So... Yeah, long time overdue.
Honestly was overfrying my brain with thinking how this wohld go but decided to simplify it and make a more linear idea.
More action later on. Also in China, no VPN, no Google, No discord, I am cut off from research atm.
I hope you pirahnas choke on my brain meat. Will try and write more stuff... Tempted to return to Overlord.
The cameras were equipped with state-of-the-art motion detectors.
That way, the streaming site would automatically transition to the camera(s) that caught wind of the legendary battle for the viewers on the scene. In contrast, the mobile flying cameras flew towards the commotion, such as one heading through the holes made by Stars' spine until it hovered above Star's decimated frame in the bathroom.
Cathleen coughed.
What just hit her?
It felt like she ate a mini-nuke, and it detonated in her gut.
Water trickled onto her face, a wet, cold stream blurring her eyes as her brain tried to process what had just happened.
What happened?
A cough escaped her throat, bitter iron lingered on her tongue as she held her stomach and hissed from the pain.
She could slowly make out what she saw, her vision clear enough to see broken pipes and…
Grunting, she sat up, but she clutched her stomach with a hiss from the sudden pain.
"STARS!"
Watching through the hovering video camera, the soldiers who knew her in America cried out at the sight.
Everyone who served in the military gathered in the lounge at each military base in America. Every soldier, from the lowest grunt to the army generals, watched with uninterrupted focus.
Within his office at the white house, watching the video playing from his laptop, General Agbar grits his teeth at the sorry sight of America's Greatest Hero picking herself up from the rubble, from the pieces of the toilet she smashed into.
He read reports of Garou's absurd growth and the potential to become the most unstoppable creature on this world. He didn't believe it at first, even after learning of Garou's victory over a weakened All Might, but now? He broke free from New Order, something no one had ever accomplished, and nearly downed America's Number One Hero at the start of their 'duel.'
Agbar knew Garou was a national-level threat capable of surpassing even All For One.
Thus, Agbar could only pray for Star's and All Might's victory over this monster, this honorable monster that broke free from the universal script of heroes and villains, the demon that healed All Might, the demon that swore to stand down upon defeat.
This illogical, noble demon who still wished to shake the world in a direction no one had charted in history.
"You can win this! Cathleen!" Agbar roared with the spirit of a thousand hero fans.
Tremors rumbled, the vibrations traveling through the ground and into her fingers, alerting her to her surroundings.
She looked around, still wet from the toilet water, only to lose her balance when the second wave shook her surroundings. The ceiling and walls cracked, and dust fell from the cracks.
It was like an earthquake arrived in Hosu to see the legendary battle.
Then the roof cracked and opened like someone popped a bottle cap, the sky glaring down on Star.
But the sky was not without its own chaos.
A second natural disaster greeted Hosu's skies, a tornado so strong and vicious, it uprooted many of Hosu's concrete infrastructure, skyscrapers and other buildings torn from their foundation and flew like leaves in a whirlwind.
She understood what happened the moment she saw the shadow of her idol above her.
All Might was going All Out.
[The fight just started and Hosu has already turned into an apocalyptic warzone! All Might ain't pulling punches here! He's going all ouuuut!] The peppy brown-haired news reporter from Yomeri TV excitedly announced before a camera facing the tornado.
[The footage in that warzone is currently buffering from the chaos! If you walk outside and look, you can see the building spiraling towards heaven! God knows what's going on over there, but I hope All Might has this! Garou's day of reckoning might finally come!]
In the eye of the storm, All Might stood, eyes and ears vigilant of the demon that hid amidst the turbulent maelstrom.
He could feel it, the predatory gaze hidden amongst the gray, dust-obscured winds, behind the flying uprooted buildings and concrete spiraling around him, stalking around him.
The mobile cameras couldn't lock onto the scene amidst the storm, but one camera managed to escape the tempest, locking onto All Might.
And the Demon in black standing behind All Might without a sound, much to the horror of the audience, Izuku and his mother
"Behind you!" Bakugo was shaking the flat-screen television.
"All Might, look out!" Ochako shrieked with panic, biting her nails.
Tsuyu cried out with her siblings and her frog parents, the parents at home for this momentous event.
Everyone supporting All Might around the world was shouting at All Might to look behind him, that the Demon was about to take him down, while those that supported Garou roared at him to reap in his victory.
