][ Previously: Mei reveals herself to be Ryo's sister right before killing his quirk. The loss of his power mixed with past trauma causes him to spiral, wherein he almost takes his own life but Mei saves him. ][

      Suzuki had killed thirty-seven villains and eleven Nomu, three of them high-end. Would he ever get any credit for it? Probably not. But his day was not over yet either.

     Blood dropped from his body. Held most of it in using his telekinesis, forcing his molecules to slowly heal and close up his wounds.

     The past S-rank villain hovered several feet above the air, the red forcefield around him pushing against the storm. By now he got it. He drew from the excessive amount of energy Shigeo's body expelled, which was enough to replenish what was in-turn being taken.

     What an impressive storm this was... The man couldn't help but quietly marvel at it a little. Surely, such a storm would be impossible for anyone else to push through. It was almost like Suzuki was destined to put an end to this. And judging by the amount of destruction this storm was causing, there was no doubt his son and past wife would be put in danger by it.

     Perhaps, then, this was the universe giving Suzuki his shot at redemption. It was unlikely anyone would ever find out about his deeds in this era of peril, but perhaps.. somehow.. word would make it to his son one day...that his father had indeed cared about him all those years. Hopefully, then, Sho would know he had a father who truly loved him...

     He had no other ways to express how he really felt for his son, so perhaps this was the only one..

     Finally, he arrived at the center of this storm of an aura. The bright white void of a person hovered along as well, the occasional flakes of black flickering through that pure flame. Suzuki's eyes widened a little.

     He stretched out his hands, struggling a little more now than usual to tear the building from its foundation, forcing the glass and concrete sky scrapper to topple over Shigeo's path.

CRASH!!!

     Shigeo continued forward carelessly. As he neared the fallen structure, an invisible sphere surrounding him melted through the debris, clearing a tunnel through the object. Suzuki frowned. Was there nothing he could do to stop this kid?! As Shigeo vanished through the fallen building, Suzuki clenched his fists, at last making up his mind.

     That kid was simply too powerful to take on in a fight.

     There was only one way to defeat him, and he was the only one who could do it!

     Suzuki then followed, his red barrier protecting the man from the dripping, molten rock and glass, which slid down its crimson edge like rain water. As the man emerged on the other side of the fallen building, his eyes widened slightly at the sight.

     "D###!! He's only absorbing our energy blasts!!" Sho cursed, sliding down the side of a slanted wall. Ritsu jumped over some rubble, staring down at his brother while flipping over him. His hair hissed a little, singed at the tips, too terribly close to the determined teen. Ritsu landed on his feet and chucked a couple boulders at the glowing one, which did nothing but melt upon impact and orbit Shigeo before flinging back out at the boys, now a much more dangerous weapon!

     "Nothing's working!!!" Ritsu and Sho narrowly dodged. It was hard enough to remain standing among all this wind! And both young teens were quickly running out of time! Their psychic energy was already being consumed at an alarming rate!

     Suzuki hovered forward as his son and son's friend raced the clock to find a way to take down Shige. He sped up a little, clearly seeing just how much danger the two were in.

     "Brother!! You need to calm down, please!!" Ritsu cried, standing in front of his brother and holding his hands out. Shigeo continued forward, only slowing when the younger one's finger tips started to burn due to the nearing aura.

     Sho tackled Ritsu out of the way, the two rolling over the broken up bubble. "ARE YOU CRAZY?!" Sho cried! "THAT'S NOT YOUR BROTHER!!"

     Shigeo stopped. Both younger teens held their breaths. Shigeo just stood there stiffly, his shoulder to them. But the elder stared straight ahead, body and eyes expressing no form of emotion.

     ...But he still stopped to listen... He clearly cared.

