A/N: I've updated Chapter 1 to include a scene that I felt was important. Go check it out if you've been reading this before this chapter dropped.

The sudden return of light blinded green eyes, and Midoriya had to shield his face with his arms as he felt gravity pull his body down. He landed with an unceremonious thud.

"Finally!" He lifted his head to see an adult dressed in a full black bodysuit and a silver helmet charging at him. "Something to do other than standing around! No offense kid, but it's part of the gig– OOF!"

Midoriya hadn't been idle when the villain was monologuing. He felt his body kick into gear, hands pushing the ground and legs kicking upwards right into the villain's helmet. He heard the headgear shatter with a satisfying crack and the villain crumpled to the ground.

"Guess you had that," the greenette whirled around at the sound of that, only to come face-to-face with a boy at least a head taller than him. Immediately he recognized the mask and white hair. Shoji Mezo. Quirk: Multi-Arms, or something. Hard to miss the literal multiple arms he has. They hadn't interacted much, but Midoriya had tried to remember the names of his classmates.

"You okay?" Midoriya asked, his breathing evening out.

Shoji nodded. One of his hands morphed into a mouth. "Can't say the same for him." It jerked towards the unconscious villain, before letting out a low whistle. "Geez... Remind me to never get on your bad side."

Curious, Midoriya turned his attention away from the weird sight of a mouth on an arm towards the villain he knocked out and cringed. There was a hole in the villain's helmet where he was kicked, giving the two students a good look at the bruising cheek and shattered teeth scattered on the ground.

Midoriya suppressed a shudder and focused on taking in his surroundings. "Anyway, it looks like we're on some kind of roof. Any idea where–"

"Argh!"

Their conversation was cut short by a loud scream. The duo made their way towards the edge of the roof they were on and their sights darted towards a girl running away from a group of villains and dodging their ranged attacks with comical precise reflexes. Midoriya recognized the pink skin.

"Ashido," he gasped. Before he could say anything else, Shoji interrupted him.

"Hey! I hear footsteps coming from the stairs. At least six of them, three flights down."

Midoriya tightened his grip on the railing. Ashido's in trouble, and taking the stairs down is a no-go – not when they have to fight their way through a group of enemies with quirks that they have no knowledge about. That'll only waste time that they do not have.

"We jump," he suggested.

Shoji stared deadpanned at him. "You can't be serious."

"It's not that high."

"We're four storeys above the ground."

"I've done six and didn't have a scratch."

"... Did Bakugo put you up to that?"

"Does it matter?" A pause. "For the record: the answer is not 'no'."

"That is not reassuring."

"We were five that time!"

"Look, I'm durable but I'm not crazy."

"You got a better idea?"

"... Fine."

Midoriya allowed his lips to curl up slightly. "Grab onto me."

"Not necessary." Shoji grunted. "I'm ready when you are."

The door behind them burst open. "Guess that's our signal!" Midoriya commented and leapt over the railing, Shoji following close behind.

The wind roared into Midoriya's ears as he fell, and for some reason, his lips widened into a smile as he and Shoji landed right in between Ashido and the group of villains pursuing her, kicking up a cloud of dust and debris that obscured their vision.

"What the–!" came the surprised cry of one of the villains. Has a hero arrived already? The cloud cleared and they saw two boys in hero costumes standing in the centre of a small crater. He turned towards the others behind him. "They're from that first-year class! Let's get them!" They shook off their shock at the rallying call and charged.

Midoriya didn't wait, his body taking a mind of its own as his muscles tensed before leaping into the fray. "Protect Ashido!" Time slowed as he closed the distance between himself and the villains. Dodging the first strike – a punch aimed at his face – Midoriya only had a split second to counter with a kick before the wild arc of a sword forced a step back. The barrage of fists and kicks and slashes continued, along with the occasional projectiles, but none of them managed to land.

And then, he spotted it: an opening left behind by the purple villain wielding the sword. The villain swung, and Midoriya weaved underneath the arc from left to right at a speed that surprised even himself. Not sparing a thought or even a chance for the villain to react, Midoriya directed a right uppercut straight at his jaw. The villain's helmet was knocked off his head as he crumpled to the ground without any resistance.

A second – or was it third? – villain charged, seemingly riled up by her pal's defeat, and her attacks turned sloppy, allowing Midoriya to dodge with relative ease before the teen kicked the lady square in the abdomen. The force from the strike knocked all wind out of her lungs and she was sent flying towards the rest of the villains behind her, crashing into them like a ball would when striking all ten pins in bowling.

Midoriya didn't spare the time to admire his handiwork, for he turned and ran towards Shoji and Ashido. "We've gotta move! The one's in the building will be catching up by now!"

Shoji didn't need to be told twice. Already giving Ashido a piggyback ride, he joined Midoriya in running away from the fight. They ran for about eternity, before turning into an empty building. Once Shoji confirmed they weren't in immediate danger, the trio took the time to catch their breaths.

Midoriya turned his attention towards Ashido. "Are you hurt?"

Ashido, who had been staring at Midoriya with wide eyes, shook herself off whatever stupor she was in upon hearing his question. "Yeah, I'm ok. Thanks for the save." She opened her mouth again, seemingly to say something else, but closed it just as quickly.

