"-my impending death is quite fun. Right, Midoriya-kun?" Jeanist hummed, sitting on an adjacent couch away from the flustered greenette.

In front of them was the small screen, displaying all the blond had missed and rubbing salt on that fact with a slightly lower quality than the one in the theater.

"Even if it's a virtual me, I want to apologize!!!"

"It's alright, kid." The denim icon smiled, patting Izuku, who was bowing at the pro hero. His response was a shaken jolt before nodding with a smile. "That's a relief. You were being used although you're injured... I didn't want you to..."

"Feel awkward? Be upset? If your plans mean we have a higher chance of stopping All For One, I wouldn't think twice to play along." Hakamada admitted as a charred corpse listened with slight amusement.

'It'll take longer than expected to join everyone to react. Recovery Girl was mad enough that I had strained my injury.' Jeanist shook his head, watching as the boy's plan fell into pieces. Or so it seemed.

--

"You're not going to react?" Ibara was repeatedly surprised as she gently braided the vines in her hair. Before her mutated classmate could give a reason; she curtly closed her eyes, a soft hum seeping from her lips as she continued.

"Well, you had looked tired even before the earlier rampage. You also didn't seem to be the movie-type Bondo-kun." Feeling singled out, his hands awkwardly tapped at his sides while he nodded.

"I'm not the binge-watch type, so I think it'll be better if I stick this one out for the majority of the film. It's not that I hate it or anything like that, but I've also realized thanks to Pony that I sleep. A lot." He began rambling until he felt a hand on his shoulder; he didn't need to spare a glance at UA's fairy; Neijire, who spiraled downwards.

"Hey there!"

"Ah, Hado-Senpai! What are you doing here?"

"I overheard someone was staying here, so I was wondering if we could join." Her twirl ended at her pointed-ear friend trying to tug her back to earth. His eyes caught sight of the curious first years and froze, realizing that he was unexpectedly placed in the spotlight.

"..."

"..?"

.

.

.

"Can I ask why you also want to stay here, Senpais? ... If that's okay with you, of course!!" Ibara added, breaking the silence.

"... Is there a sheet I could sign stating I wouldn't be in the reaction room?" Tamaki questioned shuffling around as his focus was broken from their potato heads, yet regained as his sights fell on the vines that were slowly untangling themselves from the braid as if it had a mind of its own.

Yet Ibara appeared unaware.

"Oh, I don't think so. Do you want me to bring one?"

"We can discuss that after. However, there's one thing you've got wrong..."

"It's not 'we' only 'me'... Neijire-chan would regret not watching it at the same time as everyone else, and she hasn't shown any uncomfortableness during the reaction. My reason is that everything felt way too stimulating, the lights were too loud, the screen was too bright, and the aura itself was chaotic."

"..I understand."

--

"Hey, hey Amajiki!! You can't cross me off. I can just watch the replay. It's no biggie! I don't want you to be alone." She defended, keeping her sentences quite short.

"Neijire, we both know you get upset when you miss the live premiere of shows. Let's also not forget when you get spoiled. You hate spoilers." He counterattacked.

"I can just avoid being spoiled. It can't be that hard!"

Tamaki broke his focus from the braids that were nearly undone to simply deadpan at his defensive friend.

"You're forgetting we're friends with someone who loves to give spoilers. Mirio. I can handle it. But certainly not you."

"Uh, senpais?" Bondo questioned, snapping Neijire from replying with something else as they found Momo creating a logbook. Behest of Shiozaki's request.

"...yeah, I'll continue reacting."

--

"What is this??" Alisha questioned holding different colored books in her hand. They all appeared to be from the same brand, but she never brought these books here... her eyes trailed unto Diane who shared her curious expression. Which made her narrow the suspicion to one person.

"Yaomomo?"

As if she was simply waiting for her name to be called, she straightened her posture. Looking forward with a confident gaze.

"These are Log Books as well as a list of all the things Lunchrush-san would need replaced or brought into the kitchenette. They aren't anything grand, but we thought that we should do this at the least."

"... I see,"

'This was meant to be part of my paperwork. Thank you guys...'

"You guys are an absolute lifesaver-" Alisha began before Dabi rudely interrupted again. Accompanied by muscular people who indeed found her phrasing amusing.

"...."

"...alright, I get it."

"Everyone except those I will list out can head to the reaction room, Di will follow you guys and get you started," Alisha exclaimed, which got the majority's attention. They hadn't expected time to pass by so quickly, but didn't that mean they could get back to where they stopped even faster?

Alisha walked off a little further from the crowd to where the light switches were. With a flick, purple light with cyan accents suddenly shot from a few of the many ceiling bulbs, creating an awe-dropping hologram of those who decided to watch everything later.

