Chapter Nine: Overheat

The blast Izuku launched at the villain was packed with all the flame he had available to him. A river of fire surged towards the enemy, a man covered in severed hands, but he lunged to one side and evaded the attack. Izuku immediately recalled his flames and moved them close to him and Eri, ready to attack at the next sign of danger.

The villain stared at the roaring, emerald fire, but with his face covered, only his voice could express his annoyance. "Kurogiri, why'd you bring this one? I can't kill him if I can't touch him. And now there's fire all over the place."

"Forgive me, Tomura," the warping villain materialized next to his leader, glowing eyes fixed on the teenager encircled by the fire. "I caught him trying to escape and attempted to remove him, but it seems he's presenting more of a problem than I initially assumed."

"Ugh," Tomura snarled and scratched at his neck. "Long-range Quirk users are such a pain in the ass. But what's up with that little brat he's got?"

"I do not know. But for her to be at U.A, under the protection of all these heroes, means she's likely of some importance."

"I see."

Tomura lunged at the pair of children, targeting the little girl hiding in her protector's arms. He didn't look like it, but the villain could rush with surprising speed when he wanted to. Before anyone could react, he was right in front of the pair and reaching for Eri. The lips hiding behind his hand mask curled up in a sadistic smile. "I wanna kill this one!"

His hand extended, just inches away from Eri's shoulder. As soon as all five of his fingers touched her, she would be dust.

DEATH.

Tomura suddenly found himself leaping back, reacting purely on his instincts screaming out to get away. A roar of emerald fire consumed the space he'd been in a moment before and chased after him relentlessly until he was out of Izuku's range. The villain skidded to a stop and regarded the teen with irritation.

Izuku had one hand thrust out, still clutching Eri tightly to him. That hand had directed the fire, but it had also been charging up One for All to full power in case he had to shatter the villain before he could touch Eri. His eyes glared at Tomura through his mask, emanating a sense of deadly calm. Tomura felt the skin on his neck prickle as he looked back at the teen. He grinned as he glanced down and saw goosebumps on his arms.

"That's some nice killing intent you've got there," Tomura said mockingly. "But ain't that contradictory for a hero? Heroes are supposed to help people, not kill them. You're such a hypocrite."

"Shut up," Izuku's voice belied the anger he was barely keeping in line. "You're not getting near her. If you touch even a hair on her head, you'll regret it."

He wasn't bluffing. Tomura could see it in his eyes and chuckled. "I believe you, little rabbit."

"Are you unharmed, Tomura?" Kurogiri again appeared beside his leader.

"More or less," Tomura held up his right hand, the one he'd tried to grab Eri with. He had been caught by the flames, but only enough to leave a minor singe on his fingers. "You brought me a good one, Kurogiri."

The warping villain looked at Izuku cautiously. "He's got an impressive Quirk. His reaction time is notable as well."

Tomura was focused on the emerald fire swirling around the teenager. Now that he'd backed off and really took a look at it, this Quirk seemed an awful lot like another one he'd heard about before…

He's way faster than he looks! That was too close, Izuku didn't take his eyes off of the two villains just outside of his range. The warping one was trouble, but the guy covered in severed hands had made his hair stand on end. Whatever his Quirk was, Izuku had a feeling it would be bad news if he touched them. He'd reacted with as much ferocity as he could to protect Eri from the villain and even then had barely made it in time.

His eyes darted towards the hulking black humanoid keeping Eraser Head's broken form pinned down. That thing was going to be a problem if it could cause so much damage to a Pro Hero, but Izuku was going to be preoccupied with these guys before he could act to save his teacher and-

He jumped as a head appeared out of the ground and swiped at it reflexively, but his hand just passed right through it. Izuku blinked as Mirio emerged from the dirt in front of him, sweating, but unharmed.

"Easy there, freshman," Mirio set a hand on Izuku's shoulder. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," Izuku nodded, tracing his eyes back to Tomura and Kurogiri. They were still watching the heroes in-training, but had yet to make another move. "How do we handle this?"

Mirio turned so he was facing the pair of villains as well. He'd made short work of the small fry, but he could tell these other guys would be more of a problem to deal with. "Normally I'd tell you to run for the door, but that guy with the Warp Quirk is going to make that impossible. His buddy is an even bigger problem. I've only gotten a quick look at his Quirk during the fighting, but from what I can tell, he can disintegrate whatever he touches. It's not instantaneous, but if he holds on long enough, he'll probably turn you into dust."

Izuku gulped, but that knowledge was vital and he could use it. Disintegration upon touching someone? His Quirk is similar to Eri's, but from a comparative standpoint, it's a lot weaker. If he can't disintegrate someone instantly like Eri can, his attacks can be avoided even if he makes contact. But even so…that's a really dangerous Quirk. We've gotta be careful.

Izuku bit his lip as he considered his opponents. Close range combat was a no-go here. From the looks of things, Mirio was a close combat type, but Izuku didn't know much about his Quirk other than that he could phase through objects.

He glanced around. Eraser Head wasn't going to last much longer at this rate and he could only hope that one of his classmates would escape USJ while they were keeping the warp villain busy. Fortunately, he had a lot of fire to work with. Izuku had managed to drag almost all of the flames he'd collected from the Inferno Zone with him when Kurogiri caught him and Eri.

