Chapter 257: CHAPTER 253(All Against One)
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CHAPTER START---
"No pat down?" Hawks asks as he steps out of the Warp Gate, entering a well lit hallway that gave the impression of a mansion.
"Don't need it," Dabi says. "Keep those feathers to yourself and follow me."
Walking behind Dabi he looks around curiously, wiping the blood from his face with his sleeve, and he does contemplate sending a few feathers to get a proper look of this building.
But ultimately, he plays along.
"Awe, and here I thought you didn't trust me."
"Tch, we don't need to take your phone, the Radio Wave Nomu controls all broadcasts in this area, including blocking any trackers, microphones, GPS in your phone."
"Sounds useful, can I have one?"
Dabi stops walking and looks back at him, annoyed at the smiling Pro Hero, then continues walking.
Eventually they make it to the end of a hallway and Dabi pushes open the double doors.
"Wooowwwwwww!" Hawks gawks about as he hovers through the room.
A massive formal dining room overlooking the ocean.
He entirely ignores all the villains sitting around having lunch.
Around the massive table was Shigaraki, at the head.
Spinner to his right and Twice to his left. But beside Twice was Toga, in a wheelchair, which Hawks made special note of.
Across from her was Magni, and a seat prepared for Hawks.
On the table was a monitor that remained blank, but right now everyone was glaring at Hawks who hovered above them.
"Take your seat so we can get started," Shigaraki says in a annoyed tone.
"Sure thing boss," Hawks says as he sits beside Magni, who continues to glare at him.
"Kurogiri, lets begin," Shigaraki says.
Immediately a Warp Gate appears behind him, and another appears above his right shoulder.
Kurogiri stands behind him as the larger Warp Gate closes but above his right shoulder a small Nomu, reminiscent of a frog drops onto his shoulder.
It has dozens of large eyes all across its body and back, each of which are tracking the people in the room.
"Cute," Toga says.
"Gross!" Magni covers her mouth in disgust.
"This is Shinji," Shigaraki says as he pats the Nomu, who nuzzles up to him. "In light of recent revelations, he'll always be with me from now on."
Dabi rolls his eyes, "I hope this isn't just to show off your new creepy pet."
"No, this meeting is about this," Shigaraki snaps his fingers and the monitor turns on, showing a picture of Horizon midway through ripping the arms off his Double.
Toga sees this image for the first time, laying eyes on Horizon for the first time in months.
And immediately begins hyperventilating.
Hawks looks at everyone as they are immediately concerned about her.
"You don't have to worry about him baby he isn't here," Twice says as he pushed her out of the room shutting the door behind them.
"Horizon really left some scars on you guys huh," Hawks teases.
Shigaraki gives him a bored look as he rubs his arms, "well after seeing what he's willing to do to me, you can understand why we've been extra cautious since."
"Not like you're one to talk," Dabi says to Hawks. "You're sweating more than us..."
Hawks passes a hand on his forehead, feeling it drenched in cold sweat, and holding his hand out they could all see him shaking, even before he realized it.
"Yeah well, you got the hypothetical, I got the real thing," he adopts a somber expression. "He did things to me that I'll never get over."
"We heard as much," Shigaraki says. "That's why you're here now, we finally realize that you don't really care about our cause, right?"
"I do."
Shinji ribbits on Shigaraki's shoulder.
"That means you lied," they all get ready to attack him. "Stand down."
"But---"
"I said stand down," he silences Magni. "Hawks was never on our side, but he was always against Horizon. Because let me guess, the government thought they could control him, but he's a bigger monster than any villain, right? And he turned against them..."
"Not exactly," Hawks says. "Pantu has a deal with Horizon, and she's willing to let him literally get away with murder if it means he'll stay in Japan as our #1 Pro Hero. Because his presence is more than worth a few bodies in the ground ever so often, especially since they've all been villains."
"But you disagree?" Dabi asks.
"Horizon isn't that simple. First he didn't want to be a Pro Hero, but now he's enjoying it, but now the public is being swayed to accept his more...honest self."
"You mean them cheering when he tore the arms off my Double?" Shigaraki asks.
"Yeah, and that kind of stuff has been happening a lot," Hawks says. "You guys have done so much to hurt the public that they want you gone, by any means necessary, and now they're just taking bets on how he'll do it."
"Are there any other Pro Heroes that want to help us out?" Shigaraki asks.
"I know a few," Hawks admits. "But, they wouldn't associate with Villains, especially not your group. And even if I got all of them together, its Horizon, we can't win."
Shigaraki sighs, "I want to become an invincible demon king, but it seems I'll have to get rid of one first, there is always a bigger monster, for now."
"Yeah, even Horizon isn't the absolute strongest right," Magni says. "That Star and Stripe chick is a monster, and I remember he said she was stronger than him, but that was a few weeks ago."