"Those mentioned can stay back to play some calming games! You can meet up with the others later but it wouldn't make sense."

"Wait, games! ...Is it too late to add my name?"

Kojiro Bondo

Masaru Bakugou

Tamaki Amajiki

Powerloader Sensei

Rikido Sato

Eraserhead Sensei

Lunch Rush-san

Recovery Girl-san

Inko Midoriya

Best Jeanist

All Migh...

.

.

-

"I guess it wasn't long until Koda decided to stay back. Everything was getting loud." Kyoka mumbled, walking past the once-barricaded doors.

"It's just to calm his nerves. He did say he'll try to appear as soon as he could." Shoji reassured as the ravenette nodded along.

"Class 1A just lost another member, our screen time may be less..." Mineta lamented as Sero lifted his small pal and walked towards their seats.

"Not today, bud."

--

"The title, does that mean Midoriya uses Eri's quirk?!" Mirio gasped.

~O~

A few minutes after Shigaraki attacked Midoriya...

"Oh, we're starting from this perspective." Snipe hummed.

"...Todoroki's screen time has ended for this chapter."

"Did you say something, Mineta?"

All For One was standing on the sidelines, looking at the destroyed building with an unreadable expression. He had already moved the other villains to a safer place and was now waiting for either Shigaraki or Midoriya — depending on who won the battle — to show up so he could take his next step.

And speak of the devil, the winner showed up,

"Ugh, smog move aside! Don't block the person!!" Pony huffed.

"The sounds feel like it's coming from the left, which is currently offscreen. Just wait a bit, and it'll be revealed." Compress explained. Craftily playing with a few spare marbles.

"Ah, you're back. I take it went well then?" All For One turned to look at the boy, smiling.

"You don't have to worry about him anymore... Master." Shigaraki replied, smirking, "He's nothing but dust now... His death will be such a good story to tell to UA. I can't wait to see their reactions... Won't that be amazing?"

"Huh?"

"Wait no!!"

"Why do you always censor the good parts!! Izuku can't be dead! If he is, I wouldn't forgive you Tomura!" Himiko hissed as the young adult shrugged in response. Before blinking absentmindedly as he replayed what she just said.

"Didn't you want to kill him yourself? What's the difference if I do it?"

"Big difference!"

"Tsk."

Tomura turned away, knowing that any more would've led to a needless argument. Finally, Midoriya Izuku is gone. In the end, his plans would prevail. It was a moment where the young villain should've felt overjoyed.

... Yet why does it feel so bittersweet? Was it because he saw how tactful he could be within five days, something that was so impressive? A perfect victory. An indisputable victory over the sorry heroes like a vision of what's to come with his future. The presence he gave, as if with Midoriya there Shigaraki knew the villains would prevail

"Mhm. Maybe it'll be better than to have him as a villain." All For One nodded, "Come on, we have places to be now, Tomura..."

Hah, what was he thinking? The brat died in the end, and he was the winner this time. It's useless lamenting what could have happened.

'Master is right, it's better that he died.'

--

"There's no way Leader is dead, he must have done something to fool all of them. Midoriya is brave even if faced with countless dangers he'd still step up to protect even one person. Boss would never die so pathetically... there's no way he died. No way-" Mineta clattered, staring frightened daggers toward the villain's side. Suddenly a palm landed on his shoulder with a sharp grin behind him.

"No one is going to take your words to heart if you repeat them more than twice," Kirishima replied with a sharky grin, walking towards Kaminari.

"I agree with ya' there's no way Leader died, he confused me too much to just die." The blond huffed.

"...Is that the only reason you don't believe in my death?"

Shigaraki only stood there until All For One warped them both to where the rest of the League was.

Didn't he say he'd take care of all the nuisances?

He did. And he was so glad to see his plan going smoothly.

"Midoriya's plan."

"Preach!"

No one has to worry about Izuku Midoriya anymore.

No one has to...

"Okay that repeat was suspicious, I don't believe Midoriya is dead either." Kirishima threw his hands into the air as sounds of agreement resonated around him.

--

"Hey guys, remember when we all thought when Midoriya got kidnapped the first time? We all assumed it was a clone for a while." Awase recalled.

"...yeah... why are you bringing that up?" Sero hummed, turning away from the screen to face his sister's class. (Class 1-B)

"It was better than the ghost theory at least." Kyoka jabbed.

"Hmph, what if Shigaraki killed a clone and not the real Midoriya!!"

"That's genius!!"

"That could be the reason, we never actually see what Midoriya and Hatsume-san did in the support room after all. But I believe there are multiple loopholes in this theory." Tenya analyzed as the gal herself clapped her hands in agreement.

