Chapter Text
"I'm home," Izuku announced as he entered the apartment, after what had felt like an eternity at UA.
"Welcome home, dear," Inko said to him. "Dinner will be ready in a few hours."
"Thanks, Mom," Izuku replied.
Eri knew that her big brother had been upset ever since he'd come back from that school camp, even though he still smiled at her. The smiles didn't reach his eyes the way they had before, and they had a strained look, like he was trying too hard. The way he moved reminded her of how some of Overhaul's men would sometimes; like he had all this extra energy from being upset and didn't know what to do with it, so he went too fast sometimes.
She had been happy at first when he'd come home from camp early, but then Mama Inko had told her that something bad had happened there, and Yaoyorozu had been taken by villains.
Eri didn't know Yaoyorozu very well, but she'd been nice to her when she'd come over and had made Eri toys, including her most favorite doll of her big brother in his hero costume. More importantly, she made big brother happy, so Eri really hoped that the villains who had Yaoyorozu right now weren't doing the kind of things to her that Overhaul had done to Eri.
Somehow, Eri didn't think it would be a good idea to say that to her big brother, though.
She watched as he sat down on the couch and turned on the news, but he didn't really seem to be watching the TV.
Making up her mind, Eri got up onto the couch herself, then moved to get into big brother's lap.
She wouldn't have dared to try anything like this with one of Overhaul's men. Eri never tried to sit in their laps, of course, but she tried to avoid getting their attention at all when she saw they had that angry energy to their movements, knowing how quickly and easily it could get turned on her. But with big brother, she knew he would never hurt her.
Izuku automatically moved to pull her onto his lap. He was a lot more solid than Mama Inko, but he was just as warm, and she always felt safe when he put his arms around her. Nobody could possibly hurt her when Izuku was there, not even Overhaul.
"Big brother?"
He blinked. "Yes, Eri?"
"I'm sorry about Yaoyorozu," she said softly. "I'm sure she'll be okay, though! You're always talking about how smart and strong she is!"
Izuku blinked again, then his grip on Eri tightened a little bit, but not nearly so much that it hurt. "Thank you, Eri," he said softly.
"If it helps, you can borrow the dolls she made for me," the white haired child offered. "To remind you of her." She added quietly.
Izuku's eyes got all teary. "Thank you, Eri," he said, sniffing. "That means a lot to me, but you can keep them."
"Okay," she replied. "Is...is there anything I can do to help?"
"You're doing it right now," Izuku said, which Eri didn't really understand. "But if I think of anything else, I'll let you know."
"Promise?"
"Promise," he nodded.
They sat like that for a while, big brother holding her tightly and Eri just hoping it was making him feel a little better.
Eri was starting to wonder if dinnertime was soon when that green ring that Izuku sometimes wore around the apartment blinked, shining green light out for a second.
He tensed, then gently set Eri down on the couch next to himself. She didn't know why, but he seemed different than before, less sad.
"Excuse me, Eri," he said. "My after school job is calling me."
The villain who'd intercepted Momo's escape had quickly located the unconscious members of the League, growing some sort of energy tendrils from his back and using them to pick them up and place them into their beds without ever releasing his grip on the UA student, who could only wonder how the man could use a paralysis Quirk and that Quirk as well.
Unless...was he somehow involved with the Nomu creature and its apparent ability to gain a new Quirk after every battle? Did this man actually have multiple Quirks?
He deposited her back in the chair where the League had been keeping her, his tendril arms tying her up, then finally he released her, the effect of the paralysis Quirk abruptly ceasing.
"Ugh," she grunted.
"Before we begin, Ms. Yaoyorozu, let me just say that I won't be holding your escape attempt against you," the villain said. "In fact, I confess I'm quite impressed by how close you came to succeeding."
"Very magnanimous of you," Momo said sardonically. "But you have me at a disadvantage, as you clearly know who I am. I take it you're Shigaraki's mysterious Sensei?"
"Indeed," the villain agreed. "But most people refer to me by the name of my Quirk: All for One."
"All for One?" she echoed. For some reason, the name seemed very ominous.
"Indeed," the villain nodded. "It's so much more dignified than 'the Quirk Thief.' "
"The Quirk Thief?!" she exclaimed. Momo had heard rumors of such before, but they had been tales akin to those of the boogeyman or ghosts: something children used to scare each other, not a threat to be taken seriously. "Wait, does that mean...?"
He nodded. "Yes, my Quirk gives me the ability to take Quirks from people, and give them to others, if I so desire."
Momo's eyes widened in horror, and she felt like her chest was suddenly full of ice water. Was he going to take Creation from her? What would become of her if she lost the Quirk she had spent countless hours across her life studying and training to master? She wasn't like Izuku; despite what he might claim, she wasn't so amazing that she could be a hero without her Quirk. She needed Creation! Even if she didn't, it had been with her for almost as long as she could remember. It was such an integral part of her, that the thought of having it ripped away was nothing short of terrifying.
"Relax, Ms. Yaoyorozu, I have no intention of taking your Quirk away from you," All for One said.
It took all of Momo's willpower not to sag in relief.
