One week post MHA's final chapter…how do I feel?
Still pretty satisfied. I haven't made ONE cuck joke, unlike the rest of those twitter freaks. I even had to unfollow r/bokunometaacademia because I kept rolling my eyes. There's something just so…interesting about the response in the east and west. The east was super happy with it, with someone even saying "thank god that this series didn't do any bloodline stuff, it stayed relatable", while the west is focused on one single mistranslation.
Here's my reading of it; It wasn't the suit itself that was important; it was the message behind it: Everyone in Class A, especially Deku's bully, spent their time and money to make something that would help their friend become a hero again and stay by their side.
"This is the tale of how.. ...we'll keep reaching out to help for all time."
Would it be easier if the people or the government gave him the suit instead as a reward for saving the world? Yes.
Would it be simpler if Momo helped make it? Yes.
But Horikoshi would lose the point of the suit if he did that.
It's not about Deku getting his skills back. The story is about how his real friends gave him back his dream.
I'm still workshopping it out, alongside a few other arcs to come; expect a Secret War-esqe arc in the future, that's relevant.
Anyways, please enjoy this chapter. Here's the Discord: /cgFmXz3qJ5
"The hell's going on here?!" one yakuza thug shouted, while some of his comrades pulled various weapons.
"This is a raid! Stand down and come quietly!" one officer said, trying to get the thugs to surrender, but to no avail. Since the gangsters had no respect for the officers, maybe a Pro would be better at getting them to stand down. One of the smaller heroes, Mr. Brave, stepped up to try and defuse the situation. He reached up to his black, spikey hair and ripped some of it out. That clump of hair then hardened and sharpened into a makeshift sword that the hero pointed towards the mobsters.
"Stand down, now!" Mr. Brave warned.
"What the hell…you made your hair into a sword?" one thug asked.
"D-don't point that out…" Mr. Brave muttered.
Another lesser-known hero, Kesagiri Man, rushed in to restrain a Hassaikai thug that was about to strike an officer with a metal pipe. Using some martial arts that resembled those used by pro Gunhead, the ninja-like hero caught the mobster in an arm-lock and forced the thug to the ground.
"Stay. Down," Kesagiri Man said, "Anyone else that attempts to needlessly resist will regret it!"
"They're out in full force," Monoma noted, "Probably just to keep us busy, buy time for their boss to get away!"
Some of the remaining thugs at the door were bulldozed out of the way by the walking battering ram that was Fatgum.
"Sorry if we're coming off as rude! We're in a bit of a hurry, here!" Fatgum announced. The Nighteye, Fatgum, and Omniworks squads changed through the sea of clashing officers and mobsters. Nighteye was up front, leading the squads to where he saw the thug activate a secret door that led into the underground complex.
"I'm not the only one that feels like something's off, am I?" Rock Lock asked as he followed All Might's former sidekick.
"You mean why did they seem like they were ready for us?" Fatgum corrected, "No, you're not. Don't think we have much of a choice but to push on though!"
"Was it a leak? Everyone seemed trustworthy though…" Amajiki pondered.
"No way it was a leak! Why would they just let us in the front door if they knew?!" Tetsutetsu asked, "They just wanna give us a challenge?"
"Mobs are known for their own brand of unity!" Rock Lock added.
"The underlings get together for a few drinks and pledge their undying loyalty. Even with their decline, these gangs have always kept that as part of their 'code,'" Eraserhead explained.
"All this manpower up front and no sign of any of the Bullets outside of Rikiya? Chisaki's probably using the fight to cover his escape!" Fatgum deduced.
"All this talk about loyalty and they're just sacrificing their own men?!" Kirishima yelled.
"That's not manly at all!" Tetsutetsu added.
"No doubt, but that's their definition of it," Fatgum said.
"Here," Nighteye said, coming to a screeching halt in front of what seemed to be just a random wall with a shelf on it to fully support a flower pot. Nighteye grabbed the tile and pot and moved them out of the way, eying up the various planks that made up the wooden shelf. According to his flash, there was a mechanism that would be able to open the way. He quickly found them and began pressing them in the exact order the original henchmen did.
"Just…a few more…" Nighteye muttered.
Click.
The wall moved back a bit before sliding open.
