17 | Reasons To Fight

🎶☃️Tis the season to be- SNUGGLING! >:)  *🎸HEAVY METAL MUSIC🥁* (:<🎶
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Day Ten following the UA raid

" 'Spirits And Such Consultation Office' "

     "Hey, Serizawa, look who showed up!" Gojo dragged a shorter, muscular blond with slicked back hair into the room by the shoulders. Tan suit, blue shirt, leopard tie, and fancy green tinged goggles that magically stuck to his face. "This is that friend I was talking to you about! Nanami, say hello~!"

     The man rubbed his pronounced cheekbones with one hand while rolling his eyes. "This better not be a fluke-" He gasped faintly, freezing for a moment as his eyes landed on the brunette standing in front of Reigen's desk awkwardly holding a stack of books. He pushed up his glasses after a moment of staring, which had slid down his face a little. The expression of shock slipping away, a stern, almost bored expression replaced it. "While not as powerful as Gojo was...I can now see why you would be able to defeat a Special Grade curse..."

     ".....Huh?..."

. . .

     Everyone was sitting down now in the lounging part of the office, Jin being the only one who stood, instead leaning against the wall beside Serizawa with his arms crossed. The other blond began to explain from the couch, sitting directly across from the brunette. "Some of our sorcerers inspecting the site discovered an incomparable amount of cursed energy residue, not only that, but Black Flash cursed energy: the rarest, most difficult kind to master..." His head tilted down, narrow eyes staring across the short table strictly.

     Serizawa sweat a little under the pressure of such intense eyes. His hands fidgeted with one another over his lap. "I.. I um.. I'm sorry...sir?"

     "Sorry??" Gojo laughed from beside Nanami. "You don't have to be sorry! Take it as a compliment! Nanami here is saying you're super strong! Isn't that right~?" He slung an arm over the blond's shoulder.

     "Get off me."

     "Heheh, whoops."

     "Hhhh," Nanami interwoven his fingers, elbows placed on his knees as he leaned in to speak a little more directly with Serizawa. "All I'm saying is that whoever can pull off a move like that off.. has some insane potential..."

     "Oh- well- um- ...thanks?"

     "How would you like to train to become a jujitsu sorcerer?" Nanami inquired.

     "Wow, no dancing around it I see!" Gojo.

     "Excuse me.. a what now?" Serizawa.

     "It's a lot like what you do here already, except we handle the big threats!-"

     "-Gojo, can you let me explain this?!... Yes, basically that."

...

     Serizawa cleared his throat. "I'm...still getting used to this job, being completely honest. And lately Reigen has been giving me a lot more responsibilities, a-and I don't want to let him down! He just gave me charge over his whole office today!"

     ... "How old are you?"

     "Um, I just turned thirty not too long ago!"

     "Hmm... You seem..ill experienced for your age. ...What have you been doing until now?"

     "Before I started working here??" Nanami nodded. Serizawa sat stiff as a board, his hands squeezing each other so tightly they were turning white. "Well I-- I was a shut in, sir!" Head drooping to stare down at his lap. "You see, I was afraid of my powers getting out of control... I would... Sometimes I would cause random bursts of energy when I got too anxious..and objects around me would start to fly after people!.. I even sent my own mother flying once by accident... And-I-um.. sometimes would accidentally summon the monsters from my nightmares, which would try to attack people if they broke out of my room before I stopped them!" His whole body was so tense, face going completely pale. "...A couple years ago, someone took advantage of me and my power... Made me do some terrible things in return for teaching me how to use them... Mob helped me see what I was doing and snapped me out of it. After that, Reigen offered me a job here... I am eternally grateful to them." On a scale of one to ten, everyone stared with a sense of wonder and empathy in their eyes. Jin around a seven, Gojo maybe a five, and Nanami at a generous one and a half.

     The blond sorcerer closed his eyes, massaged the lower half of his face with his left hand, and exhaled loudly through his nose.

     "...I see then. Well, whoever offered to teach you, didn't do their job very well." Pointing lazily at the man across from him. "Tell me. How do you use your abilities?"

