"Yes?" All For One asked as he had a pretty good idea of what this was about.
"He's currently streaming to over 10,000,000 people using a new gaming device called a Singularity Dive from a company with a similar name: Singularity Games," Kurogiri reported.
"I've heard." All For One naturally had his own information network and got updates about the strange emergence of gaming devices from the Singularity Games company, but the strange thing was that he had heard absolutely nothing until it was already released.
He had the records of the company being literally established today, with zero information before it, which should be impossible. Where was the funding? The staff? Researchers? Prototype testing? Early versions and development models? There wasn't even a real name attached to the company. How could this pass review from the Japanese Government? The founder of Singularity Games simply went by "The Creator" with a business email, and that was it.
The influence he had before his injury naturally affected the scale that he can operate, but he has never been blindsided like this for over a hundred years. He may have miscalculated in the past, like with the sudden overwhelming strength of that cursed quirk of his brother's 8th inheritor, All Might, but nothing that literally came out of nowhere.
It deeply unsettled him in ways he was unable to admit aloud, especially how groundbreaking the technology was. This tech was centuries ahead of anything this world had to offer. The way it communicates directly with the brain was practically science fiction. A pure fantasy and the theoretical peak of human understanding of neuroscience, and in some ways, went beyond that.
"Master, there's another thing. You probably know about how getting stronger in the game affects your real body, so it claims, but it can also heal and repair old injuries, so…" The implication from Kurogiri's explanation went without saying.
Gaming using these devices could potentially heal him back to his former strength, before his horrific and debilitating injury from that cursed inheritor, All Might.
This is what made All For One so uneasy. Even if this "Creator" managed to achieve a breakthrough so incredible that it pushed humanity's understanding of neuroscience centuries ahead, there was no possible explanation of how it could affect the real body through a fictional medium like a game. A resonance of some kind? Does it involve a quirk? That was All For One's most likely theory and an insatiable greed enveloped him wanting it for himself.
He couldn't help wanting powerful quirks for himself. They were his and his alone.
A quirk can be the only explanation of how that would be possible. Does that mean the creator can also siphon energy through their quirk to strengthen themselves? Could he end up helping an unknown being whose motivations he doesn't know? The most obvious is that this creator wants strength through the players. He also seemed to know about Tomura since he got a Decay fruit, and he refuses to believe that it's a coincidence.
It could also mean that this person doesn't care who plays. Heroes, civilians, and villains can all play and enhance themselves, but what if he has enough power and strength to finally want to pick a side? The Hero Commission certainly won't be idle and will attempt to contact this person.
At the end of the day, all he has are theories and speculation. Is the risk of empowering an unknown being worth gaining his previous strength?
The answer is yes because they'd gain the power with or without him, but that could also be false. Maybe they don't gain any strength at all, but why would they share it then and not keep it for themselves?
Perhaps there would be a chance to meet, but considering how impossibly well-hidden they are, it would have to be on their own volition.
As long as he regains his former strength, All For One believes nothing else will matter, considering he'd be the most powerful being in existence. A true Demon King. He will not be caught unaware of All Might's overwhelming power again. He originally assumed that he'd be quite a bit stronger than his master, Nana Shimura, and all the footage he saw of the man showed that he held back, but his true error was in how much.
It was a lot.
He'll never get caught underestimating a wielder of One For All ever again.
Kurogiri naturally didn't dare to interrupt his master's thinking, but he suddenly heard a ringing from his burner phone.
"It's Tomura." He waited, awaiting permission.
"Answer it." All For One commanded.
"What do you need, Tomura?" Kurogiri seemed to be listening for a bit, and dozens of seconds went by as Tomura talked. "Got it, I'll come pick it up and let the master know." Tomura hung up after this. "Tomura told me about his experiences playing along with the benefit of strength transferring to the real world. He also got sent 3 more Singularity Dives wanting to give you and me one."
Kurogiri immediately opened the phone, took out the battery, and then snapped it. He opened a portal to the middle of the ocean and threw it in, disposing of the device.
"What a thoughtful successor." All For One hummed as he grew contemplative. The creator was watching Tomura's stream based on the donation, so did that mean he knew about him? It's too early to tell, but it never hurts to be on guard. He could also just be giving Tomura extra sets to give to people to play with, but Tomura doesn't have friends. He made sure to limit Tomura's exposure to others while young to mold him, and friends would only negatively impact his designs on him.
The question is, would he even need Tomura now? Yes he would. Not only to torment All Might with the grandson of Nana Shimura, but also the way to take back One For All. He had tried to take it in the past, but the resistance was far too great for him, so he had to cultivate a disciple and vessel with immense hatred to overwhelm the wills within One For All. He can't do it on his own which was a constant source of anger.
Even if his body could be restored to its prime, he couldn't do it back then and can't do it in the future. This is why he needs Tomura to be his vessel and for Garaki to perfect the operation to enhance Tomura's body to handle All For One and all its quirks stored within.
He didn't even have his original copy of his quirk because his body couldn't handle it after his devastating battle with All Might.
Crippling All Might was simply not enough to satisfy him, but with this new tech, he would be able to finish the job himself and completely sever One For All's legacy and take it back to where it truly belongs...himself.
"Go and bring them back." All For One ordered.
"Yes, master." Kurogiri opened a portal and left.