All Might perked as he turned around at the last moment, right fist clenched and swinging with the turn of his upper body.
[Texas Smash!]
The result was him enduring a barrage of punches after his fist veered off course, guided over Garou's head.
His back hit the wall, the wall broke soon after, All Might flew through more walls as stone and plaster crumbled as he tumbled across the floor.
[New Hampshire Smash!]
He knew he couldn't beat Garou in a straight exchange, and Garou gave him no room to test his countermeasures, the martial artist executed the initiative too well for him to fight back.
Punching forward, All Might propelled himself backwards with the recoil and, when he was in position, planted his feet into the ground and countered.
[Texas Smash!]
The camera saw Garou flying out of the wall, his flight continuing until he crashed into the opposite end.
Following him, All Might propelled through the air like a bullet, flying after Garou.
[California Smash!]
He somersaulted midair, building momentum and air pressure, and punched.
The land rippled like a stone dropped in a pond, the waves of concrete rising and falling like a tidal wave, buildings and rubble waving like an undulating flag.
It did not take long after the fight began for Hosu to become a ruined city.
All Might panted as he jumped back, landing meters further from the impact site. He narrowed his eyes at the dust cloud that was kicked up by the force of his attack, looking for any sign of Hosu's overlord. Knowing from prior experience, Garou would rise again like an undying nightmare.
Still, seeing his performance reaching its peak was satisfying to see after so many years of suffering under his nemesis' curse. He looked around, seeing a hovering camera, high tech, looking at him.
All Might flashed an iconic thumbs up and smiled at the camera for good luck.
Just for his jaw to greet Garou's flying kick, the camera following All Might's flight to the other end of the massive crater he left as Garou buried his head into the wall.
All Might's head was rattling inside the darkness for a moment before he plucked his head out from the rubble, brushing the pebbles off his golden hair, hitting the left side of his head to push the pebbles out of his right ear.
Garou was rolling his shoulders as if that land-rearranging punch did almost nothing to him.
"Come on, All Might. I didn't ask for a front massage." Garou retorted, All Might could feel the smirk behind the demonic mask, "And really? Smiling at the camera? In front of me?"
"Ah hah hah hah!" All Might stood back up, smiled fearlessly despite the headache, delighted to see Garou using his quip against that four-armed mutant against him like this, "Force of professional habit! I hope your wallet can cover the cost for the VIP massage!"
The Symbol of Peace then dashed towards the Demon of Hosu once again, he leapt and swung both of his arms down.
[Double Detroit Smash!]
As they fought, the crowd roared around the world at the sight of their favorite hero's comeback of the century.
"ALL MIIIIIIIIGHT!"
Kirishima roared in his room.
In various locations, many aspiring heroes in the making were also watching from their television - either praying or cheering for the Symbol of Peace to prevail.
"Come on, All Might! You didn't hit him hard enough! AVENGE US!"
As for the heroes that Garou brutalized in his hunts, they were chanting for Garou's downfall, Aizawa especially in an uncharacteristic manner.
The teachers of UA could only look at Aizawa with a mix of understanding, worry, and pity for Aizawa's chanting at All Might to take revenge for him. Midnight sympathizes, but she was not hostile enough to break out of character like that. Nezu wondered if he should afford another chiropractor for Aizawa.
"Yes, yes! Take that Garou! How does it feel to be on the receiving end this time, huh?!" Even Hawks was out of character, excited and spirited unlike his usual casual demeanor, while eating from a bucket of fried chicken.
However, there were watchers mesmerized by All Might's opponent. They saw him defeat many challengers with absolute dominance, so this was their first time seeing Garou's skill shine.
Despite facing off against the avatar of power, against the raging winds and the threat of being on the receiving end of its might, the demon fought back with his own mastery.
Hitoshi Shinso watched the live feed on his computer.
Despite All Might throwing his iconic Smash techniques, he could not touch Garou.
[Wyoming Smash]
Garou parried and drove his elbow into All Might's solar plexus.
[Wisconsin Smash]
All Might toppled, face hitting the concrete.
[Ohio-!]
With a forward stride, Garou punched his face faster than All Might could finish.
Shinso widened his eyes when Garou weaved towards All Might, it happened so fast and simultaneously.
