Over the Top

by papireaz

When I died, I expected a few manga volumes. Maybe to learn what the One Piece is. Instead, I found myself in a world that I recognised, a story I had read and what's worse was that it was a story I had no interest in wanting to involve myself in! Then and again, the offer to become a Hero is far too tempting...

26. Issue 25

Watched 'The Batman.'

Was really good, in my opinion a modern masterpiece.

All it did was reaffirm my choices for Part 2 and 3 of this story, in fact I doubled down on a few key points. Hehe, guess you will have to wait and find out what they are.

The same song as last chapter, that being Fairy Tail Opening 3 - ft. by Funkist.

---

Summary so far:

Well, well.

We reached Chapter 25.

Impressive.

Very nice.

HOLY SHIT WE HIT CHAPTER 25 AND WE HAVEN'T EVEN DEALT WITH STAIN YET?! WHAT KIND OF DOGSHIT PACING DO WE HAVE HERE! AND CUT THIS CRINGE ASS SECTION, NO ONE READS THEM IN THE FIRST PLACE! THIS IS JUST THE AUTHORS SHITTY ATTEMPTS AT BREAKING THE 4TH WALL, WHEN HE SHOULD BE BREAKING HIS OWN NECK INSTEAD-,

Mental health is important.

I, Aozora, support mental health! Wait, shouldn't it be I support you getting help for your mental health? Screw this commercial, VALUE YOUR MENTAL HEALTH GUYS AND GIRLS! Honestly, I don't know why I did a segment on mental health. Oh right, because Iida wants to hunt Stain down and potentially kill him. Yes, that's right!

If someone kills your brother, do not go after them!

Just be a hero and, uhm, hug them!

---

I chased after Iida, tracing his path judging by the skid marks on the pavement. There was only one person that could have turned this quickly to rush into hell looking for a demon. Wait that made Iida sound cool for being a thundering dumbass, no I was going to find him and wreck his asshole by jamming my foot up it-, And now it sounded strangely sexual. Great, now my thoughts were invaded by a Conan the Barbarian rip off version staring Iida.

Well, it could be worse, at least it's not Stain being a stripper. Or Bakugo wearing leather trousers, Midoriya being a hooker, Todoroki being a NEET, and Mineta having a harem. Each and every one of those sounded like hell, apart from that last one. If Mineta got a harem I would cheer for him, get his face tattooed on my chest and name my fist born after him. Still, it was a race against time for me to reach Iida before he reached Stain, and potentially Zero.

Last time Zero and I met he nearly put a hole through Jiro to prove a point, I could only imagine what he would do now without any restrictions amongst this chaos. I wasn't going to lie; I was terrified of facing them. Supervillains with only my Quirk, a tachi styled sword that can play music, and a hero that can run really fast. Safe to say we were screwed, no screwed implied we had some way of making it out alive, Iida and I were fucked.

That was if Iida even listened to me, because if he didn't then we were even more fucked.

Luckily, I had a plan. Or two plans? Back up plans? Eh, whatever. Izuku Midoriya and Shoto Todoroki, they were my back up plans. Taking my phone out from my pocket, I was glad to see that the fire had only managed to crack my screen somewhat, and so it was extremely easy for me to share my location with the two with the message 'Gonna need some help fighting some bad guys with Iida. Need help!' Truth be told, I only wanted them to hurry to me so I could have some back up.

That being said, I had to find the bastard first.

Which was proven to be a little tricky as the dumbass had seemingly disappeared. Hosu was a big place, which gave me a large amount of area to cover in such a small period, and so that meant I had to hurry the fuck up or else Iida would get to Stain before I did. And that was bad. Very, very, very bad. It would be like fighting the dungeon boss while you haven't levelled up once or fighting a secret boss that you weren't supposed to find until the end of the game. Either way, the result was the same.

Iida would either end up paralysed, or he would join his brother in the afterlife, if there was one.

Honestly dying put a lot of things in perspective ya' know. Still, at least Todoroki responded to me with a thumbs up, but Midoriya had only left me on read. So at least all they had to do was follow my location, which updated every few seconds. But even with that, it still didn't get me any closer to where the bastard was running around, probably in some back alley with a violent psychopath licking his lips at him.

I shuddered at that.

Maybe I should ask Stain if he gets any bitches? Like, that tongue of his could be used in so many different ways other than licking other people's blood. He could make it as a Porn star, the elite, the gods of society and instead he wore a bunch of rags and a bandanna he hadn't washed in months to kill some 'fakes.' Honestly, Stain was more of a disappointment than I remembered. Like he could have gone down so many different avenues, but being an anti-hero was one of them?!

Truth be told I had considered going down a path like that myself.

If I ever went back on my ways and became a piece of shit again, I had my terrorist plan at hand. Simply put, I would make a terrorist group tasked with killing a chancellor and build and army of Mecha's to work for the rich and own a blue giant Mecha called Ordine, the Azure Knight. Because Mecha's were cool as hell, and I slightly wished that I had a Quirk that allowed me to summon one... okay I immensely wished I had a cool Quirk like that.

Sure, I could make a Mecha using my Nimbus, but that would require me to sacrifice an arm or two to even get the required amount of Nimbus to construct it, let alone maintain it for a fight. It was simply far too much effort and pain. But if I managed to find a way that allowed me to summon a Mecha, I would totally do it every time. It was simply far too cool to pass up. I turned another left, following the marks left by Iida as I entered another alleyway.

Jeez.

Hosu and its alleyway's, they were never ending.

It was like I was a rat stuck in a maze-,

Instinctively, my body halted as I felt an ominous presence seep into the area. Purple mist floated in front of me, trying it's hardest to not float away from the harsh winds. Piercing yellow eyes stared at me, and all I could do was stare back. I didn't have time to react as Kurogiri appeared right in front of me, and out came a man. A lone man reached from within, clawing his way out of Kurogiri, steadily climbing his way through the portal and onto the very ground that I walked on.

I drew out my tachi, hands at the ready for a fight.

He was slender, that I could tell from his dark armour alone. It covered every inch of his body, with a few silver highlights near his arms, legs and sides that added some colour to the otherwise black armour. Or was it a costume? He didn't seem that much taller than me, only a few inches which put him at around five foot six, or even seven. He wore a black shoulder cape that sat on his right side, and more importantly his face was covered by a demonic black mask with a red visor that reflected me. I couldn't read his expression as he slowly walked towards me, without even saying a word.

I gripped my tachi even tighter. Even if the tachi had much longer reach, a goof few inches longer than my bokuto which meant I had to grip my tachi with both hands in order to swing it. It was extremely long and thing, sitting at around fifty inches if I measured it carefully. That meant I had some range when it came to swinging the damn thing, but I also had to be extremely careful. One wrong attack could mean the end of me.

"Sora Yamazaki," He called out to me in a distorted voice. Tch, his mask had a voice modifier, how annoying. It meant I couldn't trace their voice back to anyone, either this guy was super paranoid or scared of his identity? Most likely both. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you again, and I do apologise for catching you at a bad time. However, you and I need a talk." I scoffed at the bastard, raising the tachi to point it at his chest.

"A talk? Sorry, I only talk to cute girls at this time of night. Get lost."

The masked man simply sighed in response. "Have you really forgotten me? The time we spent together at the USJ? Or rather, the time you spent with my subordinate." My eyes widened at that, he couldn't be, that meant he was-,

"Oh, I see you have finally remembered who I am." He said amused, tilting his head slightly to the left as he clapped his hands together. "So then, who am I?" He asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Y-your-,"

"Zero." He cut me off, bowing at around ninety degrees and raising his left hand up while doing so. "I am Zero in the flesh, no subordinates, or friends in the way to disrupt our talk. Just you and I Sora, you and I all alone in this alleyway. Now, where to begin?"

---

Chapter

Twenty-Five

'The road to hell is paved with good intentions!'

---

"Now where to begin?"

"Begin?" I sarcastically repeated, running towards him, "How about I begin by stabbing you to death!" DIE, DIE, DIE, DIE! RIP, TEAR, KILL! SLASH! RED! POOLS OF BLOOD! THEIR CORPSE HUNG UP FOR THE WORLD TO SEE-, No. I stabbed my tachi into the ground hard, purposefully tipping up over myself as I rolled around the rough ground. I coughed slightly as I took a deep breath and stared at the cloudy dark sky.

Why.

Why was it every time I thought about ending their life, I had to go and think about Jiro. I had to go and think about everyone who wanted me to be a hero. About how much I wanted to be a hero, and yet I still couldn't help but want to kill Zero. They stared at me curiously, I didn't need to see their face to know that. Just judging from their body language alone, their head tilted to the left and my face being reflected on their visor.

