Kyouka Jirou panted as she laid back against the wall. Her arms and legs throbbing with pain, every fiber of every muscle in her body screaming out all at once. Scolding her for being such an idiot. Sweat dripped down her face and neck. She so wanted to take a shower after this but knew that standing for that long was going to suck. Maybe she could settle for a bath if her parents were cool with it?
Her gaze drifted to the ceiling of the ragged beat down complex. The long forgotten building more a skeleton than it was an actual building.
If this place had electricity or water flowing to it she'd eat her favorite boots.
Flinching she felt a rag pressed against her aching eye, her one good one squinting in pain.
"Heh sorry, trust me, it never gets easier." Giggled her friend Sango.
Her short blue hair shifting like it was in the wind despite the fact that they were indoors. Dabbing the rag she went in for a second try, Jirou only slightly grimacing this time.
Well, on the bright side I could be the other guy.
A low groan coming out in front of her making her look towards the carnage. Half a dozen guys laid against the round, all varying in consciousness. Shika stomped past, dragging the leader of the bunch to a chair before easily picking him up and placing him in it. Nearby Yoshimura stood, her long cat like tail bristling as it lashed about.
That's usually not a good sign...
Jirou almost feel bad for the guy. Almost.
"How many times have we caught you on our turf Tada?" Yoshimura whispered in a furious tone.
"T-two times." The man said, letting out a cough.
"Two? No that can't be right...because I could've sworn I warned you the last time. Tada."
"L-listen! I'm sorry I didn't..."
"Can it."
The man's mouth shut so fast Jirou swore she heard the click of his teeth. Circling him Yoshimura tensed her hand, her long claw like finger nails inching closer.
"I thought I made myself perfectly clear last time and yet here you are, selling Trigger no less, on our turf." She extended her claw, dragging it slowly against his cheek, not enough to draw blood but it probably stung like crazy. "Are you aware that there is an elementary school nearby Tada? Shika's kid brother goes there...doesn't he Shika?"
Placing her hands on the mans shoulders Shika squeezed them tightly as she growled out. "Yes. He does."
"L-look! I'm sorry! You'll...you'll never see me again I swear!" He winced when she jabbed her nail into his neck.
"You best be telling the truth this time because I am running out of patience with you. Tada. I don't think the next time we meet we'll be so nice." Taking the chair she flung it forward, pushing the man onto the ground face first. "Now get out of our sight!"
The man stumbled to his feet, a frantic look in his eyes as he rushed out into the cold night air with his figurative tail between his legs.
Taking a couple deep breaths to calm herself down Jirou watched as Yoshimura went back to her easy smile before strolling over to Sango and herself.
"Hows the eye Kyo?"
Wincing at another eye dab she huffed, taking the rag to dab onto her eye herself. "Swollen. I probably will have a black eye after this."
Sango giggled before rolling her eyes. "Yes that tends to happen when you let a guy twice your size hit you clean in the face."
"What even happened back there? You were doing fine but then totally just froze up girl." Shika said slightly annoyed.
Yeah...not her best moment. She was doing fine but then that asshole with green hair jumped at her and she just...
Frowning she slowly stood up on her shaking legs. "I've just been thinking a lot lately..."
"...About?"
"About...I think I want to be a hero."
The three of them blinked at her slowly, staring like they were expecting something else.
The first to speak was Sango, her head tilting slightly. "Wait...that's it?"
"Geez don't scare me like that. I thought it was something actually serious."
"Yes, I too thought it was something...worse."
Jirou felt like she was just punched in the face again, looking between the three her mouth hung open. "Hold the phone, you guys don't care!?"
Shika shrugged her shoulders confused. "No? Why would we care? Sounds pretty awesome to me."
Sango nodded along smiling brightly. "Totally! From gang girl to bad ass hero girl!"
"I always believed you were better then this life...of course I believed you were going to become a singer but a hero is nice too." Said Yoshimura with her trademark smirk.
"Y-you guys..."
Tears started to form, her arms opening wide as all three of them leaned in for a group hug with Jirou in the middle.
"Oww oww easy on the body! It's really bruised!?"
A voice cut through their happy moment from outside.
"The Claws I know you're in there! I just want to talk!"
All of them groaning pulled away, Jirou leaning down to pick up her baseball bat and used it to properly stand herself back up.
"Well, no rest for the wicked. Let's go girls, let's go see what asshole is trying to pick a fight now." Crossing her arms Yoshimura started to head outside, the other two following behind.
Looking down at the passed out man with green hair. Jirou took a slow deep breath before getting back onto her screaming legs. Taking one final look at the building before following after them.
Falling from the sky Jirou's earphone jacks swayed in the wind, flailing about in a panicked frenzy as the ground came to meet her fast. Flesh meeting hard ground she winced, tumbling down a small hill she fell along dirt and rock, twisting her body to land onto her feet with a slide. Her body stung from small scraps and scratches littering all over. Looking up at a steel dome she only had a second for it to register that she was still at the USJ before a middle aged man holding a lead pipe rushed at her from behind some rocks. Ducking under the pipe she spun, cracking her faithful baseball bat against the guys head, his body bending before crumbling at her feet.
Jirou's hero uniform was made up of spikey punk rock boots, tattered black jeans, a black choker and a long jacket adorned with buttons that her friends had gifted to her. The jacket swished as she turned, revealing three long jagged claw marks painted onto the back in purple. The signatures of her friends haphazardly thrown on the back.
Raising her bat just in time she deflected a machete aimed right at her head, parrying it aside. Raising a foot she slammed her steel toed boot into the guys chest, kicking him away to put some distance between her and the assailant. She watched as the bigger man stumbled back before regaining his footing, getting back into a low stance.
"Be careful with something sharp like that, you might poke someone's eye out." She said, her gaze not leaving the larger man.
"Cocky brat."
Lunging at her again she took hold of her weapon with two hands, her baseball bat raising straight up to block the side strike from hitting her. Unperturbed by her blocking him he took a step closer, pushing her hands back against her chest. He took another step and another, her feet grinding back against the gravel. His deep voice chuckling down at her.
He was clearly stronger then me...but this wasn't.
