Chapitre 58: Chapter 2: Class 1 - A's Sticky Situation: 2
It was never easy. Life, she meant. But then again, when was it ever, especially for her? At every turn, Kyoka Jirou had found the connecting tissue of life itself. Strife, anger, pain, and resentment. Be it from the bullying she endured at her old middle school because of her mutant quirk, or from the discrimination that mutant-type Quirk users faced because of their bodily changes, Kyoka had experienced it all.
Don't get her wrong, she didn't have it nearly as bad as everyone else. People like her former classmate Koda most likely had it far worse than she ever would, but the resentment was still there. She was still a mutant, no matter how similar she looked in comparison to the average person. Those who were racist against mutants didn't change their opinions just because she looked mostly normal.
She was still resented for her earlobes. Nothing about that would change. Nothing at all.
Strife was a key component in her life because of her mutant quirk, so much so that before going to U.A., everyone except for a few teachers had practically made it their mission to make her life suck as much as possible.
Now though, she no longer had to worry about her Quirk and how it would affect her going forward because she no longer had it. She was a Stand User now, so it didn't matter anymore. But though it wouldn't affect her in the future, the impact it had on her life from the past stayed the same. She guessed, in an unjust kind of karmic retribution, her life still ended up in shambles, just like those people of her past wanted it to be.
Anger, the second part of the connecting tissue of life, was another thing that she had come to deal with in the past. Anger at her for being different. Anger at her for having a mutant Quirk. Her peers felt anger towards her for "being different." Even in a world of superpowers, mutants weren't seen as normal.
Although, now, she no longer needed to worry about that. She no longer needed to worry about the anger her mutant Quirk caused, because she no longer had it. From that aspect of her life, she was now free, even if it was completely unwillingly.
However, just because it no longer stemmed from her mutant Quirk, that didn't mean she didn't face another form of anger. The anger simply pivoted in direction, and that direction was her current situation with her "master."
Her stomach churned. She hated thinking of that thing like that, but on the off chance that he could read her mind, it would be best if she kept referring to him that way.
He was always angry with her. Maybe it was because of her performance, what with it not being the best when she was on missions she had with Shigaraki to steal things, which was something she was extremely against doing. Hell, Shigaraki had the same issues with her as her "master" but at least he kept a level head and didn't try and kick her teeth in when she didn't do exactly as he asked, most of the time.
Pain, something that everyone felt, came from her past of dealing with bullies. While that was something everyone had experienced, she got to experience a unique form of pain. And that was the pain of losing her family. On top of that, she had been separated from her extended family, The Joestars, who knew nothing of what was going on. And then, there was the pain of being forced into a twisted form of slavery for some creepy vampire to do whatever it was he wished her to do.
To call that thing a creep was an understatement, especially when describing him. She had been able to keep him away from her physically for as much as possible, and she'd continue to do so in fear of what he might do.
He dared not touch her in the sight of the other members of The League. But she knew that the moment she was alone that he'd do something. She didn't know what, but it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure it out. It was why she tried to stay with at least one person in the league. Her "master's" anger toward her would probably lead to something awful happening.
She honestly didn't want to think about it. What he'd do to her if she so much as stepped one foot out of line. She could tell he was looking for a reason, any reason, for her to be alone with him. She knew he had a "thing" for her by the way he looked at her. His lecherous stare gave her all that she needed to know. It made her feel gross.
But that was beside the point. That had nothing to do with what she was doing right now. Anything to move on from that topic was much appreciated, and she was glad to have an out because of what it was she had just finished doing.
Kyoka had just gotten done training with Dabi, one of the newest members of The League of Villains. Her bones ached, her muscles hurt, and she had a few small burns on her body. When Shigaraki had told Dabi to train with her, he had meant it. And Dabi didn't hold back, not even for a second.
His jet black, so obviously dyed hair, and his patchy purple stapled-on skin were the main things that drew her attention. His outfit screamed emo pyromaniac, what with the matte black jacket, the metal rings around his upper-arm length sleeves, and his ripped blue jeans and shredded-up white shirt. His outfit screamed "hot topic" and it was beyond pretentious. But then again, this was coming from her, so it made her sound a little hypocritical.
His outfit aside, the other thing that she noticed was the aforementioned patchy purple skin that he had stapled in some parts of his face, upper body, and arms. To say that he looked like a burn victim was an understatement, and she was fairly certain it was because of his Blue Fire Quirk. If his Quirk was so damaging to his body, why did he continue to use it? If he fried his body whenever he used his Quirk, then what was the point?
