They had worked through their plans as best as they could, and they decided it was time. They needed what they had left of the battery packs.
Izuku motioned for Hatsume to take his mom and Chieko upstairs to watch over them. They gave Inasa control of their spies to help upstairs, since Hatsume could no longer stay by her monitors.
"Everyone, don't forget your earpieces. I need everyone to keep in touch." Izuku said.
Everyone responded in confirmation that it linked them as they walked their separate ways.
As Izuku and Kacchan prepared themselves, the floodlights outside went out, casting the house into darkness. Izuku switched the emergency flashlights they had stored, placing them around the room. It wasn't much, but it would help to light up the living area. Hatsume had taken the rest of the lights.
There was an eerie pause as the house settled into its quietness. Izuku could hear the movements of Denki and Shinso as they continued to move towards the house to sneak into the back alley as their first attack.
"Shinso, are you two in position?" Izuku said.
There wasn't an immediate response as Izuku waited with bated breath for everything to begin.
"Almost." Shinso said.
The two boys had the most tense part of their plan. If Denki and Shinso incapacitated the two in the back alley than their numbers would lower. It could even out their chances of overpowering them, but if they lost, then it would be over for them.
"Inasa?" Izuku asked.
"The two on the roof have made no movements, yet." Was Inasa's immediate response.
Kacchan shifted, stretching his arms to get the blood and sweat flowing through to be ready for his turn. It distracted Izuku when Shinso's voice came through the earpiece, his voice patronizing the two men outside.
"Hey, you two must be the losers of the group, huh?" Shinso said.
There's a muffled voice. One of them must have responded because Denki was straight up, taunting the other with glee.
"Got him." Shinso's smug voice reported.
"What the hell!?" Denki's voice shouted and Izuku's head lifted in alarm. "The other one has some kind of rodent quirk! He's inside."
"You idiots were supposed to keep them outside!" Kacchan shouted.
"What did you expect me to do? He was so fast and small!" Denki replied.
If one got inside, then they either planned to come their way or the bigger threat would be them going upstairs. Izuku turned ready to move towards the back rooms when the front door explodes spraying pieces of wood their way. One of Hachiro's spikes had pierced through the wood lodged mid way.
"Inasa! Find the one that got inside. If he's small, then maybe you can stop him!" Izuku ordered.
"On it!" Inasa said.
Hachiro's voice filtered through the door, close and taunting, as he pressed up against the wood so that they could hear him.
"Midoriya." Hachiro says. "You're making this harder than it needs to be."
"Hey Reflections is gone and his partner looks to be headed to the back alley. Kaminari, Shinso keep your guard up. It looks like he has some kind of sand quirk." Inasa warns.
"Everyone keep an eye out for the mirror guy. I bet he found a way inside." Kacchan orders.
"It wasn't very nice attacking my men like that." Hachiro taunts through the entrance.
Another bang reverberated through the wood as it cracked under the pressure. Izuku releases a breath, focusing on activating One for All at a safe level. He couldn't afford to lose control and destroy his body, not unless it was necessary. This would take focus away from his speed, but Izuku couldn't take the risk.
Hachiro's smug face came to mind, and Izuku's fist clenched. The man made it hard, though.
Another explosion came through, as the door give way, spraying splintering chunks around them. The powdery wood-dust plumed out into the room, making it hard to see.
Sato was the first to enter the house, his stance casual as he shook off the powder that had floated into his hair. Izuku could take advantage that Sato considered himself stronger. He didn't waste a second as he used the wall behind him to add moment as he launched forward towards him. He landed a foot into Sato's chest and Izuku could see the surprised look in the man's eye before his body propelled back out the door. There was a crash outside, but whether he landed in the fencing or farther out into the street, Izuku didn't confirm.
Two spikes fired off toward him, and Izuku dodged out of the way. Hachiro followed him, taking aim, which gave Kacchan the opening he needed to shoot forward with a blast aimed at Hachiro's face.
The older man noticed Kacchan a second too late as he recoiled away from him, the explosion landing on part of his face.
Izuku moved up as Kacchan fell back, placing a well-aimed kick to the man's chest. Hachiro slammed against the fall wall.
