A/N: Hey everyone! Sorry for the delay in updating. I've been going back and forth between the next five chapters to make sure it's all smoothed out. I'll elaborate further in the A/N at the end. Please enjoy this chapter and, to quote the G.O.A.T., Gabe Newell: "After 9 Years of development, hopefully it would have been worth the wait."

Review responses at the end, as usual.

OPENING SONG:

"Mukoku" by My First Story

The roar of Tenya Iida's engine legs echoed down the dark, moonlit street leading away from the USJ back towards the main campus, several miles away. His sore legs ached in protest, fatigued by all of the work they had done that day, but he ignored the burn and pressed on.

"Engine – BOOST!" He shouted. The engines in his legs vibrated and sputtered, shifting gears and adding an extra boost of speed to his run. The moonlight gleamed off the young hero's white armor.

Thanks to Uraraka's quick thinking and her zero gravity Quirk, Iida had managed to slip past the Warp Villain guarding the exit to the USJ while Thirteen covered him. Although it pained him to leave his classmates behind, the teachers were counting on him to alert the school of the attack.

He reached up to the right side of his helmet and hit his call button, but the service was still inactive, even out here.

Whatever was causing an interference to the comms and the cell service, whether it was a Quirk or device, was having an EMP effect on the entire surrounding area. All of the night lights were off, as were the traffic lights and even some vehicles.

The entire power grid has been shut down, Iida gasped. If it hadn't been because of the USJ's powerful generators, my classmates would be stranded, forced to fight for their lives in the dark. If I delay any longer… If Ican't get help in time…

Iida shook the terrifying thought from his mind. He had a job to do, one that many had sacrificed so much to help him accomplish.

"Use your Quirk to save others!" Those were the last words that Number Thirteen had said to him before throwing herself to fight the Warp Villain. Shoji and Sato, too. They had thrown themselves at the surrounding villains that tried to impede Iida from escaping.

And brave little Ochaco had helped him escape the USJ, only to stay behind to help the others. And the way Gohan had thrown himself into that warp gate without a second's hesitation to save Ochaco…

Iida had been wrong about them. His classmates weren't just a mob of unruly, unfocused delinquents. Every one of them had been prepared to lay down their lives for him without hesitation. Well, now they needed his help, more than ever.

He was not going to let them down. He needed to get to UA as fast as he could! With another roar from his engines, Iida shifted another gear and sped off even faster into the night.

(…)

"KAIOKEN… TIMES TENNNNN!"

The hollow, glowing red eyes staring out from the eye-slits of the white mask bore into Gohan's soul, glowing even brighter as the scarlet aura around him intensified. The winds howled and swirled violently around the villain, making his cape spread out like an ominous pair of bat wings. Time seemed to sit still for Gohan as panic began to sink in.

What. Did. That. Thing. Just. SAY?!

Gohan's eyes widened, his lungs froze, gasping for air, and his fist and hands, trapped inside the creature's massive black-gloved hand began to tremble uncontrollably. Profuse, chilling sweat formed over his scalp and dripped down to his jawline.

WHAT DID THAT THING JUST SAY?!

His heart was racing; he could hear the deafening drumming of his heartbeat against his ears and his lips quivered. Gohan tried to pull back from the masked creature's iron grip, but his arms wouldn't even respond. He was completely petrified, frozen in place.

Before he could see it coming, the creature's fist, little more than a red blur, shot out and struck him directly in the jaw.

It was like getting hit by a freight train. Gohan's vision blurred behind involuntary tears and his teeth sank into his tongue, filling his mouth with a warm, iron taste. The next instant, before Gohan could even cry out in pain, he was already flying halfway across the USJ, passing over the many different simulation zones.

"Aaaaaaargh!" Gohan coughed and wheezed for air. He did his best to orient himself with a blast of his ki. The red aura of the Kaioken form brightened and his flight slowed to a stop. Gohan wheezed as he floated in midair for a moment.

One punch… all that power in just one punch! Gohan's eyes widened. The red tint of his own Kaioken form wavered slightly, and his enlarged muscles burned, causing him to lose altitude. How…? How was that thing able to use Kaioken?

"I've got him!" Ochaco yelled, picking up a large chunk of the wall that had collapsed and pouncing forward to trap Nomu under it, but Nomu shot off like a jet, flying after Gohan. The massive gust of wind unleashed by his takeoff struck Ochaco like a wall and sent her tumbling away.

Gohan's Scouter beeped in alarm, tracking the creature's movements. Nomu's flight pattern was unstable, unpredictable. It zig-zagged in between the buildings that housed the Squall and Fire Zones with blinding scarlet speed and rose up, flying straight towards Gohan. Blood trickled over Gohan's scalp and rolled down into his right eye, and he wiped at it, trying his best to keep his eyes open to follow Nomu's erratic flight pattern.

This is it, Gohan thought, bringing is hands together over his head, gathering his ki. It was painful – his stamina still hadn't replenished and some of his wounds still hadn't fully healed. But there was no more time to think. He needed to hit Nomu with the fastest ki blast in his arsenal. He's open! I just need him to hold still!

A golden ki orb formed in his palms over his head, charging with a high-pitched whine, casting a bright, golden light over Gohan's head. Nomu was almost on him, flying straight towards him at full speed.

"MASENKO-HAAAA!" Gohan yelled. The beam shot out from his hands straight onto Nomu's path, but at the very last second, Nomu placed two fingers on its forehead and vanished into thin air. The Masenko blast lanced out towards one of the canyons of the Mountain Zone and exploded, harmlessly.

Gohan blinked for a second. Nomu… just disappeared?!

"What the-?"

The Scouter screamed at him frantically to turn around. A sudden gust of wind brushed against his neck and Gohan swiveled around in time to see Nomu reappear behind him.

"Kaioken TIMES-" Gohan gasped, but Nomu's hand crashed against his throat, silencing him. Gohan choked and wheezed for air, clutching at the large black glove that held his throat. Nomu tossed Gohan into the air. Before Gohan could react, Nomu's knee snapped up and sank into Gohan's abdomen, breaking the golden plate that protected his lower torso. The kick was so powerful it sent Gohan flying upwards towards the ceiling.

Nomu disappeared again and reappeared above Gohan's body, slamming his interlaced fists onto Gohan's back, sending him barreling back down towards the surface. Again, Nomu vanished and reappeared under Gohan before he could land, and thrust a hand out, blasting him away with a black and yellow ki blast. With every hit, Gohan's world became darker and darker as Nomu juggled his body through the air.

There was no way that Gohan could beat him in a head to head fight. Nomu was just too powerful, and with the Kaioken x10, Gohan would be dead in seconds! The Recovery Bean that Ochaco had given him had helped heal some of his wounds, but the Dragon Fist technique had left him almost depleted of any energy, and his Kaioken form was burning through what little stamina he had left. Cold sweat started to pour down his face and his lips were turning pale and dry. The world around him began to spin.

Nomu seemed to have no such limitation. He was a machine – a valve of pure, relentless energy, bursting with power. The masked creature flew up and slammed into Gohan's abdomen with his head. The force of the blow was so powerful that it obliterated what remained of the golden plate that protected Gohan's abs and cracked the two plates that covered his chest.

Gohan howled in pain as he felt several of his newly healed ribs crack once again. As he flew back, Nomu caught him by the boot with both hands and spun him around. Gohan's stomach turned and the world became a blur of colors and lights. Nomu spun him around faster and faster, until he finally hurled Gohan back down to the ravaged plaza.

Ochaco stared in horror as Gohan's torn and brutalized body spun out of control, barrelling back down to the plaza floor in free fall.

"Gohan!" Ochaco screamed and flew off in his direction.

Gohan heard her voice and his eyes opened weakly.

"O...cha...co?" He squeaked.

The ground rushed up at him like a hammer. Gohan grunted and did his best to spin around to land on his feet, but his exhausted body wouldn't move. Instead, his broken limbs flapped uselessly by his sides.

A blur of movement from the ground below caught his attention. Nomu's black-clad body materialized in the middle of the plaza ground, where Gohan was going to land. The villain was squatted, seemingly holding something by his side, as if to conceal it.

Blue light emanated from his hands and intensified. Gohan gasped, realizing what was happening, but utterly incapable of escaping his fate. His eyes widened in terror.

"KAAAAMEEEHAAAAMEEEHAAAAA!" Nomu thundered.

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE – THE USJ INCIDENT II – CRESCENDO

THE USJ,
SHIPWRECK ZONE…

A villain screamed, swinging a blade down, aiming to slice the blonde's head in half, but Melissa parried the blade with one end of her Power Pole, knocking the blade out of the villains hands. It flew and clattered down the wooden ship deck, and Melissa twirled the staff in her hand, reversing and slamming it across the villain's face. The staff whacked the villain and tossed him overboard into the water below.

Gunfire erupted from her left flank. Villains had managed to climb aboard from that side and were taking firing formations to shoot at her. The bullets bounced off of Melissa's dark blue body armor and she jumped back, clicking her heels together. The soles of her red boots opened up to reveal three fan-like thrusters that roared to life, unleashing a powerful gale of wind that propelled Melissa into a ten foot somersault back towards safety.

Izuku appeared behind the villains with a green flash of light and electricity. He tackled the one closest to the ledge, knocking him overboard. The other villain turned to fire at him, but Izuku grabbed him by the shoulders and dropped backwards onto the ground, kicking him up and over the ledge, tossing him overboard as well.