Mirio suddenly thumped his shoulder, getting the teen's attention. His upperclassman stood up and dusted himself off. "You stay here and keep the little princess safe, okay? I'll handle these guys."

Izuku protested. "You can't beat them alone!"

Mirio grinned and gave him a thumbs-up. "No worries! Just sit back and watch, freshman!"

He lunged towards the black creature pinning Aizawa, half-falling into the ground so he could propel himself with his Quirk. Gotta get Eraser Head out of there! If he gets hurt much more, he'll die!

A black portal opened up in front of him as Kurogiri attempted to block him. "I won't let you!"

Mirio only smirked and let his entire body phase, going right through the warp gate and out the other side to reach his target.

"What?" Kurogiri exclaimed in disbelief.

"He's just a kid, but he's way more annoying than Eraser Head was," Tomura growled, thoroughly irritated.

"Have a taste of this!" Mirio shouted, punching at the beast in a blur of motion and striking him in a circle. He hit it with all he had in its back, gut, face, and neck in an effort to knock it out as quickly as possible. Mirio didn't have superhuman strength, but his body had been trained to the utmost and it normally took just one shot to knock out an average man.

But this guy was different. He was able to tell from the moment his fist collided with the beast's face and felt the impact diffuse harmlessly. Mirio kept striking, trying to find a weak point, but there was none to be found.

Tomura was finally annoyed enough to leave Eraser Head where he lay. The Pro would probably die soon, anyway. "Noumu, get that guy away from you."

Noumu suddenly swatted at Mirio in an incredible blur of speed, but Mirio had phased the moment the words got out of Tomura's mouth. He narrowly avoided what might have been a fatal blow, as the shockwave from that one strike sent a blast of air far away.

Mirio let himself phase into the ground and propelled himself back towards Izuku, skidding to a stop as he processed what he'd learned from the exchange. "I see. Physical attacks won't have any effect on this guy."

"Oh, you figured that out?" Tomura sounded smug this time. "That's because of Noumu's Shock Absorption. You can beat him all you want, but it won't do anything. The best way to hurt him would be to slowly gouge out his flesh. Whether he'll actually let you do that or not is another matter!"

"Shock Absorption?" Izuku muttered. He glanced at Mirio. "I need you to take Eri."

"No!" She gasped, looking up at Izuku desperately. "Don't go!"

Mirio didn't take his eyes off the villains. "What for?"

"We can't beat that guy down with physical attacks. My fire is the only thing we have that can hurt him," Izuku stood up and gently pried Eri off of him despite her protests. "Shock Absorption won't help him with fire."

"That's pretty risky. He's too fast for you to keep up with," Mirio replied, gritting his teeth in frustration. They were in a tight spot, he knew. "But we don't have much other choice. He's too fast for us to get away from and my Quirk can't do anything against this guy. Fine. I'll keep Eri safe from these guys, but don't do anything too risky!"

"I'll be careful," Izuku promised, passing Eri to Mirio. She struggled, but couldn't get away from the older teen.

"Izuku!" Eri cried out, trying to reach for him.

Izuku started walking towards Noumu, bringing his flames around him. There wasn't time to be afraid. If he didn't go full throttle, this guy would beat him in an instant. No one else was around besides Mirio and Eri. No one else would be able to tell what his Quirk really was. The "bunny ears" would hide his horns, just like he'd designed them to.

Eri's screams made his blood boil with rage. It's okay, Eri. Everything will be alright. I'm here!

The emerald flames around him surged up, enveloping his body from head to toe and generating a roar like a jet engine. The two protrusions atop his head became encased in fire and spiked up.

A malicious grin formed on Tomura's face. "Oh…I thought he was some cute rabbit, but now…he looks more like a devil."

Izuku lunged at Noumu, channeling One for All through his body to augment his speed. The beast turned to face him, but it wouldn't move until Tomura gave it orders.

Kurogiri glanced at his leader when said orders didn't come. "Tomura? Is something wrong?"

"I want it," Tomura hissed under his breath.

Izuku gathered a mass of flames along both his arms and clapped them together to grab Noumu with fiery hands. Green fire enveloped the beast's upper body, burning it's flesh. Noumu groaned lowly to express pain at the attack. It forgot about Aizawa completely and focused its attention on the teenager, but still didn't react without Tomura's permission.

"Now I remember," Tomura's grin widened beneath the hand covering his face. "Teacher told me that he had a pet like this once. One with those green flames. I want it, Kurogiri! I want the rabbit!"

Kurogiri considered that. "I can capture him, but as long as he can use those flames, he's a danger to us wherever we take him. You'll have to weaken him, first."

"It's like Pokemon, huh?" Tomura snickered. "A shiny appeared and I gotta weaken it without killing it. Luckily, my legendary knows False Swipe."

Something's not right, Izuku thought. Noumu was still groaning as though it were in pain, but the fire didn't seem to be doing any actual damage. He stared at the beast through the flames and froze when he spotted the burning flesh healing over.

