Chapter 4: Stand And Shadow
"How credible do you think this information is, Tsukauchi?"
All Might said this as he stared at the letter currently sitting on top of Tsukauchi's desk. Alongside him was Gran Torino and Sir Nighteye, who was currently discussing the contents of said letter:
Dear All Might,
I don't know whether this letter will actually reach you, but it couldn't hurt to try.
I know that there had been recently a massive fire that consumed an apartment building in Musutafu. I am also aware that a child by the name of Uraraka Ochako had been coerced by the villain named All For One into setting the building on fire for reasons that are unknown to me.
I am pained to see such a child be forced to commit such a horrible crime, and so, I want to help her in any way I can.
Due to a quirk that I have, I have managed to find out where this All For One currently is, Kamino Ward.
I don't know whether this information would actually be useful to you or not, but nevertheless, as an aspiring hero, I really truly want to help.
Please, All Might, save this girl and the countless others that may be hurt by this villain.
Sincerely,
JoJo
"You say that this letter came out from a hole on the wall?" Sir Nighteye asked.
"Yes. A hole appeared on the wall of the office, then a hand came out of it and gave that letter." Tsukauchi said. "There was something odd about it, though."
"What do you mean?" All Might asked.
"The hand didn't come out of the hole itself. Instead, the hand manifested from the side of the hole, like it swirled into existence. That's the best I can describe it." the detective said.
"Is it like a portal of some kind?" Nezu asked, only for Tsukauchi to shake his head.
"Not quite. The hole didn't appear out of nowhere. Instead, the hole moved physically through the wall. I wanted to touch it and inspect it, but my instincts told me that it was a bad idea."
"What about the hand itself? Anything notable on it?" Nighteye asked another question.
"There is something concerning about the hand." Tsukauchi responded. "It was a child's hand."
The room went silent as this revelation hit them like a sack of bricks.
"A child...?" Mirai said in a shocked tone.
"What is going on here...?"
"Do you think this kid is someone similar to Uraraka Ochako, and that's why this informant of ours saw it fit to do this?" Nezu theorized.
"It is possible, though now we have to question what kind of involvement did this child have with All For One? Was this person just another unwilling pawn of his in the past?" Tsukauchi said.
"What do we know about what Young Uraraka did?" All Might asked.
"Uraraka Ochako seemed to have been blackmailed by All For One to burn down that apartment building for reasons unknown to her. All For One did this by threatening her parents with death. She did say that she saw what looked to be a purple... being of some kind that can open up what looked to be portals, so we can guess that All For One kidnapped someone from that building and used arson as a smokescreen." Nighteye said.
"So All For One has a warper in his disposal? I didn't think that he would be reckless enough to reveal that card in his hand to a child." Gran Torino remarked.
"I don't think All For One believed that the child would live to tell the tale, which is why he revealed this information so readily." Nezu said.
"I can't believe that this bastard would stoop so low as to play with a child's life like this!" All Might growled angrily.
"This is why we're doing everything that he can to stop him." Tsukauchi said. "Fortunately, Uraraka Ochako and her family is now safe and is in the custody of trustworthy people. I doubt All For One's going to touch her anyway given that she's practically insignificant to him."
"Now then, how do we handle this information about All For One's location?" Nighteye said.
"I'll have some of my sidekicks investigate this lead discreetly. After all, there is still the possibility that this is a trap set up by All For One." Nezu told them.
"I see. That is probably the best move we can make for now. We cannot be reckless and charge in haphazardly. That would just be asking for trouble." Nighteye commented.
"Indeed, Mirai. I will let you handle this one for now, Principal." All Might said.
"Very well, this meeting has now concluded." Nezu said. "However, I need to talk with you a little bit more, All Might."
The hero silently nodded while the rest of the participants of the meeting left. Once the two were alone, Nezu pulled out a bunch of papers and placed it on the desk.
"What is this, Principal Nezu?" he asked.
"This is the files of the possible identities of our informant that I compiled before our meeting earlier." Nezu said.
"I see. Has the meeting provided you with any possible clues as to who it could be?" All Might asked.
"Indeed it did!" Nezu cheerfully said, before pulling out a certain someone's file then gave it to All Might.
"Midoriya... Izuku? Why this boy, Principal?" Nezu asked.
"Why don't you read the rest of the file?" Nezu said. All Might obliged, and what he read on the file surprised him.
"I... see. He can summon spirits called Stands which has differing abilities... super strength, divination, restoration, life-giving, strings, nail bullets, and plundering bubbles..." All Might said as he read the file. "Still, I doubt this child is a pawn of All For One. There is no way All For One would give some of these abilities to others. This may simply be a case of a naturally gifted child."
"Yes, and that wasn't the reason why I think he's our informant. It's something to do with one of his abilities." the rodent principal said.
"Which one...? Oh, is it his divination?" All Might realized it.
"Indeed!" Nezu said. "He could have used his divination to attempt to help you as a fan of yours, and ended up being far more involved in this than he should have been. After all, from my research, he seemed to be quite the massive fan of yours, even rivaling Sir Nighteye himself!"
"That is a bold claim... However, if it is him, then we need to protect him!"
"You are correct, All Might. We need to do whatever in our power to keep this child safe if he is indeed our informant. However, there is still the possibility that it is not him."
"I'll have to talk to Mirai about this. Can you please send me a copy of all the others as well, so we can take a look to see if it is someone else?" All Might said.
"By all means, go ahead." Nezu replied. "Now then, since we are both busy with out respective duties, let us end this conversation for now."
"Yes, Principal!"
All Might exited the office after that, leaving Nezu to himself.
...or rather, that's what All Might believed.
"That is not the only reason why I suspect him." Nezu spoke to an empty room, as if talking to someone. "There is something else, isn't that right?"
"Indeed."
"Bubble that can plunder the property of an object or an object itself... You told me that you are familiar with this."
"There is no mistaking it. That's Soft and Wet's ability. This may be something similar that can be done with Spin. After all, this is similar to Johnny Joestar's ability."
"In that case, it looks like the he may have passed into this world as well, just like you. What are your thoughts on this?"
"I do not particularly care. My past user have died in his hands, but it is simply the result of fate."
"Fate, huh? It is ironic that you say that. After all..."
"...calamity does not care for good nor evil."
"...calamity does not care for good nor evil."
"Now though, you are on the side of good, and I am glad of that."
"A Joestar as an ally this time. How curious."
I will protect the future, and these innocent children with my own hands.
"I hope she is okay..."
Izuku said this as he walked with Setsuna and Katsuki to school. It was two days after Izuku had saved Ochako from the fire, as well as a day after he had given the tip to the police, and naturally, the boy was concerned for her safety.
"She'll be fine! After all, you saved her, right?" Setsuna reassured him.
"I'm angry you two didn't include me in this!" Katsuki complained, making the two give him a look.
"Kacchan, you know that you wouldn't have been able to help much in a fire with your explosions, right?" Izuku said, causing Katsuki to look away angrily.
"...I knew that, but I'm still mad anyway!" he said, causing the other two to chuckle.
"Oh yeah, have you heard about the new transferee today?" Setsuna asked the two.
"A new transferee? At this time of year?" Katsuki asked.
"They said it was because their Mom had to change locations for work, just like me!" Setsuna said. "I'm gonna make sure to make them feel welcome!"
"I'm sure you'll do well, Setsuna-san." Izuku said.
"You know, Izuku, I want a nickname like Bakugou's." she said.
"R-Really? Something like Secchan?" Izuku said, and her face lit up.
"Yes, just like that! It's a cute nickname!" she said. "Call me Secchan from now on! And I'll call you Izu-kun from now on!"
