Back at the Kamino Ward Bar
All Might, Shigaraki, Twice, Toga, and Spinner were all watching the last bit of the program on the TV with bated breath, seeing that Joker and his minions escaped with Kurogiri, as well as watching Hawks, Skycrawler, and Ryukyu fight them. Crystal and Loco were also watching the TV, looking on at the events as they played out, shocked and maybe even apprehensive as they saw their Boss almost get sliced in half. Twitch just sat there staring at the television in a daze. Eri sat back and also watched the program in fright and dread.
As they all watched the last bit of the hijacked show on the TV, Loco had one thing to say.
"Wow...that...could've gone better...uh..." Loco turned to Crystal, a little worried, "You think the Boss is okay?"
"Uh..." Crystal uttered, trying to think what to say. "I...think so. But...Cham though..."
That was then, Kurogiri materialized into existence in the bar, and one by one, the henchmen, plus Hārē, and Joker, came out of him.
Joker, still using Mount Lady as a shield, released her, letting her plop on the floor harshly. His stomach wound is still bleeding.
"Shit...Shit!" Thermal said, a look of disbelief on his face, his expression noticeable even with his visor covering his eyes.
"I can't believe it..." Razor said in shock.
"Damn..." Rubber murmured, a little lost in thought.
"Holy cow..." Whip mumbled as well, not believing it.
"..." Turtle lowered his head in respect for his fallen comrade.
Hārē stood there, a little conflicted about it all.
Hacker stood there silently...unsure how to proceed.
...Joker stood there in silence, bleeding from his wound...
...Everyone was silent...
...Until Kurogiri said, "You lost a comrade."
...They all kept silent...
"...I for one, don't feel sorry for either one of you," Kurogiri told them.
All Might stood there, looking at the Joker and his minions as he gave out a frown at them, "I for one agree."
Kurogiri glanced at All Might. "...It seems we both can agree on that."
Shigaraki decided to take a crack at them as he said with a scowl, "Yes, was it all worth it? You got yourself injured, one of your men is probably dead, and your pride is probably broken! How can you think you can succeed in your goal when you can't even know when to quit while you're ahead!? Even I would know that!"
...Joker, getting his left hand to cover up the slice wound he has, walked over to a chair...he plopped down on it as he sat on the chair, his stomach still bleeding.
Sneering, Shigaraki kept going, "You were feeling so overconfident in your so-called plan that it cost the life of one of your own! You know, I really thought you were going to succeed in this whole thing, even after Endeavor was killed by you! But you had to keep going! It's your fault you're in this mess, you know!? You're injured, one of your henchmen is dead, and now you have a bigger target on your back! Was this all worth it!? Was killing All For One worth it after the loss!? You're the real joke! You should've let the real professionals handle the anarchy and chaos here! You should-"
BANG!
CR-CRAAACKLE!
The henchman, plus Hārē, all were startled, looking over at their Boss. Kurogiri also looked surprised, while All Might looked shocked.
Twice, Toga, and Spinner flinched, Toga yelping, while Twice and Spinner froze at the action Joker did. Twitch...just kept staring at the TV...
Above the four former League of Villains, Joker aimed his gun at the television that was playing the program, shooting it and destroying the screen of the TV, making it be unviewable.
...Shigaraki went silent...
...Joker was aiming the gun at the TV without even looking...he raised his head up and looked at Shigaraki...his eyes looking cold as they could be.
"...Shut your mouth, kid," Joker seethed.
...Shigaraki, the other three League Villains, Kurogiri, and All Might all looked at Joker, speechless.
Hārē then spoke feebly, "Mr. J?"
...Joker then said, "First of all, I sincerely apologize to my men. Cham was...a good friend not only to all of you, but to me as well."
The henchmen looked at their Boss...silent as they heard him out.
"...I take the blame for everything," Joker said, continuing as he lowered his gun hand, "It was my mistake...I was having too much fun...I would think Cham was having fun too..." he leaned his head back on the top of the chair, looking up at the ceiling. "...You remember what I told you boys, right? Before you all decided to join me?"
...The henchmen all glanced at each other and back at Joker.
Hacker then spoke, "Yeah...just have fun with no regrets."
"...Yes..." Joker narrowed his eyes at the ceiling, "I would think Cham wanted us to go on...having fun."
...The henchmen all stood there, letting that sink in...
"I never said this was going to be easy, boys...sometimes, there are bumps in the road. We might lose one of our own...but just know...that what we do, we always finish it with a smile...even in death."
...All was quiet...
"...Cham was a good subordinate...made me laugh at times too. He was a good stealther as well...being a chameleon can do that to you...he wished to be something like the main character of Metal Gear Solid...heh...I can safely say he was...he was so much better than that...we had good times playing online games together...he lived out his dream...his dream to live in a video game..." Joker then smiled...a rather fond smile. "...I'll miss him."
...All the henchmen stood there in silence...Hārē also standing there among them, getting all emotional as she teared up.
All Might looked at Joker in surprise. He didn't think this maniac had any sympathy at all...yet...he was expressing it...
