All For Myself Chapter 44

The police are often criticised for their lack of action when it comes to actually stopping the Villains which roam the streets of whatever country they might serve. But, All Might has to disagree.

The police force get a lot of crap for not actually fighting Villains, but people never take the time to consider what other factors are in place when it comes to apprehending a bad guy. Heroes actually aren't licenced to make official arrests, a policemen must be on hand to ensure that a Villain can be legally arrested. Using too much excessive force, or breaking any of these fragile laws can result in a Hero having their licence revoked. So, in that sense, a policemen is superior to a Hero.

Though, that is sadly not reflected in the amount of recruits they get in the police academy every year. Heroes have a marginally more lucrative base salary that the average officer; and that's dismissing factors such as advertisement. An industry which he has profitted greatly off of.

The police force is also extremely underfunded when compared to the HPSC, due to the funding they collect from the advertisement tax they bill each of their Heroes; advertisement tax is given to a Hero whenever they agree to sponsor products, they must pay the HPSC a percentage of that money. One would wonder how much they must have stockpiled with how massive the Hero industry really is.

This is also unfortunate considering that Quirk cancelling technology is extortionately expensive, being developed solely on I-Island. Who had complete rights on paper to be the only place on earth which can legally develop that tech. Since I-Island had a complete monopoly on the market when it came to such vital pieces of equipment used by every country on earth... well you can imagine that they make more than just a pretty penny. What they earn in a day could make the average person's life savings look like pennies in comparison.

Quirk cancelling cuffs, due to their cost, are only used on the most dangerous of Villains. Ones who absolutely needed to be contained.

Ryoto Saito seemed to fit the need very well. Who knows what powers that monster had stolen with his disgusting Quirk. When he is caught he must be detained immediately and sent to rot in the deepest depths of Tartarus until the end of his days. Because, he has proven himself to be just as horrible as All For One.

Toshinori grabbed the side of his stomach. He saved up his time today, but when you only have an hour and a half of Hero time that tends to mean little. However, this raid is necessary, good even! When he finally restores Japan's peace Toshinori can pass on 'One for All' and leave the rest to the next generation! He can retire in peach knowing that he fulfilled his duty.

Truly, he does despise Ryoto Saito. And, not just because he holds that monstrous Quirk within him, though that is part of it, no, what makes him loathe than man is the sheer gall he has to think that he could dare destroy the peace he spent his whole life building.

The idea of All For One ever actually showing himself to the public never crossed his mind. If there was one good thing about that monster, it was that he preferred to keep things quiet. Even in their final battle their struggle was kept under tight wraps.

But, this Ryoto Saito, he doesn't even care about subtly. In fact, he almost seemed to bask in the attention he was receiving during his little stunt back at Hosu. He's even worse than All For One in that regard!

Toshinori doesn't buy whatever he was trying to sell the Symbol of Peace. He was just trying to make excuses for the devastation he inflicts on others. Over the past three years the crimes rates have been slowly rising, and he hasn't been able to stop it! In fact his time had dropped down because he's been having to push himself just to try and hold back the surge of criminals roaming Japan's streets! He's a plague who doesn't care about the lives he takes, directly or indirectly.

Then there's... that face. He was the spitting image of All For One, no doubt the two were likely related. Wickedness seemed to run in that family's tree. Just the sight of the face who took his master from him was enough to boil his blood, he was forced to flee to America so that he could train and come back to face his archnemesis head-on!

Now, he had to destroy All For One yet again. His status as a Symbol has been tarnished by the actions of Ryoto, and his hard work undone.

He spent his entire life as a Hero. He sacrificed so much for the sake of his people, for their safety and security. He never had a family. Never had children. He had very few friends, or even acquaintances. So, much hardship undone in an instant, the bones he broke and the decades he gave up. The organs he's lost and the pain which he endured every day.

Toshinori wouldn't let it all be for naught. In the name of 'One for All' he will stop 'All for One'. It is his duty.

