Operation: REVERT, Part 5: The Beast King’s Den

Hideout Helm

Eri's horn was nearly three-fourths stretched to its full length. She felt nothing thanks to the drugs having numbed her senses, but even if she wanted to cry for help, she saw no point. No one but enemies were watching her, and they had no intention of freeing her. It might have been easier to submit to their experiments.

Her captivity was seen by Kroctus on his throne room hologram. The device made a ringing sound, and when the king answered it, Dr. Eggman's hologram appeared. "Greetings, Kroctus. After analyzing the cells in the image your brother sent to me, I have made a rather intriguing discovery. Some time after the Firstborn Quest, I stumbled across an extremely rare creature known as a Time Demon."

"A Time Demon? Do you mean like… Lord English?"

"No, it was nowhere near that powerful. A Time Demon is a creature that exists within time rifts. They typically show up when there are major distortions in the timeline, and I believe either Arceus or Rumpel Stiltskin's actions resulted in that one appearing. Supposedly, these creatures are ordinarily harmless, though Time Spirits will work to subdue them if one ever gets out. When I examined Eri's chronitons, I found they were extremely similar to those I extracted from the Time Demon. It's highly possible that girl is a Time Demon in human form."

"You mean the Kremling Krew has acquired yet another extremely rare species and I hadn't even realized it? I'll need to go see this for myself." The Krock King left the chamber and marched downstairs. "KAMI! STOP WHAT YOU'RE DOING AND COME TO THE LABORATORY!"

"I'M IN THE SHOWER!"

"You can finish later, just come!"

Against his wishes, however, Kami finished her shower before joining the king in the room where Eri was lain. K. Rool gestured to his brother to deactivate the claw, stroking his scaly finger over her tender forehead. "Is it true, child? Are you really a Time Demon?"

"T…T…Time Demon?" Eri repeated hoarsely.

"Well? Is that term familiar?"

"I…I don't…mmmm…" Eri thought she felt scared, but her numbed senses made it impossible to tell. She chose to listen to her heart and say, "I just wanna go home. I wanna see Deku-san again."

"You just want to see Deku, eh? Now, based on the Brotherhood's reports… he looks like this, doesn't he?" With that, Kroctus morphed into a green-skinned, naked version of Izuku Midoriya. Still eavesdropping, Invisible Girl nearly barfed at the sight, and Eri's white pupils shrunk in horror.

He looked just like Izuku, same muscles, same hair, and same welcoming smile. "Hi, Eri-chan!" he greeted in a higher voice that K. Rool could barely manage. "It's going to be alright. Just do what K. Rool says and I'll treat you to ice cream later, okay?"

"AAAAAAAHHHH!" Anger rose to the top of Eri's heart, struggling and failing to rip off the shackles. "STOP IT! STOP BEING DEKU-SAN! You're nothing like Deku-san! Stop being Deku-san or else!"

K. Rool grabbed her head in both human hands. "Then stop acting defiant! Are you a Time Demon or not?!"

"I don't know what that is! Let me go!"

"Perhaps memory is an issue. Kami, your Keyblade! See if you can unlock her hidden memories."

"Why am I your fricking skeleton key…" a wet Kami mumbled before aiming the blade down at Eri's forehead. A light seemed to leak as she punctured the child's skull. Kami mentally told herself to unlock Eri's memories, hoping the Keyblade would hear her command.

A brighter light erupted from the forehead, Eri's eyes shooting wide open. Her horn seemed to fully erect as blue designs brimmed around her body. Kami and K. Rool gaped, surprised to have acquired such a result, but Toru was the most amazed of all. Yet, her amazement was mixed with even greater fear.

K. Rool gestured with his hand, and Klammy took it as a cue to activate the 'Sucker.' A tube designed like an elephant trunk lowered down and latched onto the horn, beginning to suck on it. Blue lights were seen flowing through the tube. "So, young one… are you a Time Demon?"

"…No." Eri replied in a somber tone. "I am a tool."

"HEY, YO, Krocky Man!" A black- and red-costumed antihero pounced the king's back, sitting on his shoulders like a little kid. "I brought ya that Top Hero you wanted! Didn't know where to set him, so I threw him on top of the porn mags!"

Kroctus punched Deadpool off, breaking his arm upon impact. "I suppose CP0 is worth the money I paid… discounting how annoying you are."

"You want a discount, how about a little extra intel?" Deadpool stretched himself up and tapped his noggin. "A little migraine told me some colorful little heroes are on their way to this pretty little base."

"Some… heroes?" Eri heard.

"Kroctus, that can't be a coincidence." Klammy stated. "They could be KND operatives who discovered our location somehow. We should move the base."

"Hmmm…How long will it take to finish powering the Blast-O-Matic?"

"Well, we're collecting a hefty amount of Time Chi from this girl, and assuming the emotionbender cooperates, approximately six hours."

"Then if this group decides to stroll by here, they will make excellent test subjects! We'll use them as guinea pigs and set sail afterwards."

"How big is their party, anyway? Unless they were unaware of your status as an Emperor, they should bring a formidable force."

"Indeed." Kroctus stroked his chin, fascination brimming in his eyes. "Whether they know I'm on this planet or they don't… perhaps they underestimate the strength of their opponent. For now, keep the fortress docked. Alert the Krewmen patrolling the Gigan Rocks; there's a chance they'll try to take the scenic route to avoid stirring attention. As for you, Deadpool… how would you like an extension of your contract?"

"I say, SIGN ME UP, BUDDY!" The antihero squealed. "No way I wanna ditch this party before it gets good!" And besides… I have to find out if that girl is really…

Mobius; Gigan Rocks

The sky was painted a faint pink as the tip of the sun greeted the mountains, painting the Gigan Rocks in a serene light. The gentle roar of waterfalls echoed throughout the peaks.

"Are you certain you don't need the rest of us to come, Mr. Aizawa?" Iida asked. Behind him were Denki, Yuga, Mezo, Ojiro, Kyoka, and Sato.

"I prefer if some of us remained behind to watch over things. But if we don't return or report back in five days, inform the GKND and conduct an investigation."

"Just a second, Aizawa!" yelled Vlad King. "Don't think we're gonna let YOUR class hog all the glory for this mission!"