Kicking right between the mans legs his cocky smirk quickly turned into an open mouth screak, eyes shooting wide in pain. Knocking his weapon aside she winded a fist back before hitting him straight between the eyes, his large frame falling straight back against the ground unconscious.
Jirou finally had a moment to breath, panting slightly as she looked down at the mysterious man and shaking her hand. Frowning she spit a little on him before standing straight up with a grumble. "Asshole..."
Looking over the rugged rocky terrain she could see hills and peaks dancing along the horizon. To her right about a yard away was the edge of a cliff, the ground stopping and falling off to who knows how far down. She could see more rock on the other side of the cliff, a wooden rope like bridge connected the gap to the other side.
That looked like a ticket out of the area if she ever saw one.
"Jirou!"
Midoriya came running out from her blind side charging straight at her. She was a little surprised to see him. Bending down he grabbed the lead pipe left on the ground before pulling it back and throwing it at her, shouting as he did.
"Duck!"
Side stepping the pipe it flew through the air connecting into a guy that was apparently behind her with a knife. Blunt lead dug into the mans chest giving Midoriya a moment to rush him, driving an elbow into the side of his head, the man falling like a sack of potatoes.
Turning towards her he gave her a smile before nodding. "You ok?"
Jirou was feeling a little stunned, blinking a few times before nodding back, her face slightly red. "Yeah I'm ok, thanks for the save man."
"I wouldn't be too thankful just yet!" An unknown voice called out, making the two of them jump a little in surprise.
A man stood on top of a hill of rocks, an excited grin on his face. In response to his shout about a dozen of men and women walked out of hiding, the bulk of them emerging to start circling the two students.
Midoriya pressed against her back, the grip on her bat growing a little tighter as she frowned. Looking from one person to the next she tried to see an opening but could not find one, her mouth opening to say a single word.
"Shit."
Fake fire licked and danced along with real fire. The sound of explosions echoing out around him as he ran. Running a hand along his sweaty face Kirishima was a little relieved that his hero costume did not have a shirt with it, else he might actually burst into the flames due to the heat.
The area that he was transported to was radiating warmth, tall buildings made to look like a city scape were all around him looking like a bomb had just gone off. Whether that was because the area was supposed to simulate a fire or not he had no idea. What he DID know is that it sucked.
Following the sound of explosions he turned a corner to find his classmate, Bakugo in one of the buildings, surrounded by creepy looking guys. He did not hesitate running into the fray, his skin hardening as he ran. Lowering down he shoulder tackling one of them onto the ground, raising a rock fist into the air before bringing it down on the guys face. Rock met cardelig making a soft crunching sound.
One guy circled him to his blind side stabbing at him with a knife, the blade breaking off against his skin. Face the coward he activated One for All, red sparks shooting off of his arm before driving his fist into the guys chest and watching as he flew backwards into a neighboring wall. The rock shield around his arm shattering off from the force of his punch.
Grimacing Kirishima got back up, shaking the pain off of his arm to face the rest of the group.
An explosion went off near his left, Bakugo propelling himself across the room to bring his foot into a guys face, effortlessly twisting in the air before blasting the guy standing next to him into a wall.
"What the hell are you doing here shitty hair!?" Bakugo screamed, blocking an incoming strike with his grenade like gauntlets, sparks erupting from his palms as he fired off another blast.
Smirking Kirishima defended from behind, reapplying his armor before grabbing at a guy by his collar, bringing his head back and cracking his rock covered head against him with a headbutt. "Same as you I guess! Got teleported somewhere!"
Eye twitching Bakugo ducked under an incoming sword swing, the blade so close he could practically feel the blade slice off a couple blonde hairs. Jumping into the air he brought his boots down on the attackers head.
"God fucking...not that! Why the hell are you helping me!? These guys are fucking mine, get your own!"
"I'm just trying to help bro."
"I! Am not your fucking 'bro!" Punching a man with blade arms in the face he fired off another blast from his palm. "Ever since the school year started you've been following me around like a dog damn lost puppy and I'm sick of it!"
"Dude I haven't been following you around?"
"You have! Always looking at me like you have something to say!" Thrusting a finger forward he screamed, batting an incoming strike aside. "If you have something to say to me fucking say..."
Letting out a round of coughs Bakugo squinted his eyes, his chest starting to convulse as he fell to a knee. So busy coughing his lung up that he wasn't aware of an incoming knife aimed right at him.
Luckily, Kirishima was there to block the stab with his arm, picking the guy up before tossing him into a wall. A harsh thump putting an end to the fight.
Making sure they were in the clear Kirishima scanned the horizon before walking over to a still coughing Bakugo with his hand out.
"Dude are you..."
His hand was swatted aside by a furious looking Bakugo. His teeth gritted as he looked up at him with disdain.
"Fuck. Off."
It was a tense moment of quiet between them, the only sound filling the silence was the crackle of artificial fire going off nearby. Frowning Kirishima gave a nod.
He may not be the brightest bulb in the shed but even he knew when he was not wanted.
"Sorry. I just...wanted to thank you." Kirishima looked Bakugo over before sighing. "I saw what happened to you on the news two years ago. Watching how long you fought off against that weird slime guy kind of inspired me to be a hero. I just...didn't know how to thank you. I'll leave you alone now."
Turning he left Bakugo alone, Bakugo frowning at were he walked off to before running the top of his knuckle against his mouth.
Bakugo looked down at the ground in thought, cursed and followed after him.
Three students were huddled in a circle sitting on a boat, all dripping wet as the boat swayed slightly against artificially made waves. One of them, the shortest of the group, was walking back and forth as he ranted. His short arms waved about in a frantic motion as he panicked. His purple hair made out of completely circular orbs.
"Oh god we're all going to die! I can't die yet! I have so much to live for, so many things to do!" Cried Mineta, his eyes darting around in a vein attempt to find a way out. "There are so many women out there and I haven't had a taste of any of them yet! It's not fair, how could this happen to me!? How could..."
A long frog like tongue lashed out to smack the little imp across the face, immediately shutting up his ranting.
"Stop it. There is no point in panicking kero." Muttered Tsu, her hand going to her chin in thought.
"Yeah man chill, I'm sure there's something we could do." Sighed Kaminari, a leg propped up as he sat. "They haven't rushed the boat yet even though there are so many of them compared to us, so we have that."
