HA!
Bet you thought you were gonna have to wait another 6 months for the next chapter, didn't you?
Consider this a thank you for being so patient with me for these last few months. I hope you all enjoy some prime Izuku spotlight!
As always, there will be an optional Author's Notes at the end if you're curious about a few things in this chapter. Also! I have some pretty cool news, near the bottom, if you guys are interested!
Enjoy!
CHAPTER WARNING: This chapter contains intense violence, blood, gore, and near death experiences. Some minor Body Horror as well.
I do not own My Hero Academia.
The feeling of déjà vu was as heavy and present as the rain that soaked into Izuku's skin.
While he fell from an unknown height, the memory of his entrance exam began to flood his thoughts. And although the circumstances were similar, there was still a good amount that had changed between then and now.
For starters, it was so dim that Izuku could barely see the outlines of the fast-approaching city block beneath him. He also wasn't the only one falling this time; over the pelting of the rain, he could hear the screams of the others who had also been caught in the mist villain's attack.
But perhaps the most important distinction of all was experience.
Experience meant that Izuku knew exactly what he needed to do in order to save them all. And as the memory of Yesterday's Battle Trial guided his hand, it also meant that he could use One for All to a better degree of success.
Timing was everything, and his moment to act was about slip away. With a yell and a flick, a wide and powerful gust of wind hurtled towards the ground before it rebounded back to blast them all in the air. For the briefest of moments, the fierce winds stalled their momentum, suspending them a couple meters above the road as if they were all stuck in a vertical wind tunnel. But as soon as the winds died down, gravity was quick to pull them all into her embrace once more.
While everyone fell onto the pavement, Izuku ended up belly-flopping so bad that the air was forced out of his lungs. He was too stunned to notice the sounds of shoes scraping against the asphalt nearby, and he was too helpless to fight back against the strong pair of hands that heaved him onto a set of shoulders. The two of them began to run for the corner of the nearest building before the rest of the villains could even stir.
As soon as Izuku regained his breath, he began to try and break free from the hold. To his surprise, his captor let him go without any resistance as soon as he started to struggle. Once he had been set down on his feet and had taken a few steps away from them, Izuku understood why.
"-Cough!- Oh! S-Shoda-kun!" Izuku wheezed out between breaths as he leaned against the wall to make his head stop spinning. "Y-You're ok!- "
"Ssshhhh!"
Nirengeki pointed towards the villains as he forced his breath to steady. Izuku nodded in understanding, and as stealthily as he could, he peered around the corner to make sure their absence hadn't been noticed yet.
The villains who had fallen through the portal with them were slowly starting to recover. From where the boys hid, the groaning and moaning of those who were struggling to stand could barely be heard over the rain. The few who were already on their feet, however, had begun some sort of argument that only grew more heated as time went on.
Whatever it was they were arguing about, Izuku and Nirengeki honestly didn't know, nor did they really even care. What they did care about, at least for Izuku, was how a shirtless villain with mottled skin and a canine-like face had picked up Izuku's cleaver in interest... And to his horror, began to sniff it like a hunting dog searching for a trail.
With a shared look, the boys agreed in silence that it was time to leave... But as they tried to escape while the villains' were distracted, fate apparently had other plans in store for them.
As they crept away from the squabbling villains, they kept their eyes locked on the group… and not on their environment. The boys didn't realize how cluttered their alleyway was until Izuku accidentally stumbled over some broken pallets...
…And as Nirengeki hurried to reach out and catch him, he accidentally ended up knocking over a garbage can.
It crashed onto the ground with a resounding CLANGCLANGCLANG! and the boys were helpless to watch as the lid bounced away and rolled towards the street. They could hear the villains' argument come to a complete stop, and it made their hearts sink low in their chest. The air went rigid and still for the briefest of moments, and then all the tension shattered like glass as a few thugs screamed, "GET THEM!"
The boys were already sprinting away before the words were even said. As they made their way through the winding alleyways, each step soaked them to the bone and each burst of wind chilled them to the core. But neither boy seemed to care at the moment; they only focused on taking their next step, the next random turn, in the hopes of losing their pursuers.
But once again, fate had other plans.
After a handful of random choices, the boys found themselves face to face with a dead end… and the chorus of the angry mob wasn't too far behind.
"Oh crap! I'm- I'm so sorry Shoda-kun! I thought this was the way out- "
"Worry about that later, Midoriya-kun! We can still-!"
"-This way! They went this way!-"
"- No, they just turned the corner over there!-"
"- AFTER THEM!"
Both of the boys froze for a moment as they heard the villains closing in. Their hearts began to beat wildly in their chests as they turned and braced for what was to come. Nirengeki took a few steps forward as he shifted his weight onto the balls of his feet and brought himself into a southpaw stance. And as the boxer took a steadying breath to prepare for the fight to come, Izuku mentally raced through all the options they had available and recalled the lessons he had learned the day before.
'Be clear when you communicate, and be decisive with your actions. Know when to act and when to hold back, and always keep planning your next step.' That's what Kan Sensei said yesterday, during the review. Right now, we're cornered and outnumbered… so what is going to do next?...
In the moments before the villains arrived, Izuku took in every detail of his surroundings. The alleyway they were trapped in had a few dumpsters, and it was littered with garbage cans. Air conditioning units were mounted on a few of the windows, and a fire escape was literally within arm's reach to his left. Doors lined the walls of this long alleyway, and their backs were only a few meters from touching the dead end.
From the villains' perspective, it definitely looked like Nirengeki and himself were stuck between a rock and a hard place…
...But from theirs, all Izuku saw was a bottleneck.
"Shoda-kun, please wait!" he whispered as his bad hand went out to grab his shoulder and he finished forming the hasty plan in his head.
Nirengeki half turned to show he was listening. He refused to take his eyes off the mouth of the alleyway, where a few of the villains had already passed by the entrance on accident.
"I-I have an idea, but I'll need your help to pull it off- "
"Say no more, Midoriya! Just tell me what you need."
Izuku quickly whispered his plan as one of the villains finally noticed them at the end of the alleyway and called out for the others to come back. That villain- the same one who had picked up Izuku's cleaver- strode forward and took the lead with a low growl escaping his lips. He slowed his pace slightly so that his allies could catch up, but there was no mistaking his eagerness for blood with how the cleaver lightly bounced against one of his palms.
The rain was almost quiet compared to the ruckus created by the villains, but it was still loud enough to mask the soft sounds of nearby squeaking. From behind one of the trash cans inside the alleyway, a couple of mice watched on as they tried to take shelter from the rain. There wasn't anyone who was aware of their existence, and they used that to their advantage as they began to scamper towards the two unsuspecting boys who had their backs to them.
Step by step, the villains continued to close the distance, as cautious as they were confident despite their remaining, simmering frustration. The boys stood their ground in response, refusing to run regardless of the fear on their faces and the shaking of their legs. And right as the villains began to believe that this was their win…
…Izuku made his move, and everything changed in an instant.
Like a spring releasing tension, Izuku darted out far faster than the mob and Nirengeki had anticipated. He had bolted for the nearest dumpster, and as soon as he was within reach, he grabbed its handle and yanked it out into the middle of the alleyway. The dumpster felt as empty as he hoped it was, and right after he kicked open the wheel locks, he shoved the whole container as hard as he normally could into the crowd of incoming villains.
In their confusion, the mob stopped and stared at the young man's questionable actions, and the sight of the rolling dumpster caused some differing responses. Some were suddenly on guard for any trickery. Others were only baffled, but still continued to advance. There were even a few who stopped to chortle and jeer at whatever he was trying to attempt.
