Chapter Text
(WHA’s American Branch New York Airfield)
‘… Izuku…’
“Wow! I thought it was insane how the battle was going before with the speed and those black tentacle things. But this is just taking it to the next level, it’s almost like watching Star and Stripe in action again.” A voice spoke up from next to the man watching the battle happening in Japan on a tablet screen.
The man looked over to see a younger Hero in his mid-twenties donning a blue full bodysuit with silver armored gear and a purple visor over his eyes The costume came with a hoodie that he currently had over his head as he leaned over the man’s shoulder.“It’s crazy to think that high-schooler is doing so much against that Shigaraki guy. Some people are posting that he must’ve stolen New Order from that thieving Quirk somehow. And those energy arms look so awesome!”
“… Yeah.”
“Come on, Skycrawler. I think that’s enough bugging the poor guy for now.” The two men looked up to see another Hero approach them. He was very tall, and his looks screamed a stereotypical American jock look with a muscular physique, blonde hair that was styled in a swept back mohawk and blue eyes that were currently hidden behind a dark blue-tinted visor that was similar in design to Skycrawler. He was wearing his own hero costume of a blue and black bodysuit that was cut off at the knees and his upper arms, silver shoulder pads and kneepads, and a red cape. “I apologize for my Sidekick, Hisashi-san.”
“Oh, it’s fine. Not that often the poor guy gets to talk to a fellow Japanese person instead of struggling with his English.” Hisashi Midoriya commented with a reassuring wave of his free hand. The man was in his early forties with a lean, yet muscular build that was more on the modest side compared to the likes of All Might’s buff form or Endeavor, though he still possessed the similar high as the two heroes from Japan. His usual fluffy black hair was slicked back, which he learned to do after years of practice, bright green eyes with scale-like patterns under them and a thin chinstrap of scruffy beard and was wearing a dark-grey leisure suit over a green shirt. “I’m the one who should be thanking you all for allowing me to accompany you on the mission to Japan. I really appreciate it!”
“Think nothing of it! It’s the least we could do after you helped us out with that incident with Number 6 and getting Koichi properly situated as Captain Celebrity’s Sidekick!” A woman’s voice called out as she poke her head out from behind the blonde hero, brushing a lock of her jet-black hair behind her ear. “Having the World Hero Association’s assistance in all the legal issues the Captain Celebrity Corporation had to deal with after the Naruhata Lockdown. Even as the General Manager, I was almost overwhelmed by the red tape and paperwork. And I had to deal with so much of it before then because of this guy!”
Captain Celebrity’s wilted a little at the jab at him, “Come on, Makoto. I’ve gotten a lot better in the past few years, haven’t I? Even my wife says I’m a lot better than how I used to be, and my son thinks I’m awesome!”
“Well, Pamela hasn’t been complaining about you as much when we’ve chatted. I’ll give you that.”
“… It’s still terrifying that you talk to my wife behind my back…”
Koichi Haimawari, also known as Skycrawler, a former vigilante from Japan turned American Sidekick, weakly chuckled at the two banter. “Never underestimate Makoto Tsukauchi.”
“Or any woman for that matter, my own wife can be quite intimidating when she wants to be.” A bead of sweat fell down the side of Hisashi’s face as he said that, having personal experience of his wife being angry at him despite how soft and huggable his sweet green koala could be. “From what my son told me, she even managed to make All Might tremble after the incident with the U.A. Training Camp incident.”
“Seriously? Damn. That’s some woman you married.”
“Hold on… So, this kid’s your son?! No wonder you look so much alike. Just switch out his hair color and making him a little older!” Koichi blinked in surprise as he looked up from his own video feed on his phone, before looking down at the footage of the other Heroes slowly joining Izuku in the final battle. “… No way! Is he regrowing his actual arms?!”
“What?! How's that possible?”
“Let me see! I’ve heard a little about this kid from my brother, Naomasa!”
A small smile formed on Hisashi’s face as he watched his son hold one of his restored arms in the air, shouting out to the Villain from across the battlefield his hero name and determination to win. It had only been recently that the order had been passed throughout the World Hero Association and the countries watching the decisive battle in Japan to send available Pro-Heroes and resources to assist dealing with the remaining Villains and rebuilding, and yet all of the government airfields were being flooded by those that wanted to help. Ever since the confrontation with the Paranormal Liberation Front and the massive prison breaks caused by All for One and his Nomus, Hisashi had worried about his wife and son since travel to and from Japan had been halted which prevented him from returning home. He didn’t have the highest rank as an agent in the WHA, but that didn’t mean what he did was any less important with helping the Association as a representative of Japan with dealing with threats all around the world. Working with Top Rank Heroes from other countries and continents was an incredible honor, plus it made his son happy whenever he’d send rare Hero Merchandise or autographs… even though his busy schedule meant he couldn’t return home as often as he wanted.
Ever since the beginning of the year, there had been so much that he had unfortunately missed during Izuku’s admission to one of the greatest Hero Schools in the world. Finding out that his son had somehow awakened a Quirk at the age of fifteen, which in his line of work made it impossible for him to buy Izuku’s story about it being a late-bloomer situation, was number two on his list. Not only was his son a bad liar, but Hisashi had dealt with so many unique cases that he knew there was more to what he was being told. In the end, he decided to silently accept it to not get in the way of his son’s dream and would shelve that conversation for later. After that, he would hear stories of Izuku’s class having to deal with the League of Villains on numerous occasions, seeing him perform in the Sports Festival and so much more.
Somehow, Hisashi managed to become a grandpa to a seven-year-old girl! His female coworkers gushed when he showed off a Christman photo of Izuku and Eri dressed up in Santa Claus outfits.
Yet, one of the best and scariest moments before this whole war started was when the World Hero Association and Heroes had to deal with Humarise. On the one hand, he got to work together with his son briefly before Endeavor’s group had to go to Otheon and it was because of Izuku and his friends that they managed to put a stop to the terrorist threat… on the other, his son had been falsely accused of mass murder by some corrupt cops working with the terrorists.
Sure, it all resolved in the end, but can you even imagine how his conversations with Inko went throughout that entire incident?
Not. Pleasant. At. All!
… There was also the weird, suspicious looks that one of his son’s friends, Shoto Todoroki, kept sending his way almost the entire time he had interacted with the group. Katsuki was the same as always though, too much like Mitsuki back in High School. Still a bit of a brat, but it seemed that a lot of his ego had cooled down since he last saw him.
Tears of pride filled Hisashi’s eyes as the visage of his son was replaced by his child form, wearing his old All Might onesie and pretending to save the civilian(Inko) from the terrifying Villain (Hisashi). The memory quickly returned to Izuku and the other Heroes as they charged Shigaraki/All for One. ‘Izuku, I am so proud of the man you’ve become… I always knew you possessed the heart and potential to become an amazing Hero, and now, the entire world knows it too.’
(Mt. Fuji)
‘Again… and again… and again… and AGAIN!’ All for One’s mind roared in as he glared at the green haired teen standing in front of the wounded Heroes that had come as reinforcements. The image of the boy, who just proclaimed his hero name to be Dekiru, was replaced with the glare that his brother and first holder of One for All, Yoichi, used to give him before his death. Then his visage was replaced by Kudo, and then Bruce, then Hikage, then Daigoro, then En, then Nana, then All Might… each and every one of them staring back at All for One with the exact same infuriating look of defiance. ‘Just how many times must I deal with such irritations?’
