AN: Thanks for the interest and reviews everyone!
Ricardo Valencia - Yeah, Ochako's timeline post-Kamino was darker than canons, unfortunately.
InfinityMask - There's other factors at play for why Nagant is free.
Az-Bebere - As time goes on, things are starting to stray, despite the hero's best efforts. As for Mirror Girl…
SwordOfTheGods - They did travel through time, but things got messy when they collided courtesy of 2nds quirk. I'm sure it's fine though.
Izuku grabbed his duffle bag and quietly slipped out of his room, careful not to disturb his sister. He knew that this early in the morning Himiko was probably fast asleep, but he didn't want to take any chances. Quietly, he padded down the hallway into the living room, where he saw his mom sitting on the couch, a cup of tea in her hand.
"H-hi mom," Izuku said softly.
"Hi Izu." Inko slowly stood up. "Are you sure you have to do this?"
Izuku swallowed the lump in his throat and nodded. "We're not even fighting this time! All Might's gonna be the one actually fighting the villain!"
"Just like in that raid…" Inko got a faraway look on her face. Izuku winced.
"That worked out in the end! And this is different! It's only one villain!"
"Will you and Ochako go in if he gets in trouble?"
"Of course!" Izuku instantly answered.
Inko pressed her lips into a firm line, staring at her son. The little boy in front of her who dreamed of being a hero… She gave a resigned sigh. "All three of you better come home safe!"
"We will!"
"Good." Her gaze softened as the uneasiness drained out of her. "Before you go, I made breakfast for you. It's in the kitchen."
Without another word, Izuku crossed the living room and hugged his mom. "I'm sorry we make you worry."
"Izu…" Inko gave her son a fond look as she returned the hug. "It's my job to worry. I know it's silly, but tell Toshi to be careful, ok?"
Izuku brightened up with that. "Ok!"
Separating from his mom, Izuku quietly made his way to the kitchen and picked up the plate of food. Not even bothering to sit down, he quickly scarfed down the food and set the plate in the sink. Waving a silent goodbye, he left the apartment and trekked to his meeting spot.
When Izuku approached the meeting spot, he froze as soon as he heard a pair of familiar voices complaining.
"Ugh, why are we up this early?"
"What did you expect? They've got a long trip ahead of them!"
"I could be sleeping right now."
"It was your idea to do this anyway!"
As Izuku got closer, he saw Himiko and Aika arguing. Jiro simply stood there with her arms crossed, an amused look on her face. "Umm. Guys? What's going on?"
"There you are!" Himiko shouted, pointing an accusing finger at Izuku. "You were going to leave without us!"
"W-what do you mean?" Izuku asked sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head.
"I heard you talking to All Might during training," Jiro retorted, a satisfied smirk on her face. "You're lucky I'm on your side!"
"Wait, you heard that?!" Ochako asked as she approached.
"Duh." Jiro lazily raised her earjacks. "You two were the ones who decided to talk to All Might while I was practicing with these things."
Both Izuku and Ochako's faces heated up in embarrassment. They were just trying to confirm their meeting with All Might! The whole conversation took less than a minute! And yet Jiro managed to catch them anyway!
"So, who are we going after?" Aika asked excitedly.
"We?" Ochako was the first to recover.
"Of course!" Himiko chirped. "You two have already been running off without us. We want to join!"
"This is dangerous!" Izuku cried.
"We're looking for someone who calls himself the Hero Killer," Ochako pointed out.
"I thought you told mom that All Might was going to handle it?" Himiko crossed her arms. "Or do I need to tell her that we couldn't come watch because you two were going to fight him?"
"We weren't," Izuku insisted. "But Stain's unpredictable. We don't know what he'll do."
"In case you two forgot, we want to be heroes too!"
Izuku and Ochako gazed at each other. Neither of them had expected their friends to actually want to go along with their plan. After engaging in silent conversation, the pair turned back to their friends. "We can't convince you otherwise, can we?"
"Nope!"