"This isn't a contest, Sekijiro. Besides, the rest of you need to try and get in touch with Mobius's government."

"Oh, we will. But even so, you're gonna need a bit more firepower if you plan to face a Yonko. A few of my students are already raring to go!"

Aizawa, Deku, and the band of U.A. students who volunteered for this task calmly crossed up the mountain trail. Koji Koda, the Animal Telepath, sensed the voices of countless bugs and animals… and nearly all of them rung with malice.

A long, rope bridge would cross a trench and lead them to the base of Gigan Rocks. However, a wood gate locked the bridge. "Hey, little campers!" A brown bear Mobian jovially marched out, wearing a green hat and twirling some keys. "I'm Yogi Bear, the mountain ranger! Come to walk the Gigan Trail?"

"Uh…yes." Aizawa replied suspiciously. "My class and I are on a field trip."

"Yeah, we're here to study the ancient ruins!" Mina beamed.

"Does this place have hot springs? Any beautiful ladies up there~?" Mineta asked.

"Eh he he! Well, it's sure a nice place for a picanic, I tell ya what!" Yogi said. "Okay," he gave his hat a flick and spun it around, "I'll just open up this here gate and-"

BAM! A bullet struck the ground beside Mina.

"YO, WHAT THE FUCK?!" Mina jumped into Kirishima's arms in a panic. Everyone faced up at the short cliff behind them: a short, yellowish bear with a blue bowtie peeked out, holding a shotgun.

"Duh-oh! I missed, Yogi!"

"BOO-BOO! I told you to wait for my signal!"

"I thought that WAS the signal, Yogi!"

"No, I was supposed to twirl the hat on my finger, not my head! Remember it next time, you dumb bear of average intelligence!"

Aizawa jumped and restrained the bear with binding tape. "They're already onto us! Quick, through the gate!" He stole Yogi's keys and opened the gate. As the heroes stormed over the bridge, several bears alongside Boo-Boo rose from the cliff and unloaded machineguns. One looked like a Carebear, another like Winnie-the-Pooh, and one like Baloo. Shoto raised a wall of ice to stop them from shooting up the bridge. "Class 1-B, take those gunners down!"

A pair of horns flew and knocked the guns out of the bears' hands. "Oh, bother." Pooh said.

Once successful, the horns returned to Pony, a blonde girl with wide, Prussian eyes and legs bent like a horse's hind-legs. "Hey!" Yogi yelled, tearing his bands off. "Where did you kids come from?!"

"He's up!" Pony panicked. "Get him, Jurota!"

"ROOOAAAR!" A huge, brown-furred, beast-like hero charged and swiped claws at Yogi. The quirky-looking bear proved to be just as deadly with his own claws, but he swiftly pulled a swiss army knife from his hat and sliced Jurota's stomach.

"HEY!" Enraged by this tactic, Tetsutetsu socked Yogi with a metal fist, slamming him into the cliff. "No man or beast pulls a cheap trick like THAT in a fight!"

"YOGIIII!" Determined to avenge his friend, Boo-Boo jumped down, blasting twin machineguns. Tetsu easily blocked the bullets, leaving a cluster of brambles to envelop Boo-Boo, pricking and swinging him into the cliff.

"How could such poor animals be made to serve evil?" wept Ibara, a girl whose long green hair was made of such brambles. She spoke in a passionate, priestess-like voice. "May you find forgiveness in Celebi's welcoming light."

"Easy, Vine, we're not trying to kill anybody, yet!" Pony said. "And I hope we won't have to."

"My dearest Jurota, you're hurt! I shall fetch the first-aid immediately!"

"Chill, it barely scratched me! Let's hurry before Class 1-A gets ahead of us!"

"NOW you're talkin'!" Tetsu smashed open Shoto's ice, uncovering the bridge. "You ready to go, girls?!"

"YEAH!" The remainder of Class 1-B charged forward bravely. Their leader, Itsuka Kendo, led them across the bridge. She had spiky, ponytailed orange hair, a turquoise qipao that let her thick arms hang free, and a dark mask that highlighted her sharp eyes. "Wait, where did Kinoko go?!" But said eyes fell to panic at the realization that one of their teammates was absent.

"I used my horns to fly her across the trench!" Pony answered, galloping on her hooves.

"She was really determined to work with Mineta, huh?" asked Kodai, a soft-spoken dark-haired girl.

"What does she even see in that weirdo…" Reiko said drolly. She was a silver-haired in a pale-purple kimono, her arms angled up to make the typical "zombie" posture.

"You're calling him a weirdo?" Tetsu whispered.

Once the vanguard class reached the mountains' base, it became clear that any plan for a cautious approach had gone out the window. A platoon of Kasplats confronted them, blue-scaled Kremlings with black vests, sunglasses, and high endurance. "Don't waste your strength." Mineta told them. "Leave 'em to us. Huuuu…" He reached for his grape hair and, "huhuhu!" threw a single grape on each of the Kasplats' shoes. The Kremlings looked with confusion and laughed at his pitiful attack… "KOOSPLAT?!" But then purple mushrooms suddenly grew from the grapes, gluing them to the ground.

"You like our new mushrooms?" A girl in a red mushroom costume, white polka-dots, and brown bangs covering her eyes smirked atop a mushroom platform. "I designed that brand to adapt with Mineta's grapes. Thanks to me, they're tons stickier!"

"Kremlings, you have the honor of being the first villains to fall to Grape Fungus!" Mineta boasted.

"Sweet teamwork, but gross name!" Mina gave a thumbs-up of approval.

"LOOK OUT!" Bakugo alerted them to a storm of Orange Grenades, combusting into a cloud of fire. The grenades came from above a wide stairway to the next mountain layer. A squad of Klumps lined the top of the stairs, obese pink Kremlings in military gear. "You call those booms?! I'll show YOU booms!" Bakugo blasted up the stairs and KO'ed the Kremlings. "HAH! This is the big bad pirate crew?! These pirates are chu-"

A rotund, yellow, reptilian creature rammed Bakugo off the stairs before retreating. "What was that?!" Kirishima ran up first, seeing this creature, Mugly, had spikes on its back. "Heh! You wanna fight?!" Kirishima opened his arms and hardened himself as the beast charged. As he expected, its small nostril horns couldn't puncture his stone skin. Kirishima grabbed the beast and threw it to Tetsu, who bashed it away like a baseball. "Hey, what took you so long?"

