Here it is, the 153rd full chapter of Miraculous Quirks released when I wanted it to be in the end. It's been exactly a year since I was forced to put this story on hiatus due to catching up with the anime and deciding to wait for Season 7 to come out before continuing as it's easier to adapt via the anime than the manga. I know that Season 7 has been out for a few months now but I was letting it build up so that I've got plenty of material to work with and it got to the point that I decided to just wait for the 1 year anniversary of the hiatus to come back and back I am so it's business as usual with this story from now on as we push to the end of MHA and the end of this story. I also apologize for failing to adapt any of the films in the last year, there's no real excuse for this other than I've been focused on my other stories and dropped the ball on them but that is still a goal in the future only now it will be once I'm done and will include the 4th movie as well. Anyway, enough ramblings, you're here for the return to the action and what a return it will be because the US's Number 1 Hero, Star and Stripe, is on her way to Japan to help defeat Shigaraki and All for One so it's time for a few of the characters to get a chance to watch the fight, something two couldn't do in MHA but can thanks to the changes this story has had on the MHA timeline so sit back and enjoy it. That is all the administrative stuff that I have for you, however, and there are no guest reviews that can be responded to or questions to answer so I will end this note here. Do keep the reviews coming as I enjoy hearing from y'all. That is all I have for this pre chapter note so that means that it is time to sit back, relax, and enjoy the 153rd full chapter of Miraculous Quirks.

Disclaimer: I do not own either of these great works of fiction.

Chapter 153: Attempted American Aid

"What the hell does she think she's doing! I know that I requested aid but she's jumped protocol to get here! It's not a bad thing, all evidence points to us needing the aid immediately, but this won't go over well back in the States."

The statement came from All Might as he sat next to Nezu on the couch in Mage's office at U.A. nursing a cup of tea that Mage had made him while Mage sat opposite them in one of the chairs that always faced the couch. It was the day after Izuku Midoriya's return to U.A. and Mage had called the two men to his office with imminent news, news that would soon get out as the Japanese heroes and police had to be informed but which they needed to hear about it before anyone else did.

Said news was of course the fact that while the world dallied about whether or not to aid Japan in its time of need, one hero had decided to ignore all protocol regarding internation aid requests and had already set out to help Japan. That hero was of course the Number 1 Hero in the USA and by many estimates the strongest hero in the world, Star and Stripe, and she'd defied all orders, assembled her team, and was currently standing on top of an X-66 fighter jet that was tearing across the Pacific Ocean to Japan to take down Tomura Shigaraki and save the nation of her master.

Just like Midoriya, Star was an All Might devotee, she'd been one ever since he saved her, her sister's, and their parents' lives in California when he'd gone there as an exchange student several decades ago. She had used that dedication and her unique Quirk to rise to the top of the cutthroat American hero rankings all while emulating All Might's style in uniform and hair so that everyone knew who'd inspired her to become a hero.

Now she was coming to repay all that All Might had done for her and aid Japan despite looking at losing her hero license at the bare minimum, and if things went south and she had to call in a certain favor she was likely looking at jail time but that wouldn't stop her. As such, Mage had called All Might to tell him before Star had even set out for Japan and requested Nezu join them to provide them with his advice, input, and analysis as they expected a battle soon.

"Being a hero and answering your call, what else." Mage responded simply as he sipped his British tea. "You and your nation are in danger, why wouldn't she come to its aid? Japan did send out a request for heroes to come aid under the emergency protocols for it and she'd answered that request directly. Big Red Dot and Salaam are likely not far behind but they've got more willpower to wait for things to be official, Star not so much."

"Isn't that where you lot are supposed to come in though?" All Might pointed out. "International hero work is exactly why the Guardian Agency exists so I'm sure that if your boss decided too he could send in all your sidekicks from the area to help out, that would be a huge boost."

"If this had been a foreign invasion or an international criminal operation then he could do that without hesitation, hell I'd have had the authority to order that if that was the case so we wouldn't have needed him, but the world still views this as an internal matter and as such all protocols must be followed." Mage said annoyance in his tone at said protocols. "Dominus has been trying to point it out to them, we're mobilized and ready and the forces that we deployed for the recent war are still around and helping out as best they can so we can use them without an issue, but the UN is frustrating him. To make matters worse we believe that All for One is fully aware of what our mandate is and is exploiting it."

"What do you mean?" All Might said. "I mean I'm not surprised that he's aware of your mandate, it's common knowledge, but I'm surprised that he's actively working to styme you lot."

"All for One is no fool, he's fully aware that we're the largest hero agency in the world when you count up all of our members across the globe, perks of being the sole international agency." Mage said. "He knows that if we were to deploy our east Asian, Oceania, and Western US forces the backup we could provide would not be nominal and that's even when you factor in that people like me still can't act to our fullest."

"If you lot could then this would be over a lot quicker." Nezu said idly. "But this is a mere human matter so you can't get involved, at least not without a lot of restrictions."

"Yeah and if I do shit I'm looking at serious repercussions for violating my oaths." Mage said. "I don't want that so my hands are tied. We're trying but this is more than just a matter of the world seeing this as an internal Japanese issue and hoping it doesn't spill over."

"Something else is going on?" All Might asked. "Elsewhere in the world?"

