"One!" Izuku slammed the push bar forward and swung the door open. Once it opened, the alarm blared with a piercing shriek that tore through the silence of the underground garage.
"Go! You don't have much time!" Izuku shouted over the noise.
"Thank you!" The father thanked him one last time.
The mother echoed it as well in a hurried whisper, clutching her child as they bolted through the threshold and the door shook slightly as they disappeared into the stairwell beyond. Izuku exhaled hard before pulling the door closed with both hands.
The alarm still wailed but the family's footsteps faded quickly but even while knowing that he still kept his palms pressed against it, holding it shut as though his very will might keep danger from bleeding through.
For a fleeting moment he allowed himself to feel fear, uncertainty, and the suffocating dread clawing at the edges of his resolve before he straightened himself. His chest rose and fell in a calm rhythm to steady his breathing while letting his hands slide from the bar slowly like he was sealing his choice in place.
"No turning back. They'll survive and leave this place and that's enough for me" Izuku steadied himself.
"It doesn't matter if One For All isn't working or not because power isn't what makes someone a hero. Heroes aren't measured by what they can unleash but by what they refuse to let fall" The alarm was a beacon announcing his position and he knew exactly what that meant.
"So if I have to throw myself at that thing without a Quirk then fine. I still have my fists, I still have my will, and that's more than enough power for me" He flexed his hands before getting into a stance.
After those words left his lips, a resonance stirred within the core of One For All that was dormant and it began to flicker to life with a faint glow in the darkness of his being. With each flicker, there were threads of golden light that seeped into the current of power already coiled there.
The two energies within him, one being his inherited burden and the other was pure golden force and instead of clashing they began to converge. Izuku reached down and pulled on his respirator mask before fixing it over his mouth then he tugged the cowl of his hero costume over his head, allowing the shadows to swallow his features.
The weight in his chest lifted just slightly, replaced by the familiar fire that had carried him through impossible moments before. His gaze sharpened with that emerald determination burning through the gloom.
"Let's do this..." He turned away to face the dark and the dark looked back.
Izuku stepped forward then stopped just as something dripped from above, he looked up and saw that the ceiling bled. A black substance was weeping downward in slow drops as it gathered into a puddle and that puddle was rising.
It pulled itself upward with no skeletal structure to explain the shape it was choosing, just mass deciding to become form. The shoulders came first then the suggestion of arms hanging too low, then a head that tilted in a direction a head shouldn't be able to tilt before it righted itself.
Two spirals opened in the place where eyes would be, white voids churning counterclockwise against the black. By the time it stopped growing it had nearly kissed the ceiling with a hunched posture.
Izuku moved first as he broke left between a row of sedans and the curse tracked him without turning its head. Its neck rotated independently before the rest of its body followed a half second later before it lunged.
It crossed the gap faster than its size had any right to allow and one arm came down like a falling beam. Izuku threw himself to the right, cleared the hood of a sedan, and the arm hit the car instead.
CRRRAAASSSH!
The vehicle's entire roof as well as the body folded and bent at the center. The impact caused the cars beside it to lift off the ground for a second while setting off a chain reaction of alarms wailing. Izuku was already moving as the curse straightened, using the support pillar as a launch point and when the curse looked up, its face met Izuku's iron sole.
WHAM!
His foot sprang back then the tip of the iron sole snapped back into place which allowed Izuku to deliver another one right after. The curses head snapped to the side with it's body following but once Izuku landed he did a back handspring flip to gain distance just as the curse recovered. The curse swiped at him but he dodged with a half split before having to dodge to the left to avoid a lunge.
The curse slammed into the adjacent pillar and the whole place shook from the force. Meanwhile, Izuku hid behind the previous pillar he jumped off in order to allow a moment to breath.
"This thing is tough. It felt like hitting a wall and it hits like one on top of that. I need to be able to defend myself better" He then noticed that one of the doors from the smash car was hanging ajar so he thought that it would make a good shield despite being partially damaged.
Izuku got to it in four steps and started to wrench it the rest of the way off its hinges. The hinge bolts didn't want to go, so he dug his heels in and pulled until the metal gave with a grinding pop and he had himself a door
The curse found him at the same moment, coming around the pillar and the nearest appendage shot out toward his midsection. Izuku got the door up in time but was flung into the open. He managed to catch his footing in time before another attack came again then again. He caught them on the makeshift shield every time but on the third one he let the angle carry it wide and stepped inside the reach.
He drove his shoulder into the curse's midsection and It was like hitting a sandbag. The surface gave and then pushed back and the oily substance of its body tried to close around his arm. Izuku wrenched himself clear before the curse could grab him he ducked under another swipe then jumped over a second one.
Izuku landed on the beast's arm and used it as a springboard to gain enough height to be eye level. He swung the door along its edge as if he was trying to slice off it's head with a blade.
CRRRUUUMMMPLE!
SHHHRRRRIIIIEEEEK!
"W-what?!..." Izuku was in utter disbelief. The curses head had made an indent on the makeshift shield, crumpling it like a paper.
He caught a glance of its spiral voids shifting as the rotation stuttered for just a moment as if mere dust hit its eye. As Izuku was mid descent, the next strike came from above but it was with both arms this time. Izuku barely got what was left of the door up in time before the impact drove him straight into the concrete.
His feet may have landed but it was only milliseconds before both knees hit the ground and the shock rattled up through his entire frame. The already ruined door buckled in his hands despite pushing back against the weight. The curse leaned into it, pressing down with both force and body weight, causing the door to start folding around his arms.
"It's too heavy!" His arms shook from the tremendous weight.
He let his grip from the makeshift shield and rolled out from under the crushing weight, resulting in the curse slamming what was left into empty ground. He came up with nothing between him and the curse and immediately felt the next hit before he could fully get his footing.
An arm caught that was meant to catch him across his stomach hit his arms that were positioned in an X formation while allowed his mid-gauntlets to absorb the blow. He was lifted off his feet as he crossed the open space and hit the wall next to the door the family escaped through.
SSLAAAAMM!
"Damn..." Izuku slid to the ground and the world before him swam with the flicker of an overhead light.
"I'm not even putting a dent in it" His hands found the concrete on either side of him and pushed but his body wouldn't allow it yet.
"So what can I do? What's the actual plan here besides getting hitting a punching bag" His eyes drifted past the curse toward the ramp he used to get down here. If he ran for it and gave this thing a target worth chasing then maybe he could buy himself room.
"I could try to lose it within the buildings or even the alleyways, but what if it doesn't follow? What if it's able to pick up the scent of the family?" If he broke for the ramp and the curse didn't take the bait then...
"No, I can't...I have no idea where this leads. I don't even know if I run for it whether I'm running toward something worse out there" Fear began clawing its way up to his senses and the curse knew it too.
"I need to move while it's still just standing there" He planted a palm against the concrete to push himself up but something seized his face.
"GH-!" A hand built of the same oily black that made up the curse standing across the room latched on.
It began dragging him backward toward the wall with a strength that didn't match its size. Izuku's whole body convulsed against it and for one disorienting second the wall didn't feel solid anymore, it felt like the surface had gone soft like it was waiting to swallow whatever pressed into it.
