31/01/2023

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The Emperor's Dragon
Emergence 43 - Disputed Recruitment

While All For One couldn't see, he could hear perfectly well, and right now, he could hear proximity alarms. Interestingly, it was the outer alarms. If heroes had triggered them, he would have expected the inner alarms to be ringing as well. They had no subtlety and would no doubt charge right in. This was either an accidental triggering, or someone more cautious.

The timing was terrible but… The alarm could also have something to do with Tomura's activity. He went to the control panel and flicked a few switches, turning on some of the speakers. Maybe he could hear the group.

He cycled through the sensors until he heard one with footsteps. There were six of them. He could tell from the cadence of the footfalls.

"Shhh!"

Ah, what made people attempt to be quiet when just walking through would have drawn far less attention? If they'd just walked through he would have believed they were traveling by… with the insistence on silence…

"This is the location the tracking device is pointing to," one of them said. A girl. Young…

"So this is their hideout. Sure looks like it, huh!" That was male… also young. His voice lacked the depth that would come with age.

"I don't know but as far as we have confirmed, the villains haven't moved from here the whole day." That was the girl again.

The play became obvious. The Nomu Tomura used the grab the students must have been tracked. Clever little students.

"Just because the villains are here, doesn't necessarily mean that Bakugou and Todoroki are here as well. Right now we have to calmly take into account all the information we have as we stand here today."

All For One chuckled. They didn't have much information though… He sighed. If students were here and they had a tracking device then the Heroes would not be too far behind. "Garaki," he called.

"Sensei?" The Doctor replied.

"Find your pet," All For One instructed. "And prepare the north west warehouse for combat."

He heard the man come towards him. "There's only Nomu there," Kyudai answered his unspoken question. "But do you want other quirks?" he asked.

All For One considered it. He had transferred several quirks to Tomura, including the original All For One. It meant he had a copy, and no copy was as good as the original, so he could only carry limited quirks. As a base, he always had the copy, regeneration, life force and infrared. Those quirks were essential.

If there were students sniffing around one of the warehouses, then there was a good chance that the Heroes would be coming to the bar as well. He could afford the loss of a warehouse, but…

What would it mean if Tomura was captured?

While it would leave him free to act he could not allow that. Tomura did not yet have the reputation he did. The Japanese government was rather curious with their punishment. They executed some for villainy but others were kept alive in Tartarus. If Tomura was captured now there was a chance… a good chance that he'd be executed. His crimes had not been great, but with his quirk…

No, he could not allow Tomura to be executed. Not while he carried his quirk.

All For One sighed softly. He would have to fight if the heroes found the bar. That would give Tomura the chance to run free and… He smiled. With All For One in Tomura, he trusted that his impression would drive the boy to find him, no matter where he was.

And... Izuku.

He clenched his hand. If Tomura didn't, then his son would. Izuku would eventually choose to come to him but it would take time. And if this battle went… No, he wouldn't think of that. He would fight, but he most likely wouldn't win, but… In that loss, he would propel Tomura and his son. They would learn from this and that was good but not how he wished this to progress. Izuku would feel forced by this battle.

It would be yet another thing that All Might would owe him for. Even so, as he had told Izuku, he worked with what he had.

So, he would need combat quirks. Multiplier was a given and he liked Air Walk and it was useful. Air Cannon would be necessary and…

It would be tempting to use Izuku's friend's quirk, the mind control one. He could potentially control All Might and the other heroes. That was something to consider. Expect a physical shock woke them up and he as sure that they'd have someone on back up. He could do a lot of damage before that happened but... He liked that quirk but now was not the time to show he had it. And if he did then that could potentially put his son, and his friend in danger, but when he had time to work with someone, it was useful, as seen with Yakuni and the original owner. They were both loyal to Izuku and would serve his son well.

No, he'd leave that quirk for now.

Rivet and Rivet Stab would be necessary and, there was an old quirk he had had for a while. Spearlike Bones. That would be useful. Radio Waves would allow him to control the Nomu if he had a moment and… The Doctor had made a copy of his pet's quirk. It was a pity that they could not copy Kurogiri's quirk but… He'd need a few other quirks too if he was going to face off against All Might again but that would do.

He focused his attention on the sensors again. The students were looking into the warehouse now and were seeing the Nomu there.

"How long until they are ready?" he asked Garaki.

"I can activate one now, if you'd like," the Doctor indicated.

"No, get them all ready," he instructed, before shifting attention to the Bar. Oh, Tomura was almost ready to propose to both UA students. Hopefully the heroes wouldn't interfere before Tomura learned that recruitment had to be done delicately. He doubted the students would agree to his proposal but he would learn several valuable lessons here. Though, the fire villain Dabi's interest in Endeavor's son was interesting, especially given Dabi's quirk. There was a very interesting conclusion there. Endeavor's youngest son might yet prove interesting. "Then leave, but remain in contact," he ordered.

"Gigantomachia," All For One called. He knew his bodyguard was close.

He heard the huge man move closer. "My Lord."

With Gigantomachia at his side he could win against All Might and the other Heroes. Except… He was not yet ready for that. The timing was wrong. The civilians were not ready for the change he would represent. All For One took a deep breath. "I need you to leave," he said softly.