"No problem," Midoriya breathed, feeling his erratic breathing stabilise as he started to take in his surroundings. His eyes darted towards the sky, only to meet with the white ceiling of a dome that he recognized. "Looks like we're still in the USJ," he observed. "The question is: which part of the USJ are we even in?"

"The Ruins Zone," Shoji answered easily. Seeing the confused look that both Midoriya and Ashido were giving him, the boy shrugged. "There was a map layout at the entrance. You probably were too busy fanboying over Thirteen to notice."

Dunno if I should be offended or not, Midoriya couldn't help but think. He pushed his wayward thoughts aside and focused on the matter at hand. He placed a hand underneath his chin. "Something doesn't add up."

"You're referring to what Mr Aizawa said earlier? About this being coordinated?" Shoji queried, to which Midoriya nodded.

"I'm starting to see it. They attacked an isolated area that's far from school, a location where a class is supposed to be conducted. The timing is too exact to be a coincidence. I bet they were the ones responsible for yesterday's media intrusion and used it as a distraction to get our schedule. The thing is, I just don't see how they could kill All Might. I mean, he's the Number One for, like, over two – three? – decades now."

"Neither do I," Shoji agreed. "But, if you think about it, it wouldn't make sense if the villains went to this extent if they didn't believe they had the means to actually kill All Might, right?"

A sense of dread formed in the pit of Midoriya's gut at Shijo's words. He bit the bottom of his lips and did his best to shake off the heavy sensation. "In any case, we can't figure any of that out as long as we're stuck here." He turned towards Shoji and Ashido. "If you guys don't mind my asking, what are your Quirks?"

"My quirk's called Dupli-Arms. As you can see, I have a set of tentacles alongside my arms," Shoji answered first. "It can also duplicate any part of my body that I want. Eyes, mouth, ears. You name it."

Midoriya's eyebrows shot to his forehead. "That explains how you were able to tell how close we were to the villains."

Shoji nodded, and Midoriya thought the boy's eyes crinkled into a smile. "My Quirk's best for gathering information."

"Think you can find us an exit while steering us clear of the remaining villains?"

In response, two of Shoji's arms extended forth and turned into an eye and an ear. "Sure thing." He ran upstairs, seemingly towards the roof to gather the information they needed. Midoriya turned towards Ashido. "What about you?"

"My Quirk allows me to produce acid from my body. I can also control its solubility and viscosity," she explained. "There is a limit to how long I can produce acid, though, before I get dehydrated and need to drink water."

Midoriya nodded, taking the information in stride. Picking up the sound of footsteps behind him, the greenette spun around and took a battle stance.

"Woah! It's just me." Shoji raised his arms in reflex. "Good news: I found our exit. It's just three blocks west from our position. I saw Mr Aizawa still at the Central Plaza fighting some villains. And I've confirmed that everyone else is also in the building."

Green eyes furrowed. "And the bad news?"

The masked teen sighed. "We got five villains surrounding our position. They're probably the ones who were trying to catch us out on the roof. I give it seven minutes before they locate our hiding spot."

Midoriya's mind went into overdrive. "So, we fight. Work as a team to isolate them and knock them out. Then we get the hell outta here. We gather with Mr Aizawa at the Central Plaza and find the rest of our classmates."

"Shouldn't we find our classmates first?" Ashido asked worriedly.

"Think about it: Mr Aizawa is fighting in the Central Plaza. That's where we'll be the moment we leave this Zone," Midoriya turned to Shoji for confirmation and received a nod in reply. "He's already overexerted himself by jumping into the crowd of villains to protect us. If he's out, we lose our chance of getting to the rest. And besides–" he suddenly stretched an arm out, grabbing thin air before spinning around and slamming an invisible object onto the nearby wall just as Shoji yelled, "Look out!".

That's some battle awareness, Shoji observed while a chameleon villain materialized in Midoriya's hand, looking dazed from the impact inflicted just moments ago. He managed to track a villain that managed to slip past my senses.

"If I was the leader of this attack, I would put my minions in Zones that compliment their quirks. Which explains why these villains have been underestimating us, treating us as if we're some side characters who're just fodder. So, our classmates have the element of surprise on their side." His mind cast towards Katsuki, and he shuddered at the thought of his friend inflicting unspoken rage upon the villains who dared cross him. "That should buy enough time for us to assist Eraserhead in clearing the Central Plaza before helping the others."

Shoji and Ashido smiled at that. "So, what's the plan?"

BREAK

"Class rep, use your quirk to call for help." Thirteen ordered Iida. "Run to school and tell the teachers of the situation here."

Iida blanched. "But Thirteen..."

"Right now, our priority is the safety of your class," the urgent tone that the Space Hero took was enough to silence Iida's protests. "And you're the only one here with the speed to pull it off."

"Go, Emergency Exit!" Sato prompted as he took a battle stance in front of the speedster. "We couldn't call for backup inside here, so you'll have to do it outside."

"They probably won't follow you if you get out," Sero cocked his elbow, not unlike how one would load a shotgun.

