When Izuku drifted back into consciousness, he kept his eyes closed and his body limp. Casting his senses out, Izuku felt the electric thrum of medical devices surrounding him. Further out, he felt an adjacent bed in the room, and more rooms throughout the hospital. He could make out individual people by the phones in their pockets, patrolling the rooms or waiting outside.

Assured that he wasn't in immediate danger, Izuku looked around. Iida was in the other bed, staring blankly at the television as a news reporter gave casualty reports for the Hosu Incident.

When Izuku shifted, making a rustling noise with his blanket, Iida glared at him. "Why do you and Stain have the same Quirk?"

For a moment, Izuku had no idea what he was talking about. When he realized it, Izuku made a fist. A black Haki shell fitfully flickered into place over his knuckles. "You mean this?"

"Yes, that! Are you related to him somehow?"

Having already tried explaining Haki and having it fall on deaf ears, Izuku instead said, "If he is, I don't know about it."

As if the conversation sapped the strength from him, Iida flopped back onto his pillow. "Why did you interfere? I was going to avenge my brother."

"For what?"

When Iida refused to answer, Izuku puzzled it over. The Hero Killer, Iida's Quirk. Feeling for his phone, Izuku tried to look it up, only to find his phone fried. The battery had burst open, and only a molten glob of its outer shell remained.

"Is your brother Ingenium?"

Iida remained silent, but the rustling of his bedsheets as Iida strangled them in his hands gave Izuku all the answer he needed.

Outside the room, Izuku heard a nurse say, "Excuse me, sirs, but the patients are not allowed visitors at this time."

"Please step aside. It is a matter of national security."

The nurse evidently let them through, as a moment later, the chief of police, an HPSC representative, and Hawks all entered the room. Izuku reached for power, and though his own reserves ran dry, he stealthily siphoned power from the hospital's electric grid. Most people didn't notice the subtle flicker of the lights, but Hawks' eyes darted from the ceiling to Izuku, and a few of his feathers slipped into corners of the room, like knives hidden up a sleeve.

"Our apologies for intruding upon your recovery time," the dog-faced chief said, "But events surrounding the Hosu Incident require immediate discussion. Both of you used your Quirks against a villain in violation of your status as interns. Izuku, your mentor claims that she gave you permission, but she lacked the authority to do so."

Izuku tried to keep the surprise off his face. Mirko never said anything about it, so he could only assume she was covering for him. "I only did so in the absence of other options that would save lives," he said, deliberately not lying.

The chief nodded. "Iida, your mentor claims you actively disobeyed orders and ran away during an emergency. Do you have anything to say to clarify the situation?"

Iida's face reddened, and he looked away. "No sir."

The representative cleared her throat. "We do not have the right to dictate whether or not you are expelled from U.A. That decision ultimately rests with the school itself. However, we do have the right to file criminal charges against you for vigilantism and unlicensed Quirk usage."

Before Izuku could formulate a response, the representative said, "In light of the recent tragedy, however, we will overlook your indiscretions. Iida, given your family's circumstances and your own actions, we are mandating therapy sessions as a requirement for your continued internship and work studies. We will not be so forgiving of any future lapses in judgment."

Visibly choked up, Iida could only nod and blink tears away.

"As for you, Mr. Midoriya…" The representative adjusted her glasses and gave him a wary look. "We would appreciate it if we could have a private conversation to clear the air, as it were, and come to a mutual understanding of both your situation and the HPSC's as an organization. We understand that there are certain sensitive details about your… sudden spike in power that are best kept under wraps."

Izuku felt his face turn ashen. Had the HPSC learned about the DeLorean? Thoughts spinning through his head, Izuku numbly nodded and allowed the representative and Hawks to lead him to a private waiting room. Hawks checked the walls and vents for bugs. With a quick nod, he went to wait outside while the representative laid out a manila folder.

"First, on behalf of the HPSC, I would like to apologize." The representative let her words hang in the air. "We have long-standing grievances against principal Nezu, as over the past couple decades, he has leveraged the influence of his former students, most notably All Might, to expand the influence of his school beyond what it would typically have. Purporting himself and his institution as the foundation of heroism, he has amassed a large following of schools and hero agencies throughout Japan, and he puts a lot of pressure on the Japanese government to lessen regulations on hero agencies, provide grants to private rescue and underground teams, and give the schools greater freedom to work directly with heroes. All of these, he can claim as beneficial for Japan, but they also expand his own influence at the expense of the HPSC."