I couldn't even keep my emotions in check for more than a moment, I couldn't even repress the other bastard within me. All the hatred I had for Zero surfaced and I couldn't even control it for more than a second. Tch, how annoying.

"So, a talk?" I asked him, "What the hell do you want to talk about. Especially when you should be watching the chaos unfold from your ivory tower. I'll talk to you when you stop this mess, because only God knows how many innocents you've killed-,"

"And what makes you think that I have any control over this?" He interjected, "Why would you assume that I wanted this. No, this is the work of that pompous fool, Shigaraki. Spare me your rambling for the time being, I just want to talk."

"Talk?!" I shouted at him, "You want to talk? When people are in danger, when people are dying, now is the time you want to talk? Fuck you." I slowly stood up, resisting the urge to kill him. I was better than that, and I wouldn't be a murderer anytime soon. "I'm going to beat the shit out of you and end this. And tell me where Iida is, before I break all the fucking bones in your body."

To his credit, Zero simply stood there motionless. He simply didn't react, maybe it was because of the mask covering his face, but his body didn't move an inch. If I had to compare him to something, it would be a statue of a knight. Yet he didn't remind me of any knight that saved maidens in distress, if anything he put those maidens in danger for his 'goals.' He was a villain, and I was a hero. He wanted to go back 'home,' while I wanted to stay here.

He was willing to kill people to achieve what he wanted, and I...

"Struggling with yourself?" He inquired as he sat down on the floor cross legged. "Well, I can't say that I go through the same processes as you have, but I'm sure you must be conflicted. After all, how can we be so alike and yet following two completely different paths?"

"I'm nothing like you-,"

"Liar." He interrupted me. "I can see it in your eyes, the disdain you hold for me. And for this world. You think I didn't carefully examine you Sora Yamazaki? I know everything about you, your friends and where you even live. I know exactly how you acted just a few years ago, and it feels a bit presumptuous for me to say this, but do you honestly believe that you ever changed from the brat that you once were?"

"I have changed!" I shouted back at him, "If I didn't change, if I was the same person as I was back then, do you really think I'd have gotten to U.A? I know I would have failed that exam. I would have left Monoma to die, and I wouldn't have saved anyone. My dumbass would have tried to beat as many robots as possible, but then I'd tire myself out earlier. But I wouldn't have had the help needed to use my Quirk efficiently, so I might have gotten into 1B rather than 1A. Or U.A would have failed me. Either way, I would have been a different place compared to where I am now."

Zero didn't reply, only choosing to clap slowly.

"A thoughtful response. However, I must disagree with you. Even if you were still the 'same person' as you were back then, you would have passed the exam. In fact, I believe that we would have ended up on opposite sides either way. Because the matter of the fact is that I tried to kill you, I tried to kill your classmates. And for that very reason, I have been meaning to talk to you. To apologise to you for what happened at the USJ."

What?!

"You may be suspicious of me, but please hear me out." At this, Zero bowed his head down on the floor. "I am apologising for my mistakes. What happened at the USJ got out of hand, and I must say that I am partly at fault for it. Just as you suffer from your split personality, I suffer from mine as well. My actions during the USJ weren't entirely my own, like how you wanted to fight me just now. No, it isn't an excuse, nor do I want forgiveness, however I felt the need to explain this to you."

I scoffed at him.

"Raise up your damn head. The villains aren't supposed to bow their heads down to the hero who defeats them, it makes the journey to the fight meaningless." I replied, "But don't think I'm just going to forget everything that happened. Even if it wasn't how you wanted to act, and even if you truly do regret what happened, there is nothing I can do to convince the others involved to move on from what happened. Nor do I really want to."

"I would expect nothing less from the vindicative 'Demon of Class E.'" Zero said as he stood up once again, this time his modified voice had a hint of playfulness to it. "Still, don't go thinking that I'm a good person for this, I do have my pride as a villain at stake here. But the least I can do for you is give you an option, either you can stop this attack, or you can stop your friend from facing him. After that, I'll consider our debt paid off."

"You don't owe me shit!" I shouted at him, grabbing my tachi from the ground as I pointed it at him once more. "I'm going to make you do both, whether you like it or not. You're going to tell your boss to call this shit off, and you are going to tell me where to find Iida. And if I have to beat you ass to do so, then I'll gladly beat you for the second time in a row." Zero chuckled slightly, shaking his head as he turned to fully face me.

"And if I don't want to fight you?"

"If you don't want to fight me, then take your damn mask off and leave the League," I replied, "But you won't do that will you? For as long as you are allied with the villains, we will always be fighting each other. Because you will always be there to fuck up my plans, and I'll always be there to stop yours. Ironic, isn't it? That we are fighting each other for being on opposite sides."

Zero nodded at that. "Mmh, it reminds me of those old comic books I used to love reading. Two opponents fated to clash while both would love nothing more than to run away. Still, I suppose that our dynamic makes you happy, doesn't it? Just like a anime protagonist and their rival. All that's left is for you to knock off my mask, and give me a speech about friendship before I give up my life to save yours during the final fight."

"Obito?" I joked, "And that would be pretty cool. But this isn't the final fight, not yet. Meaning we have a few years left to build up our rivalry, so you ready for our 'second bout' so to speak? Because I'm ready to beat you up."

"Well, I won't miss this opportunity to truly show you the difference in our skill." With a forward motion, a blade suddenly appeared for Zero as he grabbed it. His Quirk I presume. I wasn't expecting him to pull out a double-bladed sword that looked to be nearly as tall as me, nor did I expect him to effortlessly use it with one hand. I didn't miss the slight change in stance as he pivoted his left foot backwards, the tip of his blade now being pointed directly at me.

I couldn't even react as he ran forward and swung his sword at me, if it wasn't for my Nimbus dragging me away from the blade, I would have lost a few limbs with that attack. More importantly, he didn't waste any time in coming after me again. He was relentless, ruthless, cold and calculating. I could only dodge and block, and even then, he was predicting where I was going. For all intents and purposes, it was as if he could see the future.

He came close to piercing me multiple times, and I couldn't even do anything as his blade lit up the dark alleyway. He did flips, used the long weapon as a balance to come after me, he used both sides of the blade to keep me on the edge of my toes. Shit, shit! I could only pant heavily as he swung his sword around, stabbing it on the ground as he continued to stare at me. His mask revealed nothing about him, it revealed nothing about his emotions, or what he was thinking.

It was like I was staring into nothingness.

"Is that it?" He taunted me. "This is all your challenge is? Running away from me, like a coward? I thought you were going to beat me for the 'second time in a row?' Or was that all talk?" I gritted my teeth as I closed my eyes and tried to calm myself. What was the thing that Aizawa always said? Fighting angry only clouds your judgement, and it causes you to make mistakes. In a fight, the person who makes the most mistakes is always the one who loses.

Right.

I didn't just have Iida's fate on my shoulders, but the fate of Hosu itself. The kids who lived in this city, like Manual's kid. I couldn't afford to get angry here and potentially let them die when I could have prevented their deaths.

No way in hell was that going to happen.

But he was simply too strong, even using all that Aizawa had taught me, I couldn't find a single flaw in his stance. Not that I would be trained to recognise it, but his footwork was impeccable. Even I could see that he had no wasted movements, and every time he attacked it was as if he was dancing on the battlefield. Not to mention that he was both strong and fast for a human, and I didn't even know if that was his Quirk or not.

His Quirk...

Wait, his Quirk during the attack on the USJ was a mind control Quirk from afar! If he summoned his sword using a Quirk, then it was possible this his reflexes came from a Quirk as well. Which meant that he had more than one Quirk.

"Zero," I had to find out for myself, "All For One gave you more than one Quirk, right?"

He howled with laughter, even taking a step back from his blade to just laugh. Was he laughing at me or was he laughing at the situation. I could only grip my tachi tighter as I awaited a response, something I supposed I was doing more often. My nails were digging into the hilt of the blade as we just stood there, opposite each other. Despite his laughter, I knew that if I tried to attack him, I'd still stand no chance.

There was also the matter of Kurogiri standing a few metres away from us. During our entire exchange, he had said absolutely nothing. He simply didn't react; it was like I was staring at a ghost. Shit, I needed to end this fast or else I'd regret it for the rest of my life.

"All For One? Well, that's another piece of the puzzle, isn't it? Yes, you are correct. I do in fact have multiple Quirks thanks to All For One. Did you think I'd only fit my subordinates with multiple Quirks? Of course, I have multiple Quirks, just like you, no?"

"Did All For One give me my Quirks?"

Zero grabbed his blade up from the ground, pointing it at my throat.

"You're asking too many questions, questions that I don't think you really want answers to." He replied. "However, I can answer all your questions if you do one small thing. From who I am underneath this mask, to your parents and your Quirks. Even your role as the 'Fourteenth' will be explained to you, as long as you do one thing."