With an elbow strike, Garou struck All Might's standing leg sliding to the left, All Might almost falling into a banana split.
"Shiiit!" All Might raised his arms at the sight of Garou about to hit his face, but Garou leapt, corkscrew spinning over All Might, and grabbed his hair.
With all his weight, he yanked All Might's head down into his knee and slammed his elbow into his face with so much force, Shino heard the shockwave, cracks spreading webs of destruction across the battlefield.
"...That… He got All Might." Shinso couldn't help but admit that was a sick finisher.
"Oh my God, that was awesome!" Neito Monoma was shocked to see Garou's brutal finisher. He shouldn't root for Garou, but… He could not deny how cool Garou was in the way he moved.
Ojiro gulped. He was trying to hold his excitement or else his family would scold him, his parents were staunch All Might fans after all.
"My word…"
Within a company building famous for building support items, Re Destro could only respond with awe.
Sitting in the executive office building, clean sterile windows dominating one side of the four walls while the executive leaders sat around a rectangular table, watching the live feed on a white screen.
Re-Destro, the current leader of the hidden Meta Liberation Army and CEO of Detnerat, a company that manufactures support items for civilians.
Trumpet, the leader of the Hearts and Mind Party, hidden leader of the Meta Liberation Army.
Curious, the blue-skinned executive director of the Shoowaysha Publishing.
And Skeptic, board member of Feel Good Inc and computer expert.
Garou claimed to have no Quirk, but his performance demonstrated proof against his claims. It was possible that Eraserhead was lying to save face…
They joined hands with All For One due to his blatant antagonism against Quirks, but his actions speak something more profound than just anti-Quirk propaganda. Garou stated about finding a way to remove Quirks but even with current medical technology, it would not be a convenient thing.
All For One was not the only one researching the prospect of Quirk transference, and he might be the only one that uncovered the secret scientifically.
The Meta Liberation Army should outnumber the Silver Fang, but that meant nothing if Garou could simply take out the leaders with his absurd speed, a man that was overwhelming All Might at his peak performance.
"Skeptic. How is your current task progressing?" Re-Destro asked his capable right hand.
"I managed to get something, but it doesn't suit his image." The man with long black combed hair and whose eyes were completely covered by his bangs turned his laptop around and slid it towards Re-Destro.
He leaned forward. His eyes squinted at the image.
Curious peeked at what Skeptic was showing, "Ohhhhh, my my… Is this real?"
"You know how thorough I am when it comes to these things."
Skeptic scoffed as Curious and Re-Destro digested the sight of Garou on the image.
Carrying a child on his shoulders, one with light-blue hair and a tiny horn jutting out from the corner of her forehead; and the child looked… happy.
"What do we have here…?" Re-destro leaned in a tad closer to the screen, a newfound intrigue in his eyes.
"This is absolutely stirring my curiosity! The Hero Hunter's secret life behind the scenes, oh the drama this will bring! Where did you get this?!" Curious asked with a reporter's glee.
"It appears that Garou is too lax when it comes to his private life, especially when he is able to contend with All Might."
Skeptic glanced at the feed, seeing the result.
All Might was groaning at Garou's feet.
"Yes…" Re-destro seemed to have something new to work on - he pointed at the image of the child, "Look into this girl, and possibly everyone else who usually hangs around this Demon of Hosu."
"...This might attract attention." Skeptic noted. "I don't know if we can handle the retaliation. He is more ruthless than All Might, and I am not sure if we could stop him. He is already dangerous enough without a growing army…"
Re-Destro was no fool, if an army of Japan's finest heroes couldn't take him down, then the Meta Liberation Army would fare no different.
"Then it is better that we use this as part of our negotiation table." Re-Destro continued. "We shall schedule a meeting with the Silver Fang. It is only a matter of time before their activities expose us."
The Silver Fang was actively deposing major corporations through means that most Villains could only dream of, exposing the sinful corruption of the managers, robbing them, and abducting the upper echelons sometimes while leaving paper trails for the Heroes to comb over to confuse them.
Not only that, some of the Meta Liberation Army's Heteromorphs were starting to support Garou's movement to fight for the Heteromorphs despite his contradicting ideology. His existence alone was fracturing the unity of the Meta Liberation Army.
