A/N: ...You guys trust me?

...~AIV~...

( Kamino Ward: Unknown Bar )

"And you'll be doing what, exactly?"

Tomura took a swig of his water, looking up at his bartender compatriot, "Spectating. Watching it all go down, seeing how the crew handles themselves. Getting Moonfish was small compared to this, I wanna see how they do."

The TV suddenly sparked to life, static coming onto the screen, "Worried?"

"Mm, fifty-fifty."

All For One hummed questioningly, "Hm, pray tell."

"Some of them I'm not worried about. Dabi, Compress, Twice, they'll do their jobs just fine. Toga and Moonfish will more or less do their jobs, but I know they'll likely be easily distracted. Spinner will do the job, but with his Stain obsession, if he sees Midoriya or Jirou he might start bowing at their feet. And, then there's Muscular."

"I still believe him to be a valuable asset."

"Yeah? Well, you're not punching distance from him."

"Ah, fair point. So, your original plan then?"

"Yep. Giran slid a couple bucks to one of his guys out on parole working as maintenance at the bus depot UA's transportation does their cleaning and refueling. He's bugged every UA bus that's gone through, and it just so happens that one of them went off course and into the mountains. Doing some digging, I learned it's the Pussycats' lodge. Giran got us some blueprints, and Kurogiri did some scouting." Tomura looked up at Kurogiri, crossing his arms on the table. "You have a spot to drop our muscular friend off at."

Kurogiri continued to polish glasses as he nodded, "A cliffside, out of the way from everyone else, leaving us to do what we came to do. He'll distract himself, as instructed. I must ask, however, what if he finds the Bakugou boy before us and decides to try and kill him?"

"We gave him two rules to follow. Just two. If he can't follow two very simple rules, we were screwed from the start."

"Hm, I suppose."

"Just relax, alright? Both of you. We'll get it done."

"You must realize that you're risking a lot for one recruit," All For One grumbled from the screen. "You really believe the Bakugou boy will turn?"

Tomura gathered his notes, along with Katsuki's picture of defying All Might at the Sports Festival. "If he doesn't, what'll it cost us? The heroes cracking their backs trying to find us? They're already doing that. I've got ideas, it'll be handled."

Tomura brushed them off, leaving the bar and heading up the stairs to his floor. He walked past Toga trying to enter her room, grocery bags in hand. "Hey, Shiggy!"

"Mm," He noncommittally hummed back, reaching his door. "You steal those?"

"Yep!" she smiled brightly.

"You followed?"

"Nope!"

"...The store clerk dead?"

"Maaaybe~"

"Toga..."

"Ugh, fine. He's alive, I promise." Toga rolled her eyes, kicking open her room door. "I remember; no drawing too much attention."

"Thank you," Tomura sighed, walking into his room and shutting the door behind him, finally alone with his thoughts again.

Sure, when it came to Bakugou, he was lying.

Well, sort of. Tomura had absolutely no idea if Bakugou would turn, and frankly, he didn't care. That wasn't what he wanted to speak with him about. He was risking a lot just for some information, but if All For One taught him anything about business, it was that even the smallest of information on your competitor can change the game in its entirety.

He and All For One might be playing different games, but that was fine.

For now, at least.

All For One wanted him to spread his wings as a leader, so he was gonna do just that. Tomura sat down at his desk, pulling out his binder, flipping it open to put Katsuki's picture back inside. His eyes lingered on the file name next to Katsuki's, smirking at the name.

[Classified: HPSC Restricted: Tartarus Prisoner 297]

He had plans of his own...

...~AIV~...

( The Next Morning: WWP Training Lodge Dining Area )

"You said yes?!"

Izuku had to agree with Kyouka's confusion. Surely he had misheard All Might. They sat almost alone in the dining hall, outside of a few 1B students and Ragdoll spread out at other tables. They had woken up a bit earlier than everyone else. Izuku had his phone to his ear, with Kyouka listening in with her jacks.

"I panicked! I'm very bad at saying no to women, alright?! She was very kind in her text, and-WhoaWhoaWhoa, wait a minute! You two still haven't told me HOW she got my number to begin with! Don't bother lying either! Young Jirou, you and I both know Young Midoriya is terrible at it."

Kyouka deadpanned up at Izuku, who mouthed an apology back at her. She sighed, keeping her voice low so as to not attract any attention from the other tables, "We...We may or may not have told her we could get her a date, and gave her your number due to not having any other options."

"What?! Why?! Why would you do that?!"

"..." / "..."

"Oh God, you were bribing her. I was your bargaining chip?!"

Izuku pursed his lips, giving a barely audible, "...Kinda."

"Why?! What is wrong with you two?! What was it even fo-...Actually, don't answer that. Will it give me scarring mental images?"

"Yes." / "Yes."

They could practically visualize Toshinori pinching the bridge of his nose as a loud sigh came through from the other end. "I...You-...I'm at a complete loss for words."

"Hey, to be fair," Kyouka quickly tried to defend them. "We didn't actually think you'd agree to it. At best, like, one date. We know you're still into Nagant."

"Oh Jesus- Can we not?! Did you two even think about what would happen if my secret got out, and then Pixie Bob comes questioning why you two had the personal number of All Might?"

"..."

"..."

"...You see-"

*Click*

The line went dead, leaving the two teens to look up at each other in silence. Izuku pocketed his phone, pursing his lips as he laid his clasped hands down on the table. "In my defense...this was your idea."

'I didn't think he'd say yes!" Kyouka raised her hands up in defense. "That's why I negotiated to get us a full week. Okay, yes, using his number wasn't the best idea, but..."

"..."

"..."

Izuku raised his brow, waiting for Kyouka to continue, "Yeah?"

"I've got nothing. Hormones trumped logic last night."Izuku couldn't even be exasperated, because she wasn't wrong. He went along with the plan with almost no resistance. "We should also be honest with ourselves though. Do we regret last night?"

"Nope," Izuku immediately shook his head.

"'Agreed. Get it out of your mind for now, you need to focus for your race."

Izuku took a deep breath, nodding as he went back to eating his food. They had nearly a month before they saw All Might again, so they could deal with those repercussions later.

Besides, maybe this would turn out for the best. Probably...

Maybe...

Hopefully...

Please?

...~AIV~...

( Some Time Later: Pixie-Bob's Handmade Training Ground )

"Runners! Ready yourselves!"

Following Pixie Bob's orders, Tenya and Izuku made their way to the freshly created path the blonde Pussycat had created for them. Both 1A and 1B were cheering, outside of Monoma of course, and placing bets on who would win.

Izuku bounced on his feet, rolling his shoulders back as Tenya stretched out his legs next to him. Tenya was smiling in excitement, looking over to his friend, "To be honest with you, Izuku, I've been wanting to do this for quite some time. I've watched your speed increase exponentially over these last few months, and I see no one better to help me push my abilities to the brink."

Izuku grinned back, already feeling the tingle of One For All course through his body, "I've been wondering about it myself. At the beginning of the year, you would've left me in the dust without question. Now, though? I think it should be really interesting. I can't wait."

"Agreed," Tenya downed the rest of his bottle of orange juice, tossing it aside as he charged his engines, "You know, you're incredibly chipper this morning, Izuku."

Izuku looked past Tenya's shoulder, seeing Kyouka in the crowd of students. She smirked and winked at him, sending a rush through Izuku's veins. "...Had a good night."

"Starting positions!" Ragdoll cheered from her position next to Pixie Bob on the plateau the latter had formed.