"And that is?"

"Join me," Zero responded, holding his left hand out for me. "If you join me, I'll be able to tell you the truth. You want the truth, the truth about us all. Why of all things did we wake up here in all places, why are there more of us. I'll be able to tell you all of that, plus more. If you want this all to stop, if you want those you care about to be safe then join me, I'll help you wherever I can. We can go back home to where we belong-,"

"Home?" I scoffed, "I'm already home. Your pitch is perfect, minus one small detail. I don't have a desire to go back 'home,' because I've already found my home. It's right here, with everyone that I care about. So, you can go take your offer elsewhere, because I'm not interested in it."

"You call this a home? No, I already know the answer to this question." Zero growled from behind his mask, "It's because you love the people here, don't you?"

"I do. Even if it does come from a manga, even if I already know some of what happens. Even if I know everyone's darkest secrets, it's still my home. It's still the place where I feel loved and wanted, the place where I can actually live my life. The place where I can actually look forward to the future, to what it will bring to myself and those that I care about. I have no desire to go back 'home' especially when I'm already there."

"The future huh? Well I ask you this one question Sora Yamazaki. How can you expect to live in the future when you choose to run away from your past?" Zero asked me. "The past always catches up to you, so you can run away from it however long you want. But it'll always follow you, forever and ever and ever and ever. Waiting for the perfect moment to strike, waiting to ruin your life. You can't tell me with a straight face that you reached closure with your past life, have you?"

"What's that got to do with anything-,"

"It's so important, that I am surprised how someone like you can miss the point entirely." Zero interrupted me. "How can you live in the present when the ghosts from your past still haunt you? All you are doing is running away from your problems, pretending it doesn't exist. You'd rather try and forget your past to live in the present, do you think that's healthy? Do you think it's fair for those who you 'care about' to suffer because you clearly haven't gotten over your past life? Because you haven't moved on, but you want to pretend that you have."

"You know nothing about me-,"

"Aozora," Zero said softly, "I know everything about you. I know all about your turbulent relationship with those you cared about when you were younger, I know all about your attempts to make up for them. I know that you still even to this day carry around the guilt of being a 'bad person.' That's why I'm asking you to join me, because I can help you. I can make sure that the guilt you feel can go away, because as much as you would like to live in the now, you can't escape your past. You'll never be able to walk forward without reconciling with who you once were, and I just want to give you that option. I want to give all of us that option."

"But at what cost?" I screamed back, "At a mountain of bodies? Of thousands of innocent lives cost just because you wanted to 'help us?' Bullshit. I don't believe that you just want to 'help us,' because you have your own issues. Your head is so stuck in the past that you aren't even living in the present, let alone the present. Can't you see what affect your plans are having on the people around you? Do you truly have no empathy for the people that you are slowly killing?"

I ran towards him, swinging my tachi as our blades clashed.

We would never understand each other, we would never be friends or even of the same side. We were just too different. We were the polar opposites of each other, while he wanted to go to the past, I wanted to leave it behind. I wanted to live for tomorrow, while he wouldn't be able to. We were incompatible with each other, and so we would always be at each other's throat. Not unless I conceded to his point, or if he started to act like me.

Two sides of the same coin fated to fight.

We would fight, over and over again until either I beat him, or he beat me.

It left a bitter taste in my mouth.

No matter how much both he and I joked about it, I still felt like shit every time our blades met. He was pulling his punches, I could gather that much just from the fact that he wasn't using both sides of his sword to cut me down. Plus, his stance looked unnatural to him. Like his body wasn't used to it, which made me think that he was just using me as an experiment for his blade.

Heh, that should have pissed me off but instead it made me happy. We were both trying not to kill each other, and for some odd reason that made me happy. Even if I didn't agree with Zero's actions, nor the way he wanted to live his life, the fact that he wasn't a bloodthirsty psychopath made me happy. Maybe under different circumstances, we could have played a few games together.

Nah.

As much as I'd love to befriend an enemy, that stuff only happened in manga and anime.

This was real.

As much as I wanted to say that he was faking this whole act, that he was trying to make me lower my defences to stab me in the back, from the corner of my eye I could see Kurogiri's disapproving stare. The League of Villains definitely didn't want this meeting to happen, meaning Zero likely strong-armed them into meeting with me. For just a chat? No, he must have had some ulterior motive.

Even if Zero was kind, he could have apologised and helped me in more ways than directly confronting me. He was trying to tell me something, or trying to figure something out and I was stuck. Oh well, if I beat him maybe I'd be able to get more information out of him.

He swung his blade, trying to catch me off guard, and I used my Nimbus to jump over it, attempting to slash his back from behind – But he was too fast. With each passing second that we traded blows, for every attempt he made to impale me, I made one to slash his throat. I wasn't able to suppress my rage towards him, and because of that it only grew. At this point I just wanted to beat him, and I didn't care what I had to sacrifice to do so-,

No.

I wasn't going to use that Quirk, not here! Not when I hadn't even reached Iida yet. Not when I hadn't achieved anything! I pulled down on the guard as a familiar blue light appeared around the tachi, and I was reminded yet again of its name.

The Kazekiri.

Wind cutter.

"Oh?" Zero looked impressed, "I wasn't aware of this. Well now, if you are planning to raise the stakes, I might as well do the same. If you land even a single hit on me, I'll take you directly to where your friend is, and I'll recall all the Nomu's. NOW SHOW ME YOUR STRENGTH! IF YOU WANT A 'CAREFREE TOMORROW' THAN SHOW ME THAT YOU CAN LIVE UNTIL THEN!" Tch, of course he knew. It meant that either someone talked, or that he had ties to U.A.

And knowing his mind control Quirk, it painted a picture I wasn't all too happy about.

But I'd win, I'd hit the bastard right now.

Using my Nimbus to create platforms in the air, I jumped around on them to try and find a blind spot. Even if he was highly skilled, he couldn't defend his body forever. So, I'd pressure him to attack, and only then would I attack him. And sure enough, he tried to intercept me jumping from between platforms, I could see his blade try to stab me mid-air, and so I only had one option. I tensed my body as I felt his blade skewer my leg.

I had noticed something during our fight, that Zero constantly led with an overhead swing that left left his torso and stomach open. It was a glaring weakness, but I had no way to exploit it. Until now. Gritting my teeth, I managed to smile at Zero as I gripped my sword even tighter changing it's position to be within swinging distance of his weak spot. Even that bastard Kurogiri was impressed.

This was all that I needed to win.

I twisted my leg, making it harder for him to pull his sword out as I ordered one of the Nimbus platforms close to me to push my forwards. Swinging my tachi, the Kazekiri, with both hands I yelled loudly as my sword clashed against his armour. I managed to push him back as he had to drop his sword in surprise, and even if my left leg was bleeding profusely, he couldn't deny the permanent dent he had on his armour.

Proof of my victory.

I grinned at the bastard, using my sword as support as I slowly limped towards him. I ignored the pain, instead using my Nimbus to wrap a bandage around my leg to stop the bleeding. It was temporary, but at least I could walk again. It would be enough to stop Iida, and worst-case scenario I'd be able to fight Stain long enough for reinforcements. Either way, I had won.

But Zero looked impressed, or rather that's what I could gather from his body posture. He relaxed more as he went to pick his sword back up, using his foot to flip it in the air and catching it with his left arm. It was a smooth motion, and one that I desperately wanted to recreate when I had the chance. Seriously, why was it that the villains knew a bunch of cool tricks.

"So, what's that now? Two wins for me, to zero for you? I guess it makes sense considering your name." I joked. I meant what I said during the USJ, he had picked a fight with me when he decided to try and attack 1A. And I wouldn't stop, not until he was in prison, he gave up entirely, or he was dead. I wasn't going to join him, nor was I going to back down from him. An unstoppable force meeting an immoveable object, that was what we both were.

"Kurogiri." Zero eventually said, "Make him a portal leading to him."

"I don't think that's a good idea-,"

Suddenly, the blade which Zero had been using against me was pointed directly at Kurogiri. The tension in the air rose exponentially, as both Zero and Kurogiri stared at each other for what seemed like eternity. They weren't partners, nor where they friends. Kurogiri distrusted Zero, and Zero couldn't care less about Kurogiri. And that probably stayed true with Shigaraki, and with All For One as well. I was reminded that Zero didn't work for them, he worked with them.

He held no loyalty to the villains.

"Oi," I yelled at him, "Why don't you join me? I'll teach you what it really means to live in the present. You want to waste your day playing games on my PC or watch an anime or two. Hell, I'll even let you burrow some of the manga and Light Novel series that I've completed. Maybe I'll take you to go and see my friends, that sounds like a fun day, right?"

Zero roared with laughter.