...It was then that Thermal asked, "Um, hey, Boss? I, uh, I can seal that wound for you."
"Uh, yeah. I'll also stitch that up for you as well." Razor offered.
Turtle hummed in agreement as he nodded, "I'll look for antiseptics around here."
"...It's okay, Boss. We'll take care of ya," Hacker reassured after his quiet demeanor.
Hārē wiped some tears from her eyes with her hands as she sniffled, "Yeah. Don't worry, Mr/ J. We'll be there for ya."
Joker still had his head up, looking at the ceiling as he said, "Thank you all...how about after I get healed up, we'll have a drink for ol' Cham?"
Rubber nodded with a surprisingly tender smile, "Yeah...that sounds great."
"Definitely," Whip also chimed in.
Loco and Crystal both gave out fond smiles, the former saying, "Man...I'll really miss that little guy."
Twitch was still looking up at the broken TV. "...I like this show."
All Might, Kurogiri, Shigaraki, and the rest of the former League Villains all watched this interaction, stunned...
Joker lowered his head down and looked at Shigaraki with a cold stare.
"...You're lucky your head and brains aren't splattered against the wall. I was almost tempted to shoot you right then and there to prove a point...but I got more of a worse punishment for not only you, but your three lackeys as well."
...Shigaraki sat there in silence, realizing the situation he was in would cost him his life if he said anything.
The Clown then turned his cold stoned stare at All Might.
All Might stared directly in the eyes of Joker...into that cool as ice stare of his...
...His eyes...they...carry something...there's...no sympathy in them...only...only resolve...
"...Sit tight, All Might," Joker said with a small smirk, "Soon, the real fun begins..."
Hacker put his hand on his robotic knob of an ear, "Huh?" He stood there processing what was given to him.
"Hm?" Whip looked at Hacker, "What's up, Hack?"
"...Huh..." Hacker had his finger on his ear for a couple of seconds, and let go of it, saying, "Uh, we'll wait until you're all healed up, Boss, but...there's an encrypted message coming through from some group called...Humarise? It's trying to reach you and only you."
All Might turned to Hacker in shock and horror.
What!? Humarise!?
Even Shigaraki, Kurogiri, and the other Villains looked surprised.
Joker, though...just gave out another one of his infamous evil smiles.
"...Tell them to call me back, Hacker."
Back at the Studio
...It was quiet in the empty studio...
Skycrawler growled as he cursed, "Damn it!"
Hawks felt the same sentiment. However, he looked at Touya, who was still cradling his father...his deceased father.
The Great Endeavor was dead.
The Winged Hero just gazed at the burnt-looking young man, the sympathy and pity expressed in his eyes as he frowned.
"...Ryukyu. Go check up on Snipe to see if he's okay," Hawks told her.
Ryukyu glanced down at Hawks in her dragon form. While the audience hostages were saved, and she was grateful, she too was feeling despondent about failing to save any Heroes, whether it be Endeavor or Mount Lady. "...Right."
She turned around and flew out of the hole that she made in the studio.
Skycrawler gritted his teeth as he seethed, "Just...damn it! That bastard took Mount Lady with him! Now she's in danger! We should've done something!"
Hawks stood there for a moment, and sighed, telling Skycrawler, "I don't think there was anything that we could do. I think that maniac would've really pulled the trigger if we came any closer."
"Still..." Skycrawler muttered. He glanced at Mr. Compress, who was still tied up by Whip's rope, and looked back at Touya, aka Dabi, who was still holding the dead Enji. "...Well, at least we got the audience out safely...but man, talk about tragic."
"Yeah..." Hawks glanced down to think for a moment, until he looked up at Touya with the corpse of Enji in his arms. "...Skycrawler. Call in the rest of the force as well as the paramedics outside to gather on the scene."
"Huh?" Skycrawler uttered as he looked at Hawks. "Uh, okay, sure. But...what are you gonna do?"
"...Don't worry about me. I just...need to be alone..." Hawks said to him.
Blinking at that, Skycrawler looked at where Hawks was looking, at Touya and the limp and unmoving form of Endeavor. "...He was one of your most influential Heroes, huh?"
"...Yeah..." Hawks muttered.
"..." Skycrawler frowned at the sight of Touya looking down at his dead father. "...I don't know the whole story about Endeavor, but...I would think at this moment...he displayed some real True Heroism."
"...Yeah..." Hawks repeated, but his tone sounded a little choked.
"...I'll get the rest of the officers and paramedics onto the scene," Skycrawler told Hawks, and with that, he glided out of the studio.
...It was now quiet, with only Hawks, Dabi/Touya, and the tied-up Mr. Compress that were there...
...Hawks flapped his wings and jumped over the long distance to where Touya was. He landed next to him, carefully not wanting to startle him...but from how he reacted to one of Joker's henchmen pointing a gun at his head, he probably would think he was immune to that right now.
...Touya didn't react...he just stared down at his deceased father in his arms...
...The deceased Enji still held a peaceful smile on his face.