Aizawa stepped out in front of them, using his scarf as a makeshift flag. He raised it up in the air, taking a sip of his coffee, "The loser has to train under Tiger and I's supervision tomorrow."

Izuku and Tenya looked at each other, eyes wide in fear. Their friendship was strong, but that was a threat neither would dare let the other win for.

"On your marks!" Pixie Bob began, with both students getting into runner's positions. "Get set!"

Izuku could feel Tenya's engines rumble the ground next to him, his heart racing as sparks danced around his body. 'Tenya's gotten faster since the beginning of the year, but One For All's pace has outsped almost everybody else. His Recipro Burst will probably be his last resort, but that might be his downfall. He'll likely use it on the last straightaway, but I have my excess energy if need be. My full mobility is much better too, and I don't need fuel. Okay, I got this...I got this. One For All: 12%!!!'

"GO!!!"

The racers were gone in an instant, with Aizawa swiveling around on his feet from the wind, doing his best to keep his coffee in his mug. Izuku exploded his excess power out of his back, giving him the headstart as they raced through the carved out parth through the forest.

They curved around the lodge, heading off towards the mountain. He heard Tenya's engines fire off behind him, barely able to keep his footing as his friend caught up to him. They were neck and neck now, with Tenya smirking next to him.

Izuku couldn't help but return the look, starting to get his runner's high. He felt like he was in Return of the Jedi , racing through the forest like they were. To outsiders, it almost looked like a streak of green light and a blue blur weaving through the trees.

A sharp turn in the dirt path came up, with Tenya turning to drift. Izuku saw this as a perfect opportunity. He didn't turn, instead continuing his straightforward sprint. He redirected his excess power, and waited until the corner approached them. He fired his energy directly out of his left side, shooting him to the side as he pivoted in the air, landing on his feet and making the turn without losing any speed.

He charged forward, now ahead of Tenya again. He dared a look over his shoulder, seeing his friend both impressed and yet even more determined.

Izuku looked back to the path, ready to make his next turn and dodge the Earth Beast's attack...

What?

"AH!" Izuku leaped over the swipe of the suddenly appearing Earth Beast, with Tenya sliding underneath it. Izuku bounced off of a tree, hitting the road again at full sprint. But, that had slowed him down, now with Tenya slightly ahead of him.

Mandalay's voice suddenly appeared in both racers' heads.

-"You didn't think we'd make it that easy for you, did you?"~

The teens looked around the quickly passing by forest, seeing more of Pixie Bob's beasts forming all around them, including the path ahead.

"Kyouka was right. School run by psychopaths."

They pressed onward, dodging the attacks they could, and/or smashing right through the beasts. Both were slowed down with each attack dodged and performed, making the race's lead go back and forth between the two.

"You know," Tenya shouted over the wind, panting heavily as he grew more tired. "this really wasn't what I had in mind for a test of speed! This isn't exactly the most accurate way to tell which one of us is faster!"

"I have a strong feeling they really don't care! At least the beasts are small...Why did I say that?" Of course, right in their path, just before the final straightaway, was a massive conglomerate of all the earth beasts forming in front of them. A mountain of claws and hindlegs, claws flailing and teeth gnashing as it grew in mass. "Don't let it form!"

"Right! Together!"

'ST. LOUIS!!!' Izuku boosted to 15%, getting directly next to Tenya and locking arms with him. Tenya fired a boost out of his engines as Izuku blasted power behind him as they leaped up. They rocketed straight into the beasts, blowing right through the other side. 'SMAAAASH!!!'

They flew through the air as the monster fell back into the dirt below. Izuku grabbed onto Tenya, firing them down to the ground below. They hit the dirt, tumbling into a roll and both returning to the race. It was the final straightaway, the lodge in the distance ahead of them.

Izuku could hear Tenya's engines revving up, the high-pitched whistle of his exhaust getting louder. Well, at least one small portion of the race could actually be about speed.

'Full Cowling: 15%!!!"

"Recipro Burst!!!"

The contestants bolted down the final dirt path, the trees turning into nothing but a mess of green and brown blurs beside them. Izuku didn't dare go any further than fifteen percent, terrified of the pain causing his legs to give out there and then.

It was a good thing he didn't need more than fifteen percent.

He redirected his power behind him, deciding on one massive final burst of power. The crack of his energy echoed into the air as he leaped forward, careening him past Tenya and towards the same place they had started.

...He was coming in pretty fast, actually.

...Very fast, and his feet weren't touching the ground.

...Welp.

"WaitWaitWait!!!" Izuku shot past the finish line, with his class (or the ones that were betting on him) cheered, until they heard his panicked screams pass them by. In a quick effort to stop himself, Izuku fired out his energy in front of him and slowed down his crash landing.

That is, until a speeding Tenya who also couldn't stop himself, ran right into him.

In a bundle of limbs, sputtering engines, and green lightning, they rolled directly into a wall of dirt that Pixie Bob made to stop them. The earth crumbled down on top of them, with the teens coughing and sputtering out dirt as they tried to get up.

~"Haha! Well done, you two."~ Mandalay's voice appeared once more. She got up on the plateau with her teammates, throwing her arm out towards them. "It was close, but Midoriya is our winner!"

As the classes cheered, Tenya chuckled, shaking the dirt out of his hair, "Well, I suppose if I'm not fast enough, I should see Mr. Aizawa personally watching over my training as a blessing in disguise."

Izuku shook his head, brushing himself off and standing up, "Whatever he has you running tomorrow, I'll run it with you. I only won due to my quirk's special properties. Besides, it has to be better than Kaminari zapping me over and over for hours."

"I appreciate that, but I wouldn't doubt our teacher's level of sadism. We should race again at the end of next semester."

Izuku smiled as he reached his hand down to help his friend up, "You're on."

...~AIV~...

( Many Hours Later: Training Lodge Outside Dining Area )

Everyone was working on their separate pots of food again. An activity they all hoped to improve upon as the weeks past, purely out of necessity. Otherwise, their stomachs were in for one hell of a summer.

Izuku sat by the wood furnace in deep thought, his eyes glazing over as the conversation with Kota seeped back into his mind.

"You okay, Izu?"

Izuku was shaken from his thoughts, looking up to see Kyouka holding more chopped wood, gazing at him in concern.

"Izu? That's new."

"My nickname pool is running dry, I needed something. No good?"

"No, no," he chuckled, putting on his flame-retardant gloves and taking the wood from her. "I like it. Just surprised, that's all."

Kyouka kneeled down next to him, a hand on his back, "Well, maybe I'll pop it out from time-to-time. That black polo looks good on you, by the way."

"Thank you. I'd say you look good too, but I fear I'm getting repetitive."

"Doesn't mean I don't wanna hear it," Kyouka smiled back as she tugged on the straps of her red tank top. "Now, you want to tell me what you were thinking about?"

Izuku shook his head as he placed the chopped wood into the fire, "Just regretting that I didn't ask All Might for advice about Kota this morning."

"Well, it was a pretty loaded phone call already."

"Hmhmhm, yeah. I just thought maybe All Might would know what to say."

"Say about what?"

"Ah!" / "Ah!"

The couple startled, turning to see Shoto standing behind them with a pot of broth in hand. He blinked, eyes shifting between the two as he remained stoic as ever, "...I interrupt some couple thing?"

"N-No! No, we just didn't hear you..." Kyouka furrowed her brow, her jacks rising into her vision, "I know, ironic coming from me."

"I was just saying that I wish All Might was here to help us with Kota."