"I'll take you up on your offer one day, maybe once you accept my offer."

"Not happening any time soon." I replied.

"We will see about that," Zero then turned to face Kurogiri, "Open the portal for him. And then take me back to where Shigaraki is, I do have a bet to uphold. And I always pay back my debts, no matter the cost."

Kurogiri nodded as a portal opened up within him, the swirling purple mist freaked me out slightly. I then turned to Zero, tilting my head slightly as I stared at him curiously. Who was he, why did he wear a mask, and how much did he truly know?

"Go." He told me. "If you want to save your friend, then walk forwards. Show me the 'carefree tomorrow' you wish to build, that is if you are strong enough. Don't worry, the portal is safe. I wouldn't go back on my word, and Kurogiri can't exactly disobey my orders. But just know this, things will only get worse for you from here on out. We will meet again Sora Yamazaki, and when we do I expect you to truly show me your strength. If you want the answers to all your questions, then search for them. Your parents. If you want even more answers, then you know where to find me. That's your duty 'Fourteenth,' oh and one last thing."

Zero walked towards me, pushing me forwards into the portal as my eyes widened at what he said next.

"Have you ever played the piano?"

I didn't have time to respond as I was pushed through the portal forcefully, with more questions than answers. If it wasn't for my hands stopping me from crashing into the wall head on, I'm sure I would have at least broken my nose or something. Tch, I was going to make that bastard pay. But I had other things to worry about now, especially the heavy stench of blood in the air. I turned around from the wall to be greeted by a katana sword with jagged edges pointed at my throat.

And more than that, I was stepping in a pool of blood.

Not even a metre away from me, a body of a hero lay on the floor. He wore headgear with a feather attached to the front, as well as feathered cape and a jumpsuit with an "N" on it, to top it off with open-toed sandals. However, he had a massive wound on his chest that was pouring blood out on the floor, and that's when I realised who it was. It was the Pro-Hero Native! And he was-,

I nearly vomited once I came to the conclusion that Native was dead, and that I was stepping on his blood. Even worse was the blood-stained katana pointed at my throat, and the one holding it. He was a muscular man who was hunched over, and he had a somewhat flat looking face. His dark combat suit reminded me off Zero, but instead the person in front of me had no sleeves, and the man had instead chosen to wrap his arms in yellow bandages that were stained by the blood of his enemies. I could only gulp as I came face to face with the Pro-Hero Killer, Stain.

"Who are you?" He asked me coldly, his eyes calculating whether he should slit my throat or just leave me there.

"I-, I-," I wasn't able to formulate a sentence properly as I glanced back at Native's corpse, I could see the expression of terror still etched upon his face. Oh God. I swallowed the spit I had in my mouth as I took a deep breath and faced him fully. "I'm Aozora." I replied. "The Over-The-Top Hero: Aozroa."

"Never heard of you." Was the only reply I got.

"I'm a student."

He raised the katana closer to my throat as I said that, licking his lips as a small grin formed on his face. It was his eyes that unnerved me the most, because I recognised that look. The same look as a madman, like one of those murderers you would see on a documentary. He was insane, and his eyes reflected that.

"A student," He repeated excitedly, "Answer me this. If you had to choose between saving a bunch of kids, or defeating a villain what would you choose?"

"I-, uhm, is the villain holding anyone hostage?"

"No."

"Then I'd save the kids, and after they are safe, I'd deal with the villain."

"And if the villain was holding someone hostage, what then?" Stain added.

"I'd still go to save the kids first, but I'd also save the hostage." Was my answer. Stain studied me for a few seconds, leaning closer towards me as he sniffed me before growling as he turned away from me, kicking Native's corpse in response which scared me. Especially as Native gasped for air, raising his hand at me to try and tell me to run away. That was before a sword embedded itself in-between his eyes.

"Shut up you fake!" Stain yelled as he kept on kicking Native's corpse. I watched in horror as he pulled his katana out from Native and licked his blood. It was sickening, and while I never turned away from gore, what was happening in front of me made me feel like vomiting all over the floor. I couldn't look away as Stain turned back towards me, with a grin on his face.

"Aozora? The Blue Sky. One more question, do you think your fellow heroes are truly heroic? Do you not feel repulsed by how fake they are, by their attention seeking ways. Those media whores who would rather make more money off from their fans rather than save those in need, do you honestly think of them as heroes?" He asked me manically, staring directly at my eyes which unnerved me completely.

"As long as innocents are saved, that's what it takes to be a hero." I answered, "A fake can surpass the original if they try hard enough. That's what I believe in." Stain didn't say anything for a few seconds, his eyes narrowing as he looked at me curiously.

"WRONG!" He screamed manically, "WRONG! You are wrong, but your words, they had conviction. Tell me boy, that stench on you comes from those League of Villain bastards, doesn't it? Are you friends with them?"

"No," I replied, "As if I'd be friends with those pricks. They asked me to join them once again, and I beat the shit out of Zero. You know Zero? The guy with the mask that sounds edgy." Stain chuckled at that.

"Ah, he had conviction too-,"

Stain was cut off as the moonlight that lit the alleyway became obscured slightly. I turned to my right to see a suit of armour stand at the end. I cursed as Iida stood there, glaring hatefully at Stain who seemed to regard him a nuisance. Shit, I had to stop this, but my feet were frozen onto the ground. I was terrified of Stain, especially as he pointed his sword towards Iida who did nothing but walk towards us.

"Who the hell are you?"

"Who am I?" Iida repeated, "I'm Tenya Iida. You killed Tensei Iida, my brother. You killed Ingenium the hero, and my hero, so halt you villain scum! You won't take another life, I won't let you!" He shouted, shifting to his battle stance. Shit, things were heating up rapidly! I needed to get Iida out of here, and I needed Stain to fuck off to his secret base, or wherever he operated.

Light.

Looking up at the roof, I could have sworn that I saw someone jumping across them. Hm, maybe it was just my mind playing tricks on me? It's been a long day. Really long, and to think that it's my birthday as well.

Stain stroked his chin, before sheathing his katana. "Ah right, I did kill him. I'm not a hero, nor am I a villain. I just got rid of your brother who was a stain on our society, a stain on what it really means to be a hero. So kid, maybe you should have chose better role models-,"

"YOU MURDERED HIM IN COLD BLOOD!" Iida screamed at the man. "And for that, I'm going to kill you. Just like how you stabbed my brother to death, I'm going to stab you to death using your own blade. Your reign of terror ends on this night, Hero-Killer Stain!"

"Oh? Another fake that needs to be put down. Hero's aren't supposed to go after 'villain' for vengeance, All Might would never do such a thing." Stain unsheathed the katana that he had just put away, licking the blade as he readied himself to fight Iida. No, crap! I had to stop this! "Don't worry boy, you'll be meeting your brother soon enough." Stain said, licking his lips.

"No! IIDA RUN!" I found myself shouting, "HE'S ALREADY KILLED NATIVE, JUST RUN AWAY!" But he ignored me, it was like he didn't listen to me as he continued to glare hatefully at Stain. The murderer grinned, cackling slightly as he started to run towards Iida with the intention of-,

I screamed as I used my Nimbus to tackle Stain onto the floor, grabbing my tachi as I stood in-between Stain and Iida. Shit, I had to get him out of here quickly. Midoriya and Todoroki weren't here yet either, which meant that our odds of beating the bastard were small. Especially as he got up from the ground, laughing like a maniac. I readied myself once more, standing in between Iida and Stain.

"Oh? You want to play hero Aozora? Let's see if you truly have conviction!" Stain yelled as he swung his sword towards me, and I barely had time to react as I raised my tachi to meet his. I gritted my teeth as he licked his lips, and I could only push with all my strength as he jumped backwards. Good, he was on the backfoot. I had half a mind to use my Bankai right here and now, but that would take far too long. And Stain was quick, extremely quick as he leapt off the wall and tried to slash me again, this time from an angle.

If it wasn't for my Nimbus acting as a shield, I would have been cut on half.

Still, I couldn't play on the defensive for the whole fight. Just like with Zero-, ZERO! I just remembered how Zero fought, just like Stain did. They both started with and overhead swing and tried to stab my torso in between stabbing everything else. In fact, they both held their blades with their right hands, and they both had a similar stance. Which meant that either Stain copied him, or more accurately, Zero copied Stain.

And so, I had to wonder why he would show me the way Stain fights before I met him. I growled slightly as Stain came running at me again, this time I used my Nimbus to twist me out of the way and I managed to kick his stomach. He left it wide open, just like how Zero did. And that's when it hit me, Zero was trying to help me. He was fighting in the same way Stain did to try and prepare me for him, because he knew that I'd face off against him.

