Inko was in the middle of her shift when the call came.
Her phone was clipped to her belt, and she slid her left thumb across the answer button, not bothering to check the caller ID, as she kept her eyes on the paperwork that she was updating.
"Hello", she said absently, as she continued to update her patient's chart, marking off the round of medication she had just helped administer with her pen.
"Hello, is this Inko Midoriya?"
"Yes, speaking".
"Good afternoon, ma'am, my name is Masameda. I'm an administrator at the Ultra Academy for Heroics, I'm-"
She blinked, before checking the time on the large clock that was on the breakroom wall, confirming that Izuku should still be at school for another few hours yet, "You're with U.A.? Is everything alright?"
"I'm sorry to have to inform you about this over the phone, but there was an incident on campus this morning".
Something cold settled itself deeply into her stomach, "What kind of incident?"
"A group of villains orchestrated an attack on the campus. As a-"
"Izuku", she snapped, cutting him off, "what about Izuku? Is he alright? Is he hurt? What happened to my-"
"Ma'am", Masameda cut her off gently, "please rest assured that none of our students have been seriously injured, however, your son was directly involved in part of the attack-"
"WHAT?!"
"-and we're asking you to come and collect him from the school in person, just so we can be sure that he's going to be safe, leaving the campus".
"Why wouldn't it be safe to leave? What happened?!"
She was drawing stares now, around the room, her friends and colleagues were looking at her with worry and concern in their eyes, but that didn't matter to her.
Izuku's safety was the only thing that mattered.
"I'm afraid that I'm not currently at liberty to disclose the exact details of-"
"Not at liberty", Inko hissed into the phone, the rage of an angry mother welling up inside her chest, "you call me to tell me that my son has been caught up in some kind of villain attack on your watch and then try and tell me that you're not at liberty to tell me what exactly happened?! What kind of-"
"Inko".
She didn't see who had spoken and cut off her rant, but it was Mari who stepped up to her, placing a calming hand on her shoulder.
"Go", the younger woman told her, "we'll make sure that you're covered. Go look after Izuku".
Inko didn't remember hanging up the phone; she didn't remember getting into her car - the old red sedan that she couldn't afford to replace - nor did she remember pulling out of the car park and onto the road, but there she was, driving, with a white-knuckled grip on the steering wheel, as her chest heaved with worried and bated breath.
She already knew that she wouldn't be able to calm down, until she saw Izuku with her own eyes.
She was thankful for the mid-afternoon traffic, which was much lighter than rush hour would have been, and probably the only reason why she hadn't already caused an accident, as her arms strained with holding the steering wheel in a grip that even All Might himself would have found impressive.
Izuku was supposed to be safe.
He hadn't joined the hero course. He'd joined the general education track and was aiming to switch over to study journalism with his friend, JJ, next year, at Seijin. He might have planned for U.A. to be a diversion from his actual school, but Inko had assumed that with over a dozen of the world's top-rated Pro Heroes on the staff, that the school would actually be considered a safe place.
Apparently, she was wrong.
As a mother, her job first, foremost and most importantly, was to protect Izuku. His safety was her highest concern. It didn't matter to her that he wasn't human, he was her son, and she'd sooner see him upset with her, if it meant that he would be safe rather than dead.
She wasn't blind and she certainly didn't consider herself a fool; she was aware that she was a large part of the reason why Izuku had chosen the journalism path over the heroics path was her concerns about his safety. She knew that, if he had pushed the issue with her, she would've relented and let him join the hero course, but she also knew that her son wouldn't push it with her.
In his early years, heroics had been a childish fantasy.
Everyone played 'heroes and villains' on the playground, so Inko had never given any thought to it. Then, her baby had begun to grow up, learning more about himself and the world around him, and Inko had begun to realise that if Izuku ever got serious about becoming a Pro Hero, then not only did he have a great 'Quirk' to let him do so, but he'd also be opening himself up to the entire world, inviting everyone and anyone to scrutinise him and his life.
If anyone ever got even an inkling that Izuku wasn't from Earth…
She didn't even want to think about what would happen.
