Upon awakening, it took All Might approximately two minutes and twenty-three seconds to realize three crucial facts.
The first crucial fact was realized fifty-four seconds upon awakening, after he had rubbed the sleep from his eyes, yawned, and finally took in the situation. The fact being that he was tied to a wall in a warehouse. In other words, he was trapped. He had no control over what happened to him now. And after the previous battle, he didn't have any strength to break through his restraints. He didn't have any will to, either.
The second crucial fact was realized one minute and forty-nine seconds upon awakening, being that he had been beaten by a kid. Humiliating. The boy had resorted to cheap tactics like messing with his emotions and throwing off his game. He wasn't just a kid, though. He was a kid that tortured his students. A kid that was no doubt going to torture him. Torture...Torture... Torture, but...
The second crucial fact triggered the third crucial fact exactly two minutes and twenty-three seconds into awakening. The crucial fact that made a shiver run down his spine. The crucial fact that meant many things.
All Might was going to die.
-
Deku turned around and let out a pleased yelp as he noticed that All Might was awake, clasping three minutes and forty seconds upon his awakening. He smiled maliciously as he realized how defeated All Might looked. Sitting there, captured, he looked like a loser more than the number one hero.
The green-haired boy was still beyond sore from their fight, but he stood up straight and calmly as he made his way towards him with a slight limp, knife in hand. He inspected All Might's restraints, making sure that he was tied up correctly and the hero wasn't hiding any knives to break free with.
"Oh how the mighty have fallen," he chirped gleefully when he concluded his inspection. "Time to wrap this up, I suppose. Oh, that's right. The rest of the villains were captured, weren't they?"
All Might's head hung low. He was in his skeleton form, skinny and weak. He was nothing compared to the man Deku had admired in his childhood. It almost made the boy sick to think he ever admired him in the first place. He didn't reply to Deku's question, but he didn't need to. The answer was obvious.
"Ugh, now I'll have to save them," he groaned. "What would they do without me?"
All Might wasn't responsive.
Deku prodded him with his finger, as though he were dead. All Might barely reacted. The number one hero figured, if he was going to be tortured, he wouldn't let this boy have the satisfaction of gaining a reaction from him. So he'd stay still. The boy laughed and took his chin, forcefully pushing his face to look at him. It was a stoic look, with no expression of sadness, regret, anger, remorse or fear. It was just nothing, as though his soul wasn't there at all, and he had only managed to capture his body.
Deku just smirked. He understood what All Might was doing. But it wasn't going to work. Because he had different torture methods in mind. Ones that one mentally crushed him rather than physically. He turned away from him and wandered over to Todoroki, who was currently unconscious and appeared to have fresh wounds on him. Deku had been torturing him while All Might was asleep. This sent shivers down the hero's spine.
He knelt beside the boy's body. He leaned in and whispered, "wake up," gently into his ear. Todoroki's eyes opened sluggishly. When they met Deku's, they dilated with fear. The boy had created an image for himself in the multi-haired boy's mind. He was the image of fear, he was the image of his failure and his faults. He was the image of pain, and the image of death, as he was sure that Deku would be the one to end him.
"Leave me alone," his voice was barely a whisper as he shut his eyes again tightly. "Why don't you just kill me?"
"Good idea, Todoroki-senpai!" Deku exclaimed, putting his hands on his face as though he were praising a child. "Let's make a show out of it for All Might! How do you want to die? Hm... strangled, maybe? Do you want to be screaming in pain or crying in pain? Oh, but if you're being strangled you can't scream. Damn. Crying it is, then. And now the-
"What do you want from me?" All Might shouted from across the room. "What do you want!"
Deku chuckled and shrugged as though it were nothing. "To see you suffer, of course. Hm... I'm not one to hold a grudge, so I suppose there really isn't a reason. Not much time left, anyway... Might as well enjoy my last day!"
"Your last day?" He echoed, bewildered.
"Just enjoy the show, All Might," Deku hummed. "Now Todoroki, you'll be the first to die. Then, Bakugou. It'll be fun to kill him."
Todoroki was silent. It was clear he didn't want to die, but he didn't have any objections. He didn't struggle. He let his fate be. There wasn't anything he could do. It was like he was already dead. Deku turned his head to smile at the hero before picking the boy up by the neck. And then he was strangling him, looking into his scared eyes. Tears welled up in them, and his mouth made horrendous noises as he tried to breathe. All Might couldn't watch this. He couldn't bear watch the boy die. He was the number one hero, he wasn't supposed to let this happen. He was supposed to help people. He couldn't fail.