"Exactly what robo-legs said, the budget to make a completely realistic android is too much for a UA student even if I use Powerloader Sensei to get it. Besides, Shigaraki would realize it was a fake when disintegrating it. I doubt we'd have programmed it to disintegrate like a normal human being and the time to do so is too much for two people in one month." Hatsume began ignoring Iida's exasperation; "It's Iida Tenya!" to continue her explanation.

At some point, the staff began to feel sorry for Powerloader.

"So it's more likely that he's using a quirk?" Shinsou asked as Hatsume nodded vigorously.

"But doesn't AFO have Ragdoll's quirk? So he would be able to tell if he's truly a fake." Vlad King interjected as Midoriya denied the claim. Yet before he can explain his reasoning he is stopped by a frustrated grunt by his rival.

"..." Katsuki narrowed his eyes at the screen, the background noises bickering more as time passed on. Their topic? On the status of the damn nerd. It didn't need to be thought upon at all. Izuku wasn't a dunce after all, he wouldn't let the man-child win.

There's something he's missing, and it might be a quirk. Or rather quirks.

~O~

"Will someone kindly explain what's going on here?" Aizawa asked the seven students and two Pro Heroes who just fell from the sky and into UA's training grounds. They already sent Best Jeanist to a nearby hospital. Thankfully, he was still alive.

"That's a relief." Izuku huffed, noticing Katsuki's stiff posture slacken at the announcement.

--

"Aizawa Sensei!" Toru cheered as the next scene quickly flashed by.

'Poor Shota, he tried to escape but now his ears must be ringing.' Thirteen thought with a sigh.

-

Unlike the space-themed Heroin thoughts, the adult was peacefully resting in one of the farther rooms, quiet enough that no one could hear of anything that was happening on the main floor. It was a place of tranquility for the man in the yellow sleeping bag, disregarding the large bed before him as the mattress was too stiff. He'd have to complain to Alisha about that.

Aizawa fell asleep.

None of them spoke but only exchanged nervous glances at each other. Almost all of UA's teaching staff — and the principal — were standing in front of them, waiting for an answer that could help the situation.

Now, if it was just the students from Class-1-A — minus Shinsou because he has no idea what kind of problem child he was yet — Aizawa would have understood everything without them speaking another word. But, it's not everyday that Class-1-B is also involved in their activities. And of course, not forgetting the fact that the number one and the number two who weren't affiliated with the school one bit were here as well.

"I think Aizawa Sensei is just fed up with us at this point."

--

"It's obvious Endeavor came for Icyhot and Hawks decided to stick to him like the fanboy he is." Katsuki tsked as Shoto nodded along.

"My name isn't Icyhot."

"Then do you want me to call you a Half n' Half bastard?!"

"No, that's somehow worse." Shoto denied raising his hand as a tick mark appeared on the explosive blond's fist.

"Pft."

--

"Midoriya is like a puppet master at this rate or a screenwriter. Now everything is seemingly falling into place so naturally... I always knew he was observant but isn't this on another level?" Shoji's eyes fell to Midoriya who was engrossed in the screen actions.

"--Especially when you think that he fooled both top heroes. Even forged the Head of Commission's signature. I almost can't believe you're Tenya's friend!"

"Tensei!!" Tenya blurted, shaking his head at his older brother.

When no answer came, Aizawa spoke himself, "Shinsou?" He looked at the purple-haired boy for an explanation.

"Yes? Ah-" Shinsou replied before realizing that the sleep-deprived teacher wasn't reacting to them at all.

--

"Favoritism."

"Asking the least problem child in the room be like:" Mina hummed, relaxing on a chair she had dragged from outside along with a bowl of ramen and soft-boiled eggs that Lunchrush-san had made previously.

"It's favoritism." Yamada tsked as Rumi stared dumbfounded at the English teacher.

'Wasn't he being biased 'bout a student during the sports festival?'

--

"Ochaco, are you feeling ill? Should we head to Recovery Girl?"

"No Mom, it's just a little chilly... that's all," Ochaco sniffled, accepting the torn napkin from her father.

"Um..."

"I bet he's feeling singled out now." Mirio hummed before turning to Neijire who appeared lost on the screen, her eyes not blinking.

"Neijire, don't you think Amajiki is curious to know what's happening now?"

"Dunno. It's going to replay twice anyway so I don't think so. But..."

"Don't you think Shinsou-kun's eye bags resemble Eraser's?" She whispered, pointing at the similarities on the screen. Togata's mouth quickly fell into an 'O' as he looked between the two, realizing hitting him like a brick.

"A LOVE CHILD!"

"No I'm NOT- wait Mirio senpai?" Izuku exploded facing his friend who normally teases him. But it was Mirio who said it, and... it didn't seem that he was referring to him.

"S-sorry!"

Shinsou bit his lower lip nervously and took another glance at his classmates before looking back at his homeroom teacher who perked an eyebrow, waiting for a reply.