     Ritsu's eye softened as he stared ahead at the disheveled form of his older brother. "...No..." Slowly, he pushed Sho off of him and stood to his feet. The gushing air flapped his clothing wildly, hair whipping his face. He leaned forward, an unsteady step taking his weight. "..This is still Shige..." Ritsu pushed through the wind, rounding his brother's aura until the two were standing face to face again. He noticed the aura no longer burnt him, even as he stood closer to him than he did before.

     Shigeo's swirling red voids for eyes stared ahead blankly, and yet Ritsu still held hope that he could talk to him.

     "...I missed you, Shige..." Dang, Ritsu was getting a little choked up already. His left eye filled with tears.

     Shigeo stared blankly, though his soul was filled with pain at the sight of Ritsu's eye patch. ... If only those idiot heroes hadn't stopped him, he would've been able to restore his brother's eye for sure. He would no longer have to look at him with such disgust and remorse.

     "...You've always been my brother, Shige... whether you lost control or not. ... Because you've always tried to protect me, no matter wh-at state you were in." The younger one admitted, tears streaming down his left cheek. 

     This hurt to watch. Shigeo was on a mission for deliverance. He was on a mission for redemption! And his brother stood here in his way, reminding of all the times he had failed before! All the mistakes he made!

     He'd decided in that prison that he would no longer care about anyone or anything. Caring about people was what always held him back, made him weak, sad, and easy to manipulate. Shigeo was better off not caring about anyone at all!

     And that included people he once considered his family.

     Shigeo pressed forward, his power increasing so that it started to sting Ritsu's skin once more. Ritsu jumped back, the strong winds of the storm tackling him, his fading power having a harder and harder time standing against it!

     "I realize now why I always wanted these powers!!!..." Ritsu shouted over the wind. "All this time, I wanted them to be there for you; to suffer with you; to be the brother you always needed, but never got!!!.. YOU CAN PUSH ME AWAY AGAIN AND AGAIN, BUT I'LL ALWAYS COME BACK! BECAUSE I LOVE YOU, SHIGE!!!"

     Shigeo's eyes widened a smidge.

     ...What were all those years..? All those years of pretending. Of faking.. Ritsu was always one to put on a lying smile. To keep the peace, Mob never noticed...but Shigeo did...

     He always noticed how afraid his little brother was of him after that incident.

     And that daily reminder was what tore Shigeo apart. What burrowed him into such a deep hole he could never hope to crawl out of.

     ...But this was different... He didn't sense any of that same fear in his brother now. No. This love... It was... It was genuine.

Thump-thump..

     Shigeo felt his heartbeat, a faint warmth encompassing it, which slowly started to grow throughout his chest.

     He always wanted to be loved, accepted, welcomed as he was with open arms.

   ...Though he was too broken now to accept that kind of love. This world still had no place for him, its inhabitants out to use him for his powers and leave him with nothing in return.

     The black along the roots of his hair grew until half of his hair was the pitch color, now flicking around like some magical black and white flame. The rest of his body too accepted more of this darker color around him, now a being of half black and half white. A gust of intense, hot air flew directly out of the glowing one's aura, sweeping both teens off their feet and flying them far away.

     Both boys screamed. Ritsu crashed into the street a couple blocks away, knocked out instantly but still alive. Sho was headed for a mound of shattered glass and spikes when suddenly--

     Someone caught the teen and held him tightly in his arms. "D-Dad!?!" Sho's bright blue eyes widened, just as angry to see him as he was happy. As his mind settled, he noticed all the blood sliding down his father's face. The bruises, cuts. Sticky blood latched onto Sho's hands and clothing. He gasped, freaked out for sure. "What happened?!" He jumped down from his floating father's arms as the man hovered over solid ground. The kid skidded on his beaten shoes and glared up at his old man again. "Don't tell me you're the one behind all this!!"

     The middle aged man landed beside his son, his barrier encompassing the two of them so that his son wouldn't have to fight the wind so much. Sho rolled his eyes at the obvious show of care and affection. "No." At last, he answered dully. "In fact, I am here to end things once and for all."

     "Wha?? How?!?"