"Yeah but how long is that going to last!? I can't fight! I mostly just capture stuff!"
"I hear you man, I'm not exactly much better. I've never been in a fight in my life, our test a week back was the first time I've ever used my quirk on another person."
"What!? How is that in anyway going to make me feel better!?" Cried Mineta, panic tears threatening to burst from his face.
"I'm just trying to let you know we're in the same boat here!"
The two shouted back and forth as Tsu stared out into the water in thought. Tilting her head she let out a small hum before standing to walk past them, the two hero students stopping their argument to watch.
Leaning over the side of the boat she stared down at the dozen of villains floating in the water, her voice calling out to them.
"Kero. Which one of you is the leader?"
The group of them all laughed, almost mocking in their tone. Swimming forward a man with a shark like head grinned evilly at her before speaking. "That would be me. Don't bother begging for your life, it won't do you any good."
"Sorry kero but that was not the plan. I just wanted to kindly ask you all to leave...I would rather not kill anyone if possible."
Another round of laughter, the leader of the group chuckling along.
"The bitch has spunk! I like that, but no, we're not going to just leave."
Tilting her head to the side she watched him for a moment before speaking. "Are you aware that we have someone here that can use lightning? I've heard stories about how dangerous that could be in water so I'd rather it not come to that."
The laughing stopped, Kaminari seeing that as his que to walk next to her and activate his quirk, sparks of electricity moving across his fingers. Eyes widening the leader stared, holding his hands out as he spoke. Suddenly the group of them looked a lot less cocky.
"Y-you're bluffing! No hero would up and fry a bunch of crooks! You d-don't have it in you!"
"Kero, we are only hero students. We aren't actually heroes yet and you are threatening to kill us. I have siblings waiting for me back home that I would like to go back to."
Staring into her face the leader squinted in an attempt to get a read on her, her blank unreadable face staring back. A silent game of chess being played between their eyes. Tsu could see sweat starting to form on his face, his eyes shaking as they darted around.
Gulping he opened and then closed his mouth, the panic in his face letting her know that she had won.
Ice shot out, moving across the ground at a startling speed before latching onto a person's foot. A cold shiver running up the mans spine as it drifted farther up, coating his leg and soon his whole body in ice. The man next to him screamed, falling onto his butt before crawling away on all fours, his weapon forgotten on the ground as he turned and ran.
Stumbling he panted, panic in his eyes as he shouted. "These kids are crazy! What the hell is with their quirks!?"
Wind parted and shifted around him, his feet no longer touching the ground as he was lifted up. Floating in place for a second he still tried to run only for his legs to flail around unmoving, looking down at the ground in shock. With a forceful yank he was jerked backwards to find himself in the arms of Inasa Yoarashi. Reeling his head back Inasa headbutt the guy across the face, knocking him out with a single hit.
"HAHA! NICE ONE TODOROKI! THOSE GUYS DIDN'T STAND A CHANCE AGAINST THE MIGHT OF OUR PASSIONATE POWER!"
Todoroki didn't even bother looking at him as he walked past, the fresh layer of ice crunching under his white boots as he walked. Behind him Inasa froze, his big smile turning into a frown for just a second before quickly returning to a smile, shaking his head he started to march after him.
Making their way over to the frozen henchman the man wiggled around in his ice cold cocoon, grunting and groaning as he tried to free himself, only stopping when he saw Todoroki. Walking over to him Todoroki looked him over with his heterochromatic eyes.
"What is the plan here? There's not way that your whole plan was to sneak into UA just to get beat up by some kids." He said in an icey cold tone.
"Ask your questions all you want but I ain't talking! What do I look like? A snake!?"
"Of course not...snakes would die if frozen. They're warm blooded."
"HAHA HILARIOUS JOKE TODOROKI!"
The two ignored Inasa's laugh, the villain squinting at him.
"Is that a threat?"
"It is..." Raising a hand freezing cold mist could be seen drifting from it. Placing a hand against his face, ice started to creep up the mans neck, slowly drifting farther and farther up. "Now talk. Unless you want to be a popsicle."
"A-alright alright I'll talk!" The ice stopped moving for the moment giving him a second to speak. "I-I don't know the exact plan! We were just told to meet at certain points and then kill anyone who shows up, I swear!"
"Not good enough."
"W-wait hold on! Um..." Eyes moving around it was unclear if he was thinking or just stalling for time for the moment. "The boss has a...a thing!"
Poking in from Todoroki's side Hagakure spoke in a questioning tone. They could not see her but if they did she was probably raising an eyebrow. "A thing? You mean a guy or like a weapon?"
"No! Like a...a thing! It sat in a crate the entire time during our briefing and only started to move after given an order. Big purple skinned thing with a bird beak! It was called our 'secret weapon' that's all I know I swear!"
Looking amongst each other the unlikely trio communicated without saying any words, Todoroki looking back to speak.
"Alright. We believe you."
"Thank you...thank you!"
"Just sit here until the heroes arrive."
"W-what!? Hey!"
Heading down the rocky pass Todoroki's gaze did not leave the direction of the square, his eyes cold and calculating as he walked.
The way he moved, the way he spoke, the way he held himself.
it was so...so
WRONG.
Inasa's hand had started to hurt from how hard he was clenching it, his smile grinding against his teeth so hard he was surprised that he had not drawn blood. A red hot fire flicking against his insides making him start to feel sick.
Inasa Yoarashi always liked everything, he was the kind of person who had a passion for any topic if you got him going. He did not...hate things. Yet, looking at his colleague and the son of Endeavor he could not stop the frown from overcoming his face.
Inasa did not hate things...but Todoroki he may make an exception.
Taking a deep breath he watched Hagakure run after Todoroki, his hand unclenching and slowly following after.
Jirou and Midoriya sat behind a rock, the sound of blast going off as the rock splintered and cracked. The blast stopped, panting Midoriya looked over the rock just to duck back behind when another volley of blast started up again.
A woman with long hair and a man in a long green jacket were firing energy blast against their hiding spot...a hiding spot that was quickly shrinking. They hardly left an opening for them to get away, covering each other's breaks pretty well.
This was not good.