"End of the line, runts!" A voice behind them caught their attention and they turned to see a crustacean villain with the body the size of a small car, jumping at them from the upper deck of the ship, his crimson razor sharp claws snapping eagerly. But a translucent silhouette leaped out from the water and spun in midair, delivering a powerful drop kick that sent the crab villain flying away back into the water.

"See ya!" The figure chirped, flipping again and landed safely on the deck on all fours.

"Midoriya? Shield?" The figure asked, standing from her crouched position. Her camouflage rescinded, revealing the figure to be Tsuyu Asui. "Boy, am I glad to see you two here."

"Whoa, that kick was amazing, Asui- uh, I mean Tsu!" Izuku corrected himself. "Just how many other amphibian-like abilities do you have? We already saw that you couldjumpreallyhigh,clingontowallsandshootoutyourtongue,butcamouflage,too?!That'sincredible-,"

"Hmm! Super-heated and rapidly cooling polyethylene glycol-coated metafibers," Melissa leaned in close to Tsu's costume, pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose. "Instant invisibility cloak! Your costume rules, Tsu!"

"You guys are freaking me out," Tsu groaned with a bright blush, taking a step back. "Stop that, please."

"Oops! Sorry!" The two wide-eyed nerds laughed in unison. scratching the backs of their heads with embarrassment.

"So…" Melissa breathed, glancing across the water towards the Plaza in the distance. "Do you guys think they really meant what they said about Uncle Might? Do you think they actually found a way to kill him?"

"I've been thinking about it," Midoriya said, rubbing his chin. "The League of Villains brought these different crime organizations together in hopes of taking All Might out. And remember what the boss villain said? He said that he shouldn't have relied on 'that brat's intel'. This rescue training was only made known to a handful of teachers and only after we got in trouble for fighting in the Market, which leads me to believe that someone affiliated with the League was able to infiltrate into UA High, and if that's true, if they've gone through all this trouble to plan this attack… then maybe they have figured out a way to… to…"

A monstrous howl suddenly rang out, bouncing off the ship walls, startling the three students.

"Oh, I've got a bad feeling about this, you guys," Tsu said, nervously.

Melissa gulped audibly and brought up her Power Pole.

A shadow flew past them, disappearing over the stern of the ship. The students followed it, but couldn't catch a glimpse of what it was before it vanished.

"We should, uhh, probably get indoors," Izuku whimpered, backing towards the door.

"Y-yeah," Melissa gulped, eyes wide with terror. "I think you're-"

Before they could even reach the door, something heavy and large landed on the upper deck. The villain's scaly green skin gleamed in the artificial light and it stared down with feral eyes, baring its razor sharp teeth at them. A black Majin Mark was scarred onto its forehead. It stood up on two legs and a pair of leathery bat-like wings extended out like a gargoyle. The monster gave them a bone chilling roar, baring its rows of razor-sharp teeth.

"Get inside!" Izuku yelled. "NOW!"

The three students ran for the entrance to the ship, but the Namekian Majin leaped down on top of them, it's sharp claws extended, ready to kill.

"Melissa, watch out!" Izuku shouted, grabbing Melissa by the waist and jumping away. The claws crashed directly on the spot where she had just been standing, sinking into the deck. Izuku and Melissa landed a few feet away safely, and the monster howled in rage. In one movement, he wrestled his claws out of the deck, breaking the boards by sheer force. The claws came free and snapped in the air. The winged serpent turned towards them with an irritated hiss.

Tsu leaped forward to strike the villain with a kick, but the Monster flicked it's tail and swatted her away. Tsu hit the wall and slid down, crumpling on the deck with a wounded grunt.

Before Izuku and Melissa could stand, the Majin was upon them. Izuku tucked Melissa's head against his chest and rolled to the left as the Majin smashed the ground with its head, jaws snapping inches away from their heads. Izuku reversed and rolled to the other side as the villain smashed the opposite side of the deck

"Run, Melissa!" Gohan yelled at the blonde in his arms. "Get inside!"

Melissa screamed as the Namekian came down and snapped its jaws shut over her face, but Izuku jammed the red gauntlet on his left arm into it. The massive jaws of the Majin snapped against the gauntlet, but it held. Izuku's eyes widened as the razor sharp teeth snapped again and again, stopping inches away from Melissa's head.

The hover soles on Melissa's boots whined, roaring to life, and she kicked into the monster's abdomen, throwing it off of them. The monster howled and slid a few feet away from them, burying its claws onto the deck to regain its footing. Melissa rolled over into a crouch and brought her red gauntlet up, aiming it at the creature with one eye closed. A thin red laser shot out, aiming for the Majin's jaws. The Majin roared and jumped towards them on all fours.

Melissa hit the switch on her wrist with her left hand and a metallic blue marble shot out into the Namekian's mouth. Immediately, it reared back, writhing under a sudden burst of electricity that incapacitated it. A tiny hook protruded from the side of her gauntlet and shot off, pulling a triple-threaded titanium binding wire with it. The wire hooked onto the creature, spinning around it several times, binding its arms, legs and wings together. The monster was trapped.

"He's open, Deku!" Melissa shouted. "Get him with the full gauntlet!"

"Right!" Izuku nodded. He got back up to his feet and shot forward with a burst of green electricity, channeling the strength of One for All, allowing it to course through his body.

"Full Cowling: Ten Percent!" Izuku shouted, balling his right hand into a fist. Green electricity flowed throughout his body, gathering around the red gauntlet as Izuku ran towards the Majin.

"DETROIT SMAAAASH!" He shouted, unleashing a thunderous right hook that collided with the villains' jaws. The Namekian creature howled as it flew over the ledge of the ship and landed in the water, it's jaw obliterated by Izuku's superpowered smash. The enormous gust of wind shook the entire ship.

Izuku clutched at his hand instinctively, but to his surprise, it hadn't broken. His hand was numb down to his elbow, his fingers twitching from the enormous blast he had just unleashed, but other than that, his hand was just fine.

"Way to go, Deku!" Melissa cheered. She raised her hand and a magnet in her gauntlet called out to the Power Pole. It leaped up from the ground and flew into her hand. Melissa caught it and slid it into the sheath on her back. "They'll only give you three full powered hits each, so use them sparingly."

"Thanks, Melissa!" Izuku smiled, staring down at his hands in wonder. "I'll keep that in mind. Now let's get going!"

Above them, three more winged Namekian Majins were flocking around the skies of the ship. Beyond them, about a dozen other water villains had surrounded the ship, cutting off any escape route. Izuku and Melissa ran across the wet boarded deck and helped Tsu get into the ship, slamming the heavy door shut behind them.

As soon as the heavy lock set in place, razor sharp claws slashed across the door several times. One of the other Majins had swooped down and thrown itself against the door, clawing at it like a feral beast, but the door held up against its assault.

"Come on," Izuku said breathlessly. "If we stay here and that thing breaks down the door, we're dead. We need to find a place to hide until we can figure out a plan."

"Here," Melissa said, pointing the flashlight on her red wrist gauntlet at a map on the wall. "The maintenance room is only three levels down. We might even get lucky and find something useful down there."

Midoriya's eyes flicked through the map and nodded.

"I agree. Do you think you can make it on your own, Tsu?"

Tsu nodded weakly.

"I'll be fine," she groaned, rubbing her bruised shoulder. "Just lead the way."

"Okay," Izuku said, turning to Melissa. "Let's get going."

…

As the trio descended into the bowels of the spacious ship, they heard desperate banging against the wall.

"Oof, those villains scare me," Tsu said, holding her trembling hands together in front of her.

"Hmm, I dunno," Melissa hummed, reaching for her belt. "It doesn't sound like the banging is coming from outside…"

She pulled out a thumb-sized device and placed it on the wall. A blue light on the device lit up and started giving off quick flashes of light that flickered down the hallways of the ship. Melissa lifted her gauntlet and a blue mini holographic image burst out, mapping the ship.

"Whoa, those are some impressive gadgets, Melissa," Tsu commented. Melissa looked over at her with a smile.

"Hm? Oh, don't tell anyone, but I kind of asked a couple of the support class students to give me a hand with the new suit. I loved my old one, but it didn't really offer anything in terms of protection. It was mostly just a cosplay of Uncle Might's costume. This… kind of feels more like me, you know?"

"Yeah… I know what you mean," Izuku sighed. "It's impressive. So all of those gadgets came from the Support Lab, huh?"

"Mhm," Melissa said, glancing up from her 3D radar. "Mei Hatsume is actually really good at making gadgets and gizmos like these. She and the Vice Rep of Support Class 1H came up with this little baby right here. I… kinda, sorta told him we were going to be at the USJ, so he let me, umm, burrow some of his prototype gadgets. If I'm being honest, I think he's got a little crush on me, because as soon as I told him I was going to the USJ, he let me take everything I wanted," Melissa giggled and brought a hand to her cheek.

"Oh, well…" Midoriya blushed and looked away, flustered. "Guess it's a good thing he did, huh?"

The radar began to beep repeatedly, highlighting a red silhouette somewhere nearby, banging frantically against a door from the maintenance room.

"Wait a minute," Melissa gasped.