"That's so sudden!" Izuku said. "But... alright, I'll call you that from now on, and you can call me that too."
"Yes!"
"If you two lovebirds are done, we need to get a move on before we get late to school!" Katsuki said, causing the two of them blush before hurrying up to go to school.
"Hello, my name is Tokoyami Fumikage. It is nice to meet you all." the transfer student introduced himself.
"Nice to meet you!" the class greeted him back, though some were whispering about his weird bird head.
"I hope you guys get along with him! Why don't you sit besides Setsuna over there?" the teacher indicated to the now empty seat beside the green-haired girl.
"Yo, Tokoyami!" she greeted him. The boy merely nodded as he sat beside her.
"Hello." he said.
"Ah, you're the quiet type, huh? Well, I guess there's nothing wrong with that. I hope we have a fun year together as classmates!" she said.
"Indeed."
"Secchan! Tokoyami-san! We reserved seats for you!" Izuku shouted from his seat at the cafeteria, sitting besides Katsuki. The two approached them, then took their respective seats.
"Meet my two friends, Tokoyami-san! This is Midoriya Izuku and Bakugou Katsuki!"
"Hi, Tokoyami-san!"
"Yo, Birdhead."
"Kacchan, that's rude!"
"Shut up, nerd! I can call him whatever I like!"
"It is fine, I don't mind it." Fumikage said. "It is a pleasure to meet the both of you!"
"The pleasure is mine! Now, can you please tell me about your quirk?" Izuku asked, causing both of them to sigh.
"Don't worry about him, he's always like that." Setsuna chuckled.
"Better to just tell him your quirk before he annoys you." Katsuki added.
"I see. Very well, this is my quirk." Fumikage said before unleashing a... birdlike being from behind him.
"Hello! I'm Dark Shadow, Fumi's quirk!" they said.
"That looks like a stand." Jotaro remarked from Izuku's mind.
"It's reminiscent of a shadow stand I fought." Giorno said.
Meanwhile, Izuku was stunned in awe, before smiling brightly.
"That's a great quirk! It's just like mine!" he said.
Too bright! Wait, just like his...?
Before Fumikage can think further, a humanoid being popped out from Izuku, wearing what looked to be bluish armor like a diamond.
"This is one of my stands! Meet Crazy Diamond!" he said. It was now Fumikage's turn to be shocked by this, something that Dark Shadow noticed.
"Ooh! You actually managed to surprise Fumi! Not many can do that." the quirk said.
"It is... quite shocking indeed. To think I'll meet a brethren like you here... It is a pleasure." Fumikage said. Then, both Dark Shadow and Crazy Diamond shook hands.
"I have a question. Do you take damage when Dark Shadow takes damage, Tokoyami-san?" Izuku asked, and Fumikage shook his head.
"No, though that does not mean that Dark Shadow is invincible. She does take damage as well." he answered. The three raised their eyebrows at Dark Shadow being referred to as a girl, but said nothing. "What about you?"
"I do take damage when my stand takes damage, but it's very durable. Well, some of them are." Izuku said.
"Can we... test that? Just a simple strike will do." Fumikage said.
"Sure!" Izuku agreed which led to Setsuna grimacing.
"Be careful there, Dark Shadow. Being hit by Crazy Diamond is rough." Setsuna commented, causing Katsuki to snicker. "Hey, it's not that funny, Bakugou!"
"Your floating head got punched, Shark Teeth! How is that not funny?" he said, before turning towards the two. "Anyway, this would be fun!"
Both Crazy Diamond and Dark Shadow stared at each other, as if they were waiting to see who will strike first.
Eventually, both of them launched a strike.
"DORA!"
"RAH!"
Unfortunately for Dark Shadow, Crazy Diamond was the faster one, and was hit first by the stand, causing her to stagger back.
"Ow!"
"Are you alright, Dark Shadow?"
"I-I'm fine, Fumi... It was actually rough..." she said. "If we're ever going to train with them, I'm not looking forward to getting punched again like that..."
"Sorry about that, Dark Shadow!" Izuku apologized, but Dark Shadow waved him off.
"Oh, it's fine, Midoriya. We both asked for it." she said.
"Hey, do you think Dark Shadow can be harmed by Hamon?" Katsuki asked, causing Izuku to look down on the ground in thought, while Fumikage raised his eyebrows.
"Maybe... I want to test it out, but I don't want to harm Dark Shadow more than I already have." he said.
"Hamon?" Fumikage asked.
"It's... essentially wielding the power of the sun through a special kind of breathing." he said. "It allows energy to flow through things easily, and it enhances one's strength. At least, that's how I use it."
"The power of the sun? I suspect that such a power can indeed hurt Dark Shadow. She is weak to light, you see." he said.
"Yeah! Sounds scary!" she said.
"I won't test it on you, then." Izuku assured them.
"I am confused, though. What exactly is your quirk?" Fumikage asked.
"I call it "Stand"! I have seven different stands, which are spirits that I can summon freely which have differing abilities from one another. I can only use one of them per day, and they appear in random order."
"What are these stands?"
"Star Platinum, Gold Experience, Crazy Diamond, Tusk, Stone Free, Soft and Wet, and Hermit Purple. That's the name of all my stands." Izuku said.
"What about Hamon and Spin?" Setsuna said. "Those aren't your stands?"
"No. Those are techniques I learned." Izuku answered, only to be met with silence. When he looked around, he saw both Setsuna and Katsuki wide-eyed, while Fumikage just looked confused.
"Wait... techniques? They're not part of your quirk?" Katsuki asked.
"No, they're... not..." Izuku answered before he realized what was wrong.
I forgot to tell them that this can be taught to people!
"To be fair to you, kid, we also forgot to remind you that." Joseph said.
"We're sorry about that." Johnny said sheepishly.
"So you can teach us both Hamon and Spin?" Setsuna asked.
"Y-Yeah... I'm sorry for not telling you..." Izuku replied, before Katsuki immediately grabbed him in the shoulder.
"Then what are you waiting for?! Teach us this stuff already!" he said, only for Izuku to hurriedly shake his head.
"Not right now, Kacchan!" Izuku hurriedly answered. "Besides, I haven't mastered them fully yet!"
"Just teaching us the basics would be enough, Izu-kun!" Setsuna chimed in. "Or maybe take us to whoever taught you this stuff and we'll ask them to teach us with you!"
"You can't... meet them." Izuku shook his head.
"What do you mean?" Setsuna asked further.
"...Fine, I'll try teaching you." Izuku said, clearly switching the topic, but both Setsuna and Katsuki knew that he wouldn't budge on this, so they didn't push it. "Anyway, do you want to come with us, Tokoyami-san?"
"I shall. This seems interesting." he said.
And so, the three of them decided to learn Hamon and Spin from Izuku.
"Let me explain the concept of both Hamon and Spin to the both of you before we begin." Izuku said as he stared at Setsuna, Katsuki, and Fumikage who were all sitting in front of him.
Classes had ended for the day, so the three went to Izuku's home to hopefully learn how to do both Hamon and Spin.
"Since I had already explained to you what Hamon is, do you have any questions about it first?" Izuku asked.
"What exactly does it mean to harness the power of the sun?" Fumikage asked.
"Sunlight is something that exists all around in nature. Even during at night, the sunlight can still exist through the moon. What Hamon does is that your body replicates that sunlight energy using its own energy, then uses it for a variety of ways like spreading other forms of energy around, healing, and physical enhancement. You use a special kind of breathing to achieve this process." Izuku explained
"Hm. I see." Fumikage nodded.