Hawks looked down at the older Todoroki son, wondering what he could say...anything to comfort him...
"...I'm sorry..." was all Hawks could simply say.
"..." Touya kneeled there, holding his dead father in silence, his face still a little bit in disbelief and shock.
"..." Hawks pursed his lips, feeling like he should have said more, but...this was also an emotional loss for him as well.
The great Endeavor...he's gone...his...his flame has been snuffed out...
"...I hated the man," Touya suddenly said.
Hawks, surprised that he said anything, snapped his attention to the man next to him.
"...I...I hated him..." Touya said again. "...From the time I was with him...I tried so hard to gain his approval...I kept going, trying to master my Quirk...to let him see that potential in me...I...I saw my own family fall apart because of him...I..." his mouth formed into a thin line as he seemed to not try to cry...which was impossible, since his tear ducts are gone, but he didn't care to correct himself at this point, "...I thought I was a failure...I thought he forgot about me...I thought...he forgot about...his family..."
...All was silent...silent as Hawks was hearing the young man's tale...
"...I don't know what to think anymore..." Touya admitted, "...I don't even know what to think of...my old man," his voice wavered at the end, "...I...I dedicated my life from that point to try to humiliate and end him...and it...it was all...f-for nothing..."
Hawks stood there, listening...just listening to this poor broken man's account...
"...Did you know that I killed people?" Touya asked Hawks, even though he didn't look at him, "Just to make it seem like it was my Dad's fault and that this Hero Society's way of keeping the peace was a joke? ..." His eyes narrowed in hatred as he said the word 'joke', "...Either way...I don't know how I can live with that on my shoulders...my Dad told me to 'live on'...but how can I? When...my reason to live...is gone?"
...Hawks frowned, unsure what to say to Touya at that point.
"...My...Dad...said he was...proud of me...I know what he meant at that time, but...how can he be proud of me now? How can I...be proud of myself, when...?" Touya faltered there.
...Hawks then said to him, "Whether you believe it or not, he was still your father...and...a father...a real father...would still love his children all the same...no matter how reserved they act, and no matter what that child has done..."
...Touya still stared down at his dead father...
...The Hero continued, "I may not know too much about your history as well as your father's, but...I would think what your father did...was an act of what a Hero really should be. As for what he said to you...I agree."
Touya's eyes widened in surprise, although he still didn't look at Hawks.
"...Live on...don't look for death...even if you feel broken inside, don't welcome it...that's about the best thing that you could do to offer your father right now...and I'm sure you don't want the Joker to win."
Eyes widened even further, and Touya's breath was caught in his throat.
"...Prove the Joker wrong," Hawks told him, his face solemn but his eyes holding a tender feel to them.
...Touya knelt there, his father still in his arms...
"...I don't know what's going to happen to you from here on in, but...I'll certainly fight for you to have at least a fair trial."
"..." Touya just kept looking down at his dead father...
Sensing the silence was good enough of a confirmation, Hawks just nodded back to him, letting this conversation end.
It was then, the officers and paramedics arrived...
From Snipe's Vantage Point
Ryukyu, now in her human form, knelt before Snipe, worried for him as she saw that one of Joker's henchmen grazed his eyes with a bullet.
"Snipe! My goodness, are you okay!?" Ruyukyu asked him in concern.
"Argh! I-I...I can't...shit! I can't see!" Snipe cursed.
Frowning at that information, Ryukyu helped him up, "Hold on, Snipe, we'll get you some medical attention."
"Ugh! Did...Did I least get the guy that was sneaking up on me!?"
Ryukyu glanced at the dead body of Cham, still leaving a puddle of blood underneath him. "I can safely assure you that you did."
"Rrgh! I can't believe that bastard blinded me!" Snipe grunted in pain, "Did any-...ugh! Did anybody get Joker and his gang!?"
"They all escaped," Ryukyu informed shamefaced and bitterly, "They took Mount Lady with them."
Snipe growled in both pain and anger, "DAMN IT!"
The Dragoon Hero couldn't help but agree...she turned her attention to Cham's lifeless body.
From where she is...she sees the smile on Cham's face.
Ryukyu couldn't help but look at that and feel...disturbed...
Why would he...be smiling? Even when being shot to death?
Upon hearing Snipe's pained grunts, Ryukyu quickly grabbed the police transceiver that was on her and called the paramedics, "I need some EMTs here, stat! Snipe is injured! Repeat, Snipe is injured!"
"Snipe!" Skycrawler exclaimed, flying over to where Ryukyu and Snipe were. Once he landed in front of them, he saw the damage inflicted on Snipe, the blood coming out of his eyes "Oh crap! Snipe, are you alright!?"
Gritting his teeth in pain, he said, "N-No! I may be...I think I've gone blind!"
"Oh man..." Skycrawler frowned in sympathy at this development.
"I got medics on the way!" Ryukyu advised.
Skycrawler nodded to her and looked back at Snipe, "Don't worry, Snipe, we'll get you some medical attention."
Turning to where Cham's dead body was, he could see the smile on his face.
