Izuku landed on the balls of his feet with a bodily thump, having climbed the fence that surrounded the forest near USJ. By itself USJ was heavily protected, but its outer perimeter only had sensors to detect unusual energy signatures so he'd be fine as long as he avoided any security cameras. Even taking that into consideration the boy had formed a makeshift mask with his hoodie's hood and T-shirt. He was getting closer to the building now, Kiri guiding him to their next objective. He just hoped he wasn't too late-
An earthshaking boom shook his bones and caused him to flinch, the boy whirling about to face the source. A new series of gunshot-like cracks split the air, followed by smaller staccato thunderclaps. Kiri pointed towards the chaos, confirming his assumptions. Izuku ran towards the fighting reluctantly, the rough sketch of a plan already formulating within his mind. But first, he had to get to high ground to observe the situation.
Cresting a small hilltop he finally found the source of the conflict. Down in an open clearing in the forest two individuals were beating the absolute tar out of each other, each blow resulting in a miniature explosion of dust and debris. One of the combatants was Hound Dog, his muzzle-like mask cracked in half and exposing a multitude of jagged, razor-sharp teeth within his snout.
Up above in the air a thin figure was gliding around the chaos, occasionally letting out a focused blast of explosive sound at Hound Dog's opponent. Present Mic was flying, his costume extended into a wingsuit and using his Quirk's recoil to propel himself through the air. His rarely-seen Banshee Mode, Izuku realized.
The boy focused on the opponent that the two teachers were fighting- that had to be one of the wielders. A shirtless, muscular man with nothing out of the ordinary except for his birdlike mask and the two massive protrusions that extended out from his back. The more Izuku looked the less sense it made- the two… things on the man's back looked both liquid and solid, flowing and solidifying at will- they kept transitioning between wispy, cloud-like wings and solid, blade-like appendages. One red, lined with long white stripes. One blue, studded with white stars. Two colossal and ethereal wing-like structures seemingly made of liquid muscle and hardened flesh simultaneously, together they formed an organic caricature reminiscent of the American flag.
Izuku could do nothing but watch and analyze, hidden within the foliage atop the hill. A quick search through his mental repository of Hero knowledge was conducted, the boy wracking his brains for a Hero or Villain with such a Quirk and appearance. The man tried to take off only for Present Mic's supercharged voice to knock him out of the sky, Hound Dog snarling and following up with a mid-air tackle that sent them both crashing into the ground.
Extra appendages. Changer rating confirmed. Flight. Mover rating confirmed.
"I told you I don't want to hurt you! You're in my way!" The man blocked Hound Dog's powerful fist, countering with a vicious two-handed swing that launched the teacher upwards, Present Mic catching his colleague mid-air. "Why can't you just-"
Super-strength. Brute rating confirmed.
"-Leave me ALONE!" he howled, the stars and stripes on his wings beginning to glow; a barrage of white star-shaped energy projectiles erupted from the patterns, a mix of red and blue electricity trailing behind. Present Mic let out a burst of sound that blasted most of the projectiles away, though his wingsuit had been torn by a lucky shot which effectively grounded him. Hound Dog grabbed a tree branch on the way down to cushion their landing, cursing as he did.
Ranged offensive capabilities. Blaster rating confirmed.
Izuku's mind was spinning into overdrive. Changer, Mover, Brute and Blaster ratings. A plethora of powerful abilities, and that stars and stripes pattern. He retrieved his smartphone and began to search through the internet as well. Crap, so many Heroes had that pattern on their costumes-
"Mic! Hound!" A woman's voice called out in alarm. Izuku looked up to spot two more teachers that had arrived because of the commotion- Midnight and Ectoplasm.
A literal wave of cloudy white ooze spewed from Ectoplasm's mouth like a tide of seafoam, twisting to form a phantasmic giant clone of himself. A set of equally gigantic jaws snapped shut around the intruder, trapping him within. Midnight sprinted up the giant's clone's back, flipping off its head and ripping open a part of her costume to release her sleep-inducing aroma right in front its face, which the clone proceeded to inhale into its mouth. They had managed to work together perfectly without a single word spoken between them; a solid combination attack, Izuku observed.
But not solid enough. The man exploded out of Ectoplasm's giant clone in a whirlwind of blades, shattering teeth on the way out like water bursting through a dam. It wouldn't have worked anyway since he was a projection, unaffected by Midnight's aroma. His mad laughter resonated through the air, a terrifying sound that seemed to echo through the forest in undulating waves.
"HERE'S JOHNNY!" he screamed, ripping the giant clone apart with his massive blade-wing appendages.
The clone reverted back to nothingness, having taken too much damage. Ectoplasm was already creating some normal-sized clones to cover Midnight's retreat, Present Mic laying down covering fire with his directed sound blasts. Hound Dog pounced, barreling into the man with a heavy crunch before being thrown off. Izuku thought again, having received another clue. Johnny. Stars and stripes. Possibly American. The man's identity was so close now, he just needed a little more info—
"Kayama!" Somebody yelled in warning, causing him to refocus on the battlefield.
Johnny swung one colossal wing like a sword, the flat edge cleaving through Ectoplasm's clones like a hot knife through butter. As Midnight somersaulted over the vicious sweep she got caught mid-air by his second wing wrapping around her waist, trapping her. The heroine hissed, ripping at the sleeves of her costume to expose more of her skin, a dense cloud of her pink aroma shrouding the two combatants.
She grit her teeth when her opponent didn't fall asleep, instead inhaling the aroma as if to spite her. One enormous wing-blade raised skywards, ready to slam down into her—
NO!