"Yeah, basically everywhere that matters as we've received reports of both internal and cross border villain activities all over the world." Mage said. "And for the latter the locations couldn't be worse. There's serious uptick in activity at the US southern border, between Brazil and Argentina, all over central Europe from Spain to France, Italy, Germany, Austria, and even Russia, as well as issues around China, Singapore, and other fare east countries."

"Oh." All Might said. "Aren't those all key locations for you?"

"Yup, basically every major hub we have is seeing significantly increased activity that falls under our jurisdiction." Mage said with a nod. "Hell there's even reports of something going on at the Northern Irish border, so pretty much every single important border where a Guardian is actively in that county other than Japan is seeing organized international crime actively happening. You may have all but eradicated organized crime here in Japan, All Might, and what was left basically got ended when the Shie Hassaikai was raided last year, but it's still prevalent in the rest of the world and All for One has already made his play there."

"It is like him to do so." Nezu admitted sipping his tea. "He does have an international reach after all, he has been alive for well over a century at least and he was always working in the shadows with extreme patience, so it shouldn't be a surprise that he could stimulate villains outside of Japan to act up while he makes his move here. These internal squabbles are an easily counter to any mobilization effort to aid Japan as countries have to prioritize their own citizens so with enough chaos elsewhere he can ensure that we are left in the dark. The past safety and low crime rate of Japan is working against us I fear."

"But Star is on her way." All Might said. "So surely the Americans are at least willing to lend aid even if she's acted before she's been allowed to do so."

"Her actions are unsanctioned which complicate things." Mage said. "And she took off without permission and is riding a fighter jet with those who support her and coming to aid which has put America in a somewhat of a bind as they can't stop her but if she fails things will be much worse. Regardless, her aid is needed and I'm sure that Endeavor, Hawks, and Best Jeanist have already been dispatched to meet up with her when she makes landfall. Right now, the best thing is to just go with this and deal with the blowback afterwards."

"Star." All Might said with a sigh. "I'd like to see her when she arrives. As soon as that happens I'm going to the command center to coordinate with her and her pilots."

"I'll take you with me, I can get there faster and I have to go anyway." Mage said. "She is a hero from a foreign nation with no license to operate in Japan so I need to be present to coordinate. Hopefully Dominus can smooth some things over back in the States even if he hates dealing with politicians there but this will likely cost her her hero license at least."

"She won't care because she's come here to do the right thing just as a hero should." All Might said smiling. "I can already see her reasoning; she'll have come to help regardless of what her government decided to do so she's just getting a jump on it now rather than wait for approval or a denial that she'll ignore anyway. Time is of the essence."

"Agreed, we are expecting Shigaraki to be 100% tomorrow based on the information that All Might received from Stain so her showing up now is most fortuitous." Nezu said. "And there is little that we can do about it anyway. She's coming to help and that's that. We aren't complaining about the aid and she is the strongest woman in the world, well human woman as I'm sure your female Guardians can best her, and possibly the strongest hero now that All Might is retired so her assistance will be a game changer. Alas I fear that it might not come to it."

"What do you mean?" All Might asked looking at his old friend as he sat next to All Might.

"Well…" Nezu began but before he could the door barged open and Fei walked in her phone in her hand and a concerned look on her face. "Ah, Miss Wu, I take it that Tomura Shigaraki has come out of hiding and has engaged Star and Stripe in the air just outside of Japanese airspace."

"How'd you know?" Fei asked surprised as Mage made a motion with his hand and the door closed behind them giving them privacy. "I just got word to tell Mage that very thing, though the report didn't say engaged and more is about to confront but that's semantics as we know what will happen. I was told that just as Star was about to reach our airspace, Shigaraki appeared from under the rock that he crawled under after the Tartarus breakout to face her though I don't think she knows that that's who he is as she could think that he's All for One. Regardless, he's there on a flying Nomu ready to fight her."

"It is as I feared then." Nezu said with a sigh. "Her presence would be a game changer but All for One is as careful as meticulous as I am, he'll have expected her arrival and calculated the risk of sending Shigaraki out to deal with her now rather than leaving her until after he has One for All and decided that the risk was worth it."

"New Order." All Might said understanding right away. "Cassie's Quirk, it's one of the strongest Quirks out there and a complicated one at that With it in his possession, All for One could be almost unbeatable. If he got that and One for All, well it's over then."

"The existence of New Order and what it can do actually helped provide cover for what Lucky Charm can do as it provided proof that Quirks with extremely unusual abilities exist." Mage said. "I don't know the precise details of it other than that it gives Star a unique command over the reality around her but that alone makes it a power that All for One shouldn't possess."

"Well he's trying to do just that and Technus has provided what we need to check it out." Fei said as she walked up to the table between the men and placed her phone on it screen up and then hit a button before taking a step back to get clear. "He took over my phone and rewrote it to allow for this when he contacted me about what was going on. He's got several of his spy drones in the air around Japan to keep the Guardians informed of what is going on here and they picked up Star's arrival so he redirected them to watch her. They'll provide us the imagery while also jamming any other video that might be in the area just in case the worst happens. Don't want America's top hero's death broadcast live after all."

"Agreed." Nezu said as All Might got worried at that idea but kept it to himself as the screen lit up and projected a small 3D image showing Shigaraki on a flying Nomu facing off against Star and Stripe as she stood on top of a X-66 stealth aircraft with several more in formation behind her into the air above the screen and the table that the phone was on. "Technus's abilities never cease to amaze me."

