Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“You did what?” All for One screamed, holding Doctor Garaki in the air by his throat.

The bald doctor didn’t yet seem to realize how much trouble he was in. His eyes sparkled as he expounded on his favorite subject, quirk science. “Your brother had such a fascinating quirk! I believe the original One for All didn’t merely grant the user the power to pass on quirks. It also strengthened quirks. How else to you explain a simple stockpiling quirk turning into something All Might could use to rip your face off? Urk!”

The reminder of All for One’s unfortunate, potato-head affliction made his grip tighten. The doctor gasped and wheezed, finally starting to show fear. Perhaps he’d realized that his boss wasn’t merely a little irritated as he became after an experiment failed or a hero escaped his clutches. Japan’s number one villain was out of his mind with fury. Red lightning crackled down his body and his pupils had consumed his irises with blackness.

Doctor Garaki cried, “I’m sorry! I know I shouldn’t have stolen your brother’s hair out of your locket. But I only took a few strands. After I ran my tests on the infant clone, I properly disposed of it so it will never threaten you again, like your original fool of a brother—”

All for One snapped the doctor’s neck. As the corpse fell in a heap to the floor, he snarled, “No one calls him foolish except me!”

Then reality set in. The villain swayed on his feet. Doctor Garaki had cloned his little brother. For a brief period of time, he’d had a living brother again. Then that poor child had died, before he’d even known of his existence.

Everyone responsible for this would die.

Next, he turned on Doctor Garaki’s terrified assistant, crouched in the corner with a clipboard covering her face.

“Tell me how he died,” All for One whispered. He’d make her death as slow as his brother’s.

The trembling woman sank lower on the floor. A bit of hair slipped out of her bun. She whimpered, “I didn’t kill the baby.”

All for One froze.

“I couldn’t. He was such a small, sickly thing. I put him up for adoption.” The woman stared up at him like a cow looking at an oncoming train. “If you’ll let me use my computer, I’ll prove it to you.”

Speechless, the villain handed her a laptop.

All for One killed her in the end, of course. No one who knew of his brother’s existence and their connection could be permitted to live. He granted her a quick death.

From behind a potted plant, All for One watched Hisashi Midoriya walk through the airport gates. His heart caught in his throat. There could be no doubt in his mind. Hisashi looked exactly like his younger brother, from his straight white hair to his brilliant green eyes. His skin had a sickly pallor, though he wasn’t nearly as skinny as before—

His brother lay spreadeagled on the dirt, a bubble of blood on his lips and his eyes wide and sightless…

All for One shuddered and tried not to remember.

Before he missed his moment, he strode forward. “Are you Hisashi Midoriya?”

That breathtakingly familiar face shot up. “Yes?”

“I know this may sound strange, but I’m your older brother. If you’ll sit down, I can prove it.” All for One took out documentation weaving a tragic story of two orphaned siblings separated and lost paperwork making it impossible for the older one to find the younger one. Entirely fabricated, of course, but their relationship was quite real. He’d sent agents to steal a sample of blood to run a DNA test.

Hisashi’s hand went to his mouth as he read. His eyes widened. “So our relatives couldn’t look after both of us because of your injuries. That’s understandable.”

“We meant to keep in touch, but tragically your adoption paperwork was lost.” All for One wiped an imaginary tear from his missing eyes.

“This is all so unexpected. But amazing! I don’t even know your name, big brother.”

Big brother.

Big brother, will you read me a story?

Big brother, you didn’t need to hit him so hard, he barely hurt me.

Big brother, I love you!

Big brother, I’m GoINg tO StOp yOU…

All for One shuddered, caught completely off-guard. He’d intended to give a fake name. Instead, his real one slipped out. “I’m Tsukasa Shigaraki.”

Hisashi beamed. “I’m so excited to find you.” Then he pulled All for One into a hug.

All for One went rigid. He hadn’t hugged anyone since, well…

Since his younger brother had bled out in his arms.

Hisashi let go. His eyes became concerned. “I’m sorry, was that presumptuous? You look dazed.”

All for One raised his trembling hands, trying to reorient himself. If he said You’re free to keep hugging me without stopping for the next couple years would that sound creepy? Probably, yes.

Fidgeting, All for One chuckled nervously. “No, I didn’t mind in the slightest. I was merely surprised. I…I don’t have any left family besides you. It’s been a long time since my last hug.” By long, he meant centuries.

Hisashi’s face softened. “You’re welcome in my family, from now on. I need to hurry home, or they’ll be wondering where I am. It’s been entirely too long since I’ve gotten free from work to return to Japan. Why don’t you come with me so I can introduce you?”

All for One wet his lips. He’d seen from the records that his brother had a wife and son, but he hadn’t planned on a family visit so soon. He didn’t even have a gift! But he also couldn’t bring himself to let his younger brother out of his sight, so it was either follow him home or stuff him in a bank vault. The vault idea hadn’t worked out so well last time, so he said, “I’d be delighted.”

“Inko, I’m home,” Hisashi called as he opened the door. “I brought a surprise guest!”

“Darling! It’s been so long!” A woman rushed to the doorstep. Hisashi dipped her down into a passionate kiss. They got so handsy with each other it started to feel awkward.

Finally, the woman detached herself from his brother’s lips. Smiling, she asked, “Who’s this?”

All for One stared at the face of Nana Shimura.

“AHHHHHHHHHHHH!” he screamed, leaping backward, his many quirks a hair-trigger from activating.

“AHHHHHHHHHHHH!” the woman cried, grabbing an umbrella to protect herself.

“Whoa! Honey, it’s okay.” Hisashi put a hand on his wife’s shoulder. “I know his face has been injured, but isn’t that too much of a reaction?”

“No, that’s not why.” His brother’s wife took a step backward, reluctantly lowering the umbrella. On a closer look, she was shorter and softer than Nana, as well as far too young. “Something about him startled me. Maybe it was the way he screamed at me first?”

Hisashi turned to look at All for One, awaiting an explanation.

All for One swallowed and thought fast. “Please excuse my horrible rudeness. Your wife looks exactly like the deceased professional hero Nana Shimura. For a moment, I thought I was staring at a ghost.”

“Now I understand.” Inko put down the umbrella. “Nana was my mother, actually.”

His nemesis’ daughter had married his brother? That damn woman was probably laughing from her grave.

“I’m glad that’s settled,” Hisashi said brightly. “Come in and meet my son.” He raised his voice. “Izuku, you’ll never guess what I brought you from America. You’ve got an uncle!”

A cheerful voice called, “That’s quite a souvenir, Dad.” A boy wearing a middle school uniform bounded down the stairs.

All for One was a vehement child-hater and proud of it. He believed all parents should keep their obnoxious offspring locked up inside until they were old enough not to make a scene at restaurants or talk loudly at the movie theatre. But the instant he laid eyes on Izuku Midoriya, he fell in love.

The boy had thick, curly green hair, green eyes, and a rash of freckles. His long fingers and inquisitive eyes bespoke curiosity and intelligence. He looked almost exactly like All for One as a child. This was clearly his own flesh and blood. It made a primal instinct cry, Mine!

Up until this point, All for One’s greatest ambition had been to conquer Japan and rule it with an iron fist. Now, he would conquer the entire world and present it to this child as a gift.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Izuku,” All for One said, impressed at how calm he sounded in the face of a meeting that had shifted his entire world. “I’m sorry I didn’t bring you a present. I wasn’t expecting to meet you tonight.” By tomorrow, he’d buy out the toy story.

Izuku grinned. “There’s no need. Bringing home my dad is the greatest gift of all.”

“Aw, you little flatterer.” Hisashi swept his son into a hug.

All for One’s arms twitched. He wanted to be hugged too, but didn’t know how to indicate this. He made an aborted step forward before stopping and letting his arms drop.

The four of them gathered around the living room coffee table. The room was small but cozy with a blue throw rug and a slightly dented cabinet holding the good chinaware. A huge poster of All Might hung on the wall. All for One fidgeted under the piercing blue gaze. More hero figurines lined the mantle. He felt like he was in hostile territory.

Hisashi’s company wasn’t even remotely connected to hero business. He’d investigated this most carefully before breathing a sigh of relief. But it appeared his little brother’s idolization of heroes remained the same. All the more reason to keep his work very strictly separated from family life. All for One wouldn’t make the same mistakes as last time. His younger brother would never find out anything that might upset him and cause him to do silly, pointless things.

Inko Midoriya carried out a tray of tea cups. A sweet scent filled the room.

Without thinking, All for One said, “You enjoy sakura tea, just like your mother.”

Inko’s eyes narrowed. “How do you know what kind of tea my mother liked?”

“Er, well, she was a famous hero.” All for One attempted a nervous smile. “I must have read an interview.” In reality, there had been a period of time when he’d been absolutely obsessed with hunting down every last bit of information about Nana Shimura.

Inko sat down. Her eyes bored into him like drills. “Funny. My mother shunned interviews and media attention.”

All for One twitched. Inko’s Shimura blood must have latched onto him as her natural enemy, like a mongoose with a snake. For the sake of his happy family life, he needed to throw her off the scent. “I was a huge fan of hers! I read every single paparazzi rag which so much as mentioned her name. Maybe someone made a lucky guess.” He laughed, high-pitched.

“You like heroes?” Izuku perked up.

“That’s great!” Hisashi beamed. “Both my son and I are big hero fans.”

“Sure…heroes…they’re wonderful…” All for One said weakly, caught in his own lie.

Izuku said, “All Might is the best, of course.”

“What about the underrated heroes?” Hisashi asked. “Eraser Head is my favorite. He deserves more credit.”

“He does!” Izuku agreed. “I admire how he tries to reform many of the criminals he catches.”

Father and son shared identical grins as they expounded on their passion. It made All for One’s heart squeeze. So many memories.

Hisashi asked, “Who’s your favorite hero, big brother?”

Two pairs of adorable green eyes turned on him. All for One sweated profusely, caught in a trap of his own making. He gave the first name that came to mind. “Endeavor?”

Both Hisashi and Izuku recoiled.

Hisashi said, “Endeavor has a bad reputation for killing criminals instead of taking them in.”

Izuku shook his head. “There are some shady rumors about his home life, too. People online talk about a coverup by the Hero Public Safety Commission.”

All for One had only picked Endeavor because he certainly wasn’t picking All Might, and the flame hero ranked number two. It had seemed like a safe, normal-person choice at the time. He squirmed in his seat. “I had no idea about any of that. I, uh, just thought he had a cool power. I don’t really have a favorite at all, ha-ha. Too many to pick from.”

“We’ve got to find you a better favorite, then,” Izuku said.

Hisashi tapped his chin. “Knuckleduster is a family favorite. We both like him because he’s quirkless, like us.”

All for One considered the irony of professing to be a fan of the man whose quirk he’d stolen. “Whoa, he sounds great.”

“If only more hero academies would accept students without a quirk,” Izuku sighed. His eyes became distant.

Hisashi put his hand on his son’s shoulder. “U.A. doesn’t have a rule against it. We’ll find a way for you to become a hero.”

“Thanks, Dad.” Izuku smiled.

All for One felt nauseous. His nephew wanted to be a hero? After he’d dodged that bullet with his current little brother, now this? Surely it had to be a whim. All the kids these days went through the hero phase. He’d offer the dear child a pick of scholarships in a wide range of fields and find him something far better than this hero nonsense.