"Hey!" Tsu said. "That kinda looks like-"

"HELP! GET ME OUTTA HERE!" Mina Ashido shouted, banging on the locked door she had been warped into by Kurogiri.

Melissa, Izuku and Tsu rushed into the maintenance room and unlocked the door to one of the closets. Mina tumbled out, tangled up in a hoses, cables and fishing nets.

"Oof!" She grunted.

"Mina!" Tsu cried, helping the pink skinned girl untangle herself. "How on earth did you get in there?!"

"It was the misty bastard!" Mina cried, tears springing from her eyes. "He said he was gonna drown me, but instead, I woke up locked in this closet!"

"It's probably for the best," Izuku muttered, helping Mina stand up. "There's about a dozen hungry villains out in the water just waiting to pounce on us. If you'd fallen into the water-"

"Deku!" Melissa scolded him. "Not helping!"

"Oops!" Izuku slapped his hands over his mouth. "S-sorry!"

"You guuuuuuys, I'm scared!" Mina cried even harder, sitting down on one of the chairs and hugging her arms. "I don't wanna die!"

"That's not going to happen," Melissa said. "We just need to figure out a way to get out of here-"

"A dozen hungry villains waiting to eat us and you wanna go out there?" Mina shouted, suddenly angry.

Something collided with the side of the ship, shaking it so violently that it threw everyone off balance.

"What's happening?" Tsu asked. Melissa glanced down at her radar.

"Shit, not good!" She said, looking back up frantically. "Something just destroyed the portside of the ship. We're taking in water, fast! The ship's probably got ten minutes before it sinks! Deku, any ideas?"

"Uhh, give me a second," he said, pacing around, tapping his thumb to his mouth. "I'll think of something."

"AHHHH! We're gonna die!" Mina wailed.

"Hold on, don't panic!" Izuku tried soothing the crying girl. "Now's not the time-"

"Now is the perfect time to panic, Midoriya!" Mina whimpered. "Don't you see? I'm not brave like you and Tsu and Melissa. I'm scared!"

Izuku gulped and exchanged worried glances with Tsu.

"Mina…" Melissa said, crouching down to be at eye level with the sobbing girl, her voice dropping to a calm tone. "I know you're really scared right now, and that's nothing to be ashamed about. Let me tell you something that Uncle Might told me when I was a little girl. Being brave doesn't mean you don't get scared."

Mina stopped sobbing and looked up into Melissa's sky-blue eyes. Melissa took her hand and gave it a firm squeeze.

"Being brave means acting, even though you're scared," she said. "Don't worry about a thing. We're stronger together, and we won't let anything happen to you. I promise."

Mina's tearful eyes leaped between Melissa's. She bit her lower lip and nodded.

"Alright," she whispered.

"Listen to me, everybody. I know we're in a bad spot right now," Izuku said, standing to his feet and looking around the cabin. "You're all probably scared. I am too. We were in Junior High only a few months ago, after all. But you know what? We aren't little kids any more. We're Heroes; UA Class 1A. This is what we've been training for, for so long. Now, we can either sit here and cower until the ship sinks and the villains get us – or we can make a stand, right here, right now. So what if they're adults? We have something they don't – training, and knowledge; knowledge of our Quirks, and how to use them in combat."

"Midoriya's right." Tsu spoke up. "We know each other's Quirks better than the villains do, which is probably why they sent me here instead of into the Fire or Squall Zones, where my Quirk would be at a disadvantage."

"Yeah," Mina rubbed reddened eyes. "And that's why the villains are waiting around outside, right? V said that she could feel the villains' fear, just before the warp villain got us. They're afraid of us. We could use that to our advantage…"

"…and hit them where it hurts," Melissa finished, closing her fists, her eyebrows narrowing.

"And where exactly would that be?" Tsu asked.

"You mean in the balls, right?" Mina sniffled

"That's not what I mean," Melissa said. She turned and walked over to the lockers filled with navy blue and white scuba gear and several tanks of oxygen. She looked back over her shoulder at her classmates.

"Remember what Uncle Might taught us during my Combat Trial against Todoroki and Shoji?"

"That everyone has a scar?" Izuku asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Exactly," Melissa smiled, taking her glasses off and undoing her ponytail. She shook her head and her blonde hair cascaded down her shoulders. "And what is every villain's scar? What do they fear the most?"

Tsu and Mina exchanged a glance and Midoriya nodded, a smile forming over his face.

"Tell us your plan, Melissa. What do you need from us?"

(…)

THE USJ
COLLAPSE ZONE…

"Wake up, Bakugo!" Videl begged, slapping a gloved hand over Bakugo's face. "We're in deep shit! GET UP!"

"HUH?!" Bakugo's eyes fluttered open. He tried sitting up, but a sharp pain from his side forced him back down.

"What the hell?!" Bakugo growled. "Where are we?"

He looked up to see Videl, sitting on the rubble-littered ground next to him. They were taking cover behind a pile of rubble from the ceiling, which had collapsed when they fell through the villain's warp gate. The Rabbit Mob, seven men dressed in green fatigues, and their leader, were all firing at them with automatic weapons. At the end of the room, Kirishima was fighting off a villain in his Hardened state, but when more villains poured in with firearms, he was forced to jump behind a metal desk for cover.

Monster Carrot cackled as he fired his weapon wildly from the entrance across the room.

"Flush 'em out, boys!" He laughed. "You can kill the two brats, but Hercule's daughter is my prize!"

Two armed villains charged the rubble where Videl and Bakugo were hiding. As they turned the corner, Videl threw herself forward and swung her right leg around high, knocking the weapon out of the hands of one of the henchmen. She continued her spin, bringing the heel of her left foot and swiping away at the villain's head, connecting with his temple.

As the villain hit the floor, Videl charged straight at the other gunman, smashing into him with her shoulder and stomping him into the ground. She grabbed the downed villain's gun and jumped back, firing wildly overhead. The rain of bullets missed widely, but the villains ducked behind cover to avoid being hit anyway.

Monster Carrot shot forward much faster than Videl could anticipate. She opened fire, but the giant rabbit bounced over her head and twisted in midair, landing behind her. Videl was caught off guard by the villain's blinding speed.

"Videl!" Kirishima yelled, jumping forward. As Monster Carrot reached out to touch Videl with his Quirk, Kirishima smashed into the pig-tailed girl with his shoulder, knocking her away.

"Transform!" Monster Carrot yelled. Kirishima screamed as a white light enveloped his body.

"Oh no, Red!" Videl screamed. Smoke burst through the cracks on Kirishima's hardened skin and exploded into a cloud that filled the room.

Videl and Bakugo stared in horror at the spot where Kirishima had fallen. Instead of the red-haired boy, all they could see was a red… carrot?!

"RED!" Videl cried out desperately, jumping towards the carrot, but Monster Carrot, who was much closer snatched it up. Videl landed on the floor and slid away, empty handed.

"Oh no!" Monster mocked Videl, twirling one of his whiskers and holding the carrot up to his mouth. "If only you hadn't been so focused on yourself, your little boyfriend wouldn't have had to die!"

"What the hell did you do to him?!" Videl shouted.

"Oh, I just turned him into a tasty snack!" Monster laughed. "Now, say good-bye!"

"NO!" Videl shouted, jumping to her feet and leaping forward.

Monster Carrot placed Carrot Kirishima in his mouth and bit down, only for his teeth to clatter against the hardened carrot.

"Oww!" Carrot groaned, rubbing his aching cheek. "What gives?! This carrot's as hard as a rock!"

"Give him back to me – NOW!" Videl roared. Her fist crackled with sparks of red electricity and a red star appeared under her feet as she swung forward, cracking Monster Carrot in the face so hard that his sunglasses shattered. Monster roared in pain, holding his cut up forehead.

"Oh, you little bitch!" He roared. "You're gonna pay for that!"

"You're the one who's gonna pay!" Bakugo shouted from behind, holding his right grenade gauntlet up at the villain. He pulled the pin and gauntlet flashed to life. Bakugo squatted to support the massive incoming blast, but the recoil still popped his right shoulder out of place and threw him against the wall behind him. Bakugo coughed and slid down to the floor.

"Get the hell outta the way, Pigtails!" He shouted at Videl. Videl jumped out of the way and the next instant, the gauntlet unleashed a devastating explosion that rocked the entire room. The blast engulfed the villains that had been firing at them, flinging them against the walls, where they fell unconscious. Monster Carrot screamed as he caught the brunt of the explosion, and it sent him flying out of the room, bursting through the door and tumbling down the stairway.

During the struggle, Monster dropped Carrot Kirishima and Videl dived forward, catching him. One of the weapons dropped by a gunman hit the floor and sputtered to life, firing off several shots wildly before getting jammed. Some of the bullets ricocheted off the rubble and struck Videl.

"AHHH!" Videl screamed, clutching at her lower side. She dove back and crawled her way back to Bakugo behind cover. A tinge of red appeared and began to spread across the side of her costume, dripping steadily onto the floor. "He got me!"

Bakugo saw the growing puddle of blood and growled.

"Nice going, Pig Tails!" Bakugo yelled. "You really can't do anything right, can you?"

"Why the hell… are you yelling at me, Bakudork?!" Videl wheezed, crawling over to take cover behind the pile of rubble. "Took you long enough to join in. Were you waiting for the red carpet or something?"