Izuku drummed his fingers on the table, trying to follow along, but having no idea what point the representative was trying to make. "What does this have to do with me?"

"Well," she said, "You fell out of the sky, displayed a very powerful Quirk not listed on your medical records, and were taken in by the police. Within an hour, Nezu arrived personally at the station with updated Quirk registry forms and whisked you out of there before our organization had the opportunity to speak with you." The representative brushed silver hair out of her eyes. "There were many within our organization who feared that Nezu planned to raise you as the next All Might."

"Which you didn't want because it would make U.A. even more powerful."

Delight flickered across her eyes before she smoothly hid it. "Precisely. And well, with the state of Japan at the time and no credible threats requiring another hero of All Might's caliber, it was decided that a hero as… volatile as you would be… would cause the hero industry to stagnate."

"And that's why the news focused so much on the villain deaths at the USJ and criticized U.A. for a lack of security, and why you co-opted the Sports Festival and tried to have your own announcers worsen my reputation."

Izuku watched her closely, expecting a wince or other sign of weakness, but to her credit, she remained perfectly smooth-faced as she said, "Rest assured, the individuals that had pushed for such heavy-handed methods have either been demoted or removed from the HPSC entirely."

"But there's nothing stopping you from doing the same thing again, is there?"

"After the Hosu Disaster, we can no longer afford to. With All Might's condition, we need a new pillar that can measure up to the threat we face."

"What about Endeavor, or Hawks?"

The representative studied him closely. "All Might never told you, did he?"

Izuku forcibly kept the confusion from his face, and asked, "Told me about what?"

Instead of answering, she opened a folder on the table. "You have every right to know, but I'm afraid I cannot tell you more without you signing an NDA. It is a matter of national security."

"And what's stopping me from asking All Might about it?"

The representative hesitated. With a sigh, she snapped the folder shut and tucked it away. "I suppose you'll hear about this anyways, one way or another." Clearing her throat, she said, "Since the dawn of Quirks, there has been a villain with the power to take Quirks and use them for himself. That villain's name is All for One."

She said the name as though she expected it to mean something to Izuku. Not knowing how to respond to it, he simply waited for her to keep talking.

"I'm sure you can understand how serious of a threat they posed. Any Quirk used against him can be taken. Hundreds of heroes fell against him, their powers used to hunt their comrades. He stole longevity and healing Quirks, gave Quirks away to create loyal followers, and set himself as the king of Japan's criminal underworld. The only force that could stand against him, and eventually toppled his empire, was a Quirk passed from hero to hero since his reign began. The Quirk One for All."

Izuku couldn't hide his surprise at that. Luckily for him, the representative mistook the reason for his shock. "You've done an admirable job hiding it up to this point. We've been watching All Might for years and never had any idea he had approached you."

The representative paused, fishing for information. Izuku had none to give. Frowning slightly at his silence, she said, "I find little joy in putting the hopes of the entire nation on your shoulders, but that's more or less what you signed up for taking that Quirk. My only interest in the matter is mending bridges with you so the HPSC can properly support you in the war against All for One."

"Mending bridges how exactly?"

"Considering you turned down Hawks' offer, I doubt you're amenable to working directly for us."

Izuku snorted. The representative stifled a sigh and said, "In lieu of that, we will work on turning public opinion around. Sir Nighteye is investigating a Yakuza group. We'll have you assigned to the task force, give the team more resources, and have the matter wrapped up before summer starts. Their leader is highly dangerous, but given your Quirk, you won't have any problem with him."

Izuku thought back to the bounties of the other world. The proposition sounded exactly like doing bounty hunting pro bono. "Sounds an awful like I'm the one doing you a favor here."

"They're behind the release of the drug Trigger. The same drug that we suspect Stain used to knock out the entire city of Hosu."

Izuku furrowed his brows at that. Stain's Haki was barely enough to knock out Iida and Native, how would he have the strength to-"

And then it hit him. He had knocked out the whole city, and everyone thought it was Stain. As his face turned ashen, the representative said, "I see you recognize the ramifications of this new drug. Do you have any reservations about helping out now?"

"None."

"Good. I'll contact Sir Nighteye immediately and have you and Mirko added to the raiding team. Hawks will try to line up a one on one between you and Overhaul if it isn't part of the plan, so pay attention to any cues he gives you. Understand?"