"As mighty as Creation potentially is, it's obvious that it needs to be paired with an especially keen mind in order to reach that potential," All for One said. "Young Tomura doesn't have the correct disposition, and while I potentially could use it, my efforts are better spent elsewhere."
"Then why did you go to all the trouble of abducting me?" she asked.
"That power of yours is completely wasted on a hero," the villain said.
"What?" she frowned.
"I can only imagine how careful you need to be with Creation to avoid causing damage, how many things are restricted to you because of the path you've chosen," All for One said. "Whereas, if you were a villain, those restrictions would simply vanish. You could so easily be one of the greats. The world would tremble at a villain who could create a nuclear device or nerve gas on demand. Even if you wanted to avoid such violence, you could still wreck so much devastation from the safety and comfort of your headquarters. Flooding the country with counterfeit money that's indistinguishable from the real thing, single-handedly destroying the diamond market. Yes, Creation is truly wasted on a hero."
"Are you trying to recruit me?" Momo asked incredulously. "Why on earth do you think I'd ever join you?"
"Why indeed?" he chuckled. "I admit, you're quite different from the typical member of the League. Born to wealth, with an incredible Quirk and the intellect needed to properly wield it. No mutations that would cause you to face discrimination, and accepted to UA on recommendation. And your touched life has continued unabated since you've started there. Thanks to your performance in the Sports Festival, the country views you as a future top ten pro hero in waiting, an elite among elite students. Certainly not the type of person rejected by society who's usually vulnerable to my recruitment pitch."
"Then why did you pick me?" she asked. "For that matter, why not Izu—Midoriya? He was the one who won the festival, after all. I only came in second."
"His Quirk is powerful, but the fact that what he creates with it doesn't persist makes its utility limited," All for One practically scoffed. "I have acquired many Quirks that are formidable on the battlefield. Despite the spectacular displays his power is capable of, it's nothing special compared to yours."
You are so wrong about that, Momo thought, and despite how dire the situation was, she had to suppress a smirk.
"But we're getting away from the topic at hand," All for One said. "I'll be the first to admit that our superhuman society has given you no reason to reject it so far...but what if I told you that only a small change could make things very different?"
"What?" she frowned.
"One of the many Quirks I've acquired over the years is called 'What If?'," he said. "Allow me to demonstrate it." He added, placing one huge hand on the top of her head.
Momo gasped.
She knew that Tokoyami would be a tough opponent.
If she was allowed prep time or an environment she could potentially exploit, it would've been less of a problem, but the tournament format of the Sports Festival's final event didn't favor her and her Quirk.
(She ignored the odd tingle at the back of her mind that said the festival had happened weeks ago, and this match hadn't occurred.)
She'd just have to make the best of it and hope she was able to make a good showing of it. After Mineta hitching a ride with her in the obstacle race had resulted in her lackluster ranking there, and the embarrassing debacle with the cheerleader outfits, it was her last chance to make a good impression on any pro heroes who might be watching.
"And...begin!" Midnight shouted.
"Dark Shadow!" Tokoyami said, and immediately the inky Quirk spirit burst out from behind him and streaked toward her.
Not enough time! I can probably manage a shield! She thought, activating Creation, the metal barrier appearing on her arm.
(That felt...strangely basic for some reason. She had the nagging sense she should have more techniques up her sleeve.)
Dark Shadow slammed against her shield with shocking force, sending her staggering.
"Sorry, Yaoyorozu!" Dark Shadow said, even as he came in for another blow.
She raised her shield again, grimacing at the bone-jarring force the impact sent through her entire body.
She needed to do something! What did she have time to create that would at least slow down Dark Shadow?
Klang!
She released a grunt of pain as she was knocked even closer to the edge of the ring, but she barely registered it. Her mind was racing faster and faster as she tried to come up with a solution, but she could feel herself verging on sheer panic at this situation, brain threatening to stop running through potential solutions and just lock up instead.
I can't lose here! Not like this!
She had to at least make a decent showing of this! It was her debut to the wider world of professional heroics! She couldn't let it end like--!
Klang!
She released a yelp as the blow sent her flying, landing outside of the ring.
"Yaoyorozu is out of bounds!" Midnight announced. "Tokoyami advances to the next round!"
Momo returned to the real world with a gasp, her head spinning as she panted, taking in great lungfuls of air.
That vision had been so much more real than even the most vivid dream she'd ever had. She could recall the burning feeling of humiliation from knowing she'd done poorly for the whole world to see all too clearly. Indeed, despite it having ended, she found that she had to keep reminding herself of what had actually occurred. It felt like she was in danger of forgetting which version of the recent past was true if she wasn't careful about it.
"And that was just a taste of how poorly things could be going for you," All for One said, and though that black helmet covered his whole head, the smirk was clear in his voice. "Would you care to see a bit more?"
"N—!"
She didn't even get a single syllable out before he activated that Quirk again.
This time it was a rapid fire series of much briefer scenes she found herself plunged into, one after the other. Some of them felt less like being dropped into another version of her own life than just a brief blast of emotion.