Maybe… he just didn't feel pain. If his skin was so burned to the point where it was now, there was a chance his nerves were all shot. Which probably sucked for him. Maybe he should look into getting a skin graft. Then again, he was a villain, and she doubted villain hospitals wouldn't just arrest him on the spot. He was a B-Rank Villain from what she heard coming from Giran, and most villain hospitals didn't treat villains who were beyond C-Rank.
Whatever the case was, Dabi looked like he had been pushed through a wood chipper. A part of her felt bad for him, but only because of how he looked. He was a mass murderer, so there was no real sympathy for him beyond that.
Although, something strange had happened during their training, and it was safe to say that she was a little… off put by it, however, it gave her a second view as to who Dabi was fundamentally as a person. The moment she had gotten hit by a point-blank blast of fire far quicker than she could have dodged, Dabi stopped and made sure she was okay. It was almost as if something in him switched.
Instead of acting like a villain—like someone who could give less of a fuck about those around him—he started acting like how an older sibling would after their younger sibling got hurt. Maybe it was because they had been training, and he didn't want to screw her up too badly, but that wasn't what his eyes told her.
His eyes told her that he was genuinely worried that he might've hurt her too badly, and it was extremely off-putting.
For a villain, he was nice. A bit too nice if you asked her. It was a total contrast to what she saw from the man when she had been first introduced to him.
When Giran introduced Dabi, Toga, and Twice to The League of Villians, she was scared for a moment. Dabi gave off the impression that he was a lunatic who didn't give a shit about who he hurt, Toga was a goddamn psychopathic murderer constantly espousing about seeing people bloodied. Kyoka noted how she almost looked… turned on by that prospect.
Twice was probably the only normal one there, and even he had a few… oddities. Like his double speak, and the way he threatened violence. She couldn't see his face because of his strange costume, so she couldn't gauge if he was being serious.
All in all, if there was anything that she could give Giran credit for, it was that he knew how to pick the right kind of people for the disastrous, vile job that was being a part of a villainous organization. Although, there was another reason why she was scared. And that was because Shigaraki looked a little pissed off due to how two of the newer hires, Dabi and Toga, were fans of Stain. Stain wasn't exactly too thrilled to learn that they were fans of his, Toga moreso than Dabi, but that wasn't the point.
What made Shigaraki even more peeved though was how Dabi openly mocked him for how the hideout "looked like a pigsty" even though it didn't. A fight broke out, or well, it would have had it not been for the calming voice of Kurogiri intervening and defusing the situation with a little help from Stain, all because of Shigaraki's "jumping to conclusions" issue.
Compare Dabi's blatant disregard in the morning, to now in the warehouse where she was currently training with him, and his almost dotting behaviour over how she got hurt. It was almost alarming how quick he was to switch up. She knew it wasn't because he was using kiddy gloves either, particularly because he had been coming at her as if he was trying to kill her, which was what Shigaraki wanted him to do so that the training emulated a real fight.
It honestly chilled her to the bone seeing just how fast Dabi was able to switch up like that. It made her realize that she had been surrounded by psychopaths.
And while normally that would make her want to turn tail and run, she didn't have much of a choice but to be around them. If she tried to escape, as she previously mentioned, her "master" would just blow up the collar that was around her neck, and kill her. So even if she wanted to leave, it wasn't possible. Meaning she had to get to know these people. Which, if she had been given any other option other than death, she would do the other option in a heartbeat.
Although, she had to admit, a week ago, before Dabi, Toga, and Twice joined The League of Villains, things had been a lot more… well, peaceful wasn't how she'd describe it, but there wasn't much else to call it other than that.
For a little background, over the last little while—i.e. a week—all Kyoka ever did around the hideout was clean stuff with Kurogiri, and when she wasn't doing that, as she previously mentioned, she would go with Shigaraki to steal the odd thing here and there.
Most of what they stole was soap, fresh clothes for Shigaraki, fresh bandages for Stain when he came back from his "cleansings" and those cheap ramen bowls to eat. Whenever she wasn't doing that, she was training by herself in a warehouse that The League of Villains owned somewhere in Yokohama in order to get a better grasp on her newly acquired Stand.