Izuku panicked, about to charge down right then and there in the hopes of helping to save his teacher when Johnny just… froze. For a moment nobody moved, cautious of what the man would do. A dry rasp echoed from within the hollows of his mask, the man's voice low and sorrowful.
"Aah… Annette, my sweet… light of my life. My rose among thorns." He delicately trailed a single, trembling finger down Midnight's face, the teacher struggling within his grip. "My guiding moonlight…"
For a moment Izuku's vision blurred and Midnight's form seemed to flicker, overlapping with the image of another woman in a different costume. A flowing green cape, and a pristine white costume with the symbol of a crescent moon on her chest... then she was gone and Midnight was still there, looking utterly confused.
What? Izuku connected the dots, he'd heard that phrase before somewhere... and he'd seen that woman before, too! A photo of her... in a history book about Heroes. That was it, he now had all the info he needed! That last bit of knowledge helped him to decipher who this man actually was. Izuku started to formulate a plan to extract him before there was any more conflict and without being noticed by the teachers- it was absolutely crazy, but it just might work.
The boy focused on thinking, already planning out the projected paths; taking into account their various positions and what they were liable to do next. All he needed was for them to line up just right but he had to act fast; there was only one shot at this. Few choices were left, time was of the essence and he still had three souls unaccounted for.
"My sweet Annette…" Johnny grabbed at his head, as if he was in pain… or weeping. He slowly released his grip on Midnight, the bewildered woman looking stunned as she backed away. "My love, saccharine and serendipitous…"
The other three U.A teachers began to surround the man in a tight circle formation. Midnight was still backing away when Johnny suddenly looked right at her, a gleam of madness in his eyes.
"No. You—you are not her. You look like her, but you are not her." he whispered while those wings stretching to their maximum length, each at least six meters long and bristling with power. "My dear Annette would never wear something so… so disgraceful! You—you degenerate!"
"Uh-oh." Midnight squeaked. She kicked off the ground and leapt backwards, the U.A teachers moving in to protect their comrade. Ectoplasm's throat expanded, Present Mic took a deep breath, and Hound Dog roared a challenge as he pounced.
Don't let the egg explode. A low whine began to fill the air. Izuku couldn't believe he was doing this.
"YOU ARE NOT HER!" Johnny screamed, preparing to strike. "SCANDALOUS WENCH! BEGONE, TH—"
DELAWARE SMAAAAASH!
Twin gargantuan blasts of wind pressure exploded from Izuku's right index and middle fingers, the boy having charged both of them up with the power of One For All. At this range the enormous gusts knocked back all four teachers without actually hurting them and produced a thick cloud of dust, leaving Johnny untouched in the gap between his attack. As the powerful wind temporarily disoriented and deafened the teachers, Izuku took a deep breath and prepared himself to scream a single word that would bring Johnny to him.
"STARGAZER!" he yelled, distorting his voice as much as possible.
The man's head shot up to the source of his cry, immediately bolting over to the top of the hill where Izuku was hiding. Upon discovering him, Johnny let out a gasp of surprise; Izuku was clutching at the damaged fingers on his right hand, grimacing. He still had his hood on and his t-shirt hiked up to mask his face as an added precaution just in case the teachers spotted him.
"You're- How did you know-"
"I'll explain later," Izuku grunted in pain. "Get us out of here!"
Johnny nodded unfurled his colossal wings once more, this time taking to the skies. He clutched Izuku in his grip, careful not to drop him as they made considerable distance in a matter of seconds; far enough that the U.A teachers couldn't see his form clearly. A quick look back revealed that the U.A teachers had already recovered from the wind blast earlier. Ectoplasm had made another giant, albeit smaller clone... Hound Dog, Present Mic and a few normal-sized clones positioned atop it. The goliath arched back like a catapult and Izuku immediately realized that they were about to throw themselves at him.
"On your six!" he yelled throatily. Johnny flipped over mid-air with Izuku still in his arms, upside down and launching a flurry of stars from his patterned wings. Hound Dog and Present Mic took cover but the clones held on tight even as three of them got shot down, committed to their roles as sacrificial pawns.
Whipping its head forward Ectoplasm's giant clone launched its payload into the air; four normal-sized clones were now flying straight at them, the wind rippling in their tan coats. Two were shredded to pieces by another blast by Johnny but he had to reorient himself to fly properly. Izuku realized he could only fire those projectiles at targets his pattern was facing, which was why he had flipped in the first place. The other two clones were still spiraling towards them, ready to crash into the pair to ground them. It was up all up to him now.
The boy grit his teeth, readying his left index finger to aim- and flicked. The clones were nearly upon them when Izuku released his third Delaware Smash, disintegrating one clone and halving the other at the midsection from the close range wind pressure. The bisected clone managed to swipe at his makeshift mask in its last moments… exposing the boy's face. In those brief seconds time seemed to slow, Izuku witnessing Ectoplasm's eyes widening with shock and recognition even as the clone faded away.
"Why…?" the teacher's clone whispered, before collapsing into a white fog that faded into nothingness.
Izuku grimaced, feeling guilty but quickly reminding himself that it was just a clone and not the real Ectoplasm. From his hero knowledge he knew that the teacher's clones couldn't relay info to the original telepathically so his identity was safe... At this distance they couldn't see his face either. Additionally he hadn't said anything during his smash attacks, just that single word to call Johnny to his side. He hoped they didn't hear him in the explosion of air, but even if they did he'd made his voice as distorted as possible.