"Fucking…. brats." Hachiro said.
The word became choppy as he tried to regain his breath. His hand went up to inspect his face, the skin marred red and black.
"Shinso!"
Denki's panic shout distracted Izuku as he turned back toward where they were for only a second.
Hachiro took that chance to shoot out another spike towards Izuku.
"Deku!" Kacchan yelled.
Izuku dodged, moving at out of the way as it ripped his shirt sleeve, a red line of blood already coming up to the surface.
"Idiot! Get your head straight. The others can handle themselves." Kacchan said.
Izuku shook his head. Kacchan was right, of course, but then Hatsume's voice came through, her voice low and rushed.
"Guys, I think… I think reflections upstairs. I'm going to lure him away." Hatsume said.
Izuku's fist clench. Everything inside him wanted to go to their aid, but he needed to trust that his companions could take care of things and stay focused on the current threat in front of him. So Izuku, with a heavy heart, had to ignore the words of his friends for now.
Hachiro stood back up, glaring at them with vicious hatred.
Kacchan grinned, rushing forward to aim another blast towards Hachiro who moved out of the way, but his movements were clumsy as he reached out towards Kacchan to grab at him making it easy for Kacchan to stay out of reach and slam an open palm up into the older man's chin.
"You're nothing but a one-trick pony." Kacchan taunted.
Hachiro growled as he grabbed Kacchan's wrist before he could move away. A sickening snap reached Izuku's ears, but Kacchan didn't even flinch.
Hachiro's arm encased itself in the same boning material of his spikes.
Kacchan wrapped his hands around the man's arm, sending repeated blasts into his arm to have Hachiro release him, but he didn't let go as he spat some of the blood that had pooled into his mouth. A sickening grin grew across his bloodied face.
"Whose a one-trick pony?" Hachiro asked.
Kacchan glared up at the man, shooting another blast at his face, but Hachiro shielded himself with his now encased arm.
Izuku used the far wall like earlier to gain some momentum to land a hard kick to the back of his head, but Hachiro released Kacchan to protect himself. Izuku didn't miss his chance to push against the man's arm and propel himself towards Kacchan, grabbing him and moving them away to the farthest side of the room.
"Denki! Stop! What are you doing!?"
Shinso's voice came through their earpiece. Izuku had never heard the boy be so loud and almost scared as he continued to yell out Denki's name.
"I got… this." Denki strained voice responded.
"Kacchan, I'll keep Hachiro at bay while you go help Denki and Shinso." Izuku said.
Kacchan stood up and grabbed onto Izuku's wrist, his frown casting dark shadows on his face as he glared at him.
His hold on Izuku was harsh and Izuku was sure he'd have bruises later, but he held onto him as if Izuku suggested he escape to go help their friends. There was an angry rasp to his voice as he directed every word to Izuku, as if he was hitting him over the head, making Izuku flinch back a bit.
"One of these days, I'm going to beat that self-sacrificing bullshit out of you." Kacchan warned.
Kacchan turned back to Hachiro, who had taken the time to encase his body in the bone-material like an armor suit.
"You listen well idiot, we're going to kill this guy together and then we'll go save those extras together too." Kacchan said.
Izuku's throat tightened so all he could muster was a small nod as he returned his focus to Hachiro, whose shielding had crept up higher, stopping right below his neck.
There was a lag to his body as the older man moved his arms a bit. Izuku moved closer to Kacchan, seeing if he noticed the same, and the blonde grinned, crouching down further in his stance.
Although his defense was stronger, the reduction in speed meant they may have the upper hand. Izuku and Kacchan shot forward, playing a coordinated game of tag with Hachiro. As Kacchan sent a barrage of explosions to distract him, Izuku would attack from behind. Their goal was to aim for his head, where he looked to be the most vulnerable or break through the boning of his armor. Hachiro blocked most of their attacks, but he couldn't do much else as they forced him into a defensive posture.
Izuku and Kacchan grew in intensity, switching back and forth, giving Hachiro no time to retaliate. Hachiro, at one point, dropped to one knee and Izuku was sure they would win as parts of his armor cracked.
