𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗧𝗜𝗗𝗘𝗦 ⌈𝐈⌔𝐌 ✗ 𝔽!𝑹𝑬𝑨𝑫𝑬𝑹⌋

Chapter 125

CHAPTER 125: What Comes After

The warp gates continued to blossom across the battlefield—blue-white ripples tearing open the sky, warping the rain into scattered, uneven sheets. Every new portal sent a pulse through the air, warping reality, stretching the storm into something unstable and alive.

Aizawa stepped forward immediately, positioning himself between you, Izuku, and the threat ahead. His capture scarf snapped in the wind like a living creature, coiling protectively around him.

“Eyes up,” he warned, voice low and steady despite the exhaustion dragging at its edges. “He’s watching. He’ll strike the moment we slip.”

Class 1-A moved in tandem behind him—instinctive, precise. Tenya took the left flank, armor gleaming through the rain. Ochaco hovered slightly above the ground, palms glowing. Katsuki cracked mini-explosions at his fingertips, sparks hissing in the wet air. Shoto’s breath fogged, frost spiraling at his side as fire simmered at the opposite.

They formed a circle around you and Izuku—
A wall.
Your wall.

You felt Izuku shift against your shoulder, breath shaky but stronger than before. His hand slid down to brace against the ground—

But Aizawa shot him a warning glare without even turning his head.

“Don’t push yourself yet, Midoriya.”

Izuku froze. “But—sensei—”

“You’ll get your turn,” Aizawa muttered, voice tired but sharp. “Just… breathe for five seconds before you try anything reckless.”

Izuku blinked, stunned.
You almost smiled.
Almost.

Rain splattered across your cheek as a sudden boom echoed from ahead.

Shigaraki—
No.
All For One wearing Shigaraki—

—stood in the distance, half-shrouded by the dissolving remains of the battlefield. His silhouette sparked with Decay, the dust swirling around him like a vortex of broken matter. His head tilted in an unnatural, jerking motion.

Then he snarled.

A sound not entirely human.

The voice that followed was not Shigaraki’s at all—

“Reinforcements?”
His tone dripped with mock amusement.
“So this is the best the Hero World can scrape together.”

Katsuki, newly conscious and fueled by raw instinct, lunged forward, almost merging with Class 1-A’s charge—just a heartbeat before Eijiro’s hand clamped onto his arm.

“Dude—hold it,” Eijiro hissed, his voice tight with warning. “He’s trying to bait us.”

“You think I care?” Katsuki snapped. “The walking corpse wants a fight—I’ll give him—”

A loud, snarling crackle of Decay swept across the ground, stopping Katsuki cold. The air itself warped under its pressure.

Aizawa flicked his scarf sharply, stepping forward with a deadly calm that made even the storm shiver.

“That’s enough,” Aizawa snapped. “Focus on me.”

All For One tilted his head, mock curiosity dripping from every movement.

“Erasure… Still limping around?”

“Still here,” Aizawa returned flatly. “Which is more than I can say for your influence over that boy.”

At the mention of “boy,” the body All For One wore twitched violently.
A strangled noise clawed its way out—

“St… sto—”
A distorted mix of Shigaraki’s voice, panicked and fading.