"We'll cover you. You got the speed," Ojiro stepped up next to his two classmates. He turned to Iida, and the bespectacled boy saw the determination burning within the blonde's eyes. "Outrun these bastards."

Iida trembled as he clenched his fists, his nails digging through his gloves and into his palms. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath before opening them again. The exhausts in his calves extended fully, and the engines residing within his legs whirred to life.

As Class Representative of Class 1-A, he will complete the mission.

The mist villain, Kurogiri, watched in amusement as the noble hero and her students hatched a daring escape right in front of him. "Desperate you may be..." he pondered aloud, his mist expanding out like a bat expanding its wings "... are you seriously stupid to the point you reveal your plans to the enemy?!"

Thirteen uncapped all ten finger guards and aimed at the incoming black cloud. "We did it because it doesn't matter if we're found out!"

Black Hole was activated, and the Entrance of the USJ exploded into a violent tempest.

BREAK

"Seriously? That's the plan?!" Kirishima couldn't help but stare incredulously at Bakugo. The explosive blonde had an enraged look on his face despite the sweat dripping down his face. The redhead on the other hand wasn't affected by the heat, but still sweatdropped.

The duo was in the streets of the Conflagration Zone and had taken down the villains who tried to attack them. Bakugo was leading the way, looking for an exit out of the Zone while formulating a course of action.

A very violent and brutal course of action.

"We kill the rest of these side characters who come after us! Then we find the main asshole at the Central Plaza and blast his ass to kingdom come!" The explosive blonde had announced just moments earlier.

"Don't you think we should be looking for our classmates?" Kirishima tried to reason as he caught up with Bakugo. "I mean, we're the reason Thirteen couldn't use her Quirk on the mist villain in the first place." Red eyes clenched in pain as he recalled the mistake in his rashness. "As men, we should take responsibility for our actions."

"If you wanna go, go ahead by yourself," Bakugo dismissed crudely, his back still facing Kirishima.

"Huh? What about Midoriya? Aren't you wor–"

Bakugo suddenly whirled around and aimed an open palm in Kirishima's direction. The redhead shielded his face and hardened his skin immediately, but the resulting blast never hit him. Instead, there was an explosion behind him, followed by painful cries of surprise. Red eyes turned to the sound to see several villains lying on the ground, dazed and unconscious.

"Deku may act like an idiot, but he ain't weak," Bakugo lowered his arm as he answered with an air of calmness that Kirishima had never seen him exude before. "You said it yourself, the warp villain is the reason we're all scattered around. I can bet your ass that he's also the villains' get out of jail card. And they'll definitely need it when they realize how weak they actually are. So, we cut that route out when the time comes."

Kirishima couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. "Were you always this calm and rational?"

"The fuck is that supposed to mean, Shitty Hair?!"

"Oh look, I think I see our exit!"

"No, you didn't! And don't try to change the subject, you punk!"

"Now look who's talking!"

"HUH?!"

BREAK

"Scatter us and kill us, huh?" Todoroki Shoto repeated coldly, ignoring the fog that left his mouth as he exhaled. Blue and gray eyes scanned the small group of villains in front of him, frozen all over aside from their faces. "I hate to say this, but you guys look like you have no idea what to do with your Quirks."

Stepping forward, he tuned out the shocked mutters of the quivering thugs and recalled the words of the warping villain before being dropped into the Landslide Zone.

"We invited ourselves into the top hero school, UA High School, in order to have the famous Symbol of Peace, All Might, take his final breath."

Heterochromatic eyes narrowed. At first, the sheer number of the villains suggested that they gathered their elite forces and intended to overpower All Might, but...

He sidestepped, stretching an arm out and wrapping his right hand around a metal spear that would have impaled him if not for his reaction. Immediately ice spread out from left hand and foot, enveloping the two thugs who tried to ambush him in a pincer attack.

... a closer look shows that these pawns are nothing but a ragtag bunch of thugs.

Todoroki bit back a sigh. Information has always been essential, but as of the moment, its importance has been dialled to eleven. He turned to the villain with green paint over his face.

"Frostbite is a tragic fate for anyone. Your cells die slowly. Painfully. Cocooned for too long, and you'll lose your motor functions," the teen noted the fear dawning on the thug's face as the latter registered his words. "I wanna be a hero, and it would be tragic if such a cruel fate fell upon any of you." He lifted his right palm over the man's face.

"Tell me, how were you planning to kill All Might?" As a show of power, Todoroki released a soft cold blast of air at the man. "I'd suggest you talk, while you still have the capacity to use your voice."

"W-wait!" One of the villains yelled from behind him, his voice a desperate plea. "If I-I tell y-you, will-will you let m-me g-go?"

Todoroki raised his good eyebrow. He didn't have to promise to release them from their ice prison.

Just... alleviate the cold.

He is a hero student after all.

BREAK

"Yaoyoruzu, hurry up and make me a weapon too!"

"Aren't you a man? Why are you whining so much?" Jiro's eyes twitched. "You're the one with an electricity quirk. Use it."

"Were you even watching the battle trials?!" Kaminari stepped back in time to dodge a punch. "I can only wrap myself around in electricity!"

