Narrator- Grey
Izuku sat in the war room and noticed how many hours had passed. Seven hours and twenty-five minutes was the official time of how long the large-scale battle had taken with all of the forces.
"Wow! Seven hours of non-stop stress and brainstorming," Kaminari winced, "my head is hurting just thinking about it."
Now, in the history of a war that might seem short compared to old-time wars but you got to remember that they now have quirks in these wars and they are far more destructive.
"I am just glad that we didn't have quirks back then, otherwise I can't even imagine what our world would have looked like right now," Nemuri said with little fright in her voice.
Izuku wishes it didn't take that long but he knew it needed to be done.
'It's really sad that so many lives were lost but right now, all Verdant can do is take responsibility for the lost lives and make sure they weren't in vain,' Izuku thought to himself.
"Get me the death counts on all sides as soon as possible since I am sure we lost a good number of men due to these battles that sadly needed to happen. To think the government forces still had that much willpower is foolish but also scary. At least we only have to focus on stabilization and then one war front from now on." Izuku said and all of the Verdant Guards nodded their heads as they too were shocked at the determination of the government to not lose that large-scale battle.
"But all that determination was useless in the end nonetheless," Nighteye said, "if only I was alive in that world. They desperately needed a master tactician to handle this mess right now."
"Or a clown to keep them entertained in tough times," Hawks remarked while Nighteye glared at him.
About 3 hours later the reports were starting to come in and they were able to get a good picture of the numbers overall since most of the count was done due to the clones they deployed to search and find bodies.
"It must be a terrible feeling to find someone you know dead on the ground," Ochako said with a sniffle while Izuku wrapped his arm around her.
As it stood, the battle claimed 617,700 new lives with an overall war death count sitting at 852,000 deaths. The death count to each side was 525,000 total for the government, 105,000 total for Verdant, and 322,000 for the civilians.
"Oh my God!" someone in the audience said but those three words perfectly described the horrifying feeling that many in there felt.
This meant the war was about to go past the 1 million death count mark which Izuku hated but he needed to finish this damn war.
"Verdant is right, if he stopped right now all of these deaths and sacrifices will amount to nothing," Izuku said in a slow voice.
Overall, the government didn't have many forces left due to how many people had died. Most of them belonged to heroes, provisional heroes, police, and anyone that volunteered to join the government side in the war which Izuku found foolish of those people but it was their choice.
Suddenly Mirio felt a streak of guilt in his heart as he realized that many of his batchmates must have followed him to the battle and some of them might have died just because he was carrying a delusional responsibility on his back.
Most of the military itself got wiped out but there was still a small chunk of the government forces that were on the front lines. As it stood, the only reason the government could put up any fight now was due to the fact that they dug in and would be able to hold out against a forward push from Verdant troops. Though this did mean that if the defense line was broken then it would spell the end because there weren't any troops really protecting them in other prefectures which Izuku planned to take advantage of as he was planning to send forces up to Hokkaido and have that large Island prefecture taken and then push forces down south to slowly take the north and force the government to hopefully split their forces in half which would make it easier to overrun them.
"Hmm, not a bad idea," Aizawa said, "forcing them to divide their already thinned forces will surely put more pressure on them and might also start crumbling them from the inside."
On the other hand, Nighteye was really fed up with this world as the commission and government were taking constant defeats and all of this was done by a 16-year-old quirkless brat just within the span of a single year. This really makes him question, is their government and commission are so incompetent that some quirkiness nobody was able to overthrow them with the help of some villains. In the end, he just dropped the topic thinking that, he couldn't care any less about what goes on in that world and can only solidify their systems here.
Izuku did decide to call Nezu again and get an update from him on the damage or deaths that UA suffered since the battle did stall a bit around UA for a period of time, and Izuku hated to admit it but he was concerned a bit for everyone there.
"Tsundere Emperor," Ochako giggled.
"I am not Tsundere," Izuku said and exasperatedly threw his hands in the air.
