I made changes near the end of chapter 32. Check them out just in case you're confused about what's happening. However, if you haven't noticed, then great! Forget what I said then. XP
The 'Hero Talk Now' Studio Building - Tokyo
A While Ago
10:10 AM
A man who...looks like a rat, having a big nose, gray fur, rat hands, rat ears, two buck-teeth, a tail, and is wearing some kind of black and yellow costume, was in the halls of the studio, where an intersecting hallway was a little ways away from him. He paced around the hall he was in, as around the corner was another hall with a makeup room nearby.
The rat-man Hero...named Rat Man, looked nervous as he was carrying a bouquet of roses in his hand.
"Okay...okay. Uwabami's room is around that corner...just...walk around the hall confidently, and give these roses to her," Rat Man muttered, "I may be a small-time Hero, but...well, she must have recognized me at one time, right? Surely she looks at the neighborhood watch news? I mean..." he slumps over, "Ugh! Man, I'm just glad I even got a place in 'Hero Talk Now'! I just need to give these flowers to Uwabami, but I don't want to give them to her while on national television! That would be too embarrassing for her and me! Besides, this is about All Might and Endeavor, I don't want the focus to be on me and her! Honestly, I could just give it to her after the show, but she's a busy woman, and...I just...man, I really admire Uwabami...I want her to know that she's-"
"Excuse me?" said a voice behind Rat Man.
"Eep!" Rat Man squeaked like a rat and turned around to see...an ordinary stagehand with long blue hair and a long face that was carrying another bouquet of beautiful flowers. Blinking at the stagehand, Rat Man asked, "U-Uh, yeah?"
"Oh, sorry, you just looked...uh, stressed?" the stagehand asked him.
"Oh, well...I-I guess I...well, yeah, I am," Rat Man rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. Noticing the bouquet of flowers again, he asked the stageman, "Um...who are those for?"
"Huh? Oh, these?" the stagehand turned his attention to the flowers, "Um...well, I was going to give these flowers to...uh, Mount Lady, but...well, I'm a little too late. She's up on the stage right now. It's more of a token of sympathy for her comrades falling into battle."
"Oh..." he looked at his own bouquet of roses and back at the stagehand's bouquet of flowers. "Wow...I guess we got the right idea then."
"Huh? What do you mean?" the stagehand asked.
"Well, I mean, we're both giving these flowers to the female guests of the show! I was gonna give Uwabami these roses, and...well, I'm a small-time Hero and...well, I'm trying to get myself up in the ranks, but really, Uwabami made me into who I am today!" Rat Man declared.
"Really? Wow, that's pretty cool!" the stagehand told him, "Did she like, inspire you or something?"
"I mean...yeah, in a way...my Quirk is Rat, and I...well, I got one of her products she promotes and it helps my fur be all silky and shiny clean! It actually made me look pretty good, like I was a well-established Hero! I then looked her up, and saw that she was actually a Rescue Hero herself! I wanted to become a Rescue Hero as well, so I went with that profession! If it wasn't for her, the thought of being a Hero didn't cross my mind! And...well, I wanted to thank Uwabami personally. I had...well, low self-esteem, what with...yeah, you know, me being a rat and all. But thanks to her products and seeing that I could use my Quirk for good, I became the Hero that you see today!"
"Ah...that's really nice," the stagehand smiled, "So you're giving these roses to Uwabami before she comes on the stage?"
"Oh yes! I, uh, chose roses because they're beautiful...like her," Rat Man blushed.
"Ah...okay..." the stagehand stood there for a second as he glanced at his bouquet of flowers and back at Rat Man, "Actually...I heard Uwabami is allergic to roses."
"Huh!? W-What!?" Rat Man looked shocked as he blinked, "R-Really!?"
"Uh, yeah, last I heard in some...um, magazine, I think. She breaks out in hives if she even touches them," the stagehand informed.
"Wha...oh man...if that's true, then..." Rat Man looked at his bouquet of roses, "I would've...oh man, thank you! That would've been horrible! But...that means..." he looked downtrodden, "Aw man...then, I bought these for nothing."
The stagehand stood there and looked at his bouquet of flowers, "...Oh, hey!" he snapped his fingers, "Maybe you can give these flowers I have to Uwabami and I'll give the roses to Mount Lady?"
"Huh? Wait, really?" Rat Man asked, looking up at the stagehand.
"Yeah! I mean, there's no roses in these flowers I would think, and roses are a nicer way of showing some sympathy for someone's loss, so...maybe we can switch?"
"...W-...Wow..." Rat Man looked at the stageman, touched as he gave him a smile of gratitude, "Th-Thank you! I mean, for real? Could you really do that for me? Giving me those flowers in exchange for these roses?"
"I mean, sure!" the stagehand shrugged, "I wouldn't want Uwabami to look like her face is swollen from something."
"Oh yeah, for sure!" Rat Man nodded, "But really, thank you! Here, have them!" He gave the roses to the stagehand, while the stagehand gave him the flowers to Rat Man.
"Aw, nice! Thanks, guy!" the stagehand said to him.
"Nah, thank you, my guy! You're my Hero today!" Rat Man told him.
The stageman smirked at that. "Heh...thanks..."
"Yeah! Okay, this is it!" Rat Man took a deep breath and turned around to go to the hallway around the corner, "Alright...wish me luck, um..." he turned his head to the stagehand, "Hey, what's your name, sir?"
"Uh...the name's Sae."
"Okay! Thanks, Sae! From your future friendly neighborhood Rat Man!" He gave him a salute. He went over to the end of the intersecting hall and took a right.
The stagehand man smiled...but soon it turned into a more devious smile.
"Heh...chump," he mumbled.
As soon as he rounded the corner, Rat Man came waltzing over to the door to Uwabami's makeup room.
When he was in front of the door, he paused for a moment...
...Okay! Now's the time! Let's do this!
Taking a deep breath, Rat Man raised his fist to knock on the door...
...Until the door opened itself to reveal Uwabami, her blonde hair and medusa-like snakes on her head. She looked to her right and left, the snakes in her hair reacting to something, one snake going to the left, while another one was going to the right, and the middle snake was looking around the area from left to right. Looking back down at the small-time Hero, she saw that Rat Man had a bouquet of flowers. Blinking at this, she asked him curiously, "Um...hello?"