“I admire how much you want to become a symbol for quirkless people.” Hisashi sighed. “I just ran away from the bullying at my workplace to go to America. I feel like a coward.”

“You hardly ran away,” Izuku said, bitterness in his eyes. “Your boss transferred you, claiming you ‘didn’t fit in with the team atmosphere.’ Funny how many quirkless people that happens to.”

“What?” All for One hissed. “What’s the name of your company again? I’ll purchase it first thing tomorrow morning.”

All three Midoriyas stared at him.

Sheepishly, All for One rubbed the back of his neck. “I mean, I wish I could purchase your company and force them to treat you better. Just a fantasy of mine. Ha-ha.”

He still intended to ensure that his brother was transferred back to Japan immediately so they could spend more time together—he would just need to be subtle about it. And he was definitely going to kill Hisashi’s boss and every single employee who’d ever bullied his brother. But he knew better than to say that part out loud. All for One felt proud of himself for how successfully he’d imitated a common, ordinary sheep.

Inko leaned forward. “What do you for a living, Mr. Shigaraki?” The mildness of her tone couldn’t disguise the hard look in her eyes. As she reached for her tea cup, he flinched.

The last time he’d seen that look in a Shimura’s eyes, Nana had come inches from killing. All for One’s hands shook on his teacup. “I’m in human resources. It’s a dreadfully boring job.”

“There’s no need to talk yourself down,” Inko said sweetly. “I want to hear all about your job. Right, darling?”

Hisashi beamed. “I completely agree, honey-bunny.”

Swallowing, All for One said, “You see, my company helps people who have talents they’re currently underutilizing find new jobs that suit them better.” For example, people who had quirks he wanted found themselves dead.

“Some sort of hiring agency?” Hisashi nodded. “It sounds like you’re making the world a better place.”

Inko didn’t take her eyes off him. “What’s your job title, exactly?”

All for One sweated and tugged at his collar. Suddenly, he remembered a technique his younger brother had often used to get out of trouble. He faked a cough. “Oh, my, I suddenly feel sick.” He coughed louder. “I’m sorry about this. I need to head home to rest.”

“Of course. I completely understand.” Hisashi nodded. “I’ve struggled with illness my entire life, too.”

Funny how the injuries that awful blond idiot All Might had given him had come to his rescue. Oh, the irony. All for One stood up. “Thank you for understanding.”

He pretended not to hear Inko muttering something sounding like, “Definitely brothers, they even fake sickness the same way.”

“Please join us for dinner tomorrow. We’ll be able to host you properly and get to know you better.” Hisashi pulled his brother into another hug.

As soon as he let go, Izuku pulled him into a hug. The child barely reached All for One’s waist. His small, thin arms felt so warm.

When he was finally released, All for One didn’t have to fake being dizzy. He might be about to pass out from happiness.

Once outside the house, he whipped out his phone. He had no intention of going to sleep, not with so much to prepare. “Kurogiri, get over here immediately. I have the most important task of your undead life.”

He would be having dinner with his family tomorrow, which meant he needed to prepare presents.

OMAKE TIME!

Omake: Years of Birthday Gifts Owed

All for One: My darling nephew, what presents do kids like these days? A bicycle? A PlayStation? A shiny new Australia?

Izuku: All Might merchandise, please!

All for One: …Are you sure you don’t want Australia? I can have paratroopers dropping from the sky to take over the capital within hours.

Omake: Protective Inko For the Win

Inko: Darling, how did you meet your long-lost brother?

Hisashi: He came up to me at the airport and introduced himself.

Inko: …And you immediately invited him home?

Hisashi: Yes, honey-bunny. Sorry, did I do something wrong?

Inko: There’s no need for you to worry about it, love of my life. I’ll be suspicious enough for both of us.

Omake: Trouble Ahead

Izuku: What an amazing day! I met both my uncle and All Might.

Hisashi: You met All Might? Please tell me all about it.

Izuku: I’m sorry, he asked me to keep everything secret for now. All I can say is that he wants to help me become a hero.

Hisashi: No need to apologize! I’m behind you 100%, my adorable little baby.

Izuku: Thank you. Someday I hope I can introduce All Might to my family, including my new uncle.

Inko: I sense a disturbance in the force. As if my late mother screamed—whether in horror or glee, I can’t tell.

Chapter Text

A huge number of boxes had been stacked outside the Midoriya house. Everything from rare 21^st century comic books to hand painted china peeked out. A giant man steadily added more to the pile.

“Whoa, that’s a lot of presents,” Hisashi said.

All for One laughed and scratched the back of his neck. “Maybe I went a tad overboard. I own a toy company, so I got a lot of this for free.” He’d brought so many gifts for his brother and nephew that he’d needed to bring Gigantomachia to carry them. This had drawn a lot of stares as they’d moseyed down the street.

Hisashi didn’t bat an eyelash at the giant. “Inko, can we move dinner outside? It looks like we have large company.”

Izuku opened a box labeled with his name. “Whoa! So many toys! Thank you, Uncle Tsukasa!”

“Anything for you,” All for One sighed, gazing at the adorable child.

From the dining room, a dark voice said, “I can help you move the table outside, ma’am.”

Inko shouted, “Who are you and why are you in my house?”

All for One ran inside. He found Kurogiri holding a table halfway through a black portal while Inko menaced him with a frying pan. “That’s my butler, Kurogiri. He only wants to help.”

Inko lowered the frying pan. “Sorry about that. Though you could have knocked.”

“He’s not the most socially aware.” All for One tapped his head in a suggestive way.

Outdoors, they all settled around the table. Gigantomachia bent way over to get eye level with the rest of the group. “LORD HAS A FAMILY! I’M SO EXCITED TO MEET ALL OF YOU.”

“How do you two know each other and why does he call you ‘lord’?” Inko asked, arms crossed.

All for One laughed nervously. “Gigantomachia works for my construction business. I don’t know why he calls me that. He’s a tad eccentric.”

Inko arched an eyebrow. “I thought you owned a toy business.”

“I own several businesses,” All for One said. More like several hundred.

“Uh-huh.” Inko leaned on her elbow and stared at him.

Oblivious, Hisashi beamed. “I’m so proud of you, big brother. A self-made man. Both of your employees seem nice.”

“Such fascinating quirks,” Izuku said, a gleam in his eye as he took notes.

“IT’S A LITTLE LORD. THIS IS THE HAPPIEST DAY OF MY LIFE.”

Hisashi said, “This is a celebration dinner. I’m pleased to report I’ve been permanently transferred back to Japan.”

“That’s wonderful, Dad!” Izuku clapped his hands.

All for One smiled. Good to hear that the new people he’d installed in charge wanted to keep their lives.

Hisashi continued, “There’s been a leadership turnover, and the company is now taking quirk discrimination extremely seriously. They interviewed me about my experiences, then gave me a big promotion and a raise.”

“It’s about time, darling,” Inko said. “You’ve been passed over for raises for years.”

Kurogiri poured water into Hisashi’s glass. “Do you require anything else, sir?”

“Your butler looks so cool,” Hisashi said. “But we don’t need to be waited on. Please, sit down and join us. My wife’s udon is the best in Japan.”

“DELICIOUS,” Gigantomachia agreed, picking up his tiny bowl and slurping.

“Very kind, sir.” Kurogiri sat down. “This is indeed excellent udon, ma’am.”

Without thinking, All for One said, “Your mother always put a few drops of Daiginjo sake into her udon. I’ve never seen anyone replicate that excellent taste, until now.”

Inko fixed him with a deadly stare. “How do you possible know my family’s special recipe? You didn’t read that in any hero magazine.”

His instincts screamed danger. One wrong word, and she’d stab him with candlestick. “I actually knew your mother personally.”

“Funny, I’ve never met you before.” Inko’s eyes narrowed. Her hand inched for the candlestick.

All for One yelped, “We dated! Yeah, that’s it.” He tugged at his collar. “Of course, she didn’t introduce her children to every random man she was boning. A good mother has to be careful.”

This fiction had a small element of truth to it. At one point, All for One had pursued Nana until it had started to cross the line into stalking. In retrospect, he blamed the suspension bridge effect—after a few too many fights, it had gotten hard for him to tell if he’d been terrified of her or in love with her.

“Y-you boned my mother-in-law?” Hisashi gasped.

Inko looked gob smacked, but her hand had fallen away from the weapon, so All for One took that as a win.

“I didn’t say anything earlier because I knew this would be awkward,” All for One lied. “After her husband died, we had a brief fling.” Fling was one word for it. Nana had once flung him into the path of a freight train.

“Weren’t you too young for my mother?” Inko asked, the hardness starting to return to her eyes. The look she gave him said that the only reason she hadn’t yet murdered him was because she didn’t believe a word of this.

All for One shrugged. “That’s what she said when she broke up with me. Age was nothing but a number to me, but she didn’t think we could last.”

Kurogiri said, “Master, this explains all the pictures of Nana Shimura you have in your bedroom.”

All for One winced. Giving Kurogiri a voice had been a mistake.

Hisashi pondered, tapping his chin. “It is a little weird, but it’s not like you could have known I’d later marry Nana’s daughter. I can’t blame you, big brother—all Shimura women are amazingly attractive.”

“Flatterer,” Inko cooed.

“You’re as beautiful as the day I first laid eyes on you and immediately decided to marry you,” Hisashi said, gazing softly at his wife.

Inko giggled. “No, I was the one who locked eyes with you at the grocery store and immediately decided to make you mine.” She sashayed over and sat down on his lap.

“I love you,” Hisashi said, running a finger over his wife’s lips.

“I love you more,” she purred into his ear.

“I love you the most.”

“No, I wuv you the mostest.” Inko cuddled his brother in a way which frankly made All for One feel a bit uncomfortable watching.

His nephew gave him a sympathetic look. Izuku put a hand on his shoulder and whispered, “Yes, they’re always like that. I used to find it dreadfully embarrassing. But after seeing how many of my classmates’ fathers refer to their wife as the ‘ball and chain’ I think it’s kinda sweet that my parents are so hopelessly in love.”

Unfortunately, All for One had realized that if Inko disappeared, it would absolutely devastate his brother. Dammit! Why had the devilish Shimura family charm even ensnared his adorable little brother? He only had one choice. He would have to convince Inko that he was a normal person, no matter what.

Kurogiri glanced at his phone, checking a text. Then he raised his hand, forming a portal.

All for One had a sinking suspicion. But before he could stop Kurogiri, Tomura popped out of the portal, waving a game controller over his head. “Sensei! This game is hopelessly bugged! We must immediately launch an attack on the company responsible. I’ve died eight times for no reason.” Spittle flew from his mouth. He scratched at his neck.

All for One sighed. “This is my adopted son, Tomura Shigaraki. I’m sorry about his rude behavior.”

Whether through good luck or bad, Tomura’s temper tantrum had already resulted in the hands falling off his head. The good? All for One wouldn’t have to explain that to his family. The bad?

Inko gasped and sprang off her husband’s lap. “Tenko?”

Tomura squinted. “Do I know you?” He looked around. “What the hell, sensei, are you attending some kind of tea party with the NPCs?”

“I’m your Aunt Inko.” She ran forward.

Over her shoulder, All for One mouthed, “No disintegration!”

