Kurogiri's USJ

Kurogiri wasn't the only one to look around when he materialised the group in one of UA's training facilities. From the information they had gathered from the schedule, this one was under the hero Thirteen's control and was called the Unforeseen Simulation Joint. The descriptions he'd read said that it was covered in different types of terrain and as he looked around he could see it was true.

He could also see the teachers. "Thirteen and Eraser Head, huh?" he voiced his thoughts. "The teacher's schedule we received the other day said All Might was also supposed to be here."

Izuku gave him a look. The man-boy was standing next to the Noumu and Kurogiri could see the way he was also looking around excitedly. He wore a mask so as to avoid any possibility of identification. His clothes were simple, like Tomura's, though slightly more formal in that his black shirt was button up, and his pants were pressed. His shoes were plain black leather. The only thing marking him out as special was that he hadn't moved with the others.

"Where is he?" Tomura muttered. "I went through the trouble of bringing this whole crowd, too…"

Kurogiri remained silent. He'd brought the crowd. He didn't miss the way Izuku quirked his head slightly and could imagine the smile on the man-boy's face. He'd picked up on Tomura's statement as well.

"All Might, the Symbol of Peace. I can't believe he's not here," Tomura said, raising his arms. He was dressed plainly in a black pullover and black pants. Today, the hands that were normally attached to his body were concentrated on his upper frame and face. He didn't have a mask because he didn't need one. The hand did it all. Tomura lowered his arms, as if realising dramatic gestures here would do nothing. "I wonder if he'll come if we kill some kids?"

"Some will probably die if we carry on with the plan anyway," Izuku murmured. The statement seemed to reassure Tomura as Eraser Head jumped down the steps.

Kurogiri watched as the battle went as expected. The so called villains Tomura had gathered for this were nothing more than cannon fodder. Their job was to provide distraction. The real force was the Noumu that was still standing silently where it had emerged from his warp. He watched Eraser Head. He couldn't actually see the man's eyes, but he could feel when the Pro-Hero's gaze was no longer on him. He took the opportunity to continue the plan as Izuku said and warped away. There was no need to tell Izuku to be careful. The man-boy would be. He was just an observer this time.

The mist villain materialised near the door. He looked down at the group there. The children were running towards him but he was now between them and the door. One of the potential flaws in the plan was if someone got away. He would prevent that. "I won't let you," Kurogiri muttered, before shifting his gaze somewhat. He kept his form tall, so that he looked down at them.

"It's nice to meet you. We are the League of Villains." It was important to get that said, or who knew what name the Heroes would come up with for them! Handsy and his sidekicks? Uh, no thanks. There was at least some dignity in the League's name. The children skidded to a halt, looking up at him. Thirteen at least had the presence of mind to move to the front of the group, after all, he was the closest villain now.

"It may be presumptuous of us, but we have invited ourselves into the home of the heroes, UA High School, in order to have All Might, the Symbol of Peace, take his last breath." Except All Might wasn't here. Kurogiri didn't need to remind himself of that, but again it was best that they understood what the mission was, and how little they could do to stop it. "I believe All Might should have been here. Has there been some kind of change?" There had to have been. "Well, that is neither here nor there. This is the part I am to play."

And playing his part in the plan, even without All Might's presence would cement the League's reputation and allow them to salvage something from this day.

The two children moving to attack him was a surprise! The explosion slightly more so. And… did they really go for his neck guard? They had!

"Oh dear, that was close. That's right," Kurogiri said to himself. "Even if you are children, you are excellent golden eggs." These were UA's Heroic Course children and UA was the best Hero school in Japan. Even the children would be good. He was better.

"No! Move way, you two!"

The mist villain looked down at them. Thirteen had one arm out. A smile formed unseen on Kurogiri's face. The two children had gotten in the way of their teacher. Not that an attack from Thirteen was that dangerous. It would be to Izuku but not to him.

"My job is to scatter you all and torture you to death!" Kurogiri announced, streaming forward. Group transportation required him to create a larger portal, and in this case, they would be several portals. With all the villains he had transported here today, finding a gathering point for them where he could expand large enough to create the original portal had been a bit of a problem, until they just took over one of the empty lots in the area. If any of this lot survived today, they may be worthy of learning about the bar.

He twitched slightly, feeling a couple pass through his side, but Kurogiri couldn't focus on that as he created multiple portals and dragged them over the children. There was an odd feeling with one. He knew she was there because of the gloves but it was odd to transport an invisible person. And urgh… they felt terrible within him.