"Woah…the place is like a ninja hideout…" Bubble Girl gasped, "If you hadn't seen it beforehand, we would've been going in circles."
"Now we just need to watch for unfamiliar-" Centipeder began, but was cut off when three more yakuza thugs emerged from the passageway.
"Like HELL you're getting down here!" the three shouted. Two of them were quickly subdued by Centipeder's own Quirk, wrapped up by two long segmented centipede-like lashes.
"Bubble, the third is yours," Centipeder nodded. The blue hued sidekick nodded and threw a collection of bubbles in the direction of the third assailant. He was confused a bit when the bubbles got close to him, but then one popped and blinded him.
"My eyes!" he shouted out. Bubble Girl moved in and grabbed his arm and neck, forcing the former behind his bag and thrust him into the wall.
Kaoruko Awata! Quirk: Bubble! Kaoruko's Quirk allows her to produce bubbles filled with any aroma that she has smelled at least once before. She can make both sweet-smelling bubbles and foul-smelling ones. She just made that guy smell a corpse flower!
「nice」
GET THE FUCK OUTTA HERE, KUMAGAWA!
"Go on ahead! We won't be far behind!" Bubble Girl shouted.
"So fast…" Izuku muttered.
"C'mon! We gotta move!" Ochako called out.
"Right!"
Further down in the complex, the seemingly diminutive director of the Hassaikai stood in one of the many concrete hallways, just listening. He was using the pipes, listening for the heroes approach down into this veritable maze.
"That is…move on in," Mimic smirked to himself, "Put your lives in my hands without even knowing it."
As the group rushed down the stairs and began to run into the maze, they saw that their way was immediately blocked.
"What the hell?! A dead end?!" Manny yelled.
"Nighteye, I thought you said the way was clear!" Rock Lock accused.
"The explanation is simple. Overhaul," Nighteye said.
"I'll take a look!" Mirio said, jogging up to the wall.
"Uh…wait, if you do that, won't you-?" Kirishima began.
"His costume's different," Amajiki cut in, "Its fibers are made from his own hair so the costume reacts with his Quirk and can phase through objects just as well as he can."
As if to prove the statement true, Lemillion easily phased through the wall as if he were a ghost. He looked around and saw that this wall was the only real barricade between the pros and the rest of the complex.
"Yep! This is Chisaki's Quirk at work!" Mirio said, "I saw the rest of the compound behind here!"
"A rather thick barrier…Deku, Red Riot!" Nighteye said. "You're up!"
"On it, Sir!" Izuku said.
"A wall? That's your best?" Kirishima taunted, hardening his fist and rearing it back.
One for All: Full Cowling! Izuku thought to himself.
"RED…GAUNTLET!" Kirishima yelled.
SHOOT STYLE! Izuku mentally yelled.
Both hits connected with the stone simultaneously and shattered the wall. But as Izuku and Kirishima made their breakthrough, a needle pierced Mimic's neck. He pushed down on it and the injection flooded his veins. Mimic groaned as he felt his muscles and veins bulge inside him, eventually ripping free of the bird-masked doll he was previously possessing.
The real Joi Irinaka emerged from the puppet, his eyes bloodshot and crazed, and he staggered towards the stone wall. With a manic grin, he slipped into the very concrete itself and activated his Quirk.
"Now…you'll never reach the master," Irinaka chuckled to himself.
As the teams were moving down the corridor, everything suddenly started shifting and morphing, throwing them all off balance. Even the entrance to the underground complex itself was suddenly sealed off, much to Bubble Girl's worry.
"W-what the hell?" Manny asked, struggling to keep his balance. Helen had actually fallen off her feet from all the shifting, but Neo was there to lend a hand and keep her upright.
"This ain't Chisaki's power," the commissioner said, "It's gotta be the director, Irinaka!"
"But the file said his limit was the size of a fridge! How the hell does he have the whole basement?!" Rock Lock asked.
"...he gave himself a boost," Fatgum realized in shock.
Joi Irinaka! Villain Name: Mimic! Quirk: Mimicry! His power allows him to possess any item he comes into contact with and then control it as if it were his own body! His limit comes into play with size. As stated before, the biggest he can usually possess is around the size of a fridge! But now he's hopped on Trigger, so who knows what his new limits are!
"How the hell do we deal with the whole basement being turned against us?!" Tetsutetsu asked, "Why not fight us like a man, Irinaka!"