"Uh, h-hello! I-I'm, um, y-your friendly neighborhood Hero, Rat Man! I-I bought you some, uh, s-some flowers! Y-You inspired me very much and...w-well, made me who I am today!" Rat Man recited.
Uwabami looked at Rat Man and the flowers again, "Oh...well...um, thank you."
"Y-You're welcome! H-Here you go!" Rat Man gave the flowers to her.
As soon as Uwabami registered the flowers being handed to her, she carefully took them from his hands and looked at them, "Oh. Well, my, my, these flowers are beautiful," she then gave out a charming smile, "My, you certainly have chosen a gorgeous bouquet."
"U-Uh, th-thank you!" Rat Man gulped as he blushed, "I-I, um, well, I...they just look good and I decided to...um, buy them! Thinking of you!"
Uwabami chuckled, "Well, I'll say, you are quite the friendly Hero indeed! This is a very nice gesture! And you're quite the charmer, too!" the snakes were still pointing to their respective directions, which made her frown at them, "Okay, okay! We'll look around a little bit!"
"Huh? W-What's wrong?" Rat Man asked in concern.
"I don't know, but my Quirk somehow senses that...there are maybe Villains nearby?" Uwabami said as she looked around the area.
"V-Villains!?" Rat Man exclaimed in shock. "A-Are you sure!?"
"My Quirk never lies. There seems to be...maybe two Villains here..." Uwabami exited her makeup room and went to her left, "There's one this way...but there's another one that way," she turned her head back to her right.
"Wh-What? Then...that means we might be in danger-" Rat Man was going to say, when-
BOOMP!
Suddenly, something inside the bouquet of flowers exploded, sending out a smoky gas and letting it spread, clouding around the area where Rat Man and Uwabami was.
"AAH!" Uwabami exclaimed.
"ACK!" Rat Man also exclaimed.
They coughed, inhaling the cloud of gas as they tried to see through it, the smoke thick enough to obstruct their vision.
And then-
"Batter up!" said a nasally-sounded woman.
Something made contact with Uwabami's head.
WHAM!
And she went out like a light.
"Huh!?" Rat Man coughed, trying to see through the smoke, "U-Uwabami!?"
WHA-WHICK!
Then, something wrapped around Rat Man's neck, choking him!
"A-ACK!" Rat Man choked out, hacking as he tried to pry whatever was wrapping around his windpipe.
It tighten...and tighten...and then, a SNAP!
Rat Man's neck was broken...and he lay limp, dead as he collapsed on the floor.
The whip tentacle released the Hero's and retracted back to the host...which was the stagehand. But this time, he was wearing a gas mask and carrying a machete in his left hand.
"Almost felt bad for doing that to ya, Mr. Rat Man...well, almost," said the man named Sae...his alias also known as 'Whip'.
"Quit the sympathy crap and help me get this lady and Rat Tail over to the makeup room!" said the woman, who is none other than Hārē. She also had a gas mask on, and had her arms and hands transformed into hard blunt objects, like baseball bats. She changed them back to her regular arms and grabbed Uwabami, who was unconscious, and dragged her to the makeup room.
"It's called a joke, Hārē. I don't feel sympathy for this loser," Whip said as he grabbed the dead body of Rat Man and dragged him to the makeup room as well, "Although, he said I was his Hero...that was kind of nice."
"Yeah, well, don't get a big head on that, Bub! You're working for my Puddin', ya know?" Hārē told Whip as she got Uwabami in the room.
"Hey, I know! Still, first time I was ever called a Hero."
"Feel good about it later! We got a job to do!"
"Right, right," Whip muttered.
The two dragged the two Heroes into the room, closing the door. Once they plop the bodies on the floor in the center of the room, Hārē told Whip, "Alright, give me the machete."
"How come you get to do this?" Whip asked her.
"Cause I'm your Boss's gal! Haven't you heard of ladies first!?"
"...Ugh. You know what? Fine. Just make it quick," Whip gave her the machete.
"Thank you," Hārē took the blade, "Now since you killed Rat's Ass over here, I'm going to get rid of Medusa here the 'Clash of the Titans' way."
"Huh...you want me to wrap her mouth and head up just in case?"
"Hey, not bad using your noggin there, Whip! Sure thing! Now, hurry up! My Puddin' should be getting on the stage any minute!"
Whip sighed, "Yeah, yeah, yes ma'am."
Now
Joker smiled in a demented fashion at the camera, the specks and smears of blood still on his face from where he wiped it off, the face makeup smeared off to reveal his pasty white skin.
"Hellooooo to the folks at TV Land!" Joker exclaimed, "I am your host...The Joker!"
The small crowd out in the audience and the remaining cameramen gasped, some of the audience even screaming and getting up and trying to leave the studio. Upon some getting to the two double-doors, they seem to have been locked as they have Whip's tentacle ropes around the handles in the center of the doors. They were all trapped inside.
"Oh, what's the matter with all of ya? I'm certain the show will be a good one if you all give me, the new host, a chance! HAAAAA-HAHAHAHAHA-HAAAAA!" Joker declared as he laughed.
Mount Lady, who was still laying on the floor staring at the severed head of Uwabami in shock and horror, registered that she was shot thanks to the pain in the back of her right shoulder. She sluggishly got up on her side and reached for the back of her shoulder, gripping the shot that's embedded into her skin. She pulled it out, the prickle of pain emitting from her shoulder, and put the shot up to her field of vision, seeing that...it was a shot.
A bullet shot.
Eyes widened in horrified realization, Mount Lady froze as she became fully aware...that she may have just lost her Quirk.
Getting up from his seat, Joker went over to Mount Lady, who was still in shock over everything, and grabbed her by the hair. This action snapped her out of her trance and she began to scream as she was being pulled by her hair from the Joker.
"AAAH!" Mount Lady screamed as her hair was pulled by Joker.
"Oh come on, now, a woman like you can't be afraid of a little stage fright!" Joker shook her head around while Mount Lady was screaming her head off, "Show that pretty face, or more notably, that fat ass to the camera, that'll get the men going!" He threw Mount Lady off the stage, letting her crash onto the floor on her back. "Whip! Tie little miss thang up over here, will ya!?"
"Oh, don't worry, Boss," said Whip, who was back in his attire, giving out a smirk as he neared Mount Lady, "I'll do more than just that. I'll shut her trap up."
With that, Whip used his tentacle whip rope and wrapped Mount Lady's body up, the rope not only wrapping up her arms and legs, but her mouth as well.