An enormous boom came from outside, making everyone stop as the house shook under the strain, as if something large hit it. It was alarming enough that even Hachiro turned distracted.
Izuku used the opening to place a well-aimed kick to the man's head, but before he reached his target, his whole body slammed down into the ground.
"Deku!" Kacchan yelled.
Hachiro took his chance, aiming a close range spike towards Kacchan. The spike lodged itself into his shoulder, swinging him back, and Hachiro grabbed the end of the spike, pushing Kachan back until his back slammed into the far wall; the spike impaling him in place.
Blood spurted from Kacchan's mouth onto the ground as his hands reached up to grab onto the spike. Izuku tried to lift himself off the ground as he watched, but he only had enough strength to breathe as his thoughts screamed in outrage.
The intercom in his ear sputtered from the weight of gravity forced over him as it fell out and onto the floor, cracking from the force.
It was as if everything was being forced down onto Izuku. His clothes, his shoes, his whole body was being pulled down as if they weighed a ton.
Izuku could see from the corner of his vision as Sato appeared, holding onto his side as he sneered down at Izuku with bloody teeth.
"You little shit, I'm going to make your death painful!" Sato said.
Hachiro stood over Kacchan, eying his spike that was sticking out of the blonde. Izuku's eyes darkened, ignoring Sato all together who was cursing at him. His only focus was on Hachiro.
Another spike slid out of his arm, but he didn't shoot it at Kacchan. He held it in his hands, mocking him.
"Not so tough when you're pinned down, are ya?" Hachiro said.
Kacchan spit a glob of blood towards the older man's face. Izuku tried again to lift himself up from the ground, only to slam back down when another ton of weight came down on him. One for All grew around him, but Izuku knew if he took the risk of using it at full strength, it would do more damage than help.
The older man wiped the blood from his face, amused.
"You have spunk kid, I'll give you that much. It's almost a shame I have to kill you." Hachiro said.
Izuku's panic spiked as he tried to take in enough breath to say anything. His bones were at their limit, like twigs, shaking in place and ready to break at a moment's notice. Izuku's arm shook as he stretched it out towards Hachiro. Even if it was a useless attempt, he needed to get closer. He needed to stop Hachiro. Something was itching under Izuku's skin, insistent to be used.
As Hachiro raised the spike up high above, Kacchan Izuku let out a strangled shout.
"No!"
Strands of black shot out in every direction from his outstretched arm. They wrapped around Hachiro's limbs, keeping him in place as others slammed into the far walls as large cracks and pieces of the plaster fell apart on impact.
"What the fuck!" Sato yells.
Sato forced his quirk down hard and fast onto Izuku, making him cry out as his ribs snap from the force. The wood beneath him splintered as it gave way, stabbing into his skin and face. The sudden appearance of the black stands disappeared just as quickly as Izuku's consciousness blurred around the edges of his vision.
"Izuku?"
His mother's voice broke through the haze, making Izuku come back to reality. A helpless dread pressed down onto him, joining Sato's quirk to suffocate him.
"Auntie, get out of here!" Kacchan yells.
Hachiro's attention shifted to his mother as he casually walked over to her and his mother inched back in response.
"Get the fuck away from her!" Kacchan yells.
Izuku opens his mouth, wanting to warn Hachiro away, but blood bubbled in the back of his throat and all he could do was spit it out.
"You must be the boy's mother. Mrs Midoriya right? You don't need to fear me." Hachiro said.
"L. leave… them alone."
Kacchan has lost it by this point, his movements wild as he used every once of strength he had to pull the spike out from his shoulder with no success. Izuku struggled to stay conscious, unwilling to go under while his mother was still in danger.
"Unfortunately, your boys need to die, but don't worry, you and your girls will be safe. We promise to take care of you." Hachiro said.
His mom was crying, but Izuku can't see much at this point. The darkness creeped in around him as it got harder to breathe.
"Sato, finish him for me." Hachiro said.
His mom and Kacchan both cried out in despair and outrage.
"Denki! Shinso!" Kacchan yelled out.