"Noumu's Super Regeneration is keeping him from getting a burn status," Tomura laughed. "He was designed specifically to take All Might on at 100%! Little moves like that won't hurt much. Noumu, don't kill him. Catch him."

Izuku leapt back, firing a stream of flame at Noumu to prevent it from charging him, but he was too close and his flames didn't do enough damage to the beast. He felt an incredible impact strike his upper chest and a massive hand enclosed around his neck, then he was slammed into the ground with such force that he blacked out.

"Nooooooo!" Eri screamed.

Mirio swore under his breath. This was really bad. He couldn't leave Eri, but Izuku was in trouble and Eraser Head was probably going to die if he wasn't taken out of here fast. Is there nothing I can do?!

"Kurogiri, catch him," Tomura ordered.

Kurogiri began to form a warp gate, but he was stopped by a roar of fury and a sudden explosion. The pair of villains barely evaded the surprise attack and leapt away, leaving one Katsuki Bakugo between them, Izuku, and Noumu. Eijirou was right behind him, along with Nejire, Tsuyu, and Minoru.

Tomura's eyes narrowed. "More fodder?"

"The hell'd you call me?!" Katsuki roared, letting explosions pop off in his palms. "You're dead! But you first, you foggy bastard! You get the death sentence for chucking me into a pile of concrete!"

"He's a troublesome one," Kurogiri decided. "Did they already defeat our underlings."

"Ain't just them!"

Approaching from the landslide zone, Kyoka appeared with Momo, Shoto, Denki, and Tamaki close behind her. "There was a bunch of them, but all you sent after us were wimps! Tamaki already took out that guy you brought to block our communications. U.A knows we're in trouble."

"I got Toru out too, in case we weren't able to send a distress call," Shoto added.

"What? I was keeping an eye out for anyone trying to escape!" Kurogiri denied the claim.

Shoto smirked. "I wonder if you can see someone who's invisible?"

"They took out our henchmen so easily," Tomura clasped his hands together. "To top it off, they're barely hurt at all. Kids these days are amazing…they're making the League of Villains look bad. And if they've already sent a distress call, the Pros will be here in no time. Ah, well. If it was just All Might, we could win, but we aren't specialized enough to deal with the others. Game over, I guess."

Tomura sighed, but then perked up. "But we get a consolation prize. I captured the rabbit. So as a gift for our beloved Symbol of Peace…let's kill as many of these guys as we can!"

BOOM!

Just then, the glass of the dome above them shattered and a blur shot down, hitting the ground with tremendous force. A wave of dust and debris covered the area for a few moments, giving the stunned figures who had been closest to the impact to regain their bearings.

"Who was it that attacked my students?"

The deep voice sent shivers down the spines of everyone there, but the students felt a sense of elation run through them at the same time. Heavy footsteps purposefully stomped the ground, sending tremors out.

"Who was it that hurt them?"

A shock of blonde hair made itself visible as the dust began to settle. Tomura's eyes widened in glee.

"You will regret it."

The scowl on his face was a far cry from his usual, wide grin, but the Symbol of Peace looked far more terrifying for it as he glared through glowing eyes at Tomura and Kurogiri. "Everything's alright now. I am here!"

"All Might!"

Kurogiri's eyes narrowed cautiously. "So he came, after all."

Tomura grinned. "He really came! This works out perfectly! You won't be getting out of this alive, Mr. Symbol of Peace! Noumu's been specially designed to take you on at your best! I'd like to see you try to overcome Super Regeneration and Shock Absorption at the same time!"

All Might took stock of his surroundings, but stopped dead upon seeing Izuku pinned beneath Noumu's huge hands. He lunged at the black beast. "Release him!"

Tomura cackled. "Noumu, get him!"

Noumu began to turn his attention to All Might, but a sudden blaze of fire enveloped him, preventing All Might from getting too close and regaining the beast's interest.

Izuku was fighting through the pain of a shattered collarbone and he could barely move, but he knew that letting Noumu fight All Might was a disaster waiting to happen and he wouldn't let it come to pass. He's got Shock Absorption and Super Regeneration! He's the perfect counter to All Might! I can't let them fight! All Might's already used up a lot of his time today!

Tomura's eye twitched in annoyance. "The shiny's still awake? Noumu, knock him out good this time. Choke him."

He wanted to scream as the pressure of Noumu's hand closed around his throat and pressed hard on his broken collarbone, but Izuku grabbed at the beast's wrist with vicious tenacity and let his flames blaze wildly, determined not to let this thing get a shot at All Might. When he couldn't hold back the urge to scream anymore, Izuku bit down hard on Noumu's finger.

"IZUKU! IZUKU!" Eri was screaming, struggling to get free from Mirio. Izuku flashed a glance at her and blanched when he saw that her horn was sparking with energy. He couldn't call out to warn Mirio with Noumu squeezing the air from his lungs!

LET ME GO! He glared at Noumu and drove the intensity and heat of his flames as high as he could tolerate and then desperately pushed it beyond that. The emerald flames roared wildly as the temperature soared and formed a core of white-hot energy at the center of the conflagration where Noumu was still trying to choke out Izuku.