That was why he was holding back, that was why his body wasn't used to the stance and fighting style that he had employed during out fight. He wasn't used to it, he had hastily copied it off from Stain in an effort to prepare me for my fight with him. Zero knew that I was going to inevitably face off with him, in fact Kurogiri knew where Stain was meaning that they kept tabs on him.

But I had to ask myself why he would do something like that. I still couldn't wrap my head around why he would want to help me? Why? It was clear that Kurogiri, and so the rest of the League of Villains most likely, didn't agree with his actions. So then why did he go out of his way to do so? Why was he risking his alliance with the League of Villains, the people who could get him what he wants to help me?

Tch, even after I met the bastard, I only got more questions than answers.

I turned around to face Iida as I grabbed his arms and tried to drag him away from the alleyway as fast as I could. But he wouldn't budge, Iida wasn't moving, and I couldn't stop him as he ran towards Stain and kicked him on the ground. And yet, I saw his sword coming from a mile away as I dragged Iida out of the way. Shit, if Stain had managed to pierce Iida's armour and made him bleed, that would have been the end of it.

"What the hell are you doing?" Iida asked me.

"Saving your life." I responded as I dragged him out of the alley. Iida struggled against me, but ultimately, he couldn't do anything as I used my Nimbus to lift his legs up completely from the ground and tie them together.

"Let me go!" He yelled, "Yamazaki I need to do this-,"

"You need to become a murderer?" I coldly replied, throwing him against the wall. "Shut up. I don't want to hear your bullshit excuses Iida, you just said you were going to kill him. Do you really think I'm going to allow you to go back to that alley? Huh? Did you see Native's body, or were you so caught up in your rage that you didn't even realise that he killed another hero. We are just kids, there is no way we can handle him-,"

"Why don't you shut up!" Iida interrupted me, "He stole my brother away from me, and this entire time all you have done is try to persuade me to not go after him. Why can't you understand that I have to go after him, why can't you understand that I have to kill him. Putting him in prison won't make my brother come back-,"

"And killing him won't resurrect your brother either," I replied. "Your brother died. Get the fuck over it, because I'm sure if he saw you right now, he'd be disappointed. Your supposed to be a hero, now act like one you fucking dumbass. You think killing Stain is gonna' make you a hero? Don't make me laugh, you're just lashing out. Aren't you supposed to be smart? Then use your brain, what do you think is going to happen after you kill him, huh? Listen, I get how you feel, but think about the consequences-,"

"I don't care about what happens after."

"What was that?" I shouted at him.

"I said," Iida screamed, "I don't care about what happens after. I just want to kill him, to get revenge for my brother. To get revenge on the person who I looked up to the most, the person who I wanted to impress, and even surpass. He was my brother, we shared the same blood. How the hell would you understand anything about how I feel, you're an orphan! You never had a family to know what it means to see it fall apart!"

It took one second for all hell to break loose.

Stain attacked us while we weren't looking, and I had to deftly dodge his katana to ensure that I wasn't impaled, which mean that I banged my head against the floor. That caused me to be hurt, and after what Iida said to me, I wasn't able to regain my concentration as my Nimbus disappeared. It meant that Iida was set free, and so Iida attacked Stain causing a brawl to break out in the streets between the two.

I coughed slightly, as I got back up on my feet and ran towards the action, swinging my tachi at Stain with the intent to break his sword. If I got rid of his sword, we would win the damn fight. Stain was quick, extremely quick, which became especially apparent when it became Iida and I versus him.

For every blow I landed on Stain, Iida would come behind me and land even more. He was aggressive, that much was obvious. However, he was too aggressive, especially as he tried to get multiple hits which left him vulnerable, especially for Stain to try and stab him.

If it wasn't for me using my Nimbus to drag him away from Stain at the last second, Iida's blood would have been ingested by Stain. But that did not mean that he appreciated it, no, instead Iida decided to try and kick my Nimbus in response, which meant that I felt that same pain throughout my body.

Message received.

Just because I was working with Iida didn't mean that he was on my side. This wasn't a two versus one situation, no it was a free-for-all between Iida, Stain and me. Iida wanted to kill Stain, and vice versa, while I just wanted to grab Iida and run away. But I couldn't, nor could I use my Nimbus for anything other than pushing Iida out of the way. I couldn't use my Chidori, or any other of my moves that required some Nimbus because I simply wouldn't have enough to push Iida out of the way.

My Nimbus could only be used from a distance so that I had enough time to catch up to Iida.

"Shit," I spat out. This wasn't going well, especially as Stain drove the two of us backwards into the alleyway we just escaped from. However, I had an idea. I mentally apologised to the owner of the car as I used my Nimbus that was a few metres away from me to make a giant hand to pick up the nearest car, and I threw it at Stain with all I had.

To his credit, Stain jumped on top of the car and leapt towards me to try and take me out, but Iida instead kicked me out of the way to meet Stain head on, delivering a kick to his head. But while the kick connected, Stain also managed to infiltrate Iida's armour and stab him, drawing his blood. My eyes widened as I ran towards Stain as fast as I could, I had to stop him before he could ingest Iida's blood!

Pulling the guard of my sword down, I made my 'Truth-Seeking Orbs' from my Nimbus fly towards Stain, keeping him occupied from ingesting Iida's blood as I went straight for his sword. With each strike made against his sword, more of it was being chipped off. Piece by piece, I managed to completely break Stain's sword in half, kicking the blade with Iida's blood away from Stain.

He was safe, for now.

But I couldn't react in time as Iida came from behind me, his exhaust pipes flaring red as he landed to kicks on me, launching me into the car which I had thrown at Stain. Ouch, that fucking hurt! I growled as I wrapped my Nimbus around my arms and tore off each car door, using it as a frisbee to throw at both Stain and Iida.

However, both of them managed to avoid my attacks.

Stain, using his sword manage to slice the door thrown at him with ease, while Iida simply kicked it away like it was nothing.

Tch, bloody show-offs.

I had another trick up my sleeve.

"HOW ABOUT YOU TAKE SOME OF THIS!" I yelled at the two of them.

Summoning my Nimbus completely, I reached from within me to turn my Nimbus into flames at the cost of some of my fingers. Using my teeth to tear a bit of my clothing off, I managed to wrap it around my fingers ensuring that I'd be able to at least hold my tachi up. But I did draw out my bokuto, and forced the flames to set the wooden sword on fire, throwing it at Stain like a javelin.

I grinned as my plan was set in motion.

When I threw the car, some gas had leaked and managed to get all over the floor. Some of the gas even fell on Stain, who couldn't react in time as he was also set on fire. Yet, that didn't deter him. Instead, it made him more determined as he fought Iida despite the burns across his body. Unfortunately, the amount of gas that had managed to land on Stain was miniscule.

But he was still on fire, so that was a positive at least.

Iida was on the backfoot, constantly trying to defend himself from Stain while he tried to crush his throat with his foot. Using the rest of my flames, I made them wrap around tachi and ran towards Iida as I began to cut his armour. Stain was outclassing us, even if Iida and I weren't working together to beat him, he was still able to fight us both on a one-on-one.

Usually, I wouldn't be able to cut his armour, however, the intensity of my flames which had now turned blue was starting to melt his armour. I had a plan; I couldn't carry Iida in his armour. I simply didn't have that much strength, so instead I'd force him to come out of his armour and drag him away easier.

Stain however, had another idea.

Pulling out a few knives, he threw them at us, and I was forced to jump away from Iida and use my left hand to cover my face. I grimaced as one knife stabbed my left hand, and I had to use my teeth to pull it out of my hand. Just as Stain was about to pick up the knife that had stabbed me, I willed the flames to fly towards his mouth as it burned his tongue completely.

Stain writhed around in pain, before glaring hatefully towards me. I grinned at him, before running to cut his hand off. Was it heroic? Maybe not. But he was dangerous, and as long as he could cut something, we would always be on the disadvantage.

If I managed to defang him, the fight would be over.

Unfortunately, Iida didn't agree with me as he used his legs to kick one of the knives, he had thrown at us in mid-air back towards Stain, stabbing him directly in the chest. But that did nothing to slow him down, just like last time he ran straight towards Iida.

"DIE YOU FAKE!" Stain yelled as Iida could only run towards the criminal with an equally fierce look on his face. They were both aiming to kill each other with a single blow, Stain aiming to stab Iida's chest, while Iida aimed to crush either Stain's throat, or completely cave his chest with his foot.

"JUST SHUT UP AND DIE!" Iida yelled back.

And then the cars around us exploded.

Before the two could reach each other, the gasoline all over the floor had managed to travel across the street, and so me setting it ablaze only served to burn the street even more than I already had. Shattered glass flew everywhere, and I had to duck to avoid a tire that nearly knocked me out. But I wasn't as lucky as I had thought as a piece of shrapnel stabbed my right foot.