Now that he thought about it, the wind blasts from his Delaware Smash was less powerful than he'd expected, even though he'd used two fingers to launch twin blasts simultaneously at first. Looking down at his fingers, Izuku inspected them carefully. They were bloodied and badly bruised… but they were not broken. That all but confirmed that One For All was now a little weaker as it was being shared among three other individuals, much like how Kiri's power was. Right, he really needed to get them back.
I can't believe it… I just attacked my own teachers… Izuku thought, groaning internally. I just hope they're okay...
With Present Mic grounded they were able to safely escape from the USJ grounds, soaring into the faraway outskirts of the city in a matter of minutes. Once the trio were far enough away they picked a remote area to land in, quickly scanning to make sure no one was around to see them.
"You're Midoriya Izuku, ain't you?" Johnny asked, bewildered. "Yeah, you're the kid, the new host! Why'd you go do that? I could have taken them."
"You were about to kill—"
"I wouldn't have killed them, lad- Just knock them out. I still have a degree of control..." the man grunted, his wings dissolving into a crimson and turquoise cloud that swirled into his back. His helmet dissipated as well, revealing a handsome face with chiseled features and long blonde hair. "What do you think I am, a Villain? Anyways, how'd you know my hero name? I'm not dressed in my Golden Age costume."
"'My guiding moonlight'. That's what you used to call her, right? Moondancer. Your wife, Annette. I've read about her… and you- in my modern history class. She was one of the very first heroes… and so were you." Izuku groaned, Kiri helping to bandage his fingers with a roll she'd retrieved from his backpack. "You're her husband... You're the Hero Stargazer. I managed to figure out… who you are by observing you."
"You'd managed to piece everything together just by looking? I'm impressed… that's some analytical skill right there." he hummed. "Cute little fairy you have, by the way."
"Nn." Kiri hmphed, sticking her tongue out at him.
"Gah..." The boy grimaced in pain as his little construct finished with the bandages. "So what should I call you, Stargazer-san? Or should I call you by your civilian name; John Valentine?"
"Johnny's fine, kid." He nodded. "Thanks for the help, but you should probably get those fingers of your looked at. Anyways, I've got some unfinished business to take care of. Now I bid you, adieu!"
"W-what? Hey, you can't just—Shimura Nana and All Might sent me to retrieve you." Izuku protested. "We have no idea what'll happen if you guys stay outside for too long so—"
"Sorry kid, but like I said, unfinished business." John folded his arms, eyes narrowed. "I need to find a man who goes by the name 'All For One'. Ever heard of him?"
"Umm… no, but—"
"Then you have no idea how important this is to me." he hissed, leaning into Izuku to emphasize his point. "I'm going to find that bastard, and I'm gonna kill him for what he's done."
"K-kill? What did he do?" Izuku stammered. All For One? Wasn't that name the opposite of the phrase... 'One For All'? A strange dread took hold in his heart, but he pushed it to the back of his mind for later study. There were more important things to focus on right now.
"You know my name, right? My Hero name. Do you also happen to know the organization I belonged to?" Johnny grumbled, rolling his eyes. "The JGA? Ring a bell?"
"The Justice Guild of America?" The Hero-otaku mumbled, much to the delight of the man before him. "I've um, read about them in my Metahuman History class."
Izuku recalled that the JGA was a Hero Organization that was established in America during the Golden Age of Heroes, decades ago when heroic metahumans were still trying to establish themselves as legitimate crime-fighters and protectors of Justice. They were arguably the first Hero Organization and were used as a perfect example on how such an organization was supposed to be, the predecessor to Hero orgs worldwide- including Japan's very own Hero Association. Their mysterious disbandment resulted in the transition of the Golden Age to the Silver Age, marking the passing of an era.
"Bingo! I'm glad someone still remembers us. Anyways, that man, All For One; he was our downfall. That's why I have to kill him."
"B-but how are you going to find him? I know the JGA disbanded decades ago and I doubt this mortal enemy of yours is even alive today—"
"Is that what history says? That we disbanded? What a load of crap. A coverup! We didn't disband, boy." Johnny's eyes glinted with anger. "He killed so many of us. He killed me. Well technically König killed me, but still. That's why I have to go after him. He's probably got ahold of some healing or longevity Quirk, I know he's somewhere here in Japan. if All Might can't kill him, then I will."
What did All Might have to do with this?! Izuku thought frantically. Wait… longevity Quirk. All Might has fought him, too. Whoever this All For One is, he must be a sworn enemy of Johnny's—no, not just him. An enemy of One For All...
"Johnny-san, I know this must be hard for you to accept but you need to return... like I said before; there's no telling what could happen if you stay outside in the real world for too long. Your power and remaining time is running out. There's a chance that you could be lost forever!"
"Then let me be lost. If I can find that bastard and put my fist through his skull, then it's worth it."
"N-no." Izuku protested reluctantly, his arms outstretched to stop John from advancing. The man stopped, his face twisting into a frown.
"No? Whaddya mean no?" he grunted. "Get out of my way, boy. This is beyond you."
"I-If you kill him, you're no better than him!" Izuku stammered, reigning in the fear that threatened to show on his features. "If you kill him, he wins."
"Christ, is this what they're teaching kids nowadays? Don't tell me you actually believe in that vapid bullshit."
"S-so what if I do?"
"Then let me open your eyes a little." Johnny sighed and shrugged his massive shoulders. Izuku noticed he was around the same height as All Might, but a little less muscular. "If I kill him, I am better than him and he doesn't win. He doesn't anything. He'll be dead. That's the point."