"It's a bit creepy at times if you ask me." Fei said as she stepped forward and took the chair next to Mage to watch as the small image was almost perfect for them to watch as they sat around the table. "But he is the Guardian of Technology so it is to be expected in today's technological age."

"Well let's watch." Mage said looking closely at the image. "And hope for a major victory before the war kicks off in earnest. If she can win, then that just leaves All for One and his top lieutenants to deal with, which while still a tough situation is much more manageable than having to deal with Shigaraki as well."

The others just nodded at that as they stared at the image though no sound came from them so it would appear that Technus either had some limitations to what he could do with his drones or more likely the location of the duel was such that he couldn't get sound as well without revealing his hand. Regardless, they had a view of the battle and settled in to watch as the two powerful humans squared off against each other.

"Why aren't they going at it yet?" Fei asked after a moment of nothing happened except for Star and Shigaraki's mouths moving showing that they were talking to each other but then, before anyone could respond to her question, there was a sudden flash as each of the aircrafts turned purple for a moment before steadying. "Er…ok this is beyond me."

"If I had to guess, the pilots of those planes have realized who they are facing and based off the intel that we provided the world on Shigaraki after the battle in Jaku have engaged countermeasures against his Quirks." Nezu said sipping his tea and All Might was glad that Mage had invited the Principal to this meeting as his keen intellect and Quirk would be vital in deducing what was going on without any sound. "Likely they've got something to counter his EMP burst Quirk given that they're on aircrafts and that flash was them activating it."

"No doubt Technus is aware of what's going on from wherever he's watching this, anything tech related he can figure out if he's concentrating on it." Mage said as the planes shifted in their formation. "But now's not the time to wonder, it's starting."

Mage was right and only a moment later All Might watched as Shigaraki sent out a powerful blast of yellow radio waves that crackled with electricity just like he'd done on a few occasions in Jaku. The scope and direction of the attack likely meant that another Quirk was at play as well but All Might couldn't guess what as the planes evaded the attack and Star was dislodged from the front aircraft.

However it wasn't like she was knocked off it. No, the movement of the plane had simply taken it just from under her feet as she was simply standing on it so she couldn't stay on it when it moved and began to fall down as gravity took over. That didn't bother Star at all, All Might knew that she trusted her pilots so she just fell all while still looking at Shigaraki until one of the planes shot under her and she landed on it with ease.

Then as the plane shot forward towards Shigaraki, she raised her hands to either side and made a move that seemed to grab the air itself as it passed through her fingers before she clenched them. Then she hunkered down and made some kind of move on the plane while staring at Shigaraki. Suddenly a large star appeared in the air around Shigaraki that was clearly made by her. Confusingly, however, it didn't seem to affect Shigaraki for a moment until his hands went to his mouth and he started coughing and then gasping as if there was no air within the star, which, in fact, there wasn't.

"So she's commanded the air in front of her to vanish or move out of the way at least." Nezu said idly. "An interesting tactic and one that does work well as it allows her to engage him while avoiding his Decay Quirk. Not bad."

"And removes some of his other Quirks based on the powers that he showed in Jaku." All Might added. "Good job Star."

"I'm sorry but what happened?" Fei asked confused. "I've been stationed in China for a while and my time in the US was before she was born so I'm lost. I know that Star and Stripe is supposed to be one of the strongest heroes to ever earn her license but what the hell did she do to command the air? There are air Quirks out there of course and the Guardian of Air could pull this off but that's not it, is it? It's something else, right?"

"No that's her Quirk, New Order at play." Mage said. "It's one of the most powerful Quirks ever recorded and what has made her the force of justice that she is today."

"What does it do?" Fei asked. "New Order isn't something that I've had the time to look into."

"Even if you did, you'd get nowhere." Mage said simply. "New Order is basically a state secret for the US so the precise mechanics of how it works so they've classified it at the highest levels and it should be seeing as it's considered by some to be near god tier given how she can affect reality. Even I'm not aware of the precise details of how her Quirk works, Dominus is but only he and the Guardian designated for the entire US are allowed to know. All Might, I presume that you can shed some more light on it. No point in standing on secrecy now."

"I can, Cassie has told me personally about it and I'm not bound by the American's so I can explain it." All Might said as he watched Shigaraki cough. "According to her, New Order allows Cassie to impose a new rule on any person or thing that she has touched and called out its name, after the whole touching and naming it part has happened of course."

"A counterbalance to the power of it." Fei said understanding. "Similar to how Lucky Charm requires Marinette's energy to work so she's limited by her physical fitness and how much she's eaten before she uses it. Same with Cataclysm for Adrien for that matter."

"That's a fair comparison." All Might said. "So to explain what we are seeing, Star touched the air around her when she held her hands out and clenched her fingers, she then called out something like 'air' and made a new rule for it which judging by the reaction from Shigaraki is that she banished it from existence in a certain radius in front of her. The star shape, yeah not sure about that but it is kinda her whole motif so there's no point in questioning it."

"I see, so that's the gist of it." Nezu mussed as he processed what All Might had said and High Specs kicked in to analyze it. "I did wonder how it worked, she's so effective that few are able to figure it out before she wins, if they survive their encounter with her as she's often called in to deal with threats that have to be ended permanently, and even looking over what she does I didn't have enough data on it to deduce precisely how it works. It really is a remarkable power."

