I know that last week's chapter was probably a lot for most people. Trust me, things will get tamer as we go on. Anyways, glad to see you all back for another chapter of "Through the Rough"! With the Meta Liberation Army Arc in full swing, things are continuing to get intense as we move closer to the big battles that lie ahead.
Both Maria and Himiko went through their struggles in the last chapter, so this time, let's see who else is having trouble! Enjoy!
THROUGH THE ROUGH
"Owie…" Himiko moaned as she and Maria carried each other into a nearby backyard.
"Sorry…" her colleague apologized, "I get super dehydrated when I use my slime for too long…" she noted, letting out a few coughs.
"At least you look better than me…" the Transform Quirk user remarked with a giggle. Maria smiled at her. "I'm glad you killed those guys," she mentioned to her surprise, "No one deserves to live after doing something like that," she stated firmly, "That's not love at all," she affirmed. The Slime Quirk user opened the door of the shed they approached, allowing for Himiko to walk in and lie down on her side.
"I'll get you help soon, I promise," Maria vowed, "I'm sure Shigaraki and the others already took care of a lot of these guys already," she added confidently.
"Yeah…" Himiko agreed, slowly starting to lose consciousness. She looked back at Maria, seeing her start to jog off.
'It's great to have friends…' she noted inwardly, falling asleep with a smile on her face.
"Skymech Ninjutsu Attack…" Callum began, swinging his arms in a swiping motion, "Drizzling Mist!" he roared, having multiple projectiles of mist rain down onto Shura. He countered by gravitationally lifting pieces of debris from the ground, firing them at the Carburetor Quirk user, who flew aside to evade them as he converted the lower half of his body into mist.
"Tch," Shura scoffed, "I always hated that Quirk of yours…" he admitted in frustration.
"An Ether-type that lets one manipulate the matter in their own body is quite formidable indeed," his opponent pointed out, landing down with his arms crossed, "Your father saw just how capable I was with it," he mentioned as his foe gritted his teeth.
"Don't call him my father…" he snarled out, sharply swinging his right hand up. There was a rumble in the ground before a couple of small buildings came up from it, floating in the air.
"And it seems you've improved with Ziggy's Quirk yourself," Callum noted. Shura swung his arm forward, making the buildings fly towards his target. Morphing his body into mist, he weaved around them with ease before closing in, rearing his right fist back. "Mist God Punch!" he yelled, striking the Satan Gravity Quirk user fiercely in the stomach, making him wince. As his foe passed by, he keeled over slightly. "Still…" the Oceans member continued, turning to see the mist wafting off of his opponent's form, "you're foolish if you think you can challenge Poseidon Nero at your current level," he pointed out as Shura yelped with pain, seeing that his torso was starting to completely turn into mist. He glared at the Carburetor Quirk user determinedly, ready to continue fighting.
OPENING
Insert "Memories" by ONE OK ROCK
Opens with an image of Tenko Shimura crying in his family's backyard with Mon in his grasp as he scratches at his eyes. A shadow looms over him, being that of his older self as Tomura Shigaraki, who narrows his eyes under the hand over his face. Meanwhile, we also see an image of Poseidon Shura looming over his younger self, as he's crying in a corner.
We cut to the opening logo, which is crushed and disintegrated before turning into "My Villain Academia". We see images of Fie, Maria Slime, Daichi, Mr. Compress, Dabi, Himiko Toga, Twice, and finally, Spinner. He sighs as he sees his colleagues loitering around, seemingly doing nothing of importance. Maria looks back at him sadly, dropping her lollipop.
All of a sudden, the ground shakes before shattering around them, with Gigantomachia revealing himself to challenge them. We also get a shot of Doctor Garaki, who grins under his moustache. The scene switches over to the likes of the Meta Liberation Army and those of Nero's forces, including the likes of Deadend Crow. Amidst them, Giran is being held captive in a tower, grimacing with frustration.
The League of Villains arrives in Deika City, being pitted immediately into battle against the Meta Liberation Army. Explosions from Curious blow back Himiko and Maria, as both have sudden flashes of their pasts, with the former trying to live her life in spite of her habits, while the latter looks in a mirror crying before Drakken Joe places a hand onto her shoulder reassuringly. We see green slime coat Maria before turning black and unleashing tendrils violently onto her foes.
Next, we see Twice getting himself trampled by puppets of his own visage. Fie tries to help him, but he's suddenly bombarded by a barrage of cards fired by Lyra. We see a flash of him as a kid having watched a particular hero constantly on TV, smiling brightly. His body flares up in flames, creating a torrential inferno.
Tomura and Shura charge through more members of the Meta Liberation Army, with Spinner, Daichi, Compress and Dabi holding off anyone from following them. We see Fabiano leap in covered in crystals, striking Tomura to send him flying back. Meanwhile, Shura gets blown away by Callum, who uses his Carburetor to tear a hole through the Satan Gravity Quirk user.
The Meta Liberation Army seems so imposing, especially with Re-Destro, Nero and Deadend Crow on their side. However, we witness Tomura and Shura charge through to them, yelling all the while. There are flashes of their pasts, with Tomura meeting All For One as he extends a hand to him, while Shura is introduced to Ijuna as his personal servant. She watches the battles rage on from the tower looking over the city, closing her right hand into a fist as she grimaces.
As the battle rages on, we see Crow and Gigantomachia collide with each other, Tomura losing his jacket and shirt as he disintegrates much of the ground, and Shura having energy lines expand around his body in midair as he faces down his adoptive father, who rolls his trio of dice in his right hand. We end the opening with the young forms of Tomura and Shura looking away from each other, both born into families that resented them. They turn to each other, now aged up to the current time, flashing sadistic grins.
