One for All (Part 3)

All for One took an uneasy breath as he sat down on a medical table, dressed in nothing but a medical gown and an oxygen mask, hooked up to a nearby oxygen tank. Shigaraki was close by. "Are you sure about this, master?" "Shigaraki, what have I told you about referring to me as master?" "...apologies, All for One." The older villain smiled. "You've been the leader of the underground for six months now. Your League of Villains has grown into something truly terrifying, and a part of me is disappointed that I won't be able to witness what you do with this newfound authority." Dr. Nomura entered the room, carrying a plate of vials filled with a strange liquid. Right behind him was a taller man in a black business suit. He bowed his head. "Good afternoon sir. Good afternoon All for One." Shigaraki glared. "Do I know you?" The business man chuckled. "I suppose you don't. My name is Kazuo. Legally, I run a pharmaceutical company called 'Aid Tech', which acts as legal revenue for All for One, and it's also a cover for the former master's drug programs." Dr. Nomura set the vials down on the table. "This new drug is just a prototype, and isn't even named yet, but it provides a significant power boost to physical strength, speed, and to the quirk of the user. Unfortunately, it's incredibly volatile." Kazuo nodded his head. "Every single test subject suffered from heart failure." Dr. Nomura let out a single laugh. "Sure, I suppose we're just calling it heart failure. Those subjects' hearts literally exploded after ten minutes of the drug running through their bodies." Nomura turned to All for One. "But don't worry, sir. This newest batch is much more successful. My estimate is that, combined with your healing quirk and the quirk enhancer working together, you should easily survive the use of this drug while receiving all of its benefits."

Shigaraki turned to his former master. "All for One, you've made it pretty clear you have no interest in resuming your position as leader of the criminal underground. You've left that role to me and the League of Villains. If that's the case, what are you planning?" All for One chuckled. "As I've already told you, Shigaraki, I'm too old to keep doing this. All Might has defeated me twice, leaving me horribly injured both times. This drug should allow me 24 hours of unrestrained freedom. I plan on finishing my score with All Might. I assume that heroes from all over will gather after I kill the former Symbol of Peace, and I'll kill as many of them as I can for you." Dr. Nomura drew some blood from All for One's arm while he talked. "You've become a wonderful leader, Shigaraki. I knew you were destined for greatness the moment I laid eyes on you. In the span of half a year, your League of Villains has grown from a handful of powerful members to nearly 10,000 crooks and villains across the west coast. I've taught you everything I know even before I was locked up. Now that you've met Kazuo, you've met every single one of my contacts, and now have their loyalty."

Shigaraki took his mask off and stared down at the ground. "...so that's it… this is goodbye…?" All for One turned to Shigaraki. "Come here." Shigaraki stepped forward. All for One put a hand on his former student's shoulder. "I know you'll be fine without me. There is just one more thing I need to give you before you're truly ready to replace me." Shigaraki seemed confused. Nomura and Kazuo looked at each other before smiling and taking a few steps back. Shigaraki seemed confused, but then felt a jolt in his shoulder. It was the same pain he felt upon first interacting with All for One over a decade ago. Then, once more, the pain stopped as quickly as it had come. All for One smiled. "It's done." Shigaraki looked down at himself before looking back up at All for One. "What's done? What happened?" All for One removed his hand from Shigaraki's shoulder. "I gave you my quirk. All for One is yours to control."

Once the drug had been injected, Nomura quickly removed All for One's oxygen mask and began putting on another metal framework, similar to what All for One had been wearing in his last battle with All Might. Once the mask was attached and the tubes were set up, All for One finally took in another breath. "This mask is better than the last one, doctor." Nomura smiled underneath his mustache. "I tried to give you my best work last time. Now that we know for a fact this will be your last battle, I worked even harder on this design. A slicker design will allow for more fluid movement while airborne, and the tubes are reinforced to allow oxygen flow to the mask even when damaged. I kept most of the original look, however, since you wanted to keep your face hidden. Your new suit is ready as well, and I even managed to find that 'upgrade' you wanted." All for One stood up from the medical table, now completely unaffected by his injuries thanks to the drug now coursing through his body. "Perfect. Time to get dressed for the day."

