The dust from the battle began to settle. Chunks of shattered concrete littered the ground, remnants of the blow that had sent All For One crashing into the rubble. Slowly, the tyrant rose, brushing the debris from his suit with both hands. He wasn't angry. He was fascinated.
Not because their escape plan had shifted. Because of what he had just witnessed. Something that defied every calculation he had made.
There was no mistaking it now. What Zoro possessed wasn't ordinary Haki. It was the rarest kind. The most dangerous kind. The kind worn only by those born to rule.
"I haven't seen anyone carry that power in a very long time."
He paused. His face lifted toward the darkened sky where Zoro had vanished.
"Roronoa Zoro... you've confirmed it now. You will become a very real threat to Tomura's future."
Gran Torino landed in the ruined plaza without a sound, taking his place beside All Might. All For One turned to him and smiled beneath his mask.
"Shimura's old friend is here too? You're making me nostalgic."
All Might stepped forward, fists tightening, eyes burning. "My students are safe. There's nothing holding me back now."
The tyrant tilted his head. He didn't move.
"You protected the wrong boy."
"He's one of my students."
The reply came quietly. Dangerously quiet.
"No... That boy was born to stand above monsters."
He let the words sit before adding: "And I won't allow it."
All Might shifted into a combat stance, voice dropping to something absolute. "Then I'll stop you. You won't get within a foot of him."
Across the plaza, near the dark portal, Toga was slowly coming back to herself. She blinked, turning her head left and right with glassy eyes.
"Where's Zoro? Where did he go? I wanted his blood."
A few feet away, Magne lay motionless on the cracked ground, still unconscious from Gran Torino's earlier strike.
Shigaraki, however, was somewhere else entirely.
He wasn't thinking about the heroes. Not the mission or the retreat. Only Zoro. He stood frozen in place, four fingers scratching at his neck with frantic force, the skin nearly breaking under them.
"Sensei... what are you hiding from me? What does that swordsman carry?"
He remembered the moment. That pressure. The kind that didn't feel like power. It felt like an announcement.
He shuddered inwardly. "That pressure... it felt like death itself."
His teeth ground together, the dark rings around his eyes widening: "Why does he keep making me feel like this? At the USJ. At Hosu. And now again. How do I stop him? How do I break that will of his?"
Gran Torino's sharp voice cut through the tension. The old hero glanced at All Might.
"Only a few of them left. I'll handle this."
Toga took a single step back from the look alone and cried out: "Shigaraki! I don't want this to end!"
All For One had been watching his student from across the field. He saw the fingers clawing at his neck. Saw those wide, useless eyes. Saw what was happening inside him.
He spoke.
"They turned the situation against us, Tomura. Outmaneuvered us carefully and took our prize. But that doesn't mean we stop. There's nothing preventing us from trying again. Pull yourself together. Retreat. Now."
He didn't wait for a response. His Rivet Stab threads shot from his fingers in a flash, threading past All Might, who dodged instinctively, assuming he was the target.
He wasn't.
The threads drove into Magne's unconscious body behind them.
"Forced Quirk Activation! Magnetism!"
At that exact moment, Gran Torino launched himself through the air like a missile toward Shigaraki. Shigaraki raised his hand to meet him, but the magnetic force ripped him backward before contact.
One by one they went. Toga. Compress. Spinner. Twice. Dragged through the air toward the dark portal whether they willed it or not.
Shigaraki fought it. He dug his feet into the ground, body tearing through the dirt, screaming:
"Don't do this! Sensei, no!"
Gran Torino pivoted in the air, trying to close the distance. "I won't let you run!"
All For One's black threads snapped outward, catching Gran Torino and hurling him aside. In the same motion, he lifted Magne's unconscious body and flung it through the portal.
Shigaraki was nearly gone. Only his head remained outside the closing gate. His voice cracked raw as he screamed:
"Stop! I need you! Let me help you! With that body you'll... don't do this! No!"
The portal snapped shut.
Silence.
The destroyed plaza settled into stillness. All For One stood facing the empty space the portal had left behind. When he spoke, his voice was calm. Almost gentle.
"Tomura... don't worry. You have something worth fighting for now. Keep growing. Keep pushing."
All Might didn't give him another second. He launched himself forward, right fist loaded with everything he had left.
The tyrant smiled. The viscous black Quirk activated in a fraction of a second, and Gran Torino was pulled directly into the path of the strike.
All Might felt it too late. His fist was already in motion. He tried to kill the momentum but couldn't stop it fully.
His knuckles connected with Gran Torino's face.
He wrenched his arm back immediately, eyes wide with horror. "I-I'm sorry!"
A low, quiet laugh filled the air. Not loud. Just enough to echo off every broken wall around them.
All Might turned, veins rising along his neck. "What are you laughing at?!"
All For One went still. Then, in a voice stripped entirely of amusement:
"All Might... do you have any idea what was born here tonight?"
He let the question breathe for a moment before continuing.
"In the beginning, I was only curious about the boy. You hid his files, manipulated the records, put a Quirk on paper. But I am not someone who is deceived easily."
He stepped forward.
"The Haki... his connection to Shimotsuki... and Kenji... I know everything now."
All Might's color drained from his face in a single moment.
"That boy..." All For One said, and there was something in his voice older than the threat itself, "reminds me of someone I knew a long time ago."
All Might tightened his fist. "Zoro is not your pawn."
"No... Pawns don't possess Conqueror's Haki."
The tyrant turned his head slowly toward the direction Bakugo had fled, carrying Zoro. He studied the night sky in silence, then said with quiet, honest certainty:
"My mission here is already complete. Tomura escaped safely. And tonight, I witnessed something truly fascinating."
He exhaled slowly. "Honestly... I was prepared to leave."
Then his gaze drifted back. The smile of death resettled on his face.
"But out of respect for you... I won't leave you standing there unsatisfied."
He opened his arms wide.
"Come, All Might. Let us fight once more... if you still desire it."
All Might stood in the wreckage. His body still smoking. His eyes holding only one promise.
"Don't act like this is a game!"
He launched himself like a missile toward his eternal enemy.
"I'll stop you here... no matter what!"
.
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