I faced forward. Nomu. A dozen other villains. Aizawa between me and them, but I knew that wouldn't last.
"Midoriya, get out," Aizawa said.
Not happening.
I checked the System again.
Task 9: Slow down or distract Nomu without dying immediately.
Right. So this thing was built different. And I had to fight it. Or at least, not get erased from existence in the first two seconds.
Shigaraki tilted his head. "You're still here? That's cute."
Nomu moved. No warning, no slow buildup. One second, it was standing still. The next, it was in front of Aizawa. His scarf shot out, wrapping around its arm, but the damn thing didn't even flinch. Then it swung.
Aizawa dodged, barely. The ground exploded where he had been standing.
I could try to help, but I didn't have a death wish. The bat was already in my hands, grip tight.
A villain rushed forward. I swung. The bat cracked against his ribs, and he dropped. Another one grabbed at me. I yanked his arm forward and kneed him in the stomach. He crumpled.
Nomu ignored everything. It lunged at Aizawa again. Aizawa moved, dodging to the side. His eyes locked on Nomu—his Quirk was still active, but it wasn't doing shit.
That was bad.
I grabbed a loose chunk of debris and threw it at one of the villains trying to flank Aizawa. It hit his shoulder, making him stumble.
Shigaraki noticed me again. "You're really asking to die, huh?"
Nomu turned.
I ran.
It was on me in half a second. I jumped back, barely avoiding the swipe aimed at my head.
[+1 Agility – SURVIVAL INSTINCT.]
The hell? Not the time.
Nomu's hand came down. I rolled to the side. It hit the ground, concrete shattering. I swung the bat at its knee. Metal hit flesh. It felt like I had just hit a steel pole.
It didn't react.
Nomu grabbed at me. I yanked my arm away, but its fingers skimmed my sleeve. The fabric tore. I jumped back again.
[+1 Agility – PANIC TRAINING.]
Okay, at least I was getting something out of this.
Aizawa came in from the side, his scarf wrapping around Nomu's head. He yanked, trying to pull it off balance. It barely moved.
Shigaraki laughed, his voice raspy. "Oh, this is fun."
I swung at his face. He jumped back. "Rude."
"Sorry, I thought we were doing first impressions."
System, give me the fucking rewards now. At least those I completed. I need stats.
[THE BALLS YOU HAVE! SHOULD I ALSO GIVE YOU 1000 STRENGTH WHILE I AM AT IT?]
Sure, why not?
[WOW, A JOKER. FINE. UPDATING STATS. TRY NOT TO DIE TOO FAST.]
Strength: 33
Agility: 36
Intelligence: 40
Limit Breaker was still active, tripling everything. My bat felt lighter. My muscles weren't screaming as much. The fight was still bullshit, but at least now I had some numbers to work with.
Nomu moved first, faster than it had any right to be. Aizawa dodged left, barely avoiding its fist as it crushed the concrete where he stood. I sprinted forward and swung at the back of its knee. The hit connected, but it might as well have been a love tap. The thing didn't even flinch.
Shigaraki turned to me. "You again?"
I ignored him, aiming another swing at Nomu's head. This time, it reacted. It moved before my bat could land, its arm snapping toward me. I twisted mid-air, barely dodging. The wind from its swing still hit like a shockwave.
The bat wouldn't do shit against Nomu's durability, but I wasn't trying to kill it. Just slow it down. I switched tactics. Instead of swinging at its body, I aimed for the eyes. The bat snapped forward. Nomu raised an arm to block, leaving its ribs open. Aizawa took the opening, slamming his elbow into its side. Still barely a reaction, but better than nothing.
"Hey, Pale Bitch. What's up with the hand on your face? Do you use it to jerk off? Is it your lover's?"
Shigaraki's head snapped toward me, grip tightening. His fingers twitched like he wanted to dig them into my skin. "You're real fucking annoying." His hand twitched. "Nomu, get rid of the extra."
Nomu vanished.
Fuck.
I jumped left, guessing where it would reappear. The air shifted behind me. Too late. A grip like steel wrapped around my forearm. My feet left the ground.
Nomu hurled me sideways. I braced, but the impact still rattled my bones. Concrete cracked under me. The jacket absorbed most of it, but my ribs still felt like they got hit with a crowbar.
I rolled up fast. No time to sit around.
Nomu's red eyes locked on me. Its hand twitched. Another attack. I moved first. Rushing it was suicide, but I needed to dodge before it got another grab in.
Nomu lunged. I ducked. Its fist tore through the air where my head had been. I swung at its knee again, aiming for the joint. Useless. The bat bounced off like I hit a brick wall. It was strong, fast, and built like a tank.
[+1 Strength – You Keep Swinging, Dumbass.]
Yeah, real helpful.