Iida, however, couldn't move in time. He had tripped over a car door and fell on the floor as Stain pounced on him, raising his katana high to completely cut Iida in half. I could only watch in horror as the sword came closer, and closer to Iida while I was stuck on the ground. I quickly scrambled to get on my feet, but everything hurt. Both my legs felt like jelly as I couldn't stand up in time.

Shit, get up!

GET UP!

"DETROIT SMASH!"

My eyes widened as Izuku Midoriya came running at Stain and punched him in the face, sending him flying backwards to one of the car wreckages. I sighed in relief as I got up and ran towards Midoriya, shielding Iida's left side, ignoring the pain for the time being. Heh, I owed Midoriya a blowjob and a half at least. Now that was a fucking hero, saving the day as always.

"Hm, another fake?"

"I won't let you harm Iida or Sora!" Midoriya shouted at Stain, "You won't hurt another person again! Not after everyone that you have hurt, after all the families that you have destroyed, lives you have ruined! I'm-, We are going to put you in prison Stain!" I clapped at that, what Midoriya said was true. Stain was going to be in a cell soon enough, and then he would be able to write to me describing what prison is like.

"You have conviction boy," Stain replied, "Even if you are defending a fake, both of you are showing much more conviction than most of these fakes. Most of these heroes like Native, like Endeavour, like Hawks! But you two, you two remind me exactly like him! Your unwavering sense of justice even in a dangerous situation, your heroic natures! You two are both like All Might, your convictions stand on top of the pile of fakes!"

"Shut up your crazy psycho!" I yelled at him, before turning to Midoriya and smiling at him. "Good to see you Midoriya. Thanks for the save, I honestly wouldn't know what I would have done if it was't for you."

"G-good to see you as well S-Sora." Midoriya replied, glancing behind him as Iida stared at him in surprise. "Iida-san, please stay back! You are injured-,"

"Protect Iida, will you? He wants to kill Stain. I'll hold him off for a little, so long as you provide me some support from afar." I cut him off. Midoriya seemed unsure at first, but he nodded at me and went along with my plan. Despite Iida's protests, Midoriya pinned him on the ground as I ran towards Stain, who was rushing us once more. However, when Izuku began to flick his fingers, the shockwaves produced managed to slow him down considerably.

I grinned as I thought of a perfect way to end this.

My fire was still up and running, and so I reached deep inside me and willed it. All the fire in the area, even the fire caused from the gasoline, I could feel it. And so, I gave up my left hand as I transformed it all into clouds. Suddenly, about three cars worth of Nimbus floated on top of me. That was the beauty of my 'Gambler's Quirk,' after I had paid the toll I kept it until either I willed it away, or I passed out.

Stain's eyes widened as I moulded each Nimbus into tens of spears and swords and hurdled them directly towards Stain with as much speed as I could.

"UNLIMITED BLADE WORKS BITCH!" I yelled as blood poured down from my arm, and the leg injury from before with Zero pulsated once more. Not yet, the fight wasn't done yet! Despite my attacks, Stain was somehow standing. Even if he had weaved through a few of them, the majority of them had at least grazed him, with some even impaling him directly.

He looked like a zombie, like he had gone to hell and back, but he was still standing. Iida and I's attacks had done a number on him, with a few burns coursing through his body, along with the various marks he now spotted across his body. And yet, hunched back as always, with his broken katana he was still able to fight.

He still had that same manic smirk plastered across his face.

"So, this is your conviction?" Stain said. "It's hot, burning hot! Like a flame of justice, yet within that flame holds so much power! But I wonder, what will happen to your conviction once I start to kill your friends? Will your sense of justice remain Aozroa, will your green-haired friend crack once I kill you? Show me! " He ran towards me, and I couldn't react as he leapt over me, running towards Midoriya and Iida.

Midoriya tried his hardest to deal with Stain from afar, but when he saw that it wasn't going well for him, he ran up to meet Stain head on. My eyes widened as Izuku managed to grab Stain's broken sword and rip it off him with ease and without flinching, throwing it behind him and punching Stain in the jaw, which nearly made him topple over, but it wasn't enough.

Damn it, just what was Stain made from?!

From behind, Iida came running up and kicked Stain on the side of his head, before sweeping him onto the ground and began to choke him out with his foot. Midoriya and I didn't even see the attack coming as we ran up to Iida and tried to drag him away from chocking Stain out. It took the combined efforts of Midoriya and I to pull Iida off from Stain, but it wasn't enough as we then found ourselves fighting Iida.

He stood in front of us, glaring hatefully at the injured villain behind us.

"Get out of the way, final warning." He told us.

"No Iida-san, I won't allow you to become a villain!" Midoriya yelled, "I know that you looked up to your brother... and I know that you want to kill Stain! But I won't let you, I won't let you become something that you don't want to be! I won't explain to Uraraka-san as to why I failed to stop you, I won't let you make a decision that you will regret for the rest of your life!" Midoriya dug his feet into the ground, green lightning crackled around him thanks to One For All.

"What he said," I added, "Stay the fuck down, or else this orphan will beat your ass into next week." Iida flinched at that, he looked guiltily at the floor as he clutched his chest in anger. Tears were streaming down his face as he broke down in front of us, clenching his teeth as he tried to wipe away his tears. In front of me wasn't some hero trying to kill a villain, nor was he a friend of mine.

In front of me was just a scared, and angry boy lashing out in the only way he knew how.

"Why, why, why!" He screamed at us, "Just let me kill him! Let me kill him, just like how he killed my brother! Why the hell do you all care so much?! Can't you see that I want to be left alone! Can't you see that I don't care - that all I want to do is kill him! I can't sleep, I can't eat. All I can do is think about how much I want to kill him, so just let me do this one thing! LET ME KILL HIM!"

"Your conviction," Stain said behind us. "It's strong, I'll give you that. I can feel your hatred even from here, and if you were a villain, I'd give you a pass. Your right, I murdered your brother, and for that I deserve to be punished. But not by you brat. You, who calls yourself a 'hero,' you who wants to kill me are nothing but a fake. But you see, you and I, we aren't so different-,"

"I'M NOTHING LIKE YOU!" Iida shouted, his voice cracking near the end as he ran towards us at full speed. But he was faster compared to before. The orange in his exhaust pipes flared into a electric blue as he blazed past Midoriya, and I before we could even react.

Crunch.

The sickening sound of bones breaking could be heard as Iida broke one of Stain's ribs with a single blow.

"RECIPRO BURST!" Iida yelled explosively as he landed blow after blow on Stain. He wasn't stopping until either Stain or himself was killed.

"DO SOMETHING!" I shouted at Midoriya as I ran to Iida and tried to push him away from Stain, but I had no such luck. Midoriya tried his hardest to push Iida away, but even I could tell that he was terrified of hurting Iida more than he already had.

Crap, Stain's blood was painting the fucking ground red.

I prayed to God silently, hoping that I'd be alright as I jumped in front of Stain and took each kick from Iida. I could see his eyes widening, I could see the anguish on his face as he tried to stop, but he couldn't. I stood there, taking each kick meant for Stain as I screamed in pain. Gah, his kicks fucking hurt, but Hinata and Gekko didn't raise a bitch. Even after multiple kicks, and a broken rib or two, I still stood there grinning like an idiot as I spat out blood on the floor.

"Is that it?" I joked, "Really Iida? I bet a grandma could kick better than you-," I collapsed on the floor, coughing up more blood. "Shit, that really hurt." Iida stood their silently as he stared at me guiltily, even Midoriya wasn't able to move as his eyes widened in shock. I had taken that shit like a champ, hell I was probably one door away from death. But I stopped him, I stopped Iida from killing him-,

"SORA MOVE!" Iida yelled as he grabbed me by me collar and threw me aside, and that was when I screamed. While I was getting kicked by Iida, Stain had got up from the floor and had grabbed a knife off the floor and went to stab me. One of the knives that he had thrown at me and Iida earlier was somehow near us, and using that he pushed forward and tried to kill me.

But instead of me getting stabbed, Iida had thrown me out of the way and had taken the knife himself.

The knife that was meant for me had instead embedded itself in Iida, the knife that was meant to stab me had gone to someone else.

Anger.

Rage.

Fury.

Iida took a knife for me. Iida, the same person that wanted to kill Stain, the same person that fought against me took a knife for me. Stain would have stabbed me in the back if it wasn't for Iida, and that pissed me off. No, that didn't just piss me off. It made me want to kill Stain, it made me want to tear his fucking spine out from his body, it made me want to decapitate him-,

I bit my hand, hard enough to draw blood.