If she were to be honest with herself, Kyoka had to admit that, besides the whole "being a villain" bit, she found Shigaraki's rants about things to be… slightly endearing in a way. Not because she believed in what he said, but because of how much conviction and pride were in his voice when he spoke. Had she had a weaker will, or perhaps some kind of hatred toward society at large, she'd believe in his cause.
His cause to destroy.
Kyoka could see where he was coming from. While she didn't know his story, she had an idea of what it could've probably been. Most villains were outcasts, thrown to the wayside by the world and told to rot. She knew that because that was what most villains during large trials had said, so she applied that to Shigaraki.
Suddenly, his childish behaviour made a little more sense. She could tell that he had a lot of pent-up anger. Anger he couldn't naturally get out, and because of that, he resorted to… well, this.
If there was one thing that Kyoka prided herself on, it was that she was a good judge of character. She had to be if she wanted to be a hero, or at least when she wanted to be a hero. Shigaraki was an evil, vile man who killed others because his temper got the better of him. But beyond that, he was clearly broken. Broken because of something. She didn't know what, and she dared not pry for information for the fear of her life, but she had to admit that she had been curious.
Then there was Kurogiri. The only one she used the "san" honorific for when referring to him when she spoke. He too was a villain, but nothing like Shigaraki. Whereas Shigaraki was vile, horrible, and disturbing, in her short amount of time with the league, Kurogiri seemed… how could she put it without sounding strange. Robotic?
The way how Kurogiri acted kind of reminded her of Yoshihara in a way. He didn't emote much, and seldom did he ever talk unless spoken to. It was kind of eerie. There were times when he would just… stand around. Like he was a robot awaiting a command. But then again, what else could one do when there was literally nothing else to do?
He was the voice of reason when Shigaraki got too angry to think clearly. This helped a lot, considering she and Shigaraki often got into arguments over the pettiest of things, most of it stemming from her inherent dislike of the manchild.
Of course, Kurogiri wasn't without his villainous tendencies. One time, when a pair of rookie villains showed up to the bar to steal some booze, she had gotten to watch as Kurogiri opened two portals around the waists of the villains who broke in, bisecting them and killing them without any remorse, before dumping their bodies via portals into an active volcano in Hawaii, at least, that was what he had said when she asked what he had done with the bodies.
Aside from that, he was genuinely a caring man. Her situation wasn't the best, having been forced into this position by her "master" and Kurogiri saw that. Whenever it was just the two of them, he would ask if she was alright. She'd vent to him about things and he'd listen, and offer words of encouragement. It made her think that not all bad people were just that, bad.
But, out of all of the things that he told her, there was one thing that she held onto. Her one true shining beacon, so to speak, for this rather dark period of her life.
"So long as you get through this, and so long as you prove yourself to be useful to the League Of Villains, I'm sure that one day, you'll be able to leave this mess you've gotten into. Of course, you could also choose to stay with us. Either way, know that like Shigaraki, I am here to make sure you make it out alive. For as long as you are in The League of Villains, or a member of Damnatio Ad Bestias, then I will look out for you."
It made her see Kurogiri in a different light. Oh, she still hated him for the USJ incident, there was no getting over that. But, his loyalties lay with those in the League above anyone else. She'd like to think that there was a possibility that she could convert him over to the side of the heroes once she was out of this, admittedly horrible, situation.
Then, last but certainly not least, there was Stain. Much like Shigaraki, Stain had clear issues of his own. Whenever he wasn't brooding over in the corner by himself, he was cleaning his swords, taking care of whatever wounds he had, and biding his time planning out his next kill. Unlike Shigaraki however, she couldn't bring herself to hate him.
There was something… odd about Stain. The way he carried himself. It felt like he was a hero. And maybe that had something to do with his past as a former Hero Student turned vigilante, turned villain. Akaguro Chizome was a former student of Shiketsu High School, and according to those who kept track of his past, he dropped out when he claimed to have seen "rampant corruption within the school system" before becoming the vigilante known as Stendhal.
Then… something happened after which he became Stain. No one knew the exact reason why Stain became the way he did, but she'd sometimes catch him muttering something about a person named Satoru. Perhaps it was because of this Satoru person that he became Stain? Or maybe there was more to it that Kyoka didn't understand.
The point was, she felt as if Stain had a better reason to be what he was compared to Shigaraki. At least, from what she knew of the two. Stain himself didn't seem to like Shigaraki all that much, and Shigaraki loathed Stain. So, the feeling was mutual.