"Well, we might have something that can kill him," Shigaraki surprises them all with that. Only he and Kurogiri knew about Machia's new upgrades after all. "If I leave a trail of breadcrumbs can you feed it to Horizon and put him where I want."
Hawks considers it, "it'll have to seem like I spied on you to get it, since Pantu sent me to spy on you and he figured that out. And it'll only be possible once, because if this goes wrong and you miss, he'll probably kill me."
"Kurogiri?" Shigaraki asks.
"It can be arranged, within a matter of weeks," Kurogiri says. "And what bait might entice Horizon?"
"Pantu has us collecting info on two people," Hawks points at Kurogiri. "You, and twice. Everyone else she just knows we can get whenever you pop up."
"Well that's insulting," Dabi says.
"It makes sense," Shigaraki says. "They're the backbone of our operation."
"This places us in great danger," Kurogiri says. "Judging by Horizon's track record he likely won't fall for the same Double trick again, the bait will have to be...live."
"Then you will be our bait, we'll collect some samples and have Twice use his Quirk to replicate yours."
"Aren't you getting a bit cocky there brat," A mechanical voice comes from Shinji.
"It can talk?" Hawks asks.
"Its not the Nomu you moron," the Nomu opens its mouth so they can all hear. "I'm speaking through it, something I didn't think was necessary until this brat decided to put one of my most prized Nomu in danger."
"Kurogiri will be fine, if your weapon actually works."
"You're doubting my work! How dare you! Don't forget that I'm not one of your loser lackeys, I'm a dear friend of your master, the true demon lord. You only get to use OUR Nomu soldiers because for some reason he thinks you're worth more than gum under my shoe! And I can take them back whenever I want."
"Are you saying you're so scared that your newest masterpiece can't handle Horizon you aren't willing to use Kurogiri as bait."
"Mmm, I'll consider it," Shinji's mouth closes as Shigaraki plays on his mysterious benefactor's ego.
"That guy is also on Pantu's list by the way," Hawks says. "I'm suppose to be collecting data on whoever is making the Nomu for you."
"Well you'll need to get in line, or question All For One," Shigaraki says. "Even I don't know who he is, he says I haven't earned that honor yet."
"Seems like we're all working with some annoying people," Hawks relaxes a bit. "So, what info do you want me to feed Pantu about you guys, after we sort that out we can deal with what to do about Horizon."
"Hmm, well you can tell her we'll be expanding out reach and being more aggressive in controlling contraband movement in Japan. I already have all the major criminal groups under me, its time we put them to work and stress out the public."
"You want me telling her all of that?"
"We'll be operating too loudly to hide it, the new year has begun, now get to stress out the public and show them they can't rely on Pro Heroes to solve everything, that they have to fight for themselves. And slowly we'll erode the Quirk Regulations of this nation."
"Alright, I'll tell her I uncovered that, oh," Hawks snaps his finger. "Someone hacked into the Hero Public Safety Commission to get into Horizon's files, was that you guys?"
"No, the last thing we want is a trail leading back to us, plus that what you're here for."
"Did they get anything good?" Spinner asks.
"They weren't looking for personal files, Pantu is still looking into it."
"Hmm, getting that person on our side could be useful, keep your ears open for anything about that."
"Got it," Hawks says. "Right now we're keeping that incident away from Horizon, because then he'll go on a warpath to silence loose ends."
"I'd imagine so, now, lets discuss the breadcrumb trail we need to setup to trap him..."
END CHAPTER---
Chapter 258: CHAPTER 254(Incremental Improvement)
Discord: https://discord.gg/t7bHrdRY7Y
pat.reon: Keanu_Eugene (Unlimited chapters ahead)
CHAPTER START---
---Wednesday, 25th January 2315, 6 weeks until Ascension...
After lunch at UA class 1A are all dressed in their PE uniforms, sitting outside at the training area on some bleachers for close combat training.
Horizon was at the top row of the bleachers sitting beside Jiro, she had one of her Earphone Jacks plugged into his phone as he showed her a new song.
As she leans against him and nods along to the music, just as he was doing, they carefully watched Ojiro and Bakugo fight in the field.
Trading blows in the small circle painted on the dirt field, both aspiring heroes give their all in this exercise.
But Ojiro was quickly gaining the upper hand.
"Tail boy got better during the winter break," Horizon says.
"That almost sounded like a compliment," Jiro says. "Careful, or else people might think you have a heart."
"Can't have that, my public image would be in pieces."
Jiro giggles and leans into him a bit more, and he drapes an arm around her, "I bet Bakugo wishes he had more room to use his Quirk in that circle."
"Mhm," they see Bakugo continuously try to line up his explosions only for Ojiro to react faster and swat his hands away. "He should just use his explosions away from Ojiro, spin himself with them to gain momentum for powerful kicks. He's so used to swinging his palms he only fights like a boxer in times like this..."