LET ME GO LET ME GO LET ME GO LET ME GO LET ME GO LET ME GO LET ME GO LET ME GOOOOO!

AndNoumu let him go.

Izuku sucked in a gulp of air as soon as the beast's grip loosened and screamed. "MIRIO LET ERI GO!"

Mirio was startled by the scream and did what Izuku asked on reflex, releasing the girl. Eri stumbled in an effort to get away from him and the energy coalescing around her horn flared up violently, but nothing was vaporized this time. She regained her footing, tears rolling down her cheeks as she ran towards Izuku.

"Eri, d-don't…" Izuku choked out, but the burning pain in his collarbone had spread all over and he couldn't get out anything more than that before he fainted again. His flames completely vanished in a quick burst, leaving him defenseless.

"He won't be able to avoid capture this time," Tomura said confidently. "Noumu, get All Might!"

But nothing happened. Tomura frowned and looked at the black, hulking beast in confusion. "Noumu?"

"Oouuu…." Noumu made a low, barely audible groan as he stumbled away from Izuku's prone form. Tomura froze as he realized that Noumu's flesh was not black because of his skin, but because it had all turned to ash. Noumu lifted his hands and pawed at his eyes, which had been baked into nothingness. And when he tried to touch his face, his hands crumbled into dust. They had been at the hottest point of the conflagration since they'd been touching Izuku and had gotten burnt down to the bone. Noumu slumped to the ground a moment later with a thump and did not rise again.

Mirio's eyes were huge. "He won…"

"Izuku!" Eri rushed to his side and reached for him, but she yelped when Shoto, who had run over at the same time, stopped her.

"Don't touch him!" Shoto warned her, creating some ice to press against Izuku's skin. It immediately hissed and evaporated in an instant. "He overheated and can't regulate his body temperature! You'll get burned!"

Izuku's body was actually steaming from the horrific temperatures he'd generated. His heat resistance only went so far and it seemed that he'd pushed that limit too far, leaving shiny red burns over his hands and arms. His face looked like it had been badly sunburnt, and it was only visible because his flames had burned away a large section of his mask and hood.

Eri bit her lip, falling to her knees beside Izuku's unconscious form. "Izuku…"

Shoto used his ice to cool off Izuku's body, but his mind was reeling from shock. I knew he had a Flame Quirk, but he just carbonized that guy's cells before they could regenerate! The only other person who I know can do that is that old bastard. Izuku can generate flames as hot as his?

"What the hell?" Tomura hissed out through gritted teeth and scratched at his throat furiously until he left bloody furrows. "He got a critical hit?! He shouldn't be able to move anymore! Ugh, I hate games where they can still fight back at full power even when they've only got one HP!"

He let his hands dropped and snarled. "There's no catching him now. No consolation prize for us. We can't beat their legendary without Noumu. Game over, Kurogiri."

Kurogiri nodded. "It's best we beat a hasty retreat before the other Pros arrive…"

"Oh, no you don't!" Katsuki snarled, pointing one of his gauntlets at them and pulling the pin. "Die!"

Mirio shouted a warning, but it was too late. "Don't do it!"

Kurogiri immediately opened a warp gate to intercept the huge explosion. "Fool!"

The explosion passed straight through the gate and opened up right next to Kyoka's group, who were tending to Aizawa's broken form. They barely had time to glance at the opening portal before Katsuki's explosion ripped through them.

"No!" Nejire gasped.

"It's okay!"

She and the rest of her group spun around to find All Might there with all five of the would-be victims safely in his huge arms. "I've got them!"

Unfortunately, while All Might was busy saving them, Kurogiri opened up another gate that he and Tomura escaped through. Tomura glared at All Might as he vanished though the gate. "Enjoy your win, All Might. This isn't over. I'll kill you!"

And then they were gone, leaving behind the critically injured Noumu.

Tamaki sighed in relief. "Those were the bosses, right?"

"Yeah," Mirio replied, walking over to his friend. "But there are other students still missing. There are probably still some villains around, as well. They brought a ton of them here."

All Might carefully set down Kyoka and the others, taking special care with the heavily wounded Aizawa. "I will deal with the remaining villains. Young Mirio, Tamaki, and Nejire, I'm counting on you three to get everyone here to the other Pros. They should be here soon. Make sure young Izuku and Mr. Aizawa are taken to Recovery Girl immediately for treatment."

"Thirteen was badly hurt, too," Nejire told him. "He was warped away with the others, but I haven't seen him."

"I'll find him," All Might promised, falling into a crouch. "Leave it to me!"

All Might launched himself into the air then, flying towards the nearest zone to search for whoever he could.

Mirio walked over to Izuku, Eri, and Shoto, the latter of which was still cooling off the burned teenager. "Can we move him?"

Shoto used his left hand, the one with heat-resistant properties, to touch Izuku's skin carefully. He was still pretty warm, but he wasn't so hot that he'd burn someone now. Shoto nodded. "His temperature's gone down a lot. We can move him."

Eri immediately crawled over to Izuku and took his warm hand in hers, squeezing it tightly. "Is Izuku gonna be okay?"

"He'll be fine," Mirio promised. "Recovery Girl will take good care of him. Now let's get him out of here."

