Ashes to Ashes, Dust to Dust

by AeroZalen

A man is tasked to redeem a villain's soul, but no one said he had to be the hero either. Nobody wants to be alone after all. A Self-Insert Redemption-style fic Rated M for possible language and mature themes including death, violence, and whatever else pops up.

13. Motivation

A/N: Hello everybody and welcome to another chapter. We're currently at 4 Reviews, 28 Favorites, 40 Alerts, and 3,286 Views.

'What do I do? I can't just leave Uraraka behind to fight him off. But if I don't go, then what will happen to everyone? What will happen to Mr. Aizawa?' Deku thought, his eyes wide and frantic as he looked between the various Zones of the USJ as well as Uraraka crouched over the downed Thirteen. Flashes of visions straight from his nightmares haunted him, Mr. Aizawa's arms twisted like twigs, his face bloody, Tsuyu's head crumbling away to nothingness! How was he supposed to decide whose life was most important, everyone would die, he had to save them, but how when he still couldn't even control his own Quirk?

"It's okay Deku." He heard his fellow hero-in-training, not even looking in his direction as she stared at the downed hero in her arms.

"Uraraka, what are you saying?"

"You need to save as many people as you can! That's what heroes do! Go and get help, use your Quirk to help others, that's what Thirteen was saying, it's up to you to save them!" Uraraka yelled, her fists clenched as Deku just looked stunned at his friend's orders.

"Ochako..." He trailed off, not realizing he'd used her first name.

"Well said Ochako-chan, good job keeping that smoky guy busy. Don't worry, I'll get help super quick!" A voice shouted as everyone looked towards the door, seeing it barely cracked open.

"Hagakure, where did you come from?" Izuku asked the invisible girl.

"No time to explain, I'll be right back guys!" And with that, she went silent, leaving the verdette to wonder if she was still there, but that seemed foolish.

"Hear that you villain, Hagakure went to get backup, you've lost!" Midoriya yelled towards Kurogiri, only for the misty villain to swirl into himself, vanishing without a sound. It caught him so off guard that he stared in silence for at least ten seconds, waiting to see if it was another trick before running to Uraraka's side.

"Uraraka, are you okay?" He exclaimed instantly, sliding to the ground next to her and Thirteen.

"Yeah, I just- I was so scared." The pink-cheeked girl looked shellshocked, staring off into space as she held Thirteen's body to her chest. He reached forwards to touch her shoulder and she jumped away, a terrified look in her eyes. rather than say anything, her fingers glowed pink, and she easily lifted Thirteen up, keeping her body stable as she jogged towards the still open door.

"Wha, where are you going?" Izuku called after her as she kept running.

"The bus is just outside, there should be a first-aid kit on it, maybe even an emergency flare or something. I need to help Thirteen right now, she's bleeding so much..." Uraraka whimpered, tears trailing her as she shoved her way through the doors, careful not to disturb the still body of her teacher.

Izuku had honestly forgotten about the bus being just outside. It made sense why it hadn't been used in his head, Iida was easily faster than it, not to mention it was operated by an electronic system that responded to the teachers only, no doubt why they'd prioritized eliminating Thirteen and then taunted him, with her they'd be forced to run all the way back to the main campus. And despite his nature, Deku didn't even know how far that was to run... especially for someone like Hagakure who had performed low on the Quirk Assessment just a few days earlier.

Just a moment, he considered racing after the invisible girl, he could probably beat her back to the school thanks to All Might's training, but... he turned back to the USJ.

Mr. Aizawa would need his help, even if he didn't know it he had to help his teacher. He knew All Might was coming to save them, he knew it! The only question was whether they could hold out long enough.

Their only chance was to be smart about this, Deku knew he was mostly useless with everything Mr. Aizawa was facing. Nomu could take blows from All Might going Plus Ultra, and Shigaraki could turn him to dust with one clean hit, and any attacks would be redirected by Kurogiri, he had a chance to think, and so as he jumped off the side of the stairs, landing in some brush, he crept closer to the main plaza, he put his brain to use. He couldn't use One-for-All yet without breaking his arms and legs, so he was forced to use the only thing he had a technical advantage on, the fact that he knew things about their enemies that they didn't about him.

All that went out the window as he got close to the plaza. it wasn't crawling with a veritable army of villains, not even the unconscious bodies of some. There were four villains, he spotted Shigaraki at the far end, sitting on the edge of the fountain, Nomu standing near him, staring at its reflection, and Kurogiri had appeared next to them both, most likely updating Shigaraki on Hagakure escaping.

But the fourth villain was fighting Mr. Aizawa alone, and he had no clue who it was. They resembled a knight, fully clad in metal plate armor that judging from the resounding noise, was exactly that. Midoriya idlily wondered if he could even lift the villain, much less Mr. Aizawa swing them around with his capture weapon, which might have been the entire idea. Too heavy to swing, to armored for hand-to-hand combat, and the massive claymore further belied that idea. The only reason Mr. Aizawa seemed to still be in the fight was his greatly superior agility, but he must have blinked as the face plate turned a bright crimson, a stream of fire covering the plaza as Eraserhead dodged around the flames, a grimace on his face.

Izuku didn't know what was going on, but he sat and waited, waited for an opportunity to swing the battle, or to protect Mr. Aizawa as he continued to think and plan.

---

I took in the USJ as I left Kuro's portal, somewhat nervously fidgeting with my gloves to make sure they were secured, flexing the fingers as I left the small slits open, allowing my fingertips to come out. It had taken a lot of finetuning to get them just right and allow them to mimic flesh, effectively hiding my Quirk in day-to-day life.

"We've been spotted Tomura." Zee stated next to me, hidden within her suit of armor, multiple plates of shimmery silver metal covering her from head to toe, masking her identity and providing her an extreme level of protection.

"Kuro, go and greet them. You know where to send them, and as for the survivors... keep them busy. Don't forget our priority target here, but if you see a chance to dispose of one of the other Pro Heroes... well, I trust your judgement." I said, Kurogiri vanishing in a swirl of black mist.

I leaned back, sitting on the edge of the fountain in the central plaza, the soft burbling of water behind me as I shifted, pulling the ends of my now soaked coat out of the basin.

'Joyous. Thirteen, Uraraka, and Midoriya should be left at the Entrance. Kuro has already proven capable of countering Thirteen in a fight, removing her from the list of problems. That leaves Uraraka and Midoriya... one of them will have to get backup. Midoriya would be the better choice, even without Full Cowling he outperformed Uraraka at the 50-meter dash, but I doubt he could leave her behind. On the other hand, Uraraka being the one to leave while Izuku keeps Kurogiri busy seems out of character for her, but the possibility does exist.' I thought over my plan, propping one leg on the other, leaning on my propped leg.

Glancing to the right, I spotted the fallen skyscraper denoting the Ruin Zone. 'Echo shouldn't engage with either Shinso or Koda, even with their low combat stats, Shinso is a tricky opponent. Echo only needs to hear them use their Quirks to copy them, so we put 25% of the minor villains there to keep them busy and allow Echo plenty of chances to record them.' I was brought out of my thoughts by Zee's armor clanking as she rushed towards Eraserhead, a large sword in her hand.

I spotted his hair floating upwards as he used his Quirk, but it didn't slow her down at all. I couldn't see his expression, but I assumed it was surprised. Perhaps he thought she was moving so easily due to some strength enhancing Quirk, but she was just naturally that strong, at least after carrying around all that weight for years. His next attack was grabbing her by the leg with his Capture Weapon and pulling.

She barely moved, no doubt because Eraserhead was incapable of swinging nearly 400 lbs. of metal and muscle that made up Zee. Disappointing, I was hoping he'd get closer in hopes that her armor wasn't actually has heavy as it looked, but he was being cautious.

'Himiko should be capable of handling both Sato and Shoji, and I made sure to give her a few heteromorphic types for the Landslide Zone so she can hide among them. Even with Shoji's enhanced senses, I doubt he'll be able to keep up with her, and if she can land a couple of hits with her knives, she can definitely take them out, and collect some more blood samples. I just hope Zee's worrying wasn't a bad sign.'

Glancing over my shoulder, I spotted the far-off Mountain Zone, or as I was tempted to refer to it, the Dumping Zone.

"Ojiro, Aoyama, and Sero... I didn't have a particular reason for sending them there nor are they a bad match with Tesla, I just didn't know where else to send them, so it seemed like a good idea at the time. Thinking about it, they may be an actual team that get work done, with Ojiro on the frontlines, Sero at midrange with crowd control, and Aoyama at range sniping. I'm glad we allocated around 60% of the minor villains over there to keep them busy. The best result is Aoyama overuses his Quirk, forcing the other two to protect him, eventually smothering them with sheer numbers. Quantity over quality.'