"And the fact that she can affect something as nebulous as air shows that the scope of New Order is a lot larger than you'd think, she's got a level of control over reality itself that is almost god-like." Mage said as Shigaraki put his hands over his mouth where they glowed green while he and the Nomu he was flying on began to fall. "And if all it takes is a touch and a name and she can rewrite what is going on, that explains why how it works is protected."

"There are going to be some limitations though, there always are with Quirks." Nezu added as he continued to analyze New Order whole watching Shigaraki begin to fall in the vacuum that Star had created around him as the lack of air affected the Nomu that he was standing on. "She likely can only give one order to the thing that she's named and touched and when she gives her next order the previous one ends, at least that would make sense, and I'm sure that there's a difference between living and non-living things but those are small compared to its overall potential."

"It helped her reach the top but her drive and determination to get there was key in it, fate just gave her a Quirk that was perfect for her mentality." All Might said though he was certain there was more to her power than just a single order but given how it had been shown he had a feeling that if Star could have two orders active at a time the second one was always active for some reason thus limiting Star to a single order at a time. "And she's used all that to hone her skills to what we are seeing before us, there is no pro in Japan that can match her I'd say."

"No kidding, that's a brutal and unreal power." Fei said her eyes wide as she processed what she'd learned but as she did the planes moved into a new formation and targeted Shigaraki as he fell. "And exceptionally wide ranged even with limitations to what she can do. You'd have to be an idiot or extremely confident to face it."

"In this case it's the later." Nezu said simply as the planes fired lasers as one at Shigaraki. "All for One wouldn't have taken this risk otherwise even if his hand has been somewhat forced by Star showing up before Shigaraki's body was ready. Besides, this has only just started as something this simple won't kill Shigaraki and make no mistake, Star is going for the kill."

"In this case it's warranted and lethal force has been authorized against him." Mage said and Fei agreed with her boss on that front as the laser attack ended and they seemed to congregate on Shigaraki. "Because I don't think anything less will take him down, especially not some lasers even if they are American military grade ones."

Mage was right and they all blinked as Shigaraki proceeded to reflect the lasers back at Star and the planes in a scatter pattern. Star was the first one in the path of the lasers and they all watched as she held out her left hand and intercepted the laser, no doubt calling out its name and giving making a rule for it that would negate it from doing any damage to her and the planes. This was confirmed a moment later as the scattered past her before being pulled back to her.

Whatever Star had done, she'd managed to end the counter attack and save the planes but the cost of that was the end of the vacuum around Shigaraki. He was breathing again and had landed on the back of the Nomu that had also recovered while his gut rapidly healed leaving no trace of damage there. Clearly he was still as tough as ever and he wasn't slowing down as his left arm rolled and he then leapt off the Nomu and at Star in a blur that even Technus's cameras couldn't fully follow.

However, that had to be what Star was expecting as she grinned and leapt off the plane that she was standing on and punched Shigaraki as he shot at her, her fist slamming directly into his face and snapping his neck back right before he was sent flying backwards. She was in the air now and falling but that wasn't a concern and those watching new it.

"Let me guess." Fei said as two planes flew behind Shigaraki and twisted in the air so that they could connect their undersides and ensure that Shigaraki slammed back first into the top of one of the planes while a third plane flew under Star to allow her to land on it and use it leap at Shigaraki. "She just needs skin to skin contact for her the touch condition to be activated and not something like all 5 fingers the way Shigaraki has to be to activate Decay, right?"

"That would be correct." All Might said with a nod as Star landed on the planes before Shigaraki could get up, her hands grabbing his forearms and pinning him there keeping his own hands at bay as she crouched over him, her legs straddling him and ensuring a stable stance on the planes. "She no doubt said his full name right after she punched him so now she can make a rule regarding him. I'm surprised that this fight didn't last longer, I'd have thought that All for One would have been more careful with Shigaraki but clearly his impetuousness is still there and he gave Star the opening that she needed to win."

"That has certainly worked in our favor." Nezu said as the drones clearly shifted to allow for a close up of Shigaraki's face as he was under Star so that they could watch the end happen. "And no doubt she's now made a rule that will ensure Shigaraki's death. I'm not sure of the ins and outs of New Order but there are no doubt limits to it regarding what it can and can't do when it comes to a living person so if I was to bet on it, I'd say that she's made a rule that if Shigaraki does something like move or speak then his heart or brain will stop working."

"A simple rule but an effective one." Mage said. "You can see why many believe that she's as close to unbeatable as it gets."

"Yes, this is likely within the bounds of what she can do." Nezu said his analytical brain analyzing the whole situation now that it seemed like Star had won the battle. "However, the fact that she didn't kill him with that punch means that there is some kind of limit on how much New Order can affect her own body. This is of course based on the theory that she can make a second rule but only uses it only on herself to make her as strong as she possibly can, which given her physique is likely, and if so there's a limit to how much she can buff up herself. However, I get the feeling that that's not really an issue when she can command her foe to die if he does something."

"All this is a bit crude but effective at the same time." Fei said nodding as the cameras showed a wide eyed Shigaraki under Star. "And if I had to guess he's realized that she can easily kill with her power as well."

"Yes this is over." All Might said. "Which is good because that just…what the hell!"

All Might exclamation was on the money as they all stared in utter shock as Shigaraki suddenly thrust his head up and shouted something defiant at Star which really caught her off guard. Clearly she'd thought that either he couldn't move or speak, her order had in fact been that if Tomura Shigaraki moved his heart would stop, but here he was moving and clearly not dying.