She saw herself with what seemed like a painfully short list of offers for work studies but feeling a spark of hope when she saw Uwabami, a heroine who was fairly high in the pro hero charts, had extended her an offer.
Then she saw that spark of hope doused when Uwabami used her and Kendo as backup models in a TV commercial. She tried to convince herself that it was useful knowledge she was gaining, desperate for her work study to not be useless, but in her heart of hearts she knew she was merely being used as a pretty prop.
She saw herself having to endure what felt like an endless number of incidents of harassment from an unafraid Mineta, the feelings of disgust that those invoked becoming all too common a companion to her.
She remembered feeling so inadequate and foolish, not daring to even think about being able to help her classmates prep for the practical part of exams, and wondering why she had ever been confident in her abilities.
And she recalled feeling like a part of her that she was too restrained to let out wanting to scream that all UA seemed to be doing was exposing her weaknesses but not lifting a finger to help her address any of them.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Momo again awoke, returning to the existence where none of that had occurred.
Her heart was hammering again, and a stray part of her mind wondered if she'd develop some kind of cardiac issue if All for One kept this up for much longer.
"Not very pleasant, is it?" the ancient villain asked her.
She merely glared at him in response.
"Did you notice the thread that connected all of that?" All for One asked. "The proverbial horseshoe nail that separated you and that other version of you?"
"Yes," she answered softly.
In that other life, she – the other Momo – hadn't been close to Izuku. He was still in her class, and they were cordial enough, but she wasn't even sure she would've called them friends. They certainly weren't dating, and they hadn't shared lunch after the first day of school, where he'd asked her if he could do the write-up on her Quirk that had proven so invaluable to her.
"Indeed," All for One didn't quite chortle. "Your little boyfriend. If not for him, you'd suffer one setback and one embarrassment after another. UA and this superhuman society wouldn't do a thing to arrest your completely needless free fall."
"So what?" she snapped. "Because I'd be doing much worse without my boyfriend, you expect me to turn into a villain and make myself into his enemy? If that's your plan, you're not half as intelligent as you seem to believe!"
"Oh, Ms. Yaoyorozu, you misunderstand," All for One chuckled. "I'm under no illusions that what I've shown you will be sufficient to turn you to my side. This was merely the opening act."
"You will join me by the time I'm through," the villain said. "The only question is how much of what makes you you will be left by then."
The heiress did her best not to audibly swallow at the sheer level of menace in the villain's voice.
"Be honored. I rarely bother going to this level of effort to recruit someone."
He reached toward her with one large hand.
A knock at the back door of the bar interrupted him just before he made contact with her.
"Pizza delivery!" a voice called from outside.
All for One sighed. "Don't tell me one of those idiots ordered takeout for delivery to the bar..." he muttered to himself before turning his attention back to the hero student. "Don't try anything. I'll be back in a moment."
He stepped away, and Momo found her dizzied, confused mind racing, wondering if she dared to attempt escape, and how she'd even best do that.
She was nowhere near a conclusion when what sounded like an explosion rocked the entire building.
Earlier...
When his personal cell phone went off in the evening after business hours, All Might at first assumed it was Tsukauchi calling him, hopefully to let him know the police had managed to discover the whereabouts of the League.
A quick glance at the caller ID proved him wrong, and sunken blue eyes widened.
"Hello, young Midoriya," he greeted, masking his surprise.
On some level, he hadn't truly believed the young man's ring would actually succeed in tracking down young Yaoyorozu before the authorities did, or perhaps he'd just hoped he wouldn't. He had almost forgotten that he'd given the hero student his personal mobile number.
"Hello, All Might. My ring was able to locate Momo. I have her coordinates," he replied, voice tight and determined.
The veteran pro hero could hear the words that Midoriya wasn't saying all too well.
Help me save her right now, or I'll do it alone.
"I'm dropping a pin at my location" All Might said as he tapped at his phone. "Give me fifteen minutes. I'll meet you on the roof, and we'll go right away."
"Right, see you soon," Midoriya said, ending the call.
With a heavy sigh, the pro hero reached into his closet, withdrawing his hero costume, and traded his civilian attire for it, putting in his radio earpiece automatically out of habit.
He tried, as he always did, to ignore how comically oversized the garment was on his pathetically withered frame.
With more than 13 minutes left until Midoriya was due to arrive – pro heroes learned how to suit up quickly – All Might picked up his cell phone again and scrolled through his short list of contacts, selecting one of the oldest entries.
The call connected after a single ring.
"Toshi?"
"Hey, Dave," All Might replied, automatically mustering a weak smile despite the fact that his old friend couldn't see him. "Sorry about the late call; I'm sure it's the middle of the night there."
"Actually, I-Island is practically a stone's throw away from Japan right now, so we're in the same time zone as you at the moment. In fact, I was planning to reach out to ask if you'd be able to pop by for a visit while we're so close," David Shield said. "But you know I'm always happy to take your calls."
"Ah, yes, thank you."
"What's this about, Toshi?" Dave asked. "You sound...grim."
"I'm off on a mission that, well, it's a bit more dangerous than normal," All Might said. "I guess I just wanted to thank you for being my friend. I never had a lot of people I was close to, and I'm glad you were one of them. I know I'm not the easiest person to be friends with."