That said, she didn't like Stain either. He was still a killer, as was Kurogiri, as was Shigaraki.
And soon… she knew that she was going to be one too.
Kyoka was biding her time. Waiting for the moment when her "master" was going to call upon her. She had gotten a decent hold on her Stand now. She understood what it could do, and it terrified her. Her Quirk paled in comparison to what her Stand could do. It wasn't an ability to save, unlike what she had wanted. It wasn't even a Stand that specialized in stealth like her Quirk had been.
It was a Stand that specialized in assassinations.
And she knew, faintly, in the back of her mind, that her chance to "prove" her "loyalty" to her "master" was going to come soon.
And she dreaded that day.
She looked down at the picture of her assigned target that she had been given by The Boss, aka Blackwell, and frowned. Even if this person was once her friend, she had to look past it. Besides, she barely knew them, so it wasn't as if she was super connected to them.
For her survival, she was going to have to kill this person. No matter what. And, what made things easier for her, was that something was going to happen soon that gave her an easy opening.
The League Of Villains had a plan. A plan that involved an ambush at a training camp that U.A. had set up during Summer Break. It was supposed to happen in the next few days. How they got this information, Kyoka didn't know. Perhaps the League had a mole on the inside? That made the most sense.
From what Shigaraki told her, she would be deployed along with Dabi, Toga, Spinner, and a few potential new members of the "Vanguard Squad" that Shigaraki was building up for this attack. The plan was to capture one of the students. Said student hadn't been picked yet, but she had a feeling it was going to be someone from her old class.
Kyoka was snapped out of her thoughts when she felt Dabi's hand on her shoulder, a small smirk on his face as he looked down at her. "You ready for round two, kid? We still have a few hours left till that Kurogiri guy's coming to get us. Might as well make it worth our while, right?" Dabi said as Kyoka nodded.
"I'm feeling a little better now, so, yeah, why not?" Kyoka replied as she rose from her seat on the floor. "Let's get this over and done with." As Kyoka said that, she put the picture of Momo Yaoyorozu away in her pants pocket. She got into a stance, narrowed her eyes, and readied herself for another round of Dabi's training.
xxXXxxXXxx
Izuku was a little tense. He had every reason to be, mainly because it had been a while since he had a face-to-face meeting with All Might that wasn't behind a classroom. The last time he had a face-to-face meeting with All Might was just before the Sports Festival. That was two weeks ago. He had been so caught up with school and everything else that was going on that he had yet to talk to All Might about the progress he had made with One For All and his Full Cowling mode that he had achieved.
He was assuming that the current meeting he was about to have was going to be a progress update. So he was a little nervous. He wondered what All Might was thinking right now. A lot has happened in the last little while. Ida's death. His mother's death….
"Stop it. Don't give yourself a reason to be depressed. You already took your anti-depressants at lunch, stop thinking about it. Lock it away. Ignore it. Don't think about it." As Izuku thought that, he sucked in a deep breath, before exhaling as he readied himself for the meeting with All Might.
Staring down at the entrance to the teacher's lounge, Izuku put on a not-so-worried expression, before entering the room. Upon doing so, he was met by All Might sitting on the couch. Surprisingly, he had looked less sunken than he had been before. His face was less of a triangle and was starting to look more filled in. His eyes weren't deep black pits with blue dots for eyes anymore, in fact, he could now see the whites of his eyes.
Another thing Izuku noticed about All Might was that he wasn't thinner than a stick in his "deflated" form. He was actually starting to look closer to a normal person. Sure he was still thin, but he was slowly regaining his muscle in his "deflated" state.
"You look… healthier, All Might," Izuku noted as the man gave him the hint of a smile.
"That I am. I'm glad you noticed," Toshinori said as the hint of the smile disappeared. A frown replaced his slight smile, as he threaded his fingers together in front of him, lowering his head as the mood for the discussion that was about to begin was set. The air became tense, and Izuku could feel an odd sensation flutter about in the room. One that did not match the typical tone that All Might represented.
Something happened. Something important. Something that All Might deemed necessary to speak to him about off the books. "Please, take a seat."
Without any hesitation, after a quick bow, Izuku sat down across from All Might. The moment he did, the blond man began to speak. "You've been through a lot lately. I'm sorry that I haven't been there to help you. If I was a better teacher, and a better mentor, I would've been there for you. Especially after the loss that you've experienced. Your mother was a kind woman. She didn't deserve what happened to her."
