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...

36. Issue 35

Well, we reached 700 followers.

I never thought I'd make it here.

Massive thanks to all of you! Let's aim for 1000, even if it'll be a challenging goal to reach. Reaching 1000 followers before part 1 ends will probably not happen, but I can dream. Still, thanks for 700! It's 700 more than I was expecting to be honest, I thought I'd have given up on this story after a few chapters.

But I'm glad I didn't.

The Pillows (Great band) - Sayonara Universe is the song for today's chapter. A little more sombre and whatnot. This is definitely going to be the darkest chapter of the series thus far, in my opinion, so brace yourselves.

Sometimes, ignorance is bliss.

SORRY FOR THE LATE UPLOAD!

I know it's only by a day, but this was the one chapter where I wanted to write it perfectly. More so than the last chapter, since one of the very scenes in this chapter was something I had dreamed of writing from the very beginning. And I'm pretty happy with how it turned out, so the chapter delay was literally just to me adding a few more touches!

So sorry!

---

Summary so far:

No need for one, let's get right into the action, shall we?

---

Izuku Midoriya POV

He woke up to a machine beeping loudly in his ear. It wasn't that Izuku Midoriya wasn't used to the hospital, instead every time he woke up in one he felt immense sadness. It wasn't that there was a particular reason behind it, but if he had to attribute that sadness to anything it would be the feeling one gets from visiting a hospital. That sense of hopelessness and helplessness against whatever your fate may be.

Or it could be because the most life-changing moment happened to him at a hospital.

"Sorry kid, it's not going to happen."

He could still hear those words being spoken, and the despair he felt at the moment. The sadness, anger and most important of all - Feeling lost. It still made him feel lost and made him want to cry. But somehow, everything turned around for him. He gained a Quirk, one from his favourite hero no less, he managed to get into the school of his dreams, and he managed to make friends with everyone in his class. Sure, some classmates were more difficult to handle compared to others, but he was fine with that.

He was in no position to be picky.

And it was exactly that reason that made him sigh softly, opening his eyes to greet the beige walls and white ceiling of the hospital. If he was in no position to be picky, then why was he keeping it a secret from his friends? He regretted having to lie to them, he really did, but he thought it was for the better. If All Might could do it, then so could he. But watching Sora's secrets put them in danger, watching as a classmate he held nothing but respect for turn around to be more like him than he originally thought…

It put things into perspective.

'Will my secrets put everyone else in danger as well?' He thought to himself. No, they already had. The villains knew about his Quirk, about the power One For All held, and they targeted him because of it. Sora might have known about the attack in advance, but the attack only happened because he was with Sora and everyone else. Izuku couldn't help but blame himself for everything that had happened.

Flashes of a man in a mask taking him away, as well as Sora's 'bargain' flooded his mind and for the second time since waking up, he felt like crying. 'It's my fault! Sora's in danger, and it's all my fault!' If only he hadn't been as injured as he was, if only he could have been that little bit stronger, that little bit faster. It made him want to run away, to pretend like he didn't have to do anything.

But he was done running away.

Izuku Midoriya was going to find Sora Yamazaki, and he was going to bring him back. Their summer vacation wasn't over yet. Despite his injuries, he got up from his bed, trying his hardest not to wince at the pain. 'I can't allow him to be in danger. I won't allow him to be hurt! Just like how he tried to make sure that I wasn't the one that was hurt…' In his mind, it was an equivalent exchange.

Sora saved him so that he could then later save Sora.

"Young Midoriya? What are you doing?" Opening the door for him, All Might in his deflated form stared at him in surprise. "You broke your arm. While Recovery Girl helped to clean up your arm, you need to take it easy-,"

"I need to save Sora." Time was being wasted, for every second he spent here was another second Sora was in danger. Another second of something irreversible happening to him, another second that he'd regret for the rest of his life.

"Young Midoriya, please calm down," All Might replied, "The police and many of the top heroes, including myself, are working hard on finding Young Yamazaki. I promise you, he will be found. The police are trying to narrow his position as we speak, it won't be long from now until they've found them. It won't be long until we bring him back-,"

"I can't just stand around here and do nothing!" Izuku shouted, shocking both his teacher and himself. "I-, Uh, sorry, I didn't mean to-,"

"It's fine," All Might waved him off with a smile on his face. "It does make me happy to see you declare what you want to do for once. I felt like I really failed you, Young Midoriya. Perhaps I pushed you too hard, or maybe I wasn't able to see the signs properly. It's okay to feel like you aren't good enough, that's a lesson I learnt the hard way. You just have to pick yourself back up, so don't run away from failure."

Izuku nodded. "Right. I have to run towards it, with a smile on my face. Y-you didn't fail me at all! I was the one who failed you. But I won't anymore, I won't run away!" All Might laughed at that, grabbing his shoulders as he grinned in response.

"That's the spirit!"

But there was something else bugging Izuku. Sitting down on his bed, Izuku Despite trusting Sora, there was just one problem Izuku had with him. He hated feeling this way about his friend, but the fact that Sora knew about One For All, and everything surrounding it worried him.

"What's wrong?" All Might asked him, worried as he sat down next to him. "Young Midoriya, if there is something bothering you, I am here. I may not be able to help you much with relationship problems, but over the course of my life if there is one lesson I've learned it's that speaking to others about your problems can only make them easier on you."

"All Might… Why is it hard to keep One For All a secret from everyone? Sora, well, he knows." Izuku studied his mentor's face, waiting for his eyes to widen only it never came.

"I guessed as much," All Might replied, surprising Izuku, "Don't blame yourself for it. Young Yamazaki's been dealt an odd fate in life. I really can't say more than that, Aizawa said he wants to specifically tell your class personally. But with Young Yamazaki now missing, well perhaps the truth of how Sora knows about your Quirk may not be revealed yet. That being said, lying to everyone about One For All keeps them safe-,"

"But does it?" The villains attacked their camp for him, and him alone. He was their goal, or rather One For All was. "Everyone might be safe now, but what about in the future? W-what if the lie I'm telling them will put them in more danger? What about my mother? She's not a hero, but the villains might go after her! What about-," All Might simply placed his hands on Izuku's shoulders in response, letting him calm down.

"Young Midoriya, you can't shoulder everything. You aren't a pillar, nor do I want you to be one. A pillar stands alone, holding everything up, but eventually, a pillar will crumble. I will crumble. I don't want you to be like me, I want you to surpass me, and I believe that you can and will. I kept One For All a secret for many reasons, but you'll come up with a different answer. I have faith that you will, and I also have faith that your class as a whole will have more of an impact on that decision than I ever will."

"I'm the past Young Midoriya, while you are the future. It's not my secret anymore, it's your secret. You can continue to lie to them, or you could decide to come clean. It's your decision, and I won't interfere. I already feel like I've limited your potential, and for that, I apologise Young Midoriya," Izuku watched as his teacher-, His idol. The man he looked up to the most in the entire world, bowed his head down towards him. "Please, choose your own path. Don't become like me, become better than me!"

---

Chapter

Thirty

Five

'The Truth, and Nothing but The Truth.'

---

I woke up feeling groggy. I was sleeping on the cold, hard floor and that made my neck hurt. Jeez, could I not even get a pillow? I was definitely going to leave a one-star review on this place-,

"So, you're awake," A voice said. I looked up to see Dabi staring down at me, his burns creeping me out. "What? You don't like my scars? Want to know how I got them?"

"I couldn't give less of a shit about your 'fun' time all alone. I bet you gave it a whack and fire came out, messing up your face." Dabi snorted, laying a tray down in front of me. Cereal and a glass of water, was it morning? No, it can't be morning. The last thing I remember was the wall of Nomu all exploding at the same time, before the shockwave pushing me into the portal Kurogiri had made.

"That was a good one," Dabi replied, sitting opposite me. "How about your blue hair? You look like a parrot. Any chance your mother fucked one and got pregnant with you?" I shrugged my shoulders at that.

"Decent come back, but do you know what's indecent?"

"What?"

"Faking your death and becoming a villain. You're nothing but a pathetic man, Touya. A pathetic man with scars on his face. I really bet your dad regrets not using a condom so that he wouldn't have had a fucking disappointment like you. I know I would have." I was going to rile this bastard up, and I was going to enjoy it.

"You know I'd burn you for that comment."

I put up my middle finger in response. "Go fuck yourself. Actually, scratch that, do you mind if I have a threeway with your mother and your sister?" Dabi actually cracked a little at that, his eye twitched at that last comment. "What? It's not my fault you are related to some very beautiful people. It's clear to see that the genes didn't pass on to you. Look at you with your scars and your clothing, you look like a emo. Is that what you are? An emo loser? No, not even emos would want to be related to you, at least they have respect. Funny that I bet dearly old daddy respects them more than he respects you - A fucking disappointment."

He kicked my cereal across the room in anger.