END OPENING
So much was happening in Deika. Tomura had gone ahead with Spinner, while Compress was with Twice, Fie, Daichi and Dabi, as the five of them were being confronted by another powerful individual. He was clad in a thick, light-blue parka that reached down below his knees, done up in the center with seven brown buttons, with a fur-lined hood that covered his face from view. He also sported black baggy pants and a pair of lace-up winter boots.
"I think I've gotten pretty strong, so I'm sure I can tell..." the pyrokinetic started to infer, "You're one of the tougher ones, aren't ya?" he assumed.
"Dabi, the wielder of blue flames..." the hooded soldier said, "Why aren't you attacking me right away?" he inquired curiously, "Is there something wrong with your meta ability?" he wondered on.
"Hey pal, I'm guessing you're unaware of this, so I'll teach ya..." Dabi began as he swung his arms down, unleashing a huge blast of blue flames, "ICE MELTS!" he roared, engulfing his foe's ice and instantly evaporating it.
"I see..." the hooded figure uttered, "That is a problem," he admitted. All of a sudden, ice was flying up into the sky, gathering around him as he made a makeshift platform and a draconic-shaped mass. "But it appears you're unaware of my strength as well," he pointed out, "For I control all ice," he declared. It wasn't too long before their battle began, with Compress and Twice having to back away from getting struck by their comrade's flames.
"Dabi, can't you show a little restraint?!" the former of the two shouted in question.
"So cold...!" Twice shivered, rubbing his arms.
"Let Dabi deal with dat schmuck!" Fie advised in panic, "We gots to regroup with Shigaraki!" he insisted of his colleagues.
"Don't forget Shura!" Compress pointed out, "Without those two, I doubt we stand a lick of a chance in this battle!" he proclaimed.
"Thanks for the support, you assholes…" Dabi grumbled upon overhearing.
"Guys!" a voice called out, getting their attentions as they looked over to see Maria running up to them.
"Ah, you're still alive after all this..." the Compress Quirk user noted, quite surprised.
"No shock here! I expected you to be dead..." Twice mentioned, shifting between personalities. Shaking her head to recompose herself from her colleague's schizophrenia, the Slime Quirk took on a serious expression.
"Himi's in danger," she told her teammates, who both gasped lightly, "She was fighting that woman we saw earlier before this whole shit started..." she mentioned, "I got her somewhere safe, but I think she needs help getting out of here..." she added, trembling a little at the memory of her bloodied colleague.
"Well, we're spread pretty thin for the moment..." Compress admitted, "That Hanabata rallied the troops and got them all riled up because someone named 'Curious' died..." he recalled, causing Maria to blink in surprise, "I take it that's who Toga fought?" he assumed.
"Yeah..." Maria confirmed in response, "Wait... where's Twice?" she asked, seeing that the Double Quirk was nowhere in sight.
"Wh-?! He was just here a moment ago...!" Compress remembered as he looked around the immediate area.
"I'll go get 'im!" Fie proclaimed, hurrying off himself.
"Hey, wait!" Daichi yelped, only for the Flame Ammo Quirk user to turn a corner and disappear out of sight.
"Tsk!" Maria scoffed with frustration, "If only that damn doctor gave us comms amongst ourselves..." she grumbled before running off.
"Wh-Where are you going?!" the Compress Quirk user stuttered in question.
"To make sure Himi's safe!" she responded firmly, "Find a way to get in touch with Shigaraki and let him know we need help!" she insisted, rounding a corner. Compress groaned, feeling as if he was being put up to deal with more than he bargained for…
Meanwhile, Fie ran down and alleyway, making sure both his pistol and rifle were loaded with ammunition. All of a sudden, he spotted a card coming down in front of face, being a heart of five. It exploded in a burst of flames, which he narrowly managed to dodge as he jumped aside, landing atop some nearby trash bags.
"Da hell was that…?" he muttered aloud as he stood up.
"So you're Fie of Fire, huh?" a voice inquired, getting his attention as he glanced over to see Lyra there, standing atop a building as she was shuffling her cards in between her hands, "You're the brother of the legendary Hito Denatsu, one of Elsie Crimson's subordinates," she mentioned with a grin. The Flame Ammo Quirk user growled a little.
"He was also a former sidekick of Endeavor," another voice chimed in, belonging to Nasseh, who was crouched atop the building on the opposite side, "You have potential to be one of the figureheads of Oceans, you know…" he added to Fie's confusion as he blinked.
"But that all depends on how well you can handle us," Lyra confirmed as she hopped down, readying a trio of cards in between her right hand's knuckles, "Why don't we get started?" she suggested. The Flame Ammo Quirk user readied his pistol. He smirked as his orange markings glowed up his neck to his face.
"Sounds fun to me…" he remarked.
X
"Oh no, this can't be real..." Twice uttered out in shock, "It totally is," he added in a more carefree tone. He had just arrived at the shed where Himiko was, finding her lying on the floor all bloodied and battered. His schizophrenic brain was panicking, trying to come to terms with the situation at hand. He couldn't comprehend what was happening. And he wasn't ready for what was coming next.
"Jin Bubaigawara, AKA Twice," Skeptic noted aloud from the tower, typing upon his laptop fluently, "His meta ability, Double," he mentioned, "In a way, he's Toga's polar opposite," he pointed out. Back at the shed, Twice felt shadows of figures start to loom over him. He turned, widening his eyes as his mouth gaped open underneath his mask.
Behind him were what he assumed were several clones of himself, which were really just puppets under the Meta Liberation Army executive's control. And they were unmasking him while prying Himiko free of his grasp. Elsewhere, Maria was about to round the corner to head towards the backyard where she knew her comrades were. However, she screeched to a halt, peeking out at grimacing to see dozens of soldiers on standby. She ducked back, taking a few deep breaths to calm herself down.
