Sabo stared in awe—no, in horror—at the sight of the kid suddenly up in the sky.

It shouldn't have been as much of a surprise as it had been for the rest of the unfortunate souls here, since he'd seen the kid do something similar. Seen would perhaps be a generous word, as getting dragged sky-high against his will was a much better description.

Even so, he was easily knocked on his ass by a powerful shock-wave. He found himself sprawled on the ground right next to an equally bewildered—and terrified, he guessed—Fire Fist, who'd been shoved to the side just moments earlier.

Normally taking stock of the people around him and their status would be his first course of action. However, staring up at the kid was far more enticing, as he watched him with squinted eyes.

Though his eyes were hardly squinted for long. Instead, they were widening at the sight of the kid seemingly grappling with another figure in mid-air. His jaw was agape and he had a sneaking suspicion that if he glanced over to the guy beside him, they'd be all but mirror images of each other.

Sabo shook off the shock and scrambled to his feet, ignoring the way the pirate followed suit. In the dim evening light, it was difficult to make out specific movements, but given each one gave off its own ripple of energy, it wasn't impossible to follow what was no doubt a fight. At first he'd entertained the notion that the kid planned to flee. Yet the longer the kid remained generally in-place, far above their heads, the less that seemed to be the case.

He ground his teeth together. All that talk about helping the kid, and Sabo was stuck here on the ground, all but useless. He was a melee fighter and pathetically grounded on the island with no hopes of reaching their heights. Perhaps it would have been worthwhile to try to figure out the Five Arts that the Marines and Cipher Pol agents used, specifically Geppo. But obviously he—nor anyone else in the Revolutionary Army as far as he was aware—hadn't and so he stared up, wishing that the fight would be dragged to the ground.

Unfortunately, he had become well aware during their trip that the kid could float for long periods of time without issue. The only question was how long his opponent could do the same.

The small sparks emanating off of the kid slightly illuminated their figures against the darkening evening sky, but it was hardly enough to make out anything important.

Their blows remained in close-quarters despite the power behind each strike. It was almost like watching a dance where both fighters had choreographed each move. Nothing seemed to be a surprise to the other, though that could simply be their battle experience overriding the typical back-and-forth of rookies. Though the thought of the kid being a hardened warrior left a bitter taste in his mouth and a tautness of his fists.

Despite their… spat earlier (if one could call it that), Sabo was more than a bit relieved when Fire Fist launched himself up to—presumably—assist Deku. Even so, the sudden release of pressure in his chest… was out of place for a man of his position. Even so, he discarded such distracting thoughts and returned his attention to the struggle above him. The light from Fire Fist's Devil Fruit as he launched his first attack elucidated exactly who the kid's opponent was, though they were still a bit far to easily make out small details.

The person was much taller than Deku, though just about as skinny. Despite that, the two matched each other blow for blow, their strength alone causing the powerful force of the air, constantly jostling him, far beneath them though he was.

As far as he could tell, Ace, though able to remain somewhat airborne, struggled to find an opportunity to step in with an attack of his own. After the first surprise hit, it was almost as though the enemy was able to adjust to his intentions.

Observation Haki, Sabo grimaced, wonderful.

He finally had the wherewithal to use his own, now that the surprise had worn off, but it did little more than confirm what he could make out with his own eyes. Though with the flickering light of Fire Fists' occasional (unsuccessful) offensives, he realized the tendrils that had held him during their journey in the skies were, in-fact, holding the enemy within a certain distance of Deku.

It finally made sense why the pair hardly seemed to move at all, despite the intensity of their battle. If he didn't know better, he would have thought Deku was trying to show off and defeat his opponent on his own.

No, he had a feeling that this may very well be what the kid had been trying to protect them from all along. He was keeping them away from the fight.

That didn't sit will with Sabo, though it was hardly a surprise. The entire time he'd known the kid, which was only a short while despite how it felt, Deku's actions had followed that line of logic. Even to the detriment of himself, not questioning Sabo's own character despite meeting him in the middle of a breakout in a Marine Base.

His own limitations kept his fists far away from the fight, though he'd much prefer his metal pipe at a time like this.

That aside, there was something mesmerizing about the exchange of blows. Even Fire Fists' precarious swerving in and out of range of the fight had an entrancing quality to it. Something drew his eyes to that man over the more pressing movements of the other two.

Despite these novel circumstances—he'd never seen two of these three people fight, nor had he witnessed a prolonged, airborne battle such as this—he could practically picture every next move Fire Fist made, though the man never got the chance to complete any of them.

