Trump Card (Part 9)

The once beautiful forest was now a warzone. Dabi and Shoto's fires were spreading everywhere. Trees were being uprooted by Jason, Chris, and Void. Even the Dorms were completely under siege as villains battled the students in and around them. All Might watched the security cameras with horror. He knew that these students would one day become amazing heroes. He knew that Chris would become one of the greatest heroes. Jason, according to almost every pro hero All Might has spoken to, was well on his way to taking the mantle of Symbol of Peace. However, despite all of that praise, All Might could barely believe what he was watching. This wasn't hero work. This wasn't saving the day. This was war. The League of Villains had stormed onto this campus and were doing everything in their power to kill anyone and everyone they deemed a threat. In true hero fashion, the students didn't run away from battle. They stayed, knowing the risks involved.

"Recipro Burst!" The flames out of Iida's leg engines turned blue as he landed a solid hit on Spinner. The villain had raised his arm up to block it, which Iida had counted on. Upon activating his ultimate move, the force became too great for Spinner to handle, so he was sent rolling a dozen meters. Before Spinner even had time to get up, a massive fist slammed down on him. Itsuka brought her hand back up and slammed down again repeatedly. She eventually stopped, retracting her hand to normal size. She took a few deep breaths, trying to ignore the pain in her other hand. Iida ran up to her. "Are you ok?" Itsuka looked at the knife wound. "...my strength increases when I increase the size of my fists… but they're still just flesh and bone… it hurts, but I'll be-" Kyoko jumped in front of them and blocked Spinner's knife with the knife she had grabbed earlier. The very angry villain glared down at them. "None of you are leaving this place alive!" Kyoko smirked. "We'll see about that." Her earlobes extended and jammed into Spinner's stomach. They sent a powerful shock through Spinner. Her small electric shock would never reach Denki's level of power, but it was enough to stun Spinner. Kyoko ducked as Iida jumped and kicked him again. Itsuka grew both hands and slammed them together with Spinner in between them. She let go of the villain. Spinner stood there in shock before collapsing to the ground, unconscious. Kyoko sighed in relief. Iida nodded and looked at Itsuka. "I'll alert the teachers that this villain is taken care of. You find something to tie him up with/ Kyoko, you need to make sure he doesn't go anywhere in the meantime." Iida and Itsuka ran off.

Denki aimed his hand at Mr. Compress. "Focused Burst: 300,000 Volts!" Mr. Compress fell backwards, dodging the attack. As soon as he landed, he drew the sword from his cane and sliced through the air. Dark Shadow, who had tried attacking Mr. Compress during the commotion, as fended off. Denki and Tokoyami glared. The blonde managed a smirk. "This won't be easy." "This villain is very experienced and creative. We must be careful if we don't want to die today." Mr. Compress bowed. "Thank you for the compliment. Now then…" He raised his sword up again. "...shall we continue?"

Chris and Void tore up the forest as they battled. Chris would try and attack, but then Void would perfectly block or dodge, followed by a counterattack. Chris would then be forced on the defensive. It wasn't a battle he could win. At least, not on his own. He needed to buy some more time. He needed Shoto and Kirishima if he was going to beat Void,

Jason narrowed his eyes. "You're bluffing." "Am I?" "Yea. There's no way to tell the difference between the clone and the original." Shigaraki put his hands in his pockets. "Did you know that clones are only half as strong as the original? It's the reason why the Dabi clones are beaten so easily compared to fighting the real thing." Jason relaxed his fist. Shigaraki took a step forward. "The real Jason, who has now taken on the name 'Void', is currently beating the shit out of Chris. Do you really think that, if you were at half strength, you could do the same?" Jason looked down at the ground, his entire world getting flipped yet again.

Toga rushed forward. Mina Raised both hands and shot out a wall of acid, It burned the floor, walls, and ceiling. Toga lost her smile and sprinted the other direction. The acid eventually fell to the floor. Toga turned back around as she watched the acid start melting the floor. "...what the…?" "I already told you, Toga, I don't care if I hurt or kill you. Plus, you already lost your chance to surrender." Mina brought both hands together and focused a stream of acid out of her hands. Toga rolled to the side, narrowly dodging it. Mina ran forward, collecting acid on both hands. Toga turned her head and drew one of her knives. "Damn it!" Toga threw the knife. Mina rolled and stood back up, catching Toga's other hand as she tried to bring her other knife down. Toga screamed as Mina's acid easily burned through the villain's sleeve and started eating away at her skin. Toga used her free hand to draw another knife and go for Mina's stomach. Mina caught her other wrist and started burning through that arm too. She was glaring at Toga. "Hurts, doesn't it? This is what I felt every single day after you guys kidnapped Shoto. This is what I felt every day Jason was missing because of you guys, This is how I feel every day knowing that the League of Villains is targeting me and my friends." Toga brought her head back and headbutted Mina, breaking her nose. Mina let go. Toga shook her arms, trying to shake the leftover acid off of her. Her skin had melted down to the inner muscles. Toga looked at Mina in fear. Mina got back up, ignoring her broken nose. Toga quickly sprinted back the way she came. Mina took a deep breath and relaxed. Then she looked around at the damage she had caused to the hallway. "...I am in so much trouble…"

Jason looked back up at Shigaraki. "...so I'm a clone." "That's correct. But don't worry. I'm sure your hero friends will understand. After all, they chose a clone over the original. They need to-" With a single well placed sucker punch, Jason smashed his fist into Shigaraki's face with all the power he could muster. Shigaraki turned to dust, having been a clone. Jason swore as he fell to his knees. He couldn't think straight. He couldn't even try to. All he could think of now was if Shigaraki was telling the truth or not.