"How can you be sure that you'll find him before your power runs out?" the boy tried desperately, appealing to his logical side. "How many people will you inadvertently hurt in your rush to find him? This enemy of yours… If he's strong enough to escape All Might you won't be able to match him as you are now! N-not to mention, the U.A teachers; pro heroes, they know your outfit, your abilities, your name. The police will be searching for someone of your description within the hour! There's nothing to be done—"
"There IS something to be done!" Johnny rounded on him, teeth clenched with fury. "That's why I'm here, isn't it? To strike back- to finish what I've started over a century ago! This is my opportunity to make things right! If I can just—"
"L-look, I know you're angry but listen to yourself- a century has passed. The glory days of the JGA are over, and so are are their battles. You can just leave it to All Might and the modern Heroes now! M-maybe it's time for you to… let go?"
"LET GO?!" the man roared, causing Izuku to flinch. He seemed to tower above the poor boy, his eyes like chips of ice as they stared him down. Kiri got into a defensive stance, fists clenched and about to attack if he tried anything. "Don't tell me to let go. You don't know what this means to me so just SHUT UP, and get out of my way!"
"N-no! I can't let you do this to yourself." Izuku gulped, standing up to the terrifying presence before him against all odds. "Please, calm down!"
"I'm the very opposite of calm right now because of you... You're making me angry." Azure light began to flicker within the man's eyes as his back rippled, his wings threatening to burst forth once more. "People piss themselves when I get angry."
He's going to take off again. I have to stop him now or even more time will be lost!
"V-v-violence never solved anything!" Izuku still didn't back off, fully committed to his task. "Please reconsider—"
"Get off your high horse! Meddling around and sticking your nose where it doesn't belong- You have no idea what the hell you're talking about, boy." An accusing finger was thrust into his face. "You! You think this is all in the past! You don't care! To you it's something that you've read in some article… some HISTORY BOOK!"
"I-I didn't mean it that way—" The boy flinched again when Johnny's fist crashed through a tree beside him, showering them with wooden splinters.
"It may be history to you, but it was my life. I, WE, weren't just some numbers in print, some statistic for you to regurgitate onto a pop quiz! These were brave men and women who sacrificed everything for the sake of Justice!" He slammed a fist into his chest, baring his teeth. "MY COMRADES, MY FRIENDS, ME! WE LIVED AND DIED IN THOSE BATTLES!"
Izuku said nothing... icy fear chilling the blood within his veins to a freezing point. He was still carefully considering his next words when Johnny seemed to deflate, the volcanic wrath he displayed a moment ago dissipating into nothingness. The man slowly leaned against a nearby tree, slumping down its length.
"And it was for nothing." he grunted weakly. "The effort we put in- the blood, sweat and tears that everyone shed... It was for nothing. I failed... I couldn't stop him in the end. I couldn't stop All For One. All the people that suffered under his rule since then. It's all my fault."
The boy could only keep silent and let him calm down, feeling that it wasn't in his place to speak about matters he had little to no knowledge about.
"When I manifested in this World I thought it was my second chance. To finally make up for my greatest failure. If I found the bastard and killed him, then—then everything would be alright again." Johnny exhaled, releasing the tension in his arms. "But who am I kidding. It won't bring them back. You're right, kid. Even though I managed to strip away nearly all of his power back then, he's probably gained it back over the years. And if All Might and the best of the Police still haven't found him after all this time, I sure as hell can't either. I keep acting on my emotions… not thinking of the big picture."
"I-I'm sorry. About what I said earlier." Izuku mumbled. "I didn't mean it that way… I-I wasn't belittling you or your friends."
"You don't have to apologize. Of course I knew you didn't mean it that way, damn it- you ain't that kind of person. I'm the one who's sorry. I shouldn't have yelled, and I shouldn't have fought them, either. I was just so… so enraged when I manifested. Angry about everything. All For One, the World, fate- But most of all... myself."
"Y-you know what I think?"
"What?"
"I think you did everything you could." the student said, sitting down beside him. "The JGA— you and your friends… you guys were the pioneers of modern hero groups. Laying the groundwork and inspiring future generations."
"Get to the point, kid." he grunted impatiently.
"U-um, I guess what I'm saying is; It wasn't for nothing. You and your friends have helped shaped the image of the modern Hero. Just like the passing of the torch. Even now, the Hall Of Heroes still have statues of the JGA on display, monuments dedicated to those who came before. You may be gone, but you are not forgotten."
The boy took a deep breath, contemplating on what he felt within his young heart.
"For me, heroes aren't just people with powerful Quirks like guys who can lift a fallen building or freeze a raging river. The real heroes are the people who do what is right, guide others to do the same, who take a stand, those who are willing to step up and be the change they're looking for." Izuku said, admiration blazing in his eyes despite everything. Admiration for one of the very first heroes. "People like... like you."
The old hero seemed to stare blankly at him for a moment before letting out a low chuckle, a deep sound that rumbled from within his throat. That chuckling soon faded away into a sigh, tired eyes gazing at the boy.
"Heh. I can't believe I'm getting a bloody pep talk from a kid." His heavy, calloused hand came to rest upon Izuku's head, messing up the young boy's already disheveled hair. "A kid who's got the traits of a Hero, at the very least."
"I- Um..." A tint of pink colored the boy's cheeks at the praise, a slight feeling of embarrassment building up within him. "T-thanks."
"You're a good guy, Midoriya Izuku." He continued to tussle Izuku's hair. "And you're dumb enough to think I am, too."
Izuku decided to file that little tidbit away for later analysis. He could still barely believe he'd managed to say all that. In front of one of the very first Heroes, no less. His heart still thumped away relentlessly in his chest.
