After Combat training the day before, Izuku finds himself in more and more situations where people are trying to socialize with him. It's a weird yet strangely welcomed feeling of normalcy.

Their second day of school runs smoothly enough. Aizawa tells them about a scheduled trip to a rescue training facility that afternoon. The class then proceeds with the task of electing a class president.

Izuku had completely forgotten that part of the whole school experience. He'd spent the last year of middle school too busy trying to catch up. Instead of actually participating in any class-related activities.

He's trying to shut out his classmate's rowdiness when he hears his name being called. Removing his head from its current position on the desk, he looks up to find Aizawa staring at him. The man, who apparently woke up while he was distracted, is gesturing for him to come up to the front of the class.

He does so without really realizing what it meant. However, as he gets closer to the board, he sees it. Right there, under the tally of most votes, is his name. Midoriya Izuku is written in bold, perfect letters, practically mocking him.

"There you go then. Midoriya will be the class president while Yaoyorozu will be the vice president. Class dismissed." Aizawa says with little enthusiasm despite the smirk Izuku knows he's hiding under his capture weapon.

The class cheers for them as they get back to their seats. Yaoyorozu having given a small speech about her gratitude.

Izuku, on the other hand, just wants to find the four people who voted for him and kill them. Maybe get them a psych test while he was at it. Because, who in their right mind, made him the class president?

He takes it anyway though. It's not like he's not used to responsibility.

It's later that morning that he finds out who were three of his four votes. They're sitting at one of the tables in the cafeteria when the three gather up the courage to actually tell him. He's currently picking at his lunch in thought when they speak up. Iida starts by congratulating him and offering his help since his vote put him in that position. Uraraka just assures him that she voted for him for a reason and that he should trust her.

It's Kirishima's vote, however, that makes him pause. He hasn't really interacted with the red-haired teen yet, other than small conversations and introductions. Nonetheless, the boy tells him that he's confident in his choice.  Each one of them reassuring him that he'll be a really good president.

Before he can actually get a word in though, the intruder alarm sounds through the cafeteria. The noise immediately results in an uproar of panic. The students push and shove each other towards the exit. So Izuku does the only thing he can think of.

He climbs on top of the cafeteria table and promptly screams at the crowd to just. STOP. Having garnered their attention, he calmly explains that it must be a misunderstanding and that they should just remain calm and collected. He makes sure to appear as neutral as possible.

It's then that he sees the crowd of reporters charging at UA's main building. The information serves to quell the student's fears. Everyone goes out the door calmly after that.

He hates the fact that he may have just about sealed his fate as class president. His mood souring for the rest of the school day.

_________________________________

After the whole fiasco this morning and later at lunch. He's more than ready to go to rescue training. His body yearns for something to do. For actions to take. Klein may have been right when he accused him of being a combat addict.

Although, to be fair, he's pretty sure that today's training won't have anything to do with combat. He's excited nonetheless.

He, along with Yaoyorozu make sure all the students are seated on the bus before joining them.

He takes a seat right at the edge of one of the long seats on board. Uraraka taking the seat next to him and Asui the one in front of him.

They're almost there when he hears his name being called. Meeting the girl's eyes, he soundlessly gets her to ask whatever she needs to.

"Midoriya, I've been wondering..." Asui begins slowly, her voice gaining the attention of the students seated around them. "Why do you have two swords, but never use them? I mean, you used one of them during the battle training, but you never actually did anything with it." She says bluntly, not noticing the way his eyes narrowed at the question. He's been dreading the use of his sword for a while now. Using them would be a clear sign of his past. He'd be basically screaming his SAO survivor status. He didn't think he was ready for that yet.

"Yeah! I was going to ask you about that too!" Uraraka agrees besides him.

He's about to come up with an excuse to redirect the conversation, when it seems he doesn't have to.

"If the nerd doesn't want to talk, don't fucking push him frog face." Bakugou grits out from his place in one of the seats near them. It seems the blonde keeps giving him breaks these days.

"Besides, we only had one occasion to use weapons Asui, give the guy some time." Kirishima, ever the social butterfly, doesn't give the students any chance to start an argument. The teen letting out a breathy laugh, effectively breaking any tension that had settled around the group. "Anyway Midoriya, you were really cool in that exercise! So manly!"