Izuku had been just nine-years-old when she'd met those people, and that had told her all she needed to know about the kinds of danger that Izuku would have to face, if he ever became a Pro Hero, and how could she, in good conscience, ever allow her son to be hurt like that?
'-and this afternoon, we've also received word that a team of villains launched an attack on the Ultra Academy for heroics this morning. Early reports have indicated that several serious injuries required treatment, but so far, no deaths have been reported. When asked for comment-'
Her hand smacked the radio's power button with far more force than necessary.
Knowing that nobody was dead was good, but her nerves were far too frayed to hear anything else.
She wouldn't feel relaxed until she laid her own eyes on Izuku, confirmed that he was okay and taken him safely home.
His safety was the only thing that mattered.
=== === === === ===
"Ugh…", she blinked slowly, her head feeling heavy, as she took in the sight of the tiled ceiling and fluorescent lighting overhead, before remembering how she'd gotten there.
She tried to force herself up, out of the bed she was lying in, before a pair of hands pushed her back down.
"Melissa", her uncle's voice rumbled, and blinking, she found his face hovering over hers, gaunt and skeletal, instead of full and square jawed, "you need to lay back down", he told her, pressing a little more insistently.
"Class", she mumbled, her tongue feeling like cotton in her mouth, "are they-"
"Everyone made it out safely", Uncle Might told her, now forcing her shoulders onto the mattress, "now get some more sleep. I'll be here when you wake up".
Melissa wanted to protest, but her eyes were growing heavier by the second, and before she realised it, she had closed them and drifted off, back into the awkward state between rest and unconsciousness.
When she woke up the second time, she felt much better rested.
She managed to wake up without groaning or moaning, and found Uncle Might lightly dozing in the chair beside her bed.
Reaching for the guards on the side of the bed, she hissed slightly, as she used them to pull herself upright, into a sitting position, as pain ran down her right arm, and that was all her Uncle Might needed to pull himself from his light slumber.
"Melissa", he breathed, "you're awake. Are you alright?"
"My classmates", she answered, ignoring his question, "are they-"
Her uncle smiled, "They're fine. Some injuries, but nothing too serious or life-threatening", he told her, "but your arm", he ran his eyes down it and she did the same, "is it feeling okay?"
Her flesh was pink, as if inflamed, but compared to the red and purple that had marked just how broken it had felt, after she had used One For All for the first time, she thought it looked great.
"A little sore", she admitted, "but a lot better than earlier".
"I'm not surprised", another voice cut in, as Recovery Girl walked into her room, "your arm was broken in three places and covered in micro-fractures. You've been under my Quirk twice already", the older woman frowned, "what you did was incredibly reckless, not to mention foolish".
"It wasn't her fault-", her uncle tried, before the school nurse turned her glare on him.
"I'm well aware of that", she told him, "this is almost entirely your fault".
"I didn't know that villains would attack-"
"That's your excuse for not teaching how to handle her Quirk?"
If it had been possible for Uncle Might to deflate any further than he already had, then she was sure that he would have done so at that moment, and if it hadn't been for the absolute seriousness of what had happened, she might have even found the sight of it to be humorous.
As it was, she didn't find herself to be in a laughing mood.
From there, she was given a series of instructions by Recovery Girl, who set about testing her arm's range of motion, checking for any lingering damage and then took a few x-rays, before leaving her alone with her uncle.
"Give her light food, plenty of water and make sure that she gets some more rest", were her last instructions, as he nodded dutifully along, completely cowed by the diminutive woman.
"I called Dave", he told her, once they were alone, sounding tired, "he read me the riot act, I promise you, but I've told him that you would be fine, and he's asked that you call him, once you're up to it".
She smiled, also feeling tired, "I'll do that".
He nodded, "Is there anything else-"
"I need you to train me".
The words surprised her.
Not that she meant them; she already knew that she'd meant every word, but that she'd said them.
Uncle Might had recommended that she take things slow, and so far, they had been. Consistent workouts, slowly increasing her physical abilities, as they prepared her to make use of the Quirk that he'd granted her.
Only, it wasn't enough.
She'd thought that they were taking their time, preparing her properly for when the moment came that she would be asked to answer the call to heroics.