     "My unique powers...remember?" Suzuki strode forward with a limp, eyes fixed on his moving target. "..I am the only one who can fix this, Sho."

     The ginger gasped. "Wait, WHAT?! But that'll KILL you!!" Suzuki turned slowly, fixing his son with a very intent stare.

     "Take your friend and leave this place at once. I don't want you to get caught up in all of this." The boy's father turned again, taking the wind barrier with him as he picked himself up in the air, making his way toward Shigeo. Sho bit his tongue, watching his dad leave him for the last time.

     He always expected himself to never care about his old man when his time came, but... "Dad..." His voice was so faint; yet so full of pain. Suzuki spun around at once, his eyes locking with the bright blue, worry filled ones of his son. He recognized that expression, though the teen tried to hide it well under stoicism. ..Sho didn't want his dad to go...

     The man turned, peering over his shoulder at Shigeo one last time, then sighed, again facing his son.

     Maybe there was a better way he could prove to his son that he loved him... By being there for him.

     "...Let's go... Is your mother safe?"

     "Yeah.. She evacuated a while ago." Sho was a little surprised to watch as his dad's lips curled upward into a faint smile.

     "That's good to hear.. We should grab your friend and get out of here as well.." Sho nodded, jogging up to his dad so that he was again within his protective barrier. Together, both father and son left to tend to their own wounds...living for a better day.

----------

     It was still hard to believe that MOB was behind this storm! The same innocent little boy who was always scared of hurting everybody!

     "Deku, I'm slipping!!" Uraraka's hands gripping the greenette's shoulders nearly let go, but the teen last second grabbed them, wrapping her arms around his neck. She wiggled her arms around from there, making sure not to choke him or cut off any blood flow. The rest of her body was off the ground, legs uselessly kicking through the air, as she hadn't the strength nor the weight to march through this terrible storm. Izuku's hero shoes and knee pads were made of metal, which made him at least heavy enough to stick to the ground. That, plus him using his quirk at 10%, helped him push through the intense winds.

     To his right was Iida, who had to use his jets just in order to stabilize himself and keep pushing forward, marching ahead in a very low stance, almost a crawl. Shoto struggled forward at Izuku's left, using ice to stick his every step to the ground. Bakugo fought the wind above them all, using his explosions to align himself up there. By far it looked like the blond was struggling the most up there, but he wasn't complaining.

     Everyone knew that look in Izuku's eyes when all the people in their assigned district had been safely evacuated. Many more classmates tried to follow, but only this small few remained of the dozen or so that tried.

     Suddenly, the wind changed course, pushing Izuku to the right in the front and pushing him to the left in the back. This forced Izuku to spin a little, stumbling and grabbing Ochako's arms again. He had told her to stay back a while ago, but she demanded that she help them. Everyone else was just as stubborn as she, slowly but steadily inching closer to the center of this vicious storm.

     Izuku Midoriya mumbled under his breath, upping his power output from 10% to 20%, JUST to continue marching. Not only was the storm worsening the closer they got, but the boy could feel his power being drawn into it, slowly and steadily leaving the greenette. Of all the problems to have, this was probably his greatest one!

     How long until he lost OFA for good..?

     He couldn't think of that now. Not while he had a friend to save!

     "Gah!!" Iida fell, grappling a hold of some rubble, struggling to stand again. But his jets in his calves were just... too weak. They sputtered, on the verge of completely giving out! "I'm afraid I cannot go any farther either!!"

     "Iida??" Izuku turned his head, narrow eyes -- to shield from the wind -- filled with worry.

     "Iida, no!" Ochako.

     "I'll be alright! Just go on ahead without me! I'll make sure the rest of the class is alright!!"

     "O..okay... Be careful!"

     The class president smiled and tipped his head. "As always." Then, he turned and ran in the other direction, the air currents helping to push him along.

     Everyone turned their attentions ahead of them. Still, there was no Shigeo in sight!