"Though I have to remind you. One For All isn't just a Quirk, it's a mantle of responsibility that has been bestowed upon you." Johnny reached out and touched Kiri on her forehead, returning her power in the blink of an eye. "I should go… I've already wasted enough of your time."
"E-eh?"
"You heard me, this is no longer my story." The man stood up, a small smile on his face. "It is yours. As the new wielder of One For All it is up to you to face Evil itself and protect the innocent. You're his successor, after all. All Might's successor."
Izuku's heart seemed to swell with pride at that last part, but the boy quickly calmed himself down. Better not get ahead of himself here. Pride and overconfidence was known to be the downfall of many Heroes.
"The last two you're looking for used to be villains, so you'd better get going, boy, no... Young Hero. Make sure you catch König first if you find her; she's the one who probably caused the breach. That bitch is fast as Hell and will be halfway around the country if you startle her, so keep that in mind. As for me..." He started to smolder, steam rising off his back. A small, sad smile tugged at the man's face, his body finally starting to fade. "I am awaited in Valhalla."
Johnny disintegrated into a cloud of viridescent azure embers, rushing into Izuku's forehead in a flurry of light and movement. The world twisted sideways and the boy began to experience another memory not of his own.
He was standing on a podium, dozens of men and women in magnificent superhero costumes watching from rows of wooden pews. His friends. His Family. He could hear the sound of an Organ playing, a melodious and rich tone that echoed through the hall that stopped when he stepped forward. Beside him, somebody was speaking...
"Do you, John Daniel Valentine, take Annette Mariah Rose as your lawful wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better or worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and cherish until death do you part?"
"I do." He heard himself say, in a voice that did not belong to him.
Standing in front of him was a woman clad in a pristine white wedding gown, a bouquet of flowers held in her slender hands. Her raven hair shone in the morning light, sparkling sapphires for eyes locking on to his lovingly. A small part that was still Izuku observed how strikingly similar she looked to Midnight, sans the mole under her left eye. She was gorgeous...
"Do you, Annette Mariah Rose, take John Daniel Valentine as your lawful husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better or worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and cherish until death do you part?"
"I do."
Together, he reached out with her and slipped a ring onto her finger- with her doing the same to him. A beautifully cut diamond atop a gleaming silver band… Annette blinked, tears of joy beading at the corner of her eyes.
"With this ring, I thee wed." They both said in unison. He could feel his heart thumping within his chest, the woman's cheeks turning a lovely shade of cherry-red.
"Because you two came here today intending to marry, because you joined hands and made solemn vows and exchanged rings to remind you of those vows, and you are now joined as partners in mutual love and respect, according to the powers vested in me and the highest power of the land and the sea; I pronounce that your wedding vows are sealed and you may henceforth be known to all as Husband and Wife." The priest beside them announced to everyone present. "You may now kiss your Bride."
His wife smiled, and he smiled with her. They leaned towards each other, staring into each other's eyes…
"I'm the happiest girl in the world right now." she whispered, her voice trembling with jubilation. "I love you. My star in the sky."
"I love you too." His lips were inches away from hers. "My guiding moonlight."
As she closed her eyes, so did he.
Izuku opened his eyes, dragged back into reality. He breathed in deep, head shaking to clear his thoughts- what he'd just seen was- that was… Johnny's memory. He'd think about it later, though a small part of him was burdened with extreme worry. Right now he still had to find the last two escapees.
"Alright." He dusted himself off, smacking his cheeks a little to refocus. "Ok! I'm ready. Let's go, Kiri."
The miniature girl on his shoulder nodded, and together they began to jog towards the city. Whatever they might come across next, the two siblings would face it together.
[x]
Johnny reappeared within Izuku's mindscape with a rush of air, already expecting a great tongue-lashing. What he found instead was All Might staring at him with considerable worry, features creased in concern. A blue soul fragment ignited into being within the Hero's halo, signifying that the lost power had returned to One For All.
"You okay?"
"...Nah, man." Johnny smiled sadly, actually looking a little embarrassed. "I'm pretty bloody far from okay."
"All For One, huh." All Might ventured curiously. "Wanna talk about it?"
"Maybe next time. It's a long story, after all. Still, I admit I may have been a little… overzealous when I manifested. Sorry about that... part of it is due to my Quirk- it seems the activation parameters still affect me even as a projection-"
The man's explanation was interrupted by a blinding flash of violet light atop All Might's head, along with a loud pop of something manifesting. Shimura Nana poofed into existence, looking very different from her usual self. Though she still wore the same costume she was no longer translucent… but now she looked like an adorable ten-year old girl instead of an adult woman.
"RAAAAAHH!" Mini-Nana charged with a high-pitched battle cry and leapt onto Johnny's muscular shoulders, wrapping her cape around his throat and wringing it back and forth to strangle the poor man.
"Nana! You're alright!"
"You—you blundering neanderthal! You moronic, irresponsible, wretched waste of memory!" Nana squeaked angrily from atop her victim. "You tried to go after All For One by YOURSELF? You attacked U.A staff! You yelled at poor Midoriya-kun when he was trying to help! What the hell is wrong with you?!"
"Gssshhhhssskkk!" Johnny explained eloquently.
"Er… Nana—"
"Just give me a second, Toshinori. I'm trying to kill this guy." She began bopping his head with a tiny fist. "You hear me talking, Yankee man?! I'm gonna get medieval on your ass!"
"Nana…"
"Alright, fine." she grumbled, finally loosening her grip and hopping off him. "He won't really die."
