Even the strongest looking guy there, that Villain with the exposed brain, has an obvious weak spot. He might be strong enough to kill All Might, but the brain is a clear target." There was no way these Villains could actually kill him. That power is unlike anything the world has seen, and he didn't become the Symbol of Peace for nothing.

"At any rate, didn't you hear what that smoke guy said? We should probably be more concerned about getting out of here and not getting tortured to death. Even if All Might does show up and defeat that brain guy, assuming that guy was their ace in the hole, who's to say that All Might will make it out in one piece?"

I scratched my head. She does make a reasonable argument, but it doesn't exactly help morale. That brain guy might be strong enough to kill him, and the exposed brain might actually be a misleading opening, like Lex Luthor's exposed head of the suit. Besides, there were more pressing concerns. I saw the fins arcing through the water, clenching my fist.

"You bastards, I'm gonna enjoy eating you!" The shout came from the shark Villain from before. I looked overboard at their numbers as Mineta screamed. There was a lot of them all right. Outnumbering us five to one, and that was just the Villains on this side of the boat.

"We have to stop whatever these Villains are planning. We need to work together and keep All Might safe. No one at UA knows what's happening, so this is up to us. We need to be heroes."

Mineta gawked. "Are you crazy?! These guys want to kill All Might and you think you can take them down?! The best way to beat these guys is to wait for a Pro!"

Ignoring him, I focused on the task at hand. "The fight will likely be in the water. These Villains are tailored to the water, so they must have known what was in here when they looked at the lesson plans. But for such a careful plan, there's still one thing that's sticks out to me that doesn't add up. They warped you here, Asui-"

I cut myself off, sputtering as I tried to recover from the slipup. "I mean Tsu! Yeah, they warped you to the Shipwreck Zone, Tsu!"

She barely blinked at my outburst. "That kinda fell apart on you, didn't it?"

I sighed. "A little."

Mineta screeched, panic in every word. "So what?! Why does it matter that she's here?!"

I shot him a look before resuming my thought. If he kept panicking, he was just going to tire himself out. "Anyway, it means that the Villains probably have no idea what our Quirks are."

Tsu nodded, following my train of thought. "You've got a point, ribbit. If they knew I was a frog, they would've sent me into that fire zone over there instead of somewhere full of water."

"Correct."

I nodded, putting my fist into my palm. "They probably separated us because they didn't know what we could do, and planned to overpower us once we were in smaller groups. Easier to pick us off one by one. We can use that to our advantage. They don't know what our Quirks are. So, for all they know, the three of us could be super powerful. Look, none of them are trying to climb into the boat. That proves they're a little unsure. But that means they're not going to underestimate us, either. They're being smart and playing it safe. For now. We need to strategize."

Tsu nodded and crouched down. I followed suit, wanting whatever our plan was to remain secret. "Right. So let's talk Quirks. I can jump pretty high, I can cling to almost any wall, and my tongue can stretch up to thirty feet. I also secrete a toxic mucus, but it just sting a little. I can also spit up my stomach to clean it, but that won't really help."

I nodded, a little grossed out by that last part. "I figured you were powerful, but that's crazy. I'm strong, but it comes at a price. Once I use my Quirk, I'm pretty much out of commission for a while. It's a double-edged sword until I can control it.."

Mineta pulled one of the orbs from his head and placed it on the ship's wall. It stuck there as Mineta patted it. "My hair is made of these sticky balls. Depending on how I'm feeling, they can stick for a whole day. They grow back as soon as I pull one off, but I bleed if I use too many. They stick to everything they touch, but I bounce right off of 'em."

I nodded at that as well. Based on that data… I think I have a plan. "I've got an idea, but I need something first. I'll need something I can use to-"

Before any of us could say anything more, a massive water hand split the ship in half. Stumbling around, I felt the ship begin to sink.

"I'm done playing around! Let's get this show on the road!" A villain shouted from the water. I looked over the edge briefly. Oh yeah, this guy. He was all over the news a week or so ago. My gaze returned to the ship, glancing around to see what we could use.

"That's a cool power, but the ship is sinking."

"Thanks, Captain Obvious. I recognize that guy from the news. He's incredibly dangerous." The door to the ship's cabin jostled open in the havoc, and allowed me a look inside. I think I've got what I need.

Pulling out a med kit, I looked over the water before returning my gaze to a collected Tsuyu and a panicking Mineta. He was saying something about Yaoyorozu's boobs… geez, he needs a hobby. And no, unless your name is Jiraiya and you write a book, being a pervert is not a hobby.

"Listen up. A Villain who's certain of victory is bound to make a mistake-"

"What does that mean?! We're going to die." I sighed. The midget's panicking is not what we need at this moment. Cooler heads will prevail. Composing myself, I looked them in the eyes.

"This is our chance to defeat them. Get ready to move."

With that, I stood over the side of the boat, holding up the med kit over my head. "Oi! Fish-face!"

The villains focused on me, seeming to enjoy what looked to them like desperation. What I said next proved them wrong. Continuing with an accent, I smirked. Thank goodness Kacchan convinced me to watch that old pirate movie, because it was worth it to see the looks on their faces. "Come to negotiate, have you, you slimy gits? Look what I've got!"