Shigaraki, Nomura, and Kazuo all waited in Nomura's lab. The doctor typed away on his computer. "I like this new lab, boss. I always need more room to make Nomus, and this place is big enough for me to triple production." Shigaraki didn't answer. Nomura spun his chair around to face Shigaraki. "Boss?" Shigaraki turned to him. "I'm still getting used to hearing that from you." Nomura smiled. "I understand. It's not every day that someone becomes the new leader of the underground." Kazuo looked at the doctor. "Given that you seem to hold this young man in such high regard, I feel like this will be a bright future for those in illicit business." Nomura turned to the black haired businessman. "That reminds me for whatever reason. Don't you have children of your own?" The man laughed as he ran his hand through his jet-black hair. "Yes, I have a son and a daughter. My son, Akura, is at Harvard. He's getting a business degree so he won't ruin everything once he takes over Aid Tech." Nomura laughed. "Getting a legal degree to run a legal business for illegal customers." Shigaraki took a deep breath, about to scold them for talking so casually at such a critical hour. However, he bit his tongue. All for One always spoke casually to his subordinates when there wasn't work to be done, or if they were just waiting. Even he was casual with the core members of the League of Villains. So instead, Shigaraki played along. "And what of your daughter?" Kazuo sighed as he slowly lost his smile. "My daughter is certainly the black sheep of the family. She decided she wanted to be a hero, and got accepted into a hero school. I haven't spoken to her since she was 16."

The trio fell silent as All for One entered the lab. He was wearing another black suit, but this one had a single unique change. All for One now wore a tattered white cape only attached to his left shoulder, similar to a paludament, or a one shoulder cape. Shigaraki seemed confused by this. "What's with the cape?" "Ah, this is just some old memorabilia that I know All Might will appreciate. Nomura, are they ready?" The Doctor turned back to his computer and entered a few commands. "Yes, All for One. All eight of the High End Nomus are ready for you to-" "No." Everyone turned to face All for One. "I only need four. Let Shigaraki keep the rest." Nomura looked concerned. "Are you sure?" "I've seen the recordings of the Fatgum Agency, along with those UA students, barely defeating just a single High End, and that took the near sacrifice of Endeavor to accomplish that. Four will be more than enough."

Four of the glass tanks opened up, and four High End Nomus crawled towards the group. Kazuo's eyes widened. Nomura chuckled. "That's right. This is your first time being up close and personal with one of my creations, isn't it?" The businessman nodded. Nomura hit 'enter' on his keyboard. All four Nomus perked up and crawled towards All for One. "They are now yours to command, All for One." "Thank you, my old friend." All for One took a deep breath. "Well, this is it. Goodbye, Shigaraki. Be well." "...goodbye… All for One…" All for One waved his hands. He and all four of the High End Nomus became covered in silver slime and vanished into thin air.

Jason and Shoto were woken up from their nap by a phone call. Jason groaned as he reached over and grabbed his phone. It was an unknown number. Shoto rubbed her eyes as Jason grogilly answered. "Hello?" "Jason, grab your team and grab your uniforms." Jason was suddenly wide awake upon hearing Principal Nezu's voice. Shoto was close enough to hear, and started paying attention. "What's going on?" "He's here, Jason. All for One is currently on the roof of the school with at least four Nomus. High Ends, from the looks of them." Jason, still keeping the phone to his ear, jumped out of bed and threw his closet open to reveal two suitcases: one with the name 'Endgame' on it and the other had 'Shoto' on it. "What about the students in the school?" "I have the teachers evacuating them, and the silent alarm has been triggered. I know telling you and your team to stay away will fall on deaf ears, so just promise me that you'll all b e careful." Shoto opened up both suitcases as she sent a text to their group chat: 'ALL FOR ONE IS HERE'. Within moments, everyone had seen it, and running could be heard up and down the stairs of the dorm as the rest of the team went to grab their hero uniforms. Jason nodded. "We'll do what we can, sir." Jason hung up and started to get changed next to Shoto.

Principal Nezu sighed as Jason hung up. He stared at the security monitor on his desk, and saw All for One just standing there on the roof of UA surrounded by four of the High End Nomus that Endeavor barely beat. After a few more seconds, Principal Nezu grabbed a key from his jacket and unlocked the locked drawer in his desk, revealing a burner phone. He picked it up and called. "Please pick up, All Might. Ready or not, it's time to bring Impact back."