Tomura’s lips puckered up like he’d been force-fed a lemon, but he restrained himself from murdering Inko as she pulled him into a hug.

Inko sobbed. “I thought you were dead!” She clutched her nephew closer. “You don’t remember me, do you? I’m your father’s sister. I had a fight with him, and he refused to let me see his children after that.” Tears poured from her eyes, soaking Tomura’s shirt. “Then your whole family disappeared. The police said it looked like a villain disintegrated them. What happened to you?”

Eyes wild, Tomura shoved her off. “I don’t need a family! Go away!” He ran for the Midoriya house. A wall was in his way, so he vaporized it.

In the ensuing silence, All for One said, “I’ll pay for that.”

“My poor nephew,” Inko whispered. “If that’s his quirk, then could it be…to his family…? Oh, for such a tragedy to happen! He must have been so traumatized!”

“He’s pretty volatile when he gets like this,” All for One said. “I’ll make him leave your house.” He raised his voice. “Tomura, stop being a little bitch or I’ll take all your games away!”

A muffled voice called, “Screw you, sensei!”

All for One noticed Hisashi glaring at him. His little brother had his hands on his hips. “That’s no way to speak to your son.”

Squirming, All for One said, “But he’s impossible when he throws a tantrum. I’d like to see someone else get him out of there.”

“I’ll try.” Izuku stepped forward. “I think your quirk is super-cool!”

Silence came from inside the house. Tomura asked, “Really? But it’s a villainous quirk. It…hurts people.”

“Any quirk can hurt people. You can murder someone with bubbles if you’re ambitious enough. I think you have a fascinating and versatile quirk with many uses.” Sincerity dripped from Izuku’s voice. “Would you come out and tell me more about it?”

A rustle came from inside the house. Tomura poked his head over the broken wall. “I can’t turn it off.”

Izuku smiled. “I know all about quirks. I bet I can help you with that.”

Tomura took a few tentative steps out.

Inko placed a hand on her son’s back. “Tenko—or do you prefer Tomura? Either is fine. This is my son, Izuku. He’s your cousin. Since you’re going to be part of our family from now on, you can call him your little brother.”

All for One choked. He most certainly had not planned on letting his successor go near his family. Unfortunately, he saw no way to avoid it now. Damn Inko and her evil Shimura wiles.

Izuku bowed. “It’s nice to meet you, big brother.”

“Big…brother?” Tomura looked torn between eagerness and fear. “I had a sister once, but she…she…” He collapsed into tears.

Inko and Izuku swept the sobbing boy into a hug.

Hisashi slung an arm over his brother’s shoulder. “I think it’s noble of you to adopt your ex’s grandson, big brother. It’s completely understandable that you’d have trouble adjusting. You’re a brilliant businessman, but you don’t know anything about raising children. Don’t worry. I’ll teach you how to become a kind, loving father. That’s what family is for! First thing tomorrow, we’re getting Tomura an appointment with a medical doctor and a psychiatrist.”

Kurogiri said, “Thank god, finally proper parenting will be happening here.”

All for One regretted Kurogiri’s entire existence.

Weeks later, All for One lounged on an armchair in his villainous lair, reading a hero magazine. This was research—he needed to find the least objectionable hero or vigilante before his brother and nephew assigned him Knuckleduster as a favorite. Shudder.

After today, there would be a few more dead heroes. Maybe All for One would pick one of them as a favorite, and his dear family didn’t need to know that he drew his pleasure from the pathetic way they’d died. His smile widened as he remembered his devious plan.

He’d learned that Class 1-A at U.A. Academy would be taking a trip to the Unforeseen Simulation Joint, so he’d laid a trap. Tomura would attack them and use the student hostages to lure All Might out of hiding.

His peaceful contemplation was broken by a ripping in the air.

“Move! Faster!” Tomura screamed.

All for One looked up from his coffee. His mug read “World’s Best Uncle.” He raised an eyebrow as his successor staggered through the black, swirling portal.

Tomura looked disheveled and furious. He spat out curses at Kurogiri until the Nomu vanished back into shadows. Ranting, he ripped at the expensive bandages Inko had applied to the dry patches on his skin.

“Back so soon?” All for One let a note of disapproval leak into his voice. Even though he’d let Tomura take his best Nomu, he hadn’t seriously expected his protegee to kill All Might the first time he tried. But Tomura had returned within minutes. He wouldn’t have had time to kill a single person. That was just embarrassing.

“Izuku was there!” Tomura screamed, scratching at his face. “He’s a U.A. student!”

All for One snorted coffee down his suit. “What? But my sweet little nephew doesn’t even have a quirk!”

“He has one now!” Tomura ripped out a lock of his hair. “All Might gave him One for All!”

All for One’s mind went blank. No. This couldn’t be happening. He couldn’t do this again. That quirk was cursed! It had destroyed his little brother’s body before finally…

BiG bROTHer, iT’S aLL GoiNG dArk…

All for One whimpered.

Tomura collapsed backward into an arm chair. “My darling baby brother wants to be a hero! What if he gets hurt? What am I going to do, sensei?”

All for One said, “I can buy a huge bank vault for you to stuff him into.”

Tomura stared. “I’m sorry, sensei, but that’s stupid. How would that possibly make this situation any better?”

“Ha-ha, yes, you’re right. Don’t do that, it doesn’t work in the end.” All for One pinched the bridge of his nose and tried to think. “I’ve got nothing.”

“You’re useless, sensei.”

“Did Izuku recognize you?”

“I don’t think so. I had a hand over my face, and I ran off before I used Decay.”

“Then it’s not too late to avoid a conflict. Let’s cancel our current plans until we figure out what to do.” All for One couldn’t let the past repeat itself. He couldn’t be forced to fight his family again. Come hell or high water, he would save his nephew from the clutches of All Might and heroism.

OMAKE TIME!

Omake: USJ from the Heroes’ Perspective

Tomura: I’m here to kill All Mi— (He spots Izuku) Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh bye!

Izuku: What just happened? Surely I’m not the only one who saw a strange man wearing hands over his face appear from a shadow portal, then vanish?

Aizawa: What did you do to cause villains run away at the sight of you, problem child?

Izuku: Nothing! I swear I’ve never seen that villain before in my life!

#Aizawa doesn’t believe him, of course #Izuku is baffled as to why that hand weirdo seemed strangely familiar

Omake: All for One was Lying about Dating Nana, But He Did Try

All for One: (Holding out a bouquet of flowers.) Nana, my angel! I heard your husband died, so I came by to see if you needed someone to “comfort” you, if you know what I mean.

Nana: I bet you killed him!

All for One: I can see where this looks bad, but that was actually another criminal with a grudge who recently broke out of prison. (He’s telling the truth for once.) I can provide you with evidence. Maybe you’ll reward me for my detective work with a kiss?

Nana: Hmm. I’ll be looking into this. You can take that bouquet and shove it up your ass.

LATER:

All for One: Once I show Nana my awesome fireworks display, she’ll forget all about her plain, ordinary, and super-dead husband and fall madly in love with me. A corpse could never provide her such high-level romance. (He stumbles over Nana’s dead body. She died avenging her husband by taking his killer down with her.) Noooooooo! (All for One accidentally sets off the fireworks.)

Toshinori: All for One! You killed my mother-figure! Someday I’ll return to avenge her!

All for One: Wait, this isn’t what it looks like. Oh, dear, he already ran off. I bet this comes back to haunt me someday.

Chapter Text

All for One stood on the Midoriya’s front step, staring Inko down.

Inko stared back.

All for One held up a fruit basket. “I heard Hisashi is feeling sick? I’m here to look after him.”

Inko tapped her foot. “How did you hear that? Hisashi is far too stoic to have texted you.”

“Call it a brotherly instinct.” Of course, All for One had placed guards on his family’s home. He would be a fool not to. Strictly Nomu, who couldn’t betray his secrets. Numerous cameras and alarms would also alert him if someone tried to attack his family.

Alarms like the one Inko pulled out of her pocket. She held up the small metal orb. “Do you know what this is?”

All for One laughed nervously. “Perhaps one of Izuku’s toys?”

“I took it to a mechanical shop, but they couldn’t recognize it. They called it cutting-edge technology. Even a buzzsaw couldn’t crack it open.”

“Kids’ toys these days. So elaborate. Can I come in?”

Inko didn’t move out of his path. “I’ve found twelve of these around the house.”

So she’d uncovered a quarter of them? This woman was good. Those had been designed to spy on government buildings and hero facilities. “I’ve never seen anything like that before in my life.”

“Funny, I thought for sure you’d know something. With all those many companies you own.” Inko smiled sweetly.

All for One twitched. How dare this woman keep him from his family when he wasn’t even allowed to murder her?

“Big brother! Come in.” Hisashi stood at the top of the stairs. “What have you two been standing there talking about so long? It doesn’t matter. I just think it’s wonderful that my two loved ones get along so well.”

Inko and All for One exchanged glances, for once on the same wavelength. Neither of them could bring themselves to disillusion Hisashi.

“Truly, my sister-in-law is the most beautiful, kind and gracious woman in the world,” All for One said. “You picked a winner, little brother.”

“Your fabulously successful older brother brought a fruit basket,” Inko said. “How thoughtful.”

Izuku emerged from the living room. “How’s my favorite uncle doing?”

“I’m your only uncle.” All for One rubbed his nephew’s hair.

“From what Tomura tells me, you’d easily be able to beat Uncle Kotaro even if he was still alive.” Izuku grinned. “I like you better than all the hypothetical uncles across all the universes.”

“Aw, how sweet—” All for One noticed a bruise on his nephew’s face. “What happened? Should I sue U.A.? Or maybe burn it to ashes?”

“Such a kidder.” Izuku laughed. “Kacchan got a bit too rough during training.”

All for One’s eye twitched. Katsuki Bakugo, the bully of his precious, darling nephew, ranked right next to All Might on his list of people to murder. He’d already dealt with most of the pathetic bullies who’d afflicted themselves on his family over the years, but U.A. students had too much security. When he’d let Tomura attack the school, he’d only made it worse. It rankled, because Katsuki had been the ringleader, and thus the one he wanted dead the most.

Hisashi waved them up the stairs. “Let’s enjoy this fruit basket together.”

All for One followed his little brother inside. One of the walls looked fancier than the others, having been recently and expensively repaired with marble and gold.

As Hisashi peeled an orange, All for One hovered. “How are you feeling, little brother? Do you need to go to the hospital? I have several of Japan’s top doctors on speed dial.”

“Trying to fit in all the brotherly smothering you missed out on during our childhood?” Hisashi laughed. “Don’t worry about it. This cough of mine is nothing new.” He covered his mouth to stop a trickle of blood.

“I fuss because you never take proper care of your health.” All for One shoved a cup of tea in his brother’s face. “Drink this, and I’m taking you to the doctor first thing tomorrow.”

It was important that his brother see his personal doctor—not only because he wanted to check up on if the cloning had left any unfortunate side-effects, but also because he knew that his brother’s condition related to cellular degeneration due to his hidden quirk. Last time, his well-intentioned gift of a stockpiling quirk had only made everything worse, since his little brother’s body hadn’t been able to handle increased use of his quirk factor. And then when their fight had overstrained that weak body—

All for One shuddered. He’d never, ever make that mistake again. Any doctor paid by him could keep secrets, and Hisashi would never find out he wasn’t quirkless.