"Do you have clothes to conceal your identities?" Ochako asked in a desperate attempt to dissuade them. "We need to be careful."
"Of course!" Aika called as she pointed out a small pile of bags resting against a lamppost.
"It wasn't hard to figure out how you guys worked after that raid." Himiko gave them a fanged grin. "I just had to tell the others!"
"Does mom know you're here?" Izuku asked his sister.
Himiko had a guilty look on her face. "...no."
"You should call her before we go," Izuku said. He turned toward the other two who looked similarly guilty.
Himiko was already pulling out her phone, while Ochako turned to the other two. "We're going to be following All Might on the rooftops. Do you two think your parkour skills are up to the task?"
"Of course!" Aika exclaimed. "I'm tired of those boring training grounds anyways. I'm up for something new!"
Jiro seemed more hesitant. "I-" She looked at the other two before turning back to Ochako. "Yeah, if we're gonna be heroes we need to be able to do this, right?"
Ochako smiled at the pair. Even if she wasn't happy about them being there, it was obvious she and Izuku were rubbing off on them.
On their way to U.A., the five departed the train station as the sun began to creep over the horizon. They stepped through the open gate to see the silhouette of Toshinori waiting for them outside the main building. As they got closer, they saw the surprise on his face.
"Young Himiko, Shizu, and Jiro. I didn't expect to see the three of you here," Toshinori admitted as they approached.
"We invited ourselves," Himiko said, looking at Izuku.
"Yeah! After everything those two are doing, we can't just sit by and do nothing!" Aika added.
"Even if we're just going to be watching you, we want to help," Kyoka finished. "After all, what kind of future heroes would we be if we didn't?"
Toshinori had intended to make the three stay behind, but when he saw the determination held by the three students, he found himself smiling. Truly, his successors had chosen wisely when they let their friends in on their secrets. "Have they explained what we are doing?"
"You're going after the guy who's been killing heroes out in Tipoca City, right?" Kyoka asked.
"Exactly! From how these two have described him, he will cause no end of trouble for us in the future if left unchecked," Toshinori said. "Unfortunately, he appears to have taken the ideals I strive for as the Symbol of Peace and corrupted them." With a deep sigh, he continued, "And has decided that any hero that doesn't meet his ideals isn't worthy of being a hero."
A heavy silence fell over the three girls as they looked at each other, each wondering exactly what they were getting themselves into. Aika was the first to speak. "But I thought nobody could do what you've done?" She pointed at Izuku and Ochako. "Isn't that the whole reason they're here?"
"It is, young Shizu," Toshinori agreed. "Which is why he must be stopped." He put his hand to his chin as he thought about it. "In many ways, this is an excellent lesson. He is a villain whose danger lies not in the physical destruction he can cause, but by the corrosive influence he can have on society."
Himiko couldn't help but stare at her own hands. "I- like me." Suddenly, Himiko felt five pairs of eyes staring at her, but she couldn't stand to look at them. "My quirk–" She swallowed the lump in her throat. "–even though it doesn't help me fight, I can cause so much harm with it."
You're a monster. A demon.
"Himi–" Izuku's voice drove the thoughts back before they had time to settle in. His hand rested on her open palm. "You're right. You could do something like that. But you won't." She felt his hand close around hers. "Because you want to help people."
"I–" Himiko looked at her brother and saw the belief in his eyes. Belief in her. Under his loving gaze, the dark thoughts retreated to the far recesses of her mind, and she returned his smile. "You're right!" Feeling better, she turned toward Toshinori. "So this hero killer will cause a lot of trouble if we let him go? Why hasn't anyone dealt with him yet?"
"For one primary reason," Toshinori started, "nobody knew his actions were the work of one man. And nobody was able to determine his next target. Until now."
"Because of these two," Kyoka said, pointing at Izuku and Ochako with her earjacks.
"Yep!" Ochako said.
"So now you're going to be punching him in the face?"
Toshinori laughed awkwardly at Aika's enthusiasm. "As much as I wish I wouldn't have to."