     An armada of rocks flew at the student heroes, aiming to take them out. "Deku!!" Ochako screamed. Yet it was she who saved him by slapping the rocks away. Todoroki wasn't quite so lucky to have a classmate strapped to his back.

     Shoto created an ice wall to shield his right. The rocks flew through it like bullets, shattering the ice and knocking the teen out cold. He fainted rather elegantly, his body draping dramatically over the rubble. Izuku and Ochako screamed his name. He'd been hit in three places. The head, ribs, and a knee. The chances of him walking out on his own were slim.

     "IIDA!!!" Izuku called back for their classmate, but he was already gonne amongst the wreckage. Izuku stared back with somber eyes... He couldn't just leave his friend out here!

     Bakugo's explosions kept shrinking and shrinking. He grunted and gritted his teeth, but it was getting harder and harder to control his excuse for a flight! Eventually, he just couldn't keep it up anymore. He crashed into the ground, both wind and gravity shoving him against concrete which grated at his skin!

     "KACHAN!!"

     Blood leaked from all over the blond's body as he pushed himself up onto his hands and knees. He grabbed onto a couple cracks in the ground just to keep his place. Bakugo panted, whining quietly to himself. "No.. no... nononono..." One of his hands rose, trying to create yet another explosion! It was so tiny. So pathetic. All of that hard work and training... Gone.. His breaths rasped, feeling with that hand the half of his face that had been ripped open by pavement. His eyes widened, heart beating frantically!

     That competitive drive he was famous for... was gone.

     'This power... It's the only thing I have! The only reason anyone even cares about me to begin with! .. But..compared to a godlike power like that,' Bakugo glared ahead. Still, through the wrecked buildings, cars, and everything else, there was no sign of their target... 'it's completely USELESS!' Bakugo hissed through his teeth. "D###it!!" He punched the ground. Then his eyes wandered over to the worried Izuku and Ochako, eyes lingering in that perfect moment -- when both knew exactly what the other was thinking. '..I'm sorry, Izuku, but I can't risk wasting my time only to lose my quirk in the end! .. I'll make it up to you later. Somehow. I promise...' It was the first time Bakugo ever gave up. The guilt that followed cut deep to his core. But... Lifting his head, spiky hair could see Mr. Princess was in need of saving. "Tch.." The teen smiled at least a little.

     At the very least, he could save one pathetic weakling.

     "I've got him!!!" Bakugo hollered, pushing his bloody self up and crawling toward the others. Gosh, it stung! It really.. really stung! The wind wasn't playing games anymore. It mercilessly took this opportunity to tug at the blond's peeling skin, adding his blood to the debris it liked to throw around. Bakugo grabbed Shoto and slung the fainted one's arm over his shoulder. He turned one last time to glare down Deku. The two stared into each other's eyes again, that rare sense of understanding between the two. "Don't mess this up, Deku!!" Were Bakugo's final words to his classmate before turning and limping back with the unconscious Todoroki. Izuku marched on as before, now only he and Ochako remaining.

     ...How... How were they going to fix this?!

     Their quirks!.. They were going to be absolutely useless by the time they got there!!

     Determination still nested in their hearts.

     They would just have to figure something out when that time came.

---------- 

     Deku..at 80%.. was barely able to trudge forward. Ochako was struggling as well. Her quirk didn't work quite as well on incoming debris, leading in her hands getting all torn up in the process! They were SO close, though!

     But...would it even be worth it in the end?

     His quirk... The one All Might trusted him with...was almost COMPLETELY gone! All the vestiges inside of him followed the flow of power, leaving the boy as well.

     How much longer...until he was nothing but the useless, quirkless nobody all over again..?

     Tears filled his eyes.

     'I'm sorry... All Might... I'm really.. truly.... sorry...'