"What about Spin?" Katsuki asked, and Izuku sighed. He knew that Katsuki liked Spin more than Hamon, even though Izuku believed that Hamon would be more compatible for him than Spin.
"Spin uses rotational energy. You see, there's this mathematical concept called the golden ratio." Izuku started to explain, prompting Setsuna to groan loudly.
"Really? Math?" she said.
"Secchan, you're good at math." Izuku deadpans.
"That doesn't mean I like it!" Setsuna said.
"Anyway, it relates to how everything in nature can be connected to the golden ratio. The Spin basically manifests that concept in a kinetic fashion, allowing your life energy to manifest that special rotation, giving you enhanced destructive power and control." Izuku said.
"Do you think we can learn this easily?" Setsuna asked, and Izuku shook his head.
"Learn this easily? Yes. Master it easily? No." Izuku replied. "I managed to do it early on, but trying to master it is hard."
"Well, watch me do it anyway!" Katsuki said fiercely, causing the other two to sigh at his high energy.
"Very well then. Hamon first." Izuku stood up, breathed heavily, then began using Hamon. He then grabbed a glass, filled it with water, then turned the glass upside down.
The water did not spill. In fact, it stayed there as if there was no opening in the first place. There was a sort of energy crackling around it.
"First, you need to be able to do this. This is one of the most basic applications of Hamon." Izuku said. "For now, I want you to breathe the correct way in order to be even able to wield it. I'll teach you."
And so, he did. He taught them the proper way to breathe in order to wield hamon, and the three of them immediately went to work in practicing it. Izuku was surprised at how patient they are at this, considering that even Katsuki wasn't complaining one bit about it. It really looked like they wanted this training for a while.
"Now that you're breathing correctly, make sure to feel inside yourself. Try to imagine all that energy flowing within you, then let it flow like ripples in the water." Izuku said. "Flow it all over your body outwards. Don't worry about control for now. Make sure you're capable of doing it first."
They did as he said. The three of them breathed and focused on themselves. Eventually, it was Setsuna who first managed to wield it and they heard the telltale sounds of hamon being used, but before anyone can say anything, Izuku stopped them.
"Focus! You need to focus your breathing. Do not be distracted, you can celebrate later." he said, and the three simply continued. Katsuki was the next one to unlock Hamon then Fumikage came next.
After they were done, Setsuna laughed out loud in pride.
"Hahahahahaha! I managed to do it first, yes!"
"Why couldn't I do it first?!" Katsuki complained, while Fumikage looked at his hands.
"That felt exhilarating." he said, then Dark Shadow popped out with a thumbs-up.
"Glad you enjoyed it, Fumi!"
"Hey, Izuku, do you think I can try and stick my sweat into things using this? I mean, you can do that with this, right?" Katsuki asked.
"Yeah, but that's quite advanced." Izuku said. "Let's not attempt that first. Just learn the basics for now."
They then moved on to Spin. Just like last time, Izuku demonstrated the Spin with a steel ball, taught them the basic concepts of the Spin and told the three of them to try manifesting Spin for now before doing anything truly advanced.
This time, it was Katsuki who manifested it first, then Fumikage, then Setsuna. It was Katsuki's turn to brag.
"Heh! I managed to get Spin first!"
"Aww, I hoped it would be me first..." she said.
"Don't worry, Secchan, you managed to get it anyway. I believe in you!"
"Thanks, Izu-kun!"
Katsuki teased them again, causing the both of them to blush. However, amidst all of that, Izuku felt happy for himself.
This is truly fun! With this, all four of us will become true heroes!
What Izuku did not know at the time was that he had already involved himself in a conflict far grander than he anticipated.
He will have his days of peace, but fate is strange.
For it is both kind and cruel to the boy who inherited the destiny of the ones cursed to fight evil.
Chapter 5: Eight-Pointed Star
"You said it was Young Midoriya who saved you?"
It has been a week ever since the meeting with Nezu, and now All Might is in full-blown investigative mode along with his sidekick. The sidekicks sent by Nezu has still failed to turn up anything regarding All For One's location, but considering the vagueness of the tip provided to them, they were determined to be patient. Since they failed to turn up any leads about that, they decided to change their angle of investigation and turned towards Uraraka Ochako to ask more about what had happened that day. And so, they returned to the secluded location where the Uraraka family was being held in protective custody in order to hopefully prevent All For One from getting to them.
It was in this interrogation that they found out something interesting.
"H-He was wearing a mask, but I recognized him from our school given how popular he is." she said almost timidly. "He was saving people from the fire, then insisted on trying to save me. When I refused, he stopped time, then brought me out of the building after knocking me out."
"He... stopped time?" Sir Nighteye asked in a confused tone.
"Hm! I didn't know how I saw it, but he used his power and saved me from the fire. It's... a shame I haven't thanked him yet. I have a lot I want to say to him..." she replied.
Sir Nighteye narrowed his eyes at what Ochako just said.
"That's not covered within his quirk description. Did he conceal it somehow?"
"It is a possibility. Such a powerful and tremendously terrifying ability... I wouldn't want people finding out about it either." All Might reasoned, and Nighteye did agree with such an assessment.
"Would you mind if we borrow your memories a little in order to get a clearer picture of what is going on?" Mirai asked Ochako, who tilted her head in confusion.
"My... memories?" she asked.
"Yes. We will bringing in someone that can do it. Do not worry, we will be returning your memories once we are done. It won't be painful, I promise. It's just like falling asleep." he reassured her.
While still being nervous, Ochako nodded at this, hoping to help the heroes in any way she could. It was then that a knock on the door was heard, and the person they were waiting for entered.
"Have you managed to collect further information on our lead?"
"All we can really confirm is that All For One is indeed in Kamino, but he is very well-hidden. The principal is doing the best he can." the figure said. Ochako looked somewhat stunned by the figure. Despite how odd it was for people to look in this world, this was still very much unexpected for her to see.
"I see. I assume you have overheard what we were talking about?" All Might asked, and the figure nodded.
"You want to see this girl's memories, correct?" the figure confirmed, and the two nodded. They then turned towards the girl and asked her once more if she was fine with this.
"I want to help you! This is fine!" she said. The figure nodded, then swiped his hand on he girl's face horizontally. In an instant, a slit appeared on her face, and a disk, similar to a CD, popped out of it. The girl fell unconscious and the figure held the disk out to the two.
"Who wants to view her memories first?" they asked. Sir Nighteye raised his hand.
"I will do it. I am much more used to this sort of thing than Toshinori is."
"Understood." the figure said before he then inserted the disk onto Nighteye's head, causing it to slightly enter through his cranial area.
As they expected, Nighteye began seeing the incident from the girl's memories. He saw the supposed warper that All For One had, as well as everything that happened during it, including the young man who saved the residents from the burning building. As the girl said, the boy did stop time for a few seconds to save her. That was the last thing she saw of that incident, since she was knocked out by her savior since she had been resisting being saved by him.
In truth, while Mirai was slightly irritated by the boy's recklessness, he was impressed by the skill he had shown in saving the girl, despite being relatively young. He couldn't believe that a child at that age will be able to act the way that Izuku did. He wondered whether he had learnt it from someone or it was simply innate talent.
We are right about our theory. All For One used this act of arson as a smokescreen to kidnap someone to take their quirk without anyone knowing.
When the memories did finish replaying, the disk was taken out and was handed to All Might, who viewed the exact same thing. Once they had both finished, the figure took the disk and inserted it back into the girl. She woke up soon after just as the figure left.
"I will be going back to investigate now. I may turn up something better this time." they said. "Once we turn up something substantial about this man, we will make our final preparations before finally taking him down."