It all started with his younger brother’s constant desire to get in his way ever since they were children growing up on the streets, pointlessly trying to use his weak and sickly body to stop him from using his quirk for anything and everything he wanted. All for One didn’t even need to use any of the quirks he stole, a swift kick to Yoichi’s head was enough punishment for throwing rocks at him. The younger Shigaraki brother may have been All for One’s first possession, but even scuffed belongings were still valuable on a personal level. He thought that by locking Yoichi away and even giving him a Quirk after being believed to be powerless that eventually his younger brother would obey him… and then Kudo formed his futile resistance and tried to fight back against him.
At first, All for One saw the so-called resistance and its members were insignificant pebbles that he could leave to his subordinates. There was no need to dirty his hands with the fools that thought they could cause him any sort of grievance, let alone defeat him… But then Kudo crossed the line.
That man, the one that Izuku Midoriya now tied with in All for One’s hated for someone even more than All Might, had made one fatal mistake.
Kudo took away what. WAS. HIS!
‘One simple, foolish action that started all of this. But all of it is meaningless to me now.’ All for One thought to himself as his body slowly lifted into the air, ‘My original body reverted away into nothingness thanks to his use of that Rewind Quirk dosage that the Doctor made for him. I honestly should’ve shattered along with Tomura since I became an integral part of him… But the moment I heard the sounds of Yochi breaking into nothing along with the rest of One for All, it was as if all the color in my world faded away…’
Izuku glared hard at the Villian hovering a small distance away from the large formation of Heroes, ‘I need to get close… I don’t know how to explain it, but both the Embers and New Order are telling me that I need to make contact with All for One’s body to finish this!’
… Z…en… Shi…gar…ki…
The Hero Student’s eyes widened in shock. It was broken and somewhat muffled, but he clearly heard a voice just now.
A familiar one that shouldn’t be possible…
… Unless…
Meanwhile, back in the pack of Heroes, Present Mic watched as the last of the reinforcements emerged from the Warp Gates. “Thanks for the help, Shirakumo… Alright folks! All abled bodies listen up! You heard Dekiru’s words!! This is a major turning point for us, OUR LAST BIG JOB TO END THIS WAR!”
“...My obsession, the one thing I desired more than anything else. Gone… Only a gaping void of loss remains now, so deep that not even that death blow you attempted succeeded.” Spikes began to emerge from All for One’s shoulders while the rest of his arms mutated and grew monstrously large as his flesh turned into weapons and other types of offensive Quirks the man had in his arsenal. One of his legs transformed and opened up in a thorny wrap as a black orb formed underneath what used to be his foot. “Izuku Midoriya… no, Dekiru… I’ve come to realized that it’s tragedy that engenders true strength. Wouldn’t you agree?”
The green-haired teen wasn’t the one to respond to the Demon Lord’s statement, as Cellophane took a step forward and patted his classmate on the shoulder. “I dunno about that. My life has been pretty ordinary compared to some people out there, not really full of those wild highs or tragic lows. Biggest thing pushing me forward were typical school stuff of not wanting to fair my next practical and such.” Taking off into a dash towards All for One, Sero continued to speak out as he saw two Warp Gates form on either side of the Villain. “But the same can’t be said for some of my friends though, especially one that used to look so empty and mentally exhausted. Miserable, tragic crap like that ain’t something anyone should have to endure!”
Emerging from his gate with his left arm ablaze, Shoto didn’t even exchange a glance with his father, Endeavor, who exited out from the gate on the opposite side of All for One with his own flames covering his remaining arm. A mild stabbing sensation from the stolen Danger Sense throbbed in the Villain’s head, though the sudden pincer attack didn’t seem to bother All for One in the slightest.
“FLASHFIRE…”
“… FIST!”
Both father and son unleashed their flame attacks in unison at All for One, who used his levitation Quirk in conjunction with a Ring Repulsion Quirk, the very one he originally stole from Tenko when he was a newborn, to move above the explosion caused by colliding flames.
“It seems that Danger Sense will only be a useless annoyance in this fight… Tell me if you recognize this, Endeavor… Dark Ball plus Pyro Absorption plus Kinetic Booster 4X.” Everyone watched as the black ball under All for One’s foot gained a purple outline as it begun to descend into the flames and to the shock of many, began to absorb all of the fire into itself and grew in size.
The Flame Hero’s eyes narrowed at this, never taking his gaze off the sphere even as Sero’s tape wrapped around his torso and pulled him away along with his son.‘ This is just like with that Four-Eyed Nomu I faced back in Hosu. He’s absorbing the flames and planning on releasing it in one powerful burst, using that ball as a catalyst so the injuries don’t go back to him!’
“You cut-rate Heroes… are mere afterthoughts compared to All Might and Dekiru… All wounded and desperate to achieve some forlorn glimmer of hope. I don’t even pity or annoyance, only nothing.” All for One stated as several of the tendrils coming out of his right arm twisted together behind the black sphere and began to bulge, “Just as you are about to become. Air Cannon.”
A shockwave of air pressure erupted from the tendril bunch and blasted into the Dark Ball, shattering the dark casing and collided with the flames inside. The already enhanced fire grew bigger and stronger as the air pressure turned the shockwave into a large torrent of flames that were heading straight for the main collection of Heroes while others were already on the move to attack the Villain from the sides.
“Already going for a powerful ranged attack, huh? Looks like All Might’s claim was right on the money, All for One’s influence is making Shigaraki starts off his fights the same way.” Aizawa eyes then widened in shock as his problem child of a student leap into the air with a hand stretched out, “Midoriya!”
“Let’s see how you like it… Fire! [New Order: The fire will condense into a ball and harmlessly float over my left hand!]” As soon as the words escaped Dekiru’s lips, the incoming flames from All for One’s enhanced counter fire created from Endeavor and Shoto’s Flashfire Fists suddenly began to move on their own into a vortex that began to shrink until it became a glowing ball of yellow-white flames hovering over Izuku’s left hand. “New Order really is amazing… Sero! Get them out of the way!”
“Already done!” The Tape Quirk user shouted back as he finished pulling the father and son, who were still severely burnt and exhausted from their fight with Dabi, out of the line of attack.
‘Midoriya?’ Shoto thought to himself in disbelief as he watched his friend manipulate the fire that All for One had turned against them. The two-toned teenager had gotten a rough briefing of what happened to his best friend but seeing him in action was another story.
Endeavor gritted his teeth through the pain as he watched one of the students that did a work study under him, ‘I managed to hear some of the chatter though communications. Deku- No, Dekiru, somehow gained the power of Star and Stripe. With a mind like his, this could be the lucky break we need! Use everything at your disposal, make our flames your own if needed to take this villain down!’
Rearing his right arm back, Izuku clenched his hand into a fist as he called out his next order. “[New Order - Revision: The sphere of fire that doesn’t harm me will recoil from impact with my fist and release in a straight torrent in front of me!]… reminds me of when I hoped to get a fire Quirk like Dad. A bit of a mix of Endeavor and Dynamight’s attacks, but… Hawaii Smash!” Striking the back of the fire sphere, all of the condensed and hotter fire released from the other side in a concentrated blast that spread out wider the farther it reached. The attack collided with an enormous collection of All for One’s nearby Rivet Spiral Spears that were aiming for a separate group of Heroes that were charging from the side, the intense heat vaporizing the black spears before they could hit the heroine sidekick Burnin and her group.
“Not bad, kid! Really put some heat on that one!” Burnin shouted with an impressed grin on her face before grabbing two chunks of her blazing hair and manipulated them into becoming lances in her hands, “Alright, you lot! Dekiru was a part of our agency not too long ago, so it’d look bad if his senpais slacked off! Divert his attacks!”