"Oh, did I hurt Touya-kun's feelings?" I mocked him, "Maybe we should hold hands around a circle and sing songs together. Or did you not have that experience while you had fun with 'dear old daddy' in the gym when you were younger? I don't blame him you know, telling you to fuck off was for the best. I mean you would have become a hero, and then what?"

He didn't answer me, as expected. But I didn't think he'd grab me by the collar, shoving me against the wall, with those pathetic eyes of his he looked like more of a wounded animal than a human.

I hated him.

I don't know what it was about Touya Todoroki that annoyed me, maybe it was the fact that he was a shit older sibling - Or the fact he was a criminal, ready to burn innocents just to get back at Endeavour. Maybe his scars unnerved me, after all, he brought those scars upon himself. He felt the pain of his flesh burning, yet he still proceeded with his plans, ready to die for them at any moment. Maybe it was the fact that his very existence would inevitably come to ruin Shoto's life, well not ruin per se.

But definitely interfere.

Maybe it was the fact that he was a murderer that took people's lives, and burned them to ashes, simply because of a petty grudge.

"Shut up," Dabi growled like a feral animal. "Or would you like me to burn you to death?"

"Go ahead, you arrogant bastard," I spat at his face, "Do your fucking worst. You think turning up the heat is going to make me shut up?" While his right hand pushed me against the wall, he raised his left hand ever so slightly in front of my face, his fingers twitching to just burn me. I could see it written all over his face, how conflicted he was. Either he killed me and suffered the consequences, or he let me live to see another day.

"Tch, today's your lucky day. You better thank God." Dabi whispered, pushing me to the ground before leaving the room in a fit of anger. Nah mate, I think I'll thank myself. Eventually, the door opened again, only this time the person who walked in wasn't Dabi, it was a cute girl. Well, her appearance was cute, if one actually got to know Himiko Toga they would be disgusted with her personality as well as her obsession with blood. Great, another murderer.

"Hiya!" She waved cheerfully at me.

I raised my middle finger at her as my response, smiling as she giggled at my actions. I didn't hate Toga, but she definitely creeped me out. Then and again she was very hot… but extremely crazy.

Wasn't one of Mineta's rules not to stick it in crazy?

"I overheard what ya' said to McBurny, and I thought it was pretty funny," She said, sitting next to me, "So, what are you going to say about me? I hope you're going to do me next, I hate waiting in lines you know! Pretty please! I won't even try to steal some of your blood this time!" She tried to steal my blood?! When the hell was this? "Oh, that was when you were knocked out. Masky pointed his sword at me though."

Pfft… Masky.

I was definitely going to call Zero that at one point.

"Fuck off, vampire."

"That's not nice."

"Neither are you. But you know what would be nice? Getting the fuck out of my room, I'm busy."

"Doing what?"

"I'm about to stroke my 'sword' so to speak, so unless you want white, hot and sticky liquid all over your body, I suggest you get the fuck out." There was no way I was going to have a wank in here, I didn't even feel like having one, I just needed her to leave so that I could check my phone. It was still in my pocket, somehow, and I just wanted to see if I could message Nanao. That would make things a lot easier on her end.

"Fine, fine," Toga said, getting up from the floor. "But if ya' need something, just scream for me. Kay?" The only time I'd be screaming her name would be if she wanted to 'play games' together or she stabbed me with a knife. As soon as she left, I turned to the corner of the room and pulled my phone out. Aha! I had two bars of service, that was enough to charge my phone-,

"Ahem."

"The fuck do you want?" I yelled, nearly dropping my phone in surprise. Ah shit. I shoved it down my trousers, hoping it wouldn't stick out too much. I turned around to wave at Shigaraki, who merely stared at me in confusion. "Oh, ah, yo?"

"What were you doing."

"Didn't Toga tell you?" I asked him.

"Tell me what?"

"Mate, I was having a wank," I lied to him, "I just had that urge, ya' know? Especially since I was stuck in this room with a pretty girl like her, well my thoughts just exploded. I'm sure you understand, right? Oh, and do you mind giving me some tissues? I really don't want to make a mess." Shigaraki just stood there in disbelief. I mean I couldn't blame him, if the kid I kidnapped wanted to take a wank in my secret base I'd be shocked as well.

"You-, I-," He stuttered, not being able to finish his sentence as I turned back around and pretend to be stroking it. "Stop being juvenile! If you make a mess I'll kill you, I mean it!"

"Stop being such a virgin," I told him, pissing him off. "Just because your crusty ass lips have never even kissed a girl before-," Okay, judging by the glare he sent me perhaps that was off limits. I didn't want to be turned into dust because I didn't know went to shut my mouth.

"Just don't do anything stupid. We can see everything you do."

"Then what's the problem? Do you want me to whack it in the toilet? I mean I'd prefer to do it there, along with some 'material' so to speak. Do you have some magazines or something? I doubt you'll allow me to use a phone or a tablet to load up some videos, now will you?" C'mon, take the fucking bait! Why was he looking at me like I'd grown a head or two, I just need some alone time to do something very important!

"Usually, hostages don't ask to 'relieve' themselves."

"Yeah well, I'm a teenage boy. I have urges."

"Are you really a teenage boy?" He asked me.

"Dude, I'm sixteen. I don't swing that way, and even if I did, it wouldn't be with you. Not only that, but I'm underage you sicko. Help! Help me! Someone help me, I'm stuck in a room with a paedophile-," That really pissed him off as he tried to lunge at me with the intention to kill me, but I was luckily saved by Kurogiri who teleported him somewhere far away from me… or more likely, his room.

Yet, I'd rather be stuck in a room with Shigaraki trying to kill me than Kurogiri. That was because whenever I met Kurogiri, I couldn't help but notice that he spent far too much of his time gazing at me like he was completely drawn to me. It creeped me out, but at the same time, I felt like he wasn't trying to be creepy. It was as if he was trying to figure out what type of person I was, which made me all the more confused.

"Are you going to continue staring at me, or what?"

"The bathroom is down the hallway on the right," Kurogiri told me, "Although, perhaps you may want to wait on going to the bathroom. My master wishes to have an audience with you."

His master?

What the hell?!

Why would All For One want to speak to me of all people?!

"Why does he want to meet with me?" I asked Kurogiri, confused. There was no reason as to why a villain of his stature would want to speak to me. It was like the Joker speaking to Blue Beetle, just what was the point? I was a small fry, I wasn't even the student he wanted to originally take, so what business would he have with me? "And where is Zero, I want to speak to him."

"Zero is currently away. He told me that he'd be back soon, and as for your first question, well the answer is quite simple," Kurogiri replied, turning to open the door for me. "My master told me that should you seek the truth, he would be more than willing to give you it, even should Zero not be here. Of course, you could wait for Zero to show up and have him explain some of the truth to you, but my master is willing to tell you the entire story. A tantalising offer, don't you think?"

"And what's the price for it?"

"There is none," Kurogiri answered, "Choose. The truth now, or the truth later."

Tch.

Either I went and got the full story from All For One, or I went and sent a message to Nanao so that she could track me down and save me. Well, that's not very fair, but it wouldn't hurt to play along with their plans for now. I had forty per cent battery, which gave me some leeway at least.

"Fine, I'll meet with the grandmaster of all this, but I'm going to the toilet straight afterwards."

Kurogiri nodded, leaving the room silently.

Sorry Nanao, but the truth came first. Finding out about my truth came first, and so I ignored my phone for the time being as I followed Kurogiri. With each step I took, the more I felt like my journey was coming to an end.

I'd finally find out the 'truth.'

For everyone else, and for myself.

---

Izuku Midoriya POV

"Sir! Please, you can't be serious!" He couldn't believe the words coming out of his teacher's mouth. Sure, Izuku Midoriya wasn't sure that his teacher would agree with his plan, but he didn't think he would completely restrict them from even leaving the hospital. Most of Class 1A was staring at Aizawa in shock as he shook his head, slamming his car door shut.

"None of you can leave the damn hospital," He ordered them, "I don't care if you think you can 'help' you are to remain here. If any of you so much as places a single toe out of line, I'll expel you on the spot. Midoriya, the villains are after you. Why would you think going to try and rescue Sora would be a good idea? Do you seriously want to get caught? Use that brain of yours, because you aren't dumb. Stop acting irrationally and use logic, he let himself go with the villains so you wouldn't get caught. Why."

"I-, It's because… well, uh, I don't know." Izuku couldn't tell anyone else the secret of One For All, how could he? All Might trusted him with it, how could he break that trust? But on the other hand, having everyone shoot him mistrustful looks hurt. If what Sora said was true, then that meant the villains were after One For All. Sora took his place so that he would be fine, but it wasn't fine.

He couldn't just sit here in the hospital and do nothing!