"We... Uhm, we were told to follow Endeavor in his mission... And rescue Midoriya from the villains... I don't think any of us had a clear idea of what we were doing because Hawks said we weren't supposed to rescue him... We were just following orders..." Shinsou replied looking down, trying his best to be honest and at the same time not to give any details about Midoriya's planning.

"Orders by who?" Aizawa asked.

"Midoriya."

"Boss."

"Problem Child."

"Deku-kun."

"Er..."

"The Commission." Endeavor backed them up, "And I think I've told you all about that earlier."

"This Midoriya kid is pretty interesting, it's a shame he's dead." Giran acknowledged.

"How are you guys just noticing these things??! And who said he's dead!" Tetsutetsu retorted.

"Shigaraki, hey kid you're from Class 1-B right? That means the only time you met these fellows was during the Summer Camp, but even then, you probably only fought the vanguard squad. The boy was already in a miserable state even before the lil' guy found him. Even if he activated Eri's quirk it's already known that it's hard to control and turn off. Which would resort to him using multiple quirks at once because he can't defend himself with a support-like quirk. Shigaraki has already begun disintegrating his head, and in a place where death is only a step away, there's rarely anyone who thinks rationally enough. This isn't a comic book kid,"

"Wake up and realize your friend is dead. The most you can do is continue his plans without error."

.

.

.

At his words, many began to believe that what he said may as well have been true. Granted majority was the villain side. But the teachers and parents were quiet as if their silence was them neither agreeing nor disagreeing with his claims.

"This is the first time I saw you talk so much pal, aren't you rooting for the kid?" Jin whispered confusedly.

"And Young Midoriya?" All Might asked with a concerned expression.

That question hit Todoroki like a thousand bricks.

He was the last person who saw Midoriya. He was the only one there. He saw Shigaraki using his quirk on the green-haired boy. He couldn't do anything to help him. He left him there alone. He saw him beginning to turn to literal dust. Yet, he was helpless. He couldn't believe that he left his first friend to die alone. He felt so, so guilty for leaving him there. If he was there, he could at least have fought the villain and the worst that could have been was a few injuries to the both of them...

Not this...

.

.

"Hah, nice speech. But I'm not backing down. Midoriya is one crazy fella,"

"Hey!"

"He did so many unbelievable things since school began, who said raising from the dead couldn't be one? What you said was just your opinion. And here's mine; Midoriya Izuku is still alive, and you who think otherwise are being played like a fiddle."

"Wasn't Todoroki the one who came in last...?" Monoma pointed out and everyone looked at the heterochromatic boy for a reply.

Todoroki took a deep breath,

"Midoriya... He... He's g-gone..."

The room became silent, a bitter aura sweeping in. Todoroki Shoto always seemed like a reserved guy, though oblivious at times, he never appeared to be the type who would stutter. Yet the pain in his voice, the sharp intake of air as he fought himself from breaking down infront of so many people even though he was his first friend died in front of him.

"Ack, his voice sounds so heartbroken, no don't cry Todoroki-kun, shroom!"

--

'Shoto...'

"That's another me, I wouldn't cry."

They only stared at him. Not even wanting to think about where he was taking it.

"Gone?" All Might asked, "Gone where? What exactly happened to him, Young Todoroki...?"

"Even All Might is in denial."

"I mean Deku-kun does create a lot of trouble around him. And always make it out alive, even when others say he would die. So All Might-san has a valid reason to ask that." Ochaco blurted as the work studies students smiled at her confidence.

"Even if it means rubbing salt in an open wound?" Yaoyoruzu questioned as the brunette paused, facing her dual-headed friend who was blankly staring at his hand.

"I-I,"

"Clarity is important as a hero, All Might-san just wants to make sure he doesn't assume the worst. I'm sure he wasn't trying to hurt Todoroki-kun." Kendo added with a slight smile.

--

"I can't believe they nearly started an argument based on All Might," Tsuburba whispered to his green-haired boss as he shrugged in response.

"This is tame compared to the internet."

...

"You, you might be right..."

The retired hero was mentally begging for Todoroki to not say it. He hoped that the boy would tell him something like the villains took Midoriya to another place...! Or Midoriya ran away from them...! Something along those lines and not what was the most obvious coming from that statement. All Might wasn't sure if he was ready to take the news that his successor was... Dead.

Todoroki looked down, clenching his fists, "... I-I think we all know what I meant."

There was a moment of silence, no one said anything.

Nezu sighed, "Students, head to Recovery Girl's office, in case of injuries and back to your dormitories. We'll talk about this later."

"Ack, I hope they don't get in too much trouble, Headmaster Nezu is scary!"

"I appreciate the term intimidating." Nezu smiled.