Izuku felt his stomach drop, as his heart shattered into a million little pieces. That was the last thing he needed to be reminded of, especially after he had already reminded himself of that just before this. All this was doing was rubbing salt in the already infected wound, not that All Might knew it. "Thank you, All Might." As Izuku said that, he placed his hands on his knees, a despondent look in his eyes. "I would prefer if we didn't talk about… all of that."
"I don't plan to bring it up past that. You have my word." As Toshinori said that, he sighed. "But there is something I want to talk to you about. While the two things are separate things, they are linked."
"I-I see… uh, what are you talking about?" Izuku questioned as Toshinori's frown deepened.
"Let's get the most recent one out of the way. I heard from the Police Chief in Hosu that the Hero Killer licked your blood. I'm sure you already know why he did it."
Izuku hummed. "Yeah, his Quirk lets him paralyze the people whose blood his tongue touches," Izuku said, his expression turning contemplative. "But… what exactly does this have to do with, what I am assuming, is a talk about One For All?"
"I'll get to that in a moment, Midoriya," Toshinori said as he cleared his throat. "The other thing has to do with something that I overheard from Recovery Girl, of which I think it was around the time when she was talking to Young Kira about something regarding some form of a medical test and whatnot…. I honestly can't remember what she exactly said, but I was able to put two and two together rather quickly after Aizawa told me something regarding the situation." Toshinori paused, fidgeting in his seat, a bead of sweat sliding down the side of his face as he continued.
"I'm aware of your… closeness with Young Kira. So, and I'm going out on a limb here, you and Young Kira did something… not school appropriate, and it caused a bit of a personal issue between you two."
Despite his extremely vague language, it wasn't hard for Izuku to get the gist of what he was getting at. He couldn't help but feel his face get a little red, as he cleared his throat. "A-ah, yeah… you could say that. B-But uh, i-it was a false alarm, so everything's good!"
Toshinori nodded. "I'm glad to hear that. But, that's beside the point." As he said that, Toshinori's expression became grim. "Tell me, Midoriya. When I granted you my power, do you remember what I said?"
Izuku tried to avoid the obvious "eat this" joke that came to his mind, and actually tried to think back to what it was he had said. And then, the moment he remembered, his eyes widened. ""It doesn't matter how it's done, so long as you get my DNA!" That was what you said, right?" Izuku said as he paled. "O-Oh no… does that mean…?"
"No. The Hero Killer won't have One For All, and assuming you aren't… erm "active" so to speak, you won't accidentally give Young Kira One For All. Not unless you will yourself to give it to her, or anyone for that matter. And while it cannot be stolen, it can be given to an unwilling participant." As Toshinori said that, noticing Izuku's confusion, he began to elaborate.
"For more… normal scenario. Say you and, for example, Young Todoroki drink from the same water bottle. Saliva will end up being swapped because both of your mouths have come into contact with the water bottle. You drink from it first, and then he takes it, takes a sip, and at the same time you think about passing on One For All, even as a hypothetical, the moment the connection is made, and the moment he ingests your DNA in the form of your saliva with the water, because of how One For All functions, you will end up passing it on to Young Todoroki, and he will be none the wiser."
Izuku bit his tongue as he thought about what All Might had just explained to him. He had completely forgotten about how One For All could be transferred via DNA. That… wasn't good. He would never admit it out loud, but he was "active" so to speak. Though that was mostly Yoshihara's fault. She was the one who instigated most of their "interactions."
Not that he was against it, of course, but there was still a point to be made, and that was that if something like that happened during one of his and Yoshihara's "interactions", and he accidentally gave her One For All, then she would need to know about how it happened.
And understandably, she'd get angry about that. Of that he was sure. It would be a breach of trust, something that she deserved to have been warned about before even their first "interaction." Although to be fair to him, he forgot about that part. But, he digressed. That was not the point here.
So now, on top of feeling like an idiot for forgetting about how he even got One For All in the first place, he felt bad about keeping One For All a secret from her, because of how One For All worked. And, as it stood, with how their relationship was panning out…. "All Might… do you think it would be a bad idea if I told Yoshihara about One For All?"
All Might paled at this, narrowing his eyes. He was about to open his mouth, but quickly shut it. He gained a thinking expression before sighing. "Depends. Assuming she doesn't already know thanks to her connections with the higher-ups at The Speedwagon Foundation, namely Jonathon who as far as I know hasn't told anyone outside those who needed to know, it all falls onto whether or not you would think that she would keep it a secret."