"You released a wave of it during the training."

"It was a desperate and stupid call. And you saw that Midoriya wasn't hurt by it!"

Jiro parried a pipe with her sword. "He said it's because he's resistant to electricity. Not everyone is like Midoriya."

"All the more reason I can't use my quirk! I'll hurt you guys! So now I'm the one who has to depend on you- Woah!" Another swing, and Kaminari stumbled backwards before his jaw became a punching bag.

Jiro turned in time to see her classmate floundering like a drunk maniac. Stretching a foot out, she kicked Kaminari in the back. "In that case, you're our human stun gun!"

"Are you serious right n–" Kaminari never got to finish his question for he slammed into the large villain attacking him. Instinctively, a wave of electricity was discharged from his body and he realized that his attacker was left stunned in place. He quickly turned to Jiro. "Hey! It works! You can count on me!"

Aren't you a little too happy-go-lucky?

"Can the two of you take this more seriously?" Yaoyoruzu queried as she dropkicked a guy in the head. A capture net shot out of her skin and she hurled it at another villain leaping at her. He struggled to get out of the net midair, but ended up stiffening as he joined the burly villain in being electrically shocked by Kaminari.

"Sorry!" Jiro plugged one of her earphone jacks from her ears onto her boot and unleashed a soundwave. Her heartbeat was pounding, increasing the rhythm of her soundwave as it shattered the lump of earth that a villain was throwing at her.

His outstretched hand unfortunately connected with Kaminari's face and he too joined the shocked villains club.

"It's done," Yaoyorozu suddenly announced while leaping backwards. Jiro looked at her quizzically and was about to ask the ponytail girl what she was talking about when a large carpet burst out of the girl's back. "It takes a while for me to create objects of this size."

The carpet covered both girls, leading to some taunts by the other villains surrounding them.

"A blanket?!"

"Are ya scared, wittle girls?"

Yaoyorozu peeked from beneath her cover, her lips curled upwards in a smug smile. "You are looking at a 100-millimeter insulator sheet." Onyx eyes darted towards the sole male classmate with her. "You know what to do, Kaminari."

The golden blonde's smile was equally smug, and several times wilder. "Alright! I don't have to hold back anymore!" Electricity wrapped his body as he lifted his arms in the air. "Indiscriminate Shock 1.3 Million Volts!"

His arms slammed onto the ground, discharging a wave of electricity not unlike the time during combat training against Midoriya, but a hell lot more potent. All around him, the villains shrieked, yet unable to move as their muscles were stunned to a standstill.

Yaoyoruzu lifted the sheet once again, scanning the unconscious bodies of the villains who now have steam emanating from their bodies. "Now then, I'm worried for my other classmates."

"Ya–Yaoyorozu!" Jiro stuttered. She had a hand covering her mouth as she realized that Yaoyorozu's uniform was in tatters in all the wrong places. "Your clothes are–"

The long-haired girl turned, a reassuring smile on her face. "I can always make them again!"

Jiro heard footsteps and immediately wrapped herself around Yaoyorozu. "Kaminari, don't you dare look this way!"

"Whee–!"

She glared at his direction, ready to rain hell on the boy for being a shameless pervert. "I said don't– eh?"

"Whee!" Kaminari was standing in the middle of the Mountain Zone, drool falling off his lips that were curled in a derpy smile. The boy was giggling and giving thumb-ups to... thin air.

"It must be the effects of overusing his Quirk," Yaoyoruzu observed. "His intelligence takes a toll from discharging such high levels of electricity in such a short time span."

"... How is that different from his usual self?"

The look Yaoyoruzu gave Jiro was drier than the Sahara's.

They were so preoccupied with each other, they did not notice the ground shaking behind them.

BREAK

"Honestly, I expected them to put up more of a fight," Ashido commented as they approached the exit of the Ruins Zone. She stretched, feeling her muscles loosen and the tension leave her body.

Shoji stared deadpan at the pink girl. "You did not just do that."

Midoriya brought a hand to his chin. "They probably were demoralized by their comrades being beaten earlier."

The trio's escape, as Ashido had put it simply, was pulled off with relative ease. The remaining villains' positions were easily located with Shoji's Quirk. Ashido acted as bait, dodging any and all attacks with her quick reflex and using the acid she produces as a final shield against any ranged attack that may have gotten too close for comfort, And Midoriya, well, he was tasked with taking out the distracted villains.

The bad guys never stood a chance.

"Anyway," Ashido hopped forward in joy as they reached the door. "Freedom at last!"

"We still need to regroup with Mr Aizawa. No doubt he's gonna need some level of support with the possibility of his fight being prolonged," Shoji pointed out. That caused the girl to pout.

"Must you spoil the mood?"

"Remember, if it gets too dangerous, we're getting the hell outta dodge," Midoriya remarked as poked his head out of the wall.

They were greeted by the sight of villains lying unconscious on the ground. Despite hiding behind the large wall, it wasn't hard to spot Eraserhead. Their teacher was in the midst of incapacitating a villain with his capture tape and pummelling another with a targeted kick onto the neck. His movement was such a mesmerizing show of practiced grace and power, Midoriya was somehow reminded of gymnasts at the peak of their performance.