He drove an elbow back blindly and felt it connect with something but the grip didn't loosen. He twisted his neck against the hold, ignoring the pull on his jaw and got one hand up to grab it's wrist. The joint sounded like it snapped as he wrenched it sideways and the grip released all at once.
Izuku didn't get further than that before Danger Sense screamed. The main curse was already mid-strike during the time he'd spent fighting off the wall. One long appendage was scything down toward where he knelt. Izuku's eyes flicked sideways to the curse still thrashing on the ground beside him so he grabbed it and hauled it directly into the strike's path.
The main curse's arm came down and tore the smaller one apart on impact, howling in pain as black ichor sprayed across the concrete in a wide arc with some of it splattering against Izuku's cowl. He didn't wait to watch it dissolve, he was already moving, rolling clear and putting distance between himself and the curse.
Then the scraping started, the same dry drag of something pulling itself loose from inside concrete. Izuku spun in time to see two shapes tearing free from the same stretch of wall the first one had come from. They hit the ground already moving faster than he could anticipate with the first one coming in low for his legs.
Izuku sidestepped behind the same pillar from before just the second one clawed into and hitting the trunk of the smashed sedan. Izuku danger sense screamed so he grabbed it and spun around to use it to protect himself from the incoming slash from the other smaller curse. But it didn't stop, it grappled onto its own kind in order to try and snap its jaws at Izuku.
The aggressive frontal assault combined with the weight pushed Izuku back while the bigger curse swept its arm towards them. The pillar exploded into rubble before both of the lesser curses were tossed aside from the attack alongside Izuku. He slammed into the neighboring car's taillight, making it skid just enough to hit the car next to that one.
BZZT!
His danger sense came to life again as one of the smaller curses recovered from their tumble. Izuku twisted, caught it mid-air by the throat and slammed it down onto the trunk hard enough to dent the metal. The bigger curse brought up both hands then slammed them down where Izuku was but he just narrowly dodged it.
The aftershock shook the ground which made Izuku stumble and despite his efforts to get distance one curse was already on him again as It latched onto his calf. Thankfully, Izuku had similar gauntlets much like the ones on his arms to protect his legs. He drove his free heel into its skull three times until the grip finally slackened while the other one used one of the other cars as a launch point to get to Izuku.
"Why won't these things just-" He tried to dodge backwards but the curse gripping his ankle chose that exact instant to wrench tight again, anchoring his foot to the ground and stealing the half-step of room he needed.
His momentum came to a halt with the curse that had lunged at him was already upon him. He couldn't dodge so he quickly shot his leg out to kick the curse away while moving his head back. The claws of the curse were pulled away just enough to not end his life but they were still close enough to score a shallow cut across his own throat.
"I...I almost..." The fear of being so close to his end caused his pupils to shrink and made him forget about everything around him.
The curse was pushed away and in that moment everything slowed and went quiet except for his own heartbeat. His body was still catching up to the fact that it was still alive but within that time frame an attack from the main curse caught him across the chest and flung him back towards the emergency exit door.
The impact knocked the air out of him, and he tumbled until he stopped, barely remembering the fall. Izuku managed to get on one knee and stayed there while catching his breath. The main curse loomed a few feet in front of him with it's spirals churning patiently while the two lesser curses dragged themselves upright stood next to it.
RRRAAAGHH!
The main curse roared with a gut wrenching sound that climbed in pitch until the concrete hummed. It rolled across the walls and came back doubled and somewhere beneath the ringing in his ears, Izuku heard the garage answer.
Soon the walls warped like there were things beneath them trying to get out. Those same things trying to get out eventually did and They came from every direction with no single point of origin.
There was no wall he could put his back against that wouldn't eventually birth something behind him. It was as if they formed a pact and were at this curses beck and call. Izuku looked up only to see himself surrounded with the threat closing in more and more by the second.
"I'm...I'm going to lose this..." He muttered to himself as he pushed his body to stand.
He then let himself ask the question he'd been keeping buried under the noise of the fight. That question was about everything that had happened, or rather how it happened at least.
The trap that had swallowed the world he knew and spat him out into one that didn't have a place for him in it. All For One's shadow was sitting somewhere behind a fear he carried since he escaped from Tartarus and somehow a piece of him found Izuku here in a story that wasn't his to be in.
"W-why..am I even here?.." The ring of curses tightened around him.
He'd asked himself some version of it for as long as he could remember. Quirkless at four years old, with a doctor's clipboard deciding what kind of life he was allowed to want. Worthless and useless were the two words he'd been convinced that were the truest thing anyone had ever told him.
"I'm quirkless again... the universe really does have a sense of humor" The thought came out flat but bitter.
"Yet I wonder if you even remember who you were before you became whatever it is you are now"
"But that begs the question..do you do it because you fear of losing the people around you? or because you might finally realize that you aren't enough to save any of them?"
"Even the strongest spirit breaks when pulled too thin"
"Maybe he was right. Maybe that's all this ever was. Something to drag me until there's nothing left to pull.." The curses seemed to have changed even if it didn't seem like it and the main curses spirals seemed to brighten, like it was feeding on whatever was coming off of Izuku.
"So what was the point. What was the point of any of it? The training, the scars, All Might's hand on my shoulder, or the promise I made to be the kind of hero who saves everyone with a smile if it just ends here. Kneeling somewhere too far from home for it to even mat-" Izuku closed his eyes.
"Thank you for everything you've done kiddo" The words from the man he saved seeped into his train of thought and shattered it.
"To us you're more than a stranger who stepped in. You're our hero" The mans grip on his shoulder grounded him in that moment.
"Meddling when you don't need to is the essence of being a hero" All might's words called out to him like an ember trying to kindle a flame.
"I can't be talking like that...Not after everything that's happened" Izuku clenched his fists fully and managed to stand even if it was difficult.
"You've been told that you could never be a hero, been counted out by everyone and yet you still kept chasing that dream"
"And you're going to let one bad night convince you that choosing this or choosing them was a mistake?!" His eyes lifted from the floor.
"I did what I had to! I did what a hero would do! I don't have any regrets!" Izuku spread his arms wide and what had been an ember now became an ignition within One For All's core.
"If this is the price for a father getting to hug his daughter again or for a mother never having to explain to her child why they didn't make it then I'll accept it with open arms!" The pulse shifted from faint to constant, thumping with purpose the way an engine rumbles to life.
The golden energy that was once shy and fleeting was now flooding through him. Izuku blinked only to see a figure draped in sunlight, it was the golden vestige of All Might. He had reached up and plucked a golden wisp that was coming off his vestige and flowing in an invisible wind just like that fateful day.
"If you feel like you're hitting your limit, remember for what cause you clench your fist! Remember where you started!" Izuku took a step forward and without hesitation reached for it then took hold of the future once more. When he opened his eyes the swarm was already lunging for him with their jaw and claws spread wide.