No one said anything as Shigaraki's hair seemed to grow and he struggled with something well beyond what he was going through with Star, something internal and Nezu with his high IQ that his Quirk granted him was able to quickly figure out what the likely cause of the situation was. However, he didn't get a chance to voice it as Shigaraki suddenly unleashed a radio wave pulse from all around him that forced Star to leap off of Shigaraki and flip back to one of the other planes that swooped in so that she could land on it.

The plane that Shigaraki was on was unaffected by the radio wave, though the drone providing the angle of what was supposed to be Shigaraki's defeat cut out. That caused the whole scene spasmed for a second before the other drones took up the slack and they were once again looking at the full 3D battle rather than a close up of Star and Shigaraki.

As they 3D feed returned, they saw Shigaraki get to his feet on the plane that he was on. However, he didn't attack right away, he seemed to be just staring at her smiling as the wind buffeted his hair and the stolen red cloak from X-Less that was still around his neck while it did the same for Star's red and white striped cape.

"Um, what happened?" Fei asked breaking the silence as Shigaraki stared at Star and she stared back at him her face hard no doubt trying to figure out why New Order hadn't worked on Shigaraki. "Shouldn't he be dead? She touched him and she doesn't strike me as the kind who'd not hold back when it came to taking down a villain of this caliber. Shigaraki is an S-Rank villain at the very least, if not SS-Rank now."

"She's not, there's no way that her rule for him was a fatal one." All Might said. "Which means that something went wrong with New Order but what? So long as she said Tomura Shigaraki after she punched him, which she would have, then that should be it because that was the moment that she won."

"And that is where I think things have gone wrong." Nezu said as he was finally able to begin voicing his theory unaware that in the battle they were watching Shigaraki was himself fully grasping exactly what New Order could do and why it had just failed to kill him. "It is just a theory but based on what we know about Shigaraki from the recent battle and what you yourself have discussed regarding the vestiges of One for All, I don't think that it's just Tomura Shigaraki in that body."

"What do you mean?" Fei asked as the planes moved shaking Shigaraki off it and he fell but the flying Nomu swooped out of the air and caught him a moment later which surprised no one. "I'm a bit behind here, only just got read in on the whole One for All stuff and its history right before Midoriya bolted to be a vigilante for a while."

"In the recent battle in Jaku, at the very end, All for One seemed to take over Tomura Shigaraki's body and used it to escape with several of the villains on Gigantomachia's back." All Might said starting to understand what Nezu was thinking. "That was reported to us by young Midoriya in the aftermath of it. Before that, he mentioned that Shigaraki grabbed him during their fight before Gigantomachia arrived and tried to take One for All from him but they ended up on some astral plain of sorts where my master, Nana Shimura, and the first user appeared while All for One seemed to be merging with Shigaraki and they fought both against each other and Shigaraki with All for One."

"Precisely and we are also aware that Shigaraki was not in command of his body during the Tartarus breakout as well, that was All for One and was why the breakout was successful." Nezu said as Star grabbed the air again showing that she was giving it an order for a second time but this time she didn't command it to vanish like she did before so they couldn't see what was going on. "Now when we factor that into what we know about New Order, I think that one of two things have either happened."

"And they are?" Fei asked.

"The first is the more straightforward theory and that is that New Order failed to work because there is a second presence in Shigaraki." Nezu said his eyes never leaving the feed as he spoke. "That presence is able to still move because Star is unaware of it and her Quirk only affects one thing at a time and thus that presence prevented New Order from taking effect and allowed Shigaraki to defy her. The second is more nebulous and that is that this is all a matter of perspective."

"Perspective?" Mage asked he was clearly intrigued by Nezu's theories as well. "I get the first one, that's straightforward enough to understand and logically could be the case, but what do you…oh wait what happened?"

There was a pause because as Mage had been speaking Star had performed a harsh uppercut from the top of the plane that she was on and a second later something hit Shigaraki and the Nomu that he was riding with tremendous force sending them flying upwards in the air. That had been unexpected but clearly had to do with whatever order she just gave the air.

"To answer your second question, Mage, she likely made a rule that turned the air into a hardened fist of some sort that she can control and thus used it to punch him." Nezu said unaware that it was actually a hard air form of Star herself only 1000 times bigger. "And as for your first question regarding my perspective theory, that comes from the near unique situation that Shigaraki is dealing with. Based on what we know, All for One is trying to take control of his body and has a presence within him and that might be making Shigaraki unable to truly perceive himself as Tomura Shigaraki due to what All for One's doing to him so he's unsure who he is."

"I can see that." All Might agreed getting what Nezu was saying as Shigaraki was suddenly grabbed in the air and seemed to be crushed as if between two hands, which Star was mimicking where she stood, but that clearly wasn't enough to do more than hold him in place given how enhanced his body was. "Star's power has always been really strong with non-living items and even with people it's strong as they are subject to the rule she imposes but if there is a perception issue then it has to go both ways with people. Something not living wouldn't be able to perceive itself at all so it's all on her but if she perceives Shigaraki as Tomura Shigaraki but he doesn't perceive himself as such then New Order wouldn't take hold."

