Chapter 14: Conviction of a True Hero

All For One chuckled at the wince of the man on the viewscreen. Knowing that he had one of the cornerstones of the Hero Support industry by the balls always gave him a warm and fuzzy feeling. "Hello, Tohru Yaoyorozu, how are you today?"

There was still a flash of anger in the black-haired man's eyes. He hadn't accepted his fate as a pawn in the destruction of All Might and hero society yet. What a shame. All For One always savored that moment, the moment when they realized that his friends were in for life.

"I have a partial list of the Heroes that Class 1-A are going to for the internships." Tohru said flatly, "Including Izuku Midoriya."

All For One clapped his hands together, "Well done, Tohru! You've ensured your daughter's safety for a little while longer. Although..." He looked over the list. Midoriya had gone to... Mirko? That was certainly a departure. He had expected All Might to throw his successor at Gran Torino. "Depending on the company she keeps, I may not be able to guarantee..."

Tohru's reaction was immediate. All the color drained from his face. "What are you talking about?"

A grin split All For One's face as his fingers danced across the tablet in front of him and he sent a certain photo a member of his intelligence network had sent him. "This. Your daughter seems to be quite smitten with Izuku Midoriya."

Tohru shook his head in disbelief, yet reality would not change to accommodate him. A picture of Momo with her arms wrapped around Izuku Midoriya had appeared on his computer. "She mentioned a boy but... I didn't know it was him..."

"If you want your dear Momo's safety to be guaranteed, I would advise you to warn her away from that boy." All For One said, "Because I can guarantee you one thing: I will make tragedy follow him, and everyone he loves will be chaff in the wind."

All For One ended the video call and made another one. Kurogiri had indicated that young Tomura had come up with an operational plan to acquire more party members after his meeting with the Hero Killer had not borne fruit. The viewscreen came to life once more, this time showing the bar that functioned as Tomura's safehouse and Tomura himself.

"Sensei." Shigiraki said, bowing his head.

"Young Tomura!" All For One said cheerfully. He was truly thrilled that Shigiraki was beginning to show initiative. It was an important step in his development. "Kurogiri tells me you have a plan to bolster your ranks!"

"Yes, Sensei." Shigiraki said, "After thinking on what to do next, and talking with the Hero Killer, I believe that my next move should be a large scale attack, but for said attack to be a smokescreen. During the attack, I plan to infiltrate the joint police and HPSC server hub in Hosu City and download as much information as I can about what villains are still at large. Then use that information to recruit as many people as I can to join the league, coupled with the example of the recent attack to act as a signal fire."

All For One tapped his chin as he considered it. It was a good plan. One that combined a goal with Tomura's natural tendency towards chaos. "Who will carry out the smokescreen attack?"

"How many Nomus are ready?"

If All For One still had eyebrows he would have raised one. That was interesting. Play on the lingering fears from the USJ attack and also ignite fear and panic by letting the Nomus run wild in a densely populated area. "I currently have six ready. They aren't as strong as the one at the USJ, but each could take down several heroes by itself. You may have all six. Consider it a reward for your initiative, but keep in mind how much effort it takes to build one." And if your plan does not succeed, young Tomura, you will still be able to find your "party members" as you insist on calling them. I will see to that.


Midoriya was beginning to wonder if he had somehow contracted some sort of conspiracy theorist disease from Todoroki. He was seeing them everywhere!

"Yeah, I don't like using the HPSC satellite offices either, kid." Mirko groused, "But it's more rational than going to some hero in the area. Especially since the top hero in Hosu is Thunderbolt. Ugh."

Midoriya had been listening when she had explained to him that the HPSC maintained offices in every city that heroes could use if they needed to travel away from their own agencies. But her wording had sent him on another burst of insane theorizing. She said it's rational! Just like Aizawa-sensei would!

He set his backpack and case containing his hero uniform down, "So, what next? Go out on patrol?" That... might not be the best idea. If Iida sees me...

Mirko shook her head, "Nah, kid. That'd be a good way for us to never find the Hero Killer or get blindsided by him." She gestured to a workstation in the corner of the office space, "There's another reason we're here. Since it's through the HPSC, we've got near-instant access to police records, medical records, and the Hero Network."

Midoriya perked up. It made perfect sense, now that he thought about it. But... didn't Mirko have a reputation for shooting from the hip? Why the focus on investigation? "I didn't know that you... did anything like that."

Mirko rolled her eyes, "I'm reckless, not stupid." She crossed to a whiteboard and grabbed a marker. "First of all, we need to figure out what we know."

Midoriya took out the journal he had dedicated to his knowledge of the Hero Killer. "Okay... as far as I know, all of his victims -dead or alive- were found in back alleys or other secluded areas."

Mirko wrote it on the board, "So we know he likes his privacy. Probably so the sick freak can monologue as his victims bleed out."

Midoriya met Mirko's eye for a moment and shuddered. That was a reminder to him. She was saying to him that This villain is a unrepentant murderer, and will kill you without a second thought. He gulped before continuing, "We also know that all of his victims were injured or killed with bladed weapons... although in almost all of the cases there was no sign of a struggle..."

"So, he's an ambush predator." Mirko said, jotting it down on the board, "What else you got?"

Midoriya gasped. "I need to see a list of the Hero Killer's victims, ordered by blood type!"

Mirko snapped back to him, "What? Why?"

"I think I know what his Quirk is!"

Mirko went over to the workstation and started requesting the information. "Talk to me. Why do you think you know?"

"Okay. Why does he leave some Heroes alive while killing others?" Midoriya asked.

"So people know what that bastard wants." Mirko said, "His bullshit more just society."

"Okay, but why has no one checked for a pattern? His pattern of kills and how many kills in an area is known." Midoriya said, "So, if I'm right..."

The workstation dinged, and Mirko checked the list. "I'll be damned. All of the Heroes he left alive had either type B or AB blood."