Looking back at Zee, she was giving it her best, but it was clear Eraser had picked up on her deficiency in terms of speed, staying out range of her sword, frustrating the metalhead. Losing her temper, she gave a loud roar, stomping after him as he attacked with his cloth, trying to find a weakness in her armor.

'Todoroki, Tsu, and Tokoyami are in the Fire Zone, possible the most thought-out trap. Tsu mentioned the Fire Zone would've been a bad matchup for her in canon, perhaps because it would dry out her skin like a frog, and the light would keep Dark Shadow contained and from becoming a threat. Todoroki would have issues using his ice with all the heat, allowing Shimmer to simply outmaneuver them. Not to mention her Quirk thrived on all that heat, as expected of the only B-ranked villain among us. Of course, this was also our debut, so Himiko, Pokeberry, Kuro, Zee, and I would probably have our ranks in the future. Honestly, I wasn't even sure how villains were ranked... by strength, danger to the public, crimes committed? All the same, Todoroki's answer would be easy enough, simply getting rid of all the fires would weaken his opponent enough for him to beat her... of course, given they were also the only source of light, it would send Dark Shadow into a rampage.'

A loud crash broke me out of my thoughts as Zee stomped on the ground, leaving a small crater as Eraser jumped back, nearing the stairs, not one to let her enemy escape, Zee pursued, bringing her massive blade down with a resounding crash that splinter the stone beneath her, leaving a cloud of dust behind. As Eraser jumped away, Zee revealed her plan, liquid metal pouring out of the slits in her gauntlet, forming several knives in her offhand which she threw at the airborne Aizawa. His Capture Weapon swept out, batting aside the projectile as well as the one following it, but the third managed to slip through, leaving a small gash on his arm.

Zee charged, sensing him weakening, only for the lithe man to contort his body around the deadly swing, narrowly dodging as he wrapped his cloth around her wrist, yanking it awkwardly as Zee yelped in pain, dropping her sword from the attack. Rather than press the attack, he retreated, kicking her sword away as she growled angrily, holding her hand. Looking between him and her weapon, she went for the blade, only for his cloth to wrap around it, swinging it away towards the water.

'The Water Temple is the most important. Keeping Iida locked down allows us plenty of free reign here, and both Kaminari and Kirishima are at a distinct disadvantage in the water. Kaminari can't use his electricity at all without harming his classmates, and if Kirishima's powers work like I assume they do, his body isn't actually turning to rock, but rather increasing in density like a rock, which would limit his movements and cause him to sink, forcing him to continually drop his guard to swim. Bakugo could probably stay in the air, but he doesn't have any long-range attacks yet, and the water will definitely diffuse his explosions, not to mention washing away his sweat if his underwater. The worst result is him simply leaving since we can't stop him, but the idea of Bakugo running from a fight is laughable!'

'And finally,' Kurogiri appeared next to me, catching both Aizawa and Zee's attention, although neither stopped fighting although I felt reasonably sure he was using his Quirk on Kurogiri to keep him from warping around again.

"The invisible girl managed to avoid my first attack, she remained hidden until I dropped my guard and escaped. She's gone for backup." Kuro said as I glanced towards the last area where Hagakure was meant to be.

'The Squall Zone, I left Poke... Mineta in charge over there, he's the best at restraint, and the constant rain will diminish Mina's acids and the rolling thunder will keep Jiro from hearing him. The rain would've helped reveal Hagakure as well, but it seems we failed in that regard. I had Yaomomo sent there at Mineta's request of fighting all the sexy babes himself and despite his nature, he does perform better in the presence of beautiful women. I just hope he can keep his focus on the mission.'

"It's fine," I stated, pulling out my phone, careful not to let my fingers slip through. "Thats fine, honestly maybe it's for the best, she got around 8 seconds of the fifty-meter dash and has N/A on her endurance run, maybe they couldn't test her because she invisible, regardless, it like 10 kilometers back to the school which would take her..."

"Tomura?" Kuro asked in slight concern.

"I'm pretty sure my brain was making the dialup sound. Honest to God I hate math, so let's say thirty minutes and call it a day. I was hoping to let Zee wear Eraser down, but it seems we're on a time crunch now. Stay here and guard Nomu, I'm going to see how Aizawa handles Ornstein and Smough!" I declared, eyes widening as I saw Zee helmet turn a brilliant red, a huge swath of flame sweeping over the plaza as Eraserhead jumped away.

Taking advantage of his momentary distract, I leapt into the fight, landing in a crouch behind him as I grabbed for his head.

He ducked under my swipe, nailing me with an uppercut that sent waves of pain through my brain. I had no chance to recover before he'd wrapped me in his capture weapon, swinging me at Zee like a flail, tossing me into her. I took the brunt of the damage, Zee barely moving as I bounced off her armored chest, slumping to the ground as she charged him like a bull, her gauntlet pulled back for a haymaker of a punch.

Pushing myself up, I raced back into the fight, Aizawa weaving around Zee's punches easily, fully aware that catching even one of them would do serious damage. I skirted them, pincering him from the opposite side, forcing him to split his Quirk between us as he glanced in my direction, his hair floating. Zee didn't miss her chance, a shorter sword forming as she slashed at him, the bedraggled man dodging closely, his capture weapon flying at me as I crossed my arms in front me, the cloth wrapping around my arm, pulling me into the air as Zee jumped back.

"Not this time, asshole!" I growled, managing to grasp where his cloth had me, the material crumbling away within seconds as I was released, bouncing across the ground but free as I dug my feet in, sprinting back.

Zee came back in with an overhead strike that missed as it slammed into the ground between her and Aizawa. "Did you seriously miss?"

"Shut up." She snarled, her grip switching in an instant, bringing it back up like a fishing pole, Eraser panting his foot on the edge as it launched him into the air, his capture weapon grabbing Zee's helmet, blinding her as he yanked hard. Rather than lifting her off her feet, it reeled him in as he slammed one foot straight into her helmet, denting the metal and knocking it loose as it fell to the ground, her midback length copper red hair flaring out.

She had several piercings, three in her right ear, and two in the left, as well as a bar in her nose. I literally ran her over, using her back as a springboard as I leapt at Eraserhead.

He ducked under me again, attempting to bring his knee into my face, but I was ready this time, grabbing the offending leg as I pushed off, landing behind him.

Two knives flew at him instantly, the teacher dancing around them, but I caught both, slinging them at him as he flipped away, narrowly dodging a long spear in Zee's hands.

We were slowly syncing up, forcing him to keep dodging as I kept close to him, able to match his speed and agility, while Zee showered the area in projectiles. A swipe that would've carved out a chunk of his shoulder was avoided as he swept my legs, not giving me any time to react as his cloth grabbed me, swinging me over his head and bring me down headfirst into the concrete.

Were it not for my brutal training, that might've taken me out, but I recovered quickly enough that Eraserhead was forced to leap back, dodging my hasty swing. I rolled my neck in annoyance, chasing him down, hands low to the ground as I weaved around the attacks sent my way. He started to jump away when I noticed Zee pinning one end of his Capture Weapon into the ground with a black metal spike.

Letting out a growl of irritation, Aizawa cut the length of his weapon, further reducing its size as he tried to dodge, but the momentary distraction cost him as I caught him, a low swipe catching him in the side as I felt both cloth and flesh break away under my touch. I felt my Quirk die a second later, but the damage had been done as he leapt away, clutching his side in pain.

Rather than give him time to recuperate, I gave chase, intending to finish the fight here.

Or at least that was my intention when a massive explosion from the nearby Water Temple grabbed my attention, a soft shower of water scattering over the stones. A second later an equally resounding explosion echoed in the USJ, the flames clearly visible from our arena.

Not one to pass up the chance, Eraser's weapon grabbed me, throwing me across the plaza as I flipped, my fingers digging a furrow in the stones as they crumbled away, Eraser must have blinked, or was focused on the bodies falling from the sky.

I was still airborne, and upside down, but I couldn't mistake the figure of Tenya Iida slamming into the ground, small flames shooting from his legs as he didn't even pause, racing towards the stairs. I spotted a shock of red hair in his arms, and a limply dangling Kaminari bouncing on top of his shoulder.

Zee, absent of any mercy, already had a massive great bow in her hands, a horrific arrow forming in a second as she fired it, fully intending on skewering the fleeing hero student.

I didn't have to worry, as the glowing flames emanating from Iida's muffler turned a beautiful blue, the boy practically vanishing up the stairs in a burst of speed. Not to be outdone, I went off like a shot, sprinting at Eraser as he glared at me, his hair floating as I pounced, sliding across the ground as he dodged. It didn't seem like the injury was slowing him down at all as he jumped with a high kick that I was forced to block with my forearm.