"Eraser," Nighteye began, "Can you erase his Quirk?"
"Not without seeing his main body, no," Aizawa said, doing his best to keep his own balance.
"The passages keep shifting…we'll never make it to the targets like this," Amajiki panicked, "And while we're stuck here, Chisaki and his cronies will have all the time in the world to escape. What would even be our next move here?! We can't fight the whole basement, it's hopeless!"
"Amajiki!" Mirio called out, "Snap out of it! You're Suneater! You don't panic like this! Besides, the shifting corridors don't mean a thing when we already know forward!"
"Lemillion?" Nighteye asked.
"I can make it."
"On your own? No, that won't be-"
"Sir, with all due respect, I need to disagree. We're on the clock and they know that. Every obstacle, every body they throw at us is just to buy them more time, time we can't afford to give them!"
Before Sir could even retaliate, the permeating hero made a dash for the nearest wall and leaping towards it.
"See you on the other side!" Mirio yelled before he phased right through.
"Mirio-!" Amajiki called out.
"Damn it! Nothing I can do to counter that one," Irinaka growled, "He can just walk right through…but the others aren't so lucky. Not much a kid can do on his own against Master OVERHAUL!"
The ground beneath the other heroes began to shake, before it completely opened up underneath them. Irinaka had a giant sinkhole open up beneath some of the Pros and they had absolutely no time to counter. They couldn't even grab hold of the walls on the side because of how smooth they were. Aizawa was about to use his Capture Scarf to try and stop the descent, but he watched as the hole closed as quickly as it opened. The heroes thudded to the ground, thankfully not too hurt.
"Ow…how far did we fall?" Fatgum asked.
"Only…about one story I'd guess," Aizawa said.
"Where are we?" Helen asked.
"Farther away from the damn target, that's where!" Rock Lock yelled.
"Well, well," a voice called out from the other side of the room, getting everyone's attention.
"Lookee what we got here. Coupla state-backed backed goons, dropping from the sky. What are the odds?"
Three figures emerged from the darkness of the room, the Shie Hassaikai flag displayed proudly behind them. Two of them were fairly thin and lithe when it came to their builds, while was a bit more buff in comparison. The buff guy was bald and wore a white surgical mask. One of the thin guys had his face covered by a scarecrow-styled sack mask, while the second donned a bird mask that looked a little similar to Overhaul's own, though not as elaborate.
"Oh, so you wanna fight huh?" Manny asked, "Oh, we can definitely oblige."
"Never seen a real Pro can do, have ya?" Fatgum asked, getting ready to fight.
"No," Amajiki said, holding out his arm to block them.
"No? The hell do ya mean 'no?'" Manny questioned.
"You Pros…your power is essential to this mission! As for these three," Amajiki locked eyes with the three members of the Eight Bullets, a determined fire burning in his eyes, "I can handle them myself."
"What the heck, man?!" Kirishima yelled. "Let's do this together!"
"Yeahhhh!" Sestuno taunted, holding up his sword. "Work together! More pigs to the slaughter!"
"Nobody pull a gun out!" The police commissioner yelled. "He's the one with Larceny!"
Setsuno furrowed his brow. "I guess the secret's out! Whatever..." He rushed forward, sticking his hand out. "It'll make it all the easier to go wild on y'all!"
Aizawa stepped forward, and activated his quirk. "That won't work." Setsuno stared down at his hand, and gasped.
"Why isn't it working?" He demanded.
"His quirk cancels other quirks." Hojo noted. "It's useless." He reached for his gun. Didn't matter how he did it, he just needed to slow the group down.
"Don't even try it." Kevin frowned, absorbing some metal to block the bullets. Tetsutetsu whistled.
"Like 60% of us are bullet proof!" Tetsutetsu smirked. "It's useless!"
"Just come quietly if you don't want to suffer." Fatgum threatened. Setsuno laughed.
"Threats like that only work on people who value life!" He yelled, before something strange happened. A giant clam suddenly flew past them. It opened up, revealing Amajiki in its maw. He sent his squid tendrils forward, and wrapped the three Bullets up. He grabbed their weapons, and tossed them against a wall.
"Setsuno. Quirk, Larceny. Hojo. Quirk: Crystallize. Tabe. Quirk: Food." Amajiki declared. "You won't be leaving this room as long as I'm here."
