Izuku thought flying through the air with All Might once in his life was all he was going to get and yet here he is, arriving at USJ after nearly falling to his death in the sky for a second time. Why did he think this was a good plan again?
All Might landed on one of the beam holding up the windows that make up the exterior of the USJ. He helped Izuku climb of his back and set him down on the beam. He coughed into his palm and Izuku resisted the urge to put out a hand to help keep him up right. This isn't good. Just taking a glance through the window he can tell Dabi wasn't exaggerating when he said there were hundreds of villains gathered for this. All Might can't take down that many, not in this state. As much as he looks up to the man, he knows he's still human and no one can take on that many people.
With another cough, All Might shifted into his skeletal-like form in a puff of smoke. He leaned against the glass, wheezing. He waved the hand Izuku reached out with away. "I'm... fine," he protested though the shake in his voice and labored breathing gave him away. "Just thought I'd... stay in this form when I'm not fighting."
He doubted that was the real reason but nodded along for All Might's sake. He looked back to the USJ, staring through the glass. His gaze was immediately drawn to the central plaza which was crowded with villains, at least half of them knocked to the ground. Where most of the villain were gathered was a man dressed in all black wielding a scarf looking material as a weapon. From this far away he could make out much of the man's features but could see the blood dripping from his elbow. He seemed familiar though. He'd seen those cloths and- oh. It's that man from his first day at Endeavors agency, Aizawa he thinks his name was. He's not surprised he's here.
Standing over top of him was a man with blue shaggy hair and weird hands attached to him. There was one covering his face and several on his arms and legs. He looked to be holding onto the man in blacks elbow, fractures slowly spreading across it. Is he... disintegrating it? He winced and shifted his eyes to look around the rest of the area.
There were various students scattered across the grounds. He squinted as he noticed a whirl pool being made in the water region by a girl slamming her massive fist into the water. Impressive. At the entrance to the USJ stood a cluster of students and... is that Thirteen? Hovering in front of them, blocking the exit, was a purple haze (someones quirk?). He could see the details of both Uraraka and Iida's costumes there. If they are there then where are the others, Shouto and Kacchan?
The sound of an explosion drew his attention to the building ruble in the far section of the USJ. Well, that answers his question.
"I need to get a better view," he mumbled to himself. All Might looked at him funny and he realized he'd said that out loud. Ignoring his embarrassment, he continued. "If I can see where all the students are, I can help guide you too them so you can get them to safety first. Aizawa-san, even if he's injured, looks to be holding up for now."
As he said it, the hand guy threw Aizawa off to the side. Aizawa struggled to at least his knees, sending out his scarf to attack several of the villains that lunged at him. He can hold for a little longer. The students are first priority. They're just kids. Kids like me. . .
He pointed to the entrance. "Thirteen has that area covered and that one of the few places I can see. I need a way to see more so I can better say where you're needed most. Can you get me up to the roof and I can look down through the glass?"
All Might shook his head. "I can but there's a better, safer place for you."
Still trying to keep me out of harm? Izuku can't blame him. It's his job as a hero. He wouldn't be the number one if he didn't worry about people. It's still a little frustrating. He wants to help and he can.
"The security room is that way," All Might raised a shaky hand, pointing to a c-can shaped box sitting not to far from where they were perched. "If you can get there, you'll have access to all the security cameras. You can tell me where to go from there."
Even as much as he hated to admit it, he's right. He'll be able to see more from there and being safer is only a bonus. He sighed. "Okay. I'll get over there. Thank you."
All Might shifted back into his hero form. His hand wrapped around Izuku's arm before he jumped down from the beam and set them both on the ground. He looked about ready to take off when Izuku stopped him.
"Wait, you have to stay out of sight from the plaza as much as possible," he urged. "From what I can tell, that's where the guys running this attack are. I'm willing to bet Shigaraki is the one with the hands. You can't be seen by them."
"Why not," he questioned, a look of puzzlement coming over him.
"I didn't tell you their motive for all this, did I?" All Might shook his head. Izuku's heart sank, an uncomfortable pull coming from his gut. "They're here to kill you."
He watched the shock wash over All Might before it eased back into his normal smiling expression. "Hundreds of people try to kill me yet I'm still here!"
Izuku wished he could be as confident in this as he is. He shook his head roughly. "No, not this time. This is planned. The alarms are down, there's hundreds of villains, enough to have had to of been gathered over months. They have a plan, a big one and I don't know what it is. They-- They might be able to kill you if we aren't careful. Stay out of sight for now, save kids until I can get more information. Things are unstable as is with Revite, the world can't loose it's symbol of peace too."
He nearly choked on the name 'Revite' as he realized how much of an effect he was having. It makes sense why villains would do this now. As Revite, he's taking away faith in so many heroes, the entire commission. People are already lost and starting to doubt the system. If the symbol of peace were gone, the one person who they can for certain trust, things would spiral out of control faster than anyone could deal with. Villains would have the upper hand.
The man he looked up to never stopped smiling, even as he broke the truth to him about their situation. All Might simply smiled wider. "Then I'll have to stay as stealthy as possible! Do not worry Young Midoriya, I'm here and will save everyone and make it out alive! I can promise you that!"
"Okay." He meant it. He trusts All Might. He started to walk backwards towards the security room. "I'll keep in touch through the ear piece, give me two minutes."
Dashing towards the security room, he reached into his bag for his phone. Once he made it to the room and opened the door, he pulled out his device and unlocked it, hitting call on the most recent of his contacts. He slammed the door behind him, staring up at the many computer screens before him. The phone rang on speaker next to him as he sat down in the roller chair at the center of the room.
"What the fuck do you want?"
"Glad to talk to you too Dabi," he retorted and set his bag on the ground. He picked up the mouse for the computer, scanning over the camera footage displayed on the screens. There were several cameras for every area. He couldn't help his eyes from being drawn to one of the screens displaying inside the city rubble zone. Kacchan was there with another student, this one shirtless and with red hair spiked up. Kacchan blew up a villain that came at them and Izuku felt a wave of relief. He's safe, now just to find Shouto.
The youngest Todoroki was also easy to find. He was in the landslide zone, his ice having frozen over a dozen different villains at once. He appeared to be lecturing them. A smirk worked it's way onto Izuku's lips. He does seem like the type to talk and fight.
"Oh great, it's you," Dabi snarled. "Still working on that USJ thing?"