The principal is definitely closing in on him soon. I couldn't believe that he actually existed. I thought that he was simply the stuff of legends. I really need some more sleep soon, but for now, the mission is much more important. It is imperative that we find this man sooner rather than later.
"Good luck." All Might nodded at them before the three of them were left alone once more. "Young Uraraka, you may leave as well. Thank you for your help."
"I-It was nothing! Thank you for protecting me and my family, All Might!" she responded.
"That is what a hero would do, Young Uraraka!" he said. However, before she did leave, there was one final question she needed to ask.
"All Might... do you still think I can be a hero?" Ochako asked. "After everything that I've done..."
"Young Uraraka, you can still be a hero. You shouldn't let your sins weigh you down and dictate your actions. Instead, you must look forward to the future, and ask yourself how you can do better and get stronger next time. Make sure that no one else will experience what you have experienced. I believe in you."
"...Thank you."
And with that, the young girl that had been cruelly tossed around by fate is now filled with renewed determination to begin again, and become the hero she had always wanted to be.
"What do you think of Young Midoriya, Mirai?" All Might asked as the two of them thought about the memories they had just witnessed earlier.
"While I am slightly unimpressed by his recklessness, I am impressed by his skill." Nighteye remarked. "Despite his time stop helping him immensely, it is still quite impressive that he managed to save those civilians with little to no effort from himself. Of course, since we're seeing it from Uraraka's perspective, it is possible that we only saw a fraction of what he is capable of."
"Mirai, do you think that he is a suitable candidate?" All Might asked, and Nighteye knew exactly what he was talking about. The sidekick looked at All Might with a stunned expression.
"You want him to be your successor? Why are you even considering a successor right now?" he asked, bewildered by All Might's sudden question. "You are in perfect condition, and you have polished One For All as much as possible for this battle!"
"I am looking ahead in the future, Mirai." he answered. "I can sense that my battle with All For One, and One For All's war with its nemesis is coming to an end. However, while I intend to finish this myself once and for all, there will still be evil lurking in the shadows afterwards. Besides, All For One is a crafty bastard, and I won't put it past him to have contingencies that he has placed upon his defeat. This is why I must think about my successor now, so that the legacy of One For All remains even after All For One falls."
"And that is why you are now asking me if Midoriya will be a suitable successor for you." Nighteye said, and All Might simply nodded.
"Indeed. So, what do you think, Mirai?"
Nighteye closed his eyes, trying to remember what he had glimpsed of Izuku in the Ochako's memory.
"I do not believe he is a suitable candidate right now. However, I also believe that he can still be further polished in the future. What I mean to say is that he has the potential." he replied. " We still need to determine whether he is heroic enough for One For All, but I believe that has already been answered by the fact that he willingly dived headfirst into a burning building to save people, as reckless and exasperating as it is."
"He reminds me quite a bit of myself during my younger days." All Might said.
"That is probably the reason why you want him as a potential successor, Toshinori. You both are too selfless and heroic for your own good. While it is great that you both want to help as many people as you could, it comes at a point in which you neglect your own lives and well-being." he said tiredly. "We'll just have to see it for ourselves later. For now, his safety is paramount."
"Indeed! With that being said, let us reach out to the boy to ensure that he is protected!" All Might said boisterously, causing Nighteye to ponder silently.
You are right about something, Toshinori. This battle with All For One is now nearing its climactic end. We need to make sure that he will never be able to harm others ever again.
Right now, we need to reach out to Midoriya as soon as possible. I do not like the fact that we have to involve a child into this, but it's too late for that now. With that being said, it may look like we will need to inform him of One For All whether he is a suitable successor or not. After all, we do not want this child to stay unaware of the true stakes of the battle that he had unwittingly joined in on.
"This is hard!" Setsuna whined as she dropped on the ground in exhaustion.
"What did you expect, Secchan?" Izuku replied as he stood before her. "I told you this was going to be hard to master."
"I know that! Still, I want to complain!" she replied, and all Izuku could do was sigh.
"You're making far better progress than I was back then, at least. Maybe it was because I was younger?" Izuku mused. "I'm also surprised how much better you are at Hamon than I am."
"You did say that you're far better at Spin than you are at Hamon, Izuku..." Setsuna said.
"And that hurts my feelings a lot!" Joseph said in Izuku's head, only for Jotaro to smack him.
"Your whining is loud, Gramps. Just accept it for what it is." he said.
"Oi, Izuku, you said that Hamon can be used to heal, right?" Katsuki called out from behind him, struggling to keep the water inside his cup.
"Yeah. From what I heard from my teachers, it can even slow down someone's aging." Izuku said.
"Wait, really? Then I gotta master it sooner!" Setsuna replied energetically from behind him, as if her earlier whining was an illusion.
"Of course you would say that... Anyway, why did you ask, Kacchan?"
"Nothing. I was just thinking about it." he answered quietly, which was quite unlike him. "I was just thinking of what it's really like to be a hero."
"Oooh! I didn't think Bakugou can speak like that!" Setsuna teased.
"Can it, Shark Teeth! I mean, I've always believed that heroes are the strongest, those that always win like All Might does."
"Kaccha–"
"I'm not going to have this argument right now, nerd." he cut him off. "And yet, you didn't win anything when you saved all those people from the fire and people still called you a hero."
Both of them stared at him solemnly.
"I wonder, was I wrong?"
"Kacchan, there's nothing wrong with trying to win as a hero. After all, that's your style, isn't it?" Izuku chuckled at this. "Save people by winning, Kacchan."
Katsuki's eyes widened before he grinned.
"That's right! By winning, I can become a hero!" he said. However, he got distracted by their conversation to the point that he lost focus with his breathing, deactivating Hamon and spilling the water in the glass. He looked at it, stunned, while Izuku looked at him with a deadpan expression.
"Really?"
"Damn it!"
"Kacchan!"
"What is it, Mom?" Izuku asked as he got out of his room after being called on by his mother.
After he had finished training his Hamon and Spin with his friends, all of them went home leaving Izuku by himself with his mom at home. He returned to his bedroom in order to further practice with his Hamon and Spin, while doing some physical training as well.
Later that night, Inko called for his son, her expression nervous, yet not anxious, making Izuku curious as to what could have happened. He also saw his father looking nervous as well.
"W-Well, someone wants to see you. Someone important..." she said.
"Don't freak out, okay?" Hisashi said, before turning towards the door.
Izuku did the same, and his breath hitched when he saw who was there. He couldn't believe his eyes.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Midoriya Izuku."
"S-S-S-S-Sir N-N-Nighteye?!" Izuku blurted out. "All Might's sidekick!"
"Indeed, I am. I have some questions for you, as well as a proposition to your family." he said, his eyes boring into Izuku.
"S-Sure, Sir... Please, sit down and be comfortable..."
After an awkward silence where they situated themselves into the living room, Nighteye spoke up.
"Midoriya, I will get straight to the point." Mirai said, before dropping the bombshell. "It was you who informed us of All For One's whereabouts, didn't you?"
Izuku's eyes widened, but did nothing else.
"It was only a matter of time, huh?" Josuke said silently.
"We did all that we could to stay hidden, but we all knew that it wouldn't be enough." Giorno chimed on.
Izuku knew this as well, so he stayed silent and nodded in affirmation, while both of his parents looked confused.
"All For One?" Hisashi asked.
"My apologies, but we will explain this all later. For now, I need to ask him questions." Nighteye said, and the two parents nodded, feeling apprehensive.
"Next, how did you find out this information?" Nighteye asked, though he already had an idea.
