My Heroic Beast King
Chapter 19
I made them all pass to give them a boost in confidence and because I though the remedial 'classes' Aizawa put some of them through was stupid. They were smart enough to get into U.A. after all. Seems to be they are doing college material instead of high school.
Also, I may have hijacked the Two Heroes movie for this one and made an attempt to make it my own.
XXXX
"Tomura, what do you see around you?" Sasuke asked as they strolled through the mall in hoodies. While Sasuke was not sure he would attract any attention his idiot boss would, with his childish personality, on top of his scarred and severely chapped face. Then again, Sasuke felt he should be extra careful given the way he just…left his family. Itachi was a full-blown hero now while he was the new family disgrace. He did it all for his brother, so he was not complaining.
"Too many annoying ass people that I would like to kill. We barely got access to the new expansion of League of Legends" Tomura griped.
"While true, the masses could be thinned…look harder. What is their mood and general state look like?'
Tomura grumbled to himself but he was appreciative that his new best friend trying to help him focus. "They are way too happy and care free. It annoys me especially when a big-time villain comes knocking that they leave everything to the heroes. It is like they have given all their own power up."
"Exactly!" Sasuke nodded. He was partially distracted by some people with way too much energy. They were just so…exhausting. It reminded him too much of…something. "But you know, once All Might is out of the picture, All for One is just going to swoop in and take it all from you. He is the Demon on the Underworld after all."
"I know." Tomura growled out a bit too loud, scaring a nearby kid that cause the mother to glare at them before walking away. "I know all too well, his vestige already tried before I took it out."
"Knowing a piece of ourselves is always part of our quirk still baffles me." Sasuke replied. Despite being evil and on the wrong side of the law, they were still human and craved connection. While mostly quiet, Sasuke got along with Tomura and they confided in one another. It was how Sasuke knew what Tomura really wanted to do. "Are you going to go through with it…end them both?"
"The world can't truly move on until their get their power back." Tomura replied evenly. "It can only do so with them both gone."
"I will concede to that point, but there are other factors to account for." Sasuke advised. "Like the MLA, for example. Did you say that Orochimaru got sent there? That group is massive. Then there is the Hero Commission protecting the status quo. Those two are going to be massive obstacles as well."
"I knew Orochimaru was going to be a problem ever since I met the snake…and then your reaction to him fully cemented that. How are your headaches?" Tomura asked and Sasuke just grunted as he rubbed his head. He suspected an earlier encounter that Sasuke was forced to forget, after all the boy gained certain insights here and there that did not make sense given his background. Born to a somewhat wealthy family whose name was barely tarnished thanks to their oldest trying and failing to be a hero like that one random civilian years ago. But then there was Sasuke himself, a runaway and his family has no idea where he was. They did not even know where their youngest was, but Sasuke did suspect they knew in some way somehow. When Orochimaru could have acquired the boy, he did not know, but he would not put it past the freak to mess with someone even if they were high class. "I am putting a plan together with info that Sensei acquired from his spy in UA. I know who I am going to take. Once shit hits the fan and the titans take each other out, we will be on our own."
"Will we go by the same organization name?" Sasuke asked as he caught site of a particular style of blond hair and his headache came back in full force that he almost missed what Tomura said.
"Probably not. My ideals are not his anymore and I have his quirk. I will…overhaul this world. People can rely on themselves over heroes and self-made villains."
"Great…I gotta piss."
"Well hurry up, I wanna play this game, before everything goes to hell." Tomura squawked as he leaned on the hallway entrance to the bathrooms. He barely acknowledged as someone passed and leaned on the other side of the hallways as he reread the description on the game box excitedly.
"I did not expect to actually see you in a crowd full of happy people, that game must be something."
"You have no idea!" Tomura lit up with excitement. "Ever since they recovered League of Legends, they expanded the world of Runeterra and actually made more than just a MOBA, they made a full arcing RPG across all lands. It probably helped that they recovered the Arcane show so they knew what they were actually dealing…with…oh damn it. I should have expected you were going to be here. No wonder the mall has extra happy energy today. You hero brats are here."
"It does help their peace of mind." Naruto replied with a shrug and looked like he was not about to get Shigaraki where he stood. "I also heard a bit about your plan and your supposed spy. I see you also wish to revamp this world so there is not an underlying current of fear."
"Do not get me wrong, I am not going about it your slow way. I intend to make things happen sooner." Tomura growled out. "And no, the spy sensei talks to say they are not even in your class, much to his own disappointment."
"So what? Are you planning to kidnap someone?"
"You actually." Tomura admitted casually. "Well, you and that violent explosion brat you humiliated on live TV. He would make a good anti hero…or anti villain like us. This is all in a bid to get the titans to kill each other off…publicly."
Naruto snorted. "I doubt All for One has the means of killing All Might, but good news for you, All Might does plan on retiring soon. He seemed excited about something that last time I talked to him about it."
"Well, the guy has to be in his late fifties or something." Tomura replied with a shrug. "Look, I hate All Might and all that he represents in this world, but if he is actually retiring, that is good enough for me. People will see they need to take their own power back and if he takes out my sensei in the process, all the better."
"I sense something major has happened to make you turn against him." Naruto replied before pushing off the wall and started to walk away. "I know you and whoever you have with you today are leaving soon, but you better make it quick. I am sure someone saw a dangerous villain nearby."