This brings up a whole new conversation topic as they discuss the battle exercise and everyone's performance.

The ride ends shortly after. Aizawa calling out for them to get down. It's only then that Izuku realizes that he hadn't actually answered anything.

_________________________________

It's none other than Pro hero Thirteen that greets them at the entrance of the USJ. The hero introduces himself, then promptly dives into a speech about the dangers that surround quirk use in this day and age. He tries to listen intently, but he finds himself constantly spacing out. A strange feeling settling in the pit of his stomach.

It's the same feeling he has every time he was out in the dungeons in SAO. Dread. His guard is instantly up. His eyes scanning through the facility, searching for any kind of threat.

Using his searching skills, he noticed a strange entity forming right in the center of the field

He meets Aizawa's gaze discreetly, not wanting to cause any kind of unnecessary panic if he's wrong.

The teacher in question, slowly follows his gaze down to the plaza, his hand reaches for the capture weapon as soon as he sees it too. There, right in the middle of the central plaza, is some kind of warp gate. Hundreds of people begin to step out of it. Villains.

"Huddle together! Thirteen! Get the kids to safety! These are villains!" Aizawa barks his commands and immediately turns to run into the fray.

"Eraser! Wait!" He's shouting before he can stop himself. Already stepping to join the hero on the stairs. "I'm going with you." His tone is even, voice calm. Leaving no space for dissuasion. He knows it. Aizawa knows it too. There's no persuading him.

"Kid, I got this, just-" Aizawa begins, but Izuku shoots him a knowing look. He wants to tell him that he'll go whether the teacher wants him to or not.

"You know I can do this." He says instead. Hoping he won't have to go against his orders.

"Fine, Thirteen! GO NOW! Don't let any other student come after us!" Just like that, they charge in. Leaving a confused pro hero and class in their wake.

_______________________

They run in parallel, feet pounding on the asphalt as they try to see what exactly they are dealing with.

Ahead of them stands about a dozen villains. They know each other's fighting style well enough by now to know what to do.

Unsheathing his sword, Izuku charges at the mutation type villains. Leaving the emitter types to Eraserhead.

Kirito soon gets lost in the blur of movements around him. His body on autopilot as he goes through the stances. His sword slashes at just the right points. Avoiding any lethal damage and working on incapacitating his opponents. They all feel like small-time villains as he fights them. He's reminded suddenly of the sentinel minions he used to come across in the boss fights. Even the small-time monsters in the dungeons.

A man charges at him just as he's taking down another villain. The villain has retractable blades in his arms. The metal gleaming in the light at him runs at him. Dodging the attack, he immediately crouches down, swiping his feet from under him. The man hits the ground with a thud, yet still tries to get back up. Before he can though, Aizawa was already behind him, eyes glowing an angry red as he knocks him out with a well-aimed kick to the head.

They fight for what feels like hours, but couldn't have been more than a few minutes. Finally, the villain input seems to slow down. Aizawa and Kirito are back to back now. Both of them are panting, but ready to act at any moment. Around them lay multiple villains. All of them in different states of unconsciousness and incapacitation.

"You okay there kid?" Aizawa asks between huffs, gaze not leaving the field in front of him.

"Never better, Eraser." Izuku replies lightly.

Their conversation is interrupted by slow clapping. They turn at the same time towards the source of the noise on their right.

"Well, well, well... It seems we have our first boss right here." The man in front of them has pale blue hair. Mutilated hands are attached to multiple parts of his body. Only serving to further the dread that pools in Izuku's stomach. "And a swordsman too..." He coos happily, his voice dangerously low. "I wonder..."

"Why are you here? You were the ones who caused the alarms to go off this morning! Weren't you!" Aizawa shouts, probably trying to distract the man long enough for any backup to arrive.