Before now, he'd never paid the pirate much attention despite his rapid bounty increases and notability. Even when the fact that he'd turned down an invitation from the Marines to be a Warlord made its rounds back at Baltigo, Sabo had mostly heard whispers. Even the brave souls that had brought the man into the conversation, potentially as an ally or someone to utilize for future plans, Sabo had only given them a blank, confused stare and they'd shut up rather quickly. Though that look had hardly been on purpose, and he'd only learned about it after he accidentally scared a newer recruit and Koala had swung by his room to berate him for it.

Those odd thoughts aside, Ace looked to be more of a hindrance than a help. The pressure made it difficult for Ace to stand his metaphorical ground, without the literal ground there for him to brace himself against. The two opponents also seemed to disregard gravity in general, twisting and turning in the air, spinning around so that one moment, the enemy had his back to Ace, and the next, Deku was the one in his way.

It was hard to tell who was responsible for such maneuvers, but that hardly mattered as the one-on-one fight wore on with no regard for its spectators, whether in the air with them or down below.

Sabo's hair brushed into his eyes, the sound of wind rushing past his ears drawing his attention away from the sky. A glance to the side made it clear that another Whitebeard had joined the battle. Returning his attention upwards, he couldn't help but feel hopeful. Three-on-one was certainly preferable.

For once, he hoped that he and his allies weren't ordained to face an insurmountable foe.

Somehow, he had the feeling that his hopes were for naught.

Midoriya couldn't help the way his heart rate spiked when Danger Sense suddenly sent a stabbing pain through his skull. The only person that had set off that quirk so severely had been Shigaraki. Or maybe All for One, since he had been controlling Shigaraki's body at the time.

But given the depth of the strike, he figured he only had mere moments to react. So without hesitation, he shoved Ace aside and turned to face the incoming opponent. Only seconds later, he locked onto the approaching figure up in the sky and moved.

He knew he'd caught Ace off-guard, but he didn't have the time to care as he met Shigaraki head-on in the air.

His chest felt as though it was being squeezed by All Might himself, yet he knew what he had to do. He had wanted to have the guidance of the Vestiges when facing this final battle, but that had been a fool's wish. Midoriya had known ever since he had been warned of Shigaraki's appearance in this world.

No…

Ever since realizing on Whitebeard's ship that he was no longer in his own world.

He had long since decided to take this burden on himself; he wasn't about the back down now.

Midoriya was determined to keep Ace and Sabo and the others away from Shigaraki until he took him down once and for all. He couldn't risk Shigaraki touching them with a single hand. He didn't want to watch someone crumble to dust before his very eyes. Hell, he could practically still see the image his mind had conjured all the way back in the USJ, when he'd encountered Shigaraki's quirk for the first time. The way he pictured Tsu disintegrating before his very eyes.

It had spurred him to act back then, when he'd been nothing but a quivering coward, struggling to stay upright with shaking legs. It would not intimidate him now, after all the villains he'd faced down and all the times he'd stared death in the face and stood tall.

If he could take care of Shigaraki here, in this world, then he trusted the heroes to work together and take down All for One. He was certain there would be casualties, but with Shigaraki as the biggest threat…

He squared his shoulders and prepared another assault and he looped Black Whip around Shigaraki just as he had the last time they'd crossed paths.

Midoriya would be okay if he could never return to his world so long as he defeated Shigaraki once and for all.

One for All.

As soon as he'd gathered his wits and regained his bearings, Ace got off his sorry ass and launched himself up into the air to join the fight.

He'd had no idea that the kid could keep himself floating like this, though the black tentacle-like things weren't new, though he hadn't seen them used quite like this. He could recall seeing Deku use them when he'd seen him fight for the first time on Ace's behalf. Like hell he'd do the same again and let the kid take responsibility for others when they were capable of fighting too.

He had no doubt that Marco would join him before he knew it. And so long as he gave an opening, even Izou wouldn't hesitate to take part. It would be even better if he could drag the fight back to solid ground, then they could all surround this guy and show him not to mess with the Whitebeard Pirates nor those they chose to protect.

Hell, Ace would bet that even the blonde asshole would jump right in given the opportunity.

And ever since his family had come for him in Marineford… well he now knew not to do things on his own. There were people who had his back; Ace wanted to convince Deku that he—that they—had his too.

It took only seconds for him to launch a shots of fire from his fingers like bullets from pistols once he reached their height. Despite his efforts, the enemy dodged them all. Only one of them grazed their target, yet didn't seem to do more than lick at the red cape for a split second before the blasts of air from the kid's attacks extinguished the flame.