Blinking at that, he got up and went over there, standing over the corpse.
Ryukyu turned to Snipe, "Just sit here for a while and wait here, okay?"
Snipe gave out a frantic nod, and Ryukyu went over to where Skycrawler was, standing over the dead body of Cham as well.
"...He's smiling," Skycrawler commented.
"Yes..." Ryukyu frowned, "...I wonder why?"
"..." Skycrawler also frowned, not giving an answer.
He died smiling even in death...would these other henchmen of Joker have done the same? Would that be...what Joker wanted them to do?
...It really was a truly disturbing thought...
- Back at UA -
Class 1-H
Izuku got up from his seat.
Mei, who was watching Izuku's phone, was startled at the sudden rise from Izuku.
Izuku, quickly putting his phone away in his pocket, began to dash away from his desk and to the exit of the classroom.
Mei blinked at this and said, "Hey, wait! Where are you going, Midoriya!?"
"I'll be back!" he simply said as he rushed out of the classroom.
Looking confused, Mei glanced at her other classmates, who also looked puzzled.
Class 1-A
...Everyone sat there in silence...
...Kaminari was the first to say something, "Dude..." he turned his attention away from the phone that Todoroki was holding, to the holder of the phone himself, "I'm...I'm sorry, man..."
Jirou also looked at Todoroki in sympathy, "Y-Yeah...we all are."
Kirishima was silent, turning his attention to Todoroki with a frown, also sympathetic.
Mina just looked at Todoroki, her face expressing true concern for the boy.
Todoroki...just stared down at the phone...unsure how to process all of this...his eyes were wet with tears.
"Todoroki?" said the voice of Ochako.
Ochako, Tsuyu, and Iida all came up to their friend.
"Todoroki...I-I'm sorry..." Iida said in his condolences.
"Yeah..." Tsuyu said, not finding the right words to say, but could only agree.
"Todoroki?" said the concerned voice of Momo, who got up from her seat and came over to her friend's desk next to her. She placed a hand on his shoulder to give him some comfort.
"..." Todoroki just kept staring at the phone screen...not saying anything...until a couple of tears ran down his face, letting him murmur, "He...Joker...he's going to pay for this."
Then, the classroom door opened.
Todoroki and the others, as well as the other classmates, looked over at who opened the door.
...It was Midoriya.
Izuku came in, his eyes focused on Todoroki...
...Todoroki looked at Midoriya...
...Midoriya rushed over to where Todoroki's seat was.
Once he got to his desk, Midoriya stopped in front of him, looking at him with the most concern out of all of them.
"...Todoroki," Midoriya started, "Are...I mean...I..." he glanced at the floor, "...I'm sorry...I'm so sorry. You didn't...I mean...I'm just...I'm so sorry..."
...Todoroki stared at Midoriya...
"...I...I just..." Todoroki began to say, his expression full of uncertainty, "...I just want to make the Joker pay."
...Midoriya frowned, nodding to that.
"...We will," he said to his friend.
Meanwhile, the two new students both watched this scene.
Shinso looked at Midoriya, a little bit in surprise.
Hey...it's that Midoriya kid...
Ibara also looked at Midoriya and Todoroki with sympathy.
That poor Todoroki student...the one named Midoriya is a very good friend to him.
And then there was Momo...who looked at her boyfriend with such awe and admiration, going all this way to comfort their friend.
Izuku...
...It was all quiet from there...
Nedzu's Office
Nedzu sat in his little chair, his paws together as he sat there thinking...all of the Hero Teachers of UA surrounding him as they watched the TV program come to an end...
...Power Loader was the first to say, "I...I sure hope Snipe's alright..."
"Yeah..." Midnight said, worried, "It...It didn't go exactly according to plan there."
Vlad King hummed in agreement, lowering his head as he silently hoped his co-worker was hurt too bad.
Thirteen was silent...until she said to Nedzu, "Principal Nedzu, Joker and his crew seemed to have captured Mount Lady as well."
"...Yes. That I saw..." Nedzu said in an almost uncharacteristic somber calm.
Eraserhead and Present Mic stood there, the latter looking more worried by the second as the former looked on at the TV screen, even when the program was cut off, his face expressing uncertain dread.
"...Principal Nedzu, I think it's obvious now that this has gotten completely dire," Aizawa told him, hoping he knows the gravity of this situation.
"...I know," Nedzu said in a monotone.
...The Heroes all stood there, quiet as they processed all of this, and waiting for some reaction from Nedzu...
...When a minute passed, Present Mic asked Nedzu, "Principal Nedzu, what should we do now?"
"...We need to give the Hero Students their provisional hero licenses. We shall give them their written tests today. Then, tomorrow, we will let them do the physical simulation tests privately on our school grounds. Right now, we need those licenses to be given to them as fast as we can. Once the Commission calls in, we'll schedule the Provisional Hero License Exam on Thursday. We shall set it in here at UA. And I will remind everyone, this will be kept secret. No one shall hear any of this, not their parents nor anyone in the public. We shall all initiate an emergency exam at all the Hero Schools. Once that Thursday has passed, we'll give them their licenses on Friday...and we will find Joker and his men, and bring them down," Nedzu told them all.