"Yeah," he said, switching the screens to a different view. A boy with a tail is in the fire zone. Three students, including a boy with purple balls on his head, a girl in green and that girl with the huge fist from earlier, were moving away from the shipwreck zone. He made note that All Might doesn't have to go over there, all the villains appearing tied up. "I'm there right now and I need some information."
There was a painful silence on the other end. "I'm sorry. . . you're what?!"
"I'm at the USJ," he said calmly. Oh, there's a guy with a bird head at the windstorm zone. He wonders what his quirk is. Is it like Hawks' where there's just a mutation or is there more? Is his shadow moving?
"Why the fuck are you there? Did you think it was a good idea to run headfirst into danger?"
"Not a good idea but the only idea," Izuku corrected.
"You could die!"
"Yes." He clicked the mouse a few times, finding the rest of the students in the mountain zone. One of the girls there created a massive sheet that landed on top of her and another girl as the boy with them started to glow with electricity and- oh. The footage cut out. Lovely. He returned his attention to Dabi. "You didn't have a problem with people dying earlier."
"That's because they weren't y- I mean- just- argh! It's not safe Deku!" Dabi ground out and Izuku couldn't hide the slight smile he got at his frustration. He totally is worried for him.
"Yeah yeah. Danger, beware, I know. I have too many people grilling me on that," he said. The thought of his mother crossed his mind. "Listen, I just need a break down of all the information you have on that Shigaraki guy. What else do you know about the attack? That sort of stuff."
"You're insufferable," Dabi muttered before sighing into the phone speaker. "I don't know much but the attack is organized against All Might. There's been rumors going around that they have a big weapon that'll defeat him. I'd be careful around Shigaraki. His quirk is decay. He can disintegrate anything he touches with his hands. I think there's something about the number of fingers he uses but I honestly can't remember."
"Young Midoriya?" All Might's voice rang through his ear piece and he winced at the sudden volume of it.
"Hold on Dabi, give me a sec," he said before tapping his ear piece. "I'm here. You should be fine to not go to the shipwreck zone. Most of the students have it under control but you should check out the mountain zone. Some students over there cut of the security feed by accident. I can't see what's going on. There were a lot of villains there. Please, just stay away from the plaza. The guy with the hands has a quirk that will disintegrate you. Be careful."
"On it!" All Might cheered and Izuku felt a wave of relief crash through him as he saw a blue, yellow and red blur dash across the screens in the direction of the mountain zone. Those kids may have it under control but it would still be best to check and make sure they're safe.
"What's going on kid, talk to me here," Dabi said, drawing his attention back to their conversation. If Izuku didn't know better he'd say he almost sounded worried.
Tapping a few buttons, he shifted the screens to the central plaza. He eyed Shigaraki's figure with a new interest. What's with all the hands? Are they people he's used his quirk on? "I'm good. Tell me more about Shigaraki."
"I don't know much," Dabi admitted. "He's not the leader is what I've heard. He runs most of the attacks but he's only second to the top. There's someone above him."
"Who?"
"That's the thing, no one knows. Shigaraki is the prized pupil but he's not much. He's a threat for sure but he's really just a kid with a temper tantrum from what I've heard. If you're looking for weaknesses, I'd say agitating him is the best choice."
"Great, I'm really good at pissing people off according to Kacchan," Izuku said, pulling his bag onto his lap. He unzipped it and pulled out his baton and costume he'd stuffed in there. He grinned. "I have to go now."
"Deku, don't you fucking dare. I know what you're thinking."
"I can't just leave them to die."
"I don't care! If I see your name on the news this evening I swear that tomorrow it will be on there again above your obituary!" Dabi threatened but Izuku was unfazed. He hung up on him with a quick see ya later, bye! just as All Might checked in again.
"The students in the mountain zone are safe and headed to the exit. Where next?" All Might asked.
"Fire zone. One student's there. Head to the storm zone after that."
"On my way!"
Izuku striped off his uniform jacket. He stared down at the mask in his hands. He can do this. Dabi's been training him, he's not defenseless. Taking a deep breath, he slid the mask over his mouth, eyes locked on the screen with Shouto on it. He has a goal and he's not going to let it go to waste.
-:-
He's never been more grateful for Dabi's training as he extended the baton, using it to propel himself forward. Swinging off the pole as it retracted back to its regular size, he lands in a roll and out of breath. He made to his feet, looking around the landslide zone. The area was covered in ice, a dozen villains frozen in place. At the front of the ice stood none other than Shouto in his hero costume. Izuku cringed at the beige-white colour of it.
"In fact, it looks to me like you've had no training. You haven't the slightest idea how to use your quirks," Shouto said. Izuku frowned, he must have gotten here in the middle of his speech. He leaned against one of the rocks next to him, waiting to see how this'll go down and ready to jump in at any moment.
"This power," one of the frozen villains said in shock, "he froze us the instant we warped here!"
Warped? Someone has a teleportation quirk then. That'd explain how everyone got so spread out. He'll keep an eye out for that.
"He's not a kid, he's a monster!" Another villain exclaimed. Izuku's frown deepened. A monster? If anyone is the monsters it's them, attacking students so they can kill the symbol of peace.
A third villain who'd managed to escape the ice lunged forward with a yell, sear raised to attack Shouto with. Shouto turned last second and grabbed a hold of the spear, freezing both the villain and that metal rod. He pulled on the spear, detaching it from the villain who then fell, ice around him shattering. Izuku grinned. Take that!
"Listen well, if you stay frozen, your cells will slowly die. " Shouto said, facing the rest of the villains. "Lucky for you, I want to be a hero so I want to avoid any unnecessary cruelty. But I can only do that if you tell me how you plan to kill All Might. That's the only way you'll survive."
There was a look in Shouto's eyes. It was cold and serious. One glance at his expression and Izuku knew he was lucky he was on his side. He meant business. He had no doubt that Shouto would do what it takes to discover their plans.
Izuku leaned forward a bit, his interest spiking. So they knew that their plan is to kill All Might? Villains probably gave a monologue like usual. If these villains value their life, they'll tell Shouto the plan. This works out perfectly. Turns out the landslide zone was the best place to go after all.
"W-We can't!" One of the villains cried out. "We don't know the plan! We were just told to fight!"