Izuku didn't entirely hear what she said. His head felt like it was packed full of cotton, muffling the world until it blurred into a haze of television static. The representative called his name, and he heard it distantly, like he was far, far below the ocean waves.

"I think I should go back to sleep," Izuku said, mind and body operating on autopilot as the full ramifications of causing, even indirectly, the deaths of a few hundred people. Maybe he would wake up and it was all a dream. Or maybe he would wake back up in the other world and find the DeLorean sunken beneath the waves, or destroyed by Kizaru, or-"

Dimly, Izuku realized his head sank into a pillow. Despite the sheer exhaustion Izuku felt at that moment, his eyes refuse to drift close. He remembered all the people he saved during the Hosu attack. Did they make it out? Did his Haki kill anyone?

When Izuku snapped back to reality, sometime later, he wasn't sure if he had drifted off to sleep or simply stared at the ceiling until his brain rebooted. When he sat up, wincing at the sharp stab of hunger in his gut, Iida looked up from his book and said, "Midoriya, are you feeling better?"

"I am. I think." Izuku rubbed his forehead. "How long was I out of it?"

"You mean after you got back from talking with the HPSC? It's been a day."

"Ain't that the truth," Izuku grumbled.

Izuku felt somewhat more alive after scarfing down the thin bowl of congee brought over by a nurse, but all the meager fare does is provide context for exactly how much food it'll take to satisfy his stomach."

"Hey Iida, mind apologizing to the nurse for me? I'm going to get a bit of air."

"Wait, Midoriya-"

As weak as Izuku felt, he slipped through the hospital with barely a sound, using Soru and Geppo to fly past the patients and hospital staff like a spring breeze. He was already out the front doors before the doctor on the fourth floor could shout for him to stop.

Izuku checked his pockets, which were empty. That left him with the option of heading home or filching food from U.A. Part of him yearned to go back home, but knowing what happened at Hosu, he couldn't quite bring himself to face his mother yet. That, and he needed to have a word with Nezu.

The school was empty and there was no Lunch Rush in the kitchen, but the walk-in fridge was well stocked with cured meats, chopped vegetables, and frozen rolls. The bread came out more mushy than anything else after he electrified it, but it made an edible enough meal.

Over the intercom, Nezu said, "I had refreshments ready in my office."

Izuku was there two seconds later scarfing down scones. "How'd you know I was coming?" he asked between bites.

"Intuition. So, are you here because of Hosu, or the HPSC?"

"Does All Might have a transferrable Quirk?"

Nezu grinned. "Sounds like the HPSC is getting desperate. Did they tell you about All for One as well?"

Izuku nodded. Nezu sipped his tea and said, "And they didn't even make you sign an NDA. Sloppy. Ah well."

"They said they were coming after me because they were worried you would use me to chip away at their authority."

"Of course I am. But tell me, Izuku, you've seen some of what they're willing to do to keep that power. Do you think they should have it?"

For that, Izuku had no answer. Instead, he asked, "What will we do about All for One?"

"You intend to fight him?"

"I plan on being the number one hero. The number one villain sounds like the perfect opponent for me."

"I'd chide you for being far too optimistic if I didn't think you had a very real chance of taking him down, especially given the rumors he isn't back at his full strength. All Might caved in his skull. That he's still breathing is a miracle of Quirks and medicine."

"I don't know if I plan on changing that. I'd rather not kill anyone if I can help it."

"Admirable. I'm sure we can accommodate him just fine in Tartarus."

"So, what do we do in the meantime? How can we track him down?"

"The easiest method would be identifying the mole amongst your classmates."

Izuku felt a lump in his throat. "You think someone helped them with the USJ attack?"

"Undoubtedly. All Might's presence at U.A. was a recent change and closely-held secret. Yet, on the third day of class, the villains used a media scramble to break into the school and acquire the itinerary for the rescue training. Incidentally, it was the day after your class and 1-B had their first lecture with him. While I admit it would be possible that the staff could have leaked this information, they could have just as easily furnished the itinerary to the villains without the risk of a break-in. Upper-classmen could have overheard whispers of All Might's presence, but I'm less inclined to believe that All for One would act on mere rumors. Thus, the most probably culprits are among the first year heroic students."

"Why are you telling me all this?"