"Precisely and now that we've discussed it aloud a perception qualifier would also make sense as a limit to New Order as well so perhaps my second theory is the more accurate one." Nezu said as lasers fired at Star but thrust out her left hand to touch them and then grabbed the lasers and merged them into one before transferring them to whatever the hard air was as they were raised into the air above Shigaraki thus proving to those watching that she could make at least two rules. "I wonder how an animal would react though. What would happen in that scenario?"

"Not the time to philosophize on whether or not New Order would work on an animal." Mage said glancing at Nezu. "And by animal I presume you mean a non-sentient one, you are still not human even if you are sentient."

"Agreed but that goes without saying." Nezu noted as the laser was slammed down into Shigaraki and he was driven down into the sea only for the sea to erupt around it and pin him to the sea bed as the laser displaced the waters around it. "Hmm, now this is interesting. What's her plan now? She's no doubt realized that she won't win by touching him but that's not enough firepower to override the strength of his Hyper Regeneration Quirk. Endeavor's flames were hotter and even they failed to incinerate Shigaraki after all."

"If I had to guess, she's only doing this to keep him in place." Mage said. "We are dealing with Americans here; they've got the best military toys to play with and Star still has enough clout to call in a favor or two for one of those toys."

"Oh, yes that would do it." Nezu said nodding as he understood Star's plan. "She'll go to prison for this, there's no question about that, and if it wasn't such a situation Japan would never allow the Americans to do this but desperate times call for desperate measures."

"What?" Fei asked as the cameras panned out and several twinkling dots appeared on the horizon. "Er… are those what I think they are?"

"Intercontinental cruise missiles, yes." Nezu said taking another sip of tea. "Likely the latest king and the Americans have plenty of them so she's no doubt asked for them as a final attempt to beat Shigaraki. I wonder if they will work. They certainly have the heat required if my calculations on the temperatures needed to override Hyper Regeneration are accurate."

"Time to see but man is this going to be a nightmare no matter what goes down." Mage said. "The diplomatic fallout of using this kind of weapon under normal circumstances is bad enough, this is not normal so it's going to be intense."

"Not something to worry about right now." All Might said as the missiles neared. "And if this works then the fallout won't matter."

The others again nodded as they fell silent and watched the missiles close in on whatever they'd been programed to target. No one had any idea how Star was going to touch them while she was using the laser and some air construct they couldn't see to pin Shigaraki in place but they all presumed she could or else she wouldn't have taken such action. As such, all they could do was watch and see how it played out.

That came a few moments later when just as the gray missiles came into full view flying towards Star, the planes suddenly flew around to form a circle around the laser that was being thrust into the water and was currently pinning Shigaraki to the sea bed. Then in what was clearly a well-timed, trusted, and honed move, the missiles were grabbed out of the air by whatever was holding the laser, at this point the four watching had deduced that it was at least humanoid in shape that Star had control over to pull off such moves, and she leapt off the plane at the missiles to touch them.

A second later she touched one of the missiles, apparently she only needed to touch one of them for New Order to effect all of them, and the laser burst apart. As soon as that happened the water crashing down on Shigaraki as it ended and Star made a new rule for the missiles.

As she was doing so, a black mass shot out of the water and up at Star that had to be Shigaraki as he now had the chance to go after her. However, as the mass tore at Star, the planes opened fire on it with their lasers and held it in place as the missiles were redirected, likely the rule that Star had made for them, and used to punch into the mass that the planes were holding at bay.

The punch drove the mass back into the sea and down to the sea bed beneath before a massive explosion erupted from it as all the missiles exploded at the same time. The resulting explosion blew the water up and sent a dome of fire into the air that displaced the air in a circle showing blue sky which the drones captured in all its glory.

"Is, is it over?" Fei asked as the planes rode out the shockwave and the drones shifted to compensate for the shockwave while doing their best to focus on Star as she flew back in the air while looking down as she did. "Did that do it?"

"The firepower of those missiles would certainly be enough to ensure that Shigaraki can't regenerate from it." Nezu noted as the drones shifted so that the image panned down to show a deep hole in the sea floor and the water rising up around it for a few seconds before it began to crash back down as the force that had displaced it ended. "Even with Hyper Regeneration his body should have been vaporized if it took the direct force of all those missiles so it should be enough but until an expedition is sent to confirm, we can't…"

Nezu didn't get to finish before a blackened, charred, and badly damaged figure burst up from the hole in the center of the impact zone right before the waters crashed down in on it and shot high into the air as the water returned to normal. They all stared wide eyed, trying to process it as the figure quickly healed while flying revealing that it was Shigaraki.

Star was looking like a sitting duck so the planes flew in to support her as he neared her but just as they were about to do so, Shigaraki thrust his right arm into the air and purple tinged, black lightning burst from his palm indicating that he'd activated another Quirk. However, none of them knew what it was because this was one that they'd not seen before.

They got an answer as to what it was because almost as soon as the Quirk was activated the flying Nomu, which they'd all missed and which was falling limply in the air, sparked with the same lightning, and blew up in a spherical fiery blast that sent out a shockwave in all directions and caused the planes to be blown off course. It was in that moment that once again Nezu put it all together thanks to his High Specs Quirk.

"I see, that was a serious sleight of hand and I can't say who was controlling Shigaraki's mind to come up with it though I'd say it was Shigaraki himself given how risky that was." Nezu muttered as Shigaraki got clear thanks to the Nomu blowing up and landed on one of the planes. "As loathe as I am to say it, that was impressive and should have been factored in but we were so focused on the missiles that we missed it."