Tsu and Mineta just appeared confused. Their confusion turned to surprise as I lunged over the edge, aiming my arm at the water's surface and bracing for liftoff. I can't sacrifice my arm just yet, but I have a plan. The Villains swarmed around me, eager to tear me to shreds.

"DELAWARE SMASH!"

I was launched upwards with the force as the water churned beneath me, forming a giant whirlpool that sucked the villains towards the center as I rebounded from the burst of wind. I saw Tsu jump out of the corner of my eye and felt her tongue wrap around my midsection to haul me to safety. Mineta saw what I did and decided to get in on the action.

"Take that, Villains! You can eat my sticky balls!"

…phrasing, Mineta. Phrasing. Regardless, the orbs of hair landed in the water, sticking to the Villains as they tried to escape the current. They clung together, refusing to detach even as the bad guys tugged at them. With an explosion of water, the clump of Villains was launched skyward.

"Guess we passed the Shipwreck Zone." Tsu said through her tongue, beginning to descend. As she landed in the water and we walked to the edge, I looked towards the other facilities.

Uraraka, Iida, Kirishima, Kacchan… please, stay alive.

My POV (Meanwhile…)

"WOOOOAAAAAAAHHH!" Kirishima and I crashed to the floor out of the Warp Gate. As we stood to orient ourselves, I realized we weren't alone. A crowd of Villains of all shapes and sizes surrounded us. A glance out the window revealed the Collapse Zone.

"Heads up Red, we've got company." I muttered quietly to him. I drew Sunlit Heart, the blade providing a small degree of comfort as we stood back to back and faced down the horde. Ember Vindicta was still fully deployed and dangerous, ready to show these suckers how painful a grenade capsule to the gut can feel. The artificial red-head hardened his arms, ready to fight. I uttered one phrase.

"Good afternoon, you poor doomed idiots."

With that, I ignited Sword Skill in my right hand and let my left crackle, swinging and blasting away with the fury of a cornered animal. I slashed apart their weapons before blasting them into unconsciousness, kicking one of them firmly in the face before turning to see how Kirishima was doing. Turns out, I needn't have been concerned.

He swung his hardened arms, punching and chopping away at anyone dumb enough to get in range. And in this cramped space, it was really easy for him to make mincemeat out of his opponents.

I rammed the pommel of my burning weapon into the gut of another Villain before blasting yet another out the window. "Sorry, I'm a bit new to this whole fighting for my life thing, so I don't exactly have any snappy one-liners prepared. I'm sure you'll understand if I stop talking and just kick your collective butts, and maybe rip your lungs out through your a**holes, a**holes!"

"That doesn't sound very heroic." Kirishima chided from behind me.

"Shut up, I panicked!" Well, at least I can cross an Abridgehog reference off the list.

We kept at it, the thugs scattering like bowling pins as we fought through them. Eventually, there was only one. I grinned and caught the hardener's eye.

"Hey Red, combo attack?"

He nodded in return, smiling. "Sure thing."

With that, he turned and ran behind me to the rear wall. This combo required precise timing, but my reactions were fast enough to make it work. Kirishima charged, his arms hardening as he ran at my back. The Villain raised an arm, a gun of some sort visible from the palm. Unfortunately, he wouldn't get the chance to use it. I crouched, avoiding the line of fire as the red-head leapt up. Raising my hands, I caught his feet and used my explosions in both hands to send Kirishima rocketing towards the guy. The red-head himself crossed his hardened arms in front of his now-hardened face.

"RED TORPEDO!" *SMASH!* The Villain was smashed through the wall by the flying rock man, unconscious from the damage. Standing up, I assessed the situation.

"While we've got a moment, let's recap. These guys are all mooks, and from what I can tell, there are only three really dangerous people here. That brain guy, the warp villain, and the hand-covered guy appears to be the boss of them." I placed a finger and thumb to my chin. This was gonna be close.

Kirishima got to his feet as well and turned to the doorway. "Come on, we need to make sure our classmates are okay."

"No."

The red-head gawked at me. I raised my hand for a moment before continuing. "Based on the power level of these mooks, our other classmates will have no problem handling them. I care about their wellbeing, but I'm also confident in their abilities. So instead of getting in the way, I'm going to the central plaza to fight the big guys head on."

My friend paused for a moment, considering what I said before a small grin cracked out over his face. "Sounds like you really believe in them. That's real manly, Bakugo. For a second there, I thought you didn't care."

I nodded before sheathing the sword. Turning to Kirishima, I spoke one last time. "It's because I care that I'm not coming to their rescue right now. Do what you wish to help. I'll see you on the other side."

I blasted away after that, the recoil of the explosions sending me towards the center at high speed. I heard my compatriot complain once before jogging after me, but I didn't slow down. Whatever was happening, I had to help!

Iida POV (A few minutes earlier…)

I looked back to see half the class still there. But where was everyone else? The cloud of darkness was reforming to make the Warp Villain, and the others appeared to not know what to do. Bakugo, our class rep, appears to be gone, as is the assistant class rep, Yaoyorozu, so Thirteen is the only one who can lead us. Shoji had his many arms extended, searching for our classmates before he spoke.