"Shut it, Stoney! I get the next one!" Another, similar creature came charging. It was Thugley, purple-skinned with back armor and a larger face horn. Tetsu ran headfirst, head hardened into steel. But while Thugly reeled back from the impact, "OOOW!" Tetsu suffered an injury to his own skull.

"Wait!" Kirishima realized Thugly's horn was iron as well. "That thing knows Haki! But…" Smirking, he dashed for the reptile, Thugly charging once more. "I wonder if it's stronger than Jinta's?!" And once his rock-hard knuckles struck the horn, it went flying off as the beast fell unconscious."

"Dammit, you stole my thunder!"

"There's a cave up ahead." Tokoyami pointed. "I'll lead the way through here!" Dim lanterns lined the interior of the cave, but its darkness gave power to Tokoyami's Dark Shadow. A bird made of darkness emerged from his frame and shredded up the Slippas and Klaptraps lurking inside.

"The cave branches off." Aizawa observed. "Let's divide and conquer. Any group who finds the best route, contact the others immediately."

The heroes split into their respective classes and followed a route. Following 1-B at a slow rate, Reiko saw a swarm of Flipflap bats flapping her way. "The spirits are angry that you've made such a mess of their home." Using her Poltergeist Quirk, she summoned Nature Spirits to pick up some fallen rocks and whack the bats out of the air. Further ahead, magical oil drums were summoning infinite hordes of Swoopies; long-beaked birds. Pony sent her horns to take the birds down, in which they magically disappeared upon defeat. Kodai ran up and touched the oil drums, using her Size Quirk to shrink them. The Swoopies came out tiny and harmless.

"What the heck are these things?!" Team 1-A was ambushed by a horde of Rockkrocs, stone Kremlings with red eyes. They were an easy match for Kirishima's Quirk.

"You never know how many creatures are around you until they all turn hostile." Froppy said as spiders lowered from the ceiling. Koda used his Anivoice to soothe the spiders' hostile intention.

"They all have a domineering aura around them." Koda said. "I think it's K. Rool's Haki. It's interfering with my control of them."

"Figures no flimsy telepath can match a pure bod of Gold Haki!" a country voice hissed.

Froppy tensed up, a pair of red eyes glaring from a dark passage. Rattlesnake Jake lunged out, teeth open—Deku PUNCHED the snake in the side, crashing him against the wall. "I-I-I-I almost died…" Froppy shuddered.

"Just breathe." Deku held her in comfort. He glared at Jake. "You're the one who kidnapped Eri. You better not have hurt her!"

"Blame that on the boss, not me! How did you kids even know to come here? You plant a trackin' device on us?"

"Deku, I'll hold him back!" Tokoyami returned, Dark Shadow's wings open.

"! ! ! ! !" Paling before the monstrous bird, Jake hurriedly slithered up the cave. "I AIN'T DEALIN' WITH NO EMO BIRB BOI."

"Uhhhh…"

"That was easy." Ochaco said in relief. "Maybe you should stay by Tsu, in case that freak comes back for her."

"My best friend from middle school was a snake." Tsu frowned. "I guess I don't have a good affinity with them."

1-A finally found the light at the end of the tunnel. The cave let out in a valley with a feudal Japanese building. A line of Kannons readied their aptly-named weapons and fired. "You ain't the only ones who can bust out the big guns!" Momo erected her own cannon from her stomach, using her Creation Quirk. The pirates were fodder before her. Their only way forward was to cut through the building, but in the very first room they entered, purple Kremlings called Skiddas were doing a graceful ballet dance on the polished wood floor.

"Whoa! Looks like we barged in on their studio!" Mina exclaimed. "Sorry, guys, you don't mind if we cut thr-"

The Skiddas swiftly zipped by the heroes for quick, forceful kicks against Deku and Shoto, while Mina managed to duck one. "What kind of cheap-ass fighting style is-" Bakugo wanted to finish them quickly, before Mina grabbed his arm.

"Hey, if these crocs wanna fight with dance, then I'll give them what they want!" With that, Mina skied onto the floor, secreting acid from the holes in her shoes to move gracefully. She ducked, jumped, and dodged the Skiddas' kicks. With thrusts of her palms, she shot globs of acid that knocked the crocs over, and did twirling motions while swinging acid whips. "Deku, wanna join in?"

Deku jumped out of his boots to dance on his socks, mimicking Mina's technique to K.O. the last batch of Skiddas. The rest of the class was able to cut through and hurried up the stairs to the next floor. "You're a great dancer, Deku!" Ochaco praised.

"Haha, I never thought it would be so effective!"

"This is Erasure to Class 1-B." Aizawa called. "We're progressing steadily on our end. How are things on yours?"

"We made it outside, coming up to a waterfall!" Kendo responded. "Oh—call you back in a bit. Some guys want trouble!" A band of Krunchas and Krushas (muscular blue Kremlings) came marching. Kendo ran for the first bunch, enlarging her fists to thrust the first bunch backward.

"He-hey! I like a girl with big fists!" roared a Kruncha. "Whaddya say we smash them, Kruncha #431?"

"You bet ya, Kruncha #211!" His brethren flared up their aura and turned red, punching at Kendo with combined force. Her fists began to bruise, so Tetsu jumped in to help beat the brutes back, and Jurota spared no mercy for them.

Kendo shrank her hands and raised her communicator. "Momo, these Kremlings just called each other by serial numbers. I know I'm not an expert on this race, but it's kind of weird how there are so many copies of the same types and fighting styles."

"You have a point." Momo answered, molding a pair of cutlasses from her body to fight the Kutlasses. After finishing their dance battle, Deku and Mina shared a high five before catching up with their teammates. Class 1-A made it through the fort and continued through a valley with some ruins built in. Large Zinger nests were built into the walls, so Koda stayed back to focus his Anivoice over the bees. As they were nearing the end of the valley, they found a large, medieval-style gate with stone towers blocking the next path.