Tsukauchi noticed the intense expression on his friend's face and the way he was clutching his stomach." All Might, are you okay? The raid is about to start so we need-"

"I am fine Tsukauchi. We will defeat Ryoto Saito here and today, I know that he will be present here tonight. I swear that I will defeat him."

In the face of his dutiful words his detective friend reminded him." We. Whilst I don't doubt that you can go toe to toe with him, actually beating him in another story entirely. We have no idea what Quirks he might have, or how many, so do not fight him alone. It's been three whole years since your last battle, a lot can change in that time."

All Might resisted the urge to frown at those words. He might be out of his prime, but he doesn't doubt his ability to deal with someone so inexperienced, no matter how many Quirks they have, and his strength being questioned was something that bothered him deeply. As the Symbol of Peace he was meant to be looked up to by all, to be someone reliable without question.

That being questioned? Well... it stung.

But, regardless of his own thoughts on his duty, Toshinori nodded at his friend.

Tsukauchi and him were at a position above from the hospital, on a building just in a kilometre away from the lair of All For One. Unfortunately the many care workers who are employed at Jaku hospital will end up being confused by the whole ordeal, it's regrettable, but they can't take any chances when it comes to the apprehension of such a dangerous and cunning Villain.

Unless they act immediately he will get away, he could even choose to act in a manner similar to the last time they crossed paths.

'One for All' flared up in his chest, catching him off-guard and whispering in his ear incoherently. This has been happening to Toshinori a lot lately, but he just assumes that it's because he hasn't yet passed the Quirk on. He will, but he just hasn't found the right person for the job.

Some may argue that he could just pass his power onto a Hero that was already on the job, and maybe he could, but that just wasn't him. That wasn't what he wanted.

The young will always surpass the old, the young have more powerful Quirks, he wants to find a student at U.A who would be willing to take up his mantle. He wants to give his power onto a student in the heroics department.

Though, in hindsight, that might have been a mistake. He may not be able to use 'One for All' at all if he did end up passing the Quirk on. He's so short on time that if he gets even weaker then he might have to just throw in the towel and retire.

He shook his head. He was thinking too much on this subject, he needs to focus.

Tsukauchi stared at his watch for a moment, and realising the time he quickly grabbed his communicator and ordered the other Heroes on the line." Engage now!"

The moment those words left his mouth Toshinori bounced into action, taking his friend in his arms and jumping off towards the hospital, an expression of determination on both of their faces.

They wouldn't fail.

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"Hmmm, it seems I have some guests." I noted to myself as a group of Heroes and police officers stormed into the building, swiftly putting in the work to evacuate any civilians and patients in the hospital.

I recognised quite a few of these guys from the show. The Wild Wild Pussycats, Eraserhead, Rock Lock, Cementoss, Mirko- I wonder if she still remembers me-, Best Jeanist, Endeavour and of course All Might.

They all have great Quirks, years of experience on the job, and they outnumber me by a staggering amount. A lesser man would surrender, afterall without my Quirks and without backup my chances of victory should be zero.

Should be anyway, but winning was never my goal. In fact I intend to lose, to lose beautifully.

I spoke into my ear piece." La Brava, get ready to record."

"Yeah yeah, just try not to die."

I couldn't stop myself from smirking if I tried.

I wasn't going to die. I wouldn't be able to witness all my hard work coming together if I did.

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"Through here! This is the entrance to his base!" Tsukauchi yelled as they made their way through the hospital and he pointed towards the hospitals morgue.

Tsukauchi could sense that something was wrong here. They hadn't seen anything, no traps, no hostiles, no obstacles. No nothing. This is definitely a trap.

But, his patience was wearing thin. This Villain was slowly, but surely, turning Japan back into the dark ages. He doesn't want to imagine a world where the crime rates are as high as they used to be, where All For One still lurked in the dark.