No, I wasn't going to lose to him now of all times. That other side of me could keep quite and shut up, because I wasn't listening to what he was offering! Despite my conditions, and despite the pain coursing throughout my body, I threw my tachi to the ground as I got up and walked towards Stain. He was cackling madly; a smirk having been formed on his ugly face.

And despite that, Iida fell to the ground, blood pouring from his wound.

"I got rid of the fake, I got rid of the fake-,"

I punched Stain in the jaw, causing him stumble slightly. Summoning my Nimbus, I broke my other hand as more Nimbus appeared, and instead of a cloud, something else started to form.

Another human.

One that looked more muscular than me, one that floated above me like a ghost.

"You got rid of nothing," I spat at him, "Now go to sleep for a while, because the next time you wake up, it'll be in a jail cell." Even if I couldn't punch the bastard myself, my Stand could. Instantly my Nimbus pounced on Stain, pummelling him with punched far faster than the human body could even achieve. I felt a grin form on my face as he was punched repeatedly in the face, some of his teeth being knocked out as he was sent flying towards the ground, resulting in his nose breaking, or was that even more of his ribs?

"Take that... bastard." I coughed up more blood as I collapsed on the floor. Shit, I was down for the count. Luckily, Iida seemed to be fine. The knife had pierced his armour yes, but it was a shallow cut on his chest. He would be fine, which meant that he would live another day. I felt relieved as I slowly stood back up with Midoriya's help, and we both reached out to help Iida get off the ground.

Yet, he could only stare blankly at the sky.

"Hehe," Stain was laughing, "That's one down." I swore in realisation as I turned back to Stain surprised, he ingested Iida's blood! When he had stabbed Iida, he had managed to get some small parts of his blood and had ingested it. Crap. Fuck.

"MIDORIYA, TAKE IIDA AND RUN!" I yelled. "IIDA CAN'T MOVE, SO JUST RUN!" Midoriya however didn't listen as he ran towards Stain and attempted to fight him. That was when I realised that I had lost my voice.

Fuck, FUCK!

I couldn't even warn Midoriya, and when Stain's knife managed to cut him-,

"Freeze."

The temperature around the area became chilly as ice spread from the floor up to Stain, and I sighed in relief. On the other side of the street Shoto Todoroki stared at us with the same expression on his face as always, but I could see it in his eyes, he was worried for us. With each step he took, the colder and colder the street became. Todoroki was fucking pissed, or was that his natural mood?

Ha, how great, another hothead.

"Midoriya, hang back. I'll take him down." Todoroki said as he raised his right hand and more ice appeared, freezing Stain in place as Midoriya managed to steal his knife away from him. Even as Stain managed to break out from the ice, he knew he had lost as he scoured the area, looking for an escape route. I could only sigh in relief as Stain was backed further and further into the corner by Todoroki.

He was outnumbered, and he was heavily injured.

We had won.

We had won-,

"Enough."

That voice, it came from above us! Suddenly, Midoriya and Todoroki were both pinned to the ground as someone walked towards us. Each step they took increased the pressure in the air as I panicked to get up from the ground. It was like an invisible force had placed weights on top of them, and to some extent even me. I gritted my teeth as I tried to slowly stand up.

Whoever they were, they weren't an ally.

"Oh? Still trying to fight, are you? Impressive." The voice said once again as I was lifted up from the ground. In front of me, was a man with long dark purple hair. He wore a long grey overcoat over a standard navy blue suit with a white shirt underneath, with simple black suit trousers that were held up by two brown belts. His yellow pinstripe tie and white trainers clashed heavily with the rest of his outfit, and yet he looked oddly charming.

He was tanned, extremely tanned. He looked more Greek, or Turkish-, No, he looked directly from Okinawa. Like he had spent his entire life out in the sun, basking in it day in and day out. He was also tall, or taller than me at least. He was at least five foot nine, or even five foot ten, I couldn't exactly tell the difference from the floor. All that was missing was a bowler hat, or any sort of hat.

Maybe even a pair of glasses.

That would surely have completed his outfit.

But it was his eyes that unnerved me. More so than Stain's, who appeared manic, the persons eyes in front of me were calm. They were blue and yellow, calm and collected, and yet they held the same madness. No, the person in front of me was madder than Stain, and he knew it. And that damned smile, that damn smirk on his face that told me everything I needed to know about him. He thought-, No, he was enjoying this.

"Maa, maa Aozroa. That scowl on your cute face doesn't suit you, maybe you should smile more?" The man said cheerfully, but I knew that it was an act. "You never know when someone might carve your face with a knife, so smile for me won't you? Still, I can't believe you managed to beat Stain. Even after I warned him that he would lose, he actually went and lost. How sad, you've made me sad Stain. Are you going to apologise?"

"S-shut up clown-,"

"Now, now. Don't overexert yourself now Chizome, I would hate for you to lose your tongue." The man joked towards Stain as he dropped me back on the floor and picked up the murderer. "Well, cheerio I suppose." The man said as he turned around and started to walk away from us.

"Wait!" I yelled, trying to get back up. "Don't go anywhere bastard and drop the fucker back down on the ground!" The man shut his eyes as he chuckled at my antics, waving his hand around like he had heard the funniest joke ever. And then when he opened his eyes, the blue and yellow from before was replaced by a red and green with a minus sign in both eyes.

"Are you sure you want that, hn?" I couldn't breathe as it felt like I was being choked to death. I clawed my way over to the man as I grabbed at his coat and tried to pull him to the ground, but I didn't have enough strength. I was feeling lightheaded, and when I could finally breathe again, I gasped for air. Midoriya and Todoroki had both gotten up from the ground, but the man's eyes turned to blue and yellow again, the minus sign in his irises now having disappeared, pinning them on the ground once more.

It was like an invisible force was sitting on them, just like before.

"You know this was such a wonderful day," He began, "The new Dengeki novels came out today. And then there was a new coffee flavour that came out, but it wasn't worth it. Pumpkin Spice tasted nasty, so I wouldn't recommend that flavour for you. But I would recommend you try the normal caramel iced frappe; it was nice as always. And then the Nomu's caused all this beautiful destruction, all the fire and screams of help. It was like music to my years, you know?"

He then crouched on the ground as he flicked my ear playfully.

"But then, then I manage to see you. I see you chasing around the city looking for your friend, so I decided to test you. There was a perfectly good building in front of you, so I decided to burn it down. Hehe, and sure you enough Aozora, you went in and saved the kid trapped inside. You saved him, just like a hero!" He clapped his hands at that, "And afterwards you met with that party-pooper. Zero. Isn't he so annoying? He's so serious all the time, such a stickler for his 'plans.' I'll tell you this, I definitely prefer you, and it isn't just because you are much cuter than that mask of his."

The man ruffled my hair as he got back up from the ground.

"You see Aozora, Zero wouldn't understand you. Nor would he understand me, if you catch my drift," The man unbuttoned his shirt to reveal the number nine tattooed on his chest. "You're lucky you know, not having an ugly number like this on your body. But as I was saying, you are much more fun compared to Zero. But I wouldn't dare of asking you to join up with me, no that wouldn't be any fun at all. So here I am, taking little Chizome out of your hands for the time being. Don't worry, Chizome has been a friend of mine for years – I'll patch him up all nice and good for you."

"C-come back!" I yelled at him, "Don't move a fucking muscle!"

The man tutted in response. "Tsk, when will you youngsters ever learn. This fight is over Sora-chan, you have won. Chi-chan over here has lost, and as his manager I am forfeiting him from the rest of the fight. I know, its anti-climactic after the intense fight you had, and let me tell you it made me sad that I couldn't interfere. I would have loved to fight against the four of you, especially all at once. But alas, I got caught up in the chaos around me. I suppose I was too busy living in the present to really notice what exciting things were happening right in front of me. Unlike that sour grape, you get it, right? Our lives here are so much fun, so why would we ever want to go back?"

"Y-you-,"

"Now, now Sora-chan. You're already injured, and I took the liberty of calling an ambulance for you. After all, as your 'older brother' I do have to look after you. While you may be the 'Fourteenth,' you still are family. So don't sweat it, I've got you lil' bro. Just live out your life the way you want, and I'll be oh-so proud of my cute little brother. Mmh, I do hope you become a strong hero in the future! Maybe you can even arrest me?" The man joked. "Oh well, our time has been cut short. How regrettable, after all this time my reunion with my little brother has made me all the more excited for out next reunion. Ja ne, Sora-chan!"

"Wait!" I yelled, "Where the hell are you going? Who the hell even are you?"

"Oh right, how could I forget my manners." The man then turned back around and dropped Stain on the floor like a sack of potatoes, who grumbled loudly at that. "Chi-chan, don't go complaining like that, especially in public! Ahem, Aozora your name means the 'blue sky,' correct?" I nodded at him. "Well then my name shall be Yozora, the 'night sky.' Now I can't go telling you my hideout, but I can say that we will meet again. Especially since that un-interesting younger brother of ours works with the League, it means that the three of us will be having a lot of fun together in the future."