"Endeavor, Hawks, my office. Give me a quick run down on the situation. Then you're both free." The principal added.

Everyone simply followed the instructions that were given.

"Wait!!"

"C 9 4!!! Don't forget to say C 9 4 Todoroki!!"

"You had one job! Icyhot! C 9 4 it isn't hard to remember!!"

--

"Ugh, I think Senpai's anxiousness is contagious," Kirishima muttered whilst stirring in his seat.

~O~

Red eyes scanned the place.

"Katsuki?" Mitsuki muttered before freezing as that dangerous shade of red looked nothing like her son's.

"Hah?"

It looked like a normal room. There wasn't anything there that could tell him why All For One decided to bring him there. Heck, he didn't even know what or where this place was!

Tomura Shigaraki turned to look at his so-called Master, "Um, why are we here?"

"Hah? S, so-called?! I would never call master that!"

'Never say never.' Alisha thought as future events flashed in her mind.

Yet there weren't many people to hear his outburst as they were too engrossed in the screen.

'I would never call master that... so why is that there?'

However, there were the chaotic few who had noticed this one scene but decided to stay quiet for the fun of it. Or explaining it all right now would just be too troublesome to do.

"Ah, you see how the heroes had a clear notion of our previous location?" All For One asked.

"Thanks to Midoriya."

"Ugh, I want bush hair to overthrow these villains. Shame he's 'dead'. Why aren't I there?" Mirko huffed.

'Bush-Hair?!'

"Snrkt-" Katsuki wheezed.

Shigaraki nodded.

"This is a completely unknown area to them. I have to keep you and your League here, hidden. And as far as transportation is concerned, I'll have Kurogiri know about all the necessary coordinates. This place has everything that you'll need, so don't worry about a thing." All For One explained, "May I also add the fact that there is a whole army of Nomus, underground, already prepared to rip apart the heroes on your command?"

...

"What?!"

"That wasn't supposed to happen until later! Right??"

"Seriously, who are the people who keep giving those short NPCs reactions???" Spinner snapped.

"Pft- NPCs."

Shigaraki's eyes widened, "B-But, Master, we didn't even start creating those Nomus! How did you—?"

"You're right at your place, Tomura. We were supposed to make an army of High ends... But you've already seen the circumstances we've been put through." All For One replied, "I had a feeling the boy might betray us... Even after he answered all those questions with honesty... So, I prepared a patch of about a hundred normal Nomus just in case."

"That's because he said half-truths you overgrown toe!"

"I still can't believe you fell for something like that so easily, even if you had a counterplan. It's too sad. Too embarrassing."

"Chisaki you shouldn't talk after getting pummeled by the same kid who was giving someone else a piggy-back ride."

"..."

--

"... and the slander continues..."

"I forgot how tiring it was."

"Really? It's satisfying to watch." Midnight cackled, plopping in her seat with another batch of popcorn. Thirteen stared at her friend before sighing, taking a few of the buttery popcorn to enjoy.

"Hey!"

Shigaraki took a moment to process what All For One just told him.

So, Midoriya wasn't the only one who planned ahead, huh? All For One was trying to play the same game as him, huh?

"Emphasis on the trying, please."

"Okay something's off, Shigaraki wouldn't insult the big man like that. Something truly is up."

"Master," Shigaraki smiled, "... That's outstanding!!"

"But imagine if that was Midoriya? Like the real one, not the clone." Awase spoke, raising a finger to represent both 'clones of Izuku'. As you can see, he believed in the clone theory as he saw Hatsume in action a few times.

A word to describe her when she's inventing is: insane.

"Quite," All For One smiled, "You can progress your plan without any trouble... But there's this one thing."

"Hah?"

"When you retrieved a few villains along with me, there was this man; Kai Chisaki. I'm pretty sure you remember him." All For One stated. Why would All For One bring him up? He already stole his quirk. What else could he want from him?

"Oh yeah he did do that, I guess that's why he's so salty now?"

"But he can't even use his quirk right?" Ojirou commented, remembering the news saying he needed his hands to activate his quirk.

'Next time I'll just watch the replay, why did I feed my curiosity...' Kai regretted his actions of erasing his name from the log book.

Shigaraki nodded, impatiently waiting for the Symbol of Evil to proclaim his condition.

"I did some research and read his files... And I found something of my use. Something beneficial to all of us!" All For One said.

Shigaraki stared at him, curiosity rising in his system

"I want the girl alive."

"Noooooooooo! TOT"

"Manga-kun you're making the face again."

--

"No not Eri!! The Edgelord can kill us all he wants, just don't harm Eri!!"