'If they're just waiting, then that means someone else is trying to deal with Twice and Himi...' she noted to herself, looking at her seemingly dry hands, 'I can't really use my Quirk right now... and I've got no idea where Fie is...' she added inwardly, growling with frustration. Someway, somehow, she had to get into that backyard. With as much strength as she could muster, she managed to stretch her right leg out and kicked one of the soldiers in the back of his head, knocking him onto the ground face first. Others took notice before spotting the retracting limb ducking into the alley.
"It's Slime!" one of them called out.
"Don't let her get into that backyard!" another ordered. They pursued her into the alley, only to see her reel herself up to the roof via her right arm. They climbed after her as she ran across the roof, noticing that about half of the soldiers who were on street still remained. They spotted her, firing off ranged attacks to try and trip her up. But she evaded them, traversing the gap in a single leap and landing upon the grass of the backyard.
"Himi!" she called out, readying herself for battle. And then she hesitated upon seeing who had a grasp on her. "Twi-?" That hesitation in her voice allowed for one of the puppets to strike her in the face with its right fist, knocking her onto the ground. It and another pinned her down as she grimaced.
"Ah, S-Slime!" the voice of the Double Quirk user stammered out, getting her attention as he looked to see that he too was being pinned down by the puppets, "I'm sorry... I don't know what I'm doing!" he apologized, trying to wriggle himself free of the puppets' grasp.
'It's not him...' Maria realized as she struggled against the puppets pinning her, 'It's... whoever's in control of these...!' she concluded through her thoughts, gritting her teeth as she tried to break free from their grasp. She could see that the puppets were attempting to snap Himiko's neck. It was probably an enactment of vengeance for killing Curious earlier. And neither the Slime Quirk user nor the Double Quirk user could seemingly do anything to stop it. At least in the case of the latter, he didn't know what to think.
"WHO... AM I?!" he exclaimed in question. He was someone who kept stumbling in life. One bad day turned into several more. And soon enough, he couldn't trust anyone, even himself.
But then he met Giran. And after him, the League. He finally had a place to belong and people who he be around. The girl whose neck was going to be snapped was the same one who comforted him when his mask had gotten torn.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" he screamed, wriggling himself free of the puppets' grasp and bumbling to his feet, "TOGA!" he cried out, hurrying over to her. However, one of the other puppets came in and punched him aside, followed by it and two others going over and thrashing him over and over.
"Twice...!" Maria gasped out with reddish slime bubbling off of her face, trying to free herself from the puppets upon her. But she helplessly watched as two of the puppets grabbed his arms... and broke them. He was in sheer agony. But he was laughing.
"Even though it hurts... I'm not disappearing!" he realized, smiling through his tears. The Slime Quirk widened her eyes. She never knew that all this time, he thought that he was a clone. And now that he knew that he was the real one, he didn't have to fear anything. In an instant, the puppets were blown away.
"Ah!" Maria yelped, finding herself caught by the arms of two duplicates of her ally.
"Liberation Army..." Twice began with a determined grin, "you're about to see just how terrifying my Quirk can be!" he declared. And with that, he essentially created an overwhelming army that completely vacated the area of any Liberation Army soldiers. It was a march of grief known as the Sad Man's Parade.
"Incredible..." the Slime Quirk uttered out.
"Are you okay?" one of the doubles asked, getting her attention as she was sat up.
"Of course she is, you idiot!" another shouted back in response. An annoyed groan left Maria's lips before she hurried over to the real Double Quirk user, who had Himiko lying on his lap.
"She's lost a lot of blood..." she pointed out with a grimace.
"Don't worry, I'll take care of it..." Twice assured, "You should get back into the fight," he insisted to her surprise, "Our comrades are gonna need you just as much," he mentioned.
"You sure about that?" one of his clones inquired. Ignoring him, Maria looked down in thought for a moment. The issue of numbers was now seemingly gone thanks to this new development. But something else crossed her mind…
"I need to get to Shigaraki," she decided firmly, "You gonna help me?" she inquired of the clones.
"You got it, lady boss!" another double replied with a thumbs up.
"Maybe we should make her the new leader..." one more suggested.
X
"Who da hell are you dopes supposed ta be anyway?" Fie inquired as his foes hopped down into the alleyway.
"We're Poseidon Nero's top enforcers," Nasseh answered, "We're known as Oceans," he introduced with a chuckle.
"Enforcers?" the Flame Ammo Quirk user repeated in confusion.
"Love the accent, by the way," Lyra said as she shuffled her cards in her hands, "It's such a shame we gotta take you out, though," she admitted, "You'd be useful to Nero…" she pointed out.
"Why are you's even fightin' us?" Fie inquired, "Aren't we aftah the same thing?" he questioned on. Nasseh laughed loudly in a mocking manner, causing the Flame Ammo Quirk user to growl.
"Oh, so sorry…" he apologized, wiping a tear that came from his right eye away, "You see, your goals don't exactly align with ours," he noted, "We're building up in the shadows, amassing soldiers while also supplying ourselves with a steady supply of resources," he mentioned further, "Your group just goes out in the open to cause whatever mayhem you'd like in order to 'reshape society' as your leader so boldly proclaims…" he mocked, much to Fie's frustration as he gripped his rifle tightly, "But we may as well thank you for drawing the heroes' attention," he admitted with a shrug, "And now that we'll eliminate you here, we can overcome those heroes before they can even think to make their mo—!" A bullet shot narrowly missed his head, streaking by him.
"Tch," the Flame Ammo Quirk user scoffed with his rifle trained on the Oceans' member, "I don't care 'bout the whole Liberation Army crap…" he muttered out, "but I ain't dumb enough ta let you bastards kill me and my friends!" he roared in declaration.
"Huh…" Lyra sighed, "Should've known he'd be one of the big loyalists…" she noted as she readied a trio of cards in between her fingers, "Oh well," she said with a smirk, flinging her cards out as they pierced into the ground around her foe, catching his attention as he took notice of them. The earth swelled, suddenly bursting at his feet and sending him flying into the air. "Earth Card," the Gambler Rush Quirk user remarked with a giggle, "Knowing how your Quirk works, it's so obvious how I can deal with it!" she pointed out. A growl left Fie's lips as he pulled out his handgun in midair, aiming and firing a few shots out at her.