Aizawa moved in, scarf shooting out to grab Nomu's arm. His Quirk was still active, but Nomu didn't slow down. Whatever kept this monster moving, was not a Quirk. The thing didn't even acknowledge him. Its free arm swung. Aizawa barely avoided getting crushed.
I pulled a smoke bomb from my pocket—Momo's earlier gift—yanked the pin with my teeth—of course—and threw it at Nomu's feet. Smoke burst out. I jumped back, grabbing a chunk of broken concrete. The second the smoke cleared, I hurled it at Nomu's face.
It hit. Didn't do much, but it got its attention.
Shigaraki growled. "Why are you still alive?"
I smirked. "Skill issue."
Nomu blurred forward. I moved, but it clipped my shoulder. The force sent me skidding back. I barely stayed upright.
[+1 Endurance – Congratulations, You Haven't Died Yet.]
I spotted movement at the entrance.
All Might.
He was here. Finally.
Shigaraki noticed too. His whole body twitched. "No, no, no—Nomu! Kill him!"
Nomu vanished again. This time, I was ready. I dropped to the ground just as its arm tore through the air above me. I swung low, aiming for the back of its leg. Not to damage—just to trip.
The hit connected. Nomu's foot shifted. It wasn't much, but Aizawa took the opening. He moved in, aiming for its head. Another scarf wrap, a sharp pull—Nomu barely reacted.
All Might landed with enough force to shake the ground. His shadow covered us. "I AM HERE!"
Pale Bitch looked at All Might like he owed him money. "Nomu, kill All Might!" Then he turned toward me and Aizawa. "Kurogiri, help me kill these two."
Oh, so that makes him Shigaraki. Fine by me. Bonus quests time.
Nomu blurred toward All Might. The second they clashed, shockwaves ripped through the plaza. The ground cracked, air pressure alone forcing loose debris into the air. All Might swung, fist colliding with Nomu's chest. No effect. Nomu countered with a punch of its own. All Might caught it, but his feet slid back from the impact.
Shigaraki twitched when Nomu didn't one-shot him. "No, no, no—come on!" His head snapped toward me. "You, stay dead." He lunged.
I swung. The bat connected with his ribs. He stumbled, fingers flexing like he was ready to turn me into mince. Kurogiri's mist shot forward, wrapping around me.
[Target: Shigaraki Tomura
Quirk: Decay – Can disintegrate anything he touches with all five fingers.
Strength: 58
Agility: 70
Intelligence: 55
Charisma: 30
Luck: 65
Traits:
Fragile Menace: Physically weaker than most high-tier villains, but makes up for it with a lethal Quirk and unpredictability.
Impulsive Rage: Quick to anger, especially when things don't go his way. This leads to reckless decision-making.
Obsessive Fixation: Once he marks a target as his enemy, he fixates on eliminating them, sometimes to his own detriment.
Underestimating Fools: Assumes heroes are 'fake' and underestimates their will to fight.
Decay's Dilemma: His Quirk is horrifyingly destructive but requires all five fingers for activation. This creates exploitable openings in combat.
Unhinged Leader: Can inspire fear and loyalty in villains, but his erratic nature makes long-term cooperation difficult.
Burden of the Past: Wears the severed hands of his deceased family, including his father on his face, as a constant, suffocating reminder of his past. This fuels both his hatred and his instability.]
[WHEN WILL YOU START INSULTING KUROGIRI IN A WAY THAT MAKES HIM PAUSE?]
I smirked. "Right now."
Kurogiri's mist shifted like he wasn't expecting that. I didn't waste time. I swung my bat straight through the mist around me. Didn't do shit, obviously, but it made me feel better.
"Man, I gotta ask," I continued. "How do you eat? Do you just dump food in your portal and hope it lands in your stomach?"
The mist flickered. That was a pause. I counted that as a win.
Shigaraki twitched. "Kurogiri, stop fucking around and warp him into a volcano or something."
Kurogiri's mist curled around me like a cheap-ass haunted house effect, but I just grinned. "Damn, you're quick on the draw. That a natural talent, or did you get used to cleaning up Shigaraki's cum-stained hands every night?"
Shigaraki's eye twitched so hard I thought he was about to develop a new medical condition. "You—"
I took a step closer, tilting my head. "What, did I hit a nerve? You mad I figured out why you keep all those crusty-ass hands around? Not enough affection growing up, so now you gotta jerk off with your dead family's fingers?"
His breath hitched like I just slapped the trauma straight out of his soul. Then he lunged.
Kurogiri moved with him, trying to box me in, but I was already shifting. The second Shigaraki's nasty-ass corpse grabbers reached for me, I dodged sideways and swung my bat up. The steel cracked against his forearm, and he jerked back, wheezing.
"Goddamn, are you made of fucking drywall? That's all it took?" I flexed my fingers. "Shit, I should've hit you harder."