"WAIT!" All Might screamed. "Please wait! Don't kill him! I- I'll do anything!"
Deku dropped Todoroki carelessly and looked over with a smile. Todoroki fell to the floor gasping breaths and clutched his throat, coughing and spluttering. Once he had calmed down, he looked at All Might with a concerned gaze that said don't do it.
"Anything?" Deku smirked.
"...Anything," he repeated slowly.
"Okay," the green-haired boy said. He put his hand to his chin and stroked it as though he were thinking about his next words, though again, he knew what he was going to say anyway. "Then I want you to..." He trailed off as he looked at Todoroki, to Bakugou, and then back to All Might. And an idea seemed to spark in his eyes.
"I want you to give Todoroki-senpai your power before you die."
All Might blinked at him. Confused. Flustered. Shocked. "What..?"
"You know, give him your power so One For All can live on forever," he elaborated, waving his knife around. "That's what you want, isn't it? So then do it."
When All Might didn't respond, he boy took off the multi-haired boy's restraints and gingerly picked up Todoroki in his arms and carried him carefully to the pro hero. Todoroki was half-conscious and didn't have the will to struggle. He looked like a completely different person, weak and helpless and broken.
"Now do it."
He laid Todoroki's body on the ground next to All Might. He unrestrained one of his arms so he could do whatever it was he needed to. Deku took a step back, away from the hero's reach. The skeleton of a hero pulled out a small clump of his blond hair.
"He has to swallow my hair," he told the villain.
Deku nodded and shook Todoroki into full consciousness. He seemed hardly there, like he was gone on the inside, but still there physically. He seemed tired, and overall done with the world. He didn't want to obtain All Might's power, he didn't want to do anything. It was heartbreaking to see.
"All Might... What's going on?" He sounded like a scared little kid pleading for his parents to tell him it was alright. All Might did no such thing. Because that would be a lie. It wasn't alright, but right now, it didn't need to be.
"Todoroki... This is it for me, okay?" All Might began, voice cracking. "My last job as your mentor... Eat this. You'll get my power. You'll be the next All Might. I'm sorry I couldn't have been of more help to you. I have a word of advice for you now; don't be like your father. Don't let him control you. Your fire quirk, it's yours, not his, don't forget that. With that, you'll become the greatest hero of all time."
"All Might..." tears formed in the rims of his eyes. "I can't be like you. I don't think I'll... ever be as good as you."
"No. You'll be better," he insisted. "Just do things your way, young Todoroki. And remember to always smile in the face of danger."
All Might smiled, and Todoroki understood. He smiled, too. He hugged his mentor for the last time and then stepped back. He looked at the blond hair in his hand, and despite the situation, he wrinkled his nose as he consumed it. He stuck out his tongue in disgust. It tastes like hair, not power, and he felt no different after eating, except a bad taste in his mouth.
"All Might," he said, his voice thick with emotion. "...Thank you."
The villain, Deku, smiled. "You're free to go, Todoroki."
He didn't call him -senpai. He was serious. Todoroki was free. Maybe if he was fast enough, he could get help. Deku went over to the entrance of the warehouse and pushed open its big doors. Sunlight poured into the otherwise dreary room. The darkness disintegrated into light, and it spelled out freedom, joy, happiness. It spelled out everything that Todoroki thought he'd never have again over this past week.
He looked at All Might one last time. The hero didn't look sad, but content. Todoroki could understand why. He had been through so much, he must feel alright with leaving the world now. Maybe he thought he wasn't of any use for the world anyway. In any case, he would enjoy his afterlife. He wore a small, weak smile on his face. The boy then turned around and never looked back as he bolted out of the warehouse.
He used his quirk- his fire side- as a boost and blasted forward with abnormal speed. Todoroki looked around to see that he wasn't actually that far away from U.A. He could see it in the distance, the far distance, but it was there. He looked himself over as he belted forward, he was covered in his own blood from head to toe. He needed to hurry before he passed out. He was beaten, bloody, bruised, and weak from the whole ordeal. After over a week of being tortured, malnourished, and mentally drained, he felt like his body could collapse at any time.