"I don't gots time for yer card tricks, dammit!" he pointed out angrily. She giggled, hopping back to evade the bullets sent her way.
"Are you even aiming at all?" she wondered aloud mockingly.
"Didn't the League have a better shooter in their ranks before Camino?" Nasseh inquired on, laughing with her. That drew the Flame Ammo Quirk user's ire as his blood vessels bulged. His orange energy lines started appearing along his neck and face, running under his eye patch and glowing brightly.
"EAT THIS!" he roared, firing a shot from his rifle that seared with fire. Nasseh blinked in surprise before moving aside to evade it, flinching from the intense heat it exuded. The bullet struck on the street afar, exploding in a fiery blast that knocked down some Liberation Army soldiers.
"Well, that's certainly a shot…" the Eye of Horus Quirk user admitted aloud, sweating a little, "Lyra, could you cool down our friend for me?" he requested of his colleague as golden energy lines started to appear along his face.
"Yeah, yeah, I gotcha'…" she responded, readying a set of five cards that she flung out. Spotting the first two as he landed down, Fie shot them both with his handgun. The other three burst in splashes of water, drenching him and his weapons.
"Dammit!" he cursed, trying to evaporate the water with the heat from his body.
"Nope, that's not happening!" Lyra exclaimed as she dashed by, flicking a pair of spades into the Flame Ammo Quirk user's face, "Gale Card!" she yelled. Bursts of air were released from the exploding cards, slamming into her foe and sending him tumbling back along the alleyway. "Ahahahaha!" the Gambler Rush Quirk user laughed, "I haven't pulled an ace yet!" she pointed out.
"Ergh…" Fie growled as he pushed himself up.
'They're trying to put me out before I can even get started…' he noted to himself, 'Dammit… why did I charge in without thinking?!' he wondered inwardly, 'I can't go fighting on the front lines without backup!' he mentioned through his thoughts, 'I'm supposed to be a sniper like her, after all!' he affirmed on. More cards pierced into the ground around him. He could tell that they were a mix of clovers and diamonds before they burst, bombarding him with gushes of water and mounds of rock.
"Hm, this is getting pretty boring…" Lyra admitted as she yawned, "You finally ready to spice it up, Nasseh?" she inquired of her colleague, who approached with his markings glowing brightly.
"But of course…" he responded, concentrating on Fie as he stood up. In an instant, he froze in place. He dropped his weapons. The Eye of Horus Quirk user smirked. "Go ahead and disarm that rifle of yours," he requested.
'What…?!' Fie exclaimed inwardly. His body was moving without him in control, taking the rifle and removing its cartridge, letting the bullets clatter onto the ground at his feet.
"Now pick up that pistol," Nasseh instructed. The Flame Ammo Quirk user reached over to grab the handgun with his right hand, standing up. "Check to make sure your safety's off," his foe added further.
"What are you trying to do…?" Lyra wondered aloud curiously. Her colleague chuckled. Brainlessly, Fie made sure the safety of his weapon was off. Nasseh grinned sadistically.
"Now shoot yourself in the foot," he said. There was hesitation at all. Under his control, the Flame Ammo Quirk user aimed down and pulled the trigger. The bullet that was shot pierced right through his foot.
"Ergh… GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!" he screamed out in agony, toppling over onto his knees as he writhed with pain.
"Ahahahaha!" the Eye of Horus Quirk user laughed, "So much for being a threat!" he remarked disdainfully as Fie tried to bring himself back up, only to wince from the burning in his foot, "From what I heard, Dabi does a better job at being a pyrokinetic compared to you," he pointed out, "And Seth Anderson was a much better gunman," he added on, "You're just a cheap copy trying to live up to their potential when you've got no hope of doing that," he told him, "Do yourself a favor and blow your brains out for us…" he instructed.
"Ew, gross!" Lyra exclaimed.
"Might as well show the League what'll happen when they defy us…" Nasseh pointed out. Getting to his feet, Fie slowly started pointing the handgun toward himself. Inwardly, he was panicking.
'Stop it… STOP IT!' he pleaded to himself, 'I can't die here!' he proclaimed through his thoughts, 'I gots ta help everyone…!' he whimpered inwardly, 'Otherwise… I'll just get left behind again…' he presumed as he stuck the barrel of the gun in his mouth, about to pull the trigger.
FLASHBACK
"You both finally got your Quirks?!" a spiky orange-haired man inquired of a pair of young boys standing in front of him, "Well, isn't that something?!" he exclaimed with a hearty laugh, "After four years went by for both of you, I thought chances would be over for you two!" he admitted, laughing on.
My whole family was Quirkless. Our bloodline was one of the unlucky few that didn't get the genes that'd let us get powers. No matter how we extended our family with Quirk users, no one else got a Quirk down the line. That is… until me and Hito got ours.
We heard a lot about Ether-type Quirks, so we started training at some old dojo with a guy whose power was to create and manipulate fire. Both of us took a while to get the hang of it and end up with Ether ourselves, but when we did, it was the most amazing feeling.
"So what're you boys gonna do now that you've got Quirks?!" the man before the pair inquired excitedly.
"I'm gonna be a flaming superhero like Endeavor!" Hito declared excitedly with a pump of his fist, "I know with my Quirk, I'll be just as strong as him one day!" he affirmed.
"Haha!" the spiky-haired man laughed on, "And how about you, Hino?" he inquired of the younger boy, who seemed to be even more excited as his eyes glimmered.
"I'm gonna be superhero dat no one'll ever tell was comin'!" he proclaimed, "Like Lady Nagant!" he added. His brother and father both blinked in bewilderment. "…What's wrong?" he asked of them, noticing their surprise.