"Let me tell ya, I've been to Uwabami's makeup room and trust me when I say, she needs a different color to wear besides red! HAHAHAHAHA-HAAAA!" Joker cackled, "Now today, before we have our show, just to let the audience be aware-HEY! SHUT YOUR SCREAMING AND LISTEN UP!"
Some of them froze, while the other audience members were panicking and hyperventilating at the spot. The three cameramen all just backed away from their positions and tried to run, but then, someone came up behind one of the cameramen and touched him, making him shrink and be compressed into a small marble ball. It was one of the League Villains, Mr. Compress. The other cameramen were also surprised as their bodies were suddenly wrapped up in Whip's tentacle rope, rendering them immobile and letting them collapse on the floor. Mr. Compress rushed over to the tied-up men and touched their bodies, compressing them into marbles.
Whip smirked at the use of Mr. Compress's Quirk. "Heh. Nice."
Mr. Compress also smirked behind his mask, "Yours is not bad itself."
"Aw, thanks. It's basic, but it gets the job done," Whip said.
Soon, everything was quiet in the studio...
"...Thank you," Joker said with an evil smile. "But oh dear! We seem to have fewer cameramen here on the set! Why don't I let one of my co-workers operate one of these things? This one in particular?" he pointed at the camera that was in front of the stage.
Mr. Compress and Whip looked at each other, which the latter gestured to the former the front camera. "Hey, I would think you're a showman yourself, so you might know how to work those things."
Looking at the camera a little ways from him, Mr. Compress turned back his attention to Whip and shrugged, "I mean, sure. They're simple enough."
So with that, Mr. Compress walked over to the camera in front of the stage and operated it, focusing the screen on Joker.
"There we go! Camera is on me, and everyone at home is watching...or perhaps they're watching from the workplace! Hm-hm-hm-hm-hm-hm-hmm!" Joker grinned, "But first..."
Joker then turned around, walked up to the severed head of Uwabami, and without any dignity, picked it up, turned around to the audience, and letting it drop as he kicked it over there.
"Ally-oop!" Joker cried out as he punt the head.
The head flew over to the crowd and almost hit an audience member, the screams of the audience reverberating all around the studio as they were horrified by the body part and the grotesque action that Joker made.
Mr. Compress winced and mumbled, "Wow...that's a little disrespectful."
"Oh come on now, be lucky that the head is not rotting! Speaking of rotting, I wonder if that Rat Man will be eaten by his own fellow rats? HAHA! Oh, who cares? Right now, it's all about me!" Joker grinned sadistically, "Now, as I was saying, before we have our show, just to let the audience be aware, that the people that are working in the back are...well, trapped in their marble-like prisons. As you saw with my co-worker, his name being Mr. Compress, he trapped them all! Now, you're probably wondering, how did Mr. Compress capture all those people behind the doodads of the control room? Well, simply put, with a little stealth from my boy Whip here," he motioned the camera to go to Whip, which Mr. Compress did, letting the camera go to Whip who was waving at the device. Compress brought the camera back to Joker, as he continued, "and a little compressing 'magic' from Mr. Compress, I have some of them captive! Some of the others are probably dead. But who cares about the behind-the-scenes stuff, let's get to the show! We have some very special guests with us here today! But first, right now, give a hand to my lovely assistant, who is simply known as, Hārē!"
And up came Hārē, who was now wearing her usually skimpy attire, black and red shorts and sports bra with black leather fingerless gloves, and red knee high boots. Her hair is now stylized into twin pigtails, the tips of her pigtails each dipped in colors, her left pigtail blue, and her right pigtail red. Smiling and waving at the audience, she blew out kisses to the crowd and basked in the spotlight.
"Mwah! Mwah! Mmmwah!" Hārē blew out kisses to the audience.
"She'll be helping me out throughout the program!" Joker smirked, "Why don't you take it away, Harẽ, and announce what we have in store for this show?"
"Sure thing, Mr. J!" Hārē said with an infatuated smile at Joker. She looked at the audience and the camera and announced, "Well, first of all, we got ourselves some explosive block parties planned not only around Tokyo, but around some of the surrounding areas! How many of these block parties? Well, there's about eleven of them! The locations are places you'd likely roam around on a sunny day, so look out for them! Our preparatory team is setting all of these gatherings up, but they might need some help to get everything started! Will some of you all volunteer and assist them? We want to make these the best block parties ever!"
"Thank you, Hārē!" Joker said, turning to the camera with another evil grin, "And remember! There are eleven block parties! So you need to go and find them! And just in case all of you are complete total idiots, me and my crew planted bombs at these locations. So you should all find them or have a blast! Until then, I'll give you all some hints! They're all attractions of the grand ol' city of Tokyo! HAHA! That's all you're getting! Now get out there and have fun!"
The Bar in Kamino Ward
In the bar, a tied-up All Might was sitting near the screen where All For One communicates, while Shigaraki, Toga, Twice, and Spinner all sit in front of a TV to watch the show Joker has invaded. Hacker, Crystal, Loco, and Twitch were sitting at the table watching the show on. The wall-mounted TV near the door to the bar, the first three just watching it while the latter of the group just sit there in a daze as he twitches around in his seat. Kurogiri was behind the bar, rinsing a glass, while the tied-up Eri was sitting in the corner near Joker's henchmen table as she watched the TV herself, seeing the frightening image of Joker killing the host, the guests, and making a havoc on the program. Her eyes widened at the gruesome display of violence, her mouth all covered up by the rope Whip made as she felt sick and disturbed by it all.
Crystal looked back at Eri and saw her horrified expression. He shrugged as he told her, "Hey, you think that's bad, little girl? This is tame compared to the stuff that he does on a regular basis."
All Might and Kurogiri, hearing that, looked at Crystal, the former shocked, while the latter looked intrigued.
"Wait, that little girl is over there watching Joker do horrible things!?" All Might exclaimed, "Are you insane!? Turn that off!"
Spinner, Twice, and Toga looked over to where the Joker henchmen were, while Shigaraki looked on at the show, fascinated.
Kurogiri hummed a bit in curiosity and suspicion. "While that part about Joker worries me a little, I would think a child like the girl shouldn't be watching something so violent."
All Might glanced at Kurogiri, a little surprised that the dark mist man would even show a mild case of awareness for Eri.