At the same time One For All roared to life with those familiar red veins flaring to life across every inch of his body. They climbed his throat, seared across his cheeks, and locked into the sharp X between his eyes. His emerald irises brightened, casting an eerie light in the eye sockets of his cowl. With One For All beating within him Izuku's channeled 50% of it into his arms that were still spread wide open.
"SMASH!" Just when the curses just close enough he slammed his hands together to create a thunderclap.
The shockwave scattered every single one of the curses swarming him in every direction and destroyed any remaining pillars and cars. The main curse however, managed to resist it and charged Izuku with one of its arms swinging down from above.
Danger Sense detonated in his skull like needles poking across his nerves, so both of his arms shot up to meet the falling fist with a clap that cracked the air. The impact drove him half a step down but he held his ground.
CRRRAAAAAAACCCKK!
Concrete spider webbed from his shoes in jagged lines before a shallow crater buckled under him. Heat surged through his forearms with that engine-deep thrum rising in his chest. The red traceries of One For All were no longer alone, they were accompanied by fine threads of gold that had weaved through them.
The oily material of the curse's arm deformed under his grip, rippling around his fingers as if trying to escape contact. The curses swirling white voids stuttered in surprise as Izuku drew a controlled breath.
"You're not getting past me!" He roared as he dug his heels in and straightened his spine against the pressing weight.
The curse growled but Izuku's eyes only burned brighter in response, which only made the engine inside him climb even higher. He forced the curse's fist off him, making concrete beneath his boots cracked again as he surged upward by shoving the arm aside with a burst of raw power.
The momentum freed him just enough to snap his fingers forward for two quick flicks of compressed air blasted from his fingertips. Twin Air Force shots that ripped across the air until they slammed into the curses torso.
The curse reeled from the attack but it recovered with terrifying speed with a slick appendage slicing downward to intercept him. Izuku dropped low to slide under the strike before kicking up off the ground to spin kick the curse in the head. The curses head snapped sideways and Izuku landed back on the ground exactly where he wanted to be
"DETROIT" His right fist drew back to coil it tight as he twisted his torso along his entire frame to align in unison.
"SMMAAAAAAASSH!" The roar of the attack tore through the garage as his fist shot upward in a brutal uppercut.
The strike connected squarely with the curse's diaphragm, the pressure compressed the monster's oily body for a second before releasing it like a slingshot. The entity was sent skyward, its massive bulk tearing through every floor above until concrete from the roof exploding outward in showers of dust and rubble.
The entire building structure shook along with a low tremor running through the foundation as fragments rained down. Izuku's cape billowed from the force of his own strike, his glowing eyes tracking the creature's path even as the dust cloud enveloped him.
"It's coming back to me but I need to shake off the rust" Izuku adjusted his stance before bending down low allowing the muscles in his legs to act like compressed springs.
He lowered his center of gravity further, fingers brushing the ground for balance then he launched himself upward. The concrete beneath him exploded as he rocketed into the air with the wind tearing past him.
After he had cleared the building completely it collapsed in on itself ultimately trapping whatever was inside. Despite being blasted through multiple floors, the entity had twisted midair unnaturally until it righted itself against gravity.
From its limbs came slick black strands lashed outward like spears, snapping through the air with deadly precision. His danger sense flared but Izuku crossed both arms in front of his chest, forming an X guard and let his power surged through him.
"Carolina Smash!" Izuku uncrossed his arms with enough to rattle the rooftops below.
The strands shattered on impact, torn apart in bursts of oily mist, the cursed material dissipating before it could reach him. The force of the strike didn't stop there however, it carried through the air like a ram before slamming directly into the curse.
Izuku didn't give it a chance to recover this time and snapped his wrist, letting Blackwhip lash out from his hands. The black tendrils wrapped around the creatures form, binding it tight despite its thrashing.
"The family said this area was already evacuated but I might as well send it back to where there's already damage that it caused" The thought sharpened in his mind as he tightened his grip and with a roar Izuku spun into a full rotation.
Blackwhip strained from the curse being dragged in a violent arc around him like a ball and chain. His teeth clenched as he aimed his trajectory into the distant back where he had initially been attacked then released.
Without wasting a breath he fired multiple Blackwhip tendrils outwards from both hands to latch them onto opposing buildings. The cords stretched taut as he extended and retracted his legs repeatedly to stockpile Fa Jin.
In no time the tendrils pulled to their limit then the cords whipped him forward like a slingshot, exploding across the sky in a green streak. Wind blasted against his face as the gap between him and the beast shrank in an instant.
The curses hulking body spun uncontrollably before crashing down into the street in front of the department store it sent Izuku through earlier. The impact was both devastating and deafening as asphalt split open in jagged lines forming a massive crater at the center of the strike.
whatever cars that were left closest to the epicenter flipped end over end, crashing into storefronts and crumpling against lampposts, while those further away shook violently with their alarms blaring into the hollow emptiness of the evacuated district.
"Just how many families like theirs have you hunted?! How many more would have died if I wasn't here?!" Izuku already upon the curse.
Danger sense flared and he twisted midair, he shot a leg downward with violent force to propel him up and behind the curse as the attack sliced past him. Before gravity could reclaim him, Izuku shot a Blackwhip tendril to the pavement in front of the curse.
It latched deep into the broken asphalt to anchor him but one the cord pulled taut to arrest his momentum, it snapped him back toward the monster with punishing velocity. Izuku reeled his right fist back, every muscle screaming, the Fa Jin energy spiraling into his arm.
"Take this!" As his fist reeled back, the golden strands threaded into the veins of One For All and resembled a faint flickering flame.
"Texas Smash!" His fist connected with the left side of the curse's face.
A shockwave ripped through the city and the curse's form distorted violently under the strike, its body hurled sideways as the golden flare illuminated the night.
Izuku's body followed through the punch, landing hard against the ground, cape and tendrils whipping in the wake of the shockwave. Sparks flew from his iron soles as he twisting his body mid-slide. He locked eyes on the staggering curse and coiled his legs beneath him for one explosive motion.
"St. Louis Smash!" The air popped as he rocketed skyward, he arched his right leg back to channel his Shoot Style.
He swung the leg in a perfect vertical roundhouse that slammed the side of the curse's head with enough force to twist its hulking frame. The impact reverberated before sending the creature plummeting into the ground below. Asphalt and concrete burst upward in a violent crater as the curse slammed into it even further.
Izuku lashed out a Blackwhip tendril behind him to the corner of a building without even looking. He yanked himself above the crater until he was high enough to spin into a frontal somersault to gather momentum.
"CALIFORNIA..." The curse began to rise but Izuku was already descending.
Golden flame that was once flicker had now flared around his fist and that same glow intertwined with One For All. The two energies no longer separate but feeding into each other, burning brighter together.
"SMASH!" Izuku's fist came down like judgment itself.
A blinding flash tore across the city block, bathing it in a golden radiance that seemed to swallow everything in its path. The cursed flesh burned as it unraveled as though the light itself denied its existence.
The oily body thrashing violently while being ripped apart by the sheer purity. The curse let out no scream, only a low howl that broke apart as its body was exorcised piece by piece. Its swirling white void eyes flickered once in confusion, recognition, maybe even fear before they too dissolved in the golden storm.