"I already apologized, jeez." Johnny rubbed his neck, grimacing. "I could still control myself and I wasn't going to hurt any of them seriously… besides, Heroes in my country fight each other all the time. In fact, I think they had this huge Civil War during-"
"Yeah but this is Japan, asshole!" The little girl snapped her fingers, producing a large, cartoonish-looking hammer, the only 'weapon' she could manifest in her weakened state. "You—Yooooouuu!"
All Might began to experience equal parts nostalgia and worry when she began whacking Johnny with her hammer. Her strength was too lacking to inflict any real pain in that child form of hers, each blow resulting a soft pomf instead of a meaty whack. It kind of reminded him of his physical training with Gran Torino, actually. Ah, the good ol' days…
"Ow, hey! Come on, don't be like that! Everything turned out okay in the end, right?" Johnny argued. "Ow!"
"It is not okay!"
Pomf!
"You are impulsive!"
Pomf!
"You are selfish!"
Pomf!
"You are American!"
Pomf!
"And you are stupid four times over!" Nana pouted, her childish face scrunching up. "We could have lost you if you actually went after All For One like the idiot that you are! Not just your portion of One For All's power but you, the person. Did you even spare a fraction of a second to think about the consequences of your actions?! How do you think everyone in here would feel if you disappeared for good, huh?!"
"Well, um…" the man began nervously. "I didn't think they'd car—"
"That's right! You didn't think." The little girl beckoned for All Might to bend down a little, snatching the blue soul fragment off his halo when he did. She pitched the orb at Johnny like a baseball, nailing him right in the stomach and causing the man to double over. "Get in there!"
"Crap. Well... I'll see you again sometime, All Might." he sighed, resigning himself to his fate.
"Uh, yeah. See you." All Might eyed the man's form, which was slowly being sucked into his own soul fragment- his body from the waist down was warping into the small orb, stretching like taffy and resembling water swirling down a drain. Nana marched over to him and began pushing down on his head and shoulders to accelerate the process, her childish features turning pink from the effort.
"My heart and actions…" Johnny began, eyes closed serenely.
"Get-"
"Are utterly unclouded."
"-In there-"
"They are all those of 'Justice'."
"-You big jerk!"
There was a loud pop and Johnny was gone, sealed within that diminutive orb. His soul floated up into All Might's halo, the other souls blinking and flashing as if to greet their comrade with a 'welcome back'.
Nana huffed, hands on her hips. All Might simply sighed, having accepted all this strangeness as part of his new, bizarre life as a phantom.
"It's nice to know you're okay, Sensei." he said, studying her new form. "But why are you a kid?"
"It's something I learned from observing little Kiri-chan." She twirled around, tossing away her hammer. "It's my own power-saving form! Took me a while but I managed to figure it out… or maybe fusing with her has provided me with this new ability, I dunno. Anyways, I'm still drained from yesterday.
"Right. Also, you didn't need to be that harsh with Johnny. He mentioned something about his Quirk?"
"Maybe you're right. But yeah, his Quirk affects his cognitive abilities. 'Stars and Stripes', he calls it. An eldritch power that mutates his body to form stuff like those wings, but at the cost of his own sanity; his ability to reason is hit especially hard." Nana shrugged. "In the final battle against All For One he overloaded his Quirk, driving himself insane in exchange for enough power to nearly defeat him. Took the wielders before me decades to fix him up… even now the effects linger—he's still a little mad sometimes. I guess when he used it in the real world an underlying psychological effect came into play."
"That's horrible…" All Might shook his head. "Okay, back on topic. The last two wielders are still out there. I hope Young Midoriya will be able to convince them to return peacefully... What do you think?"
"Those two, huh." The girl grimaced. "Remember this one lesson I taught you when we first started training together? 'There are two types of people that are truly dangerous'."
"'Those you can't predict, and those who don't care.' What about it?"
"The two that Midoriya-kun will be up against…" Nana pinched the bridge of her nose in worry. "They are exactly that."
[x]
A section of downtown Musutafu was burning.
The wide-open street had been cordoned off, the surroundings within aflame with raging fire. The Number Two Hero, Endeavor, rose from the ground painfully, clutching at his broken right arm. Far behind him laid the unconscious bodies of his comrades, his fellow Heroes, all swiftly defeated by this new, overwhelming threat. It was lucky that all nearby civilians had been evacuated safely beforehand; the buildings to his sides had been utterly trashed in the battle, scorched and in ruin.
"Look around you, Hero." An armored figure walked towards him, completely unscathed. "Look at what you've done."
Endeavor spat, a thin stream of bright crimson dripping down his lower lip. This person, this villain, had took down an entire ensemble of pro heroes that had arrived to aid him. He was the only one left standing.
"I told you not to fuck with me. Now your world burnsaround you." Green armor reflected the flickering firelight, shadows playing across the two long points atop the figure's head that looked like ears… or horns. "None of this would have happened if you'd just stopped and left me alone. But on you marched, and for what?"
"A Hero's duty… is to defeat Villains." Endeavor rasped, his working left arm igniting with flame. "To protect the innocent."
"Then practice what you preach. You didn't protect a damn thing." Gloved fingers clenched into fists, a strange crackling emitting from within them. "You can't even protect yourself."
Orange flames erupted along Endeavor's body, the very air set alight from the heat. A two-meter stretch of asphalt behind the hero flash-melted into tar, the extreme temperature vaporizing the moisture in the air. A miniature sun bloomed into existence on his palm, greedily consuming oxygen in its surroundings. A fearsome amount of extreme heat and flame compacted into an impossibly small space. One of the Hero's strongest special attacks.