This Villain is too dangerous and elusive to underestimate. The people he's gathering, the doubt he casts on All Might, the way he causes crime to increase. He's undoubtedly the second coming of All For One.

He needs to be dealt with, no matter what.

Along with his lackeys, where is Garaki?!

The several Heroes on the scene were showing their efficiency and experience when it came to evacuating the people inside of the hospital. Hawks was deploying his feathers to grab and carry out patients, the WWPC were directing and ordering other Heroes to work more effectively in their task of informing and evacuating civilians, whilst the combat Heroes were ready action and to storm the hideout at his words.

All Might rushed forward without warning, totally disregarding his friend's earlier words and going ahead alone." I can take him alone, the rest of you help with the evacuation effort." Toshinori turned into a blur as he sped forward.

The Heroes behind him, particularly Mirko and Endeavour, bristled at his words, and Tsukauchi couldn't help but feel the same.

"That idiot!" Endeavour visibly showed displeasure, with his flames intensifying in his rage until he burst forward, following behind his rival.

Several more Heroes followed, and Tsukauchi couldn't help but let out a sigh as they did. His friend was terrible at working with others. He thought that he had to shoulder all of society alone, but he didn't seem to understand that he just couldn't. A one man system can't hold out forever, that fact was one of the reasons he was glad Makoto moved to America, she wouldn't need to be in Japan for when Toshinori eventually tired out and the evil descended.

That isn't to undermine his friend's efforts though. Japan has the lowest crime rate in the entire world. Even at 8%, three percent more than before, other countries have about twice that, maybe more in the less fortunate countries. Japan enjoys peace even to this day because of what he does for their people.

So, he will do his best to make sure that peace lasts as long as possible.

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"Where is the blonde baffoon?!" Endeavour yelled with rage clear in his voice. He was angry, and needed a Villain to take his anger out on.

He was gliding through the air, using his flames to pick up speed, and was surprised to find that the dark tunnel he was in had... nothing. This place was the epitome of the word barren.

Flying through there was no traces of an conflict going on ahead, strange. The enemy was said to be incredibly powerful, with several destructive Quirks under his command. They wouldn't go down without a fight. That he knew.

So, just where the hell were they?!

Even Endeavour had to admit that he was more than a touch shaken when he first heard of the Villain they'd be apprehending. As the number two Hero for over twenty years, much to his chagrin, it isn't as though he'd never heard of All For One before. However, he simply dismissed them as a legend like so many others at first.

However, even legends can hold some truth it seemed. A person who can steal Quirks would automatically be considered an S-class Villain, because just the idea of such an ability was enough to rock the foundations of their society. They needed to be stopped, before they inflicted irreparable damage. Hell, they already had!

The dark tunnel he was flying through came to an end and he found himself in... a totally empty room?

Looking around Enji could see that nothing lurked inside the confines of the vast space he'd found himself in. He was half expecting some sort of laboratory, like from the ones his children used to watch, but... no. Just nothing.

Not even All Might.

Endeavour landed, a stoic yet mildly confused look on face, and he carefully examined the area in front of him. Something wasn't right here, an idiot could see that this was a trap. But, what kind of trap? There were no people set to outnumber and ambush them, no weapons of any kind.

"Hey Enji!"

A booming voice suddenly snapped his hand into action, his right fist igniting in flames as he stared at a massive screen that had the smug-looking and grinning face of Ryoto Saito on it. He appeared arrogant, as though he'd already won.

Endeavour's anger overwrite his confusion though." Show yourse-"

"By the way this is a pre-recorded message, so don't think I'm sitting on a computer somewhere. In fact, you might not even be Endeavour, I'm just guessing. I'll be fighting Toshinori somewhere."

Endeavour could only listen on in confusion as the white haired man seemed to monologue on screen.