Shoto raised a brow, "Kota?"

"The kid that's been lurking around here," Kyouka clarified. "We've just been trying to help him through something, but he's not exactly the most agreeable person. But, he has very understandable reasons. We just hit a bit of a dead end."

"Well, what's his problem?"

Izuku and Kyouka shared a quick glance, knowing that while Shoto was someone they could trust with their lives, Kota's backstory was a private matter. It was by pure circumstance that they knew as it was.

"He has problems with quirks and the superpowered society," Izuku finally answered, keeping the full story as covered-up as he could. "We were trying to get him to come around to it, see it in a different light. But, no such luck. I thought All Might would know what to say. He's been inspiring the whole world on a daily basis for thirty years. If anyone would know what to do, it's him, don't you think?"

"Hm...It depends."

Kyouka deadpanned up at him, "No shit, Sherlock."

"What I meant, is some speech from a couple of strangers won't help much. It just feels like you're prying into his business. It's all about the actions you take. People usually don't like to listen until they're given dramatic examples. You can't change someone's point of view without showing them why they should. I don't know what you guys are trying to get from him, but I think you'll need a bit more than just words. You both know how stubborn people can be, I was one of them." Shoto turned away from them, heading towards his own stove. "But, Izuku, you've done it before. With me, I mean. You can do it again."

They watched him walk away, returning to his own table. Izuku sighed, throwing off his gloves and sitting back against the warm stove. "He's right."

"Mhm. The only problem is, I don't see how we can show him that. At camp, that is. Training our quirks is something he hates, and that's all we're gonna be doing."

"Yeah...Mm, maybe...Maybe I can show him the All Might video? The one that inspired me?"

"I don't think this is just a matter of inspiration. Hero Inspiration is one of his problems."

"Ah, damn it. You're right," Izuku hit the back of his head on the stove with a deep sigh. "I know his situation is very delicate, and we can't help everyone. But, when he's right there in front of us..."

Kyouka squeezed his hand, "I know. We'll figure it out, we usually do. We've got plenty of time. Besides, I know who you can help right now. Me, whenever we have to do this apparently scary challenge against 1B in a couple hours. You know Scary and I don't mix well together."

Izuku chuckled, squeezing her hand back, "I'm well aware. We still have to watch 'Aliens' at some point."

"I refuse and you can't make me."

...~AIV~...

( One Hour Later: Training Grounds )

1A stood gathered around the edge of the forest, awaiting the Pussycats' to explain the so-called 'scary' event they had planned.

"Alright!" Mina cheered, pumping her fist in the air. "The Test of Courage, here we co-...No..."

Mina caught Aizawa's gaze, an evil grin slowly growing on his face. "Who's ready...?"

"No..."

"For..."

"NoNoNoNoNo-"

"Summer School?"

"AAAAAAAHHH!!!" Ashido, Kaminari, Kirishima, Sato, and Sero all tried to bolt, tripping over each other as they tried to make a break for the forest. Everyone watched as Aizawa casually wrapped his scarf around his students, dragging them back towards the lodge with his usual deadpan expression. "Somebody cut the scarf! Tooru! Save me!"

Her pleas fell on deaf ears as the class watched them go, not daring to defy their teacher.

Kyouka heard their complaints loud and clear as they disappeared into the lodge, looking over to Izuku, "Do you realize how close we were to being a part of that group? It's still wildly unfair that All Might was an option to fight."

Izuku shrugged, "Yeah, but even then, we were the ones that decided to stay and fight. We actively chose not to run for the gate."

"Yeah, bu-...We-...Damn, we were stupid."

"Agreed." / "Agreed." / "Agreed." / "Agreed." Their friends nodded their heads in agreement.

Kyouka deadpanned at them as the Pussycats came back, with Tiger stepping to the front.

"Alright, listen up! The Test of Courage is gonna go like this: Teams of two will enter the forest every three minutes, follow the markers laid out across the forest, find their name cards at the halfway point, and make it back here. 1B is already in the forest, waiting to use their quirks in creative ways to startle you to the best of their ability without making direct contact. Basically, we're gonna scare the ever-living shit out of you." Ignoring the looks of confused fear on many faces, he raised a slip of paper into the air. "The papers you all drew earlier? Find the classmate with the matching number. That'll be your partner. Team One, head to the start of the path."

Izuku furrowed his brow, watching as the others went to find their partner, "I don't remember taking a paper."

Kyouka shook her head, "Me neithe-...Oh, right. Duo."

"Yeah, sorry, you two." They both looked up to see Mandalay approach them, two slips of paper in hand. After being handed the paper, the couple glanced down at their slips to see the number eight on both of them. "Since you two are required to work together on all tasks, we took you out of the drawing pool. But, that means you're going last."

"Fine by us," Kyouka replied, with Izuku nodding next to her. They walked over to one of the nearby outdoor dining tables and took a seat. Kyouka propped her arms up on her thighs, resting her head in her hands. "Guess we just hurry up and wait then."

...~AIV~...

Most of the groups had gone after fifteen minutes. Shoto had to go with Katsuki, and while he remained his usual stoic self, they could tell he was looking forward to it about as much as Katsuki was.

Due to the remedial classes, they were at an odd number of students, leaving Tooru with Tenya and Koda, who would soon be sent off into the forest.

While they waited, Izuku and Kyouka quietly discussed incredibly important topics fitting of Heroes-In-Training...

Kyouka scoffed, "You seriously think you don't have a type?"

"I-I've never really thought about it," Izuku shrugged. "There's no general feature or anything that I'm looking for in a girl. I've never really sought after anyone besides you, so, I don't think I have a type. What would my type even be?"

Kyouka knit her brows, thinking deeply as she analyzed her boyfriend, "Okay so, based on my overall vibe, my style, and your love for heroes, you totally had a crush on Raven from Teen Titans, Ramona Flowers, which I already knew about, and I'll take a gamble here and say Rogue from X-Men. But, specifically X-Men Evolution. Am I in the ballpark here?"

"...Okay, so hear me out-"

"AHA!"

"W-Well, what's your type then?!"

Kyouka smirked, crossing her arms smugly. "My type can't be boiled down to fictional characters."

"...Peter Parker."

"God-damn it!" Izuku began to laugh as Kyouka feigned a pout. She opened her mouth to retort, but her gaze was dragged up into the sky. "Uh...Izuku? What are the chances of Shoto and Bakugou getting into a fight?"

Izuku recovered from his laughter, turning back to her in confusion, "What do you mean?"

"That," Kyouka pointed overhead, leading Izuku to turn back to the forest and see a massive and still expanding pillar of smoke in the distance.

Izuku stood up, his eyes going wide, "Shoto and Kacchan are way too smart to use their quirks like that."

Kyouka's jacks perked up, her heart dropping as she recognized the sound she heard. It was the exact same sound she had heard back at the USJ.

"Izuku, I think we have company!" They both turned back towards the rest of the class and the Pussycats, seeing black portals emerge from thin air. A massive metal rod flew out of one, slamming directly into Pixie-Bob's head, immediately rendering her unconscious.

The location of where camp took place was supposed to be a secret. How were they tracked?

Magne and Spinner emerged from the portal, with Magne grabbing her weapon from next to Pixie Bob's body. "Aw, I was aiming for the big fella. Oh well."

"Don't worry, Big Sis Mag. You'll get your chance." Spinner smiled, turning to the students, "Good evening, UA Students! You meet the League of Villains once again!"

Mandalay turned back to the students, nodding towards the lodge, "Everyone, get to the safety rooms! Now! Class President, lead them!"