"I had Hermit Purple back then. You already know its abilities, right?" he said, and Mirai nodded, prompting Izuku to continue. "I wanted to help All Might since he's my favorite hero, then used Hermit Purple on the TV to find out information that can help him. This led to me finding out one piece of information. "All For One is in Kamino.""
Nighteye raised his eyebrows.
"That's it? Nothing else?" Mirai asked, in which Izuku answered with another nod. "Then how did you find out about Uraraka Ochako?"
"Is Uraraka-san–?!"
"Do not worry, she is fine. All Might has taken both her and her family into his custody. They are all safe." he replied, causing Izuku to sigh in relief, then he answered his question.
"I didn't know what to do with All For One at first, so I tried consulting with my friends. Just as we talked about him, we heard Uraraka-san talking on the phone with someone called All For One, who was threatening her family. Since we were all concerned about her, we figured it would be best to watch over her. It was then that we found out about what she did, and I dived in to save everyone there. Am I... in trouble for that?"
Nighteye took in the information he had just found out, then shook his head.
"No, you are not. We can be a little lenient since you are an eight-year-old child. You'll be let off with a very stern warning not to do it again until you have a license, but that's it." he said. "As for your friends... who are they?"
Izuku gulped, but he knew he didn't have a choice but to share this information.
"Bakugou Katsuki and Tokage Setsuna. No one else knows." Izuku replied firmly.
"I see. Very well then, it's time that I informed you about All For One, and the truth about All Might's quirk."
Nighteye then narrated everything, from the tale of the two brothers, to the journey All Might undertook to get to the point that he is now.
"This... is a lot to take in."
Both of Izuku's parents were shocked by what they had just heard, while Izuku was staring down at the ground solemnly.
"He's like Dio, then." Jotaro remarked, and all of the Joestars who knew Dio nodded.
"Even in another world, there are still people like that, huh?" Joseph remarked.
"I'm... glad that I managed to help All Might take another step into finding and defeating this villain, then." Izuku said, much to the shock of everyone else in the room.
"You're a lot calmer than I thought, Midoriya." Nighteye said, only for Izuku to show his shaking hands.
"I am scared, but how can I become a hero like All Might if I let my fear of a villain get to me?" Izuku replied, surprising Mirai once more.
He is a lot more courageous than I thought... He is truly determined to be a hero. I guess you really are a suitable candidate.
The hero sighed, while the two parents look both exasperated and fond at Izuku's attitude.
"Here is my proposition, then. All Might has offered your entire family protection. You will be living in his headquarters indefinitely until we have finally defeated All For One. We will be taking care of everything else, including your educations and informing your two best friends of the situation at hand. All you have to do in exchange is to help with locating All For One using your Hermit Purple. That is all we ask." Nighteye bowed at them. "I know that we are asking help from a child, but we want to make sure that no more children live in fear of him."
The two parents are very contemplative of this, but Izuku did not hesitate.
"I'll do it."
"Izuku!" Inko shouted, but he didn't budge.
"All Might can finally defeat his greatest enemy! If I am to become a hero, I need to do this!" Izuku said.
Meanwhile, all of the Joestars mentally patted him in the shoulder for his bravery.
"Besides, I have Hermit Purple right now! We have no time to waste, Sir Nighteye!" Izuku informed him, causing the man to be stunned.
"That's..."
"Please, Mom and Dad! Let us go!" Izuku pleaded with his parents.
Seeing Izuku's expression made them think about the idea, before they eventually relented.
"We will do it." they said, making Izuku sigh in relief.
"Good, then let us go. There is no time to waste."
"WOOOOOOOOOOOOOW!"
Despite everything that has happened, Midoriya Izuku is still a massive fan of All Might, so seeing his headquarters up close and in person triggered every fiber of his being. He stood in awe and amazement of the abode of the hero that he admired so much. The three adults looked on at Izuku with warmth and fondness. However, they knew that there was something urgent to be done, so Mirai cleared his throat.
"You'll have more time to admire this scenery later, Midoriya. For now, we have something that we need to do."
"O-Oh! Okay!"
They then entered the premises, and after some short paperwork, they acquired their own apartment in the building. Once they reached their apartment and opened it, a familiar face greeted Izuku.
"Midoriya-san!"
Izuku was greeted by a crushing hug from Ochako, just as he entered the room, with both of her parents looking on warmly.
"U-Uraraka-san... I'm happy that you're okay..." he said.
"Thank you for saving me! And... I'm sorry for worrying you."
"It's fine! As long as you're okay!" he said.
"Midoriya-kun, thank you for saving our Ochako." Ochako's mother approached him to thank him.
"Oh, it was nothing! I only did what a hero would do!"
"Oh, you want to be a hero as well? Our daughter also wants to be a hero." she said.
"Uraraka-san does? I'm sure that she can do it!" Izuku responded. Just as they were about to continue talking, Sir Nighteye entered the apartment, along with the Symbol of Peace, All Might.
"I AM HERE!" the hero shouted, causing Izuku to freeze up and stare at his hero in the flesh.
"A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-?!" Izuku stuttered considerably, until Inko had to smack him lightly in the head.
"Izuku!" she said, putting him out of his trance.
"M-Mom!" Izuku then turned towards All Might again, then he simply stared up at him in awe. "To think I'll be meeting him in person today..."
"While I am happy that you are such a big fan of mine, we have no time to waste right now!"All Might said, reminding Izuku of what they needed to do.
"Ah! All Might, do you have any TV screen here connected to a GPS system?" he asked, causing the Uraraka family to look confused. However, they couldn't ask anything as All Might answered his question.
"We do! I will lead you there, Young Midoriya!" All Might said, causing Izuku to nod.
"Good. Let us end this once and for all." Izuku said."
In a few minutes, they had arrived at Nighteye's office, where there was a massive TV screen displaying the map of Kamino ward on the GPS map. The two heroes nodded at Izuku, who immediately activated his stand.
"Hermit Purple!" he shouted. Purple vines shot out of Izuku's wrist then connected towards the TV screen. Sparks of electricity surrounded it, before the GPS map moved on its own, eventually pointing towards a certain location in the outskirts of Kamino ward, a seemingly unassuming apartment building.
"It's probably a cover of some kind. His base is probably underground." Sir Nighteye said, with All Might nodding in agreement.
"We have him now." All Might said grimly. "Nighteye, contact Nezu and Tsukauchi. Tell them that it's ready."
"Understood."
Prepare yourself, All For One! I am going to kill you!
"Hoho, it looks like All Might has finally located me. Who knew that this seemingly niche quirk is pretty useful, after all?"
The Quirk Boogeyman, the Devil of Underground Crime, All For One himself, sat down upon his chair as if it were his throne. He had an amused smile on his face as one of his passive quirks triggered.
It was a quirk that allowed him to sense whether he was located by a GPS tracker and know where he is being tracked. He had sensed that he had been located from the Might Tower, so he knew that this battle will now reach its climactic conclusion.
"I wonder how he managed to locate me after hiding myself so thoroughly? Was it that rodent?" he mused, referring to the Principal of UA. "It's quite a pity that I couldn't kill him. All of the followers that I sent after him all died in horrible and unfortunate accidents. It is quite odd, really."
The demon lord then turned towards his most prized asset.
"Tomura."
He called out to his apprentice, who turned towards him obediently.
"Yes, Sensei?"
"I'll have Kurogiri take you to the Might Tower. All Might is most assuredly coming here, but that will leave his headquarters unguarded. Destroy and kill as much as you can, then escape with Kurogiri if you are about to be captured. I have faith in you."
The boy started scratching his neck in excitement.