If he died in the process of saving All Might, so be it. Sorry, All Might. He was at the gates of U.A in five minutes, and only then did he begin to slow so he could open it. He did, and he trekked through the grass of the school. Slower...Slower... Slower... Bam. He fell to the floor. He lost too much blood. Right before his eyes closed and he was engulfed by darkness, he thought he heard footsteps. Maybe it was just his imagination. Yeah, it had to be.
In those five minutes, Deku had finished what he intended to.
-
As the villain watched Todoroki speed away, he swept his head around and looked at All Might. "Well, I did it." He said, to no one in particular. "My mission was to kill the symbol of peace, and I'm going to. I did it. No one believed in me. But they were wrong. Imagine that." He walked around the warehouse slowly, flipping the knife in his hand and catching it with ease each time. "I didn't even need a quirk."
Deku smiled at that. "I beat everyone with simple strength, wit, and determination. I guess I could've become a good hero after all, huh All Might?"
"Only hatred was what allowed you to progress this far. As a hero, you would have crumbled."
The green-haired boy frowned, however, he didn't show how much that truly bothered him. After all of this, the pro-hero still didn't think he was worthy. The villain just shrugged. "Oh well, guess we'll never know. But anyway. How do you want to die, All Might?"
The pro hero didn't answer. Seems he'd been doing that a lot lately.
"Torture takes too long, and it appears Todoroki may be calling for help. So I'll make this quick."
He made his way across the room to the unconscious body of Bakugou, he kicked him harshly, resulting in him to jolt awake. He sat up, wide-eyed and sleepy. He was far better since his fever began, but still there nonetheless.
"What?" He grumbled, glancing at All Might.
"Watch the show."
Deku smile a wicked, cruel smile. And then... Without a moment's hesitation or warning, he twisted his body to face All Might, took a knife from his pocket, and threw in All Might's direction. It landed in the hero's head. It was a clean hit. All Might's body convulsed in a short fit of pain, and then nothing. The light fade from his eyes. No tricks, no loopholes.
He was dead.
Bakugou stared in disbelief. His eyes were wide and round, wider than before, his pupils dilated in pure shock. He gaped at the body of the hero he grew up admiring. He had once said he would pass All Might. He couldn't do that now. No one could. Because he was dead. He was gone. And when Bakugou thought this, something broke inside of him. It was hilarious. Deku bellowed a hysterical laugh, clutching his abdomen and doubling over.
"Oh my god! The look on your face! I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I know I shouldn't be laughing, but it's just so funny! All Might's dead, just like that! It was like squashing a bug."
The villain Deku continued to laugh as Bakugou stared at the pro hero. His eyes told everything, he hadn't expected Deku, the quirkless loser, the wimp, the crybaby, the weakling, to kill All Might. His hero- everyone's hero. For some reason- he didn't think he could die. He thought that if a knife was hurdling at him, he'd stop it. Somehow. Some way. Because he was fucking All Might.
But he didn't. He didn't grow into his muscular form at the last second, he didn't break free from his restraints and dodge it at the last second, he didn't catch the knife, he didn't survive. At any moment, he expected All Might's face to light up with life, and for him to exclaim, "never fear! For I am here!" For someone to tell him that it was all a joke, that All Might was alive, that none of this was really happening.
But no one did. All Might stayed limp, motionless, dead, Deku continued to laugh, Bakugou was still restrained, alone with a villain in an old abandoned warehouse. And he would be next. There was nothing he could do. Just like when he caused All Might to fight All For One and retire. It was his fault, and he couldn't fix it. He just watched as All Might fought his enemy. Now, he did the same thing, watching as All Might died and being powerless to stop it.
"How could you?" Bakugou's voice was thick with emotion.
Villain Deku snorted. "You sure made it a lot easier."
Bakugou was silent. He started to remember all of the times he told Deku to kill himself. To "take a swan dive off of the building and die." To give up on his dream. That he was worthless, weak, a damn nerd, a quirkless loser. This was... his fault. That was what had been in the back of his mind ever since he was captured by Deku and figured out he was a villain, but he didn't allow himself to think it.