Before I knew what was happening, he'd tripped me again with his Capture Weapon, uprooting my footing as he gave me no time to recover, slamming a foot into the back of my head as I met the stone floor again. Rather than release me, he pulled me into the air, blood streaming from my nose as he landed an efficient knee kick to my stomach, robbing my breath as I was sent bouncing off to the side.

I dug into the ground as soon as my feet touched down, picking up my hand as I carefully replaced it on my face, the white color stained red by my blood... how ironic.

---

Kirishima could see the light approaching him, growing larger with each passing second.

'I guess this is it huh?' He thought as he closed his eyes, awaiting the warmth that would surely accompany him in the afterlife, wherever he might be.

Gasp! Gasp! Deep gasping breaths were loud in his ears as Bakugo shot into the sky, the red-haired hero student splayed across his back, trying not to jostle the boy.

He'd seen Kirishima fall into the water, sinking beneath the waves and flew after him. He wasn't sure why, but in the back of his mind, he still remembered that slime villain, the need to breath he felt, like his whole body was burning from within as he drowned in the viscous fluid body. Seeing someone suffering like that, he wouldn't want any wannabe hero to suffer like that.

Kirishima bit his tongue as each small explosion hurt, pulling at the slowly bleeding wound across his chest.

Bakugo got lower, hovering near to a bedraggled Iida, who had lost his glasses somewhere in the water. He also looked like he regretted the armor now, although it had also saved his life more than once already.

"Take him Specs." Bakugo said, no ordered as he sloughed off Kirishima to Iida, who slung one of Ejiro's arms over his shoulder, suddenly thankful for his stronger than normal legs as he kept them both afloat.

The two villains seemed to be arguing about something, but Kirishima was too out of it to listen or care.

"You said you can't use your Quirk in the water because you spin in place? Do it sideways, go as fast as you can." Bakugo ordered again, Iida almost arguing until he saw Katsuki's eyes. Hed seen those eyes before, or at least eyes like that.

Sometimes his brother would come home after a rough day, maybe he hadn't been able to save someone, or a villain got away, but Tenya could always tell because his brother had a look in his eyes that looked out of place on the considerate older brother. A look that went beyond determined, perhaps even focused, a intense look that spoke nonverbally of single-minded intent. A look that promised vengeance.

So he didn't argue as he armed Kirishima up careful, holding him tightly as he fired up his Engine, instant discomfort shooting through his legs, like a bad Charlie horse. He knew it was due to the water, it had flooded his Engine and his body was having to force it out. He realized almost instantly what Bakugo's plan was, the swirling waters slowly dragging in the surrounding currents, but his Engine was too strong, it pushed him to the surface, even with Kirishima.

Bakugo, hovering overhead, noticed the problem, his rarely used tactical mind analyzing the issue right away.

"Shitty hair, you need to use your Quirk, make yourself heavier, think you can manage that?" Katsuki asked, a massive wave careening towards him as he raised one hand, scattering it to rain without even looking.

Kirishima looked scared, Iida couldn't blame him, Bakugo was essentially asking him to put himself back in the situation he'd just saved him from. But the ashen blonde stared at the Hardening boy.

"I'm not going to save you, time for you to save yourself! Prove that you can be a hero!" Bakugo yelled as Kirishima gave a tentative nod, swallowing as he clenched his eyes shut. Iida was honestly surprised such a rude approach worked, but he'd save his complaints for later. He almost missed as Bakugo slung one of his gauntlets off, tossing it to the boy.

"When I give the signal, pull the pin, and make sure your pointing it away from you." His voice was soft, a rarity for Bakugo, but Iida could feel the weight behind each word as if they were a hammer striking an anvil. He gave a silent nod, and flared his Engine again, Kirishima now an anchor that dragged them down as the currents began to swirl around them.

Iida felt Kirishima shift, a hard impact shoving him away as he spotted a metal trident falling away before being reeled in like a harpoon. The villain seemed to have figured out their plan, or at the very least noticed Kirishima's injuries. He started to swim back to the surface, when he heard the manly boy's shout.

"Fry them Kaminari, don't you worry, we're heroes, it'll take more than this to defeat us!" In response, Iida had to clench his teeth as he felt Kaminari's electricity carve into him, a muffled grunt of pain visible as bubbles floated away.

Kirishima got it much worse, his wound screaming, and the boy matching it, but his eyes hardened, not literally, metaphorically, as he kept his Quirk active, nodding at Iida as the responsible boy nodded as well, flaring his Engine for the third time, the smoking villains unable to resist as the currents began to drag them in, Iida sinking lower as the surface dipped, a visible vortex forming as Bakugo watched from above.

'I'm slowing down, I need to go faster, make this whirlpool as big as I can!' Iida thought, closing his eyes as he flexed, attempting to force more out of his legs, he could feel the pain getting worse with each second, but Kirishima, Kaminari, even Bakugo was counting on him. Kirishima had to be in more pain than him, he had a duty to his fellow students!

The boy's Engine flared, the flames pushing back against the encroaching water as it bubbled around him, until with a roar of determination, they turned a blue color, actually managing to push the water back enough to jet out of his legs, the vortex suddenly doubling in size as he roared, pushing his Quirk as hard as it felt like it could go.

He cracked his knuckles, hovering for just a moment before dipping down, freefalling into the center of the vortex, the wind starting to swirl around him. He primed the air with mini explosions, racing Iida and Kirishima to the bottom as his grin grew. Finally, he plunged past them, covering the last few meters as his hand glowed like a spotlight.

"Kirishima, stop!" He roared as the boy obeyed, the current instantly pulling them away as Bakugo reached the bottom.

He braced himself for just a moment before letting out a massive blast, the primed air only adding fuel as the nitroglycerin being swept off his palm ignited, the overloaded detonation being forced into the ground.

It was like an eruption underwater, the whirlpool flipped upside down as all the bodies of the villains were thrown sky high, Iida, Kirishima, and Kaminari along with them.

"Go!" Bakugo roared over the explosion, Iida nodding as he grabbed a drooling Kaminari giving a thumbs up, Kirishima holding the gauntlet tightly as he pulled the pin, the grenade exploding with fire as they were launched through the sky towards the distant plaza.

Katsuki only had eyes for the villains, launching himself into the air like a human surface-to-air missile, he crashed headfirst into the hydrokinetic villain that gave Kirishima his wound, knocking him out. He didn't stop, exploding forwards as two more villains fell in front of him, one with a wide toothy maw and the other clutching a golden trident.

He didn't give them a chance, rotating in the air as he planted a fist into one's head, and a boot into the other's face. They were barely surviving after Kaminari's attack, and that finished them as he spotted the platypus girl.

She saw him approaching, crossing her arms to block as he landed one explosion after another on her body.

"I'm not letting you get away you ugly piece of shit!" Each word punctuated with an explosion that rattled her body, as he finally blasted her away, the girl barely holding on to consciousness.

'If I can just get back into the water, there's no way I can lose!' She thought, diving towards the water below as Bakugo raced after her.

He reached her just before she could get under the surface, planting both hands on her back as he unleashed another devastating blow, "RPG Rush!"

The force smashed her into the water, in a bellyflop, leaving her only seeing white in agony. But Bakugo wasn't done as the explosive force pushed her down, the water came back together, shooting her into the air as he let loose his strongest attack yet, sending the girl skipping across the water before arresting her momentum as she hit the ship, which cracked in half from her impact, sinking beneath the surface as Katsuki flew away, heading towards the plaza.

---

"BURN IN HELL YOU VILLAINS!" I paid for my introspection as Bakugo Katsuki slammed into the ground, barely missing Zee as she jumped back rather than take the full brunt of his attack on her exposed head. I immediately spotted the trap, as well as his slasher grin, as he leveled his grenade-shaped gauntlet at her, not hesitating to yank the pin out as a rolling explosion tore towards her.

I saw her start to form a shield to protect herself, when the metal fell to the ground, Eraser's hair floating and his eyes glowing an ominous red as her Quirk refused to respond to her. I expected her to throw herself to the side, it would still catch her in the blast radius, but she'd get away with moderate injuries at best.

But I spotted her turn her head back to Kurogiri and Nomu behind her, also unable to dodge with Eraser's Quirk locked on them, as she squared herself just in time for the attack to slam into her, not breaking the ground in its path so much as obliterating it.

I'd seen the damage that attack could do when caught on the edges, the rubble left behind, but seeing it firsthand was a different experience.