But that all stopped as soon as the green-haired boy shouted in a voice empty of fear.
"Now, Shoda-kun!"
"Hupp!"
As Izuku backpedaled away, Nirengeki charged forward and rammed his shoulder into the dumpster with a shocking amount of force. The villains immediately began to back off as a feeling of unease overwhelmed them… but by then, it was already far too late to act.
Right as Nirengeki threw himself to the ground, Izuku finished priming the middle finger on his left hand with One for All. And the moment the boxer was safely out of the way, Izuku flicked his finger and unleashed his hastily built power.
The gale that roared forth rushed into everything in its path within the alleyway-turned-wind-tunnel. Anything lightweight and unattended battered the villains who were caught in the bottleneck, and the dumpster that the boys had shoved into their path began to fly forward and bowl many of them over.
Whether it was by the winds too strong to resist, or by the dumpster too heavy to stop, the villains were forced all the way back to the opening of the alleyway. And right as the winds began to die down, Nirengeki braced his body and activated his quirk.
Twin Impact, at its core, is a quirk with a few physical drawbacks. For every impact he recreates, there are always at least two recoils: one felt by the target, and another felt by himself… and both have about the same amount of power stored within them. Anytime the young boxer uses his quirk, he feels the empowered recoil on the same place he initially made contact with. And usually, it hurts a lot more the second time around.
Over the years, his body grew and adjusted to accommodate his quirk and it's recoil, just as amputees learn to adjust to life with fewer appendages. It made him bulkier and sturdier than the average teen, but it also meant that his bruises weren't as big or as nasty as they were when he was younger. Nowadays, he could brush off the sting of Twin Impact with ease; in the case of an unusually powerful recoil, all he would need is a simple stretching session to cope.
Nirengeki knew how to take a hit. His body was built to withstand the brunt of his own powerful impacts. From his own experience, it takes quite a bit of force behind a blow to even phase him these days…
… and that was exactly why what happened with the dumpster caught him off guard.
The moment he activated his quirk, the dumpster he had rammed into lurched forward at a speed he had never seen before. In a fraction of a second, it had traveled dozens of meters and had bulldozed over everything in its path. Without losing any of its momentum, it crashed into the building behind the mob, going through it-
-and then the world went black.
But only for a moment, this time. And only for Nirengeki.
The boxer reopened his eyes instantly, and found himself seeing stars and hearing whines. His head was throbbing like a ringing bell, and he was surprised to find his shoulder and side as numb and tingly as they were. His muscle memory kicked in once he realized he was still on the ground, and he struggled to get back on his feet. He couldn't help but notice that this was also the first time his quirk left him feeling like his arm was about to be pulled out of it's socket-
-wait… that's Midoriya… helping me to stand... Nirengeki numbly thought as he slumped forward and noted a pair of red sneakers with his blurry vision.
He hadn't realized how heavily he was leaning on his friend as the two of them awkwardly stumbled away from the downed villains. With the cool rain helping to clear his head, Nirengeki was able to fully snap out of his daze after a few more deep breaths and a couple more steps. As Izuku paused to pick up his cleaver, Nirengeki's vision returned to normal and he was able to somewhat walk on his own. And once the two of them shared a nod and followed the dumpster's path to escape, the boxer felt like he was mostly ready for the next round.
As luck would have it, the dumpster had cleared a path all the way to the other side of the building before it had come to a stop in the middle of the next street. The pathway that was created was big enough for the boys to easily move through, and once they were on the other side, they took a moment to look around and get their bearings. As Izuku made sure none of the villains were following them, Nirengeki spared a glance at the ruined container... But the longer he looked, the more he realized that he had no idea what was going on.
One entire side of the dumpster was completely caved in, and it had an indention in the middle deeper than the rest. His quirk should've only activated on the portions of the dumpster where his body had made contact. However, it looked like his quirk had activated- and affected- a much bigger area.
What… What just happened?! Was that…me? No, no, it couldn't have been… that-that has to be from Midoriya-kun's doing-
"- Shoda-kun, are you alright?"
Nirengeki snapped out of his thoughts and turned from the dumpster to see his friend looking at him in concern. Later. Think about this later. "I'll be fine! Just, uh, got knocked around a bit. How about you, how's your hand?"
Izuku flexed his left hand and tried his best to ignore the tenderness of his two very swollen, bright red fingers that shook with every move he made. He had tried to aim for the same percentage he used during his Battle Trials, but he was fairly certain he overshot that amount by a bit on both attempts. "I-I can manage, Shoda-kun! I can still fight!"
Nirengeki stretched out his shoulder as he nodded and winced. Jeez, when was the last time a rebound messed me up this badly? "I'm glad, that's good. W-What's the next step here, Midoriya-kun? How do we escape from… from wherever this is?…"
"Are you sure you're ok, Shoda-kun? You-You kinda… fainted, back in the alleyway for a moment…"
"I'm… I'm a little sore. And I'll be honest, I have no idea what happened to me back there. But right now, we have bigger things to worry about. I appreciate the thoughtfulness, Midoriya-kun, but let's focus on staying alive first, yeah?"
Izuku hesitated before he nodded in agreement. He knew Shoda was amazing but… wow. Part of him was in awe of his toughness and power, and the other part was itching to analyze what had happened and explore the possibilities that his friend's quirk just created. But before Izuku could shelve his admiration and curiosity, Nirengeki suddenly froze and pointed at his shoulder.
"H-Hey, uh, Midoriya-kun? There's, uh-"
"Squeak! Squeak!"
Izuku nearly jumped a meter in the air at the unexpected noise that was right next to his ear. He reflexively tried to brush the mouse off of his shoulder, but it had already scampered down his body before he could even move his arm.
As the boys continued to try and brush off the mouse that wasn't perched on his body anymore, a loud crash! suddenly ripped through the air. The boys froze and glanced around, and when they couldn't find the source of the noise, they shared a look and nodded in silent agreement. They needed to get out of sight, fast, and they needed to quickly make a proper plan to-
"Squeak! Squeak squeak squeak!"
The soft chirps from the mouse began to grow in pitch and frequency, to the point that they could be heard over the pouring rain and the whispering wind. It's little noises contrasted so much with their environment that the boys couldn't help but look back in wary interest.
There were now two mice on the pavement, and both stood on their hind legs as they sniffed the air between the noises they made. One of the mice scurried closer to the crash, while the other tentatively ran back towards them.
The mouse that came back stopped about halfway before it looked up at the boys. It then began to run around in a tight circle in front of them, pausing every now and then to look up and emit a few more squeaks. The second mouse turned to look back, and it's own high-pitched squeaks began to join the first's. It hurried back to the first mouse, gently bumped into it, and then scurried back towards the crash with the second mouse hot on its tail.
"Uh, Midoriya?... Am I… Am I seeing things?"
Izuku didn't immediately respond. He was watching the mice intently as they paused once more to look back. The green haired boy took a single, hesitant step forward, and the mice reacted by scurrying closer to the crash, doing their best to keep the same amount of distance between them.
Once they realized that Izuku had stopped moving, they stopped to turn and look back at him again with twitching whiskers. He took another step forward, and watched as the mice repeated the exact same actions as before.
"I think… I think they want us to follow them."
"… dude… That has to be a trap…"
"I… disagree."