"Shut up! This is what you get for standing around like an idiot!" Bakugo shouted back. He reached into his utility belt and took out a recovery bean and offered it to Videl. "Hurry up and eat this, before you snuff it, you weakling!" He said.

"Ojiro gave me his already, dumbass!" Videl panted, annoyed. "If I eat another one, it'll burn through the last of my stamina and I'll die."

"Trust me, you'll be doing us both a favor!" Bakugo grumbled. "Then I won't have to hear your whining anymore!"

"Don't think I won't come back and haunt the hell outta you!" Videl shouted back. She brought a hand up to her mouth and coughed out blood. "Ugh! I can't believe I'm wasting my dying breaths arguing with the king of all douchebags."

"Just use your damn Quirk to heal yourself so we can finish kicking these guy's asses already," Bakugo barked back, reaching for his broken arm with a grimace. "It's only a matter of time before that over-sized Skunk comes back with more men."

"Bakugo, he's a rabbit," Videl corrected.

"Like I give a damn what the hell he is or isn't, Pigtails! Just hurry up and heal yourself!" Bakugo bellowed, his pupils whitening out with rage. "If you don't stop the bleeding, I will!"

"I've used so much of my Star Power throughout the day," Videl moaned. "There's nothing left."

A low rumble started from the bottom of Bakugo's stomach. His jaw clenched, baring his teeth and a bulging vein popped over his forehead, steaming with anger. Bringing his knees back and burying the soles of his boots against the floor, Bakugo slowly started to push himself up against the wall.

"This is really… it, huh? I'm so sorry, Red…" Videl whispered. Her breathing became labored and she suddenly felt so cold. Her weak grip loosened and Carrot Kirishima fell on her lap. Videl's lips were pale and her eyes were sunken from the blood loss. She looked up at Katsuki weakly.

"Bakugo," Videl whispered, her voice becoming distant. "Guess you were right about me. I really couldn't do anything right, in the end."

"AHHHHHH! Shut the hell up, Pig Tails!" Bakugo roared. He pushed up on his legs and slid up the wall to a trembling stand. He reached over to his dangling, broken right arm with his left hand and with a dry snap, he slipped it back into place.

"Quit talkin' like I'm sorta savior, because I'm not!" He shouted. "If you wanna sit back and bleed to death, then have fun. But if Dumb Hair really means somethin' to you, then quit whinin', get back up on your feet and fight back, dammit! That's what it means to save someone, Pig Tails. Just watch! I'll show you what it means to be a real Hero!"

Videl's mouth formed into a line and her eyes widened, moved by Bakugo's words.

"Kinda hard to watch… when there's a hole on your side," Videl whispered.

"Do I have to do everything for you, ya useless Pigtailed loser?!" Bakugo huffed. He stumbled over to Videl and fell to his knees. Removing one of his gloves, he tore Videl's shirt at the side, exposing the heavily bleeding bullethole. He reached out a hand and placed it over the Videl's bloodied open wound.

"Hold on, Bakugo!" She groaned, her head rolling to the side. "What the hell do you think you're doing?! You're not seriously going to use an explosion to-"

Bakugo's hand flashed bright orange for a second and a low powered explosion flared over Videl's wound, cauterizing it. Black smoke and the scent of burnt flesh rose from the Videl's side. Her hand shot up towards the wound, clutching over the top of Bakugo's hand. Her head shot back and she screamed out in pain, unable to contain her tears, her hand tightening around Bakugo's.

Bakugo's first instinct was to shove her hand away, but if squeezing his hand took her mind off the pain for a few seconds, he'd allow it.

The burn from the blast stung like the cut of a knife, but at least the bleeding had stopped.

Bakugo moved his hand away from the wound and grabbed her by the elbow, pulling her up to her feet.

"Ahhh! You asshole!" Videl growled, wiping her tears with her sleeve. "That really hurt!"

"Well, I didn't say it was gonna tickle, did I?" Bakugo barked back. He reached back for the Recovery bean and broke it in half, handing one piece to Videl and swallowing the other. "Here, just eat it. It's half a dose, so I doubt you'll die… unfortunately."

Videl stared at Bakugo, unnerved by his uncharacteristic kindness.

She smiled and took the bean. As soon as she ate it, she felt a swell of vigorous energy coursing through her and she leaped back up to her feet.

"So, are you ready to fight or what?" Bakugo asked as more villains charged into the room.

Videl glanced down at Bakugo's bloodied hand. That was her blood.

Before coming to UA High, she had always felt alone. She was so convinced that everybody else had it in for themselves, or were trying to use her somehow. Her entire life, she had been unable to rely on anyone but herself. But ever since she started attending UA High, her classmates were always running ahead to get between her and harm's way, to protect her. Kirishima, Gohan, Ojiro, and now even lame-ass Bakudork…

Her hands balled into fists and she nodded.

"Let's kick some ass, Bakugo. You and me! We'll crush these losers until there's nothing left!" She cried. "Oh, and… thanks. I mean it."

"Tch! Whatever," Bakugo growled, wrinkling his nose and avoiding eye contact. He picked up Carrot Kirishima and handed him to Videl. "I'm only keeping ya around to show you how much better I am than you!"

Videl smiled and took the carrot, placing him securely in her utility belt.

"Well then, what do you say we kick these stupid villains' asses, and send them straight to hell where they belong?!"

This stoked Bakugo's blood-lust, and his face twisted into a predatory, demented smirk.

(…)

THE USJ,
FIRE ZONE…

Ojiro and three of his clones stood back to back against a horde of villains with pyro-based weapons and Quirks, protecting Hagakure, who stood in between them all. From the distance, a warp gate opened and from it strode two figures clad in martial arts robes. The two villains stopped a good distance from the Crane student, concealed by the large flames, and watched intently as he fought bravely against the fire villains.

"Ooh, he's still got it," Yurin cooed, holding her hands to her face. "Mashi always was the strongest Crane Fledgling in our village. Do you think he still remembers me?"

Mercenary Tao huffed with a grandfatherly smile, holding his hands behind his back.

"It's very likely, my dear. You only died five or six years ago. Do you remember?"

"How could I forget?" Yurin scoffed. "I remember everything that happened that night – the fear I felt when Nomu came down in the middle of the night and destroyed our village. I remember crying for help, but all of the Cranes were already dead or running away."

She reached down to her exposed midriff, touching the scars around her pierced bellybutton gently.

"I remember the burning, visceral pain I felt when Nomu ran his fist through my stomach. But what I remember the most is feeling so cold… and alone. I bled out in our village's rice field, and nobody was there to hold me."

"Hmmph, and now, the instrument of your death is your plaything," Tao commented, raising an eyebrow. "Does that not unsettle you in the slightest?"

Yurin chortled and gave off a maniacal giggle, staring into the flames around them. Her scarlet eyes glowed with the flames.

"At first, yes. When All for One brought me back to life and gave me this magnificent Quirk, I hated Nomu – hated him for destroying my village, murdering my parents and for killing me. But then I found out what he really was and I realized… that we're exactly the same."

"Ohh?" Tao hummed.

"Nomu was a person once, too. He died and was brought back to life and fused him with different Quirks, just like me. They say he even had a cute little family like mine, and friends who loved him dearly. They couldn't get him to accept the Mark, so the Doc created a mask for him that mimics the Quirk and compels him to obey my commands. But every once and a while, fragments of Nomu's memories return to him and I get a brief glimpse of the man he was before – the man under the mask… He remembers his old life, his family, his friends…"

Yurin glanced up at Tao, and in his forty years working as an international hitman, nothing had chilled him straight to the bone quite like Yurin's smile at that very moment.

"I'm going to make Nomu hunt them all down," Yurin smiled, eyes widening like a lunatic. "I'm going to make him hurt them, and then I'm going to make Nomu kill them slowly with his very own hands. And once Nomu realizes what he's done… then, my vengeance will be satisfied."

"HAHAHAHA!" Twice laughed behind them, crouched down to the ground, holding his stomach as he doubled over. "Wooow, and Shiggy says that I'm the one that needs therapy! PSYCHOTIC BITCH! The attack on your village was Original Nomu's first trial run, that's all. It was never anything personal…"

"Just shut up and keep pumping out copies, you clown!" Yurin huffed, crossing her arms over her chest indignantly.

"BITE ME! More canon fodder coming right up!" Twice said, bringing his right hand over his forehead in a salute. He quickly knelt back down to the ground to gather the mud he used to create his clones. But Ojiro was defeating the copies just as fast as Twice could create them.

In the distance, the villains, even those that had the Majin Marks, were no match for Ojiro, who was leaping and dodging, parrying attacks and delivering devastating strikes with his tail.

Mercenary Tao's eyes narrowed.

"I've seen enough," Tao huffed. "My contract is on All Might, but Tienshenhan's students? Those I can always kill for free."

(…)

THE USJ,
MOUNTAIN ZONE…

Momo Yaoyorozu, Kyoka Jiro, and Denki Kaminari backed into a defensive circle as villains surrounded them. Although they had managed to hold their own up until now, there were simply too many villains to keep fighting.

Momo's hands trembled with exhaustion, but she forced herself to keep her weapon up. She needed to be strong for her classmates, who were looking up to her for leadership. Denki's eyes were droopy as well. He had used up so much of his energy that he was beginning to feel the side effects of his Quirk. Jiro held a deep cut against her shoulder that she had received from one of the villains, rendering her defenseless.