"So cool!" Aika's eyes sparkled. "We get to see All Might in action!"
"We won't be that close," Izuku said. "We'll be on the rooftops, watching from a distance."
"The hero killer is fast and uses blades," Ochako added. "One knick is enough - if he can drink even a drop of your blood, he can paralyze you."
Himiko's head whipped around to stare at Ochako. "His quirk is blood-based?!"
Ochako hesitated for a moment before nodding.
"Even more reason to capture him, right?" Kyoka asked her friend, seeing the look of frustration on her friend.
"Right," Himiko forced out the word, her knuckles turning white as her nails dug into her palms.
"Don't worry, young Himiko. After today, he'll be off the streets," Toshinori assured the girl.
"Th-thanks," Himiko said softly, her hands slowly unclenching.
Several hours later, Toshinori and the students arrived at Tipoca City, the van pulling into Agent Ice's agency. Stepping out of the car, Toshinori looked around to ensure nobody was around before he disappeared into a puff of smoke, transforming into the smiling form of All Might.
"Are you five ready?" All Might asked them.
"Yeah!"
Without another word, the group entered the agency, where Agent Ice stood. He was a tall man with sharply angled features and white hair dressed in a white and blue costume.
"All Might!" Agent Ice exclaimed, a grin on his face. "I still can't believe it."
Toshinori chuckled as he held out his hand. "I wish we could have met under happier circumstances."
"Believe me, I understand." Agent Ice's grin disappeared as he shook the number one hero's hand. "It's hard to believe the mythical Hero Killer is here in Tipoca."
"Not for much longer," All Might exclaimed. "With your help, we will bring him to justice tonight!"
"I must admit, I was hesitant to go on patrol today," the ice hero confessed. "However, knowing that Japan's top hero is going to watch my back makes me feel better."
All Might slapped the hero on the back. "Don't worry, I'll ensure this Hero Killer doesn't lay a hand on you."
A smile crawled across Agent Ice's face. "So what's the plan?"
Agent Ice was tense as he slipped into a back alley. While the pressure had eased up recently as he started to earn the trust of local yakuza, tonight he couldn't shake the feeling that he was being watched.
And, according to All Might, he was.
He suppressed a shudder as he stood at an intersection in the alleyway. After pausing to examine the area for signs of illicit drop-offs, he continued through, breathing a small sigh of relief as he exited back onto the street.
As he looked up at the darkening sky, he hoped the hero killer would strike soon.
Stain hopped from rooftop to rooftop, tracking his target.
The hero seemed tense today. With good reason - it had been a week since Stain had dispatched the last false hero. That meant the heroes of this city were on guard, knowing they could be next.
Good.
That meant they were learning.
After Stain visited a town, the heroes became more aware of their own mortality and more vigilant. As a result, they ended up being more helpful to the people they were supposed to protect.
It wasn't enough to push them into becoming true heroes, but it was a start.
Someday, Stain hoped that his message would take root and spread, and then it wouldn't just be heroes in the current town, but heroes all across Japan, who feared a visit from him.
For now, he was content to spread his message in his own way as he hopped from rooftop to rooftop, stalking Agent Ice. The trigger syringes rattled around in a pouch on his belt, reminding him of the hero's crimes.
In another hour, the sun dipped below the city skyline, blanketing the city in twilight. With the disappearance of the sun, Agent Ice felt his anxiety increasing. He became acutely aware of every noise, from the rustle of leaves to the sound of an empty bottle rolling down the street.
Breathe, he told himself. All Might is watching you. You can trust him. He's the top hero in Japan for a reason.
Stopping in front of a wide alleyway, he hesitated. He had been down the same alleyway hundreds of times, but tonight it was dark and foreboding. Swallowing the lump in his throat, he clenched his fist.
You're a hero, damn it! Act like one!
It's like All Might said. If I don't act, more people will die. It has to be me.
Nodding to himself, he gathered his courage and stepped down the alleyway.
Was this the one?
Stain observed the hero as he hesitated in front of the alleyway, frowning.