"Listen to me," Aizawa sighed, banging his head against the headrest of his car. "I get it. But you can't leave, none of you can. I've already lost one student, I can't lose another. I'm driving to meet with his parents, to try and calm them down. I don't want to meet any more parents for the rest of the day, certainly not because their child did something stupid. The police and many of the finest heroes in Japan are working to find Sora as we speak-,"

"So what?" Izuku couldn't hold it in. He wasn't going to run away. "He's our friend. And he's all alone. Just because you don't care for him-,"

"Don't presume to know my feelings on the matter," Aizawa cut in coldly, "It's a tough pill to swallow for me as well. The fact is there is nothing you can do to help, you'd only get in the way. Tch, what a stupid kid. Worrying us all like this…" Aizawa shook his head, starting the engine as he turned around to face their class once more. Izuku swore that for the briefest moment, he could see a tear journey down his teacher's face. Or perhaps it was the lighting of his car, but Izuku had never seen his teacher look so sombre before.

"When we get him back, just know that I'll put him in detention for the rest of his time at U.A." With that their teacher drove away from them, leaving their class all alone in the parking lot.

"We should head inside-," Iida tried suggesting but paused at the looks some of the other students gave him.

"And do what?" Mina asked him. "What will we do inside the hospital? Watch TV? Wonder if our friend is even alive?"

"He is alive-,"

"And how the hell do you know that?!" Mina snapped at Iida. "You stopped Yaomomo and Jiro from getting him back, so what right do you have to lecture me? Aren't you the reason he's gone in the first place?" Iida quietened down at that, taking a step back in response.

"Mina, you need to calm down," Yaoyorozu tried telling her. "Aizawa-sensei is right, the only thing we can do now is go inside and pray that he'll be alright."

"And you're happy with that?"

"Of course not. But what else can any of us do? We don't even know where he is. Maybe I could have placed a tracker on him, but I didn't even get the chance. I was so angry at him for refusing to tell us the truth, that it slipped my mind. So if you want to blame someone, blame me."

"How can any of us blame you, kero," Asui chimed in, "You aren't All Might to do everything. No one blames you."

"What frog face says. The only one I blame is the bastard himself, putting on a damn show like that pisses me off." Bakugo yelled angrily.

"Keep your comments to yourself," Todoroki replied.

"Huh? Did'ya say something half-n-half? Wanna' go?"

"Guys," Jiro shouted, causing everyone to stop bickering with each other. "Let's just go inside. Kaminari's still stuck to his bed, and Hagakure's ankle is still broken. Not to mention like ten of us are sitting inside. Standing out here is just a waste of time. Why should we worry about someone who isn't even here when our friends are suffering inside?"

Mina snorted at that.

"Honey, your boyfriend didn't just hurt you. He hurt all of us. You aren't the only one allowed to feel bitter towards him, so don't go around giving orders to the rest of us like you're the leader here." Mina snapped at her.

"Shut up." Jiro replied.

"Or what? You going to let me walk all over you like you let your boyfriend do?" Mina asked, mocking Jiro.

"I said shut up!" Jiro yelled, tears streaming down her face. "You think I don't know that he hurt everyone? That all his lies are making us all feel shitty? But standing around in a parking lot complaining about how unfair life is won't fix our problems. If you want to whine and bitch about it, be my guest. If you want to try and help him without a plan which will get you killed, go ahead. But don't try and act like we can do something, because there isn't anything we can do."

"We could ask the police if they know any clues. Then we can call people we know around the country to see if they've seen him. We all come from across Japan." Ojiro offered. Izuku thought it was a start, but Jiro shrugged her shoulders.

"Maybe, but by the time we'll get a lead on him, Sora will either be dead in a ditch or already found by the heroes," Jiro replied. "Time isn't on our side. Hell, he could be in another country by now. Do we even know how far that teleporter's Quirk can go? We're just kids, stupid teenagers. Sora's already been stupid and gotten himself in trouble, why the hell should we follow after him."

"Because he's our friend-,"

"A friend who lies to us, a friend who constantly goes behind our back to try and play with things out of his league. A friend that'll look us in the eye and say he loves us as he hurts us," Izuku wanted to deny everything she said, but he couldn't. He wasn't able to. "He's our friend, yeah. But where is the line? What line won't he cross to 'protect us,' because I know him! I've known him for a long time, longer than all of you. This stunt of his wasn't just to protect Midoriya, he did this because he wanted to."

"So what other reason did he go with them for? Why did he take Midoriya's place?!" Mina asked Jiro.

"If I knew that then he'd be here with us right now. I have a guess as to why he left, but it's just a guess. And I hope that I'm wrong, I really do. But for now, let's just go inside. It's cold, and it looks like it's about to rain." Izuku looked up at the sky, and sure enough, the clouds were grey as he felt a tiny drop of rain brush against his cheek. He wanted to argue with Jiro, but no words came out as Jiro, and eventually, everyone else, headed back inside the hospital leaving him outside all alone.

He wondered what Sora was doing right now. Was he awake? Had he found what he was looking for? But Izuku wasn't going to wait for the heroes to rescue him for Sora to answer his questions - No, he was going to ask Sora himself. Izuku was going to find his whereabouts, and he was going to save him. Even if he had to do all of it alone.

'It's a terrible day for rain.' He thought to himself as he walked back inside the hospital.

---

The room was dark as Kurogiri sat me down in a chair, only a blank TV screen was lit up in the room, as evident by the blue light it radiated. Suddenly, the lights were switched on as I realised I wasn't alone in the room. With his arms folded, leaning against the wall, I was greeted by Zero. Just judging by his body posture alone, he wasn't all too comfortable with me being here.

Odd.

I was forced to sit in a chair, a wooden chair to be precise. Immediately, my hands were tied before I could even think. I grunted as I turned around to see Kurogiri floating behind me, almost as if he was my guard. "So, is it just going to be us three or what?" I asked, and hopefully, someone would reply. Zero shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly, before turning to stare at the TV screen in front of me.

"Sora Yamazaki," I jumped up in surprise as the TV screen turned white and a voice came from it. "I've been wanting to speak to you for a long time," The voice sent shivers down my spine, especially as I realised who it was. All For One. "Why the long face? Are you surprised to hear my voice? Did you think that your deeds would never reach my ears?"

"I didn't expect to be meeting with the final boss so early," I joked, smirking at the TV screen. "So what can I do for you today, Demon of the Underworld? I have a packet of sour sweets, do you want one? Is your face still fucked up from All Might's rough BDSM session with you?" To his credit, All For One actually laughed at my joke. His laughter did make me afraid for my life, however, but sensing my discomfort the TV screen switched on as I finally came face-to-face with All For One.

Scar tissue covered his face completely in a way different from Dabi's. When I looked at Dabi I felt pity for him, but looking at All For One's face made me want to empty my stomach out onto the floor.

"What? Don't like what you see?" He asked me, smiling cruelly at my expression. "It was just a joke. I thought you liked jokes. Don't they overcompensate for a lot of things you feel your personality is missing?"

"Don't act as if you know me," I replied as his smile widened, "You're just another freak. A 'clown' with a capital C, but I'm pretty sure even the circus wouldn't want you. I would say go fuck yourself, but I don't know if you can even move your hands to 'relieve' yourself. But by all means, go hire a prostitute. But even then, I'm pretty sure they wouldn't fuck you." All For One's laughter echoed the room once more but compared to before it didn't have the same edge.

"Do you know how refreshing it is to talk to you? So many 'heroes' would have sat where you sat and wouldn't have the guts to reply to me, let alone try to mock my appearance. Truly, you have no fear. Whether it's bravery or complete idiocy doesn't matter, the fact is that I commend you for such feats," All For One said to me, making Zero snort beside me. "But as much as it would be interesting to see you insult me for as long as possible, that's not the topic of discussion today, is it?"

"Why the fuck are you asking for me? You called me here, did you not? I hope you know I was extremely busy, so let's make this quick, yeah?"

"Yes, but I'd like to hear it from you," All For One explained, "I'd like to hear what you want to know."

"The truth," I answered, "Nothing but the whole truth. I thought Zero over there would be telling me the truth, not you, but then you came calling cause' apparently he wasn't here. But now that he's here, you can fuck off or something. Then after I learn the truth, I'll be off on my merry way. Sounds good?"

"That sounds perfect," All For One replied, his smile twisting upwards ever so slightly, unnerving me. "I have no intention of keeping you here. It would serve me no purpose, in fact, it would actually impede my plans. But I have to ask, why would Zero be telling you the truth?"

I scoffed at him, who was he trying to fool? "Listen, I'm sure you're lonely and all, but why do I need you to explain it to me? Zero told you about the truth, no? I don't need you to tell me what he told you when I can hear it directly from him." All For One chuckled loudly at what I said, confusing me to no end.