Ochako was caught off guard. Where'd this sudden surge of confidence come from?
"Fighting these three isn't gonna solve anything." Amajiki said, with an air of unexpected confidence. "If our pros get caught up here, the mission is as good as over."
"He's right. Not a moment to spare." Albedo agreed. "Eraser, lead the way. I have a feeling we'll need your quirk erasing abilities..."
"Right." Aizawa said.
"B-but!" Kirishima said. He was worried for Amajiki, especially since he'd be taking on three enemies at once.
"You heard him!" Monoma yelled, rushing over to tap Setsuno's shoulder. He activated one of his watches.
"No time to argue." Fatgum frowned. "Come on!" Setsuno tried to activate his quirk once again, but Eraserhead quickly 'removed' it. Amajiki reeled back again, and slammed the triad against the wall again.
"GO!" Amajiki yelled to the others, and they listened. "HELP OUT MIRIO! I just know...he's gonna take things too far and need saving..."
The others rushed towards the door, and left. Kirishima looked back, still frustrated. He wanted Amajiki to be involved in this raid, not be stuck dealing with a bunch of C-tier villains.
"Is it a good idea to leave him back there?" Rock Lock asked Fatgum. "He's your guy, but it seems like a bad move."
Fatgum disapproved of that comment. "He's more capable than anyone else here...just lacks the spirit. He puts this pressure on himself, to be perfect. But it crushes him. In spite of that, he's still one of UA's big three."
"Just believe in the guy, would ya?" Tetsutetsu snapped. "You're being a real downer, man."
"Just a being realist." Rock Lock frowned. "But if Fat's trusting him...I'll take his word."
Amajiki wrapped his tendrils around the triad. Tabe, the one in the burlap sack mask, was knocked out cold. Hojo and Setsuno were still conscious, though. He spoke in a low voice, "You three are under arrest for your involvement in illegal activities. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in court."
Hojo and Setsuno exchanged glances, but remained silent. Amajiki raised his free arm, and prepared to strike. "Sorry. You're all about to take a little nap." Amajiki said.
Setsuno suddenly stood up, and rushed forward, just as Amajiki swung his fist forward. Setsuno's face collided with the tendrils-
And Amajiki yelled in pain as something sharp sliced into his tendril. Setsuno laughed, revealing a knife hidden under his face mask.
Amajiki grunted in pain as he quickly retracted his tendrils, pulling them away from Setsuno's reach. He had not expected Setsuno to have a hidden knife, but he knew that he had to be careful. "So, you're willing to play dirty, huh?" Amajiki said, keeping a close eye on the triad.
"You're up against some opponents who aren't gonna be playing fair. Take us more seriously!" Setsuno announced.
"Especially against the likes of us." Hojo started to activate his quirk. Sharp, durable crystals started to protrude from his skin. He easily broke free of Amajiki's tendrils.
Amajiki took a step back, eyeing Hojo warily as the crystal protrusions grew. He knew that he was up against dangerous opponents, but he couldn't let them escape. "I'm taking you down, whether you like it or not," Amajiki said, his own quirk starting to surge.
He extended his tendrils once again, but this time, he was more careful. He didn't want to get caught off-guard by another surprise attack. Instead, he focused on using his tendrils to distract the triad while he planned his next move.
As Hojo charged forward, Amajiki used his tendrils to wrap around the crystals and pull them away from Hojo's body. He used his other arm to punch at Setsuno, but Setsuno was quick to dodge and counterattack with his knife.
Amajiki grunted in pain as the knife sliced through his arm, but he refused to back down. He used his tendrils to trip Setsuno, sending him sprawling to the ground. Meanwhile, he continued to dodge Hojo's attacks, waiting for the right moment to strike.
He tried to block one of Hojo's strikes with a clam shell. It formed around his arm...but it was quickly 'ripped' away. It flew into Setsuno's hand, and laughed. This was 'Larceny' in action- it instantly stole a person's equipment.
Hojo launched a powerful blow against Amajiki, but Amajiki was ready. He used his quirk to absorb the impact of the blow by manifesting lobster shells around his arm. This allowed him to quickly counterattack. He extended his tendrils once again, wrapping them around Hojo's crystal-covered arm. With a sudden twist, Amajiki pulled Hojo off balance, sending him tumbling to the ground. He quickly followed up with a punch to the stomach, knocking the wind out of Hojo and leaving him gasping for air.