It was with some relief that Kurogiri released them all, scattering the children around the USJ facility. The rest of the villains would deal with them now. He spared a glance down the stairs towards Tomura but he was still standing with the Noumu and Izuku. That was in hand, instead, those who had remained here were talking. Thirteen was here, as well as someone dressed in white armour. They were discussing their plan?

Kurogiri blinked. Seriously? It was obviously beyond time to end this. "Even if you have no other choice, are there really idiots who talk about their plans in front of the enemy?" He drove forward.

Thirteen moved to meet him. "We did it because it doesn't matter if we're found out!" The pro-hero cried, uncapping her the tip of her right forefinger glove. There was a tug from it. Kurogiri expanded but he could feel the wisps of mist he used to define his gates being pulled in. "Black Hole!" The pro-hero cried.

It was an ameteur move to cry out the name of an attack. He thought a pro would be beyond that… though maybe All Might was a bad influence? The number one hero cried out the names of his attacks all the time… American cities… Bah. There was no difference between those attacks. They were all punches.

"Black Hole," Kurogiri said conversationally. He saw how the pro was being careful to remain in front of the children. "It sucks up everything and turns it all to dust. I see. That is an astounding quirk." He ignored the mist that was being ripped from his body as he had the irreverent thought that it would be perfect for cleaning up after Tomura. No more dust in the bar. Thirteen's quirk was powerful but the Pro-hero didn't know how to fully use it and it was time to demonstrate. "However, Thirteen, you are a hero who works to rescue people from disasters." Which was not the type of Hero the League was really after but a pro was a pro and now was not the time to differentiate. "As expected, your battle experience is less than half of that of a normal hero."

He'd planned this from the start, so it was easy to open a warp gate behind Thirteen. The effect was instantaneous.

"A warp gate?" There was panic in the pro-hero's voice.

"You turned yourself to dust," Kurogiri mocked as the back half of Thirteen's suit disintegrated. He'd seen a lot of things disintegrate thanks to Tomura. This wasn't as fine as Tomura's power but the black hole was effective.

The pull from the black hole vanished as Thirteen fell forward. "He got me…" Kurogiri heard the pro say.

Obviously not completely if the pro was still capable of speech, but she would not be continuing to fight. The children were dismayed. It was nice to see their shock, it was nice to savour their despair. Though at least one was intelligent. Kurogiri heard the footsteps and turned. The one in white armour.

One of the children who was not scattered, he thought. He had felt a few escape his earlier dome. We are only waiting for All Might. If the other teachers are called here, it will be hard for us, Kurogiri knew that. It would be a disaster if they lost either Tomura or Izuku… Probably Izuku. That would reveal far too much of Sensei's plans because the heroes would find out who he was. And from there…

Izuku wouldn't tell them but they would know. With his new age, it was impossible to hide the fact that something larger was going on. They would be suspicious. He couldn't allow that. He opened a gate in front of the running child. It was a good plan but he couldn't allow it.

"Argh!" Kurogiri cried out as something engulfed him. The sensation wasn't pleasant as things wrapped around him, forcing his form into a smaller space. "You impertinent! I will not allow you to go outside!" He kept his attention on the runner. This wasn't enough to stop him. "You impudent, four eyes! Be gone!" The child was almost at the gate. It would transport him a long way… Except!

Why was the world dropping away? "My body! Oh no!" The unfamiliar sensation blanked out his gate. That didn't matter, he could open another, he just needed to see the running boy and it would be done. Just a second…

"Urk!" The world spun. Kurogiri felt a jerk at his neck and the USJ spun around him. He tried to regain stability but the world kept spinning. One thing was clear. The door… It was open.

"He's going to call for support. It's game over." Urgh… now he was using Tomura's terms… but it was true. This mission was effectively over. But… if he went outside then… UA's security was impressive. He would be detected and that would be an even faster way to lose. They had some time now… Limited, but some.

Kurogiri left the children as he warped himself back to Izuku and Tomura. Izuku looked up at him briefly but was not surprised at his presence. Kurogiri could see that Tomura had been fighting. Pro-hero Eraser Head was very much down but he had to report.

"Tomura Shigaraki."

Tomura turned to him. "Kurogiri, did you kill Thirteen?"

"I put Thirteen out of action," Kurogiri confirmed. "But there were students that I was unable to disperse and one of them has run away."

Izuku displayed no reaction. He wasn't invested in this attack. Tomura was. He reached up and scratched at his neck. Kurogiri could tell that he was frustrated. He was as well. It should have been a simple thing to stop the children but… These were the best of the best of the future heroes. He shouldn't have underestimated them.