He couldn't help the snort the escaped him at the stupidity of that statement. Several eyes were suddenly trained on him, including Shouto's. So much for going unnoticed for a while. He offered a sheepish smile before remembering he was in a costume and his mouth is covered. Great, he can't even go for the friendly approach.
Shouto glared at him. "Who are you? What do you know?"
Ice slowly started to creep towards him. He stumbled back a step to avoid it. He cleared his throat and raised his hands in a show of surrender. "I'm not here to hurt you. I'm on your side."
"I'll be the judge of that," he answered and Izuku really wanted to stop being on the receiving end of his glare. "What's so amusing to you?"
"I just think it's dumb that they'd lie like that and say they don't have a clue what's going on," Izuku answered honestly. "I have outside information from someone who isn't even here and they knew the basics of the plan. There's no way that not even one of these villains know what the plan is."
"Who is this guy?" one of the villains asked to their buddy.
The ice had reached his feet and was starting to freeze over his red shoes. He shivered, thankful that his black jacket was warm enough to keep him from being too cold. Shouto took several steps towards him till he was right in front of his face. Izuku gulped as the dual colored boy spoke up. "I'd like to know that as well."
"Uh..." Izuku didn't really know what to do. If he gave his name, his real one, Shouto might trust him. However that would let him know who he is behind the mask and he's not ready for that yet. He took a step back, making a decision that hopefully won't get him killed. "I-I'm Revite. But I'm on your side, I swear!"
His eye's narrowed suspiciously. "Revite takes down heroes. . . doesn't that put you against me."
"No! I take down licensed villains, not heroes. There's a difference," he clarified and almost immediately regreted it when Shouto seemed even more annoyed at that. He kept his hands in the air. "Look, I don't want All Might to die. He's one of the few true heroes left. If he dies it'll ruin my entire plan. I'm here to protect him not help kill him. I have information that the villains organized some big weapon to kill him and I need your help destabilizing it. You have a strong quirk, I could use that on my side right now. Please, let me help."
The speech he gave seemed to get his point across. He watched as Todoroki's face leveled out into his normal blank look. He noticed his jaw tick once before he withdrew his hand, the ice at his feet melting away. He turned away from him, moving away from the villains. "If you betray me I can't guarantee you escape from the same fate of these villains."
He let a sigh of relief leave his lips and felt the corner of his lip quirk up. "Then I guess I just won't betray you."
From near Shouto, one of the villains exclaimed, "You can't beat the Nomu! Not even All Might can! Don't get so ahead of yourselves!"
"And what exactly is a Nomu?"
Izuku smiled to himself. This is going better than planned.
-:-
"Their weapon is what they call a Nomu. It's a bio engineered creature who's body is designed to hold multiple quirks," Izuku explained to All Might over his earpiece in a hushed whisper, Shouto walking to the plaza several steps ahead of them. He tried to be quiet enough so that he wouldn't be heard by the other boy with his voice changer turned off. "This one has the quirks of shock absorption, super strength and regeneration. All things that are supposed to best you."
He could hear All Might hum on the other end. "That is certainly troubling news. Any weaknesses?"
"Not that I know of."
"Too bad. Thank you for informing me Young Midoriya and if you don't mind telling me, how did you know all this?" All Might questioned and Izuku's blood went cold.
"Um, uh Revite showed up. He hacked the security room so I got the information," he lied quickly, a sour taste on his tongue even as he said it. He never did like lying. "I don't know how he knew someone was even in here."
"Revite? The one who writes those articles?" All Might asked, shock laced into his voice. "I wasn't aware he ever appeared in person."
"Yeah. Um... He's heading to the plaza right now with Sh- Todoroki," he caught himself. Wow, his mouth is enjoying giving him mini heart attacks today. "They seemed to have formed some kind of pact."
"I see. I hope Young Todoroki is careful. No one knows much about Revite. He needs to be cautious."
"I'm sure he is. He looks tense from what I can see."
It's not completely a lie. Shouto is several strides ahead of him, his back straight and shoulders tight. The way he held his hands at his side reminded him of how Dabi is when he's preparing to attack at any moment, wrist turned slightly outward and fingers straight. His mind couldn't help but draw the similarities between the two. He had to force the thought away. Now is not the time to dive into his suspicions about his friends past.
He clicked his earpiece again, double checking that Shouto wasn't paying attention to him as they continued to walk. "You got the students all to safety?"
"Yes. All except Young Bakugou, Kirishima and Todoroki. The villains that were with them have been secured as well." All Might confirmed.
"Great." He glanced at the exit where a bigger group of students were, the purple mist villain still blocked their way. He noticed Iida, the boy with engines, run past him and both Thirteen and Uraraka stop the mist guy. Perfect. He can warn any pros who aren't already on their way here. The villain is still a concern. Thirteen can't take him alone. He must be the villain with the warp quirk if his appearance is anything to go by. "Head over to the entrance. There's a villain giving the students and Thirteen trouble."
"Right!"
Izuku turned his voice changer back on, picking up the pace to walk beside Shouto. The boy gave him a blank look he couldn't decipher before shifting his gaze back ahead. Together they reached the plaza, hiding behind a bush. Shouto poked his head up to see and Izuku watched his lips drop into a frown.
He pulled on his sleeve. "Revite, look at this."
Poking his head up as well, his eye's widened as his jaw dropped. The scene in front of him was far from pleasant. He'd greatly misjudged the situation earlier. Where Aizawa had earlier fought off several villains at a time, he was now lying on the ground with his face bloodied and ruined. His googles were spewed broken across the ground leaving his dry and red eye's visible. His elbow was dripping with blood, the bone visible from when Shigaraki had touched it earlier. The most horrifying part was the thing standing above him.
It was the Nomu, no doubt about it. It's body was shaped like that of an insane body builder with a head not unlike in shape to a birds. It's skin was a deep purple-blue to pair with the gold around it's mouth and red scars lining it's arms. Izuku couldn't help but gawk at the top of its head left open to reveal its brain. A terrified gasp left his mouth and next to him Shouto seemed frozen in shock.
It's knee, padded with a skull shaped brace, dug into Aizawa's back. It's hand was curled around the dark haired mans head, tugging on it and making blood run from his scalp. The creature slammed its hand down on his arm, the sickening crunch of bones breaking ringing in the air. In front of them, Shigaraki stood with his expression hidden by the hand on his face. The Nomu slammed Aizawa's head into the ground, his painful groan audible from where Izuku and Shouto were.