“Right!” The other members of the Flaming Sidekickers roared in agreement as they followed the copper-flame green haired woman in getting closer to All for One.
Creating more of his tendrils and spears, All for One fueled more of his various offensive and enhancement Quirks through them as the large mob of Heroes charged forward. But even as the Pro-Heroes and Hero Students struggled to fight off his attacks, the Demon Lord kept his focus on Dekiru, who started to run towards him with a look of determination.
‘Even now, Danger Sense prioritizing Izuku Midoriya and his New Order as the biggest threat, while barely registering any of these weak afterthoughts- ‘ All for One was quickly pulled from of his thoughts, both figuratively and very literally as extraordinarily powerful force suddenly started pulling him from behind. The man snapped his head around to see the Pro-Heroine Thirteen riding on the back of her fellow teacher and Pro-Hero, Hound Dog, with all of the fingertip caps on her gloves open.
“Black Hole!” The helmetless woman shouted as she kept her Quirk’s suction trained on All for One, preventing the man from attacking the incoming Heroes.
But Thirteen wasn’t alone as the fleshy quirk of the Hero Student. Shishikross temporarily held the Villian in place long enough for another Pro-Hero, Gang Orca, to get close enough to unleash a powerful hypersonic attack.
“… Nothing but dust to sweep away…” All for One commented as he shook off the sonic attack before letting his tendrils run wild, each one tearing into the very earth before the Heros’ feet and sending a few flying.
“Holy crap! Just how fast and strong is this guy?!
“Dealing with just one of his attacks is taking dozens of us to hold him off!”
“I knew he’d be insane to fight, but we’re not even close to evening the field!”
“Don’t let him split us up!” Itsuka Kendo, student of U.A.’s Class 1-B known as Battle Fist, exclaimed as she used her enlarged fist to punch away an incoming spear, “Fight back as a cohesive unit! If it takes a bunch of us to divert even one attack, then make it happen together!”
“Smash!” Destroying one of the airborne boulders descending upon some of the Heroes with a powerful tornado kick, Izuku landed nearby with his feet skidding across the ground. “Everyone! I know it is asking a lot… but please… lend me your strength!”
“But of course☆! We’d better get running then.” A familiar French accent spoke up just as a hand grabbed onto Dekiru’s, making the green-haired teen turn to see Aoyama looking straight ahead towards All for One. The man responsible for his family’s anguish.
“Aoyama…”
“We’ll need your strength to finish this as much as you need us. The very reason we all came… was to fight by your side.”
Briefly looking down at his classmate’s hand pulling at him to start running, Izuku briefly thought back to that moment after they found out that Aoyama was All for One’s spy and how he offered his hand out to him… But despite the lump slowly building in his throat, the former One for All user swallowed it down. Feeling the strong tug of Aoyama lightly tossing him forward, Dekiru glanced back to see that Can’t Stop Twinkling sent him off with an encouraging smile even as All for One’s Rivet Spears tore through the ground underneath him before going full charge towards the Villain.
Now wasn’t the time for tears.
Meanwhile, a ways back, Aizawa snapped his head back to look at where his friend-turned-Nomu, Kurogiri was standing. “Shiraku-?!” Eraser Head couldn’t finish his orders as he watched as his former friend’s body distort and actually begin to physically melt… It seemed that Kurogiri/Shirakumo had pushed his body too far. The man’s teeth grinded hard to the point that a few molars nearly cracked before turning his head back towards the battlefield with a hand on his earpiece, “Carve a path! Lead one straight to Shigaraki for Dekiru!!”
“My Omni-Factor Unleash…” Dozens of Quirk and nearby Rivet Spears under All for One’s control began to tangle and merge together in a monstrous barrel rifle over his shoulder, “… Unlike how my original body seemed to be emotional during his battle with Katsuki Bakugo, the true power behind it not the result of me giving into base emotions. The augmentation before you is what happened when I exercise control and authority over my myriad of Quirks… Can your feeble minds understand what I mean by that?”
Every Hero watched as a crackling ball of energy started forming on at the very end of the makeshift cannon, cracking with black lightning while the barrel was glowing ominously as the power inside continue to build. But that wasn’t all as many of the spikes taking form on All for One’s shapeshifting body twisted until they were pointing down at the approaching Izuku and the Heroes nearby, along with other types of projectile and emitter Quirks.
“You may have a culmination of Heroes on your side, but assuming that means you have me outnumbered is foolhardy.” With his cannon pointed straight at Dekiru, All for One barely flinched as the force from the massive lasers blast destroyed the tendrils and transformations Quirks used to create it. The recoil was of little consequence to him as long as he had Hyper Regeneration.
“Shit!”
“This is just like what we saw in Kamino with All for One’s battle with All Might!”
“Combining Quirks like this is too insane!”
“Tch!” Izuku reared a fist back, fully prepared to launch a shockwave punch with the embers inside of him, only to be caught by surprise as a girl with long, messy, wavy chartreuse hair with pink specks in it jumped in front of the laser. She didn’t appear to be wearing much besides some gloves and boots and a torn black jacket that barely reached her thighs. “Get out of the wa-”
The green haired teen didn’t get a chance to finish his statement as the girl brought up her hands to the incoming laser and, to Izuku’s surprise, managed to manipulate the laser and cause it to bend away from its initial trajectory. Despite what close she had been mostly torn to shreds by the attack and the light burn on her cheek, the girl appeared to be unharmed by it and actually flashed Izuku a large grin and determination in her big round eyes that were teal on the outside with a yellow interior.
“Got laser-ish stuff coming your way? Invisible Girl is your gal!” The beautiful girl called out to the group below before turning her attention back to All for One and put all of her energy into bending the powerful laser in her control even more.
“H-Hagakure?!” Izuku replied in shock as he managed to get a good look at his classmate, who’s body appeared to be glitching as she was pressed up against the laser and her Invisibility Quirk no longer hiding her body. But his surprise didn’t end there as he caught sight of two more of his classmates nearby with an Electromagnetic Rail Gun that Creati had created with her Quirk connected to Chargebolt to use his electrical Quirk as a battery. “Yaoyorozu! Kaminari!”
“Ready to fire!” Yaoyorozu shouted to the blonde Hero Student.
Despite feeling his brain already starting to short-circuit for a while now, Kaminari only smirked as he summoned even more of his electricity to power the weapon. “Yaaaayyyy…”
The sound of the Electromagnetic Rail Gun rang through the air as it fire a powerful shot at All for One as Hagakure finished spinning the powerful laser blast around and release control of it, changing its trajectory fully to hit the very man that fired it. Raising a hand towards the incoming counterattacks, All for One scoffed as he channeled a few defensive Quirks into his arm, “Insolent brats…”
“I really hope this works…” Dekiru called out as he leaped into the air with his enhanced speed and landed near the tip of the laser attack being redirected back at All for One. “Laser! [New Order: From now on, lasers will not harm my body and be surfable!]” With his feet firmly placed on the laser, Dekiru leaned forward as he rode on it all the way towards the Villain. Creati and Chargebolt’s Rail Gun seemed to have more power behind it than normal as the projectile actually passed the laser and was tearing through any of All for One’s other incoming attack that got near it. “You’re not getting away!”
Narrowing his eyes as the rail gun bullet slammed into his hand and taking a good chunk of his palm, All for One concentrated more of his attack onto Izuku as he approached, “Clever. It seems your mind isn’t limited by imagination in how to use New Order. I suppose that is one thing you have more than Star and Stripe, Dekiru… But can you protect them like All Might did?”