"Since when were you under the impression that Zero told me the truth about your reincarnations?" All For One asked me, gleefully relishing every second he had when speaking to me. "You don't understand, do you? Zero never told me the truth about you, about that Nanao Iori or Setsuna Tokage. About that brat Yozora, or even Zero himself. Why would he tell me something I already have knowledge of?"

What?

"The hell are you saying?" I asked confused, the feeling of anxiousness growing in my stomach as my legs felt weak. I was wrong? But… how? How was I wrong? All the signs were pointed to Zero having allied with All For One for a way back home and so he told All For One about his knowledge. IT MADE SENSE! How was I wrong? No, I can't have been wrong-,

"Sora Yamazaki, since you reached out to the truth I'll tell you a little story," All For One's voice cut my thoughts cleanly off as I focused all my attention on his words. "Many moons ago, a man was travelling the world. He had lost his brother you see, a brother that betrayed him in the worst possible way. Yet even in the highest of mountains or the busiest of cities, this man couldn't find closure. This man couldn't simply move on, for each Quirk he took the souls of those who held the Quirk originally, haunted his dreams at night. That was until he came across a young girl, it was a chance encounter."

"This man already had a friend who was a scientist. But this small girl who came across his way was interested in science that hadn't been explored; after all the development of Quirks had slowed society's progression. The small girl showed the man whose heart was filled with darkness a shining light, a new branch to grasp upon. The ability to travel across different universes, potentially meeting different versions of ourselves. Yet the man dismissed it as make-believe, he pushed the girl aside and continued on with his mission."

"More time had passed, and eventually the man became more of a feared person. But he knew what he wanted, it was power. The power to do as he pleased, but that power didn't make him find closure with what happened to his brother. Instead, it only deepened the scars left on his heart, and so when his brother's successors came after him one by one he took care of them quickly. But he made sure never to kill them, after all, they still had a part of his brother in them. The man couldn't stand to kill his brother, to kill the last remaining family member to him. And so he decided he would try to steal his brother back, even if it was a difficult choice to make."

"One day the man happened to come across another child. But this time the child scampered away in fear at the sight of the man, which intrigued him. Why would a mere child back away from him? The man wasn't known publicly, so why was this child afraid of him? As the man investigated, the child said three words that shook the man's entire world. 'One For All.' The child somehow knew about the man's brother, and he was afraid of the man himself. But it was a mere child, that was what the man thought. And so without any consideration, he curiously took the child's Quirk, only for it to surprise him completely."

"The man knew that while Quirks were inherently passed down, and functioned, largely around genetics, not even his scientist friend could explicitly explain Quirks and how they worked. Perhaps it was a mutation, but perhaps it was a manifestation of the soul. That was why the souls of the Quirks the man took haunted him for eternity every time he closed his eyes. Yet the Quirk he had stolen was something entirely unique, it was something he couldn't believe. It was as if the man had won a lottery. The ability to summon souls from a universe different to theirs, somehow the child had used the Quirk on themself and ended up like that."

"Immediately, a new path was present in front of the man. A path to power, but also a path to closure. He had decided that all of his plans would lead to a singular goal, reclaiming his brother and conquering the world. But he had trouble building allies, after all, they came to him for help and than had to pay off their debt. They held no connection to the man apart from wanting to pay their debt off, either for having removed a Quirk or having gained one. But they truly resisted his control, and so he decided that he'd use his new Quirk for a different purpose."

"His scientist friend was already planning on making soldiers for him, monsters that followed orders directly. They had no free will, nor did they truly live. But these experiments weren't working, not as well as the scientist had hoped. And so the man offered him a second experiment, what if you could make soldiers from birth that had the mind of an adult? The experiences and life of an adult, knowledge and expertise from a wide range of topics. The man could shower them with power, money and whatever their hearts desired for their loyalty."

"The scientist enthusiastically approved of the plan, even if it was a minor dream. An army of soldiers that had knowledge from another life, they could be moulded and shaped into anything the man could want with enough time. But his scientist friend couldn't do all this work at the same time with the other project all alone, so the man hired two more scientists. One was the young girl who he met all those years ago, she had grown up into a scientist worthy of her own praise. The second woman was a foreigner, she had a Japanese father but had been raised abroad. Together, the three scientists came together to work on their project."

"Children were taken away from their families as they were experimented on, but not all the children survived the experiment. I wiped their souls, before using my Quirk on them. Only eleven survived initially. One of the scientists was so enthusiastic that she even experimented on her soon-to-be daughter, you may know her as Setsuna Tokage, but the truth is that her mother treated her more like a toy rather than a child. Even I was surprised at how far willing she wanted to go, but that's beside the point. Do you understand now? You weren't brought here by accident, I brought you all here."

All For One paused to look at me, grinning gleefully as I shook my head at him. No… that-, that couldn't be it, could it?

"This is your destiny. The truth that you longed for, it's now within your grasp. Accept it with dignity!"

"NO!" I shouted, trying my hardest to break the rope that bound me to the chair. Even if it meant ripping my arms off, I was going to get out of this damn suffocating room! "You lie! You're a liar! Do you think I'll believe you? That I'll believe your sick and twisted lies? No, you won't break me. I won't let you break me!" He-, Ha, that was bullshit. "You're such a bad liar, I can't believe it. I won't believe it."

"Why would I lie to you? What would I gain from it?" All For One asked me. I gulped as I shook my head once more, refusing to believe his story. Scientists? Experiments? Ha, what was I, a Nomu? But the more I thought about it, the more it made sense. Why I had multiple Quirks, why Zero would even ally himself with All For One, why everyone else knew more about the truth than I did…

"And what about the second scientist?" That was the one burning question I had because it felt like I already knew the answer. "What happened to her?"

"Ah, she was a perfect scientist. Smart, but creative as well. It was amusing to see the child I had met along my journeys across the globe turn into a woman like her, but that child-like naivete always remained, even if it eventually ruined her life for good. She was a mother of a child already, and while her husband had died, she joined in on our project to find a way to bring him back. But eventually, all the experimentation on the children reached a point where she couldn't take it, and so she did the one unthinkable thing, one thing that she'll regret for the rest of her life."

What?

"Just what did she do?" I asked cautiously, looking around the room to see Zero refusing to face my way.

"I'm glad you asked," All For One replied, his sickly sweet tone of voice alarming me even more than I already was. "She decided to free not only the eleven children but also her colleague that was pregnant. She was under the presumption that I had forced her into modifying her unborn daughter, but that simply wasn't true. And so afterwards, well, I had to punish her disloyalty. She had cost me a lot of time and resources, especially when numbers one through six were found dead within a few weeks. They had killed themselves or had been killed by minor villains. Naturally, I killed all of them in response."

"At first I targeted the woman's child. They were only one year old at the time, and so I used my Quirk on them. I wiped her child's soul and used it in an experiment while I made her watch the entire time, and I assure you, it was extremely cathartic watching her writhe around screaming to let her child go," All For One chuckled at the memory of that, making me feel sorry for the scientist. "But that wasn't the end of her punishment."

"You see, I wasn't exactly happy with all the experiments. I wanted more. I already had a powerful corpse that was being used to create a useful Nomu, one that would aid me greatly with my plans. An eighteen-year-old hero that had died in the line of duty, but he was a fine specimen. And so, when the opportunity presented itself, Shirakumo Oboro's dead body was used in a very specific experiment, you see the body was only a day old. I had retrieved it for the purpose of making a Nomu, but I could afford to harvest his sperm. And so, using it, I forced the scientist to bear a child that she didn't want. I used the Quirk I had gained on the child, genetically modifying him even more than the normal experiments. Four Quirks, one of which was an evolution of his fathers."

"Do you understand now?"

I couldn't breathe as I stared at the screen in shock, hyperventilating as I shook my head. No. That was-, I turned around to look at Kurogiri, who looked at me the same way as he always did.

Curiosity.

"Ha ha… What kind of bullshit are you expecting me to swallow?" I asked, laughing slightly. He was lying, there was no way he wasn't lying.

"Oh, pardon me. I completely forgot to tell you. I never intended for you to help me directly with my plans, but rather a contributing factor to their success."

"Wha…"

"You see I let the woman go just as she was about to give birth. She wandered around Musutafu looking for a hospital before she gave birth to you, promptly running away the first chance she got. And then you were taken into an orphanage, a nice one ran by a loving caretaker. Until a villain 'attacked' the building, leaving all but one child alive… Curious, isn't it? Most curious indeed, especially since I hired the villain." All For One laughed at my face as I tried my hardest to escape from the chair, even if it meant ripping my arms off.

"And then your 'loving' parents? Hinata and Gekko Yamazaki was it? It was easy to manipulate them into adopting you. After all, a check-up from the esteemed Doctor Ujiko, Gekko's idol, to claim that they'll never be able to have children led to them wanting to adopt instead. I played on the pities of a noble-hearted family to raise you, and it worked. You were given a loving home, only for you to squander each chance they gave you."

