Our plan was a gamble born of desperation, but it was the only plan we had. Momo worked tirelessly, her breath becoming heavy as she converted her fat reserves into solid metal. The first tower shield she created was massive, as tall as an adult, made of a tungsten alloy she reinforced with internal supports. It was incredibly heavy.
"I... I can't carry it alone," Ojiro said, trying to lift one side and failing.
"We won't carry it alone," I said. "Shoji, I need your strength. Use multiple arms."
Shoji nodded, sprouting two additional muscular arms from his back. Together, the three of us—me, Shoji, and Ojiro—lifted the giant shield. The weight was immense, and we could only move slowly, our steps heavy on the soft forest floor. Momo, meanwhile, had already started making a second shield. We moved forward, a makeshift fortress creeping slowly toward the sound of battle.
As we got closer, the scene became even more horrific. The air was filled with the sound of whizzing metal and an inhuman, insane laughter. Long, flexible tooth-blades slashed in every direction from Moonfish's figure, turning the surrounding area into a death zone. Trees fell, the ground was torn apart. Bakugo and Todoroki were forced to constantly defend, leaping back from the unpredictable reach of the blades.
"He's everywhere!" Bakugo roared in frustration, unleashing an explosion toward the center of the mass of blades, but his attack was simply parried.
"We can't get close," Todoroki said calmly, creating an ice wall to block a series of incoming blades, though the wall was instantly shattered.
"NOW!" I yelled to my comrades.
With one final, powerful push, the three of us shoved the tower shield into the clearing. We slammed it into the ground with all our might, creating an instant wall of protection.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
Dozens of tooth-blades struck the shield simultaneously, the deafening sound of metal filling the air. The shield vibrated violently from the impact, but it held. We had created a small safe zone in the middle of that storm of swords.
Bakugo and Todoroki stared at us in shock. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE, DAMN IT?!" Bakugo roared, though I could catch a faint note of relief in his voice.
"Giving you a place to breathe!" I retorted. "Yaoyorozu is making more! We can build a fortress and corner him!"
Todoroki nodded, immediately understanding the tactic. He quickly created more ice around our shield, reinforcing our defense. For a moment, we managed to hold off Moonfish's assault.
However, in another part of the forest, a different horror was unfolding. Tokoyami's team, consisting of himself and a few other students, was being pushed back. One of their friends was injured, and the total darkness of the forest—exacerbated by the dense tree canopy and lack of moonlight—was beginning to affect Dark Shadow.
"He's... he's getting angry..." Tokoyami whispered, his body trembling as he tried to contain the power within him. Dark Shadow, usually a controllable protector, was now a larger mass of darkness, its red eyes glowing with pure hatred, no longer loyalty.
It was then that bad luck brought them face to face with Moonfish. Frustrated that his attacks were being blocked by our fortress, Moonfish changed his position, his tooth-blades extending and sweeping a wider area, accidentally attacking Tokoyami's group.
Seeing his friends in mortal danger, Tokoyami's last bit of control snapped.
"DON'T TOUCH MY FRIENDS!" he roared, but the sound was more like a cry of pain.
"GRRRRAAAAAAAAAAGHHHHHH!"
An explosion of pure shadow energy erupted from his back. Dark Shadow was no longer bound. It grew to a terrifying size, a giant shadow monster as tall as the trees, its red eyes now two chasms of rage. It no longer had a distinct form; it was the embodiment of darkness and fury itself.
Moonfish, sensing this incredible power, turned his attention. "New flesh!" he hissed, sending dozens of blades toward the shadow monster.
But it was a fatal mistake. The rampaging Dark Shadow caught the blades with ease, shattering them as if they were made of twigs. With one incredible sweeping motion, a giant shadow arm slammed into Moonfish, sending him flying through several trees before finally smashing him against a cliff face until he was unconscious. The villain who had cornered the two strongest students in Class 1-A was defeated in a single blow.
But the terror wasn't over. After defeating Moonfish, Dark Shadow didn't return to Tokoyami. It turned, its glowing red eyes now looking in every direction, seeing everyone—friend and foe alike—as a threat.
"Run!" Tokoyami cried out desperately. "Get away from him! I... I can't control him!"
From our position, we watched in horror as the shadow monster began to rampage, destroying everything around it.
"What the hell is that?!" Bakugo exclaimed, even he looked slightly intimidated.
I immediately processed the situation. My knowledge from the original story resurfaced. A rampaging Dark Shadow. Its weakness... was light.
"EVERYONE, FORGET THE VILLAINS! FOCUS ON THAT SHADOW!" I yelled, taking command. "WE HAVE TO CREATE LIGHT! AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE!" I turned to the two strongest light sources we had. "Bakugo! Todoroki!"
They both looked at me, confused for a moment before understanding my plan.
"Don't order me around!" Bakugo growled, but he immediately raised his palms. "But if it means I get to blast something with full power, I'm in!"
"Bakugo, not a powerful explosion! The BRIGHTEST explosion!" I corrected. "Create a flash of light! Todoroki, your fire! Don't use it to attack! Create a wall of fire! Light up this whole forest!"
They were rivals, but they were also smart heroes. They understood. Bakugo began to unleash his Stun Grenade explosions, creating blinding flashes of light. Todoroki raised his left hand and unleashed an incredible torrent of fire, not as a projectile, but as a stable inferno that turned the night into day around us.
"Yaoyorozu!" I yelled again. "Industrial flashlights! Projectors! Mirrors! Anything that can reflect or create light!"
Momo, who had already returned to our group, immediately went to work, creating a series of powerful battery-operated spotlights. I myself did my part. I manifested the Incursio leg guards and began to run around the shadow monster, acting as a high-speed bait, drawing its attention away from the other, more vulnerable students.
It was an incredible sight. A teamwork born of desperation. Todoroki's blazing orange fire, the blinding white explosions from Bakugo, and the artificial light from Momo's items all worked together to push back the darkness.
Under our combined assault of light, the giant Dark Shadow began to scream, its body shrinking rapidly. The rampaging monster returned to a small, trembling shadow, which quickly retreated back into the back of Tokoyami, who had fallen to his knees from exhaustion and guilt.
We had succeeded. We had defeated two major threats through perfect teamwork. For a moment, we all stopped, panting in the light of our man-made bonfire, surrounded by the destroyed forest. The groups that had been separated had now united into one large, battered but resilient unit.
It was then that Aizawa-sensei finally arrived, leaping down from a tree branch, his eyes scanning the scene—the unconscious Moonfish, the trembling Tokoyami, the stretcher-bound Midoriya, and the rest of us, exhausted.
"Excellent work," he said, and I could hear a rare note of relief and pride in his voice. "All of you..."
He didn't get to finish his sentence.
From the top of a nearby tree, a cheerful and theatrical voice sounded. "Oh, oh! Look what we have here! All the precious lambs have gathered in one place! You really make my job so much easier!"
We all looked up in horror. Standing casually on a branch was a man wearing a mask and a top hat. Mr. Compress. Between his fingers, a small, glittering blue marble was visible. Before any of us could react, he leaped down with surprising speed and agility, his target perfectly clear.
He wasn't aiming for Midoriya. He wasn't aiming for me. He was aiming for the grand prize.
"Time for the main event!" he exclaimed cheerfully as he lunged straight for our group.