'Why is Mineta-kun getting so many lines?' Aoyama thought, glancing at his teary friend with an awkward smile. His arms were slowly hurting from his bizarre pose. Their attention slowly fell unto him, their sparkles. Why? Mineta couldn't have more screen time than him, right?

"I don't know much, but I heard she was hurt a lot by that creepy no-hand boss! I won't allow you to make her experience anything worse than what she experienced. Because I'm a Hero!!"

Many eyes widened at the studio. Before them, Mineta had stood up against the symbol of fear. The one who ended All Might's career. The coward would only think of perverted ways to be around girls.

Was this a change?

A spark that truly signaled change?

After all, Mineta stood up to All For One!!! ... well... he tried to at least. If only he would stop looking at the reflection on the tiled floor and look at his face.

Yuga was one of those that were wide-eyed. A small tear slid past his cheek. It was a singular tear, however, it was enough to allow Aoyama to sit down and leave Mineta in the spotlight for a little while longer.

'Don't die, Mineta-kun.'

Unless he's having character development. Yes, that's something Aoyama didn't want to disrupt.

"There's no use talking to a sacrificial pawn. How unfortunate that you have no idea of what's about to happen."

--

"He wouldn't f*cking dare." Mitsuki huffed.

"In your dreams you rotten potato."

"I will throw these hands, don't tempt me." Reiko glared towards the villains.

"It better be Shigaraki, he has enough as it is." Overhaul grumbled.

--

"Someone's holding down Midoriya, right? Mirio-senpai too?" Shoji questioned remembering all the times they had almost pummeled All For One. Although he wasn't certain if they would've won. A hit would have been satisfying to see.

"Yeah, Eri." Hatsume pointed at the little girl who did hold the two down by playing a hand game she had learned from Pony. Although the occasional glares they sent were scarier than any actions they could've made.

DON'T. YOU. DARE. TOUCH. ERI. YOU. VILE. OBSESSIVE. BROCON! 

(A/N: That wasn't apart of B O U N D.)

...was the vibe they were giving. Or at least Midoriya was giving off that vibe.

"At this rate, Leader is going to have a century-grade smash potato." Monoma hummed while sitting next to Tetsutesu.

"Doesn't that only work on wine?"

--

"You're using... a child?"

"No, she volunteered."

"I volunteered." Eri proclaimed, turning her head towards the teens. "Mister Deku will win."

--

"Peace was never an option huh? Especially when All Might-san isn't here."

"Guys please, remember this is simply a virtual film the real Eri is safe with us. Don't lose yourself over his words!!" Tenya remembered as he raised his hands into the air.

"You may be right Prez... but, PROTECT THE CHILD!!" Mina exclaimed as half of the villain team stood up in military uniform.

"PROTECT THE BEAN!!!"

"ERI PROTECTION SQUAD IS HERE!! WE'RE ONLY MISSING A FEW OF OUR ARSENAL MA'AM. THEY ARE THE WORK STUDIES STUDENTS AND SENSEI AIZAWA!"

"... y'all should be happy Shota isn't here right now. Damn, how is he so good at escaping loud situations?" Hisashi wondered while looking at his students below that was probably going to start a war if even a strand of hair was harm on the yakuza's granddaughter's head.

Iida Tenya facepalmed. The impact was so strong that it broke his cinema glasses.

--

"Can't he just steal Eri's quirk from Midoriya? Why bother taking the girl?"

"Because the Midoriya kid got turned into dust."

"At least he's taking her alive, they're acting as if he told him to dis-" Before Muscular could finish his sentence he was promptly shut down by Nezu.

"It's so fun watching everyone's reactions. Oh well, as long as you don't damage anything or break any rules we're good, right? That means no physical fights. Now stop dragging the time slot longer than it needs to be. I get that the majority of you are pissed that he even thought of Eri-chan but you'll never know if he got to her if you continue to keep the screen paused." Alisha rambled gesturing at the paused screen.

...

Oh, he wanted Eri.

"Lord, I ask for Patience, strength is only going to make me kill a monster."

"Look, you made Ibara start acting like her Villain Team Persona!"

"Do you expect me to be intimidated by that? You've gotten too bold when I haven't done anything." A red blur flashed between the teens in time to block a palm.

"Kids stay back," Hawks warned, raising a feather sword. It glinted from the light of the lamps, in a dangerous red.

"I'm not doing this again."

~O~

Endeavor sat there in his office, he just came back from UA after filling Nezu in about everything that happened.

"So Todoroki didn't tell him about the 9 4 C in the end?" Kaminari sighed, relaxing on a beanbag he snagged from the center spot.

"Kaminari-san, I feel like you got the order wrong." Momo smiled as the screen continued playing.

The flame hero stared at the text he got from his son. And then back at the book he was given.

'C-9-4.'

"GAH! Why does this happen to me?!"

--

"Phew."