The imposing figure went back to his thoughts.
This world was changing in ways he couldn't predict. He never would have thought something like this could happen, especially since the emergence of quirks set the world in a standstill in terms of technological understanding. Humans should already be colonizing the moon at least by this time, but humans evolved.
Now, he either has to change with the world like he did back then or get left behind.
All For One was never the type to fade into obscurity. Living in the shadows of society was due to necessity rather than choice. If he had his way, he would already be ruling Japan and soon the entire world.
Now, with this technology, he has his chance to reclaim everything and more.
Kurogiri wasn't one to make his master wait, so he reappeared quickly with three boxes.
"I have them, master." Kurogiri placed the boxes on the floor.
All For One couldn't see the world like everyone else due to not having eyes anymore, another reason to detest Toshinori, but he can see in other ways, and scanning the boxes with one of his quirks, he couldn't detect any electrical signals or network receivers. This should be impossible, but he needed more evidence.
"Set up one of them and try using it." All For One ordered once again.
Kurogiri unboxed one of them, and with the battery life, he would be able to play for 8 hours, so he put the headset on, covering his glowing eyes. If All For One could see, the scene would be quite comical as the device was practically floating amidst a purple and black mist.
All For One immediately sensed Kurogiri's body going slack and activated his sensing quirk.
There was still nothing. It was as if the Dive had no electrical work at all. The realization was baffling as connecting to anything should have a signal, especially something as complex as this, but nothing. Absolutely no feedback from his quirk or the headset.
This also gave him a bit of reassurance using the device, considering the location couldn't be tracked by heroes or cyberspecialists. Could it be tracked by "The Creator"? His intuition told him that it was likely, but he was unworried. He could always handle whatever comes his way, even in his reduced state. Even if All Might were to show up, he could always escape.
While the thought of escaping was beyond irritating and humiliating, now that he has found a way to restore his body, he could always enact retribution for the slight manyfold over.
"That's enough, Kurogiri." All For One knew that the device could notify him of outside interference thanks to his subordinate's conversation with Tomura.
Kurogiri came out of the experience.
"Master, it's as Tomura said and technology states, I was truly in the world and I saw my true face." He never knew what he actually looked like, thanks to his quirk and it was quite the shock.
"Make sure to change it when we go in." All For One didn't want any possibility of Kurogiri remembering who he once was, even if the chance was very small.
"Master, you mean…!" Kurogiri's glowing eyes widened.
"Yes, I believe it's time we joined my little protege. Go get Dr. Garaki from his laboratory. I believe he would be interested in joining us." All For One grinned wickedly. He can almost imagine the scene of his revitalized strength crushing All Might beneath his feet.
Kurogiri immediately opened a portal and left.
"Soon, everything will be mine." All For One muttered to himself, envisioning the day of his return.
His reclamation of his former influence will come.
Next, the world itself.
+=[MHAGD]=+
All Might had recently gotten home after a day of training with his successor. The boy he had placed hope in for the future and One For All. He was very satisfied with his choice. On the way back to his modest one-bedroom apartment in the Roppongi district of Minato, Tokyo, he had stopped several crimes taking place that took a few hours, completely draining his strength.
His body was forced back into its emaciated state, which left him with complicated feelings. It also didn't help that he always went back to an empty house. The word and feeling of "Home" being absent, but that was the price of being All Might. His only family was Nana, and she was taken by his archnemesis. Even her child, whom she left behind, disappeared without a trace.
This left a scar within him that as long as he has nobody, then he can never lose anyone. He had close friends, of course, but none reached the level of bond he had with his master.
He was okay with this life as he needed to be the symbol everyone depended on, but now his body was failing, and he could no longer keep up, which is why he took in a successor to pass on the legacy of One For All.
Honestly, with All For One dead, and his successor being everything he could hope for, life has never looked better in the past couple of decades since his master died. Sure, he made some great friends like Tsukauchi and David, but the looming threat of All For One always made him uneasy. The fallout with Sir Nighteye also hurt regarding the future of One For All, and he believes he made the right choice.
However, taking in the lifeless and bland apartment apart from a picture of himself, Nana, and Gran Torino, he felt a sting of emptiness, and that's not due to his shredded insides.
Toshinori Yagi hardly exists; only All Might.
"A PHONE CALL IS HERE! A PHONE CALL IS HERE!"
His ringtone blared from his now oversized pants, and noticed the caller ID with dread. He really didn't want another shouting match.
Sir Nighteye
+=[MHAGD]=+
I know that the All For One scene was long as it encompasses over half of the chapter, but I had to expand his thinking and logic. He didn't make it this far by being an idiot, so him jumping into the tech with little thought made no sense.
"Oh? A mysterious figure made groundbreaking technology that enhances your real body that appeared out of nowhere? Sure! Let's hop right in!"
This would be a disservice to his character and the reason he didn't wait and observe is because he's also not perfect otherwise he'd already be ruling Japan and One For All would be a thing of the past.
Update: Recently corrected this chapter due to a missing link in All For One's character that makes it far more accurate.
Once a method to regain his previous strength and a chance to crush All Might appears, why wouldn't he take it? He'd rather place his hopes and ambition in himself if he could. Why would Tomura be needed otherwise? He had no choice.
I also added a bit more depth to All Might for a later plot point.
Hope you enjoyed!