"Huh?" The word was practically a snarl. "You! If you weren't a warp gate I would've crushed you into pieces!" Tomura raged. It was the same rage he showed when whatever game he was playing defeated him. Then he calmed. One of the good things about Tomura was that while he was quick to anger, he was equally quick to release that anger. The resentment he felt from it would fester, but he would not lash out unless it was in the moment. "We can't win against dozens of pros. It's game over. Man, it's game over this time. Let's go home."

Izuku made a small noise. Kurogiri was slightly surprised as the man-boy's mask turned towards them. He held out one hand pointing at the Noumu who was still restraining Eraser Head. Then he pointed to the water. There were two students standing there. Their fear was palatable. The boy looked close to crying.

Tomura chuckled, obviously pleased with the suggestion. "Oh yeah, before we leave, let's smash some of his pride as the Symbol of Peace."

Kurogiri knew Tomura could be quick when the boy wanted. He was reminded of that fact now. One moment he was standing with them, the next, his outstretched hand was a millimeter from the student's faces. They hadn't moved. They hadn't even cried out so why had…

"Darn it. You really are cool, Eraser Head."

Ah, that explained it. Kurogiri glanced towards the beaten pro-hero. The red gleam in his eye was unmistakable. He'd stopped Tomura. Even beaten and bloody, the man was a pro, after all. But he couldn't keep his eyes open forever.

The crash from the far end distracted them all. The girl student had the presence of mind to jump back. The boy didn't. Tomura's hand touched his face. All five fingers. The Noumu ground Eraser Head down further.

The boy screamed. Tomura liked to say that he had no control over his quirk. That wasn't quite true. It was true that he couldn't turn it off but he could, partially at least, control its intensity. A glance at Eraser Head's elbow indicated Tomura had let his quirk be slow then. The damage was superficial. Painful but superficial, mostly extending to the pro-hero's skin. This time, his touch wasn't.

The boy's face just disappeared, allowing Tomura's grip to go tighter, to dig into his eyes. His scream became wet and his tongue distended before it disappeared. Balls were popping off the back of his head in a torrent but it did nothing. His eyes bulged and cracked and then…

Noumu was in front of Tomura, shielding him and All Might held the boy who was now gasping for air. His face was gone, leaving a bloody pulp where it used to be. He smeared blood on to All Might's shirt.

Tomura chuckled, stepping around Noumu. "Oh, we're getting a continue."

That was normal. What wasn't normal was the way Izuku was glaring at the Number One hero. Kurogiri looked at the man-boy. It wasn't obvious because of the mask, but there was a distinct glint in Izuku's eye. He resisted the urge to sigh. More history. There was always more history but that was to be expected. Sensei wouldn't have chosen Midoriya if there wasn't a reason. He missed what All Might said.

"I've been waiting, hero, you trash of society," Tomura announced, bringing Kurogiri's attention back to him. It was dangerous otherwise. All Might couldn't be underestimated, though the warp villain cast his eyes around.

"He's alone," Izuku whispered to him, breaking protocol slightly. He wasn't meant to speak if there was a chance anyone could overhear him but the words were soft. Kurogiri overlooked that.

So All Might had come ahead of the others. How noble, how convenient... for them.

There was another burst of air. Tomura cried out and again Noumu was protecting him. Kurogiri could see that pro-hero Eraser Head was now in All Might's arms and being delivered to a group of students. Ah, that made sense. Except…

"It's no good. It's no good!" Tomura's words were a litany. He was shaking. One of his hands was gone. Kurogiri braced. That was never good, except before Shigaraki could explode, Izuku offered him the hand. For a moment the mist villain thought Tomura would attack Izuku. No one touched Tomura's hands but him. The other villain didn't seem to notice. Instead he took the hand back, cradling it gently.

"It's no good," he whispered again, looking down at the hand. "I'm sorry, Father," Tomura added as he lifted the hand to his face, fitting it over his features.

Kurogiri breathed a small sigh of relief. There wasn't going to be an explosion this time. They couldn't afford it. All Might had hit Tomura as he was saving Eraser Head.

Tomura appeared to refocus. "It's the violence of a government official," he muttered. "He's fast, as expected. I can't follow him with my eyes but he's not as fast as I thought he'd be. I guess it's true, after all, that he's getting weaker."

That is what Sensei had said, though it didn't appear as if All Might was weakened at all. Still, it wasn't their job to fight him. That was why Noumu was here. The black creature attacked.