"Okay, so he told him, good." Was the echo of nearly half the studio.

"F*cking finally," Katsuki smirked.

--

'Will that family ever stop cursing? The censor noise is quite irritating to hear... I heard he's Shoto's friend.' Enji glanced towards Katsuki who was grinning as ferally as Monoma's maniac laughs.

'Shoto how could you be friends with a delinquent!!'

Endeavor pondered for a while; what could those numbers mean?

The book wasn't divided in sections so why was there a 'C'. The '9' and the '4' could easily refer to a page, paragraph or line. What was the purpose of the alphabet?

"So this is how the Hero who solved so many crimes thinks, very calm hm." Compress whistled to himself.

"Hopefully Endeavor can complete Midoriya's plan."

...

"Guys, have you ever wondered who that last book could have gone to?" Thirteen questions.

He then turned to page 9, line 4... It started with a 'C' and after that, everything was blacked out.

"Le gasp!!! Kacchan!! Boss!!! I solved the hint!" Kaminari pointed at the screen with disbelieving eyes. Katsuki, who was some distance away, managed to hear him just fine the moment he called his name. A bout of childish glee came upon him as Denki called his name first and he flaunted a proud smirk at Izuku's direction.

Izuku raised his fist into a thumbs-up for his friend. "You're quite smart Kaminari-kun, don't be shocked when you get something right."

"Yeah!! It lowers not only your credibility, and my credibility as the lieutenant of the Villain team, but our leader, the mastermind behind it all, Kingpin!! Show some more self-confidence!!"

"I'm a smart heroic chicken!!" Kaminari yelled with a wide grin.

"... a what?"

"It's a 1-A thing," Jirou added, watching as her blond friend began pumping himself up more.

He sighed and rubbed his thumb against the paper, growing impatient.

Suddenly, he felt something.

"Duh, paper."

"Nah it has to be all that smeared ink." Spinner disagreed with the parent.

"Do you think he accidentally burnt the book due to how fed up he was?"

The blacked-out part of the paper came off.

"Huh?"

This wasn't ink... This was just a black sheet. How did he not notice that!?

There was a note in between the paper and the sheet.

"He was blind that's how." Dabi bounced back.

"Pft."

--

"Midoriya is one sly kid."

"Hawks, isn't a bird's eye view pointless here? Sit down." Endeavor spoke as the young adult compiled without a fuss.

"Can't underestimate the number 1 now, can we? Hm."

'As long as they don't become suspicious of me due to this kid's smarts.'

The whole thing — that the heroes were supposed to do — was written out on it.

Whatever Mastermind was controlling their actions through cryptic books sure knew how to do his thing.

"THAT'S MY VILLAIN LEADER OF COURSE H- ACK!" Just before he could spiral down; Kendo knocked him out.

"All that and he's sixteen. Can't I adopt you? Or should I ask All Might and Inko-san? If not then I want to be your aunt!! I want to show off that I have a cute, adorable, smart, sadistic, passionate, heroic, strategic nephew like all those braggy old hags!!"

"You mean Aunties?" Ectoplasm questioned watching as the grown adult huffed.

"Yeah!!"

"Nemuri you're better than this."

--

"One of those words is not like the others." Kendo grinned.

"It's cute, right? She already used adorable, which is just a better way of saying cute."

"No... but I'm thinking that you're spending too much time with the Toga girl, Uraraka-san."

"Nah. I don't think so."

~O~

The following day at UA High...

Unlike the usually lively preparations that went on campus, things looked a lot more dull.

"Oh yeah, it was supposed to be the school festival."

"Festival? Oh yes!! I completely forgot!"

"Damn, so many things happened, especially involving Midoriya. No wonder we forgot."

Since, everything that had recently happened have been kept a secret from most of the student body and the media, the ones who knew couldn't help but feel all the pressure on their backs.

A student was reported dead. The villains were planning a big attack. Only two Pro Heroes were doing something. Nezu could call off the festival any moment. And only they knew that.

"Why does it feel like the festival is more important than Midoriya's death?"

"Maybe it's because they added it last." Rin explained before Mirio gave the "insider info". As he called it.

"To Midoriya, the festival was just as important because it was his opportunity to make Eri smile. I even heard that Class 1-A wanted to kill others with their music for the band."

"Did someone say kill?"

The ones who went to save Midoriya from the villains told their other classmates about what happened. And for Todoroki, the hardest part to describe was to what happened to the green-haired boy in the end, again.

"Wait, wasn't that classified?" Mirko questioned, her previous grin falling to a line.

--

"Sorry Todoroki-kun."

"It's okay."

...sorry.

It was a shock to all of them... But they were instructed to not act any different. And it was killing them to act like nothing happened.