It was over in a second, leaving behind silence in the wake of Bakugo's attack. Kurogiri and Nomu had escaped unscathed for the most part, both Zee's resolute body shielding them from the worst of the damage, as well as Nomu further shielding Kuro's main body. Zee on the other hand, looked rough. Her entire upper armor had been shattered in impact, leaving her shoulders as well as the swell of her breasts on display, burnt red flesh exposed, and blood covering her face. I could see where her earrings had been, now ripped out by the force of the explosion. I was certain those metal shards sticking out of her body were shrapnel left of her chest plate. And the ashen blonde had the audacity to look pleased with the results of his attack.

I lost it, seeing my sister covered in so much blood, I'd crossed distance between us in a blink, my hand around Katsuki's throat as I lifted him over my head and slammed him into the ground, my eyes glaring into his soul. I only realized after the moment that it was a good thing Eraser was still blocking my Quirk, or else Bakugo's head would've shattered like plaster from the force of my attack.

That didn't stop me however, as I spun on my feet, hurling the stunned student at Eraserhead, forcing him to deactivate his Quick as Bakugo blocked his vision.

My sister didn't miss her chance, beaten, burned, and battered, but not done yet as she slammed into the ground like a juggernaut, her cheeks puffed as she unleashed a massive torrent of flame at the two. I followed up, sure to spot an opening as my blood sang in my ears, like the cheers of a crowd at an arena.

And yet my annoyance increased as a familiar green-haired boy jumped towards them, his hand glowing as before Aizawa could question him, or Bakugo could gripe, Izuku broke one his fingers, letting out a gale force of wind that hit the fire, pushing it back as it threatened to sweep over us.

Zee didn't blink as she punched the ground, her exposed hand and the three holes in her flesh leaked metal out as it formed a veritable wall covering us as the flames swept over, not even affecting her shield. And why should it, I didn't need to look to know what it was made of: dense tungsten, perfect for fire resistant forging. Her whole armor was likely composed of tungsten, which was why it had shattered on impact.

I didn't give them a chance to rest, aiming a dropkick at Aizawa as he blocked with his Capture Weapon, pulling me off-balance and nailing me with an elbow to the sternum. I managed to get a gloved hand in the way to block, but I still felt some of the force as I coughed. I recovered, planting a hand on the ground as I pushed off, twisting myself around to try for another kick to his head, but he leaned back.

That was just a feint, however, as he used my free hand to sucker punch him in the side, a wet noise rewarding my efforts.

"You're getting slower Eraser. I wonder how much longer you can hold out?" I taunted, seeing Zee jump over us, her metal boots clanging on the stone floor.

She'd shed most of her upper body armor, leaving only her gauntlet that extended to her elbows, as well as her metal boots to crawled up her legs in a weird facsimile of stockings. Probably the most amusing part was the remains of her chest plate, which now only covered her stomach, tapered to her waist, and barely covering her breasts like a knightly corset, the bottom barely maintaining her modesty as her ass was visible.

"Are you moonlighting as a stripper now?" I teased, only a low grunt answering me as Zee landed between Izuku and Bakugo. Throwing her arms out, two spears formed quickly, launching towards them as Bakugo fired his explosions, pushing himself out of the line of fire, but Midoriya wasn't as quick, the metal leaving a small cut across his back as he dove to the ground.

Bakugo took to the air, and rather than continue to engage him, Zee went after the weaker target, the currently downed Midoriya, a katana in hand.

Deku managed to avoid major damage on the first hit, her sword only nicking his thigh as he rolled across the stonework. As he tried to get away, she planted a metal boot on his back. I glanced over my shoulder as Bakugo raced towards Kurogiri, who began to swirl with darkness.

My attention remained focused on Izuku, though, as he grit his teeth, his whole left arm glowed with green lightning as he desperately swung a fist at Zee who couldn't dodge at the close range.

For a moment, my rage flared up again, fully aware that One-for-All even it its diminished state could seriously hurt Zee if he went 100%. But as the smoke cleared, I saw the fear in his eyes, Zee's metal falling to the ground in pieces, the redhead able to barely get a shield between the damage, as well as his awkward angle both mitigated the power. Nevertheless, her arm looked like it was very broken, purple splotches all the way up, and it was hanging limply.

But she had a fire in her eyes, twice now she'd been subject to massive, overpowered attacks, and she wasn't about to let it happen a third time. She brought her blade down like an executioner, intent on ending the green-haired boy's life.

The sword never reached it as a cloth wrapped around Midoriya's leg, pulling him into the air. Zee must have been weakened by the heavy blows she'd taken if Aizawa could just pull him out from under her boot like that. I felt Eraser's foot hit me in the gut, trying to make room between us for him to get away with Izuku.

I reached out, managing to just grab hold of his calf as he slipped away, his glowing red eyes immediately peeking out from his goggles as he gave me his attention again.

He landed roughly, already favoring his left leg, my Quirk eating away at the muscle for just the few scant seconds I'd been afforded.

"Get out of here, you and Bakugo both!" Eraser ordered as he tossed Midoriya towards the stairs, but the boy spotted an angry Zee, already pulling her right arm back to throw the long javelin in her hands. He didn't have time to think as he broke another finger on his right hand, the localized blast wave knocking both her and me back.

"Sorry sir, but I can't do that! Thirteen is badly wounded, and Kirishima looked like he'd lost a lot of blood. If something happens to you, they'll just hunt us down... it's just logical!" Deku argued, a smirk crossing my face as I placed a hand on my hip.

"You're all problem children." Mr. Aizawa muttered, his breath coming in short pants.

"You move a muscle, and I'll blow you to Hell!" I heard to the side, spotting Kuro on the ground, Katsuki pinning him with a glowing hand.

"My apologies Tomura, he overpowered me." Kurogiri apologized flatly.

"It's fine Kuro," I nodded, looking at Bakugo nonchalantly, "Do you really think you should be warning us about your plans?" I asked simply, cocking my head.

Before he could answer, or taunt, or whatever he felt like doing, I spoke one word, "Nomu." The hulking behemoth, Anti-All Might, Nomu's head snapped up, lumbering across the ground in a moment with enough power that the stonework broke beneath his feet as he appeared next to Bakugo and Kuro, a sweeping backhand already colliding with the ashen blonde.

I didn't need to look to know several bones were broken on impact, most likely both arms as well as a few ribs, but he wasn't dead as he flew across the air. I sprinted after him, at the very least to make sure he didn't interfere with our mission any further.

A massive wall of ice appeared in my path, blocking me from reaching the collection of hero students and single hero teacher on the other side.

"You've gotta be shitting me!" I cursed, the figure of Shoto Todoroki crouched on the other side, part of his body encased in ice.

---

"Run," Todoroki stated authoritatively, sprinting away from where the pink-haired woman was moments started spreading across the ground with each footstep, sending small steam clouds into the air.

Tsu didn't hesitate, holding Tokoyami on her back as she hopped after her bicolored classmate. The layer off frost on the ground was uncomfortable, but she was able to ignore it for the most part, considering adding insulation to parts of her costume in the future.

"Just go straight ahead, we'll find a wall and circle around, it'll put us with nowhere to run, but at least we'll be sure which direction she's coming from." Todoroki said, not looking as he blindly fired a wave of ice backwards.

"Wait your turn, cherie. I just 'ave to kill zis cow, and we can be alone." The villainess murmured, appearing between the students. Tsu launched herself into the air, narrowly dodging a kick that would've sent her careening into some rubble.

Todoroki wasn't so lucky, her fist buried into his side as he skipped across the ground. He recovered quickly, her punch had lost some of its power from the cool air it seemed, as he swept his hand out, a swath of ice catching him as he skated back, sending multiple ice spike at the villainess who smirked, stamping the ground as a jet of flame appeared before her, shielding her from the ice.

Looking at Tsu, she kicked off the ground, slamming into the ranine girl like a fiery bullet, knocking her breath out as well as causing her to drop Tokoyami who slumped to the frosty ground. Asui tried to recover, but only found herself flying into a streetlamp as the shimmering villain hit her with a blistering jab.

Ignoring the boys, the pink-haired girl sprinted after Tsuyu, her leg bending the metal pole as Tsu flipped around it, pushing off to land on a nearby wall which shifted dangerously. Her instincts saved her a second time as she leapt away, the villain bursting through the brick wall without a second thought.

"Stop running chienne." She heard from the collapsed wall as the girl charged through a second time, bringing the whole wall down in a pile.

"Kero kero." Tsu ribbeted, jumping away a third time, hoping to stall until Todoroki caught up with them.

She wasn't fast enough this time as the glowing girl grabbed her by the hair, throwing her over her shoulder like a bag of garbage, leaving Tsuyu sore. It didn't end there though as the thermic women punted her in the chest, sending her bouncing down the street. Asui looked up to see her attacker standing in a fire, her skin turning a molten red as she glared at Tsu, who pushed herself to her feet.