Only, the moment had arrived, and when it had, she hadn't been ready.
A single punch had shattered her arm, and with it, her ability to help people.
In an instant, she'd turned from would-be saviour, to in need in saving, and that was something that she could not abide by.
"Melissa…"
"Uncle Might… All Might-sensei… Master", she said, recalling the reverent tone that he reserved solely for the rare times in which Nana Shimura was mentioned, "I need you to-"
"I know".
"You…", she blinked, "know?"
She turned to face him, finding her resolve mirrored in his eyes, as well as a sad smile on his face, "I was in your position once too, Melissa, believe me, I know".
"Then…"
"Training begins the moment that Recovery Girl clears you", he chuckled, "and you best get some rest now", he shook his head, now grinning, "because trust me, you're gonna need it".
"I can handle it".
"Wait until you've met Torino-sensei, before you say that again".
She frowned, "Who's Torino-sensei?"
=== === === === ===
"Principal Nezu, all", Detective Naomasa Tsukauchi offered a shallow bow, and he slipped off his trenchcoat and hat, draping his coat over the back of the offered chair and dropping his hat onto the table, "thank you for having me".
"Of course, Detective", Nezu said, pausing for a moment, as the detective took his seat in the meeting room, "I trust that our students have all been cooperating with the police?"
"I'd say things are going about as smoothly as they could", he agreed, as he took in the sight of the various Pro Heroes assembled in the room, "there were some slight panic, fear and anger, among the students and parents both, but given what happened, I'd say that was to be expected".
"No kidding", Vlad King muttered.
"Quite", the Detective agreed, "we've taken statements from most of them, and we're continuing to get those few that we're missing, but even the students in the hospital have been incredibly helpful".
"That's good to hear, I suppose", Cementoss added, "but how are the students in the hospital faring?"
"Well, Recovery Girl insisted on accompanying the students and overseeing their treatment plans. Most of them have some bumps and bruises, but nothing serious. Of them, the worst off was Mashirao Ojiro, who suffered from a bruised tailbone that he gained when he accidentally pulled part of a fake wall down on himself", a few people chuckled at that, with even Tsukauchi's lips twitching for a moment before he continued, "I've just been reliably told that Melissa Shield is alert, awake and just in need of some rest. Her broken arm will need a few more days of rest to finish healing, but otherwise, she'll be fine".
"All Might is currently with her", Nezu added, informing the rest of the room, "and he has also promised to keep watch over the hospital, while we continue to conduct out investigation, and he will be working with her on Quirk control, over the next few weeks and will continue over the summer".
"Tsuyu Asui was dropped into the Conflagration Zone, which, combined with her Quirk, left her severely dehydrated. She's on fluids and bedrest for the moment, but she is expected to make a full and complete recovery".
"Thank god", Snipe whispered, and the rest of them nodded in agreement.
"Shoto Todoroki suffered from intense and immediate frostbite; he was treated at the scene and then moved to the hospital, but his father has since arranged for him to be moved into private care. Before he was moved, the hospital said that he was improving, but since then, there's been no word".
"I'd say no news is good news, on this occasion", Cementoss pointed out, "had something bad happened, I don't believe that Endeavor would be shy about blaming us for what had happened to his son".
There were several murmurs of agreement, as the group seemed to agree with his assessment, and Tsukauchi took that as permission to continue, though his face turned grim, when he looked at his notes.
"Tsutsutaka Agoyamato was the only student from the general education classroom who warranted the need for immediate medical attention. He was taken to the hospital where he was treated for an open head wound that required a dozen stitches to close, as well as a minor concussion. Thankfully, everyone else suffered only slight bruising at the worst of it", he shook his head, "I'm told that the student in the classroom who actually faced the Nomu creature suffered no actual injuries?"
Nezu made a 'hmm' noise, as he steepled his fingers in front of his face, "Mister Midoriya's Quirk seems to grant him quite the resilience to physical harm, in addition to his strength and speed. Quite… fortunate for us, that he was able to deal with the issue so cleanly".
"Tell me about it", Present Mic added, running his hands through his hair, "I'm just glad he was there at all".