A band of gruff toad Mobians, short in stature but nonetheless deadly, stood guard with maces, hammers, and bladed weapons. "This is as far as you go!" declared Captain Grime, a toad with a yellow-green left eye and scarred, pale right eye. "Show them the pride of the Toad Army!"

Diary of Kroctus: Today, we paid a "friendly" visit to a somewhat isolated Mobian country called Amphibia. I had no plans to konquer the country, yet, but I heard of a large band of toads who planned to overthrow the Newt King. I used my new power to disguise myself as a toad and infiltrate the nation. A small display of power was enough to earn the toads' loyalty. They had an interesting warrior among them.

Shoto used flames to make the toads shrivel in dehydration. Kirishima proceeded to punch through their armor, but the stone-skinned boy suddenly suffered a cut to the hip. "UACK!" As blood seeped out, he glared at the culprit: a human-sized, thin figure in red armor, a dark cape, and a blonde ponytail behind a helmet. Her sword was coated in Haki. Aizawa focused on her to disable her Haki, but even as Bakugo assaulted her with explosions, the warrior was evasive, headbutting the hero and knocking him back. Captain Grime spat slime on Aizawa to break his chi-blocking, but Froppy turned invisible to shoot him with saliva.

Deku blew the gate open with his sheer strength, opening the way to a thin, wavy trail suspended above a chasm. "Bakugo, we'll take care of these toads!" Kirishima said. "You guys go on ahead!"

"Yeah, Deku!" Ochaco and Froppy gave him a thumbs-up. "We'll catch up with you soon!"

"Haha!" Deku smiled at their confidence. "I believe in you!"

Kirishima took down the rest of the Toad Bandits, and Ochaco touched each of their weapons to make them levitate. She willed them to fly into the human warrior, who tried to swat them down, but took an axe to the head, knocking her helmet off. "Huh?" Ochaco was surprised to see it was an ordinary teenage, human girl, a beauty mark on her face. The girl quickly woke up and ran to slash at Ochaco, who nimbly dodged and managed to slap her face. She made the girl levitate, but she couldn't raise her high enough before the girl shook free of her chi, stretching a leg to kick Ochaco upon landing. "Nice try! I learned to resist gravitybending!"

"Then I'll have to step up my game!" Ochaco made herself float, thrusting herself at the swordsgirl with stamps of her armored boots.

"Hey!" Tokoyami yelled, raising Dark Shadow. "Look out above you!"

Rattlesnake Jake was set on a cliff, shooting his machinegun tail. Ochaco avoided the gun, and Jake slithered back in fear as Dark Shadow flew his master upward. "Grime! Do somethin' about that bird or I'll be munching you next!"

"I'm a little busy, Snaky!" Grime yelled, trying to smash Froppy beneath his hammer. The camouflaged frog evaded each time before lunging at Grime with a Froggy Kick!

The other 1-A heroes were about to face a stampede of triceratops. "They even have dinosaurs." Aizawa said, holding his comm. "Class 1-B, I think we've found the right way. Backtrack to the cave and follow our route."

"I think we're gonna be a little late…" Kendo replied worriedly.

After they followed a path behind the waterfall, the B-Class hadn't expected to find a red-suited man on a majestic white unicorn. "Yoooo! Bravo, Class 1-B!" Deadpool clapped. "You made it into the story! WOO! Man, you should've seen the first version of this chapter, it was SO boring."

"It can't be!" Kendo gasped. "Professor, look at this!"

She sent him a photo via her phone. Aizawa gasped. "That man… is Twice, from the League of Villains!"

"AAAH!" Deadpool literally fell off his high horse. "No, I'm pretty sure that's Deadpool." Kendo corrected. "The infamous freelance hero! What are you doing here?! Don't tell me you're after K. Rool!"

"'fraid not. I'm actually under the big man's employ right now, and mah mission is to give you kids a spanking!" Deadpool tried to sit up… but found himself stuck to the ground on his side. "Ugh! If I could just get up!"

"You won't be moving from THOSE sticky shrooms!" Kinoko smirked, tapping a purple gun to her chin. She had, in fact, saved a few Grape Spores from Mineta.

"You sure about that?!" Deadpool grabbed a sword and sliced off his right waist. He was able to stand up, the heroes horrified as his severed flesh regrew.

"It's a Regeneration Quirk!" Tetsu said. "A fast-acting one, too! More importantly, why the heck does he have a unicorn?!"

"She's my baby, Vanessa!" Deadpool stated. "And she's feeling a little horny!" The unicorn dashed, first ramming and puncturing Jurota with her horn. She then kicked him away and targeted Kodai, but Pony's flying horns caught her by the shirt and raised her friend to safety. Pony grew two more horns and shot them at Vanessa, having them swerve around the unicorn to stab her from multiple angles. Tetsu ran up to Deadpool to land a flurry of steel punches. "Iron Body!" The assassin hardened himself, withstanding Tetsu's onslaught. Tetsu could swear Deadpool was smirking in cockiness, and this only made Tetsu more determined to puncture his armor. "HAAAAH!"

"OOF!!" One more firm punch to the noggin was able to knock Deadpool back, and Tetsu followed up with a kick—Deadpool blocked with his own leg, then flipped up the other to catch Tetsu's leg between, hands propped on the ground. "Not bad, Steely Jones!" Deadpool spun to swing him into the cliff. "WHOA!" He was snared in Ibara's brambles.

"Heathen! Arceus does not forgive those who taunt their foes!"

Deadpool grabbed his swords and sliced free of the brambles, slashing wildly to dice them up as Ibara tried to whip him from any direction. "Ah, an Arceist, huh? Boy, will you hate what I have planned!"

"HUUUR!" Jurota tackled Deadpool, wrestling him down, but Deadpool kicked him off and lashed Tempest Kicks. Deadpool Shaved around Jurota to deal Finger Pistols, but the beast spun and swat him away. "You're a hairy old guy, ain't ya? But nothing to what I got growin'!" Deadpool showed his back and hunched down. "I haven't shaved my back in AGES!" He grabbed the back of his suit and ripped it, exposing a forest of back hair. Before they could question the point of this, Deadpool used Life Return to stretch the strands out, combined with Finger Pistol to pelt Jurota with the force of miniguns. Tetsu jumped to block the bullets while Jurota ran in front, but the speedy assassin zipped around his foes and struck at any opening.