Aizawa then asked Nedzu, "How do you know the Commission will call? What would the Commission's reaction be in all of this?"
"...If I know the Commission, then they are in dire need of other Heroes after losing some of their own. They will need new Heroes...even if they are just teenagers," Nedzu solemnly reminded, "I would think the Commission would be very much desperate at this point on recruiting some new talents."
Recovery Girl stood there in silence...until she spoke her mind, "I don't like this."
"If I'm being honest, neither do I, Recovery Girl," Nedzu said, narrowing his beady eyes at the TV screen, which had the "off air" signal, "But desperate times mean desperate measures."
"..." Recovery Girl said nothing as she lowered her head in thought about all of the wild happenings that were going on right now.
Nedzu then said to them all, "Everyone. Go back to your classes. Tell the students what we're planning to do. Make them be prepared for this. And remind them that this is all to be kept secret to anyone that they are close to, their friends, their parents, their whole families. Only the Hero Students and the staff of each Hero School will know of this dire situation at hand."
...They all stood there, letting this weigh down on them.
"...And Eraserhead?" Nedzu said to Aizawa.
"Hm? Yes, sir?" Aizawa said.
"...Comfort Todoroki. I know you're not one for emotions, but...do as much as you can."
"...Of course," Aizawa nodded.
Nedzu nodded in return.
The rest of the teachers and staff of UA felt the melancholy in the room...they, as well as Aizawa, all then proceeded to walk out of Nedzu's office.
That left Nedzu alone in the room...
Sitting there, he continued to look at the TV screen...
...I would think the Commission would be calling right...about...now.
...Sure enough, his phone on his desk rang. Getting his paw out to reach for it, he grabbed it and answered the call.
"Yes? Hello?"
"This is the President of the Hero Public Safety Commission speaking. Nedzu?"
"This is he."
"Hm. I'm certain you've seen what has happened on television today?"
"Yes…that I have."
"I will say, I'm sorry that one of your staff members has been injured during the scuffle."
Well...at least she has some sort of a heart.
"I appreciate the sentiment. But I would think that's not why you're calling me, now, is it?"
"Hm...you probably know that the situation has gotten serious as of late."
"Indeed, it has."
"We lost Heroes, both minor and higher-up, including the No. 1 and 2 Heroes."
"That I'm well-aware."
"The Joker has become enemy number one at this point…I may even be so bold as to say that he's a bigger threat than All For One."
"All For One was a threat."
"Exactly. Which is why we need to get new Heroes. New ones that can take care of this threat once and for all."
"Are you suggesting holding a Provisional Hero License Exam so soon?"
"...Hm. I guess it's true then. Nothing gets past you."
"Either way, I agree with the suggestion. How do you feel about starting sooner this week? Around Thursday even?
"That will be ideal. I would think you want it to be set in your school?"
"If it's convenient, then that would also be ideal. I think we should set this exam up immediately."
"Yes. We will contact all the other Hero Schools around here to participate in the meantime. Until then, Nedzu, prepare your Hero students for what's coming."
"That I will," Nedzu said with resolve.
Back at Class 1-A, Outside of the Classroom
As soon as Izuku left the classroom after comforting Todoroki, he heard a familiar voice.
"Izuku!"
The boy turned around to see that the voice...belonged to Momo. She exited the classroom and closed the door behind her, coming up to him.
"Momo?" Izuku said, curious as to what she had to say.
Once she came up to her boyfriend, Momo said to him, "Izuku! I...I just want to say that it was really kind of you to comfort Todoroki."
Izuku smiled at her, "Hey, it's no problem. Todoroki is our friend after all."
"Yes, of course," Momo nodded with a smile of her own.
...They stood there, looking at each other...
"...I..." Momo was about to say, but faltered.
"Hm?" Izuku blinked, "Um...what's wrong, Momo?"
"...I just...I just miss you here in class," Momo admitted with a sad frown, "It's...going to be different without you."
Izuku gave her a comforting smile. "Hey, I'll still be in school. And I got your number, so we can talk all we want, even texting each other while in school."
"...Right," Momo nodded with a reassured smile. "That's right. But...it's just..."
The verdant-haired boy gave her a concerned look, "What's the matter, Momo?"
"...It's just that you said you'll make the Joker pay, but..." A thoughtful pause stopped Momo from saying more. She turned around at the door to her classroom and looked behind her in the hall. Seeing that they are alone, she came up to him a little closer and whispered so no one could hear, "Izuku, while you are being trained by Oguro-sensei, I...I don't know if just your raw strength could be enough to face Joker and his men."
"Huh?" Izuku looked confused.
"Well, Todoroki's brother, the one named Dabi, tried to face Joker's men without his Quirk, but he was still overwhelmed..." Momo's expression then turned shame-faced as she said, "I-I'm sorry, Izuku, I'm not saying that you can't beat them, I'm just..." she then paused once more and thought of something to consider, "...Wait..." she looked at Izuku with determination in her eyes, "Izuku, I think I can help you!"