The moment Mr Aizawa landed on both his feet was the moment a villain with disembodied hands wrapped on his face, neck and arms charged at the hero. Noticing the new opponent, Eraserhead tossed his capture tape forward, and the villain caught it as Aizawa rushed to close the distance.

"You got him, Mr Aizawa!" Ashido whisper-cheered as their teacher delivered an elbow directly into the villain's abdomen.

Shoji and Midoriya, on the other hand, did not share her enthusiasm. For the blow never connected, the villain having intercepted it with his hand. And that's when everything started to fall apart. Literally, as the skin on Aizawa's elbow cracked and peel from the point of contact with the villain's touch, revealing flesh and muscle tissues.

Green eyes widened in shock. "No..."

Midoriya watched as Mr Aizawa managed to wrestle free and leapt back, creating distance between himself and his new foe. The hand villain looked like he was saying something, but Midoriya could only hear deafening ringing in his ears.

"By the way, Eraserhead," Aizawa's eyes narrowed as the teal-haired villain took a laxed stance. A shadow loomed over the Pro, and he turned to see the creature with the bird beak towering behind him. "I'm not the final boss."

Before he could even figure out when the birdman had even moved, a large black hand grabbed Aizawa by the face and all that Eraserhead knew next was pain.

Mina watched, eyes wide and jaw slack, as her homeroom teacher's head was repeatedly slammed into the ground. Her body stood stock still at the sight of blood pooling around Mr Aizawa's face. She had to physically cover his mouth to prevent herself from letting out a shriek at the sight of the monster snapping Mr Aizawa's good arm like a twig.

Shoji, who also watched the brutal beatdown in muted horror, was able to find his voice, though it was only a whisper. "Midoriya, what do we do?" When he didn't get a response, he turned to his classmate. His eyes widened, and the muscles in his body froze rigidly.

Midoriya, like his two companions, wore an expression of horror and shock. But something was... different. His eyes were wide as saucers, but his eyebrows were twitching downwards. His lips were curling upwards into a sneer despite his jaw-dropping in supposed shock. His breathing was getting shallower, and his chest was heaving.

"You may have a quirk, Eraserhead," Shigaraki mused, "but in the presence of true power, you may as well be quirkless."

The beast slammed Mr Aizawa's face into the concrete once more. Shoji found himself staring at empty space.

One second, Shigaraki was lauding over Eraserhead how powerless the Pro was. Next, a tiny figure was grabbing Nomu by the arm and tossing the beast away from the fallen hero with a strained yell.

"What?!" Shigaraki gasped as the teenager in dark grey armour was standing at the spot his Nomu was just a moment ago. "What cheat code did you use?"

Midoriya paid no heed to Shigaraki's question. His attention was entirely on helping his teacher. "Mr Aizawa, can you hear me? I'm going to get you out of here."

The obvious lack of reply caused Shigaraki's neck to itch, and his fingers twitched in irritation. He marched up to the armoured teen who dared ignore him and brought a hand towards the boy's face. "Hey! I'm talking to you brat!"

Before he could lay a finger, let alone five, Midoriya grabbed the outstretched arm by the wrist, keeping the villain's hand from reaching any further. Shigaraki's eyes met Midoriya's, and the former had to fight off the sudden urge to run and hide at the sight of fluorescent green orbs glaring searing daggers in his direction.

"That's some killer instinct for a 'promising' hero," Shigaraki lamented. He nodded at his wrist. "Now be a 'good' hero and let me go." He tried to pull his arm back but found that his wrist was trapped in a death grip. His impatience grew. "Let go!"

Before the villain could decide to use his other hand to free himself, Izuku tightened his grip on the wrist and only let go when he heard a satisfying snap.

"ARGH!" Shigaraki hollered as he pulled his arm back and cradled his wrist with his good hand. Izuku wasted no time and used the window of opportunity to grab Aizawa before leaping out of the villain's reach.

"Midoriya, what–" Midoriya heard Mr Aizawa slur, the man fleeting in and out of consciousness as blood flowed down his face. "What ...re ...u doi–"

"Making sure you're not dying," the teenager replied. The calmness in his own voice despite his hands trembling stunned himself as he grabbed the cleaner part of his teacher's capture cloth. In the corner of his eyes, he noticed Shoji and Mina rushing over to his location.

"That was too dangerous, Midoriya!" Mina chided as her green-haired classmate began wrapping the tape around Mr Aizawa's head. "Rushing in like that–"

"We need to get Mr Aizawa out of here," Midoriya kept his eyes on his teacher, who looked to be out cold. He tuned out the ensuing protest from his classmates, along with the loud cursing undoubtedly from Shigaraki, to scan his surroundings. In the corner of his eyes, the teen noticed the giant beaked beast standing back up and the misty warp villain materializing next to Shigaraki. Time's running out.

"Shigaraki, are you alright?" Kurogiri's question was laced with concern as the young master let loose a series of curses that would rival a sailor.