"Fun?" I asked confused.

"So much fun, to the point where I'm so excited that I can barely keep it in. I just want to jump around and kill everyone that I find, but it's a shame I have to stop myself from doing all that. Or else every hero in the country would come searching for me, and that isn't fun. Still, those pesky League of Villains are annoying. Don't worry Sora-chan, Stain and I would never sell our souls to them. No, we have our own plans that are going to be so much fun. But until then, we have to go hide. So, until we meet again brother!" He grabbed Stain off the ground once more and ran away into the night.

I could only sigh in response as to what just occurred. Just great, I meet another person who was reincarnated and they were working with a murderer. Hell, they were probably a murderer too. Why, why couldn't I just meet a hot police detective that wanted to do 'role-play' with me? Why couldn't Jiro just wear a maid costume and call me 'Sora-sama' for a day, whilst also wearing cat ears.

Life, I decided, hates me.

Why did I exist, just to suffer?

"You didn't tell me you had a brother." Todoroki spoke suddenly, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"Mate, I didn't know I had a brother until now." I replied honestly, laughing at that.

"Oh."

I yawned as the sirens of the ambulance came closer to us.

"Hey, can you guys take a photo of me? I want to send it to Bakugo to piss him off. Maybe something with the tag line of, 'I fought the Hero-Killer, how was your day?' Oh right, I almost forgot. Thanks for the birthday messages you guys. I still can't believe that all this happened on my birthday, like jeez. What kinda' luck do I have for this to happen?"

"Sora-san, don't speak until the ambulance gets here. You could die-,"

"Izuku, Izuku, Izuku." I sang, "I'll be fine, honestly. I drink milk every day, so my bones are healthy. Sure, I feel a little lightheaded, but who doesn't? I'm more worried about Iida, he's been quiet for a few minutes now. Oh, and thanks for the save you two, seriously you guys had me on the edge of my seat. If this was an anime some badass music would play right now, like a 'well done for the fight' type music."

"I'll take your word for it."

"Wait, have you never not seen an anime Todoroki?"

"Should I have?"

"Should I have-, ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! Midoriya, get me my fucking phone right now! My fingers are hurting, so I'll need you to type up a few anime to show Todoroki while the ambulance arrives. It's the first website that I favourited, just click the no button for any adverts that pop up, and you'll be fine."

"Sora-san, is there never not a time when you can act normally?"

"Act normally? Please Midoriya, as if you can act normally either. Seriously, no one other than you uses 'san,' not even Yaoyorozu who's like the Queen of politeness. It's either Sora, Yamazaki or 'shitty cloud watcher.' Oh, by the way, Bakugo sent me a birthday message, the fuck is up with that?"

"Ah, my mum told Kacchan's mum that it was your birthday, so she probably forced him to say happy birthday to you."

"You speak about me to your mum? I'm flattered Midoriya, but I like girls."

"I-, I-,"

"Relax man, relax. Jeez, you are way too easy to tease." I sat up grinning as Midoriya helped me up from the ground. "Still, Uraraka's nice, isn't she? Like, I would totally date her if I had the chance."

"W-what about Uraraka?" Izuku asked nervously.

"You should ask her out," I told him, "You two would make a cute couple. Like you could buy her mochi in the morning before school, and then she would kiss you in the cafeteria as she eats her mochi with you. And then you two can go to the toilet together and you can fuck her in the cubicles, just be sure to wear protection-,"

"SORA-SAN PLEASE STOP TALKING!" Midoriya shouted, burying his face in his arms in embarrassment. "Uraraka-san is just a friend. That's all." I scoffed at that, turning towards Todoroki who shrugged his shoulders in response.

"How much you wanna' bet that by the time we graduate they will start going out?"

"Some yakisoba?"

"Todoroki, you have yourself a bet."

---

No, Yozora isn't the biological brother of Sora.

Still, that's another plot-point I've been waiting to set up for a while.

So far it's:

Sora and Tokage with the Heroes.

Zero and with LoV.

And now Yozora with Stain as the outliers.

Really, I'm just setting up the pieces on the board. As for how many more people will show up? Well that's the question isn't it? Still we got some more information on Zero this chapter, and maybe two good fights? I tried to add a bunch of cool shit to the fights will still making it feel like a normal fight. But yes, as of now the Stain arc is finished.

The next chapter is mostly tying things up and more of a break from the constant action of this chapter, as well as a few talks between characters, especially Iida. I mean he took a knife in the chest for Sora, even when he wanted to kill someone. Which I know, Iida as a whole might feel slightly weird here. Most of it will be explained next chapter, but as for some of my reasoning for Iida acting the way he has is because his brother is dead.

People react to grief in many different ways.

And poor Native, I had to kill him. Originally I was supposed to have him stay alive for a bit, or have a Quirk that allowed him to resurrect himself or something, but that was scrapped. I really don't care for Native, and so I had him killed to show how truly dangerous Stain is, plus it scared the shit out of Sora.

Now, I know having Stain escape at the end could be seen as a 'cop out' but hear me out. I want Stain to be a sort of recurring villain in the future for Iida, like an obstacle for him to overcome to truly become a hero. In his quest for vengeance, how many people died that could have been saved? Plus, he treated his friends (Sora) horribly this chapter, even fighting against them to try and kill Stain.

Like how Zero is Sora's 'rival' or how Dabi and Todoroki, or Midoriya and Shigaraki are fated to clash, I want Iida to have someone to face off against in the future. And for me, the perfect person for that is Stain. Iida will definitely develop into a different character compared to canon, and that's no part thanks to Sora.

Still this is the 25th chapter. I reckon about 15-ish more chapters left until Part 1 ends? I mean there isn't that much for me to write. Like all it is now is the Test (Which shouldn't take more than one chapter) and then we move on to the training camp (That'll take a few chapters, and will be very different to canon) and then ? before ending with the Shie Hassakai Arc which will end up being the longest arc in this story thus far. Okay, maybe 15 chapters is a little short.

Oh I also forgot the provisional license arc, but that isn't going to be longer than a chapter.

So it's going to be 2 chapters for the test and provisional license arc.

Like 5 chapters for the camp and ? arcs, leaving 8-ish chapters left.

8 is more than enough for me to cover any 'filler scenes' and the Shie Hassakai arc.

But to be honest 15 is a rough estimate, and It'll probably end up being 20 just because I want to add so many little things before Part 1's ending, just so it ends up even better than I would have wanted. Damn... maybe I won't be able to finish Part 1 this year? Actually, I will. If it get's to that point I'll probabaly switch to weekly uploads so I can finish this in October-ish.

Then a nice long break until April to edit Part 1 and start to write Part 2.

Still that's enough from me, let's talk about you!

Snakehulk: Hero's do not 'beat the shit' out of criminals. I'm sorry, but to me hero's are supposed to inspire hope, not fear. And Oboro is not a 'dead main-character' even with his role in vigilantes, at best he is a side character. 'Same stupid logic that schools use' I don't know, because maybe if someone is bullying you, that doesn't give you the right to snap their fucking neck in response?

Like okay, I get it Mr Macho - If someone gave you a dirty look you would run them over with your car, but that isn't exactly cool in my opinion. Nor is it necessary. I'm not trying to write some hard ass motherfucker, and him being out of touch with reality is the point. Like, was that not clear enough?

'Seek help,' okay dude. I will.

Honestly if you want to criticise this, at least criticise it correctly. Like holy shit your argument can basically be summed up as 'Meh, I don't like your character as he acts different to how I would act! So I'm going to insult the author!' At least give me some feedback to improve on. The only thing that I gained from your review was a couple of laughs.

Servant Ambrosius: Hehe, I didn't realise the Sun Wukong links until you pointed them out. And I definitely am going to explore that, I already wrote down notes about Sora's character arc a long time ago, so having something like this just makes it easier to tie it into the themes, oh and make a lot of jokes with it. A lot of jokes.

MintEdd: Maybe he will work with Hawks, maybe he won't. :)

Nightwing265: Thank you! I've tried my hardest to make this unique, but honestly at times it's hard. I get why reincarnation fics play it safe, but if I ever rehash the same plot points from those fics then I'd actually kill this story right away. I'm haven't spend this much time writing and planning this story to make it safe, no I want to push myself as a writer.

Even if it's trial and error, I'll gladly take that path.

So thanks for telling me I managed to do something unique, and I hope you enjoy reading this story!

Guest: This is extremely childish. Sora is 16 now, he's still a kid. So, excuse him (Or don't, I really couldn't care less.)

And that's all folks!

Next time on Over the Top:

Blah, blah, blah. Are you in heat or something?