"You're kidding me..." Setsuno growled. Amajiki didn't give Setsuno a chance to retaliate. He extended his tendrils once again, wrapping them around Setsuno's legs and pulling him off his feet. Setsuno struggled to break free, but Amajiki's grip was too strong.
*This kid's insane!* Setsuno thought, trying to break free. *I gotta try and get him up...*
"TABE! WAKE UP!" Setsuno yelled. "IT'S EATING TIME!" Tabe's eyes shot open, and he darted over- and took a huge bite out of the tendrils. Amajiki winced in pain as Tabe bit into his tendrils. He quickly retracted them, pulling them away from Tabe's reach. He didn't want to risk getting bitten again.
"Octopus...yummy..." Tabe chewed. "YUMMY!" He continued to try and eat through Amajiki's tendrils. Amajiki's eyes widened in surprise and alarm as Tabe began to bite through his tendrils. He quickly retracted his tendrils, pulling them away from Tabe's reach.
That's disgusting, he thought, feeling a shiver run down his spine. He couldn't let himself get distracted by Tabe's strange quirk. He still had to deal with Hojo and Setsuno.
Amajiki quickly assessed the situation. Hojo was still on the ground, trying to catch his breath. Setsuno had been freed, and was doing some knife tricks to intimidate Suneater. And Tabe was...well, Tabe was eating his tendrils.
Great, just great, Amajiki thought. This is turning into a complete disaster...I'm...I'm gonna fuck this all up for everyone, aren't I? Damn it...!
Amajiki gritted his teeth as the triad launched a coordinated attack on him. Hojo charged forward, crystal protrusions at the ready, while Setsuno darted to the side, knife glinting in the dim light. Tabe continued to chomp on Amajiki's tendrils, preventing him from using his quirk effectively.
Amajiki knew he was in trouble. He tried to dodge Hojo's attacks, but the crystals were too fast and too strong. He felt a sharp pain as one of the crystals sliced into his shoulder, and he stumbled backwards. Setsuno took advantage of his momentary weakness and lunged forward with his knife. Amajiki managed to deflect the blade with his own quirk, but it was a close call.
Tabe continued to gnaw on Amajiki's tendrils, making it difficult for him to use his quirk. He tried to pull away, but Tabe held on tight. "Let go, damn it!" Amajiki yelled, but Tabe just laughed and took another bite. Setsuno brought his knife back to him, and smirked.
"I can see your openings, kid!" Setsuno smirked, tossing the knife at him. Amajiki couldn't react in time- the knife hit his shoulder, and he yelled in pain.
He then used his Larceny quirk to pull the knife back to him, and threw it at Amajiki once again.
Amajiki dodged the knife this time, but Setsuno continued to throw it at him, using his quirk to bring it back to him each time. Amajiki tried to use his tendrils to deflect the knife, but Setsuno was too quick for him.
"You're not gonna win this, kid," Setsuno sneered. "We don't CARE if we die here! We don't care if our attacks don't land, or if we kill you- we're the lowest form of humans."
Amajiki dodged another knife, as Hojo began to regale their tale. "One of us was tossed aside because we didn't mesh with society. Another was betrayed by their lover, left with her debt and tried to kill himself. And I became the tool of a money grubber. When they figured out my fake gems were worthless...we were deemed as worthless."
"Hassaikai...doesn't care..." Tabe huffed. "Doesn't discriminate...we're free!"
Amajiki tried to restrain them with his tendrils, but Setsuno stole them. Tabe had somehow managed to get them down to "There we go! Now you're managable..." Setsuno smirked.
*Scary...Overhaul doesn't control these guys with fear. He sort of brainwashes them...* Amajiki thought.
"A hero could never understand this- we're trash, but we have bonds over BEING trash!" Setsuno yelled, as Hojo's crystals formed around his arms, morphing them into sharp blades.
"PREPARE TO DIE, KID!" Hojo yelled, stabbing forward...
Amajiki quickly dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding Hojo's attack. He could feel the wind rush past his face as the sharp crystals barely missed him. He knew he had to come up with a plan fast or he would be overwhelmed by the three villains.