"Am I alri– Of course I'm not fucking alright! My hand's broken, you misty pupilless fuck!" Shigaraki snapped hotly. He tried to take a deep, calming breath. He failed miserably. "Did you at least do something useful and fucking kill Thirteen?!"

"I could only put her out of commission," was Kurogiri's reply. "One of the students managed to escape. No doubt the heroes will be here by any minute now."

Kurogiri's calm tone despite the less-than-ideal report only brought back the itch in Shigaraki's neck. His eyebrows twitched as he growled. "Kurogiri, if you weren't our only escape route, you'd be a fucking pile of dust, right now."

"FUCK!" The pale villain cursed loudly and proceeded to kick up dust. "Now we needa go back and restart. After everything we've fucking done to get here!" His laboured breathing stilled when a thought occurred to him. "No," his posture straightened. "If we're leaving, I'm doing so after we've completed a side quest."

Red eyes landed on the dark-grey armoured Midoriya. "Nomu, get that Iron Man wannabe. I want his crushed hand as a stage reward."

Midoriya was already shoving his classmates away upon seeing Shigaraki pointing in his direction, but Nomu was faster. Black muscles materialized in front of the boy and a strong force grabbed him by the arm.

"Midoriya!"

Mina found herself calling out in concern as Midoriya was flung into the nearest wall. If Mr Aizawa was utterly crushed by the monster in seconds, what chance does Midoriya have in surviving the encounter?

"Mina, we need to get Mr Aizawa out of here," Shoji said hurriedly as he extended his arms into a makeshift stretcher for their homeroom teacher. "Stay here any longer and Mr Aizawa wouldn't be the only one who'll need help!"

Round beady eyes darted towards her still bleeding homeroom teacher, then towards where Nomu stood. She almost wanted to tell Shoji off, but found herself agreeing with him. If anything, he was right – their continued presence would only pose a risk not only to Mr Aizawa, but also to themselves.

Besides, it's not as if they have what it takes to even deal with Nomu's overwhelming power.

Midoriya pushed himself up against the pain throbbing in his chest. Green eyes spotted an indention in his armour. The force behind the punch definitely explained how Nomu easily defeated Mr Aizawa. His ringing ears drowned out Shigaraki's laughter, but the teen shook it all off to focus on the beast standing idly by.

The creature, nor the other two villains, didn't seem bothered by his friends making a run for entrance. Based on how Shigaraki ordered it around, Nomu only reacts to voice commands. That explains why its focus was entirely on Midoriya. No doubt if Shigaraki got bored, he would turn his attention towards Shoji and Mina.

Midoriya bristled at the thought, his fists balling on the ground. He lunged straight for Nomu before landing a punch with all his strength.

"What?" The teen gasped when he noticed the beast had taken no visible damage, nor did it seem fazed by his attack.

"Nomu has Shock Absorption. It was created to tank All Might's punches at full power." Shigaraki could be heard chuckling ominously. "What damage do you think a brat like you can do?"

"If you think about it, it wouldn't make sense if the villains went to this extent if they didn't believe they had the means to actually kill All Might, right?" Shoji's earlier assessment replayed itself at the back of Midoriya's mind like a taunt. A large hand engulfed his vision and he moved to dodge.

He wasn't fast enough, and instead his back made contact with the ground beneath him.

Shigaraki let out another laugh as his Nomu slammed the boy into the ground once again. His glee was cut short by a yell.

No, not a yell. A howl. One filled with absolute and barely contained rage as a projectile blazed into the scene and launched a large explosion right in the face of Nomu. The beast didn't take any damage, but it was stunned enough to release its grip on its captive.

"Damnit, Deku! I turn my head away for five seconds and you get your ass handed to you by the fucking big boss." Bakugo snapped as he dragged Midoriya away from the large creature. His friend began coughing, a sign that he's still alive.

The sight of a blonde kid with grenade-shaped gauntlets snatching the greenhead from his Nonu caused Shigaraki to widen his eyes. The villain was barely able to open his mouth in time as his feet turned cold. He looked down just in time to see ice forming on his torso.

"Your underlings were defeated by children," Todoroki declared as he stared at the frozen villains with equally cold heterochromic eyes. "And you call yourselves 'League of Villains'."

Kirishima joined his classmates and let out a groan when he realized the enemy had been neutralized. "Aww man, and I thought I could get a cool entrance."

Kurogiri let out a disgruntled noise. "Ugh, h-he go-got me b-by my brace."

The layer of ice that wrapped around his whole body kept Shigaraki in his place and he couldn't move. His eyes darted towards Nomu to see that the beast was also trapped. No matter...

"Nomu..." Shigaraki commanded and his attack puppet began to struggle against its frozen prison, eventually breaking free albeit at the cost of its body tearing itself apart before crumbling to the ground.

"What..." Todoroki uttered in disbelief at the sight of Nomu destroying itself, and his – and the others' – horror was compounded as the monster reformed its torn muscles.

"Regeneration?" Midoriya managed between coughs. "You said its quirk was shock absorption!" Bakugo let out an irritated scoff.

"Either the shithead's lying, or this birdbrain has more than one quirk."