Looking down at his bleeding arm he grasped it in a hope to stop the bleeding. Looking to his left Jirou didn't look much better, signs of bruising and minor cuts already starting to form on her body. Silently he cursed at the fact that he lost his medical supplies when they were teleported.
This was his first time fighting a group of people that were actively trying to hurt him and man was it different then just sparing in a dojo. There were so many of them and no matter how many he knocked out there was always more waiting for him around the corner. It barely felt like they were making an progress at all. Exhaustion had started to set in, his movements already feeling slower then they were a while ago. He thought he had good stamina but that didn't seem to help much in this situation...Jirou didn't look to be fairing much better, her chest moving up and down as she held her bat.
Common Midoriya think, there had to be a way out of this.
Squeezing his fist he wracked his brain trying to think of some way out of this but could only think of one solution. He could maybe hold them off long enough for Jirou to escape and get someone to help.
"Midoriya." Jirou's voice snapped him out of his planning, looking down to find her staring up at him. "I just...I just wanted to say..."
BOOM
The ground shook a little, a loud bang coming from the other side of the rock. Smoke billowed out, a silhouette running, no sprinting, towards them. Before they could even register the incoming threat they both watched shocked as Yaoyorozu came running out of the smoke.
"Yaoyorozu!?"
"Momo!?"
They both exclaimed at the same time. Taking hold of both of their arms she pulled them towards the smoke. Midoriya and Jirou not hesitating even for a second to follow after her.
Squinting against the thick smoke Midoriya could hear coughing all around them as they ran, the faint shadows of other people shifting around in the unseen. A glint to his right made him notice it, snatching a machete off of the ground as he ran. As quick as they went in they emerged, the light of the steel dome making their eyes hurt when they came out on the other side. Not stopping their movement they started to run towards the wooden bridge. Jirou to his right screaming as she ran.
"Thank God you showed up when you did Momo! I thought we were a goner!"
"I am happy to see you two are ok as well!" Gesturing to a bleeding side of her head she shouted back. "When we were teleported away from the others I fell wrong and went unconscious! When I came to I heard the sound of fighting and came as fast as I could!"
"But how did you create such an explosion?" Shouted Midoriya back, the sounds of screaming followed by footsteps could be heard behind them.
"That's easy. I merely created a canon and fired a smoke bomb into the crowd from up high."
"You made a what!?"
Jirou snickered "Did no one tell you that Momo's quirk let's her make things? It's pretty crazy."
"But a canon!?"
"My father is a fan of old timey weaponry, he has collected many books on the subject over the years and keeps them in his personal library." Responded Yaoyaorozu.
"Your dad owns a library!?"
Their feet met old rickety wood as they ran, the bridge slightly groaning under the extra weight. Coming up on the other side all three of them turned to see the massive group of henchmen hot on their trail. Raising a foot Jirou slammed it onto the bridge, her earphone jacks shooting down to plug into her spikey boots. Her shoes thrummed a single low sound before shooting a soundwave out, the group of criminals stopping in their tracks to grasp at their throbbing ears.
"Not to say that this conversation isn't hilarious but I think we have a bigger problem at the moment!" Yelled Jirou over the sound of her boots.
Gripping the machete he picked up Izuku swung it at one of the ropes holding the bridge up, embedding it partially through it before swinging at it again. It shifted and swayed under the stress making the criminals look amongst each other.
"Better run else you want to find out what's at the bottom of this ledge!" Midoriya shouted, bringing the blade down on the rope a third time, it cutting clean through it.
Screaming the group started to run back from whence they came, the bridge started to tilt on one side. Going over to the other rope he started to chop at it, making sure to only finish cutting it after everyone had gotten off the bridge. With a loud snap the rope came undone, the bridge going completely vertical as it wiggled, one side of it plummeting down below. Leaving the group on the other side and cutting off the one entrance to and from the mountain zone.
"Do me a favor and hold down the fort sport! You're the man of the house until we get back!" Yelled Midoriya, cocking his arm back and chucking the machete off of the cliff.
Letting out a laugh Jirou joined in as well. "Don't give the babysitter any trouble and be sure to go to bed on time!"
"Ah um, we left a few hundreds on the dresser incase you get hungry!"
Blinking the two turned to stare at an embarrassed looking Yaoyaorozu, her face bright red. "What? Is that...not normal?"
...
Letting out a snort Jirou gave her a pat on the back as they walked. Midoriya staring a little bit longer in an attempt to figure out if she was joking or not...
Turning he stared off into the distance, past the jagged rocks and the steep drop of the cliff side he could see the faint glimpse of water from the fountain. The fountain in the center of the USJ. The fountain that he knew that Mr. Aizawa was fighting at...clenching his good hand he frowned.
This was really stupid, he should just try and sneak past to regroup with the others at the entrance. He would just be in the way...and yet.
Yaoyaorozu and Jirou stopped their walk to notice that Midoriya was no longer following them, looking back at him confused.
"I want to check on Mr. Aizawa."
Eyes widening they stared at him shocked, mouths opening to shout at him at the same time.
"Absolutely not!"
"What are you crazy!? We barely made it out of there alive and now you want to run back into the fray?" Jirou marched up to him to poke at his chest. "I will not go risking my life again over something so stupid as pride."
Sighing he gave a nod. "That's fine, you don't have to go. I just want to make sure everyone is ok." Walking around her he started to head down the hill. "Go meet up with the others, I'll catch up with you shortly."
"W-what!? The fuck I am!" Jirou shouted as she marched after him. "What? Are you that desperate to get yourself killed!?"
"Jirou leave me alone."
"No, you are not going to just walk away from me. We are all going back to the entrance!"
"I can take care of myself."
"Apparently not considering everything we just went through! I get that you're all big and strong now but you don't have to do everything on your own!"
Stopping in his tracks he spun around to glare at her, his eyes flashing green. The sight making her flinch away from him slightly. His words hissing out through ground teeth. "Kyouka, drop it. Just leave me, it's what I'm used to."
That seemed to really hurt her, a hand going to her chest like he just struck her. Taking a deep breath his shoulders untensed, trying to calm down his breathing.
"I can't just leave knowing someone may need my help."
A bit away Yaoyaorozu's eyes looked between them as they spoke, a look of realization coming across her face. Taking a step forward she coughed into her hand to get their attention before speaking.