"Because you're the most probable target of All for One's next move. If the HPSC is convinced you have One for All, odds are he will believe the same. And given the fact that the Quirk grows stronger with each wielder, while he has only grown weaker, he will feel pressured to nip it in the bud, so to speak. You need to be careful what information you share with your classmates, and watch for anyone making unusual attempts to get close to you, searching through your belongings, or asking for intimate details about your abilities."

Izuku closed his eyes. He didn't want to imagine any of his classmates as traitors, but with the way they treated him, it was all too easy to see them selling him out. Yet, the thought of shoving them away, of watching for knives behind their backs, didn't sit right with him.

"Thank you for telling me this, but let them."

Nezu frowned. "Don't underestimate All for One. If he takes your Quirk, I don't think anyone would be able to stop him."

Izuku grinned, and Nezu froze, like a rodent before the gaze of a hawk. Electricity crackled around him as he said, "I'd like to see him try."

Mei stood tense, hunched over a thin spiral shell of carbon fiber. Her eyes twitched, the reticules in her corneas twisting slowly as she brought the artificial Dial into closer and closer focus. Every microscopic imperfection in the metal lay bare before her gaze, and with the subtlest brushes of the soldering iron, she nudged individual atoms into place. Her eyes itched from pushing her Quirk so far, but she worked through the pain.

The first few explosions were a lot of fun, especially the one where a scrap of shell punched through Power Loader's helmet and shaved a strip down his scalp, but between the hundreds of failures littering her scrap box and her dwindling supply of Dials from another world, Mei rolled up her sleeves and set about doing everything perfectly. And apparently, when it came to Dials, perfection went down to the atomic level.

Satisfied that she had made as perfect a copy of a Flame Dial as humanly possible, Mei set down the soldering iron, wiped the sweat off her brow, and took her newest baby over to the bomb room. It had a different name, once, but pockmarked with craters as it was, with an odor reminiscent of gunpowder and ash clinging to the air, everyone now called it the bomb room. It had steel-lined walls, with concrete a foot thick surrounding it. Mei set an acetylene torch firing on one end, set the Flame Dial in front of it, and sealed the room. Cameras perched in the corners gave her a close view as the Dial absorbed the ambient flame, but zooming in showed her pixels instead of atoms.

"Excuse-moi, would you be-"

Mei held up a finger. With the press of a button, she killed the acetylene and watched the Flame Dial. Grabbing a pair of tongs off the wall, she slowly pried open the bomb room, took a quick whiff to check for any gas leaks, then grabbed the Dial with the tongs. Keeping the door between her and the Dial, she gingerly pressed the button. When she dared look, she saw a jet of flame licking the steel inside the bomb room. Once it ran out, she set it back inside, slammed the door shut, and turned to greet her guest.

"Hatsume Mei, future owner of Hatsume Industries and greatest inventor alive, how can I help you?"

Aoyama flushed slightly. "I, well, I have a problem with my Quirk, and I need support gear to use it effectively. I heard you were the best in the school, and-"

"Say no more, I have just the thing!" Rummaging through her baby collection, she pulled out a massive grenade launcher. "Featuring Baby One-Nine-Six, the Master Blaster 3000, or whatever works well with your hero name. A smart grenade launcher packing ten different kinds of nonlethal ammunition, from EMPs, to flashbangs, smoke grenades, sticky webs, tasers, sneezing powder, and more! The grenades can be set to detonate on impact, with a timer, or manually. The launcher can also coat the grenades in a sticky substance, or made more rubbery for extra bounciness. A laser sight, smart aiming, and self-adjusting projectiles gives this baby an effective range of half a kilometer. With this, you won't need a Quirk to make waves as a professional hero!"

Aoyama staggered under the launcher's weight when Mei handed it to him. Grunting each word out, Aoyama said, "Magnifique, I'm sure, but I was looking for something for my Quirk?"

"Of course. Just leave your Quirk's details and I'll have something cooked up in a week. Stomach pain, you said? Is it from neuron stimulation, or blood pressure fluctuations?"

"I… don't know?"

"Find out. Oh, and get me your measurements as well. All of them."

"I'll have Recovery Girl send them."

"Good. Anything else?"

Aoyama hesitated. "Uh, just curious, what's the craziest invention-"

"Baby."

"Oui… the craziest… baby… you've ever made?"

"That would be the time machine."

"The wha?"

"Time machine. Built one out of a DeLorean."

"And you've used it?"