"You're Eraserhead right? There's only one hero who can do what you just did." This draws a reaction from the teacher. The man standing slightly straighter. Ready for a fight at any moment. Not many people knew about his hero persona. "Who's the kid, though? Some hero wannabe?" His eyes rake over Izuku in slight interest, his gaze lingering a little bit more on the weapon still strapped to his back. "Could you be-"

"Leave my students alone."Aizawa interrupts him with a growl. Immediately diving for an attack. "Your fight isn't with them."

The man reacts almost instantly, dodging the hero's attack at an unnatural speed as he skids back a couple of steps. "You misunderstand Eraserhead. We are the league of villains. We came here to take down the symbol of peace." His voice is getting stronger as he continues. Frantic even. "Since he doesn't seem to be here. Killing your students will have to do instead." He finished ominously, giving away the smirk that surely adorns his features by now.

With that, he charges at Kirito. However, he doesn't get to reach him, his path effectively blocked by the angry homeroom teacher. He tries to help him, but his own path gets blocked by multiple villains running at him, all at once.

From the corner of his eye, he can see them trading blows. Eraserhead's red eyes growing dimmer with each passing second. The urge to blink getting stronger and stronger.

Somehow, Eraserhead manages to trap the villain with his capture weapon. Using it to pull the man towards him. Slamming an elbow into his stomach in brute force.

However, instead of flinching from the attack, the hand-villain takes hold of Aizawa's elbow. Izuku can see the struggle for release from his place near them.

The villains he'd been fighting, lay unconscious at his feet. Looking around for any other attack, his eyes land on something else. A couple of feet ahead of them, are Mineta and Tsuyu. Both of them look scared as they crouch down in the water. Hiding from the villains in the plaza. He's too distracted by the sudden appearance of his classmates to see the hair on Aizawa's head falling back on his shoulders. His eyes turning back to their natural dark color.

A grunt of pain gets his attention back to the fight near him.  He watches in horror as Aizawa's skin crumbles into ash at the villain's touch. Disintegrated flesh and raw muscle sit in place of the previously unblemished skin. The hero tears himself away from the villains' grasp. Putting as much distance between them as possible in order to regain his composure.

A disintegration quirk then.

Looking at Aizawa worriedly he gets a small nod in reassurance.

"His quirk is touch-based then." He states in a hushed whisper.

Looking at each other for a moment, they come to a mutual decision. They're going to have to fight together on this one.

With only a nod exchanged between them. They charge.

Aizawa swings low as he aims for the villain's legs while Kirito, goes in for a slash on the arm. They manage to at least overwhelm the villain slightly, as he frantically tries to dodge their successive attacks. Aizawa manages to hit the man with a swift kick to the back. Whispering a soft 'switch' that makes Kirito prouder than he'd like to admit. Taking it as an opportunity, Kirito slashes at the man's feet, sending the villain toppling to the ground. The man howls in anger, hands coming down to hit the ground in rapid successions. Fury practically pouring from his every word. "I've had enough of this! Nomu! Take care of them! Take out the teacher first."

Izuku's about to ask what the hell was a Nomu. However, his question is answered a second later. Out of seemingly nowhere, a giant monster appears on the plaza. It rounds immediately in on Aizawa. Pining the man in the blink of an eye.

It has dark blue skin, its stature towering over the hero menacingly. Reminding Izuku grimly of gleam eyes. The sword strapped to the thing's back isn't helping his image at all. The blade is huge, reminiscing of the Zanbota sword from SAO. A sickening crack resounds through the field as the Nomu crushes Aizawa's arms in its grip. Izuku doesn't know if he's imagining the whimper that comes from the water near them.

Before he can even register the movement. He's already running at the monster. Sword held firmly in hand as he slashes at its back with a shout of anger.

The hit pushes the Nomu slightly forwards and off of the underground hero. As if to attack, the creature raises its arms above its head. However, instead, it proceeds to take out the sword strapped to its back.

Without waiting for another reaction from the monster, Kirito slashes at it again, this time hitting its leg. To his shock, the wound immediately stitches itself back together. No sign of the injury he inflicted on it. Regeneration quirk maybe? He doesn't have time to ponder it though, the sword aimed at his head making it hard for him to think about anything else.

"Get out of there!" Aizawa shouts at him from his place on the ground. His broken and bleeding arm held tightly against his body.