"Yeah yeah." Tomura replied, waving off the blond. All through out that conversation, he felt tense because he knew Naruto was way stronger than he looked. The blond could have killed him at any moment but he did not. Naruto wanted to see how this played out. Tomura promised himself that he would succeed…now he just needed to find some villain to weaken Naruto enough to have him taken…or just have Mr. Compress sneak attack him and seal him in a marble.
XXX
Toshinori grunted as he felt a bit of uncomfortable in his airplane seat. Despite his new Endless Might form, he was not invincible. He got hit by all those elements and Recovery Girl really let him have it when she healed him. At least he was not crippled or something, that would make everything worse!
The reason he was currently flying right now was because he and a few others were headed to I-Island…not that Dave knew. Melissa was very adamant her father was not to know until the last second. Something about a breakthrough on a project he had been working on and Mei had given him an idea. Plus, he was allowed to take anyone he wanted, so naturally, he took his Wife, Kaina, and daughter, Himiko. Naruto had won the Sports Festival and secured a ticket all on his own and invited Mei Hatsume and Izuku Midoriya who were bouncing in their seats in excitement while Naruto was casually leaning back in his chair. However, Toshinori knew that this was a front, Naruto did not like flying. Something about a screaming metal death trap.
Naruto would have felt better with his girlfriends Momo and Kyoka on the plane with him but they were taking the Yaoyorozu Jet seeing as Momo was representing her family for the upcoming I-Island Expo. And apparently so were Shoto and Tenya. The only other ones from U.A. that were coming were Denki, Hitoshi, and Monoma…but there were there because they needed money and would be working a few of the restaurants on the island.
The best part, Toshi could be his normal self at I-Island and no one really needed to know that some hippie looking dude was All Might. It was a mini vacation and he as so here for it! Sure, All Might was invited to the investors party like usual, but the rest of the time was his…he would be spending his time with his family. That felt really good to say after so many years of being alone!
XXX
"UNCLE TOSHI!" Melissa screamed in happiness as she came in, bouncing on a red pogo stick she made. She almost called him Uncle Might like she used to do, but after learning of his actual name, it made more sense to call him this. Still, old habits die hard. "It has been forever since I saw you face to face. I mean, I see you nearly all the time in video call but this is better!"
"I agree wholeheartedly!" Toshinori laughed out as he hugged the girl. "I am truly grateful for the invitation though it is disorienting to see you so grown up."
"Of course, anything to get my favorite uncle and his new family here. I finally get to meet Aunt Kaina, Himiko, and Naruto in person!"
"Hey now, do not forget about me!" Mei replied from behind the blond. Melissa and Mei gained soft smiles as they then hug each other warmly. "Wait until I show you some improvement schematics for those pogo shoes you made!"
"I am very excited to see them and maybe pick your brain for a secret project I am working on." Melissa replied while holding Mei's rough hand. Mei was not usually one for touchy feely stuff, but for her girlfriend, she made an exception.
"You two are so cute." Kaina state as she walked over to Melissa, hoping to get on the girl's good side.
"So are you and Uncle. I am glad you make him happy." Melissa replied with a quick hug before going back to Mei. "And I mean real happy, not the fake mask he puts on for the world. I have always known the difference."
"Perceptive, aren't you?" Naruto replied with a smirk, knowing a thing or two about putting on a mask in front of everyone.
"Yep and it is great to see you as well, Naruto." Melissa replied.
"Likewise, this trip will be a wild time, I can just see it now." Naruto replied, smiling. "So are we going to see your dad now or later?"
"Actually," Toshinori interjected sheepishly. "I was hope just Kaina and I could sneak in some alone time with David…and surprise him in general."
"Aw, bummer. I was hoping we could see Uncle David right away." Himiko pouted cutely before a coy crossed her lips and she elbowed Melissa softly. "Though that does give us time to prank him with a twin act."
"Oh right, your Transform quirk lets you do that." Melissa replied thoughtfully. "How good is your acting?"
"Passable, most can't tell the difference." Himiko replied with a cute grin.
"I can tell the difference between my friends. Other people….not so much." Mei admitted.
"Maybe later than, but let's not to do it on the first day here." Melissa stated, making the rest of the teens shrug while squeezing Mei's hand in comfort. "Come on, if they are meeting dad, let me give you all a tour of the Expo and the Island."
XXX
Sam, David Shield's assistant, walked out of the hallway bathroom to see two things and only one concerned him. There was two people waiting to knock on their lab door. He figured the blond man to be the civilian form of All Might, Toshinori, that his boss was so fond of and the other to be the man's wife, Kaina. He had to admit, they looked like a good couple and Toshinori looked way happier just chatting with her. This did remind Sam of his own wife and he smiled as he thought of something good to give her just because. She put up with him and his schedule here at I-Island all these years, so she deserved it.
However, he was concerned of the door to the lab just opening and an older man in his 60s walked out with the tapping of a cane. The old man was completely bald with a few liver spots here and there from his age. An odd feature was his knife ears, as if he were an elf. He wore half-moon glasses and a goatee on his face and had his lab coat buttoned up. He glared at the couple for being in his way and the atmosphere of the hallway just went sour after. "I see our resident star has some guests. Do take care of the weak-willed fool, will you?" He replied in a mocking German accent.
"What did you do this time, Dr. Nachtmahr?" Sam grumped, already feeling the passive effects of the old man's quirk. Sam considered this man a dark stain on the island despite being a value asset. Too bad the grumpy old man was an asshole and his quirk thrived off negative emotions. For that, he worked with very few people.
"I went for a walk and decided to stop in and chat with David about his breakthrough." The old doctor replied before a ding on his phone caught his attention. Reading the message, he smiled sardonically. His guests had arrived. He left without saying another word.
"What was that about?" Kaina asked, a bit on edge.
Sam gave them a sympathetic look and led them into the lab. There they saw a depressed looking David Shield looking at his notes. Sam sighed, figuring this was the case. Time to run damage control. "Dave, I know Dr. Nachtmahr takes a toll on everyone here, but maybe you will be happy with your guests?"
David looked over hollowly for a moment and then the world came into the color for him at seeing his best friend and the man's wife. "Toshi? Kaina? Aren't you a sight for sore eyes. What are you doing here?"
Toshinori smiled warmly at his best friend. "Your daughter invited us to celebrate the break through on your project."
Dave smiled happily at that. They had a lot to talk about.
XXX
"I feel so at home here!" Himiko cheered happily at the café they stopped by after getting an early viewing of the Expo. It was great, but she was not interested in a lot of that stuff, same for Naruto. The others, however, were the complete opposite. It was how Momo, Kyoka, and Setsuna joined them after all. Mei, Izuku, and Momo gushed at all the new tech, to the amusement of the others.
As for the reasons Himiko felt at home in this little café they found was one, her boyfriend Hitoshi, was serving her and two, he was serving her a blood smoothie! It seemed Blood Quirks were more common in other countries than Japan and they catered to them. There were even people whose quirk produced way more blood than they needed, which made some give away to blood banks. She was very much in heaven right now.
"I still cannot believe you convinced the local blood bank to give you samples." Hitoshi deadpanned, causing Naruto to snort in laughter.
"I'll admit, I am still jealous you all got to work with famous local heroes." Melissa replied wryly.
"What are you jealous of?" A new voice interrupted the group that got Izuku to vibrate in his chair. It belonged to none other than Star and Stripe herself. "You and your dad get to work with all sorts of international heroes all the freaking time! Melissa, you provide a lot of much needed help that you are gaining a name for yourself despite still being in a school!"
"SENSEI!" Izuku cheered from his spot, still careful not to leak out electricity in his excitement.
"And there is my only student so far! HA!" Cathy Bates grinned excitedly herself. "How's work on Project Atlas?"
"It is going great! Naruto here helped me finish it during the prep time for exams!" Izuku replied even more excited as he put an arm around his best friend.
"I had some…experience with that type of technique, just in a different way. So, we refined it and made it a combination technique." Naruto explained.
"Wait, you guys aren't taking about that overcharged form that he showed off in their fight against All Might, right?" Setsuna asked as she leaned on Izuku's shoulder a bit to tease him. She did feel bad that she was starting to win against Ochako, but she let it slide. She was being slow. Unless…
"No, the Raijin Form was more of an accident, but we are still working out the kinks to it."
"Speaking of kinks." Setsuna snickered playfully, causing Izuku to blush a bit, "I am trying to improve my DNA infused costume. I thought it consisting razor sharp scales and having my ultimate move being that tornado attack Naruto used in his giant fox form would work, but it feels….unfinished."
"OH!" Izuku replied a spark arcing across his body as his eyes lit up and his brain started chugging out ideas. "You could add an element in to the attack. While your quirk is best used for stealth, I have seen you use it in other ways that are brilliant. You could use a weapon or your suit's scales could generate that needed element."
As Izuku continued on, Cathy whistled, not missing the sly look Setsuna had as she had Izuku's full attention now. "Wow, forgot about his idea storms. At least he is not muttering."
"True, though he does lapse back into it occasionally." Naruto replied and Cathy eyed him for a moment and then smiled.
"Ah, Izuku mentioned you. I gotta say, I am a bit jealous that you and Himiko are All Might's kids." Cathy stated in a somewhat joking manner.
"Don't think less of us because we are." Naruto countered with a grin. "I got my own path to follow, same for Himiko."
"Plus, we don't wanna raise the stakes too high, or else Eri will be left in the dust." Himiko chimed in. "Though she does not seem all that interested in hero work."
"Eri? Who is that and why is she not here?" Cathy asked, genuinely interested in All Might's family. Where Kaina and him working that quickly?
"Eri is our new baby sister that Naruto saved from some Yakuza asshole that was experimenting on her. We did not think it was a good idea to take her with us so soon. So, we left her the care of Nezu and the new dubbed Uncle Aizawa due to his quirk canceling powers." Himiko explained.
"If that Yakuza was left standing…I would tear it down myself." Star And Stripe declared menacingly. NO ONE did that to a child.
"It is not, I turned the place into a sinkhole." Naruto replied casually as he took a sip of his drink.
"I worry about you sometimes. You were way too casual to just say things like that…" Hitoshi grumbled.
"On to lighter matters." Melissa said, cutting off all conversations in her panic to change the subject to something less…dark. "Why don't you all join me at the investor's party tonight?"
"Even us?" Kaminari and Hitoshi asked. Inside they were giddy but Monoma was on break somewhere and would not be attention anyway. Dude was still an asshole for really no reason.
"Yes please!" Melissa replied. "In the meantime, I can show the rest of you the sites. There is even a contest down the street where people show off their battle powers."