"Hm," All For One's voice rang through the other TV screen, "I would agree. Maybe one of you that's with Shigaraki can bring her over there with you all?"
Spinner, Twice, and Toga all glanced at each other, with Toga turning her attention to where Eri was, saying, "Um...okay. I'll do it."
"Ah, no worries," Hacker said to them, getting out of his chair and walking over to her, "I'll take her to ya."
"Kurogiri."
"Right." Kuroguri then 'leaped' over to the area where Hacker and Eri were. He materialized in front of Eri, his back facing her as he was facing Hacker.
Crystal and Loco got up, a little alarmed by this sudden action.
Even Hacker backed away, hands up in defense, a little surprised. "Whoa! Hey, what gives?"
All For One then spoke, "Not to be rude, but while you may have been in Garaki's lab, that doesn't make me fully trust you."
"Wha? Aw, come on, I thought we were cool. I made the stuff my Boss told me to make, and soon you'll get your...uh, bro, back or...something?" Hacker said, a little confused as to what to call One For All.
"Hrm...while you may have made the antidote, your Boss made me lose a little bit of trust in him. You and the woman were with him, too, weren't you?"
"Uh...yeah. But to be fair, I didn't know what my Boss was going to do. He never even knew about this thing you were talkin' about." Hacker told him.
"Still, I would expect some...professionalism from your Boss."
Loco then spoke out, "Hey, he just does what he does. Don't blame him for trying to defend himself."
"Hm...either way, I want one of my League members to get the girl. Toga, is it?"
"Huh?" Toga looked at the screen, blinking, "Uh, yeah. That's me."
"I would like for you to bring the girl to where you all are. Do this now, please?"
"Um, okay..." Toga walked over to where they went
All Might looked on at this exchange for a moment in interest.
Huh...so All For One is losing a bit of trust in Joker...that's never a good sign for the other person.
Toga went over to Eri and knelt down to her. Eri looked at Toga, who was scared out of her mind.
"Hey there, little girl...um...Eri, is it?" Toga asked awkwardly.
Eri just looked at her in desperation, her mouth covered up and her eyes looking so frightened.
"...Okay then. Um...come on then. Let's go," Toga told her and picked her tied-up self off the floor.
As she walked back to her group, Kurogiri looked back at Toga and Eri...and looked back at Hacker, saying, "You may sit now."
"Okay, okay," Hacker said, raising his hands up in defense still, "Sheesh, you give me a drink, and this is how I'm treated."
"Hrm..."
"Alright, alright, whatever," Hacker then turned around and walked over back to the seat and sat on it to watch the show. The other two, Crystal and Loco, cautiously sat back down as well.
Kurogiri 'leapt' back over to the bar, while Toga was carrying Eri over to where they were. However, Toga wondered something as she paused with Eri in her arms.
"Um...where do I put Eri?" she asked the screen All For One communicates with.
"Place her near All Might. I feel like he needs the company," All For One suggests.
All Might glanced at the screen next to him with a glare.
"Okay..." Toga then went over to where All Might was, and placed Eri next to the left side of him against the wall on the floor. Eri still looked frightened and looked like she was about to cry, which made Toga...feel different...
Not liking how Eri is acting, Toga then talked softly, "Hey, um...Eri?"
The girl looked up at Toga, in fear that if she didn't comply with Toga's question, she would be punished. All Might looked to his left and watched the interaction unfold.
Toga looked at Eri for a moment, almost looking...sympathetic. She raised a hand, which made Eri flinched, a muffled squeak coming from her wrapped bindings. Toga paused for a moment, until she lowered her hand on Eri's head. She patted her head and softly told her, "It's okay, Eri...don't think of yourself as a curse."
Eri just looked up at her, her eyes full of surprise as she heard what Toga said. All Might also looked surprised at Toga's moment of humanity towards the little girl.
Nodding back to Eri, Toga also said, "Don't ever think bad about yourself..." with one last pat on her head, she stood up and walked over to where her group was.
Eri just sat there stunned, while All Might looked on at the exchange, also a little stunned.
...My goodness...it seems some of these Villains...are actual people...
All Might glanced at Shigaraki and the rest, but then he stopped to look at Toga for a second.
...This is a very interesting situation I've gotten myself into.
Meanwhile, Shigaraki kept his eyes glued to the screen, watching the part where Joker kicked Uwabami's head. Spinner and Twice winced at that, while Toga was getting back into her seat.
"Damn...not a very good way to respect the dead," Spinner said.
"Yeah...yikes. Totally. That's just gross." Twice agreed.
Shigaraki looked at the screen and hummed, "Yes, a little brutal, but I heard that she was the type of Hero who mooches off celebrity status. Which is one of the things that we are fighting against, honestly."
Toga remained silent, almost as if she was thinking...
"Hey, is there any way we can communicate with the rest of our League and with Joker's henchmen?" Spinner asked either of his comrades.
"Maybe? I don't know." Twice answered.
All For One spoke out, "Yes, one of you from Joker's crew seems to be in communications with the others?"
"Yep," Hacker answered with his head turning back to them, "I got it all 'wired' into my head. I'll give them the signal, and they activate the bombs. Of course, I'll tell them the location of where they're planted and let them be away from the explosion."
"Hrm...and you placed them somewhere they can't be in the crosshairs of the explosion, right?"
"Oh yeah, of course I did, A.F.O.! No worries, you can even ask Kurogiri over there that I placed them somewhere that no one can see them."
Kurogiri hummed at Hacker in suspicion, his eyes narrowing at the robot-man. "...They had planted them inside buildings, so the rest of the League should be safe from anything as long as they are outside."
"...Hm. Alright then."
"Yeah, no worries whatsoever!" Hacker assured, "Besides, we got our own guys out there as well! We wouldn't put ourselves in danger also, ya know?"
"Hrm...see to it."
"Yeesh...I mean, uh, yessir," Hacker corrected himself with a salute. He went back to watching the TV with the rest of his comrades.
"Hmm...conveniently enough, Joker is talking about the bombs," Shigaraki mentioned, "Let's hope the Heroes and police force get distracted enough for Joker to humiliate Endeavor."
All Might glanced at the screen Shigaraki and the rest are watching, and couldn't help but feel a little bit of sympathy for Enji...
Endeavor...whatever happened with your family, including your oldest son...I know you're not a perfect man by any means, and I don't know your whole reasoning and backstory, but...you chose to be a Hero for a reason...not for fame, I don't think, but...you truly felt like you wanted to be a Hero. And the way you looked at your oldest son...you seem to truly be happy to know he was alive...again, I don't know what caused all this turmoil in your family, but...