"Refresh my memory, but this is the same kid who-"
"Turned down a place in the heroics course", Present Mic confirmed, answering Power Loader's question, "which I now know for a fact, is a complete waste of talent".
"It was his decision", Snipe pointed out.
"Still", the Voice Hero blew out a tired breath, "maybe this will make him change his mind".
Vlad King cleared his throat, "As Aizawa isn't here, I have only one thing to say about that happening".
Nezu furrowed his brow, "Which is…?"
"Dibs".
The Principal frowned, "Dibs?"
"Dibs", the Blood Hero confirmed.
A few of them chuckled, brightening the room for a moment, before Tsukauchi cut through the chatter.
"Tenya Ida suffered from second degree burns to both of his legs", he told them, the lingering noise instantly replaced with a grim solemnity, "made worse by the contact with his armoured hero costume", several people hissed, having had experience with similar burns of their own, "Recovery Girl's Quirk mitigated some of the immediate damage, but she couldn't do anything for the already damaged skin. He's on strict bed rest with his legs slightly elevated, until the damaged areas are more fully healed. If all goes well, he should be back on his feet within two weeks and doctors are optimistic that he will make a full recovery, but until then, we won't know for sure".
"Fucking hell", Snipe muttered, before raising his voice, "please tell me that's the worst of it?"
Tsukauchi nodded, "For the students, yes, but Eraser Head and Thirteen were both injured as well, and much more seriously than their students".
Vlad sighed, "And how are they?"
Tsukauchi's face turned into a grimace, "Well, the bones in Aizawa's arms are splintered and he's got facial fracturing. Fortunately, I'm told that there doesn't seem to be any serious brain damage, but his orbital floor has been almost completely destroyed. We have no way of knowing if his eyesight will be impaired once he's healed up".
"His eyes?"
Present Mic's voice was small, barely there; a complete contrast to his usual boisterousness, and the detective could only nod in response.
Midnight cleared her throat, "What about Thirteen?"
"Thanks to Kurogiri - the villain with the transporting Quirk - she ended up unleashing Black Hole upon herself. She has some pretty bad lacerations to her back, obviously there's always a chance that her spine could be impacted, but they're hopeful that there'll be no lasting damage to her mobility", he did his best to smile, "she'll likely need some form of physical therapy, but she's expected to pull through".
The room seemed to sigh as a group, relaxing, with only Nezu still sat up straight, his focused gaze swinging between them all one-by-one.
"While I am glad to hear that our students and colleagues should make recoveries, what I am now concerned with, is our obvious need for security improvements; perhaps even, an entire security system overhaul".
Snipe nodded his head, "Agreed. Warp Quirks are rare - very rare - and they can completely change the course of any battle… or war".
Hound Dog's gaze snapped up, "War?"
Snipe shook his head, "Perhaps I'm overreacting, but it's still frightening to know that a villain has such a power".
Hound Dog simply growled, before turning his gaze onto the detective, "Speaking of power, what became of those creatures?"
"The Nomu, as they're apparently called, are being held in a secure facility. They have no apparent injuries and have both been fully compliant with our voice commands, though they don't seem to understand our written instructions. Neither one has said a word, though… truthfully, we're not even sure if they can talk".
"And the other two? Kurogiri and Tomura Shigaraki. What do we know of them?"
"We've investigated the group calling themselves 'The League of Villains', but it appears that this was their first outing, and we've been unable to find anyone named Kurogiri, Tomura or Shigaraki, between the ages of twenty and forty, with registered Quirk descriptions that match up with their transporting or disintegrating abilities", he shrugged, looking exhausted, "we're slowly expanding the scope of our search, but so far, we have nothing".
Midnight nodded, "That makes sense. They're probably not, err…", she paused for a moment, looking for the right word, "polite citizens and they're most likely unregistered. They'll be using false names, unregistered Quirks and don't have any addresses".
"In other words", Cementoss said wryly, "we don't know anything".
Though they couldn't see Snipe's lips flick up into a smirk, they could hear the amusement in his tone, "So, no change there, then… still, based on what All Might told us, you have to think that once the wounds I gave Shigaraki heal, they'll try again".