Kendo thrusted her palms at Vanessa, channeling chi to act as a layer of defense against the unicorn's lasers. When Vanessa dashed, Kendo quickly spread her arms to CLAP her between them. Pony had stepped back to catch her breath, but once her next pair of horns were ready, she asked, "Ready, Yui?"

"I'm ready!" Kodai affirmed, shrunk to a three-inch height. While her Quirk could normally only shrink objects, she later learned that she could change her own size, too. She held onto one of Pony's horns as she was launched at Vanessa, and from there, she unveiled her next surprise. Having practiced Kateeny Style while in this state, she pulled her fist back and punched Vanessa's waist, the unicorn stumbling sideways. Vanessa gasped, seeing the horns circling her once more. Vanessa landed on the horse's back, forcefully punching and kicking while Vanessa tried to shake her off. Eventually, Vanessa sent her flying. "AAAAH!" Fortunately, Kendo's big hands were there for the doll-size girl.

Kendo shrank her hands and opened them to confirm Kodai's safety, the friends sharing a smile. "I'm through playing games." Vanessa morphed into a human/unicorn hybrid form, thrusting her arm-hooves at Kendo. She tossed Kodai to Pony and countered with enlarged palms, but Vanessa leapt over the fingers and kicked Kendo with enough force to send her through the waterfall. Pony quickly carried herself with a horn, going through the fall to see where Kendo was falling, and sending a second horn down to catch her. Kodai had resized, throwing pebbles at Vanessa that she quickly resized into boulders, but Vanessa shattered the stones with her horn laser, then jumped through the dust to kick Kodai backward. Pony and Kendo returned to land as the former dashed and impaled her head horns into her side.

Tetsu jumped Deadpool's back, grabbing and twisting his neck. "Thanks, friend! That spot was getting sore!" Deadpool bent his twisted head front-back and headbutted Tetsu hard enough to knock him off. Deadpool twisted back to normal—"Huh?" but then realized his feet were glued down by sticky mushrooms. Kinoto stuck her tongue out at him. Jurota ran to bash Deadpool's back and bend him forward, at the same time Tetsu kicked his knees, causing them to bend inward. "YOOOOW!"

"And you won't be cuttin' free without these!" Tetsu grabbed Deadpool's swords and tossed them to Reiko.

"Life Return: Knee-Degeneration!" Deadpool's knees inflated and exploded! On his arms, he flipped back, pulled guns, and shot at Jurota and Kinoko, both of whom hastened to evade. He quickly willed his legs to reform.

"I didn't think Regen Quirks were that strong!" Reiko said, holding the swords ready. "Is this guy even killable?"

"HUUUUU!" As soon as she spoke, Deadpool faced Reiko in awe. "That voice! You're…"

Reiko's Quirk called up the spirits of the swords, both resembling Deadpool. "We serve only the voice of Ryan Reynolds!"

"But brother! Her voice! There is no mistake!"

"But do we serve Man Ryan Reynolds, or Girl Ryan Reynolds??"

"To us, brother, there is no difference! He or she who holds the Reynolds, holds the swords!"

Reiko felt an aura encase her: an aura similar to when one holds their destined sword. Brimming with confidence, Reiko trusted the Sword Spirits to guide her motions in her clash with Deadpool, who fought back with Tempest Kicks.

At the Toads' Gate, Ochaco was able to tackle the blonde girl and levitate them both. "You're a human, aren't you? Why are you working with the Kremlings?"

"I'm part of the Toad Army, dummy! And it's a long story!"

"'Guess it doesn't matter, anyway!" Ochaco twisted upside-down and threw her to the ground. Froppy, meanwhile, was able to catch Captain Grime on her back and spring him directly at the girl. When both heads made contact, both were knocked out.

"Nice job!" Tokoyami flew down. "I was able to chase that snake away. Let's hurry and catch up!"

"Tokoyami, you're bleeding." Froppy noticed.

"It's just a few bullet wounds. You can treat me after we get away from here! …Ah! Looks like Koda's ready to move on, too!" The sounds of buzzing filled their ears as a cloud of Zingers loomed over their friend.

Superbia KND H.Q.

"You can't get in contact with the Mobian KND?!" Lemillion yelled at the monochrome boy onscreen.

"We fear either their base has been compromised or the Kremlings destroyed the KND satellites!" Jerome replied. "We've sent scouts to survey the situation, but they've yet to report!"

"Dammit! We were counting on the Mobians to send backup to Gigan Rocks! It's a good thing we've already got pros and teachers heading there, but I don't know if they'll be enough. Otherwise, they'll be in for the fight of their life…"

Outside Hideout Helm

While waiting for progress on his machine, King K. Rool decided to take a break out on the deck of his flagship, Gangplank Galleon. The nice weather made his coconut milk taste all the sweeter. "WAZZUUUUUP, KING K. DIDDLY!" The eccentric, microphone voice probably belonged to the incoming ship with "U.A." on its sail and an All Might Jolly Roger. "Feel free to stay nice and comfy in your chair, 'cause you're in for a world-class butt-whooping massage!"

The voice belonged to Present Mic, a hero in high-standing blonde hair and a black suit. K. Rool lazily got some binoculars to study the other heroes: Class 1-B's teacher, Vlad King, a rabbit-earred woman named Mirko, a chubby man in a yellow suit called Fat Gum, and Mt. Lady, a woman in a purple suit and horns. "That's not being discrete, Yamada." Vlad said.

"They should've seen us coming by now, anyway." Fat Gum figured. "It feels like he's not worried at all…"

"Well, that's about to bite him in the tail." Mirko cracked her knuckles.