Izuku sighed. "I suppose. But… I don't feel right about keeping something as big as this a secret from her. I can hardly stand to keep this a secret from my friends. With those of my class who I don't know all too well, I'm fine with keeping this secret. But for those who I'm friends with… it feels like I'm betraying their trust. It's worse with Yoshihara. She's told me so much about her own deeply kept secrets that not even her guardian is aware of, and yet I've said nothing about anything. You… understand where I'm coming from, right?"
Toshinori shook his head, frowning. "No, I don't. Unlike you, Midoriya, I was never given a chance to form bonds with those my age. So no, I don't understand." The blond man paused, closing his eyes. "But, what I can understand is how you're feeling bad about keeping secrets." When he said that, he reopened his eyes. "Truth be told, Midoriya, I haven't been fully honest about One For All either. There are still things that I've kept hidden from you regarding the Quirk because I believed the problem was already dealt with. However, as recent events have shown, my worst fears have come to light."
"What… do you mean, All Might?" Izuku asked with apprehension in his tone of voice. He could hear the fear in All Might's voice. All Might was scared. That was something that he had never, ever once even considered to be a possibility. The strongest hero in all of Japan, and debatably the world, was scared of someone.
The man calmed himself with a breath, before staring directly at Izuku, making eye contact with the boy. "You see, Midoriya, One For All used to exist as a part of another Quirk. A Quirk so powerful, so dangerous, that it along with its user were stricken from the record. Any history regarding that man was stricken from the history books. Novels referencing him were taken off of shelves, records that mentioned him had his name and his crimes blacked out."
All Might's expression became grim, as he tensed before continuing. "Anyone who worked for him who hadn't been able to get into hiding or cover their tracks, be they coerced into doing so or otherwise, were killed by the Government to ensure he never had the chance to rise back to power. Men, women, children, it did not matter. If they could wipe any mention or reference to that man off the face of the Earth, they would do so in a heartbeat."
"W-What?!" Izuku muttered, his eyes wide. "B-But why?! Men and Women I could maybe understand if they did so willingly… but children?!" Izuku had become genuinely frustrated at that. There was no reason, at least in his mind, that anyone would kill a child unless under extreme circumstances. Hell, he was against killing, period. However, he understood that sometimes it needed to happen. But children being killed? And by the Government no less? "That's… That's…!"
"Barbaric?" Toshinori finished, as Izuku nodded, anger still in his eyes. "I completely agree with you, Midoriya. The lengths to which the Government went to bury this man's existence was a knee-jerk reaction. But it wasn't unprompted. Unfortunately, there was a reason for it all. I don't understand it myself, but… that man was a monster, Midoriya. A complete and total madman. He used everything and anyone he could to sew as much fear, pain, and destruction as he could. If you want the definition of evil, then all you need to do is know the name… All For One."
For a brief moment, Izuku grew confused. All For One… One For All, and All For One. "One For All… and All For One. Like the three musketeers quote?" Izuku muttered aloud, shaking his head. "I don't get it. What does this All For One person have to do with One For All?"
"Everything, Midoriya. He has everything to do with it," Toshinori stated, his expression never changing. "His Quirk, also named All For One, allowed him to take and give Quirks. In a way, he was the Genesis of Quirks. He had the power to give and take, if he didn't think you were worthy of a Quirk, he'd take it from you. When Quirks showed up, so did he. He was a countermeasure for Quirks, at least that was what some theorized. Evolution gave us superpowers, and the Earth responded by giving us All For One."
Izuku frowned, knitting his eyebrows together. "But that doesn't answer my question. What does he have to do with One For All? Did he somehow create the Quirk?" Izuku asked as Toshinori nodded, catching Izuku off guard. "H-Huh?"
"You're correct, Midoriya. He created One For All. But not on purpose," Toshinori said, his frown worsening even more, to the point where his teeth were starting to bear. "I haven't done much research into how he created the Quirk. All I know is that it wasn't intentional. But… I cannot stress to you enough just how evil All For One was. He is the sole reason why the concept of Heroes and Villains was implemented." As Toshinori spoke, his eyes gained a speck of what appeared to be nostalgia. "It's hard to imagine a world where Heroes and Villains aren't commonplace. But… back then. Back when All For One first came about, there was no such thing."