Suddenly, the warping villain was standing next to Shigaraki. His body came into view, dressed in a suit and neck covered by some sort of armor.
"The mist villain got away before I could get there! Thirteen is severely injured!" All Might yelled through the ear piece but Izuku was barely paying attention. "Young Midoriya? Are you there?"
"Tomura Shigaraki," the warp villain said, his voice lower than expected.
Shigaraki turned his head to him. "Kurogiri, did you manage to kill Thirteen?"
"The rescue hero is out of commission but there were students I wasn't able to disperse and one of them got outside the facility," the villain- Kurogiri- stated calmly.
Izuku held his breath as that seemed to draw a reaction of Shigaraki. He brought his hands to his neck and started scratching. He scratched so much he was shaking. His voice came out raspy when he spoke again. "Kurogiri, you fool! If you weren't our warp gate, I'd tare apart every last atom in your body. There's no way we can win if a dozen pros show up to stop us. It's game over. Back to the title screen. And I was looking forward to finishing this today, dammit. Let's go home."
A wave of confusion passed through him. What? They're giving up already? Not that he isn't happy it just seems to easy. It doesn't make sense. Shigaraki isn't making sense, not with the way he talks or his plan. They don't even know All Might is here yet. The whole purpose of their plan hasn't even begun to their knowledge.
He exchanged a worried look with Shouto. Something isn't right. There has to be more. What's the angle?
"Before we leave," Shigaraki said, and his head whipped around to face them. Shit shit shit. He's spotted Shouto and him. That look in his eyes. It's not good. "Let's make sure the symbol of piece is broken. Let's wreck his pride."
Before he could even think twice about what to do, Shigaraki had lunged forward his hand outstretched towards them. As if in slow motion, Izuku watched his hand grab a hold of Shouto's shoulder. No. Not this. His quirk!
His hand connected with Shouto and... nothing happened. What is going on? He should be disintegrating.
Shigaraki slowly turned his head to look behind him and Izuku followed his gaze to where Aizawa was staring at them, his eyes strained and red but unblinking. His hair floated above his head. Shigaraki scoffed. "You really are so cool, Eraserhead."
Eraser... head? It clicked in his head faster than he expected. That's his hero name. His quirk must have something to do with erasure. Shigaraki's quirk isn't working. Can he rid people of quirks or just erase them for a period of time. If the latter, then for how long? How come he's never heard of him before? What's with the floating hair? From his eye's it's more likely sight activates his quirk so why would it float like that?
The unknown frustrated Izuku. He can't help if he doesn't know what's going on. He needs to make a plan and quick but not without knowing Aizawa's quirk.
The Nomu slammed Aizawa's head into the ground again and before Izuku could think twice, he extended his baton, allowing it to wack Shigaraki in the head so he flew back from Shouto. He dived for Shouto, grabbing him around the waist before tumbling into a roll with him so they were out of the way. A roar from his left drew his attention and his eyes widened at the Nomu came barreling towards them. The ground beneath in suddenly turned cold as Shouto created a pillar of ice under them, shooting them into the sky.
The Nomu crashed into the ice, breaking it. Before Shouto and himself could fall, Izuku extended his pole and slammed the end into the ground and used it to swing him forward with Shouto still in his grip. He slid down the pole, retracting it when they reached the ground and clicking the button Dabi had showed him was the shield. Both the Nomu and Shigaraki came running towards them. He braced the shield for impact when out of nowhere, the ground beneath him shook. Huh?
He lowered the shield, looking across the plaza. Standing there was All Might, his hands on his hips. He must have jumped from the entrance, shaking the ground on impact. "Have no fear students!" He exclaimed. "I am here!"
Against his side, he feel Shouto relax ever so lightly. It was hard not to feel relieved to have All Might here to fight. Every part of him screamed that it was selfish. The villains are here to kill him. His being here is bad. Izuku doesn't know if he can win against the Nomu. All the different quirks inside it make it impossible for a regular hero to beat, who knows how much damage All Might can do, especially in his weakened state. He was barely able to maintain his hero form when they got here, never mind up against an opponent like this. Izuku can't find it in himself to be too grateful All Might came to the rescue.
"Ah, looks like our game is going to continue," Shigaraki muttered just loud enough for Izuku to hear. "After all this waiting, the heroic piece of trash shows up."
Izuku had to hold back the urge to bite back that he'd show him who the real piece of trash is.
All Might ran forward, taking out several villains as he went. He scooped up Aizawa before turning to face them. In the blink of an eye, he'd dashed past Shigaraki and the Nomu, his arms wrapping around both Shouto and Izuku. Izuku watched as Shigaraki's hand on his face was knocked off while All Might dropped them off a good fifty feet away from the villains. He set them down, laying Aizawa carefully on the ground. He looked up at the two of them. "Go back to the entrance, take Aizawa-sensei with you, he doesn't have much time."
Before Izuku or Shouto could get in a word of protest, he charged back into the fight. Izuku watched Shigaraki talk to himself, too far away to hear. All Might approached him slowly. Izuku frowned, turning to face Shouto who'd bent down to pick up Aizawa. He reached out and stopped him. "Wait. Let me take him. I have a feeling we'll need you. Your ice is strong and maybe it can hold down the Nomu for enough time to allow All Might to get a good hit on it that'll work through its shock absorption."
Shouto nodded but hesitated to leave. "What will you do? You said you could help."
"Don't worry about me. I have a plan." He doesn't but he can make on up while he takes Aizawa away. "Just go. I got this."
He heard the familiar shout of "Carolinaaaaaa smash!" and glanced back just in time to see All Might intercepted by the Nomu. Shouto moved towards the fight, dodging the few more minor villains that were still standing.
Izuku shook his head. He needs to hurry so he can get back here quick. He may not have a plan now but he can make one. He's good at that. He can't just sit around and watch.
With Aizawa's body slung over his shoulder, Izuku braced his knees. He's not strong enough to carry the heroes full weight all the way to the entrance. He lifted his baton with his hand not hoisting up Aizawa and extended it, allowing it to carry him into the air. He's propelling his weight like how Dabi had showed him. Dabi had compared it to pole jumping. The movement of swinging himself forward and up. But unlike pole jumping, he could retract the pole in time to extend it again in front of him and repeat the movement without touching the ground.