"That's pretty smart, any insight on how I could have done better in my fight?" Jiro asks.
"Yeah, don't fight Kirishima close up."
Jiro sighs and Horizon pats her head, "some matchups just aren't good no matter how you try to go about it."
"Yeah well I've got the bruises to show for it," Jiro says.
While they were talking, on the other side of the bleachers was Momo, chatting with Uraraka and Toru, who as usual was entirely visible.
"She really offered you that, already?" Toru asks Uraraka. "You've only been working with her for like 3 months."
"Yeah, its kind of a strange situation since this really wasn't in my plan."
"But you have to at least consider it," Momo says. "We know your heart is set on being a rescue hero, but a contract with Ryukyu for after you graduate isn't something you can simply turn down."
"Yeah!" Toru cheers. "You've gotta think about her ranking too, she's super high ranked, almost in the top 5. If you work with her even for a year or two then every rescue hero will send you offers and you can just pick any one you want."
"And you'll be able to negotiate for better pay," Momo adds. "That is why you're becoming a Pro Hero after all, if you do this then you can better provide for your family."
Uraraka blushes a little but awkwardly smiles a them, "well yeah, and I guess its better to know how to fight strong villains before I go into being a rescue hero. The last thing I want is to get caught off guard and be defenseless, and since rescue heroes don't fight much I won't have many chances to sharpen my skills when I find a rescue agency to work with."
"Exactly," Momo says. "Better to be a warrior in a garden than the other way around, just be sure to think carefully before you commit to any contracts. Consider how popular and capable you'll be at the time of graduation and judge the offer against that version of Uravity."
"Yeah, I'll be sure to think a lot before giving her a answer, but what about you Toru?"
"Huh, me?"
"Yeah, didn't Mt. Lady sent you an offer to work with her, that'll make you a member of team Lurkers...sort of."
"Oh yeah I already accepted," Toru says. "Working with a team that does stealth and infiltration stuff is perfect for my Quirk, plus two of the top 10 Pro Heroes are on that team so everyone will be watching me."
"That also means you'll be seeing Sero a lot," Momo says. "He's still working with Edgeshot after all, and his previous Pro Hero mentor Kamui Woods is also on that team."
"Ooo, maybe I'll even get a part in whatever next big operation Horizon is planning!" Toru gets so excited she fades in and out of visibility for a few seconds. "That'll make me super popular for sure!"
As they continue talking, not even a minute later a loud whistle is blown.
All eyes go to Aizawa as he raises a hand, "Bakugo is out of the circle, Ojiro wins," he announces.
Ojiro respectfully bows as Bakugo just gets up and stomps back to his seat, not returning the gesture.
"Alright the next match," Aizawa reaches into a box and takes out a ball with the number 18 on it. "Midoriya, you're up."
Deku jumps out of his seat and rushes over to the circle, confident in his close combat skills.
"And his opponent," Aizawa takes out another ball, and winces when he reads it. "Seat 19, Horizon..."
The entire class goes silent as they look back to Horizon, even Jiro stiffens as she's leaning against him.
"Me and Deku, well, its about damn time..."
SHAMBLES!
He warps into the small circle, standing opposite Deku. The entire circle was only 5m -15ft- wide, and suddenly it felt entirely too small for Deku's liking.
Aizawa looks over at them, seeing Midoriya already getting nervous.
"Horizon, when I blow the whistle you stop, understand?"
"..."
"Understand?!"
"Yeah, I got it," Horizon says.
"This is a training exercise, so don't use Counter Shock, I want to actually see Midoriya's progress, not just watch him get fried in the first second."
"Play it out and have some fun, got it," Horizon raises his hands in a boxing stance. "C'mon Deku."
Taking a deep breath Deku enters a low stance, ready to pounce forward at any time.
'ONE FOR ALL: 30%'
Small arcs of current begin bouncing across Deku's body as he focuses on Horizon.
BOOSTER SHOT!
"Begin!"
Deku launches forward and upward, spinning his entire body and kicking toward Horizon's face.
Horizon raises both his arms and takes the hit onto his forearms.
"Hngh!" Horizon's bones quake as the hit was much much harder than expected, but he immediately uses Booster Shot to amplify his physical strength once more and pushes Deku back.
'I've barely seen my classmates train these past few months, that caught me by surprise,' Horizon thinks.
Deku recovers instantly before even approaching the edge of the circle and rushes back in.
'A lot faster too,' Horizon thinks as he notices Deku's features becoming harder to track. 'One serious hit from him and I'll get pushed out of the circle, need to be careful.'
In the same millisecond it took him to realize this, he also analyzed the result of the Scan he did when they made contact.