XXX
"A clearance time of 20 seconds!" A peppy announcer cheered as the group made their way to the battle arena. Naturally, a place like this only had robots be the obstacle instead of humans. As for who beat them all that quickly, it was Tenya Iida. Though if he was not so stiff about everything, he could have gotten a faster second.
"Yeah! Go little brother!"
"Tensei, did not expect to see you here." Naruto casually said to the man in the wheelchair. While Naruto may have helped him regain power in his legs, the doctors still insisted he use a wheelchair and go to physical therapy. In any case, Tensei was grateful his old vigilante friend, Naruto, helped him out.
"Our family gets invited here every year. Since I was already here due to the medical miracle." Tensei said, shooting Naruto a knowing smirk, "I had Tenya come visit me. The rest of the family was a bit preoccupied."
"Either way, I think I will give this course a test." Naruto replied with a smirk.
It turned out that most of the group wanted to give it a try. Only Himiko, Mei, and Setsuna decided to watch the others alongside Melissa. As much as Kyoka wanted to use her sonic cannon, this was a timed test, so she could not lug around her transforming backpack into it. Instead, she took out her melee weapon. A guitar that was currently in its Tuning Fork Sword and Sonic Shield mode. With a few sonic bursts, she destroyed all robots in about 25 seconds.
Momo created a grenade launcher that blasted them away in 20 seconds, matching Tenya's time.
Shoto, who showed up midway, got it down in 15 seconds with his ice as he felt his fire was too slow still for this contest. He was only there to represent his father's agency since the man was busy as well. Shoto did find it odd that his father seemed sad or was it annoyed that he could not go this time.. His father was just..less after the Sport Festival. Less angry at he world. Very odd indeed
Izuku hyped himself up and zipped through all the robots in about 12 seconds.
Naruto, knowing he could take everything out in less time, paced himself. They did not need to know his true speed for a fun contest. What he did was take out his Lightsaber version two from his microphone staff and decimated them all in about 10 seconds flat. He, of course, used his One for All speed as well. His Sage or Tailed Beast speeds would certainly be overkill.
XXX
As the group all got ready for the upcoming party, Melissa walked into her room/lab with a happy smile because Mei came with her. She watched as her girlfriend marveled at her lab and all the 'babies' she had made. It really was thanks Mei, Naruto, and their other friends that she was doing so well. She feared that if her dad had not introduced her to Naruto and her friends, her depression at not having a quirk would have overtaken her at some point. They never looked down on her for her quirkless and she needed that. Mei had even told her that her own scope-like Zoom eyes were not much help in other areas of her life, so she related more to the quirkless and even the weak quirks. So Melissa had nothing to worry about.
Still, she wanted to be of more help, it was why she had joined her dad in helping heroes with their support gear. Star and Stripe was right on the money about that. But if push came to shove, Melissa wanted to be there on the field if ever they needed it.
"Mei, there is something I want to show you. Do you remember those schematics I showed you a while ago for my secret project?" Melissa asked, ready to show it off.
"Hmm?" Mei hummed out, startled from her inspection of some tech on her workbench. "OH! How is that going?"
"Well, you saw the spring boots when I came to get you." Melissa offered as she went over to a panel on the wall. "Mark 1 of the main project was a complete disaster and blew up in my face." Mei snorted because that happened to her all the damn time. Something Melissa knew intimately about her with all the video calls being interrupted with at least one. "Marks 2 through 6 were much the same way but I learned a lot from those failures. So recently, I started making each piece individually and it has been going swimmingly!" Melissa pressed a button and the door opened to reveal her project.
Mei looked in and was mesmerized by what she saw. It was not complete, much like her own super suit but that is what made it all work. It was…beautiful in her eyes. She said as much to Melissa after seeing her nervous look. "It is beautiful, just like you." A compliment from Mei was genuine and everybody knew that. It was what made Melissa a step towards her space and then kiss the pink haired girl.
As the girls moved away from the door, it never closed. If one were to look inside and that while Mei's costume was more Dr. Octopus in nature, Melissa's was more Medusa and Iron man mixed into one. It was not complete, but that was fine. Progress was slow. She had the boots and legs ready to go alongside the chest armor. The arms were missing but oddly enough the hands were there. As for the helmet, the face was exposed, but the head was completely protected and provided the most utility. What with all the tentacles inspired by Mei's costume and Medusa's 'hair.' Mei would later on learn that the helmet was also inspired by something called a Beholder.
XXX
"I expected you to be late, not everyone else." Tenya stated with his arms crossed and impatiently tapping his foot in his fancy suit.
"A ninja is never late, nor is he early, he arrived precisely when he means to." Naruto replied with a shit eating grin in his black suit with bright orange tie.
"No more Lord of the Rings for you." Tenya stated with a hand chop and a supremely unamused look on his face.
"I still thought it was clever." Izuku muttered.
"Of course you did," Hitoshi groaned alongside a snickering Denki.
"What is Lord of the Rings again?" Shoto asked.
"An old movie about dropping a cursed ring in a volcano." Denki replied with a shrug. That was of no help to Shoto.
"Besides, I expected to wait on the girls." Naruto stated. "They usually want to look their best. Pretty sure Tensei mentioned that to you, once."
"I am sure they will look fine, but they need to be punctual!" Tenya replied.
"Yeah…that is probably never going to happen dude. Better get used to it now." Denki deadpanned, causing Tenya to nearly have an aneurysm.