"I knew it!" Midoriya crowed. "His Quirk... I think it has something to do with blood! That's why he always attacks with bladed weapons! It probably can paralyze in some way, with some sort of limit based on blood type."

Mirko whistled, "This going to be a pain in the ass. When we fight him, we can't get cut. Not even once." One of her rabbit ears twitched, "Plus there's no way we'll just find him alone. We'll have to ambush him while he's in the middle of trying to kill another Hero. Which means..."

Midoriya felt like a void had opened up in his stomach. "Which means we may likely end up running into Iida... while he's trying to kill him."

Mirko glanced out the window. Night had fallen on Hosu City, the sky was clear... and there was something that set her on edge. A buzzing at the base of her skull that just would not go away,..

She nearly swore. It was her Rabbit Survival Instincts. "Kid, get geared up. Hurry."

Midoriya finished putting on his hero costume with a tug on the gloves. "What's wrong?"

"Don't know. Just got a real bad feeling..." There was a knock at the door. She opened it to find a HPSC employee there, "Yeah, what?"

Midoriya clutched his head as it throbbed in pain. Danger Sense! We're under attack! "Mirko, get-"

Midoriya's warning was cut off by an unearthly wail pierced the air. "What the hell?" Mirko yelled, "Let's go!" She shoved the HPSC stooge to the side and charged out the door with Midoriya hot on her heels.

They burst into the reception area of the HPSC office just in time for another hero to get thrown at the wall next to them and leave an impact crater. Before them stood a humanoid creature that stood seven feet tall and had light gray-blue skin... and an exposed brain. Its arms ended in giant pincers. It reared back and screeched again. Midoriya sucked in a gasp. There was no mistake.

This was another Nomu.

He was about to warn Mirko about it when Danger Sense throbbed again. He gritted his teeth and rolled forward, barely dodging the Nomu extending its arms far beyond the human norm and attempting to grab him with its pincers. Mirko dodged in the same way. "I think we have to go for the brain!" Midoriya said.

Mirko cartwheeled past another blow, "How do you figure?"

"One of these things was at USJ!"

That was all the convincing that Mirko needed. "I'll keep it distracted, go for the kill shot!"

The Nomu's eyes turned towards her and took that as an invitation. It tried to grab her again, only for Mirko to smack the offending arm out of the way with a roundhouse kick. "LUNA SWEEP!"

Midoriya took a moment to take in his surroundings, making a point to ignore the bodies strewn around the room. They were probably just injured, and there was no way he and Mirko could start triage until the threat was eliminated. The room was trashed, but the walls and ceiling still looked stable. No time to hesitate! One For All: Full Cowling, Ten Percent!

He leaped towards the wall, then kicked off sending himself careening at the Nomu. He extended his feet and braced for impact. "BULLET TRAIN SMASH!"

"Good shit!" Mirko called out after she kicked the monster's other arm, keeping it from launching a counterattack.

Midoriya's drop kick struck home, and the Nomu stumbled back. I can't let it regenerate! It doesn't seem to have Shock Absorption or all of the Enhancer-type Quirks that the Nomu at the USJ did, but I can't take any chances! He flung an arm out behind him and flicked a finger, sending him towards the Nomu again. The monster screeched in a vain attempt to rattle him, but Midoriya silenced it with a well placed axe kick to the brain.

The Nomu went rigid and fell to the ground, like a puppet whose strings had been cut. Midoriya ran over to the nearest person on the ground, a man laying face first on the ground, "Hey, can you hear me? Are you okay?"

"Kid, wait-"

Midoriya ignored Mirko's warning and turned the man over. His skull had been caved in. Probably from getting smashed into the floor. He looked around wildly at the others only to realize that they weren't moving either. One... two... ten people. Dead. All because he wasn't fast enough, because he wasn't good enough.

Mirko knelt down next to him and snapped her fingers in front of his face. "Hey, you still with me, Mister Miracle?"

The use of his hero name brought him back, "We... didn't save them."

Mirko frowned, "Kid, you're never going to be able to save everyone. It's just not possible, even for All Might." Her phone beeped which she checked in a heartbeat. "Five more of these damn things? You've got to be..." The kid can't handle that right now, those monsters are gonna leave carnage in their wake. Can't sideline him though... Midoriya was getting to his feet despite everything. "Kid, what are you doing?"

"We have to find the Hero Killer and stop the Nomu."

She got up and spin him around by the shoulder, "Kid, take a breath. Now, here's what we're gonna do. I'm gonna go out there, and start taking these things out."

Midoriya took a step backwards. "What about me?"

Shota is going to kill me. "You are going to take everything you know about the Hero Killer and find him. Tonight is the perfect chance for him to strike, with all the chaos and all. Once you find him, send me your location and I will come help kick his ass as soon as possible. If he is about to kill someone, you have my permission to fight, but only until you create an opening for you and whoever else is there to escape. Got it?"

Midoriya nodded. "Yes, ma'am!"

Mirko hesitated for a moment, was this the right call? There would undoubtedly be consequences, potentially deadly ones. Shit, this is why I work alone. "Get it done, Mister Miracle!"

The die was cast.

"Yes, ma'am!"


Tenya Iida knew what he should be doing. He should be with Manual and his sidekicks helping them fight a Nomu. He should be protecting people.

He couldn't. Not now. Not when he was so close. So close to quenching the red-hot coal of anger and fury that burned in the pit of his stomach. Midoriya didn't understand, he didn't need to be saved, he didn't want to be saved. He just needed to make sure that justice was done.

He turned a corner into an alley, and finally saw him. The Hero Killer. The blades and scarf were unmistakeable. He had another hero pinned against a wall with a katana poised to strike.

Iida ran at him full tilt. If he could just get there while he was still distracted-

His trajectory was interrupted by a slash of the Hero Killer's katana, knocking his helmet and glasses off of his face and sending him sprawling. The Hero Killer let the other hero fall to the ground, whimpering as he went. "Run away. This is no place for children."