He was the biggest contributor to Deku's fucked up life. Just because he was born without a quirk, he felt the need to bully the damn nerd. He was just so weak and so helpless, yet he could still want to be a hero? Bakugou thought that maybe he could show Deku how pointless the dream was. He could prepare him for the real world. At least, that's what he told himself. But more than anything he was... jealous. He had such ambition and determination, he was so smart and fucking nice. Why did he get the perfect attributes to be a hero, but not a quirk? If he had a quirk, he would've made an amazing hero. The best, maybe. He wished he could be like him. Sounds weird, I know. Wishing to be like the quirkless loser.
But all the same, he hated himself for not being like Deku. He thought that all he could do was yell and be angry and push people away, but that's not all he wanted for himself. He was so set in his ways, he couldn't change. So he took all of that out on Deku. He crushed the poor boy's spirit. He didn't deserve to have such pointless determination, he wasn't going to be a hero. Bakugou, yes Bakugou, always sort of secretly admired Deku for never giving up, though. He put the smaller boy through a lot of shit, but he always saw through it and only worked harder for his impossible goal.
And then he did give up, and he threw his dream away. It made his heartbreak at the thought. That he gave in to all of his taunts. He stopped wanting to be a hero. So he chose the next best thing. A villain.
And Bakugou couldn't be angrier with himself.
"Okay, Kacchan! You're next, I guess. I'll kill you and then get out of here."
Bakugou was silent for a long moment. He just stared at the ground, an odd look on his face. One that didn't suit was that... sadness? Deku looked down at him expectantly, probably waiting for him to say something like, "fuck you, damn nerd!" or "You couldn't kill me if you tried!" But he didn't say anything.
Until he did say something.
"Deku... Izuku... I'm... I-I'm sorry, okay?"
Deku wanted to ignore him. He wanted to let him break inside and not give him a single glance. But perhaps it was the way his voice crumpled into itself that he made him look over at Kacchan. And when he did, he was shocked. Bakugou was crying. Actually crying. Tears streamed down his red face faster than he wiped them away. His expression was angry and frustrated, he tried desperately to stop, but the more he did, the more he sobbed.
It was a terrifying sight.
At first, Villain Deku was going to snap at him. Say something along the lines of, "oh now you apologize!" or maybe kill him on the spot. But something about staring at his enemy, the boy he knew all his life as a bully or a symbol of fear, sobbing, curled up on the floor, trembling... It made him soften. He opened his mouth to speak, but he was beaten to it.
"This is my fault," the blonde boy continued, his voice shaking and quiet. "I just wanted to... be like you and shit. You looked like a hero. And I looked like the villain... That's so fucking ironic now."
He could tell how hard it was for Bakugou to be speaking like this. He almost never talked about how he really felt, he always masked his feelings with anger and shouting. It seemed the easiest way to get through social interaction. But now, now that his life and many others were on the line, he felt obligated to say something that meant shit. He didn't want to die without saying what was on his mind.
"Even though... you never saw it... You already were a hero, Deku- Izuku, fuck!" He paused, wiping his eyes and taking a jagged breath in. "You still can be. You can kill me, but just.... don't... please don't... fucking kill anyone else..."
He looked up at Deku for the first time since he began his little speech. Bakugou's mouth was pulled in an angry frown. His face was red and puffy from tears, and he was biting his lip to keep it from quivering. But his words were sincere. They came out angry, but they were genuine. Deku, on the other hand, looked agitated, but defeated. Like his words has stabbed him through his chest and he had lost the battle- whatever it was.
Villain Deku sighed. "It's too late for that now."
He sat down next to Bakugou and crossed his legs, leaning his face into his hands as though he were bored. He didn't look guilty or remorseful, or sad or angry. He looked...
Disappointed.
Bakugou blinked at him, sniffling. "What are you doing?"
"Waiting."
"For what?"
"The pro-heroes, dumbass," he grumbled, as though he didn't have a choice in the matter.
"Why-"
But he didn't continue. Deku. Fucking Deku. The blonde-haired boy had realized something at that moment- the thing that made Deku so powerful. He didn't want to win. He didn't want to lose. He didn't have an end goal in all of this. Every outcome, every possibility, every winner and every loser, he didn't care about any of them. Sure, losing would be disappointing, but not bad. All he cared about was... having some fun in the process.
What happened next seemed to go in slow motion.
It took five minutes for the pro-heroes to show up. The entire time, the warehouse was completely silently, safe for Bakugou's abnormal breathing and sniffling. When they did, Deku surrendered. They police untied Bakugou. Deku was handcuffed harshly. They forced him into a police car. He "had the right to remain silent." And the entire time this happened, he wore a stoic look.