Eri sniffled and tried to wipe her eyes, but she was still crying. "Okay…"

"Sixteen, seventeen, eighteen…Not counting the kid with the broken collarbone, everyone was pretty much unharmed," the detective in charge of removing the villains from U.A announced to Class 1A with a sigh of relief.

The police were currently escorting the villains out of USJ and into police vehicles, where they would be taken to prison. The students had done a great job fighting their attackers off and All Might had laid waste to the rest of them upon arriving. His wrath had been something to see assuming you could keep up with him, blitzing around USJ in blurs of motion and knocking out villains by the dozen faster than you could blink.

The detective cleared his throat to get the attention of the class. "For now, you all need to go back to the classroom. This isn't the time or place for police questioning."

Tsuyu held up a finger to her lips. "Hey, detective? How's Mr. Aizawa doing?"

"He's in critical condition at the hospital," the man admitted. "His arms were shattered and his face suffered fractures all over. The bones around his eye socket, the orbital floor, have been crushed into a powder. It might adversely affected his eyesight, but thankfully, there was no brain damage."

"And Thirteen?"

"His back and upper arms sustained severe lacerations, but his vitals are stable and it's expected that he'll make a full recovery."

Ochako couldn't stop herself and let the question bubbling in her throat burst out. "What about Deku?"

"Deku?"

"She means Izuku," Mina told him, frowning worriedly. "Is he okay?"

The detective blinked in understanding and nodded. "Ah, yeah he's with Recovery Girl. His injuries weren't so bad that he had to go to the hospital. She'll be able to heal him completely once he wakes up and regains some of his energy."

Denki let out a tense breath. "Whew, what a relief…I thought he was dead when that Noumu guy started choking him out…"

"You all did a great job," that was Mirio as he, Nejire, and Tamaki walked over to them. They'd been helping the police with the villains since they already had hero licenses, but their job was done now. Mirio smiled widely at his juniors. "You freshmen pack a real punch! A bunch of these guys are still dizzy from the beating you gave them!"

"All Might knocked out most of them, you know," Tamaki muttered lowly.

Katsuki had been unusually quiet since they'd been evacuated and kept clenching and unclenching his fists. Eijirou noticed something was up and nudged the volatile teen lightly with his elbow. "You good, man?"

"I'm fine," Katsuki shrugged him off with a growl. "I'm just pissed that that damn nerd almost got himself killed. He ain't allowed to die."

Mina's eyelid twitched with annoyance at his rough words. "Can't you act nicely for just one-"

"It's okay, Mina," Eijirou interrupted her, shaking his head. Katsuki only huffed and started stalking for the bus that would take them back to U.A. He wasn't in the mood to give Mina a piece of his mind, or so he told himself. Eijirou sighed.

He says that, but I'm sure he's even more worried about Izuku than the rest of us.

Izuku woke up blearily and blinked the sleepiness from his eyes. There was a sort of light ache all over his body and he felt more exhausted than he could ever remember being before. His thought process was so sluggish that he hadn't yet recalled what had happened when Recovery Girl appeared by his bedside.

"Oh good, you're awake," she smiled at him gently. "You were out like a light for a couple of hours."

"I was…what?" Izuku blinked in confusion and suddenly all the memories of USJ came rushing back. His eyes widened, but before he could open his mouth, Recovery Girl held her hands up.

"Everyone is okay," she assured him. "All Might saved everyone after he arrived. Aizawa and Thirteen are getting medical attention at the hospital and they're both expected to recover. None of the other students were hurt."

Izuku ran that through his head before another worry made itself known. "What about Eri? Where is she?"

Recovery Girl chuckled and gestured to his bed. "Take a look."

Izuku looked down and realized that Eri was hugging his left arm, though she was sleeping deeply. She still had tear stains on her cheeks, but other than that she looked peaceful.

"She wasn't hurt. You protected her, just like she said you would," Recovery Girl told him. "That little girl didn't leave your side the whole time."

"Her Quirk didn't flare up again?" He asked, using his right hand to wipe away the tear stains on her face before he smoothed her hair back gently.

"No. Mirio told me what happened, but luckily no one was harmed," the nurse replied. "Do you know what her Quirk does?"

Izuku bit his lip. "I think so, but I have to tell All Might about it."

"In that case, it's a good thing I'm here."

He almost yelped at the familiar voice and looked up to spot All Might sitting on a stool at the foot of his bed. He was in his true form and sat beside a police detective in a trench coat. Both men looked amused by Izuku's surprise.

Izuku sighed and put a hand over his heart. "You scared me."

"Sorry, kiddo," All Might apologized. He leaned forward and grinned at the teenager. "I can see you're still pretty groggy, but we should get this out of the way as soon as possible. This is Naomasa Tsukauchi. He's a police detective and one of my best friends. He came today to take custody of the villains, but his initial purpose was to speak with you, young Katsuki, and myself about what happened last night during the confrontation with Eri's kidnapper."

"I'll make this pretty quick," Tsukauchi promised, waving Izuku down as the boy straightened in his bed. "No, lay down. Recovery Girl would have my head if I made you get up."