"Yes, ma'am!" Tenya nodded. "C'mon, everyone!"

This caught Spinner's attention, his smile growing wide, "Ah, it's you! The fake that helped put Stain away! I've got a bone to pick with you, four-eyes! I'm one of his most devoted followers."

Kyouka looked at the man's outfit and ridiculous sword, rolling her eyes, "Really? Never would've guessed."

Spinner's eyes went wide as his gaze found the owner of that voice, seeing Izuku and Kyouka. "Big Sis Mag! Those two are off limits! They were deemed true heroes by Stain himself! Leave them unharmed!"

"They're off limits anyway, so whatever," Magne shrugged, digging her weapon into Pixie Bob's head.

Izuku still couldn't believe that twice now he could happily wear his Stain-Immunity Badge. Izuku gasped, swiveling towards the forest, "Kota!"

Kyouka's heart sank at her boyfriend's words, realizing the young boy wasn't here, "Oh shit. Mandalay!"

The leader of the Pussycats turned back at the call of her name, just finishing broadcasting orders to Ragdoll to keep track of everyone.

"We know where Kota is!" Izuku shouted to her. Mandalay's eyes went wide, looking back and forth between her and the villains, conflicted between her jobs of being an aunt and being a hero.

With Tiger suddenly taking action, giving her no time to think on it further, she nodded at them, "Go! Remember, no fighting! Just Run!"

Izuku wasted no time, taking Kyouka's hand and moving her behind him, kneeling down for her to hop on.

"Tenya, go on without us! We're gonna go get Kota and be right back!" They didn't give Tenya any time to respond, with Izuku taking off into the forest in a green streak of light. Thankfully, the surrounding area of Kota's secret base didn't seem to have any fire near it, so they were at least given that comfort. "Call All Might!"

Kyouka growled, her phone already out, "I'm trying, but there's no signal. They must've cut off all communications."

"Damn it. I should have known something would happen after Shigaraki's thing at the mall!"

"Stop that! You couldn't have kno-!" Kyouka's jacks suddenly perked up, eyes wide. "Izuku...I hear two voices."

His eyes widened, running out of the forest, seeing a massive looming figure walking towards Kota. "Oh no..."

...~AIV~...

( A Couple Minutes Prior )

~"Kota! Get back to camp NOW!!! I'm sorry, I don't know where you always run off to! I can't come to you, just please come back! If you find any students, stick with them as you return to camp!"~

Mandalay's message was unfortunately too late, falling on deaf ears as Kota slowly backed away from the hooded man before him.

"Huh, you're not on the list. Whatcha doin' up here, kid?" Kota didn't answer, scared into silence as he continued to back away from him. "Slick hat you got there. All I've got is this stupid mask. Wanna trade? Trade me, and I might just let you live."

Not wanting to take that bet, Kota tried to make a break for it, sprinting towards the forest.

Goto removed his mask and crushed it, "Hehe, well, can't say that I didn't try. Now I'm gonna have some fun with you!"

He leaped forward, far faster than Kota could track, bouncing off the cliffside and landing in front of him with strand after strand of muscle engulfing his arm. He raised his arm up, about to bring it down on the child.

But, a flash of green light engulfed his vision, knocking the villain to the side and taking Kota with it. Goto grunted as he stood back up straight, his eyes locking with fierce emerald orbs.

Izuku kept his eyes locked on Muscular as Kyouka hopped down from his back and picked up Kota.

Goto smiled widely as he recognized the two faces before him, "Well, well, well, Izuku Midoriya and Kyouka Jirou. Whaddya know? The two kids we were explicitly told not to kill."

Izuku and Kyouka glanced at one another, both with the same thought on their mind.

...Not to kill?

"Hm, this is a pretty sweet gig I've got going on here," Goto tore off his cloak, dropping it to the wayside. Izuku's brow furrowed, the villain's face feeling oddly familiar. "But, that Shigaraki guy is just so controlling about it. Ah, I really shouldn't...But, I have to admit, it just makes me all the more curious to see what you can do."

"M-...Mom..." The couple could both hear Kota muttering under his breath, seeing his petrified face and his eyes completely glued to the villain before them. "Dad..."

Izuku's brain finally put the pieces together, internally cursing at the universe. How the hell did the exact villain that killed Kota's parents show up right where he was? Fate really did just hate him, didn't it?

"Don't worry, Kota..." Izuku's energy flared, One For All zapping through his veins. "We're going to save you!"

Muscular rolled his eyes, but his manic smile never went away, "Of course you'd say that. Heroes always spout bullshit wherever you go. Ah, well I guess I can't knock ya for staying on brand. Well, guess if I can't kill ya, I should ask: You see that Bakugou kid anywhere? He's at the top of our list."

'Kacchan?!' / 'Bakugou?!' The couple both thought, the stakes suddenly rising even higher than they thought. There wasn't just an immunity list, but a specific hit list?

Kyouka stepped forward, deciding to take a gamble, "You just said you've been ordered not to kill us. Let us walk."

Goto hissed back through his teeth, muscle strands slowly emerging from his arms again, "Yeah, about that, it's quite the situation I'm in right there. Being told not to kill you just makes me want to kill you even more. I'm way too curious. Hm, although, while I was told I can't kill ya, sure...but, never said I can't fight you. Beat you into a pulp. Break every bone you got. Spill your guts out all over this mountain. Hm, well, as long as you still got a pulse.."

Izuku's hair stood up straight, grabbing Kyouka immediately, "Hold o-!"

"Then I still did my job!!!" Muscular was on them in an instant, but Izuku zipped them away as quickly as he could, leaving a pulse of energy behind him. Muscular punched into the ground, his arm embedded into the rocks and his muscles convulsing from the electricity. "Ah, damn it! The hell was that?"

'He's fast!' Izuku stopped where the rocks met the forest's grass, doing his best to keep Kyouka and Kota steady. "Kyouka, take Kota and run."

"What?! I'm not leaving you! Let's just run!"

"I know about this guy, I know what he's done. We can't let him get back to camp, most of the others don't stand a chance. Kota can't leave on his own, there's no telling how many other villains are out there, and you don't have your gear."

"Exactly! If the others are on the same level as this guy, then I'm screwed! Most of our class is! We don't know where they are, or what their quirks are. We gotta stick together!"

"I-! Ju..." Izuku turned around, seeing Muscular pull his arm out of the rocks, turning back to smile at him. He didn't have time to argue with his incredibly stubborn girlfriend. She had a point, anyway. He could do this. He could beat this guy, then he would be able to keep Kyouka and Kota protected when they ran for camp. "Keep Kota safe, but leave Muscular to me. I saw the news reports, what he's capable of. I might be one of the only people at camp that even has a shot against him. Wait for me by the treeline and look out for any more villains. If you find an opening to attack or distract him and give me an opportunity to take him down, take it. Otherwise, he's mine."

"Deal," Kyouka kissed his cheek, running to Kota and picking him up. "Kick his ass."

Izuku furrowed his brow, watching Muscular roll his shoulders back as he recovered. Lightning danced around his body, his muscles tingling with power, "Well, you heard the lady."

"Ah, just you, huh?" Muscular's shoulders engulfed in muscle fibers as he cracked his neck. "Fine by me."

"No!" Kota struggled in Kyouka's arms. "Let me go!"

"Kota!" Kyouka grunted out as she tried to keep her grip on him. "Now's really not the time!"