     "Just a little further!!!" The vaguely familiar voice of a man was heard a little further off. Ochako and Izuku listened intently, eyes on the look-out as the road they trudged along merged with another. There, two full grown men in business suits struggled through the wind too, the brunette with an umbrella leading the charge. "O-oh no, sir! My powers are giving out already!! I'm afraid we won't be able to go much further!" He frowned. "And even my boost of spiritual energy isn't going to last us much longer at THIS rate!!!" The same man spoke..again?? But, his voice sounded just a little different that time.

     Reigen's jaw clamped tightly. His hand out in front of him shielded some of the wind from his face as he peered around the man and his umbrella.

     "...I-it's alright, Serizawa! I think I got it from here! Dimple, possess me now!" The blond suddenly gained enough of a physical energy boost to sprint further into the storm. Izuku stared in awe as the man so selflessly threw him out there...once again putting his own life on the line for his student.

     Only...wait...

     Didn't that guy have...no powers? He couldn't remember if Eri had restored it or not. But either way, nothing had changed about the man.

     He didn't rely on his quirk to jump into danger. Didn't worry that he might let someone down, or fail in the end.

     But most importantly, he didn't rely on his powers to do the right thing. Quite frankly, nothing would change about Reigen...whether he had his quirk or not.

     It reminded Izuku a lot of...himself. Before he even joined UA..he jumped into a dangerous situation, trying to save his friend.

     He remembered how that felt. ...Completely hopeless, but determined. Determined to become a hero no matter what!

     Deku's legs sprang alight with color, charging his quirk, upping it to 100%! No! Past that!! One million percent!!! "Hold on!!" Izuku grabbed a hold of Ochako's arms.

FWOOOSH!!!

     The young hero raced after the blond, determined to reach Mob!

     And even if he didn't. Even if he lost his quirk forever...he would STILL become a hero! Why?! Because there were still so many ways he could help people that didn't require having a quirk!

     ...Being quirkless didn't make you a nobody... He...he finally got it now. It just made you a little different. ... Guess Izuku would just have to figure out how else he could help others...if smashing and punching things was no longer an option!

     Izuku grabbed both of Ochako's arms with one of his, then reached his free hand out for Reigen as he passed by. He grabbed a hold of the blond one's arm, helping him reach the center of this storm even faster!!

     "Woah!!" Reigen cried, his legs hardly able to keep up. He finally got a chance to look up at the kid helping him. "Midoriya?!... Uraraka?!"

     "Let us help you!!" The girl wiggled one of her hands free and touched Reigen's shoulder, making him a little lighter. His smile grew a little, happy to have the help.

     "Thanks, guys!.. Just make sure to leave the talking to me!.. Alright?!"

     "Got it!"
     "Got it!"

     Izuku ran, Reigen hardly having to do anything anymore, parkouring over rubble, leaping over huge cracks in the ground.

     The remaining embers of his power fell away at an alarming rate. Reigen instantly felt when Uraraka's quirk died out, now having to carry the brunt of his own weight, slowing them down.

     The three broke into a clearing at last, where the only thing remaining of the quaint little park were splinters and a sorry splashing pond. Shigeo walked over the rough waves, any daring water droplets willing to jump out at him instantly evaporating. He touched shore right as Izuku collapsed by a park bench. He grabbed a hold of it, helping Reigen latch on as well. Everyone clung on for dear life, hoping the bolts wouldn't come loose.

     Shigeo absently glanced their direction for half a second.

     Ah... The manipulative con-man and the boy who saw him as nothing but an interesting thought experiment... How delightful. To be graced by the two individuals who objectified his powers the most... Granted, he preferred Izuku's nosy curiosity over Reigen's cunning any day. But these two were probably his best living examples of the two extremes; the kinds of people he despised the most.

     How long until people just give up and leave him alone?

     How long until he was no longer treated differently, like an outcast, or something to be feared/praised for his gifts alone?

     How long would it take...for these two to break..?

.

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Reigen rn TvT:

He hasn't gotten much sleep since Mob said "it's Mobbing time" and started to Mob all over the place. (since he was arrested)