"Lady Nagant?" Hito said, raising an eyebrow, "Why not Endeavor?" he inquired.
"'Cause I think she's cooler!" his little brother responded, causing him to gasp with offense.
"She couldn't hold a candle to Endeavor!" Hito proclaimed angrily. However, their father laughed, getting their attentions.
"You're allowed to like whatever hero you want," he assured, placing a hand each onto the heads of his sons, "But remember, if you're gonna try and live up to their names, you gots to work harder than anyone!" he pointed out seriously.
"Right!" the two orange-haired boys agreed.
Hito was quick to master his Quirk pretty well. We got it registered under the name Flame Manipulation, though he wanted to call it Flame Bolt. In my case… I wasn't exactly getting the hang of things…
"Wah!" Hino yelped as he fell over, the flames in his hands dissipating. Watching from nearby were both his brother and their father.
"Guess it's harder for Hino since he's younger, huh?" Hito assumed.
"And he doesn't really have much of a teacher…" his father pointed out, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. The little boy sat up and whined dejectedly. "Hey, here's an idea!" his parent exclaimed, "How 'bout we head into town and see if we can figure something out for ya?" he suggested. Immediately, Hino perked up with excitement.
Moments later, he was brought to an indoor gun range. Whereas most people would flinch and recoil from the sounds of bullets being fired, he was enthralled by the sight of them. He even imagined himself standing in the firing line alongside the other men.
"I tend to come here a couple times every now and again," his father pointed out, obtaining a gun from the counter as he loaded it. Hino was quick to take note of the process. "It's not only a good way to practice, but also let off some steam," he mentioned to him.
"Steam?" his son repeated in confusion, making him chuckle as he patted his head.
"If I'm ever feelin' mad, I come here to let it out like this," he told the little boy. He then went over to the firing line, aiming his firearm forward at the sets of targets. He fired, with his shots hitting the rings. Hino watched on with amazement, as other patrons looked over at him with concern.
"Should a kid that young be in a place like this…?" one of them wondered aloud, causing the father to perk up, "What if he gets hurt?" he asked in concern. At that moment, Hino found the gun being handed over to him.
"Got one shot left," he pointed out to him, "Go ahead," he offered, "But be careful," he advised of his young son.
"R-Right!" he responded, carefully taking hold of the firearm's hammer, putting it into his grasp.
"Hey, I don't think you should let your kid do this!" one man yelled in panic.
"It's fine," the father assured, "If something happens, I'll take responsibility," he promised to the other patrons. Meanwhile, Hino was tuning out everything around him. He steadied his trigger finger, concentrating on the bullseye his father hadn't yet hit. He took a deep breath as orange energy lines appeared along his right arm, trailing up to his finger. Pulling the trigger, the bullet he fired seared out with flames surrounding it. It didn't just tear through the first bullseye, it also went through the two beyond it before piercing through the back wall, with smoke emitting from its impact.
"Ah…!" most of the patrons gasped in astonishment. The father smiled.
"You did it, Hino!" he exclaimed, going over to pick up his son and dance around with him excitedly.
"Was… that an Ether-type Quirk?" one man inquired aloud.
"He got three bullseyes in the blink of an eye…" another pointed out. Suddenly, everyone inside heard the sound of tires screeching before a crash, causing them to all jolt in surprise.
"What was dat?" Hino wondered.
Turns out my shot was so powerful, it pierced through the building and ended up hitting a lady in her car driving by. It was just a flesh wound to her leg, and she was fine. However, the owner of the range banned me and my father for life 'cause of how reckless we were. But dat day… I realized somethin'…
I was able to use my Quirk with weapons, make my bullets even stronger than anyone else's. For my tenth birthday, Dad bought me my own gun to use. When I turned thirteen, he basically had a full artillery for me. He saw that guns were what helped me… and he wanted me to be what I wanted.
The fact he never cared about himself… was the damn reason he wound up dead.
"Dad…?" Hino uttered, staring at the body of his father, lying in a bloody pool up against a counter as he was riddled with bullet wounds. He trembled a for a moment, breaking out into tears as he dropped to his hands and knees.
My dad had stolen the guns from some punk he met a long time ago. They pretty much raided the house and killed him before he could fight back. And Hito was still at school, so I was the first to know…
Pushing himself back up, Hino looked over to see that in the pool of blood beneath his dead father was but a single gun. He picked it up, seeing that the cartridge was still loaded, while the safety was on. He looked back at his deceased parent, seeing the smile that graced his face upon his passing. A growl left the young teen's lips as he stood up, clutching the lone gun tightly.
What I did next might've been stupid… but I didn't care. I wanted to go an' kill every last bastard that got my dad killed. And I did it all by myself with just that one gun. I was just like Lady Nagant…
The emptied firearm lied in the pool of blood right in front of Hino as he stared at it with his lone left eye. His right had wound up slashed by a knife when the fracas started. But that didn't hinder him in the least. In fact, he found it to be fortunate. Now he didn't have to worry about which eye to use to aim.
'I wonder… does Hito know about Dad yet?' he inquired inwardly, 'Is he worried about me?' he wondered on. Footsteps started approaching, but the Ether-type Quirk user didn't move. Coming to a stop in front of him was none other than Drakken. He narrowed his eyes, looking around at all of the dead bodies. He then turned to the young teen.
"Hey, brat," he said, "You do this by yourself?" he inquired. Hino nodded. "Pretty ballsy…" the Oracion Seis member remarked with a smirk, "See, I was coming here to settle a score with these guys myself, but you took care of 'em for me," he explained.
"They killed my dad," the young teen noted. Drakken smirked.