Izuku could guess Kacchan was trying to call for help. His voice sounded farther away than before. He couldn't take a full breath anymore, the weight crushing as his blood slowed down to a crawl in his veins. Even that felt like it was weighing on him, his heart tightened in his chest.
"Stop! Please! I don't want to hurt you!"
That sounded like his mom, but Izuku couldn't connect why his mom would say anything like that. His mom was so tiny compared to them she would only get hurt if she tried to attack them. Hachiro and Sato's laughter drowned out her warning.
Izuku tried again to draw in another breath.
Was this as far as he could go?
"Midoriya!"
Izuku could hear All Might's voice calling to him. It must mean he was on the brink of death if he could hear his mentor.
Would he get to see him again?
Some part of Izuku almost felt relief that he would.
It would be easier to give up.
Less painful.
"Fight!"
All Might's voice grew stronger as he shouted at him clear as day, but it was off as his voice mingled with others that were unfamiliar to Izuku.
"Fight!"
The next second, air rushed into Izuku's lungs, who gasped in surprise as Sato's quirk lifted off of him.
Izuku looked up, his vision still blurry, to see Hachiro's shocked face. There was movement next to Izuku, but he check to see what it was as Hachiro turned to his mother in anger and Izuku doesn't hesitate as he launched forward to stop him.
Izuku has enough time to see Kacchan flying towards Hachiro from behind, palm raised. Izuku slammed his fist into Hachiro's chest as Kacchan's explosion landed on the back of Hachiro's head. The older man's body slumped forward in a heap on the floor.
Izuku wasn't sure if Hachiro was dead or just knocked out, be he didn't have enough strength to care as his body gave way to fall into Kacchan who caught him.
They both slid to the ground and Izuku's mother joined them as she held onto them, her tears wetting Izuku's cheek, making his cuts sting.
Izuku wanted to rest. There was so much that happened, but it reminded him of the others that could still be in trouble, and so he lifted himself to a sitting position.
His body protested at his movements, and his chest burned with every wheezing breath.
He looked over at Sato laid out on the floor. One of Hachiro's spikes impaled into his throat. The blood pooled out around him as his eyes stared wide and unseeing back at Izuku.
"I'm sorry…. I'm sorry. I didn't know what else to do to stop him."
His mother held onto him, her body shaking and words becoming incoherent as she tried to explain. So it was his mother. Izuku didn't think it was even possible for her quirk to do something like that, but he couldn't ask her more in her current state.
Izuku placed an arm around her, closing his eyes from the sight, his focus on comforting his mother more important at the moment.
"Don't worry auntie, you did nothing wrong. You just did what you had to do." Kacchan reassured.
His voice was rough and vindictive.
Izuku looked over at Hachiro. The man's body slumped over and unmoving.
"Is he….?" Izuku couldn't even bring himself to finish those words.
His mother shook her head.
"No, I think he's just knocked out."
"Kacchan, can you tie him up?" Izuku asked.
The blonde nodded, but as he stood, his injured arm stayed limp at his side.
"Let me help you." His mother said.
Kacchan didn't protest, but you could tell he was frowning at the idea of her helping him. They went over to the items they had kept stored away and began wrapping the unconscious man with a thick rope.
As they finished, they all heard movement from down the hallway and Kacchan stopped, stood ready for any danger when Denki and Shinso appeared.
Their bodies were leaning on each other. Denki looked half conscious, his face covered in cuts, but he was better off than Shinso who was holding onto him, his clothes singed and his body black with burns.
"Oh! Are you two okay?" his mother said.
She rushed over to check them over and Denki smiled at her.
"Don't worry, we totally won." Denki said.
Shinso groaned. It sounded half in annoyance, but more in pain, as he did his best to stand on his own.
"What about Hatsume and Chieko?" Izuku asked.
Denki shook his head. "We came straight here since Baku was shouting at us."
"Not that you two were any help." Kacchan said.
"Give us a break. We were both knocked out until you woke us up with your squawking." Shinso muttered.
"What the fuck you say, eye bags?" Kacchan yelled.
"Katsuki." His mother warned.
Kacchan shut up after that, and Shinso gave him a mocking grin in response.
Izuku stood up, but Kacchan had to catch him as Izuku stumbled his body weak and overworked.
"It's too quiet. Hatsume said reflection may be up there. We should go check on them." Izuku said.
Kacchan lets out a Tch, but moved Izuku's arm around his shoulder to help allow him to lean on him.
"I think we'll go with you guys." Denki said.
Izuku noticed the way Denki looked over toward Sato and he figured the boy wasn't ready to be left alone with a dead body.
"We'll all go." His mother suggested.
They made their way upstairs. Izuku's mother left at the rear, just in case. She didn't stop fussing over them as she watched them all with worry.
Izuku wondered if any of them would be of any use if there was still danger, but he had to make sure the girls were okay. If there was still one left, then they would deal with it somehow.
The second floor was ghost-quiet as they went down the hall to the bedrooms. A squeaking reached their ears as they grew closer, but Izuku wasn't sure where it was coming from.
"There!" Denki said.
He pointed out a small mouse that was trapped in some kind of glass jar. Hatsume's spies lay scattered around it, most of them destroyed.
"That's the guy that got past us." Denki said.
So Inasa had trapped him.
Good. One less person to worry about.
His mother moved over, gathering the broken spies into her palm as she praised them.
"Good work. I'm sure Hatsume will fix you all up later."
They moved on, choosing to leave the mouse there for now.
When they reached the door, they could hear muffled voices coming from the room, but neither sounded like a male, so they all relaxed, assuming the girls were fine.
His mother opened the door for them, and as they enter, Izuku saw Hatsume first. She was kneeling in front of Chieko, who was curled into one corner. They both had tear stains on their cheeks as they looked up towards them.
There was blood covering half of Hatsume's face, and her goggles were missing from her head. She looked alarmed to see them, her mouth half open. Chieko looked fine mostly, though Izuku wasn't sure if that was because of her quirk or not.
"Are you two okay?" Izuku asked.
His mother rushed over to them as she checked on Hatsume, who gave her a watery-smile.
"I'm okay Mrs. Midoriya."
"Was it Reflection?" Izuku asked.
Hatsume hesitated, as if unsure how to answer him, before shaking her head.
"No, I captured him, but there was a seventh guy." Hatsume said.
There was a worried rush of alarm that came in as Izuku looked around, but didn't see either man in the room.
"What happened?" Izuku asked.
Hatsume grimaced, looking away, but didn't respond.
His mom frowned, concerned, as she reached out towards Chieko to check on her, but she recoiled, drawing herself closer into herself.
"Don't touch me!"
His mother pulled back in surprise and even Chieko looked back at her, eyes wide as if she didn't mean to do that.
A tension settled into the room as everyone looked on, unsure of what to say.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you." His mother said.
"Ah! Chieko is probably still in shock." Hatsume said.
Everyone glanced over at the pink-haired girl as she waved her hands to get their attention on her.
"After I caught reflections, the seventh guy got the jump on me, but Chieko saved me and during the struggle, the guy fell out of the window." She pointed out to the broken glass of the window.
"It was pure luck, but it must have scared her." Hatsume said.
Izuku walked over to the broken glass with Kacchan's help and looked down. It was still too dark out to see, but there was a silhouette of a figure at the bottom, unmoving.
Izuku closed his eyes. That made at least two people dead. There was an ache in his chest that it all had to reach this point, but he didn't feel he had any right to say anything when they all did what they had to do to survive.
In this world, there were no rules. They couldn't afford to pull back for fear of having blood on their hands.
"Are you okay, dear?" His mother asked Chieko.
"I just need a minute." Chieko said.
She attempted a smile and Izuku could see she was doing her best to reassure his mom, no doubt feeling guilty about yelling at her. Izuku sighed, moving the heavy feelings of the outcome to the side for now. They still had too much to do.
"Let's round them up first and we'll rest before we head out." Izuku said.
"You mean round them up? You rest." Kacchan corrected.
His mother chimed in as she stood dusting off the dirt from her clothes as she eyed the two of them.
"The both of you will rest while we bring them in."
The two ducked their heads, unwilling to argue with Izuku's mom as they nodded, their voices coming out in unison.
"Yes, ma'am"