The nostalgia in his eyes was immediately replaced with a sombreness, the likes of which the green-haired boy had yet to see from the man. There was something about how he looked at Izuku that tipped the boy off that what came next was going to be something harrowing. "All Might? Are you alright?"
The man smiled, if only briefly before his expression returned to a neutral, yet sombre grimace. "Midoriya, allow me to tell you a tale. A tale of the past. Of a time when society hadn't managed to adapt to the changes Quirks brought." Toshinori paused, sitting up straight, his expression losing the sombre undertone, and becoming completely neutral. "Back then, the norms of what it meant to be human suddenly collapsed. Racism, segregation, death camps, inhumane treatment of those who would be typically considered neighbours… all of it skyrocketed. The world had become a hostile place, much too similar to what happened in World War 2 Europe.
"Protests. Riots. Murders. Crime in general skyrocketed. So much so that the very meaning of the words "Law and Order" no longer existed in a conventional sense. It was pure anarchy. The likes of myself and you would be considered criminals simply because of our powers. Even today, we still see the effects of this with those who have been blessed with Mutant Quirks. Can you imagine being treated like how some of them are treated? Can you imagine those who once called you a friend or a lover suddenly turning on you because you can make your nails abnormally long?"
Izuku looked at the ground, his expression turning sour. "No… No, I couldn't."
"I couldn't either, Midoriya, and I was appalled when I learned about this," Toshinori replied, shaking his head. "But alas, that was how the world was like. Not even a century ago, that was how the world was run. You, Midoriya, have been born into an era of peace. But I was not. Quirks were frowned upon by most of society. But even in my time, they weren't outlawed. And because of the complete and total anarchy of that period, in the generation before my own and my masters, societal progress halted. To say it was catastrophic is an understatement.
"During this time, in what historians refer to as The Great Age of Terror, one man saw what was going on, and used it to gain an exuberant amount of power. He was, and still is, referred to as a Hero. His name was Rikitatsu Shigaraki."
Izuku's eyes widened. "Wait a minute! I heard of him!" As Izuku said that, his eyes narrowed. "At Aldrea, my teacher asked the class for all of us to report on the events of The Great Age of Terror. I chose to report on how Rikitatsu helped the country get back on its feet and establish an age of peace before the age of fear began. It was referred to as The Era of Peace, which is why the era we live in now is referred to as The Era of Heroism, rather than what people have been calling it."
Izuku's expression changed from shock to bitterness. "When I heard the name Shigaraki at the USJ, I knew it sounded familiar. That villain… is he perhaps a relative of All For One, and by that respect, is All For One a relative of Rikitatsu?"
Toshinori shook his head. "While I don't know about the USJ villain going by Shigaraki… I do know about Rikitatsu. Because Rikitatsu is All For One." When Toshinori said that, Izuku once again paled. "The history books that we do have about the events are heavily skewed into painting All For One as someone who created peace. And while to the public that was what it appeared to be, at least in the beginning, it was only a setup for what was to come.
"To do what he did, to "create peace" he took Quirks from others that were deemed by the Government as potential societal risks. When he did, he gained the trust of those in power, and once the Government turned their backs on him, thinking that he was their lapdog, All For One gave those Quirks back to those whom he took them from and made them pledge loyalty to him. The outside saw it as a resistance force, but in reality, it was a terrorist cell. All For One overthrew the Government in days, all the while spreading his influence and his twisted, warped perception of peace.
"Society was no longer in shambles, yes, and I will give All For One credit for one thing, he was swift in his work, but he had no good intentions. Once he gained power, once he became The Dictator of Japan, he did awful things, made others commit wicked acts through manipulation, and turned Japan into an isolated state once more.
"His reasoning for this, from what I am aware, was to spread his ideals like a plague across Japan, ensure that there was no resistance force to him, and then, place sleeper cells within other countries. Sleeper cells that still exist to this day, biding their time, waiting for the day that All For One gives them the command to begin their own destructive, violent revolutions of their own.
"His plan was full-proof because those he gave Quirks to would listen to him, based solely on trust. They would submit to him, bow to his every whim, no matter what he made them do, or asked of them, those who he gave power to would listen to him without question. Although, if the load was too much for those who he gave any power to bear, they would become mere puppets for him to use. Just like Nomu."