Just as he was about to say something else, Himiko walked through the door in a red and black dress…with the red made to look like blood splotches. True to her theme and neither Naruto nor Hitoshi ever expected nor wanted her to change.
Setsuna came in next; she had a green and purple tube dress made of scales that showed of her curves. She could not help but wink at Izuku, who blushed. She smirked at the thought that she still had it.
Momo and Kyoka came into together and latched onto Naruto's arms. Momo actually wore a beautiful yellow dress and anyone could tell she was excited for the party. Her excitement stemmed from attending many of these fancy partys with Naruto, so it was never boring. Kyoka, who still was uncomfortable with these fancy parties, wore a pink and purple dress and even had her signature jacket to make it punk but in Naruto's eyes, she made it look good.
Finally, Melissa and Mei came in. Melissa wore a charming blue and light blue dress and chose to wear contacts instead of her glass. As for Mei, most would think she was incapable of wearing a dress but she cleaned up nicely. She wore a red and black dress, which seemed to compliment Melissa's dress. They did look cute together after all.
With everyone here, Tenya nodded and moved to the door of the party. However, that was when their night of fancy parties went awry, for it was locked and soon so were the windows.
XXX
As the announcer told everyone at the party to enjoy themselves, Kaina frowned a bit. "The kids are late."
"They probably got side tracked by something or had trouble with their fancy clothes. I know Naruto has trouble every time since he is not one to actually want to go to these things despite the need for his contributions to the medical field." Toshinori chuckled a bit.
"I have to agree with Toshi on that." David chuckled.
"I bet it was the girls." Kaina smirked a bit, daring them to agree with her. "We do like to look our best."
"Indeed, you do." Toshinori replied lowly as he smiled lovingly at his wife. David rolled his eyes at the affection but smiled as well. After his own wife passed, it was weird for him seeing other couples interact. Was this how he acted before?
While David was speculating on his past love life, something he knew hurt Melissa because her mom passed when she was young, someone gripped his shoulder. Turning to see who it was, he was pleasantly surprised to see Cathy Bates out of uniform. In fact, she was not using her out of this world quirk to make herself buff like her hero. Instead, she just looked like herself, beautiful. Especially in her red and blue dress she brought for the occasion. He supposed it made sense; people barely recognized her out of uniform and there were plenty of uniformed heroes at this thing. It ensured she could take a break and enjoy the party….just like All Might. She was not clever.
"What's got your head in the clouds?" Cathy asked curiously while stealing a look at Toshi and Kaina. "I thought you would give that big brain of yours a break after that breakthrough."
David smiled; she was always invested in his work despite not always knowing much about it. Not to mention she was here a lot, something Melissa enjoy because she was a big fan. Cathy took that in stride and warmed up to the girl on her own. Stealing a glance at All Might and Kaina and then to Sam and his wife, he felt a pang in his heart. Sam noticed and gave him a knowing look. Damnit…ok fine, he had a thing for Cathy and she him. It was just his brain and heart got their wires crossed a lot. His missed his wife and having feelings for Cathy did feel like a betrayal to his dead wife….whom he would never get to see again. But Melissa never really knew her mother and imprinted on Cathy in some way. Was it right to be happy like this again?
Putting on a smile and banishing his negative thoughts, he said, "Well, I have been contemplating your offer." Cathy's eyes widened at that and a ghost of a smile crossed her lips. "I would…like to give it a try. I…"
David did not get to finish his sentence because the room had gone unnaturally quiet and he felt the negative emotions return. They brought on a momentary thought of if she was just getting close to him for the military. But he shook that thought away when he saw Dr. Nachtmahr slowly making his way to the center stage, the taps of his feet and cane echoing loudly in the now quiet gallery. It was his negative emotions quirk though that commanded such attention.
It was horrible.
But before he could say something that would undoubtably cause the group attending to plunge deeper in the black water as it were, the doors to the party burst open. For a moment, David felt hope that it was just the late kids making an entrance in the now quiet room, but that hope died when it was not them. It was worse, armed thugs came rushing with heavy assault weapons and started screaming at people to get down and their leader, some guy in a twisted metal mask just grinned at them. Before any of the costumed heroes could do anything about it, he merely held up a finger. Just in time for I-Island security and alert system to kick on.
"This is an announcement from the I-Island security system. We have received a report that an explosive device was discovered somewhere on the I-Expo grounds. I-Island will now be in high-alert mode. Your safety is our top priority. Residents and tourists should return to their lodgings. Anyone remaining on the street after ten minutes will be in a violation of the law. Please clear out of the public areas. As a precautionary measure, most of the main island building will now be sealed off."
Wait…that was not the bomb protocol. Was this a poor attempt at a 'Die Hard?" Seriously?
"In case you haven't caught on," The thug leader in the twisted metal mask and white trench coat spoke out in the resulting panicked silence. "The security system is under our control now. I know we've got a lot of heroes in here, but if you decide to make a scene…" At that, one of the giant TV screens in the room shifted its image to those outside the building and they all looked afraid of the robots surrounding them in a threatening manner. "I'll make sure the security sentries think the good people they've got their sights are dangerous criminals. So…I'd play nice if I were you. Because everyone on this island is my hostage. Naturally, that includes all of you."
He whispered something and then glowing restraining bindings popped out of the ground and immobilized the costumed heroes. Both Toshinori and Cathy looked about ready to do something but David and Kaina held them back and shook their heads. Now was NOT the time to reveal themselves. They had to play this right.
"You're late."