     "We-well I usually need some kind of object to channel my powers though! First, I used an umbrella, now I like using my business cards if I have them!" The man managed to smile, remembering to pull out and show the man one of said cards. "Without that, my power tends to get a little out of hand and does whatever it wants."

     "I see..." With his eyes closed. "Well, I guess that can work as a good short term solution. But what you want is complete control over your abilities. ... As I see it right now, your power is like an untamed flame. It can be a valuable tool when used properly..but as it is now, it stands as nothing but a fire hazard. Using objects is like creating a fire pit of sorts to contain the flame. But there is always the chance that the wind might blow some embers free... Point is, what you want to do is work on controlling the source of the flame. I.E. your emotions that fuel them."

     "Th-thank you.. I've actually been reading books about doing that already!.. Just need to, you know..get better at it."

     "That's alright. How long have you been working here?"

     "Uhh- just over half a year, sir!"

     "M.. Well, seeing as it isn't my place here to tell you what to do, I won't. But..if you ever need the help and resources, I am willing to share. ...I think you have the potential to become a fine Jujitsu Sorcerer..is all I'm saying." Out from his jacket pocket, Nanami pulled a small slip of paper and handed it to Serizawa. On it contained all the contact information he would need.

     A hand loosely cupped over his mouth, "Nanami actually promoting sorcery to somebody??" A mocking gasp from Gojo. His eyes followed the blond as he stood and passed in front of him, heading toward the door.

     "Calm down, Gojo. I'm only offering it because the man already works in the exorcism business... He may as well be making a decent salary if he is going to be involved with so many dangerous curses." The blond turned to the door, opening it up to leave when-

     "-A trial tutorial might be nice!!" Serizawa sprang from his seat.

     Nanami turned slightly. "Huh?"

     "Y-you know! Like when you take online courses and classes! They-they always have some kind of free first course you can watch to see if you're interested!.. I have an exorcism I need to leave for in only a few minutes! Ma-maybe you can show me some of what you are talking about there!" A stroke of bravery surprised Serizawa most of all.

     Nanami turned his head back to the door to hide the faintest smirk on his face. He glanced at the watch on his wrist. "...Guess I still have a few hours before the end of my shift."

     Serizawa smiled, relieved that he was actually accepted. Wait...but now he felt guilty! "S-sorry for taking more time out of your day, sir!"

     "Hhhh, don't worry. It's fine." He didn't have any other plans anyways.

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     Reigen returned home late that night with a ghostly pale expression. His eyes were slightly widened and glossed over. Dark bags gathered under each eye. In short, he both looked and felt like he was about to throw up.

     "Reigen, where have you been??" Elyse was alone in the kitchen. She tended to cook when stressed. Reigen noticing this and dipped his chin in defeat.

     "M' sorry..." He was too tired to put up any kind of act now, but all that left him with was a zombified state. The moment he returned home, again in the presence of someone he cared for dearly, his legs just about gave out. He made his way to the table and sat in the nearest chair, groaning tiredly.

     "What's wrong??" She asked while at the sink cleaning off her hands, leaning her head as far back as possible to try to snatch a glimpse of the blond.

     "Nothing.." Reigen sighed. But that wasn't true at all. His heart felt as though it were imploding in on itself! It wasn't even a question whether he was lying or not.

     Elyse fought off her own gripping fears of abandonment -- that intense desire to call their relationship off and kick him out before he had the chance to leave her. But the woman dug her heels in and thought about this rationally. And the facts were that Reigen was in serious pain.. whether he knew it or not. "...You hungry? I..heh.. accidentally made too much food again."

     "No... I'm fine.." That didn't sound very convincing. Elyse made two plates of simple rice, chicken and veggies just in case. She set one plate down in front of the man. He, already feeling weak in the stomach, fought the urge to gag at the sight of food. The woman sat across from him, eating quietly. Reigen's stomach started to growl as the smell of food wafted into his nose. But, knowing how sick he felt inside, worried he might vomit if he ate anything. Instead, he just laid his head on the table facing away from the plate. Elyse honestly felt lost watching this mess of a human being.