"Toshi, you're scaring me. What mission are you about to do?" Dave asked.
"It doesn't matter. The life of a pro hero is dangerous. Even the most mundane day can be the last," the number one hero said philosophically. "Make sure Melissa knows her Uncle Might is very proud of her, if it comes to that."
"Toshi—"
"Gotta go, Dave," All Might said, abruptly ending the call.
He left his cell phone on the coffee table, then headed up to the roof of the apartment building.
The old pro was unsurprised when he saw a green light in the dimming sky only ten minutes after his phone call with young Midoriya had concluded.
"Hi, All Might," the hero student said somewhat awkwardly as he touched down on the roof. "Are you all right?"
The number one hero supposed that even for those who knew about his weak form, seeing it was still a little jarring, if it was a rare occurrence for them.
He called upon One for All, shifting to his muscle form in a puff of steam. "Just fine!" he said. "Lead the way, young Midoriya!"
The hero student nodded, then quickly took back to the air. With a practiced motion, he pushed off the roof of the building, leaping skywards after the glowing green young man.
"So, where is the League holding her?" All Might asked.
"Kamino ward in Yokohama," Midoriya answered. "The coordinates correspond with the address of a bar downtown."
"I suppose it's better than the stereotypical abandoned warehouse," All Might grunted, trying for a little dry levity.
"I don't care where they are," Midoriya replied, the coiled tension of someone who'd had no outlet for his anxiety for far too long practically radiating off of him. "They could be on the Moon and they couldn't get away from me."
"Remember the plan, young Midoriya," All Might cautioned him, adjusting his path through the air with a super powered snap of his fingers, almost without thought. "I understand how much you must want to trade blows with the League right now, but once we find young Yaoyorozu, grab her and get out. Leave any remaining fighting to me. Getting her to safety is your top priority, and she wouldn't want you to risk damaging your future prospects so you can give the villains an extra emerald smash."
"I understand," Midoriya said. He clearly wasn't happy about it, but he understood.
All Might supposed invoking both young Yaoyorozu's safety and her likely desires had been a tad low of him, but he was determined to keep young Midoriya out of the crossfire tonight as much as possible.
It wasn't long before the two arrived at their destination, with the pro hero and the Green Lantern touching down on the rooftop of a building across the street.
The bar looked like any number of seedy establishments that existed all over the place, though it seemed a bit more well maintained than most of the ones All Might had seen in his days. There was no sign identifying the name of the place, though a currently dark neon sign of a beer mug, plus multiple posters advertising various types of liquor, made it obvious that it was a bar.
It was exactly the sort of hole in the wall that villains liked to frequent, though actually being based out of such a place was relatively unusual.
"How are we going to get in?" young Midoriya asked.
"Nothing like the direct approach," All Might replied.
With a single bound, he leaped from the rooftop to the street. Avoiding the front entrance, he ducked into a nearby alleyway, soon locating a side door. The towering pro knocked, rapping his knuckles smartly against the door. "Pizza delivery!" he shouted, doing his best to sound like anyone other than himself.
If the stakes were lower, he probably would've laughed at the way young Midoriya's eyes bugged out at the audacity.
There was a long moment of silence, nearly enough to make All Might conclude that the villains were either ignoring the knock or that nobody had heard him, but the sound of approaching footsteps from inside came just before he could decide to either break down the door or find another way in.
The door abruptly swung open, and hero and hero student found themselves face to face with a huge man in a dark suit, an elaborate helmet of black metal with an imprint meant to suggest a skull on him.
"You?!" both All Might and One for All exclaimed simultaneously, neither having expected the other one to be at the door.
The two old enemies might've stared at each other in shock for a couple more seconds, but the moment was interrupted when a green fist slammed into All for One's head with enough force to crumple the metal of the helmet and send the villain flying.
All for One crashed through a nearby wall, bits of wood and plaster joining him in the air, and went careening into the main bar room. The villain tried to scramble to his feet, but what seemed like thousands of jade tendrils wrapped around him as an emerald Best Jeanist lifted him off the ground and then hurled him into the shelves of alcohol against the far wall, bottles falling and glass shattering left and right in a cacophony of noise.
“You--!” the villain growled.
A green Mirko kicked All for One in the head, severely denting the already damaged helm of black metal the villain wore and sending him flying right into the viridian fist of Death Arms. A green Ingenium administered a roundhouse kick before All for One could hit the ground. The towering crime lord finally came for a landing in the center of the bar, knocking tables and chairs in all directions as he went.
However, the relentless assault that the Green Lantern was dealing out still didn’t end. A small cluster of glowing green Ectoplasms roughly pulled One for All to his feet, just in time for a jade Star and Stripe to deliver a titanic punch right to the villain’s gut.
For a long moment, All Might could only watch with a combination of amazement and shock as a hero student who hadn’t even finished his first year mercilessly waled on the most dangerous villain the world had ever known, luminous doppelgangers of pro heroes materializing and vanishing with amazing fluidity as they took turns assaulting their foe, not even giving him a moment to rally.