“Tch! Just watch me-”
Before Dekiru could finish his retort, all of the incoming spears and other offensive Quirks that were heading towards the former OFA user were destroyed or knocked away by the combined effort of Izuku’s classmates from both Class 1-A and 1-B. Though it wasn’t enough to stop some of the thicker tendrils from colliding from the laser Dekiru was riding on and halting its advancement, causing him to cancel out his order as a result to keep his slots open.
“Who says he’s got to focus on protecting us?!”
“Don’t worry about us, man!”
“You just save your strength! It can actually hurt him!”
“We might not know each other well but let us endure these attacks for you!”
“Shiozaki’s right! Let us can tank these while you finish that guy off!”
Feeling two different sensations wrapped around his torso as he felt his body slowly start to descend, Izuku followed them upward to see two more of his classmates, Tentacole and Froppy using their Dupli-Arms and tongue respectively to pull him upward with a lot of force.
“While we can’t weave through these brutal attacks like you…” Tentacole started to say.
“… We can still help you get a little closer in our own way!” Froppy finished as she and her fellow Hero Student put all of their strength into throwing Dekiru forward.
“Thanks, Shoji! You too, Tsu!”
‘About time you finally said it right, kero!’ Froppy thought to herself as she leaped off the tendril she was on as spike shot out of it.
Landing with a crouch, Izuku took in a deep breath as he took off running once again. Briefly stopping as a large stone whip was swinging towards him, only for Pinky, Red Riot, and a skinny Fat Gum to intercept it and hold it off with all their strength. “Show some GUTS!!”
Red Riot’s body seem to struggle as it repeatedly shifted between his Hardening Quirk in its base form and his Unbreakable form, and yet he continued to push back against the stone attack, “You got this, dude!”
The red haired Hero Student wasn’t the only one who was visibly having difficulties with their Quirk. The left side of Pinky’s body no longer possessing its pink color for a fair tone and sclera of her left eye lost some of its black color, reflecting how dehydrated she had become even as she summoned more acid. “Get it done!”
“Don’t worry, I will! Blood… [New Order: The blood inside my body will pump and flow throughout my body at a faster rate!” Izuku roared as the order took affect channeled more power and became a blur as maneuvered through the attacks, his mind racing as he continued to run while his allies did their best to counter or intercept anything that tried to get close to him. ‘I can’t keep this order up for long! It’s similar to blood doping and will increase my speed and agility for a little while, but the consequences will be similar what I went through with Gearshift… But now I’m starting to feel it as I’m getting closer. The Embers inside me are resonating with the actual Quirk inside him!’
Izuku wasn’t the only one with thoughts racing through his head, All for One was starting to struggle internally as he watched so many Heroes continue to struggle against him despite his power. ‘Why… Why do they refuse to lie down and die? These future carcasses should know that their actions are amounting to nothing, wasting so much strength in their previous skirmishes… And yet their eyes… their eyes…’
“Finding himself watching helplessly! Giving your power to this worthless trash was a mistake!”
“It wasn’t a mistake. This young man possess an unyielding will to protect others and give it everything he has to overcome challenges presented against him.
All for One’s eyes widened slightly as his previous words when Tomura tried to steal One for All echoed through his mind.
‘… So that’s what my little brother meant… Compared to All Might… you don’t have the overwhelming presence proclaiming that you can handle everything on your own. You may have power once again, but you clearly struggle with your entire being to achieve your goals… and that in turn spurs others to do the same.’
With a powerful leap off of an elastic platform of air created by Gentle Criminal, Izuku leaped towards All for One with an arm reared back. All the while unknowing of the words of encouragement people both on the battlefield and watching through whatever visuals they had available.
(Throughout all of Japan)
“Do your utmost, boy!" “Keep going, Hero!" "We believe in you!" “Do your best!”
“You can do this!” ""DEKIRU!"" "Get it done."
“Don't stop fighting!” "Take him down!" "You've got this!" "This is your chance, kid!"
“I know you can… Dekiru!” Gran Torino weakly said from his hospital bed, thankful that he got audio to hear his final student proclaim himself to the world.
“… Do your best!” Uravity whispered as she stared at the small screen Pixie-Bob was holding out for her as they rode the helicopter to the hospital.
Lady Nagant refused to take her eyes off the screen that the Pro-Hero, Rock Lock, was facing in her direction, even as a nurse worked on restitching the wounds she had aggrivated in her attempt to provide Dekiru support earlier. "Take that bastard down. "
“I know you can win!” Kota shouted with tears in his eyes.
Several feet away from the boy, Ippan Josei had her hands clasped together ii front of her face as she watched image of the young Hero that saved her rush towards the villain. "Don't give up! You can do it!"
“Papa/Izuku… DO YOUR BEST!”” Eri and Inko shouted together with tears in their eyes as they watched Dekiru get closer to the Villain.
“Win this, son!” Hisashi stated as the aircraft he was on took off into the air, several Pro-Heroes watching over his shoulder with looks of encouragement on their faces too.
(Rooftop of Destroyed Building in Ido City)
“I thought our ejector seats were disabled, but here we are.” Ethan Drive, one of the fighter pilots that came from America with Star and Stripe, spoke up as he removed some of the nearby rubble while his teammates were giving first aid to the incredible injured man lying on his back. “I take it that was because of you, All Might?”
Japan’s former Number One Hero, also known as Toshinori Yagi, took in a deep breath as he felt one of the men work on securing his demolished right arm, but the damage done to him by the original All for One would need to be treated at a real hospital. “… Those kids are hoping for an absolute victory… So, the least I could do was keep our losses to a minimum if possible.”
“Coming from you? That’s rich…” The amused smirk on Ethan’s face turned melancholy as he turned his head to look at one of the monitors they managed to salvage from a destroyed X-66, which luckily allowed them to see the broadcast being shown of the battle happening at Mt. Fuji. “Can’t say that I’m not happy though… Getting to see Cassie’s Quirk in action again, in the hands of a Hero at that, makes this all worth it.”
“No kidding. I thought we’d never see her crazy New Order again after she sacrificed herself against Shigaraki.” The man securing All Might’s head to allow the man to see the screen as well, “Don’t know how the kid managed it, but now a piece of Cassie lives on.”
“Damn right! That bastard doesn’t stand a chance against two Number One Hero Quirks, especially with all those other Heroes supporting him.”
I don’t know the full picture, but it was the part of me inside of One for All that helped you somehow… Young Midoriya, that day we met, and you jumped in to help Young Bakugo… you inspired me to take action …’All Might said nothing as he weakly raised his still working arm into the air, clenching his hand into a fist as he pointed it at the screen with Midoriya’s back to him. “You’re already the Greatest Hero in my book! So, keep that fist clenched tight and win this!”
(Back with Dekiru and All for One)
‘As long as you breath and keep moving forward, the will to fight against me will not cease…?!’ All for One’s eyes widened in shock as he felt a painful sensation coming from his hand that he raised to attack the airborne Hero, the same one he had used to take the rail gun blow earlier... one that was still showing signs of damage.
“It’s over now… ZEN SHIGARAKI!” Dekiru shouted at the same moment his fist crashed into the Villain’s chest with a devastating punch, but even with the pain circulating through his body, All for One’s focus immediately locked on to what Izuku had just said.
“How… do you know that name?!” All for One gritted his teeth underneath his hand-mask, several veins on his face bulging and the holes in his hands spurting out blood.
Izuku’s glared straight into the eyes of the Villain, “You can thank the First for that… He didn’t want me to go into fighting you without knowing who I was fighting and told me everything during that time I was on my own. About the history you shared!"