"Revenge, huh?" he guessed, "I like that," he admitted, reaching his right hand to the Ether-type Quirk user, "Come with me," he offered, "I could use someone like you helping me out," he mentioned to his surprise. At first, he seemed reluctant to take his hand. But ultimately, he did, getting pulled up onto his feet.
I didn't know until way later that Hito had left Endeavor's agency 'cause of some shit that he found out happened with his family. He ended up workin' for Elsie Crimson. And I was basically Drakken's second hitman after Mister Seth. From there, I called my Quirk Flame Ammo. And my name was Fie of Fire.
The only time I've ever held a gun to myself… was when I thought about ending it all right there, when I saw my dad's dead body covered in blood… and that loaded gun right next to him…
END FLASHBACK
Tears were pouring out of the Flame Ammo Quirk user's lone eye as his hand holding the gun trembled, with the barrel still in his mouth. Lyra narrowed her eyes in confusion.
"Hey, shouldn't he have pulled the damn trigger by now?" she inquired of Nasseh, looking over at him.
"There can be some cases of resistance when it comes to the hypnosis…" he admitted aloud, sounding unbothered, "But it's futile now," he affirmed confidently as his energy lines brightened along his skin, "Go ahead and end it already, Hino Denatsu," he instructed. The Flame Ammo Quirk user had both hands upon the gun, seemingly unable to stop himself. The pair of Oceans members chuckled to themselves. But then, they noticed a smoke starting to build up around the area, emitting from their foe. It veiled him entirely from their view as they gasped.
"He's gonna try and run!" Lyra exclaimed.
"No he won't," Nasseh assured, "My Quirk's effects last a full ten minutes," he pointed out, "And he won't be able to do anything without completing the last order I gave him," he added, "Now shoot!" he commanded. A gunshot went off. But to the pair's surprise, the bullet flew out, striking the Eye of Horus Quirk user in his left shoulder. "AAAAAAHHHH!" he screamed in pain, falling onto his knees and clutching his wound.
"Nasseh!" Lyra yelled, letting off a grimace. She heard a chuckling coming from the cloud of smoke before Fie limped out, grinning widely.
"How 'bout dat?" he remarked. Nasseh gritted his teeth.
"How… did you break free of my hypnosis?!" he inquired loudly.
"You know lots 'bout me an' my family, right?" the Flame Ammo Quirk user questioned back, "My Quirk might be called Flame Ammo, but it's really the same as my big brother's," he pointed out to his foes' shock.
"Don't tell me…" Nasseh uttered with shaking eyes.
"Hito Denatsu…" Lyra said, "His fire-type Quirk also let him manipulate electricity to some extent…!" she realized, trembling a little.
"I ain't as good as him, but I figured I might as well try with my life on the line…" Fie pointed out, reclaiming his rifle as fire flickered off of him, "See, I could tell that somethin' wasn't right in my head…" he noted, "I could still think, but my body wouldn't listen," he mentioned, "Your Quirk screws around with my head, right?" he presumed, readying his firearm as he aimed it towards his opponents, "So if keep puttin' out electricity, your hypnosis crap won't work, right?!" he guessed with a sadistic grin. Nasseh chuckled a little.
"You're a lot more cunning than I give you credit for…" he admitted. Fie pulled his trigger, firing a shot towards his pair of foes, who dove out of the way.
"Ugh, you should've just made him go to sleep, Nasseh!" Lyra complained, "Now he won't be affected by your Quirk!" she pointed out angrily.
"A blunder on my part, I'll admit," the Eye of Hours Quirk user admitted, pulling a phone-like device into his left hand and pressing the button upon it, "But it's not like we don't have contingencies in place of blunders…" he noted with a grin. A shadow loomed over him suddenly. Fie blinked, looking up to find something coming down towards them. Landing just behind Nasseh was a large mechanical suit that was taller than an average person and was heavily armored with large gauntlets for combat. It had a unique helmet along with two wing appendages and rocket thrusters on the back.
"A frickin' robot?!" the Flame Ammo Quirk user exclaimed.
"The Sea Devil, huh?" Lyra noted, "Kinda seems like overkill…" she remarked as a drop of sweat rolled down the right side of her face. The armored suit opened, with its wires wrapping around the Eye of Horus Quirk user and pulling him inside.
"We might as well make certain the League's wiped out entirely…" he noted with a wicked smirk. The mechanical suit closed over where he was as he aimed its left arm forwards. The guns mounted there fired a flurry of energy blasts towards Fie, who stood still for a moment. However, he cracked a grin.
"You even tryin' ta shoot me?" he inquired, merely moving his head aside to avoid the blasts. Within the armored suit, Nasseh gasped.
"What?!" Lyra exclaimed in disbelief. Growling, the Eye of Horus Quirk user charged forward, attempting to strike with his right fist. Ducking under it, Fie planted his rifle's barrel against the underside of the suit's arm, pulling the trigger. An explosive blast erupted from the bullet that was fired, tearing the mechanical limb off completely. Both Oceans members widened their eyes in disbelief.
"It's weird…" the Flame Ammo Quirk user uttered out, getting their attentions as they saw him pick up his pistol from the ground, "Now that I've got my bro's electricity, I feel all tingly… like actual fire…" he admitted aloud, "Bring your fancy tech, your stupid strong Quirks, and all your army's got to offer…" he listed off, "You ain't beatin' us…" he proclaimed with a wicked grin, "'Cause we got somethin' you'll never get!" he yelled, pulling the triggers to fire off two more shots. Reacting quickly, Nasseh went over to grab Lyra before rocketing off with her thanks to the Sea Devil's thrusters.
"Hey, we're running?!" she yelped out.
"It's just a tactical retreat," her colleague proclaimed in response, "Besides, I doubt he can do much more given that he shot his own foot…" he muttered confidently. However, the Flame Ammo Quirk user was reloading his rifle, taking aim as his markings expanded.
"The worst thing you can do…" he began as he smirked, while Lyra looked back and gasped.