Kroctus heard the sea splash to either side. Two heroes emerged on the deck: Gang Orca, a killer whale Fishman, and Selkie, a spotted seal Mobian. "Earplugs in!" Selkie gestured, the ship-based heroes doing the same. Orca unleashed a hypersonic wave, and Kroctus seemed to tense up, allowing Selkie to jump and sock the croc in the head. Once the 10-foot giant was down, Orca caught his neck in a choke hold. Present Mic's earsplitting sonic waves further amplified the damage. Mirko, her sensitive ears tightly plugged, made the heroic leap to the Galleon. Kroctus punched Orca away, grabbed Selkie, and hurdled him straight back to knock Present Mic down, silencing the sound. By that time, Mirko dashed to land a combo of kicks to Kroctus's jaw, afterwards kicking him to Orca, who punched him to the side.

"HA HA!" Mirko was less than half the size of this beast, so being able to take him down filled her with adrenaline.

Kroctus, from his fallen position, cracked his eye open in a bored manner. "…Is that it?"

A sudden punch sent Orca flying across the sea. Mirko grew alert and evaded his next flurry of fists. Luckily, Fat Gum and Vlad landed, the former rolling first. Kroctus punched him straight in the belly, but found his arm sinking into the fat. "Brute force doesn't work on me!"

"Argh!" Kroctus tried to bite the fat, but a wave of blood wrapped around his mouth and hardened. The blood was courtesy of Vlad King's bending. Selkie and Mirko went for a combined kick-punch at the back of Kroctus's head, but the king spun and hauled Fat Gum to use as a shield. The impact squished his fat the other way, allowing Kroctus to withdraw his arm. He punched the blood off his mouth and leapt at Vlad, who withdrew. "Huh?" It was then a shadow enveloped the ship.

Mt. Lady had flung off her ship via catapult, high above the Galleon, and became a 67-foot giant. "I'll smash your boat into the sea!"

Her boots hit the deck and violently rocked the boat. "?!" She realized too late the king had leapt up to her level. A solid punch from the small fist toppled the giant into the sea. Kroctus crashed back down, the pros surrounding him with caution. "Agh…" Kroctus cracked and straightened the bones in his neck. "Superbians… So proud of their fancy, birth-given Quirks, beating down run-of-the-mill supervillains. None of you have a penchant for real battle. For REAL willpower!"

"Our wills are committed to stopping villains like you!" Fat Gum declared, having to eat some pastries he was carrying to refuel his fat. "No matter how strong you are, you'll never defeat justice!"

"Justice? That depends on who's in charge around here." Kroctus hardened his fists with iron Haki. "And last I checked, you heroes are a little out of your habitat."

Gigan Rocks

A few hours into the morning, the Kremling guards were nodding off in boredom. They had been protecting the wooden barracks all night, with no need to raise their swords, throw Orange Grenades, or fire the cannons. They were merely waiting for their shifts to end so they could conk out for 17 hours or so.

"Huh?" One of the Kritters perked up at the sound of buzzing. Soon, all the Kremlings were alert, watching as a swarm of large bees were flying to their base. "Aren't those Zingers from the ruins? Why are they coming here?"

"H-Hey! WATCH OUT!" a Klump screamed when the Zingers began ruthlessly stinging them. The Kremlings hurriedly tried to fight them away with weapons, unaware of the steadfast hero racing toward them. With passion in his eyes, Deku raised his leg and cried, "Dakota SLASH!" With the strength of a giant saw, the wooden wall was split up the middle!

"What the hell is happening?!" yelled a Krusha on the inside. Through the dust, animals came charging, such as tigers with katana in their teeth, armored rhinos, and armadillos that screeched like tires across the ground. The Neckies gaped at the traitorous animals, swooping down to attack them. However, a monstrous bird of darkness grabbed the vultures by the necks and slammed them into other Kremlings.

The nearby Kremlings set their sights on Tokoyami, but they were instantly frozen by Shoto's icebending. "If these reptiles are cold-blooded, they should be weak to ice." he assumed.

"They have waterbenders!" Tsu yelled, watching as some lady Kremlings used their powers to melt the ice. They then lashed the water at Shoto, who countered with fire to turn it into steam. Mina then fired acid through the steam, striking the Kremlings' eyes and burning them. As they desperately washed the acid off with waterbending, Froppy whipped her tongue to KO them.

"Are these people locals?!" asked a gray Krusha, charging for the group alongside a platoon. "Some of them ain't human! They must be aliens." replied a Krewmate as they hardened their fists with Haki. "We'll beat 'em senseless and make them spill—hey, where's our Haki?!" They realized their fists reverted to normal.

Kirishima immediately seized the chance to sock them in the heads with stone fists, with Bakugo adding explosions to their pain. "Thanks, Professor!" Kirishima grinned. As soon as the Haki Krushas were KO'ed, Eraser Head decided it was safe to blink.

Ochaco found a barrel of Orange Grenades and touched them all, willing them to float before sending them into the Kremlings launching projectiles from watchtowers. Deku was swift to destroy tents and kick bunches of Kremlings into submission. "Hooooooo!" Koji called, commanding the Neckies and Bristles (hedgehogs) to attack other Kremlings by spitting nuts and performing Spin Dashes.

The attack continued for several more minutes until all the Kremlings lay in defeat. "Thanks for your kind assistance." Koji told the non-intelligent animals in a meek tone. "You may return to your habitats now."

"Man, we were right to take you along, Koji!" Mina beamed. "You're like super-duper useful against these guys!" The praise caused his face to redden.

"Hey guys, these crates have a bunch of fruit!" Ochaco beamed. "I think we just found our breakfast."

"There's even some barrels of fresh water over here." Tsu acknowledged.

Taking note of the nearby poison river, Aizawa deduced, "The waterbenders must have used their powers to filter the poison. They're probably doing something further up. I think we're almost there, so you better get your nutrition now."

They continued on to a cliff, overlooking a very wide area of river. A sloped walkway seemed to lead across and up to a higher cliff. However, Aizawa grew weary of the mud-colored mountain on that island. He asked Momo to create some binoculars, and with them, he observed the mountain more closely. There were ants, spiders, bees, beetles—all sorts of massive bugs crawling around the mount. "It's a whole fortress of bugs. …But I think I see a safer way around." The poison river led around the fortress. "The base should be located wherever this poison is coming from. All we have to do is travel along the river and we may find it without having to go through that nest."