"You guys should really know by now, trying to attack me is a terrible idea. You would have better luck trying to make a fish breathe on land than catch me off-guard. I predicted your dumbasses and prepared carefully, you won't find jackshit in that old base since I destroyed everything in there. If you want to find us then just go outside, but you might find getting out a little more difficult than getting in."

At that moment the flat screen went static and, almost on time, Mirko arrived right behind him. Her powerful legs bringing her nimble run to a graceful stop.

"Where the hell is this guy?! I need payback for way back then-"

Enji cut her off though, with his flames intensifying." It's a trap! We need to leave, now-"

The flame Hero was cut off by the slamming of metal right behind the doorway which Mirko had just come through. It came fast and the rabbit woman turned around to see that their exit had been blocked off and they had been trapped.

Enji gritted his teeth. They were stuck. As much as he despised that happy-go-lucky fool, his fate was something that worried him. As someone who wanted the number one spot more than anyone, he knew all too well just how important that position was to society. If the Symbol of Peace, the only pillar who society has, were to fall then so would the country they kept up.

He couldn't let that happen. If All Might were to be killed here and now then Endeavour wouldn't be able to surpass him! He would never be able to prove he was strongest! His efforts will have all been for nothing!

He wouldn't let that happen. Not after everything he's done.

The flames in his palms compressed themselves as he burst into action, ready to melt the steel wall in their was down and push forward to All Might.

As flames grazed his skin he thought back to his family. Shoto would be attenting U.A soon enough, he was born with a Quirk even stronger than Enji's own.

He was certain that Shoto would one day grow even stronger than him. He had the potential to go where Endeavour couldn't.

There was Fuyumi and Natsuo, Rei and... Touya. His late son. The boy who he practically killed, he sometimes wondered what would have even happened to his son, if he survived that was. Would he have still tried to become a Hero, even with his deformed Quirk?

Probably. That boy inherited his father's stubbornness. It was the reason he reduced an entire forest to just ash in minutes. It was the reason he burnt himself out just trying to get that little bit stronger. No matter what he did, no matter how many hurtful words he threw that boys way, he was never dissuaded. If anything that only made the situation worse.

Then again, ignoring him also made things worse. Maybe Enji could never have hoped to have fixed the boy, maybe his fate was inevitable from the start. But, that just feels like an excuse. The guilt of his son's life will forever hang over him. He can't change the past, but he can make sure that all of it amounted to something. Shoto would surpass All Might, that he is sure of.

"Mirko, I'll melt the wall, stand back."

Decades of experience showed itself as a beam of condensed fire was set ablaze and directed right at the hard steel of the door, the sheer firepower slowly starting to melt the steel. They would get through soon.

He can only push forward in his life, because he is as stubborn as his son was.

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All Might rushed through with his smile morphing into a scowl, he wasn't around anyone, he didn't need to keep his mask up. He didn't need to smile.

The tunnel turned into a dark blur and he burst forward. Intent to find the man who was plotting to destroy all of his hard work.

All Might's thoughts went into hyper speed. 'One For All', at it's surface, may look just like a physical enhancement. But, it's so much more than that. His bodily functions are all boosted, this includes the speed his brain can perceive others relative to his movements. The brain is just another organ afterall.

The world flew by him and Toshinori mused at how slow he was compared to his younger years. Back in his prime, he used to be able to move many times the speed he was currently going. He was slow, very slow by his standards.

Toshinori cast his doubts aside though. The power he had at the moment would have surely been enough to finish off someone as inexperienced as this new All For One. He reasoned that someone who was barely into their twenties would never stand a chance against someone like him; someone with decades of combat experience.

(Though a small voice in the back of his head told him not to lose himself in pride. He was unable to defeat Ryoto before afterall, what would make this time any different? What was stopping him from losing when he was even weaker now than when they drew?)

That was the very reason he went ahead from the other Heroes. He had a duty to fulfil, they would only get in the way. He had been keeping the country up for decades without help. This time would be no different. The Symbol of Peace would never crack under the might of some Villain just out for power.