In that brilliance there was no malice or corruption only release until the last of it's remnants evaporated. Izuku stood at the center of the crate with his fist buried in the ground where he had driven the strike. The flame still lingered faintly along his arm while the golden threads weaved into One For All once more before dimming back into silence.
Izuku slowly raised his head, scanning the now dust filled street. The alarms in the distance had died, leaving only the groan of broken steel and the whisper of settling debris. The curse was gone, not defeated, not driven off but erased, exorcised completely by the radiance that had awakened within him.
"One For All...it's back" Izuku slowly pulled his fist free from the fractured earth with dust and fragments of asphalt tumbling away from his knuckles.
The power thrummed through him yet even as relief spread through his chest there was something off about One For All now. He glanced down at the faint traces of red still pulsing across his skin, marking the familiar pathways of power he knew by heart but interwoven with them were those faint strands of gold.
"It feels...weird not using it for so long then suddenly it's here again. But just what is this golden stuff?" Izuku muttered as he flexed his hands while watching the light coil and fade.
It wasn't just One For All anymore as something else had joined it, something that didn't belong yet refused to be separated. The warmth it carried didn't feel hostile instead it was somehow familiar in a way he couldn't place like encouragement whispering at the edge of his consciousness but that only made it stranger.
"...what are you?" The question hung in the air unanswered. Above him the wind carried through the skyline with the same silence pressing on which only continued to offer no explanation to his situation.
Whatever it was, it was his now and if this world intended to bury him beneath curses and shadows then he'd wield both the fire of One For All and this light until neither could be denied. His legs moved almost automatically as his thoughts shifted away from the fight and back to what truly mattered.
The family, they ran when he told them to and if they were trying to escape the area the safest bet would have been to head toward Meiji-Jingumae Station. It's entirely possible that it could be an evacuation station below ground.
The newspaper he had picked up earlier flashed in his mind with the words Shibuya Halloween Festival. The words clawed at him now even if the event had still been underway when the chaos started, there could've been crowds in the very heart of it.
Even if the area had been evacuated he couldn't shake the image of people trapped, scattered, or left behind there as well. Izuku's mind spun like gears in overdrive, every scenario branching into ten more with the cogs in his head turning as he worked the problem.
"What a minute...Meiji-Jingumae Station. If I remember right, it's basically a straight shot into central Shibu-" Izuku's thoughts were cut short by an extra pair of hurried footsteps that wasn't his and a voice he recognizable.
"Don't take another step!"
Izuku froze mid-step and lifted his head toward the sound. A boy stood just beyond him with a low posture and fists balled so tightly the knuckles whitened. His eyes were wary and they didn't seem like they were leaving Izuku any time soon.
"Just what the hell are you?" The boy demanded.
Izuku could hear his breathing echo faintly behind the respirator, could feel his pulse quicken. He didn't move, his cloak shifting slightly in the breeze and the faint glow of his emerald eyes catching what little light seeped through the ruined street.
"Answer me..."
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[Act 3: Crossroads]
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The damp chill of the subway tunnel clung to Yuji's skin as he walked beside Mei Mei and Ui Ui. Yuji squinted his eyes immediately catching the jagged scars gouged into the concrete pillars and walls.
"Looks like we're on the right track" He raised a hand to point toward them.
Mei Mei said nothing, allowing her gaze to sweep the platform while Ui Ui walked silently at her side. Yuji started to move forward when a sudden skittering sound scraped against the ceiling above.
He snapped his head upward just as something fast leapt at him and his reflexes kicked in with his hand snapping out to it. Yuji clamped down around the object mid-air and was ready to crush whatever cursed insect had decided to ambush him but then it shouted.
"Stop! Don't crush me!" Yuji froze, when he opened his palm it wasn't a bug at all instead it was a strange disc shaped drone.
"Wait...Mechamaru?!" Yuji blinked.
"Yeah it's me! Don't squish me Itadori!" The voice was urgent but undeniably familiar.
"What are you doing in something this tiny?" Yuji held the odd device close to his own eye as Relief mingled with confusion.
"I didn't have much of a choice. This is all I've got left to work with" He responded with a twinge of regret.
"So you survived after all" Mei Mei's eyes narrowed as she stepped closer. There was a long pause but when Mechamaru finally spoke his tone didnt change but the weight of the pause did the heavy lifting.
"I didn't" Yuji's eyes widened.
"I lost against Mahito but even before that fight I knew the odds weren't in my favor. So I prepared these drones across Shibuya. Contingencies in case I failed. In case I...died" His words carried finality but there was no time to dwell on it.
"But that's not what's important right now. This drone was programmed to activate if something specific happened which it has" Mechamaru said urgently
"What do you mean?" Yuji felt his stomach twist.
"Satoru Gojo has been sealed" Mechamaru words were nothing short of haunting.
"Gojo has been sealed?!" Yuji's voice cracked against the tunnel walls.
"Yes. Shibuya's balance has already been broken and from here on out everything changes"
"You have to tell the others. Gojo's sealing isn't something we can sit on and it's the endgame they've been planning for. If word doesn't spread now then this entire operation collapses. You need to move quickly."
"Speaking of changes we've encountered an...odd curse" Mei Mei stepped forward.
"Explain" Mechamaru asked with urgency
"It wasn't acting alone, It was leading lesser curses and directing them like pawns. It was abnormal, not only that but It seemed unusually powerful" she said with intrigue
"It's not just that. Weird stuff's been happening since before we even made it down here" Yuji added
"When I was on the stairs earlier everything around me shifted. The air, the walls, the whole damn place changed into something else like a void. For a moment I wasn't in the subway anymore. I saw...a figure"
"I don't know if it was a curse or something else entirely but it wasn't normal" He swallowed as the image of the silhouette flashed in his mind.
"Then this is worse than I thought. Gojo's sealing was just one piece. If curses with that kind of abnormality are moving freely then the battlefield is reshaping from the inside out" Mechamru thought for a second.
"There's more. When we were caught inside that curse's domain or at least what I thought was a domain we felt a ripple. It was as if reality itself shifted for an instant" Mei Mei's eyes flicked between Yuji and the drone
"That ripple did something neither I nor the curse anticipated. It shut the domain off or cancelled it's technique entirely. One moment we were trapped and the next it collapsed around us as if it had been unraveled from the outside" Mei Mei continued
"She's right. When it happened, Sukuna's tattoos...they appeared or reacted to it" The words echoed through the tunnel with implication.
"I don't know if it was him or whatever caused that ripple but it was real" Yuji's fists clenched tighter.
"If Sukuna's influence is bleeding into moments like that, tied to distortions in space itself then Shibuya is already far beyond a simple battlefield. Something is twisting the very foundation of this city" Mechamaru deduced.
Yuji looked down at his hands then back toward the platform ahead. The thought of Sukuna intruding like that burned in his chest but what chilled him more was the unanswered question of what caused the ripple in the first place and why was Sukuna seemingly drawn to it.