His thoughts flitted away as he looked to his left to see Eri sitting there, miserable as she sat next to him, her eyes looking hopeless and scared. She looked up at All Might, and the look she gave him just breaks his heart.
All Might frowned, wishing he could comfort this poor girl, but being tied-up made it impossible. He doesn't even think words could help her. He would feel like her whole emotional psyche was damaged enough as it is.
But he had to try.
"...It's...going to be alright. Eri, right?" All Might asked her.
Eri paused, and seeing that he was speaking in an honest tone, she nodded.
"Right...it's gonna be okay. We'll get out of this. They...They won't win."
Do I believe that?
The dark thought came in All Might's mind.
However, seeing Eri's eyes teared up, looking at him in what felt like...hope…
Hope...
...Yes. Yes I do...
"...They won't win." All Might reassured her.
Eri teared up, letting her tears pool out of her eyes, and giving him a small nod.
All Might nodded as well, his face serious and firm, but comforting and soft at the same time.
...We need to overcome this. We will beat them...Good always prevails.
Always.
Shibuya District
Muscular stood there on the sidewalk in the midst of the other people in the district, where some of them were watching television sets in display windows in electronic stores. The screens are showing the program Joker was on, each of the people watching it in morbid curiosity and intrigue. Even the big billboard screens on the buildings in Shibuya were showing the program around the district, the news catching it on time, as it surely was important for people to be aware of the danger that people were in right now.
The Villain waited for when the right opportunity to detonate the bomb would be from his communications...
That Hacker nerd said one of his guys planted the bomb at the Shibuya Station, right?
Tokyo Tower
Magne stood a little outside of the Tokyo Tower, looking around the area to see that everyone stopped in their tracks to look at their phones at the live coverage of the program being taken over by Joker.
She had to wait until the signal...
Man...am I really gonna blow up the Tokyo Tower? I haven't even gotten any time to go up to it!
Ginza District
Mustard stood there amongst the people, watching the TV screens in display windows of news coverage of Joker taking over the show. The once busy shopping district was at a still when the news hit as everyone watched with bated breath.
He was waiting for the right moment...
Let's see...one of Joker's thugs said the bomb was across the Seiko House...
Tsukiji Market
Moonfish...was in a closet somewhere, waiting for one unlucky person to open the door, so he could eat them.
Either way, it's safe to say that someone else had access to the detonator of the bomb.
Flesh...flesh...FLESH!
Tokyo National Museum
"Hmm...very interesting," Turtle murmured as he looked at a piece in an exhibit.
Everyone else in the museum was looking on their phones at the news...
Edo-Tokyo Museum
"Ah...so Tokyo was called Edo one time...huh..." Rubber said as he looked down at the description in the exhibit.
Everyone was looking at their phones...
Tokyo Government Metropolitan Offices
"Ah...such a nice day," Cham said as he sipped on a frappuccino.
Everyone else was looking at their phones, while some were looking at the TV screens that were in display windows.
Akihabara Electric Town
Thermal was walking across the street as he was walking away from the Akihabara District, minding his own business...
National Diet Building
Razor sat on the bench where he was a little away from the building.
"...Hm," Razor looked at his old Rolex watch, "...Any moment now..."
There were two other bombs as well...in Ueno Park and at the Imperial Palace...
In a Room Inside a Building
All For One was watching the program with attentiveness along with Garaki, the TV screen in front of the Villain as he studied the Clown.
Garaki looked on at the show, until he turned to All For One, "Master. Are you feeling...doubtful about Joker?"
"...I am...a little...wary of our new-supposed ally."
"Hmm...then maybe you should step in and teach him not to defy you. Of course, in your time. Just a mere suggestion."
"Yes, I know. But patience, Garaki. First, we'll see where this goes. Then, when he is done, I'll have a little...talk with Joker."
"Hm...of course. As you wish." Garaki nodded to All For One.
Back at the Studio
"Now, for our special guests!" Joker grinned wickedly, "And boy, are they special! First up, we have not the No. 1, but the No. 2 Hero here with us! Please welcome, everybody, the Flame Hero, Endeavor!"
Then, something was tossed onto the stage, a marble next to Joker. Then the marble glowed, and out popped out Endeavor, also known as Enji Todoroki. He was still tied-up by Whip's rope, his whole body and mouth covered up. Laying there on his side, he looked up at the stage and the camera that was pointing at them.
"Give him a hand, folks!" Joker goaded.
The audience all looked on in shock, seeing the once mighty Endeavor reduced to a mere mortal, a mere human being.
"Okay, or not. Actually, I don't blame you. HAHAHA!" Joker laughed, "Oh, but we have a very special guest for not only you in TV Land, but for Endeavor as well! Do please help me welcome our surprise guest, will you all? Cause I'm certain it will be a touching reunion!" grinning sadistically, he announced, "EVERYONE, WELCOME THE OLDEST SON OF ENDEAVOR, DABI! OR BETTER KNOWN AS, TOUYA TODOROKI!"
Dabi came around the stage and walked up to it, walking up the platform with his hands in his pockets, waltzing up in a nonchalant way. He didn't stand next to his father's laying form, as he stood next to Joker's other side.
"Hey." Dabi said to the audience.
The audience in question looked on in more shock as they looked speechless. Some even sat back in their seats as they watched this unfold.
"Well, this is something! A Hero...and I hear you are a Villain now, right, Dabi?" Joker asked Touya.
"Yeah," answered Dabi, his mouth turning an angry frown at the camera. "Made something out of myself. And it's thanks to my Old Man."
"Oh? Well, do tell us what your daddy here did to make you this way?" Joker asked him with an evil grin.
"Gladly," Dabi seethed as he went up to Endeavor's tied-up form and roughly picked him up from one of the Whip ropes to let him kneel in front of him. "This son of bitch made me into who I am today! All because I wasn't good enough for the bastard!" He knelt in front of his father, letting him look into eyes, "The constant times I wanted him to see that I could be a good successor to him, he just turned a blind eye on me, like I didn't matter to him!"
Endeavor, also known as Enji Todoroki, just looked at his son with such distraughtness. He couldn't help but stare at him, his eyes full of conflictive emotions as they teared up, this feeling somehow foreign to Enji.