Re-Destro wasn't exactly sure if Garou was truly against Quirks, so he must ask Garou himself on the matter. If he was against Quirks, he wouldn't take in so many people with Quirks without discrimination, which was paradoxal in his cause.
His head was ringing.
Even All For One couldn't oppress him this much at his full power. Despite being at full strength, the dynamic between them didn't change. Worse, it felt as if the gap widened in favor of Garou.
He was more than sure that Garou had hidden cards he did not show as he struggled to push himself up, looking up to see Garou looking down.
He didn't even look like he was struggling, not a single struggled breath.
[...He is scarier than I thought.]
All Might heard a familiar voice in the ringing, he would've jotted as a figment of his imagination if he didn't recognize it. He glanced behind him.
[I never thought I would meet someone who can rile my Danger Sense this much. You're very unlucky to encounter someone like him in your timeline.]
[Honestly, I wished he was born during my era.]
[I want to see him defeat All For One in my day. It would've been a spectacle.]
He saw them, the faces, one of whom he recognized.
Nana Shimura glanced at him and waved with a motherly smile.
[Sorry for being a third wheel, Toshinori. We managed to find a way to look at your battle… I gotta say, he is scary. I didn't think he could overwhelm you at your peak.]
The previous wielder of One For All commented as All Might looked back.
He blinked. Time seemed to stand still… no, Garou was moving in slow motion.
[I managed to give us some breathing room with my Quirk so we could talk.]
One of the specters spoke, though he was holding his hands together, fingers hooked upon each other.
All Might then stood up and inspected his surroundings. Other than the time being slowed-down, he was still on the battlefield, except there was some kind of tear in the space behind him, leading into some kind of dark, ruined world where the apparition of Nana Shimura and his other predecessors were standing on a ruined platform. All Might wanted to speak, to greet them, but he then found the darkness enveloped his mouth and throat, effectively muting him.
[...You can do that? Since when can Gear Shift do that?]
A bald specter pointed at him.
[We needed time to talk, and this Garou didn't look like he would give the current wielder the luxury. I believe One For All has evolved to the point where we can use our Quirks despite the will of the current host if we wished.]
[Garou looks like he is going to split your head like a watermelon.]
Another pointed at Garou walking towards All Might.
Yeah, All Might should do something about that. He grunted as he slowly rose to his stance.
Garou seemed to notice the shift as he stopped his walk.
It was strange. He looked around, head turned left and right.
[...Did he sense us?]
The one with Gear Shift asked.
[No way, that's impossible. How could he detect seven ghosts from the past?]
All Might gave a strained nervous smile.
[Would you like some help from your old teacher?]
Nana Shimura coyly asked. He glanced at her, seeing that teasing motherly smile.
'...I would appreciate it… but I'm not exactly sure how you can help.'
All Might was still confused by the sudden development. This had never happened before, One For All reaching an unknown, unexplored stage that he did not have time to unravel or else Garou would split him in two just to see if he could.
However, Garou stopped as All Might saw a familiar five-pointed star appearing over Garou.
"All Might!"
All Might looked up, seeing Stars and Stripes standing over the edge of the Garou-made pit.
She was struggling, looking strained, holding her left outstretched palm with gritting teeth.
"I don't know how long I can hold him! Finish it before he breaks free!"
True to her word, Garou appeared stiffened, paralyzed by a supernatural force, although the star representing the effect of New Order was cracking audibly with the sound of breaking glass.
He could express how glad he was to have a window like this.
"Thank you!"
All Might flew like a bullet, fist cocked and ready.
The audience held their breath, the All Might supporters roaring for All Might's comeback to make it through, the star of New Order shattering just when All Might made contact.
[New York Smash!]
It was deja vu, right when the star of New Order shattered.
Garou reacted at the last second, but not fast enough to parry his fist as All Might launch him to the skies.
This time, not only did Garou fly higher than before, but also All Might wasn't finished.
All Might propulsed through the air after Garou from below.
[Toshinori. I believe I can assist you this time.] Nana suggested.
All Might wasn't sure what she meant until he felt it, the weight of gravity no longer pulling him, free from all worldly constraints.
When he propelled towards Garou by punching the air, he flew faster, so fast that it caught Garou off guard, All Might could tell because Garou couldn't deflect him this time with his martial arts.