"Hahahahahaha... I finally get to destroy some of All Might's stuff! Take me there, Sensei!" Shigaraki Tomura said excitedly.
"Good. Once I sense him nearby, it will be time for you to go, my young apprentice." he said.
A few minutes later, All For One perked up, sensing the presence of his most hated enemy.
"Go, Tomura and Kurogiri." he ordered them. The two then exited towards a portal Kurogiri created. A moment after, the ceiling of All For One's base collapsed, and a figure stared at All For One with unbridled fury.
"All Might! It's nice of you to visit!" All For One said with a mocking smile on his face.
"All For One! It is time for me to finish what the first user started." he said as he walked towards him. The villain grinned.
"You say that when you ran away with your tail between your legs last time? Very well, I'll entertain you! It's time that I take back what is mine."
A legendary battle was about to unfold.
"Here it is. Toshinori..." Nighteye said worriedly as he watched All Might's GPS tracker reached the location showed by Izuku from his office at the Might Tower. The boy was right beside him, also looking on.
I'm too anxious. I'll have to look into my future for only a few minutes to see what happens here.
The hero did, and he was stunned by what he saw.
He saw Izuku, injured but otherwise alive and well, standing alone in the rubble of their apartment. There were noticeably nobody else in the room, so either he was already alone when it happened, or the other inhabitants there managed to escape.
However, this did signify something incredibly distressing.
"The Might Tower is about to come under attack!" Nighteye said. Izuku's eyes widened, but then moved before he could even think.
Mom! Dad! Uraraka-san and her parents!
Thankfully, the apartments were not that far away, so he managed to get there just in time for a portal to open up inside the room, much to their horror.
A boy older than Izuku stepped out of the portal, his skin dry and his smile eerie.
"Sensei asked me to destroy and kill as much as I can! Let's see how All Might reacts to his base getting destroyed by me!" he shouted, then turned towards the door of the bedrooms where the Urarakas sleep.
Before he can even take a step towards that direction, he felt his right arm get wrapped up by vines, and he looked towards the door, seeing Izuku standing there with vines coming out of his wrists, staring at him with fury.
"I won't let you!"
Izuku then glanced briefly at the clock hanging by the wall of the living room.
11:55 pm. 5 minutes before my stand switches. Let's do this!
Chapter 6: Two Battles Of Good And Evil
"DETROIT SMASH!"
It was All Might who opened up the battle first. The hero sent a strong direct jab at the villain, hoping to catch him off-guard with his blinding speed. However, All For One was prepared for this, and immediately erected a barrier to protect him from the strike. All Might struck said barrier, angering him.
"Are you really going to be a coward hiding behind your barrier?!" the hero angrily asked.
"Hahahahaha! It's called being smart, All Might!" All For One responded with a sneer. All Might simply struck the barrier again with more force, causing it to crack. As All For One was briefly stunned, All Might shattered the barrier and jabbed the villain right in the face. The villain managed to block it, but was sent flying into the wall.
All Might tried to charge in to press his assault, but then heard the villain speaking.
"Wind Cannon, Continuous Force, Needle Sensation, Temperature Increase, Penetration Enhancement, and Knockback!" he shouted, before a massive blast of wind erupted from his position, hitting All Might with it full force. Of course, All Might managed to block it, but he still felt immense pain from it, as the wind was extremely hot, and he also felt multiple prickling sensations from it.
I just have to blow this wind cannon away, since he didn't do anything to increase its defensive power!
All Might readied one of his fists and punched into the wind cannon, dispersing it immediately. However, what he did not expect was that the moment the wind cannon dispersed, a massive pillar of earth immediately hit him right in the gut, sending him flying into the air, then more floating rubble tried to hit him while he was mid-air.
Fortunately for him, he managed to blow said rubble away with another punch just as he landed back into the ground, then he ran forward to reach All For One, who used more pillars of earth to get in his way, only for him to smash through it with ease.
"Ah, you really are an expert in using sheer dumb brute force, All Might!" he said, as he prepared another wind cannon to send him away. However, before he even managed to do it, All Might jumped towards him with his arms crossed, then attacked.
"Carolina Smash!"
The attack managed to hit the villain head-on, but he wasn't sent flying this time, only staggered backward. He then noticed that All For One managed to anchor himself on the ground, preventing himself from being blown away. All For One smirked and made his next move.
"Flesh Tentacles, Muscle Enhancement, Flexibility Enhancement, and Poison Tip!"
A dozen tentacles emerged from his back and all tried to attack All Might, but he instinctively dodged them with minimal effort. However, they continued assaulting All Might, pressuring him into the defensive. As he evaded attack after attack from him, he knew that he needed to do something to turn the tides.
And so, after dodging another flurry of attacks from All For One, All Might flicked his fingers, creating a powerful gust of wind that blew away All For One and the tentacles, then proceeded to launch another attack.
"Texas Smash!"
The strike hit All For One in the gut, causing him to spit out blood and spit, as well as sending him flying once more. However, he managed to land this time, then stared at All Might with his sneering grin.
"You seem pretty proud of yourself for harnessing the power of One For All so easily. Are you proud of yourself for wielding such power?" All For One asked.
"I am proud of wielding such a power in order to destroy you!" All Might responded, only for All For One to laugh.
"Hahahahahahahahaha! Really now? How terribly arrogant of you to think you can destroy me so easily! Let me dispel that delusion of yours." All For One said, before holding his hand to the sky.
"Flame Production, Fire Manipulation, Blue Fire, Temperature Increase, Pinpoint, Explosive Yield, Homing Projectile, and Burning Sensation!" All For One's grin grew wider as what seemed to be a miniature sun was produced from his hand. "Prepare yourself, All Might!"
Toshinori crossed his arms to block, just as All For One threw his attack.
"Who the hell are you?" the boy glared at Izuku, who was still holding on to his arm with Hermit Purple, before shrugging. "Oh well, doesn't matter. You'll die anyway."
He held out his hand and touched the vine with all of his fingers, but then his eyes widened in shock. Something probably happened that he didn't expect.
"His quirk allows him to do something once he touches something with all five of his fingers, but it only affects physical objects, which is why nothing happened to Hermit Purple." Jotaro remarked.
"A silver lining in this situation. Keep your distance from him and you'll be fine." Giorno advised him.
Izuku nodded silently. The boy internally debated whether he should close the distance between him and this villain, knowing that it would be extremely risky to do so. He cursed internally at not having brought any steel balls with him, as that would have given him long-distance attack options against him. Hermit Purple is not an inherently offensive stand, so he would have to settle with using Hamon to enhance his attacks.
The vines then gripped him tightly, then proceeded to fling him to a nearby wall. The boy screamed briefly in pain, but then glared at Izuku.
"I didn't expect to fight a miniboss today, but I'll make sure to kill you, you brat!"
With speeds he didn't expect from the villain, he ran at Izuku with his hands outstretched. Izuku dodged sideways, and the hand landed on the ground. The floor began to crumble into dust, now giving Izuku a horrifying idea of what his quirk is.
Fortunately for him, he saw an opening that he didn't hesitate to take. After charging up his arm with Hamon, he launched a punch at Tomura.
"OVERDRIVE!"
The punch hit Tomura squarely in the face, causing him to stumble backwards and be stunned, but Izuku didn't dare move in to continue his offensive. He knew that one wrong move and he'll probably crumble into dust like the floor was beforehand.
Instead, he used Hermit Purple to fling a wooden stool at Tomura, hoping that it would do enough damage to him, but he managed to recover faster than Izuku anticipated and held out his hand to decay the stool into dust.