He staggered, snarling. "I'll rip your fucking throat out—"
"Bet." I twirled my bat. "I'll let you get the first swing, too. Oh, wait—you already did, and I'm still standing. Looks like you're more bitch than villain."
He damn near foamed at the mouth before lunging again, swiping at my face. I ducked, brought my bat down on his shin, and laughed when he crumpled like a faulty deck chair.
"Damn, you're really this fragile?" I leaned in. "Hey, don't take this the wrong way, but you ever thought about suicide? Like, seriously? Because if I looked like a fucking melted candle and took Ls this hard, I would take the permanent exit too."
His whole body twitched like he was about to fucking explode. Kurogiri moved fast, mist snapping around me again, but I was already stepping back, watching Shigaraki shake like a fiending crackhead.
"You need a moment, buddy?" I tapped my bat against my palm. "Or do you wanna keep getting folded in front of all your little goons? Or perhaps you bend for them all the time?"
Shigaraki let out this nasty, choked noise—like I just reached into his soul and pissed all over whatever fragile ego he had left. His fingers curled, twitching like he was debating whether to go for my throat or just drop dead from sheer fucking humiliation.
"Shut the fuck up," he hissed, voice cracking like his mental stability. "You're nothing. I'm gonna—"
"You're gonna what? Cry? Fucking go for it, Casper, maybe if you water those crusty-ass lips, they won't look like an abandoned construction site." I leaned forward. "No, but really. What's the skincare routine? Cemetery dirt and bad decisions?"
Kurogiri's mist swirled aggressively. "Shigaraki, we should retreat."
Shigaraki's teeth clenched so hard I thought they might snap. "No. We were supposed to kill All Might—"
"Oh yeah, that's totally happening," I cut in. "Any second now, All Might's gonna drop dead. For sure. Definitely not about to shove his fist so far up that creature's ass it starts talking in Morse code."
Shigaraki whirled around to glare at me, fingers twitching like he was debating whether to kill me or cry first. "You—"
I tilted my head. "What? Cat got your tongue? Oh wait, no—that's just the buildup of plaque because you look like you haven't brushed your fucking teeth since the womb."
His eye twitched again.
I grinned. "Tell me, what's it like being a walking science experiment for what happens when cousins fuck? Did you crawl out of a radioactive meth lab, or did your mom just smoke crack during the third trimester?"
Kurogiri actually had to physically move between us like a fucking babysitter. "Shigaraki, we need to leave."
Shigaraki trembled, fists clenched.
"Oh, come on, you can't go yet! We were just starting to bond!" I spread my arms. "Hell, I was about to ask if you wanted a hug, but I wouldn't want whatever the fuck skin disease you've got going on. Pretty sure if I touched you, I would need an exorcism and a round of antibiotics."
Shigaraki made a choked sound, and I swear to god, for half a second, he actually looked like he was about to cry.
I flipped them off as they vanished. "Don't forget to send me a postcard from Loserville, you crusty-fingered inbred."
His hands twitched, scratching at his neck like he was trying to peel off the embarrassment I had permanently glued onto his soul.
"YOU LITTLE SHIT—" he screeched, pointing at me with so much rage I thought his nails might detach from his fingers. "YOU THINK THIS IS A GAME?!"
I leaned back, grinning like I just won the lottery with someone else's ticket. "Oh, it's not a game," I said, voice dripping with cruel amusement. "It's a public execution, and you're the star attraction, Crusty McChoke-Yourself."
Shigaraki took a step forward, shaking with fury. "I—AM—GOING—TO—KILL YOU."
"Oh?" I tilted my head. "That's adorable. You gonna try real hard this time? Maybe even take off Daddy's hand before you start swinging?"
He froze.
And then it happened. The exact moment he knew he fucked up.
"Make sure Kurogiri cleans that hand on your face from spunk after you use it to incest-masturbate to your father's hand. Well, you seem like a person who would eat his own spunk from his father's hand though. Never mind."
"WRAGHHH! DIE!"
All Might finished his side too. One Detroit Smash sent Nomu flying, and Kurogiri wasted no time, pulling Shigaraki into a swirling mess of mist before he could throw another bitch-fit.
I dropped onto the ground, finally feeling the adrenaline wear off. My ribs hurt, my knuckles were scraped, and my jacket had a tear in the sleeve.
Aizawa sat nearby, bleeding but still conscious. "Should've left," he muttered.
"Yeah, well, you looked like you were about to be paste," I said.
--
"You can't just keep reading and not vote!"
"I'M GIVING YOU CONTENT, MR. WHITE!"I'm throwing hands with pacing, crying over arcs, monologuing like a villain on espresso...
And you?Just scrolling?JUST SCROLLING?!
Power Stone me before I start cooking in the basement.
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