Izuku felt a chill cascade down his spine. "The Nomu…! Are you suggesting that they were created by All For One? Huh? But how?!" Izuku shouted, his eyes narrowed and his fist clenched. "That would mean that All For One is, at least, 98 years old! There's no way he'd be functional enough to do that in that old of a body!" Izuku said as Toshinori lowered his head ever-so-slightly, his eyes showing a fierceness that Izuku hadn't seen before.
"That's because All For One found a way to increase his lifespan. Be it through a Quirk or bodily augmentation, I have not yet figured it out. But All For One was most likely able to continue to live through even the most illogical conditions. However, while this is important, the connection to One For All and All For One is moreso. Please, allow me to continue."
"I—" Izuku paused, calming himself. "Alright. I'm sorry. Continue?"
Toshinori nodded. "Thank you…. Now, as I was saying, his plan had been full-proof, save for one thing. There was just one thorn in his side that he could not ignore for his master plan to be fulfilled. One person whose name has since been lost to time. Rikitatsu's younger brother. He was Quirkless and had no power of his own, or so everyone, including himself, thought. But that didn't stop him from trying to stop his older brother, for he saw what it was that All For One was doing, and it pained him.
"But, compared to his brother, he was weak, frail, and barely even able to stand up on his own. Now, the next part of the tail is obscure, because it is unknown if what All For One did next was out of pity, kindness, or an attempt to make his brother submit. Either way, through this one action, his empire toppled. By giving his brother a Power Stockpiling Quirk, he had sealed his fate, because of what I mentioned earlier.
"Unknown to everyone, including All For One's sibling, his brother possessed a Quirk. It was completely useless for the user, as it allowed him to pass on his Quirk to others through the consumption of DNA. In an even stranger twist that neither of the brothers saw coming, The Power Stockpiling Quirk and The Transference Quirk fused. Neither brother knew how it happened, but it did. So, using his newfound power, All For One's sibling fought his older brother, though All For One defeated him soundly.
"Before he died, the younger sibling passed his Quirk down, to which each user of the now-named One For All Quirk did so. The previous Seven wielders' names were lost to time, except for my master Nana Shimura. Each user of the Quirk had one goal, and that was to Kill All For One. Prevent him from succeeding in his goal of total world domination.
"To do this, each user grew the power of the Quirk and took shots at All For One's life. All of them failed. All of them except me. But by that point, All For One's chokehold on Japan had loosened significantly. Society had practically reverted back to normal, as All For One lost control of his power in the country after the 3rd user forced him into hiding. It was around that time when the Government started to expunge all the records of All For One existing.
"By the time the power got to me, I was able to go toe-to-toe with All For One, and I had successfully defeated him. Or at least, that was what I had thought. Somehow, he survived. Somehow he was able to continue living despite having his head caved in. And now, as the true leader of The League Of Villains, he's attempting to make a comeback. Why else would an upstart group like them attack the U.A.?" Toshinori paused, crossing his arms and closing his eyes.
"Typically, in an ideal world, I would say that One For All and its user's sole purpose is to hunt down and kill All For One. And since you, Izuku Midoriya, are the 9th user of the Quirk, it would fall onto you to take down the tyrant that is All For One. But after what happened to Ida, and after we've learned that All For One has creatures like Vampires, Nomu's, and potential Stand Users on his side this time around… I cannot say that in good conscience. All I would be doing is condemning you to death."
Toshinori stared at Izuku with a determined look in his eyes. His hands were firmly placed on his knees, and in a sudden shift in tone, he spoke once more. "Unlike myself, Midoriya, you have allies that can be there for you. You are not alone in this. My mistake was that I went to it alone because I thought that was what I had to do. My hubris backfired on me, and it caused me insurmountable pain that I had thought would never end. My actions, my separation from everyone who I cared about, only caused division and agony. Keeping this a secret did more harm than good. However, that does not mean you should tell everyone about this. Because all it will do is cause more chaos. And that is exactly what All For One would want."
"Then what should I do? I can't just keep people in the dark like this," Izuku replied. "It's like you said, keeping this — all of this — a secret only causes grief and harm. But, at the same time, spreading this information only means that All For One would get what he wants. So… what should I do?" Izuku asked as Toshinori inhaled sharply, coughing when he did so.
His expression became contemplative, as did his body language. It was only after a few minutes of silence that All Might came up with a proper response. One that made sense to him. Because they should at least know. If there was one group of people that needed to know about this. It was them.
"Tell The Joestars. Tell Young Kujo, and tell Young Kira. Tell them the secret of One For All."
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone