Reset and Rewind

Chapter 54 - Derailed Raid

Izuku rushed through the hospital, following Endeavor closely as they darted through the halls. Patients were still being evacuated, but the wing where the doctor was hiding had already been cleared out. Now all that was left to do was find him and Toga, preferably before most of the Nomu's were activated and the whole building got destroyed. Every hero on this case had been informed of the way things played out the first time around, so they were more efficient, knew where to go, what to look for.

That's why, when they ran into the doctor in the hallway, they instantly knew it was a clone. Endeavor burned him to a crisp without hesitation, making sure he wouldn't be able to call upon any help this time around. His body turned to goo in an instant, allowing them to move forward. Everything was going smoothly so far. It felt easy, maybe a little too easy for Izuku's liking. Even if they had better intel, even if this strategy had been 'field tested'... There had to be more to it than this, right? There had to be.

Izuku hated when he was right.

Of course things couldn't be this easy. Of fucking course there had to be a catch. A way for this universe to flip him off and laugh in his face, taunting him as if he were still a quirkless middle schooler. Because the secret lab was void of anyone. The doctor, Toga, even the Nomu- No one. Just...empty. Some of the equipment was still there, as were the giant incubation tubes that lined the walls, but nothing else. Everything was shut down, a layer of dust covering all of the machines, as if no one had been here in a while.

"What's the meaning of this?" Endeavor asked, turning to glare at Eraserhead. "Where are they?"

Izuku would like to know as well. They should be here. The doctor had to be here in order to conduct his research, in order to access dead bodies and create Nomu. This is the heart of his operation! And yet... Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Just an empty lab without any trace of inhuman experimentation. But that wasn't right, was it? In the first timeline, Shigaraki underwent body modifications here. Izuku doubted another lab would have the right equipment for it, so Toga must be here. Unless-

"Toga has her memories," Izuku said, his eyes widening. "She knew this would happen, she could've warned the doctor."

"We've been keeping an eye on this hospital for months and nothing indicated any large movement operations."

"They tricked us," Izuku continued, realizing what was happening right now. "This is a trap."

The moment he said that out loud, the whole building started to shake. So that was the plan. Bury any and all evidence, taking as many heroes with it as they could. A real 'If I go down, you'll go down with me' mentality. Izuku really hated self-destructive villains, it was always such a mess... But he didn't complain. Instead, Black Whip shot out of his hands, black ropes ricocheting throughout the lab, creating pillars of some sort in order to keep the interior somewhat stable.

"This won't hold forever," Izuku told them, already struggling against the weight of the hospital. If he'd been in his prime, this much wouldn't have been an issue. But his body was still underdeveloped and his quirks were taking a toll on him. "We need to get out of here!"

"Retreat!"

"Deku, start letting go of the room, starting from the back," Aizawa instructed him. He knew he wouldn't be able to hold this for long, being able to read his student like an open book. Izuku didn't like the fact he couldn't hide his weaknesses from this man. A hero was supposed to be unstoppable, you know? A picture perfect person, someone who always saved everyone, who never lost. An unattainable image, really. "Are you listening to me? You can start letting go of the building."

"Yeah... Okay," Izuku nodded, carefully retreating Black Whip, flinching when he heard the building collapse, making clouds of dust blow their way. He started coughing, falling to one knee as everything started to come down. Eraser was quick to react, swooping up his student and getting the hell out of there. He had no doubt that, given time, Midoriya would've made it out just fine. But this was a trap, there was no time to linger about. They had to get away from here and figure out where the doctor had gone and fast.