Barely dodging the hit coming his way, he goes on the offensive once again. However, this time, his sword is met with the monster's as they struggle against each other's strengths. He feels his feet cracking the ground beneath him, but pushes on anyway. They trade more blows, their blades create a cacophony of clashes throughout the field. He's getting tired though, and every hit he lands are disappearing as if nothing happened. This was going to take forever.

A blow to his stomach sends him skidding across the floor, knocking him several feet back. However, he doesn't let himself fall over. Swiftly, he jabs his sword into the ground, flipping his body and landing on his feet in a low crouch. A copper taste makes itself known in his mouth, he grimly wipes the blood that spills from between his clenched teeth. This was the difference between SAO and the outside world. Injuries were harder to ignore. Blood and pain were all too real here.

The only way to end this was to use his full powers. But even then... He'd be exposing his past to his friends. To the villains even.

His decision is made for him, however, as he catches the look of hopelessness in Tsuyu's eyes. He follows her gaze to the Nomu and he sees it. The monster is going for Aizawa again. Sword raised in the air, ready to strike at the teacher's fallen form.

He'd be damned if he let anyone get killed on his watch. He'd rather die.

Sachi's and Shinsou's face flash right before his eyes. Followed by the faces and voices of the people that died in front of him.

The fear and hopelessness he yearned to wipe away from their faces.

"STOP!"

His throat hurts as he screams at the top of his lungs. Fear and anger boiling in the deepest pit of his stomach. He desperately lungs at the space between Aizawa and the sword aimed at his heart. Only reaching him at the last possible second, to intercept the blow.

Kirito's sword hisses against the lengths of his opponent's. Yellow sparks erupting from the contact as he barely manages to deflect its path. Effectively, redirecting the hit so it plunges into the ground instead, just inches away from where Aizawa's body lay.

"Impossible!" He hears the villain shout angrily from a place nearby. He doesn't pay it any mind, though "How is he doing that!? Nomu is supposed to be stronger than ALL Might!"

Preparing for the monster's next attack, he takes out the sword still strapped to his back. The dark repulser feels right in his grip as he holds it for the first time. Its weight grounding him to the reality of the fight.

The swing comes fast and hard. The swipe meant to be fatal. Each hit he takes, a step closer to an inevitable doom. If he had an HP bar in this world, he imagines it would be steadily dwindling down to red.

"GET HIM OUT OF HERE!" He shouts, knowing his classmates will understand.

There's no turning back now.

With that, he lets himself get lost in the fight.

He blocks the Nomu's blade with both his swords. His weapons crossed against the monster's own steel, as they absorb the blow. The impact causes a shockwave to spread around them. The wind scatters the dust and make his cloak sway behind him. With newfound strengths, he parries the sword above him, managing to halt the monster's attack.

His mind goes back to the skills he acquired with the Dual Blades. Thoughts, screaming at him to make this count.

The Nomu's regenerative powers will hinder any attempt, he makes at destroying it unless he's fast enough.

With a battle cry, he goes on the offensive. Running at the monster in a blur of movements. Back low to the ground, his gaze trained on the beast.

His swords slash and cuts at the Nomu's flesh in a rapid succession, barely leaving the monster any time to react. A high level slash with his right followed by a mid-level one with his left. His movements are getting faster and faster. Left-right-left-right.

He needed to go faster.

This doesn't change the fact, however, that he does get hit many times. His whole body aches as he endures blow after blow in order to get in as many hits in of his own as possible.

Faster.

His mind feels slightly disconnected as his body moves with a speed, he's never seen before. His swords moving at a pace fast enough to blur in the light. He's getting tired though. He won't last long.

Still...

He needed to go faster.

A fifty hit conbo wasn't going to cut it in this fight. He needed to go beyond that.

_____________________________

"Is that Midoriya?" Todoroki asks, having just arrived at the plaza with Bakugou and Kirishima. "He's fighting like-"

"Like he's been doing it for years." Tsuyu says as she makes her way towards them.  Aizawa's barely conscious body slumped over her arm as she holds him up by the shoulder.

Todoroki instantly goes to lift the man up himself. Eyes never straying from the fight that's happening in front of them.