This, however, just made Touya a little confused...but mostly angrier.
He looked at his father with a glare and gritted his teeth, scowling at the man he hated the most.
...He swung a hard punch to Enji's face.
WHAM!
Knocking him down onto the stage floor, Enji fell on his side.
The audience gasped. Even the tied-up Mount Lady looked on in shock.
Touya, also known as Dabi, just looked down at his father with a sneer, "...You're nothing but a pathetic waste."
Enji just let the tears fall down on his face...
Meanwhile, at an Asylum Hospital
Every doctor and patient watched the large TV screen in the lobby for the patients, including one woman patient...
All of them looked on in horror, while some of them looked on in morbid curiosity.
The woman, Rei Todoroki, looked on in shock, mouth agape, her eyes shimmering as she saw her firstborn son and...her husband...in the same room...together.
Rei began to feel faint...
"Huh?" one of the doctors glanced at Rei, "Wha-MRS. TODOROKI!"
One of the female nurses went over and caught Rei before she could land on the floor.
"Mrs. Todoroki!?" exclaimed the nurse. She called out to anyone, "Someone help me carry her! She just fainted! She needs medical attention!"
Class 1-A
A Little While Ago
"And how do you pronounce New York City in English?" Present Mic told the class.
"New. York. City." The class said it all in monotone.
"Well done, class! Now, how do you say Los Angeles in English?"
"Lo...Los Angel...Angeles. Los Angeles."
"Good job, students! That one was a little trickier, as it's also Spanish! It's the name of a city, but it's also Spanish for 'The angels'."
"Oh, wow! That's so interesting!" Ibara said, enthralled.
"Hm...that's where All Might was when he graduated UA, right?" Shinso asked with a monotone.
"Indeed it is, Young Shinso!" Present Mic said with a dramatic point to him, "My, you're very knowledgeable about All Might!"
Shinso shrugged, "I thought it was just an obvious fact."
"Yeah, we all know that, don't we?" Kirishima said.
"Uh, yeah, I thought it was, too?" Kaminari said with a hand raise.
"Yeah. I mean, if my boy Kaminari over here thinks it's obvious, then I think everyone else here knows about that." Jirou told Present Mic.
The class murmurs out their agreements.
...Kaminari asked Jirou, "Wait, I'm your 'boy', now?" he blinked.
"Shh!" Jirou shushed him with one of her earlobe jacks. "Not now, we're in class."
"...Uh, okay," Kaminari blinked again, dumbfounded as he blushed.
Present Mic pouted, "Well, hey now, I'm just trying to be supportive here! Look, let's just move on to the next English lesson, shall we? Now I will-"
Suddenly the door to their class opens.
It was their homeroom teacher, Aizawa.
"Oh! What's happenin', Aizawa!? I didn't think my class was over-" Present Mic began to say, but Aizawa interrupted him.
"Not now!" Aizawa said, his eyes looking serious all of a sudden. "We got to go! Nedzu is calling us for an emergency meeting!"
"Wha? What happened?" Present Mic blinked in shock.
The rest of Class 1-A looked at their homeroom teacher in concern.
"Um, Aizawa-sensei?" Momo asked, "What's happening right now?"
Aizawa turned to his class and announced, "Class, stay here in this room. Do not go out. We will commence a lockdown here in a moment. If you all need to know what is happening right now, look on your phones. Until then, remain here and stay calm." he turned to Present Mic, "Come on, hurry!"
"Uh...okay," Present Mic turned to his students, "Uh, sorry, class, got to go!" And with that, he rushed out of Class 1-A, the door closed behind him.
...The students all looked at each other, a little troubled.
"Um...should we worry?" Ochako asked one of her classmates.
"Uh...perhaps we should look on our phones to see what's happening?" Iida asked either one.
"I mean, might as well," Mina shrugged.
Every student got their phones out and looked to see the recent news...
Ibara was the first to gasp.
"The Joker has taken a program on TV hostage!?" she exclaimed.
"Huh?" Shinso, who was in the process of typing whatever in the search bar, glanced at Ibara, "Wow, that was fast."
"Whoa, really!?" Kaminari looked back and back at his phone to see it loading. He saw the first headline on the site he gets info from, and his eyes widened, "Dude! It is the Joker!"
"Whoa!" Jirou's eyes also widened in shock, "Guys...this is happening now!"
"Wow..." Tsuyu frowned, "It says he killed the host of 'Hero Talk Now'."
"He did!?" Kirishima's eyes widened and looked back down at his phone, "Whoa...that-that's horrible!"
"Oh man!" Mina said with a horrified expression, "My grandma watches that show!"
"Dude, not only that, but Joker killed a Hero named Midas Touch!" Sero exclaimed in shock.
Momo looked on at a headline that chilled her to the bone.
"U-...Uwabami...she's...she's dead..." Momo's eyes widened in horror.
"My word..." Ibara put her hand to her mouth, "This Joker...he has no shame!"
"Wow...damn, this Joker guy is for real," Tokoyami blinked.
"Mount Lady? She...She has her Quirk supposedly taken away!?" Mineta's eyes widened in shock, "...I...I think I'm going to be sick."
"Guys...this...this article here says that the Joker's face is exposed!" Ochako exclaimed.
"Huh?" Iida broke out of his shock and turned to Ochako, "Really?"
"Yeah! We need to go to whatever news app we have! I think it's live!" Ochako turned around and told everyone.
The rest of the class then went over to their preferred news app, and watched the live coverage that was going on now.
Todoroki, who was shocked but silent throughout the whole thing, looked at his news app and selected the recent news video. "Everyone come watch mine, I got a live video of the whole thing!"
Some of the classmates, which include Mina, Kaminari, Jirou, and Kirishima went over there to view the news.
"I got mine on live video, too!" Tsuyu exclaimed to anyone wanting to watch hers.
Ochako, Iida, Tokoyami, and Sero went over there to Tsuyu and her phone.
"I have a live video of it as well!" Ibara told them.
Ojiro, Koda, Shoji, and Mineta all went over to Ibara.
"Oh...um, o-okay! H-Here it is!" Ibara said with a blush, not used to having young men get close to her.
Mineta sniffed her. "Wow, you smell nice, Ibara."
"..." Ibara froze.
"Dude, don't freak her out, Mineta!" Ojiro scolded him.
"Yeah, this is serious! Leave her alone!" Shoji also scolded him.
