Chapter 35: Black Mist
"Thirteen… and Eraser Head," said a strange man with a hand covering his face, seemingly the leader. "According to the teacher schedule we got a few days ago, All Might was supposed to be here today…"
Yoshikage Kira's eyes narrowed. These villains knew U.A.'s internal schedule. Was it tied to the cafeteria chaos, or had they infiltrated the school earlier through methods like this?
"So it was you behind the other day's mess?" Shota Aizawa said, unsurprised, likely prepared for such an ambush. As the villains approached, he subtly signaled Thirteen to retreat with the students.
"Where is he?" a low, hellish voice growled, dripping with disappointment. "We brought all these guys here, and the Symbol of Peace… All Might isn't even present…"
Losing interest, the leader said, "Fine, let's just kill these kids first."
…
Seeing the villain approach with an excited grin, the class didn't panic much. Instead, they seemed to think the villains were idiots.
"Villains? Are they stupid, sneaking into U.A.? That's just dumb!"
Momo Yaoyorozu wasn't as optimistic. "Sensei, what about the intruder sensors?"
"They exist?!"
"Of course," Shoto Todoroki analyzed. "We don't know if they're only here or across the whole school, but since the sensors didn't trigger, they must have a Quirk to disable them."
"They knew our class schedule and chose this isolated USJ on purpose. It's a carefully planned ambush for some goal," Yaoyorozu added.
"No, it's just us under attack," Kira said, tossing aside his firefighter helmet and turning to the class. "The cafeteria incident was probably them scouting the sensors' locations. Since they're showing up so boldly, their numbers can't be enough to cover the whole school—just enough to overwhelm one class and wipe us out. It's harsh, but we're on our own."
"How can that be?!" The class reeled, stunned into silence by Kira's words.
"Kira's right. The sensors are down. Kaminari, try using your Quirk to contact help," Aizawa said to Thirteen. "Get them to safety. I'll handle this."
"Sensei, you're fighting alone?! Eraser Head's style is neutralizing Quirks and capturing, not frontal combat!"
Aizawa chuckled softly. "If you only have one trick, you can't be a hero."
Under the class's gaze, Aizawa leapt off the several-meter-high platform, charging at the mob of villains!
"Hah? This guy's rushing in alone? Thinks he's All Might?!"
Several villains grinned wickedly, treating Aizawa like a moth to a flame as they moved to meet him.
"My Quirk!"
One villain's Quirk fired bullets from his hands, but as he aimed, he froze in shock—his fingers sparked nothing!
The others around him faced the same issue. In that moment of confusion, multiple bandages shot out, wrapping them tightly, leaving no room to move!
Aizawa's neck scarf became a lethal noose, constricting their space. With a single yank, the bound villains flew into the air, crashing into each other helplessly!
"Aizawa-sensei's amazing! He uses goggles to hide who he's erasing, making it impossible for them to coordinate!"
"Even against passive enhancement Quirks, he's dominating in close combat. That's a pro hero!"
Tenya Iida shouted at the muttering Midoriya, "This isn't the time for analysis! Move!"
Seeing Aizawa's one-sided dominance, Kira relaxed slightly, stopping a fired-up Midoriya from rushing in to help.
"If we help Sensei, we could take them all down!"
Kira shot him down bluntly. "Right now, our job is one thing: get out of this battlefield so Aizawa-sensei can fight without worrying about us. Turn around and head for the exit."
*Burden, huh…* Midoriya fell silent, clenching his fists, then ran toward the door.
*I may be a burden now, but one day… I'll be as strong as All Might!*
He swore it to himself.
"Trouble! Enemies ahead!"
A shapeless black mist appeared, forcing the class to halt. Like Aizawa, it blocked Class 1-A's path.
"First meeting. I am Kurogiri, of the League of Villains. We've come to the heroes' stronghold to eliminate the Symbol of Peace, All Might, once and for all."
His overly polite tone lent eerie weight to his absurd claim. Kira felt a chill—these villains were serious about killing All Might!
"All Might was scheduled to be here. Did plans change? Did he suspect us? …No, impossible. No one would guess our target is him."
Kurogiri's form flickered, like gas escaping a container, spreading into the surrounding air.
"Well, no matter. My duty is… what?!"
Thirteen, weighed down by bulky gear, stepped forward to shield the students. But to everyone's shock, Eijiro Kirishima charged at Kurogiri, with Katsuki Bakugo right behind, both landing attacks on him!
"You didn't think we'd take you out first, did you?!"
Kirishima grinned smugly as Bakugo's explosion smoke obscured Kurogiri. "Underestimate us, and you'll pay!"
"No, get back, you two!" Thirteen noticed Kurogiri still moving, trying to use their Black Hole Quirk, but Kirishima and Bakugo blocked their line of attack.
The white smoke was overtaken by black mist. Not only was Kurogiri unharmed, but he expanded, enveloping an even larger area.
"That was close, so close. You're just students, but you're raw gems like Tomura…"
His misty arms spread like an embrace, engulfing the class in his black mist!
"So, please exit the stage once more!"
Like the inescapable alley in Morioh, the black mist surged toward Kira. As it enveloped him, clinging like a parasite to drag him into lightless darkness, he couldn't resist. Only his face remained free, watching his classmates swallowed too, with one thought left.
"I haven't done anything wrong… so why am I going out like that guy, Yoshikage Kira…?"
---