All Might had always viewed the final takedown of All for One as something he would need to do alone, or else something a future bearer of One for All would need to do alone, should he fail.
After all, while there were any number of powerful pro heroes who’d happily fight by his side against the ancient villain, bringing allies with him in the fight against All for One had always seemed too great of a risk. An already fearsome battle could easily become hopeless if All for One were to successfully steal the Quirk of a top pro hero in the middle of it; All Might could only shudder at the thought of his old nemesis suddenly having access to New Order, for instance.
Yet though he didn’t realize it, All for One couldn’t take young Midoriya’s power, because it wasn’t a Quirk. Not only that, but Midoriya’s power ring, combined with the young man’s incredible willpower and encyclopedic knowledge of pros, meant that he essentially brought a small army of heroes into battle with him, if he desired.
All without the slightest risk of allowing the infamous Quirk Thief to obtain a new power.
It looked like young Midoriya had had a weapon just as capable of taking down All for One as One for All all along.
Yet he was still a student, and All Might couldn’t allow one of his students to take this burden, especially not when another student was still in danger.
“Young Midoriya!” he shouted, even as a swarm of jade feathers from Green Hawks and glowing viridian rings from Green Majestic assaulted the villain. “Find Yaoyorozu and get to safety! Leave this scum to me!”
For a split second, defiance flashed in the hero student’s glowing green eyes. He finally had an outlet for all the anxiety that had been boiling inside of him since the camp, and he wanted to release it all upon the villain.
Then the moment passed, and he nodded. “Ring, lead me to Momo,” he commanded.
A string of green light burst forth from the hero student’s power ring, then darted into a doorway leading to the back. The Green Lantern quickly followed it, vanishing from view.
Despite the incredible assault he’d just endured, All for One started struggling to his feet almost immediately. The once skull-like helmet he wore was so mangled and lumpy that there was no trace of the previous design, and the internal mechanisms were releasing grinding, scraping noises. His once immaculate suit was torn, ripped, stained with spilled alcohol, and even burned in some places.
“Done doing your best ragdoll impression?” All Might taunted, clenching one massive fist.
“You made a mistake letting the boy go, All Might,” All for One growled.
“Let’s test that,” the number one hero said.
The bar really wasn’t that big, and Izuku moved fast through its cramped back hallways, or at least as fast as he could through the confined space. Still, the couple of seconds it took him to reach his destination felt much, much too long.
He burst into the room the ring led him to, which was little more than a biggish closet where Momo sat, bound to a chair.
“Izuku?!” she exclaimed, onyx eyes widening at the sight of him.
His girlfriend was still wearing the clothes she’d had on when she’d been abducted, which by now were dirty, damaged, and rumpled. It was clear she hadn’t been allowed a shower since then, and her hair was a complete mess.
Izuku didn't think she’d ever looked more beautiful than she did right now.
He almost moved immediately to free her, then halted. “Ring, confirm this is really Momo and not a duplicate created by a Quirk or something.”
“Confirmed.”
He felt like he could’ve collapsed with relief, if the situation wasn’t still so dangerous. Green blades suddenly appeared in the air and began to cut her bonds.
“Izuku, what are you doing here?” Momo asked, even as she used her Quirk to create her own blades from her limbs to help cut the ropes. “How are you here?”
“My ring found you. I came with All Might,” he answered.
"You came here with All Might?" she exclaimed.
“Long story,” he said as the ropes started falling off of her. “I’ll tell you all about it later. We need to get out of here.”
He pointed his ring against the far wall and released a blast of emerald light, punching through the side of the building and creating an impromptu exit into the alleyway outside.
“Let’s go,” he said, taking her hand as she rose to her feet, and the two dashed to freedom.
Outside in the alleyway, Izuku scooped her up into his arms in a princess carry and took to the air, darting over to the building where he and All Might had surveyed the bar from only a few minutes ago, coming in for a landing on the roof.
It was only when they were behind an AC unit and out of sight of anyone in the bar that Izuku allowed himself to even marginally relax.
“I am so happy to see you,” he said, taking hold of her shoulders. Only the fact that an incredibly dangerous villain was still nearby prevented him from pulling her into a kiss.
Momo chuckled weakly. “I’m very happy to see you, too, believe me,” she said. “But…you came with All Might? And he’s in there fighting that villain?”
“Yes,” Izuku said, gazing across the street. “He told me to grab you and get out, but…”
“You don’t want to just run away when he’s dealing with such a powerful enemy,” the raven-haired girl replied. “I understand that, but what are you planning to do? We don’t even have any way of knowing what’s going on in there.”
As if on cue, the bar erupted at that very moment, pieces of lumber, concrete, drywall and other debris exploding into the air and flying in all directions. Several cars that had been driving down the street in front of the bar swerved and crashed into each other as the drivers were seized with panic, car alarms blaring after the impacts. People on the sidewalks screamed and went running.
Izuku immediately created a dome of green light around himself and Momo, and several pieces of debris went bouncing off the emerald force field.
“…I stand corrected,” Momo said.