Nirengeki tore his gaze away from the mice to look at his friend, and found the freckled teen deep in thought. "The mice are acting strange, but they haven't been outright hostile. Every villain we've faced so far has attacked us on sight, regardless of planning or organization. If these mice are acting strange because of a villain's quirk, we would've been bitten a dozen times over already- "
Izuku froze mid-sentence as a single thought began to dominate his mind: What if… what if, what's influencing the mice isn't a villain's quirk?...
Prompted by a sudden sense of urgency, his mind quickly began to piece together some clues he had noticed but hadn't really spared the time to process yet. (These buildings… they're similar in style to the ones at the entrance exam… and now that I'm actually looking around, I don't see any rain clouds. It's too dim to tell, but I'm pretty sure there's a wall directly above us, and surrounding us too. This has to be some sort of controlled environment... like the ones available in the USJ... And if we're in one of it's simulation areas...)
"Shoda-kun! We're following those mice!"
"Wait, what?!" the boxer hurried after Izuku as he took off at a brisk pace to follow the tiny creatures. "Why?!"
"I'm pretty sure the mice aren't being controlled by the villains! And I'm pretty sure that we're still in the USJ!- "
"-But- But wait! That would mean…" Nirengeki's eyes widened as the dots began to connect, and he swore under his breath as he picked up his pace.
"Oh crap! They could be a call for help!"
With this epiphany at the forefront of their minds, the two boys ignored the chill of the rain and the wind as they earnestly began to follow the mice...
...And they were completely ignorant of the true dangers that lie on the path they had set upon...
-(TTAE)-
The mice were hard to follow in the dim light of the dome, but their soft squeaks and chitters were enough to allow the boys to keep track of their movements. The adrenaline that overflowed in their veins helped to ward against the chill, though every step they took still made them shake with anticipation.
The crash they heard before began to be joined by others, and the closer they got to whatever was making them, the more intense they became. Yells and screams rose to join the crashes, and they mixed with the downpour of rain and the howling of the wind to create one surreal symphony of disarray.
Despite all the unknowns they faced, the boys continued to follow the mice through the simulation area. They focused solely on the tiny creatures, following them through another alleyway as the sounds of battle steadily drew near. They prayed that this wasn't some elaborate ruse, and as they rounded the corner to turn onto another street-
-they were promptly forced to scurry back into the cover of the alleyway… Just in time to avoid half a car as it flew by, scraping against the pavement.
Izuku and Nirengeki were content to keep their backs pressed against the wall for the moment. Their eyes were wide and their breathing was fast as they tried to process what they had just seen. After a moment had passed, Nirengeki broke their silence with a voice barely audible over the ambience.
"M-Midoriya… what… what the heck was that?!"
Izuku swallowed the lump in his throat as he replayed what had just happened in his head. "I-I have no idea, Shoda-kun… b-but… I-I think we found our classmates…"
Nirengeki nodded in agreement as he took a few more steadying breaths. As he did, Izuku chanced another peek from the corner of their hiding spot and watched as the scene unfolded before them.
It was like a modern-day Renaissance painting had come to life. In the heart of the conflict, about fifty or sixty meters away, two people stood in the cone of a dim, flickering streetlight. The shorter of the two was a boy wrapped in a black cloak, who had the head of a raven. The other boy by his side was a bit taller and stockier, with peach colored skin, a red and yellow costume, and a rock-like head.
Their body language was as different as their appearances, judging by the way they moved. The larger of the two boys was crouched on the ground, visibly shaking, with his hands next to his ear and positioned in a way that made it look like he was trying to hide something within them. The smaller boy, in contrast, was the very picture of calm and collected, save for the way he kept shifting his gaze from side to side.
The smaller boy's disposition would have been odd for the average person in their situation. But, his actions were well warranted for one huge reason…
…and that reason was due to the presence of the entity.
The entity in question was a being of shadow moved around like it was fueled by vengeance, and it hovered around the raven-headed teen like some sort of dark guardian angel. It was the size of Shishida in his beast form, and its reach alarmed those who were trying- and failing- to approach. It's yellow eyes seemed to glow in the dim light, and when it spoke, it's voice rumbled over the hard-pelting rain. Izuku couldn't quite hear whatever words the beast was saying, but the message it conveyed was quite clear: Try me. I dare you.
The villains surrounding the two boys had opted to keep their distance. They were hesitant to approach, their attacks were half-hearted at best, and the slightest twitch from the shadow beast made them all jump back in fear. But even though their little game of cat and mouse was intense to watch, it appeared, in Izuku's eyes, that the beast was holding back.
Or maybe it's being forcibly restrained? he mused out of habit as his eyes wandered over to where it's body connected to the smaller boy's abdomen.
"Midoriya-kun, look!" Nirengeki suddenly nudged him as he spoke in a hushed tone. Izuku jumped a little, having not realized that the boxer had also peeked around the corner. Much to his surprise, however, Nirengeki wasn't pointing at their classmates. "You were right! The mice were sent to get help! Look, they're running towards the bigger guy!"
Izuku glanced at the peach-skinned boy just in time to see him reach out and pick up the mice that had scampered his way. He stood up on shaking legs and brought the critters closer to his ears, as if the mice were whispering and he was trying to listen.
The boys were compelled to step out of their hiding spot once their suspicions were proven true. There wasn't any hesitation between them as they set their jaws and made up their minds to do everything they could to help their classmates.
Luckily for them, the boys from 1B were able to start their advance unnoticed. The villains were all too preoccupied by the shadow beast, and the ambience of the battle and the dome were enough to mask their approach.
"I know you had your heart set on learning this stuff in the classroom… but sometimes, you don't have a choice but to dive right in." Nirengeki murmured as he shifted his weight onto the balls of his feet and brought himself back into his fighting stance. He found comfort in the familiarity of his movements as he willed himself to take the lead this time. Midoriya had already done so much to save them; now, it was his turn to make sure they got through this next part alive.
"Like I said before, I'll be in your corner. And if you ever find yourself on the ropes, don't be afraid to tag me in. You can count on me, Midoriya-kun. You ready to kick some ass?"
Izuku swallowed hard as he kept pace with his friend, and he did his best to tighten his grip on the cleaver. His heart thumped wildly in his chest, but still, he leveled his gaze and held his weapon before him in the same way that he'd seen Kamakiri hold his. Nirengeki was right, and Izuku was grateful to be his friend. The boxer's quiet words were enough to give him strength, and Izuku found himself ready to put what he had learned into practice. "Y-Yeah, Shoda-kun. We- We can do this!"
Remember, keep communication clear, and think about your next move. Take the initiative, chain your attacks, and aim for the weak spots, just like Tokage-san does. And above all else, keep cooking the eggs in the microwave. Cook them two, three at a time, so that One for All remains constant and ready to use…
Izuku's words were loud enough to draw the attention of the nearest villain. The moment he turned their way, Nirengeki was rushing forward at a surprising speed to intercept him. He lashed out with an unexpectedly vicious jab-jab-cross combination, and landed all three hits in rapid, efficient succession.
The villain stumbled back in surprise as the cross hit him in the jaw, and Izuku took the opportunity to run forward and hit him with the back of his cleaver. The rigid spine of the weapon collided with the back of the villain's knees, and it made him topple to the ground in a daze and a splash.
His collapse startled the closest villains, and Nirengeki didn't waste any time in activating his quirk as they turned in their direction. His knuckles twitched at the empowered recoil, and the fallen villain's body lurched to the side as a powerful unseen force rammed into his chest and chin. It forced the villain to slide along the wet pavement so fast that he tripped his closest ally before they could even react.
(Quick! Gotta take them down before they can get up!)