Reflexively he grinned. It had been a long time since he had fought a nimble enemy rather than a sturdy one. He was especially impressed because the bright red cape and baggy pants made for easy targets. Although the dark shade of his loose trousers blended in with the darkening sky, the flashes of light from Deku, as well as the man's long, white hair made him hard to miss.

Moments later the man turned towards him.

Their eyes met.

Ace was frozen in place.

It felt as though ice had been dumped down his spine. The sudden dread had his heart skipping a beat as it raced through his veins. His muscles felt stiff and heavy and he stifled the urge to throw up.

Before he knew it, the man's gaze was ripped away from his own as Deku launched another attack, sending the man tumbling backwards, flipping in the air as he did so. That was all it took for Ace to snap out of whatever that was. He readied himself for another strike of his own, yet each time he took aim or shifted his position in the air, the opening he'd planned to aim for immediately closed.

Each time this happened, Ace could hear his teeth groan in protest from how hard they clenched against his will. It was beyond frustrating to not get an offensive move in edgewise. And given the fact that the fight was close-quarters and neither side used projectiles to attack, it wasn't as though he could go on the defensive either. Or at least, not until Deku backed off a bit and gave some more space.

Even as he studied the brawl before him, waiting for a chance to intervene, he couldn't help but be impressed by the fight. It almost look choreographed, if not for the profound expressions each gave in response to each attack.

The man blasted an air-wave of his own, his palm flat, facing the kid. The force shoved Deku back, but the black tendril wrapped around them both pull taut and kept them from straying too far from one another. Finally, the two of them were far enough apart.

But just as quickly as he decided what kind of attack to use, Deku had closed the distance once more, launching an earth-shattering punch at the man.

The pirate narrowed his eyes at yet another missed opportunity.

It was only once his eyes met with Deku's that it clicked into place. The man wasn't solely responsible for covering his own ass; Deku was almost helping him to do so. The strong glare in Deku's gaze told him all he needed to know.

Back off, it said.

As if, he thought.

From what he could tell, Deku hadn't been responsible for that first dodge. The odd pause in his relentless assault as well as the intense return as if to recover from his lapse in focus told him that much. (Or at least he hoped.)

He couldn't understand protecting an enemy like that, so that was only explanation.

Luckily, as he awaited another opening, his hopes of making it count rapidly dwindling as the fight wore on, he saw the familiar flash of teal flames bursting up between the two. The shock was plain as day on Deku's face, though it was far from absent on the other guy's as well.

Ace let a grin spread across his face as the black tendrils recoiled and faded into the air as if they had never been there in the first place.

Much to his surprise, however, without the tendrils holding onto the other man, he began to fall. It took them all a moment to register the movement, but as soon as they did, each of them moved to follow.

This had been Ace's goal, however Deku seemed far less happy about this outcome, "Don't let him touch the ground!"

"What?!" his words shocked Ace out of his stupor, but it wasn't as though they explained anything.

His desperation was clearly conveyed, at the very least, although Marco picked up on it much faster than Ace himself had. He watched as the Phoenix went into a nose-dive and grabbed the man by the leg with his talons.

Not long after, Deku followed suit and materialized another one of those tendrils, sending it their way. Ace tried to descend, but he could hardly keep up with their speed. Note to self, figure out how to maneuver in the air fast and slow and everything in-between, because this was much harder than he thought it would be.

He squinted against the air rushing past him, trying to keep an eye on the enemy's movements. From what he could see, the man was… trying to reach up to touch Marco?

"Don't let him touch you!" Deku shouted.

Ace squeezed his eyes shut as the air stung against his reflexively widened eyes. Touch? Touch?

Did this guy's Devil Fruit have to do with touch? That didn't narrow down what kind of power this man had. Sure, any knowledge was better than none, but surely being upfront was a better move?

Within the span of a single blink of his eyes, the man's fingers curled up around Marco's half-transformed leg. Another blink and Marco cried out in pain. Before his next blink, the man was wrenched from Marco's grip, and Marco from his. Ace stared in horror as Deku yanked the tendril closer towards himself once more, readying the very same battle of attrition he'd attempted moments before.

Something thick rose up into his throat. It certainly wasn't a warning sign of tears, no. It was all the words he needed to describe exactly what he was feeling, stuck in his esophagus, unable to spill out and make everything make sense.

Reluctantly, Ace angled himself towards Marco, who was keeping himself in the air, despite the obvious difficulty.

"Marco-" he cried.

"I'm fine, healing remember? Go help the kid. I'll be there in a second," Marco grit his teeth.