As the dust cleared, the two hero students saw that nothing but a crater in the ground remained where the bar had once stood. All for One hovered a few meters in the air, one of his arms mutated and grotesque with irregularly bulging muscle and rocky protrusions. All Might stood before him, not smiling for once. The number one hero’s costume was damaged in places and blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, but he stood defiant in the face of the villain.
And behind All for One lay the supine forms of the League.
“The other villains are unconscious?” Izuku frowned in confusion.
“I knocked them out,” Momo said. “I was about to make my escape when All for One happened to arrive.”
Izuku stared at her in amazement.
“Long story,” she said, mustering a tiny smile. “I’ll tell you about it later.”
The young Green Lantern would’ve laughed if the situation was less serious.
As they watched, jagged bolts of black energy arched out of All for One and slammed into Kurogiri. The misty villain didn’t wake, but his Quirk did activate, causing a swirling portal to consume him. In seconds, the other villains were sucked in, vanishing. The portal closed, revealing that Kurogiri was gone as well.
“My, my, taking the trouble to get your protégé and his lackies to safety,” All Might scoffed. “If I didn’t know better, I’d even think you cared about him.”
“Believe what you like, All Might,” All for One said. “Now, have at you!”
The two charged at each other, massive fists colliding.
The force of the impact was like a bomb had gone off. A shockwave burst out, sending more dust flying and causing Izuku and Momo to grit their teeth as it washed over them.
“How can such a powerful villain exist without everyone knowing about him?” Momo wondered aloud.
“I…I think All Might injured him, a long time ago,” Izuku said. “He’s probably been laying low and acting through other villains.”
“So the League is just a puppet of this villain,” Momo said. “It makes sense, I suppose. Shigaraki never seemed like the sort who could organize such a thing.”
As they watched, All Might and All for One continued to trade titanic blows, the neighboring buildings groaning under the duress of the constant shockwaves. In only minutes, all the civilians in the area quickly fled, while police started to arrive and hastily set up barricades to keep away potential onlookers who were no longer present.
Just as the battle seemed to be about to reach a crescendo, the villain said something to the number one hero, too quiet for the pair of students watching from across the street to hear. All Might recoiled as though struck by a blow more powerful than any that All for One had managed to land so far.
“What did he say?” Momo wondered.
“I don’t know,” Izuku said. “I’m pretty sure they know each other, but I have no idea what he could’ve…is All Might crying?”
“He is,” Momo whispered, seeing the tears trickling down the pro hero’s chiseled face.
Izuku tensed. If All Might had lost the will to fight, he couldn’t just sit here while the villain murdered his childhood hero.
He felt his girlfriend’s hand on his shoulder. “The villain has terrifying powers,” she said. “Please, don’t jump into this unless there’s absolutely no choice.”
Izuku opened his mouth to reply, though he didn’t really know what he wanted to say. Did he want to argue, to say that as a hero-in-training, he couldn’t just be a bystander until it was too late? Did he want to agree, to do as this amazing young woman who he cared about enormously wanted?
Ultimately, he never got the chance to say a word before All Might leaped at the villain once more, his assault more furious than ever.
“I’ve never seen All Might fight so…savagely,” Momo remarked with wide eyes.
“Neither have I,” Izuku agreed quietly. The number one hero was unleashing blows that would’ve no doubt killed less durable foes many times over, not letting up for even a moment. All for One repeatedly tried to counterattack, and several of his blows even landed, but he never came close to gaining control of the fight or even making it seem even again. “This definitely isn’t a normal battle for All Might.”
“United States of….SMASH!” the pro hero roared, unleashing one final, tremendous blow to All for One that shattered the villain’s helmet like it was made of glass and deepened the crater in the ground where the bar had once stood.
“I’ve heard of that move, but I’ve never seen it,” Izuku whispered, even as he automatically created another bubble of green light to protect himself and Momo from the shockwave. Despite everything, he couldn’t keep the fanboy awe out of his voice. “Supposedly, he only used it once before, and nobody got video of it. It’s supposed to be All Might's strongest, ultimate super move.”
“I can certainly believe that,” Momo whispered as she gazed at the suddenly quiet battlefield.
All for One lay sprawled out on his back, clearly struggling to breathe without his elaborate helmet and whatever mechanisms had been built into it. For his own part, All Might looked worse for the wear as well; the hero was still on his feet, but he was bent forward, using his offhand to hold the arm he’d used to unleash his final attack, as though it were injured.
Izuku was just about to express relief that it was finally over when All for One began to sit up.
All Might wasn’t sure he’d ever recover from the knowledge that All for One had managed to locate Nana’s son and twist her grandson into a villain, even though he knew that was what his nemesis wanted.
He had always been against never checking up on Kotaro Shimura; it had felt too much like abandoning the boy in his opinion. However, Gran had always insisted that maintaining any contact with Nana’s only child would just endanger the boy, so he’d reluctantly respected both his wishes and those of Nana herself.
And it had all been for naught. Could he and Gran have prevented this fate from befalling Nana’s grandson, if they’d kept tabs on her family? There was no way to know, and he suspected that uncertainty would torment him for the rest of his days.
God, how would Gran react to this knowledge?
He was pulled from his glum musings by the sound of All for One’s wheezing. The ancient, battered villain was struggling to sit up.