All Might was scared to find out if Garou actually could deflect him midair and he didn't want to find out the hard way.
'Thank you… Nana.'
All Might was a blue and yellow blur, almost unseen by the camera.
The All Might fans were cheering around the world as he overwhelmed the Demon of Hosu, the Heroes of Japan roaring when All Might appeared over Garou, hands clasped together before he swung down.
Lightning fast, Garou reacted. His ungodly reflexes still astounded All Might that he could react even in that position, but Garou was a half-second too slow as All Might slammed Garou back into the earth.
Garou's fall created another small crater on the ground, the Hero Hunter laid on his back as he saw All Might turned his body around until his back was facing towards him. The hero then cocked his fist back and unleashed another straight at the opposite way.
[New Hampshire Smash!]
The force behind his punch propelled All Might down straight towards Garou.
He must take Garou down before he could react, but Garou hammered the ground with his clenched fists, the force pushing him to his feet.
All Might suddenly sensed danger, inexplicable danger.
[Dodge!]
One of the past users screamed in his ear.
All Might propelled himself to the side as Garou jumped.
Then Garou, to All Might's shock, changed trajectory, flying towards him.
[He… He copied your technique?!] A bald past user shouted in shock.
"SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIT!"
Meaning All Might lost his aerial advantage.
All Might tried to run, but Garou caught up, his hand grabbing his face before corkscrew twisting a full revolution and throwing All Might down.
All Might managed to land on his feet, but barely evaded Garou's landing.
Then the danger All Might sensed encroached upon him as Garou walked towards him, the danger swallowing All Might like a voracious darkness devouring him whole.
[What the hell is this guy? My Danger Sense is going crazy! This can't be right!]
And Garou was simply walking towards him at close proximity, slowly and passively.
All Might wasn't sure what that past user was saying, but he needed to get out of the danger.
Then Garou stiffened, the star of New Order appearing.
"This annoying manwoman…!" Garou hissed as he turned his head towards Star and Stripes, seeing the woman attempting a command on Garou's being.
Now was his chance.
[Detroit Smash!]
But the Star of New Order shattered instantly, Star and Stripes cried as her left hand twisted and snapped in the wrong angle again.
Detroit Smash was caught, held by two hands, Garou gazing directly at All Might's eyes even as the force blasted wind through him, flapping his black cloak as large swathes of dust scattered.
All Might shuddered as his Danger Sense was ringing alarms, caught in the demon's hold.
[Explosive Heart Release Fist.]
All Might heard a pulse from Garou, like the drumming beat of a heart.
Garou's fists were mostly passive yet mighty, flexible and adaptable.
Now it was pure force and aggression when Garou plunged his fist into All Might's center.
He could feel the shockwaves breaking his ribs, cracking them apart as the shockwaves exploded from within and traveled without, blowing away the dust and pebbles like a force bomb.
"Kuagh?!"
All Might fell to his knees and vomited blood, the bones of his ribs grating his chest.
What was that power? It was… different from the previous attacks…
"This is a martial art that I roughly stole from my master's secret safe, one that he sealed because of its brutal nature." Garou explained to All Might as the camera watched, the audience listening. "The Explosive Heart Release Fist. I managed to master enough of the glimpsed steps to do this. It uses my heart to explosively enhance my power in short periods. Enough to break every bone in your body, old man, if I wanted."
All Might grimaced as Garou tapped onto his ear.
"Since we're at this point, I guess it's time I show you something fun. Marco. Bring it."
From a helicopter high in the air, two trusted Silver Fang demons overlooked the chaos below.
Marco Levaron and Mr. Compress was in the cockpit, the first aiming his sniper rifle down at Garou.
"Delivering package."
He fired a bullet, one containing one of Mr. Compress' special pearls.
All Might perked when he heard the sharp whistle of a bullet before the ground beside Garou was struck by a sharp pang.
Mr. Compress snapped his finger as the pearl uncompressed.
A large black case was before Garou. All Might stared at the case, confused, the audience watching closely as Garou knelt down and opened it.
All Might gawked when Garou took out a large bat, a metallic bat from the suitcase.
"I hope you don't mind. This doesn't count as cheating, does it?" Garou coyly asked as he twirled the bat around.