Ace wasn't convinced. Given Marco's long stint as a pirate, not many things were enough to keep him down, or for him to blatantly display his pain for that matter, for long. The Phoenix's reaction put Ace's guard all the way up. However, Marco was right; they would have to defeat this enemy before they could get proper answers out of the kid.

"What did he do to you?"

Marco grimaced, "I think he… disintegrated my skin. He grabbed me and… in less than a second it felt like I was burning."

He stared at his brother in arms. Marco couldn't be burned. To have something described that way from him...

With a deep frown and a knowing look, Ace reluctantly let himself return to the ground. The others rushed to his side the second he landed. Even the blonde looked concerned; Ace could practically see the questions on their lips, even as they bit them back.

"They're fine. I think there's a reason Deku is keeping that guy off the ground. I'm going to go help him."

With that brief rundown, he launched himself back up as best he could, though it was far easier than before, now that they were at a much lower height. Unlike before, Ace couldn't even spot a small opening for him to intervene. Even Marco, opposite him, with the two enemies in between, was just as unable to act. Deku's efforts had doubled if that was even possible. Even more black tendrils wrapped around the man's body, slowing down his attempts to block, dodge, or mitigate any of the blows Deku was raining down on him.

It was only then that it clicked.

He'd seen the strength Deku had back at Marineford, although he had been more than a little distracted. However, the recurrent blasts of air emanating from each blow only reinforced Ace's understanding of the kid's strength.

So how was this man withstanding such force? From what he could tell, it wasn't Armament Haki. Otherwise he could have made some sort of progress in disabling or defending against the tendrils.

Without Haki, Ace would even say Pops wouldn't last so long. He could still squash Deku like a bug, of course, but simply taking hits and not moving to defend or counterattack…

He bit his lip as he continued to watch the fight unfold. Even if Marco was up against such an onslaught, it would be a battle of attrition. It would depend on who got too tired to continue first, Marco with his regeneration or Deku with his attacks.

Did that mean… this man was regenerating?

But it wasn't possible to have two Devil Fruit Powers at the same time!

A traitorous thought in the back of his mind reminded him that Deku seemed to have more than one as well. He told that thought to fuck off.

Assuming his hunch was right, and this man was regenerating, that meant he couldn't afford to simply stand by until Deku couldn't continue. If his powers were activated by touch, and distinigrated whatever it was… With a grimace he shook off his nerves launched himself at the man. Deku startled just moments after Ace moved, though the man didn't seem to catch on until the kid scrambled to put distance between them.

Despite the new space between the man and the kid, the black tendrils were still firmly wrapped around each limb. Ace hoped they weren't flammable as he grabbed the man's arms. In the blink of an eye, the man's fingers attempted to grasp his wrist, only to close into a full fist as his arm burst into flames instead.

"You can't hurt someone who's made of fire!" he mocked and lit himself ablaze.

It was always a different experience to hear the screams of pain close-up instead of from a distance, but beggars couldn't be choosers. The wretched sounds and stomach-churning smells of burning flesh always brought him back to his childhood. Unfortunately for this fucker, the strongest feeling he'd had at the time overtook him whenever he was brought back to that moment.

He'd protect Deku for sure.

As soon as Ace decided he'd burnt the fucker to a crisp, he released him and put distance between himself and the body. The intense scent wasn't doing his stomach any favors. Instead of the crisp corpse falling as he'd expected, the kid rushed to close the gap.

He didn't understand why he'd want to experience such a horrid smell. Ace wanted to keep the kid away from such horrible things, even though he knew that was a futile endeavor, as it had been (and still was) with Luffy.

"That won't work!" Deku hollered, startling Ace even though his voice was barely audible over the sound of rushing air from another powerful punch.

And then he saw the dead body's arm raise.

It felt as though he'd been transported to a different plane of existence. Nothing felt real. For a second, he almost fell himself, as his concentration had been disturbed by the utterly incomprehensible… He couldn't even put words to it. He'd learned from Luffy that there was a Devil Fruit that could keep one alive after death, but that was obviously in use by the Skeleton on his crew.

So what the fuck was this?

Clearly Deku had expected this. Or at the very least had been prepared for the possibility. This man and the kid… they'd met before; if he had been unsure before, he was certain now.

When Ace finally regained his wits, he launched forward for another attack. Simply staying airborne was taking its toll on him; he needed to finish this sooner rather than later. He sent a focused attack towards his legs. This time, his ranged attack didn't miss. As the fire went out, he could see the man's calcined leg hanging on by a charred, stringy piece of his body. That and his bones, but the less said about those the better.