"No!" the huge man said.

He turned his face towards his bodyguard. "We discussed this," he reminded Gigantomachia. He could just order him and he would be obeyed but willing obedience was better. "If this comes to a battle, I will need you free to assist Izuku," he reminded his bodyguard.

Even though he couldn't see details, he could tell Gigantomachia was displeased.

"Tomura will establish a reputation I can step into," he said.

He heard Gigantomachia huff. "And I will need to you to keep my quirk holders safe," he added, knowing that giving Gigantomachia a mission would make the huge man far happier.

There was a grind of teeth before another huff. "It will be done, my Lord," came the rumble.

"Thank you," All For One said before he heard Gigantomachia shift away. "Take the quirks for Izuku as well," he added as an afterthought. Mr Tanaihito was still away. The young man had left the quirk copies with the Doctor.

"Garaki, bring the holders here, and then send Gigantomachia and them away," he ordered.

"Yes, Sensei," Kyudai replied and a moment later, several midsized tanks appeared.

All For One got up and touched the flesh that was available at the openings, exchanging the quirks he'd need. He trusted the copy of All For One to know that he did not wish to press pieces of himself to them. The Doctor indicated that was probably about will and he was sure of his.

"Take them now," he ordered a few moments later as the new quirks settled. He could actually feel a slight strain on the copy. He usually left space but… if he was to fight All Might then, he could not afford to be overly weakened.

"My Lord," Gigantomachia said by way of parting before Kyudai manipulated his pet to warp the large man and the tanks away.

All For One turned his attention back to the screens where Tomura was freeing the students, while keeping his ears on the warehouse. "Time to wait," he indicated.

No matter how this turned out, it should be interesting.

-ted-

Shouto walked in front of the black haired villain as indicated. There was something odd about the man. His questions and examples were too pointed, too focused on Enji. And when he'd asked…

Shouto knew he didn't understand a lot of the subtle social cues his classmates took for granted but even he could see there was something personal in the reaction. The villain was badly burned so the obvious conclusion was that he'd been caught in one of Enji's attacks somewhere but… If the man was a civilian then he would have been compensated. Enji spent enough time complaining about the insurance he had to pay.

So, that left the man being a villain and… As much as Shouto didn't like his father, he knew he didn't often fail a mission. Having the villains burns caused by Enji would explain why the villain had a personal interest in Endeavor but… It didn't feel right. There was something else there because the villain knew exactly what to ask and had… A villain who'd been a victim of one of Enji's attacks would know that his father was brutal but they wouldn't know how Enji thought of him.

What had the villain called him? Enji's prized possession.

A victim would not know that. Only someone with a more personal background interest would but… Who? How? He didn't know.

And… The villain had asked some interesting questions. There was, really, only the barest of differences between Enji and a villain. The main difference was that Enji had a public relations team and a license. And Enji didn't just go out and attack people.

His mind jumped on that. Essentially Enji did but they were meant to be those who'd already hurt others.

He was confused.

Surely not all heroes were like that? Except the villain had an answer for that as well, and it was one that made sense. UA was training them to be heroes but they wouldn't show them everything that could go wrong all at once. He needed time to think but with him going to see the boss, he knew he wasn't going to get it.

He'd just have to see what happened.

"Finally, we can get on with this," a villain Shouto had seen before said as the one behind him gave him a gentle shove to indicate he should stand with Bakugou. He looked at Bakugou, giving him a nod to show that he wasn't hurt. Surprisingly the blond returned it and Shouto turned to stand there.

They were in a bar. The floor was wood and the walls were brick. The room wasn't well finished but the bar looked sturdy. There were a few tables around and there was a television on the wall. It was showing a press conference. Shouto realised that Aizawa was there and looked pissed. There was another screen on the bar but it was showing static. Shouto looked around and spotted several small cameras.

This wasn't a regular bar because they didn't look like they were security cameras. Before he could think on that, the guy with the hand spoke.

"Take off their restraints," the guy with the hand said. It was interesting to see him this time. At the USJ he'd seemed… Childish. Now he was a bit more contained and he was certainly still casual but all the villains here appeared to be casually dressed. Only one was in costume and that was a full body suit which included a mask. He flicked his eyes over the group. They were quite mixed but he didn't get to consider that as the hand guy was still talking. "If we want them to join, we have to treat them as equals. And besides, they know they can't win, so let's see if they will acknowledge the truth or if they are just another pair of heroes." There was real hatred in the man's voice when he said that but Shouto wasn't surprised. He was a villain after all.

And he was right. While Bakugou and he were often tied in practical exercises there were only the two of them and there were nine villains here. And they didn't know the quirks of them all. From what he remembered the misty guy behind the bar was a warper, and the guy with the hand had some sort of disintegration quirk. He had no idea what the burned guys quirk was, or the one in the body suit. They didn't know enough to attack, even if they weren't outnumbered.

But did they really want to recruit them? Of course they did. The black haired villain who'd spoken to him had made that clear. He didn't have to be Enji's prize possession. He could be himself. Except he didn't know what that meant.