Tomura chuckled. It was easy to see why. All Might was shocked that Noumu had withstood his punch. It was understandable. The Number One Hero wasn't known for being weak and even in villain society there were very few who could stand against him, even temporarily. "It doesn't work because of shock absorption," Tomura told the Hero. "In order to damage Noumu it would be most effective to slowly gouge out his flesh. Whether he'd let you do that or not is a different issue though."

Of course it was. Noumu was made to fight All Might and while by many measures the hulking creation was stupid, when it came to fighting, it wasn't. It knew what to do, and taking damage unnecessarily was one thing it would avoid.

"You can make a warp gate that is a circle, can't you?" Izuku whispered to him.

Kurogiri didn't look at the man-boy. "I can," he confirmed.

"All Might will use a brainbuster, suplex or piledriver," Izuku continued whispering. "When he does…"

Kurogiri nodded. He knew those moves. When All Might did that, if he opened a warp gate, the Noumu would have the upper hand.

The Noumu charged. All Might met his charge. All Might was more than just a hero thug. He thought about his punches. He thought about his moves. He couldn't have been the Number One for so long if he didn't. But that was his downfall. Izuku was right about his move set.

Kurogiri saw the moment All Might took a grip on Noumu and prepared to drop the creation backwards.

"Hey hey!" Tomura exclaimed. The move wouldn't kill Noumu but it would stun the creation for a moment.

The warp gate opened. Noumu didn't really understand what happened but he knew enough to take advantage of the situation. Claw like fingers dug into All Might's left side. The hero didn't cry out but it was a close thing. Blood seeped around Noumu's fingers.

Shigaraki appreciated the sight. "Were you trying to keep him from moving by sticking him deep into the concrete? You won't be able to stop him like that, because Noumu is as strong as you are!" He crowed happily. "This is good Kurogiri. This is an unexpected opportunity! Kurogiri!"

The mist villain knew what the order meant. This was going to be messy. "I do not want blood and guts overflowing within me but I would be happy to take in someone as great as you. You are too fast to see with human eye. Restraining you was Noumu's job, and then, when your body is half way in, to close the gate and tear you apart is my job."

Not really but that was the way these things happened. He was about the close the gate when the children attacked. Kurogiri recognised some of them. Two of them had attacked him earlier. The explosive child gripped his neck protector while the other one…

This was not good. The other one Kurogiri recognised had his hand at Izuku's throat. The man-boy wasn't moving and his mask was still in place. His throat was exposed. That was something. At least that other child hadn't actually gripped him. That could be troublesome.

Tomura was the only one unguarded and the Noumu… It's arm and leg was frozen. All Might leapt free of its grip. Noumu was quick to move out from the warp gate but it cost an arm and leg. They regrew quickly.

They were at an impasse but it was one that suited the heroes. There were no doubt other pro-heroes already on the way. Tomura knew that and he knew that while Kurogiri was trapped they couldn't escape. Kurogiri just hoped the boy remembered Izuku. Sensei would be upset if they lost him today.

"Noumu," Izuku snapped quickly. His eyes seemed to be fixed on the black creature but from Kurogiri's angle, he could see that Izuku was actually looking at the child holding him. Was there something there?

"Shut up!" the child at Izuku's throat growled.

But the word was enough. Tomura recognised the opportunity. He flicked one hand. The Noumu knew what to do. The mist villain barely saw the movement but he felt the child's grip release. He expected to see the child as a splatter on the floor. He wasn't. Instead All Might was putting him down, along with the other one. Even if Tomura didn't mean it, Noumu had forced All Might to see to the children first, meaning Izuku was free to move around. Kurogiri wasted no time as he rose and stood near Izuku with Tomura before them.

"He protected the child, huh?" Tomura asked rhetorically. Of course All Might protected the child.

The Number One hero took a few deep breaths. Noumu hadn't attacked him but the damage was obvious. "Do you not know how to hold back?" All Might asked, still holding his position.

Tomura stepped up to them. "It was to rescue my companions," he said. "I had no choice. Violence for the sake of others makes it admirable. Isn't that right, hero? You know what, All Might. I'm angry. I'm angry that this world categorises the same violent acts as heroic or villainous, deciding what's good and what's bad. Symbol of Peace? Hah! You're just a device to repress violence. Violence only breeds violence. The world will know this once we kill you."