"Yep! Kinda wish I could use it again, since I'm running out of supplies, but Nezu has it locked away." Mei shrugged. "Ah well. I'm having more fun inventing a solution anyways."

"I… see. Seems like a shame. Do you think you'll ever get it back?"

"After I graduate, probably, but I'll have to promise not to use it for evil or something."

A massive blast rattled the walls of the bomb room. Mei opened the door. The Dial was embedded in the steel wall, still intact, while the acetylene torch, melted to a lump of metal, had twisted fragments scattered across the room.

"Whoops. I think it melted the fuel line. Bye new customer."

Mei wriggled into a bulky, explosion-resistant suit and waddled into the room. Aoyama waited until he was off of the school's campus before texting what he had learned to the number All for One had given him.

Nighteye was already nursing the beginnings of a tension migraine when the phone on his desk started ringing. Inwardly sighing, Nighteye picked up and said, "Sir Nighteye speaking."

"No need to sound so glum, Mr. Sasaki. I come bearing gifts for once."

Nighteye pinched his nose. He could already tell the HPSC agent wanted something from him, and he had enough on his plate as it was.

"I appreciate any gestures of goodwill from the HPSC, but unless it's information on the Shie Hassaikai, I'm afraid anything else would do more harm than good for the investigation."

"I have that and better. We've located their main R&D facility for a new drug they're testing out. You will have a warrant to raid them within the week, expedited through the legal system so they will have less time to prepare, as well as the support of Ryukyu, Hawks, and Mirko."

"Mirko? Are you sure she will be suitable for such an operation?"

"Perhaps not, but the real reason she's being brought on is her intern. It's incredible how quickly he's become proficient with One for All."

Nighteye nearly dropped the phone. "One for All?" he asked, hoping his voice came off as skeptical. "Is that supposed to mean something?"

"You don't need to pretend for me, Mr. Sasaki. We've been in the fight against All for One as much as your old mentor. As for Midoriya, I trust that All Might has filled you in on his progress."

"Of course," he said, fighting to keep the bitterness from his voice. "He has done very well."

"And this raid will hopefully be another step on his road to succeeding All Might once he passes the torch." After a brief pause, in which Nighteye was left to stew in the reminder of Toshinori's impending death, the agent said, "Speaking of, considering how… important Midoriya will be to Japan's future, it would be appreciated if you could check into his future."

"You know why I can't do that."

"Just a thought. Any amount of information could be helpful. When he succeeds All Might, how it happens. If you find out anything useful, please give us a call."

Nighteye was left listening to the empty hum of the dead line. He set the phone down and turned to face the All Might poster hanging from the wall.

"All Might." He took his glasses off and ran his hands through his hair. "Why don't you ever listen to me?"

A/N: I could say I waited an extra day so I wouldn't be posting on April 1st, but that would be a lie. I delayed it because I changed my mind about one detail that ended up being a bit annoying to edit out.

Mernom: "Stain is the perfect character to give Haki to. It gives a neat answer for why is threat level is so high in a world where there are no real ways to go beyond the limits of what your Quirk can do for you."

Bardothren: and that's exactly why I gave it to him. That, and he probably has more willpower than any other villain in the MHAverse, so if anyone would unlock it on their own, it'd be that guy. Combine that with the 'paralysis' effect of Conqueror's will, and it seems only natural he have it.

Joshua-the-Hand-Written: "I feel like the chipped blade is a red herring. You're trying to make me think it's Stain saving Izuku, when it'll turn out to be Mirko or Endeavor. Looking forward to the next chapter, and congrats on the house hunt."

Bardothren: nope, that was Stain. Kinda hard for anyone else to be involved at the moment. Also, thanks!

AzrelRazgriz: "I'll be honest, i greatly disliked this chapter and i hope that Stain will be the ecception and not the rule regarding Haki and the Six Powers in MHA!"

Bardothren: sorry to hear you feel that way. I felt a fight with Stain would be way too boring otherwise, and given his character, he'd be the most reasonable person to have Haki. I personally don't think the story would be any better or worse changing it to be otherwise.

Helrio uzugazu: "My recommendation is we should have gotten an explanation on izuku's take on gears 2 & 3 when they showed up. So I have to ask, what's the difference? The rumble fruit is a completely different quirk than luffy's so it stands to reason the gears would be different to."

Bardothren: the explanation I would give for why they're so similar is that Izuku based his off of Luffy's.