Just as the villains closed in on them, a wet, slick hiss caught everyone's attention. A flat layer of ice shot out across the ground in the blink of an eye, coming straight from the Landslide Zone above them.

The ice slithered across the rocky terrain, snaking around the student's feet and shooting up at the feet of the villains. The villains screamed in surprise and horror, and the ice tendrils traveled up their bodies, freezing them in place.

"Ice?" Kyoka tilted her head. The three students turned to look over their shoulder at their rescuer. "Then that means-"

The tall boy with dual colored hair and eyes slid down the ice, riding it with one foot in front of the other like a surfboard, hands stuffed in his pockets. When he reached them, Shoto Todoroki leaped off and landed behind his classmates.

"So the plan was to scatter us and kill us?" Shoto scoffed at the villains, his hot breath coming out in a puff of air. "You're woefully unprepared."

"Todoroki!" Momo gasped, unable to contain her relief.

"Shoto, hey! You're a sight for sore eyes!" Kaminari hummed with a dopey smile.

"Th-this power!" one of the villains wheezed as the ice around him thickened and traveled up his body. "He froze us all in an instant!"

"He's not a kid – he's a monster!"

"So cold!"

"Listen well, villains," Todoroki announced. His icy glare scanned the row of frozen villains, who had little choice but to listen to their captor.

"If you stay frozen, then in about an hour or so, your cells will begin die as your bodies succumb to frostbite and hypothermia. Unfortunately for you, there are other villains out there trying to kill us, so I don't have time to wait around. That means you've got two choices: You're going to tell me how you plan to kill All Might or we're going to make this quick and clean."

Shoto lifted his right hand, fingers stretched out together, and a thin layer of ice formed over it, sharpening into a blade. The villains tensed up as the teen slowly approached them. The blade's razor edge gleamed as Shoto raised it up to the nearest Villain's neck.

"So, what's it going to be?" He asked with a cold, uncaring smirk.

"Wait!" The villain cried, tears springing to his eyes, washing down the green war paint across his cheeks. "You're supposed to be a hero! You wouldn't!"

"How do you plan to kill All Might?" Shoto repeated, inching the blade closer to the villain's neck, breaking skin. "Talk!"

"Stop!" Yaoyorozu shouted, getting between the crying villain and Shoto. "This isn't right. These back alley hoodlums are little more than pawns. What information do you plan on extracting from them?"

"Answers," Shoto huffed. "I've been thinking it over. At first I thought the League had gathered a group of elite villains that would gang up on All Might and kill him. But it's as you say, most of these villains are low-level thugs, so that can't be their master plan. From what I can tell, there are only about five or six truly dangerous people here."

He lifted the blade again.

"But even rats like these always scurry around when breadcrumbs fall. They know something. Besides, have you forgotten about what they did to the Marketplace, to our classmates and to our school? Their League declared war on us, so why shouldn't I finish it?"

"Not this way," Momo pleaded, bringing a closed fist to her chest. "That's Endeavor talking. This isn't you! You don't have to follow your father's path, Todoroki!"

Shoto's fierce, icy stare burned through Momo, but she didn't move. The two students stared at each other for a long moment.

"Todoroki, please…" Momo whispered. "Don't do this."

"T-T-TODOROKI?!" The villains shouted in unison.

"I knew it!"

"It's him! It's Endeavor's kid!"

"Shigaraki didn't mention he'd be here!"

"He'll kill us for sure!"

"Listen, Your Highness," The villain in green begged. "I'll tell you everything you want to know. Please, spare us!"

The steely edge around Shoto's icy glare finally dropped with a sigh, and the blade in his hand melted.

Momo breathed in a sigh of relief and smiled proudly at him.

"Thank you," she whispered. Shoto stared at his wet hand for a moment before looking up to meet Momo's eyes. He clenched his jaw and shifted his gaze over to the trembling villains.

"Talk," Shoto commanded.

"The League of Villain's is after All Might because they think they can kill him. Our job was to lure him out by taking out his students. But Shigaraki has plans for the Big Guy himself. It's the masked Saiyan, Nomu! That's Shigaraki's trump card. He's a Pure Blood. I heard one of the higher ups talking about him. They did some freaky Frankenstein shit to him; brainwashed him and pumped him full of Quirks. He's the one who's going to kill All Might."

"Lies," Shoto spat. "There are only a handful of Pure Blooded Saiyans left, and they all work for Endeavor's Agency."

"Shoto, what's a 'Pure-Blood'?" Jiro asked.

Shoto looked down at his hands and clenched them into fists.

"They're Saiyans whose bloodline has never been mixed," he said. "Saiyans born today, even those that end up manifesting powerful Saiyan Quirks like ki Control, are hybrid versions of that ancient race, diluted and mixed with Non-Saiyans throughout time. There are only a handful of known bloodlines that have never intermixed. They hold the key to unlocking the Golden Form of Saiyan Legend. Endeavor is a descendant of one of these bloodlines; In ancient times, his family was the elite ruling class – House Vegeta. But there was a civil war in Age 449 that brought an end to the old Saiyan empire and scattered the Saiyan tribes across the globe, where they mixed and dwindled within the many other tribes of the world."

"I didn't believe it when I heard it myself, but it's true…" the villain shivered. "I swear it! I saw Nomu destroy an entire village with the palm of his hand. He's a monster with absolute power! Shigaraki said that Nomu's job is to break All Might's spirit and his body"

"Spirit and body…" Momo placed a pensive hand on her chin. "Perhaps this Nomu creature is somebody that All Might knows?"

"I wish I could tell you more, but that's really all I know. Please!" The villain begged.

Shoto heaved an irritated sighed. So that's it, then. That's their gameplan. They created a villain strong enough to take on All Might. But could such a villain exist? A Pure-Blooded Saiyan…? But if that were true, that means there's another bloodline that escaped the Purge. One that Endeavor did not know about…? Perhaps…

The sound of an explosion and shattering glass caught everyone's attention.

"What the heck was that?!" Kaminari yelped, glancing around nervously.

"Look! The Entrance to the USJ is open!" Momo shouted, pointing down towards the entrance, where dozens of unconscious villains littered the ground.

The warp villain that had been blocking the escape was no longer there. Sato and Shoji were tending to Thirteen, who lay wounded on the ground.

"They must have figured a way to beat the smoke guy," Shoto said. He looked around the face of the mountain where they were standing and shook his head.

"No use," he muttered with a sigh. "They warped us to an area that didn't have any easy way of escaping. Scaling the side of the mountains would take too much time, not to mention, if the villains discover us, we'd be easy targets!"

"Hmm," Todoroki placed a finger on his chin in thought, looking at Momo.

Jiro watched impatiently from one classmate to the other as they thought of a plan. Suddenly, her expression brightened.

"Hey!" she exclaimed. "I've got an idea! What if Todoroki made us an ice ramp that reached the exit? Then all we would have to do is slide down to freedom!"

"Hey yeah!" Kaminari said. "Momo could make us some ice skates or something. No prob, right Momo?"

Momo nodded.

"It's a sound plan," she said. "Can you do that for us, Todoroki? I'll get to work making the skates."

Shoto nodded and kneeled down by the ledge of the cliff. A shining, white sheet of thick ice shot out of his right hand and boot and extended out like a bridge from the top of the mountain zone to the exit.

As soon as Sato saw the ice sheet, he looked up to see his classmates from afar.

"HEY!" he shouted from the exit. "Hurry up and get down here! The Mist guy is gone, but Thirteen is seriously hurt!"

Momo finished making the skates for Kaminari, who put them on excitedly.

"Aw, this is gonna kick major ass!" he said happily, tightening his shoe-laces. He got off to a running start and jumped onto the ice, bending down on his knees, whooping with joy as he skated his way down to the entrance. "GERONIMO!"

Jiro was up next. She put on her skates and approached the ramp.

"Heh, this is so punk rock!" she said, excitedly. She jumped forward onto the ramp and skated her way down.

"Your turn now, Todoroki," Momo smiled happily. She held out her arm, activating her Quirk with a sparkling sizzle of lipids, producing a pair of ice skates for Shoto. Shoto took the dark blue skates and stared at them.

"These skates…" he said, lifting them up.

"Yep," Momo chirped. "Just like the ones I used to make for you when we were kids; when we would sneak out and skate in the old lakes behind Yaoyorozu Manor. You… remember that, right Todoroki?"

A small, faint smile formed over Shoto's lips.

"I remember," he said. "That is… a good memory…"

"It is," Momo said. The two sat there, kneeling in front of the ice ramp for a moment, in silence.

"Yaoyorozu?" Shoto finally spoke up.

"Yes, Todoroki?" Momo asked.

"I wasn't going to kill those villains," he said, glancing at the villains that were still frozen in the distance. "I had to find out what their plan is, so I used a scare tactic to get the answers. I swear, I didn't mean-"

"It's okay, Todoroki," Momo said, placing a hand over his, but Shoto quickly removed it. Momo closed her hand into a fist and bit her lower lip, embarrassed by his rejection.

"I don't know why I'm telling you this," Shoto said, standing to his feet. "I know that it really doesn't matter, but for some reason, I just needed you to know."

"Aww, how sweet!" A voice boomed from somewhere behind them. Shoto swiveled around in time to see a villain floating down from above, behind the students.