"Well, you kids really are smart," the quartet of teens turned to see Shigaraki free from his icy restraints and was examining his wrist. "Did you losers think we won't be prepared for a slugfest?"

"It's his quirk!" Midoriya warned. "He managed to rot Mr Aizawa's elbow just by touching it!"

Shigaraki paid no heed to the warning of his ability, instead choosing to make sure that Kurogiri was also liberated from the trap. Then he turned his attention onto the dual-haired boy who dared mock his League of Villains. "I don't like you," he declared lazily. "Nomu, take the ice brat out. Kurogiri," his lips curled up into a maniacal smile beneath his hand-mask "let's kill as many of these brats before the Symbol of Peace gets here!"

Todoroki didn't have time to put up any sort of defence as he felt a strong force slam into him. But as he opened his eyes the dual-element wielder realized with a start that he was standing several feet away from where he was a second ago and, more importantly, he wasn't in the clutches of the Nomu.

Instead, it was Midoriya who was trapped underneath Nomu's giant hand that was pressing him onto the ground. It took everything from the teen to keep the monster from crushing him completely. The pain of a shattered collarbone sent his nerves into overdrive.

"Still kicking, huh?" Shigaraki's eyes twitched and he clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Since you wanna die so badly, I'll send you to hell right now. Nomu, crush his neck."

A second beefy hand descended and wrapped itself around his neck, causing Midoriya to close his eyes and let out a silent scream thanks to the sharp pain of his collarbone and his oxygen being cut from his lungs.

He had to get out! His friends are in danger! He needed to force the beast to release its grip!

"Let...go..." Getting the words out felt like talking with his mouth full of sand. Black spots covered his vision. He didn't even feel his arms heating up and moving as if taking a mind of their own. "LET GO!"

A red glow flashed from underneath Nomu before the very ground that the villains and heroes-in-training at the Central Plaza stood on shook violently. White and blue light engulfed the Nomu while temporarily blinding those within close proximity.

BREAK

Ojiro and Sato stood vigilant as they guarded the stairs leading to the Entrance while Uraraka and Sero tended to Thirteen. The quintet had wrestled control of the area from the warping gate villain and bought just enough time for Iida to get past the double doors and out of the USJ in search of help.

However, it was at the expense of Thirteen. The hero was injured when the villain opened a portal behind her while Black Hole was active, shredding her suit from the back. Uraraka had a glimpse of her teacher's wounds, and to say it was 'not pretty' was an understatement.

"Hey, is that Shoji and Ashido?" Ojiro suddenly asked, a hand over his eyes as he looked towards the bottom of the stairs. Uraraka bolted to his side, and she squinted her eyes to get a better view. A smile of relief formed on her face, and she cupped a hand to her mouth upon recognizing her multi-armed and pink-skinned classmates. "Hey!" She waved.

"Hey!" Ashido waved back. "Can you come down for a bit? Mr Aizawa's hurt! And I think Shoji's starting to tire."

That got a reaction immediately, both Sato and Uraraka rushing down to assist with carrying their homeroom teacher. The chestnut-haired girl tapped her fingers on Mr Aizawa, activating her quirk to lighten his weight.

"Thank you," Shoji muttered as Sato took over his role in carrying Mr Aizawa. His arms returned to their regular shape. "I was beginning to feel slightly numb."

Sato gave his classmate a reassuring thumb–up. "That's what classmates are for ri– what the?!" He was interrupted by sudden strong tremors beneath his feet, and it was only thanks to Uraraka's anti-gravity quirk that he didn't drop his injured teacher as he tried to steady himself.

"An ear–earthquake?" Ashido asked, finding some form of stability by grabbing onto Shoji. Her answer arrived in the form of a column of white energy blasting skywards and punching a hole in the dome.

The energy dissipated, and so did the quaking. Shoji was the first to recover, and the first to speak.

"That came from the Central Plaza."

BREAK

So much for being the Number One. All Might chastised himself as he soared through the air.

He had a sinking feeling earlier when both Aizawa and Thirteen didn't pick up his calls. His pride took the hardest hit when it took Young Iida bursting into Principal Nezu's room, face all pale before uttering the three words he dreaded hearing.

"Villains... attack... USJ..." the boy had managed between pants. It was all the Number One Hero needed to spring into action, not waiting for Nezu to gather the other teachers as he rushed out of the office through the window.

If only he had prioritized his duties as a teacher and trusted the other heroes like Nezu had warned. Then two of his colleagues wouldn't have to deal with the crisis on their own. Worse still, nineteen young heroes-in-training who have barely a week's experience have been tossed to the wolves.

He noticed the white dome of the USJ in the horizon and that's when he heard it. A faint, yet sharp, pulsating hum just as a part of the dome exploded, a column of blue and white light streamed out of it in droves.

That's- Ultra Beam?! Blue eyes widened, and Toshinori Yagi put more strength into his legs for the next leap than he ever did ten years ago.

BREAK

"What the hell was that?" Shigaraki cursed as his vision slowly recovered. His nose was assaulted with the nauseating smell of leather burning and he immediately opened his eyes. "Nomu– No..."

The beast's torso was undamaged, and the same could be said for its lower body. Just not the head.