"Nasseh, you idiot!" she yelled, getting his attention.
"IS RUN FROM A SNIPER, DUMBASS!" Fie roared, pulling the trigger to fire off a bullet that seared with fire and lightning. The Eye of Horus Quirk user could only gasp as his mechanical suit was struck, plummeting down to the ground and crashing in a flurry of dust. As it cleared, it revealed that both him and Lyra were unconscious, eyes white and mouths gaping open. From where he was, the Flame Ammo Quirk user snickered. "Bet you would've loved to see that one, big bro…" he noted aloud, "Now where can a guy find a good place to be a lookout?" he wondered as he looked around curiously.
X
"I'm sleepy..." Tomura complained as he wandered about the city aimlessly, killing liberation soldiers left and right with ease. Over a month of endless fighting against Gigantomachia, he was barely getting any rest. He was essentially hobbling about, disintegrating any unfortunate soul who came close to him.
Spinner was left watching as a whole horde of soldiers closed in on his leader. He was starting to see things, enduring pieces of memories he couldn't figure out. There was a study, a little girl who showed him a picture of a hero he was told was his grandmother, and a little boy who looked at it.
But the pieces weren't coming together. It made him sick. He didn't need a flashback if it wasn't going to show him everything.
"Ugh... enough already!" he yelled, hopping atop a wall before rushing forward... and disintegrating each and every one of the soldiers that charged toward him. Spinner was astonished. He had only touched a few of those people. Yet all of them were gone.
'Shigaraki...' he uttered inwardly, 'what's happening to you?' he wondered through his thoughts. Elsewhere in the city, the battle of fire and ice between Dabi and Geten continued. The liberation soldier was actually proving to be quite a challenge. Not only could he control ice, but he could also manipulate its temperature and make it spread. Clearly, he was well-trained. In the meantime, his foe was looking somewhat worn, especially as his skin seemed like it was burning.
"Dabi, if you could lend us a hand for a moment?!" Compress called out in request as he and Daichi being bombarded by attacks from other soldiers.
"Nah, kinda busy here..." the pyrokinetic muttered in response as he shook his right hand.
"How cold!" the Pain's Tree Quirk user exclaimed, "We're not as strong as you, ya know!" he pointed out in frustration.
"Exactly!" Compress agreed.
"Then why not just ask one of them?" Dabi suggested, gesturing to his left.
"Huh?" Compress uttered in confusion. He turned his head... and found over hundreds of Twice clones coming towards them. "WHAT THE HELL?! YOU OVERCAME YOUR TRAUMA?!" he questioned out of disbelief.
"Yep! Through the power of love and courage!" one of the doubles responded as they charged in and tackled away several of the soldiers.
"Love and courage?" his masked ally repeated, "That makes you sound like a hero..." he noted.
"And what's so wrong about a guy who wants to protect his comrades?!" a Twice copy inquired back.
"It's just… a bit strange for you of all people…" Daichi pointed out.
"You guys hang back and rest up for a bit!" another insisted, "We'll make copies of you to take these Liberation Army bastards down!" he declared firmly with a thumbs up.
"Wait, Twice!" Compress called out, "If we eliminate too many of them, we'll have nothing to throw at Machia when he arrives!" he told him emphatically.
"Oh yeah, good call..." one of the clones agreed.
"So no Dabis, right?" another guessed.
"Yeah, he'd just burn everything..." one more replied. All of a sudden, they were struck by a rush of ice conjured by Geten, making most of them dissolve completely into muck, though they managed to save their friends. The liberation soldier loomed overhead aboard a platform of ice.
"You're only delaying the inevitable, even with what might you may have..." he proclaimed, raising his right hand, "You'll all fall..." he said. But at that moment, a bullet went through his right shoulder. "AGH!" he yelped in agony. Dabi blinked out of surprise.
"Where did that come from?" Compress wondered aloud. Daichi grinned.
"Seems like our sniper found himself a good place to start some havoc…" he pointed out excitedly.
"Tsk," Dabi scoffed out, "I didn't need his damn help..." he muttered out.
"Would you like him to shoot you to keep it even?" Maria's voice assumed as she approached, causing him to turn away out of annoyance.
"Ah, Maria!" Compress exclaimed, "You're still alive, it seems…" he noted in relief.
"Yeah, thanks…" the Slime Quirk user responded with a roll of her eyes, "How long until Machia arrives now?" she inquired of the Compress Quirk user, who pulled out his pocket watch.
"Just a little over an hour..." he answered grimly, "Honestly, we're already doing a lot more damage than we thought possible earlier," he pointed out, "At this rate, Machia won't have anything to fight!" he mentioned aloud.
"Maybe he won't have to fight at all," Maria suggested to his surprise, "If we win this battle and take this damn army down, we could earn Machia's respect," she told her colleagues.
"You actually think we could win?!" Daichi inquired, stunned by how optimistic the Slime Quirk user was sounding.
"We have an army now," she pointed out, "So let's make use of it," she insisted. She glanced up and noticed that Geten had already covered his bullet wound with ice. "You can handle the rest here, right?" she assumed of Dabi, who scoffed again.
"As long as no one gets in my damn way..." he muttered in response, whipping around to unleash another blast of blue flames. They engulfed the ice, incinerating it completely.
"He does not know the meaning of restraint..." Compress noted, adjusting his hat, "And what about you, Maria?" he inquired of the Slime Quirk user as she looked over at him, "What are you going to do?" he asked of her.
"I'm gonna help Tomura end this," she vowed in response. Elsewhere on the battlefield, the Decay Quirk user and Spinner had gotten themselves closer and closer to the tower at the city's center. But the closer they got, the more enemies they were running into. Nevertheless, the wicked smile on Tomura's face didn't leave, even as they were about to be bombarded by attacks.