The villain prepared his own special attack in response, taking up a stance and pulling his arm back. There was a monstrous roar that resembled the sound of a jet engine powering up, filling the air with cacophonous noise as a lance of green energy erupted from an armored elbow, shock diamonds forming within. Thin lines of emerald electricity coalesced into chaotic streams of lightning across the figure's forearm.
Endeavor blasted forward like a missile, propelled by the flames jetting out of his boots. The miniature sun flashed and throbbed in his hand, the energy within reaching critical mass. The unknown villain rocketed forward as well, gouts of green energy bursting forth from his elbow and his own boots- propelling him the same way Endeavor's flames did. His fist cocked back, crackling with explosive energy.
"Iowa…"
"FORBIDDEN SUN!" Endeavor roared, unleashing his strongest attack in years. A tsunami of fire flared from his palm, the sphere of flame growing exponentially as it screamed down the street with its blazing core grossly incandescent—
"-Smash."
[Chapter 5 End.]
Omake: Musutafu's Finest
[One month before Izuku met his little sister.]
The stray Villain that was rampaging in Musutafu city had been captured by Kiri; she knocked him out almost instantly and was now carrying him over to the Police Department Headquarters.
Usually she'd just leave him there for the Police to clean up but this Villain had some kind of Quirk that made him weigh a ton; she couldn't exactly just leave him in the middle of the busy highway since that was dangerous for all the oncoming vehicles and she figured they'd take quite a while to move him. Eyeing her landing point Kiri finally arrived at the Police Headquarters with her usual entrance, silent and waiting for someone to come out and greet her.
Like clockwork, she was soon faced with a wall of riot shields barricading the entrance only minutes after she touched down. The sound of at least six weapon bolts cycling assaulted her ears, nervous officers behind the gunsights. Standard procedure for dealing with unknown threats, she noted. They've even evacuated the area for the public's safety.
"Alright you lot, stand down!" A cat-headed police officer emerged from the makeshift barrier, a handheld loudspeaker in his hand. His feline eyes focused on the intruder, bringing the device up to his mouth in a huff. "You again, Valkyrie? What do you want this time?"
Kiri didn't reply, simply shaking the captive villain like he owed her change. Everything was silent and still except the ruffling of cloth from the captive's body being jerked back and forth. The cat-man and his squad simply watched the ongoing scene before them, unable to even express the pure absurdity of the situation in words.
"Yeah, nah. I'm not paid enough for this." He turned towards someone behind him, jabbing a thumb back at the building. "Get Tsukauchi-san down here immediately."
"S-sir?" the young police graduate asked nervously, unsure.
"Just do it. He's the only one she actually listens to for some reason." Kiri stopped shaking the villain, now advancing towards the barricade. There was a sharp intake of breath as the men behind it stiffened, grips tightening around their weapons. The cat-man strode forward fearlessly past the wall of shields and Kevlar, accepting his demise. "Whatever you do boys, don't shoot. I'll… I'll buy you some time. Just like before."
The woman loomed over the poor officer despite being around the same height, dropping the villain onto the ground carelessly with a thump. The wisps of mint-green energy trailing off her eyes was only making her look even more intimidating as she eyed the sacrifice before her, a single, mischievous thought running through her young mind.
Kittycat.
When Detective Tsukauchi burst out of the Police Department's front door in a frantic and confused daze, it was already too late. He had the eyes of a man who had too much on his plate, exhaustion clear in those widening pupils. He was dressed in a simple dress shirt and slacks- his signature tan overcoat and hat was missing, having been busy with paperwork in his office when a panicking young man notified him that Valkyrie was here.
There she was, currently tormenting one of his best men, Tamakawa Sansa. The poor cat-faced man was helpless as Kiri alternated between petting him and pulling his cheeks and ears with that same flat expression, much like a kid playing with a real cat.
"Owowowow. Ma'am, please don't do that. You're a little too rough. Despite how I—ouch—look, I am not a cat. I don't think real cats even like this." Sansa groaned, knowing that it was futile to resist. "Wait, don't pull my whiskers—MEOWUCH!"
Trying to pry her off or fight her was only a waste of energy; she was stronger than all of them combined and she knew it. Even the famous hero Endeavor had never managed to successfully capture or defeat her… mostly because she always escaped instead of fighting back. That was the mystery about Valkyrie; she never attacked any law enforcement or Hero, even if they attacked her first. Well, he supposed this didn't count as attacking. If anything, it looked more like she was playing with him.
Kittycat. Kitty. Kittycat. She mused gleefully, continuing to play despite his protests.
"Valkyrie, unhand my officer right now!" Tsukauchi howled, cranking his angry voice up to eleven.
Miraculously, the vigilante obeyed and let her hands fall to the side. Sansa simply rubbed his aching ears, wincing all the while and shooting his friend a glare as if to say 'what took you so long'. Tsukauchi sighed wearily, striding forward to confront the strange girl.
"You. Youuuuuuuuuuuu." An accusing finger was thrust in her general direction, the normally-calm man seeming to expand with righteous wrath.
The confused girl looked to her left, right and finally behind her before pointing a finger at herself.
"Yes, you. What are you doing here?" The last time she was here was in the dead of night, trying to hand over a dangerous villain weapon over to the Police. He was already assuming this was something similar.
Kiri picked up the villain, who had somehow stayed unconscious throughout the entire event. She began shaking the man back and forth with gusto, peeking out every so often from behind her captive's body. When Tsukauchi responded with only a frown, she only began shaking the poor Villain harder in an effort to illustrate her point.
"This guy was causing trouble in the street so you beat him up and brought him here?" the detective deduced, already trying to discern her motive. A few rapid nods from her confirmed his theory.