‘Y-Yochi… How…? How is this happening?’ All for One could feel all of the Quirks connected to his body come to a halt and something within him crack, ‘I should’ve realized that Hyper-Regeneration wasn’t working from the moment I took over this body, that it was only its enhanced durability that was fending off the blows I was taking… Was it because Dekiru and these insignificant whelps overwhelmed my sensitivity-‘
“And I finally figured out who you are… so now our perceptions are matched up and conditions are met!” Izuku shouted as he activated New Order and the Embers of One for All in tandem, “I called out your name and made contact with you! [New Order: Zen Shigaraki’s body and soul will be unable to withstand the power of One for All and SHATTERS TO DUST!]!]”
All for One, no, Zen Shigaraki’s eyes widened in horror as he watched as the area of his body that was in contact with Dekiru’s punch began to break apart like glass with chips and pieces breaking off… almost similar to how Decay used to kill its targets. “N-No… That’s impossible! I threw away that name when I decided to become a Demon Lord!”
“You’re original body discarded the name, but that was only your surface perception! Quirk Vestiges represent a person’s true self, so even if you try and change who you are, the purest true version of yourself will remain unchanged! Just like how Tenko Shimura still existed inside of Tomura Shigaraki!” Dekiru explained as he kicked Zen’s right arm as he tried to reach for him, shattering it while creating some distance between him and the crumbling villain. “And with that Order to weakened your body even further, it can’t withstand the combined force of One for All’s stockpile after nine generations!”
Zen’s eyes drifted down as he felt more of his body continue to break apart, already reaching the right side of his face as his one good eye saw his Quirk creations break along with him. ‘So that’s it. That attack into the core not only made my spirit a lost cause, but it ruined this body even more than I previously thought.’
Down on the ground with the Heroes, each of them watched in amazed relief as all of All for One’s Quirks stopped their assaults and were actually starting to fall apart. One of the Hero Students from Ketsubutsu High, Yo Shindo aka Grand, hesitantly raised his hands off the halted tendril that had been attacking his group. “Is it over? All of his Quirks are crumbling away…”
“Midoriya must’ve pulled it off!” Red Riot called out as he and several of his nearby classmates and Pro-Heroes climbed over the large rubbles to get a better view of Dekiru and the Villain, all of them seeing that the source of the destruction had a large hole in its mass. “Hell yeah!”
The broken stolen body of Zen Shigaraki could only stare at the younger man pulling away from him, feeling nothing but the same emptiness inside of him as he did before even as only the left upper portion of his body remain… before being quickly replaced by RAGE!
Spikes and bars manifested out of the openings in his nearly vanquished form to hold his failing body together, truly becoming the monster on the outside that he was on the inside. ‘I’m not done yet!’
Dekiru couldn’t help but feel a little stunned at what he was seeing, ‘Using his Quirks so haphazardly to fight against the immutable rule I created using New Order. He seriously can’t think such a desperate thing will work, right?’
“I haven’t achieved anything yet! No one can get in the way of my dreams and rob me of what is mine!” All for One roared as he struggled to use his Quirks to fight against his body’s annihilation. “As the Demon Lord, only I am singular and absolute! If this body is going to be ruined then all I simply need to repeat the process I did with that fool! With such a wide selection before me, all I need do is grant someone my Quirk and claim their body as my NEW VESSEL!””
“Did you forget that I made contact with you a second time, Zen Shigaraki? I won’t let you have your way anymore! [New Order - Stacking: Zen Shigaraki can no longer take or give Quirks away with All for One or One for All!]” Dekiru stated that he used one of the still intact giant tendrils as a stepping stone to launch himself back at the Villain with his body spinning at high speeds like a tornado while rearing his right leg back.
Zen’s remaining eye widened in horror as he felt as if the transfer ability inside his Quirk were being locked down and sealed tightly in the abyss of his mentalscape, “No!”
“Midoriya!” Eraser Head called out to his student in worry as he could see the inevitable clash that was about to occur, just as it did when All Might and All for One dealt their final blows at Kamino Ward.
Noticing some movement a little ways behind him, the Underground Hero turned to see that Kurogiri returned to his feet, the Nomu forcing his body to stay together as his eyes locked onto the Hero and Villain as well. “Sho… ta… Yama… da… S-Sorry… I ha..ve… to… p-pro… tect…”
“Shirakumo?!” Present Mic muttered out in shock before his eyes widened in realization and looked back up at where Dekiru and All for One were, where a large Warp Gate had formed between the Hero and Villain, and felt tears in his eyes at the sight. “Aw, gimme a break! This is just like you… even on death’s door… you just can’t help reaching out a hand!”
Using everything that he had left in him, the High-End Nomu could still feel the gate and his very essence break apart. But that did not stop him as he spoke his final words, even as Dekiru’s was getting close to being swallowed up by the gate. “All… for One… Give… back… Tomura… Shiga…raki… His friends are wa-”
Kurogiri didn’t finish as a pair of teeth clamped down on the small visible part of him and released an explosion that destroyed what remained of the Nomu and his deteriorating Warp Gate. The cause of the explosion turned out to be Katsuki Bakugo, otherwise known as… Great Explosion Murder God Dynamight…
… Yeah… Give me one second…
[New Order: The story known as Inheriting the Star and the author Dekiru Tales will only use Dynamight as Bakugo’s Hero name from now on!]
… Okay, I feel better.
“Bakugo?! Where the hell did he come from?!” Present Mic called out as he watched the Explosion using Hero’s mangled body hover briefly before it began dropping to the ground below, “Don’t tell me he came here alone with his blasts instead of going to the hospital!?”
“Todoroki might’ve helped out with this little ski jump…” Dynamight revealed as his body started to fall to the ground with smoke coming out of his mouth, his eyes never leaving Dekiru’s back as he finished spinning with his leg reared back as far as it could go. Luckily for the teen, Shoto wasn’t going to let him continue his dangerous descent and summoned some ice to catch Dynamight. “But don’t you dare let me surpass you, Izuku!”
Channeling more of the Embers into his leg, Izuku was prepared to end this. “I can’t look past what you’ve done, Zen Shigaraki! But my perception of you is complete!”
“… No… Stop…” The Villain, known as All for One replied weakly. “Don’t lo-”
“And you’re no ‘Demon Lord’! You’re just a pathetic, lonely man that threw a tantrum because nobody in the world wanted to look at him!” Izuku continued as he got close, “But understanding you doesn’t equal forgiveness… and I will make sure there are no remnants left! UNITED...”
“STAY AWAY FROM ME!” All for One shouted in a panic while raising his lone arm in an attempt to fire off a counterattack.
But it was too late.
“...WORLD OF…!” With his foot tearing through the remains of Zen’s arm and his makeshift body parts, Izuku let out a roar as his kick slammed underneath the Villain’s chin with all of his strength. “SMASH!!!!”
As his foot made contact, a bright flash overcame Dekiru’s mind.
(???)
“…”
“…”
“…”
“…”
“… I guess I… should be thanking you…”
“Don’t bother. I only gave you that Quirk to make Master pay for betraying me, turning you into my tool for vengeance… At least I managed to destroy something in the end.” Tenko Shimura’s vestige replied as his body partially restored itself. “You took a page of what All Might’s Vestige did and used the Embers inside you to awaken the other users to attack Master from within… It was only thanks to my grandmother that some part of me remained tethered as well and came back to get a blow in as well.”
Izuku let out a sigh as he lowered his arm, “Just like with him, it's impossible for me to forgive you. After everything you did… there was no way I could let you continue in spreading all that pain, grief, and misery you felt onto the world. I had to stop you, and wanted you to stop yourself too…
“Hah… I don’t want to fully admit that you were right about me just being a crying little kid… But maybe there is some truth to that…” The scared Villain let out a sigh as he felt his spirit start to vanish, this time with no chance of coming back. “Izuku Midoriya… Dekiru… I have a request…”
(In the Physical World)
Back with Dekiru’s physical body, the force of his kick reduced what remained of All for One/Zen Shigaraki’s body into dust in the wind. But that paled in comparison to the spectacle that every Hero on the battlefield, the civilians at the shelters, and everyone else watching from around the world witnessed as Dekiru’s form hovered post-kick with his leg stretched high in the air.
The darkened clouds that had stretched out for miles over the area were blown away with a single kick… letting the sun shine down on the airborne Hero that came out victorious.
As the hero, Dekiru, landed back on the ground without any injuries and the sun shining down on him, the green haired teen turned to face all of the other Heroes with a large smile on his face before lifting a fist high into the air.
And it was quickly mirrored by almost every other person there.
- IDMOFANOIDMOFANOIDMOFANOIDMOFANOIDMOFANOIDMOFANOIDMOFANOIDMOFANO-
“…”
“…”
“…”
“…”
“… Um… We both can admit this feels awkward, right?”
“Heh. Extremely. How many times was it that we were in the exact opposite positions at the beginning of the school year?”
“I don’t think we should go down that road of irony… How’re you feeling?” Izuku, dressed in civilian clothing asked from his seat next to All Might’s bed, taking in his teacher’s heavily injured form with full casts for his arms and legs, a neck brace and other bandages that were visible.
It had been a week since the final war between Japan’s Heroes and Villains had ended and the peace had mostly been restored to the country. There were still some low level Villains from the prison break still trying to cause trouble here and there, but thanks to all of Pro-Heroes arriving from all over the world to come and help, those problems were swiftly taken care of. All of the outpouring resources the other nations sent over greatly helped with the restoration process as well, with many civilians being able to return to their restored homes. Luckily, the weather was strongly in their favor as clear sunny skies allowed them to work unimpeded except for some fierce winds that would blow by… which was the exact same weather that the United States were also going through.
Social media all around the world were making posts about how it must’ve been the result of Dekiru’s final kick against the Villain. Some commenting on how the Symbol of Peace had dealt a punch that changed the weather for a few hours, while the new Symbol of Hope had dealt a blow that changed it for a week.
The newly renamed One for All Hero: Dekiru quickly gained a massive fanbase after that.
But unfortunately, there was some bittersweetness to the battles conclusion as a few of the Heroes lost their lives during the multiple final battles. Many had been injured as well and were taken immediately to all available hospitals for treatment. One such place was the Central Hospital where many severely injured Heroes like All Might was currently being looked after… and ironically, Izuku wasn’t one of them this time.
“Well, the doctors said they’d never had to use so many bolts to cobble someone back together.” The former Hero lightly joked as he looked over at his student with just his eyes, too injured to be able to turn his head even a little. “How about you, Young Midoriya? For someone who had fought the enemy leader, you don’t appear to be in that bad of shape.”
“Thanks to Eri’s Quirk and the Embers I used to power it, any injuries I had before the start of the battle disappeared. I had to deal with some numbness for a bit, and the doctors had to get a proper look at me after getting a massive headache and passing out with a nosebleed after that final blow.” Izuku explained as he leaned forward with his elbows on his knees, some compression bandaged wrapped around his right forearm, “Turns out that just the Embers are able to enhance New Order in a way similar to how One for All did the Vestige’s Quirks, made it stronger but also the side effects to go along with it. Continuously giving out all those powerful orders with an exhausted mind was a little too much for me, and the consequences of that pseudo blood doping I did. Thankfully, a few days of rest and eating a lot of food managed to help with the recovery process.”
“I’ll bet. Damage to the brain can be disastrous, let alone manipulating your blood flow like that. You’ll definitely have to strengthen your mind if you want to use New Order on Cassie’s level.”
“… Yeah……… All Might?”
“Hm?”
“I’m just wondering if I was wrong to try and save Tenko in the end…” Clenching his hands together, Izuku thought back to when he made it inside of Tenko’s heart, in that brief moment when he interacted with that child he saw before All for One intervened. “I managed to reach into the depths of his heart and shattered all of the hatred inside of him… but even after, Tenko was still the League of Villains’ leader to the very end.”
Toshinori was silent for a few seconds as he lifted his gaze up to the ceiling, “Having gone through a near-death experience myself… let me ask you… What was the face he had on his face in his final moments?”
“His face…” Izuku closed his eyes as he recalled his final conversation with his arch enemy.
“If Spinner ends us surviving this, tell him… that Tomura Shigaraki fought to destroy to the very end… Oh, and if anyone asks… you took New Order away from me during our struggle.”
“… Alright, though I think you destroyed plenty of the old society.”
“Oh yeah? Then I guess it all depends on what the people decide to do in the future… Continue to do your damn best and don’t waste that power of yours… Dekiru.”
“Whether or not it was the right call, unfortunately only you can answer that. But if you didn’t see that crying kid, then I think you did manage to save his soul at the very least. You manage to finish what all of the previous One for All users started and put an end to Zen Shigaraki for good... God, I can’t believe that after all this time, it wasn’t till after the bastard died that I learned he had an actual name…” It still left an awful taste in Toshinori’s mouth to associate a real human name to the selfish, cruel monster he had fought against for over forty years. “I could feel it when you passed on One for All, as well as the part of me inside of it restoring New Order… How much is left?”
“… Most of it mixed in with New Order once the Quirk became mine and made it stronger, but I can still feel some embers existing separately inside of me.” Izuku confirmed with a small smile, not realizing that the door to the hospital room was opening. “It’s smoldering, but I’m sure it will eventually-”
“WHY THE HELL’RE YOU UP AND ABOUT?! DIDN’T THE DOCTOR JUST SAY TO REST!” Mitsuki Bakugo shouted worriedly at her son, who was completely covered in bandages, his surgically restored arm in a heavy cast and a large brace wrapped over his entire mid-section, he even had multiple fluid injections going into his body. “I’m so sorry about this, All Might! He was just worried about you! And Izuku, I’m glad to see you’re doing all right!”
“Thanks, Auntie.” Izuku had a relieved smile on his face as he focused on his rival, who had a stunned look on his face. “I’m so glad to see you’re okay, Katsuki! You’ve been out for almost the entire week, and I wanted to thank you for your help back there!”
“… Did you just say… embers?” The shock and disbelief on the younger Bakugo’s face as he processed what he had just heard was only met by a calm expression Izuku was sending his way. “Does that mean… you’re…”
“No. I didn’t go back to being Quirkless… Back when I was fighting Tomura, One for All and All for One connected to each other once again… and I ended up taking one of his somehow…” Izuku explained while clenching one of his hands into a fist, “I’m surprised you didn’t hear about it when you were rushing to the battlefield… I ended up snatching the Quirk he stole from Star and Stripe, and the embers inside me restored its Quirk Factor into becoming mine now… So, I can continue to…” The green haired teen felt that whatever he was going to say next quickly died as he saw tears falling down Katsuki’s face, “Wh-WHAAAAAAA?! Why are you crying?!”