In the spirit of 'taking the initiative,' Izuku had a thought: What would happen if he simultaneously sent power to both his legs and his arms? If he could immediately close the distance while attacking at the same time-
WHAM!
Izuku blinked back his surprise as he looked down at the crumpled forms of the villains at his feet, under his cleaver. They had been hit with so much force that the pavement had cracked and spiderwebbed a few meters around them. He let out a shaky laugh at his unexpected success, and as he looked up to find his next opponent, he found that the villains looking their way were hesitating to act.
Nirengeki, who had been hot on his tail, also found himself skidding to a stop and blinking in surprise.
Were… were his eyes playing tricks on him?
He rapidly shook his head, flinging rainwater everywhere as he attempted to clear it. And when he opened his eyes again, it verified that what he had just seen was real.
Those two villains had been at least five or six meters away, and his friend had closed that gap in an instant.
Not figuratively, literally in an instant.
And… why was a dim, greenish light fading from his body?
Nirengeki blinked a couple of times before he forced himself back into action to continue their assault. The… lack of light… it's probably messing with my head… he thought as he glanced back at his friend and saw that he looked as normal as ever. Coulda sworn that Midoriya was glowing there, for a second…
The boxer didn't have time to finish the thought. Izuku's cement-shattering smash had drawn the attention of more than a few other villains around them, and a handful were already getting over their shock to rush forward and attack his friend.
As Izuku and Nirengeki continued to navigate through the mob, the boy with the mice finally realized what was happening and looked in their direction with wide eyes. He was unable to make sense of what his tiny friends were trying to tell him; in all honesty, it sounded like they had accidentally brought more enemies to them. But, once the mice had reacted to the crunching of the pavement, he followed their gaze and quickly connected the dots. As smoothly as he could, he stood up and placed his hand on the smaller boy next to him. And once he had his attention, he leaned in to whisper in his ear.
Izuku ducked down to avoid a wild haymaker from some villain in a stained tank top, who had lobster claws for hands. His mind flashed back to the Battle Trials, and Izuku felt his body respond accordingly as he remembered how Kamakiri would attack as he dodged. He sent some of his power to his arms as he swung his cleaver up, and he struck the villain across the jaw with enough force to knock him into Nirengeki. The squat boy punched him in the nose before the villain could even take a single, wobbly step, and as the villain reeled from the hit, the second impact sent him flying into his allies.
Before either boy could advance on the disoriented villains, a pair of large, inky-black claws came from above to shove them straight into the ground. The birdlike head of the shadow beast arrived a moment later, and it's smooth, yet curt message cut through the startled cries of everyone around it.
"Ayo. Fumikage wants a word with you guys."
The shadow beast wrapped a clawed hand around each of them before the boys could even respond. It hauled the boys all the way back to the street lamp with ease before it set them down without warning. And as the boys stumbled to catch their balance as they landed, two pairs of arms reached out to steady them.
"Are you both unhurt?" the raven-headed boy said in a surprisingly deep and solemn tone.
"We're good! We're here to- look out!"
Izuku shouldered the boy with the mice out of the way as a villain with a snake-like body lurched forward with their long neck to bite him. The freckled boy managed to parry the attack on time by smacking the villain's face to the side, but the parry made his broken fingers throb in agony. The cleaver clattered to the ground as Izuku hissed in pain, and Nirengeki was quick to step forward and throw a well-placed bolo right into the villain's liver.
The villain fell to their knees, clutching their stomach, before their groan of pain quickly turned into a shriek of surprise. A massive black hand had suddenly snatched them up, and they were thrown at another villain who was approaching before either of them could even react.
The crowd around them quickly backed off again as the snake-like villain crashed into their ranks. As the shadow beast swiped it's claws in a wide arc around them, Izuku took the opportunity to dip down and retrieve his weapon. With his throbbing hand cradled close to his chest, he held the cleaver out before him, determined to intercept the next attack the best he could. "W-We're from 1B, and we're here to help! Is there anyone else in this area?"
The shadow beast turned its attention to the villains on the other side of the loose ring, and the raven-headed boy shook his head to Izuku's question. His gaze was deceptively sharp as he glanced around, and he kept his eyes on the places his beast wasn't focused on.
(Wait, are they mentally connected? Can the shadow see what he sees, and vice versa? So cool!)
"So, you are from our school," the shorter boy mused as he gestured to their soaking-wet gym uniforms. "I am grateful, and it appears that we are in class B's debt. But to answer your question, no. Koda-san has been searching for others since we arrived here, and has found none except the both of you. We," he gestured to the four of them, "are the only souls in this area."
The taller boy, Koda, nodded earnestly in agreement. Oddly enough, the mice on his shoulders nodded along with him.
(So it is some sort of animal controlling quirk! Amazing!-)
"Thank goodness you guys are alright," Nirengeki said as he picked up a chunk of rubble and volleyball spiked it towards a villain who had begun to charge them. The piece of rubble ricocheted off the pavement before it suddenly shot across the area like a baseball in a batting machine. It only missed the villain because she forced herself to dive out of its way with a scream of fright. "This is a horrible place to be trapped in by yourself."
"Agreed," the solemn boy said as he appraised the two newcomers. The shadow beast suddenly darted across the ring to pounce on a cluster of villains who were whispering among themselves. "The sooner we leave, the better. How were you two able to reach us so quickly? Is that option available for us to make our escape?"
"One of your classmates created some sort of portal to our school. Another one ran through to get some help." Izuku had a flash of insight as he spoke, inspired by how he had seen both Shoda and Tokage use their environment to great effect. He used a small burst of his power to kick one of the larger pieces of rubble at a villain who was getting too close for comfort; he hit it so hard that it turned to dust mid-flight. The villain he had aimed it at was sprayed with fragments as she tried to duck out of the way, and she began to blink and cough as the wet dust began to envelope her.
Izuku closed the distance while she was distracted, and brought the back of his cleaver down onto her collarbone to stop her in her tracks. As he backpedaled away from her, he hastily said, "I-I don't think that option will be available to us for a while, uh…"
"Tokoyami," the raven-headed teen supplied as his shadow beast continued to create havoc. It was barely perceptible in the dim light, but Izuku thought he saw his eyebrow raise in interest. "Hmmm… so the pariah has become the savior… Monoma-kun sure knows how to leave an impression."
"U-Umm…"
"Squeak! Squeak squeak!"
The three boys turned to look at the one name Koda. He was once again kneeling on the ground, but this time he had extended his hand to let a third mouse climb onto it. As that mouse began to emit a series of chatters and squeaks, he cupped his other hand around it to shield it from the rain.
"U-Um, this little one… s-she… out… s-sure of it!"
Contrary to his size, the boy's voice was so soft that he could barely be heard over the surrounding chaos. Izuku and Nirengeki couldn't quite make out what he was saying, but his own classmate heard enough to fill in the blanks.
"Your mouse can lead us to safety… is that what you're saying, Koda-san?" Tokoyami asked as he mentally told his partner to attack the villains approaching from their left.
As the quiet boy nodded, Izuku looked up in surprise and hope at the news. "The mouse told you the way out? That's amazing! Where is it at? How far away is it?"
Koda briefly froze at his question, as if he were unsure how to answer. "D-Distance is… it's hard for animals to describe. B-B-But mice have really good memories! She- She can lead us out of here, I know she can!"