"I take it you have your heart set on this...and you promise to leave the fighting for the professionals, only leaning into support?" A nod from him was all she got before nodding back. "Then I am coming as well. I would feel much better if I knew that everyone was ok."
With no other words needed to be said they both started to head off, a fuming Jirou behind them. Stomping her foot she turned and kicked a rock a few times before sighing, quickly stomping after them.
"Alright fine! I'm coming too but if we all die I get to tell you I told you so!"
How had it all gone bad so quickly?
Hiding behind a rock they watched Mr. Aizawa get slammed into the ground, his gnarled arm twisted in a way it should not be twisted. Bending and distorting until they heard a sickening snapping sound, Aizawa letting out a pained groan that made a shiver run up and down Izuku's spine. In the corner of his eye he could see Jirou wince at the noise, obviously sounding way worse on her end.
"What do you think of him Eraser Head? He's the bioengineered anti symbol of peace. But...you can call him Nomu." The man with hands spoke, his voice almost giddy with glee...or maybe malice.
The thing, Nomu, let out a horrifying bone chilling screech making all of them shudder at the sight. This thing...this "Nomu" was so unlike any of the common thugs they met at this point. It was different, so much worse. It's massive, purple, muscle covered body distorted and twisted to look almost human. The fact that it could almost be mistaken as a person besides the big beak like face and exposed brain somehow making it even creepier.
Turning to look at the massive being holding him it crushed Mr. Aizawa's arm under his foot. Momo's hands going to her mouth in pure shock, her eyes wide as she watched Nomu lift Mr. Aizawa's head and slam it into the cold concrete.
This was bad, really bad. So much worse then he thought...
Before any of them could even do or say anything they watched as the portal guy from earlier appeared, leaning in to whisper to the man with hands. Jirou leaned in a little, stabbing her earphone jack into the ground to listen in on the conversation.
"They're talking about retreating...sounds like IIda got outside of the USJ."
Letting out a small sigh Momo smiled. "That's good."
"The hands guy seems to be having a panic attack...now he's talking about...killing...kids."
Whipping around to stare at Jirou they both turned in sync to watch the man with hands go sprinting off into a horizontal direction. Turning their heads towards where he was heading they watched horrified as he ran towards a second group that was watching from a far. The hands guy lunging at the group of Asui, Denki and Mineta.
Izuku Midoriya had no idea what the villain could do but he had a terrible feeling deep down that whatever his quirk was it was probably very bad.
His body moved before he could register what he was doing, jumping out of his hiding spot to go rushing at them. He could hear the voices of Yaoyaorozu and Jirou shouting behind him.
The mans hand grew closer and closer, like a creeping shadow of death. His arm moving faster then Izuku could run it hovered over Tsu's face. Time stopping for a second to take in Tsu's wide eyed, terrified face. Time returned, the hand placed right on her forehead before pausing.
Letting out a sigh the villain looked behind him to stare at Mr. Aizawa.
"You really are cool Eraser Head."
Lunging forward from the water Denki reached both of his hands out, sparks flickering off before firing a massive charge of electricity aimed right at the villain. For a second Izuku thought that Kaminari had got him but when the smoke cleared the "Nomu" was standing in the way of the blast. Unmoving, as if he wasn't just hit with a blast of pure electricity point blank.
In one quick motion the monster reached down to grasp at Kaminari's wrist, wrenching his stunned brain fried body into the air.
Tsu shot out a tongue in a desperate attempt to save Kaminari from the beast.
Mineta begged for mercy.
And the man with hands slowly crept his two palms forward, promising death for both Tsu and Mineta.
Cocking a fist back Izuku aimed a strike right at the back of the villain's head, hoping that if he came in from a blind side he could get a hit off. Unfortunately, that did not work, the man dodging away from the strike and taking a leap back.
"Oh ho! Two more enemies have emerged from the fog."
Movement to his left in the corner of his eye he saw that Jirou had joined him, her shaking hands gripping onto her bat tightly. He had no idea where Yaoyaorozu was but he refused to turn his head to look, something told him that looking away meant death.
Hopefully wherever she was she was safe.
No one moved for a moment, Jirou's foot grinding into the dirt as the hand villain tilted his head, a single eye glaring at them from behind a bizarre twisted mask.
Dirt shifted as they both rushed him. Jirou swinging at him from the left, her bat missing it's target. Lunging at her with one of his hands he had to pull away when Izuku tried to kick him in the head. In a fluid motion he ducked under Izuku's leg, going in for a second strike only this time to be interrupted by a frog like tongue lashing at him from a far.
Shifting to the left he dodge the tongue, raising his arms to block the stinging strike of a metal bat. Izuku pushed the offensive landing a few hits into his stomach before having to retreat from another strike.
A second bat strike came from his blind side forcing him to block with his arms, bruising starting to appear along them. Letting out a frustrated growl he swung at her just for her to duck back behind the others.
He knew this trick...all three of them were using hit and run tactics, landing a few hits before retreating, being sure to cover each others escape with blanket fire. He's played enough shooting video games to know what kind of game they were playing...it was smart, probably the best way to defeat a stronger opponent. It probably would have worked...if he was alone.
Thrusting his hand out into the air he plunged it into a portal, the hand appearing behind Tsu as she was mid leap, his fingers digging into her shoulder. Letting out a pained scream, her body twisting in the air before falling against the hard ground.
Jirou tried to swing at him but he caught it with his free hand, giving the steel weapon a squeeze. Both of them watching in horror as the bat crumbled to dust, splintering into pieces upon the ground. Forcing her retreat to a safe distance.
In a last ditch effort Izuku dipped in close to cover Jirou's retreat, meeting his fist with an open palmed strike. Their attacks got close, all five of the vilain's fingers inching closer before he paused, jerking his hand back in surprise and leaving himself wide open. The villain's face snapping back from the blow of Izuku's punch, his mask falling to the dirty ground with a soft thud.
Almost instantly the lanky villain forgot anything else, bending down to pick up his mask. Behind him Midoriya and Jirou raised their eyebrows.