"Sure whatever you say," Ochako replied with a sly smile.
Izuku called Nezu's number again and after a few rings, he answered. Izuku had the bug & memory user switch to where Nezu was, so he could see who was all in the room with him.
"Ah yes, the bug users international cable where instead of reality T.V. you see real-life people," Compress said.
Izuku saw quite a lot of students and parents. 'Nezu must have made all of the parents of students live on campus to help protect them. I wonder when he did that but oh well...' Izuku thought.
"Of course, Nezu is nice to everyone except his teachers," Aizawa rolled his eyes.
"Aizawa, you have no idea how soft I have gotten over the years," Nezu said, "and if you still don't believe me just ask the teachers who thought here before you, isn't that right Gran Tarino."
Gran Tarino just averted his eyes not wanting to be part of this conversation.
"Hello Nezu, it's Verdant Emperor," Izuku said, and Nezu greeted him as well and told him he was on speaker and they had most of the students of UA and their parents with them in the auditorium were listening to them.
"It's almost funny how Nezu is trying to be so cautious while dealing with Verdant and on the other hand Verdant is just sitting on his couch staring at Nezu's unaware face," Mina said.
"That's fine. Apologies for not being able to give you a warning further in advance but I needed to defend against possible leaks of the attack since you saw how well-fought the government forces were. How much damage did UA suffer?" Izuku asked as he watches Nezu on the projection. "Overall, some damage to the buildings but nothing structural so that will be fine. No deaths of anyone on campus but that doesn't include anyone that held a provisional license that had been sent to the front lines sadly." Nezu said and Izuku could only apologize for their deaths.
"You know, back then I was so happy that we get to have a provisional license earlier than usual but now I am equally glad that we didn't get it in that world," Jiro said.
"I do know I have a large number of UA & Shiketsu High School students that were captured in several battles, across the front lines. I will send you a list of the students so you will know who is dead or not. They will of course be released once the war is over but I can guarantee their safety while under our care as I do for all other prisoners of war." Izuku said and Nezu thanked him for treating them with care and would be watching for the list as he will forward SHiketsu's to their school.
"Finally some good news after a long time," Nezu said, "I just hope that the death count amongst students is as minimum as it could be."
"Yeah, telling the parents that their kid didn't make it will be a haunting experience," Nemuri added.
Izuku then decided to hit the main topic they needed to talk about, "Nezu... as you know, UA is now under Verdant-controlled territory. As such, I need you to surrender as I can't allow a Pro Hero school to exist in my controlled land."
"Great! Not even 24 hours had passed and he is already showing his tyrannical side," Nighteye said, "what's next, hospitals, communications, or anything that threatens your rule?"
"Can you stop exaggerating things and then spinning them to fit your narrative?" Izuku rolled his eyes, "besides, Verdant had already stated multiple times that he doesn't like the hero culture, on multiple occasions so it's totally in character for him for wanting to shut down a school that produces heroes."
"We can meet to reach a compromise on the school's contained functions but I require a declaration of surrender from UA due to you being the top hero school. Do I make myself clear?" Izuku asked hoping none of the students from 1-A or 1-B were dumb enough to bring up the fact they already had a meeting about them giving up to Verdant rulership the same day Izuku launched his assault.
"Well even if there is someone stupid enough we can take care of it," Dabi said with a grin.
"No! We are not hurting any of the children," Himiko said, "but can scare them right? Like, send them a chopped-up finger or something as a warning."
"No, we are not doing anything to kids and definitely not sending them things that will make them spend the rest of their Sundays in therapy," Izuku said, "let Nezu handle everything regarding U.A."
"I understand and I already worked on a public declaration during the last few hours since it was clear Verdant would win this prefecture. I am available whenever you wish to meet about the school's contained functions. I will have the statement for the press ready in a bit as I've called news stations to come to meet me outside of UA."