"That strength... Are you All Might's student, or something?" Tomura asked with a slight fury in his eyes, while Izuku couldn't help but smile.
"Honestly, I wish I was!" Izuku replied, causing Tomura to growl and charge at Izuku again.
His fighting style is very similar to Kacchan's. I need to avoid his hands, specifically his palms.
"You need to be careful of his physical abilities, though. He's fast, especially without a quirk to enhance that. Be careful, buddy." Josuke said.
I will, Josuke-san.
Izuku then evaded most of Tomura's attacks, not wanting to risk trying to counterattack only for him to be touched. As he did this, he saw an opening in which Tomura had both of his arms up, so he used Hermit Purple to grab both of his arms, then charged his leg up with Hamon before kicking Tomura in the gut.
Tomura was sent flying into a bookshelf this time. Izuku winced about the damage he had just incurred, and mentally apologized to All Might.
I will not allow you to kill anyone here, villain!
As the villain stood up, Izuku couldn't help but notice how young he looked. While he was definitely older than Izuku, he was still in his early teens from the looks of him. He wondered who he was.
Is this a student of All For One's or something? That is probably why he attacked right at this moment. However, where is the other one? I know that someone brought him here via that portal!
Izuku then remembered about Nighteye.
Is he trying to stop Sir Nighteye from coming here?! Is that why he isn't here yet? Wait, but that means that the other one can't come here to help him either, which means...
"Unfortunately, you're on your own." Johnny said.
Then, I'm just going to have to do this regardless!
Just as the villain was standing up, Izuku used the vines again to bind one of his arms, then began to spin from his spot, causing Tomura to be carried with him. He built the momentum from this spin, then let go of him, sending him crashing into the wall again. The villain recovered faster this time, and growled even louder.
"This brat is playing with me! I'll make you pay for this!"
Tomura then took a fighting stance, crouched down low, and charged at Izuku once more.
Sensing that he is taking him much more seriously this time, Izuku raised his guard more and focused more of his attention towards the villain than ever before.
Then, Tomura moved.
He was faster than last time, making Izuku wonder whether All For One had provided him with a quirk that enhanced his speed. He also began throwing punches and kicks last time, probably hoping to incapacitate him before landing the finishing blow on him with his quirk.
Izuku, having a bad feeling, decided to use his Hermit Purple to do something.
This something being tested when Tomura took advantage of an opening and tried to touch Izuku right in the face with his hand.
"You're panicking, All For One! Are you stressed that your big attack didn't do as much damage as you had hoped?!"
"Not at all! I would be sorely disappointed if the quirk my brother wanted to cultivate would be so weak! Taking it would not be so rewarding anymore if that was the case."
Despite the injuries on him, All For One still had that unsettling grin on his face, something that All Might dearly wished to remove from it.
After All For One threw that massive attack at All Might, he managed to hit him directly in the body. Fortunately for All Might, the attack didn't do as much damage as he would have thought, only leaving him with burns and bruises around his body.
After that, All Might tried to charge at All For One again, but icicles started appearing all around him, forcing Toshinori to either dodge or destroy them.
All For One then stomped on the ground, causing a bunch of rubble to be sent upwards. They floated up in the air, then the villain controlled them all and sent them all hurtling at All Might.
And that was what led to this current moment.
"Nebraska Smash!" All Might spun around, trying to generate wind pressure with his strength to create a miniature tornado, gathering the debris All For One threw at him then using his strength to throw them back at the villain. The collected rubble was thrown back at the villain, but All For One used his barrier once more to block them without even moving. The barrier then broke from the combined force, but none of them managed to hit him regardless.
Unfortunately for him, it did leave him open for All Might to use another attack at him.
"New Hampshire Smash!"
Using the force of his own punch, All Might sent himself propelling through the air, crashing into the villain as a result, causing him immense pain.
He expected this, though, something All Might knew when he felt an electric current passing through his body. He then grabbed All For One by the arm and threw him away from there.
All Might himself recovered from being electrocuted, just as he saw All For One standing up.
"You really are a brute, All Might! Very much unlike your mentor!" he said.
All Might gritted his teeth as the two of them began to clash once more.
"Don't you dare speak of Nana!" he said as he threw a punch at the villain, only to be dodged and almost countered, if not for All Might blocking it.
"Oh, but why wouldn't I speak of such a beautiful woman?" he said.
"That praise should never be coming out of your mouth, you bastard!"
The two exchanged more attacks, as the villain used his myriad of quirks in order to keep the pressure on All Might. Everything from earth attacks, to water lances, to acid daggers, to nigh-unbreakable chains, to even summoning a road roller out of nowhere to try and squash him. Despite all of this, All Might simply managed to get through them all with no real issue.
It was then that All For One thought of a way to really get into All Might's skin and catch him off-guard.
"You know, All Might, when I had defeated Nana, I had thought to myself about how much of a waste it would have been to just kill such a beautiful woman like her." he said, causing All Might to be anxious.
I don't like where this is going...!
"Seeing her laying there, beaten up and bruise, I thought that maybe I should have some fun with her!" he said, his grin widening. "Hearing her squeals and playing around with her until I had killed her had been absolutely rewarding!"
All Might processed what All For One had just said, then his expression went incandescent with rage.
"ALL FOR ONE! I WILL KILL YOU!" the hero shouted as he launched a flurry of punches at All For One, who dodged them all. Unfortunately for All Might, his rage left him open to attack.
One which All For One gladly took advantage of.
"How sad, All Might. To think that such meaningless lies will rile you. Did you really think I will stoop so low? What a fool."
He said this just as hands dug deep around All Might's side, making him bleed.
"Damn you, you clever brat!" Tomura said as his hands pressed up on Izuku's face. He knew that his face should have been crumbling by now...
...if it wasn't for the vines covering his face and getting in the way.
"You figured out I can't destroy you without all five fingers, huh?" he said as he stepped back from Izuku.
"It wasn't that hard to figure out." Izuku replied as he charged his arms with Hamon again.
That was what Izuku attempted to do. By wrapping enough vines on his face, he would prevent Tomura from decaying his face with his quirk. Since Hermit Purple is immune to his quirk, it wouldn't be decayed, and it will block all five of the fingers from getting to touch Izuku's face. However, he needed to have been prepared in advance for it, so his brush with death was still too close for comfort.
"It doesn't matter. I'll still be able to kill you, brat!"
"I won't let you kill anyone."
With that, they continued their fight. Both of them were much more wary of the other's attacks this time, so they both tried hard to avoid each other instead. Neither of them even wanted to counter one another, wary of being caught in an attack they wouldn't even be able to escape from.
Izuku tried punching Tomura with Hamon-infused fist, only for Tomura to dodge it. The boy then had to dodge the villain's hands multiple times, even using Hermit Purple to grab them to swat them away. He did managed to evade those, but it was enough to drive away the hands from ever touching Izuku.
Tomura attempted to kick Izuku in the gut, only for him to block it. Izuku saw a glass filled with water in the kitchen, which was somehow untouched, then had the idea to grab it with Hermit Purple. He shot the vines at Tomura's direction which was easily dodged, but it was all a feint. Instead, he grabbed at the glass of water, let Hamon flow through the stand on the glass itself and onto the water, then pulled it towards Tomura. The villain sensed it and tried to use his quirk to decay it. While he managed to decay the glass itself, the water didn't splash outwards due to the Hamon flowing through it, and it managed to hit him square in the face. It was like a solid mass hitting him, and it stunned him for a few seconds, leaving him open to be punched by Izuku in the gut and in the chest.
"You little shit!" the villain shouted in frustration as he recovered from the attacks and tried to attack back, but Izuku dodged them with little effort.