"I understand." Shoto replied, aiming his right hand at the river and turning it to solid, mucky ice. "Keep in mind that icebender ice can quickly crumble in warm temperatures. I'll try to maintain it as much as I can, but we should tread it carefully."

"Bakugo, carry me." Tsu moaned, wrapping herself around him. "Sorry, but ice makes me sleepy."

"What a pain…"

By continuously emitting ice from his feet, Shoto was able to keep the river frozen. The young heroes trekked it quickly, but carefully, and they were evenly spread apart so not too much force was pressed onto one area. Hearing the ice crackle slightly kept them on high alert. "The poor fish are angry." Koji said.

"I know, but we're only here to rescue Eri, right?" Kirishima replied. "We can come back to clean the river later."

"N-No… that's not why they're angry. They're angry 'cause… we're trying to find their secret base!"

They felt rapid bumps under the ice, for the fish were furiously trying to break through. "Man, everything's part of the Krew here!" Tsu panicked. "But shouldn't the poison make them sick?!"

"The catfish says, 'Some perks to working for the Kremlings are poison immunities, bitch!' Oh, I'm sorry for his language."

"AAAAH!" Deku cried when a small shark sprouted out of the ice, biting his ankle as he quickly stomped it off with the other foot. "Since when do rivers have sharks?!"

"They're too strong, I can't keep the water frozen!" Shoto yelled.

"Then we'll fly over it!" Ochaco declared, quickly touching all her friends. Once all were levitated in the air by her power, Ochaco focused upriver and willed them to "fall" in that direction.

"Hey, you're coming with us!" Tsu shouted, whipping her tongue at the gravitybender to pull her along! They landed on the cliffside where the river curved, and Shoto froze that part of the river as Ochaco changed gravity to normal.

After catching her breath for a moment, Ochaco cried, "AGAIN!" and had everyone fall further upriver. Ochaco repeated the process numerous times, covering what felt like miles of river. They came upon towers built on the river and platforms on the cliffsides, Bazukas and Kannons perched on them as they blasted the operatives. Bakugo hurriedly blasted the towers and Shoto shot fire at the more distant Kremlings, weakening their assault so the double-bender could once again freeze the river.

"Okay guys, let's go it again…" Ochaco moaned, green in the face.

"Hang on, you're sick." Deku said, lifting his friend. "Let's keep going on foot."

"Urk…Thank you, Izuku."

Eventually, the young heroes were able to rest at the shore of a lake. "I received a text from Vlad." Aizawa said. "The pros have engaged K. Rool outside his base. But there's been no sign of any Mobian reinforcements."

"By the time we make it to the base, we might be too exhausted fighting all these pirates. I'm worried if we can really do this…"

"We've already come this far." Deku said. "The longer we wait, the more they're hurting Eri. If we don't at least try, we'll be a disgrace to the KND."

"Totally. Besides, Toru is waiting for us, too." Mina agreed. "Just imagine how scared she is!"

"The poison seems to flow from across this lake." Shoto observed. "In fact… it's coming from there."

They crossed the lake's shore to a cliff with a waterfall pouring out of a cavern. Upon closer inspection, the cavern was a metal pipe. "Did…Did we find the base?!" Deku asked.

"I feel like there should be a lot more security around." Aizawa said suspiciously. "Why don't we see what's up top first?"

"Leave that to me." Fighting her sickness, Ochaco floated up for bird's-eye view of the valley above the cliff. There were still miles to go until the ocean, but the heroine could clearly make out, "Guys, I see another Japanese building! And behind that… it looks like a mountain with arms and a crown…"

"Sweet! We're almost there!" Deku beamed.

It was then everyone's comms went off, and they heard Kendo's voice. "This is 1-B to 1-A. The route we were taking seems to head to your location! Jurota can pick up Froppy's scent, so we're on our way!"

"You are? What about Deadpool?"

…

Kodai balled herself up as Kendo cupped her in giant hands, while Kinoko made mushrooms grow over Vanessa's head to blind her. Kodai shrank as Kendo held her hands in a flicking position. Her bulbous finger flicked the pocket-size hero with incredible force, and the impact of her Kateeny strength to Vanessa's head knocked the unicorn out cold. Tetsu and Jurota, meanwhile, tanked Deadpool's Finger Pistol to restrain his arms. Reiko crossed arms and leapt, and even as Deadpool used Iron Body, Reiko swung both of his blades and cleanly sliced off his head.

"AAAAH!" the severed head cried. "Now I know his Kisame feels! Betrayed by his blades and beheaded!"

"Wow, he really CAN'T die!" Tetsu yelled.

"No, but I think it's time to send him flying!" Pony sent one more horn to puncture the head and send him off the waterfall cliff.

"The Reynolds will be with you alwaaaaays…!"

"YEAH!" Kendo fist-pumped. "Awesome job, team! Now, let's catch up! Can't let the A-Team hog all the glory!"

…

"You sure you guys aren't tired?" Aizawa asked. "That man was no joke, you know. I have to advise that you return to-"

"Don't you tell us to back down!" Tetsu shouted. "We're all going to save Eri, no matter what!"

"It's true. We need as much manpower as we have." Shoto agreed. "I'll freeze the river again so you guys can catch up, but be careful."

"Hey, guys… I see a bunch of animals in caged areas. It looks like a zoo." Ochaco pointed.

Shoto made an icy stairway up the short cliff so everyone could climb up. They bypassed the trees and arrived at a tall, barred cage that overlooked a gorge where pandas carefreely ate bamboo. "I wonder where the entrance is?"

"Screw the entrance, this is a villain's lair!" was Bakugo's reasoning for blowing a clear gap in the bars.

"Don't just do that!!" Deku panicked.

"Well, it's not like Uraraka coulda floated us." he retorted as he squeezed in the gap and sidled along the rim of the gorge. Deku sighed and followed him, with the others joining.

"The pandas sure sound happy." Koji smiled. "They say the bamboo and water are amazing."

"So, their water isn't poisoned." Shoto deduced. "Even though it seems to come from right under this place."