His perception, being sped up by 'One for All', made minutes blend into mere moments as he bust into the hideout, raring for a fight, only to be met with the sight of just a very large and dark room.

He kept his guard up as he carefully examined his environment. This place was strange, it was barren and almost entirely dark asides from a purple light bulbs that gave the place an ominous undertone.

Wisps of purple fog came to life in front of, but that guided little of his attention as his enhanced ears picked up the faintest of sounds coming from right-

Whipping his head around at super speed he hardly had time to even comprehend what happened when a purple and black beam of energy slammed right into his chest. Launching him backwards and causing a strong scent of sulphur to graze through his nose for the briefest of seconds.

Pain clouded his senses and he became critically aware of his surroundings as he was suddenly sent plunging through the sky.

He had been teleported away!

He took a second to correct his movements. His heartbeat picked up and his one lung was working overtime as air resistance hit his face, making him panic as he corrected his falling and pushed upwards by swinging his arm, hoping his raw strength would be enough to correct his trajectory.

He was wrong.

A speeding missile suddenly crashing to him at insane speeds, a fist being painfully buried into his guts all the while, as any momentum he managed to gain was countered and they were sent crashing down to the ground.

The brutal attack caused blood to erupt out of his throat and onto the face of the one responsible. The face which haunted his dreams. The face of the one he hated.

Ryoto Saito.

The evil incarnate laughed mockingly, holding onto Toshinori with surprising strength." Did you honestly think that would work? You're even stupider than I thought. You're going to pay for your shortcomings All Might, consider this payback for abandoning your people!"

All Might's world went spinning as he was thrown down onto the ground with such force that a miniature crater was created where he landed.

All Might groaned in pain and discomfort, the wound in his stomach already acting up from the punch to the gut from before. The power behind that attack wasn't normal, that punch was like it came from him if he was holding back.

Ryoto glared down from him, hovering above the city and lording over All Might. Toshinori took notice of this and felt some level of satisfaction. It seems that he isn't as stoic as previously thought. That is good.

Toshinori got up from the ground, mostly unharmed due to the nature of his Quirk and got ready for a fight.

This was a good thing. His opponent was likely arrogant and was underestimating the might of the Symbol of Peace. This child had no clue as to who he was dealing with. Plus, he can deal with this matter alone, 'All for One' vs 'One for All'.

He wouldn't want to defeat him with help. This is his battle. No one else's.

Analysing his opponent, Toshinori was unpleasantly surprised to see that the resemblance between his arch nemesis and the monster before him had only increase in the few years that had passed. That suit only intensified the similar looks that they share, though he appeared to lack that creepy eternal smile, but the glare in it's place was hardly any better.

Ryoto moved his hand and wiped some of the fresh blood off his face, seeming to act nonchalantly in the face of the strongest man in the world, before randomly musing." Usually Villains start a battle with some long drawn out monologue. They'd go on and on about the foolishness of their enemies and the ease at which they accomplished their feats, but I have no need for monologues. Not right now anyway."

He lifted his arm up, purple veins appearing on his body, and then All Might shivered at the sight he saw next.

The clouds above expanded and raged with lightning, as though they were reacting to his call, and darkness descended over the city as an onslaught of rain began to fall over Jaku.

He could control the weather!

The purple veins on the white haired man's skin faded away, being replaced by green as the droplets of water dampened his hair and wetted his suit. But, he didn't seem to care.

Ryoto's red eyes glowed as he spoke out loud." You believe yourself to be all powerful All Might, but I'll show you what true power looks like."

At those words Toshinori arrogantly scoffed." You have no chance against me Villain, you will rot in Tartarus for the rest of your days! As the Symbol of Peace I vow to end you reign of terror throughout Japan!"

In response to that Ryoto's lips curved upwards, in a mocking tone, as he brought his hand down, the clouds above intensifying and surging with power.

"Keep telling yourself that."