They watch in shock as their classmates goes head to head with a monster twice his size, if not more. His movements are swift and practiced. They speak of years of experience and swordsmanship. The fabric of his sleeves are in tatters now. Giving them a full view of his brand.

"He's an SAO survivor." Kirishima whispers in slight awe. An unreadable expression covering his features.

To their increasing horror, Izuku seems to be getting tired. Yet, with every hit he takes, they watch as his eyes light up with new fire and he fights back even harder, even faster. Shouts of anger spilling from his throat with every attack he makes.

"He's bleeding too much! We have to help him." Kirishima's voice sounds frantic as he worries his hands together. Feet moving as if to join the fight.

"D-Don't" Aizawa's voice is barely above a whisper. Pain and exhaustion, clear in his tone as he struggles to stand straight. "If you go in now, you'll just distract him." From where they're standing, the fight looks nothing more than a haze of movements. Blue and black blur together at a pace too fast for the naked eye to see.

However, a second later everything seems to come to a standstill. The dust clears and the scene they're faced with making their blood run cold.

The Nomu has the edge Midoriya's sword held tightly in its hand. The creature's sword coming down to impale Midoriya right in the heart.

However, before any of them get to shout any warning or do anything to help. Midoriya moves on his own.

The teen jumps in the air, spinning his body until he's standing on the monster's shoulders. Hand already coming down to impale the Nomu's brain with his sword.

The world seems to stop for a moment. Complete silence encases the field if not for the slight hiss of the wind.

The best goes down a second later. Hitting the ground with a heavy thud. Body still in a motionless heap. Lifeless.

___________________________

Izuku knows that he should be feeling something right about now.

Maybe, some sort of guilt or sadness at his actions. Remorse, perhaps.

Yet, all he feels is empty. Calm, even.

The years of fighting, he's had to endure, made sure that he knows by now the rules of this world. Sometimes, you have to do whatever it takes to survive.

No matter how hard or wrong.

He looks down at the body in front of him and wonders if there's a human underneath it all.

He pushes the thoughts creeping into his mind for another time. Another sleepless night.

Retracting his sword from the creature's head, he swipes at the air a couple of times before sheathing it back into its holder. Followed by the elucidator a moment later.

He lifts his head up, meeting the shocked faces of his classmates. All of them have similar expressions adorning their faces. One of surprise and slight fear. He ignores the feelings burning in the back of his throat and turns to meet the villains.

Like he expected, the hand villain isn't alone anymore. The warp gate from before is standing next to him.

"Shigaraki... It would be wise retreat. The Nomu's down and the Symbol of peace isn't even here yet."

So that's his name then...

"Hold on, Kurogiri. It seems we have a beater in our midst." Shigaraki growls, taking a step forward. Beater. Kirito heard that slur directed at him too many times. Yet, it still managed to bring him some level of grief. He never expected to hear it on this side of reality. It made his heart jump in his chest. "He killed my Nomu!" Shigaraki shouts hysterically, his hands coming up to scratch at his throat frantically. "No... no. Impossible!" He shouts once more. "The black coat... the duel wielding... The black swordsman! The rumors were true!" His words get faster and faster as he talks. "You're the one who has it... its true..."

"How do you know that name?" He asks before he can stop himself. "You were in SAO weren't you?" Because why else would he know? Why else would the Nomu have the same sword as Gleam eyes...

His question goes unanswered as the entrance to the USJ interrupts whatever response Shigaraki had. Out of the debris and dust appear All Might, followed closely by most of the teachers of UA. They walk in unison. Marching into the USJ in angry strides.

"It's game over Kurogiri. Take us out of here." The warp gate forms around the two villains, but just as they're about to disappear Shigaraki speaks up once again. "This isn't over... KI.RI.TO." He sing-songs maliciously, rolling up his sleeve to reveal a mark that makes Izuku's breath hitch in his chest.

The last thing he sees before the warp gate disappears is the LAUGHING COFFIN symbol.

The leader's mark.

It's the last thing he thinks about as his body finally gives in to the blood loss and he loses consciousness.

Art i made for this arc~