"The attack was bold", Vlad King agreed, "too bold for a normal person to even think about carrying out. Take that, then you add the way he bragged about the Nomu's Quirk and how, when things didn't go the way he wanted, he began to throw a tantrum, he came off as distinctly childish".
Midnight raised an eyebrow, "Childish?"
Vlad nodded, "Think about it. He threw away the advantage of having unknown Quirks, let alone multiple Quirks, whilst fighting against heroes. He made immature, wild statements with a straight face, and bragged about his possessions. He assumed that everything would simply go his way", he shrugged, "to me, he comes across as someone who hasn't gotten rid of the childish sense of omnipotence most of us have, at one point or another".
"A man-child", Present Mic pointed out, "you think he's some sort of man-child with power?"
"It makes sense", Vlad looked at them all, "doesn't it?"
"If he was an outcast from birth, or worse, raised by villains, it could be that he never received the mandatory Quirk counselling that every child gets at school", Midnight mused, "and if he has a Quirk that's only good for destruction, well… it paints a grim picture, doesn't it?"
"Why did they follow him?"
"What was that?"
Midnight turned to Hound Dog, as everyone else did the same, but the hulking Pro Hero continued to stare at the report in front of him, "Why did they follow him? He was strong, sure, but like you said, immature. The police arrested seventy-two villains at the USJ, but they were all small-timers, not crew guys, so why did they all agree to follow the man-child. Like calls to like, and villain calls to villain, but there's another piece to the puzzle here", he turned his gaze to stare at them all, "we're missing something… something big".
Hound Dog was not renowned for his eloquence, or his desire to speak at all, yet whenever he chose to do so, everyone else found that they listened, and as he finished, everybody present couldn't help but acknowledge that he had a point.
"In a way, he's like our students", Midnight said softly, "He still has room to grow. If there's someone out there, even more capable than him, backing his efforts, trying to cultivate his malice…", she swallowed and the other Pro Heroes in the room felt a chill run down their spine, while Midnight simply shook her head, "I don't want to think about what could happen…"
The thought sat uncomfortably in everyone's stomach, before Tsukauchi broke it, clearing his throat, "Yes, well, tat may be a line of thought to follow in our interrogations, but it was thanks to you heroes that we even have something to investigate at all, and I promise you, we will get to the bottom of this".
=== === === === ===
"A Nomu", the word lingered, as he dragged it out on his tongue, "called Humanite", he confirmed, "and it not only possessed a body with superstrength, but also superspeed and regeneration".
"Yeah", Togata said, half-laughing, "it might have been super-agile too, according to Midoriya, but if it was, I didn't get to see that much before we took it down".
"Still", he mused, "that's quite the power combination".
"No kidding", Togata agreed, nodding his head, "that thing was far stronger than I was. If Midoriya hadn't done the heavy lifting, I don't think that I could've held it long enough for Suneater to take it out".
Izuku Midoriya…
The name meant nothing to him, but when the details of his performance were given to him so plainly by Togata, and combined with All Might's new position as the new Heroics Course teacher, then Mirai Sasaki, better known to the world as Sir Nighteye, All Might's former sidekick-turned-independent Pro Hero, had but one conclusion to draw.
This unknown, this Izuku Midoriya, had obviously been entrusted with the world's greatest Quirk: One For All.
It seemed so obvious with the information that Togata had given him, yet one little fact lingered.
Midoriya wasn't in the heroics course.
He was a student in the department for general education.
That… didn't make sense.
The only reason that he could think of, was that Midoriya was laying low in the general course, waiting just long enough for All Might to establish himself as a teacher, before transferring to heroics at a later date, in order to better protect their shared secret of One For All and the legacy that it represented.
It was actually quite intelligent, and he found himself, despite his awareness of a far superior candidate to receive One For All, begrudgingly impressed with the young man's forethought.
It didn't change his opinion that Lemillion would be a far superior candidate to carry All Might's legacy, but he would admit that the boy clearly had some skill in benevolent deception and there was no reason why he couldn't, with the right guidance, become a skilled Pro Hero in his own right, in the years to come, but the Symbol of Peace?