Izuku blinked again, puzzled but curious, "Y-You can?"
"Yes! My family's company delves into support gear! I can try to create, well, not by my Quirk, but by pen and hand a blueprint of what you can use when you fight Joker and his men! Maybe a suit of some kind!"
...That sparked an idea in Izuku.
"Wait...you said you can do a 'blueprint'?" Izuku asked her, eyes widened as he couldn't believe his luck, and thanked God for such an awesome girlfriend.
"Yes!" Momo nodded with a smile, "I can think up some great weapons and custom attributes for your suit!"
"...Momo, I want you to meet someone after school," Izuku said with a big grin.
Back at the Bar
Once Razor finished stitching up Joker's sliced stomach wound, Thermal used his heat vision to seal up the wound once it was closed.
After Thermal used the last of his heat vision on the last bit of the cut, he told his Boss, "Okay, Boss. Try to stand up."
Joker stood up, his shirt and purple jacket off, exposing his pale skin and his medium build but lanky physique. Taking a deep breath, he got his shirt and put it back on. Once he had done that, he slipped back on the purple jacket he wore, adjusting it as he put it on. Craning his neck around to get the kinks out of his neck, Joker patted Thermal's shoulder and told him, "Good work, Thermal." He then turned to Razor, "And thank you for the stitch-up, Razor."
"No prob, Boss," Thermal nodded with a slight smile.
"Yeah, anytime, Boss," Razor nodded as well with a slight grin.
Nodding back to them, Joker told everyone else who helped him out with his injury, "Thank you as well, Turtle and Hacker, for finding the antiseptics as well."
"Anytime, Boss," Turtle said with an unusually warm smile.
"Of course, Boss," Hacker said with a nod and a smile.
"Hm..." Joker then turned his attention to Kurogiri and asked him, "Kurogiri, please be a good sir and give me and my men a nice shot of whiskey, will you? Oh, and don't serve Twitch any, he's very sober."
Kurogiri just stood there...not moving...
Hacker glared at him and positioned his fingers to snap, "Do it."
"..." Kurogiri growled and went over to the bar. He served whiskey in all ten shot glasses, and the henchmen were getting their drinks on the counter.
Joker was the last to get his as he approached the bar counter. He turned around to face his lackeys and raised his glass in the air.
"...To our good comrade, Cham," Joker declared.
The henchmen all raised their glasses, each of them with somber expressions.
Joker then raised his glass to his lips and drank the whiskey in one gulp. The others did this as well. Twitch was just twitching near the table where All Might and the other hostages were.
All Might, Shigaraki, Twice, Toga, and Spinner all looked on at this melancholy gathering...the very former looked at Joker's posture, staring at the madman, wondering if he's truly sympathetic to losing a comrade.
From the way he's playing with his shot glass, twirling it around without a care in the world...leaning back against the bar counter with one hand propping him...and seeing his face devoid of emotion...
"...You don't care," All Might said.
The henchmen looked at All Might. Shigaraki, Kurogiri, and the other League Villains looked at All Might. Twitch was just staring off into space, twitching.
Joker...turned his attention to All Might.
"...I beg your pardon?" Joker asked All Might.
All Might got up from the floor and stood there, still wrapped up in Whip's decaying whip-rope. His face expressed disgust and loathing with gritted teeth.
"You don't care about your comrade..." he seethed.
...Joker just stared at him, not saying anything.
One of his henchmen, Loco, spoke out in anger, "Hey, shut up, All Crap! We're having a moment right now!"
"Yeah, who are you to say that we and our Boss don't care about one of our own!?" Rubber exclaimed angrily.
"I have every right to cut ya, Skinny!" Razor said with a scowl as he had his hands out, spreading his razor fingers.
"Hell, I might even burn you for the heck of it, ya little shit!" Thermal said with a disgusted sneer as he held onto his visor with his fingers, itching to lift it up to fry him with his eyes.
"Hey," Hacker said with a glare, raising his hand to aim a gun at All Might's head, "Apologize right now."
All Might turned to Hacker and all the other henchmen, "Don't you see!? He's just using all of you! Whatever he promised you, it's all for naught! Why would you follow a madman like him!? Some of you said you all had mundane jobs, but would you really throw that all away for a clown that promises you just chaos!? Whatever he said is all just a lie! He-"
WHAM!
All Might was hit across the face...with Hārē's fist, which turned into a blunt hard knob.
Blood came out of All Might's mouth as he was struck.
Then, Hārē swung another punch at All Might's face, letting her hand be a blunt hard knob as well.
WHAM!
All Might was struck on the other side of his face, going down to his left side on the floor with a plop! More blood came out of his mouth once he was struck again.
Shigaraki, Kurogiri, and the other League Villains all gasped, shocked at the sudden lunge.
The woman of Joker's crew then stood there, letting her fists hang at her sides as she breathed heavily, the breathing sounding feral and angry.
"Don't...ever...call my Puddin'...a liar!"