"Don't make me send my bees on you, Mineta," Koda warned him.
"...Okay, okay, sorry. Yeesh," Mineta felt a little annoyed but downtrodden a little bit.
"Um...thank you three...uh, let's see the video now," Ibara said as she played the video.
Momo told everyone else, "I got it here too!"
Shinso, Hagakure, Aoyama, and Sato looked at the phone screen of Momo's.
...They all watched the live video feed in silence...
"...So that's the Joker...that's his face..." Momo murmured as she frowned in distaste.
"Man...guy likes to smile, doesn't he?" Shinso said with a cringe.
Meanwhile with Tsuyu's group...
"So the Villain finally shows his face...took him long enough," Iida mumbled in disdain as he narrowed his eyes.
"That guy looks way too happy," Tokoyami muttered.
Ochako glared at the screen at Joker.
Meanwhile with Ibara's group...
"Man, the guy radiates slimeball-whoa! Is that Uwabami's head!?" Ojiro exclaimed in shock.
Ibara's eyes widened in horror and puts her hand to her mouth.
Momo, who was also watching the live video feed, looked at her screen in shock and horror at how Joker took no shame as he kicked Uwabami's head over to the audience.
Shinso blinked and almost felt sick. "Damn...that was...that was harsh."
And with Todoroki's group...
"Oh my gosh, that's disgusting!" Jirou said in wide-eyed horror as she got close to Kaminari.
"Dude...he didn't have to do that to Uwabami," Kaminari looked on in disgust.
"Oh man, if my grandma is watching this right now..." Mina looked at the scene in trepidation.
"That was so not manly," Kirishima muttered in disdain.
Todoroki cringed in disgust.
They kept silent as they watched Joker...dreading what might come next.
Meanwhile in Class 1-H
The class was sitting in their seats while Power Loader left for the emergency meeting. Every student looked at the shared screens on their phones and looked on in terror at how Joker showed no humanity.
The one that was dead set on studying the Joker, though, was none other than Izuku.
However, Mei was next to him as she looked at his screen. Once Joker kicked Uwabami's head, she flinched and cringed.
"Whoa! That was not necessary!" Mei proclaimed.
Izuku just kept looking at the video...
It's him...he showed his face...and...his smile...it's exactly the same...that same demented and evil smile...
"Hey."
He glanced at Mei, and saw that she looked concerned.
"You...okay?"
"...Yeah," Izuku went back to watching the live video, "I'm just...mentally preparing myself to see what he's going to do next, I guess."
"..." Mei nodded with a smile, "You're planning your next strategy. I get ya!"
"Huh?" Izuku now looked at Mei in confusion, "Strategy? I mean, well, I was just-"
"Don't deny it! You want to make this guy pay!" Mei smirked, "And just to let you know, I meant what I said! I can help you out with anything! Just give me a blueprint and I'll work it out for ya!"
"...Wha...for real?" Izuku asked her, blinking at her.
"Yeah! I think you can be a Hero with a few gadgets on ya! Just cook something up on paper, and I'll make a little baby with ya!"
"...Okay, first of all, can you...not say it like that?"
"Huh? Say it like what?" Mei blinked, puzzled.
"...N-Nevermind. Look, secondly, why would you help me with this?" Izuku asked her.
"Why?" Mei tilted her head to the side, "Well, you want to be a Hero again, right?"
"Well, yeah, but...well, why in general do you want to help me?"
"Huh?" Now Mei looked confused, "I mean...I don't know, you were pretty cool at the Sports Festival, and you kind of inspired me. I mean, that's the only reason I feel like helping you."
"Oh..." Izuku blushed a tiny bit, "Um...well, I mean...okay..."
Mei smiled, "Yeah! Okay!"
"Whoa! It's Endeavor!"
"Huh!?" Izuku looked back at his phone screen, as well as Mei, who looked curious.
Back at Class 1-A
Shouto looked at his phone screen in shock.
Mina was also shocked, and glanced at Shouto.
"Whoa, Endeavor!" Kaminari exclaimed.
"Oh my gosh!" Ochako said with her mouth covered up by her hands.
"Oh no!" Hagakure gasped.
Ibara looked on at the screen in dreadful intrigue.
After a couple of seconds, when Joker announced the next guest, everyone froze.
Shouto looked on at the screen, eyes wide in horror. "T-...Touya?"
...The students kept watching their screens.
Mina looked at Shouto, her face expressing worry and sympathy for him.
Back at the Studio
Touya then lifted Enji back up as he held onto the rope that was covering his mouth. Seeing the tears in his father's eyes, he only got even more enraged.
"STOP! CRYING!" Touya yelled at him, "WHAT ARE YOU SO GRIEF-STRICKEN ABOUT!? EVER SINCE YOU PUSHED ME AND PUSHED ME AND PUSHED ME TO BE BETTER, IT ALL AMOUNT TO NOTHING! YOU SEE YOUR FAMILY AS A PAWN TO YOUR FUCKING LEGACY, AND YOU ARE JUST A SELFISH LITTLE PRICK! YOU POMPOUS, ARROGANT, SELF-RIGHTEOUS BASTARD! YOU! ARE! NOTHING!"
Lifting his fist, he slammed it onto Enji's face, punching him.
WHAM!
Lifting it up, he did it again.
WHAM!
And again.
WHAM!
And again.
WHAM!
Again.
WHAM!
Again.
WHAM!
Again.
WHAM!
Again.
WHAM!
Again.
WHAM!
And again.
WHAM!
And one more time.
WHAAAM!
Without even realizing it, the hand that was holding the whip rope was burning it, letting his Quirk rip it off as it deteriorated. With that last punch, he sent Enji to the ground, bruises on his face as his mouth was now uncovered by the whip rope. Tossing the remnant of the rope behind him, Touya looked down at his father, breathing heavily as he glared down at him in hatred.
Enji...just laid there...his eyes closed as his tears kept going down his face as he wept.
...Everyone was silent...silent as the great Endeavor...wept...
"...Shut up," Touya sneered, his lip curled up in disdain. "Quit your fucking crying! What do you have to cry about!? Is your pride really that damaged!? Are you going to bawl like a little child!? I bet that's what my youngest brother had to deal with. He cried out to you to stop, didn't he? But you...kept...him...going..." he turned to the audience, "DAD OF THE YEAR, FOLKS!" turning back to the fallen Enji, he seethed, "I saw...ooooh, I saw you and Shouto that day when I woke up from my coma...you just up and forgot all about me...you went with the next best thing."