'Deku's teeth are different now. Quirkless people can't regrow teeth, they're less evolved like pre quirk era humans, but this Deku can regrow teeth and metabolize enamel. One For All must be fully integrated into his body, that's why he can use this much power without breaking himself apart.
He's no longer a Quirkless little shit that got handed a Quirk, now its more like he was simply born with One For All. He's indistinguishably melded with it, just like All Might the first time I scanned him and couldn't tell he was born Quirkless.
Looks like he's one step closer to surpassing All Might, maybe if we ever get a real fight it'll actually be fun, well, at least until I get bored. He's still only human after all...'
In the millisecond it took for this analysis to happen Deku also realized something, for the first time against Horizon, he had an advantage.
His mind doesn't move as fast as Horizon's, but when they clashed he could feel Horizon buckle and have to summon more power before pushing him away.
And that was all the confidence boost he needed.
'One for All: 32%- Shoot Style!'
Deku crouches down and leaps forward, intent on spinning to deliver another kick without ever making contact.
Horizon knows what he's about to do and rushes forward, getting into Deku's personal space before he could finish the kicking motion and grabbing his leg.
Realizing his kick wasn't possible anymore Deku takes advantage of Horizon's grip keeping him in the air, leaving Horizon to hold his ankle he twists his body and kicks at Horizon with his other foot.
BOOSTER SHOT!
Horizon grips his ankle so hard it felt as if he would snap it, then pulled downward, slamming Deku's back into the dirt.
"Ngh!" Deku spins on the floor, trying to kick Horizon's leg and sweep him off his feet.
But his foot makes contact with nothing as Horizon leapt up.
He barely rolls out of the way before Horizon lands on the dirt, right where his chest was.
Deku does a flip and gets back onto his feet, raising his hands once more to continue the fight.
'I need to keep things simply and contest him with just pure strength, and I can't take my eyes off him even for a second,' Deku thinks as he rushes in once more.
This time he performs a non-stop barrage of punches, all at 30% power.
Horizon and the spectators alike can feel the air being pushed past them with each attack.
Horizon constantly uses Booster Shot to heal the damage being done to his forearms as he blocks all the attacks, beneath the body glove the muscle and bone were constantly being damaged and healed.
"So that's how strong you've gotten," Horizon says as he begins emanating blue energy vapor from his arms.
He pushes Deku back and immediately prepares a strong right and launches it at Deku.
"Let's just wrap this up, show me if you're even worth having a real fight with!"
Hearing this Deku smiles, looking back he wouldn't even understand.
But it just felt right, and he couldn't help but smile.
He rushes forward and the ground gets cratered beneath him when he launches into another Shoot Style attack.
Horizon's entire right hand is shrouded in the blue energy mist as they make contact, but even as Deku pushes away all the air around them the mist clings to Horizon.
Deku's foot makes direct contact with Horizon's gloved fist, and a shockwave rips through the air.
BOOM!
A cloud of dust covers the area as everyone covers their eyes and gets caked in dirt.
A few people begin coughing and moments later the dust begins to settle.
"Argh, I can't feel my leg," Deku winces as he sits at the edge of the circle, holding his right let.
"Did you break it again?" Aizawa asks as he swats the dust away from his face.
"No, its just numb," Deku says. 'Why did I do that? I've never used 45% before, but in that moment it just came out...'
"Looks like you won, congratulations," Horizon says as all the dust is finally cleared. "My new variation of Booster Shot still needs some work..."
And everyone is shocked to see both his feet carved out a trench in the dirt, ending a few inches outside the circle.
Deku is most surprised to see this, but he frowns at the result, "you only moved back a few inches further than me...I've still got a lot of training to do."
Horizon chuckles as he casually walks up to Deku, who was still on the floor, "and here I thought you'd be happy to finally beat me at something."
Deku forces himself to stand on his numb leg, "a fight where you could only use you weakest attribute...which happens to be my strongest, how can I become the #1 Hero if that's the only victory I can get?"
"That's the thing, you don't become the #1 Hero, I do..."
"I'm still growing too you know," Deku says, surprising everyone as he actually stands against Horizon. "Don't count me out yet."
Aizawa looks at the scene carefully, ready to intervene, and everyone stares on in silence.
But Horizon just looks down at Deku, clearly more amused than anything else.
"Alright, 'Small Might', then prove it in a real fight---"
Deku's face immediately pales.
"---I'll be in the finals at the sports festival, as usual, just meet me there and you can show me what you've got, that should be easy, right? Mr. #1 Pro Hero..."
As Horizon walks back to his seat Deku is finally able to breathe again.
'What the hell is wrong with me, that could have gone so badly, but, he's right. If I want to prove it, then the sports festival is the best place to do that, and I've only got a few months to master my new moves...'
END CHAPTER---
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