“What the hell… is wrong with me… I treated you so badly, but… the thought of us not completing anymore… Even after all the shit I put you through…” Katsuki did his best to rub away the tears, only for more to take their place. “Why… am I… so…”
Izuku could feel his own tears start to build up as he watched his oldest friend shed tears, “Hey, cut it out! T-This isn’t like you! It’s not like I’m going anywhere. Being all banged up must be making you emotionally vulnerable or something…”
Even though it hurt to do so, All Might lifted up his head to get a better view of Katsuki standing at the door, his parents staying out of sight in the hallway while keeping an eye on their son. “The two of you have grown so much since the day we met…”
As Mitsuki and Masaru silently listened to the former Number One talk to the two boys, the sound of footsteps coming from the corridor on their right made the parents turn to see some familiar faces walking up to them. Hisashi raised his hand up in a wave while Inko and Eri were bringing up the rear, the little girl holding her grandmother’s hand tightly.
But the trio weren’t alone.
“… To the pair of Great Heroes that saved my life, thank you.”
Despite the tears falling down their faces, the smiles on Izuku and Katsuki’s faces were the biggest and most joyful that they had in what seemed like an eternity. But before any more could be said, the pitter-pattering sounds of small feet entered the room, making the two boys look down to see Eri making her way past Katsuki and went to her father’s side.
“Papa! We’re here to see All Might and pick you up. There are also some big men here to see you!” The little girl stated as she jumped at her father’s torso, giggling slightly as he caught her and lifted her up in a more comfortable hold. But a look of concern appeared on her face as she noticed the tears in Izuku’s eyes, “Are you okay, Papa? You’re crying… ah, and so is Uncle Kacchan!”
“We’re fine, squirt.”
“He’s right. Don’t worry about us, Eri. Remember what I said when you met Grandma for the first time?”
Eri tilted her head cutely at that, puzzled for a few seconds before nodding her head. “Oh! You’re talking about happy tears… but, neither of you are taking a nap…”
“E-Eri, sweetie, you don’t have to bring that up!” Inko’s voice called out from the room’s entrance, allowing the four inside to see an embarrassed Inko standing there with Hisashi, Mitsuki and Masaru.
Hisashi chuckled as he brought his shorter wife close, “I’m sorry, Inko, but it’s a little too late to get embarrassed by that at this point.”
… The man’s words did not make Inko feel any better, looking up at the man with tears welling up in her eyes. “Hisashi~!!!”
Bending down to kiss the top of her head, the WHA agent turned his attention to the man recovering in his bed, “I’m glad to see you are awake and alive All Might. The last time we were in the same room together was during that seven years ago in Brazil, right?”
“I didn’t realize you were a part of the Century Dandy Operation, though honestly I mostly just remember fighting off Dandy Silva and having trouble conversing with the South American Pro-Heroes.” All Might let out a low hum as he took in Hisashi’s appearance, focusing lightly on the scaly marks under the black-haired Midoriya’s eyes. ‘Now I think about it. I do remember hearing about a very brilliant agent diffusing some of the international tension thanks to being a polyglot and possessing a clever mind. Seems like Young Midoriya inherited more than just looks from his father.’
“It was certainly an interesting experience… All Might, I’ve been wanting to say this after my wife told me what you said during those teacher visits that U.A. did after your fight in Kamino Ward.” Hisashi had a serious look on his face as he pulled away from Inko and walked up to the bed until he was standing near the foot of it, keeping his arms firmly at his sides while giving the injured retired Hero a deep, respectful bow. “Thank you for all the work you’ve done for the World for so many years… Thank you for becoming Izuku’s teacher and giving him the opportunity to achieve his dream of becoming a Hero… As his father, I wasn’t there for Izuku as much as I should’ve been. The WHA work did keep me away from my family more than I wished, causing me to fail in my duty to be the supporting father he needed… But even after my son had been diagnosed at Quirkless, I knew with every fiber of my being that he would find a way to become one of the greatest Heroes the world has ever known.”
“D-Dad…” Tears were falling down Izuku’s face at his father’s words.
Bright warm smile formed on All Might’s face, “I agree. Your son did indeed have the potential to be an amazing Hero, even if he was too much of a crybaby when we met.”
“All Might!”
“Ha! What do you mean was? This selfless idiot is still a crybaby!”
“Something he inherited from his wonderful mother. But enough about that now, I think we’ve kept the men outside waiting long enough.” Hisashi turned his head toward the doorway, “Sorry for the hold up. You all wanted to see All Might and Izuku before you left, right?”
"Sorry to interrupt. It's good to see you again, Dekiru." Through the door, several of the soldiers from the Air Force Squadron entered the room with their leader leading them inside. "Good to see you're properly stable, All Might."
"Thanks to you saving my bacon with the emergency care yoy gave me, Ethan."
"Nah. Just returned the favor after all you've done for us."
Izuku bowed his head towards the Air Force squadron, “You guys really helped me out after I got taken to the wrong battlefield by Himiko Toga, and even more with all the chaos that happened after. If it wasn’t for all of you, things would’ve turned out a lot worse.”
“Star and Stripe placed all her chips on you to be the one to defeat All for One and Tomura Shigaraki thanks to you inheriting All Might’s Quirk… Though I doubt when she said those words, she could’ve predicted that you’d also inherit New Order from her as well.” The Bravo Leader of the group, Ethan stood out from the middle of the group of soldiers, “We had gotten a basic rundown about those mindscapes and Vestiges created from the Quirk Factors inside people… does that mean Cassie is still in there?”
“…”
“…”
“…”
“…… I’m sorry, but no… What she had New Order do when Tomura stole it from her had torn it apart and reduced the Quirk to almost nothing. It was only because of the Embers and All Might’s Vestige that it was able to reconstruct itself the way it did…”
Shaking his head sadly as he thought back to a few days ago when he had tried to reenter his mindscape using similar methods to when he would try to enter One for All, almost giving up after an entire day of attempts only to find himself back on that beach with no one else in sight. He could feel the ‘him’ inside the mindscape filled with New Order’s Quirk Factor, and the Embers of One for All had taken shape as a second setting sun that was slowly shrinking as it merged with New Order. Izuku doubted that he'd ever be able to return to that place since he no longer had a Quirk that reached Singularity.
Izuku briefly closed his eyes as he recalled his only time back in his vestige world, “The only voice I can hear inside of me is my own, but big sis said as much before her vestige faded away…”
“Worth a shot. I guess she’s really gone for good now.”
Thinking back to his conversation with the former Number One Heroine, the second request she asked of him flashed through the greenette’s mind. “She did want me to pass on a message to you guys.” Shifting Eri onto one arm, a large smile formed on his face while raising a fist towards the men, who were shocked as Izuku looked exactly like Cathleen did back when she was announced the new American Number One Hero and declared they would ride or die together.
“Thanks for everything, Bros… I couldn’t have asked for a better ride-or-die group to watch my back. Tell Commander Agpar that I’m sorry for having been such a pain… And… when you get back home, make sure to tell my niece and nephew a lot of cool stories about me!”
A few of the soldiers sniffed and tried to hold back their tears as they could easily imagine their deceased friend saying those exact words. Ethan rubbed his eyes briefly with his fingers, “Thanks, Midoriya. I’ll be sure to honor her request… Speaking of requests and Commander Agpar, after we managed to open up communications back with America, the man himself wanted us to pass along an offer to you.”
“An offer?”
“Yup. He wanted to know if you wanted to take part in the exchange student program and take a year to study in America. Several Top Rank Heroes back in America even offered to bring him on as a work-study intern.”
“““HHHHUUUUUUHHHH?!??!?”””