He eventually stopped struggling as he realized Kyouka was too strong, instead opting to look back at Muscular with tears in his eyes, "Water Hose! M-...My parents...Why?!"

Goto's eyes widened, a surprised scoff escaping his lips, "Whoa-ho-ho! Wait a minute, you're serious? You're their kid? Ha! What kinda sick, twisted fate is that?"

Izuku muttered, "Been asking myself the same question for years."

"Your mom and pops gave me this glass eye," Muscular chuckled, popping out the prosthetic and tossing it around in his hand. "I'll give 'em props for that, at least. As for why? Well, why do you think? They were in my way, so I killed them. Not my fault they couldn't put their money where their mouth is."

Kyouka squinted in incredulity, "You're not taking the blame for murder?!'

"Hey, they claimed they could stop me. They didn't have to jump in, but they were stupid enough to gamble on a losing battle. Not my problem. But, if you really have a problem with it..." Muscle fibers snapped into place, his smile growing wider, "I'll send you straight to Mommy and Daddy!!!"

He rushed them down at even faster speeds than before. Izuku shot up to fifteen percent, arcing to the left and slamming into Muscular's side.

"Stay away from them!!!" Izuku grabbed Muscular's face, directing all of his excess power out of his arm, electrifying the psycho's head and causing him to stumble and scream. Izuku raised his strength, pushing Muscular's head to the left, off course from Kyouka and Kota.

Muscular growled, grabbing Izuku's hand and yanking him down, grasping his head and slamming him into the ground. He didn't stop, shoving Izuku's face into the cliffside and dragging him along the rocks before throwing him into a boulder.

Izuku yelped as his back hit the rock, feeling it crack apart beneath him. Goto gave a hearty laugh, contorting his face around to shake away the shocks from Izuku's attack.

"You got some wicked powers, kid. But, I was told you can pack a punch. I wanna see it!" He watched Izuku get up from the rubble, blood running from the left side of his forehead down to his cheek. "First blood, hahaha! This oughta be-Huh?"

Izuku was on him in a flash, his shoulder slamming into Goto's stomach as he wrapped his arm around his leg. He got the villain off of his feet, and they collided into the cliffside. He blasted his power into Muscular, using the force from the attack to get up into the air and repeat the same action from his back, launching him right back to Goto.

He punched Muscular's head into the rocks, but was grabbed by the side of the head and swung around to be given the same treatment. With his face against the stone, Izuku growled as he unleashed another pulse of electricity, loosening Goto's grip on him. He rocketed his elbow back, hitting Muscular square in the nose. He pushed off of the wall, flipping over Goto and grabbing him by the hair, pulling him down to the ground on his descent.

With the villain on his back, Izuku clasped his hands together and slammed them down on Goto's face, cracking the earth beneath them. Unfortunately, more muscle fibers enclosed around Goto's arm as he hit Izuku under the chin and grabbed his foot on his ascent, throwing him back at the cliff.

Izuku tumbled until his back hit the wall, scraping together the energy to stand back up. Muscular was on his feet too, a maniacal smile plastered onto his face as blood dripped down from his nose. "Holy hell, kid! You're awesome! This is the best fight I've had in a long time. Fuck orders, I'm going all out!"

All out? He wasn't even trying?

Izuku did his best not to panic, pulling at more strands of his strength. There was no way he was ready for this, but camp was all about pushing beyond your limits, right?

He had to put this guy down for the count, and get Kota and Kyouka back to camp. No time to lose.

His skin glowed brighter, cyan electricity striking the area around him. 'One For All: 20%!!!'

Muscular's eyes widened, sensing something was different, the air had a buzz to it. Faster than Goto cared to admit that he couldn't track, Izuku threw his 20% punch into Muscular's cheek, his bones screaming at the tension they were being put under. But, they weren't broken. That was good enough.

...Or not, as Muscular only stumbled back a little and wiped his bloody lip, chuckling as he turned back to Izuku, "That's what I'm talking about. More of that!"

'...Oh.'

"So, you've been holding back on me, is that it? Perfect, I've been doing the same." More muscles shot out from his skin, entwining around his arms and legs as he cracked his knuckles.

'...Shit.'

"Alright then! Show me what you've been hiding!" He charged Izuku, throwing a punch down at him.

Izuku slid under Muscular's leg, building up as much energy as he could and blasting him right in the back. Muscular stumbled forward, his muscles contracting wildly and leaving an opening. Izuku jumped up again to twenty percent, exploding energy out of his back to dropkick Muscular's spine.

He couldn't let up, so Izuku zipped up the cliffside wall and pushed off into a punch straight into the villain's cheek. He slid to a stop at the cliff's edge, grunting as his muscles burned like hell. At this point, he was more afraid that the mountainside was going to collapse from underneath them as it shook with every blow he delivered. Izuku turned back, seeing Muscular chuckle as he spit blood.

"Not bad, Midoriya." Muscular spit out a molar onto the ground, flashing a bloody smile to the teen. "Not bad at all. But, holding back won't get you anywhere. I know you've still got more power in you!"

In the blink of an eye, Goto backhanded Izuku, sending him careening into the rock wall. Before Izuku could recover, he received a kick to the stomach that cracked the wall behind him and sent him into the rocky crevice. Izuku breathed heavily, peering through the pure darkness to try and see out of the crack in the wall.

"Is that all? I don't believe it. Maybe I'll ask your little girlfriend and the kid if you've got more power in y-!"

"GRRAAAAAAH!!!"

There it was, that was the trigger. Green lightning erupted from the hole in the cliffside, shooting off into the night sky. In a flash of light, Izuku launched right into Muscular, a punch landing directly into the villain's stomach.

Blood spurted from Izuku's arm, but the punch was solid. He could hear Muscular wheeze, the wind knocked out of him and blood flying from his mouth as they moved towards the edge. But, Izuku didn't account for more muscles to come out from the villain's stomach and completely trap Izuku's arm inside of them.

Muscular grabbed onto Izuku's arm tightly, using it to throw Izuku against the rocks. With Muscular's continuously growing strength, the grapple caused Izuku to feel something crack in his forearm.

This wasn't working. Muscular kept getting stronger, but so could he. He just needed to outpace him.

To think, he had gone so very long without breaking his arm. His streak had to end at some point.

He just needed an opening. If he mistimed a full powered punch, it would be over for him. Just one golden opportunity.

Apparently, Kyouka was adamant on proving why they were partners, and read his mind.

On one of the shards of a boulder cracked during the battle, Kyouka jumped on top, seeing her opportunity.

Kyouka jumped onto the villain's back, her jacks jamming directly into his ears and pulsing out as much sound as she could muster. Muscular screamed out in agony as his eardrums felt as if they were being stabbed with a hundred needles.

God-damn, he loved that woman.

He reached up to yank them out, but Izuku leaped onto his chest, his hands grasping onto each side of his face, firing pulses of electricity out of his hands.

Izuku had to use one hand to grab onto Muscular's right, and a foot on his left, keeping him from grabbing at either him or Kyouka. Muscular continued to scream, "Get the hell offa me!!!"

He slammed back against the cliffside wall, causing Kyouka to cry out in pain, but she held firm.

Izuku heard her yelp, his fury building. This needed to end. NOW.

Muscular fell backwards in a last ditch effort to get Kyouka off of him. Kyouka managed to plant her feet, but even with her much improved physical strength from months of training, Muscular's massive form was too much. She could feel her legs giving out from beneath her at an alarming rate.

Izuku saw his opportunity, raising his fist up as it glowed a violent red with green lightning arcing across the entire cliffside, "KYOUKA!!! MOVE!!!"