The man in the mask smirked as he looked to the one who spoke. His boss, Dr. Nachtmahr. "You said to make an entrance and we did."
"Indeed, but anyone with a thinking brain here will know those are not the protocols for bomb threats…but I understand your hacker is fighting the superior technology of the I-Island Security System. It is only natural that lesser minds will have difficulty. At least have your hacker patch me in. I wish to speak to our victims." Dr. Nachtmahr ordered, making the masked man frown in irritation as he called his guy.
Wait…so Dr. Nachtmahr was actually in charge of this farce? David dreaded what that could actually mean. He knew the man was a crochety old asshole who everyone treaded around like they were walking on egg shells but this was ridiculous! He was not villain, not at his age. Wait, why did he look a bit different?
"Are we on?" Nachtmahr asked impatiently and the masked lackey merely nodded. That meant he would be broadcasted throughout all of I-Island. Some were even recording what they were seeing to the outside world since internet access was not taken away. "I will keep this brief and simple for all the lower thinking individuals on this island. I am known as Dr. Alp Nachtmahr and I am one of the leading researchers in quirk analysis. I will spare you the details of my early life and just say I came from the uncertain and dangerous time before All Might graced us with his peace. In my long years of research, I have come to many conclusions about quirks. One being that we are inextricably bound to our quirk. Ever wonder why a person with a bomb quirk is so…violent? Or why a fire user is so…passionate? Because their quirk influenced the mind and drives personalities. You can try and control your quirk and its usage all you want, certain countries like Japan are rather strict about that, but sooner or later that powder keg will burst and there will be pandemonium. I like to think of myself as an agent of chaos, bringing that eventuality closer. Just like an old colleague of mine predicted with Quirk Singularity. I am that old, yes. You see my quirk, Negative Demon, runs off negative emotions and gives me…power. I have been subsisting on small, base emotions for a lot time. But I need more, and that is why all this is happening! I am bringing back a bit of that darkness from before All Might's time! What better way to do that then to attack I-island, who's security is par with Tartarus. Proving that nothing is foolproof and even those dangerous criminals can get out if the right variables are set."
"YOU WON'T GET AWAY WITH THIS!" a random hero shouted.
"Oh, my muscle brained captive, I already have. Just taking over this party gave me so much energy and now that the entire island knows…" Dr. Nachtmahr's posture straightened and his face grew younger as a negative image glow surrounded him. While he mostly stayed bald, a red and black energy grew in place of his hair. Long and flowing. He then took out a remote from his pocket. "I am young and powerful again! Having walked with people like the All for One the Quirk Thief Boogeyman, who is still very much alive by the way, I have learned to survive in this world full of heroes and make myself more powerful! OH! And I know there are heroes out there coming to rescue these people, but you will have your hands full with those robots, my Negative Demons, and…" He pressed a button on his remote and the island was rocked with a few explosions. "After all, your ten minutes are up!"
The feed was cut and David felt a cold sweat as his negative emotions drove his mind to the dark place. He was suddenly restrained and pinned to the ground by a Negative Image of himself, smiling cruelly down at him. He eyed those close to him and saw that Cathy, Toshi, and Kaina were restrained by their own negative versions and were whispering horrible things to them just like his was. In a way, Nachtmahr's Quirk was self-sustaining as it dove into the victim's psyche. However, David was barely listening to his because his mind was on one person. Melissa. Oh, his negative demon noticed that.
Dr. Nachtmahr's quirk was fucking terrifying.
XXX
"Oh my!" Dr. Nachtmahr roared out happily as he and his mercenary, Wolfram, exited the building. Wolfram observed the mad scientist carefully and was weirded out by the man's smile…the fact that his clothes were straining on his more muscular body did unnerve him a bit. "I knew leaving the internet open would be a good choice! I feel the negativity around the world surging through my veins!"
"Hmm, so you weren't blowing smoke out of your ass after all." Wolfram stated with a smirk. "You really can handle yourself."
"Yes, but do not leave my side. Heroes incite positive emotions in the masses and when even one gets here, I fear I could lose." Alp admitted.
"Sure thing boss, but I thought the plan was to cause chaos and leave. Are we not leaving yet?"
"No. I plan to confront a hero and kill them to demoralize the world a bit more. Oh, this negativity is so juicy!" Alp exclaimed, making Wolfram nervous that his boss might be losing to the power.
The breaking of glass and metal was heard and a blond boy in a damaged suit came crashing down in front of them with what looked like a Negative Demon on top of him. A challenger? So soon and so young? Perfect.
However, the evil doctor was thrown off guard when the Negative Demon got off his counterpart and offered him a hand up. "Always wanted to do that." It said and only then did the doctor realize the construct had red eyes. "I just had no idea I could leave our body." What in the ever-living fuck? Someone so young had faced their inner darkness? That's some bullshit!
"Yeah, I bet, now do you want to help me beat this asshole or not?" The blond boy asked his dark half.
"Nah, I can't do much in this construct. Besides, I would rather watch from the depths of our mind." The construct replied before dissolving.
"Damn, I knew I could be an asshole, but geez." The boy grunted before looking back at the two men staring at him. "Hey, how are ya? Name's Naruto and I will be the one to kick your ass tonight." Naruto finished with a dramatic flourish as he took out his new microphone staff and pressed a button. "And the world will know that it was the students of U.A. that did the deed."
"What the hell? I lost contact with my hacker!" Wolfram raged.