"Hold on, leader!" a double of Twice called out as he and several others tackled their allies to the ground before they could get hit.
"What the?!" Spinner yelped, "Twice?!" he exclaimed, "There's so many of you...!" he pointed out, quite astonished.
"You overcame yourself..." Tomura realized, stunned as well.
"Of course!" one of the doubles responded, "It's all for your sake, Shigaraki!" he added in exclamation.
"Take them out, quickly!" another soldier demanded. However, he and two others immediately took bullets to the head.
"Whoa!" Spinner yelped. Turning, Tomura looked over to see Fie there with his rifle at the ready.
"Fie..." he uttered out.
"Sorry fer the wait, boss," he apologized with a grin, "Got busy dealin' with some crappy dumbasses," he noted.
"You seem to be in a great mood, Fie," one of the Twice clones noted.
"You getting to go all out, too?" another inquired. The Flame Ammo Quirk user blinked twice.
"Whoa, Twice?!" he exclaimed with a widened eye.
"Yep, that's us!" the clones exclaimed together.
"Hey, guys!" a voice called out, getting their attentions as they looked over to see Maria jogging towards them.
"Slime, you're okay!" Spinner noted with relief, "Wait, wasn't Toga with you?" he inquired out of concern.
"Twice is taking care of her," the Slime Quirk user pointed out in reply, "Shigaraki, there's a change in plans," she told the League's leader as he blinked in surprise, "Machia doesn't have to get worn down enough for you to defeat him," she pointed out, "All you need to do is prove your worth to him," she explained.
"Prove his worth?" one of the Twice clones repeated in confusion.
"Oh, like Ujiko was saying..." Spinner recalled.
"And how the hell would I do that?" Tomura inquired, narrowing his eyes.
"By defeating this damn Liberation Army's leader," Maria replied with a smirk to everyone's surprise, "Then he'll have to respect you," she added assuredly. The Decay Quirk user's eyes shook. Originally, the plan to just hold out long enough for Gigantomachia to come and wreck shop seemed fine to him. But the idea he had just been presented with... sounded a lot more satisfying.
"Let's do it..." he insisted in response. Elsewhere in Deika, Shura grimaced as he felt more of his body disappear into mist. Callum stood before him, sighing.
"You've gone soft since joining that group," he noted, "Emperor Nero had hoped you'd come to your senses by now, but it's obvious that you've chosen to be our enemy," he pointed out. The Satan Gravity Quirk user grimaced, but then smirked to his foe's surprise. He started chuckling, followed by hollering with laughter. The Carburetor Quirk user was confused, and then blinked in shock to find his enemy's body reverting back to normal. His laughter died down.
"I haven't gone soft at all," he affirmed, "I'm actually pissed as hell," he assured as he clenched his fists tightly, "Because that geezer took everything away from me…" he growled out as he marched forward, "I couldn't care less about getting Ziggy's power, getting stronger, having the world at my fingertips…" he listed off as he gnashed his teeth.
"Mist God Punch!" Callum roared as he shot forward, cloaking his right fist in mist as he closed in.
"The only person I ever cared about… the one that bastard took from me…" Shura continued, rearing his own fist back. The Carburetor Quirk user attempted to land an uppercut, but was struck down by the fierce punch of his foe's fist, smashing him into the ground as blood left his lips. With blood dripping from his knuckles, the Satan Gravity Quirk user walked past him. "For what did to Ijuna…" he kept going, "I'm going to kill him," he vowed firmly.
ENDING
Insert "Calling" by Metro Boomin X NAV X A Boogie wit da Hoodie X Swae Lee
Opens with the dawning sun, causing Shura to wake up as rays of sunlight reach his eyes. He looks over to his left to find Ijuna sitting next to him, smiling lovingly at him. He smiles back, putting his hand atop hers. Elsewhere, we see Spinner sitting atop a building, looking out at the horizon. Maria comes over and sits down next to him. She glances at him for a moment before leaning against his shoulder, much to his surprise as he looks at her. We also see Himiko skipping along a sidewalk as Twice walks after her, holding her handkerchief in his pocket.
We continue with Tomura seemingly wandering through an empty house, having flashes of the past as a kid, running through the house and spending time with his family… except for his father. We see him pick up a picture in a study, narrowing his eyes to see Nana Shimura upon it. He disintegrates it as the house around him also crumbles into dust.
Shura stands at the doorway of his bedroom, remembering every day he'd return with bruises and cuts from his training from Nero, not once being properly taken care of. He blinks and finds himself being tended to upon his bed by Ijuna, who wraps bandages around his arms. A small smile crosses Shura's face. He blinks again… and finds that Ijuna is gone. He lowers his head as Nero looms just behind him.
We get a shot of Fie seated inside a warehouse with a rifle by his side, looking at a picture of himself as a kid with his big brother, Hito. He grimaces before burning the image up. Then we cut to Mr. Compress, who removes his mask and balaclava to reveal his face as he looks in the mirror. He sees a reflection of Harima Oji before it changes back to himself, causing him to clench his lone fist tightly.
From another building, Maria watches a civil rights protest for heteromorphs go on as she winces, with bits of green slime dripping off from her body. A hand comes onto her left shoulder, causing her to look over and almost mistake Spinner for Drakken, who nods to her. We see Dabi wandering about city alleys with cobalt flames in his wake, as smoke emits from his skin like burning meat. Even so, he grins.
The song winds down with the League gathering together, looking out over Deika City. Removing the hand upon his face, Tomura grins determinedly. The others do the same, ready to face whatever they have to in order to fulfill their desires…
END ENDING
Compared to the last chapter, I'm actually shocked that I was able to get so much done. Maybe I'm motivated by the fact that the current series is kinda dragging down for me, so I want to write something fun, but also gritty. It's a strange feeling, especially considering the ideas I have for Shura's backstory when we get to it.
Thanks for your support, everyone! See you next time!