Before the car could speed away to its destination, Deku's mother joined the scene. The driver rolled down the window for them to speak before the villain was locked away for the rest of eternity. Inko Midoriya looked terribly. She looked years older rather than months, as though the burden of losing her child had aged her greatly. Her skin was wrinkled and dry and uncared for. Her eyes had dark circles under them, and they were bloodshot from sleepless nights of wondering where her precious Izuku was. Her hair clearly hadn't been brushed for several weeks, or maybe even months. It was longer than he remembered, too, as though she couldn't be bothered to brush it.
"Izuku! My baby!" she wailed. She hugged him as best as she could through a car. She didn't yell at him for what he'd done. She wasn't disappointed. She was only glad to see him. She was ecstatic to see him. The tears that ran down her cheeks were tears of joy that she finally knew where he was, that he wasn't dead. As though nothing ever happened between him leaving and now.
"Mom...," he trailed, looking at her incredulously. "I... Do you know what I've done?"
After all of this, he still couldn't bring himself to utter the words. He killed All Might. Oh god, just thinking the words were difficult. His feelings had altered and now he seemed almost normal. Like he was just Inko Midoriya's son. He wasn't normal, of course not, but for the time being, that's what he liked to think. A normal boy who did abnormal things.
"Izuku, honey, I'm so sorry! I should've been a better mother to you!" She shouted and hugged him tighter. She was most likely referring to the time when he was a kid, a sad, desperate kid. A hopeful kid.
"Mommy... Do think I can still... I can still be a hero too?"
His eyes were full of tears and crushed dreams, but also something else, also hope. He wanted someone to tell him that yes, he could still be a hero. That he still had hope. That anyone could be a hero if they tried hard enough. And he could, too.
"Oh, Izuku I'm so sorry!"
Was all she said as she collapsed into a hug. Hope smashed. She didn't believe in him. No one did, but not even her. Izuku thought that if anyone would believe in him, it'd be his own mother.
He was wrong...
"I should have been a better mother back then...," her voice was a little more than a whisper. "Then maybe you wouldn't have strayed away...."
"Mom! How can you say you're sorry? Do you have any fucking idea what I've done? The blood is on my hands. I have enough sense to know it's wrong. And I knew it was wrong when I did it. I did it anyway! It was fun. I'm a terrible person."
He didn't regret it. No. Of course not. Deku would never regret it. Maybe Izuku would, but that part of him was dead along with All Might. The world without its number one hero. He smiled internally. He liked this new world. He loved it, even. And he was glad he created it.
"It's okay Izuku." her sounded strained. "I'll visit you from time to time, okay? I promise."
She finally let go of her son, gave him a soft kiss on the forehead, and then took a step back to let the car drive away. The driver, a police officer, kept glancing in disgust at the villain who had killed All Might. He looked just as shocked as the rest of the world would be once they found out. All the while, Todoroki was being treated in a secure hospital. He was in a coma currently, and once out of it he was most definitely going to fall apart upon hearing the news of his dead mentor. Even though he knew it was going to happen, that did nothing to lessen the blow. Now he had to be All Might, and that would definitely be a daunting task.
News reports broke out within hours. Headlines: "Number one hero, dead!!" or "All Might killed by a little boy!!!" Chaos set. The news reporters assured everyone that all the other villains were captured- that didn't do much. People were devastated. Some people demanded the villain responsible for the death of All Might was killed. Instead, he was taken to the facility in which All For One was held. He was kept under high, high maintenance. Sometimes he was quiet and respectful, sometimes he would scream curses at the guards, sometimes he'd mess with their heads. It was fun, but it got dull at times.
Villain Deku didn't pick a side. He was a side, all on his own. He didn't trust anyone. He wasn't with anyone. He treated people the same, heroes and villains alike. Villain Deku may have been caught, but he wasn't, really. Many may saw this as the end. Many may saw this as the end.
But only Villain Deku understood,
This is just the beginning.
𝐹𝒾𝓃
A/N- I finally finished editing this piece of garbage. Yeah, it sucks but whatever. I'm still kinda proud of it. Now I just need to edit the epilogue and I can focus on actually good things. Yay. Anyway, thanks for reading this trash! I hope you enjoyed it!