Had he made a mistake? Had he been spotted? Was that why the hero was hesitating?
This was one of the better alleyways for an ambush, and the hero had to know that, just as well as Stain did. Perhaps that is why he was hesitating.
Stain silently debated the pros and cons of using this alleyway as he had originally intended before deciding to stick with his original plan. If the hero lost his nerve and fled, Stain's job would get much messier. He wasn't above breaking into a hero's home and finishing them off. But that would dilute his message.
No, much better to act now, while he still had the chance.
He took off in a silent run, leaping to the next building to get ahead of the hero. He drew his blade. Silently, he watched the hero make his journey down the alleyway, his body coiled and ready to spring.
The air in the alleyway was oddly still as if the city itself was holding its breath, waiting for someone to make a move. It unsettled Agent Ice.
He kept glancing around, watching shadows stretch and dance as he moved through the alleyway.
This really was the perfect spot for an ambush.
With a flick of his thumbs, he unsealed the two tanks of water on his belt, preparing to use his quirk. He knew it would be futile - there was no way he could match All Might in speed. But he refused to go down with a fight!
He was about two-thirds of the way through the alleyway when it happened. For a fraction of a second, he felt the pressure in the air change. He began to use his quirk, feeling the water in the tanks freeze and begin to move under his command, when suddenly, he felt a large, muscled arm wrap itself around his torso. The next moment, he was flying incredibly fast further down the alleyway.
"Who dares interfere with my plan?!" the angry voice of the Hero Killer rang out.
"Your days of hunting are over, Hero Killer. For I Am Here."
Agent Ice felt himself gently placed on the ground, and he quickly stepped away from the hulking form of his rescuer. "Thanks for the save, All Might!"
"Anything for a fellow hero!" All Might said as he gave a salute before turning his attention to the Hero Killer. "I hear you've been judging heroes based on my deeds."
"Don't get in my way," the Hero Killer warned as he held his sword defensively in front of him. "He doesn't deserve to be protected by the likes of you, none of them do!"
"That's where you're mistaken!"
Meanwhile, several buildings away on a quiet rooftop, five students stood in rapt attention, trying to observe the fight.
"This is insane!" Aika whisper-yelled. "Why hasn't All Might finished him off yet?!"
"Sometimes it's better to talk to the villains," Izuku observed. "While All Might could knock him unconscious in a single blow, he still is trying to reach out to him."
"Reach out to him?" Jiro asked.
"Remember this morning?" Himiko asked, a pained look on her face. "It's not just about greed or anger. They could be lashing out, desperate, or hurting…"
"That guy doesn't look like someone who's lashing out though…"
"Quiet!" Jiro suddenly whispered, her earjacks suddenly flying in every direction. "We're not alone up here."
"Where?" Ochako asked, her face serious as she turned toward her purple-haired friend.
Jiro's eyes slid over to look at Ochako; her Earjacks pointed to an adjoining building. "On the roof."
Ochako nodded. "You three stay here. Izu and I will go check it out."
"No way!" Himiko protested. "We're going together!"
"Himi-"
"I don't want to explain to mom why you ended up in the hospital - again - after one of these things," Himiko argued. "Especially when I can do something to help."
Izuku and Ochako gave each other a resigned look, before turning towards Kyoka and Aika. "What about you two?"
"Of course we're coming, isn't that right?"
"Obviously," Kyoka said with a smirk. "Someone's gotta keep you two out of trouble."
"Make sure to stay behind us," Ochako ordered.
"And be prepared to run," Izuku added.
"Yeah yeah, we get it. Leave the punching to you two," Aika responded.
"Hopefully it won't come to that," Izuku said as he looked at the building that was their target. With a final glance back, he took off, running across the rooftop before launching himself across the gap, landing deftly on the fire escape.
Moments later all five of them had crossed the gap, and began silently making their ascent to the rooftop.
AN: I hope you all enjoyed the chapter!
I'll be taking some time off for the holidays, but we'll pick right back up in a few weeks.
Happy holidays, and see you all in the new year!