They arrived at a pathway and climbed over the wood fence. "'ey, what are ye mangy landlubbers doing in me zoo?!" To their surprise, a muscular Kremling with a spiked club marched up the path, plopping his weapon up and down in his bulbous hand. "'Tis 15 Kremkoins per guest in Krem Zoo! Begone or Ay'll have ye clubbed-"

Bakugo immediately blew him back with twin explosions. "Arrrr… ye were supposed to just stand thar and let me send ya flyin'."

"Now, what's all this ruckus?" came an elderly, feminine voice. "Oh, it seems we have guests." They were approached by a short, pudgy old woman with white hair, shades, a black suit, and a distinct ox tail. "Good morning, children. I'm Mrs. Goodwall. Might you be on a field trip?"

Aizawa narrowed his eyes. Neither could hide their suspicion from each other. "Your clothing doesn't befit this planet."

"Oh yes, forgive me. I am actually visiting from Earth." She calmly led the group as they studied the various animals in their habitats. "King K. Rool has a zoo established at many of his bases, collectively known as the Krem Zoos. He has given me the honor of managing them. I have much experience with breeding animals, you see."

She's not even trying to hide who she works for. "King K. Rool, you say?" Aizawa inquired.

"Why, yes. He has long been building an army of all the animals of the universe, so it's only natural he would build zoos for the purpose. All these adorable creatures are raised to obey and fight for the Kremling Krew. Of course, what you see here is only a tiny fraction."

"So, all these animals are trained for combat?" Bakugo asked.

"Yes, from the moment of birth. Of course, animals are already such fierce fighters from the start, it's quite easy."

"Heh, it would suck if all your trained animals ended up turning against you. Ain't that right, Koji?!"

Before Mrs. Goodwall knew it, the pandas, tigers, rabbits, snakes, and all other animals of the zoo heeded Koji's beck and call. "Forcing such precious animals to commit crimes is unforgivable." Koji spoke seriously. "At least when I ask them for help, I try to respect them. At least I ask them to help people. As long as I'm here, I won't let K. Rool have his way with them!"

"Why, you must be an Animal Telepath." Goodwall said with a false smile of awe. "That should make this a bit interesting."

They had no time to question this fact before the air seemed to grow 10 times heavier. Malice formed in all the animals' eyes as they snarled at the heroes. Deku, Bakugo, and a few others restrained their selves from dropping to one knee, as if their own hearts were trying to weigh them down. "I-I don't… feel so good…" Ochaco moaned, her sickness growing worse under the tense air as she fell on her front.

"Ribbit…" Tsu felt her bones disappear, becoming as squishy and slimy as the frog she resembled.

"What is this… unsettling aura?" Tokoyami grunted, having to hold his head.

"'W-W-Why would we listen to a c-c-cowardly worm like you?'" Koji translated. "'L-L-Look at him shaking in the knees. Th-They might as well be twigs.' 'He's got nothing on H-His Majesty.'"

Mrs. Goodwall smiled, pleased and humored by their frightened forms and diminishing confidence. "!!" To their horror, a humongous figure came flying from the shore, colliding just behind Goodwall. "That's… MT. LADY!!" A tearing Mineta hurried over to the giant's broken face. "Mt. Lady! Who could have defiled you so?!"

"Nnnhh…" The heroine cracked open her eyes with a smile. "Sorry… little guy…" After passing out, the giant shrunk back to her normal size.

A green eagle flew from the shore. As it landed, its body grew and began to morph, easily dwarfing Aizawa at a full 10 feet. Now in the form of a big-bellied crocodile, the aura only seemed to intensify as they fully realized who this beast was.

"It's a pleasure to meet you!" K. Rool beamed, knowing no introductions were necessary on his part. "I never have guests as often as I used to. I guess it's a downside to living so far away. That, and most people assume that I'm too good for them. Like a fan and a movie star, so to speak."

This aura must be Conqueror's Haki. Aizawa analyzed, focusing intently on the king. I've never chi-blocked this before… and for some reason… I can't.

"So, what brings you all to my zoo?" Kroctus' hands met in an exuberant clap. "Have you perhaps come to rescue the little timebender?!"

"W-What happened to the pros?" Deku asked.

"Them? Well, they're taking a little nap on the deck." He thumbed backward. The heroes in question were all bruised and KO'ed on the Galleon, and their own ship had sunk. "Don't worry, they're still alive. The animal-types are sure to make good Krewmen if all goes well. Ah, and I made sure to keep Eri happy!" He changed into a nude Midoriya.

"THAT'S IT, YOU'RE DEAD!" Bakugo focused pure rage in his explosions, laying a direct hit on the king. Deku had been frozen in horror at what he just saw, and the girls would never erase the image.

K. Rool endured the explosion, reverting to his true form as he clasped both of Bakugo's hands and SQUEEZED them, lifting and slamming the hero against the ground. He planted his foot on Bakugo's head, reveling in his feeble attempt to push it off. "Some villains prefer to hide behind legions of followers or big comfy lairs, but I'm different. When predators march into my habitat, looking to knock me off my throne, I am entitled to defend it." He transformed into Ochaco, using the same amount of strength to keep Bakugo down. "And no matter how frail I look, my very presence is enough to numb the senses."

Ochaco could not restrain her vomit, the others closed their eyes, and blood spewed from Mineta's nose like a fountain. K. Rool noticed the smaller hero and took Mineta's form, returning Bakugo to them with a strong kick that caused him to cough blood. "Even though some species try to stubbornly resist my call…" Hearing a cluster of buzzing, Koji looked up in utmost terror when a swarm of giant bugs was closing in, "even the demons of Hell will give in someway!"

"RIBBIT!" Tsu cried when a net seized her, yanking her over to Rattlesnake Jake. The snake ensnared the helpless frog, squeezing her ever tighter. Mina and Kirishima were about to retaliate, only for the zoo animals to growl and scare them into submission. Once the giant bugs had clouded over the area, their hesitation only increased, feeling absolutely overwhelmed.

"You WON'T scare us!" Midoriya yelled with determination. "We're taking Eri-chan home, no matter how many you throw at us!"

"Saving Eri-chan, saving the bananas, saving Donkey Kong! Even against overwhelming power, their excuse is ALWAYS the same! Their desire to save something always gives them power, and it always works! And that…" The king's aura was on fire from his warm-up battle with the pros. "That's exactly what I hope for!"