Chapter 24 - The Symbol of Peace
"All Might… he's gotten all skinny! Just what has become of our Symbol of Peace?!" the news reporter from earlier shouted from his chopper, "You've seen it here first… now he's getting saved by a kid! Just what the hell is going on down there?!"
Back at U.A. High, studies had been interrupted, as the class was much more focused on the events that were occurring within All Might's battle. The students were huddled around Mina's phone, glued to it like their lives depended on it.
"What's going on with All Might?" Ochaco questioned, a hint of worry in her voice, "He's lost all his muscle..."
"Yeah, well… whatever the case, he's still All Might!" Kirishima shouted, "He'll find a way to win… he has to!"
Suddenly, an impact occurred on the phone below.
"Wha- Midoriya?!" Ida questioned.
"What's he doing there?!" Momo added.
"Wait what?" Katsuki let out, getting out of his seat.
Rushing towards Mina's phone, Katsuki quickly pushed aside the group of students who blocked his way to it. He stared at it for a minute, and his brow began to furrow.
"You're telling me that crappy nerd's gone to help All Might all on his own?!" Katsuki shouted.
Katsuki then turned away from Mina's phone, jumped on a table beside him, and launched himself off of it, using his explosions to propel his way to the door.
"Not on my watch!" Katsuki shouted.
Before Katsuki could reach the door, however, a purple mist surrounded him… and he was forced to begin to hold his breath.
"Yes… and you won't rush off on my watch either." Midnight said, licking her lips due to the lingering taste of youthful energy in the air, "I couldn't tell you why, but Midoriya's there with permission. You're not."
"Then give me permission so I can go kick some ass!" Katsuki shouted, being careful to not inhale any of Midnight's gas.
"I like your energy… but I won't." Midnight firmly asserted, "It was irresponsible that the kid even got permission in the first place… I just have no idea what your homeroom teacher is thinking…"
"Woah, it's not just Deku!" Ochaco observed, "Those two are also with him!"
"Good work, Midoriya!" a voice yelled out from behind, commenting on Izuku's aforementioned attack on the Pacifista.
Leaping off of his ride and into the fray, the person who had arrived was none other than Shota Aizawa, and his former ride, Tony Tony Chopper.
"Aizawa... Chopper?! What are you... both doing here?" All Might questioned.
"After you got into your fight, Izuku informed me of the strength of that Pacifista, so we decided to come here with Chopper." Aizawa explained, "And now, we're gonna save you."
"But… those two are students-"
"I've authorized both of them to use their quirks." Aizawa noted, "Whatever repercussions Midoriya or Chopper face for their actions… I'll be the one to take full legal responsibility."
Through the eyes he could barely keep open, All Might stared up at Aizawa. It wasn't like him to endanger his students like this, and to the Aizawa of the past, the actions the homeroom teacher of Class 1-A would be dubbed 'completely irrational'. But... the Grand Line had changed what was rational to Aizawa, and the actions he needed to take to ensure a peaceful future. That was the change All Might had seen reflected in Aizawa's eyes.
"Scope!" Chopper stated, announcing his attack as he placed his hooves together in order to try to find the Pacifista's weakness. Before he could, however, he saw a yellow beam flashing.
"Everybody, dodge!" Chopper ordered.
The laser fired, but due to Chopper's warning, Izuku, Aizawa, and Chopper were all able to dodge. Fortunately for All Might, Aizawa also wrapped his binding cloth around All Might, moving him out of the way of the Pacifista's attack.
"Midoriya, stay back here and make sure All Might doesn't lose any more blood!" Aizawa ordered, as he released his bind on All Might. Izuku then took over, catching the hero with Blackwhip, "Chopper! You're the only one with battle experience against the Pacifista, plus, you have comparable strength to All Might. I'll support you from behind while you attack!"
"Got it!" Chopper replied, as he thought, "Walk Point!"
Transforming into his reindeer form, Chopper rushed to the Pacifista.
"Mr. Aizawa, are you sure I can't do more?!" Izuku questioned, but Aizawa simply scoffed.
"Don't get ahead of yourself kid. You're still just a student." Aizawa stated, preparing to run after Chopper, "If I had it my way, you'd still be at school!"