"Nice! Then let's get going- "
"Wait! Shoda-kun, we need a plan!- "
Izuku was cut off when a burly villain with spade-like hands burst out of the asphalt behind him and swung down with a heavy blow. As Izuku leapt out of the way, Nirengeki rushed forward to take him on, starting his assault with a flurry of jabs. As the two of them briefly fought, the boxer ducked and weaved under the villain's wild, retaliating swings, and each time the villain's missed, Nirengeki activated one of his impacts to further disorient him. After one particularly powerful recoil threw the burly villain off-balance, the boxer closed in and slammed a hook right into his diaphragm.
"Look, Midoriya-kun, I'm gonna be blunt, ok?" Nirengeki quickly said as he backed away from the burly villain and activated the rest of his impacts simultaneously. Izuku almost missed out on what he was saying as he watched the villain get launched into a nearby yatai, but he forced his attention back to his friend once he continued to talk. "If these villains couldn't handle us when we were in two groups, then they're not gonna be able to handle all of us when we're working as one! We can do this, man! We can get to safe- "
Izuku blinked as Nirengeki was suddenly cut off.
He felt his heart skip a beat, and then another. And when Izuku eventually blinked, his heartbeat began to thunder in his ears.
Beside him, Fumikage's stoic face rapidly turned into alarm as he experienced something similar.
Dark Shadow's appearance immediately reflected his master's inner turmoil. It even abandoned the villains to hurry back to his side.
And once their initial moment of shock had finally passed... the three of them began to frantically dig for their friends.
-(TTAE)-
Unbeknownst to the four teenagers, the 'leader' of the villains in the Downpour Zone had stayed out of the fight. He was content to let his feet dangle over the edge of a nearby roof, and as he watched on from afar, all he could do was sigh in boredom. Honestly, he had no intention of getting involved; he was only here as favor, and also to see the supposed 'end of All Might' in person.
But… a job was a job, and the bare minimum was- at the very least- expected…
...Even if his 'boss' had assigned him to a place where he couldn't even see the show, much to his slight annoyance.
Welp, what's done is done. I wonder if Fuzzy can get his hands on the footage afterwards... Assuming, ya know, that his 'boss' can actually pull off that ridiculous pipe dream of his...
He sat on the edge of that building, watching the poor excuse of a fight with his chin in his palm and waiting for a half-decent moment to tip the scales.
He almost thought it wasn't gonna come, but then the guy with shovels for hands decided to try his luck. (What was his name again? Sajihori?... Eh, whatevs.)
And as soon as the skittish thug had popped out of the ground to sneak attack the teenagers, the 'leader' decided it was time to add in his contributions.
Sinkholes… are deceptively dangerous. They have a tendency to build up unseen over many years, and no one would be any the wiser until they've eroded just enough to collapse. The tunnel created by Shovel-Hands gave the 'leader' a head-start on the erosion process; all that was left was to do was drag some water under the surface and force it to rapidly carve out the area. He considered bringing the oil from the asphalt into the mix, but he decided to keep it in reserve just in case.
He cringed in sympathy as he watched Shovel-Hands get his ass beat by the fat kid. As the teenager somehow sent him flying, he felt the rapidly-moving water begin to meet less and less resistance, and knew that his sinkhole was seconds away from being born. With one final nudge of his quirk, the 'leader' grandly swept his arms like a conductor in front of an orchestra, and forced every bit of underground water out to the edges of his pit trap.
It's the least I can do for you, Shovel-Hands, since your tunnel made this happe- aaaahhh, dammit…
The villain slightly frowned when only two of the four teenagers fell into the sinkhole about as wide as an inflatable pool. As annoying as it was to admit, the 'leader' had been hoping to at least capture bird boy...
…Meh. Oh well.
He made a gentle, sweeping motion with his right hand and brought all the water he had shoved to the outer edges rushing back into the pit. At the same time, he quickly dropped and splayed his left hand, and forced all the nearby oil from the asphalt to flow into the pit as well. As the oil and water mixed for just a moment, he relaxed his left hand to make a rising motion while his right made a downward shoving one. And once he deemed the oil and water separated enough to do what he wanted, he stiffened his left hand as his right made a slow grasping motion.
He released a breath, relaxed, and watched the area closely to ensure that his quirk remained in effect. Hmmm, I wonder how long my quirk is gonna last this time… he mused as the two remaining boys realized what was happening and visibly began to panic. 'Cuz even if it's only for a minute… you guys are still gonna get screwed…
The villains all around the boys began to hoot and holler with glee, and many began to charge the teenagers now that they were desperate and distracted. As the 'leader' shifted back into a comfortable position, the two boys began to act with an impressive display of ferocity. He hummed in interest as he watched their desperate actions, but… despite their best efforts, he couldn't help but shake his head and sigh.
Sorry, kiddos. Don't take it personally. You can only stall for so long, ya know? Besides, beatin' on that oil isn't the answer to your problems-
CRACK!
The villain blinked before he slowly leaned forward in interest.
The plain boy… the one with the minor power-up quirk... had somehow completely bypassed his pit trap…
…Though, it appeared that his efforts weren't without a heavy toll…
The 'leader' was so preoccupied with admiring the plain boy's accomplishments that he almost forgot that he had a job to do. Sort of.
With a muttered, "Whoopsie," he decided to play it safe and put forth some genuine effort. He didn't waste another moment as he reached out with his right hand to make an exaggerated grasping motion. At the same time, he slapped his left hand over his newly formed fist, much in the same way that Paper covers Rock in a game of Janken.
He had no idea if the kid just got lucky, or if he somehow figured out how his quirk worked. In all honesty, it didn't really matter; the teenagers were preoccupied, and despite the havoc the shadow beast created, the mob was quickly closing in- growing bolder- with ever step they took towards the duo.
The seconds seemed to stretch out in the moments before the inevitable. And as it all came to a head- with the shadow beast's handler desperate and distraught, and the plain boy paralyzed by indecision and fear- the 'leader' believed the boys to finally be defeated.
But then he detected swift and sudden movement, from the last place he expected it.
And as the 'leader' turned his attention to the boy with the cleaver, every iota of his common sense told him to run...
... For as the young man moved through the downward motion of one final swing, his body began to glow in a dim light, and emerald arcs of lighting began to dance along the surface of his skin.
-(TTAE)-
Izuku, Fumikage, and Dark Shadow managed to clear away the loose pavement under them in record time. But, the same urgency that was driving them forward was also giving them tunnel vision.
They hadn't realized how bad their fixation was until the moment they had removed enough of the debris aside to see their classmates. They could see them somewhat clearly, below and through the black, oily liquid… but in the back of their minds they couldn't help but think, 'why haven't they surfaced yet?!'
The boys stood directly above them, on the black liquid as easily as if it were solid ground… and yet, they couldn't quite figure out what was so wrong about their positions, their perspectives.
Alarm bells were blaring in their minds for all the obvious reasons, yet they still couldn't quite see the bigger picture before them…
…Until, that is, they tried to plunge their hands into the black liquid, to pull their classmates out… and found that they couldn't.
It was like they were trying to push against a slab of flexible metal. They pushed and pushed, clawed and beat against its surface… but no matter what they did, the liquid remained immovable. Even with the shadow beast ferociously swiping at the surface, and even with Izuku frantically swinging his cleaver with five percent of his power... the liquid simply would not budge.
A chorus of cheers and howls suddenly pierced through their tunnel vision. The hairs on their necks began to rise as they picked up on the sudden shift in their temperament. The mob began to act just like a clan of hyenas, and a few had even begun to charge the boys the moment they detected 'wounded prey.'
And in response to their advance, Izuku grit his teeth and yelled out from the depths of his heart.
"TOKOYAMI-SAN! PLEASE, BUY ME SOME TIME!"
"Let's go, Dark Shadow!"
The shadow beast roared in fury before it launched itself at the incoming mob of villains. While it was consumed with it's relentless assault, Izuku and Fumikage continued to try and free their friends. The bird-like boy was busy hauling more of the pavement away in the hopes of finding a weaker area that they could break through. Izuku, on the other hand, continued to go for the more direct approach.
With every one of his failed attempts, Izuku swung again at a slightly higher percentage. He wasn't aiming for a specific number; he was only focused on increasing his power just enough to break through.
But, he couldn't raise it too much: both of the trapped boys were very close to the surface, and the pit trap itself was only slightly more than two meters wide…
If… if he broke through whatever this effect was… and if he failed to stop himself in time… then he was definitely going to end up hurting one of them…
...Or worse...
Had Izuku not been in such a panicked state, he might've noticed that his whole body was beginning to feel… alive, as his power traced his movements. From his feet to his legs, to his core to his back, and then down both of his arms, One for All truly began to course through his veins as he used everything he had to free his friends. He could hear his whole body beginning to creak in agony as the power spread everywhere within him, and he could feel his bones starting to crack under the strain of his efforts…
…And then he heard, and felt, the concrete shift around him.
Izuku whipped his head towards the source of the noises, and for a moment, he was confused. But with his next breath, his brain had finished solving that puzzle, and his body had begun to hurry for the edge of the pit trap.
I get it now! There are different liquids in this pit, but only the one on top has been made immovable! The other liquids have been taking the brunt of our blows all this time, which is why the outside edges of the pit trap have started to break off! If I can smash the edges hard enough, there might be a chance that I don't have to deal with the immovable layer at all! And once I bypass that…
Izuku barely passed the closest edge of the pit before he slammed his heel as hard as he could on the ruined concrete. There was a reverberating CRACK! in the air as the power of his stomp utterly pulverized the ground within a few meters of him. He felt the bones in his shin snap at the impact, and he ended up landing on his stomach as he fell into a crater of his making.
But that was fine, more than fine! Water began pouring out of the pit and into the crater as he laid on his stomach, following the flow of gravity just like it would in nature. And as Izuku bared the pain in his leg to look up and find his friends, he felt his heart swell with relief as he heard them sputtering and gasping for air.
…I'll be able to save my friends!
Not a moment was wasted as Izuku hurriedly crawled forward to pull them out. Fumikage followed his lead, scrambling onto his feet to hurry for the crater. He jumped down from on top of the black liquid onto the rubble, and as he landed, he took a moment to summon his shadow beast back to his side.
Thankfully, the boys in the pit had recovered enough to begin moving towards their classmates. Between the chest-height water level and their coughing fits for air, their trek was undoubtedly slower than it should've been. Izuku was facing a similar problem, with how his leg throbbed from every movement he made. But as he lamented over leaving his cleaver- which could've been use as crutch or a cane- back at the edge of the crater, he began to notice some oddities as he crawled through the water.
The first one he noticed was the water itself. It was incredibly hard to move through, and if felt… disturbing, like he was trying to wade through a bed of seaweed, and all the strands kept trying to grab him as he moved. One glance at his classmates let him know that he wasn't the only one struggling to move around… And it definitely felt like it was getting harder to move in by the second.
Another thing he noticed came from overhead, about thirty or forty centimeters above Koda. The liquid that formed the top layer was slowly losing it's form. It had begun to ripple, like raindrops on a pond… and there were areas that were beginning to fully lose their shape as the liquid dripped onto the water below.
Izuku's gut began to clench uncomfortably tight, and it spurred him to move faster as he got to his feet. Dark Shadow came swooping in to help at that moment, and together, the two of them reached out for their classmates as the boys who were trapped reached out for them…
…But no sooner had they grabbed each other's forearms did the water around their feet suddenly shift.
It felt like they were being swept up in a tide, and all three boys ended up losing their balance and falling into the water. And right as the water began to drag them further into the pit, the immovable liquid from above lost its shape and completely collapsed on top of them.
The only reason Izuku made it out of there was because Dark Shadow was able to grab him just in time. Once it had pulled Izuku back to the safety of the crater, it flew back to the mass of black liquid to try and snatch up the other two… but it was already too late...
The black liquid had become immovable again, and all the creature could do was watch as it's claws bounced off it's surface.
After a few more fruitless swipes at the liquid, Fumikage called for his beast to resurface, to handle the incoming mob again once more. The shadow beast obeyed with a bit of reluctance… and once it was gone, Izuku was left on his back in the crater, without a way to free his classmates.
As the young successor lay on the rubble, reeling in pain, he found that all he could do… was watch.
All he could do was watch as Tokoyami and his beast steadily became overwhelmed from fighting their hardest against the unrelenting villains.
All he could do was watch as the liquids shifted and took the shape of a black, swirling ovoid, one that was as tall as the pit but only half as wide.
All he could do was watch as Koda covered his mouth with both of his hands, and all he could do was watch as Nirengeki slammed his fist again and again and again into the immovable water without any success.
And the more he watched on, the more his thoughts began to spiral out of control.
Because even with All Might's power… he had still failed to save his friends…
…He really… really… was just a worthless Deku-
-"Don't sell yourself short so easily, Midoriya-kun; you did good today!"
Izuku nearly choked out a sob as Nirengeki's words broke through the fog of his mind… and before he even realized it, he was back on his feet, searching for the cleaver he left behind.
Once it was found, he hobbled over to snatch up the weapon with both of his hands. He shifted himself into a stance, with his bad foot in front of the other, and leveled the cleaver blade-out before him. And as he took a deep breath and forced himself to swallow the lump stuck in his throat, he threw all of his concentration into solving the problem before him.
Nirengeki had said that he was in his corner. So now, Izuku needed to be in his.
One way or another, he was going to find a way to save his friends.
- "You're athletic, but… not in that way, ya know? When it comes to a fight, you gotta know how your body works."
Nirengeki's advice rang true once again, more so now than it had before.
Izuku's body wasn't strong enough to handle the higher percentages he needed to free his friends, and his shaking leg was solid proof that brute strength alone wasn't going to cut it. So, instead, he decided to spend a few precious seconds to focus. Izuku was going to face this problem from another angle, and he was going to seek out the clues he needed to save his friends.
With his cleaver at the ready, he saw the black stains that were splattered along the length of its spine. They were similar to the ones that Tokoyami and himself had littered all over their clothes. Additionally, he also noticed that little ripples marred the surface of what he assumed was oil- at least, it shimmered in the dim light just like the oil from asphalt would. And even though it was barely perceptible, Izuku was certain that the ripples were caused by the rain that fell onto it… as well as the wind that brushed over it too.
(So the oil can move… just not in the way I was forcing it to…)
His eyes traveled up and around the ovoid, and he realized that it had been sized and shaped to match the side of the pit… which meant the trick he used before wasn't going to work again. But then, he noted his position from where he stood in the crater… and he realized that that issue wasn't going to be a problem.
In fact, with Tokoyami behind him, and most of the sounds of Dark Shadow's brawl coming from the same general direction… if he found the right angle…
…Then he could save everyone, without hurting himself.
But… would it work? His last attempt had failed, and Recovery Girl's warning about the dangers his power posed to himself and to others was still fresh in his mind. If this plan backfired… if he was even off on its execution by a hair-
-"Breathe, Izuku. You got this, ok?"
Izuku forced himself to exhale, and he felt momentary relief as all his wayward thoughts came to a stop.
He wasn't going to hesitate, not this time; he had succeeded once, and he was going to succeed again.
"SHODA-KUN! I'M GOING TO AIM FOR THE SPOT RIGHT ABOVE YOU GUYS, SO STAY CLOSE TO THE BOTTOM! Tokoyami-san! Please, when I swing my weapon… tell Dark Shadow to get out of the way!"
Izuku didn't wait for their replies; he only focused on building up as much of his power as he dared while Shoda and Koda swam to the lowest parts of the ovoid. He pictured the movements he needed to trace perfectly in his mind while he waited, and his breathing was brought into a steady rhythm right as they got out of harm's way.
Start with the cleaver ready, and exhale…
With his cleaver held before him, gripped as firmly as he could with both of his hands, Izuku began to send One for All to all the places it needed to go. Power began to flood his body as every little egg was delivered to all the right places, all at once. His body twitched and writhed with the hum of his quirk as it enhanced his muscles to the extreme… and like a candle shining in the night, Izuku began to glow and shed dim light…
Bring the cleaver up… and inhale…
With a fearless step forward, he brought the cleaver high above his head and adjusted his stride to accommodate his wobbly broken shin. At the same time, he began to shift his power from his legs to his torso, and then from his torso to his arms. Little rivers of red energy began to appear on the surface of his skin, and as One for All raced from one part of his body to another, they moved in tandem with his shifting power.
Now step… and swing!
And right as he finished stepping forward… Right as the little rivers of red energy transformed into emerald arcs of lighting that danced along his skin… Izuku brought the cleaver down with all of the power he had built up-
-before he abruptly stopped mid-swing, with his arms firmly at hip height.
At first, nothing happened whatsoever as he pulled back on his attack right before he struck the ground...
…But in the moments that followed, even Izuku found that he had a hard time keeping track of everything that happened.
He felt his arms seize up as the full extent of his generated power transferred from his body to the weapon. As the cleaver began to bend from the sheer force of his swing, Izuku suddenly remembered why All Might had used cheap sledgehammers for their control-training exercises in the first place.
Despite being sturdier and hitting nothing but air, the weapon still shattered into a dozen pieces the moment he stopped in his tracks. The pieces weren't even on the ground before the winds began to drastically change in both direction and speed. It was like Izuku's swing created a jet stream, and watching it hurtle through the air was like watching a giant, invisible wedge divide the falling rain in two...
... But the rain wasn't the only thing that was being divided.
The One for All powered winds collided into the earth, and the pavement began to fissure under its unrelenting strength. Dust and debris were immediately blown away, revealing the uneven trench that was being carved into the very ground in mere seconds. But even with the storm raging on, and even with the earth being split in two, Izuku barely acknowledged what was happening before him.
Instead, he kept his eyes riveted on the boys who were trapped in their prison. He sucked in a breath as the wind shredded through the pavement with startling ease. His heartbeat quickened as the wind sliced it's way towards the ovoid, hacking it away as easily as a table saw could cut through wood. Izuku began to fear for the worst, and right as he tried to step forward before it was too late-
-whatever remained of the ovoid completely burst apart, as if a bomb had detonated right under it's surface.
There was so much force from the burst that Izuku was thrown on his back and onto the rubble underneath. Oil and water splattered him mercilessly, and his leg was absolutely killing him... but right now, he couldn't have cared less. All that mattered was that his friends were free, all thanks to a last minute miracle-
(OH! Shoda-kun must have activated his quirk! The oil must've been firm enough for him to land all of those hits! But since there's only one explosion, does that mean he activated them all at once?!)
Izuku was so relieved that he hadn't even noticed his windstorm had finally begun to die down. He only realized it once the lights in the dome flared to life, and he flinched away as his eyes were forced to adjust. The artificial winds and rain had also stopped working, and their absence created an unnerving lull in the ambience. A synthetic voice began to speak over the intercom a moment later, and the words, "…System…Error..." echoed on repeat throughout the dome, making the sudden, eerie silence feel more oppressive than it was before.
When all was said and done, Izuku's windstorm couldn't have lasted more than six or seven seconds. But for those who had front row seats to it's devastation... it may as well have lasted for hours.
-(TTAE)-
There was hardly any movement to be seen in the aftermath... if you were stuck on the street. The nearby rooftops, however, were a completely different story.
While everyone else was left reeling from the whirlwind, the 'leader' on the rooftop was already hustling off the roof and down the fire escape. He was grateful that no one was aware of his movements, because his body was way too jittery to do anything but flee, and his mind was far too busy replaying the last few seconds of his life.
In the blink of an eye, that kid had literally cleaved a hole through the wall of the dome. He wasn't an engineer by any means, but those walls were very thick and very sturdy... and somehow, the kid threw a goddamn typhoon at it. One that was strong enough to force that very thick, very sturdy wall to cave and buckle and rupture with shocking ease.
From where he stood, the villain couldn't see how far the wind had traveled outside, but it looked like the dome had taken the brunt of the impact. Honestly, he didn't really care what went on outside the dome; he was far more consumed with watching the wind gouge out the earth and toss around his goons like they were stuffed animals. Those weren't the only visual effects to have happened though; street lights were blown over, buildings swayed and crumbled, dumpsters and food carts were sent flying into the air...
... and all of that happened with a single, calculated swing of the kid's weapon...
Fuck this. I am OUT.
Hokatachi Jidaro continued to descend from floor to floor, as quickly and as quietly as he could. He kept muttering obscenities under his breath as he shook his damp salt-and-pepper hair out of his grey-green eyes. The kid's last attack proved to be his breaking point, and all he found himself thinking about as he escaped was how nearly everything on this entire job had gone to shit. He should've voiced his concerns once he saw what he was working with, and he should've dipped out the moment Handyman and Misty-san showed up with that... thing...
But, he had stayed, mostly because Fuzzy- a damn good broker and the guy who had offered him the job- had asked him too. He had went along for the ride because he'd done multiple odd jobs for Fuzzy in the past, and the two of them had solid rapport for being occasional accomplices. But the main reason why Jidaro had stayed despite his better judgement was because Fuzzy had vouched for his new employers, and in their kind of work, Fuzzy's word carried a lot of weight.
So what in the actual fuck was going on with this job?
In his honest opinion, a toddler eating a box of crayons could've shit out a more coherent plan. The goal itself was basically unobtainable, and the method to achieve it was idiotic. Communication was nonexistent, information was minimal, and leadership was optional. The workforce had been scooped out from the bottom of the barrel, and the gear was barely a step above generic. And that was just the basic stuff.
What in the world was going through that broker's head, when he decided to team up with the League of Villains?
I know times have been tough lately, but... yeesh. Villains used to have standards, dammit. And jobs as ambitious as this one should've been nipped at the bud. He should've know that...
Whatever. I'm heading back to Fuzzy's, and we're gonna have a loooooong talk about this...
If, ya know, I can somehow find my way back to one of his safehouses... Been working together 22 years and the prick still uses his quirk on me. Asshole.
-(TTAE)-
While Jidaro escaped unnoticed, Izuku groaned and remained on his back, shaking from a combination of pain and adrenaline. It didn't feel like he broke any of his bones during this stunt- besides his already broken shin. No, he just felt sore and tender all over, as if his body just relived his first six months at Takoba Beach all in the last few seconds.
When Koji and Nirengeki's coughing had subsided enough for them to stir from the bottom of the pit, Fumikage finally shook himself out of his daze. With a bit of mental prodding, a tame, docile, (and slightly shaking) Dark Shadow was sent to help pull them out. While Dark Shadow carried them out as gently as it could, Fumikage glanced at Izuku and began to cautiously approach him.
Izuku tried to reassure his classmate with a strained smile, but a swell of movement and noise off to their side diverted their attention. Once he saw what was happening, Izuku began to yell at Fumikage to leave him, to run and get to safety… But before the words could even leave his mouth, he realized he didn't have to say a thing.
The villains they had been fighting were the ones who were creating the ruckus, and it seemed to only grow as more and more were roused out of their shock. But unlike before, when the villains were tense and ready to kill the teenagers without a second thought… Every single one of them was now doing everything they could to flee in the exact opposite direction.
Gone were their nasty, twisted expressions as they made their way to safety; the only emotion that was left was sheer and unholy fear in the wake of Izuku's destruction.
Some were able to fully sprint for the newly created hole. Others had to crawl and limp their way there, after the roaring winds and shaking earth battered them so mercilessly. And then there were some who had to beg for their 'allies' to help them out... with little to no success.
Those in the last category had been subjected to the worst of the windstorm. Among the injuries were legs that were bent at odd angles, heads that were openly bleeding from the flying debris that had bashed into them… and even a few who had remained nearly motionless in the aftermath. The only evidence of their consciousness was the low groans that were barely audible, and the feeble movements of their chest.
And as the last of the villains who could flee ran away, the area became still and silent once more.
Izuku, who had been watching the villains intently, jumped a bit when someone gently grabbed him from under his armpits and began to pick him up. After a few awkward movements, Izuku turned and found himself face to face with Fumikage, who was ducking under one of his arms to better support him.
The two of them together hobbled their way towards their other classmates without saying a word. Koji and Nirengeki were slowly getting to their feet, spitting and coughing out water as they tried to catch their breaths. Fumikage's guardian hovered nearby, and it continually glanced around the desolate space to keep an eye out for trouble.
During their little walk, Izuku missed how Fumikage kept glancing at him from his left in silent appraisal. He also missed how Dark Shadow shied away from him as discreetly as it could when they were close enough to talk to their friends.
"Shoda-kun! Are you ok?! You're not hurt, are you?! And Koda-san, are you ok too?"
As Koda silently nodded and gave a feeble thumbs up, Nirengeki whipped around unsteadily at the sound of his voice. "-Cough!- Holy crap, Mi -Cough!- Midoriya! What the he -Cough!- What the heck was that!?"
Izuku suddenly became acutely aware of the two other sets of eyes (three, if Dark Shadow counted) that were openly staring at him, waiting for his answer. The urge to shrink away hit Izuku squarely in the gut, and he found himself taking a step back, unable to look any of them in the eye. Recovery Girl's warnings suddenly began to reverberate in his mind... and all he found himself thinking about was how some of the villains still remained in the area, and not by choice.
"I'm… I'm-I'm sorry, S-Shoda-kun. You... You guys could've g-gotten really hurt, from what I did... I-I-It was the only way- I-I didn't think… I should've- "
He felt his next words get caught in his throat as a pair of brawny arms pulled him into a hug.
"What're you even apologizing for, bro?! You -Cough!- You just saved our lives!"
Izuku froze, unsure how to respond, and Nirengeki let him go with a parting thump on his back. Both he and Koji were still coughing a little, but they were looking a lot better now that they could freely breathe.
"I am of the same mind as Shoda-san. You have my deepest gratitude as well, Midoriya-san," the raven-headed boy quietly spoke as he inclined his head in deep respect. "We are in your debt. Without you…" Fumikage trailed off and sighed, before he straightened himself to look Izuku in the eye. "Do you need some more assistance with walking? Dark Shadow, come over here-"
"-BOYS!-"
"-Boys, are you alright?!-"
"-What happened over here?!"
The four young men turned to find three identical people sprinting towards them, with each of their sopping wet trench coats trailing behind in their wake. Relief welled up at the sight of their teacher, and the boys immediately moved in their direction.
Or, they all tried to, at least. Izuku only managed to take a single step before he stumbled, but Dark Shadow was there to gently caught him with its claws.
Two of the Ectoplasms rushed forward to meet up with the boys while the third stayed behind, turning to examine the broken wall and placing a finger in his ear. As he called in to verify that the students in the Downpour Zone had been found and were being prepped for escort, he was suddenly cut off by the shouts of another clone. He listened in to the information that all the clones were receiving on their earpieces… and every single one of them came to realize that they needed to get the children out of the USJ.
Right. Now.
Because if what the shouting clone had said was true... If The World's Greatest Hero actually relayed that message to them... Then there was only one thing it could possibly mean...
All Might was fighting for his life... and the villain he faced was so powerful, that he intended to bury them under the ruins of the USJ.
06:52- Izuku, Nirengeki, Fumikage and Koji are found by the Ectoplasms.
Author's Notes!
And with the end of this chapter, Izuku has finally achieved Full Cowling!... Well, for like a few seconds anyway. But, not to worry, Izuku will be sure to hone his new technique once he gets to understand it better!
So, last chapter, I mentioned that using dice rolls to decide who ended up where sorta gave me some trouble. This, was why.
Izuku and Nirengeki were, originally, supposed to end up in the Ruins Zone... with Bakugo. I was surprised that the dice rolled up that way, but I tried to go with it, to see if I could pull it off.
I couldn't.
No matter what I did, no matter what I tried, this whole scenario just wasn't working the way I wanted it too, character interaction/development wise. I must have rewrote this section about 4 times, but each time, something was off. This was probably the biggest reason as to why I took so long to release the new chapters; I didn't want to publish anything I didn't completely love, and let me tell you, I hated how this originally turned out.
Eventually though, I got frustrated enough that I just scraped the entire scene and rerolled the dice. The Downpour Zone came up, and I had a different issue this time around because Tokoyami is just so dang powerful, and the addition of Izuku and Nirengeki was just not needed... Eventually though, I made it work with the help of one of my OCs. He showed up earlier than I would've liked, but... I think his debut went off somewhat smoothly!
Speaking of which, how did you guys like Jidaro? If you were wondering about his name, (which, I must confess, I am not too skilled with creating Japanese names, so I do apologize if I didn't quite make it right.) His first name, Jidaro, contains the Kanji 'ji' (self) and 'daru' (lazy). When together, his name reads as 'self indulgent.' And his family name, Hokatachi, contains the Kanji 'ho' (to carve/carving) and 'katachi' (to shape/to form). When read together, his family name reads as 'engraver', which I found was... relevant, for his role in my story. But anyway, what do you guys think his quirk is? (Hint: it's NOT Hydrokinesis.)
I forgot to mention in my last author's notes, but Itsuka's little brother, Kenji, contains the Kanji for 'health' and 'second'. I tried to make his name similar to how Itsuka has hers written, so... hopefully I did alright in that department.
Anyway, I hope you guys liked Izuku's and Nirengeki's little trek through the Downpour Zone! Let me know your thoughts!
OH! Before I forget: I am currently working on two other stories at the moment! The first one is another 1B centered story, based on the picture of Eri dressed in a witch's costume that Horikoshi published last year for Halloween! Expect the first chapter to be published around the same time that Chapter 21 of this story gets published! And the second is actually a collab, also staring our 1B superstars, that I am super excited for! It's gonna be a crossover of excellent proportions, that much I can give away! I won't spill who the other author is quite yet, but... if you are curious, let's just say he is one of the best authors of a specific AU that's really popular with Izuku!
Thanks again for being awesome, everyone! Until next time, stay safe, stay happy, and stay healthy!