The extra weight of Aizawa proved to make the movement, already clumsy from only a few hours of training, much harder. He managed though, swinging himself all the way to the stairs of the entrance. When he reached, several of the hero students rushed toward him. He set Aizawa down on the ground carefully, his arms aching from having to swing them both.
"Aizawa-sensei!" One of the students cried out, rushing towards him and Aizawa. Her skin was a bright pink to match most of her outfit and hair with little yellow horns poking out. Beside her, a boy with blonde hair and another boy with several arms and a blue mask came forward to. The boy knelt down next to Aizawa, an ear growing on the end of his arms. He pressed it to the hero's chest and nodded to the others, a mouth on one of his other arms speaking up, "His heart is still beating but he's badly injured."
"Oh thank god," a girl in a red suit said, pressing a hand to her more exposed chest.
Izuku's flickered across the group of students. A few were taking care of Thirteen, including Uraraka. They seemed to have obtained medical supplies somehow, likely a quirk. Some were guarding the entrance and others the stairs. The rest were the four people surrounding him and Aizawa.
"Yeah thanks," the blonde said. Izuku noticed the small back lightning bolt looking design in his hair and recognized him from the security camera's earlier. "but uh, who the hell are you?"
"You're quirk is electricity, right?" he asked, ignoring the question.
The guy rubbed at his neck. "Yeah but you didn't answer my-"
"How many volts can you produce?" He asked the questions quickly, not wanted to spare a second of time. He could hear the fight continuing to rage on behind him. He can't let All Might get hurt. Even if he does defeat the Nomu, he'll overwork himself to the point where he won't be able to hold up his hero form. His secret would be exposed. That's almost as bad as him dying. If everyone knew the truth there's no telling what will happen.
The boy frowned in confusion but answered any way. "1.3 million volts but I just over worked my quirk and could probably only make half of that and I'd still fry my brain."
"That's okay. 1.3 million volts. That's roughly..." He did the mental math, never more thankful for school. "a thousand milliamps."
He frowned as he ran over the stats in his head though he's sure he's muttering out loud. It'd take a hundred to two hundred milliamps to kill a person but to knock out a creature like the Nomu... it might take more. Electricity isn't a physical hit like a punch so hopefully they won't even have to worry about the Nomu's shock absorption quirk. It's better to be careful though.
He snapped his gaze to the blonde. "Can you create four hundred milliamps?"
"Uh... I think so."
"Great. What's your name?"
The guy grinned a little. "The name's Denki Kaminari."
"Alright Kaminari, see that villain beating the shit out of All Might?" He glanced back at the fight. All Might had hoisted the Nomu up in the air and tipped it back to slam it into the ground. A cloud of dust arose and when it disappeared it was clear Kurogiri had activated his quirk where All Might had slammed the Nomu so instead of going into the ground it came out the other end of the portal. Izuku winced but continued with what he was saying anyways. He faced Kaminari. "Hopefully you won't have to use four hundred volts and we'll suffice with two hundred but be prepared to up the amps if the situation calls for it. How's your aim? Think you could hit that Nomu?"
Kaminari's eye's widened and he started frantically waving his hands in protest. "Oh no, man. I can't do that! I can barely aim. My electricity goes everywhere so forget hitting a moving object! Besides, my brain's still pretty 'wheyed' out from earlier!"
Sighing, Izuku resisted the urge to run a hand down his face. Of course his plan had a flaw.
He looked around at the group of students, his eye's resting on the girl in the red from a few moments ago who was now creating medical wrap for Aizawa. He was right. Her quirk must create stuff. But is it limited to medical supplies? He tapped her shoulder to get her attention. "Can you make anything?"
She appeared shocked to have grabbed his attention. Nodding, she said, "Almost. I have to know the make up of the material in the item."
"Do you know how to make a water gun?" he asked. She nodded again and he felt a bubble of hope surface in him. He spared a look back at the fight. Shouto seemed to have frozen the Nomu in place with All Might, its body halfway through the warp. An idea sparked in his head. He faced the girl again. "If you could please make one that allows Kaminari to have his hand in the part that holds the water than I think I might have a plan."
The girl seemed confused at first before realization dawned on her. She smiled at him. "I can do that! You're a genius!"
He felt heat rise to his cheeks. He's not that smart. It's just his job. He shook his head, refocusing on his train of thought. "Right. So here's the plan..." He went on to explain what he'd came up with, a few of the other students deciding to listen in. When he finished he asked, "Any questions?"
Kaminari shook his head. The girl, whose name he'd learned during his explanation was Yaoyorozu, had finished making the water gun and handed it to Kaminari. She nodded to the two of them, muttering a quick Good luck! before moving to go help the others finish bandaging up both Aizawa and Thirteen.
Izuku thanked her as she went before turning to Kaminari. He held out his hand, preparing to extend his pole. "You ready?"
"Nope," he answered, taking a wary step back.
He grabbed the boys hand anyways, tugging him forward so he could grip him properly before extending the pole. "Too bad. It's now or never!"
The pole shot them both in the air and Izuku was greatly amused by Kaminari's gasp of surprise. He held the boy a little tighter, making sure he didn't slip from his fingers and fall to the ground from twenty feet in the air. He retracted the pole, the two of them stumbling to their feet on the ground a dozen feet away from where All Might and the Nomu were held in ice. Next to them he noticed Kurogiri was pinned to the ground by... is that Kacchan?
Kacchan seemed to be giving a lecture to Kurogiri about his weaknesses. Going on about how his physical body was still there. The villain tried to move and he set of a couple explosions. "Don't move! You try anything funny and I blow your ass up so bad they'll be piecing you back together for weeks!"
"Ohoho! That doesn't sound very heroic!" The redhead he'd seen fight beside Kacchan earlier exclaimed from where he was standing. Izuku tilted his head to the side. Someone teasing Kacchan? Do they want to be blown up?
The Nomu suddenly roared, it's body shaking as it tore it frozen limbs off and emerged through the other end of the warp. Shouto stared at his broken ice in shock. The group had yet to notice Kaminari or himself and the blonde tugged at the sleeve of his disguise. "I don't know man. This won't work. He just broke through the ice!"
"It will work," he whispered shouted to Kaminari. "Trust me. Sho- Todoroki is strong. His ice will hold when we need it to. Come on, lets go get that water. All Might can handle the Nomu till we get the gun filled."