Hisashi shifted in his seat. “You’re being overly careful. I don’t need to see a doctor every time I cough.”

All for One snorted. “You’d never see a doctor if I didn’t force you.”

Izuku laughed. “Whoa, you just met Dad and already you know him so well.”

“Some things never change.” All for One sighed.

Hisashi raised an eyebrow at his son. “You think I should see a doctor too, I take it?”

“Mom agrees. You’re outnumbered.”

“Then I won’t argue.” Hisashi stroked his son’s cheek. “You look worried, my baby boy. Is something wrong at school?”

“Yes. No. It’s not important.”

Hisashi’s eyes were gentle. “I’m your dad. I think everything about you is important.”

Izuku looked at his hands. “Kacchan asked me why All Might gave me—I mean, he asked why I deserved to have my quirk. And I didn’t have a good answer for him. I can’t help thinking there are a million people out there stronger and braver than me.”

Whoa, this Katsuki brat is positively begging for death, All for One thought.

“That’s not true.” Hisashi tucked a lock of hair behind his son’s ear. “There’s no one stronger or braver or smarter than you. This is your dream.”

Izuku squirmed. “Just because I really want it doesn’t mean I deserve to have it. I feel so selfish.”

“I don’t think you have any reason to feel selfish at all. But since you’re a sweet child who can’t help his overactive conscience, then let me be selfish on your behalf.”

“What do you mean, Dad?”

“I’ve wanted to be a hero ever since I was a child. But I never had a chance at it. Not only did I have no quirk, I also had a weak constitution. My foster family threw me out as soon as I reached majority, then it was all I could do to survive. I suffered through countless jobs where I had to take all the bullying with a smile if I wanted to eat. I want life to be different for you, my son. I want to see you achieve your dream. So next time you’re feeling selfish, just think about how happy you’re making your poor old dad by becoming a hero.”

Teary-eyed, Izuku smiled. “That does help. Thank you, Dad.”

Hisashi pulled his son into a hug. “I love you, and I know you’ll be an amazing hero. Your uncle thinks so too. Isn’t that right, big brother?”

All for One’s teeth clenched so hard his smile hurt. “That’s right. You’ll be a wonderful hero.”

Dammit, how was he going to stop his nephew after hearing that? But what was his alternative? Heroing simply wasn’t safe!

He wanted to kill All Might. Not so much because he thought it would solve his dilemma. Just on general principle.

As if the devil could be summoned by his name, Izuku said, “All Might is coming over this afternoon to pick me up for training. Uncle Tsukasa, can you stay long enough to meet him this time?”

“Ack! I suddenly feel sick!” All for One clutched his scarred face.

Because of the need to avoid a certain blond hero, All for One couldn’t attend the U.A. Sports Festival to support his nephew in-person. Oh, the indignity of it. Hopefully he’d be able to find a disguise quirk soon. In the meantime, he had to settle for watching the festival on a floor-to-ceiling TV while giving directions to Tomura via an earpiece with a camera attached.

Together, Tomura and Izuku walked toward the stadium. Izuku looked heart-wrenchingly adorable in his school uniform. A burn scar peeked out of his sleeve. All for One remembered hacking into school records describing all the times Katsuki had “played too rough.” His anger burned and festered.

Izuku said, “All Might told me to announce my presence to the world using the sports festival, but I’m so nervous. What if I can’t live up to his expectations?”

“You worry too much, baby brother.” Tomura gave Izuku a friendly punch in the arm. “You’re going to get out there and kill all those NPCs. Easy mode.”

Izuku said, “I’m not supposed to kill my opponents…”

Tomura blinked. “Really? I see where it could be more difficult for you, then. How about maiming?”

“I’m not supposed to main anyone, either.”

“Well, that’s just impossible. All Might is holding you to a ridiculously high standard.” Tomura shook his head. “What a bastard.”

“No, All Might is wonderful! Once you meet him, big brother, I’m sure you’ll see.” Izuku spotted All Might and waved. “Over here!”

“Young Izuku!” Waving, All Might ran over.

Tomura’s hands clenched into fists.

Sensing danger, All for One spoke into his microphone. “Remember, Tomura, now isn’t the moment to fight All Might. You must pretend to be normal so no one suspects you after Katsuki Bakugo dies.”

“Understood, sensei,” Tomura whispered. “Our top priority is killing that worthless brat who bullied my precious little brother.”

All for One nodded. This sports festival would be his rare chance to get close enough to a U.A. student to murder him.

Izuku gestured. “All Might, this is Tomura Shigaraki. He prefers to be called that, since he changed his name after his adoption.”

“I’m so happy to meet you!” All Might swept Tomura into a hug.

Tomura’s entire body tensed up. His fingers twitched frantically. As All Might squeezed, the hidden camera gave All for One a huge close-up of his archnemesis’ face. He shuddered and averted his eyes.

All Might finally set Tomura down. “It’s a shame Izuku’s uncle couldn’t make it. I wanted to meet the man who’s been taking such good care of my master’s other grandson.”

All for One wiped sweat off his forehead.

Izuku said, “Yes, it’s a shame how poor Uncle Tsukasa’s health has been recently. I hope he’s not overworking himself.”

All Might peered at Tomura. “You look rather pale yourself. Are you feeling all right?”

Through clenched teeth, Tomura said, “Nice…to…meet…you. I…feel…normal.” His eyes became increasingly maniac with each word.

“Don’t push yourself if you feel sick, big brother,” Izuku said. “You should sit down. Our whole family has front row seats.”

All Might said, “Young Izuku, I have a few tips to give you before the festival. Could you come with me?”

As the two of them walked away, Tomura frantically brushed off his body. “Sensei, I need a shower. I have Plus Ultra cooties all over me.”

“Be strong, Tomura,” All for One said. “Remember your mission.”

From behind a pillar, Hisashi and Inko emerged, holding hands. From their disheveled hair and flushed lips, they’d probably been making out again. In public, no less. It was a wonder that Izuku didn’t have a baseball team’s worth of siblings.

“Did we miss All Might?” Hisashi asked. “Aw, too bad. Wait.” His eyes fixed on Eraser Head. They lit up like a child on Christmas morning. “Oh my god! It’s him!”

The shriek drew Aizawa’s attention. He walked over. “Mr. and Mrs. Midoriya? It’s a pleasure to meet you two. Your son is a truly talented hero student. A bit reckless, mayhap, but that’s also one of his strengths.”

“Eraser Head knows my name,” Hisashi whispered. His hand went to this mouth. “This is the happiest day of my life.”

All for One felt an unpleasant stirring of jealously. His little brother had never looked at him with such admiration. Even though All for One had successfully founded his first criminal organization as a teenager, his brother had been all like “Blah blah stop stealing people’s quirks and definitely stop murdering them afterward.”

While her husband was lost in a fanboy daze, Inko took over. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Aizawa. Izuku has highly praised your classes. Thank you for looking after my son.”

“You’ve raised a good kid,” Aizawa said.

“Would you sign this?” Hisashi pulled out a briefcase with an impressive amount of Eraser Head merchandise. Most of it had been custom-made since the underground hero didn’t have much fame. Patiently, Aizawa signed every single piece.

Tomura didn’t stick around to watch. He’d spotted Katsuki Bakugo striding down the walkway like he owned it.

The spiky-haired blond boy sure did look a lot like a miniature version of the second user of One for All. All for One’s eye twitched. Although he had more important reasons to want the boy dead, the sight of that infuriating drove him into even more of a murderous frenzy.

Tomura’s spare backpack had a bomb inside. According to the plan, it would look like the little terror had blown himself up. Tomura placed the backpack directly in Katsuki’s path and then leapt backward, out of range.

Katsuki asked, “Who the hell left this here?” He kicked the backpack into the air.

It exploded. Several people looked up, admiring the fireworks. Face paling, Katsuki looked around, muttered, “Did I do that?” then ran off.

Together, All for One and Tomura cursed. So close!

A loudspeaker announced the festival would be starting soon. The Midoriyas and Tomura rushed to their seats. As promised, Izuku had seated them right at the front.

The event started with the students fighting robots. Mostly All for One just wished he could see Izuku’s cuteness better among the crowd. All these ugly brats were getting in the way of his line of vision.

A sudden boom grabbed his attention. Riding a metal plate, Izuku shot high over the minefield and landed over the finish line.

“Ahhhhhhh!” All for One clutched his armrests in horror. “How can they let children undertake such dangerous activities?”

“Yay! That’s my little brother!” Tomura cheered.

Hisashi and Inko clung to each other and cried happy tears as Izuku’s victory was announced.

While the cavalry battle was described, Tomura stood up. “I have to go to the bathroom,” he announced loudly, though no one was listening.

Tomura made his way to where the students stood. With his hood pulled over his face, he asked, “Water bottles?” Pretending to be a staff member and avoiding eye contact with Izuku, he gave Katsuki a poisoned bottle.

Just before the target could take a drink, some red-haired friend of his came running over and slung an arm around his neck. The bottle spilled to the ground.

Tomura screeched in frustration. “I thought he was an NPC, but he’s more like a bug in the game! No matter what I do, he doesn’t die!”

“You have to get back to your seat before the next event,” All for One reminded his protegee.

To add insult to injury, the spiky explosion brat actually had the nerve to place higher than Izuku in the cavalry battle. All for One longed to kill him even more.

Hisashi cried, “Our baby took fourth place! He’s still in the game!”

“I’m so happy!” Inko flung herself at her husband and kissed him passionately and loudly.

“Eww.” Tomura recoiled in horror.

All for One closed his eyes. “Tomura, please turn the camera away. I don’t need to see that.”

Tomura snuck past several guards to find Katsuki guzzling down water in the locker room. Happily, the soon-to-be-dead brat was alone.

“Katsuki Bakugo! I’m so excited to meet you!” Tomura’s delivery fell a bit flat, but All for One wanted to praise him just for speaking those words without choking.

“Huh? Who are you and how did you get in here, cannon fodder?” Katsuki looked up from his regrettably not poisoned water bottle.

“I snuck in to see you. I’m your biggest fan.” Tomura held out his hand—without a glove. “It would absolutely make my day if you would shake my hand.” A hint of malice leaked into his voice.

Katsuki looked him over. “Weakling. No wonder you admire me, with your scrawny nerdy arms.” Whipping out a pen, he signed his autograph across Tomura’s forehead. “No need to grovel in gratitude.”

He’d completely ignored the outstretched, deadly hand. All for One asked, “Do you think he’s onto us?”

Tomura whispered into the mike, “No, he’s just a huge jerk.”

It probably took one to know one. Fortunately, they had one last backup plan.

Katsuki’s jacket lay flung over the locker bench. Moving slowly, Tomura removed an explosive device from his pocket and attached it to the collar.

All for One was quite proud of this plan. With just a single spark, the device would explode. Once the explosive boy started fighting, he’d inevitably trigger it. To the rest of the world, it would look like the stupid brat had blown himself up.

After washing the marker off his face, Tomura returned to the stadium in time to see Izuku’s first fight start. A purple-haired boy started talking…then Izuku turned and began to walk out of the ring.

All for One bit his nails. It must be a mind control quirk. How useful…no, he had no time to think of such things when his nephew was in trouble!

When Izuku’s hand exploded, All for One screamed. He buried his face in his hands, unable to watch.