Izuku glanced at Tomura. Unless the boy was ranting at one of his games, that was actually a long spiel from him and no doubt All Might would have something to say but they didn't have time. Thankfully Tomura recognised that fact.

"Noumu, Kurogiri, get him. I'll deal with the children. Now let's clear this and go home."

Noumu charged as did Tomura. The children were more aware now and ran. Kurogiri didn't move from Izuku's side. They were in the end game, if they got separated now there would be no chance to regroup.

Tomura never got the chance to attack the children. The shockwave from Noumu and All Might knocked him off his feet, but he was quick to recover. Sensei had trained him that well. "Darn! Hey you talked about his shock absorption yourself earlier, didn't you?" he addressed the Number One Hero.

"Yes, I did!" All Might admitted, exchanging more blows with Noumu. The wind pushed everyone back.

Kurogiri hooked one hand around Izuku's upper arm as he was blown back towards Tomura. "I can't get near him!" He told the hand covered villain.

"If your quirk isn't shock nullification but shock absorption, then there's a limit to it right?"

Tomura hissed. Kurogiri knew what that meant, as did Izuku. The Number One Hero was correct in his assessment. Though so far Noumu was holding on and the black creature was not weak. Shock absorption wasn't his only quirk.

But… Kurogiri watched as the landscape disintegrated under the force of the blows. It wasn't going to be enough. He could feel that, he could see it in the way Noumu moved, the way the head bent backwards. All Might was still too strong… or was prepared to push himself too far. Kurogiri's eyes narrowed as he watched the fight. The signs were there. They were subtle, you had to look for them but as All Might landed his final blow, literally driving Noumu through the outside dome of the USJ, Kurogiri knew that while they had lost this time… It was only this time.

That didn't mean it wasn't scary when the Number One Hero turned towards them. Izuku seemed not to be affected. He still glared at the pro-hero.

"Hey, what's going on?" Tomura was muttering. "He's not any weaker at all? Did that guy lie to me?" He reached up and scratched at his neck. If he didn't stop soon, he'd be bleeding.

Sensei hadn't lied, could Tomura not see that?

"Tomura Shigaraki, please calm yourself," Kurogiri urged. Usually Tomura would already have been calm. It was a measure of his anger that it was lingering. "Look carefully. You can see that he was definitely weakened from the damage from Noumu's attacks."

The mist villain weighed up the time. They might still have time before the others arrived. It was probably safer to retreat but in this condition, Tomura wouldn't accept that. "The children appear to be frozen in fear. We still have underlings who can be used. There are likely only a few minutes before reinforcements come, but if you and I work together, we still have a chance of killing him."

All Might was weakened. They could do it. Maybe. To live with Tomura, they had to try. Under his mask Izuku gave him a look. It told the mist villain that he didn't think it was a good idea but Kurogiri shook his head slightly. This had to be done.

"Yeah… yeah, yeah, that's right. We have no choice but to do it. I mean we have the last boss right in front of our eyes." Tomura bent forward slightly, his eyes glaring at All Might from between the fingers of the hand. He stretched out one of his arms, reaching towards All Might as he dug in his shoe to the ground.

Tomura's yelp was not expected. He pulled back his hand quickly. Kurogiri saw the wound. A gunshot.

He knew what that meant. Tomura huffed. "Ah man, they're here. It's game over now. Shall we go home and try again later, Kurogi-?"

It was odd to see Tomura fall but he did. The cause was easy to see. He was bleeding from each arm and leg. That meant Pro-Hero Snipe. There was no point in trying to see him. Kurogiri expanded himself, spreading around Tomura and Izuku who had the sense to move closer.

There was a gust of air from the side. "Thirteen!" Izuku's exclamation wasn't needed.

This wasn't good. Kurogiri gritted his teeth and kept opening the gate.

Tomura glared. "I may have failed this time but I will kill you next time Symbol of Peace, All Might!"

The gate closed around him, and they disappeared.

Kurogiri was happy to see the familiar inside of the bar. It was the first place he could think to warp them too.

Tomura fell to the ground, bleeding. Izuku looked at Sensei's TV. It said voice only but that meant Sensei was there. He looked at it, taking off his mask. "I understand," Izuku said.

Kurogiri looked at the man-boy. There was a gleam in his eyes, a look that said he'd do whatever it took. He couldn't help the smile that formed, even as Tomura bled. They may not have killed All Might but maybe they'd gained something else.

Izuku didn't pause for long. He moved to the bar and reached over it to where there was a first aid kit. Kurogiri looked down at Tomura who was now staring up at the TV.

They'd get through this.