     "...Want to hold hands?"

     "..." He thought about it for a moment. "Yes please." So the two stretched out an arm and held hands over the dining table while the woman ate. ...The contact was so nice. So warm and gentle, yet strong and reliable. Elyse's eyes widened when she noticed him starting to leak tears all over the table.

     "Alright, tell me what the frick happened, man!"

     "I just got back from a detour to the nearest police station, since I was technically a witness to a suicide over the phone... Nobody I knew really. Just..shocked me is all."

     "...Oh man..." Elyse stared with growing compassion. Her thumb rubbed his hand as her desire to comfort him grew. "Do you...want to talk about it?"

     "No..." Mumbling.

     "Mmm..." Elyse inhaled another bite of food. "How about we watch a movie together?"

     "This late..?"

     "...I mean.. you were probably just going to stay up super late on your computer anyways-"

     "-Okay... I'm sorry.." Elyse laid her head on the table for a moment to study her man's depressed, hazy look. In all her life, she never saw someone so utterly depressed. ...Except for Deserae. That face her sister had after their parents died, she would never forget.

     The woman hurried to eat all she could, then took the plates of food with her to clean up. "You just make yourself comfortable on the couch! I'll start the movie!" She called over. It took Reigen a while to heed her orders, but he eventually did drag himself out of that chair and drudge on over to the couch. Elyse later arrived with the remote already in hand and a blanket under one arm. Reigen didn't ask what movie they were watching, nor did he show much awareness for what was going on at the moment. He was watchful, but that was just about it. Mostly tired. He did take a little notice, though, when the TV turned on, revealing the movie it to be one of the most boring old westerns he ever had to suffer through.

     "This movie???" He squinted at the screen as Elyse sat down right beside him wrapping the blanket around them both. When it looked like he was about to scoot away from her for some personal space, the skilled hero attacked, wrapping her legs and arms around his shoulders and waist before leaning back, dragging him down into the couch with her. "Hehe, consider your waist snatched."

     "The h###??" The man wiggled but could not break free without risking hurting her.

     Elyse rested her chin on the man's shoulder and grinned. "I am Yandere now. You will love me. Muahaha."

     Reigen was suddenly a flustering fit. "I-- I.. help?" The warmth of her body filled him with tingles. He could swear his heart was racing twice as fast! For the most part he was simply overwhelmed. Overcome with affection to the point that he genuinely feared he might literally melt. It made him uncomfortable. This was simply too much love at once! "Ca-can you..let me go please?"

     "Not until you get it through your thick head that I love you."

     "I-I- do! Alright??"

     "No.." Elyse gremlin growled, readjusting her arms around the man to get more comfortable. Her back settled against the couch pillows, propped up a little by the edge of it. The movie was silent to their left as Elyse possessively squeezed her man tightly, deciding that she wouldn't let him go unless she wanted him to go, even if that required wrestling him to the ground! "My man.. my pretty man.." She was teasing now, petting his hair like how those cartoon villains pet their cats.

     "Pff.." Reigen almost smiled. "No I'm not."

     Elyse faked a gasp. "How dare you insult my pretty man." Followed up by kissing him on the cheek. She hugged him even tighter, her chin resting against the base of his neck. "My most beautiful, precious man."

     Reigen genuinely wanted to scream. It was so foreign here, like he was trapped on an alien planet, helpppp! "Guhdifgmer!" That was just him trying to speak alien. Definitely not the sound of him trying to wiggle free. His whole body may as well be on fire. It sure felt like that!

     A wave of negative emotions spiked to counter the positive ones trying to sink in. The constantly belittling of himself that just wouldn't stop. It was a genuinely painful experience. The war inside his heart. This one-sided attention just didn't feel fair! Half of him just wanted to go die in a hole!.. But as the seconds turned into minutes, that part of him screeched less and less. Elyse knew she was making some progress when finally the blond started to relax his muscles one after another, now much more comfortable to hold. She kissed his cheek again, then scooted down lower so she could comfortably lay down with the pillows propping up her head. It didn't take as long for the man to relax again after that.