"We'll worry about that curse and the distortions later. Right now Gojo's sealing has to be our top priority. Once we regroup and tell them, we can come back to this with more people and a plan but not before" Mechamaru stated.
"I agree. Information before confrontation" Mei Mei gave a single nod
Yuji's lips pressed into a thin line, the memory of the ripple and Sukuna's tattoos burning hot in his mind still. Part of him wanted to argue that they finish what they'd started since that thing was still out there and every second they spent walking away was another chance for it to come back and bite them.
"If we leave it it'll just cause more problems later on and it might even end up killing people. But... if we don't tell everyone about Gojo then everyone's in even bigger danger. Damn it..." He didn't speak aloud to anyone after that Instead he argued with himself in silence.
He hated walking away, hated the thought of leaving things unfinished but even he knew Mechamaru was right. He trailed behind Mei Mei and Ui Ui as they resumed their march toward the station, his mind still buzzing with conflict.
On the surface he followed orders but inside he swore to himself once they'd told the others about Gojo, he'd make sure they circled back. And when they did he'd be the first one standing against whatever was waiting in Shibuya's shadows.
The three of them moved quickly, the silence of the tunnel pressing on their backs. When they reached the edge of the boarding platform, Yuji jump upward in a single bound, his shoes hitting the tile with a sharp thud. Mei Mei followed then help Ui Ui effortlessly before setting him down beside her.
They regrouped and exchanged a quick glance before they pressed toward the stairs leading up to the main floor of the subway station. As Yuji adjusted his pace Mechamaru spoke, giving him a suggestion.
"Itadori, put me on your ear. You'll free up your hands and I'll still be able to talk to you" Mechamaru's voice crackled
"On my ear? Like a headset?" Yuji blinked
"Exactly. I designed these drones to attach if needed"
"Guess that's better than holding you like a toy" Yuji sighed.
The small drone latched gently to the side of his head just above his ear. It folded into a sleeker form that clung snugly like a comms device. A faint buzz tickled his skin as it secured itself.
"Alright, Let's keep moving" Yuji rolled his shoulders and gave a small nod.
Eventually All four of them made it up the last step of underground station and into open air, finally stepping into a less claustrophobic space. The group stopped on the sidewalk in front of the HOKA sportswear store and took inventory before Mechamaru decided to speak.
"Listen carefully. We can't scatter aimlessly so we need coordination. Itadori, you'll notify Nanami's team and Mei Mei, you and Ui Ui will link with the Zenin group. Once they all know about Gojo's sealing we regroup and act together. That's the only way we'll have the numbers to face what's coming" Mechamaru directed.
Mei Mei gave a curt nod but Yuji's mind was still on the weight of what Mechamaru had said earlier. The thought of Gojo sealed weighed on his chest, he flexed his fists as if to anchor himself then forced a determined nod.
"Right. I'll find Nana-"
"H-hey! Over here!" Yuji's head snapped toward the sound and saw three figures to on the other side of the street.
"Civilians?" Mei Mei questioned.
"This far in? They shouldn't even be here" Yuji broke into jog and Mei Mei and Ui Ui followed.
The trio along with mini Mechamaru soon made it past the crosswalk and met them in front of The SHEL'TTER TOKYO Tokyu Plaza. Now that they were up close it was man who had called out to them with his family right behind him. They looked half-dead from exhaustion with their skin streaked with grim.
"Thank god, thank god... a-are you with the people...that's handling this?" The mans breathing was ragged.
"It's ok just take a minute. What happened to you guys? Are yo-" Yuji walked up to the man and put a hand on his shoulder.
"P-Please...there's a monster...n-near Harajuku street... It's in an underground parking l-" He wheezed as his words broke off into a coughing fit as he gripped Yuji's uniform.
"Please help us..." The mother pleaded while Yuji kept the man upright.
"Is that thing gone? Did it follow you?" Mei Mei's eyes were already scanning the street behind them.
"I-I don't know. I don't know anything anymore... We got out hell we're alive because someone got us out" The man dragged a hand through his hair.
"H-honey just sit down with us and rest.." The wife motioned as her legs nearly buckled on the way down and the main followed after words.
"Just breathe for a second and tell us what happened" Yuji said while crouching down.
"There's only a small window...he told us to move while we had the chance" His eyes flicked toward the dark mouth of the street they'd come from.
"H-He's the one who got us out" The man swallowed
"He?" Mei Mei perked up.
"Who's he?" Yuji questioned.
"It was a boy about your age. He stayed behind so we could escape..." The mans head hung low.
"New plan, we're going to find that curse" Yuji said while getting up and glancing back to Mei Mei.
"Please. Save that boy of you can!" The father's grip was weak but desperate enough to stop him mid-step.
"You're a strong kid so try to help others" The answer was simple.
"I'll save him!" Yuji closed his eyes for the briefest second
"Itadori, Ui Ui and I will take the family somewhere safe. In the mean time save that boy and ignore the curse if you have to. We still have a mission to complete" Mei Mei said firmly.
KA-THOOM!
A crack tore across the sky in the distance but the view of it was covered by the buildings in front of them. But they didn't need to see what they felt next because what followed next was an impact neither of them expected.
BOOM!
The impact rattled storefront windows up and down the block and sent a tremor through the pavement itself. Yuji staggered momentarily before he managed to keep himself upright and beside him Mei Mei's shot an arm out to steady Ui Ui before he could go down.
"Damn!" Yuji was caught off guard.
"Yuji, you need to act now before this beast causes anymore trouble. We'll take them to Shoko" Mei Mei commanded and Yuji didn't wait for anything more than that.
He broke into a dead sprint past the mouth of Tokyu Plaza and hit the sidewalk beyond it at a break neck pace. He was now coming up a public smoking area that had had a side street to it's left. He cut the corner with a skid as he opted to take the narrow side street instead of following the main road.
BOOM!
RUMBLE!
The first tremor hit like the world had tilted half an inch before correcting itself. Yuji stumbled into a half-stride before catching himself on the side of a building, feeling It rattled under his palm.
"I need to reach that curse in time! It's already getting worse by the minute" Yuji gritted his teeth then pushed off the wall to continue sprint.
In no time at all he was already coming up on the end of the side street while nearing a used clothing store. He was about to round the corner when a second boom as well as a tremor rolled through the ground but it was even stronger since he was closer to what was causing it.
"Geez will this thing stop hitting stuff already!" Yuji managed to catch himself on one knee.
Grrroooaaan
An old weathered sign post finally gave way due to the tremor, bending down until it was in Yuji's peripheral vision. He glanced at it while noting the arrow that was pointing back the way he came as if it was warning him. Yuji's glance lingered a moment before his brow furrowed at it and he picked himself up into a sprint again.
SNAP!
The sign snapped then fell to the floor once Yuji rounded the corner past Caliente at a full sprint. Now on his final stretch of road he began to see the tall frame of the curse him and Mei Mei fought in the tunnel.
"There you are you..." Seeing the curse within reach only drove Yuji faster to close the distance.
But Yuji didn't get to close that distance because something else was already do it from above it. Yuji looked up to try and make out what it was but whatever it was had been wrapped in a golden radiance.
