Chapter 140

Make sure to check out the story's P@treon, Nar_cisseENG if you want to read up to 50 chapters ahead of shedule.

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Hands clasped behind his back, head raised towards the white wall, the teenager stood motionless.

In front of him, the wall suddenly appeared gigantic, distorted, as big as an iceberg and as menacing as the gate to hell.

Shoto turned towards her calmly, as if everything was normal.

- Ah, Uraraka. Please sit down.

She followed his outstretched hand and saw, a hair's breadth from her knees, a metal chair she'd never seen before in her life.

She didn't sit down.

Shoto smiled - his eyes turned into crescent moons - grimly, and suddenly Ochaco was sitting in the chair.

- Did you like my little game?

Ochaco wanted to bite her nails, but forced herself to remain calm and spread her fingers across her lap.

- What have you done to me?

- A better question would be, 'What are you going to do to me?'

He eyed her, his eyes gleaming with malice.

- What do you want? she growled, feeling the tension begin to leave her body, though the nervousness remained.

She was neither mad nor in the grip of a dangerous psychopath with a Quirk capable of altering reality: even if she was wary of Todoroki, the familiarity of his personality calmed her somewhat.

- Ah, you've obviously misunderstood the situation

Suddenly, Shoto's eyes turned red and Ochaco screamed, struggling against the leather straps holding her to the wooden chair.

She felt as if liquid fire was being poured into her ears, seeping like poison into her veins, melting her body from the inside out.

She writhed against her bonds, scraping the armrests of her chair until she was bleeding, splinters digging into her bloody fingers, screaming against a gag that was pressing down on her throat and choking her.

Her skin heated and, lacking air, Ochaco pressed the flat of her feet against the floor, trying to break the straps with the pressure.

Lava poison runned inside her torso, her elbows, rolled down her forearms, descended into her pelvis, seeped into her thighs...

Ochaco blinked and was back in her room, her damp hair clinging to her neck.

- Even if your mind knows it's an illusion, all I have to do is convince your body that you're dead and it will stop working

A flash of red crossed his heterochromatic eyes.

- But perhaps you'd like a demonstration?

Ochaco felt panic tighten her throat.

- No, no, no ! I'm sorry, I'm sorry !

Shoto eyed her with unhealthy attention, as if he really intended to carry out his threat.

Ochaco felt something stirring and swarming in her stomach, and suddenly she was sure it was the maggots, and they were going to rip her belly open to get out.

- Please

Then Shoto smiled - his eyes crinkled - and the rumbling in her stomach subsided.

Ochaco's desk appeared behind him and he leaned against it, his arms crossed over his chest.

- I saw what you did with Denki, he said. Clever, since no one else should know about the cards.

Ochaco felt her blood run cold.

- I don't-

He raised his hand and Ochaco fell silent.

- No lies if you don't want me to get really angry

The teenager's mouth closed.

- I've been thinking a lot about you, you know. I could kill you after staging your runaway. I'd make you write a letter confessing to Ashido and Kaminari's murders and you'd just disappear.

He snapped his fingers.

Ochaco, dripping with sweat, jerked at the straps that dug painfully into her skin.

Her dry, rough tongue, rubbed against her teeth.

Shoto watched her squirm like a fish out of water with relish and turned up the heat.

- But I talked to Katchan recently and he gave me an excellent idea...

The gleam in her eyes at the mention of the teenager displeased Shoto greatly.

- What are you smiling at, you imbecile ?

The maggots began to swarm violently in her stomach again: looking down, Ochaco could see them pushing against the barrier of her stomach, buzzing against her skin like bees in a hive.

- I'm sorry, she said hastily. I'm sorry !

The maggots subsided.

Worried, she asked quietly:

- What did you discuss?

- I've been thinking about your behaviour during the championship. Do you remember the way you waited for me in the locker room after I announced that I'd offer a million to the winner ?

He smiled (his eyes turned into crescent moons).

- Katchan made me wonder what could have made you switch to All for One's side. That's right: what could have brought you to work for him?

He held up two fingers.

- He couldn't have threatened you and your family : you cut all ties with them almost a year ago.

The hairs on the back of Ochaco's neck stood up.

How did he know ?

- He must have offered you something you desperately wanted, something you'd be willing to die for. It could be many things. But I think I know you well enough to know that you're only interested in money.

Shoto suddenly clapped his hands together.

Ochaco jumped, startled.

- That's good : I've got plenty of money !

Ochaco, uncomfortable, deflected the question.

- What do you want ?

- The exact location of All for One

Ochaco swallowed, hesitant, but asked anyway:

- What are you going to do with it ?

Shoto's eyes narrowed and, for a moment, Ochaco thought she felt the maggots stirring again in her stomach.