"Yaoyorozu, jump!" Shoto shouted, but the villain lifted a hand and shot off a ki blast. The blast screeched as it flew over Shoto and Momo's heads, striking the ice bridge and breaking it to pieces.

"Ah-ah-ahhh," the villain cooed, wagging a finger at them. "Playtime ain't over yet, kiddies."

"Yaoyorozu, get behind me!" Shoto shouted, throwing himself in front of Momo.

"Sayyyy, I know you," the villain scoffed, pointing at Shoto. He was a shorter, older man with two tufts of black hair that framed his otherwise bald head. A nasty scar ran through his right eye and his ugly smile was missing several teeth. His raspy voice screeched like nails on a board.

"Yeahhh, I recognize you," Scarface taunted. "You're Vegeta's boy, aren't ya? Shoto Todoroki. The half-breed son he's so proud of, huh? What, no tail? No surprise there. How many other pathetic tail-less monkeys did the mighty Vegeta pump outta that weak little ice whore?"

Todoroki's eyes narrowed and his nostrils flared, but he didn't respond to the provocation. A sheet of ice shot out from under his boot and snaked its way over to the cackling Saiyan, winding up his exposed leg and freezing him in place.

The temperature regulator strapped to Todoroki's back hissed, sending off a heat wave that warmed the ice that had formed over his right side.

The Saiyan's laughter was only stoked by Shoto's attempt at trapping him with an ice wall. In a single move, the Saiyan lifted his arms and broke free from the ice effortlessly. The broken sheets of ice tumbled to the mountain floor, shattering into pieces.

"Yaoyorozu, you need to run," Shoto said. "Go – get out of here! I'll cover your escape!"

"No, Todoroki!" Momo shouted back, lifting her hands. An iron shield materialized over her left arm and a long Naginata shot out of her right palm. The blade at the end of the staff gleamed in the light. Momo clutched her weapon and crouched, at the ready. "We're facing this guy together. I don't care how strong he thinks he is – we're UA Recommendation students. We can take this villain on together."

Shoto grunted, but he didn't argue back. He lifted his right hand and a long, double edged ice blade formed over it.

"We cut off his tail," he said. "That's his source of power."

Scarface howled with laughter.

"You can come and try, kiddos," he taunted. He lifted his fists and these began to glow with an ominous triangular neon purple light.

(…)

THE USJ,
MAIN PLAZA…

The cratered ground of the USJ plaza shook again as another blast missed Eraserhead by inches and exploded. Even though he managed to evade it, the force released upon impact sent him hurling back towards the stairs that lead to the entrance.

His body hit the ground at an angle, but it gave him the momentum he needed to roll around onto his hands and feet, leaping away again just as Android 14's massive fist crashed against the stairs.

As he rolled out of reach, Eraser swung his capture weapon and wrapped it around 14's leg. He leaped forward, pulling on the scarf. The Android was swept off his feet and Eraser pulled with all of his might, swinging him up and over his shoulder. At the same time, Eighteen kicked Android 15 in the abdomen, hard. The kick sent him flying and Eraser slammed Android 14 on top of him, lassoing them together.

The diminutive Android struggled to untangle himself from the larger android and Eraser's bindings, cursing the entire time. Eighteen landed on her feet, bringing both hands together. A pink beam of light shot out of her palms and incinerated the struggling Androids. The robots' bodies twisted and exploded in a fiery flash.

Android 15's head rolled out of the fiery plumes and stopped at Eighteen's feet.

"You've gotten stronger, Eighteen. But don't think that you've won," he cackled, his voice distorted and electronic. "You're nothing! Android 13 will find you and make you pay."

"Why should I be afraid of Android 13, or any of you Red Ribbon defects?" Eighteen asked, lifting a palm towards the talking head. "You're all outdated models. I'm the upgrade."

"Grrahhh! Go to hell!" Fifteen yelled.

"You first," she spat out.

A pink blast shot out from from Eighteen's hand and vaporized the Android's head, leaving nothing behind but charred robot parts and a twisted husk that used to be 15's head.

"Eighteen!" Eraserhead shouted.

"Relax, Eraser. These older models aren't real people, just robots. Besides, we have bigger problems to worry about. Come on!"

Eighteen helped Aizawa stand up just as more villains piled on top of them, but they pushed through the gauntlet.

"Hey, is it me," Eighteen shouted, plowing through a villain with her elbow, "or are there less villains than before?"

"Yeah," Aizawa grunted as he took down another villain. "You're right! Where did they all go?"

The two teachers glanced at each other.

"The warp villain!" They shouted in unison.

The two heroes looked over their shoulders to see the misty villain fighting Thirteen by the entrance, doing its best to reach the handful of students that stood behind her.

"Dammit," Eraserhead grunted. His hair floated and he swiftly knocked out another villain with a powerful kick. He hit the ground running and caught up to Eighteen.

"During my fight with the big guy over there, I blinked and the Warp Villain must've gotten away. So he's been warping his ilk all over the facility, along with our students. Look!"

Eighteen looked up in the direction of the several training zones – the mountain zone which led down to the landslide zone and the collapsed city zone at its valley. To her left, the Squall and Fire Zones were shaking with explosions and the small boat in the Shipwreck zone was being flocked by flying villains. Her internal scanner showed the glowing silhouettes of several students surrounded by villains, fighting for their lives.

Behind them, Number Thirteen was fighting the Warp Villain, unleashing her Black Hole Quirk, sucking up the villain's black tendrils and dissolving them into dust.

"Eraser," Eighteen said, wiping the blood from her lower lip. "Thirteen's taking care of the Warp Villain. I'll hold these last guys back. You have to get to the Villains' leader. Take out the final boss, and the other villains will fall into chaos."

"But my students-"

"Aizawa," Eighteen said, sternly. "You're a great teacher; I know you taught them well. They'll protect each other, just trust them. The sooner we get these villains under control, the sooner we can call for backup."

Eraserhead gritted his teeth but nodded, panting for air. His hair was singed and his clothes were in tatters. Underneath his goggles, his dry eyes were bloodshot and exhausted, but he ignored the sting.

Eighteen herself wasn't looking too great, either. The scorch marks that streaked her face, her labored breathing and the thin red lines that snaked down her lower lip and nose betrayed the calm in her eyes. She, too, had sustained heavy damage. Unfortunately, the comms were still down, so they were not likely to receive any sort of backup any time soon.

She was right. The sooner they knocked out the leadership, the sooner they could rescue his students. He was just going to have to trust that his students would look out for one another long enough for him to rescue them.

He scanned the destroyed Plaza for the villain with the hands attached to his body. The other villains – the pig-tailed girl that was controlling the Majin had disappeared, taking half of her brainwashed villains with her. The two Saiyans were gone, too, along with the pony-tailed mercenary, the loud-mouthed schizophrenic and the Rabbit Mob. No doubt they were going after his students. He needed to finish this fast!

Up ahead, in front of the water fountain, the villain leader was watching the battle unfold. As Eighteen engaged the villains behind them, Shigaraki grumbled and scratched at his patchy neck, prowling back and forth like a starving predator.

Aizawa wrapped his capture weapon around two villains, flung them together and jumped forward, bringing his knees out to knock them both out and clear the path towards the Boss villain.

As soon as Shigaraki caught sight of Eraserhead running after him, he jumped forward into a run to meet him, hands outstretched.

"Twenty-five seconds, no twenty-three seconds!" Shigaraki hissed, counting down. Eraser continued dancing in between the handful of villains left standing between them. "Definitely slowing down now!"

"Final boss!" Eraserhead shouted, leaping away from the mob and lashing out at the villain with one of his capture weapons. Shigaraki caught it by the end and wrapped a hand around it, running towards Aizawa with surprising speed.

"You're such a cool hero, Eraserhead. It was hard to see when you were jumping around, but I found your tell – it's your hair! When it drops it means you've stopped using your Quirk, right? You're having to blink more often."

Eraserhead swung the capture weapon back, forcing Shigaraki to stumble within reach and shoved an elbow forward, aiming for his abdomen, but to his dismay, the skinny villain caught it. As soon as all five of the villain's fingers closed around his elbow, Aizawa's arm began to disintegrate.

Eraser grunted. The skin around his elbow rotted and fell off, leaving behind a painful, open wound. Eraserhead couldn't contain an agonized scream. Shigaraki's eyes widened with blood-lust, leaning in over his victim.

"Don't push yourself too hard now," Shigaraki taunted. "You might end up falling apart in front of your students. Wouldn't that be a shame?"

Eraser thrust himself forward, slamming his forehead against the hand that covered Shigaraki's face. Shigaraki howled as the blow sent him reeling back, and Eraser shot forward with his boot, kicking him in the gut. He then leaped away to put some distance between himself and Shigaraki.

"Slippery bastard, aren't you?" Shigaraki laughed, picking himself up. "Oh well. It'll be over soon. That annoying Quirk isn't suited for drawn out fights against big groups, is it?"

"Shut up!" Eraserhead shouted, jumping at one of the nearby villains with a kick.

"And still you threw yourself into the fray, to protect your students. I'm sure they must be so proud of you for making it this long. You really are so cool! But unfortunately for you, I am not the final boss. He is."

At that instant, as if on cue, a Scarlet Blur fell from the ceiling, crashing directly between Eraserhead and Shigaraki, sending debris flying.

Eraser knocked out another villain and glanced up in the direction of the crash landing. His stomach sank.