Kaminari shakily nodded and let himself be dragged to the water at the edge of the plaza. They walked backwards and Izuku's eye's widened as he saw the Nomu's arm and leg grow back. All Might shouted for everyone to stay back. That must be the regeneration quirk. All Might seemed to forget about this as he shouted, "What is this?"
Shigaraki chuckled sickly. "The Nomu is designed to take you on at even one hundred percent of your power. He's basically a highly efficient punching bag that hits back. Nomu, get him."
The Nomu ran forward but not at All Might. Kacchan's eyes widened as the creature barreled towards him. The blow came and everyone was blown back. His gripped Kaminari's arm and stabbed his baton in the ground so not to go tumbling into the water. When the wind from the blow died down and the cloud of dust disappeared, he made out Kacchan lying on the ground next to Shouto and the redhead. What the...?
"How'd you get over here so fast, man?" the redhead asked.
Shouto scoffed. "Isn't it obvious?"
He pointed to where the rest of the dust was clearing. All Might stood there, arms raised in a blocking position. Izuku let a smile reach his face. He's not surprised he blocked that. He pulled the water gun from Kaminari's hand, forcing himself to forget about the fight going on and turning to the water. He bent over, filling the tank attached to the gun with the water. He heard hits behind him but ignored it. His job is getting this gun ready for Kaminari to use.
His ears picked up the sound of Shigaraki giving a speech about heroes and villains and what makes them different. He would listen in if it wasn't anything he didn't already know. Being Revite made him a little bit too immune to these sorts of talks. Heroes are fucked, villains just as so. The difference is one is licensed for their violence, the other put in jail. He knows the drill. Still, Shigaraki is blind to think that All Might and many other heroes are at all like him. They try their best to not hurt others and only do so when the situation calls for it. It's different, somehow.
"Hurry up dude," Kaminari hissed, worry filling his tone, "They're going to spot us any minute now."
"I know," he hissed back. The tank was finally full and he handed it to Kaminari who held it like it would blow up if he shifted his finger the wrong way. He supposes that's fair considered the guys quirk. He took a hold off Kaminari's other hand again and got ready to extended his pole as he turned to watch the fight again, looking for an opening.
All Might forced the hero students back and the villains seemed distracted by them. Perfect chance. He launched forward, extending the pole and ignoring Kaminari's surprised squeal. He grit his teeth, his muscles straining as he pulled him and Kaminari forward. "Todoroki!" He called out and the boy looked up at him in the air. "Ice!"
Shouto seemed to have gotten the message, though definitely surprised to see him and Kaminari flying with his extended baton. Ice appeared at their feet, rising to meet them in the air. The platform of frozen water stood at least fifteen feet up, enough that they could look down onto the Nomu and Shigaraki from where they were standing on it.
More ice shot out and froze the entirety of the Nomu's body. It roared at the new feeling of being held in place and Izuku held his breath. This has to work. It will work. He planned this perfectly. Sutorimu would be proud, he knows it. This has to work!
"Kaminari! Now!" He shouted.
Kaminari raised the water gun and aimed it at the Nomu with his other hand stuck in the hole in the water tank that Yaoyorozu created. His hair lifted almost like static was running through it as he sent electricity down his arm and into the water gun. Please work, Izuku pleaded in his head, Please please work.
A click noise came from the gun as Kaminari pressed down on the trigger and a stream of electrified water shot out through the nozzle. And thank every god out there that Kaminari is better with aiming a water gun than he is his own quirk. The water hit the exposed brain of the Nomu and it shook even in the frozen ice. It's body seemed to go through shock before it's eyes rolled to the back of its head and it went limp. Unconscious.
The world seemed at a standstill for a few seconds before it was broken by Shigaraki's enraged shout. "You cheated! This isn't how the game goes!"
Izuku frowned. It's really weird how this guy talks. It's getting on his nerves a bit and not much bothers him. He wonders what Dabi would do if he was here. Probably laugh at him and mock his plan until he got pissed off enough to do something stupid... why doesn't that sound like such a bad plan? That should sound like a bad plan.
He's a threat for sure but he's really just a kid with a temper tantrum from what I've heard. If you're looking for weaknesses, I'd say agitating him is the best choice.
Agitate him, huh? Seems like he's close to throwing a tantrum right now. If he can shove him off the edge than maybe he'll play right into their plans, maybe they can catch him.
Izuku stepped forward on the ice pillar him and Kaminari were on. He tried his best to fake a cocky attitude, the words what would Dabi do playing on repeat in his head.
"The Nomu was made to beat All Might," Izuku shouted down to Shigaraki. The villain only glared, his hands scratching his neck aggressively. "That's your flaw. The Nomu could withstand all of All Might's strengths but that doesn't mean it'll hold up against others. An electric quirk, for example."
"You brat!" Shigaraki shouted at him. "You aren't supposed to be here! Those weren't the rules!"
He barked a sarcastic laugh, hoping it was enough to cover the fact he was panicking. The pros will be here any minute. Just stall him a little longer. "News flash! Revite doesn't follow rules! I'm actually quite against them!"
At the mention of his name Shigaraki seemed to hesitate. Kurogiri took a move towards him, reaching out in warning. "Tomura Shigaraki, I don't think this is wise. If he really is Revite we need to stay out of this. We don't know what he's capable of."
"Oh?" Izuku tilted his head. "I'm not unheard of?"
Truly, he's surprised. He's well aware his name isn't a small one but this organization doesn't seem like child's play. Dabi said there's someone above them, someone powerful. They're big, even if they don't seem it yet. If they've heard of him than Dabi's right in saying Revite is making a bigger impact than he lets himself believe.
"Tomura Shigaraki, I advise you not to-"
"Course we've heard about you!" Shigaraki snarled, his raspy voice cracking. The scratching of his neck intensified. "The whole world knows your name! You're a stupid player who gets in the way!"
Izuku's eyes widened in surprise. He really should listen to Dabi more. "Yeah? Glad I could be of inconvenience to you."
"Fight me you pesky vigilante!" Shigaraki yelled, his red eyes bottle with annoyance and rage.
He shrugged and extended his pole. He ignored the tug of fear in his gut as he slid down the extended baton before closing it when he hit the ground. Taking several steps towards Shigaraki, he twirled the baton in his hands. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see small wisps of steam coming from All Might's shoulders, not noticeable if you didn't know what you were looking for. He doesn't have much time. A minute at most. It's a good thing he didn't have to fight that Nomu then.