"Ergh..." All Might winced in pain.
"You hear me!?" Hārē screamed at the downed Hero, "My Mr. J had been through so much! He had to deal with all of society and their bullshit throughout his entire life! You don't know a damn thing about Mr. J! What do you, a freaking has-been, know about living in his shoes!? By the way, if you're such a big Hero, then why don't you save the people that matter, LIKE MY PUDDIN!?"
All Might grunted at the pain, trying to get up from the hits that were inflicted on him, but to no avail.
"You're all just the same...you act all high and mighty, thinking you're doing the good work of saving people, but when it comes to the actual people with dreams of being a Hero, you tell them the cold hard truth. That people with no powers can't be Heroes. And whatever you got with that Sylph bitch, you might as well be worse than her," Hārē said to the downed All Might.
Eyes widened, All Might paused as he heard his mentor's Hero name...but he also paid attention to what Hārē said.
"...What..." All Might turned his head to Hārē, "...What is your affiliation with Sylph?"
Sneering, Hārē glared down at him, "She used to be a Hero of mine! Someone that I looked up to! But that all changed when I heard about my Mr. J's tragic-"
"HĀRĒ!" exclaimed Joker.
The woman jumped and turned around to look at her Boss with blinking, confused eyes, "Uh, y-yes, Mr. J?"
Joker...gave her some kind of look...a dull-looking expression...but he also looked like he was telling hernot tosay anything.
"... I'd rather you don't mention anything about that moment in my life," Joker told her.
"...Oh. O-Of course! S-Sorry, Puddin', I was just-"
"No, no, it's alright dear," Joker reassured her, "I just...don't want to remember that."
"Oh sure! Of course! I-I apologize, Mr. J.! Of course you don't want to hear what she had to say!"
"...Right," Joker said with a simple smile, "Now, let me say something to All Might for a moment, shall I, Hārē?"
"Um, yes sir!" Hārē nodded with a sweet smile. She moved out of the way to let Joker through.
Joker nodded with the same smile and walked over to the downed All Might. Once he was close, he carefully knelt down and grabbed a portion of the whip-rope, pulled it, and let him stare at him at his eye level. All Might just glared at him, the blood dripping out of his mouth.
"...You know, I really think you need your priorities straight, All Might," Joker said, his smile gone as it was replaced by a serious frown, "Of course I care about my crew! We share laughs all the time, we cause a little chaos, and we're all like one big happy family, too! I mean, I'm a little insulted, really! To think that you think that I don't care for my own colleagues! Well, let me tell you something, All Clout!"
All Might's face morphed to one of slight uncertainty, maybe even shame. For an instant, he began to think that he was actually wrong...maybe Joker actually did care...maybe...maybe Joker actually has some form of...
...But then, Joker smiled again...and his eyes said it all...
You're right.
...Before All Might could say anything, Joker punched him in the stomach.
"BLEAGH!" All Might splurted blood out of his mouth from the punch.
Joker whispered to his ear, "Next time, shut your mouth."
And with that, Joker pushed him back, letting All Might fall on his back.
"UGH!" All Might exclaimed.
Joker stood up and walked over to Hacker, saying, "Hacker! Try to call back this Humarise that's been trying to oh-so-diligently contact me!"
Hacker looked at his Boss with a blink, "Oh, uh, now?"
"Yes, my good man! From what I gathered, it sounds like an urgent call! Call them back, please?"
"Uh...sure," Hacker pressed his ear and let it ring...soon, he said, "Okay, they're on! Telephone mode activated."
"Thanks, Hack. Hello? Anyone there?"
Then, there was a voice...one with a European accent...
"Hello? Is this the Joker?"
"Why yes, it is! How may I help you?"
"I'm calling from the country of Otheon. One of my branches in Tokyo saw the program you performed in. I heard everything about what has happened so far from them, to this Shie Hassakai, to All Might, and to All For One."
"Ooooh, really? Why, it must be quite late over there! Well, what can I do for you at this fine hour in Japan, or better yet, at the early hours of the morning in Otheon, Mister..."
"Call me Flect. Flect Turn."
"Alrighty then, Flect, ol' boy! May I also ask what this Humarise organization is all about, by the way?"
"Indeed, you can. As I said before, I know of your exploits. You...have certainly impressed me. You have done all of this, even without a Quirk...that is truly admirable."
"Aww, stop."
"They truly are. As for what Humarise stands for...have you heard of the Quirk Singularity Doomsday Theory?"
"Hmm...I may have heard of that somewhere before...will you enlighten me?" Joker said with a wicked grin.
UA Grounds, After School
After the long day of written tests and hearing that they'll be doing their Provisional Hero License Exam soon in the coming week, Izuku and Momo were walking down the halls of UA to go to Class 1-H.
"So her name is...Hatsume Mei?" Momo asked her boyfriend.
"Yeah," Izuku nodded, "You know that girl in the Sports Festival, right? The one who used all her gadgets to get across the track and whatnot?"
"Oh...I think I do," Momo looked thoughtful as she tried to remember this Hatsume.