"Nezu, are you sure you want to publicly take Verdant's side?" Endeavor asked, "I understand that you don't like Commission but staying neutral here will make much more sense in case Verdant does lose this war by some miracle."
"Yes, logically it would make sense to remain neutral until the end to avoid getting on any one party's bad side but considering my regular skirmishes with the commission I doubt we were on their good side anyways," Nezu explained, "but honestly it doesn't matter anyway. By now it is as clear as day that Verdant is going to win this war unless the government can somehow convince Cathleen or Richards to fight or make plans for them."
"Though, may I ask if it is possible to negotiate the transfer of the UA students in your custody to be released since we will be surrendering?" Nezu asked to hope to get his students returned sooner instead of later which was a risk of angering Izuku in all honestly.
"I don't know. Is it a really good idea to release them before the end of the war?" Hawks questioned, "don't get me wrong. I am happy that most of them will get to reunite with their families and all but at least some of them will hold resentment against Verdant for capturing them or killing their friends. Which can spell disaster for all of you guys as well."
Izuku was silent and Nezu thought he screwed up and everyone else in the UA building was dead silent as well. "I am open to having a talk about it when we meet. Though I can tell you now I can't release LeMillon until the war is officially over since he has already made a direct attempt on my head due to his quirk. I hope you understand?" Izuku said and Nezu thanked him for his willingness to negotiate it and understood about LeMillion's custody.
"Honestly, it is better that way," Mirio said with a tired sigh, "maybe staying isolated from the world will make other version of me understand the reality of the situation."
"That's surprising," Izuku said, "I thought you hate Verdant and his approach to all of this."
"And I still do," Mirio said, "I am not a fan of all the death and destruction he caused but I also understand that I can't stop him now, and trying so might get more people hurt or killed in the process."
Meanwhile, Nighteye was watching their conversation with narrowed eyes.
Soon the phone call came to an end after Izuku told him he would reach out to him in the next day or so about setting up a meeting.
"Meeting with Verdant is really a nerve-racking event," Nemuri said, "who knows what will happen when we will see him this time."
Izuku ended the call and watched the projection to see what Nezu and the others with him would talk about. He could hear Nezu sigh as he told everyone that he was thankful for them staying silent for the call.
"You know, it feels weird to see Nezu so helpless in these situations," Mic said, "I don't think my eyes will ever get used to seeing him like that."
"I will release the list of captured students once I receive it. I do apologize in advance if your child's name is not on the list." Nezu said as he bowed his head towards all of the parents and they could only nod their heads in silence since they won't know for a bit longer if their child is dead or not.
Izuku closed his eyes in defeat as he felt a stroke of guilt in his heart. In his mind, he knew that everyone is responsible for their own decisions and the outcome of that decisions but his heart pained every time he saw the desperate look of the parents waiting for their children to come home on their own legs and not in a casket.
Nezu dismissed everyone to roam about the campus or do as they wish but the staff headed towards the staff room to have a meeting. As the bugs followed the staff, we find them all sitting in the room in silence as no one was willing to break the silence. Suddenly a sigh escapes from All Might's mouth as he looked up and around the room. "What are the chances of the government just surrendering to the Verdant due to the fact that they now control over 50% of the country?" All Might asked the room so that anyone could answer.
"It's unfortunate but we all know that they won't step down from their thrones even if the literal swords were hanging over their heads," Aizawa said.
"You are right," All Might shook his head, "that was a stupid thing to ask."
But of course, Nezu was the one that answered as he had the best guess, "The people currently in control of the government wish to hold onto power even if it costs more people their lives so the odds of them surrendering are near zero but that doesn't mean that the individual prefectures couldn't surrender if they were pushed enough to do it," Nezu said.
"Wait? That's possible?" Izuku thought for a moment and his eyes went wide, "wait! That's possible!"
