Powerless - A My Hero Academia/ DC Crossover

Chapter 65: Red Riot's Gambit

The rest of the raid party was making the most out of the time afforded to them by Suneater's decision to fight the Hassaikai enforcers alone. Fatgum was concerned. He didn't want to leave his protege behind, but he knew that time was of the essence. However, one of the young sidekicks of the Green Arrow, Speedy, seemed to be unable to stomach this and had doubled back to help him. Izuku wanted to follow, but Oliver had told him that Speedy had faced more villains in a month than many did in their entire careers, and that he had utmost confidence in her abilities. Besides, Izuku's number one priority was finding Eri, and taking her out of the hands of that madman Chisaki.

As they continued down the hall, Eraserhead began to grow wary. He felt as if they were being watched, and kept vigilant for any surprise attacks. No sooner had he thought this when a large piece of the wall next to him seemed to spring to life and lunge out at him. He realized that it was the Hassaikai villain they encountered when they first entered the compound, the one who was able to control the cement walls around them. His range was greater than they expected, and was obviously trying to take Eraser out of the fight. His Eraser quirk was too much of a liability for them.

Before the moving wall could envelop him, he felt something push him hard out of the way, glancing back to see Fatgum had taken the attack for him. The rotund hero was forced through the opposing wall and out of sight.

"Fatgum!" Shouted Izuku. "Kirishima, let's –" He turned to face his friend so they could help their fallen comrade, but he was gone. Before Izuku could ascertain where he was, the walls and floors began to morph and change all around them. He felt something grab him by the scruff of his costume, pulling him hard as a new wall was formed where he was previously standing. He looked up to see Eraserhead standing over him, pulling him to safety.

"Not this time, Midoriya," he said. "You're staying where I can see you."

Fatgum rolled at alarming speed down a dark, slanted corridor, coming to an abrupt stop as he tumbled onto the level floor beneath him. He was unharmed, his fat having absorbed the shock of the attack, but to say he wasn't stunned a little would be lying.

He was glad he was able to push Eraserhead out of the way of the attack. He was the cornerstone to their plan. If his quirk was compromised, it would make the rescue ten times more complicated for them, maybe even preventing them from succeeding. But now he had to figure out where he was and how to find his way back. He was shaken from his thoughts when he suddenly heard a muffled cry coming from under him. Standing up, he was shocked to see that Kirishima had somehow accompanied him in his descent.

"What the –" he said. "What are you doing here, kid?"

"I tried to jump out in front of Aizawa," said Kirishima. "But I kinda got stuck in your fat."

"Oh," said Fatgum. "Well, nothin' we can do about it now." His head snapped suddenly to the left as he heard the sound of approaching footsteps. "Get ready, we're not alone."

A large figure came running at them from the shadows. Kirishima barely had time to put up his defense before a large, metal-gauntleted fist collided with his body. He was thrown back at tremendous speed, crashing into the wall behind him. Fatgum was immediately accosted next, his assailant hitting him with several devastating blows. Normally, his fat would absorb the attacks, but to his surprise, he was able to feel every one of them.

This guy was strong. Very strong.

Rallying himself, he looked back at his fallen intern. "You okay, kid?" He shouted. The dust around Kirishima cleared. He was trembling in a large pile of debris, his hardened forearms cracked and flaking. The assailant managed to break through his hardening quirk in one blow.