On the other hand, Eri started to get worried when Midoriya didn't come to see her two days in a row. They usually hung around in his free time with Mirio!

But now he wasn't there...

"I refuse to believe he's dead! How could he part with us? With Eri!!"

"She doesn't know! Oh, this would hurt her even more, how could they!"

"This is making me feel so sad."

--

"Guys I'm healthy and alive, I'm right in front of you. Stop pretending I'm dead."

"A lesson about mood, tone, and how to manipulate is in need for you, don't worry. I ensure that all my pupils ace their classes."

"We're not even part of your school!"

"Yeah!!"

Did something bad happen?

She asked Mirio but he said that he hadn't seen or heard from Midoriya in a while either.

She hoped he was fine.

"He should be fine, he's the Villain Leader after all!"

"No, he's Deku-san. He will win, I know it." Eri puffed.

Mirio just left her back at the teacher's dormitories as something came up from his classmates.

Eri sat down on the couch in the Common Area, alone, waiting for him to come back.

"Wait no! Don't leave Eri alone!!!"

"This is some strong red flags," Tokoyami exclaimed in that tone of his, swiftly munching on an apple. Dark Shadow was going ballistic, screeching at the idea that such a sweet child, Eri would once again be a captive.

Yet this time her kidnapper is more cruel and demonic than the Yakuza. The symbol of fear; All For One.

Alisha's eyes enlarged in fear as the dark claws swiped towards the screen. An attempt to grab onto the periwinkle doll who is so precious to Class 1-A. Quickly, her feet moved, and her hands flailed for the light switch. Ruining the ambiance of the studio as it was engulfed with white lights.

"Dark Shadow control yourself!!!"

But before everyone could shield their eyes something happened that made the majority's stomach drop. Something... purple.

A warp gate appeared behind her.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!"

"Damn, did you have an oxygen tank for lungs?!"

"Eri-chan!! You can't be taken!!" Hado reached out to Eri wrapping her in a 'too tight' embrace.

"I can't breathe- Nenei-chan!!" Eri choked out patting the 3rd Year's back.

"Ah! Sorry!"

--

"F*ck you, leave her alone." Mistuki raised her middle finger towards the villains who weren't paying her any mind. After all, they were winning and all the curses that followed were just the words of the losers.

"Sh*t."

"F*ck."

"'Bout to end these vile beings who dared touch the child. Anyone else?" Ibara questioned as her vines began to rise... menacingly.

"Deep breaths... deep? HOW DO YOU CALM YOURSELF?!"

"You're supposed to count in a particular order when you're doing these exercises. The key is to breathe as slowly as you can, it will trick your brain." Shinsou exclaimed, smiling at his villain brethren.

--

"Kidnapping Eri should be illegal."

"It really should."

"Nezu-san, can't we make this possible?" Snipe questioned his boss.

...

"Isn't it already? It's in the name!"

--

"A, it's Midoriya so Eri's safe. B, it's Kurogiri, meaning that Eri is in danger."

"..."

"I'm seriously hoping it was Midoriya that took her."

"Same." The majority of Class 1-B said in unison.

"Would that be a plot twist?" Sero questioned as Ojiro shrugged.

"The amount of glazing you guys are doing because of the first film is sad. Shigaraki killed the child. And Kurogiri took the girl. Stop with the false hope and look at what you're seeing." Compress tsked catching the glares of several teens.

"How dare you underestimate our Leader!! Let's see who would be the last one laughing in the end HM?!"

"Guys at this rate you'll sound like typical gangsters," Izuku announced as Alisha began to open the doors once again. A signal that this episode was finished.

"Aren't they one already?" Chisaki questioned watching as Kaminari went up and personal at the mask with a disfigured typical thug look.

--

"Midoriya, how can you be so calm?" Mirio questioned, appearing right beside his intelligent kohai. Izuku flinched a bit from his unexpected appearance before smiling.

"I made a promise."

"Hm?"

"Deku I don't f*cking care if faking your death is part of your plans, but if Pipsqueak gets hurt because of it I will personally bury you alive," Katsuki warned, crossing his throat at the teen.

"Actually yeah!! Eri is too precious to get injured!!" Setsuna puffed.

"Since when were you soft for Eri Kacchan?" Kaminari blinked, amazed.

Midoriya's light expression fell as he stared at his rival. "Do you think I would ever let that happen, Kacchan?"

...

"Well guys, remember, no spoilers." Alisha smiled, bowing as the door opened widely allowing for them to see someone was waiting outside. A tall lanky man with hollow eyes. He was once a man who couldn't be touched. Be beaten. Although there was a bruise on his forehead as if he was whacked by something.

"I'm so pumped to see what's next!"

"So Midoriya doesn't uses Eri's quick. But at least I got Eri right."

...

"...why do I feel uneasy?"