She couldn't see her boyfriend, but the shaking ground and the tone of his voice was enough to know he was deadly serious. She retracted her jacks, rolling out from underneath Muscular in a clumsy tumble, only barely catching a glimpse of Izuku's fist about to connect.

"SMAAAAASH!!!"

Kyouka shut her eyes as dust and rubble slammed into her, the force from the impact causing her to fly back towards the treeline. Unfortunately, she didn't hit the ground first. A tree held the honor of stopping her flight path, sending a sharp pain into her hip as she fell through branches that cut her up as she fell all the way to the ground in a heap of leaves and broken rocks.

"Ungh..." Kyouka groaned, struggling to get back up. She felt a pair of small hands grasp her arm, attempting to pull her up.

She opened her eye, seeing Kota trying to pull her to her feet, "C'mon! Get up!"

"J-...Just gimme a sec," Kyouka panted out, grasping her ribs as she tried to get on her knees. "Are you hurt, Kota?"

"N-No, I don't think so."

"Are you guys okay?!" Both Kyouka and Kota looked up to see a flash of green light stop before them, revealing Izuku kneeling down to help. Behind him was the massive crater in the collapsing cliff, where Muscular likely rested at the bottom. His shirt was half-torn off, but Kyouka's main concern was the pure black and blue his arm was.

Out of all their time together, she had only heard about the true physical backlash One For All dished out. She was grateful for that, of course. She didn't want to see Izuku in any kind of pain. Especially now that she saw it.

"Izuku, your arm."

He waved her off, using his good arm to wrap around her shoulders and kiss the side of her head. "Don't worry about it. I think it worked, so that's all that matters."

"No, we gotta get you to the infirmary."

"I can say the same for you," Izuku chuckled as he tore off a shred of his shirt, pressing it against Kyouka's cheek to clean off the blood. She looked down, observing the damage. Her hit against the rocks left her aching all over, and the cuts from the tree thankfully were mostly surface level, outside of a few lightly bleeding ones. "Kota, we need to move. Stay behind us an-"

Three hearts stopped at the sound of moving rubble, leaving them to turn and stare in despair as a hand came out from the crater, raising Muscular out from the rocks below.

"Ho-Holy shit! Now THAT'S what I'm talking about, Midoriya!!!"

No...

It couldn't be.

When the villains stood up, all they could see was a ball of tightly-wound muscles. The mass of muscle strands broke apart, revealing the damaged villain underneath. He spat out blood from his broken smile, and even with that and more pouring into his nose, he was still laughing at it all.

"Gotta admit, that was a close one. But, close ain't good enough for me." He stumbled out of the crater, clearly still dazed by the attack. But, that wouldn't last for long.

Izuku gazed in horror; that was everything he had. He was beaten, tired, broken, and Muscular wasn't even fazed. He was ready to keep going like nothing had even happened. His quirk just kept growing and growing, and now Izuku was one-and-a-half arms down. He couldn't keep up.

What was he supposed to do now?

"C'mon, Izuku! Get up!" Kyouka grabbed him by his good arm, lifting him to his feet. Izuku breathed heavily, his stamina depleting by the second. Kyouka could see his eyes were hazy. He put everything he could into the punch, but Muscular just looked more excited than hurt, and he was only getting stronger.

Izuku looked at Kyouka, his heart pounding in his ears drowning out her shouting for him. His world seemed to slow down as he looked at her, then at Kota, and then over to Muscular crawling his way out of the mountain.

Kota couldn't fight.

Kyouka wasn't powerful enough for the fight, and she was hurt, too.

They couldn't call anyone. No one would hear them, and they were fighting for their lives too.

It was only Izuku. Just him. No one was coming. All Might wasn't here to save them. There was no running, not from this. Izuku clenched his eyes shut, drooping his head as his heart sank and he felt sick to his stomach. If only he had been ready, trained a little harder, maybe he could've...

No. No, this was just as Muscular had said. Sick, twisted fate.

This wasn't like Stain, where he at least had the comfort of knowing he had no intentions of killing him. Muscular was a psychopath, an already well-known murderer. He threw his orders aside, ready to shed blood out of the pure joy he got from it.

If he didn't take a stand now, they would all die. He would run into the forest and kill countless others. His classmates, his friends, Kacchan...

...He knew what he had to do.

And, odds were he wasn't coming back.

"Take Kota and go."

Kyouka turned to Izuku, her glare piercing. "Are you insane?! I'm not leaving you, you'll...you'll..."

"Kyouka-"

"No! I-I...I won't!"

"Kyouka, sto-"

"We can...I-...We can-!'

"Kyouka!" He grasped her shoulder, shaking her out of her panic. "I told you, I'm not afraid to die for something."

"I-! What?! No. Nonononono! No! Shut up! Just shut up an-"

"But, I'll fight with everything I've got to stay." Izuku turned to her, his "good" arm wrapping around her waist. "If things turn out for the worse, I need you to know-..."

"Stop! Just stop!" Kyouka was panicking as unrelenting tears flowed down her face.

"-...that you're the best thing to ever happen to me. I love you so much."

"I swear I'm going to punch you if you don't stop talking!"

"I'd give everything to you if I could." Izuku looked back at Muscular, the villain finally crawling out from the rubble, their eyes meeting. "But, I only have one thing left to give. And I can't think of anyone better for it."

"Izuku jus-mmph!" Kyouka was silenced by Izuku's lips as he captured her in a deep kiss.

'Goodbye, One For All...Please, take care of her...Please.' Izuku pushed her away, knowing she wouldn't let go if he didn't. "If I don't come back, tell my mom and All Might that I'm sorry. Go! Now!"

"Why..." Izuku turned to Kota, standing behind Kyouka with wide and confused eyes. "Don't do this! Why are you doing this?!"

"I...I have to. You don't understand, I know. I'm sorry that I couldn't reach you in time, but...I just hope someday you'll understand."

Izuku turned around, and walked forward. He had looked death in the eye before, and he had avoided him time and time again. But, it looked like death felt he had overstayed his welcome. He'd give it everything he had, but if he had to go...

Then that motherfucker wasn't gonna take anybody else with him.

'One For All: 100%!!!'

"Still got some fight left in ya!" Muscular shouted, his grin widening, "God-damn it, I like you, kid! Almost a shame I want to kill you so badly!"

Izuku broke into a run, bringing everything he could muster into his left arm. It was bad, but not broken. It would have to do.

"Detroit!"

"Give me everything you got, Midoriya!" Muscular launched towards his opponent at full speed, his fists coming forward.

"SMAAASH!!!"

Their clash shook the forest, with lightning sporadically striking the ground around them. Izuku felt his arm shatter on impact, the ground broke apart beneath them, and the shockwave from the impact blew through the forest as he pushed back against Muscular. Multiple strands of muscle fibers tore open against his punch, but Goto held strong.

"Ohohoho! Now that had some kick to it! Show me more!!!"

Izuku could feel his feet dig into the stone as he pushed as hard as he possibly could, his body screaming at him to stop. His arms hurt, his legs hurt, his whole body hurt, breathing hurt. But, he was the one wall between Muscular and dozens of lives.

"I-...I'm fine!" Izuku didn't dare look back at Kyouka. He really hoped she wasn't there at all, but he knew that she would be too conflicted to simply run instantly. "You have to go! I won't let him get past me!"

"Ah, still looking after 'em! You're the gift that keeps on giving, kid!!!" Muscular bellowed out in a piercing laugh, his muscle fibers continuing to grow and grow.