As Setsuno and Tabe closed in, Amajiki took a deep breath and activated his quirk. He felt his body transform, taking on the traits of the octopus. His skin turned slimy and rubbery, and his limbs stretched and became more flexible. He quickly moved out of the way of Setsuno's knives and Hojo's crystals, easily dodging their attacks with his enhanced agility.
"W-what!? I thought I stole his tendrils!" Setsuno yelled.
*My manifest quirk isn't just limited to manifesting one animal trait at a time,* Amajiki thought. *I can't use my tendrils...then I'll use something else!*
Amajiki quickly manifested a pair of sharp claws on his hands and leaped towards Hojo. The two clashed in a fierce exchange of blows, their weapons colliding with sparks flying everywhere.
Meanwhile, Tabe charged towards Amajiki from behind, ready to take a bite out of him. Amajiki anticipated this and quickly turned around, throwing a punch towards Tabe's face. Tabe stumbled backward, but quickly recovered and lunged at Amajiki again, attempting to bite him.
Amajiki jumped back just in time to avoid Tabe's attack, then turned her attention to Setsuno. Setsuno picked up a bunch of broken Hojo crystals from the ground and started throwing them at Amajiki. As the pieces of crystal flew at him, Amajiki quickly moved out of the way.
*Their teamwork is incredible!* Amajiki thought. Setsuno and Tabe moved in quickly, both attacking Amajiki from different directions. Setsuno threw his knives while Tabe tried to tackle him. Amajiki dodged and weaved, but the attacks were relentless. Hojo, taking advantage of the distraction, used his crystal manipulation to create a large spike that shot towards Amajiki. Amajiki managed to dodge it, but the spike impaled itself into the wall behind him, and Hojo used his quirk to rapidly extend and multiply it, trapping Amajiki against the wall with a barrage of sharp crystal spikes.
Amajiki gritted his teeth in pain as the crystals dug into his skin and pinned him against the wall. He struggled to free himself, but the crystals only dug in deeper.
"You're not getting away from this one, kid." Setsuno laughed.
*My attacks get gobbled up. And my defense gets stripped away...I'm...I'm screwed...* Amajiki thought, as the group closed in on him.
Even as it seemed like the three Bullets would be able to down Suneater, he couldn't help but flashback a bit. He remembered when he first met a certain, always smiling blonde kid.
When attending grade school, Amajiki wasn't exactly a people person. When he transferred to a new school, he choked on his words during his introduction, going quiet.
"H-hi," the younger Amajiki said, "I-i'm…Amajiki. I…I wanna…I wanna be a..a he-..." And then he fell quiet. He never finished that intro. Instead, when the students went to go chat with their friends, Amajiki was left on his own. His fumbled intro and lack of courage back then really didn't help him. He wasn't exactly one to try and break the ice, either. He was mostly by himself, just laying his head on the desk with downcast eyes.
And then he showed up.
"Hey Amajiki!" a younger Mirio said, approaching the new student with two of his friends, "Earlier, when you said 'he,' did you mean hero?"
"U-um…y-yeah?" the future Big 3 student said.
"That's so cool! Who're you a fan of?"
Of course, that wasn't the only time Mirio has come to encourage Amajiki. During their own Quirk training in high school, both of them had a bit of a struggle. Amajiki was a bit nervous and those emotions inhibited what he could manifest. Inside of vines, for instance, he could grow a small sprout on his hand. As for Mirio, while today you wouldn't guess it, he had quite a hard time with permeating through objects. Sometimes he could only get an arm and a leg through, but that was it. He couldn't quite walk through an entire plank of wood just yet. Of course, that didn't hamper his optimism.
Later that day, Mirio and Amajiki were walking home together.
"You're…incredible, Mirio," Amajiki said, "Even when you fail, you still have…that unending cheery attitude. It's infectious. To everyone but me, anyway. My mind just goes blank and I freeze up when I think on my failures… You're gonna be a great hero. Bright and shining, like the sun."
Mirio blinked a few times, taking in the compliment.
"Well, thanks for the vote of confidence, but you're giving me way too much credit, buddy!" the permeation hero-to-be said, "The reason I work so hard? It's you. You're at my side through all of this! I'm not that strong, really. You said my cheeriness is infectious? Well so's your determination! You go out there and you give it your all in spite of your nervousness!"