No amount of warning could've saved her, however, as the incandescent villainess appear in front of Tsu, her fist already buried to the wrist in the froggy girl's stomach, throwing her further down the street where she came to a stop painfully as she hit a brick wall, she could feel her stomach in her mouth... literally as she forced it back down.

Tsuyu tried to pick herself up, her vision swimming in a way that the Frog girl was unfamiliar with, only for the bricks she leaned on to come loose, dropping her on the ground again as the villain stalked closer, running her hand through a nearby flame.

"Why won't you die you freak!" She shrieked disappearing in a blaze, aiming to cave in her skull.

"Sorry Asui!" Todoroki shouted as he landed, having thrown himself into the air with his ice. As such, he knew the situation as the shimmering villain reappeared, her leg halfway to Tsuyu's face.

Thankfully, the bicolored boy got in the way, only having a split second to get his right arm up as she hit him, a layer of ice covering it like armor. He felt the pain in a moment, reinforcing his feet to the ground to not be sent flying, but that just left all the impact on his arm as it snapped like a twig. All the years of abuse came back like a flash, as his ice shattered, but he was Shoto Todoroki, and it would take more than mere pain to make him balk.

Both fighters let out a sharp cry, Todoroki's like a wounded animal, but the girl screamed in both fury and tortured agony. Tsuyu felt her stomach churn as she saw the girl's leg, or at least what was her leg.

Todoroki had covered his arm with a frozen layer of protection, and it had shot out like little icicles, firstly impaling the girl's leg as she kicked him. Secondly, his rage had caused his powers to flare, erupting in a concentrated blast of ice, except it wasn't just ice that had been frozen, the bleeding wound had frozen through in a second, judging from the bloody spikes sticking out of her leg.

The villainess seemed to be caught between rage and pain before her rage won out as she lunged at Todoroki, who was cradling his broken arm, with a screech.

"Todoroki-kero!" Tsuyu shouted, having recovered as her tongue shot out, lashing the shimmering villain across the face as she was knocked back. As soon as she vanished behind a sprouting flame, Tsu wrapped her tongue around Todoroki's waist and leapt away. He guided her to where he'd left Tokoyami, the black bird boy resting semipeacefully.

Grappling Tokoyami with her tongue, she started to hop away as gently as possible so as not to further agitate his wounds. Todoroki looked behind them, wincing as he formed a thick layer of ice around his forearm, effectively immobilizing it and reducing the swelling from the broken bone.

'A defeated villain is not the same as a captured villain! If you let them escape, even if you beat them, they'll only get stronger!' The hot-and-cold boy could hear one of his father's lessons in his head. Shaking his head, he turned to follow Tsu, running after her as they tried to escape from the wounded woman.

Meanwhile, Shimmer pushed against a wall, lifting herself up as she looked at her mess of a leg. Gritting her teeth, she tried to put any weight on it, only for lancing pain to drown out any thought.

"Fuck ze plans! Zose brats are dead as soon as I catch zem! To zink zat I would be forced to resort to drogues like zis?" Shimmer growled angrily, fishing inside her sports bra, pulling out a syringe as she tentatively shoved it into her neck, the drugs inside flooding her body. "Zey will pay ruining my magnifique body!"

The trio, technically duo, of hero students neared the exit, Asui spotted the double doors in the distance, the wall beginning its descent towards the ground. "We;re almost there, we'll get you both to Recovery Girl, kero!" The Frog girl announced, a small lisp due to her tongue hanging out of her mouth, no doubt getting drier by being in the sweltering environment.

Looking behind them, Shoto noticed the flames flickering in a weird way as his instincts screamed danger! "Sorry again Asui!" He yelled, the green-haired heroine not having time to question him as ice surged forth, launching them apart, Tsuyu and Tokoyami closer to the exit, but throwing Todoroki back into the Conflagration Zone.

Shimmer appeared where they'd been standing moments earlier, her fiery eyes looking between Todoroki and Asui before focusing on the brat that marred her beautiful leg.

'If her leg was injured earlier, it doesn't seem like it now.' Shoto noted, not having time for anymore observations as she rocketed towards him, her left fist smashing into his chest, robbing him of breath. Before he could recover, she nailed him with a blistering uppercut that sent him hurtling through a brick wall. It hurt, but he pushed through the pain, creating a wall of ice between them as she crashed into it.

'No, she made sure to land on her uninjured right leg, she may not feel it, but she knows her left leg is worthless.' He noted, her form blurring as she hit the wall with a rapid series of jabs that quickly reduced it to shards. Her bloody hands only further reinforced his thoughts. Not that helped him as her fist buried itself in his face, definitely breaking his nose, feeling the blood trickling down his face, and lost sight in his right eye.

Still, he noticed her switch to her bad leg, swinging a high kick at his head with her stronger right leg. It took all his self-control not to block with his broken arm, resulting in her heel knocking his lights out, the metallic taste of blood filling his mouth as he went flying. Even dazed, he recognized the gift she'd given him: space.

Gritting his teeth, he swung his arm out, a wave of ice scything across the burning battlefield as Shimmer was forced to dodge around as he sent multiple waves of ice, forcing her to zigzag, slowing her down. He was thankful she seemed to focus on killing him to notice his plan.

"Really hope you listened Asui." He muttered under his breath, catching himself on his backfoot as he took a deep breath.

"Mourir!" Shimmer screamed, her fist hurtling towards his face.

'She scarred my greatest masterpiece, so I put her in a hospital.' He focused on the boiling rage as he stared her down, his ice blue eye glowing as he pushed, ice erupting from his foot as half of the dome was consumed by ice, smothering flames, the primed air feeding his attack as a low mist hung over the area. Shimmer was inches away from him, her body convulsing as she tried and failed to break out, her Quirk stolen from her by the freezing temperatures.

He turned to leave, the surging flames warming his body and dispelling the hanging mist. The fight had taken a lot out of him, the boy cradling his broken arm gingerly, and looking around for the exit.

The first thing he heard was the sound of crackling ice as the flames around him swelled due to the redirected fuel. "Don't... walk away from me! I'm not losing to some morveux!" Shimmer wailed, a sicken squelch capturing his attention, as he looked back in time for the still raging villain to tear her skin away, her blood splattering across the ground as she lunged for him. He was so caught off-guard, he didn't move, the pink-haired woman tackling him to the ground.

He struggled, throwing a punch at her with his left hand, but if she felt it, she didn't show it. She glared at him, pressing her fingers into his throat, strangling him as he tried to fight her off. In his struggles he noticed her left leg, or at least the remnants of it. She was missing anything below the knee, his eyes spotting the mangled limb still in his ice, whether his earlier attack he severed it or she had ripped it off like a rabid animal, he felt bile rising in his throat.

He forced down his disgust, trying to create ice between her fingers and his throat, but she reacted far quicker than he expected, smashing a fist into his face, more blood filling his mouth. She kept hitting him, his vision getting darker as he couldn't concentrate between the lack of oxygen and the pain spreading across his face.

'Soon you'll reach the limits of that Quirks power, and then what will you do?' "Shut up you bastard, your fire would only make things worse!" Shoto gurgling through the blood. 'Pathetic, you're losing like this, to some bitch without a leg, running on fumes?' 'Shut up!' 'Oh well, what's another 15 years, I can always make another one.' 'SHUT UUUPPPPPPP!'

He roared with rage, spewing the blood in his mouth out, his powers reacting subconsciously as the blood froze, skewering the villainess like shrapnel, several sticking out of her neck as she reeled back, her eyes rolled back as she clawed at her neck and face.

But Todoroki didn't see her, in his eyes all he could see was a triumphantly laughing Endevour as ice poured forth like a tidal wave, smashing into Shimmer and throwing her into the ground as Todoroki laid there breathing heavily.

...

Tsuyu didn't have to look very hard to find the source of the ice covering much of the Conflagration Zone. She'd carefully left Tokoyami just outside the door in some bushes while she went back for her other classmate. Hopping quickly, she landed atop a spire of ice piercing the roof, spotting a small boy near the bottom, propped against it as she hopped down, landing near him with barely a sound.

He looked rough, arms outstretched to the side, blood all down the front of his costume, one eye swollen shut completely. She didn't have to look far to find his opponent either, the body of Shimmer a scant ten feet away.

If Todoroki looked rough, she looked like she'd been front row to a cannon. One leg was gone, skin and muscle stripped away from her hands, bones visible, a blood splattered on the ice, most likely from the needles sticking out of her neck, but the most chilling thing was the large spike of ice jutting from her midsection.