"But… you…" All Might raised a shaking finger, pointing at that metal bat.
Why was he holding something like that? He was already terrifying without a weapon.
"I bet everyone is curious why I am holding this?"
Many watchers nodded in response, Izuku gulping at the sight of Garou holding a weapon.
"Well, I've been feeling nostalgic lately, and most of my followers prefer weapons. I thought, why not try my hand at it since I have time? I picked this because one of the first S-Rank heroes I fought used it. He's a tough bastard, growing stronger the more I hurt him. Kept fighting no matter how badly he's beaten." Garou tapped the metal bat on the floor.
"Your kneecaps are first, old man."
All Might felt danger as he held his kneecaps on instinct, growing more terrified. He could feel Garou's demonic grin behind the mask.
Garou assumed a stance, one that was different from his usual martial stances.
This one, unlike before, was more feral and rough around the edges, the metal bat resting on his shoulders as he bent his knees like a predator ready to pounce.
"...Shiiiiit!" All Might cursed as he sweated bullets.
At this rate, he would end up like the heroes Garou hunted in the early days, broken and ferried to the hospital! Without a rib bone!
But before Garou could move, time slowed to a crawl once more.
[Toshinori.] Nana spoke.
[I know this might be too much to process, but understand this. As of now, One For All has evolved. The Quirks of the past users are available to you.]
All Might turned, seeing the speaker as an emaciated thin man with messy white hair covering his eyes.
[At first, we thought that the Quirk All For One gave me is the only one that grows with every generation, accumulating power with every use from each user. However, ever since your protege returned the One For All to you, it rapidly developed into something more. What was once mere motes of… of fragments of the past users evolved into what you see. One For All has carried the Quirks of the user as well, hence, why you can access our abilities from the past. We are still discussing how this is all possible from our side, however.]
All Might's eyes widened as his brain connected the dots - his ability to defy gravity, the sixth sense for danger…
[We believe you should be able to use our Quirks without experiencing the physical strain on your body. We will try to explain our Quirks during your battle. You are no longer alone in this fight.]
[Get ready, now. Time is returning to normal.]
[I'll be sure to protect your kneecaps, little Toshi.]
All Might blushed a little at Nana's remark. A few of the other past users snickered.
Time returned to its normal flow as Garou approached.
There it was again, the feeling of several presences intruding the duel.
Garou stopped and looked around again, a little confused. He turned to All Might, seeing a confidence that wasn't there prior.
Where did he get his courage from?
"I can sense something strange coming from you."
All Might blinked at the sudden remark before he tilted his head, "Ah hah hah! Strange? I've got nothing to hide!"
"You're terrible at lying. Even with that forced smile, I can read you like a book… But it doesn't matter."
Garou entered the wild, uncouth stance of Metal Bat, one of his memorable victories over the S-Class.
It was a good intense fight, even though that hero fought like a dumbass, relying on his Fighting Spirit to power through all that damage. Thinking about it though, he was no different than him. That guy was on the right track.
He could still recall that yankee's fighting style as if it happened yesterday.
His fingers gripped tighter, all muscles tightened and pulled in a manner he usually wouldn't use them, a strong brute form as he grinned behind the mask, excited to show All Might the heroes of his world through copied memory.
This time, All Might was not facing the Hero Hunter as the spirit of Metal Bat took over The Demon Lord of Hosu.
He spun like a wild twister, wind and force gathering around his weapon as he swung with brute force, barely a speck of technique
Garou expected All Might to take the hit after which he would follow with a combo and break his forearms, then he would bash All Might's kneecaps.
He didn't expect All Might to dodge by back-stepping away from his range. Garou was confused, he should've moved to protect his kneecaps, knowing his movement patterns and habits.
Annoyed, Garou broke away from the twister and spun closer towards All Might with each rotation. It was a feint to have All Might's guard low as he sprung up, throwing an overhead downward swing, but, to Garou's surprise…
All Might sidestepped. He didn't even bother blocking with his arms.
"Hm?"
Garou admitted that he was copying Metal Bat's movesets down to the smallest detail with a bit of perspnal flare, but from what he gathered, All Might shouldn't be able to see that coming
Was it his imagination? That walking chunk of useless meat was terrible in high-level close combat.