After the hated All Might had left, Tomura tapped on Izuku’s window. “Over here!”

Izuku looked up. “Big brother! How did you get in here?”

“Snuck in,” Tomura admitted. “I had to be sure you were all right. How’s your finger?”

Izuku held up his healed hand. “Good as new. I don’t know what everyone was fussing about.”

“They were fussing because you scared us, you brat.” Tomura scowled. “Your mom and dad were crying.”

Izuku flinched. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry. Don’t do it again.” Tomura scratched at his neck. “I don’t like it when you get hurt. It makes me angry.”

“That means you care.” Izuku smiled.

“Don’t get all sentimental on me.” Tomura felt around in his pocket. “I brought you a candy bar. They cheer me up when I’m feeling bad. You don’t have to eat it or anything.”

“I’ll take it. Thank you.” Izuku ran over to the window.

“I won’t forgive you for getting hurt unless you win, got it?” Tomura jabbed his finger.

“I understand, big brother.”

The two of them were rather cute. Though most of All for One’s attention was distracted watching the news. Why had no one yet announced Katsuki Bakugo’s ugly head had been blown off? The boy had definitely set off repeated explosions, but nothing had happened. Was the device buggy? Or did it just need a slightly stronger spark?

The fight between Izuku and Shouto Todoroki proved the most exciting yet.

All for One could barely watch. He bit his nails and wished again his nephew would pick a safer career. The child was cute enough to be a model or a pop star.

Izuku seemed oddly bothered by how his opponent only used ice, not fire. He shouted, “Everyone’s giving it their all. To win…to achieve their goals…to make it to the top. And you’re going to win with half your power? I still haven’t put a scratch on you! Gimmee everything you got! Come at me! Your power is your own!”

In acknowledgment, Shouto’s left half burst into flames.

The bug in his collar exploded.

Dammit! That fool Tomura had sabotaged the wrong jacket! All for One groaned and clutched his head. So close!

Shouto’s ice had already damaged the device, preventing it from blowing his head off. But even the smaller explosion threw him out of the ring.

Izuku gasped and ran to help smother the fire covering his classmate’s body.

Shouto lay cross-eyed on the ground, shaking. His clothing burned and his hair smoking, he muttered, “So traumatized…I hate fire…I’ll never use it again.”

Izuku wailed, “No! All my hard work convincing him, wasted!”

Sheepishly, Tomura said, “At least Izuku won his fight?”

All for One let his pointed silence be his answer.

As the final fight between Izuku and Katsuki began, Tomura muttered, “Sensei, can I just shoot him?”

All for One considered. “Sure, if you can find a gun.”

“I smuggled one in my backpack past security.” Tomura stood up. Clearing his throat, he declared, “I have to go to the bathroom.”

“Again? Are you feeling all right, sweetie?” Inko asked.

“Might have been something I ate.” Grimacing, Tomura shoved his way over knees and through the crowd.

All for One knew many reasons he ought to stop this, but his irritation and impulsiveness had reached critical levels. He’d never wanted to conquer Japan as badly as he wanted to watch the horrible brat die.

Climbing up a tree, Tomura hid himself behind the branches. With Katsuki’s forehead in the cross-hairs, he fired.

Mid-punch, Izuku’s head shot up. “Kacchan! Look out!” He shoved Katsuki out of the path of the bullet.

The extremely ungrateful brat grabbed Izuku’s hand, still on his shoulder. “Don’t touch me!” he screamed as he flung Izuku out of the ring.

All for One said, “Tomura, you idiot, you’re grounded.”

“That’s fair,” Tomura said as he ran away.

Katsuki stood on the first place stand, muzzled and chained. After All Might took his face mask off, he screamed, “I demand a rematch! Something funny happened. I know I felt something whish by my head before the nerd pushed me!”

“That’s okay, Kacchan,” Izuku said. “I don’t mind taking second place, as long as you’re safe.”

Katsuki struggled even harder. “I mind, you useless bitch! I want to beat you fair and square so you know that I’m superior! Rematch!”

All Might said, “I believe both of you, but no one could find any evidence the fight had been tampered with. If you’re not happy with this result, then try harder next time.”

With tears in his eyes, All Might went to hang the second place medal around Izuku’s neck. “I’m so proud of you, my boy,” he said as he pulled Izuku into a hug.

“Thank you so much!” Izuku sobbed.

All for One gnawed on his face mask with jealousy. Why did Izuku look so happy about getting a hug from that blond moron? He didn’t make nearly as big a deal about it when his uncle hugged him. What did the idiot hero have that he didn’t? Was it the fame and reputation? Didn’t being Japan’s top villain count for something?

As Katsuki continued ranting, Tomura glared. His nails dug into his gloves. “Sensei, remind me again why I can’t walk over there and disintegrate the bug?”

“You’d go to Tartarus and never see Izuku again. More importantly, you might make my family suspicious of me.”

“Yeah, I know. I just needed to hear it again.”

OMAKE TIME!

Omake: Shouto’s Preemptive Revenge on All for One

Shouto: (Sees Inko and Hisashi making out in public.) I’d been wondering if Izuku might be All Might’s love child, but his parents seem madly in love. Besides, I can see how much Izuku takes after his father. That can’t be it. But…

LATER:

Shouto: Is All Might your uncle?

Izuku: Ehhhhhhhhhhhhh?

All for One: I wonder why I have an inexplicable urge to massacre the entire Todoroki family.

Omake: If All for One Had Attending the Sports Festival In-Person

Endeavor: Shouto, get back up and keep fighting! I know I’ve burned you worse in training before!

All for One: Sit down, bargain bin All Might. Your swollen head is blocking my view of my nephew’s victory.

Endeavor: How dare you? Do you know who you’re talking to?

All for One: I’m talking to the guy who’s son just lost to my nephew, you half lit cigarette. Don’t make me come over there and put you out.

Endeavor: Oh, it’s on now!

Aizawa: (Uses erasure.) I’m ejecting both of you idiots from the stadium.

Hisashi: Big brother, please stop. You’re embarrassing me in front of Eraser Head.

Omake: How Oboro Became Kurogiri

All for One: All Might still wants me dead because he thinks I killed Nana. How can I settle this misunderstanding? I doubt he’ll listen to me. I know! I’ll rescue some random hero and use him or her to pass along a message. Maybe a hero student—All Might seems like he’d be weak to children. Perfect idea. I’m going to save the next hero student I coincidentally find injured.

LATER:

Kurogiri: Greetings, master.

All for One: Yikes! What on earth is this freak? I told you to save that kid, not turn him into a shadow creature! I don’t think All Might will be happy at all if he sees this.

Doctor Garaki: You handed me a corpse and told me to resurrect it, boss. Were you expecting the result to be very pretty?

All for One: That kid was dead? I guess I didn’t bother to check if he was breathing after I dragged him out from under the rubble. Oopsie.

Doctor Garaki: You realize I’m a mad scientist, not a medical doctor?

All for One: I guess I’m going to have to fight All Might. Whatever, surely I’m way stronger than him.

Chapter Text

It was always a pleasure to be invited over for a Midoriya family breakfast. Though Inko might be a terrifying demon from hell, she was also a damn good cook. All for One took a bite of banana pancake and sighed in contentment.

Hisashi reached for the syrup. “Thank you for coming, big brother. It’s unfortunate you couldn’t make our family dinner celebrating Izuku taking second place at the sports festival.”

“That’s right,” Inko said. “It’s funny how you always get sick whenever All Might comes over.” Her smile was more piercing than most villain’s glares.

All for One muttered, “Maybe I’m allergic to his overly heroic cologne.”

Izuku said, “I had the funniest dream last night. I met a spiky-haired man who claimed to be the Second User of One for All.”

All for One flinched.

Izuku continued, “At first, I thought it might be a real vision. But then he told me that Dad was a clone of the First User of One for All and my uncle is an ancient villain who’s stalking us because Dad is his reborn brother. Isn’t that ridiculous?”

All for One gripped his knees under the tablecloth. “Very…ridiculous.”

Hisashi laughed. “Total nonsense, my dear son. Clones don’t even work like that. They aren’t the same person; they’re like identical twins.”

“That’s what I said.” Izuku nodded. “But according the dream-guy, the mad scientist did something special to the clone to make sure it had the First User’s original quirk. DNA isn’t unique to one soul, but quirks are—even twins don’t have the exact same quirk. One second the First User was chilling with the other users in the void, and the next second he got yoinked away. They’ve been freaking out for the last couple decades until they got transferred to me and saw my dad. Then they freaked out even more.”

“Ha! This story just keeps getting sillier.” Hisashi wiped a tear of laughter from his eye.

Inko giggled. “I agree. I’ve got my suspicions, but that definitely can’t be right.”

All for One’s nails dug into his skin so tightly they drew blood.

Izuku said, “I almost started to believe it, but the supposed Second User looked exactly like Kacchan. That pushed me over the edge to disbelief. Ghosts are one thing, but a ghost who looks like the ancestor of my childhood friend? I’m pretty sure that was a figment of my subconscious telling me something. Maybe I’m still insecure about whether I can stand equal to Kacchan as a hero.”

“Dreams are silly,” Hisashi said. “I dreamt I turned into a seal, once. Then I dreamed a marshmallow tried to eat me.”

“On a completely unrelated note, look what I can do now.” Izuku held up his hand. A black whip shot out. “I’m developing all kinds of new quirks!”

“So cool,” Hisashi whispered, clapping his hands.

All for One whimpered. In addition to a disguise quirk to hide from All Might, he also needed to find a quirk to exorcise pesky ghosts.

All for One drank from his “World’s Best Uncle” mug as he read financial reports. A supervillain’s work was never done. The walls behind him were decorated with diagrams of Katsuki Bakugo caught in increasingly elaborate death traps.

Tomura had taken some Nomu and run off to terrorize the town. His protegee needed a boost to his confidence after his spectacular failure at the Sports Festival. Tomura had promised not to show his face or use Decay, so it wouldn’t be a particularly big attack. Just a little bit of mayhem.

Since Tomura was a moron who specialized in screwing up even the simplest of orders like murdering a teenage boy, All for One kept an eye on the chaos through a small television on his desk.

Izuku’s adorable curly head appeared on the screen. All for One dropped his coffee mug. The priceless treasure shattered on the floor. He barely noticed in his horror at watching his nephew face off against a Nomu.

He texted Tomura, “IZUKU IS THERE GET OUT NOW.” Not trusting his edgelord successor to follow directions, All for One grabbed a shade off a lamp to cover his face. Then he ran out the door.

When All for One found his nephew, Izuku was on his knees, unable to move. The Hero Killer Stain stood over him. Two other insignificant fools lay bleeding on the ground, but All for One didn’t care about them.

The lampshade covering his face, All for One charged forward. A blast of his air cannon sent Stain flying.

All for One gave the Hero Killer no time to recover. Bone drills pierced every part of his body.

Holding the skewered villain in the air, All for One slapped him across the face. The gesture was deliberately intended to humiliate.

Leaning close, All for One whispered, “I hate braindead hypocrites like you the most. You try to murder an innocent boy who only wants to help people, and you think you’re making the world a better place? Nah, you’re as rotten inside as me.”

Stain gurgled, trying to protest.