Izuku felt his arm burst open, blood flying into his face. He brought his broken arm up, the adrenaline thankfully reducing the pain as he slammed it into Muscular, using his full body to push him back. "KYOUKA!!! JUST RUN!!!"

...But, she couldn't. She was paralyzed to the spot he left her in.

'I...I-I can't move...I can't do anything.' Kyouka crumpled to her knees as Izuku's legs began to give out, Muscular's power overwhelming him.

In only a few seconds, the person she came to love more than anything, was going to die right in front of her. The only thing that made her feel whole, that made her feel like there was something truly amazing in her.

She wasn't strong enough. She couldn't stop him.

After everything he had done for her, she failed him when he needed her most.

Kyouka's body shut down. She could no longer feel her heartbeat, no sounds came to her ears. Her world went completely black aside from the love of her life close to being crushed.

Then, she would be killed. She didn't listen to Izuku and take Kota to safety. He would die, too. Her failure to listen would get them all killed, with Izuku making this sacrifice for nothing.

Tears flowed in rivers down her face, hopelessness seeping into every corner of her being. 'No...please. I'm so sorry, Izuku. I-...I-...'

Izuku fell to his back, everything but his arm giving way. His eyes turned to Kyouka one final time. He was screaming at her to run, but she couldn't hear him.

Their lives flashed before both of their eyes.

Every day, every second of time spent together as if it happened that very day. From meeting in Recovery Girl's office, to the karaoke club, to playing the piano in her room, to their first time at the beach.

Their first kiss.

Their first date.

Their first time saying they love each other.

Their first time making love.

She couldn't be alone. Not after meeting him. He couldn't be alone either. They had each other, they had something no one else did, or could. They had a future together, one Kyouka couldn't just let slip away from her.

That is why, without thinking, her body began to move.

Her senses came back in an overload. What was she going to do against Muscular? She didn't know. But, she still ran at him.

Time around Kyouka came to a halt.

With every step she took, the world grew darker again. With every breath, a pair of glowing eyes would emerge from the darkness. Silhouettes gazed at her, but she didn't care.

She just kept running.

Her heart suddenly began beating intensely, her body felt light as air. She wasn't sure if it was real, but in her eyes, Izuku suddenly began to glow. An explosion of colors burst from him, flying right into Kyouka as she continued to sprint at Izuku.

None of the imagery mattered to her. Kyouka's mind was locked on Izuku.

Those colors, that energy, suddenly froze completely in the air between them. Then, the power that entered her suddenly began flowing through her and back towards Izuku, circulating through them both.

The energy intertwined, coursing at a complete stalemate between them. Kyouka didn't know what it was, but she could envision light flashing through different orbs of light.

Eight in total.

But, unlike the others, one of them was two colors. Flashing brightly and sparking, before it finally exploded, engulfing both teens' vision in light

Kyouka didn't know how, nor did she know when she learned to do it, but the young hero sent as much power as she could into her fist.

She clenched her eyes closed, only to open it up with power bursting from it. A bright, vibrant purple lightning erupted from her body.

Voices called out in harmony. "Now, it's your turn..."

Muscular grinned sadistically, ready to slam down on Izuku one final time. "SHOW ME YOUR BLOOD!"

"RRAAAAAAH!!!" The villain looked up at the scream. His vision was consumed by a fist rocketing straight for him.

*SMASH!!!*

Muscular's head was rocked to the side, blood spewing from his mouth as his cheek began turning black and blue. He blinked a few times and stumbled backwards, barely registering the pain of the punch that hit his cheek. He looked back over at Kyouka, a brow raised, "...How the hell did you do that?"

"Shit!" Kyouka quickly scrambled backwards, looking at her aching hand in confusion. 'Why the fuck didn't that work-GAH!"

Muscular grabbed her, lifting her up in the air, "Kid, I appreciate the enthusiasm. But, I'll get to you later, alri-"

*SPLASH*

The villain blinked away the water that was suddenly splashed into his face, looking down to see Kota standing before him. "LET THEM GO!!!"

"Ugh, people all day today. Just so impatient to die?"

Izuku looked through the only sliver of light he had under Muscular's form, seeing Kyouka's face through the gap, with Kota just below her. They looked terrified.

...But, they were fighting. Fighting for him, knowing neither of them stood a chance.

It was stupid. Reckless. Suicide.

She was fighting for his life. Their life. Their future together...

What the hell was he doing?

Dying with a life with her right in front of him? Dying, and leaving both her and Kota alone during this attack? Dying when he had so many people left to save? Dying when he just restored everything between him and his mom? Dying when All Might was relying on him?

No.

NO.

NO.

Muscular chuckled, sneering at Kyouka, "Don't you worry. You're next. Your boyfriend was fun and all, but no-Huh?!"

The villain was suddenly held in place, green lightning sparking across the entire cliffside. Izuku had rushed from his crater and grabbed onto as many strands of muscle as he could. Muscular tried to push back down on Izuku, but the kid wasn't budging. Kyouka knew she needed to get the hell out of there, jabbing her jacks into her hand, causing him to let go.

She fell to the ground, grabbing Kota and running like hell.

"Stay. The hell. AWAY FROM THEM!!!" Izuku began pushing with all of his might, driving Muscular closer and closer to the edge. He pulsed every last ounce of excess power he could into the muscles he was touching, causing them to spasm and weaken. Izuku pulled down on the muscles he grabbed, ripping them right off of the villain's body.

Muscular screamed, multiple massive tears in his skin were ripped open.

There was still plenty left, but there was just a wide enough opening, leaving him a split second to make his final move.

Izuku dug down deep, pulling in every last ounce of power he had left. As much as he wanted to hold on to his embers like All Might had been doing, he couldn't afford it.

This was it. This was his...

"FINAL!!!"

Izuku brought his arm back, envisioning the sparks of vestiges flowing through him, hoping he was making the right choice. He could feel the embers of One For All, dwindling away. But, then...

In the vestige space, Nana watched solemnly as the fire began to dwindle away, preparing to move on from Izuku.

The end of their short road together...

"I'll take care of her, kid. I promi-...The hell?"

The fires of One For All weren't dwindling away. The exact opposite, in fact. The flames began to pop and whip around violently.

The shadows of the other users gathered around, all watching curiously at the new development.

The black mist of the vestige space suddenly froze in the air, the flames dying back down to a state of stability.

...Until the embers exploded!

Colors flew all around, a surging light engulfing the vestiges.

Izuku felt his body surging with power, his strength felt as if it had been magnified. The shadows of the vestiges surrounded Muscular as his world slowed to a crawl.

"SMAAAAAASH!!!"

Izuku threw himself entirely into the punch, his body going up into the air until his fist made direct contact with Muscular's face. The villain was launched off of the mountainside, along with most of the mountain itself. Trees were ripped from the ground as a cyclone of wind and force ripped through the forest.

The ground shook throughout the entire area. Every student, along with Aizawa and the Pussycats, barely managed to keep their balance as half of the distant forest was ripped away from the earth.

Muscular hit the ground far off in the distance, with dust and debris cascading the forest from the massive shockwave his body caused.

Izuku wanted nothing more than to collapse right then and there. But, he stood tall. He couldn't think of anything else to do, but to just scream at the sky. Maybe it was instinct, or adrenaline, he didn't know. But, it was a scream of relief, and also sadness.

It was gone.

Izuku searched his body, finding One For All, waiting for it to fade away for good.