Before he even heard the sound of it making impact everything went bright white with a wave of wind pressure detonating outward in every direction at once. The wind tunnel that formed within the confines of the street hit Yuji like a wall before he could brace for it.
It picked him clean off his feet and slammed into the pavement below. Meanwhile, every window still standing on that block gave out at once in a chorus of shattering glass around him. When the light returned to Yuji's eyes he pushed himself up onto one elbow and saw that the curse he had been looking for was just gone.
The only thing left were drifting motes of light that drifted into the air from a the crater before fading but then something else stood up in its place and began walking towards him. Yuji immediately scrambled to his feet and got into a stance then processed the figure that was in front of him.
The figure's clothes were shredded, burned, and torn until they barely resembled anything human. The cowl was jagged and frayed and the metal mask around its face with black grime streaks across its entire being. Combined with the glowing veins of energy pulsing beneath the ragged clothes and the heavy aura radiating off him, the figure looked less like a survivor and more like a curse.
"Just what the hell am I dealing with?" Yuji's fists clenched without thinking.
"Goodluck" Somewhere within Yuji, Sukuna who had be silent up until now had spoken to him.
"Don't take another step!" A chill was sent down Yuji's spine and he was on high alert as he raised his fists. Izuku looked up to the sound only to see a boy about his age in front of him.
"What the hell are you?" Yuji demanded, ready to strike at the first hint of danger.
"Answer me..." Yuji wasn't sure why but every instinct in his body was on fire just by looking at what was in front of him.
"Itadori, I would advise you move with caution" Mechamaru chipped in.
The figure standing across from him didn't move yet something about him felt off about him. His stance looked as if he was he'd been living in fights his whole life although it wasn't like a sorcerer's nor was it like a non-sorcerer. What was all too noticeable however, was the energy rolling off him, it pressed against Yuji's skin in a way he had never felt before.
Izuku's eyes narrowed beneath his cowl, flicking to the small device on Yuji's ear as soon as he noticed it. Even though it was muffled, he could catch a faint voice spilling out of it. Someone was speaking to him or at the very least guiding him which also meant that he wasn't alone.
"Is he a hero or something else? Could he help me figure out what's going on? What if he's just another threat?" The questions piled up.
"I can't make heads or tails of this. You said the curse you were fighting brought illusions to life yes? So what if this is another one of those illusions" Mechamaru suggested.
Yuji felt his pulse hammer quicker, his gut instinct screamed "Something about this guy wasn't normal". He swallowed before his shoulders began to tense up and the silence between them became suffocating. The last time he felt this amount of pressure was standing in front of a special grade when Fushigoro, Kugasaki, and himself were at that detention center or when he stood next to a high level sorcerer.
"Could this really be one of those illusions? or could this be a curse user?" Yuji thought wearily
Izuku's lips parted with the instinct to speak tugging at him but he forced the words back down. His fists curled slightly at his sides as he lowered his gaze for half a heartbeat to think about the situation at hand.
"No, I need to be careful. I can't be giving out information so freely. Everything about this place so far has made it difficult to trust anything" His thought was cut short by a sharp sting in the back of his skull.
The warning wasn't the immediate malice of an attack meant for him. Instead it was a presence bleeding from the person in front of him and it felt like the same essence of the monster he just fought. This was different though, it was more refined and malicious in a way that ran deeper than instinct.
What he didn't know or rather what he couldn't have known was that the danger clawing at his nerves wasn't from Yuji. It was the evil that lurked within him, it was something far older and far worse.
"He sees me as a threat but that malice rolling off him..." Izuku's eyes flicked over Yuji's fists to see the faint glow of energy.
He couldn't trust someone who carried the same power that felt so familiar to the monster that prowled Shibuya. Izuku let the air hiss through his respirator as he shifted his stance, his foot sliding half an inch back. He allowed full Cowling to spark across him with arcs of green lightning crawling up his arms and legs. Yuji's eyes snapped wide as instinct took over before his own thoughts could catch up to him.
WHOOOOSH!
The warning barely flashed through his nerves before Yuji's fist cut through the air. Izuku moved his body just in time as the knuckles of his opponent grazed past his mask. The force was so great it scored across his mask and ripped the lingering particles into a swirl between them.
"He's fast!" Izuku was surprised.
During his surprise however, Izuku had caught a glimpse of something that would've made him raise an eyebrow. It may have been from the heat of the moment or maybe he was flat out seeing things but just as the fist went past him, he swore he saw an eye open up on the side of this guy's face.
"I can't let this guy make the first move again! I have to stay ahead of him instead!" Yuji felt whatever it was that was rolling off of this guy and it made his senses go haywire.
"Oi Itadori! Don't just rush in like that!" Mechamaru shouted in his ear
"Sorry but I can't just ignore this guy!" Yuji barked back as he sent an attack from above
"Above!" Izuku leapt backwards to avoid it but when Yuji's fist hit the ground the sheer force of it cracked the pavement.
He didn't give Izuku a second to recover after his first strike missed. His body pivoted sharply with his momentum flowing seamlessly into a roundhouse so fast the wind whistled off his shin and Izuku barely managed to bring his arm up in time.
The impact was like being hit with a steel beam, the mid-gauntlets on his forearm absorbed the impact as his boots scraped back. His iron soles scrapped and caught just slightly on the road from being at an odd angle which cause him to be off balance and before he could even recorrect himself, Yuji was already on him again.
Izuku didn't want to fight since he was still trying to figure things out, doubly so after fighting that curse and his quirk acting strange. Although his opponent wasn't giving him much of a choice. Izuku ducked under a vicious elbow strike that was so close he felt the wind graze his hair.
"How much of One For All can I even risk using against someone from this world? If I go too far..." Every nerve screamed at Izuku to counter or to end it with a single decisive blow but hesitation rooted him.
"Why isn't he dishing anything back at me?" Yuji thought warily before jumped up with a spin and a leg raised high, bringing down an axe kick infused with cursed energy.
"That energy again.." Izuku threw both arms up to block. The collision resonated throughout his gauntlets and the asphalt beneath his boots spiderwebbed with cracks exploding outward.
"Whatever this is it feels the same as those weird strands I interacted with in that hidden basement. On top of that, this guy hits like a truck!" Izuku clenched his teeth
"Screw it, I'll just fight with 15% of One For All for now. I'll only use higher percentages for movement" He ducked under another hook before planting his hand on the ground and using the momentum to swing a kick at Yuji's midsection.
Yuji in turn side stepped the attack then blocked with his forearm before retaliating with a knee to Izuku's stomach. The impact had Izuku staggering as Yuji capitalized, stepping in with a brutal straight punch to Izuku's jaw but he ate it in order to analyze.
"His movements are refined but still a little wild. He's used to close-quarters combat but there's no wasted motion and every strike has purpose" Izuku took a mental note
Izuku's eyes tracked the slight shifts in Yuji's stance, the way he planted his feet before a punch, how his core twisted to maximize force. Izukus analysis engine raced to break down Yuji's offense, he was leading with his right while trying to force openings with sheer pressure.