All for One slapped him into silence. “I’m evil. I know it. I’m proud of it. At least if I try to murder a child I don’t expect society to give me a Noble Peace Prize for it, you delusional bitch.” He followed up the insult with another slap.

Stain croaked, “Actually, I just wanted to kill the glasses kid. I wasn’t trying to kill the other boy.”

“What? Oh, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to interfere in someone else’s evil scheme. Carry on, then.” All for One let Stain fall in a heap to the ground.

Unfortunately, Stain was too injured to move.

Turning around, All for One saw Izuku staring at him. Surely his nephew hadn’t overhead? He’d been whispering.

Oh, right, it must be the lampshade over his face.

Whoa, how embarrassing. He ran away as quickly as possible.

That evening, All for One peeled an apple at the Midoriya’s kitchen counter. Meanwhile, Hisashi added spaghetti to boiling water.

“Thank you for helping me make dinner, big brother,” Hisashi said. “It was so nice of you to volunteer to come over as soon as you found out Inko had left to help a sick friend.”

“I’m a wonderful person that way,” All for One said. “Such a shame I won’t get to see Inko this time. Downright tragic.”

“I miss her too! It’s only been a day, but that feels like forever when I’m apart from my honey-bunny,” Hisashi said. “I know she’ll be sorry to miss your visit. She absolutely loves you.”

All for One said, “I can assure you that Inko’s feelings concerning me are entirely mutual.”

Laughter came from the living room. Tomura called, “I’ve got you now, my weak baby brother!”

“I’m not out of the game yet,” Izuku said.

More sound effects came from the game, followed by Tomura shouting, “You killed me! Dammit!”

“Play another round?” Izuku offered.

Hisashi leaned against the counter and smiled. “It’s great how well they get along. Just like brothers.”

All for One laughed. “Doesn’t that remind you of the two of us as kids? Remember how angry you used to get when I hit you with a blue shell in Mario Kart?”

Hisashi blinked. “But we didn’t grow up together. What’s a Mario Kart?”

All for One froze. Desperate plans to purchase a bank vault flashed across his mind. “Uhhhhhhhhh. It was a joke.”

“I get it. You were making a joke about that silly dream Izuku had about clones and reincarnation and century-old villains.”

“Ha-ha.” All for One attempted a weak laugh, very glad Inko wasn’t present. “It was lame. Let’s just drop it.”

“Sure. Have you heard about the new vigilante in town? The one with a lampshade over his head?”

All for One twitched. Of all the topic changes, why did his brother pick that one? “Uh, no. That sounds very silly.”

Hisashi said, “This is a secret incident, so I shouldn’t tell you about it—but hey, you’re family! He saved Izuku’s life from the Hero Killer.”

“Izuku never should have been near the likes of Stain,” All for One muttered. “What is U.A. doing?”

“He went to rescue a friend. I’m so proud of him.” Hisashi wiped a tear from his eye.

“That feels like something adult heroes should have been doing if they weren’t all useless.”

Hisashi said, “The lampshade might be an odd costume choice, but I don’t care. That vigilante is my new favorite hero.”

All for One froze. “What, really?”

“He saved my son’s life. That makes me his biggest fan.” Hisashi smiled.

An odd feeling formed where most people had a heart. Funny, All for One had always believed he had an empty void there. Then why did he feel so warm inside? “That’s great.” Strange how his voice sounded choked.

The admiration in his little brother’s eyes had taken him off-guard. He’d never believed that look would be directed at him ever again.

Shamelessly, All for One said, “The lampshade guy is my favorite hero too.”

“Ha-ha, you’re just copying me.” Hisashi swatted him with a kitchen towel. “Get your own favorite, big brother.”

After dinner, All for One drove back to his hideout. In the backseat, Tomura played a game on his phone.

“Are all the preparations ready?” All for One asked.

“Of course.” Tomura didn’t look up from his phone. “I won’t fail you this time, sensei.”

“Good. Don’t forget that you’re going to kidnap him, not kill him.” All for One smiled darkly. “Killing him comes during stage two of the plan.”

This would be the most difficult task of All for One’s villainous career. But he wouldn’t fail again.

Katsuki Bakugo must die.

OMAKE TIME!

Omake: All for One Did Not Give Tenko the Decay Quirk in this AU

All for One: Rumor on the street has it that Nana had a granddaughter. I’m going to check in and see if she’s hot.

Kurogiri: Master, she’s a small child.

All for One: Really? When you’re immortal, it’s easy to lose track of the decades. Remind me in another twenty years.

Kurogiri: Master, you’re being creepy.

Tenko Shimura lies on the street, dehydrated and hollow-eyed.

All for One: Ew, he’s ugly. My obsession with Shimuras has been cured just from looking at him. Let’s get out of here.

Kurogiri: Master…

All for One: What?

Kurogiri: He’s going to die if we leave him here.

All for One: I’m evil, remember?

Kurogiri: Weren’t you still looking for a way to get All Might off your back? I bet he’d be super grateful if you rescued his master’s grandson.

All for One: What a brilliant idea. I’m glad I thought of it.

Omake: The Worst Insult

Stain: I wasn’t trying to kill the green-haired boy. He’s a true hero.

All for One: What the hell did you just call my adorable nephew? Never mind, I’m killing you after all.

Omake: The Stain Conversation

Tomura: We need to talk about Stain.

Izuku: Do you want to hear my opinions on his ideals?

Tomura: No, we need to talk about how reckless you are! What if he’d harmed a hair on your perfect little green head? Then I’d be forced to burn down society in vengeance and you know how that would upset Aunt Inko and Uncle Hisashi.

Izuku: …

Uraraka: Is this man bothering you?

Izuku: Nah, he’s just my idiot older brother.

Omake: I’m Implying the Second Could be an Ancestor of Katsuki, Not Time-Travel. How Would the Time-Travel Katsuki Theory Even Work? Just Picture It…

Katsuki: Yo! I’m here from the future to become the second user of One for All. I need to eat your hair.

First: Excuse me? Is this some sort of strange sexual fetish you’re shoving into my face? And what’s One for All?

Katsuki: Dammit, did I go too far back in time? Okay, let me know when you’re ready to kill your brother. I’m going to change the future and murder that bitch early.

First: You stay away from my beloved brother, you psychopath!

LATER:

All for One: Why have you been clinging so closely to me, my adorable little brother? Not that I mind.

First: Some weirdo threatened to kill you. I’m going to protect you! I think he might be a sexual deviant—he keeps going on about eating my DNA.

All for One: You are very pretty. I’ve been chasing off unworthy dogs for years. Just point me in the direction of this one, and I’ll take care of him, too.

First: Thank you, big brother!

Katsuki: Why do I feel a sudden urge to get in my time machine and get out of here?

DURING HEROES: RISING, AFTER IZUKU GIVES KATSUKI ONE FOR ALL:

First: (Sadly clutching a picture of Izuku.) Come back to me, my cute little Ninth! You’re my favorite!

Sixth: Hey, come with us, we’re going to check out our tenth user.

First: Nooooo! I refuse to accept any substitutes! (They drag him over to see Katsuki.) Wait, the tenth is him?

Sixth: Yeah, is there a problem?

First: He’s a time-traveler! I met an older version of him in the past, and he sexually harassed me. I refuse to live in the void with him. REFUSE.

The other users consider. Whoever becomes the user of One for All becomes stuck in the void with them, so it’s extremely important for everyone to get along. They do not want to spend eternity with a pervert who’s after the First’s body. Defying the laws of reality, One for All yeets back to Izuku at top speed.

#This is why One for All came back to Izuku at the end of Heroes: Rising #No, I don’t accept any other theories

Chapter Text

Grabbing Katsuki Bakugo had been easy. Kurogiri had created a portal to U.A.’s summer training camp, and Tomura and All for One had grabbed the boy by the scruff of his neck and dragged him in. They hadn’t caused any other trouble because they didn’t want to risk Izuku getting hurt.

As they stood outside the door to Katsuki’s cell, Tomura said, “I don’t understand why we can’t just shoot him.”

“That’s where we went wrong last time.” After watching his precious nephew shield his bully, All for One had realized something important. “Izuku suffers from Stockholm Syndrome. Why else would he be so attached to the horrible little monster?”

Tomura wrinkled his nose. “I don’t understand why he’d protect someone who bullied him, either.”

“It’s tragic what trauma bonding can do to a young mind.” All for One sighed. “Poor Izuku still talks about ‘Kacchan’ like they’re friends. We need to show him otherwise. That’s why you’re going to convert Katsuki Bakugo into a villain. We’ll show Izuku how worthless his so-called childhood friend truly is.”

Tomura scratched his nose. His skin had gotten much better thanks to his regular doctor’s visits, but he still sometimes had rashes. He said, “I’ll try, sensei, but you know I’m not the suave temptation sort of villain. I’m more of the disintegration type of villain.”

“That’s fine.” All for One shrugged. “Just go in there and threaten to decay the little hellspawn unless he converts to villainy. That works on most people. We’ll help him commit a few felonies and murders. Once we have proof of his true nature, we can kill him, and Izuku won’t cry at his funeral.”

Tomura perked up. “Sounds like a plan!” He’d put on an extra mask just to be on the safe side. He entered the room.

A few minutes later, All for One heard the hell child screaming, “It’s pointless to try and change my mind!” followed by an explosion.

Surely Tomura hadn’t been stupid enough to take off the boy’s restraints? All for One peered through the keyhole. Yes, he had, and he looked like he’d gotten his ass kicked by his own prisoner. Spittle dripped down his cheek. Tomura hadn’t been kidding about being bad at this.

Well, some villains were masterminds, some were more like minions. All for One supposed he’d better handle the persuasion himself.

Fortunately, he’d already prepared a disguise: a huge, box-shaped mask covering his life support equipment and a voice modifier. In case the brat from hell escaped, he couldn’t risk him recognizing “Izuku’s uncle” later.

All for One pushed open the door. The explosive brat sat in the chair with one leg crossed like he owned the place. Staring at All for One’s mask, Katsuki raised an eyebrow. “What sort of horror movie character are you cosplaying?”

Through centuries of patience, All for One resisted immediately jumping to murder. “I’ll make this short and quick.” The voice modifier gave his words a mechanical tone. “Either become a villain, or I’ll kill you.”

“You’re bluffing.” Katsuki sneered. “I’m an important hostage. Part of your master plan.”

All for One blinked. “No, there’s no master plan. I’m quite serious about killing you.”

To prove it, he sent a bone drill flying at Katsuki’s neck. Not aimed to kill. Just to nick him and make it clear this was no bluff or game.

The drill bounced off and landed on the floor.

All for One stared. He twitched. He resisted the urge to rip out his nonexistent hair. “HOW IN THE NAME OF VILLAINY ARE YOU DOING THAT? ARE YOU ACTUALLY A DEMON FROM HELL? DO YOU HAVE AN INVISIBLE QUIRK?”

Katsuki gave him the look commonly reserved for crazy people. “What the hell are you talking about?”

“No, I’ve never heard of someone born with two quirks,” All for One muttered. “What if Izuku has an invisible quirk? It would run in the family. Oh, no! Of course he’d use his invisible quirk to protect the most useless, worthless person imaginable. Just wonderful.”

Tomura leaned over and picked something off the ground. “Your attack bounced off this, sensei.” He held up a metal device the size of a button. It had been broken by the drill, revealing wiring.