"I watched you from afar, treating everyone around you like they were inferior. And they are inferior to you, it made me pleased to see you act in such a way. It was rather interesting to see you develop, especially when you made it to U.A. But of course, things aren't ever really that simple. You see, you becoming a hero helped me. You were the missing piece that completely unbalanced the Class 1A I had heard so many things about, and just as I wanted you became the heart of the class. You fractured Class 1A beyond repair, you destroyed my enemies. The enemies I had heard from Zero that destroyed me in a different future have now been destroyed, they won't be coming to save you, nor will they save anyone else ever again."

"No! They're stronger than you think! They'll definitely come for me! They'll beat you, I know they will!" I yelled back at him, but All For One merely laughed in response.

"That's not true. If it were true, they would have already left the hospital they are at right now to come and save you," He told me, "They would be on their way to save you, but they aren't. Giving you a loving family made you arrogant, just because the family I gave you stuck with you through your lowest doesn't mean that others will. I created your ego, and now it'll be the reason why you lose everything and everyone you love. Your lies to protect the truth will be the reason why 1A will never be able to stand in my way, I'll crush them easily. All Might will come, and you can use that phone in your pocket to message anyone you want. I'll kill All Might easily, just as it was fated to be. The successor of my brother's Quirk, Izuku Midoriya… I wonder what his reaction will be when I kill his teacher in front of the entire world?"

No.

No!

NO!

"And so, I must thank you again. These past few years have been of inestimable help, you far surpassed any expectations I had."

"No! You're lying! You have to be lying!" I was just… All that time spent with everyone was that all just… It can't be.

"Why are you sad?" All For One asked me, grinning wickedly as I looked at the TV once more. "Your ignorance in helping my plan allowed you to have a family in 1A, did it not? You could easily just crawl back to them, apologising to them for everything. But you won't be able to tell them the truth, not about yourself or my plan. You see, the Quirk I used on you makes it so you cannot tell anyone who isn't already in the know about what we've discussed here, not unless you want to die. I made it so easy for you, if you say nothing they'll never know. You'll be able to live with your friends for as long as you want. Although, I wonder if your friends will accept you after all this. After all, you've lied to them and you will continue to lie to them, but if your 'friendships' are that strong then everything should be alright."

"Shut up," I yelled. But I didn't know if I was yelling at him, or myself. "Just shut the hell up. They will come for me, I know it. I know it."

"Sora, I have my agents waiting at the hospital to track their movements. The only person that's left the hospital is your teacher, Eraserhead was it? Do you really think honest people like your classmates will come and save you? Because you aren't like them, you're a devil. A demon. You don't deserve to be a part of their class, and you know it, don't you? That's why you feel sad. Because you can go back to them, but 1A will never feel like home again for you, will it? After all, with every action, you take the more fractured the class becomes. There is nothing you can do to repair all the damage your lies have cost because you can't tell them the truth. But even if you had the chance to do so, would you really take that option?"

Would I…

I…

"Why? Why did you make me do this? Why me and not someone else?!"

"Why?" All For One tilted his head to the left slightly, the contraption on his face shifting alongside him. "You mean why I didn't use someone like Zero? Well, that's simple. You were the one giving a loving family, one that stuck with you through thick and thin because of their own inability to bring a child into this world. You were entirely honest in the way you presented yourself and your love for everyone, but Zero can't do that. He wasn't raised in a loving family, but you were. I suppose asking you to go back to 1A after all this might be a bit hard, especially for someone like you."

Stop…

"And what of the woman's first child?" I couldn't finish the sentence as I gulped hard, trying not to think about it. My sibling. I had an older sibling. Someone that was experimented on, just like me.

"Now, I can't reveal everything can I?" All For One replied, "Of course, my goals have changed. But you needn't concern yourself with them, because now my plan will be able to take off without anyone in my way. You're free, Sora Yamazaki. The role you've played in my plan is now complete, so I can let you go. But if it becomes too much for you, if you can't live with that fact, you are always welcome to return back to me. I'll always have a space open for you in my plans, Sora. But of course, while speaking to you is fine… I also would like to speak to the other person within you." I looked back at All For One, confused as to what he was saying.

"What do you mean 'other person'?"

"My, haven't you realised it yet? I never wiped the soul of the original child, it was as much of an experiment for me as it was for you. That was why your biological mother called you a 'devil' was it? Because you weren't just a child that she didn't want, a child created out of a loveless exchange. No, I wanted to see what would happen if the soul of the original child wasn't wiped but instead was raised right alongside you. And it didn't just 'grow up', from the looks of things it fused with you. Truly, the soul is a magnificent being that not even science can comprehend. That was what playing the piano truly meant, to free that other side of you. A melody that could only work on you. So bring him forth, let's just see how the darkness inside you has developed."

I fell to the ground, unable to breathe as I just wanted to die. Was this my punishment? But why was I being punished, just what did I do wrong?

I only wanted to live, so why?

---

I opened my eyes to the sound of laughing. Someone helped me up from the ground, cutting the ropes that tied my hands together. Zero. I wanted to grab a knife and stab him in the throat, before tearing his mask off and killing his family if he had one, or even any friends he had.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you," All For One. He's the reason why I live a life like this, the reason why I'm stuck. It's all because of him. "Now that the pesky hero is out of the way, how about we do a deal? Why don't you join me? I promise you that you'll be the one in control, and you'll get whatever you want. Power, money, women, anything you can think of and I'll give it to you. What do you say?"

What I want…

I grinned at him, laughing manically at what he had to say. Oh, this was perfect! "Fine then, I'll join you and I'll get whatever I want?" I asked him, just making sure that he meant what he said. When he nodded at that, I had to refrain from breaking out into tears of happiness.

"Just name it, and it will be yours."

"What I want…" I watched as the man grinned happily, expecting to get his way. "...is to kill you, to kill everyone in this room. In this building, and then replace you as the head of your criminal organisation. I want to kill everyone in this city, I want to burn it to the ground." The smirk All For One had was wiped off his face, which only made me smile more in response. I hated him.

I hated them all.

I hated them.

Disappear.

I wanted them to disappear.

Especially the damn TV. It was an eyesore. This TV. This room. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life. This life.

By the time I was done, the TV was smashed into many smaller pieces, as was the desk holding it up. I turned back to the chair that was on the ground, before picking it up once more and sitting on it.

I was going to kill them all.

I was going to burn this entire world down.

That was what I wanted.

I was going to make the hate inside me disappear.

"What was all that?" Zero asked me, brandishing his sword and pointing it at my throat. I resisted the urge to lean forwards to see if he would stab me in my throat, or if he would pull away at the last second. "Just what the hell do you plan to accomplish? Do you think telling him that is going to help you in any way? You just declared war on one of the most powerful people on the planet, do you have any idea what you've just done?"

I shrugged my shoulders in response.

"Bring it on."

"Tch." Zero was annoyed at me as he slammed his sword to the ground angrily, before turning his back from me, staring at Kurogiri as they exchanged a few words about putting me back in my cell.

Soon…

I'd kill everyone and everything.

---

Izuku Midoriya POV

"Iida, we have to find a way out of here," Izuku hadn't given up, even if the rain outside deterred the others. It wasn't just pouring, it was heavy rain. The sound of the rain drumming against the windows even being loud enough to interrupt their conversation. "We have to find a way to help Sora."

"I know," He replied while drinking a cup of water. "But it's a much harder task to solve if it's just the two of us, Midoriya." Izuku sat opposite him, looking around the hospital to make sure that no one could overhear them.

"If you can cause a distraction, I think I'll be able to get out of here."

"Absolutely not," Iida refuted his plan immediately, "The villains want you. No matter Sora's reasoning for stopping you from going with the villains, I will not allow you to put yourself in danger like that. If we go to save Sora, we will go together."

"You two nerds ain't going anywhere," Kacchan interrupted from behind them, sitting in the chair opposite them, "I'm coming with you two. Ain't no way in hell you're going to save the bastard without me, so don't even think of going. And don't slow me down either." Izuku smiled at that, Kacchan was still the same even after everything that happened.

"Bakugo, while I appreciate your concern-,"

"Concern? Go fuck yourself four-eyes. Yamazaki owes me big time, and I expect him to pay his debt. I want to have a spar with him, but he keeps dodging me. So this time I'll save him, and force him to have a spar with me. Understand? And if you even think of getting in my way, I'll kill you."

"As always, you are as eloquent as a mutt," Todoroki said sitting down next to Iida, holding some sweets. "However, I will be joining in this search for Yamazaki. Whatever you need me to do, I'll do it."

"That's fuckin' great half-n-half, but I don't remember asking," Kacchan replied, putting up his middle finger to Todoroki. "Anyway, as the leader of this group, I'm going to tell you to fuck off-,"

"Woah, leader?" Iida laughed at that.

"What? You got a problem four-eyes?"

"Sorry, I just can't imagine you being a leader."