     "...You feel like telling me what's been bothering you now..?" Crap, now she was expecting him to think clearly?!

     "Uh- I- uhhh..." The man's cheeks pinkened. His whole body was slowly soaking in the warmth of the embrace. Not just skin level, but a deep, profound level of comfort that slowly seeped into his very soul. A soul which was such a stranger to the warmth, it was honestly pathetic. All his mind cared to think about was what million things and more could he possibly do to repay her for offering him such kindness? Last to soak in the warmth was his creaky cold heart, which fought stubbornly against such gentleness. "...I need a pillow for my head."

     "Oh- um, here." The woman quickly squished one of the pillows by her head into a shape tall enough for to rest his head on.

     "Thanks.." He sighed uncomfortably. Elyse's limbs also relaxed in time, holding her man loosely now.

     "...Just want you to know you're wanted here." The woman mumbled, her own sleepiness revealing itself now. The shell around Reigen's heart cracked. "We all miss you, Reggie..." Another small crack. "Especially me." Chip! Though the shell did not completely break off, a small, new hole allowed for some of that tender warmth to enter through it. Reigen rolled onto his side so he could wrap an arm around the woman, placing a long, loving kiss on her cheek. Resting his head down on the pillow beside her, he sniffled a little, a few small tears falling free from his eyes.

     "...Do you think you could be a little meaner to me in the future by any chance..?"

     "Hu? Why?"

     "..Because you're too perfect as you are..." Elyse gasped faintly from hearing that, her own heart filled with the small fluttering of butterflies.  

     How does one process love, exactly?... Is it a fleeting feeling that engulfs the heart in raging flames whenever lit but turns and tumbles about in every which way to the wind? Or, is it a dedication one must commit themselves to and fight for no matter which way the stormy winds rage? Why not both? ...Yeah. Both sounds good. 

     The two brought their lips together and shared a little kiss...lasting a bit longer than expected.

     The figure of Zeya ominously stood at the other end of the couch, lit only by the TV light. Her invisible tattoos glowed a little. When the kiss ended, Elyse's brows  tightened. "What??"

     "You guys aren't having s##, are you?"

     "No!!"

     "Oh, thank God!" Hands slapping her sides. Elyse's blush increased tenfold. Reigen was just kinda frozen there like an opossum.

     "What is it now, Zeya?"

     "Jss' came to tell you...that..I prefer brunettes."

     "...That's it?"

     "Yah! Pretty much.." Nodding and scanning the room to avoid making eye contact, her eyes eventually landed on the TV screen. "Ew, are you guys watching that movie?"

     "Get out of here, Zeya."

     "Right, right" backing away slowly, "wouldn't want to ruin this special..bonding experience for you two-"

     "-Too late cuz you already kinda did." Reigen added. Again the teen's hands flew out in front of herself defensively.

     "Continue~" The teenager slipped out of sight. After a moment of silence, the two adults sighed.

     ... "Guess I better-" Reigen moved, aiming to push himself up. But Elyse caught on and tugged him back down.

     "-Nope, I need my man pillow after that scare you gave me."

     "darn..... I'm kinda hungry."

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Me writing fights: 🏎️💥🌀☄️😎🪂
Me writing romance: 🐌🚶🤦💖💀👌
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     ""Yo, Nanami!... Mind explaining why you actually offered for Serizawa to become a Jujitsu Sorcerer?!.. Thought you hated the job!""

     "Hhhh... Because, unfortunately, thanks to your absence...the spirits are starting to recognize the massive power gap waiting to be filled in.

     . . . Might bot be long before even The Spiritual Power Broker makes an appearance... As well as a handful of other unregistered Special Grades.

      We're going to need all the help we can get."

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Day Six following the UA raid

...