...Enji just kept crying...
"...Look at me...look at me, Dad...look at me...LOOK AT ME! LOOK AT ME, DAD! LOOK AT ME!" Touya yelled out in a rage.
"Look at me, Daddy! Haha! I did it! I made fire! Look at me! He-haha! Isn't that cool!?
...He can hear that little boy's voice...
...Ever since he heard the news...he couldn't get that sweet little child's voice out of his head…
...He never wanted to...
He wanted to remember that little voice...forever more...
...He wanted to remember his eldest son...
He wished he could've said he was proud back then...in fact he was...he tried…
But it's true...he was so involved with trying to be No. 1...all because of his trauma of what happened to his father...he wanted to make him proud...to honor him...and to honor that poor girl that died with him.
...He became so obsessed...that it deterred his role as a father...
But he did care...he cared for his family...he was just...
...
...
…
"...I'm...I'm so sorry, Touya..." Enji wept out.
...Touya stared down at him...
His father continued, "I..." he opened his tearful eyes and looked at his oldest son, "I...I never meant...for any of this to happen.
...All was silent...
Enji spoke out some more, "I..." he turned his tied-up body to lay on his back, "...I am a failure."
...Touya just kept staring down at him.
"...I tried...I tried to uphold the family...you're right, Touya," Enji admitted.
The eldest son's eyes widened.
"I...I shouldn't even be in this profession...it was all because...of your grandfather...ever since I saw him die that day, along with that poor little girl..." Enji's eyes started to water again, his eyes tearing up, "...Ever since that happened...and ever since..." Enji closed his eyes as his tears came down, "...I never want to lose anyone again..."
...Touya remained silent...
"I trained...I trained to be the best...in honor of my father...but it consumed me..." Enji opened his eyes, full of sorrow, "It made me blind...when I...when I had you, Touya...I wanted to be like my father...to protect everyone in my family...I...I couldn't even do that...you're right, Touya. I'm...I'm no Hero...I'm just...I'm just a fool..."
...Silence...
"...So..." Touya started, "...You finally admit it."
Enji looked up at the ceiling.
"...Yes...I have..."
"..." Touya just looked down at his father, his eyes wide, his mouth clenched. His hands started twitching, a warm heat coming from his palms. "...You know what's hilarious?"
Enji lay there, still staring up at the ceiling, almost dreading what he was going to hear from his son.
"...I wish I could cry, but I burnt my tear ducts off. So with that said, I got no tears for you, Dad," Touya explained.
"..." Enji remained silent, almost in understanding.
"...But I will give you this."
Touya raised his booted foot up and slammed it on the chest of Enji.
"AUGH!" Enji exclaimed at the pain of his stomp on his chest.
Looking down at his father, Touya stared down at him, glaring down at his form.
"...You know what? You really are something. You know that, Dad? You admit you're a failure, and yet, I'm still not that happy. Maybe it's because I want vengeance instead of reconciliation."
He stomped on his foot on Enji's chest again, hard.
"UGH!" Enji exclaimed in pain once again.
"Do you want to know what I've been up to, Old Man?" Touya stomped again on Enji.
"AUGH!"
"I've been burning and killing people who ever tried to mess with me." Touya stomped on him again.
"ACK!"
"And now I'm chumming up with like-minded Villains that hate this pathetic and worthless Hero Society that everyone is so damn counting on!" He stomped on him again.
"AAAUGH!"
"Yeah, you feel that? That's the pain of feeling weak! The one thing you tried not to be! Well, guess what, DAD!?" Stomp!
"AUGH!"
"YOU'RE WEAK! YOU'RE NOTHING BUT A WEAK FUCK THAT DESERVES,"
STOMP!
"EVERY!"
STOMP!
"DAMN!"
STOMP!
"FUCKING!"
STOMP!
"HUMILIATING!"
STOMP!
"BEATING!"
STOMP!
Then, Touya's stomping foot started to heat up a bright blue fire.
"SAY GOODBYE, YOU BAST-"
BANG!
...The audience gasped.
...Mount Lady looked on at the scene in shock.
...Mr. Compress looked over the camera in shock as well.
...Enji, feeling the pain of the stomps, didn't feel the last one.
Class 1-A
The kids all looked on at the scene on the phones, each of them stunned.
Shouto was shaking at what he was witnessing.
Mina grabbed onto Shouto's hand, making sure he was in a stable state of mind.
Everyone else looked on in horror.
Class 1-H
Izuku and Mei looked at the scene in surprise.
Nedzu's Office
Nedzu and the Hero teachers looked at the TV screen in shock.
The Bar at Kamino Ward
Shigaraki, Toga, Spinner, and Twice looked on at the occurrence that happened in the program with such surprise.
All Might looked on at the screen in shock at it all, for Enji and Touya...but mostly for what happened next.
All For One
Garaki's mouth opened in shock.
And All For One...didn't look too happy...
Back at the Studio
...Touya...lurched forward.
Something hit his back with a tremendous force.
He flew past Enji below him...and landed on his front.
SLAM!
...Touya, feeling the pain in his back, tried to get up. Getting his hands on the floor, he picked himself up rather slowly.
Enji looked at his son in...horror...
"...T-...Touya...y-your back..." he softly said.
Touya sluggishly reached behind his back...
...and pulled out...
...a bullet shot.
Grunting in pain as he took it out, Touya investigated the shot...
"...Wha...What the...?" he looked down at it, disturbed by what he discovered.
...The one that shot the bullet...
...with his arm posed out in front of him, the Joker shot Dabi...with a Quirk Erasure bullet.
...Dabi, also known as Touya, turned around slowly by the waist to look at Joker...his expression in confusion and...fear...
"...What...Why did you...?"
Joker just stood there, a simple evil smile on his face.
Lowering the gun in his hand, he answered:
"...I just really hate drama."
...The eldest son of the Todoroki family just turned to look at Joker in shock.
"...Oh come on, why so serious?" Joker asked with a shrug and a smirk.
Little does everyone know...
...It's all...part of the plan...
It's all part of his plan.
Joker's plan.
And there ya go, a long chapter! What do you all think of it? :D
I hope it's all good and dandy! Do tell me if you enjoyed it! Leave a review, fave, and a follow!
Thank you all for reading and keep on rocking everybody! :)
-TSP