"I concur. You may be powerful, but your attitude and personality results in you being less of a leader, and more of an annoying hellion." Todoroki added, annoying Kacchan to no end.

"First of all, go fuck yourself. Second of all, I'm a great leader. The best there ever is. Do you want me to give a pep talk? If we don't save that fucking idiot, I'll kill you all. There, understand now? I'm the greatest leader you've laid your fuckin' eyes on."

"Truly a brilliant pep talk, I feel so confident in your leadership skill already," Todoroko replied dryly, causing Iida to stifle a laugh. "I feel so emotional over your speech, I might burst out into tears of joy. Thank you so much for giving such an inspiring speech, it was very thoughtful."

"Huh? Fuck did you say to me? Say that again scarface, I dare you."

"I'm certain that history has shown that leaders who have ruled using fear get toppled rather easily, so by all means continue 'Bakugo-sama.'"

Kacchan laughed at that, clapping Todoroki on his shoulders as he pulled him in a headlock. The two of them shoved each other for a little bit, before separating as a nurse chided them for their behaviour.

"Huh? What's with your outfit lady? I thought the slutty nurse costume was only in porn?" Kacchan asked, while Todoroki sincerely apologised lowering his head for both his actions, as well as Kacchan's. "Why the hell are you apologising on my behalf? I don't want to apologise to Misty Mountains over here." It took a lot of apologising on Todoroki and Izuku's part, but they eventually managed to get the nurse to not lodge a complaint against Kacchan.

"Yeah, walk away. Fucking whore."

"Do you enjoy pissing others off, or is it just wired into your personality?"

"Fuck is that supposed to mean, scarface? Who the fuck lodges a complaint, against me of all people? I should have sued that bitch for libel or something," Izuku sighed in response, as always Kacchan was Kacchan, no matter what happened to him. "Now are we going to sit around in a single for the rest of the day, or are we gonna get the fuck and up and go do this!"

"Go do what exactly?"

Izuku turned to see Yaoyorozu staring at them, her arms folded as she tapped her foot against the floor impatiently.

"Uh-, Yaoyorozu-san-, Well, the thing is that-,"

Luckily, Kacchan stepped forward and answered her question for him. "We are going to go outside and have a massive orgy in the rain. What the fuck do you think we are going to do? We're going to save the bastard, and I'm so fucking tired of all you extras coming along to steal my thunder. Make up your mind in three seconds, or you aren't coming." He yelled, making Izuku chuckle nervously.

"Thank you for your… speech," Yaoyorozu replied, "But I'm glad we could come to an agreement. I wish we could have more people join us, but Kaminari's parents picked him up, and Mina, Ochako and Tsuyu are cheering Hagakure up. Ojiro, Sero, Tokoyami and Shoji are playing a game of cards, while Mineta's on the roof all alone. Kirishima's sleeping, and Aoyama-,"

"Is right here," Aoyama added, sitting down next to them, "I want to help."

"Well ain't this great. It's so convenient that we all happen to be in the same place while we're putting together a team. Just fucking great. We're like the Revengers, only with more fucking extras."

"You certainly have the ego to be Metal Man."

"And you certainly have the usefulness to be Birdeye." Kacchan snapped at Todoroki, before turning to shrug his shoulders at Aoyama. "Alright, you can join in fuckface. But try anything like selling us out to your former employers, and I'll shove my hand so far up your ass you'll become my puppet for the rest of your miserable life. Got it?"

"Crystal clear. Now let's hurry up and get this show on the road-,"

"You really are all so predictable." Jiro sighed from behind them.

"Oh, for fucks-,"

"I assume you're here to try and stop us," Izuku stepped forward. "If so, you should know it's not going to work. No matter what you say, I'm going to try and save him." Jiro sighed, rolling her eyes at him.

"I'm not going to stand in your way. I'm just going to ask you one question. Even if somehow you find where he is, and you get a chance to save him. Then what? How are you going to help him?"

"I… I don't know," He answered truthfully, "But my body won't allow me to sit here and wait to receive news about Sora. So I won't try to do that, because if I can't even save a single friend then I can never call myself a hero. Let alone someone that wants to surpass All Might, or even save others with a smile on my face."

"Well isn't that fucking great, we can all hold hands and praise you for telling you about how happy we are for you finally growing a pair, Deku. Or, we can hurry the fuck up and get the fuck out of this hospital," Kacchan exploded with anger, before pointing his finger at Jiro. "Seriously, get the fuck out of my way. I'll beat the shit out of you, and the asshole isn't here to defend his shitty girlfriend."

"I don't need him to protect me, but is that a hint of jealousy I hear in your voice? I didn't know you liked him like that Kaplosion, although it makes sense now. You have a little-bitty teenage crush on him, don't you?" Jiro mocked him, "But don't worry, I won't stop you. Not that I have the power to do so in the first place, but if you all want to walk to your death then go ahead. But you won't be saving him, you'll just be making yourselves feel better. You'll be just like him; using something good as an excuse to just not feel guilty."

'I…' He couldn't refute her point.

"And is there anything wrong with that?" Yaoyorozu asked Jiro. "Because from where I stand, it seems like you don't want us to save Sora. It's like you don't want our friend to come back home safely."

"He's made his choice," Jiro replied, looking at the ground sadly. "I-, I tried. You don't know how bad it was because you came only after the fight had ended. I offered my help, and he took it. I know he took it. But in the end, Sora decided to turn his back on me, on all of us. He decided to go with the villains and he left us. You can spin it in whatever way you want, but the Sora we know wouldn't go with them. He'd have gotten Midoriya back, but his solution would have been different. We all know this, so let's stop lying to ourselves. I've gotten sick of all the lies. I want him to come back more than anything in the world, but if he comes back, then what? Then we'll be hurt by him more and more until he either leaves because he's gotten himself killed, or we'll leave him because he can't accept us!"

"So then why did he go with the villains?" Yaoyorozu snapped, "Jiro, you're my friend. My best friend, along with him. You don't think it hurts? But at this point the only way we can confirm anything is if we go save him, so why don't you stop with this? Tell me why he went with the villains, and I'll back out. But you can't, because you don't know. Just as he didn't trust us with his plan, he didn't trust you either. So answer, why did he go with them?"

"Oh that's simple," A voice answered. Leaning on one of the walls, Setsuna Tokage had her left hand in a cast, and her once long hair was cut unevenly. "The bastard went with them to find the truth. Saving Midoriya? That was a major factor sure, but I knew as soon as I saw him again that if the opportunity presented itself, he'd try and learn the truth. That's the type of person that's really inside of him, right Jiro?"

"You mean to tell me that whatever happened to him, was who he really is?" Jiro asked Tokage.

"That's exactly what I'm saying. Maybe not all of him, but it is a part of him. A part that he hasn't accepted, a part that he'll never accept. He's a stubborn fool," Tokage replied, looking at the ground sadly, before shaking her head to walk towards them. "Don't worry at all about what happened, just because it's what a part of Sora is, doesn't mean that's how he thinks of you. He does care for you."

"What is she talking about?" Yaoyorozu asked Jiro in confusion.

"You haven't told them?" Tokage giggled at the look on Jiro's face, "Oh that's priceless. You really were going to try and chalk up what happened as some dream, weren't you? Life doesn't work that way. He's already far too gone, if you think that what happened to him was a random event, think again. It'll happen again and again until he either accepts himself or he loses control permanently."

"Jiro, what's she talking about?"

"I-, How do you?"

"How do I know? That's simple. I went through what he did. All alone, stuck in a room with no one to help me. I still suffer what he went through, although I've never been possessed fully like he was. To be honest, not even I know what he went through. I've never seen anything like it, and even asking the older cow led to no answers on my end." Tokage explained, yet to Izuku her explanations weren't making sense. Just what was she talking about?

"So I wasn't just dreaming, it actually happened," Jiro laughed at that, she laughed so hard that she eventually started to cry. "So his threats of killing everyone on the mountain was something he was going to try and actually do."

'Kill… everyone?' Izuku took a step backwards at that. Sora would never say something like that, let alone try to go through with it. That just wasn't him.

Even Tokge took a step backwards. "I didn't go through it like that, but whatever happened to him was probably the final straw for him. He doesn't know anything, and it's not like I know more than him, but he's the type of person to go looking for the truth - Even if it's something that'll kill him."

"Are you sure?" Yaoyorozu asked her.

"Positive," She replied, "But while it sounds selfish, and it is, it's sadder than you think. I bet the bastard thinks that by learning the truth about himself he'll be able to open up more towards you, that he'll be able to treat you all better. That there will be no more lies, and you guys can finally trust him again. He's conflicted, on that, I'm sure of. He's at odds with himself, and it's hurting everyone. But it's tearing him apart mentally, and there's nothing I can do about it."