     "Whaaaat exactly do you intend to do with this cursed object?" Ryo brought a small box to his master. The two stood in a large, dark, empty room of a mostly decimated building. The box radiated such a repulsive aura that it made the younger man's stomach turn. His hand felt all dirty from simply holding the object!

     All For One took the box inbetween his fingers and held it delicately. "I've been meaning to research spiritual-based quirks for a while now, but without professional help from someone already in the field, have shied away from it."

     "Oh.. so how is this thing supposed to help, then?" Ryo could only guess what was in the box. But, whatever it was was probably just another stupid waste of time. It was strange that he could sense a human-like aura from an object, though.

     AFO slid the small door to the box open carefully and pulled out the small, wrapped object It was thin and long..like a pickle!

     "...It's something I've been meaning to study for a while now... Garaki has one of these things locked away in his lab for that very purpose. ...The measly remains of an ancient quirk user. .. Ryomen Sukuna, I believe his legal name was."

     "Ryomen?" Ryo rubbed his chin. "Hm, sounds like a pretty cool guy~"

     "They called him The King of Curses, which I believe refers to a sub-category of Espers."

     Rubbing the back of his head, "Yeah.. probably. I don't really know how my own powers work, so, sorry I can't help out with that."

     "It's alright." All For One chuckled as he closely examined the solitary wrapped object. "I'll only be needing this for the purpose of seeing spirits." He started to scratch at the weird paper around the object.

     "Oh~? What for? Want to exorcise some googlies~?" Ryo hopped up an invisible step, standing on air beside his boss so he could better see the object..and also pick on his master a little.

     All For One chuckled, finally setting the object free. Ryo grimaced. It was a gross finger! "No.. I just want to be able to see my little brother when we at last obtain that One For All user."

     "Oh.." Ryo had been picking up bits and pieces of this man's stories. Like crumbs thrown out to a starving bird. All he understood so far was that this villain once had a brother, who now lives inside this quirk being passed along. And that green haired kid is apparently the most recent user.

Ghhgguuuhhh...

     Ryo spun around, gasping faintly as a weird spirit crawled out of the ground, headed toward his boss. The Esper jumped into action, exorcising that one and a few others, which had spawned while the elder stood there completely oblivious. After finishing off the last one, "Uhh, you sure that thing is safe??"

     "No quirk is ever safe, technically. I could easily kill someone by giving them a quirk their body is not prepared for... That is, after all, how I wound up accidentally killing Yoichi... However, my own quirk is specially adapted to handle even the most lethal of them."

     "Mhm...alright." On the bright side, if AFO died by his own stupidity, he would have no one to follow anymore! Wait...the world would literally end if that were to happen, since he was the dreamer! Ryo watched warily for a moment as his boss held the exposed, long-dead finger in his hand, unphased by how repulsive it was!

     "...It appears powerful enough for me to steal its quirk from this alone." Trying it out, AFO held the finger in the palm of his hand and clenched all five of his fingers tightly around it. From it, he drained the dark red aura of the object into himself. Suddenly, he felt something tugging on his conscience. Attempting with all its might to pry his own soul from the rest of his body. He recognized this sensation. Though this one was definitely stronger than the others, the villain knew in his heart that he could suppress this quirk's influence just like the rest of them. Though doing so DID require him to focus and close his eyes for a second. Ryo stepped back as his boss' whole body shook a little under the sudden stress.

     AFO's eyes shot open in delight, the quirk officially his now!

     ' 'Aw f###. Not this body too!' ' A disheveled groan echoed through his head. AFO smirked.

     "Sukuna, is that you?"

     ' 'Yes, now what do you want?' '

     "Nothing much. I was just-"

     ' '-Well too bad! What do I look like?! A genie?!' '

     "First of all, I do not know what you look like. Secondly, I wasn't going to ask you for anything."