He should remove some useless movements to test something out.
He sharpened his swings, faster and more accurate. His first attack aiming for All Might's knee was a feint, yet All Might reacted just when he moved.
His bat barely reached him, three consecutive swings, swift thrusts of a swordsman with finesse, grazed All Might's cheek, shoulder, and abdomen, then All Might jumped as Garou went for reverse side swing to bust his kneecaps.
All Might landed behind him, his smile did not radiate composure, his eyes almost sweat with nervousness.
"...What's going on?" Garou was suspicious. Something had changed, and it was not All Might improving; he was using a supernatural trick.
"Ah ha ha… W-Why, I don't understand-"
"You didn't learn and predict my moves, yet you somehow sensed my attacks before it happened."
All Might flinched. He could almost hear a strangled wheeze coming from the old hero.
"…What have you done, All Might?" Garou accused as he pressed the earpiece.
The old man was cheating somehow.
"Send the 'Bushido' and 'American Special' packages."
Garou glared at All Might behind his demonic mask. The weapons were mostly for fun and to help inspire the grunts under him to improve using fancy moves he copied and studied through action movies and martial art manuals.
He was already at the top, so why not expand his skills for the sake of others? However, All Might was playing naughty.
Which warrant lethal punishment.
"[Two at the same time? Are you trying to kill him?]"
"Do it."
"[Understood.]" Marco cut off the transmission.
A few seconds later, two rectangular cases crashed beside Garou, lodged deep into the concrete of this pit of shattered concrete and glass, the floor starting to wet with water from the broken pipes in the 'walls'.
He opened the one on his left.
He glanced at All Might as he opened the lid and took out a weapon that would be extremely dangerous in his hands.
"A-Ahh… I-I-I-I-Is t-t-t-t-that a-a-a-a-a-a…"
Garou almost smiled at the sight of All Might trembling at the sight of his weapon. It was commissioned to be made as sturdy and unbreakable as possible in order to cut down All Might, something to amaze and terrify the viewers.
Garou wrapped attached the katana by belt to his waist before he went to the other package.
He had never played with firearms before, but a quick lesson with his gun-savvy subordinates was more than enough of a good start.
He grabbed two pistols, one in each hand.
The sound of All Might's strangled cries was funny to hear, he would never get tired of that.
He checked the bottom of each pistol, magazines fully loaded.
He primed each gun with a click by sliding it against each other.
"In case you're wondering, these are for fun. Besides, the Number One Hero can take on a Quirkless man with a few weapons on him, right?"
He turned to check All Might's reaction.
He looked like he had gone white from terror, that constant smile replaced by hung jaws, it was so funny seeing the Number One Hero like this.
"Not if I have anything to say!"
Garou perked at the man-woman's voice.
"Cathleen Bate can ignite gunpowder with her mind!"
What?
Garou instantly threw his guns up and jumped back just in time.
All of his guns, even in the package, blew up in a fiery blast, Garou singlehandedly deflecting all shrapnels away as he landed back several meters.
"...You bitch."
Lividly, Garou turned to the woman standing atop a pile of rubble nesting at the edge of the crater. That woman had actually scored a point against him. She was going to pay for that.
"Ha ha ha! Brave of you to use guns in front of an American Hero! Do you know how many villains use them back in my homeland?!"
Star and Stripes winked at him.
She ruined his moment.
Garou already drew the katana from the sheathe, wanting to see how she could handle this.
"All Might! It's time for Plan C!"
Garou squinted.
Plan C? He pretty sure he ruined Plan A, Plan B was a mess.
"Star! Don't do this! If you do-"
"All Might!" She looked at her idol. "Didn't you say that when all hope is lost, we have to go beyond?"
All Might was conflicted, it was written on his face.
"Now is that time! Plus…!"
Garou couldn't believe it.
He could see the same crackling electrical sparks of power crackling around Star and Stripe as her muscles expanded in mass, bulging with newfound energy that was definitely not from her Quirk. He was absolutely sure because this power reminded him so much of All Might's Quirk.
He looked at All Might, seeing a face full of regret that it had come to this.
"So that's your dirty secret."
Garou had never felt so enraged in his life.
All Might looked more frightened.
"So you are the infamous Quirk stealer. All For One."
"...Eh?"