"And don't you forget it!" The old woman warned him good-naturedly.

The detective chuckled. "All Might and Katsuki already gave me their testimony about what happened the other night. We know the gist of what happened, but I also have to get your perspective of the event. We can save the USJ testimony for another time since you're currently recovering from a serious injury."

Izuku nodded a bit nervously. "Okay."

Tsukauchi's questions were short, simple, and to the point. Izuku confirmed that the villain had been the one to initiate the fight and that he'd done his best only to act in self-defense so that he could protect Eri from her kidnapper. There were a few other basic questions- how Katsuki had acted when he arrived and what the villain had done to try and get Eri back, but it was all pretty cut-and-dry.

Tsukauchi scribbled down the last of his notes for the testimony and nodded. "And we're done. But I'd like to hear what you were going to say about Eri's Quirk. I understand that it flared up at USJ? We'll need to know what it is so we can inform the appropriate foster care she's taken to after this."

"I don't think it's a good idea for her to go with someone else right now," Izuku told Tsukauchi, shooting him an apologetic look. "I'm sorry, but I don't think it'll be safe for Eri."

"She'll be well-cared for," the investigator assured Izuku. "She'll have police protection as well."

"I don't mean protection from whoever took Eri, I mean from herself," Izuku said. "Her Quirk's flared up twice today, at USJ and earlier when Fumikage scared her on accident."

All Might raised an eyebrow. "You didn't mention that earlier at lunch."

"Sorry, I was just trying to figure out how to best explain what I saw," he apologized meekly. "But I spent a long time thinking about it and I think…I think I know what it is."

"And? What is it?"

Izuku looked down at Eri and ran his fingers through her hair, swallowing hard. "Molecular Disintegration. She can instantaneously break down an object at the molecular level as long as she's touching it while her Quirk is active."

Dead silence met his hypothesis. Tsukauchi looking incredulous. "…Are you serious?"

"I only saw it once, but I'm pretty sure that's it," Izuku nodded stiffly. "She was touching a tree when her Quirk flared up the first time and it just…vanished. Not shrunk, not turned invisible, just…gone. Completely. Leaves, bark, roots, everything. And when her Quirk started going out of control, she was crying for me to let her go. In that moment, I…I got this feeling that if I didn't let her go, I would have died."

"That'll be your body instinctively reacting to danger," All Might said, his face grim. "Molecular Disintegration? Even amongst Pros, a Quirk like that…the only person even remotely similar is Thirteen, and this phenomenon is much different even then."

"There's more," Izuku went on. "She told me she didn't want to hurt me, but I…it might be just speculation on my part, but I got the impression that she might have accidentally used her Quirk on a person before. If it had just manifested and someone went to pick her up or touch her…"

"She would instantly kill them on contact," Tsukauchi finished, sighing. "Well, this case gets more complicated by the second. That's not the kind of Quirk we can just ask a Quirk counselor to a foster home to handle. If she panics like she did earlier, she'll vaporize anyone who doesn't understand how to deal with her."

Izuku nodded. "She told me that she was cursed. That the bird people- the villains who kidnapped her- were right, and she would always hurt people. I didn't want her to feel so hopeless and scared of her own power so I…talked to her about All Flare."

He glanced at Tsukauchi nervously, but the man only smiled. "I'm aware of it, but don't worry. All Might is a friend of mine and he's told me that you're a good kid. So far, I'm rather inclined to believe him."

Izuku relaxed somewhat. "I didn't go into details, but I said that my Quirk scared and hurt a lot of people before. I just wanted her to know that she wasn't alone and that we could help her. She needed to know that she'll be okay."

All Might smiled at the teenager with approval. "Well said. Yes, I agree with you. Children, especially those who have gone through trauma of some kind, often feel calmer around someone who they can relate to and expect to guide them. Seeing as she feels safest around you to begin with…I think it would be best if she stayed with you and your mother. Of course, we'll have to ask your mother about this, but if she can't stay at home with you, I think it would be possible for her to stay at U.A and see you every day. It would keep her happy, calm, and we could work on her Quirk safely. That's the kind of environment she needs right now."

"You make some pretty valid points," Tsukauchi admitted, standing up. "Very well, I'll inform the department about this. For now, you, your mother, and All Might need to hash out where Eri will be staying for the time being. Also, Izuku?"

The boy blinked as Tsukauchi glanced from him, to Eri, and then to Recovery Girl. "You need to find a way for Eri to provide Recovery Girl with a blood sample. It's possible that her parents are searching for her somewhere, but we'll never know without a DNA test to go off of. I understand that she's terrified of needles, so would you mind helping Recovery Girl with that as soon as Eri is comfortable again? The sooner, the better."

Izuku nodded. "I'll do my best, but I won't rush her. Sorry."

"Don't apologize," Tsukauchi smiled at him reassuringly. "We won't rush her, but it is a priority. For now, just rest and get well. You did a great job today."

With that, the detective left, leaving Izuku with All Might, Recovery Girl, and the still-slumbering Eri attached to his arm.

"He's right, you know," All Might said suddenly, getting Izuku's attention. The Symbol of Peace grinned. "You did a great job protecting Eri today. There isn't a single scratch on her."