     The voice in his head huffed. ' 'Oh really~? Because I can bet anyone else in your shoes would realize what an immense swell of power they have just discovered by now.' '

     All For One dropped the ashes left in his hand from the cursed object and flexed his own fingers. Indeed, though only a little bit, he did feel stronger. He also noticed he had two new -- presently closed -- eyes underneath his normal ones. "Hmm... I think I see what you mean. --Ryo!" Twisting around to the young man kicking around a stick. "Bring me a spirit. Any kind. I just want to know if I can see it."

     The black haired one saluted. "Yessir, cap'n!" He vanished from sight.

     ' '...You know~ If you find more of my fingers..you'll grow even stronger.' '

     "Hmh.. I heard about that." The villain started to pace, hands holding each other behind his back as he stared down at the dark ground. "...But I don't want to risk your will overpowering mine. I am content with what I have for now."

     ' 'WHAA!?! The All For One...content?!' '

     "For now, yes."

     ' 'Ughh.. You're a far more boring vessel!' '

     "Sorry to disappoint." He grinned widely, knowing well he was the one with the better deal of the two. His needs were fairly simple regarding this quirk, already being powerful enough on his own to not really need it.

     "Iiiiiiiiii'm back!" Ryo reappeared, holding a wiggly little gecko-looking spirit by the tail. "Look at this guy! All alone out in the rain.."

     AFO was awestruck, fascinated. He stepped closer, kneeling lower to graze his hand against the spirit's squirming side. "...It's far more colorful than I expected a spirit to be!"

     "It is??" Ryo tilted his head. Since he didn't perceive the same way others did, he couldn't exactly see things like color and light. "Alright then."

     "...Mind if I hold it?" Ryo answered yes by simply letting go. The villain caught the creature in his hands and held it a little closer to himself, studying all the strange oddities. The texture, temperature, detail, all things he didn't expect a spirit to look like. "..Now, how do I exorcise it?"

     "Crushing it should do the trick."

SQCHSH!

     Purple blood splattered everywhere, a liquid that was both lighter and colder than normal blood. The poor spirit whimpered, barely clinging onto life. "...I didn't even know spirits could bleed. What a fascinating discovery." He then dropped the spirit and stomped it into the ground, ending it's suffering. After it was properly vanquished, the blood on him started to fade away. "...Interesting..." Ryo chuckled. The elder looked up at once. "What?"

     "Oh! Nothing... You just.. Funny seeing people reacting to things I've seen pretty much my whole life!"

     "Hmhm, I've avoided obtaining a spiritual quirk for so long... Didn't want to have to see the hoards of souls stalking after me after I had killed their hosts. But.." looking around himself, "I guess it doesn't exactly work like that." The room was empty.

     "Eh, not really."

     "--Which is good." Spinning back around, the villain walked toward where Kurogiri was resting to stir the Nomu awake again. His hands were again behind his back. "Now I know that when we catch that young Midoriya...I'll be able to see my little brother standing with him." That did put a smile on his face. A surprisingly non-malicious one. "Then, it will only be a matter of time before we can work everything else out."

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Day Ten Following The UA Raid

...

     The pale blue moonlight hit the roofs of the buildings spectacularly. Thanks to the decreased amount of working lights in this district, the city was much darker as well, allowing the freckled sky to reveal its true beauty.

     Deku was active as always, jumping, swinging, and flying around in the darkness. He surveyed the passing area carefully, watching his surroundings with anticipation.

     He hadn't yet run into Tanjiro or the others since leaving them earlier that morning. It was dark now, though, so the likelihood he would run into them tonight was high. The moonlight all the brighter made the shadows all the darker. Made it hard to tell whether or not something might be hiding in them. And he didn't have special demon eyes, so he really was put at a disadvantage out here in the night.

     ""Deku!"" The device at his voice called. It was Best Jeanist. ""Update us on your status.""

     Deku pulled out the tracker/phone mid flight and held the responding button down. "So far haven't run into any villains. I--"

Zzzzzzzip!

     Something flew through the air, snagging the boy's device right out of his hand! Deku gasped and redirected himself to land against the wall his device was pinned to. The purple bullet that impaled it had a speaker on the end.

     ""Izuku Midoriya, surrender now and let me bring you in, or suffer dearly... Remember, All For One doesn't require that you keep your limbs."" The message from it sounded. Izuku trembled. That bullet made from hardened strands of purple hair.. Looked just like the work of Lady Nagant! The traitor Hawks warned him about!!

     Izuku's eyes dashed to the shadows, but he couldn't make out a thing. He found himself in a the center of a U-shaped abandoned apartment complex. Each and every balcony was shrouded in shadow. He was the only one basking in moonlight. Izuku sweat, gritting his teeth as he glared, searching for where that bullet would have come from.

     Lady Nagant, previously working under the HPSC, turned on them suddenly by killing their president in cold blood. She had an amazing quirk, but it wasn't that that scared most people. No, that honor went to her raw talent and years of training. Despite not having a scope or tracking quirk, she always hit her mark.

     Danger Sense zapped in the back of his head, as ding the teen on high alert. The whistle of a bullet slipped his way, Deku just barely able to dodge in time. Even with Danger Sense and OFA, that bullet still managed to scrape his side, drawing blood. That bullet too came with a speaker attached.

     ""I thought I was doing the right thing too. I thought I was saving people.""

Zzzz-

     Deku jumped, falling from the wall and swinging around to latch onto it with whips and yank himself back. That time he managed to dodge the bullet successfully.

     ""But that was all a lie. The HPSC was just using me to fool the population into thinking they were safe. Killing people quietly behind the scenes, without a trial."" Deku again just barely managed to escape another bullet. A slash tore through his skin, this time grazing his shoulder. ""I was nothing more than a glorified assassin.""

     Deku hissed and jumped to stand on top of the building. He peered down at the open courtyard where a small park with some trees and flowers grew. He watched carefully now as a dark dog flew from one of the shaded balconies, the bullet flying directly up before arching back down his way. He jumped out of the way just in time, even using the force pressure of a flick to ensure the bullet missed him.  

     It struck the roof beside him. ""Compared to a society that likes to sweep all its problems under the rug, treating its heroes as nothing but disposable weapons, I would much rather All For One's vision of the world.""

     "Oh yeah? And what is THAT?!" The teen, now latched onto a target, charged OFA in his legs and prepared to jump.

     "Freedom." The voice was distant but clear. Deku jumped that way immediately, landing on the balcony ready to punch. But there was no one there. He threw open the sliding glass door and stepped into the apartment. Inside was a faintly glowing gadget, which began beeping wildly the moment he entered. The teen panicked and spun on his heels.

BOOM!

     The bomb thrust him out of the apartment, off of the balcony, tumbling toward the ground, ash clinging to his hero suit. As he fell, a bullet whistled his way from another balcony. He twisted his body mid-air, unable to escape another gash tearing through his leg. "Gah!" This was getting bad. Did she just teleport?! Maybe he should break that small capsule after all, alerting Tanjiro to his location. But no. This woman was after him only. He didn't want to drag anyone into a fight they could avoid! No, he could take care of this. No one else would need to get hurt!

     Too bad he was a little slower than he'd like to be... Running on so little sleep. The ringing in his head from that explosion didn't help any either...though I guess he was kind of used to it now, with Bakugo as a bully and all.

     Deku fell into a tree, its branches scratching and poking the child, but saving him from a brutal landing all-the-same. Lady Nagant appeared to him, elegantly skipping on the air his way. "Do you yield?" She asked flatly.

     "No!" The young hero -- presently snagged upsidedown -- barked. The villain rolled her eyes. She folded her arm back, her elbow protruding a long range shotgun from it. However, instead of aiming it at the teen, she aimed it upward. Deku followed it's trajectory with his eyes, which widened in horror.