The only one in the room that wasn’t surprised by the offer was Hisashi, who took a thinking pose very identical to his son’s, and started talking. “It wouldn’t be outside the realm of possibility. The United States has a lot of experience in training up New Order with how much they worked with Star and Stripe, and All Might did go over there as an exchange student. You’d definitely be getting a lot of good training and experience as a Hero over there. Heck, I wouldn’t be surprised if any of the other Nations wouldn’t try to throw their offers into the pot to help raise up the new Symbol of Hope. They’d probably have no issues with securing a home for your mother and Eri to stay if you wanted to bring them along. But in the end Izuku, the choice is up to you.”
“…”
“…”
“…”
“…”
“…”
“… I appreciate the offer, but no.” Izuku replied as he pulled in a smiling Eri close, his answer surprising a few in the room while both Katsuki and All Might chuckled lightly with knowing looks. “With everything that’s happened this past year and trying to rush into filling All Might’s shoes, I think just staying in Japan for now and enjoying my time at U.A. High is the best option for me to really come into my own as the One for All Hero, Dekiru, and as a person. I’d rather work hard and earn my way up to becoming a Number One Hero instead of it being handed to me… Not to say that going to America for a bit wouldn’t be out of the question in the future or be an extremely rewarding experience! I would get to learn more about how different the Hero Systems around the world are compared to what we’re being taught here. Plus, it would be better to wait for Eri is older to see more of the world since I don’t want to overwhelm her right now. I also have to take into account all of my friends here and how each of them fought so hard. It wouldn’t be right to get special treatment or…”
“Alright, we get it! Enough with the word vomit!” Katsuki exclaimed with a sharp teeth and his angry eyes turning white, snapping the other Hero Student out of his mumbling storm. “And who says you’ll become Number One, huh!?”
“Damn it, Katsuki! We’re in a hospital! Stop shouting and disturbing the other patients!”
Hisashi had an exasperated look on his face as he stared at Mitsuki, who held back in smacking her son due to his injured state. “You’re one to talk. Where do you think the kid gets it from? I swear, you’ve haven’t changed a bit since High School.”
“Huh?! You’ve wanna start something, Pepper-breath?”
“Any time, Sweatsuki (Sweaty Mitsuki)!”
Inko and Masaru both sighed at the same time at their significant others arguing with one another. It was a wonder how these two were childhood best friends with how much they argued. Some things that unfortunately escalated after they became parents.
“At least my Izuku is a polite young man that treats everyone with respect! When was the last time Katsuki actually called you, Mom?” Hisashi questioned as he pulled his embarrassed son close into a one-armed hug, which also brought a confused Eri closer as well. “And he’s already given us an adorable, sweet grandbaby!”
“D-Dad, c-can you please stop…”
A twitch mark throbbed on Mitsuki’s forehead before patting her grumbling son’s hair, “My brat may be a cocky asshole at times, but he’s still a bright kid with a good future ahead of him! He even took down that Villain that almost killed All Might! You may have gotten a grandchild before me, but I’m sure I’ll have more than you once Katsuki manages to find a girl that can put up with his shit!”
“Don’t insult me while praising me.” An emotionally drained Katsuki muttered under his beath, still feeling a little overwhelmed after the crying, as well as All Might’s little pep talk and thank you earlier. ‘Do you really have to go through this shitty routine every time?’
“Yeah, and Izuku finished off the other major Villain, who was supposedly even stronger-gah!?” The older Midoriya man was cut off from speaking as he felt a familiar pressure suddenly pull at his ear, causing him to release his son in the process. “Inko! Why~?!”
The short woman had an unamused look while using her Quirk to lightly pull her husband ear, which could be considered a small object. “Sweetheart, you’re getting too passionate again. Please remember we’re in a hospital with many injured Heroes and civilians trying to rest peacefully. You wouldn’t be a bad example for our granddaughter, would you?”
Innocent red eyes blinked as Eri was looking at the adults from her spot in Izuku’s arms, her tiny hands gripping his jacket to steady herself from the constant movement.
“……” The man said nothing as his body guiltily slouched forward.
“Hehehe, serves you right.” Mitsuki snickered, only to feel a hand rest on her shoulder.
Turning her head slightly, the woman flinched as she was greeted by a look of disappointment that her husband was sending her. “Mitsuki…”
The Bakugo matriarch mirrored Hisashi’s actions upon hearing her husband’s voice. It wasn’t often he displayed such a look with his more passive personality, so when he did, it was a lot more effective on her and their son…… it also turned her on as well, but that wasn’t something she could broadcast right now.
A clearing of a throat caught the two families attention as they turned to see the amused looks the Air Force squadron were giving them, with Ethan standing at the front. “As entertaining as this moment is, I think it’s time for us to be heading out. We’ve still got a lot of briefings and paperwork to fill out back in America. While I’m sure we won’t face too harsh a punishment when we return, our squad still has to answer our superiors on leaving with Star and Stripe without initial clearance and disobeyed orders to retreat. The reports we sent in can only do so much… plus, as Cassie’s ‘bros,’ we need to meet with her family to give our condolences.”
“Oh…” Izuku’s eyes lightly dimmed at that, recalling meeting the woman’s vestige in his mindscape, “I wish I could go as well… But I don’t know how’d they react to a stranger showing up with New Order, so please give them my regards as well.”
Ethan nodded his head to Izuku’s request. “Will do. But I doubt they will have any objections to you, just as long as you honor her memory and use that Quirk as a responsible Hero… You’ve got a lot of eyes on you now, Izuku Midoriya. It may seem small and uncertain right now, but you becoming the one of the first pillars to support this new path the world will head in. Many will be expecting remarkable things from you and your classmates after all the stuff you lot went through.” A grin formed on the American’s face as he held his hand out to the teen, “Just know that if you need help, our group will be happy to lend you aid. Whether or not you go to America, you’re still Cassie’s living legacy and someone I’d be happy to call a friend and ‘little brother’.”
“…”
“…”
Izuku stared down at Ethan’s hand before looking up to see all of the fighter pilots grinning at him, all of them in complete agreement with their leader’s words. The green haired teen smiled back before meeting the dark-skinned man’s hand with a strong grip and shook, “I appreciate it, Mr. Drive.”
“Call me Ethan, kid…. Oh, and I should probably give you and your friend my sympathies for the immediate future. Especially once you interact more with the public, god knows Cassie and All Might had enough of that trouble.”
The bedridden man let out a pained chuckle at the soldier’s words, “You have no idea. But it’ll be good practice for them.”
“… Huh?”
“What the hell does that mean?”
“Heh. You’ll find out soon. Good luck, Symbol of Hope.”
(Time Skip to Few Weeks Later – U.A. High School in June)
“EEEEEEEEK!”
“Todoroki!”
“Omigod! It’s Dynamight!”
“DEKIRU! YOU LOOKED SO COOL ON TV!”
“Can I get your contact info?”
“I’m a huge fan!”
“Please! Shake my hand!”
“You’re so awesome!”
“Please take a selfie with me!”
Shoto had a befuddled look on his face as he, Katsuki and Izuku were trying to get away from the shrieking female students chasing after them. “What on earth is happening…?”
“Why are these First-Years so intense?!” Izuku cried out with wide eyes as he looked back at the younger girls chasing after them, his face turning red as one loudly asked if he was single.
“Expel ‘em all! Right now!!!” A freaked-out Katsuki demanded as he tried to get ahead of Izuku and Shoto.
He didn’t have to outrun the fangirls, just use the other members of the New Big Three as meat-shields to get away!
WHERE WAS KIRISHIMA WHEN HE NEEDED HIM?!
- IDMOFANOIDMOFANOIDMOFANOIDMOFANOIDMOFANOIDMOFANOIDMOFANOIDMOFANO-