Yuji kept his footwork light but springy, using the fluid low to high kicks from Taido. However, when Yuji threw hands the cadence changed into knee strikes and snapping jabs with the occasional elbow strike from kickboxing. In the midst of all that speed there were sudden bursts of raw flexibility of Karate, straight-line thrusts, and airborne axe kicks.
Izuku could feel the weight of each style bleeding together into a hybrid rhythm that should've been unpredictable to most people. For someone like Izuku on the other hand who has lived his entire life analyzing quirks along with movements from classmates and pro heroes alike it was like peeling apart layers of a puzzle.
If this guy was going to come at him with this kind of power then he couldn't afford to just turtle behind blocks. Izuku's vision sharpened as he took in every detail even as Yuji pressed on with the assault.
"Taido, kickboxing, karate...everything has a tell including it's starting positions and follow throughs..." Izuku had entered the zone. Yuji was in his space again, lowering his stance as he stepped in while launching a punch toward his torso as his cursed energy flared once again.
"Divergent fist!" Danger Sense flared and Izuku's forearms slammed together and once it had hit there was nothing else to it which confused Izuku.
Within the next second however was the second impact which made his bones underneath his gauntlets rattle. The force from the second impact sent him sliding back but he still stood tall. Yuji's eyes widened in shock as normally Divergent Fist had even the likes of Mahito reeling from it's affects.
It had landed flush against Izuku forearms but it did nothing to him. The delayed impact that always caught opponents off guard just dispersed, Izuku didn't even budge. The timing of his hits wasn't just a matter of speed or brute force, there was a delay and it was one that Izuku recognized.
"What the hell?! That was a clean hit!" His mind raced.
"Itadori get it together! This is no normal sorcerer. Whatever he is you need to end this quickly before he retaliates" Mechamaru's voice crackled over his ear
"I'm trying but this guy can take one hell of a hit not to mention he's one slippery bastard" Yuji exhaled.
"Divergent Fist? So a delayed shockwave? No, it's the force of that energy catching up after the initial strike in order to catch people by surprise" Izuku processed the sensation as the realization clicked in his mind.
"Gojo is counting on me to give my all during this operation. Hell everyone's counting on each other to come out of this alive and tonight has no room for games" Yuji said with determination
Yuji rushed in again but this time he lead with his left but Izuku deflected it with his forearm despite the impact sending a ripple up his arm. Yuji was relentless, the moment his punch was blocked he transitioned into a swift spinning hook kick. Izuku hopped back just in time but the moment his feet touched the ground, Yuji was already on him again pressing the attack.
"I can't afford to hold back anymore.." Izuku clenched his fists then slid his head just off the line of Yuji's next attack.
The jab hit nothing but air while Izuku finally countered with an uppercut to the jaw. The hit landed clean, forcing Yuji's head to snap back but he rolled with it before throwing his weight into a spinning backhand.
The hit connected making Izuku's head snap to the side and cracking his mask. The small moment of victory was fleeting however, since his gaze snapped back almost instantly with his eyes burning with an emerald intensity that sent a chill down Yuji's spine.
"If you can hit this hard then I doubt you'd have any issue handing the power I dish out.." Izuku said with slight frustration
Yuji was already sending out another jab but Izuku's palm shot out, meeting Yuji's fist mid-swing and a powerful thud resonated from the contact. Yuji's momentum crumpled like a car hitting a wall as Izuku's grip clamped tight.
"One For All: Fifteen percent!" His hand refused to let go and waste this opening.
Yuji's eyes flew wide open in an instant from his instincts screaming louder than ever to get away. Izuku's head tilted down which made the emerald glow catch within the shadows of his hood.
"My turn" One For All surged across his entire being then without warning Izuku pulled Yuji towards him while his other fist shot upward towards the gut.
"OH SHI-" Yuji couldn't finish his curse.
"SMASH!" The blow slammed into Yuji's stomach with bone rattling force.
"GUUUUHH!" Yuji's breath exploded out of his lungs.
The impact lifted him off the pavement, sending a small shockwave rippling through the street. Before Yuji's feet could even find the street again Izuku's hand shot forward to seize him by the collar. Izuku reeled back his fist before driving it into Yuji's face and sending him backwards.
Yuji bounced hard off the asphalt before ricocheting into one of the flipped over cars. The part of the vehicle he hit had crumpled inward on impact but before he could even come to a rest Izuku didn't stop.
Blackwhip snapped forward, latching onto Yuji's arm before he could recover then with a forceful yank Izuku reeled him in and with Yuji only having a split second to react with his instincts redirected the momentum, using the pull to slingshot himself towards Izuku instead of spun twice as the tendril had more slack to it, ready to bring down a devastating overhand punch like a hammer about to hit a nail.
"One For All: Full Cowling 25%" Izuku
One For All surged through body as he jumped to the side before rebounding off the side of two buildings with immense speed. Yuji had become tangled by blackwhip during the process of this.
"He got faster?!" Yuji's shock was short lived
"Manchester Smash!" Izuku capitalized immediately by flipping and twisting his body and flowing into an axe kick of his own.
The kick connected with Yuji's back, the force sent him into the asphalt making it crater. Pain laced up Yuji's body but he wasn't out of the fight just yet. He quickly placed his hands onto the ground before springing himself out of the of the small crater.
A split second later Izuku's fist and the pavement caved in under the sheer force. Yuji had barely escaped but before he could even steady himself Izuku was already there. Yuji decided to met him head on to regain control of the offensive but Izuku's eyes tracked it all.
Once Izuku Midoriya has analyzed something, there's no room for argument and Yuji Itadori had become an open book. Yuji snapped a fast jab at Izuku but he just side stepped its motion while he shot his right hand out to catch Yuji's wrist mid-motion.
Izuku then latched onto Yuji's elbow with his left hand and with a sharp tug he pulled Yuji off balance. His right hand let go of the wrist before he drove his elbow down into the shoulder joint, striking the muscle where it met the upper arm.
Yuji hissed as the nerves fired as the arm briefly became numb. In the same motion Izuku snapped his arm towards the side of Yuji's neck with a Karate chop that sent a shock through his frame before releasing him.
"Damnit...I cant even make a move!" Yuji staggered back a step with gritted teeth.
Yuji moved in and sent out a double karate kick, the left leg was a feint while the right leg was the real kick. Izuku shot his arm up, deflecting the shin with the back of his forearm allowing him to step into striking distance.
Izuku's other hand shot forward, smashing into Yuji's sternum with a palm strike. Yuji coughed as the air was knocked out of him again but due to the coughing fit and the difficulty breathing, his movements became sloppy.
Yuji lashed forward with a back kick but Izuku angled his head just enough to let it graze by, stepping into Yuji's blind spot. Izuku's knuckles hammered into Yuji's exposed oblique, followed by a quick upward knee that collided with his back once more.
"I can't lose! People are counting on me to make it through this!" Something in Yuji's stance shifted the moment the thought finished.