Snapping back to the present, Hojo took the lead in the trio's charge against Amajiki. With his crystals at the ready to give him a bit more durability and power, he reared his fist back and slammed it into Amajiki's face. The first hit was followed up by another and another, before the crystalized yakuza turned his strikes into a full blown barrage.
"Whaddya say? Let Hojo finish him off?" Setsuno asked, coming to a stop and just watching Hojo pound the hero into the wall.
"Sure…as long as I can get something to eat after," Tabe said, almost as if he wasn't really paying attention.
As Amajiki continued to get hit, Mirio's words came back to him again.
"Ya know, with all that determination, there's the chance I might actually lose to you!" the past Mirio said.
"Lose?" Amajiki asked.
"Yeah! You always act like I'm the greatest, but you don't give yourself the same credit. You're building me up to be the next All Might which, yeah, would be great, but that's not why I'm doing this. You wanna say I'm the sun? Well, guess what? You're even brighter than me!"
"Last one," Hojo smirked, rearing his fist back and coating it in even more hardened crystals, almost to the point it more resembled a mace head than a hand. With a roar, the crystal bullet of the Hassaikai threw the punch forward, ready to end this hero that dared to fight against Master Overhaul's wishes.
But the first didn't connect. Hojo blinked as he saw that Amajiki had caught the final punch, his hand now resembling a chicken's talons.
"Give it up…" Amajiki said, tightening his grip on Hojo's fist, "Because I…am…"
"If I'm the sun, then you'll outshine any sun out there! Be confident Amajiki!" the past Mirio encouraged, "Know why? Because you're…!"
"SUNEATER!" Amajiki yelled. In an instant, his chicken talon hand was covered in the hard shell of a crab, making his hits even harder and sharper.
"The hell?!" Hojo gasped.
"My Quirk…lets me manifest aspects…of whatever I eat. But who said I was limited to just one aspect per body part?"
Indeed, it wasn't *just* crab-like shells that had covered Suneater's hand. His muscles had grown larger on that arm for a brief moment and, at the joints of the shells were the suckers of octopus tentacles. The muscles and tentacles were good for shock absorbers while the shells just provided an extra layer of defense.
"Oh yeah…and there's one more thing," Amajiki said, freeing up his other hand with the use of some tentacles that he'd just sprouted.
"Huh?! How the hell-?!" Setsuno yelled.
"You already stole them…but octopi have a nice little trick where they can regenerate their limbs when they're severed."
Amajiki brought a small crystal up to his face, one of Hojo's very own. The trio of yakuza thugs watched in shock as Suneater than *ate* the crystal. A mask of pure crystal appeared over Amajiki's face, much like the shell mask he'd worn earlier. Crystals then jutted out along the length of the tentacles.
"Vast Hybrid…" Amajiki began, "Chimera… ** CRYSTAL KRAKEN!**" The crystal-lined tentacles lashed out around the room, tearing up the tiles and concrete beneath them. Setsuno, Hojo, and Tabe were slammed into by the tentacles. Hojo tried to form a crystal shield by his arms, but Amajiki's tentacles cut through that barrier like a chainsaw, knocking him into the ceiling.
"Oh shit!" Setsuno shouted as crystal-lined tentacles slammed into him and threw him into the wall so hard his mask popped off his face.
When Tabe tried to bite into the tentacles, they slithered to the side and simply wrapped around his lower body. Amajiki made sure to keep his tentacles out of range of the yakuza's mouth and instead, threw him towards him. Amajiki's foot transformed into a shell-covered talon before he grabbed onto Tabe by the mid-section and manifested more crystals. With one swift thrust down, Tabe was slammed into the ground and into unconsciousness, breaking all the crystals in the process.
"Master…Overhaul…" Tabe wheezed out.
"Forgive…us," Setsuno groaned.
Amajiki huffed and puffed, waiting for them to make a move- in his head, he was counting to ten, like he was a ref confirming the pin. Ten numbers later, and no one had moved an inch. That confirmed it- Suneater was victorious.
That was way too much trouble.... He thought. I hope everyone was able to move on without a hitch. I've...got to...
His body was growing weak- he was falling towards the floor without even realizing it.
Keep...going...
Mirio…