Bakugou snorted but made no other move when the villain in the body suit came forward. One of the other villains shifted too. The guy in the top hat and mask. He had a suit on with a vest and he looked at them. Shouto remembered this was the villain with the quirk that turned him into a marble. Or he assumed it did since that's what it had done to Bakugou.

"I apologise for taking such a forceful approach with both of you, however, please understand that we are not just a group of hoodlums endeavoring to perpetrate evil acts." He gave a small nod with his words as the villain with the hand over his face got off his chair. It was kind of odd hearing that they didn't want to perpetrate evil when Shouto distinctly remembered the hand villain deciding to kill several of his classmates because All Might wasn't there. And… who wore a hand on their face. While he couldn't be sure, Shouto was pretty sure it was a real hand, not just a prop.

The villain in the top hat continued as the guy with the hand came close. Bakugou was free now, and was rubbing his wrists. The villain moved to his bonds. "We didn't just casually decide to abduct you. Everyone here has different circumstances but people, rules, heroes…" the guy in the top hat paused, and Shouto felt his bonds fall away. "We are all shackled by them. You both should underst-"

Whatever more the villain was going to say as Bakugou leapt forward. He aimed straight for the villain with the hand. The man was quick and jerked back but still took the full force of the explosion.

"Shigaraki!" the guy who'd freed them cried but the villains seemed content to watch the reaction for the moment.

What was Bakugou doing? Shouto wanted to demand but it was too obvious. He thought they could fight their way out.

"I stayed quiet and listened to your blabbering one and one. Idiots don't know how to summarise things so they go on forever. Basically 'we want to make people hate us, so join us please!' right?" Bakugou lifted his head as the villain with the hand stood up. The hand was gone but Shouto couldn't see his expression as his hair was covering his face. He took a few steps back, positioning himself against a wall. If the villains attacked, he could just ice the entire space.

"It's pointless!" Bakugou hissed. "I've been won over by the way All Might looks when he wins! You can say all you want but nothing can change my mind about that!"

Inwardly Shouto groaned and watched as the villains shifted. This was not the time to make those declarations! What was wrong with him? If they'd just pretended to go along with it then…

As much as he hated the thought of his father paying a ransom, he knew Enji would be trying to find him. It would only have been a short time they had to pretend but Bakugou couldn't even do that and now…

The villain Bakugou had exploded was looking towards the hand. It was resting on the floor but didn't appear damaged. Shouto blinked as he looked. There was a rising tension in the room though the villains didn't appear overly concerned with Bakugou. Why should they? Shouto realised. They'd defeated him once. The one with the top hat sighed but Shouto heard the one who'd been talking to him mutter. "He's an idiot." Right that the moment, Shouto didn't think he could argue that.

"I'm not the type to lie about things I don't want to do," Bakugou declared. I also have no desire to stick around in this shithole." Shouto saw the way he was grinning and holding his hands. Bakuguo did seriously believe he would be able to win.

"Tomura Shigaraki, no! Calm down!" The bartender said, and it looked like he was about to jump on the other villain.

He pulled up as the villain shot out one hand. "Stay out of this, okay, you guys? This one is an important piece," he said as he picked up the hand and put it back on his face.

Shouto watched. The hand was obviously important to him but he also possessed the ability to restrain himself. That was interesting. The bartender looked on and seemed to relax slightly at the proof of restraint and he appeared to have been forgotten but he knew better than to believe that. The black haired villain who had spoken to him was watching him. Shouto knew his expression was bland usually and he made no further move. He'd act if he had to.

"If possible, I would have liked for you to hear me out. I thought maybe you could understand, that you could both understand," Tomura said.

Shouto moved his head slightly to indicate he'd heard that he hadn't been forgotten.

"Heroes and villains are two sides of the same coin," Shigaraki finished.

"No chance!" Bakugou declared.

Shouto sighed.

"Then I've got no choice. The heroes are saying they're carrying out an investigation, so we don't have the time to leisurely persuade you both," Tomura said.

Shigaraki looked to the screen Shouto had seen on the bar earlier, the one showing static. "Teacher," he said. Was he actually talking to the screen? "Lend me your strength."

There was silence for a few moments before Shigaraki sighed. "Kurogiri, Compress, put them back to sleep."

Shouto wondered if something else was meant to have happened and the villain with the top hat sighed. "I've never met anyone as bullheaded as him. I'm actually impressed," the man said as he moved.

Bakugou was braced but before anyone else could move, there was a knock on the door.

-ted-

If you actually look at the canon Kamino arc, and I did look at it a lot, it's actually a very long time between events starting and that little bit of a tiff between AFO and All Might... Which, I have inadvertently replicated. There are also a few things I'm going to change in the next couple of chapters to highlight some points, which have not been made (if reader comments are to be believed.) It might still be a while to the fight, but I promise the fight chapter is double length and it is honestly the events after the fight that are way way more interesting.

My discord is on this code: TcBnRN7aDn FFN will remove links but you should be able to figure that out. There's a heap of other authors there, so come along and chat to us all!

-ted-

Loved it? Hated it? Found a spelling mistake? Let me know please!