The masked villain in black robes was staring up towards the ceiling, crouched and holding it's hands together, charging a massive blue blast of energy.

"KAAAAMEEEHAAAMEEEE-" It roared.

Aizawa looked up to see Gohan's broken body falling down, straight into the path of the masked villain. If that blast hit Gohan, it would kill him for sure!

"Son!" Eraser shouted, dashing towards the boy. Nomu lifted its head in his direction and Eraser's eyes flashed, canceling Nomu's Quirk. The Kamehameha wave dissipated harmlessly and Eraser leaped forward to catch Gohan in his arms.

But Nomu jumped and grabed Aizawa by his scarves, pulling him back down to the ground. Nomu stomped on the teacher's limbs, breaking his arms and legs one-by-one. Aizawa screamed in agony, closing his eyes. In that instant, Nomu's powers returned. Opening a palm towards the teacher, Nomu began to bombard him with ki blasts at close range, tearing holes into Aizawa's body.

"Aizawa!" Eighteen screamed, appearing behind the creature and delivering a massive kick across Nomu's face. The blow sent Nomu flying back and Eighteen brought her hands forward together.

"Infinity Bullet!" She shouted. Eighteen pink ki blasts shot out of her hand and flew towards Nomu, who didn't even move to dodge.

"Eighteen, watch out!" Thirteen shouted from behind. Eighteen turned to see Thirteen standing directly behind her, staring through a warp gate. Thirteen's hand was open, fingers pointing at Eighteen's back.

"Aizawa!" Eighteen shrieked. "He opened a warp gate!"

Thirteen's Black Hole Quirk struck Eighteen's back,,. Eighteen screamed in pain as her back began to disintegrate, turning into dust. At the same time, Kurogiri opened a warp gate in front of Eighteen, and the plasma blasts from her Infinity Bullet appeared behind Thirteen, raining down on the space hero and wounding her gravely.

In one fell swoop, all three Pro Heroes that were defending the class were out of commission.

Eighteen's eyes unfocused and she collapsed next to Aizawa, groaning in pain.

"Oooh! Nice job, Kurogiri!" Shigaraki cackled with delight, watching the Pro Heroes writhe on the ground. "You got three for the price of one! Hurry up and kill them, Nomu!"

Nomu stood back up. The top right corner of his mask had broken from Eighteen's mighty kick. The pieces crumbled and fell to the floor, revealing Nomu's entire right eye and black eyebrows. Two sharp bangs of black hair poked out from under the hood.

He walked up to the two writhing Pros and lifted his hand to kill them. Aizawa's eyes flashed and he deactivated Nomu's Quirk, but Nomu kicked at his head. Aizawa's head bounced back and hit the pavement, and he fell still.

"I'm… so sorry, Aizawa…" Eighteen groaned beside him, eyes closed. "I'm trying… but I just… can't…"

Once again, Nomu lifted his hand and a ki blast charged in his palm, aiming it at the two downed heroes. Gohan, who had landed close by, picked himself up weakly and saw what was about to happen.

"No!" He shouted, jumping forward to tackle Nomu. "Stop it! Leave them ALOOONE!"

The tackle caused Nomu's hand to shoot up and the ki blast fired off towards the ceiling, causing an explosion that tore a giant hole in the roof. Light from the stars and the full moon, and the chilly mid-spring night air poured into the USJ.

Enraged, the creature grabbed Gohan's arm firmly and bent it downward, snapping the bone in two. Gohan screamed as the creature forced him down onto his knees. It raised a hand and a bright orb of light formed in it again. Around them, the wind picked up as Nomu prepared to kill Gohan.

And then it all stopped, just as soon as it started.

The blinding aura, the violent, howling gusts of wind, the glowing ki blast in the creature's hand… it all stopped.

Sparks flew out from the mask and Nomu emitted what sounded like an exasperated, gurgling growl, amplified and distorted by the mask's vocalizer. For a moment, the Mark on the mask's forehead dimmed and the creature blinked and turned back to Gohan, staring down into his eyes.

"G… G… G…" Nomu gasped. The glowing red eyes behind the mask blinked again. "G...Goh…"

Gohan gasped, staring into the masked Saiyan's eyes. The red glow emanating from Nomu's eyes dimmed and Nomu's eyes widened. Nomu reached out and brushed Gohan's cheek with his thumb. Gohan glanced up at Nomu, confused.

"Go… han…?" Nomu said.

Gohan's eyes widened and he couldn't rip his sight away from Nomu's gaze. A tear rolled out of Nomu's haunted, glowing stare.

"HEY! HEY!" Shigaraki bellowed, shaking with rage. "What the hell do you think you're doing, Nomu? Stop playing with your food and finish him!"

"Goh…"

The Mark on the mask and Nomu's red eyes blazed once again.

Ochaco flew in towards them from Gohan's left, and he looked up at her. His eyes were sunken and haunted, and Ochaco froze in midair, feeling a chill run down her spine.

"Run," Gohan pleaded. "RUNNNNNNNNN!-"

"GOHAN!" Ochaco cried, reaching out to him as Nomu's hand wrapped around his neck. "NO! NOOOOOOO!"

"SONNNNNNN!" Aizawa yelled.

In a single, swift movement, Nomu jerked its arm backward. Gohan's neck cracked with a sickening thud, twisting in an unnatural way. It all seemed to happen in slow motion. With one final, pained whimper, Gohan's body jerked forward and his arms fell to his sides, limply. Nomu released his hold on him and Gohan collapsed to the ground on his back, his eyes staring up at the ceiling.

His eyes glazed over and his pupils whitened out.

And then he was gone.

ENDING SONG:

"Let Me Hear You Say" by Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas

UA HIGH,
TEACHER'S LOUNGE...

Toshinori undid his necktie and the first two buttons on his collar and pinched the bridge of his nose with his bulky fingers, heaving a tired sigh. Some of the teachers still lingered, planning the next day of class or relaxing after the long day.

Principal Nezu himself was still there, drinking tea at a desk and watching the news.

"Boy, that couldn't have gone any worse,"All Might said, slumping into one of the couches.

The hour-long press conference had turned into a nearly three hour shouting match between the board of the Hero Public Safety Commission and members of the press.

Although there were definitely some vultures out there, scouring for controversial sound bites and headlines, for the most part, Toshinori could relate to their grievances. The appearance of the so-called Z-Fighters wasn't the only thing weighing on people's minds.

The marketplace in front of UA High, one of the busiest in the country, had just been attacked. Japan hadn't seen a terrorist attack this bad since that final battle with All for One's Army of Villains almost eight years ago. And now, after so many years of peace, villains not only resurfaced, but brought an entire city to its knees, and the heroes were powerless to stop them. People were right to feel outraged.

More than seventy-people, including heroes and sidekicks had just lost their lives, and the heroes-structure that had sworn to protect them had been completely dismantled in a manner of minutes.

If it hadn't been because Gohan and a handful of students from Class 1-A, the so-called Z-Fighters, intervened, the number of casualties would've been much, much higher.

In the end, the Hero Public Safety Commission promised to work shoulder-to-shoulder with the Police Force to apprehend the members of the League of Villains, no matter the cost, and that seemed to satisfy the media, for the most part.

"Well, that wasn't quite the reunion I was hoping for," a cheerful voice said behind him, catching All Might's attention. He turned to see a tall, handsome, dark haired man. Tsukauchi smiled, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his brown trench coat.

"I guess some things never change," All Might smiled. "It's so good to see you, Tsukauchi."

"Yeah, same here, Toshi," Tsukauchi smiled. "Hey, while we're on the subject of reunions, you'll never guess who just got promoted to the Police Force!"

"Oh? And who might that be?" All Might asked.

"Well, it's not exactly the cushy office job I imagined it would be," Krillin laughed, walking into the room. "But it gets me outta traffic duty."

"WHAT THE CRAP?!" All Might gasped. "Is that really you, Krillin?"

The shorter detective shrugged.

"I mean, how many other five-foot-tall bald martial artists do you know, Toshi?" he laughed. "Of course it's me!"

"AAAAHAHAHAHA!" All Might threw his head back and laughed heartily. "Ah, it's so good to see you, old friend. Please, make yourself comfortable. Can I offer you some tea?"

"Yeah, it's so good to see you alive and well, Toshi," Krillin sighed. "I'd love to sit and catch up, but is Lazuli, erm, I mean Eighteen around, by any chance? There's something I needed to ask her, but she's not picking up her phone."

"Oh, crap!" All Might shouted, slapping his forehead. "I forgot about Class 1A's Detention Assignment at the USJ! Sorry, Krillin, but we asked Eighteen to help teach a Detention Class with Eraserhead and Thirteen. They're probably hard at work, that's all."

"Detention already?" Krillin laughed. "Ahhh, that's right – the students who fought the League in the Market earlier. Ah, kids these days."

"Oh, wait until you find out who goaded them into a fight. He's turning out to be a real handful, just like his Dad," All Might smiled.

"Oh yeah? And who might that be?" Krillin asked.

Suddenly, the door to the teacher's lounge burst open. Everyone looked up to see Iida, gasping for air, his dark blue hair a disheveled mess. Smoke and a foul odor were emanating from the back of his engine legs.

"M-M-Mister Toshinori – All Might!" Iida yelled, breathless.