"Everyone's here. They're scattered through the facility, but they're here."

We breathed a sigh of relief before Thirteen turned to me. "Iida, was it? I have a job for you. Our phones and radios are useless, and the alarms aren't sounding. We're completely cut off from the outside world. Whoever the jammer is, they must have hid the minute they walked into the USJ, so they could be anywhere. It will be faster for you to run to the school and let everyone know what's happening."

I was shocked. Being asked to leave behind my classmates? That was disgraceful! "Yes, but Bakugo had a similar plan earlier, and he got me"

"This time, there are more of us to keep him busy. None of them are outside. If they cut the alarms, that means they're only in here and not out there." Sato walked forward, assuming a stance as he prepared to fight.

"If you get outside, you'll be okay to run and get help. Blow the mist away with those engine legs!" Sero got ready as well, standing beside Sato.

"Use your Quirk to save others. Be a real Hero!" Thirteen said, her filtered voice sounding more stressed than ever now. Uraraka stepped up and smiled, hiding whatever fear she had.

"I'll float you using my Quirk, like with Bakugo. You can make it."

The shadowy villain contorted again, ready to attack. "Are you really foolish enough to strategize in front of your enemy?"

"It won't matter once I'm through with you. "BLACK HOLE!*" With that, Thirteen let her power flow, the gravitational field absorbing the incoming warp mist.

"Black Hole. The Quirk that sucks up matter and crushes it into nothingness. An astounding Quirk indeed. However, you're a Rescue Hero, Thirteen. You lack combat experience, and battlefield awareness. Now, watch as you turn yourself to dust!"

Another portal opened behind Thirteen, partially destroying her suit before she stopped using it. The entire back of the white object was obliterated, the weakened voice of our teacher emanating from within.

"Sorry… he got me."

Thirteen fell to the ground, passing out from the damage she sustained. I was taken aback, but was quickly snapped out of it by Sato. "Iida, run! Get out of here, now!"

Not waiting for Uraraka to float me, I charged ahead, remembering Thirteen's words to me.

"I'll use my Quirk to save others, like a true Hero!"

I shot past the misty man, not bothering with fancy moves and focused solely on getting to the door. The sounds of battle wore on behind me as my classmates kept the Villain busy. Bakugo had the right idea, but he depended on too few people. To handle a Villain like this one, you need a group backing you up!

Rushing to the door, I managed to pry it open. Stumbling into the open air, I charged, headed straight for the school. All I can do now is hope that I can bring help in time.

Gentle POV

Oh ho, my vigilante debut went better than I ever dared hope it would! Thank goodness Oracle was able to provide me with something substantial. Resolving a hostage situation was one of the fastest ways to establish myself as a vigilante. Presently, I was sitting in my apartment, La Brava typing away at her laptop as I looked through some files on my computer. After finding out about Lady Nagant, I had begun a little side project of figuring out who some potential recruits might be. So many names had popped up as I sifted through the theoretical allies. I knew he planned to recruit Hawks and Stain, perhaps Nagant, but there was no reason I couldn't be proactive.

Let's see, who among these would-

"Gentle?"

I roused from my thoughts to look over at my assistant, her eyes containing some concern. "What is troubling you, dear girl?"

"Oracle said that your fight with a UA student was what made him decide to recruit you, so I've been keeping an eye on UA's security systems from time to time to try and determine who it is as well as maybe figure out potential allies. Unless I'm mistaken, the school itself will be a big part of the future."

It did make sense. I wish she had told me sooner, but it was logical. After all, a student would have access to things we could not. I nodded and motioned for her to continue. "Well, the entirety of the surveilance systems for the Unforseen Simulation Joint has gone offline. As far as I've seen, that doesn't happen. Sure, a soft reboot occurs every so often, but an entire system going down like this for an extended period of time is unheard of."

Oracle had hinted that something big was coming up in his last email, saying, and I quote;

"What's going to transpire next will be inevitable, and will have long-lasting effects going forward. I won't ask you two to intervene just yet, as I doubt you're going to be well received. But I will fill you in on the event proper once it has happened."

This must have to do with what Oracle said. I placed a finger and thumb to my chin. I hope you know what you're doing, good sir. You always appeared to be the one with a plan, but plans rarely survive first contact with opponents. So whatever plan he has in mind going forward, he must have backup plans on top of backup plans for his strategy to succeed. A man with such careful planning must be commended.

"Come, La Brava. I suspect we will need some tea for the explanation to follow."

The short girl hopped out of her seat and followed me to the kitchenette. "Whatever you think is best, Gentle!"

Cut! That's a wrap! I know, I know, you guys probably hate me for ending on another cliffhanger. Spoiler alert, this is nowhere near the last time I'm going to do this. Once again, if you have any names for Oracle's organization or potential recruit ideas, please tell me. The cutoff for name suggestions will be the end of the USJ arc. As for next time, all I can say is this version of events won't end quite the same as it does in canon.

Anyway, what do you guys think? PM me or leave a review, and I'll see you all later.