"What was?" All Might asked as Shigaraki leapt from plane to plane closing in on Star as she continued to fall down from the sky with no planes near her for her to land on. "What did we miss?"

"The moment the water fell and there was a split second's pause before she redirected the missiles, Shigaraki used the fact that we couldn't see him to send the Nomu he was flying up and at Star as if it was himself." Nezu said as Shigaraki reached the final plane and stared up at Star while the pilot clearly was ready to be killed by Star to take Shigaraki out with the explosion of his plane. "We were all distracted by that action thus allowing Shigaraki to use Decay to bury himself as deep underground as he could manage where the explosion would kill him, though with a clean path to him from the explosion site he was badly burned by it but that wouldn't matter with Hyper Regeneration. Then he leapt out and now he has the upper hand."

"This isn't good." Mage said a note of resignation in his voice. "That was the best shot now that New Order won't work on him. This could be it because there's no way that the Americans will send anymore missiles even if there was time to do so."

"Alas I fear so." Nezu said his own voice filled with resignation as well. "But after what we saw there's a bigger issue at hand."

"And that is?" Mage asked while the watched.

"Based on what we just saw, I'd say that Shigaraki now has full control over Decay." Nezu said. "He's mastered his destructive Quirk and while we know that Cataclysm can hold against it should they clash, with that level of control this is going to take a lot of planning to counter."

The others agreed with this assessment as it made sense based on what they'd seen when the waves were parted but no one said anything because right at that moment Star smiled and Shigaraki leapt at her, grabbing her face in his complete right hand. They all knew what this meant, it was over, Star and Stripe had been defeated, her Quirk would now be stolen while Decay took hold, if it hadn't the moment he'd grabbed her, and she'd die.

The strongest hero in America, possibly the world, had failed to defeat Tomura Shigaraki. All they could do now was watch it play out unaware that even with her death imminent, Star had one final move that she'd already made when she accepted her defeat and possible death if she couldn't use New Order to prevent Decay from taking hold.

It started with red lines appearing around Shigaraki's arm and Star's face as All for One was activated and he stole New Order from her. With that done, he pulled back, the lines being sucked up and into the hole that was in the center of his palm that was the telltale sign of All for One as Star fell back in the air, her face cracking.

There was a brief pause, the cameras were close in now, or zoomed in it was hard to tell, as it was clear that Star tried to stop Decay with the last moment that she had with her power as it was taken from her but it failed and the red light was fully sucked into Shigaraki's palm and Decay continued to ravage her. It had started before she'd given the order so there was no way to countermand Decay by calling out her name and saying that she wouldn't succumb to it.

Shigaraki had won and he'd held his hand out to the air and clenched it as he used New Order for the first time only seconds after stealing it and that was when it happened, his eyes went wide and suddenly his face caved in as if he'd been punched. This was followed by a series of red flashes inside his body that blew outwards before his body started to twist, mangle, and explode while he remained suspended in the air, his regeneration ensuring that he wouldn't die immediately but unable to do anything else. All the four people watching could do was stare in utter disbelief at the change.

Unbeknownst to everyone, Star's final successful rule with New Order had been to make a rule that New Order itself to rage against any other Quirk that it encountered. It was her last card to play but she couldn't let her power be stolen without consequences so when she knew that Shigaraki would touch her she gave the order. She'd hoped to use her second rule to avoid her body decaying as well but alas that hadn't happened so if she had to die to allow for peace then that was a price she was more than willing to pay.

That was what she'd done but none of them knew it in that moment, they just watched as her body decayed in the air, falling apart as she fell down to the water below. At the same time Shigaraki's body seemed to be at war with itself and the drones made sure to capture all of it for them to watch.

There was no doubt in their minds that there something was very wrong with Shigaraki and he clearly knew it as well as he turned as if to flee, he'd won so there was no need to stay or so the four watching presumed. In reality, Shigaraki actually trying to find a pilot to give New Order to as he couldn't destroy it only take or give it away, but the pilots wouldn't let that happen as they encircled him in the air and let loose with their lasers at the same time once more and this time pinning him in the air there as New Order ravaged his Quirks from the inside.

Again, Nezu was the one who put things together and he was impressed by the final act that Star had done and the clear head that she'd maintained to see it through despite her what was coming for her. What tipped Nezu off this time was the lack of a reflection like the first time that the pilots had used their lasers to attack Shigaraki.

"Star's last move in this fight, it was a rule that she applied directly to New Order." Nezu deduced as the lasers kept up and it looked like Shigaraki would still be beaten if he was held in place long enough and the pilots clearly weren't giving up. "I'm not sure what but if I had to guess, it was a rule that caused it to attack any other Quirks that it came in contact with. I only realized this because he didn't reflect them as if he's lost that Quirk. It's a counter only available against Shigaraki and All for One and one only Star could pull off."

"Cassie…" All Might softly said his eyes wide at the sight of Star's decaying body and Nezu's words. "Even to the end your fighting. Goodbye, my friend, you fulfilled your dream to the very end."

As All Might spoke, Star and Stripe, aka Cathleen Bate, raised her cracking right fist to the sky under the planes and then to her head in a salute. This was her final motion in life as she disintegrated in the air unaware that All Might was watching as she returned the favor so many years after he saved her and her family in California.