Ignoring the body for the moment, she checked on Todoroki, who looked dazed. She patted his cheek, getting no response as she sighed, steeling herself as she slapped him on his good cheek with her tongue, alerting the boy to presence.

"Asui?" He mumbled, his eye looking past her.

"Yeah, it's me, kero." She ribbeted, helping him to his feet as he looked at his hand. lowly, he lifted it to his face, covering his swollen eye with ice, administering first-aid o himself as the Frog girl looked at Shimmer as they walked past her, any moment Tsu expected her to lunge at them again, like some Hollywood movie monster.

"She dead... I already check for a pulse." Todoroki said simply, staring at the ground.

"We'll worry about that later; others are fighting for their lives too." Asui stated calmly, softly patting the depressed boy.

"Asui!" He stared at her in shock at her seemingly callous reply.

"Sorry, I usually say what I'm thinking. You protected both me and Tokoyami-chan many times, often sacrificing yourself in the process. I don't believe you would've killed her unless you had no other choice, kero. This attack was well coordinated, forcing us into horrible situations, I only hope our other classmates are able to survive." Tsuyu said quietly, hopping ahead of him as he slowed down.

"Asui, I-" Whatever he'd been about to say was lost as a massive explosion rocked the area they were in. They looked at each other for a moment before running ahead, locating and leaving exit within a few seconds as Todoroki had to cover his eye, the dim interior replaced by floodlights.

In the distance, they could both see a massive of fire wash over the plaza, rubble scattered around from the raging battle.

"I'll get Tokoyami-chan to help, go help them. Like Thirteen-sensei said, 'use your Quirk to help others'!" Tsuyu ordered, taking charge as she retrieved the awakening Tokoyami, who groaned as he gingerly held his head, the green-haired girl helping him to his feet as they began walking towards the Entrance.

---

Shoto Todoroki looked like he was on his last legs. One half of his face scarred, the other a black color that could only come from heavy bruising that had swollen his eye shut, reducing his vision. One arm was immobilized with a shell of thick ice, and his costume was stained a filthy red with blood that couldn't be just his own given the only pen wound was his obviously broken nose.

Despite his wounds, he was glaring with a cold fury as he stomped his foot on the ground, a wave of ice washing over us.

"Think you can handle Half-and-Half?" I asked Zee as she smirked, her eyes leaking metal like tears as a helmet reformed around her head, taking the appearance of a roaring dragon, the body modifications to her hands pouring forth enough metal as a heavy maul filled her hands, and her exposed skin leaked metal, rebuilding her armor as her body temperature rose drastically.

"Affirmative." Was Zee's reply as she stomped forwards like a walking citadel.

"Okay, then I'll handle Green Bean and the Bomberanian." I answered, sprinting around the encroaching winter wonderland.

"Oh, are we abandoning the objective for your petty revenge?"

"Hardly, Eraser's leg and hips have both been disintegrated, so his mobility is getting worse by the second. Let's force the Monk to play tank for a bit, huh?" I teased as I could see Zee roll her eyes in my head. A second passed as an equally terrifying avalanche of flame countered the ice, both sides pouring more into it. Zee shaped more and more metal to keep up her fire as it slowly pushed Todoroki's ice back due to sheer quantity. Finally, it broke through, frozen chunks falling to the ground as a heavily frost covered Shoto was pulled back by Eraser's scarf.

While he was busy, I charged Bakugo, careful this time not to accidental murder him. He was still cradling his arms where Nomu had bitchslapped him away as he rammed into him, my fist narrowly missing his face with a rapid haymaker. Faster than he could block, a caught him in the face with an elbow, busting his nose, and while he was reeling, clipped his cheek with a backfist.

I made sure to stay close to him, so Izuku couldn't attack without hitting Bakugo with friendly fire. I tried to press my advantage, aiming a high kick at his head, but he blasted me with a close-range explosion, Aizawa's scarf wrapping around his midsection and pulling him away. I'd just brushed the smoke away when one of Midoriya's pressure waves slammed into me.

I glanced at Zee's fight just in time to see her swing what looked like a cat of nine tails topped with razor sharp claws that dug into Todoroki's chest, the bicolored boy just managing to get out of the worst of it. But she used her momentum to swing her massive maul at him, a swath of ice destroyed instantly as he dove to the ground, the metal whip tearing into Eraserhead's back.

Regaining balance, I dashed at Izuku, the green-haired boy reacting with panic as he jumped back. I was forced to divert as Katsuki jumped back in, an explosion blinding me, but little else. I saw a hand attempt to grab me by the face, a feeble attack by Bakugo as I grabbed his hand, crushing it into the ground, and ramming my knee into his chin for good measure.

He gave as good as he got, though, forcing his explosion into the floor as it knocked us both back, the explosive blonde recovering quicker than me. He came in with an overhead kick that would've left me seeing stars if I hadn't blocked with my arm. Now steadied, I managed to get a grip on his leg, judo throwing him at Izuku, who caught his friend. "Let go of me Deku. Stop being useless!"

I spotted one of Aizawa's cloths coming at me with a smirk. "Zee, Fireball!" I dodged the Capture Weapon, managing to grab Aizawa by the wrist. Zee slammed her maul into the ground with her left hand, forcing Shoto to leap back. Her cheeks puffed as she spat a ball of flame at us.

Eraserhead had to keep his Quirk on me or else lose his hand, so Zee had a clear shot as the fireball exploded on us. It hurt, the fire licking at my exposed skin, but Aizawa took the brunt of the damage, his lacerated back singed. I expected him to wince, or close his eyes in pain, but he persevered, pulling me closer as he landed a surprisingly strong punch to my throat, and swept my leg, reversing our center of gravity and sending me to the ground.

Using his hold on my wrist, he bent my arm the wrong way, pinning me to the ground. "Don't move." He ordered; his eyes focused on me. "You're the leader right, now that I've caught you, you should just surrender." He threatened.

"What leader doesn't have a back plan, Nomaaarggh!" I cried, my wrist snapping from the pressure and my shoulder giving a dull cracking sound as it left its socket. "I said don't move, that dislocated shoulder should keep you from resisting any further." Eraser said, digging a knee into my back. For good measure, he shoved my face into the concrete, thankfully my hood eased the damage.

Zee tried to help me, but Bakugo had recovered, flying at her as Todoroki focused on the ground, rooting her in place. She would overwhelm the eventually, but she had taken some heavy hits today, and she was noticeably slower. Not to mention both boys were keeping their own distance, harrying her more than hurting her, no doubt due to their own injuries.

"Hey guys, I came to help." A boy's voice shouted, jogging up.

"Oh, Sato, we've got it handled here I think, head for one of the other Zones and try to help everyone else finish their fights." Izuku said, a soft smile on his battered face. I took a deep breath, exhaling slowly as I waited for my chance.

"Sure thing, just let me do something first." Sato said, a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes showing.

"Huh?" Was Midoriya's intelligent reply as Sato suddenly leapt towards him, a feral look in his eyes.

My chance came as I saw the grey slime splatter around Sato, revealing a fully nude Himiko, stunning the heroes.

---

"SATO!" Shoji shouted, tackling the blonde girl to the side, wrapping her in his arms to keep her from escaping again. He could feel her wriggling away, but he pinned her to the ground as he checked on his classmate.

'He must really be shaken if he already forgot I don't just get smaller.' "I get bigger as well." Himiko shouted, forcing Shoji's arms apart as a duplicate of himself replaced the girl.

It took her a few second to get used to the new body, and that gave Shoji enough time to regain his composure, swinging a heavy fist at her which she caught. She tried to retaliate with a jab to his side, but he was ready, grappling her arm. She tried to land a kick, but he stopped it with his lower arms, throwing himself towards her, intending to pin her to the ground and use his superior fighting ability to knock her out.

He was surprised though, when she went with the throw, using her remaining three arms to push him over her head, allowing her to separate the two as she rolled to her feet quicker than him, expecting the fall.

"I can tell even now, you have a totally uncute face, so I want to get out of this quickly." She stated, aiming a brutal stomp that would've left him debilitated for the remainder of their short fight.

Thankfully, Sato charged in, "SHOJI!" a devesting wallop of a punch lifting Shoji-Himiko off her feet, and quite literally knocking her out of her disguise as greyish slime landed on the rocky ground. She bounced across the ground several times before flipping to her feet, a massive bruise covering the side of her face as she glared hatefully at the raging boy.

"I was careful to avoid any vital organs, but if you keep moving around like a maddened beast, you're going to tear open your wound and risk internal bleeding, so sit still already!" She snarled as Sato beat his chest like a gorilla, roaring at her. "Fine then, if I have to bleed you a little dry to keep you from killing yourself, then let's go!" She shouted, pulling three knives from her side that she whipped at a now rampaging Sato, the blades barely nicking him, unable to penetrate his muscled hide.