"F-father I'm sorry, look at you...all covered in dirt now. I, I'm so sorry..." His breathing growing panicked and labored as he spoke, only really calming down after he put the weird hand shaped mask back onto his face. Turning to face them Midoriya could practically feel the hatred radiating off of him, his gaze boring into him. Raising a wrinkly flaking hand he pointed at Midoriya, his voice seething. "Nomu. Kill that one first."
In a blink of an eye the bird creature was upon him, wind parting around him being the only tell that it moved at all. Maybe it was always just standing there and he never even saw. Unblinking its dead eyes stared down at him, black smooth eyes more a puppet then anything that ever resembled a living breathing creature. Izuku didn't even see the strike, a blur moving across his eyes a second before he felt the blow. A fist about the size of his lower half slammed into him, a sickening crack filling the air as pain shot along his chest. His feet were no longer on the ground, wind soaring past him at a startling rate as he was launched back. Another shot of pain overcoming his body from behind this time before...nothing, the last thing he heard was an old friend screaming his name.
"Izuku!"
This was insane. Was she the only one that saw that...that monster!
Heading up the stairs to the entrance Momo Yaoyorozu's feet clacked against each step, practically moving up them two at a time.
All she did was stare in horror as Midoriya and Jirou had sprinted into the fray to try saving the others from that...that THING.
She had prepared for many hours for the day that she would come across a criminal, she knew it was inevitably in this line of work. She had planned for many situations and they worked out perfectly against petty criminals, she remembers not even thirty minutes ago feeling so proud of herself...yet when faced with something so much scarier, something she could not have possibly planned for, she ran. Just turn tailed and bolted as fast as she could, leaving her friends to god knows what fate. An all too familiar feeling of shame creeping in from the dark recesses of her mind.
What would her parents say if they saw her running for her life like a coward?
Unable to finish that thought she noticed the familiar brown bob of Uraraka, running towards her with Shoji in tow.
"Momo! Oh thank god you're safe!" The normally bubbly girl exclaimed, worry etched on every crevice of her face.
Walking up next to them an extra mouth appeared from Shoji's shoulder to speak. An action that she was still trying to get used to.
"Is anyone else with you?"
"Y-yes, Midoriya and Jirou were with me but they got caught with a villain, I was hoping to get some help." She managed to say through her panting lips.
You mean you abandoned them? Don't you?
Uraraka perked up at the sound of Midoriya's name. Momo knew of Uraraka's crush with the young green haired boy of course, how could she not? She may not be as gossipy as Mina or Hagakure but she was still a romantic at heart.
"You saw my guardian angel? Is he alright?"
Uraraka's hopeful look made a new wave of guilt hit her. Swallowing she nodded. "Yes, last I saw him he was running into the fray to save some of the oth..."
She heard the loud bang sound before she felt it, the ground shifting slightly from the force of the impact. Uraraka and Shoji turned in surprise, both of their eyes going wide, Uraraka placing her hands to her mouth in shock. Small traces of tears starting to form in her eyes. Momo was almost too afraid of what she would see when she turned her head...judging off of the looks of her friends it was anything but good. Her body moved like crawling through thick tar, her hair swaying as she turned to see Midoriya lay upon the ground.
He was...covered in blood, his chest sunken in a way she was sure that it was not supposed to. Cuts and bruises littered his body from the impact, the ground slightly cracked from the force of the impact. He looked to be breathing but just barely.
It was terrifying.
Uraraka acted first, letting out a scream as she ran over to his slumped body. Shoji followed after her hot on her tail and she followed behind them, her body jolting to life and moving before she even thought it.
"Oh my god, oh my god!" Exclaimed Uraraka, tears running down her face. "What do we do? What do we do!?"
"We should move him somewhere safer." Muttered Shoji clearly in shock.
"No. We aren't supposed to move a crash victim unless we are 100% sure that we wont injure anything in the move. In case something has broken off inside of him." She responded perhaps a little forcefully, the other two starting to look at her. Lowering a hand towards her stomach she started to make wraps, pulling them from her skin as she spoke. "We need to make a stretcher out of something, something to keep him from jolting about. Uraraka you need to kneel behind his head and hold him by his shoulder blades. Shoji you need to lift him by his armpits and one of his forearms. We need to lift all at once, no sudden movements or twisting."
She had just started to wrap his arms when the door burst open...
Momo had always admired All Might growing up, I mean...who hadn't? It was All Might, the symbol of peace and the protector of the people. Despite all of that he was never her favorite hero, she had others she personally liked more.
Yet at that moment, turning to see All Might in all of his towering glory, his blonde hair shifting as he walked. A flurry of emotion came over her.
Why did she ever hold someone in higher regard them him?
Him standing in the doorway to the building, marching up to the top of the stairs and looking down at them like an ancient protector filled her with a sense of awe and hope she had never felt before. His presence drew all eyes in the room towards him and she suddenly found it harder to breath...yet she weirdly felt a wave of comfort come over her.
Everything was going to be ok, because All Might was here...
and he looked pissed.
"Fear not." All Might's voice boomed as he gripped the knot of his tie. "I am here!" He shouted as he tore the article clean off his neck.
"All Might..." She whispered, the sound of villains panicking down below not drawing her away from the sight. In a flash he was standing before them, his thick arms going to his sides as he looked them over. His eyes stopped at the sight of Midoriya, his frown becoming a full grimace. Silently turning towards the plaza square.
"Mr. Aizawa and the others are still down there! There's some kind of monster that's wrecking..."
Anything else she was planning to say vanished along with All Might, his massive frame disappearing almost as if he was never there. A sonic boom exploded near the fountain, hordes of villains getting knocked aside like they were nothing.
Her, Jirou and Midoriya barely survived a dozen of them and yet All Might beat twice as many as them in a mere second.
In a flash he was back with Jirou, Kaminari and Mineta at his side, Tsu and Aizawa in his arms. Setting them down nearby he looked at Aizawa for a moment, his voice deep and booming yet still quiet, holding the faint signs of regret.
"I am sorry I did not make it sooner my friend...I'll take it from here." Looking at the six of them he gave them an encouraging smile. "You six. Make sure to watch over the injured for me. I'll be right back."
Walking towards Midoriya Jirou fell at her knees before him, tears starting to run down her face at the sight of his beaten form.