Behind All Might, Kacchan and the redhead both seemed surprised that Revite had shown up at the USJ. He felt a little flutter of pride. He shocked Kacchan. Shouto appeared to be watching his movements closely, waiting for a mess up or a betrayal or something else entirely.
"So," Izuku started, trying to draw attention away from All Might, "how do we fight? Quirk or no? Dance off perhaps?"
He's not going to lie and say that line's actually his. Dabi used it originally during training once when Izuku was apparently being an idiot. Dabi said he looked like he was trying to dance, not fight and then proceeded to joke about it for a solid ten minutes. What better way to do what Dabi would do than to do what he's already done?
"You piss me off," Shigaraki spat. "When I'm done with you, you'll be nothing but dust laying in a pile on the gr-"
He was cut off by the sound of a gun shot, a real gun this time instead of water. Izuku's eye's widened as a bullet ripped through Shigaraki's arm. His eye's shot to where the bullet had came from and gasped in surprise. Standing at the entrance to the USJ were several of the teachers at USJ, including Snipe who had to have been the one to make the shot. The pro's! They got the warning!
"Sorry everyone," Principal Nedzu stepped to the front of the group. "I know we're a bit late but I got the teachers over here as fast as I could."
"Your class rep has returned! I fulfilled my duty!" Iida shouted from where he stood in front of two of the pro's, crouched down. "And I brought reinforcements!"
Izuku grinned as Present Mic stepped to the front of the crowd, tilting his glasses down before letting out the most earth shattering Yeaaaaaahhhhhhhh that Izuku has ever heard. All of the lesser villains still standing fell to the ground, clutching their ears. He couldn't help but feel a little proud of his teacher.
Speaking of teachers, he shot a look towards All Might. Shit, he looks ready to collapse. He has to get out of here and fast before his form diminishes.
"The pros are here," Shigaraki cursed, clutching his arm. He backed up. "It's game over for real. Let's go home before-"
Several more shots from Snipe went straight through Shigaraki's legs. Kurogiri's warp wrapped around both the villains before anymore shots could reach them. In the blink of an eye they'd both disappeared all together. Izuku gave a frustrated huff. So much for catching them when they can just warp out of here.
He glanced back at the pro's. One of them, a buffer man in a red suit (Vlad Lord? Vlad King? Izuku can't remember right now) came rushing towards him. Right, the whole wanted vigilante thing. He turned to Kaminari who now was safely on the ground next to Shouto. He saluted them both. "That's my cue to leave! See ya around heroes!"
He ran away from them, till he stood next to All Might. He grinned at the number one hero though he couldn't see it. "You should get out of here, before you revert to your civillain form."
All Might's eye's widened. "How-"
"I'm Revite," he said, cutting him off. "I know everything." He extended his pole and shot forward. He called back behind him, "Later All Might! And keep in my good books, would ya? We need good heroes like you!"
Whatever reaction he got, he didn't get to see it before he went tumbling into a bush and made a mad dash back towards the security room.
-:-
Not even a minute after he'd arrived in the room and changed back into his school uniform, All Might arrived. He opened the door before slamming it shut behind him, his figure immediately shrinking. He fell back against the door, sliding to the floor and coughing into his fist. Izuku didn't waste a second to rush forward and help his idol into a sitting position.
"I... I'm sorry Young Midoriya," All Might said, coughing into his fist again. It still surprised Izuku how different his voice was in each of his forms. "I hate... to burden this on you."
"N-no! You're not a burden at all!" He insisted. Actually, he kind of enjoys this. Being able to see a side of All Might no one else does. Or at least no one else does and knows it's him. He offered a sheepish smile. "It's fun being able to help somehow, even if I'm not the one doing the hero work. It's why I decided to try to be an analyst in the first place."
All Might hummed, as if understanding somehow what he meant. He looked up at him with sunken in eyes. "Thank you. You were a great help."
"Really? I feel like I didn't do much." It's the truth. As Izuku Midoriya, he barely did anything. Revite's the one who did all the work. "All I did was tell you where the students were."
"And it saved their lives," All Might countered. He weakly patted Izuku on the shoulder, a small and tired smile stretching across his lips. "You were right to come along. Though I was worried for you during the last bit, you'd gone silent."
Panic swelled in his chest. He forgot about that. He'd didn't answer All Might after Shouto and himself had reached the plaza. What can he even say? There was no reason for his ear piece to jam. He frowned. He can lie. Could he say he was frozen in shock from seeing Aizawa get destroyed? There was a villain jamming the alarms, he could try fibbing that he'd caught on to their communication and messed with it. Would All Might believe those?
He opened his mouth to spew one of the lies only to find there was no one to tell them to. All Might's head rested on the back of the door, eye's closed. His chest rose and fell in the steady pattern of sleep. Izuku tilted his head to the side and smiled a bit. Good, he deserves a well rest. And it kind of saves his ass from lying but All Might getting rest is good too.
Standing up, he slipped his arms under All Might's arm pits and dragged him to the couch. Why there's a couch in a security room? He has no idea. He supposes everyone needs break sometimes. He lifted him onto the couch, shocked at how light his skeletal form is. He really is all skin and bones when he's like this.
Once he'd set him down in a comfortable position, he heard a bang on the door. He hesitated before heading over and shouting, "Who is it?"
"Presentation Micheal!" The response came back clear as day.
Izuku cursed to himself. Just his luck his teacher would be the one to show up now. The teacher who he'd lied to and said he was just going to the bathroom quickly. Quickly escalated into over an hour and bathroom became the USJ. This is sure to be fun.
"Look, I'm sorry," he said the moment he pulled open the door. Present Mic blinked at him with a weird expression Izuku didn't understand as he continued with his apology. "I know I said I was going to the bathroom but then I ran into All Might and I found out about what was happening here and I got worried for my friends and I thought I could help and then I got caught up in all this and then-"
"Woah!" Mic rested a hand on his shoulder. "Calm down, little listener. You're not in trouble."
"I'm not?"
"No. You're not." Mic wrapped an arm around his shoulder. Izuku's not even sure teachers are allowed to do that. Maybe U.A.'s the exception to a lot of school policies. "I'm surprised is all though you being here explains a lot."
"Heh, sorry," he mumbled.
"Quit apologizing kid." There's that word. Kid. He's growing a little too fond of it and the people who use it. He blames Akito and Dabi for that. Mic leaned into the security room, eye's widening. "I was actually looking for All Might but I see he's not here."