     "You're still young and naive... Maybe experiencing the true sting of hero work will snap you out of your heroic trance." Standing on the rooftop was Ryo Shimazaki, but he wasn't the focal point of the boy's attention. Instead, his was on the wiggling, human sized sack he held dangling over the roof's edge. "Because I know, no matter the person, a hero's greatest fear is being unable to save somebody..." Her brows furrowed as she mumbled. "Though I guess it helps knowing the person inside is someone from your class." Deku gasped as he stared at the wiggling bag. He couldn't tell who it was! But..she was right. Even if it were a villain in there, he would still try to save them. "And no one's faster than this bullet!" She spoke with pride after loading the bullet into her gun. She aimed. Ryo dropped the bag. She fired.

     "NOO-O!" He gathered every ability in his arsenal at that moment, collecting each and every one of them to use at once.

     The teen BULLETED through branches thick and thin, snapping his back and losing all feeling in his legs for a second. Those nerves regenerated in time, but what was needed in this split second were his arms. He jumped in the way of the bullet, snatching the bag and hurtling into the wall. His legs repaired just in time to catch himself, cratering the wall he rammed into. All this while carefully holding the person close to him, ensuring they not die via whiplash. He jumped from the wall, gliding down gently to land among the trees. Immediately after, Smoke Screen expelled from him, covering the entire garden. It was as he landed that he realized who this was. Just from holding them. Gently, he set the classmate down and started to devise a plan as he untied the bag.

     "Don't worry. It's okay... I think I have a plan." It was pretty simple, actually. Use Smoke Screen to confuse the woman, then strike her from below. Though..guess he now had Ryo to deal with as well. Ugh. At least he would have his friend here to help him out.

     Danger Sense burned in the back of his head, but none of his other senses detected anything. The person in the bag fell limp on their side, likely already weak from all of the chaos. But still this concerned Deku deeply.

     He stood suddenly to his feet, leaving the bag for now, and stood ready for a fight. "WHO'S OUT THere.." His voice suddenly slurred. His whole body felt ten times weaker. Close to collapse.

Snap

     A twig alerted Deku to the coming threat. He spun around, blasting a gust of air at the noise. But, it hit no one. Shuffling was heard coming from a little to the right. Deku copied the move from before, again missing his shot. But he did spot someone ducking behind a tree that time. Wait...why was his own fog...kinda dense? Thanks to it now being his quirk, he could usually see perfectly through it. But, now it was a little..foggy. ...And it wasn't just that his eyes were getting heavy.

*screeching violin music intensifies*

     Wait, he wasn't the ONLY one with a purple dog quirk! That's right! Back at the summer camp! Someone--

Pop!

     The quiet, defeating sound of a gunshot from behind. Danger Sense screamed in his head, but it was too late. He was too tired. Too slow.

     A bullet struck him in the side. Instantly, the feeling of support and strength from the previous users and their quirks...suddenly left him.

     Deku was stuck between holding his breath and gasping as the small red bullet fell to the ground. As he stood there, truly weak for the first time in months...still trying to wrap his head around the concept, another teenager in a plain, black school uniform and army green mask stepped out from behind the trees. He approached slowly, tilting his head as satisfaction overcame him.

     He couldn't breathe for some reason, like the shock knocked all the air out of him. Maybe that was a good thing in this case.. The masked stranger expelled purple mist of his own as he neared. Once close enough, he readjusted the gun in his hand and swung out his arm, smacking Deku in the head with the handle of his blunt weapon. He finally gasped as pain breached his skull, the sensation of tiredness drowning out any lasting pain. Deku fell to his knees, fighting with whatever strength he had to stay awake!

     "Tff... This was the next All Might?"

     Ryo appeared beside the villainous teen, a hand cupping over his nose and mouth. "You made sure to shoot him with the temporary stuff, right?"

     "Of course." Dragging his tone through the dust, "And even I didn't, the boss has a quirk that'll fix that."

     "Right..." The man teleported away for a split second to breathe, returned a moment later and slipped his free hand into his pocket to watch. All while the young hero tried and tried to think up a way out of this. ...But it was a losing battle. "...That easy, huh?" Remarking as the greenette fell onto his side, losing to that relentless call to unconsciousness.

     Ironic that it was sleepiness which led to his downfall.

.

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I just realized all the active antagonists this section have been women with purple hair. What's up with that? XD

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