“Stay down,” the number one hero growled. “You’ve got no fight left in you. Don’t give me an excuse, because right now, I will take it.”
All for One released a gasping, shuddery laugh. “Perhaps I don’t, but…”
Black ooze suddenly materialized in the air near to the villain. Before All Might could react, it rapidly expanded in size, then seemed to burst like a giant, disgusting pustule.
The towering black Nomu that seemed to have been stalking his students since the USJ landed on the ground with a deep thud.
“This Nomu was…designed to fight you…All Might,” All for One coughed. “Time for it…to finally…get its chance.”
“We need to help him,” Izuku said.
“What?” Momo hissed.
“We need to get in there and take down that monster,” Izuku said, rising to his feet.
“But the media’s already starting to arrive,” Momo protested. “If we do, everyone will know we’re guilty of vigilantism. Surely, All Might can take down the Nomu!”
“No, he can’t,” Izuku said grimly. “He’s been keeping it a secret as best he can, but his power’s been fading for years. He doesn’t have much left. There’s no way he can take down that Nomu after that battle.”
“Izuku…”
“We can’t just stand here and let him die,” Izuku said. “We’ve taken down the Nomu before, twice. You did it on your own last time. We can do it again.”
“I…what is that?” Momo frowned, abruptly looking skywards.
They had both heard the approaching plane but thought nothing of the noise. Only now did they realize just how low the black aircraft was flying.
“What’s the…matter…All Might?” All for One wheezed. “Not up for…another round?”
Damn, should’ve ended him when I had the chance. Now I’m about to fight to the death against a creature my own students have bested repeatedly. So much for my reputation, He thought with a grim smirk.
At least young Midoriya had no doubt taken young Yaoyorozu and departed the area by now. The last thing he wanted was for his students to draw All for One’s ire more than they already had. He’d rather be another sacrifice in the generations long war against All for One and his empire than put them in the firing line.
Also, he wouldn’t need to break the news about Nana’s grandson to Gran if he happened to fall here.
Not that it meant he wasn’t about to go down swinging; he would never give All for One the satisfaction of his surrender, but he was acutely aware of how diminished the strength of One for All within him was.
He clenched his fists and prepared to fight.
The earpiece he’d donned entirely out of habit suddenly crackled to life.
“Looks like you could use a hand.”
His eyes widened. “No!” he said, putting a hand to his ear. “It’s not your time yet! Leave this to me!”
“I can’t just hunker down and stay safe forever. I have to make my debut at some point. If I just sat by while you fought to the death when I can help you, I wouldn’t be worthy of this Quirk.”
All Might cursed himself for calling Dave before he’d left and for failing to check how close I-Island currently was to Japan.
“It’s okay. I’m ready for it to be my turn now, Uncle Might,” Melissa said.
The number one hero sighed, his heart twisting at the thought of how many villains would shortly be turning their gazes upon his surrogate niece and how incredibly proud he was of her.
“Someone just jumped out of that low flying plane!” Momo gasped, gazing up at the person who was now plummeting toward the ground with a pair of binoculars she’d created a moment ago.
Izuku quickly created a pair of emerald binoculars for himself, locating the rapidly falling figure.
He was just starting to wonder if he needed to fly out and save them when the mystery person unleashed a massive punch toward the ground. The resulting shockwave was so powerful that he could actually see it from the way the air moved. It rapidly decelerated the person, who readjusted their position at the last moment, landing gracefully in a three-point stance.
“That’s All Might’s technique,” he said softly.
“What?” Momo asked.
“It’s his technique. It’s how he slows himself down after leaping really high into the air. She did it exactly like he does,” Izuku elaborated. “I’ve seen him do it in a ton of videos of his fights and stuff.”
“Who is she?” Momo asked.
Izuku looked out at the new arrival to the scene. She had long blond hair and was overall slim but with broad shoulders and muscular arms. Her hero costume consisted of what looked like a sort of gown made of numerous strips of some kind of metallic substance over a tight black bodysuit, accompanied by blue goggles. More of the strips of the metallic material made up her boots and gloves that went up to the middle of her upper arms.
She didn’t look that much older than himself and Momo, he noted.
“I don’t know,” Izuku admitted.
His girlfriend actually did a double take at that, shocked that there was a pro hero he couldn’t identify.
“She must be new,” Momo decided eventually. “Do you think she can actually take the Nomu?” the raven-haired girl wondered.
For a moment, the mystery heroine and the bio-engineered monstrosity merely stared one another down, the air tense with the promise of violence.
The heroine lifted her arms slightly, then made a quick little flicking motion with her hands. The metallic strips that made up the outer layer of her hero costume abruptly coiled tightly around her body, going from looking like a sort of sloppy gown to a sort of jump suit.
Then she launched herself toward the Nomu with a single titanic bound. A crack like thunder reverberated through the area, and Izuku immediately knew that the blond heroine had briefly broken the sound barrier.
The Nomu took a swing with one of its enormous arms, the mere fact that it could attempt a counterattack a testament to its own enormous speed, but it might as well have been moving in slow motion for all the good it did it. The heroine easily avoided the blow, her fist colliding with the creature’s jaw.