All for One stared. “Tomura, did you let someone put a tracking device on the brat?”

Tomura scratched his neck. “I think a black-haired girl with a ponytail might have thrown something at him before I dragged him through the portal. Oopsie.”

An explosion rocked the hideout. All Might’s cheerful voice called, “Kamino pizza delivery!”

All for One didn’t say anything. He didn’t need to.

All Might stood resplendent, his trademark smile on his face. Countless heroes lined up behind him. “All for One! Today, we finally settle our feud. The centuries-long battle ends here.”

All for One wasn’t listening. Instead, he’d focused all his attention on Katsuki Bakugo. His plan might have been shot to hell, but he wasn’t leaving without killing the demonspawn. He’d buy Izuku a pony to make up for it.

Even as All for One lunged, murder radiating from him, Best Jeanist picked up Katsuki and deposited him behind the heroes.

Screaming in incoherent rage, All for One chased after the boy.

“Huh?” All Might’s head swiveled around. “You’re running away?”

“Shut up! I don’t have time for you!” All for One cut his way through the heroes between him and his prey. “I’m about to murder my greatest enemy!”

“Uh, right. Me.” All Might pointed at his own chest.

“Who cares about you?” All for One screamed. “I’m going to kill my real archnemesis. The most difficult enemy I’ve ever faced. The only one who’s ever evaded me so many times. Katsuki Bakugo!”

“What? Young Bakugo? Is this some kind of joke?” All Might looked deeply offended. He tore after All for One at top speed.

Countless Nomu flooded through Kurogiri’s portals. Glancing over his shoulder, All for One called, “Tomura, hold him off!”

“Understood, sensei!” Tomura and the Nomu faced off against the heroes.

All Might leapt forward. A Nomu tackled him. All for One ran even faster.

Katsuki must be some sort of demon straight from hell. Blessed and protected by Satan himself. How else could he keep surviving every attack from Japan’s greatest villain? No matter what, All for One had to nip this in the bud for fear the hell brat grew up into an even worse monster.

That’s when All for One saw something he’d be seeing in his nightmares. Through the smoke and chaos, Izuku ran forward. Accompanied by several friends, but All for One could care less about those.

Leaping between them, Izuku spread out his arms wide. “I won’t let you hurt Kacchan!”

All for One’s world crashed to a halt.

In a mind’s eye, he saw a scene from a century ago. His little brother, standing between him and the spiky-haired second user of One for All.

“BiG brOTHer, I wOn’t LeT yOU hURt…”

There had been so much blood.

All for One froze in place.

“Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!” he screamed, staggering backward and clutching his head. The whole world twisted as he lost control of the quirk allowing him to see. The past and present blurred together.

All Might’s fingers grazed the back of his suit.

All for One would never admit it, but Kurogiri saved his ass by grabbing him and yanking him through a portal.

Tomura swirled ice cubes in a glass. “Well, that could have gone better.”

Sitting in his backup hideout with his legs propped up on the bar counter, All for One shrugged. “Eh. At least I got to annoy All Might. You should have seen the look on his face! He looked like a confused puppy.”

“Everyone on TV is criticizing U.A. and all of Hero Society,” Tomura said. “They went off with a huge group of heroes and didn’t manage to capture a single villain. It’s embarrassing.”

“I’m not sure why I got so obsessed with killing Katsuki Bakugo, anyway.” All for One took a swig of whiskey. “He wasn’t a demon, just a lucky brat. It’s not worth upsetting Izuku.”

Tomura nodded. “I agree, sensei. I don’t want to chase after him anymore. He spits like a camel.”

From behind the bar, Kurogiri called, “You’re both very good at not admitting you lost.”

All for One said, “Shut up and pour me another round.”

OMAKE TIME!

Omake: Can You Imagine All Might Trying to Figure Out Later How the Hell Katsuki is All For One’s Nemesis?

All Might: Young Bakugo, I’m not angry, but this is vitally important for the national security of Japan. You must explain to me your connection with All for One.

Katsuki: What’s an all for one?

All Might: (Twitches.)

Omake: The First Battle with All Might Where All for One Lost His Face

All for One: Wait! Will you stop attacking me for a moment and listen?

All Might: You killed my mother! Prepare to die!

All for One: I keep telling you, I didn’t. Nana was way too hot for me to murder her before I got to tap that ass.

All Might: I’m going to kill you even deader!

All for One: Look, what if I told you I rescued Nana’s grandson and raised him as my own? Would that make you calm down?

All Might: You raised Nana’s grandson as a villain?!

All for One: Kinda? He just had a natural talent for it.

All Might: Aargh! (Rips off All for One’s face in a fit of rage.)

#All for One, probably: I don’t understand what he’s so upset about #I trained Tomura for a great career in a rapidly growing field #Villains > Heroes

Chapter Text

“This coffee is excellent, Kurogiri.” Inko took another sip.

“I’m happy to be of service, ma’am.” Kurogiri swept away her empty cup. “It’s so wonderful to work for an employer who keeps a clean house with the kitchen equipment up-to-date.”

Inko laughed. “I’m delighted to finally have someone in the house who doesn’t put too much oil on my good frying pan. If you keep cleaning up so well afterward, you’re welcome to use my kitchen any time.”

“Finally, someone who appreciates me.” Kurogiri floated back into the kitchen with a blush of happiness on his shadowy cheeks.

All for One wondered why those two got along so well. Probably because they both enjoyed tormenting him.

Gigantomachia tapped on the window. “I’VE FINISHED PLANTING YOUR TULIPS.”

“You’re such an excellent gardener,” Inko said. He purred in response.

Really, for someone who kept subjecting him to her suspicions, the woman had no qualms about taking advantage of his minions.

At the other end of the table, Hisashi and Izuku were engaged in a passionate conversation about the strengths and weaknesses of foreign heroes. All for One listened with one ear, taking notes, because they were exposing some very interesting intelligence.

Not that he’d been doing anything villainous lately. He’d been too busy spending time with his family and working on projects to protect Izuku.

Ever since their conflict at Kamino Ward, All Might had been hunting down All for One’s organization with a very personal vengeance. It almost seemed like his feelings had been hurt by being ignored. He was acting like a girl who’d been stood up for prom. However, since All for One had put most of his villainous activities on temporary hold, there wasn’t much for All Might to find. This only seemed to irritate the blond hero even more. It was fun!

“I still can’t believe U.A. let Katsuki get kidnapped.” Inko shook her head. “I wanted to withdraw Izuku, but neither he nor Hisashi would hear a word of it.”

At the other side of the table, Izuku’s head shot up. “This is my dream, Mom.”

“I know.” Inko sighed. “And I can’t deny you that. But I’m your mother, and mothers worry.”

Hisashi said, “Relax, honey-bunny. Izuku is a hero, and heroes always win in the end.”

“Ack!” All for One clutched his heart in pain. Visions of the past danced across his eyes, ending in a horrible splatter of blood across the ground.

“Is something wrong?” Hisashi touched his brother’s arm.

“Fine. I’m only a little sick,” All for One grated out. “Just…don’t say things like that. It worries me.”

“Worry?” Hisashi blinked his big, green eyes. “I don’t understand.”

“You don’t have to understand. It’s better if you don’t.” All for One smiled maniacally. “Just maybe don’t speak so lightly about dying, okay? You might not like what happens if you keep talking like that.”

“Sure, whatever makes you happy,” Hisashi said, with no idea how narrowly he’d just avoided a vault.

Inko asked, “How’s the internship been going, Izuku?”

“Fine,” Izuku said, shifting in his seat.

Hisashi frowned. “Is something wrong? You don’t need to hide it from us. We’re your family. We’re behind you 100%.”

Izuku looked away. “I don’t want to complain. It’s not a big deal. It’s just, Sir Nighteye doesn’t seem to approve of me as a hero.”

“That’s ridiculous!” Hisashi sat straight up. “I’ve studied heroes all my life, so I know what I’m talking about. You have the strongest heroic spirit of anyone I’ve ever met.”

“But that doesn’t make me strong against villains.” Izuku picked at his breakfast. “Maybe he’s right. Maybe someone else would do better with this quirk.”

“Did he say that?” Hisashi’s eyes blazed. “If so, he doesn’t know you at all.”

“Yeah, did he say that?” All for One asked. He needed to know if he should add someone new to his murder list.

“It’s just my insecurities talking.” Izuku rubbed his hair. “That’s not what’s really bothering me, anyway. I met this little girl, named Eri, and I shouldn’t have let her go.”

All for One frowned. “Izuku, you’re far too young to date.” His baby might get hurt! He was far too naïve and easily taken advantage of. All for One couldn’t allow it. This Eri tramp could find someone older to seduce.

Izuku laughed. “No, not like that! She’s only a child. She was taken away by a yakuza. Later, I found out he’s hurting her.” Izuku’s hands clenched on his fork. “I’m going to be part of the team to rescue her.”

“That’s great! I’m so proud of you!” Hisashi beamed.

Inko frowned. “That sound dangerous. Should they be letting hero students get into a fight with the yakuza?”

“I’m sure everything will be safe,” Hisashi said.

All for One was sure it wouldn’t. Heroes were morons. They had no care for safety. “Izuku, I think you should sit this mission out.”

“I can’t.” Izuku raised his chin. “If I don’t save Eri, I’ll never be able to forgive myself for letting go of her hand.”

“I have another bad feeling,” Inko muttered.

Over the table, All for One and Inko locked eyes and the place where eyes would have been. All for One’s look said I can’t believe we agree on something and Inko’s in return said I know, right?

Time to increase the number of watchers he had on Izuku. All for One wouldn’t let the tragedy from a century ago repeat itself.

All for One had dozed off when an alarm woke him. He looked at his computer screen, then sat bolt upright. The bug on Izuku was screaming a red alert! Where was Tomura? Shouldn’t he have been watching?

Tomura was asleep in front of a video game. Useless!

Due to the urgency of the situation, All for One only had time to grab the same lampshade for a disguise again.

The villain leapt across rooftops, not caring in the slightest about the tiles destroyed by the springs on his feet. The battle between the heroes and the yakuza could be heard from miles away. He followed the trail of rubble and charged through the broken wall.

Where was his nephew? All for One looked around, frantic. He spotted Izuku, another hero student of no relevance, and a little girl huddled together. Izuku had dirt and bruises all over his body.

All for One’s temper snapped. Whoever had done this must die.

Some freak stood on top of a block of rubble and monologued as he waved his four giant black clawed arms. Whoa, what a moron. Hadn’t he ever read the Evil Overlord List? This ugly mofo could only be Overhaul. The yakuza had fallen far to make this their leader. Luckily for them, he’d be shortly removing that problem.

“Outta my way, fool!” All for One cried, coincidentally kicking Sir Nighteye out of the way of Overhaul’s spikes as he charged forward.

“What kind of hero wears a lampshade on his head?” Overhaul asked, his lips pulled back into a sneer.

All for One held out one finger. With just that, he blocked the yakuza’s punch. “Don’t insult me. I’m no hero.”

Overhaul glared. “Then why are you here? No, it doesn’t matter. You’re about to die.”

All for One casually stepped on Nighteye’s head as he sucked out Overhaul’s quirk.

The yakuza’s arms shrank. The minion he’d merged with fell out of his body.

Looking at his human hands with horror, Overhaul cried, “Who are you?”