"Oh? Seems this one had some inside help from someone on the island. Cute, but it will not help. As we speak, my Negative Demons are restraining…or killing people on this island. You sure you do not want to help the real heroes out, whelp?" Nachtmahr asked.
"I have faith they can handle things and besides I am not alone." Naruto replied with a cocky smirk as other students dropped down and back him up. One even came flying down in a half-made metal suit. That was David's daughter…oh joy.
"Overwhelming force it is then." Alp sighed out as he took out a device and attached it to him wrists and head. He took out another and gave it to Wolfram. "I have no problems killing children, I have done it before in the chaotic times. Oh, and just so you know, I have been given multiple quirk by All for One, it is how I am so powerful, boy. You stand no chance." At that, both men began to change. They both became beefier and ripped through their cloths. While Wolfram gained glowing pink skin, Nachtmahr was the one to change the most. His skin became black and grey and his energy hair became a roaring mane of chaotic energy. Then a guardian made of his negative energy was formed and towered over them. It looked like a giant humanoid horse! Its energy then trapped Naruto in fist of energy. "See boy, you are out of your league! I stole some quirk regeneration and amplifier research from David Shield and made a better version. I already had amplifying quirks from All for One but what's one more! Now face the German Nightmares of old!"
Out of the horse construct spawned even more negative demons that rained down all around them. And they were growing. That was file with Alp, he planned on sinking I-Island anyway and make his escape!
"Is that all you have?" A deep voice rumbled and it shook Alp a bit. That voice held power. "You plan was to infest us with negative emotions to the point of immobility? That is sad. But if you wanna play…let's play!" It said as music began to play all around them.
(Please play 'Come Play' by Stray Kids & Young Miko)
The deep voice roared out for all the hear as a giant golden fist punched the Guardian Horse off it and sent Nachtmahr and Wolfram out of I-Island, to the ocean outside. "You're not alone. Look at my shadow, I'm behind you like a ghost! Mission 'Die a legend' is a go, the way I flow, taking all the shots. Landing free throws, beast mode. Double snake eyes, turn 'em all to stone!"
With the battle taken to the edge of I-Island and beyond, Melissa, Mei, Himiko, Hitoshi, Izuku, Kyoka, Momo, Setsuna, Shoto, Tenya, and Denki all found themselves floating above the outer wall, confused on what was happening, but no less prepared to fight.
"Oh? You are that brat from the Hosu incident! You are all show, let me show you what real power is, boy!" Nachtmahr screamed as his horse construct grew to titanic levels. Then Wolfram used his quirk to bring metal plates from I-Island to give it a thin layer of protection. However, that was not all. He called over the most powerful Negative Demons out of I-Island and grew them to his guardian's size, giving him a small army of negative energy to work with. "The world fears me now boy! All their negative emotions are fueling me! There is nothing you can do!"
Naruto just snorted at the challenge. While he could not believe Kurama actually started the song, he and the others would finish it. Still, he had to thank Kurama for his help. As Kurama's golden chakra image formed all around him, ten multicolored tails swirled behind them. Naruto smirked and pointed at the two men in the nightmare horse as he sang. "And you're a student of war. When I pay you back, I'll leave you begging for more. You'll feel it deep in your bones, the moment you open that door. There's no more game, the other answer is none. It's a sight you've never seen before!"
"Try me, I dare you to try me." Naruto sang while Kurama and him gave 'come at me' gestures, causing both older men to growl in frustration as they commanded the giant armored horse nightmare to charge at them and throw a gigantic fist at them in hopes it would knock Naruto out of this illusion, they thought him to be in. After all, there was no way this construct was real, right? Kurama sidestepped it with a shit eating grin and prepared to bring drown both fists down on the head of the horse. "Took me long but I'm here, coming down like lightning. Taking back what's mine, It was a matter of time!"
Suddenly multicolored strings materialized between Kurama's ten tails and the floating students at I-Island's wall and they were pulled forward into the fight as constructs began to form all around them. Mei and Melissa were taken into the form with the Eight Tailed Octopus-Ox with a spectral form of All Might doing the 'steering.' It just winked at them in their gob smacked state.
For the 7 Tailed Horned Beetle, Hitoshi was joined by Nana Shimura. He was put off by this development of Naruto powers but was not completely surprised that Naruto REALLY wanted to show off against these guys since they caused so much chaos on what was supposed to be their vacation. He did find it funny that Naruto could play this off as massive illusions since he did it regularly at his concerts.
For the 6 Tailed Slug, Setsuna found herself with a guy in a red trench coat called En Tayutai. Since she was the most out of the loop here, she suspected it was just someone Naruto knew to go along with his illusion but damn was this the most intricate one yet! This was going to be fun!
For the 5 Tailed Dolphin-Horse, Tenya was joined by an older hero that he vaguely recognized from a book he read. That meant to him that this was indeed one of the men inside Naruto's quirk. His name was Diagoro Banjo and he looked rough around the edges and while that irked Tenya to a point, he was learning how to be a hero and had to work with all types. This would have to do.
For the 4 Tailed Great Ape, Shoto was joined by a white-haired man with a face scar called Hikage Shinomori. On some level, Shoto always figured he would meet one of Naruto's inhabitants but not like this. He did appreciate being paired with someone with a similar scar to him, even if it was different. On the other hand, he was just getting used to his fire again, so he was only slightly annoyed by being paired with the fire monkey.