No.
That position, Sasaki knew, belonged to Mirio, but still, there was no reason not to help Midoriya on his path.
While the rules laid out by the Hero Public Safety Commission were strict when it came to the care and treatment of minors working on internships and work studies, such as the ones that laid out the fact that only one student could intern at an agency, per each individual registered Pro Hero, some of them could be somewhat circumvented, that rule only applied to hero course students, and if he invited Midoriya to intern with him as a researcher or as a member of his support staff, then he wouldn't be in violation of any rules.
And if that just meant, that next year, when Lemillion was no longer an intern, that Midoriya would see the wisdom in continuing to seek out his guidance, then there was no reason not to help such promising potential to find its right path, in becoming one of the key supporting players in Mirio's rise to become Japan's new pillar of heroics.
"About this Midoriya", he turned to face Lemillion, "do you know what his goals are as a student?"
"Oh, err…", Mirio rubbed the back of his head; the same way he always did when he felt slightly embarrassed, "sorry, Sir, but no. We talked for a while, but I didn't think to ask him that".
"It's no issue", he reassured his protégé, "but with summer internships coming up and you being in your second year here, I was thinking of hiring another intern, but an office-based one this time".
"And you're thinking of Midoriya, oh that would be swell, Sir. Would you like me to set up an introduction?"
"Oh, Mirio", he felt a smile settle on his face, which Mirio was quick to return, smiling as bright as the sun, "that would be perfect".
=== === === === ===
"Stop complaining".
His mother was hovering.
U.A. was closed for the week, underdoing a complete and comprehensive security review, before they hosted a meeting with the parents of the two classes most affected by the attack on the campus. Apparently, not only had there been a monster deployed into Class 1-C, but at one of the school's training facilities, a full-fledged invasion had taken place, with Class 1-A being attacked by a horde of actual villains.
Thankfully, it seemed that no one had actually been hurt, or at least, not badly.
"I'm not complaining", Izuku said down his phone, which was flat on his desk, beside his laptop, the speakerphone button highlighted, as he focused on the screen in front of him, "it's just a bit… much".
"Look, Izuku, in case you missed it, you nearly died".
"I told you, just like I told her, I'm fine".
"Izuku", his friend said, as if he was explaining something to a particularly dense child, "your school was attacked. The Humanite - a literal monster - in case you're forgetting tried to kill you, and you were the one responsible for stopping it-"
"The upperclassmen were actually-"
"-and ignoring your dumb sense of modesty, you were still thrown out of a window-"
"Technically it was a hole in the wall".
"-and then had to fight for your life. Your mom's worried about you. Izuku, I'm worried about you. Just let the woman hover for a few days".
"JJ, seriously, I'm fine".
"I'm just saying; number of times that Seijin has been attacked this year: zero".
"You're hilarious".
"Hey, I'm serious".
"And somehow, that's even funnier".
"Izuku-"
"JJ, I am fine. Just… drop it, already".
There was a pause, and he could hear his friend's slow exhale, "Alright, alright, consider it dropped… for now, at least".
He blew out a breath of his own, "Thank you".
"And as we're now considering it dropped, I can now ask you what you have for me?"
"And just like that, we've arrived at the real reason you called to check in on me: you want something from me".
"You just said that you were fine".
"So, what do you want from me?"
"Oh, don't even pretend that you haven't written something for me".
"You do know that you're not my boss, right?"
"If you can look me in the eye-"
"This isn't a video call".
JJ ignored him, "-and tell me that you don't have already something written for me to upload to Flamebird, then I'll eat my hat".
"You also don't wear hats".
"You really know how to take the fun out of all of this".
"Thank you".
He could imagine JJ glaring at his phone screen, and even shaking his head, as he made him wait for it.
"Izuku…"
"You know", he added, his tone conversational, "now that I think about it, I might have something ready for posting that I can send you".
"I really hate you sometimes".
"I love you too", he told him, even as he pressed 'Send' on his email.