Leaning towards the edge of the stairs All Might bent at the knees and was gone again, followed by the sound of an explosion down below.
Everything hurt, pain pulsing through his body like a heartbeat, slow, but all consuming. His chest moved up and down slowly, every breath a chore. Every gasp filled with a sharp sting.
Slowly lifting his sagging eyelids he stared up at Jirou. She was crying...tears dribbling down to fall onto his heaving chest. She was saying something but it was hard to make out. Lips moved like she was shouting yet it all sounded like a whisper.
"I-izuku, stay with me! I...I haven't properly apologized yet! You can't just leave like that!"
Watching her through his hazy eyes he wondered why he was so mad at Jirou again? It felt like such a long time ago now...like in the grand scheme of things it didn't really matter.
His eyelids were so heavy...
Maybe it couldn't hurt to close his eyes for a moment.
He could feel them slowly start to close, the pain giving way to a cold numbness that was almost a comfort.
He had a good run despite it all...
Kendo sat down next to him on her bed, turning towards him to say something her mouth moved, a soft caring smile on her face before she let out a laugh.
Oh that's right, he never got to talk to Kendo again one last time. Do you think she'd be mad or sad when she finds out what happened to him?
Rise.
There was that voice again, a voice he only heard in dreams calling to him from the dark.
RISE.
Numbness gave way to a growing warmth, a fire bristling and lashing out as it grew and grew until the heat had started to become unbearable.
R I S E.
Standing around Midoriya's unmoving frame they were busy wrapping his body, a large plank jury rigged into a stretcher. Midoriya's breathing getting slower and slower as they worked until it stopped entirely.
Then suddenly, his body jerked. His chest heaving forward almost as if pulled by an invisible force, jade green flames flickered from his open wounds before engulfing him entirely, forcing everyone to take a few steps back. Letting out a long deep breath Midoriya jerked to a sitting position, his shining green eyes being yanked wide open like he just woke from a bad dream. Sitting before them was a living, breathing Midoriya. Looking a little worse for ware but ok.
Everyone jerked back from the sight, watching as he looked around, a hand going to his chest before looking down at what used to be a bleeding arm. Instead only being greeted by a faded scar.
"Your alive..." Muttered Yaoyaorozu, her eyes looking him over with shock.
Shoji rubbed at his eyes to make sure he was seeing right.
Opening his mouth to speech, his chest heaved, gasping out as he turned away. Billows of black smoke and ash shooting out of his mouth and onto the ground. When he was done coughing he let out a breath.
"Anybody get the license of the truck that hit me?"
Uraraka practically slammed into him, pulling him into a hug, her tear covered face rubbing into his shoulder.
"How am I..." Midoriya's voice trailed before thinking of something, quickly getting up despite the others telling him to take it slow. "Mr. Aizawa, is he ok!?"
Locking in on the sight of a badly beaten Eraser head he ran over to him, going to look him over when he was stopped. Eraser head's hand raising before pointing at an unconscious Tsu that he was just now seeing. "Save...my student first."
Making his way over to Tsu she was laid back, her breathing labored. On her shoulder she had a wound that he had never seen before. A black mark of breaking skin in the shape of a hand print. Cracks splintering out and slowly spreading up her neck, the tree like branches already starting to touch her chin.
"We don't know what he did, no matter what we do we can't make it stop." Said Yaoyaorozu next to him. "Its some kind of quirk and whatever it is it looks deadly."
Propping her head with hand his other lit ablaze, hesitating for a second before running it along the wound.
Seering hot pain like he had never felt before rushed into him. Izuku Midoriya has grown accustom to pain at a young age, but this was on a whole other level. It felt...like his atoms were being pulled apart on the inside. Every part of his being fighting to stay together against an unknown force. Gritting his teeth he pushed through it, his eyes shutting as his muscles tensed. He thought of the small smile that Tsu gave him on the bus and he charged through the pain. It got to a point where he was starting to question if he could really do it when it ended, the flames parting to reveal a wicked looking scar all the way down her neck, onto her shoulder and down her arm.
Falling back to the ground he felt arms wrapping around him to catch him, turning to see Shoji nod at him. Tsu's breathing growing more natural, now looking to enter a deep sleep. He took the hard part away, the rest was left for her body to regain its energy.
Getting back onto his tired and sore legs Shoji helped him up, multiple arms holding him as he started to make his way over to Mr. Aizawa. "Ok, one down, one to go."
Fist met fist, each powerful blow being met with an equally as powerful one. Each clash created a force so powerful it shook the stage and rattled his boned. What his master said was true...All Might had gotten weaker over the years. Which was kind of ironic since a weaker All Might was still a massive threat, he shuddered at the thought of facing All Might prime.
Raising a hand Shigaraki grimaced as he scratched at his neck, no matter what he did the itching would not stop.
God he hated the itch, usually killing satisfied it for a while but killing that frog bitch did not seem to have done the trick. In fact it seemed to have only made it worse! Ever since he fought...that child. The boy with green hair. It's a good thing the Nomu killed him, the way his fingers froze when they got close to the boy shook him more then he would like to admit. For some reason when he got close to him he was overcome with an uncomfortable feeling, the itch running over him in a way he had never felt before...
The fight with All Might was going well, they had almost done him in with their little portal trick. The weak point really was right where master said. But then more brats showed up to stop them.
I swear they are like cockroaches. Little, annoying, cockroaches.
Three dps brats, one with explosions, another with air and an icey asshole got in the way. That plus a tank and the fight had gotten a lot more complicated.
All party members he will have the pleasure of killing later but for now they had to focus on All Might.
"Weren't you listening!" Shigaraki screamed over the sound of exploding fist. "I told you his power was shock absorption! You can't beat him!"
"Yeah, so what!?" All Might yelled back, his punches never faltering. "If it's only Shock Absorption and not nullification, then that means this guy has limit to how much he can take, right!?"
What.
This was not happening, Nomu was fucking losing!? Master entrusted it to him and it was being steamrolled!
Spinning in the air he spun Nomu around before tossing him back into the ground. Falling next to Nomu All Might's shoulders tensed.
"Let me show you what it really means...to go beyond." Throwing a fist back as he shouted light flashed around his fist, slamming his fist forward and into the chest of Nomu as he shouted.