For the 3 Tailed Turtle, Izuku and Denki were paired up with a serious looking grey-haired man whose hair was done in a top knot, only known as Bruce. Having known about Naruto and his powerful friends, they were kind of hoping for the 8 Tails. Ah well, they could make the giant defensive turtle work, especially as it whispered how to use their quirks with its form.
For the 2 Tailed Cat, Himiko was chosen alongside a man named Kudo. In all honesty, Himiko got along with her beast counterpart due to her costume choice and past interactions since she was one of the closest to Naruto, being his sister and all. She only got along with Kudo on account of wanting to protect Naruto when he got too reckless.
The form of the 1 Tailed Tanuki was still made of sand and decided to stay near the wall. It's swirling mass of sand preparing to catch any stray attack that would hit I-Island. In its epicenter, Yoichi sat on Shukaku's face like it was a throne.
As for Momo and Kyoka, they joined Naruto inside Kurama's construct form. As soon as they entered, they knew what could they could do alongside Kurama's chakra. Momo created a version of her armor around Kurama's form. Red on Gold was something to behold. As for Kyoka, she created sonic gauntlets with the chakra. Naruto smirked at their handy work as he continued singing the fight as Kurama's giant gauntlet encased fists slammed down on the Horse's head, shattering its armor with a sonic boom.
However, Naruto was not the only one singing at this point, everyone decided to jump in for a chorus of voices that confused the men. "If you wanna come play! You gotta start with me and the monsters in my head, in my head! I've got blood on my hands and you're my revenge. And you push me to the edge, the edge! Do you wanna come play?"
Nachtmahr and Wolfram both found themselves hard pressed to even penetrate this new armor of Naruto's construct with their new found strength or their armored horse construct. So, the evil doctor commanded his other massive constructs to hurry up with their own massive fights in the now churned up ocean. He was further surprised to see the gigantic hero, Godzillo join in on their fight by jumping from I-Island to them. There probably was not much he could do to help the tourists.
Kyoka with her beautiful singing voice stepped up with the next part. "You acted like you didn't believe in me. We arrived with the crew, ready to mess things up. Watch out, I've got a short use, and I might blow up. Let's see if I light this fire and burn all your goods. Better to ask for forgiveness than permission, I go with the flow and to all these people, I'll slam them down. If they want to measure strength, I've got a warning, bad luck with the girl who shoots and never misses." As Kyoka ended her verse with another sonic punch, knocking down the horse construct and peeling away more of the armor.
Meanwhile, the others were showing what they could do with Tailed Beast enhanced quirks. Himiko was transforming into the other constructs, disappearing into the crowd and then Kudo stopped them in place for her to obliterate them as they changed back. As for Izuku and Denki, they were joined by Star and Stripe, who use her quirk to make none of the guns work and took out all the thugs at the party with ease before joining them. She used the very air around them to create Bowser Pinball. Which consisted of Izuku and Denki electrifying the turtle's shell and blitzing through their chosen enemy. Shoto froze his constructs before blasting them with lava or having Tenya speed through them. Setsuna was having a blast by filling her field with smoke before her entire construct split up like her and attached themselves to the other constructs, melting them away. Hitoshi found that his voice was enough to stop his opponents in place and then in a bright flash, they were gone. As for Mei and Melissa, they were having a blast. It turned out Melissa's new head armor was very much like a Beholder from Dungeons and Dragons. While not all powers fit the situation, she was able to, with Mei's pinpoint accuracy, slow, paralyze, petrify, and disintegrate their opponents with ease from the various tentacles that Gyuki had.
Those constructs stood no chance, especially with Godzillo and Star and Stripe helping out.
When Nachtmahr saw all this working useless, he growled in frustration before forced that feeling down. He knew from the start if other heroes got involved, their positive energy would negate his own negative energy. It was why he had an escape plan, even this far out to sea. He nodded to Wolfram, who understood it was time to go. Still, he would allow his main horse construct to fight these surprisingly strong kids. Looking to Naruto, there was no way all of this was some sort of illusion, but if not that, then what was this shit? Ah well, he would have time to ponder that mystery later. With a simple thought and final power up, Nachtmahr told his construct to get back in the fight.
As the giant horse nightmare monster rushed forward to meet Kurama, its form flicked a bit at all the positive energy returning to the area. "Try me, I dare you to try me. Took me long but I'm here, coming down like lightning. Taking back what's mine, it was a matter of time!" Naruto sang as Kurama knocked the horse back again.
Only then was it surrounded on all sides by the Tailed Beast constructs, Godzillo, and Star and Stripe. They all rushed forward in a brilliant display of teamwork to destroy the horse construct. "If you wanna come play, you gotta start with me. And the monsters in my head, in my head. I've got blood on my hands and you're my revenge And you push me to the edge, the edge! Do you wanna come play?" With the horse completely obliterated, the 9 Tailed Beast constructs all formed a pose similar to the Ginyu Force, making Godzillo and Star and Stripe chuckle.
Yet no-one even noticed as they returned to I-Island a heavily damaged helicopter making an escape into a glowing green Ouroboros portal.
XXXX
Hope you enjoyed Dr. Alp Nachtmahr… German for Dr. Elf Nightmare. I plan to make this guy not just a one-off villain, what with Orochimaru getting a hold of him and Wolfram at the end. And after seeing Arcane, I had to include one song from that, why not Jinx's final entrance song?
Review please!