"Young Iida?" Toshinori asked in surprise, catching the boy by his shoulders as he fell. "You're all supposed to be training at the USJ with Aizawa. What are you-"

Iida glanced up at him, eyes wide with terror. His jaw and his shoulders were trembling uncontrollably and tears streamed down his cheeks.

All Might's grip tightened.

"What happened?" He asked, steeling his voice.

"The League of Villains…" Iida gasped for air. "…At the USJ… We were ambushed! Please… Save our class!"

Toshinori gasped, glancing up at everyone in the room.

"We're on our way!" Tsukauchi barked. "Krillin, Sansa, call in the cavalry! Endeavor, Tienshinhan, Archangel, Mirko, Gran Torino - everyone of them! I want every Hero Agency available to know we've got a possible hostage situation here!"

"Right behind you!" Krillin nodded, running after Tsukauchi, calling into his radio for backup. "Guess that tea's gonna have to wait till later!"

"I'll mobilize the teachers. Iida can remain here with us," Principal Nezu said, reaching for the comm button on his desk. "You go on ahead, All Might. Save our students. We'll be right behind you!"

"Right!" All Might said, tightening his fist. "Those villains will pay for attacking our students!"

A/N: Yeeahhhh, those villains are screwed! The next couple of chapters have been my favorite to write. I actually already have fragments written out for each, so it shouldn't take as long to update again.

I had originally planned to write separate chapters for each zone, so five or so chapters just focusing on each battle individually, but when I was done with it, it felt super stale and repetitive, so I chose to just focus on the fights that actually had an impact on the plot, while introducing some answers here and there throughout the fight, as well as adding some connective tissue to some of the unanswered questions from this season.

I really hope you liked it. Next episode, the stakes raise even higher.

Again, sorry for the long wait between updates. I promise, no matter how long it takes, I will finish this fic.

Onto the Review Responses:

Guest chapter 9 . Aug 2

I need to see Ssj

Guest chapter 1 . Aug 2

My Saiyan better get ssh I'm serious though Good read

Hi there, guest! Thank you so much for your kind reviews and don't worry, we're definitely going to be seeing Gohan go beyond and achieve the legendary form. Right now, story wise, he's kinda going through his "Namek Saga" phase in terms of power. I had delved into a potential Power Level for him, but I quickly realized how little I understand about Power Levels, so I just never brought it back up again, but he's got a little ways to go before he can become a Super Saiyan. But he will absolutely reach it. Thanks so much for lending me your time and checking out my fic!

Xeno Gohan chapter 28 . Jul 24

BROOOOOO this chapter is HYPE

does that nomu has Gohan's powers?! Oh boi, our boi is gonna need that grade Z(heh) plot armor to beat him

and is the ape Gohan was fighting is reference for the supposedly "saiyan" yamcha and tien fought when they were training in the lookout? If so then neat

looking forward for that next chapter

Hey Xeno! That's right, they were the two Saiyans from the Pendulum room in Z, adapted to fit this universe. Here, their basically mercs, hired by the League to attack the students.

And yes, we'll soon find out who Nomu really is, but I've left some clues. And remember, this is just his base form… the Heroes have their work cut out for them, for sure!

Thanks for your review, so good to hear from you again!

brandonmunoz499 chapter 1 . Jul 15

Im just happy deku wont get any girl

John Cena: "Are you sure about that?"
Thanks for your review, Brandon! I hope you enjoyed the new chapter :)

jackojr283 chapter 28 . Jul 6

So this is my first review on this site, sorry I have been quiet just really enjoying the story so far and am always eager to see the next update but that cliff hanger oh boy All For One turned Goku into a Nomu (which I had a feeling about) once he said kaioken my reaction was simply "well... shit" and then times ten, well to quote popo from abridged episode 48 "He dead!"

can't wait to see how this all turns out keep up the great work.

Hi, Jack! No worries, man! I'm glad you're enjoying the story so far. We've got so much to reveal in the next chapters, that I'm really excited for you all to read! And thanks for the awesome TFS reference. That was hilarious!

The final clash will happen soon, so don't miss it!

Brandon Dupere chapter 28 . Jul 5

Merci encore pour nous avoir offert un nouveau chapitre. Je ne sais pas si vous savez à quel point c'est stressant pour nous, qui suivons ces histoires, d'attendre les nouveaux chapitres sans savoir si l'histoire continura, à cause de toutes ces autres fanfic inachevé qui traînent sur ce site depuis des années. Aussi, je vous remercie d'être prêt à lire mes fanfic, si vous voulez les trouver, vous n'avez qu'à cliquer sur mon nom d'utilisateur et vous trouverez mes deux fanfic. Je suis impatient de savoir ce que vous en pensez.
Aussi, j'ignore si mon premier commentaire était claire, si vous l'avez compris et ben bravo à vous, mais je vais le dire clairement par acquis de conscience.
Je voulais émettre la supposition que la véritable identité d'All For One puisse être Cell, car ces deux personnages se ressemblent.
Cell à été créé avec les cellules de plusieurs puissant guerrier, possèdant leur pouvoir et techniques, et cherche à avaoir sa forme parfaite en absorbant C-17 et C-18. All For One lui, possède plusieurs alter et cherche à obtenir le One For All pour être invincible. Il n'est donc pas bête de croire que les deux puisseent être la même personne.

I love your analysis between the two characters – it's spot on! I don't want to spoil anything for the future of this fic, but keep an eye out in the Season Two finale arc (I-Island). You might see a familiar face or two there…

Thank you so much for your review and please forgive me for responding in English, my French is so bad.

Hmm chapter 28 . Jul 5

Nice another chapter and I see eighteen has a wild past herself eh? as my name says HMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM? anyways kaio-what?! Nomu used kaioken huh, neato, Gohan is gonna get in big trouble or would his quirk manifesto would save the day again hmm? that cliffhanger tho, *enter tfs vegeta scream*

anyways I AM HYPED when youu said that you'll be tackling unnerfed gohan x fuyumi after you finished your several stories

whoo, gohan bout to embarrass endeavor

Yep! It's a little taste of something bigger coming next Season. Yeah, my boy got whooped so bad by the masked menace. How will he escape this predicament?

Find out in the next episode of PoTD!

And yeah, the more I watch the MHA episodes that feature Fuyumi, the more ideas I'm getting. Just gotta plan it out right, since it will be a Gohan who won't get nerfed, but will also act as a mentor more than a learner, right? I'll work it out somehow, once I'm done with one of my other fics. Thanks again for the review!

X3runner chapter 28 . Jul 5

Super dragon fist I really dig the movie that's from, I also like how ochako came in for the save at the end. Also I like the mention of 18s family kinda wish we found out more about them in Dbz. I do wonder will gohan get a zenkai from this or was that more if exhaustion than injuries and if he is injured how long is it going to take for him to recover hope we get some Rage mode gohan aling with a trip down memory lane as gohan learns and discovers about his people!

Oh yes, he will definitely be getting an earth shattering mega zenkai after all of this is over! Dragon Fist was originally going to be a Quirk, but I couldn't think of any other applications for it without it being ki creations like Rose's Scythe. Since that's another Quirk Gohan's getting in the future, I decided to make the Super Dragon Fist a technique, rather than a Quirk.

The difference will be explained during the Internship arcs…

And as always, you're spot on with where the fic is heading! I hope you like what's coming next!

Thanks for your reviews, as always, X!

AnonymousTJ chapter 28 . Jul 5

I hope that the Shoto vs Midoriya scene still happens in this fic because that scene is so great. Someone who wished he could have power for his whole life vs someone who wished he didn't have his quirk is such a good dynamic. I know you could probably give this to Gohan but I feel like we haven't gotten enough of Gohan hating his own quirklessness, the only time I think we got an indication of that was when he couldn't help his mom. I guess this could be a chance to add that with a few backstories but I feel like there's already so much to Gohan's plate.

Anyway I'm focusing on the far future but for right now. I loved this chapter. I really believe that is Goku (Nomufied) but I guess we'll see in the next chapter. Also that Midoriya, Goten scene a few chapters ago(I know I'm late to the party) was so adorable and awesome. I can't wait for the reunion with Chichi and Gohan. And the hilarities when Gohan, Midoriya and Goten are in the same room and there all like "How do you know each other"

Hey TJ! Good analysis! Don't worry, that match is too perfect to change, for all of the reasons you listed off. It's going to be a little different, but the lesson will be the same. It's your Quirk, not his! That's what's going to help Shoto start to accept who he is, instead of running away from it.

As for Gohan, you're right, I probably should've fleshed out his Quirklessness a bit more. When I started writing the fic, I relied too much on the "amnesia" trope that it came to bite me in the nuts, now.

I sprinkled in some things to allude to the negative effects to his Quirklessness, like the poverty element, not being able to help his family get ahead, his family being looked down and taken advantage of by society, getting bullied and even beaten up when he was young, a farmboy in the big city, watching his little brother go through the same experience as he did, all of those experiences lead him to want to make a better world for his family and every other family around him.

But we will definitely get more of Gohan's backstory, as well as Ochaco, Midoriya and Melissa. And as for the reunion… it's happening soon! Thank you so much for your review! I hope you like this update

That's it for the reviews. Thank you so much to everyone who's still reading. I hope you guys are enjoying the updates! Let me know what you think, or if you have any questions and I'll do my best to answer them in the next chapter!

See ya!