Some staff asked what he meant since the individual prefectures under the government control likely didn't have the authority to do something like that to which Nezu shook his head. "Not really, so as the National Government is more or less breaking up at its struggles in this war. They barely have enough forces to keep that defense line going against the Verdant. The only reason Verdant couldn't wipe everything else out and take full control is due to the sheer number of trenches and traps the government laid." Nezu said and showed a map of where the government defense line was currently at.
"So you are suggesting that even if the higher-ups in the government won't surrender to Verdant, the governors in charge of said prefectures might do it to save their skins or cut their losses," Izuku said.
"Indeed Midoriya," Nezu hummed in approval, "they might also hold onto the hope that surrendering to you might also bring them into Verdant's good books and they might retain their positions."
The staff asked where he got that information from and Nezu smirked and said he hacked the government communications and military networks.
"Of course, he did," Nighteye scowled, "snooping around in people's private businesses just like a rat."
"If this defense line breaks then the government really doesn't have anything standing in Verdant's way from taking full control. Now, what do you think would happen if the governments behind the defense line were to start surrendering and the Verdant just ships troops to those prefectures?" Nezu asked and everyone's eyes widen and even Izuku's eyes widen since this was a good approach instead of just forcibly taking the prefectures since it would cause less damage if they would just surrender to him.
"Glad to see I was able to teach something to someone as smart as Verdant," Nezu said.
"That's not true sir," Izuku said, "no matter how smart someone is, they should always be open to learning things from people around them."
Izuku listened in to Nezu's words and was making notes since he originally tended to just transfer troops via the teleportation gates and then forcibly take over.
"Verdant is taking notes from Nezu," Kaminari said in a fearful voice, "I think they should start preparing for apocalypse... and maybe we should as well, you know just in case."
After listening in more, Izuku had a general idea of what he would do and saw that the meeting at UA had come to an end now. Izuku had all of the Verdant Guards join him in the other meeting room where they talked about the new plan of pressing the prefecture governments to just surrender and ignore the national government.
"Good, this method is much better than the previous one," Mirio said, "at least, there is a chance that there won't be any fighting for remaining prefectures."
After some planning, it was decided to work from the far north in Hokkaido and then work their way down. A delegation of Verdant Members would warp into the prefecture and then head to the Prefecture government's location and negotiate their surrender.
"Well, that's good and all but I seriously hope Dabi refrains himself from burning down the government officials if they denied our request," Izuku said with a tired sigh.
"Oh come on! I am not some crazy arsonist or something," Dabi rolled.
"Yeah, about that..." Himiko, Compress, and Twice said in unison.
This would take place about a week after they stabilized their current prefectures so that they wouldn't overextend their resources as they needed to be careful of any surprise attacks from Japan's government who had taken to using the media as a way to try and get civilians to support them but it hasn't really had any effect at all since a lot of people have seen the positive effects that the Verdant has had in their controlled land as they never censored what the Media reported from any news channels.
"Idiots, getting lured by the dream of false paradise," Nighteye said.
"But sir, how can something be false when everything is out in the open and transparent for everyone to interact with," Mirio said, "also I don't think Verdant ever said he will build a paradise in any of his speeches. All he promised was an improved life quality for those of us who have dealt a bad hand of fate in their lives."
"Shut up Mirio, and stop making excuses for people who chose villainous routes to live their lives," Nighteyes said, "if you keep thinking that way you will never become the next symbol of peace."
"I think I am fine with that," Mirio replied with a smile, "I will just be LeMillion who will save Million people from dangers and if needed, from themselves as well."
"Fine, do as you wish. I will just consider you a failed investment," Nighteye said and Mirio felt bad that his mentor discarded him just like that.
As such, with things going how they are, Izuku predicts that he can win the war within the next two months if everything goes as he is planning. Once the war is over it will be time to establish relations with all of the other countries and aim for future plans of space exploration!
"Yes!!!!!" Ochoko and Mei yelled.
Then the screen turned black and the words appeared on the screen, Ep.35 'Bloodshed.'
To be continued...