“Someone you’ve made very angry.” All for One smiled, a demented expression. “I could care less about your grand goals. But you’ve crossed my bottom line. I’ll engrave into your body that you never, ever lay hands on my family.”

All for One’s arm swelled into a massive, twisted thing. He drew back and punched.

Overhaul went flying—into two pieces. His right half hit the wall and his left half flew out into the lawn.

All for One dusted his hands. “Don’t monologue unless you’re strong enough to back it up, like me.” He looked at the bisected yakuza. “I guess you can’t hear me any longer. My bad!”

Izuku stared at him. He had one hand covering the little girl’s eyes.

All for One felt embarrassed. Why did his nephew keep seeing him with this stupid lampshade over his head? He ran off, ignoring the heroes crying at him to stop.

When All for One received a late night text from his nephew asking him to meet up at U.A., his paranoia went into overdrive. Had All Might found out about their relationship? Was he using poor, sweet Izuku to lure him into a trap?

Of course, All for One went anyway. He couldn’t risk his nephew getting hurt.

Izuku met him outside the U.A. dorm. He waved. “Thank you for coming so late and at short notice. This was the only time she could sneak out. I’d like to introduce you to Eri.” He gestured at the white-haired little girl clinging to his side.

“Anything for you, Izuku.” With a subtle gesture, All for One ordered his Nomu to back away. It looked like he wouldn’t be needing them.

Izuku said, “Eri’s quirk can rewind people. Both of us want to help you with your injuries, but it’s hard for her to get permission. If you can keep this a secret, then she’ll help you. I can’t imagine how difficult it must be for you, relying on life support equipment every day. I want to save you.”

All for One’s small, shriveled heart throbbed. Izuku wanted to heal him badly enough to break the rules? What a sweet, wonderful boy.

A chance like this might not come along again. He had to take it. “Thank you both.” He knelt down and let Eri touch his bald, scarred head.

A light came from her horn. All for One felt his ever-present pain fade away. Looking at his hands, he watched the wrinkles fade away. He had eyes! He was seeing the world through regular vision, not infrared! He smiled.

Wait, weren’t his hands getting a bit too small?

Izuku cried, “Eri, stop!”

All for One leapt backward. He felt his body. His suit hung a bit baggy over his arms.

“Oh, dear. It looks like you rewound a tad too far.” Izuku held up a mirror.

All for One’s teenage face stared back at him. He looked sixteen or seventeen. What the name of villainy? He groped at his face. “My stunning good looks are gone! I have pimples. Pimples.”

Eri buried her face in Izuku’s pants leg. “I’m sorry!” Seeing the murder on All for One’s face, she squeaked.

“I’m so sorry.” Izuku had gone pale. “Please, blame me, not Eri.”

He was scaring his nephew. He’d never, ever wanted to show his darker face in front of Izuku.

All for One took deep breaths and forced himself to calm down. This might have come as a nasty shock, but he’d still been healed. “There’s no need for you two to apologize. I feel better than I have in centur—” He cut himself off. “In years.”

“You’re not mad?” Eri peeked up.

“You have no idea how badly I was suffering before.” Every single day had brought with it twinges of pain. “Anything would be an improvement. I’ll grow back into my old body.” This wasn’t the age All for One would have chosen, but a few years with pimples was more than worth it to have his face back. “Thank you both.”

Izuku smiled. “See, Eri? You can do good with your quirk, after all.”

That was when All for One noticed most of his favorite quirks were gone and went back to internally freaking out.

Attending the U.A. School Festival was a risk. All Might would definitely be there. But as soon as All for One found out his nephew’s class was putting on a live song and dance performance, he couldn’t resist.

All for One pulled down the hood of his baggy sweatshirt. Tomura had lent it to him. It was a fashion disaster, but it did a good job hiding his face. Hopefully by creeping in to meet his family a little late, he could avoid the blond menace.

A familiar heroic grin beamed at him. “Ahhhhhhhh!” All for One leapt backward, bumping into someone.

Oh, it had just been a cardboard cutout of All Might standing in front of one of the festival booths. All for One’s heart rate settled down.

“Are you all right?” the person he’d bumped into asked.

All for One froze. He didn’t dare turn around.

Unfortunately, the person stepped in front of him. It was All Might.

The blond hero scrunched up his nose. “Funny. You look just like…”

All for One’s heart stopped.

“Young Izuku!” All Might finished. “You two could practically be twins.”

“Uh, yeah. Genetics are funny.” All for One laughed uneasily and tugged at his hood.

“You must be the uncle who Izuku has told me so much about.” All Might pumped his hand. “It’s a pleasure to finally meet you.”

It was a pleasure for one of them, anyway. All for One yanked his hand away and wiped it on Tomura’s sweatshirt. The garment would need to be burned later.

All Might said, “I’d love to talk more, but I’m helping patrol the festival for villains. We’re also keeping an eye out for a new vigilante. Despite the rather strange lampshade over his head, he’s very strong. Although it’s my duty to stop him, I’m quite grateful to him for saving Sir Nighteye’s life.”

“Who?” All for One blinked.

“My former sidekick.”

“Oh, yes, him.” Had All for One pushed some insignificant insect out of his way? What a blunder! If he’d known that had been All Might’s sidekick, he would have killed the man himself. Well, you won some, you lost some. He’d successfully tricked All Might today, so he’d call that a victory.

“Back to work! Plus Ultra!” Finally, All Might departed. Whew.

All for One continued through the crowd. A shout drew his attention. “Big brother!”

His head shot up.

Waving, Hisashi ran toward him. “I’m so glad you could make it to see Izuku’s performance. He’ll be delighted.” Hisashi looked him over. “I still can’t get over seeing you like this. I’m taller than you!”

“Not for much longer,” All for One groused. If he remembered correctly, he’d have a growth spurt in a few months.

Hisashi grinned. “I could call you little brother now.”

“No. You couldn’t.”

“If you feel so strongly about it.”

“Yes, I do.”

“As much as I’d love to keep teasing you, I do owe you.” Hisashi lowered his voice. “After all, you’re the vigilante who saved my son’s life twice.”

All for One froze. “How did you find out?”

“I recognized your lampshade.” Hisashi shrugged. “You showed me a bunch of pictures of Tomura when I was showing you Izuku’s childhood photo album. After the fight with Overhaul, you finally appeared on the news, and I saw your picture.”

“But…other people must own similar lampshades!”

“Mostly it was just brotherly intuition.”

In other words, he’d given himself away just now. All for One rubbed his forehead. “Please, keep it a secret.”

Hisashi laughed. “Of course I will. I already told Inko, though. Me and my honey-bunny tell each other everything. She adores you, so I’m sure it will be fine.”

“Oh.” All for One had a bad feeling.

“I’m super-proud of you.” Hisashi clapped him on the shoulder. “I did right in picking you as my favorite hero. You’ll always be my number one.”

This got a smile from All for One. “Really?”

“Really.”

Together, All for One and Hisashi headed to their seats. Inko and Tomura arrived a few minutes later, carrying snacks.

As Hisashi and Tomura talked, Inko leaned over and whispered to All for One, “You know I know?”

“Yes,” he whispered back.

“I can’t thank you enough for saving my son’s life.”

“He’s my nephew,” All for One said. “I’d die for him if necessary.”

Inko smiled. “You know that I’ve been suspicious of you. But whatever you’re hiding, as long as it doesn’t threaten my family, I’ve decided it doesn’t matter.” She laughed. “Your secret can’t be that bad! It’s not as if you’re a centuries-old villain like that crazy dream Izuku had.”

“Ha-ha, that would be ridiculous.” All for One tugged at his sweaty collar.

“I’m calling a truce. For the sake of our loved ones?” Inko held out her hand.

All for One shook it. “For the sake of the people we both love.”

“What are you two talking about?” Hisashi asked.

“How well we get along,” All for One said, and for once it wasn’t a lie.

After the music performance finished, All for One leapt to his feet, screaming and cheering. Completely caught up in the moment, he didn’t care if he lost all dignity.

Izuku ran over, looking adorable in his yellow suit. “I’m so glad all of you could come!”

“We wouldn’t have missed it for the world.” Hisashi kissed his son on the top of his curly hair.

All for One said, “I wanted to tell you that I’ve finally picked a favorite hero.” He grinned. “It’s Deku.”

“Me?” Izuku flushed. “But I’m not even a hero yet…”

“Is that another clichéd choice? Favoring my own family?”

“No, it’s a great pick.” Izuku smiled. “I’ll do everything in my power to live up to it.”

After Izuku had to leave to clean up the gym, the family departed to enjoy the rest of the festival.

Tomura nudged his arm. “Fun festival, sensei.”

“Great performance,” All for One said. Those kids hadn’t been half-bad. Of course, his nephew had been the cutest.

“Sensei, I’ve been wondering…do we really need to defeat Hero Society? Can’t we just chill out with our family and have fun?”

All for One considered. Japan would still be there if he decided to conquer it a century later. “You know, Tomura, that sounds like a great idea. I’m glad I thought of it.”

OMAKE TIME!

Omake: All For One, Professional Shrink

Nighteye: I have to know how this story ends!

About to be stabbed by Overhaul, Nighteye looks into the future. He sees a vision of many years later. All Might and Izuku are sitting at the dinner table eating and joking around with a healed All for One.

Nighteye: Huh. It looks like the future isn’t predestined after all. And my ability isn’t always right. Some of the stuff I see is just plain stupid. My trauma is cured!

All for One steps on his head, knocking unconscious.

#Shouto: Hey, isn’t anyone going to cure my trauma? #I’m still scared of my fire half!

Meta Omake: The Crossover with Custody Battle

Custody Battle All for One: Little brother, I’ve finally figured out who you were switched out for at birth. It’s him. (Points at Clone Blues First.) He’s a sweet, obedient child who adores his big brother and doesn’t run around at night trying to be a vigilante. I’d like to trade.

Clone Blues All for One: (Clutches his little brother and growls angrily.)

Custody Battle All for One: Two Izukus of different ages? I can’t pick. I’ll take both of them home.

Clone Blues All for One: It appears I’m going to need to school you so hard your preschool teacher will be feeling the pain.

Custody Battle First/Yuuto: Hey, look, Clone Blues’ All for One is a vigilante like me. Maybe I’ll trade YOU for him, big brother.

#All for One was just kidding about trading brothers #Of course he wants both Firsts and both Izukus #But there’s only room for one possessive sociopath in the family

Omake: There’s Only So Many Dreams About Past Users Izuku Can Ignore

Izuku: Eri, what happened back there? I thought you had control over your power now.

Eri: That’s right. I rewound your uncle into a teenager and pretended it was an accident, just like you told me to.

Izuku: Like…I told you to? What are you talking about?

Eri: The glowing-eyed Izuku came to me late at night. You said you wanted to take a precaution just in case he didn’t stay reformed. Then you mumbled something about petty revenge.

Izuku: Glowing eyes? Are you sure that wasn’t a dream?

Eri: You did keep calling yourself the Second. Second what? You didn’t say.

Izuku: That sounds strangely like a series of increasingly persistent dreams I’ve been having. Luckily, they stopped after my uncle turned into a teenager. Funny coincidence, that. Hmm.

Eri: Did I do something wrong?

Izuku: Don’t worry. I think everything may have turned out for the best.