"Jump Point!" Chopper thought, as he leapt into the air after he transformed. Placing his hooves together once more, he then thought, "Brain Point: Scope!"
With a massive boost to his brainpower, Chopper now utilized his enhanced observational abilities and intelligence in order to find any structural weaknesses the Pacifista might have.
"Just like the one on Sabaody, and the Nomu at USJ... this guy's coated in that regenerative substance…" Chopper thought, "Wait, no! This one's slightly different… there's-"
Before Chopper could finish his thought, the Pacifista quickly shot two beams of light at Chopper.
"No time… Kung Fu Point!" Chopper thought, as his body morphed. With his Kung Fu Point, Chopper's weight increased, and he was easily able to make his way to the ground.
In response, the Pacifista vanished from sight, and landed in front of Chopper an instant later.
"T-this speed!" Chopper thought, as the Pacifista struck Chopper directly in his gut, knocking him backwards.
"Chopper!" Aizawa yelled out, utilizing his binding cloth in order to catch Chopper. The reindeer had reverted back to his Brain Point form after getting hit, having been injured due to the Pacifista's last attack on him enough to lose concentration on remaining in Kung Fu Point. Chopper hadn't been as badly as All Might was before he used his Goku uniform, but he wasn't nearly as durable as All Might had been after it's usage.
"Ugh… thanks sir…" Chopper deliriously commented, as Aizawa released his binding cloth so Chopper could fall to the ground.
Chopper landed smoothly, and then said, "I should have utilized my Guard Point… I was just off my game, I guess."
"Yeah, make sure you're focused. We're gonna lose if you take any more hits like that." Aizawa asserted, trying to comfort his student in his own, 'rational' way, "Did you learn anything about the Pacifista during that scuffle?"
"Oh… yes!" Chopper stated, "This Pacifista is a bit different than the one I fought on Sabaody! While a substance which let the Pacifista regenerate coated the last one I fought, this one's missing them on his head!"
"So if we target there… he'll be more vulnerable?" Aizawa questioned.
"Yes, I think so!" Chopper responded.
With a plan in mind, Chopper and Aizawa were ready to fight against the Pacifista yet again… and not a moment too soon, as the Pacifista had gotten closer to them yet again. Firing a catalog of lasers at both Aizawa and Chopper, the reindeer of the pair quickly reacted.
"Jump Point!" Chopper thought, as he dodged the Pacifista's lasers, but to his horror, his teacher wasn't so lucky, "Mr. Aizawa!"
Having been struck in his chest by a laser, only a hole remained. Blood began to spurt out of it, and Aizawa's pupils seemed to disappear from the damage he had taken.
"This guy… What was I thinking?!" Aizawa noted, "He fought against a powered up All Might… there's no way I can even match that!"
"Oh no, Mr. Aizawa!" Izuku cried, looking on at the battle ahead of him.
"Young… Midoriya…" All Might muttered, who was beside Izuku, laying down, "Leave me. The Pacifistas… Chopper and Aizawa… will need-"
Before All Might could finish his statement, he began to cough profusely, with just as much blood as there was air coming up when he did so. It was clear that the hero was at his limit from his previous fight with the Pacifista.
"Don't be stupid!" Izuku confidently told All Might, "You're injured, and bleeding all over! I can stop your blood from leaking out with Blackwhip… but I can't do that while I'm in a fight; you'll die if I leave!"
All Might paused for a moment, as he began to try and get up.
"Don't!" Izuku cried, grabbing All Might's shoulders and stopping him.
"I'm... too weak... I'm too weak in every way!" All Might asserted, "Symbol... of Peace? There was an entire world suffering right below my feet… one that I've been ignoring all my life… and I don't have nearly the strength to save it… I can't even beat this lackey in front of me..."
A face which could only be described as one of pure shock began to materialize on Izuku's face, as he saw one of his heroes breaking down right in front of him.
"All… Might…"
"But you… Young Midoriya… are different!" All Might confidently stated, "You're strong… in a way different than I ever was. I might be too dumb to pinpoint why... but I know that much! You can save this world… leave my weakness behind and embrace your own strength!"
"Horn Point!" Chopper shouted this time, no longer keeping his thoughts in his head. His body morphed, and while in midair, he quickly did a flip, hitting Aizawa with his horns in the process. By doing so, he allowed him to avoid the two lasers that the Pacifista aimed at him.
"Kung Fu Point!" Chopper shouted, as he utilized the additional weight granted by the form to quickly make his way to the ground, "Jump Point!"
Chopper leapt into the air, catching Aizawa as he did so.
"Thanks…" Aizawa muttered, having already taken extreme damage.
"Don't speak! Your injury looks bad!" Chopper commented, as he landed on top of a nearby building. This wasn't a place for reprieve however, as an instant later, the Pacifista already attacked once more with a laser assault on the building. Chopper leapt off of the building, with Aizawa still in his arms.
"Leave me…" Aizawa told Chopper, "I can save myself."
"Eh?! Are you…" Chopper began, before trailing off once he noticed something in the distance, "Wait… what's he doing?!"
Processing what All Might had just said, Izuku paused momentarily, as a whirlwind of thoughts had just appeared in his mind. Having previously been on his knees, clutching All Might's shoulders, Izuku got up… but didn't take his tendrils from Blackwhip off of All Might's injuries.
"Midoriya…"
"You think you're weak?" Izuku questioned. All Might paused, and Izuku continued, "Even though you inspired me, Kacchan, and countless others… even though you've saved thousands of people… you think you're weak because people exist who are stronger than you?!"
All Might continued not to speak, for Izuku's speech wasn't over. Izuku breathed in, and continued yet again.
"I refuse to accept that!" Izuku declared, "Because… regardless of power, true strength isn't made by who you can beat… but by not accepting your limits as the limits of your growth, and getting up after failure time and time again!"
Tears began to form in All Might's eyes, as he recalled something that Young Luffy had said to him a long time ago.
"Someday in the future… we'll meet again. Before that day comes, I'll get a lot stronger… and I want you to be a lot stronger as well." Luffy spoke, "Because if that happens… then we won't have to fight again."
"The only way you can be weak is if you don't have the will to keep fighting!" Izuku shouted, "So don't you dare say that someone like you… who smiles even in the worst circumstances, who fights even despite his deteriorating body, is weak!"
All Might's eyes widened… for his vision of the world had expanded.
"Young Midoriya…" All Might thought, "You've saved me, yet again."
"Then, I suppose I ought to live up to your words." All Might stated, getting up. This time, it wasn't motivated by a lack of self-worth, but rather, a belly full of it.
"All Might?!" Izuku cried, confused… but the very next moment, he understood. All Might transformed into his buff state once more, as Izuku's tendrils of Blackwhip rebounded off of the Symbol of Peace.
"Worry not Young Midoriya… and thank you for your words." All Might stated, steam pulsating off of him, "I… AM HERE!"
Yet again, stars appeared around All Might's body, as the next instant, he had transformed yet again. His uniform cloaked his injuries, and no longer was he merely a weak willed civilian, but now, he was All Might.
Utilizing the Shave technique, All Might rushed towards the Pacifista yet again, even faster than ever before, his intense will to beat the Pacifista being the reason why he could.
"DETROIT… SMASH!" All Might shouted punching the Pacifista directly in their chest, faster than the cyborg could even react.
"Wait… what's he doing?!" Chopper shouted from afar, "He's too injured to fight, he should be resting on the sidelines!"
Aizawa breathed heavily, but then he realized, "He's a hero. He doesn't get paid to slack off."
All Might's Haki swelled, as his strength had reached new heights which he had never known before… but at the same time, this newfound increase in strength also increased the rate at which One for All left his body. One thing was clear to him now: this would be his last fight with the power.
"Doesn't matter!" All Might thought, in spite of this.
All Might then caught up to the Pacifista yet again, and unleashed a flurry of blows onto them.
"TEXAS… GATLING!" All Might shouted.
The Pacifista, backed into a corner, attempted to extend its missile launcher to fire at All Might, but All Might merely destroyed it the instant it came out.
The Pacifista then improvised, utilizing lasers on their feet in order to propel themselves into the air, leaving a massive explosion in their wake. Being hit by the laser, All Might was sent flying backwards into a building… but even after that, he still got up, and shot straight to the Pacifista.
"IOWA…" All Might stated, clocking back both of his fists as he flew up into the air, "SMASH!"
Both of All Might's fists then shot forwards, hitting the Pacifista directly in the face. This time, All Might was finally able to draw blood from his opponent… and quite a bit of it.
"All Might, what are you doing?!" Chopper shouted from afar, "Your wounds… they're deep! The only reason you're probably up right now is adrenaline-"
"That doesn't matter!" All Might shouted, "A real pro… should always be ready to put his life on the line!"
Suddenly, jumping off of the air, All Might shot up towards the Pacifista. The cyborg wasn't going to take this lying down however, as they retaliated with a barrage of lasers. Airborne and without a method to quickly change his trajectory, All Might submitted to tanking these blows.
"LOOK OUT!" Chopper shouted, transforming into his Jump Point and attempting to catch up with All Might, but it was in vain.
"The Seventh's Float!"
Shooting directly past Chopper due to jumping much earlier, Izuku shot a tendril of Blackwhip to All Might, grabbing him and allowing him to dodge.
"Young Midoriya-" All Might began to say, as he thought, "That's... Nana's quirk..."
"Don't worry, we're all behind you!" Izuku shouted, shooting the tendril of Blackwhip he had used to catch All Might backwards, prepared to launch the hero, "Gum Gum… Slingshot!"
All Might then fired into the air. It wasn't as fast as he could've propelled himself, and All Might knew that. Taking advantage of this, the Pacifista fired a barrage of lasers at All Might. Kicking underneath himself, All Might readjusted his trajectory in midair to be above these shots, but there were still some that he couldn't dodge.
"GUARD POINT!" Chopper shouted, as he appeared in front of those lasers that All Might couldn't dodge, tanking them for the hero, "Go!"
Speeding past Chopper, All Might found his way to the top of the Pacifista… but, with steam coming off of his body, as well as his injuries, he knew he didn't have much longer left.
"NEVADA…" All Might stated, now above his foe with his left fist clocked back, "SMASH!"
The Pacifista was then sent plummeting to the ground at hypersonic speeds. Beyond the impact of All Might's smash attack, he then also suffered a mighty blow when he fell down to the ground as well.
"All Might!" Aizawa shouted out at the hero, as All Might turned his attention to the person who called his name, "The Pacifista's head is its weakness! It doesn't have the red threads around that part!"
"Red threads… oh!" All Might thought, "Thank you, Eraser Head!"
Before All Might could react, Izuku surrounded All Might with his tendrils of Blackwhip yet again. It wasn't just him this time, but also, Chopper in his Brain Point form.
"Gum Gum…" Izuku stated, stretching his tendrils backwards, "SLINGSHOT!"
Yet again, Izuku released All Might and Chopper from his grasp, as both were sent plummeting to the ground.
"Kung Fu Point!" Chopper shouted, as he transformed into another form which allowed him to fall much quicker.
The Pacifista was still recovering from the previous blows which All Might had left on him, and was beginning to short circuit. This left him no time to react to the incoming reindeer above him.
"KUNG FU BOMBER!" Chopper shouted, as utilizing his intense weight, he landed directly onto the Pacifista and kicked him, dealing immense damage to the Pacifista's chest.
With his body mostly disabled and lacking time to regenerate, this left All Might the perfect opening. Falling from the sky, All Might clenched his teeth together, as he readied one final attack.
"SUPREME SABAODY…" All Might shouted, as he was moments away from reaching his foe, "SMASH!"
With his left fist, All Might then unleashed a heavy blow onto the head of the Pacifista, triggering a massive explosion which blew both All Might and Chopper backwards.
"They did it!" Izuku shouted from up high, keeping himself suspended with the Seventh's Float.
Sitting on the edge of a nearby building, Aizawa merely smirked after this attack transpired.
"Guard Point!" Chopper shouted, as he transformed into a fluffy ball. Falling onto him, All Might appeared, now knocked out after giving it his all.
Chopper reverted back into his Brain Point form after All Might had landed on him, breathing heavily.
"Jeez… my body hurts all over from that last attack…" Chopper muttered, "Hey All Might, are you o-"
Cutting off Chopper, blood began to spout out of each and every one of All Might's wounds. The hero was knocked out completely, and losing blood fast.
"WHA- SOMEONE CALL A DOC- wait that's me…"
"You- you've seen it here first!" the aforementioned news reporter announced, tears falling from their eyes as they said, "All Might has taken out the unknown villain, even despite his battered and bruised body!"
"He did it!" Mina squealed in happiness due to All Might's victory.
"Hell yeah!" Kaminari cried.
"Those injuries were tough… but he pulled through!" Jiro commented, a nervous smile appearing on her face.
"That's why he's the Number One hero!" Ryuko cried.
"Well, it seems that ended quite well…" Midnight remarked, as she looked over to Bakugo, "But your expression hasn't eased up at all."
"Yeah… cause something's off." Katsuki stated, "That villain… he came out of nowhere with a strength that allowed him to fight against even All Might… and you're telling me they lost, just like that? The fuck was the point?"
"Come on Bakugo, don't be such a downer." Sero replied.
"No… I agree with Bakugo." Momo interjected, "That villain… his strength was the real deal, and he seemed to possess multiple quirks. That's similar to the Nomu we saw at the Unforeseen Simulation Joint… could this merely be another test from the League of Villains?"
"Doubt it." Katsuki stated, "That blue haired guy ambushed us last time, remember? Clearly he wants to be present for the party."
"Then… just what was their goal?" Momo questioned.
"U-uh… guys…" Mina interjected, as something unforeseen had occurred on the phone in front of her.
"...They took out PX-16." Sentomaru commented, clearly frustrated by this information.
"Oh? I didn't think they were that strong." Kizaru commented.
"They aren't!" Sentomaru whispered as loud as he could, "That guy… All Might, he utilized Life Fibers to amp himself somehow! Plus, they discovered that these models of Pacifista don't have life fibers on their heads due to the scuffle with the Kiryuin's!"
"Hmm…" Kizaru stated, "Well… that's okay, after all, you brought the others for this exact situation… right?"
By reactivating and deactivating his Float quirk rhythmically, Izuku slowly made his way to the ground. Touching down on it, Izuku contemplated his next moves.
"There's no way that Pacifista wasn't defeated after that massive explosion…" Izuku reasoned with himself, "I should go check on All Might then."
Izuku then went to activate the fourth's Danger Sense in order to gauge the position of All Might… but before he could, his quirk activated all on its own. Jumping upwards with 10% of One for All, Izuku was narrowly able to avoid a massive laser. Stalling himself in the air with the seventh's Float, Izuku began to flip in midair, and while upside down, he saw something horrifying.
"I-impossible!"
Ahead of Izuku were two Pacifistas. It took All Might that all he had to defeat just one… and now, two had arrived?!
"Y-you've seen it here first!" the news reporter from before stammered, "T-two more of the villains that All Might defeated have arrived?! Is this the beginning of the apocalypse?!"
Izuku, who previously held a look of fear and shock on his face, suddenly changed his expression.
"H-huh?! That boy there… zoom in on him!" the news reporter stated, "Even despite All Might's defeat… even despite two more of an impossible foe appearing in front of him… he's still smiling?!"
Getting into a fighting stance, Izuku prepared himself for a fight. The pair of Pacifista began to charge lasers which were aimed directly at Izuku.
"This is no time to get scared…" Izuku thought aloud, "I can feel the presence of everyone around me… crying out for the Symbol of Peace. For them… I can't lose!"
END OF CHAPTER NOTES
Chapter 25 will be released in tandem with this one, so I'll save my notes for then.
SHOCKING REVIEW SHOWCASE
Just a quick SRS, I'd like to thank hdzalex084 and Melonboi for your reviews.
Melonboi, I'm sorry if I disappointed you with the fact that Aizawa did in fact not die in Chapter 23 or 24. I hope I can make it up to you some day by killing off someone else XD.
I am also glad you are impressed with what I put on display in Chapter 23 Mr. hdzalex084. I hope that you will enjoy the rest of the Fajesta arc!