The next exchange came faster than anything before it with Yuji closing the gap with a jab that wasn't meant to force a flinch and Izuku read the feint a half-second too late to fully capitalize on it. He slipped the real strike that followed by inches instead of the clean margin he'd been managing all fight.
A hook from Yuji was deflected, a counter elbow from Izuku followed but Yuji ducked under it. A knee that connected, a palm strike that didn't. Every opening closed half a beat after it opened, every advantage erased before it could be spent.
Yuji's right fist came in low and aimed under Izuku's guard so Izuku threw his arm down to block it but Yuji stopped his fist before he could block it. At the same time Yuji launched a left hook and missed the angle by enough that the punch grazed past his forearm and caught the underside of the jaw instead.
Divergent fist activated and the second impact snapped his scowl away from his face, the hood collapsing back off his head entirely. Yuji barely had time to register it because Izuku's fist drove caught Yuji square in his jaw along with snapping his head back as well. His vision whited out at the edges with his legs buckling half a step before some stubborn piece of him refused to let the rest follow.
Both of them staggered back at the same instant but recovered equally as fast then both of them roared. The sound tore from their throats at once with no warning behind it and they closed the distance for the last time.
They stepped into each other space, Izuku's fist came up at the same time as Yuji's came up to challenge it. But in the middle of their clash both of them had a vision flash, a vision both of them had seen before they even met or perhaps they already had without knowing.
When Izuku and Yuji both descended a set of stairs in their respective locations that night they had witnessed a shift in reality. On one hand Izuku saw three figures descending subway steps before instinctively reaching out for it.
While on the other hand Yuji felt a prickle on the back of his neck after the subway steps turned to old wooden ones. Upon turning around he saw a figure two steps behind him while reaching out to him. The vision faded and both of them locked eyes in recognition, suspended in confusion with their fist still lingering an inch away.
"Wait a minute.." Yuji thought.
"Wait a minute.." Izuku also thought.
"I've seen you before" Izuku muttered in realization
"I've seen you before" Yuji also muttered in realization.
Slowly, almost sheepishly, they lowered their guards in unison with neither one quite sure what to do with the adrenaline still hammering through their veins now that it had nowhere left to go.
"Okay, hold on. What do you mean you've seen me before?" Yuji took a step back while rubbing his jaw where Izuku's fist had connected.
"I'm the one who saw some staticky ghost thing reaching for me on a staircase that wasn't even supposed to be there" Yuji added
"That's...wait. Was it a an old wooden one that wasn't where it was supposed to be either?" Izuku's eyes went wide.
"Yeah! How do yo- Does that mean you saw me too? But when?" Yuji's brow furrowed deeper.
"I don't know exactly when just that it happened. I was heading down some stairwell with two people I was working with and everything just changed. The steps turned into subway steps out of nowhere and there were three people walking ahead of me. They looked like a bad signal" Izuku looked down at his hand.
"I went for the closest one and reached out without even meaning to" Izuku looked back up to him.
"Dude... THAT'S ME!" Yuji pointed at himself.
"I felt something reach for me so I turned around" He shook his head slowly, trying to fit the pieces together.
"So that means you means the static figure you saw was me then" Izuku put a hand to his chin.
"Ok...that makes sense I guess. None of that was normal though..." Yuji sighed.
"Yeah..." Izuku agreed
"You some kind of sorcerer?" Yuji's eyes narrowed
"Are you a hero?" Izuku asked at the exact same time and they both blinked.
"...Hero?" Yuji repeated the word with genuine confusion.
"Y-You don't know what a hero is?" Izuku's confusion mirrored his own right back at him.
"No, I know what the word means I just..." Yuji scrubbed a hand through his hair.
"You're not making any sense. Although...I don't think I am either" Yuji sagged before walking over to the curb to sit down.
"Okay. How about we start over? Clearly we got off on the wrong foot or I guess fist" Izuku managed something close to a tired laugh as he plopped down next to Yuji.
"Yeah, Yeah. Fair enough" Yuji snorted despite himself
"Izuku Midoriya but you can call me Deku" Izuku extended a hand toward him.
"Yuji Itadori. Man Deku, you sure know how to beat the breaks off someone" Yuji said as he accepted the gesture.
"y-yeah my bad" Izuku rubbed the back of his head nervously.
"So uh...do you go to the sorcerer school in Kyoto or something? Cause I've never seen you around Tokyo Jujutsu High before" Yuji asked curiously.
"Sorcerer school? What the heck is that?!" Izuku on the inside was confused.
"Uh yeah, something like that I guess..." Izuku let out a nervous chuckle while scratching his cheek.
"I Knew it! You've got that whole out of town tough but humble thing going on! Definitely countryside vibes" Yuji nodded with his thumb and index finger under his chin.
"I guess coming from the country side is my origin now...first the family now this guy..." Izuku thought with mild annoyance.
"Hey don't sweat it there's plenty of great people that I've met that come from small places. Like this girl I know, she's strong, fierce, and determined as hell but man she can be so full of herself..." Yuji said with a grumpy look on his face.
"Let me guess...hot tempered, outspoken, brash?" Izuku matched Yuji's tone
"You got one too huh?.." Yuji exhaled
"You have no idea..." Izuku was exhausted just by mentioning Kacchan
For a moment they sat in silence as the tension that once threatened to choke the air between them was gone and instead replaced by a relaxed shift in tone. It felt like they were just two kids talking after class instead of two strangers who beat each other.
"I gotta ask Deku, why were you fighting that curse in the first place?" Yuji turned to Izuku.
"Curse?" Izuku was confused but took a mental note of the word.
"Well, when arrived here I ran into a family that was hiding out in the department store over there. But we were attacked by that...curse so I guided them until we hid in a parking garage" Yuji nodded along.
"I knew that they couldn't keep running forever so I stayed behind while they escaped. I only hope that they got somewhere safe..." Izuku's words trialed off.
"It was a husband, wife, and their kid right?" Yuji recalled.
"Actually yeah, how did you know?" Izuku perked up at the words.
"Their the reason why I even cam across you in the first place. They mention a boy saving them and that they were being chased a curse but don't worry about them. Some people I know took them somewhere safe from here"
"Thank goodness. I'm so glad they made it out of all this..." Izuku felt like the weight of All Might was lifted off his shoulders.
"Me too. Anyways Deku, countryside or not you definitely don't fight like someone who's new to it. You sure you didn't get secret lessons from some old mountain hermit or something?" Yuji suddenly piped up with a grin.
"I- uh" Izuku blinked but a small laugh quickly escaped him. Yuji snorted right after, unable to keep a straight face at his own words mixed with Izuku laugh.
"Well, since you asked how I got involved in this mess, I think it's only fair that I ask how you got involved too" Izuku finally spoke after their laughing stupor.
"I can understand that but I gotta warn you, it's kind of a long story. So you might want to be seated for this" Yuji shifted his posture.
"Yuji, I'm already seated... Actually, both of us have been" Izuku was unsure whether Yuji was joking or if he had hit him too hard.
"Oh...right..." Yuji said sheepishly and from this point on, Yuji told his tale of why he was here and explained the dangers he faced while doing so.
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To be continued...
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