"PLUS!" Pivoting his waist he thrust it forward, All Might's fist practically punching straight through the creation. "ULTRAAAAAAAAA!"
With the rallying cry echoing through the USJ, Nomu launched off into the sky from the sheer power of All Might's strike. Smashing into the dome Shigaraki could feel the ground shake, soaring past the dome, parting clouds as he went before sailing out of the sight.
He could hear the shield brat mutter in disbelief not far away. "That was like the finishing move in a video game..."
A bullshit video game! What kind of game balancing is this!?
"I really have gotten weaker." Placing a fist against his chest as he spoke All Might still had his infuriating smile plastered on his obnoxious face. "In my hay day I would have finished him in just five punches, but today I needed over three-hundred thundering strikes to defeat that beast!"
"Now then villains. It's your turn." Turning towards them now he did not seem to move but his presence promised destruction to them. Two hands went to his neck, scratching frantically as his itch would not go down, it persisted regardless of everything.
Why wouldn't it leave!?
Kurogiri phased next to him to speak in his ear. "He's bluffing Shigaraki, look how he shakes. I think the Nomu did more damage then he lets on! We can still win this."
He's right, they could still win the fight, they just needed to...to
Frozen in place that's when he saw it. Green fire in the distance, engulfing someone in a bright jade like flame before subsiding. Far away within his eye sight a group of people stood around, watching as their teacher got back up like he wasn't just pummeled into oblivion. But the thing that really drew his attention was in the crowd he saw the frog girl from earlier, she was sitting up now and looked overall ok. His decay...failed.
That. Fucking brat survived. His obnoxious green hair noticeable anywhere. Watching them it all made sense now.
They had a healer.
Letting out a huff he tried to channel that anger, growling out as he turned around.
"No. We're leaving."
Kurogiri paused, his yellow misty eyes widening slightly before nodding. "Of course...Shigaraki."
Creating a portal he walked into it, looking behind him one last time before disappearing from sight.
Not long after that the rest of the school staff showed up to clean up the stragglers. Most of the minor thugs giving up after their ring leader ran.
Wincing Izuku felt the sting of Recovery girl's cane as she shouted at him, scolding him for nearly giving her a heart attack. Which honestly...he had a feeling she would survive somehow.
"Are you even listening to me Midoriya! Do you have any idea how much stress you have put onto me!" She shouted, smacking his shin again.
"Oww! Yes Mrs. Shuzenji I hear you! Please stop smacking me, I'm still in a lot of pain!"
"And who's fault is that!? Certainly not mine! Last time I checked I only told you to go watch over the rescue training of class 1A, not throw yourself into danger and almost die! Have you no self preservation!?"
"Oww please, I'm sorry! I give! Uncle! Uncle!"
She would probably still be hitting him if Mr. Aizawa did not walk up to them. He walked with a slightly limp and his eyes would probably never be as powerful as they used to but he was mostly ok. Turning towards Recovery girl he sighed before giving a nod.
"All right. I'm in." Recovery girl nodded back with a small smile. Izuku had no idea what he meant by 'in' but whatever it was made her happy. Looking back at him he spoke in a gruff but gentle tone, way more gentle then he was used to. "Thank you for saving my student. Get some rest, you're going to need it."
With nothing else needed to be said he turned around and started to head off back towards the busses.
Two stretchers zipped past holding the bodies of Thirteen and Tsuyu Asui. Jogging up to them Izuku looked down at Tsu, she was awake now, her tired eyes looking up at him before speak.
"Kero, I think I see what Uraraka was talking about now. Thank you, for saving me."
Gulping he gave her a small smile. "Right. Of course."
Watching her be wheeled away he couldn't help but feel a little pride for what he did. Turning back around he noticed that Recovery girl had wandered off, knowing her she was probably making sure no one else was hurt.
Sitting on a curb Jirou was playing with one of her jacks, her eyes quickly looking away when he caught her eye.
Well...this talk was bound to happen eventually.
Taking a seat next to her he let out a tired sigh. "Hey Jirou, are you ok? You aren't injured are you?"
Jirou looked over at him a little surprised before shaking her head. The silence between them was uncomfortable, the air awkward before she finally spoke.
"I'm sorry...for everything Midoriya. What I did in the past was not ok and you don't have to forgive me...I just wanted to say that I was sorry."
"I kind of knew that you've been trying to apologize for a while. Yet I was still actively avoiding you, hoping that if I just left you alone we wouldn't have this talk." Running a hand at his neck he grimaced. "You leaving really hurt Jirou, it messed me up for a long time. The more I think about it the more I feel like you were a little right...we weren't actually friends. Just two hurt people trying to survive in the same boat."
Jirou stared at the ground, frowning as she nodded along.
"But...that doesn't mean we can't be friends now. How about we start over?" Lifting a scarred hand he held it out for her, smiling gently. "Hi, my name Is Izuku Midoriya, it's nice to meet you."
Blinking back at him surprised she nodded, smiling back as she took his hand and gave it a shake.
"Hello Midoriya, my name is Kyouka Jirou. It's so nice to meet you."
Notes:
We're finally here at the USJ and it is a chonky boy! I didn't want to dwell on the USJ too much since most of it is the same as the original story so it's all just one extra long chapter. I had to show some of changes I needed to make to the canon for going forward. Things are only going to start changing more and more from here on.
The Izuku and Jirou drama has come to an end...kind of. It will probably never be completely healed but its begun the first steps to being ok. But with the loss of drama now comes more with Todoroki and Inasa. I found their conflict in canon was glanced over too quickly so I thought it'd be fun to bring it in earlier.
We got to see how One for All works with Kirishima's quirk, making a weird blend of shielding himself and then breaking the shield off for damage.
Bakugo is an angy boy like usual only hindered by something physical.
We found out that Jirou is more a brawler close range fighter then she is in canon now and we've finally come to the main reason I wanted to make this story!
Izuku Midoriya has an anti decay, his quirk more or less cancels out Shigaraki's. Sure there is a lot of pain to do it but it's doable. How will this change not only Izuku's path but also Shigiraki's? How will they grow? What will happen with Tsuyu the best character!?
Who really knows, I'm still writing that part.