"Why didn't you leave him there like you always do?"
Kiri dropped the Villain a second time, this time right at his feet. A heavy thump, followed by the pavement spider-webbing with cracks. Strips of heavy metal rebar were wrapped around the man's wrists and ankles as makeshift restraints. The guy must have weighed a ton, Tsukauchi realized. Might as well ask her to carry him in and save having to bring out the forklift.
"Fine… you can help bring him in." the veteran detective grumbled, a wave of his hand dismissing the squad of armored policemen. He did a sudden double-take, waving a warning finger like a teacher to an errant child. "But don't get any ideas like last time, understand?"
With a quick nod Kiri slung the captive over her shoulder, walking into the Police Headquarters casually. She did notice the two guards that flanked both her and Tsukauchi, weapons at the ready to blast her if she tried anything. She couldn't blame them for their distrust- the media had only perpetuated the fact that she had made fools out of both the Police and Heroes by simply evading arrest. At least over the years they'd stopped calling her a loose cannon and eventually accepted her as unorthodox but ultimately harmless… unless you were a villain.
Under the Detective's directions, she dumped the captured villain into a temporary holding cell and even undid his bindings. Just as she was about to leave without a care, Tsukauchi declared that she had to sign some forms before she could go. To the surprise of everyone around, she actually obeyed again and followed the team towards the offices, earning nervous stares and whispers from the workers there when they passed.
"So that's her, huh? The infamous Valkyrie."
"She's quite the looker- and that costume, or rather, lack of one..."
"Oh man… I want her to capture me, and step on me too."
"Careful, she'll hear you!"
"I wonder why she only obeys Tsukauchi-san? How lucky..."
The flurry of commotion trailed off when Kiri swept her gaze across the room slowly while she drunk in their alarm and fear discreetly, the workers hurriedly going back to their own tasks. Little did they know that the only reason she listened to Detective Tsukauchi was because he was the one that let her into the department's pantry the last time she was here on the assumption that she was hungry. Also, he kind of reminded her of her old caretaker, who wore a similar trenchcoat and hat. He kind of acted as a liaison between her and the police, now that she thought about it. Speaking of which…
"Whatever happens, do NOT let her near the pantry." the tall detective commanded hurriedly. "Consider that a standing order."
"Sir?"
"The last time I let her in there, she ate all the sugarcubes and doughnuts before I could stop her. All. Of. Them." Tsukauchi groused, emphasizing each word with slow and deliberate intent. "That means no coffee or doughnuts for the whole lot of you."
A collective chill ran down the spines of everyone present, while those who were there on that fateful day shuddered in horror. A Police Station without coffee or Doughnuts was absolutely unacceptable, not even remotely conceivable. A few brave officers got up and guarded the doorway with their lives, one even hugging the fridge protectively. Kiri let her shoulders sag just a tiny bit, slightly disappointed. Those doughnuts had tasted so good, too.
"Lucky the Chief isn't here right now… You have no idea the amount of paperwork I've had to do recently." Tsukauchi grunted tiredly and handed over a manila folder with a pen he had fetched from his office, pointing to where she had to sign. "Because of you I've got the media breathing down my neck, the Chief is fixing to eat my ass every time you beat our boys to the punch, and Endeavor-san, aka Mr. Pants-on-fire keeps screaming at me through the phone lines about how we can't even catch a single vigilante-"
Kiri just looked over the documents quickly and signed with her little "V" signature, just like she had did the last time she was here. They were just acknowledgement forms that Heroes sometime had to sign when handing over a captured Villain or item, some stupid law that they'd implemented a few years back. She had a feeling they were only making her sign these so the Hero Association could observe and gather more data on her through the building's security cameras. She'd obey for now, secretly in the hopes that she would get a reward- like more food. If there wasn't one then she'd take a little reward for herself.
"-I mean, you'd think that he of all people would know. It's not that we haven't tried, not to mention the rumors that you can talk, but you have never talked to us, the Police. What kind of image does that project, eh?" The girl tapped on the ranting man's shoulder. "Hmm? Yeah, there, that one. Sign that, please."
After clarifying the man went back to his complaining monologue. Unsurprisingly, she was barely even registering the words spewing from his mouth.
"You think I like having you walk around here like you own the joint? I know you have good intentions, Valkyrie-san- but you're making us look bad. Worst thing is, we can't do a thing to stop you. I suppose the only silver lining is how you will never attack cops like some—"
The harried detective turned to place the folder down. When he turned back he was met with Kiri chugging a large flask of dark liquid nonchalantly, steam rising from her pert little nose.
Tsukauchi could only watch with an odd mix of realization and rising horror at what was happening- the vigilante had somehow stolen the carafe from their only coffee machine without anyone noticing, downing an entire day's worth of the department's coffee. He watched her drain the entire damn thing wordlessly… all that delicious piping hot coffee, gone in seconds…
The detective wrung his hands, barely able to control himself from flying into a rage. He was normally such a calm, composed man too- but nobody, not even the number one vigilante, messed with his coffee. It was the one thing that kept him calm in times of crisis- and this definitely constituted as such a time. With the combined stress of recent events and a literal mountain of paperwork left to do, the poor man was close to exploding.
"I hate you," Tsukauchi hissed, voice surging like an attack dog at the end of its chain. "So much."
Kiri put down the now-empty carafe, flashing him a little "peace" sign with her fingers. Or perhaps it was "V" for victory? She had seen some cute girl do it on TV. Whatever, now she used it to represent herself.
"Valkyrie, get the hell out of here."