=== === === === ===
"We failed", Shigaraki spat the word out, as if it had physically pain him to say, "our underlings were taken out. Our Nomu was beaten. All Might", the name reverberated in his chest, almost like a growl, "the Symbol of Peace; he wasn't weakened at all! You lied to me!"
"Tomura Shigaraki, your injuries-"
"Shut up Kurogiri!"
Pushing himself up from the bed, ignoring how his wounds pulled at him, Tomura moved to stand in front of the blacked-out television screen that occupied the corner of his room, jabbing it with his finger, "You were wrong, Master. So wrong!"
"No, I wasn't".
The voice, deep and commanding, had an amused lilt to it, "We simply weren't as prepared as we should've been".
"I agree", the Doctor chimed in, his face similarly hidden, but there was no doubt that he was at the Master's side, "we underestimated them, but thankfully, we used that cheap 'League of Villains' moniker, rather than the Master's name. Now, you were shot four times, so sit down before you tear your stitches".
Shigaraki grumbled, but relented, allowing Kurogiri to guide him back to the bed, where he pulled a blanket over his legs.
"Rest now, Tomura", the Master told him, "All Might will still die. It just won't be today".
"Fine", he grumbled.
"I'd still like to know what happened to the creatures. Where are the Nomu?"
"Yes, Doctor, an excellent point. Why did they not return with you?"
"Apologies, Master, but the one Tomura Shigaraki refers to as 'Peacebreaker' was blown away. All Might's strength proved to be too much for him".
"What?!"
"Without knowing the exact co-ordinates to his precise location, I am afraid that I am unable to use my Warp Gate to retrieve him".
"I see…"
"Due to the nature of Tomura Shigaraki's injuries, I deemed it prudent to return him to you, rather than search for the Nomu".
"A wise decision".
"Thank you, Master".
"Wise?! This is a travesty!"
"Calm yourself, Doctor".
"After all we did to make him as powerful as All Might, it still wasn't enough! How can that be?!"
The Master said nothing, with the only sound being a faint rumble, which Kurogiri assumed was the Master's version of a chuckle, "Well, I suppose it can't be helped. How… unfortunate".
"Unfortunate?! Master, this was-"
"Come now, Doctor, you're upset, but this was not a futile mission. We've learned many things about All Might's capabilities, and we will be better prepared for our next attempt".
They heard the Doctor sigh, "I suppose".
"In the meantime, I think we'll move away from the common rabble. Tomura, your next task will be to gather yourself a villainous elite. Take all the time you need as you build your own group to challenge the reign of the Symbol of Peace. For now, I must remain hidden in the shadows, which is why I need you to become my new face. A symbol in your own right".
"Yes…"
"Tomura Shigaraki… I promise you, the next time that you step onto the stage, you will show the world why it should be afraid of you".
Nodding, Kurogiri watched, as Tomura drifted off, back to his slumber so that his body could continue to heal, before he reached up, setting the blanket to cover his torso.
"Kurogiri?"
"Yes, Master".
"You never said what happened to the second Nomu".
"Apologies, Master, but several minutes after we arrived, I deployed the second Nomu, referred to by Tomura Shigaraki as 'Humanite', to the main U.A. campus, at Tomura Shigaraki's request, placing it into the centre of one of the non-hero classrooms".
"And what became of it?"
"When I returned to collect it, I found it unconscious beside a group of older students and one of the children from the non-heroics classroom. The state of his clothing leaves me to believe that he battled it for some time, before help arrived. Due to Tomura Shigaraki's injuries, I chose to abandon it, rather than risk a second battle".
There was a pause, leaving him curious as to what the Master was thinking, before his voice returned, "I see…"
He bowed to the screen, "I apologise, if I was incorrect in my assessment of the situation".
"Kurogiri?"
"Yes, Master".
"Tell me everything you can, about this child that was enough to defeat my Nomu".
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Author's Note
Alright-y then… that's all for Part Two folks!
Some of the dialogue in this chapter is adapted from the English Dub of Season 1, Episode 13 "In Each of Our Hearts", as well as Season 2, Episode 1 "That's the Idea, Ochaco".
I expect to see all of you back here soon for, Volume One, Part Three: The Sports & Culture Festival.