Izuku looked down at the sleeping girl and smiled at her gently. "Good."

"Given the circumstances, you class will have next Monday off," All Might went on. "Enjoy the three day weekend while it lasts. You won't have many of them. Stay at home, recover, settle down with your mother and Eri. They're both worried about you. In fact, your mother should be here any second, so I should beat it before she sees my true form!"

Izuku mirrored the humorous grin All Might flashed him. "Yes, sir. See you later, All Might."

"I'll text you tomorrow," All Might promised, then left the infirmary.

Recovery Girl sighed, but she was smiling. "What a bunch of knuckleheads I'm taking care of. Ah, well. Since you're awake, I'll go ahead and give you your last bit of treatment. It'll fix up those minor burns you've got and repair whatever damage is left to your collarbone, but it'll tire you out. Go home after that and get a good night's sleep."

"Yes, ma'am."

Tomura walked out of Kurogiri's warp gate and into the empty bar that they used as a base, shaking his slightly burnt hand with some annoyance. As soon as both of the villains had entered the bar, they faced the computer screen next to the wall.

"Well? How'd it go?" From the computer's speakers asked a deep, calm voice.

"All Might wasn't there for a while," Tomura muttered in irritation. "He only showed up at the end, so we didn't get to fight him. Those kids were annoying, though. All the fodder we brought with us ended up being dead weight!"

"What about the superhuman your teacher and I engineered to defeat All Might? Where is Noumu?" A second voice queried.

Kurogiri's gaseous form condensed so he could fit into a butler's suit. "My apologies…he was burnt to the point that his Super Regeneration could no longer heal the damage he took. He's likely still alive, but he's been heavily crippled. The police certainly have him by now."

"What a waste…we went through so much effort to make him a physical match for All Might, too!"

"It can't be helped. But if I might ask, who defeated Noumu? The only man I'm aware of that is capable of defeating him with fire is the Number Two Hero…Did Endeavor make a surprise visit?"

"No," Tomura grinned behind his covered face. "It was a kid, teacher…I wanted to catch him, but he got a critical hit on Noumu."

"You let Noumu get defeated to try and take some brat hostage?"

"Settle down, doctor," the first voice said reassuringly. His tone- for he was undoubtedly male- became interested. "This is unusual. You look excited, Tomura. Did something good happen?"

"Teacher, you told me about a pet you had once. The one with green fire who fought All Might and destroyed a whole city," Tomura was practically shivering with excitement. "That brat who took out Noumu had the same Quirk!"

Silence filled the room for several moments before the first voice spoke again, this time with a great deal of interest behind each and every word. "Is this true?"

Kurogiri nodded. "I believe he's right. It was a far cry from the Quirk that challenged All Might, but it was without doubt of a near-identical nature."

"Sir, it couldn't be…"

"It's possible. That's all that matters right now. I'll look into this. You did well today, Tomura! You've learned something valuable."

"I want him, teacher," Tomura clenched one of his hands as though trying to grasp something. "I want a pet with green fire, like you did!"

"And you will have him. For now, let's gather a new group of individuals hand-picked for efficiency. There's no need to rush…the best plans take time and patience. All Might will deteriorate over time. Perhaps today's failure was fate telling us not to face him yet. It makes no difference. It will be that much easier to kill him next time. Tomura Shigaraki…next time, show the world the true horror of your being!"

Inko Midoriya was in the kitchen, cutting up some vegetables to make into a soup for Izuku and Eri in the other room. She was glad that they were okay after yesterday's attack on U.A. She'd just about had a heart attack when the call came from the school nurse that Izuku had been hurt and needed her to come pick him up. For goodness sake, she had just been there that morning!

She didn't blame the school for what had happened. From what the news reports were saying, it had been a carefully laid-out attack with a rare warping Quirk that no alarm system would catch. Izuku had also told her that two of his teachers had been seriously hurt trying to protect them and All Might had shown up not long after to save the day. She was upset that Izuku had been hurt, but at least the damage was already healed thanks to Recovery Girl.

The plump woman added the vegetables into a pot and began stirring them in the boiling water. Izuku had told her about what happened to make him get injured like that. She wasn't upset with him for risking his life to protect Eri, but she did worry about him.

The thought of the small girl made her smile somewhat. Since the attack ended, Eri was even more clingy with Izuku than before. Inko wasn't sure she'd seen them separate since she picked them up except to use the bathroom and take showers. It worried her that Eri might be getting too attached to Izuku. If the day came when Eri had to go into foster care…she dreaded that the girl might fight it so that she could stay with Izuku.

She shook her head. There was nothing to be done about it for now. The investigation into Eri's kidnappers was still ongoing and all they could do was make sure she was safe and happy. Inko didn't mind Eri staying with them. Honestly, she was growing quite fond of her.

Inko's train of thought ended as the front door was opened and she peered around the hallway to see who was coming into the house.

Katsuki had let himself in again without knocking, as usual. "Hey, Ms. Inko."

"Hello, Katsuki! Come to see Izuku and- oh?" Inko blinked as she noticed a group of teenagers behind Katsuki. "Um, hello? Katsuki, who are your friends?"