"That's annoying, I'll just have to be smarter about my attacks then." She said, sprinting at him, transitioning into a much smaller body as she slid between his legs, her trusty switchblade digging into his knee as it buckled under his weight, allowing her to clamber up his back.

"All that power really messes with your flexibility, huh?" She taunted as he tried to reach behind him, unable to with his bulging biceps. Her grin was replaced by a fangy frown as he lifted himself to his feet, jumping into the air, aiming to crush her beneath him. "Seems it serves as its own natural armor though, let's keep you from doing that anymore, hmm?" She said, grabbing a few capsules off his waist as she jumped away, just avoiding the crater in the ground as she got to her feet.

She had a split second to lick her dripping switchblade, her teeth aching at the thick blood. "Eww, what's in your veins, syrup?" She grimaced, her body bulging as Sato's form took her place, the rippling muscles dampening Shoji's blow as she hit the ground, rolling out of the way of his follow-up. Her Quirk only let her copy the physical traits, not his growing musculature.

She switched again, just in time to avoid Sato's fist shattering her skull if the sundered boulder was any indication. She vanished into the dust, stopping her breathing as she disappeared from their sight.

"Are you okay, Sato?" Shoji asked, guarding his partner.

"RRAAAGGGHH!"

'Okay, keep calm Mezo, she's not teleporting, just focus on locating her.' Shoji told himself, closing his eyes as he spread out his tentacles, replacing the bulbs on the ends with eyes and ears. "Don't worry Sato, I'll find her with my Quirk, she can't hide forever. Then once we beat her, we'll get help." Sato's response was to destroy another boulder, littering the area with more rubble.

"Is that right, or are you just giving me more targets?" He heard in his ear as he whirled around, eyes wide as Himiko sliced through one of his tenacles, the now useless limb falling to the ground. And yet, when he looked, he couldn't see her, only the dripping blood was the only sign she had been there after all.

A groaning sound caught Shoji's attention instantly as he looked, only to realize some of the knocked-out villains were starting to come to, rousing themselves. He jumped at one, a woman with large hairy arms like a gorilla. His power knocked her back, but she managed to block some of the damage with her arms. Any follow-up was aborted by the sound of whistling air, the multiarmed student turning in time to block several knives that were aimed at his back. Looking around, he still couldn't spot the girl anywhere, slightly unnerving him.

Sato, meanwhile, suddenly found himself shoved back by the horned villain's goring charge. The curved horns barely penetrated his thick muscles, but they still drew blood, and pushed him back as he yelled, wrapping his arms around the villain's barrel chest, displaying amazing flexibility and balance as he slammed the villain down in a suplex. He grimaced as the move ripped open his gut wound, blood pouring out.

The gorilla lady tried to sucker punch Shoji while he was distracted, but one eye bulb turned in her direction, alerting him to her attack as he grabbed her outstretched arm, pulling her into a fist that left her coughing up blood. He used her like a projectile, tossing her into a third villain, one with a large mouth full of teeth.

Listening carefully, he spotted another dagger flying in his direction. He followed its path, spotting a small distortion in the air as it shifted. "Sato, destroy that rock!" He shouted, the sugary hero unloading a rapid series of punches into a nearby boulder, a cloud of dust covering the area. While it could've made it much more difficult to spot her, his eyes were outside the cloud, watching carefully as the dust swirled around a quickly dashing figure.

Reacting quickly, he swept out his right side, the webbing colliding with a camouflaged figure as a lizard-like villain was revealed, for more greyish goo to fall off, revealing Himiko once again. "Your skills are inferior to Hagakure's." He stated confidently as the girl smirked.

"Is that right, well then... I'll just have to be craftier." She changed halfway through her sentence, Shoji's deeper voice replacing her's. "Sato, over here, grab her!" She shouted with Shoji's voice, the masked boy's eyes widening at the approaching footsteps.

"Wait, she's changed again, she's trying to trick you." He shouted, only for his own voice to argue.

"No, she's the impostor, smash her Sato!" Shoji had to dodge to the side as Sato's meteoric fist left a crater in the ground. He looked around, trying to spot his clone in the dust. "Get her, don't let her get away!" 'There!' He thought, charging at the sound of the voice, only to be met by a fist that stunned him. Before he could recover from the sneak attack, Shoji-Himiko grabbed his head, bringing it down on his knee, busting his nose as he stumbled back. "These things are pretty 'handy', hehe." She giggled, an alien sound with Shoji's voice.

He shook his head, shaking the cobwebs away as she came at him, a long knife in her hand. He grabbed it, bringing her into a clothesline that left her gasping for breath. Nonetheless, she gave a loud cry of pain, prompting Sato to come running, "Shoji!"

He frowned under his mask, looking for the charging hero student. Himiko didn't miss her chance, switching her blade to a different hand, swinging at him as he released, the villain vanishing in the dust cloud which still hadn't dissipated. A cursory look revealed why, a nearby villain had regained consciousness, spewing a cloud of sand from his arms, creating a localized sandstorm.

He had to abort his investigation as Sato came rushing through the cloud, arm pulled back for a punch. He jumped to the side, only this time Sato landed with a heavy stomp, pushing off as he intercepted Shoji in the air, his fist burying itself in the taller student's stomach, blasting him into the ground. Shoji barely had time to catch his breath as Sato came at him again, hands held for a hammer blow.

Shoji grabbed his hands, stopping the momentum as Sato struggled with him for dominance. "Stop Sato, it's me, she's trying to fool you!" Shoji shouted, only for Sato to shove his knee into his exposed abdomen. The rocky ground dug into his torn open back, blood dripping from the crisscrossed wound left by the earlier attack.

Sato's grit teeth changed to a feral grin, "I know." He teased, blonde hair spilling forth from grey mud as Sato dissolved into Himiko again. He also saw what had been hidden within Sato's larger hands, a long needle that pierced through two of Shoji's bulbs, thankfully hands for the moment. She wasted no time jumping back, throwing a few more knives that he swatted aside, one piercing his arm as he pulled it out, the handle a reddish glass.

Catching his breath, Shoji stood up just in time for a rampaging Sato to encounter him. Shoji hadn't realized in the small gaps between attacks, Himiko was peppering him with knives, at least four sticking out of various parts of Sato's body, the hulking boy unable to pull them free. And his eyes immediately locked on the knife in Shoji's hand, incorrectly assuming him to be the culprit.

Himiko had been efficient in her attacks, cutting off their vision of each other, pretending to be the other to rile up tensions. Now the two glared at one another, Sato smashing the ground with a punch that left a crater. Looking at it now, Shoji should've known he couldn't match Sato's power with his own. Shoji tried to get back, but Sato's overwhelming power allowed him to close the distance in a second, a wild haymaker threatening to end Shoji.

He ducked under the punch, lifting Sato off his feet as he slammed him into the ground. He used his superior size and limbs to restrain Sato, who struggled against his hold.

"Stop fighting Sato, it's me!" Shoji tried to say, only for Sato to roar in his face, trying and failing to reach for another capsule of sugar. "Oh no you don't." Shoji scolded, removing Sato's remaining sugar packets with a newly grown arm. He threw them to the side, the small tubes vanishing in the smoke. Not that that stopped Sato from trying to break free, a fact Himiko exploited as she flew overhead, now a harpy looking lady, smirking with a beaked mouth as she littered the ground below with daggers, several finding their mark in Shoji's back.

'These collection knives work perfectly like in Demon Slayer... I'll need Zee to make a few more when we finish our mission, the 10 I have aren't nearly enough. I'll have to use my syringes and Mr. Stabby if they don't go down soon. I'm at a definite disadvantage in close combat, hopefully they'll be worn down from pummeling each other in the dirt, foolish brutes.' Himiko thought, fingering her switchblade as she tried to see they fight brewing in the sandstorm below.

She'd been forced to return to her stash several times, collecting the discarded one throughout the fight. She couldn't wear clothes with her Quirk, but thankfully her weapons didn't get in the way, the blonde girl able to stash them in her pockets whenever she transitioned.

'How many of those things does she have?' He yelled internally, only for his momentary lapse of focus to let Sato slip out, slamming a devesting uppercut to the masked boy. A quick jab pushed Shoji on his backfoot, and the hasty guard with his arms was blown aside by Sato's raging series of punches, leaving the sensory hero with blurry vision, his entire body hurting from the power packed into that barrage of blows.

Still, he persevered through the pain, knowing that Sato would probably keep beating on him until he fell asleep. He growled beneath his mask, wrapping Sato in a bearhug as he headbutted the sugar-high hero, pulling back as Sato's eyes rolled back in his head, falling on his back. He tried to push himself up again, but the last of his Quirk finally left him, leaving him asleep.

Using his webbed arms, he blew the billowing sand away, revealing the battlefield around them. Unsurprisingly, only a few villains were in sight, having been pulled aside by the ones that remained. At the head of them was the blonde girl, a toothy smirk on her face.

"Go help Echo and Tesla in the Ruins and Mountain Zones, I'll finish up here." She ordered, several of the other villains nodding in ascent as they ran away, leaving Shoji and Himiko staring at one another.

Shoji lowered himself into a combat stance, all six fists clenched as he stood over Sato's sleeping body. "I won't let you hurt him! I'm going to beat you!" He threatened as she smirked, shrugging off her jacket, no, her body was shifting again to that of a young man with wild golden hair. He was lacking a shirt, his muscles on full display as he grinned, posing.

The blonde sprinted at him, Shoji's injuries and blood loss slowly catching up to him as the blonde weaved around his punches. Shoji managed to pull back his head in time to avoid a haymaker of a punch but couldn't do anything about the jab that caught him in the chest, pushing him back. He took a deep breath, his Dupli-Arms growing an additional four hands, all he could manage now as he came at the blonde man with a flurry of punches.

Yet his opponent seemed to almost weave between them, her eyes darting around quickly, deflecting any punches that got too close. Finally, Shoji overextended with a hand, the blonde sliding under his guard as he swept Shoji's legs. Before he'd even landed, the blonde hammered a fist into his stomach, throwing him back with surprising strength. "Useless."

Shoji got to his feet, leaping at the blonde like a spider, arms outstretched as he pushed them to grow as much as possible. His six main arms covered his core, while his remaining arms extended, creating a net like effect. "Useless."

The blonde sprinted in recklessly, fists a blur as he pummeled Shoji's guard, wearing away at the remnants of his resistance. "Useless, useless, useless!"

He jumped into the air, aiming to kick Shoji's head, but Shoji recovered, blocking the high kick, thankful for his height in that moment. The blonde didn't hesitate to use his other leg to try for a kick from the other side, Shoji blocking in time, confidence filling him again at the blonde's exposed form, both legs held aloft in a split. His remaining arms wrapped around, giving the blonde nowhere to run as he put all his power into the last four fists, victory in sight.

"Useless." The blonde's hands opened, revealing long claws that slashed off one arm. "Useless." A second arm fell as the blonde's claws scythed through the air. "Useless!" His right hand stabbed into Shoji's shoulder, blood pouring out as he tried to pull back. "Useless, useless, it's all useless!" The blonde hissed, left hand leaving four furrows on Shoji's chest as Himiko fell, blood soaking his shirt.

For the first time, Shoji noticed his red eyes as he spun on his heel, a high kick that left Himiko in a standing split snapping his jaw shut as the boy fell to the ground unconscious, arm partially covering Sato.

Himiko couldn't resist as she looked around, running a bloody hand through her hair, "You thought you would win, but it was I HIMIKO! WWRRYYY! Okay that really lacked the gravitas, I need to work on that..." She mumbled, turning back into her regular self, hunting for her discarded clothes earlier. "Oh, screw it, I'll just stay as Power for a bit longer." Himiko complained.

She could hear Tomura's voice in her head about that being the laziest use of her Quirk, to just avoid wearing clothes. "Speaking of... hold on a little longer Tomura, I've gotta patch these morons up before they bleed out, geez I might've overdone it a bit, but they wouldn't stay down." She griped as she found her clothes with her medical supplies, carefully placing all her knives back in her pouch.

---

"Ahh!" Midoriya yelped, falling to the ground as Himiko sat perched on his chest. He looked stunned by the sight of the nude girl straddling him. Glancing to the other side, Todoroki and Bakugo looked similar, jaws hanging open at Himiko's body.

The blonde glared at Eraserhead, covering her chest with one arm and her privates with the other hand. "Stop staring you hentai hero!"

He regained his composure the quickest, one long strand of his Capture Weapon shooting towards Himiko, but it was too late. Zee had taken her chance once the boys stopped attacking her, her fire melting the ice holding her down in a second, and sprinted across the fifteen feet between us, her massive maul swinging like a batter aiming for the fences.

He leaned away, avoiding the brunt of the damage, but it still caught him in the cheekbone, knocking him back and dislodging his goggles, the protective gear cracked in pieces. I pulled my arm free, pain shooting up the limb as it resisted the sharp motion, but I followed through, my right hand sweeping up in a clawing motion, leaving a small scratch on his head, but it was enough.

I didn't have to look as his skin crumbled away like dust, a violent red replacing it. The attacks had left him open for a second, and that was all it took for my Quirk to reach his eye, the orb turning a milky white as it split apart. He screamed in pain, clutching his eye, trying to force it open enough to use his Quirk to stop the spread before it killed him.

Possibly the only thing that saved him was my Quirk eating his eyelid, leaving his eye exposed as he forced it to activate, the sensation of emptiness washing over me. He'd managed to save himself, but the entire right side of his face was gone, muscle exposed, and where I'd touched first was a bone white, literally. Part of his eye was gone, and I felt my breakfast fight its way to the surface.

"We don't need to kill you, I suppose, just get rid of your annoying Quirk." I muttered, holding my vomit down.

"SENSEI!" Izuku yelled, lightning surrounding him as he flew at me, Himiko sent flying as her form warped into a slightly taller version of herself with a greenish coat.

Zee was cast aside as Todoroki silently swept his broken arm out, a wave of ice that dwarfed the one he used on the 0-pointer in the Sports Festival, swallowing Zee in a second. I didn't have time to worry about her, Midoriya's hateful eyes boring into my soul as he threw his fist out for a smash that was decidedly more than 5%, I wouldn't be surprised if it was 100%. Regardless, it was faster than I was expecting, but I could still see it coming, just enough time to make peace that it was going to hurt.

"Did you forget, I am here!" Thankfully, I wasn't the only one ready as Kurogiri's WarpGate appeared before me, covering me as Midoriya fell through, his momentum too much to resist as he smashed his fist into the side of Bakugo's head, warping his cheek around his fist. Midoriya must have pulled back some, because rather than blood or a sickening bone breaking, Bakugo simple fell to the ground like a puppet with his strings cut, caught off-guard by Izuku's forced sucker punch.

Todoroki's ice quickly began to melt as Zee superheated her body, her skin a glowing scarlet as she walked out of her prison, joining me at my side, her maul replaced with a pair of hand axes. Todoroki himself wasn't even moving, well, that wasn't true, he was shaking like a leaf in a storm, his Quirk's backlash almost paralyzing him.

"Is that it, I hurried over here to help you finish off that Daki wannabe, but you'd already almost killed him already." Himiko whined, pouting as I softly hit her on the head.

"First of all, why aren't you wearing any clothes?" "Had to ditch them to turn into Sato." "So, you just used your Quirk to facsimile clothes for you, we need to talk about your exhibitionism. And secondly, Daki, really? No offense but he's hardly as hot as Daki, wouldn't you say?" I teased.

"For sure, although wasn't she like 14, that's super sus Tomura." Himiko exclaimed, earning an eyeroll from me. "Also, if it matters that much to you, let me use your cloak." Himiko pouted at me, batting her eyes as I gave a deadpan, removing my hand faceplate, shrugging off the symbol of my leadership as I tossed it to her, the blonde girl turning back to her base form, earning a smile at the progress she'd made on her identity issues.

"It's a cape, capes are cool so don't let it drag in the dust on the floor, and really, I think a Beholder would be a more appropriate reference, especially now..." I pointed out, gesturing at the remains of Aizawa's face.

"You bastards..." I heard a small voice say as Midoriya stood up, cradling his shattered arm. I was honestly more surprised is bent leg was capable of supporting him after likely shattering it in that last ditch attack on me. "YOU BASTARDS!"

CRACK!

The echo of shattered wood and metal was heard in every corner of the USJ as a titan of a man appeared at the top of the stairs, the farthest thing from a smile on his face.

'Crap, Zee's holding on, but if she had a health bar, it'd be flashing red. And Himiko is putting on a brave face, but that bruise isn't fooling me, she's only just started really training... she excels in sneak attacks, in a straight up fight, she suffers. My arm is screwed, not that I had any intention of fighting All Might today, but in our current state, I'll have to come up with a plan quick before he knocks us out. At the very least, Kuro is still good to go, he's barely been touched, and Nomu can tank if I get desperate while we escape...'

"Oh look, it's All Might... everyone ready for a Raid Boss?"