...But, that feeling never came.

"Izuku?" Shaken out of his daze, he turned around to see Kyouka running towards him. He looked over her shoulder to see Kyouka safe and sound with tears in his eyes. Once he felt Kyouka's arms around him, he finally allowed himself to collapse. "You'll be okay. You're gonna be okay."

Izuku pressed his face against Kyouka's stomach as he laid in her lap, having no energy left to move. "I-hah...told you...Everything I've got to stay."

Kyouka didn't have any retort or comeback. She simply kissed him hard, hugging his head with everything she had as she sobbed into his hair. If Izuku could, he would have hugged her back. But, he just opted to kiss her back, and simply whisper back that he was okay.

"Is Kota okay?"

Kyouka wiped her eyes, nodding her head, "H-He's fine."

"Good. Ah, good." Izuku didn't try to move. He just shouted out, "Kota! Just stay there! Give us a second, we're gonna get you back to Mandalay! I promise."

"Oh my God, Izuku stop promising things."

He let out a weak chuckle, "In my defense, I promised I would save him, and delivered."

"If you died I would have killed you."

Izuku smiled, "That's a Kacchan line if he actually cared about anybody."

Kyouka leaned back, looking down at Izuku with relief, before her gaze landed on her lips. The kiss, all those visions...

"Izuku, did-...Did you see all that stuff I saw?"

"Y-Yeah. Yeah, I don't know what that was. It didn't happen when I got it from All Might."

"So, that kiss...You..."

"Yeah, I gave it to you. It's even weirder though, because it shouldn't have worked so fast, but I-I'm starting to learn that One For All is unpredictable."

"It didn't work, I tried to use it and got nothing. But, that means you're going to lose it, eventually. H-How do I give it back?"

"I don't think that was nothing. You hit him hard, I could tell. I don't th-"

"Uh..." The teens both averted their gazes to the new voice, eight shadow-like figures stood before them as the world darkened. Nana appeared from the mist, her eyes wide, "This...is definitely new."

Kyouka looked up at Izuku, "You're uh...You're seeing this, too, right?"

"Yeah, but I'm used to this. But, I don't understand. How am I still able to see you?"

"Hold that thought, kid," Nana stopped him, her eyes still wide and confusion still evident on her face. "Um...Okay, so something happened. And, uh, not the whole giving it to Jirou thing. Well, yes that. It's related, but...I...I don't...Guys, what happened?"

They watched as Nana turned back to the shadows of the other users, looking for some kind of answer. They were responding to her, but the voices were muffled and unclear to the teens. Neither had any idea what was going on at that point.

"Uh..." Nana looked back at the couple, clearly not having a proper answer yet. "...We'll get back to you."

And like that, she was gone. Their vision turned to normal, the cliffside coming back into view.

Izuku and Kyouka looked to one another, both of them trying to process everything that was told to them.

Izuku shook his head with a sigh, "Cryptic as always."

"I dunno, that sounded like they were extremely confused."

"Well, we can't worry about it now. C'mon."

"Nuh-uh, hold it." Kyouka stopped Izuku in his tracks, taking off her red tank top, leaving her in a black spaghetti strap shirt. She ripped it into strands, grabbed a couple sturdy sticks nearby, and began making a makeshift cast on Izuku's worse arm. "This should hold until we get to the infirmary."

Izuku wrapped his arm around Kyouka's waist to steady himself as they walked. "I don't think we'll have time for the infirmary."

"A girl can dream. Now do not use your arms. Kicks only, and that's only if we have to fight. We're beelining it straight to the facility, helping who we can along the way, and getting you patched up."

"N-No, we have to-"

Kyouka suddenly grabbed his face, making him look her dead in the eye, "Izuku, if you say we have to go find Bakugou, I'll break your legs next."

"We have to help him. You already know it. They're after him."

"Bakugou is a big boy. He can handle himself until we-"

"No. Not against these guys. Muscular was proof of that. You know I'm right."

"I...Urgh, I know! Fucking fuck!" They reached Kota, finding the boy crying and on his knees. Kyouka reached her hand down to him, "Kota, I'm sorry, but we've gotta go. There's a lot of fire out there, so we might need your quirk. Is that okay?"

"I...Y-Yeah." He wiped his eyes as he stood up, taking Kyouka's hand. She hoisted him onto her back, her jacks wrapping tightly around him to keep him secure.

Kyouka turned to Izuku, a firm hand on her shoulder as she spoke sternly, "You don't fight unless absolutely necessary, do you understand me? If you do, kicks and energy pulses only. Are we clear?"

Izuku chuckled, but nodded, "Yes, ma'am."

"And, if the worst comes, then..." Her jacks reached up, plugging into a confused Kota's ears as she spoke softly, "Teach me how to use this quirk, okay? I'll do my best to protect us. I'll break my arms too, if need be."

"Let's hope it won't come to that, but we'll see. We still need to keep this a secret...whatever's happening to us. You're gonna search for warmth under your diaphragm, and you need to spread it out across your entire body. Whatever part of your body you need it, focus it there. Just a small tug, nothing visibly crazy. We just need enough to move fast through the forest."

"Phew, okay...okay..." Kyouka began to search for that warmth, taking a few seconds to find the unfamiliar presence in her body. She began to pull on just the small amount she could, and oddly enough, Izuku's own warmth felt fainter for just a second, just barely. It didn't seem like a concern, not that they had time to dwell on it anyway. "Okay, I, uh...I feel sort of tingly."

"Good, that's enough. Don't pull on it anymore. We've gotta go."

Kyouka suddenly flinched, "Right, okay. Don't have to yell."

"I...I didn't."

"You sure? Everything seems...loud."

"...Oh boy. U-Uh, we'll deal with that later," Izuku shakily replied, his voice low. Whatever was happening, it seemed One For All's side effects might still be a problem. "We need to go before my adrenaline runs out. Let's go."

Kyouka nodded, and they were off. Izuku kept it slow, but it was still kind of exciting to see Kyouka keep up with him as they rushed past the trees. It was almost like he could...feel her.

'...Nana, whatever's going on up there, I need you to figure it out. ASAP.'

They ran off into the night, not ready for the unknown. Both in the forest, and in themselves.

...~AIV~...

MANDATORY AUTHOR'S NOTES/ ALSO LOOK AT THE ARTWORK BELOW: Okay, okay, uh...So this has been planned for about three years now.

You might be wondering, "So they both have One For All now?" Uh...technically yes. It's a bit more complicated than that, and it will be made clear to you as it is made clear to the characters. Who, as you saw, are also very confused.

This idea has evolved and grown over time, and pretty much the rest of the story is built upon this development. Legitimately, there are plans all the way to the finale based around this development, and how the canon storyline changes from here. So, basically if everyone hates this, I'm absolutely screwed. But, no matter, we're here now. I really, really think we've got something going here. I've made it very clear before that I won't be breaking the canon rules of the universe, but I'm going to abuse them. Canon MHA warps and abuses their own world-rules all the time, and I'm gonna use that to my advantage.

Everything will be explained, and it has all been planned out using the in-universe rules. I'm abusing the system, baby.

You guys trust me, right? ^-^

Also, in case nobody picked up on it based on Tomura's line, I am dropping the Traitor Plot. It's pointless, goes nowhere, and all around disappointing. I have no interest in pursuing it, and have other alternative storylines that I am more interested in.

...Okay Happy New Year Please Trust Me Byeeeee

*Cough* Check out my Twitter and Patreon for more work, all under the same name of MizuTori