"They aren't my friends," Katsuki growled, looking over his shoulder at his classmates in annoyance. "They're just scrubs in the same class as Deku and I."

Kyoka's eyelid twitched at him. "Gee, thanks for the first impression, Katsuki."

"Oh, you're all Izuku's classmates?" Inko realized, surprised. "I-I had no idea you were all coming! I though it was just Katsuki?"

Katsuki shrugged. "Sorry. I gave my number to the red-head and before I knew it, he got the rest of these losers involved."

Eijirou scratched the back of his head, smiling in embarrassment. "Sorry, sorry, but everyone was so worried about Izuku that they wanted to see him. Katsuki said he was gonna visit and I kind of got ahead of myself asking if everyone else wanted to come by..too…"

He trailed off as Inko covered her mouth, tears filling her eyes. Eijirou and the other students (minus Katsuki, of course) froze, afraid that they'd done something wrong.

"Oh, my baby has so many friends who care about him!" Inko cried, wiping her eyes.

Sero sweat-dropped and leaned over to mutter into Katsuki's ear. "Is…is this normal?"

"Shut up, of course it's normal," Katsuki snapped back. "I swear to god, the crying is hereditary."

Inko quickly cleared her face of all tears and smiled brightly at the group of students. "Come in, come in! Izuku's in the living room!"

She quickly poked her head around the corner to tell her son about the new arrivals. "Izuku, Katsuki's here. He brought a bunch of your friends, too!"

Katsuki led the way for the group of teenagers, which consisted of Kyoka, Eijirou, Sero, Ochako, Mina, Denki, and Tenya. He walked into the living room and announced his presence like he always did. "Yo, Deku. Let's kill some…stuff…"

He trailed off and stopped dead, staring at the head poking out of a pile of blankets on the couch. The only parts visible of Izuku were his eyes and curly green hair, which looked even messier than normal.

The rest of their classmates entered the living room and also stared at the image of their friend bundled up into what was basically a human-sized burrito. Izuku didn't actually emerge from the cocoon and just mumbled through the blankets. "H-hey, guys…what are you all d-doing here?"

Denki smirked. It looked kind of funny. "Thought we'd drop by and see how you were doing, but uh…this isn't quite what we were expecting. You catch a cold or something?"

"Something," Izuku replied. His head poked out a bit more until his whole face was visible.

"You sick?" Kyoka asked, leaning away slightly.

"No, I'm just c-c-cold."

Tenya chopped one of his hands towards the teen burrito. "Izuku, the A/C in your home is barely on! How are you cold?"

"'Cause I overdid things with my Quirk at USJ," Izuku sighed. "I can't use my flames at all."

"Eh?" Ochako exclaimed. "You can't use your fire?"

"Why not?" Mina asked.

"Recovery Girl said it was because I overheated my body and pushed my flames beyond what I can handle. My Quirk hasn't fully recovered from the heat overload, so it's taking time to go back to normal."

"That sucks, but why are you cold?" Eijirou looked confused. "It's not like you're using your flames all the time."

Katsuki rolled his eyes and walked towards the TV and the various gaming devices neatly arranged beside it. "Idiot. People with Quirks that control temperature use them a lot without thinking, kind of like how we just breathe naturally. Deku's Quirk can heat things up, right? His body probably produces a mild amount of heat depending on the outside temperature to keep him stable. Now he can't keep himself warm, so his body is colder than it normally is."

Izuku smiled a bit with embarrassment. "That's how it is…"

"Your pathetic lack of resistance to even mild cold aside," Katsuki went on, flashing a glare at Izuku over his shoulder as he crouched to look through some games. "You gonna play, or not?"

"Um…" Izuku slowly extracted one of his hands from the blankets and pointed at the bundle over his stomach. "I would, but um…Eri's kind of asleep right here…"

Mina covered her mouth to hide the large smile spreading her lips. "That's adorable."

"Whatever," Katsuki muttered. He finally decided on the GameCube and got everything plugged in before looking at the others students who were still standing up. "What are you guys even doing? Get over here so I can beat you."

Sero grinned. "You asked for it!"

Eijirou cracked his knuckles. "You're on!"

Surprisingly Kyoka shrugged and took one of the four controllers. "Sure, I'll have a go."

"Fine, I play winner!" Denki declared.

While they went about trying to decide which game to play, Tenya decided sit down and watch with Denki while Ochako and Mina sat by the couch near Izuku. Mina threw a fist in the air towards the group of teens about to play and gave a cheer. "I'm here for support unless the game's good! Then I'm gonna beat you all!"

Ochako held a finger to her lips. "Shh! Guys, keep it down. Eri's still asleep, remember?"

Katsuki glanced over his shoulder at the lump of blankets on Izuku's body and snickered. "Yeah, we wouldn't wanna wake up daddy's little girl, would we?"

Izuku's face reddened. "Katsuki!"

His embarrassment was cut short by a small movement on his chest and Izuku looked down to see that Eri was peeking out from under the blankets at him. She was barely awake and the sleepy expression on her face was precious. He sighed, smiling, and used the hand still buried under the blankets to smooth her hair a few times until she dozed off again.