"Don't worry, you'll know when you see her. But, uh, just to warn you, she says some...well, she says some very interesting stuff."
"Oh? What kind of stuff?"
"...Just don't be shocked by what she says at times."
Confused by that statement, Momo just decided to see for herself what this Hatsume will entail.
As soon as they walked over to the Class 1-H door, Izuku opened the door for Momo like a gentleman, and they entered the classroom.
When Izuku saw that Hatsume was leaning in her seat, working on some gadget on her table, he spoke up, "Hey, Hatsume! We're here!"
Startled, Hatsume turned her whole body to face Izuku and Momo. Blinking at Izuku, she smiled and said, "Hey! Midoriya! You ready to make a baby!?"
"...Wh-What?" Momo said with a red blush on her face, eyes widened as she looked shocked.
"Uh...that's...what I'm talking about," Izuku sweatdropped. He turned to Momo and quickly said, "But really, she means gadgets!"
"Gad...gets?" Momo just blinked as what Izuku told her was starting to make some sort of sense, "Oh...uh, okay..."
"Yeah..." Izuku directed her attention to Hatsume, "And, uh, well, not...yet?" He looked a little sheepish, rubbing the back of his head, "Actually, I want to introduce you to my girlfriend, Momo Yaoyorozu! She's from Class 1-A, the class I used to go to, and she has such an amazing Quirk! Creation is what it is! She can create anything out of her! However, she wastes lipids, so she needs to, uh...consume as much as possible! But either way, she has something that I think you can do!"
"Oh? Well, show it to me!" Hatsume said to them.
Izuku turned to Momo and nodded to his girlfriend, who got the blueprints out of her bookbag and showed them to Mei on her table.
"This is a suit that I was thinking Izuku could wear for...um, 'protection'," Momo said discreetly.
"Hmm..." Mei looked at these blueprints for a moment...until she said, "I think I could do something like this!"
"You can!?" Izuku asked, hopeful.
Momo also smiled, happy to know that the blueprints were readable.
"Yep! Although...not here," Hatsume told them.
"Huh?" Izuku and Momo said in unison.
"Wh-What do you mean?" Momo asked her.
"Well, I could make it at home, but I might need parts from UA to do so. And UA just doesn't give mechanical parts to anyone. Also, if I made it here, I don't know what the staff of UA would say," Mei looked at Izuku, "I mean, you said you still want to be a Hero, right? Just not in the 'Heroic' way, correct?"
"Well, yeah, but..." Izuku felt a little crestfallen, "...So...we're kind of stuck at square one then?"
"Sorry, Midoriya, but it kind of looks like we are," Mei shrugged sympathetically, "But hey! I can make weapons for ya at least! Or, maybe your gal pal can make the stuff that I can make the suit with!"
"Oh, I don't know if I can do that," Momo was swift to say, "As much as I want to help Izuku, that would take a lot of lipids, and...I would be malnourished. And although my family owns a support gear company, I just can't straight up ask my parents if I could borrow some parts to build a suit. They would be suspicious, and I don't know how they'll react to you being a...well, you know," she said to Izuku.
"Oh...well, yeah, then, sorry Midoriya, I think we're kind of stuck right now," Mei said again with a frown.
"Oh..." Izuku looked down in disappointment.
Momo looked at her boyfriend and felt his disappointment. Trying to cheer him up, she said, "Hey, don't worry about it, Izuku! I'm certain we'll get something going with this suit! In the meantime, I think you need to tell Oguro-sensei about this suit idea!"
"..." Izuku looked at his girlfriend with a smile, "You're the best, Momo."
Momo smiled as well, her cheeks red.
"But yeah...I think right now, I just need to keep on training with Oguro-sensei. The rest will come later...I just hope by some miracle, we get some kind of resources for this suit," Izuku says, looking thoughtful.
Meanwhile...in the Air on a Private Jet
A man with brown short hair and glasses sat in his seat, while a blonde girl with glasses was sitting across from him.
The man sat there looking out the window as he was deep in thought.
All Might...I hope you're alright...I can't believe this was going on in Japan while I was at I-Island...
"Dad?"
The man looked at the girl, his daughter, "Yes, Sweetheart?"
The girl looked out the window also, quiet for a moment...
"...Will Uncle All Might be alright?" the girl asked as she looked at her father, her face expressing concern.
"...I have to be honest, Melissa...I don't know," the man said, "But we will do anything in our strength to help out as best as we can."
"...Right," Melissa looked unsure about everything...but she had to be strong. They have to be strong. For Uncle All Might...
Don't worry, Uncle Toshi...we're gonna be there to help...
Okay! I have now finished this chapter! :D
But yeah, surprise surprise! Tell me what you all think! I want to get this out as soon as I can, so I may edit this again in case it all looks rushed or something. XP But I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Tell me how I did with a review! And leave a fave and follow if you all like it! :D
Thank you all for reading this far into the story! I'll surely be able to update more chapters as I go along! Until next time, keep on rocking everybody! :)
-TSP