"I think that he's scared. He cares for people so much that it breaks his heart when you guys feel hurt. That much is obvious, but it means so much more to him than you think. Sora… he's afraid of the truth more than anyone. And he's searching for it, out of curiosity but also out of a desire to make it so you aren't hurt by his secrets. His biggest fear is hurting all of you, and yet at the same time, all he can do is hurt you. Just by reaching out to grasp the truth about himself, he's hurt you, but even if he didn't he would have hurt you all by not telling you the truth."

"And I think he rejects that fear. I know that he rejects that side of him, that deep down he chose to go with the villains to make it up to you all - But he thinks that it's him deciding to be selfish. I don't think he realises how much the truth scares him, but I don't think that he'll be fine when he finds out the truth. I think that he'll end up rejecting that as well, and if that happens then I have no idea if Sora will even come back."

"Then we have to go now! We can't waste any more time!" Izuku yelled, turning to his classmates. Sora trusted Tokage, that was obvious, and if what she said was true then he couldn't just stand around here and do nothing!

"Go where exactly?" Jiro asked him, "Even if what she says is true, what can we do to help him? Just being there for him isn't going to cut it, especially when I know he's going to tell us that he's fine. That he'll put on a grin and ignore the pain he's in, that he'll try to push it aside. And in the end, he'll only push us away, making us feel like we are bad friends. Making us feel like we are the problem. Hasn't he made it clear that he wants to keep us 'safe' even if his definition of 'safe' doesn't make us happy? Tokage, I think you're wrong in some aspects. Sora is selfish. And that selfishness is driving him right now, he's doing only what he wants."

"He's our friend-,"

"He is our friend, which is why it's a bitter pill to swallow," Jiro interrupted Yaoyorozu, "I know him better than anyone else. Not Aozora, or the Sora that he presents to others. I know Sora Yamazaki, and I really thought that he had changed from how he used to be in middle school. He thought he had changed. But he's still the same person underneath all the extra layers he's added; a selfish person driven by what he wants to do. He does care about us, which is why he's pushing us away. So that he feels less guilty when he acts selfish, just like now."

Maybe…

Maybe Jiro had a point.

Both Tokage and Jiro described Sora completely, almost as if he were two different people. Someone who cares so much about others that he messes things up, but also a selfish person that will do whatever he wants even if it hurts those closest to him, pushing them away so he doesn't feel guilty about his actions. But both sides also completed him, two opposite extremes in a sense that combined to make one whole person - To make Sora Yamazaki as Izuku, and everyone else knew him as.

"It doesn't matter what his reasoning is, it's our duty to save him," Izuku found himself saying, stepping forward as he drew everyone's attention. "You may be right Jiro, even if we save him there might be nothing we can do to help him. But I don't care about that. What was it that Sora said during the USJ? That he'd make it out alive saving everyone, and he did that. He made his own option, and that's what I'll do as well." To become a hero with a smile on his face, just like All Might.

No.

'I'm going to surpass All Might.'

Perhaps All Might would have given up on Sora if he were in his position, or perhaps he'd go and save him but never truly help him. But Izuku was going to carve his own path, he was going to help his friend even if he didn't want it. That's what Sora would do in his position-, No, if Sora was in his position Izuku was sure he'd do something risky. That was just who he was, despite what Tokage and Jiro said, Izuku felt like both of them didn't really understand Sora completely.

Because not even Sora understood himself.

And Izuku was going to help Sora do exactly that. By forcing him even if necessary, because that was his path to becoming a hero.

Saving everyone with a smile on his face.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but Deku's actually saying some smart shit for once," Kacchan chimed in, "Like hell am I going to let that bastard do something this crazy and not join in on the fun? I'll save his ass, and beat all the villains even if I have to do it myself, so if you extras want to stay back and discuss all this pointless shit go ahead. Fuck him, and what he thinks. I can see right through his bullshit and I'm not even his friend. I hate him, but as his 'friends' it would be fucking funny if you all let me save the day. So either step the fuck up, or sit the fuck out."

Aoyama stepped forward, his lip quivering while doing so but his eyes showed a fierce determination that Izuku hadn't seen the boy display before. "Sora gave me a way out. I didn't want to accept his help at first, I thought that I was doomed. But I wasn't doomed, perhaps I was never really in danger in the first place and my own actions were driven by my fear. In that regard I can sympathise with Sora, we both hurt people because of our own fears. And I want him to help him face his fears, just as he helped me face mine! So please, let me help!"

"You can count me in as well," Iida added, "I… I tried to kill Stain. It's a secret I've been hiding from you all, but not anymore. It was to the point where I ignored all the carnage around me because of my lust for revenge, but Sora managed to pull me out of that darkness. I don't know what this 'truth' is, or what it means to Sora, and frankly, I don't care. I owe Sora Yamazaki a debt that will never be repaid, he brought me back to my senses. And I'll gladly do the same to him, which is why his reasoning for doing all this doesn't mean anything to me."

Yaoyorozu was the next person to step forwards, sighing as she did so. "Sora's a handful. But he's like my little brother in that sense, he'll annoy me to no end but he'll step up when it counts. If I can't do the same then I can hardly call myself his friend, let alone a hero. Let alone the class president of 1A nor Momo Yaoyorozu. I'd be a coward. Admittedly I don't know how much I can help him, or even if I can help him at all, but if I don't at least try then attending U.A would have all been for nought."

"To be frank, I couldn't care less about Sora's motives," Todoroki said coldly, "Whether he went with the villains to make it up to us or to be selfish means nothing to me. But he opened my eyes to a truth I was avoiding for so long, and so if he needs to deal with the truth he doesn't want to accept, then I'll open his eyes for him. I would still be the closed-off person I used to be if it wasn't for him, but he made me change. So when it comes down to it, it would be rude for me not to punch him in the face until he changes."

"Get in line half-n-half!"

"What line?"

"I'm punching the bastard in the face first!"

"I wasn't aware there was a line for that."

"Wha-, Oh for fucks sake, you're being sarcastic aren't you! I'll fucking show you sarcasm, get the fuck over here so I can give you a matching scar-,"

"Pfft," Kacchan stopped as Tokage's laughter reached everyone's ears. She was laughing so hard that tears started to fall down her cheek. "Sorry, it's just that I can see why he likes you all so much. Why he's afraid of losing you all because I can see that you are all like a family. I know for a fact that Sora didn't have a good family while growing up. He hasn't said anything to me about it, but the signs are there. He probably feels like he doesn't belong anywhere; he's an adopted child after all. No matter how much his adopted parents are good to him, he'll never feel at home. But he feels at home here in 1A, and it's all thanks to you."

That made Izuku want to save Sora even more. Even Jiro recoiled at that, looking to the wall closest to her sadly. Perhaps she was looking at things the wrong way because while Sora was selfish, he was also selfless. Izuku knew that with first-hand experience, which was why he wasn't giving up now.

Because there was no Class 1A without Sora Yamazaki, it was just something his mind couldn't comprehend. For better or for worse, he was a member of their class - A member of their family. For someone like Sora, someone that didn't fit in. Not in middle school from what he and others had said, nor his own childhood. Or whatever family Tokage was speaking about, he never felt at home.

Until he arrived at 1A.

And Sora fought to keep it all intact, even if he lost his way sometimes. Even if Sora was wrong, even if his lies left them all hurt and confused - Sora was still a part of 1A. He was still everyone's friend, from helping to feed Koda's pets, to making stupid bets with Sero. Goofing off with Kaminari and Mineta, or getting into arguments with Yaoyorozu. From listening to music with Jiro in the back of the class, or getting into fights with Bakugo. He wrote stories with Tokoyami until late in the night, as well as cleaned the classroom with Iida at the end of the school day.

Sora and Hagakure talked about trending models during science, while Sora and Mina always made everyone laugh while doing a presentation on a novel they had to read. He always made time to work out with Shoji and Ojiro, as well as asking Kirishima questions on what workouts to do at home. Sora and Uraraka always shared sweets during maths, always having long conversations about their favourite sweets that always disrupted the class. Asui and he always tried to see who could score higher in English class, while Aoyama and Sora always set up random card games to play for fun.

And Sora… well, he was always there for Izuku. Even when Izuku didn't want to listen to him, when he was so lost in his own head and feeling useless, Sora was always there for him. Whether it was trying to increase his confidence by doing something stupid, or by trying to give him a pep talk that didn't always stick the landing. Sora was there for him, and he never asked for anything in return.

There was no way that Izuku wasn't going to save him now.

"Nanao Iori," Tokage eventually added, "If you find Nanao Iori, I can guarantee that she'll help you find Sora. Especially when she's the one spearheading the police investigation to finding him. Even if Sora doesn't want your help, isn't it meddling when you don't need to when someone doesn't want to, the essence of being a hero? Did he do a shitty thing, yeah? But I don't want to be the one to explain his fuck ups to his friends. So I'll let him do all the explaining this time. More than that, he's the type of person to not ask for help even when he needs it the most. And I know that deep down that he's counting on you. On all of you."