A scratchy, breathy voice emanated from the corpse. It sounded disjointed and breathy, though some phrases broke through more smoothly than others. Like a voice giving out in reverse, he spoke.

"Wh-at ar..e y-ou-uu?"

He could feel his face twist with incredulity, "I should be the one asking that!"

"You came here and didn't know?" Deku blurted out as he halted his follow-up attack.

It was a bit absurd that this fucker didn't know who he—Fire Fist Ace—was, but that phrasing rubbed him the wrong way. But whatever, that just meant that they had even better odds than he thought. There was a good chance this guy wouldn't recognize Marco either, though either way they'd still kick his ass no problem.

"Sh-hut u-"

This time, it wasn't his voice breaking that cut him off, but Marco swooping in and snatching what was left of the dangling limb off of his body. It wasn't a pretty sight, but far from the worst Ace had encountered (or caused). The kid, though, probably wouldn't fare too well after this. But perhaps that was for the best. ( )

Maybe wishing emotional distress on the kid wasn't the most moral thing to do, but he was a pirate. And pirates take what they want… or find a way to make it happen.

Those hopes were… dissuaded if not wholly dashed as Deku returned to add another powerful blow to the mix without hesitation. The kid was used to this kind of gruesomeness… then at least he'd fit in well.

After that, though he never went down for the count completely, was a beat-down. Now that they'd proved they could hold their own, Deku gave in and let them assist. He wondered to himself if seeing the man fail to even hurt Ace played a part in that decision. It would be understandable, after seeing Marco's wound even knowing it would regenerate… he wouldn't want to see a repeat if he could help it.

As the battle continued, he saw bubbling flesh attempt to reform the missing leg. Overall, the burning stench began to dissipate somewhat, it was caught on Ace's clothes like Luffy giving a hug. Incredibly stubborn and tough to remove. The man struggled and flailed as he tried to put up any semblance of a fight, but between the brutal efficiency of Marco's dive attacks, Ace's flame shots, and Deku's unrelenting hits, there was little he could do. The tendrils almost felt like overkill at this point, only there to make the strain seem even more like an insurmountable task.

Ace would almost feel sorry for the fucker if he hadn't been aiming to kill the kid. They were simply protecting what was theirs.

Despite his assumptions, the man's wriggling wasn't in vain. He managed to escape the grasp of the tendrils in the blink of an eye. Deku was used as a springboard as the man launched himself as far away as possible. Marco would go help the kid while he could finish this man off. It was the least he could do. He trusted his brothers—and yes, even that blonde asshole—to take care of the kid and whatever injuries he might have sustained. After all, he failed his last hunt.

This time he wouldn't fall short of his goal.

He scowled at the man's cowardice. As the one that started this fight, he should also stick around to see it out to the end. Overconfidence was paid for in blood; he of all people, regretfully, knew that. So the pirate commander was more than prepared to follow him until he got what was coming to him.

"Don't-" Deku gently grabbed his arm, taking him by surprise.

He'd expected the kid to be flung much further back, or even back down to the island. Yet the kid seemed to have recovered and decided his first course of action, other than resting, would be to hold Ace back. It made him want to roll his eyes.

But the way he so delicately tugged Ace back made his resolve melt away. Perhaps the kid and that fucker weren't exactly enemies after all. He could understand that. As a pirate himself, their crew were on good terms with some other crews despite being rivals or even opponents, at times. Ace himself couldn't help but spread kindness to those in need, especially children. He was a pirate. However there were no rules to be a pirate other than the freedom to do whatever one wanted. And if he wanted to do a good deed, well no one could stop him.

A pitiful sight.

That was the only way Ace could describe the sight of this man frantically fleeing into the distance. It turned out to be rather anti-climactic, for all the sudden appearance and Deku ruthlessness had taken them by surprise.

"It seems he got more than he bargained for," Marco huffed, obviously tired, but pleased at their victory.

A glance at the kid confirmed that Deku hardly felt the same way. He often had unreadable or obtuse expressions, but the internal conflict and distress was plain as day, written all over his features. Instead of offering words that he knew would only fall short, Ace turned back to the kid and urged him back to the land below them.

However, their fight wasn't over yet, even as they began their descent to the ground once more.

"Are you okay?" the blonde fussed as soon as they touched down.

Deku simply closed his eyes and nodded. He didn't even last a second as his knees buckled and let himself tumble into a kneeling position.

"You certainly don't look fine," Izou commented, unimpressed, though not unkind.

The tired glower Izou got in return said all it needed to.

Yeah, taking care of this kid was going to be a challenge.