Izuku frowned and glanced back at the blonde man on the couch. Does Mic not know or...? Should he leave a hint? "Uh... just to let you know, these security camera's let me see a lot, including what comes in and out of this room."
He hoped that was enough to give away what he was hinting at. If Mic knew, he'd know Izuku would have seen All Might approach the door in hero form then end up on the couch in civillain. If he didn't have a clue, he'd just think he's spouting random nonsense.
Class 1-C's homeroom teacher relaxed. "So you know about All Might?"
"Yes," he answered and jutted a thumb over his shoulder where the symbol of peace is sleeping. "He's exhausted and overworked his form. He needs to rest."
Mic grinned. "I couldn't agree more! But you, listener, need to come with me and the other students. The police are going to need a full report and we need to make sure you're A-OK. Cool?"
He nodded and let himself be guided away from the security room. He felt a little guilty for leaving All Might behind but he knows he can't stay. He's already invaded on the heroes privacy enough as is and Mic is right, he has things to get to.
As soon as him and Mic had reached the entrance were all the hero students were huddled, all attention shifted to them. He heard murmurs of Who is that guy? and Why's he got a uniform on? Is he a student?. He felt a little overwhelmed as more than a few students talked about him.
"SHITTY NERD!" A familiar voice called from the center of the crowd. Kacchan came storming out of the crowd, eyes narrowed. "What the hell are you doing here Deku? Huh?"
He waved awkwardly. "Hi Kacchan. Nice to see you too."
Again. he's not entirely sure when he gained the balls to be so comfortable around his childhood friend. He thinks spending most of his time around Dabi awakened a tolerance for insults and aggressive people.
Mic stepped the two of them. "Let's all get along, yeah?" Kacchan grumbled a few curses to himself and crossed his arms. Izuku chalked it up to him already being tired from fighting all morning. He probably doesn't want to put in the effort of fighting him. Mic clasped his hands together. "Great. Everyone, this is Izuku Midoriya. He's an analyst from class 1-C. He was brought in to help access the situation since he has more experience than most of his classmates. He was a big help today so be nice. I'm leaving him in your hands while I go run some things over with the police. Later listeners!"
Izuku watched him go sadly. What is with his mentors leaving him alone in awkward social situations? Do all of them expect him to make friends that quickly?
He had barely any time to think longer on that when Uraraka bounded forward and pulled him into a hug. "Deku!" she cheered and hugged him tighter before releasing him. She grinned at him brightly. "I can't believe you're here! Thank you for the help!"
Scratching his neck uncomfortably, he nodded. "Uh, yeah. I, um, I'm glad I could help. I didn't do much."
"I bet you did lots!" She pestered and gave him a high five. He resisted the urge to tell her she didn't even know what he did.
The rest of class seemed to have lost their interest, not that he can blame them. After a long day like this, not even he wants to talk to more people. He wants to go home and crash on his couch if he's being honest. Not that talking to Uraraka isn't nice but watching re-runs of his favorite shows on the couch is sounding more appealing by the minute.
Behind Uraraka, Shouto made his way over to them. He stopped directly in front of him, expression as blank as ever. He said, "I didn't know you went to U.A.."
This. This is why he doesn't want to be left alone to interact wit class 1-A. His bosses son, the boy he's trying to save, the one he has to earn the trust of, is standing before him basically asking why he didn't tell him they went to the same school when the whole reason he came to U.A. is for him. Not his ideal scenario.
"O-oh, yeah. You'd be surprised by the amount of people at Endeavor's agency go to or have gone to U.A.," he said on the spot. "I didn't know you went here. Well, that's a lie. I did but, uh, my brain didn't fully process that meant we'd go to the same school and then I forgot to tell you at the party and now we're here and- I'm rambling again. Great."
"I don't mind," Shouto reassured. For some reason those three words were enough to cause Izuku's stomach to twist and his face to heat up. He blamed it on being embarrassed he'd rambled in the first place.
"Uh..." Uraraka drew his attention back to her. She gestured between them. "You two know each other?"
"Oh! I work for Shouto's father as an intern for analysis."
"Shouto...?"
Wow. His mouth hates him. "It's not like tha-"
"It's confusing at the agency to call me Todoroki with another Todoroki there," Shouto said, tone blank. "Most people at the agency refer to me as Shouto."
At least Shouto is less flustered than he is. Uraraka seemed to find it amusing and giggled into her hand. She then proceeded to punch him lightly on the shoulder. "Anyways, thank you Deku for the help! I'm going to check on the others! It's nice seeing you."
"You too!" He called after her and she waved at him before running off to join a girl in green. He smiled softly. He's glad she's all right. He's glad everyone is okay.
"Do you prefer to go by Deku?" Shouto asked, the sudden question surprising Izuku.
He shook his head. "No. Only Uraraka, Kacchan and my brother call me that."
It almost surprised him how easily his slipped in the lie about Dabi being his brother. Maybe he's getting a little too comfortable with it. Speaking of Dabi, he needs to call him back later. He's probably worried, even if he won't admit it. There's no doubt news about this has already spread.
Shouto bobbed his head. "I should be checking in with my classmates as well."
"Oh. Right." He held out a fist for Shouto to bump. "Awesome fighting today. You're really amazing to watch."
The dual colored boy seemed to stare at the fist in confusing. His brow furrowed and lips pulled tighter. "What are you doing? Are you going to hit me?"
A smile cracked at his lips. Sometimes he forgets Shouto isn't the most culturally aware. He chuckled under his breathed. "It's a fist bump! It's supposed to be friendly. You just bump fists lightly with me like-" he reached out for Shouto's hand, folding into a fist and guiding it to bump into his other hand- "this!"
Shouto hummed and when Izuku released his hand he bumped his fist into his lightly again. If Izuku didn't know better he'd say the corner of his lip had twitched up into a half smile. "A fist bump. I'll remember that."
"Awesome." He took a step back, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. "I'll, uh, see you at the agency sometime. Or school, apparently."
"Hmm, yes. Maybe."
And then he was gone, already retreating back to his class. Izuku hugged his arms and watched the class of the next generations heroes speak among themselves. He let his grin spread into a full on smile. Not a bad day. Not a bad day at all.
Dabi's so going to kick his ass later.
[A/N: Would any of this actually work? I have no clue but who cares. Quirks aren't real either yet here we are.]