And with that, Tokage left them all alone.

Izuku caught Iida's eye, he knew his friend had Nanao's number. She was the detective that had taken him away during the incident back in Hosu, and so he'd be able to contact her. But it was Jiro's reaction that made Izuku pause, especially when she punched the nearby wall in anger.

"That… idiot," She whispered, "Idiot. Stupid. Fool. Moron. Imbecile. Dunce. That idiot." She repeated over and over again, punching the wall until she had to be physically restrained due to her knuckles bleeding. No one said anything as she turned around to face them all, wiping away her tears. "We are going to save that idiot, before giving him a good thrashing. I'll make sure to get it through his thick skull that he'll always have a place in 1A. We all will."

"Great, now we have a full party," Kacchan quipped, before scratching his head. "Now how do we contact this Nanao? Does anyone know her fucking number? If so, fess up. I promise I won't kill you for not mentioning the fact that you know a fucking cop that's investigating his disappearance as we speak, I'll just beat you until you can breathe no more."

"Well I didn't know that she was investigating Sora's location, but I do have her number." Iida said, holding his phone out.

"Then let's call her." Aoyama suggested, but Yaoyorozu shook her head in response.

"And say what? That we want her to tell us any information she has regarding Sora's location. That sounds like a sure way for us to get arrested."

"Actually," Iida cut in, "That doesn't sound like a bad idea."

"Pardon me, but what?"

"I know it sounds crazy, but we can trust Nanao. Especially when it comes to Sora, from what I've seen of the two interacting they both trust each other. I don't know why, perhaps it has something to do with the truth he's searching for, but I think we can convince her to tell us where he is. As for where she is, I don't think we need to call her. When we were all driving here, I saw her in one of the police cars. I'm sure she's nearby, probably hauled up in one of the nearby vans. I bet Tokage met with her, which is why she knows that if we need info we'll need to meet with her."

"Which means Nanao might have told Tokage to tell us that if we want to find Sora, we'll need to look for her." Jiro added, to which Iida nodded.

"It sounds like it'll take a miracle for all this to be true." Yaoyorozu commented.

"Well, we'll need a miracle if we want to save Sora," Todoroki said, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "I can call my dad and ask him where the police are because I have a question, I'm sure he'll give me their location. We'll just need a distraction to get us out of this place."

"Leave it to me," Aoyama replied, smiling softly at the task given to him. "Shining brightly is my speciality, so I'll be able to give you guys as much time as you need to get out and find this Nanao. Just say the word, and I'll create the most sparkling distraction you've ever laid your eyes upon."

"Thanks, Aoyama," Izuku thanked him, before turning to Todoroki. "When do you think you can get that info?"

"I'll call him right away." Todoroki said, pulling out his phone and walking away from the group as he called his father. Izuku then turned to the rest of them, grinning at them as he realised that this was it.

This was their team to save Sora.

"What are you grinning at, Deku? I don't like the look of it, are you trying to belittle me or something?"

"I'm surprised you know what the word belittle even means."

"Are you trying to pick a fight with me, Earphones?"

"Interpret it however you see fit, just don't be an asshole."

"Okay, okay. That's enough you two." Iida interrupted them, "We don't have time to bicker amongst each other."

"Shut it, glasses."

"Iida, kindly shut up."

Yaoyorozu giggled at that, sitting down on the nearest seat. "So, how are we going to rescue Sora?"

"I say we kick the shit out of all the villains, arrest those fuckers then save Sora afterwards. All on TV."

"Okay… Let's try someone else, how about you Jiro?"

"Yeah, there's no way we can beat a group of villains by ourselves. Even trying to rescue him is a stretch, but if we can time our movements correctly with the police, then maybe we'll have a window to sneak in and get him out without anyone noticing."

Izuku nodded at that, it sounded like a good plan.

"Alright, I found out where the main police van is," Todoroki came back a few minutes later, holding his phone up, "It's parked outside the hospital, near a side road. But we'll need to escape the hospital first."

"I got that covered," Aoyama replied, giving them a thumbs up. "Good luck with getting Sora back, although I doubt you'll need it. The next time we meet, our class will be reunited. For now, I bid you adieu." Izuku watched as Aoyama twirled away, sending a few lasers of his lasers at the walls as he started to sing loudly, drawing the attention of nearly everyone.

'Well, I suppose that counts as a distraction…' Izuku thought to himself, turning to nod at the rest of the group.

"Let's do this!"

---

And part of the truth is revealed...

Yes, AFO's part in this story might be 'forced' but it was the only way I could get it to fit in with the story I wanted to tell. Ultimately, AFO wants to control everything. Imagine how much of a flex it would be for him to control an entire army of soldiers like Sora, child soldiers no less. A minor AU, but at this point who cares?

Canon AFO has about as much characterisation as a fucking wet wipe.

I have tried to add more depth to AFO in my own way, I want to make him sorta like Walter White from Breaking Bad. Someone who clearly loves his brother, but whose ego and psychotic tendencies got in his way which led to him becoming everything he stood against at the beginning of his journey. That's all, I'll be elaborating on that next chapter!

And yes, I'll be ending this arc next chapter! It's going to be a big one, so I hope you'll enjoy it!

Aacent:

Was it a little forced? Yeah, Jiro's arc has changed these past few chapters but I feel like that force is necessary. She was put in a very tense situation, and outside of the USJ, she hasn't been in tense situations, unlike Sora. They say when people are put in extreme conditions, they reveal their true selves and that's exactly what I wanted to do.

Break down both Jiro and Sora.

But I'll most likely edit it to make it more organic when I finish all of Part 1 of this story and add edits to everything.

Guest:

Sora's relapse is a major part of his character arc.

I deliberately wanted him to be built up as new and improved during the first few chapters, and slowly show that in some aspects he's changed, but that he was going back to who he used to be, making everything about himself. It's the arrogance that's been built up over successfully winning at the USJ, against Todoroki and Iida.

And now I want to explore how that arrogance will lead to his downfall, before building him back up properly.

That was always my plan from Chapter 1, and while it may not be written perfectly, I hope to edit the earlier chapters to make this shift more apparent.

Fan De Fin:

Sora and Yaoyorozu are like siblings. They will NEVER be together under any circumstances!

Sora and Tokage... well, Sora like Jiro.

But if Jiro rejects him or finds someone else, well who knows what could happen :P

That being said, I will not confirm who Sora will end up with.

It's a mystery that you the readers will have to find out!

14:

Sora will learn some kendo, just after this arc. I wanted him to learn some during the camp training segment, but it was between evolving his Quirk or learning some sword skills...

So, I made an executive decision and decided to push his kendo lessons until after.

Demonstrathe:

That forcefulness in the first chapter was intended. Albeit it was executed pretty badly due to my subpar writing skills at the time, I do want it to still feel like it's not an actual, organic change.

Because it isn't.

Guest:

Glad you liked it!

Sacredsygil:

Well, they are all people, at least that's how I want to write it. Midoriya is especially hard to write for me because even though he's a protagonist, having him react to certain events is hard, but I hope that everyone in 1A feels real to you as much as they feel real to Sora. Although perhaps I've been doing a lot more telling rather than showing...

And ofc he's gonna forget some stuff.

Sora's favourite work of all time is One Piece.

Fun fact: Sora can recite all of One Piece, line by line, scene by scene. Don't ask me how or why, it's just a part of his character. It's very important to his character arc in my humble opinion.

Guest-Questioner:

Well, I love Ashoka.

I grew up with her in the Clone Wars and I had a HUGE crush on her.

If you are suggesting that I wanted Jiro to end up like Ashoka, well you aren't wrong. As of right now, Jiro's been a damsel in distress twice, and in the context of Sora's POV she's framed as someone he must protect at all costs. But Jiro is a BADASS, and I want her to grow into one even more. She isn't just Sora's crush, even though in his mind she is exactly that.

You'll see what I mean eventually, but Jiro is arguably one of the people that grow the most along with Sora and Zero in the future.

In my opinion, the three of them are the main characters of this story.

While Izuku Midoriya is the main character of the world so to speak, those three are very much the key figures in Over the Top's plot. Always pushing it forwards until the conclusion, which will involve all three in some capacity. But that's enough from me.

TheRealBigJ:

Huh, I guess you're right.

I didn't think of that.

I do love Evangelion, but I really didn't think of Shinji while writing that scene.

So thanks! Now I can claim that it was intended all along :)

Chacca7:

Well at the star Sora is a psychopath.

Kurai's hatred as well as Sora's own fractured mind has been influencing him from the start, although it wasn't clear back then, it's clear now if that makes sense. It was all intentional, but it could have been handled better.

AND THAT'S ALL FOR NOW!

Next time on Over the Top:

"So... I'm hungry. Wanna' get some pizza?"