- What do you think I'm gonna do with it ?

- I don't know it, the teenager murmured. He never tells us where he is : he only tells us what to do.

Shoto's gaze was icy.

- 'Us' ?

Ochaco bit the inside of her cheek.

- Be very careful what you say next

His eyes turned blood red.

She cleared her throat.

- He's... we...

She dropped her eyes, intimidated.

She'd only killed because she had no choice, because her cover was in danger of being blown.

He, on the other hand, had no reason to kill the villains in the camp - and yet he'd done it in cold blood, showing no remorse, even shamelessly blaming Aizawa-sensei for his actions.

He'll have no problem killing me.

A lump tightened her throat.

- There's another spy in the class, she muttered. It's Aoyama.

Shoto made no sound.

- Does he know where All for One is?

- No, she replied hastily. If I don't know, then it's impossible for him to know.

If I lose my usefulness, he'll kill me.

- Hmm

The toes of Shoto's shoes entered Ochaco's peripheral vision.

- I'll give you two options: either I kill you here and now with, let's say, a nice little cardiac arrest...

Ochaco stiffened, her eyes riveted to the ground.

Beads of sweat rolled down her neck.

- Look me in the eyes when I speak to you

She obeyed.

Her cheeks were flushed, her hair a mess, her eyes filled with tears she refused to shed.

Shoto sniffed, scornful, not the least bit impressed.

He tapped her head with his fingertip.

- But I'll put you through a thousand years of suffering in there before I end your torment, so that you'll beg me for mercy and death

His eyes crinkled into a crescent.

- Or maybe the second All for One comes out of his hole, you let me know. In that case, I won't kill you and I'll even give you some money to get the hell out of here.

Something must have changed in Ochaco's expression because Shoto spat in disgust :

- You really like money, don't you ? A real whore

Ochaco, humiliated, swallowed all her weakness, tears and mucus.

- Why do you want to hurt me ?, she snapped. I've never done anything to you !

He could have given her money, told her he'd turn her in or kill her if she didn't do what he wanted, but to torture her - to make her suffer before killing her - was like saying he had a personal grudge against her.

The boy's expression darkened.

- You seem to think that just because a few bad weeks have passed since the camp, everyone has forgotten what happened

There was something malicious in his look.

- But I haven't forgotten that it was you who distributed the explosive cards to everyone

Ochaco's fingernails dug into the palms of her hands.

Shoto spread his hands as if to encompass the whole room, like a politician in the middle of a campaign to show his voters that the world will be within their reach if they elect him.

- The choice is yours, Ochaco. Will I keep you here a little longer, or will you choose to leave this nightmare ?

Her nails hurt so badly she thought they would bleed.

He whispered.

- Remember : there are worse things than death

Instinctively, Ochaco sank back into her seat, trying to get away from Shoto.

All for One inspired a well-founded fear in her, but also a healthy dose of respect for his almost professional pragmatism. He had clear goals and would do whatever it took to achieve them.

There was a pattern, a logic to All for One. You could criticise him all you wanted, but All for One was no fool.

Shoto, on the other hand...

Shoto frightened her because he was an unruly cold-blooded killer.

He scoffed at villains and had no intention of being a hero, yet he was born with powers beyond logic.

He had no ambitions, nothing he wanted to achieve : he moved forward blindly, acting on his whim without thinking of the consequences. He was often violent and sometimes irrational.

Ochaco had once thought of him as a villain on the rise, but perhaps it wasn't quite that.

If villains and heroes were to clash, which side would he take ?

His powers could change the course of any war.

Both sides would tear him apart until there was nothing left of him.

If I could guess it... then he must know it too, right ?

Ochaco swallowed the knot in her throat.

- As soon as I hear from All for One, I'll let you know

Shoto smiled and leaned forward.

- Good girl

Then he grabbed her hair with one hand and lifted her head violently.

- I guess you don't need to hear what will happen to you if you try to play it smart ?

Ochaco shook her head in horror.

Shoto studied her in silence, disgusted.

Then he unceremoniously released her, almost shoving her away.

He looked down at her with bloodshot eyes before exploding like a supernova at the end of its life, illuminating the surroundings with a blinding white light.

Ochaco covered her face with her forearm and turned her head away.

When she opened her eyes, she was standing in the doorway of her room, the towel around her neck, her damp hair clinging to her face, her maths paper in one hand.

But the apple on the table was gone.

*

Author's note :

Genjutsu in full action everyone !

This was so funny to write, honestly had a blast.

Tell me what you thought in the comments, if some things could be clearer or anything else you want to talk about.

If you want to support the story (or me and my reading addiction)/read ahead of schedule up to 27 chapters, then go check the story's P@treon, Nar_cisseENG

See you in the next update everyone !