Iida glared at the man with unbridled anger. "You're the Hero Killer: Stain. You-"

Iida was cut off by Stain waving the tip of his katana in front of his face. "Your eyes are searing with hate and vengeance. Choose your words carefully. While I would prefer not to kill a child, I will not hesitate if you prove to be unworthy,"

Iida's eye twitched, "What made my brother unworthy, you despicable villain?"

"Your brother-" Stain stopped mid-sentence as he figured it out, "Ah, so Ingenium is your brother. Your entire family is a blight on true heroism. Treating heroism like a job..." He spat on the ground, "All your brother did was cheapen the meaning of the word hero."

Iida slowly got to his feet and began revving his engines. "You know nothing! He was an amazing hero that lead others to protect people time and again! And you made it so he can't continue that, all because he didn't live up to some impossible standard that you use to justify your killing spree! I'll-"

Stain pointed his sword at the fallen hero slumped against the wall behind him. "Save him first."

Iida froze as he looked at the man for the first time. His face twisted in disgust as he saw the Number Five hero, Thunderbolt. "I will save him... after I'm finished killing you! My name is Ingenium! And I will be the one to defeat you!"

Stain sighed. "I see. Die."

"FOR TENSEI!" Iida lashed out with a kick, only for the Hero Killer to leap over him and kick him in the back of the arm. He gasped as he felt something stab him. Did he have spikes on his boots?

The force of the kick and the momentum from his own engines sent him to the ground. He tried to get up, but before he could get anywhere, the Hero Killer stabbed his left arm with his katana and planted his boot on the back of Iida's head. "No, not like this..."

Stain leered at him, "Would you like to know where you miscalculated, fake?" When Iida refused to respond, he continued, "You damned yourself the moment you challenged me. The city is in flames, innocent people are having their lives destroyed, and you're here. Using your power for hate and selfishness. You're no hero."

"Stupid kid." Thunderbolt groaned, "You should've ran. If he could tag me..."

"And now, both of you will die tonight." Stain removed his katana from Iida's arm. For a moment, his spirits soared.

Then his body stopped listening to him.

What? Why can't I move? Is this his Quirk?

"I think I'll start with you, Ingenium." Stain said, his blade poised for a killing blow, "You are your parents' youngest, yes? That's good. One less of these so-called heroic legacies polluting society."

In desperation, Iida called out. "INGENIUM WILL DASH ACROSS THE LAND TO TAKE A LOST CHILD BY THE HAND!"

Stain stopped. So he does have some true conviction after all. No matter. His fate is sealed. "One less."

The Hero Killer's katana began to descend. Until it didn't.

"SMASH!"

The pressure on Iida's head was lifted, and the Hero Killer was flung off of him, but how?

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw emerald lightning.

"Midoriya?"


Moments earlier...

Midoriya dashed through the streets of Hosu City, thanking the insanity of Mirko's training with every step. Thanks to her insistence that he stay at ten percent of his power whenever possible, his body had acclimated to the strain.

Iida has to be close! I passed Manual when I went by that battle back there, so I just need to check the alleys, since the news said that all his victims are found in back alleys and-

His internal mumblestorm was cut off as he looked down an alley he was passing by and saw the glint of Iida's armor. And someone else... with a katana?

He screeched to a halt, he needed to send the text to Mirko now. He wouldn't have time once the fight began.

Hero killer here. Send help.

After attaching his location data to the text, he sent it.

Unbeknownst to Midoriya, he had accidentally hit the button to send the message to every contact in his phone.


Todoroki took out his phone. He couldn't afford to ignore anything while he and his father were deployed in a battle zone like Hosu, He read the text, and immediately acted.

"Endeavor! Midoriya is engaged with the Hero Killer here in Hosu!"

Endeavor made a split-second decision. He chose to have faith in his son and his abilities. "Send me the location. As soon as I'm done with this monster, I'll follow. Go."


Momo Yaoyorozu was riding in a tilt rotor aircraft headed towards Hosu City when she got the text.

One of Crust's sidekicks was discussing the plan. "One of the monsters seems to be patrolling the area around the joint police and HPSC server hub. We'll start there and-"

"Crust! There's another emergency!" Yaoyorozu blurted, "One of my classmates is in Hosu and is fighting the Hero Killer!"

Crust gritted his teeth. "We can't make a detour... but you can get there on your own, can't you, Creati?"

She unbuckled her safety harness and created a jetpack and a pair of goggles, then took the time to eat a bit of an energy bar. No sense flinging herself into mortal peril without being at her best.

"Open the hatch."


All Might and Inko stared at their phones.

"I'm going to strangle him." They said in unison.


Aizawa glared at his phone.

"Problem child." He hauled himself out of his sleeping bag and grabbed his binding cloth. He opened the fridge for a jelly drink, only to see that Mirko had taken the last one. "Damn it, Rumi."


Midoriya was oblivious to the doom that awaited him if he should survive the next few minutes, as he was in the middle of kicking the Hero Killer in the face.

"SMASH!"

As Stain was sent reeling from his blow, Midoriya took stock of the situation. Iida was face down on the ground, but alive. He was bleeding from a wound on his arm. Okay, honestly I can just grab Iida and go..."

"Just get out of here, kid. Me and four-eyes are dead anyways."

Midoriya spun around to find Thunderbolt. Crap! If it was just Iida... damn it. "Can either of you move?"

"No, it must be his Quirk." Iida said.

"Yeah, lucky bastard blindsided me and whammied me after a single cut." Thunderbolt groused, "I watched the Sports Festival, kid. I know how you fight. You don't stand a chance against him."

"Here to save your friend?" Stain asked, "That was a flashy entrance, but calling out smash... you know who you're invoking with that, right?"

Midoriya gulped, "Yeah. And I'm going to save both of them from you. That's a promise."

Stain cocked his head, "Really? Even that one?" He pointed his katana at Thunderbolt, "You know what he's done, right? Who he is?"

Midoriya nodded. "He's Thunderbolt, the Number Five Hero. He only has that position due to the amount of incidents he resolves, as he's publicly reviled for the abuse of Quirkless suspects. Which the HPSC conveniently ignores."

"And you're still going to save him despite that?" Stain asked, "Why?"

"It's not a hero's job to pick and choose who they save."

"Don't do this, Midoriya!" Iida cried, "This is between me and him! Don't get involved!"

"You know I'm not going to back down, Iida." Midoriya said.

Tears fell from Iida's eyes. No. I don't want my classmates... my friends to fall victim to this maniac because of my mistakes... "Leave! I don't want your help!" I don't want you to die because of me...

Midoriya took his stance. "Haven't you learned anything from what All Might has been teaching us? Meddling where you're not wanted, giving help that's not asked for, is the whole point of being a Hero!"

Stain's mouth split into a grin. This boy invokes All Might by word and by deed. He may... "Let us see if you have the strength to back up your conviction."

Stain dashed at Midoriya and swung his katana at him. Normally his speed was enough to overwhelm most opponents, but somehow this boy had outmaneuvered him by slipping in close. It's almost like he had pre-warning of my strike? But how?

Midoriya let out a breath as he ducked under the katana. Danger Sense was probably going to be his saving grace during this fight. He saw Stain going for a knife from a sheath on his side and responded with a finger flick at ten percent that blew his guard wide open. Make use of my agility, just like Mirko taught me! While Stain was still regaining his balance, Midoriya moved behind him and jumped into the air,

Stain turned and saw no one. Where did... ah. He looked up just in time for Midoriya to deliver an axe kick to his head.

Now! Midoriya flung an arm above him and flicked a finger, causing him to come down in an earth-pounding stomp. "AVALANCHE SMASH!" He sent out spiderweb cracks where he landed. He blinked, did the Hero Killer-

"Not bad." An arm flashed out, and Midoriya felt a sting as a knife grazed his arm. Before Danger Sense even had time to warn him, Stain's tongue flicked out and licked his blood off of the knife.

Midoriya fell to the ground, unable to move. "Crap!" One graze? Wait, my theory about blood type and whether he leaves people alive or not! It's blood!

"You negated my range advantage and used your Quirk in creative ways, both to defend and attack." Stain said as the walked towards Iida, "And you have conviction! That alone puts you far above all of these corrupt heroes."

"Iida's the same way!" Midoriya cried, "He wants to be a hero just as badly as me! So what if he made one mistake? If it wasn't for him, no one would've made it out of the USJ, even All Might!"

"All you've convinced me of is how far your friend has fallen." He raised his sword above Iida.

"STOP IT!" Midoriya screamed hopelessly. If I can't save Iida, how can I call myself a hero? He shut his eyes. He couldn't bear to watch.

He felt a rush of heat, and his eyes snapped open to see Shoto Todoroki, left hand outstretched. Stain had retreated in the face of his flames, but only barely. "Get away from my friends, Hero Killer." He said, his voice carrying a chill that promised retribution if he was ignored.

Stain licked his lips, "And now the son of Endeavor delivers himself to me? This night just keeps getting better."

"Don't let him get your blood! He swallows it and then you're paralyzed!" Midoriya shouted.

"That explains a lot, actually." Todoroki said as he created an ice ramp that deposited the paralyzed Thunderbolt, Iida, and Midoriya behind him, "You won't-" He jerked out of the way of a throwing knife an instant too late and it cut his cheek. He reflexively sent out a wave of ice, but Stain cut through it with a flurry of slashes.

"You're good, but obstructing your view of your opponent is a stupid mistake!" Stain flung another knife that embedded itself in Todoroki's left arm and dashed in close, his tongue hanging out in anticipation of the blood dripping from his Arm and cheek.

Todoroki blasted out a wave of fire, but went limp immediately after. "Are you kidding me? How?" He asked.

It has to be now! Come on! Midoriya tried to move, and was relieved when he did. So type O is the shortest. "GET AWAY FROM THEM!"

Stain turned to face him once more with a grin on his face, "I'll delay as long as I have to if it means getting another taste of your conviction, boy!"

He took advantage of the opening and unleashed a blistering salvo of punches. "BLITZ SMASH!" Midoriya followed the barrage with a side snap kick. The distance he.created lasted for all two seconds before the Hero Killer was on him again.

"Stop this!" Iida said, "He's mine... it has to be me that-" My friends are fighting for me, bleeding for me... what kind of hero am I if I let this go on?

"Then stand up!" Todoroki said as feeling returned to his own limbs and he undsteadily got to his feet. "Then stand up and show this fundamentalist whackjob that he's wrong about you and me!"

Midoriya yelped as the Hero Killer opened up a nasty gash in his leg, clutching his head as he went down. Ugh, need to learn how to turn Danger Sense off, it's too much in a battle like this!

Stain wheeled back around to attack Todoroki again, "Die, offspring of a false hero! DIE!"

The corner of Todoroki's mouth quirked up in a smile. "Thanks for taking me out of the fight for a while. It gave me time to charge this. FLASHFREEZE FIST!" A beam of ice emanated from his right fist, catching the Hero Killer in the chest and freezing him solid. "Hit him now, Iida!"

"I still can't move!"

"Get up!" Todoroki yelled, "Get up before I have to borrow Midoriya's stop being a dumbass bat!"

Iida blinked. "Did you just say what I think you said?"

"Yes."

Iida's hand twitched. He could move again. He began to regain his footing. "I'm sorry that I dragged you both into this. I won't let you bleed anymore for me."

"This again?" Midoriya said, "Don't give us that, you'd do the same for us!"

Iida drew a deep breath in and turned to Todoroki. "Unfreeze his head. I want him to hear this."

"That's unwise, we're better off just attacking." Todoroki said, "Besides, he's already decided that you're guilty. Nothing's going to sway him."

"No, you're right. Just wishful thinking on my part, I suppose. I'll take the lead, you two back me up."

"Of course!" Midoriya said.

"Let's end this." Todoroki said.

"RECIPRO BURST!" Iida shot forward and blew through the ice with a kick and followed up with another that broke Stain's ragged katana in two.

Stain charged forward and tackled Iida to the ground. "Ready to die, fake!" He drew a knife and held it menacingly close to him

"No!" Midoriya dashed forward while Todoroki prepared a fire blast.

"it's time you learn something about me, Hero Killer. No matter the predicament..." Iida kicked out with his Recipro Burst powered legs, sending Stain skyward, "I WILL NEVER BREAK! Mister Miracle!"

"Even if it's risky..." Midoriya punched Stain in the gut as he came back down, then delivered a thunderous uppercut to his jaw using fifteen percent of One For All, "RISING DRAGON SMASH!"

As soon as Midoriya was clear, Todoroki let loose with a torrent of fire that he stopped when the Hero Killer hit the ground.

Stain fell to the ground, unmoving. Todoroki quickly covered him with ice.

Midoriya fell to his knees on account of the wound to his leg. "Did we... did we win?"

"I think... we did." Todoroki said.

"Oh, sure!" Thunderbolt said, "Now I can move. Ugh. Saved by kids. Never gonna live this down. I'll call an ambulance, you find-"

Todoroki stared at him deadpan while holding some rope he had just found in the dumpster.

"Okay, we should also -"

"Take away his weapons." Midoriya said, "We're already on it."

Thunderbolt blinked. "Why do I feel like a side character?" When no one answered him, he sheepishly took out his phone and called an ambulance.

By the time they all made it to the street, Endeavor had already arrived with his sidekicks. "Shoto, what happened? Where's the Hero Killer?"

Todoroki gestured to the tied-up Stain. "Right here."

Endeavor looked over at the limping Thunderbolt, "I assume you helped?"

Thunderbolt shook his head, "It was all them. I'm not even going to try to steal the credit."

"How noble of you." Endeavor deadpanned.

"Okay, why the hell are you all standing around? Where the hell is the Hero Killer?"

"Mirko? What are you doing here?" Thunderbolt asked.

"No one asked you, prejudice for brains!" Mirko saw Midoriya and his friends and zeroed in on him. "What happened, kid? Did he get away? Did you have to get out? Well? Spill... the... beans." She blinked as she saw the Hero Killer unconscious and tied up at her student's feet. "No."

"Yep." Midoriya said.

"I told you to only fight until you could get the hell out!"

"I did!"

One of Endeavor's sidekicks pointed at something. "Is that someone on a jetpack?"

Iida squinted. "Isn't that Yaoyorozu?"

"Wait a second." Midoriya said, "How did any of you except Mirko know where to find me?"

"You sent a text." Todoroki said.

"I only sent that to Mirko, though." It took a beat of silence and Yaoyorozu landing for it to sink in. "Oh no. I sent that text to everyone."

Yaoyorozu took her goggles off. "Hello, honey," she said in a overly sweet voice, "How are you today?"

Midoriya chuckled. "I'm in danger!"

Yaoyorozu raised an eyebrow, completely unimpressed. "Could that have something to do with you fighting HIM?" She pointed at the Hero Killer,

"I'll be sure to give a moving eulogy at your funeral, Midoriya." Todoroki said.

Before Midoriya could dig himself a deeper hole, a familiar unearthly screech sounded. Midoriya turned at saw a winged Nomu headed straight for him.

"Dammit, How'd we miss that?" Endeavor asked, "No matter. Take it down!"

It paid them no mind as it swooped down and grabbed Midoriya by the shoulders and began to carry him away.

Endeavor began to bark orders, and Mirko had already begun telling him where to shove said orders. They were wasting time. Yaoyorozu pressed a button on the control pad, triggering her jetpack to make her fly after Midoriya.

Yaoyorozu's body moved without thinking,. Unfortunately, this also meant her mouth, and she discovered that her ability to be proper and lady-like ran directly inverse to how much danger Izuku Midoriya was in.

"HANDS OFF MY BOYFRIEND, ASSFACE!"

With unerring accuracy she calculated an arc that caused her to come down right on the Nomu's head. She created a katana and pierced it with one strike. The Nomu released Midoriya and Yaoyorozu surfed the Nomu as it fell out of the sky.

She looked back to see everyone staring at her. She flipped a lock of hair out of her eyes, "Another happy landing." She quipped.


All things considered, things had gone just about as well as they could have. Had Endeavor and Mirko not been in Hosu due to Midoriya and Todoroki urging them to go after the Hero Killer -apparently Todoroki had been worried about Iida too- then the heroes normally stationed in Hosu City wouldn't have had the muscle or the manpower to repel the Nomu attack.

That wasn't even counting that without Iida, Midoriya, and Todoroki, the Hero Killer would've left Thunderbolt dead in that back alley. Given their injuries, they were brought to Hosu General Hospital.

Which also was where they had to give their statements to the police.

It would've been a simple matter for Iida to lie about why he had ignored Manual's orders, but that just wasn't who Tenya Iida was. He told the whole truth, even though it would probably damn him. The inspector had shaken his head as he left. The meaning was clear. Such a waste.

To the trio's surprise, they were soon visited by a group consisting of Endeavor, Mirko, Manual, Aizawa, and a dog-headed man that none of them recognized.

The dog-headed man stepped forward, "Greetings, my name is Kenji Tsuragamae. I am the chief of police. This situation is... unusual, to say the least, so I am here in person to make sure that everything is as it should be. First, you may be interested to know the Hero Killer's condition. He has regained consciousness and has been transferred to a medical facility more suited to his... needs. Woof." His gaze sharpened, "However, during our investigation, we found that one of your number acted against the Hero Killer with intent to kill."

"That's correct." Iida said, "It was me."

Tsuragamae inclined his head at Iida, "Thank you for your honesty despite your situation, young man. Now, had this incident happened on its own... well, we would be throwing the book at you. You would be expelled from UA, blacklisted from all other hero schools in the country, and arrested for vigilantism and attempted murder.To put it simply, you would be in the dog house, woof."

Midoriya barely maintained his composure in the face of the pun.

"However, given the widespread damage caused by these... Nomu monsters and other recent attacks, we are in need of a signal victory. I will be blunt, Iida, you will be cut out of the narrative completely."

Manual stepped forward, "In addition, you will not be welcomed back to my agency for any further internships or work studies. Some of my sidekicks are in critical condition because you weren't there to support us when we needed you to be. They're expected to pull through, but there must be an accounting."

Iida nodded, "I understand."

Tsuragamae nodded, "Now, on to happier news. Midoriya, Todoroki. I've spoken with both Endeavor and Mirko, and since you both received permission to fight, we are prepared to offer you both the lion's share of the credit for the defeat of Stain. Due to how public we want to make this, we will need to hold a press conference as soon as-"

"Wait." Todoroki said, "I don't think I'm ready for that yet. I'm still... figuring some things out."

"Hmm. Very well, every dog has its day and all. In that case, it would all fall on you, Midoriya. We'll say that you largely defeated the Hero Killer singlehandedly, with an assist from Endeavor in the end."

"I'm sorry, but doesn't that stretch credulity a little?" Aizawa asked, "I'm not one to downplay my students, but I'm not one to overhype them either."

"It's not completely unbelievable." Iida said, "Over the course of the fight, Stain recognized Midoriya as worthy -if only by his twisted worldview- and said that he would spare him."

"How about it, kid?" Mirko asked, "You ready for everyone to know that Mister Miracle is a big damn hero?"

"Rumi..." Aizawa said warningly.

"What? I'm right and you know it, Sho!"

Midoriya froze. Wait. Rumi? And now they're arguing like a married couple? Was I right?

Endeavor looked at them bemusedly. Even though his own marriage was -to be frank- something akin to a nuclear wasteland, he could still see the signs.

"I'll do it." Midoriya said, "But not because I'm after the glory or anything like that. At the Sports Festival, All Might told me to show the world that I am here, and this feels like a natural extension of that."

"Thank you, son." Tsuragamae said, "I truly appreciate it."

"Please don't call me that," Midoriya said a little too quickly.

Aizawa's eyes narrowed. Just like me, huh?

Tsuragamae turned to the others, "And while you may not be receiving public recognition for your feat, as chief of police, I thank you for helping keep the peace."


Midoriya was rapidly rethinking this whole getting credit for taking down Stain thing in the face of public speaking. As Aizawa-sensei would say, it was a rational decision.

"Don't worry, kid. Me, Endeavor, and Sho- Eraser Head will be there for you every step of the way." Mirko assured him, "If there's a question you're not sure how to answer, just clam up and one of us will handle it."

"Also, remember that no matter how... affable the reporters are, they are not your friends." Aizawa said, "Only say as much as you need to, and do not volunteer information." There was a beat of silence before he corrected his mistake, "Especially if they're asking you about Quirks, you'd only talk circles around them."

Endeavor raised an eyebrow but chose not to comment. "I'll take point on this, since you hate the media, Eraser and... you're you, Mirko."

"Everyone's a critic." Mirko groused.

Midoriya followed them out onto a temporary stage constructed in the hospital's lobby, and was immediately assaulted by a barrage of flashbulbs and shouted questions. It was only due to his experiences as a viewer of these kinds of press conferences he was able to keep his cool until he took his seat. He tried not to fiddle with the microphone attached to his hero costume, but it was tricky,

"Thank you for coming. This press conference has been called to inform the public that one of the most dangerous villains in recent memory has been captured." Endeavor mentally ordered the facts of the cover story in his head, it would be bad if he bungled it. "Hero Killer: Stain has been apprehended."

There was a massive uproar and explosion of flashbulbs. "Who brought him in?" A reporter shouted.

"While acting under orders of Mirko, the hero he was interning with, first-year UA student Izuku Midoriya stumbled across the Hero Killer before he claimed his next kill, the Super-Speed Hero: Thunderbolt. A fight broke out, and Midoriya managed to hold him off long enough for myself and Mirko to intervene. Together, the three of us captured Stain."

"Then what's Eraser Head doing here?"

"As Class 1-A's homeroom teacher, my responsibility is the welfare of my students." Aizawa said, "Which means my place is here."

A reporter near the front raised their hand. "Yasui Nobuo, Hero Watch. First of all, what is your hero name, young man?"

Oh, thank god. An easy one. "Mister Miracle!"

"Now, for my real question."

Crapbaskets.

Nobuo continued, uncaring of Midoriya's internal distress. "The Hero Killer has killed scores of heroes, and crippled even more beyond recovery. How were you able to fight him off largely singlehanded?"

Midoriya gulped. Well, deep end it is. "Well, that's because I managed to get him to fight me without intent to kill or cripple. You see, All Might is our Foundational Heroics teacher this year at UA. So, when he questioned if I was there to save Thunderbolt or stop him, I was able to answer well enough to convince him that I was there to save Thunderbolt. That caused Stain to regard me as a 'true hero' which resulted in him pulling his punches."

Somehow he made it through without stuttering. Truly, a feat worthy of a hero.

A woman raised her hand next. "Yuki Terada, Heroics Tonight. As I'm sure you're aware, Mister Miracle, Thunderbolt is no saint. Did that have any impact on your choice to focus on saving him?"

Midoriya shook his head. "No, it isn't a hero's job to pick and choose who they save. It's their job to save everyone, no matter the danger."

A reporter towards the back raised his hand, "Takayuki Watanabe, TV Tokyo. Mirko, your disdain of working with other heroes is well-documented. Why would you take a hero trainee on as an intern?"

"It's cause he fights like I do." Mirko explained, "Now, I'm not talking about technique, I'm talking about mentality. Think back to the Sports Festival, specifically his fights with Bakugo and Todoroki. He lays it all on the line and gives everything he's got, treating each fight like it's his last. With an attitude like that, how couldn't I request him for an internship?"

A woman in the middle of the assembled journalists raised her hand, and the others near her cringed away. "Chitose Kizuki, Shoowaysha Publishing. You know, everyone's all Hero Killer this, Stain that, but what I'm curious about is you, Mister Miracle. Just what kind of Quirk lets you tangle with the Hero Killer and come out smiling?"

Midoriya froze for a brief moment before answering. I should have expected a question like this! "I call it Superpower, it lets me increase my strength in all or part of my body."

Fortunately, the next reporter focused Endeavor and asked how he felt about being overshadowed by a hero trainee being taught by All Might, which Endeavor responded to by bringing the press conference to a swift end. But the interrogation into the topic of his Quirk still unnerved Midoriya. Especially since Chitose Kizuki's eyes didn't leave him until he was out of sight.


When Midoriya was brought back to his hospital room, he certainly hadn't been expecting Yaoyorozu to be there. Honestly he had expected to be alone, since Iida and Todoroki were being transferred to hospitals closer to their homes. She was standing with her back to him, facing the window with her arm folded. "Oh! I never had the chance to thank you for saving me from that Nomu!" Midoriya said.

Yaoyorozu didn't move. "You're welcome." She said curtly.

Midoriya frowned as he sat on his bed. The doctors had told him to stay off his injured leg as much as possible, "How are you even here? I thought you were working with Crust?"

A ghost of a smile appeared on Yaoyorozu's face before it disappeared again, "Crust's a big softie, he assigned me to morale replenishment duty today. Meaning I could come visit you."

"You... don't seem too happy about that..." Midoriya ventured. What's wrong? Is she mad at me because I fought the Hero... Killer... oh no.

"What I'm not happy about..." She took a deep breath, then continued, "How much of a plan did you have before you fought the Hero Killer?"

"I had a plan!"

Yaoyorozu just looked at him.

"I mean... sort of? It kinda got thrown out the window once I saw Thunderbolt there, cause before I was just going to grab Iida and run."

Yaoyorozu facepalmed, "Midoriya, that's... twelve percent of a plan."

Midoriya's eye twitched, "What was I supposed to do? Let Iida attempt to take revenge for his brother and end up dead or in Tartarus?"

Yaoyorozu's eyes narrowed, "This wasn't just a spur of the moment thing, was it? You've been planning this." She thought back to anything that could've triggered this, "Since you ran out of class after Iida left."

Crap. Well, no sense in not being truthful now. "Yeah, I tried convincing him not to do it but he refused."

it felt like Yaoyorozu's gaze was boring a hole through his skull. "So you decided to fight the Hero Killer. So Iida couldn't."

"Uh, yeah."

"Did you choose to kiss me at the train station because you were afraid that you were going to die?"

Midoriya was practically a deer in the headlights at this point. "I... uh... yeah."

She rounded on him and started ripping into him. "Do you have any idea how worried I was when I got that text? How worried your mother was? This wasn't some training exercise with Recovery Girl on standby to heal anyone who gets in over their head! You easily could have died. One cut to the jugular or femoral artery and you would've bled out in seconds."

Midoriya tried to head off the oncoming steam train. "Well, actually-"

Yaoyorozu's nostrils flared and Midoriya was certain he saw a vein pulse on her forehead, "Don't you dare 'actually' me, Izuku Midoriya! You don't even know! You don't even know that you were a razor's breadth away from making your mother's worst fear a reality! That you'd be the hero beyond saving brought into the ER, and that I- that she would be powerless to do anything but watch as you die!" Her voice cracked on the last word and tears were flowing freely down her face, "Here is how this is going to work going forward. You will not- WILL NOT do anything this reckless again without a concrete plan with contingencies planned for every foreseeable outcome. If you cannot come up with that plan, or feel that you cannot trust yourself to come up with said plan, you will come to me, and I will help you."

Midoriya blinked. "You're... not breaking up with me?"

"Where the hell did you get that idea from?" Yaoyorozu grabbed him by the collar, hauled him off the bed, and made him look her in the eyes, "Why would I say all that to you and then break up with you? That would make exactly zero sense! No, i intend for us to have a long and happy life together, but that won't happen unless you stop going on suicide runs at any supervillain that exists in your general vicinity!"

"... I promise to come back alive."

"No more pre-battle kisses then." Yaoyorozu said, "You only get kisses after. That should give you adequate incentive to follow through on that promise, yes?"

Before he could respond, she pulled him into a kiss. Unlike their kiss at the train station which had been soft and tender, this was rough and full of need. In fact, it felt like Yaoyorozu was channeling all of her frustration with him into it. She released him, and he fell back onto the bed, stunned.

"Get some sleep, Izuku.. Goodness knows you need it after the day you've had." She captured his face in her hands, then swooped in and planted a kiss on his forehead. "Sweet dreams." She said on her way out.

Midoriya wasn't sure how long he sat there before he gained the ability to speak again, but he did know that the words he said would have a meteoric impact on his relationship with Yaoyorozu.

"I need to tell her about One For All."


The week before classes resumed was excruciating for Midoriya. The school had decided to end his internship early due to his injuries, which meant he was stuck at home.

On house arrest.

Inko had made it very clear how unbelievably angry she was with him for the risks he had taken. She had also made it clear how proud she was.

All Might had said basically the same thing, and had given him a mountain of homework to go with his house arrest. Hundreds of hypothetical scenarios that he could potentially encounter as a hero, and all had to be answered to All Might's satisfaction by week's end.

At least they didn't take his phone away.

Slowly, the exploits of his classmates trickled in. Jiro had helped with surveillance and evacuation during a hostage crisis. Tsu had helped Selkie stop a drug smuggling ring. Kaminari worked with Yoroi Musha to bust an underground fighting ring. Uraraka and Gunhead had stopped a convenience store robbery. Bakugo had rescued a man from a car about to explode. The most absurd was by and far Kirishima. He and Tetsutetsu of 1-B had stopped a QLF riot before it began by telling the would-be rioters to take out their frustrations on them rather than the city. Luckily, Eclipse wasn't present.

Most startlingly of all, was the revelation that Hagakure had undergone a Quirk Awakening. She could now control whether she was invisible or not. Unfortunately this meant that she had the least practical experience out of everyone, due to not having a hero costume that... was appropriate.

Eventually, the week ended and it was time to go back to UA. The day went by normally, apart from a tense moment where Yaoyorozu thanked Mineta for the new costume design and he panicked because Midoriya was supposed to tell her it was his idea.

Yaoyorozu covered for him and said it was fine. She knew that he had been thinking about other things during his internship.

After Foundational Heroics, All Might passed him a message that told him to come to the teacher's lounge after classes were over for the day. That wasn't ominous at all. Nevertheless, he did as instructed.

He walked in to find a veritable gauntlet waiting for him. His mom, All Might, Aizawa-sensei, Mirko, some old hero dressed in yellow that he couldn't place, Recovery Girl -who was holding hands with said hero-, and Principal Nezu.

"Uh... hi?"

"Oh, young Midoriya." All Might said, "Good, we can get started."

"Get started with what, exactly?" Mirko asked as Midoriya sat down next to his mom, "I'm a busy woman." That much was true, as her involvement in the Hosu Crisis -as it had come to be known- had helped her break back into the Top Five, unseating Thunderbolt from the number five spot.

"Well, the first order of business is to being you and your husband into the circle of trust on the true nature of Midoriya's Quirk." Nezu said, "And yes, I know."

Aizawa's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean? It's just a power up-type." He chose to ignore the fact that Nezu had just revealed a secret that he took great pains to keep hidden to the rest of the room.

"Yes, just a power up-type." The hero in yellow said, "A Quirk that has been passed from hero to hero for over a hundred years, all to defeat the greatest evil the world has ever known."

Midoriya felt his mom tense up beside him. "I'm sorry, could you repeat that last part again, mister..."

"Gran Torino. I was All Might's mentor after One For All was passed to him by Nana Shimura,"

"That makes no fucking sense." Mirko said. "There's no such thing as a transferable Quirk!"

Inko took a manilla envelope out of her purse, "Then explain these. They're Izuku's foot X-rays from when he was four."

They opened and looked at the X-rays. All Might and Gran Torino explained the specifics of One For All to them, causing Mirko to facedesk more than once.

"This... certainly explains a lot." Aizawa said, "Especially how injury-prone Midoriya can be."

"Why trust us with this?" Mirko said, "Wouldn't be better to keep this hush hush?"

"Expediency is key." Nezu said, "As the two of you seem to be poised to be his primary trainers outside of All Might and Gran Torino, it would be foolish to keep you in the dark."

"What was the part about that whole fighting a great evil thing?" Midoriya said.

All Might stood and clasped his hands behind his back. "I fear that I have not been entirely truthful with you, young Midoriya... or you, Inko. I did not sustain my injury in a battle with Toxic Chainsaw, rather I sustained them against a villain so dangerous that his name was stricken from all records after his defeat. He operates off of the delusion that his ability to steal Quirks and bestow them on others makes him some kind of demon lord. He has many names, The Quirk Thief, The Symbol of Evil. But the only name that matters is his actual one. All For One."

"Why bring this up now?" Inko asked, "Why not tell us from the beginning?"

All Might heard the unspoken question. Why did you lie to my family?

"To be blunt, we thought he was dead." Gran Torino said, "Toshinori had punched his face off and needed immediate medical attention, so we left him for dead."

"The advent of these Nomu monsters has led us to believe that All For One is not only alive, but setting his plots into motion once again." Nezu explained, "And as the current wielder of One For All, it will ultimately fall to Midoriya to defeat him."

"That isn't rational." Aizawa said, "All Might is still capable of fighting."

"At nowhere near the same level of strength that I did when I defeated All For One the first time," All Might said, "In fact, what I'm using now is simply the embers of One For All that remain when it is passed on."

The room descended into silence as they processed the revelation that All Might would soon be powerless and that his greatest foe was on the mend.

Midoriya broke it. "If I have to go through All For One to make it to my dream of becoming a hero that saves everyone I can, then I will. I just... uh..."

"What is it?" Nezu asked.

"I can tell Yaoyorozu about all this, right?"

All Might could feel Gran Torino's glare on him. And for once in his life, he didn't care.

"You may, young Midoriya."


A/N: Stain: My greatest weakness! Interns!

Look at that, some more of All For One being an utter bastard. Who could've guessed.

Mirko doesn't rush in without a plan. She rushes in with a plan and dumpsters the plan when needed.

The results of Shigiraki's mission will be shown next chapter.

Mirko blows through high end Nomus in canon, so there's no way that she and Midoriya can't handle a low end one. Midoriya also learns a valuable lesson.

The Stain fight is the Stain fight. Todoroki is canonically type O.

One thing that always miffed me about the Stain fight was the fact that we don't know Native. He's just a dude. By swapping in Thunderbolt we make Izuku's conviction stronger, because he's protecting someone that people who idolize Stain would say deserve what's coming to them.

Midoriya done goofed. Yaoyorozu is pissed. No, they are not going to break up. That's cheap angst. We serve only the best angst at this establishment.

Aizawa and Mirko are brought into the circle of trust, and the existence of All For One is revealed.

The next couple of chapters are going to be different. I have a big time window to play with before the Final Exam arc, so we'll see how this plays out.