Despite the attacks he has landed on Tomura, though, the villain didn't let up, causing both of them to be irritated at their lack of progress at defeating the other.
Izuku then tried something risky. Glancing up at the ceiling fan on top of the room, Izuku used Hermit Purple to grapple onto it and lift himself up, trying to hit Tomura with a kick. Unfortunately, he dodged it with ease, and after Izuku landed near a wall in the apartment, Tomura was there to try and decay his face again. Izuku was cornered.
However, this was all part of Izuku's plan.
The green-haired boy rolled over to the side to dodge it, letting Tomura decay the wall, but then he let go of it as he tried again to touch Izuku, which was near the wall he just decayed and put a hole into, only for Izuku to duck downwards this time. He then ran past Tomura to his back, intending to try and attack him from there, but Tomura turned around fast enough, grinning as he knew that Izuku would be caught off-guard by this.
However, he wasn't.
In the wall earlier, two holes were formed after they were decayed by Tomura. However, between them was a thin strip of wall that was unaffected by Tomura's quirk. Izuku quickly took advantage of that.
Izuku used Hermit Purple to loop around that strip, making it a sort of anchor then reached Tomura from behind, binding his entire body.
"What the hell?!" Tomura exclaimed, causing Izuku to grin as he did something he always wanted to do.
"Your next line is, "That's what you were planning to do the whole time, you brat?!"!" Izuku said.
"That's what you were planning to do the whole time, you brat?!" Tomura said, before he gasped. "Wha-?!"
Izuku's whole body was filled with Hamon as he stared at Tomura with determination.
"My heart resonates... heat enough to burn... My blood's beat is razor-sharp!"
He charged at Tomura and launched a flurry of fast punches.
"SUNLIGHT YELLOW OVERDRIVE!"
"Gah!" Tomura screamed in pain, but his angered determination made him refuse to give up as he raised his hand to touch Izuku in the gut, decaying his clothes and soon his body.
However, Izuku heard the sound he's been waiting for.
DING!
"Khh!" All Might gritted his teeth further as the villain's hands dug into his side.
"Look at how the mighty and invincible Symbol of Peace has fallen! It's a pity nobody else is watching this, right now! Imagine the despair that Japan will feel upon seeing you bleed!" All For One said, chuckling darkly to himself. "Oh well, it is time to take back what is rightfully mine."
Using his quirk, he attempted to take back One For All, only to be met by the ghosts of seven users, whose combined wills stare down All For One.
"WE REFUSE!"
"Wha-"
"One of our absolute favorite things to do is to tell someone who we think is strong, "no."! Now begone!"
All For One was repelled out of the quirk, then he felt his hand being gripped by All Might.
"You may have injured me, but you forgot soomething, All For One." he said before smiling. "I can't beat the shit out of you without getting closer!"
All Might gripped his arm hard enough that it broke, grabbed All For One closer, and punched him in the chest.
All Might didn't let go, though, and continued beating into All For One. He rained down punch, after punch, after punch at the villain, enduring the grave injury at his side.
After he was done with that, he clenched his fists one last time, then unleashed his ultimate move.
"UNITED STATES OF SMASH!"
His fist landed on All For One's head, causing it to cave in and bleed profusely. Meanwhile, the area they were fighting on exploded due to sheer force of the punch, causing a chunk of the city to be destroyed. Thankfully, the civilians were evacuated at the nick of time, so there were no civilian casualties.
At the aftermath of it, All Might stood over the defeated body of his nemesis, his head cracked open like an eggshell, blood and brain matter spilled everywhere. Satisfied by what he had done, and that he had finished the job, he collapsed into the floor, slowly diving into unconsciousness. However, before that, he spotted something familiar. An entity that belonged to an ally.
"I see you have finished the job."
"Wonder... of... U...? I see... The principal... was watching...?"
"Indeed. In case of your unlikely defeat, he hoped that the villain attempt to pursue him in order to incur calamity upon him."
"That... is a brilliant... idea... However... I have already finished it..."
"I do see that. You have done well."
"It was... an honor... to see this through..."
All Might, relieved that he had won the battle, fell into unconsciousness.
Tomura was shocked at seeing the clothing he had just decayed be restored. He also saw the vines disappear and for a towering figure to replace it.
"Crazy Diamond!" Izuku shouted, then the stand threw a fast punch at him.
"DORA!"
Tomura was immediately blasted back, and he spit out saliva due to the sheer force of the stand. He growled at the pain incurred to him.
"Damn it... you can switch powers... and one that's an exact counter to mine...? You really are a mini-boss!" he said.
He attempted to fight him further, but he was even more outmatched than last time, as the sheer strength of Crazy Diamond put pressure on him, as well as its ability to restore things. Eventually, when he missed and decayed the floor once more, Izuku punched it, restoring it and trapping Tomura's hand inside of it.
"You...!"
"DORARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARA!"
Tomura got his by a flurry of punches again, much more powerful than last time. He felt many of his bones broken, but still glared at Izuku as he decayed the floor again and freed his hand.
"You... brat!"
"Shigaraki Tomura!" A warped voice called out, and a portal opened up from behind the villain. "Master has been defeated! Retreat!"
"Sensei... has been defeated?! Damn you, All Might!" Tomura screamed. Just then, Sir Nighteye opened the door, looking exhausted and bruised.
"Midoriya!" he shouted, seeing Midoriya and Crazy Diamond stare at the retreating form of the villains.
"Midoriya... I see, that's your name..." the villain said. "I'll remember it, you fucking mini-boss..."
"I will also remember you, Shigaraki Tomura. The next time we meet, you will meet your end."
It was then that the villains disappeared, living the heroes inside the ruins of the apartment.
"Are you alright, Midoriya?" Nighteye approached Izuku out of concern, and he nodded.
"I am fine. I managed to protect all of them, thankfully." he said, gesturing towards the bedroom.
"That's good." Mirai remarked as he finally relaxed. Just as they were about to truly calm down, a voice spoke from above them.
"Sasaki Mirai."
They both looked up, and Izuku saw something that was very familiar to one of the Joestars.
It was a humanoid entity in a pale blue color with pink accents. Its fingers are thin like pads, and it had two... bunny ears. Izuku immediately went on guard as he knew who the figure was from the stories told to him by Johnny.
"What are you doing here, D4C?!" Izuku shouted, while Mirai was confused as to how he could know this entity.
"Calm yourself, bearer of Johnny Joestar's will. I mean you no harm. I am simply a stand without a user, without a will of its own, and is now seeking a new master." the stand spoke.
"What about President Valentine?! Where is he?!" the boy shouted.
"He is dead. You should know this." the stand said before turning towards the hero. "Right now, I'm making an offer towards Sasaki Mirai. I want him to be my new user. He is worthy."
"What does that mean?" he asked.
"You will be the new bearer of my ability. The power to wield yourselves through multiple universes."
"Will you be following my will? To be a hero? To save and protect others?" Nighteye said.
"I simply follow the will of my new master. If you accept this, your will shall be mine as well."
Izuku still felt wary, but he knew that Nighteye getting the stand will be a boon towards them. Mirai knew this as well, and so...
"I accept."
"Very well, then. I will follow your will, Sasaki Mirai."
The stand then fused into Mirai's body, but he was physically unchanged.
"Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap..." Mirai quietly remarked. "Let us address that later. For now, let us go to Toshinori. He is injured during the fight and he needs healing. I see that you have Crazy Diamond, so you can help."
Izuku nodded, feeling relief at All Might's victory, but nervousness at the presence of the stand of a former enemy of the Joestars.
I wonder... Is this the work of fate?