BOOM!
The impact was like a bomb going off, even more powerful than the blows that All Might and All for One had traded mere minutes earlier. The buildings nearby trembled as though caught in a mild earthquake.
The Nomu went staggering, amazing considering the beast’s Shock Absorption Quirk, but it wasn’t done yet. It quickly regained its bearings and charged forward with a roar, throwing a wild punch, its total lack of finesse made up for with pure power.
The heroine grabbed its wrist, which was roughly as thick as her waist, with both hands and threw the Nomu, sending its bulky body careening through the air.
Another crack of false thunder, and suddenly the heroine was standing in the Nomu’s path. She pulled back her fist.
BOOM!
This time the beast outright went tumbling, bouncing across the ground like a stone skipping across the surface of a lake.
Somehow, the Nomu recovered and leaped into the air, snarling as it soared toward its foe. The heroine bounded upwards to meet it.
BOOM!
The Nomu slammed into the earth with the force of a meteor. Izuku automatically threw his arms around Momo as the building they were on shook violently.
The beast rose to its feet, looking punch drunk.
Izuku didn’t think he’d actually seen the Nomu genuinely look the worse for the wear in the multiple times he’d encountered the creature.
The heroine charged forward.
BOOM!
“Yeah, I think she can take it,” Izuku said as he watched the beast soaring into the sky, rapidly shrinking until it was a tiny dot and then vanishing entirely from view.
There was a moment of shocked silence in the wake of the thunderous battle. The blond heroine kept the fist she’d unleashed the final, devastating uppercut against the Nomu raised, the gesture now looking like one of triumph. All for One lay motionless on the ground, clearly unconscious, if not worse.
Then the paparazzi who had scrambled to the scene of the massive villain battle surged forward, jumping the hastily erected police barriers and overwhelming any attempts to stop them through their sheer numbers, quickly swarming All Might and the new heroine.
Under just about any of circumstances, Izuku would’ve been all too eager to stay and watch and hopefully learn about this new hero, who already seemed destined to be a big name.
With his newly liberated girlfriend next to him, however, he wasn’t about to linger.
Or spend too long gawking at the scene across the street from them for that matter.
“Izuku—”
She didn’t get any further before he kissed her, deeply and passionately, pouring his immense relief and joy at having her back into it. Though initially caught by surprise, Momo quickly returned the kiss just as enthusiastically.
They were panting for breath by the time they finally parted.
“Glad to see me, then?” Momo asked with a little grin.
“More than I can express,” Izuku smiled back. Right then he wanted nothing more than to just stay there and kiss and hold his girlfriend, but he knew it would be a bad idea to hang around the area. “But we should get out of here and get you to the authorities. Your parents will lose their minds if they hear about this battle and nobody knows where you are.”
Momo agreed, and Izuku flew the two of them away as stealthily as he could, landing a short distance away from the nearest police station. The two took a moment to agree on what exactly the heiress would tell the authorities (and to promise to see one another again as soon as possible, as well as exchanging one more kiss), then Momo headed into the station to report herself liberated from the League of Villains.
Despite knowing how needless it was, Izuku couldn’t help but linger until he’d watched her go inside.
Only once she’d vanished into the station did the young Green Lantern finally leave, taking to the air and flying back home.
He could barely believe how little time had passed since he’d left. All the intensity and worry made it feel like it had been hours and hours.
Allowing his Green Lantern uniform to change back into his civilian clothes, the hero student made his way to his apartment.
“I’m home,” he announced.
To his surprise, his mother almost immediately appeared in the kitchen, throwing her arms around him in a fierce hug.
“Mom?” he asked, automatically patting her back comfortingly. “Are you okay?”
“Just fine,” she assured. “I was just worried. Eri mentioned that you’d left to do your ‘afterschool job’ and that made me afraid you’d been involved in what the news started reporting and that you might’ve been hurt, and—!”
“I’m fine, Mom,” he broke in gently, recognizing that she was working herself into a Midoriya-style ramble that would culminate into Midoriya-style crying if he didn’t interrupt her. “What’s the news reporting?” he asked, even though he had a pretty good idea.
“See for yourself,” Inko replied, leading him into the living room, where she grabbed the TV remote and turned it on.
As he’d expected, the news was all over the abrupt battle that had levelled the bar where the League of Villains had been headquartered, the media not caring that they still had more questions than answers about the incident. Someone had somehow caught video of the bar basically exploding with their smartphone, and the footage was being replayed every few moments.
“It seems like it’s still a bit of a mystery who that new pro hero who showed up at the last moment was,” Inko remarked. “Though they did get her hero name.”
Izuku, eternal hero fanboy that he was, perked up immediately. “What is it?”
“She calls herself Aegis, the Iron Protector Heroine,” Inko answered.
“Aegis,” Izuku echoed.
Something told him he’d be hearing a lot of about her in the future, and not all through the news and online articles.
Then he shrugged it off, heading to his room to get his smartphone.
He wanted to make sure he had it on him as soon as Momo was able to reach out to him to allow him to officially know she’d escaped.