Hard to do so when what was left of it was nothing but a glowing red stump on the neck.

That beam of light turned the air into plasma, Kurogiri looked upwards to see a hole created in the ceiling from melted metal braces as the air sizzled with sparks of electricity. Pupilless eyes turned towards Nomu's headless body that fell backwards to reveal one Izuku Midoriya still lying on the ground. Yellow slits widened into round saucers upon noticing that the teen's arms were crossed in a '+' shape and the wisps of smoke emitting from his vertical hand. It came from the child?!

Shigaraki broke Kurogiri's train of thought by letting out a frustrated yell. "This brat cheated! There's no way he can land a fucking crit on my Nomu! That move was a fucking hack!"

"Tomura Shigaraki, please remain calm," Kurogiri tried to reason, but the young villain was having none of it. Shigaraki began stomping towards the still supine Midoriya, who was panting heavily. The sound of loud and quickfire explosions forced him to leap away as one Katsuki Bakugo planted himself between Shigaraki and the object of his wrath, ready to blast the villains to smithereens.

"You aren't laying a crusty hand on him," the blonde snarled before he launched himself at Shigaraki. "Fuck off and DIE!"

Kurogiri's form expanded. "I won't let you!" A black portal appeared right in front of Bakugo's flight path, giving the teen no chance to dodge as he was dropped right on top of both Todoroki and Kirishima in a tangle of limbs.

That only served to piss off the blonde further, who quickly freed himself from the pile and lunged at the pair of villains once again. "As if that'll stop me, shitheads!" He aimed a glowing palm at the duo, "Now DIE!"

The explosion that followed would have hurt Shigaraki had it not been for Kurogiri's intervention. The fog villain was quick to create a dome of mist around his young master. The cloud shrank into a speck within the blink of an eye right before being harmlessly blown away by the shockwave of the ensuing explosion.

The dust cleared, and Bakugo cursed under his breath as he surveyed the damage – or lack thereof – that he inflicted. Without any bodies lying around no doubt the misty fuck had warped hands-for-face away. Red eyes landed on Midoriya and the explosive blonde rushed towards his childhood friend.

"Izuku!"

"Watch it!"

Todoroki-the-icy-hot-moron yelled out in alarm before a wall of ice rose right by his side. Several gunshots rang out and the bullets cracked the ice. Whirling around, Bakugo saw several villains who Mr Aizawa had taken out earlier were now gathering near the plaza.

Kirishima hardened the skin of his arms and took a fighting stance. "Looks like we got a fight on our hands."

Todoroki clicked his tongue in annoyance. "There's too many long range fighters." Heterochromatic eyes cursed at the sight of his misty breath. His body was starting to get cold now?!

Sparks of tiny explosions went off in Bakugo's palm. The blonde let out a challenging roar. "You wanna die so bad?! Bring it, you fucking losers!"

The villains charged, but a loud boom halted their rush. A new hole was torn open in the ceiling as a blur crashed into the plaza, sending up a wave of dirt and debris for a few moments. The hulking figure stood up from within the cloud of dust.

"Who was it that attacked my students?"

Bakugo felt shivers down his spine upon hearing the booming deep voice, and as he scanned his surroundings the teen knew that the villains were beginning to feel nervous.

"Who was it that hurt them?"

Heavy footsteps stomped the ground, sending tremors out as the dust cloud cleared for everyone to see the No 1 Hero standing intimidatingly in the middle of a crater of his making.

"YOU. WILL. REGRET. IT."

The scowl All Might wore was a stark contrast to his signature, pearly white grin. Blue eyes practically glowed as the Symbol of Peace took stock of his surroundings. He ripped his tie off collar. "Everything's alright now. Because I. AM. HERE!"

"What are you so afraid of?!" A muscular villain in a tank top snapped at his fellow cronies who were beginning to get hesitant. "We can take him! We still have the numbers advan– ACK!"

All Might zoomed into action, turning into a white blur as he crashed into the horde of enemies and knocked them out in a single leap before disappearing from view for a few seconds. More yelps, groans and curses could be heard as the remaining villains all across the USJ were taken down with the surgical precision possessed only by an overpowered seasoned veteran.

About five seconds passed when All Might returned with Yaoyorozu and Jiro in one arm, along with a brain-fried Kaminari in the other.

"Now," he began as he placed the trio of students on the ground, "who is the deviant behind such a despicable act? STAND AND FACE M–"

His challenge was cut off as his eyes landed on Young Midoriya.

"Young man!" The alarm in the Number One Hero's was evident as he appeared next to the unconscious teen's side in an instant. A quick finger on the neck confirmed the boy was still alive. Though his skin was concerningly warm.

He turned towards young Bakugo. "What happened here?"

A/N: ANDDDD CUT! *Phew* 7k words. Took a while to properly lay out a few aspects for this chapter. Hope you enjoy it. The writing's been abit the rusty end, so... sorry about that! Will continue to keep improving.

Oh and shoutout to ZoomieZoomie324 for making sure the writing isn't 100% trash, and to TidalMoon2003 for keeping me sane (or insane idk)

If there's anything you like about this story, don't be afraid to review/comment xD