All Might was watching, though, and he had tears in his eyes as Star died but alas, even her sacrifice seemed to not be enough as wings suddenly burst from Shigaraki's back and he flew out of the lasers and away as fast as possible, likely a stolen Quirk from the Nomu. The pilots weren't deterred though as they shot off after him and the cameras followed.

Alas that wasn't enough as Shigaraki let out a final, powerful, radio wave EMP blast that was fueled by his rage and desire to get away and sort himself out. This time the EMP blast overrode the planes' defenses stalling them in the air and allowing Shigaraki to fly away. At the same time it knocked out all the remaining drones which had moved to follow the pursuit of Shigaraki and track him which caused the whole 3D image fell away leaving the room in silence as the four people stared at where the image had been.

They remained like that for a few more moments unable to speak after what they'd just watched. As far as they were aware, the only people who knew what had happened were them, the pilots who would radio in what had happened soon if they weren't doing so already, and Shigaraki so they had a moment before the news began to get out to first Japan and then the rest of the world. However, it was only a moment and they needed to be on top of this and so All Might rose and rubbed his eyes as he did.

"I must go." All Might said breaking the silence as he got to his feet. "The command center needs to be made aware right away and I'm sure those pilots will land in Japan; I need to meet with them."

"Of course, go." Nezu said with a nod. "I'll follow up with you when you get back as I need some time to think on what just went down."

"Thank you, we will need your advice and strategies." All Might said with a nod before he turned to the door and walked to it, Mage opening it with a wave of his hand as he reached it so that All Might didn't have to bother with it. "We cannot let her sacrifice be in vain."

At that All Might left the room and the door closed behind him. Again silence fell over them and in that Fei reached forward and picked up her phone, as she did she turned to look at Nezu.

"What did All Might mean?" Fei asked. "Star lost; did we gain anything from that in the end? I can't see the world reacting well to this."

"Yes, even if it was just a bit, we did gain something from this loss." Nezu said. "Star gave us two things at the very end because I do not doubt that Shigaraki will find someone soon to offload New Order to and save himself from what it's doing to him."

"What two things?" Fei asked.

"The first was that she depleted All for One and Shigaraki's Quirk arsenal." Nezu said. "If my theory is correct, several Quirks will have been destroyed, hopefully Hyper Regeneration amongst them but it didn't look like that at the end though there is still time as he still has to reach land and find someone to give New Order to, so he will have less to work with when the final battle comes. Of course, we have no clue how many Quirks have been stockpiled in Shigaraki's body so that's a problem but less is always better."

"Agreed though given the age of All for One and the work of that doctor who was with him I doubt we've made more than a dent in the number of Quirks that he has." Mage pointed out. "And the other thing is what I told you about the yesterday when I said that Star would come, Fei, and that is time."

"Time?" Fei asked. "True, you did say that that might happened but did we gain any?"

"Certainly, there's no way that All for One is fully ready based on that fight and Star has delayed it for us though by how long I cannot say." Nezu said with a nod. "But we've got a few extra days at least and that is vital. Now of course something else could come up that causes issues for us but we'll deal with that if and when it arises. For now we must focus and get right back to work. Go and help the students prepare, both of you. You can't do much Mage but I am sure that you can do this much at least."

"I can and I don't want to see chaos run rampant here, I have a duty and even if I can't fight given my oaths I can help the mortals here prepare for it so that they can fend off chaos." Mage said raising. "Principal, I'll leave you to think on all this and help prepare the next move. Fei, come with me, let's do what we're supposed to do here and train these kids. Marinette should have had it fitted by now, today was the day that Recovery Girl was going to sort it out, so we need to make sure that she understands how it works and isn't in discomfort from it."

"Yes sir." Fei said with a nod as Mage walked past her and too the door, falling into step behind him. "I'll take the martial arts for now though while you go see Marinette, I've got…"

Fei's voice cut out as she and Mage left, turned, and walked down the corridor leaving Nezu alone to his thoughts in Mage's office. He'd need all his intellect after what had just happened because as soon as Star's death got out the rest of the world would back off, they'd be too hesitant to come and aid Japan after that and besides All for One will have his allies up the chaos that they're causing in their jurisdictions and across borders so others wouldn't be held up regardless. Japan was now truly on its own and it was up to them to end this threat once and for all.

While it had been delayed, the day of the final battle was approaching and Nezu planned on being as well prepared for it as possible as he got up and made his way back to his office thinking on everything. It was time to plan and prepare because who knew how much time they had left before the end.

I think that that's a good spot to end this chapter on and what a way to mark this story's return from hiatus then the Star v. Shigaraki fight. Given the nature of this fight there was no other way to show it so I felt that this was for the best and while Marinette and Adrien could have been here for it, they need to be training and preparing so that's what they're up to right now and there was a little tease at the end as to what some of that preparing might be. There really isn't much more to say on this chapter, it was a pretty straightforward one telling the events as they were happening and showing them via Technus's abilities so that All Might could see Star's last battle and now that I'm back in full swing of this story it will keep up until the end so stay tuned for more. That is all that I have for y'all with this chapter, however, so I will leave this off here. As always, if you like it or have any questions please let me know in reviews or PMs, I will try to answer them as best I could and post any questions asked between uploads at the start of the next chapter and do follow and favorite this, so you are alerted to future uploads. Do keep the reviews coming as I like hearing from y'all as you enjoy my work, it motivates me to keep producing the best work I can for y'all to enjoy. Until next time.

Stringdog