Archive of Our Own ^beta

He had been so close.

All for One was one of less than ten percent of Japan’s remaining population, and who knows what percentage of the world since they’d lost contact with other countries months ago. A virus outbreak- something the government had feared, but was never imagined to happen at the scale it did. Victims of the disease experienced symptoms within minutes, full turning averaging in less than a day. The host would appear to die from the body’s attempt to fight the virus, only to seemingly awaken again. But they would have lost all sense of self, of mind.

They were thoughtless, and highly aggressive. Volatile enough to attack those still healthy, and continue the cycle like a case of vampirism gone mad.

Of all the apocalypses All for One had imagined seeing to fruition, a zombie outbreak hadn’t been one of them.

Still, he was the greatest crimelord in the world. As the government crumbled in the early weeks, he only took a stronger grip from the shadows. He found a territory to protect, salvaged enough of his men to fortify it, then kept things welcome enough on the surface that survivors would come to him, would see him as the savior he was.

Behind the scenes, he and the doctor worked tirelessly to find a solution. Not a cure- though he allowed many of the groups that entered to believe that was the case. Rather, they sought a way to control the horde. If they could make the living dead obey their commands, it was the key to labor that needed no rest, armies that needed no food.

A way to cement his power as the victor over the ashen remains of the human race, for as long as humanity still lingered on.

There’d been a recent breakthrough for the doctor; he was sure he could make the undead to answer to All for One’s call. But he needed additional materials, things that were precious few in the aftermath of the apocalypse.

Normally they would send some of their men for resources, but this was too close to the territory held by that blasted ex-NPA Commissioner General Toshinori. Since the man couldn’t help but play hero despite the fall of the system he worked for, he’d been the biggest threat to All for One’s success thus far- spreading information about his dealings, dissuading the remaining survivors from approaching him.

Well, the action only brought to him the most desperate, the most willing to do the worst things. And once All for One found a way to feed Yagi to the undead, things would be all the better.

Seeking out what the good doctor required, he’d been led to what remained of the genetics labs in Kamino.

He’d killed a couple of Yagi’s scouts on his way in- he’d known there wasn’t much time, that there was always a chance he’d be followed. So he set a trap, cut open a gas line in what they’d assume to be his exit, then set a burner on in the far room. All he’d needed was ten minutes; the doctor had given him the exact location of the remaining serum.

But when he got there, the samples were already gone.

Somehow, the information must have slipped to that buffoon Toshinori’s frail band of survivors. And before he could think to check any other areas, several of the rebels came into the room, surrounding him with the intention of bringing him down.

As if anyone could. He feared no foe, alive or dead.

But he’d miscalculated on how long the gasoline would hit the fire. Hisashi Shigaraki had seen the burst of light, looking up to the window reflexively just as he gutted the last man. The shockwave immediately burst the glass, it’s light blinding him. He closed his eyes too late against projectiles that were not hindered by flesh.

Then, absolute agony.

Pain was a familiar concept, in the last five months since the apocalypse had begun and the world’s population was rapidly transformed into flesh hunting monsters. There was the pain of losing your old life, the death of loved ones you’d never know the fate of. The physical pain of going hungry for days while not knowing if you would find the next meager meal to carry on. Even a man as great as Shigaraki understood the flare of ache from bloodied knuckles fighting, stab wounds and broken bones.

Pain was a familiar friend to a survivor. But now Hisashi Shigaraki felt agony.

All for One had been thrown back with a cry, lying over the killed body for who knows how long. When he’d come too, the world remained dark, any movement of his eyes leaving him wanting to scream. His hands catalogued the tender flesh over his face, the wetness of his own blood. He could feel more cuts along his arms, his shoulders. Managing to grit his teeth through the pain, he brushed off what debris he could, before moving to acknowledge a more pressing problem.

He could hear the moaning of the undead outside, the shuffling of their feet as they likely entered through the destroyed walls.

All for One feared no monster, but even he knew better than to take on a hoard blind…

Gritting his teeth, nostrils flaring against the pain, he pulled himself up, grasping the half destroyed walls of the cubicle to stumble out. He fought against coughing from the fumes and smoke, clinging desperately to the walls as he staggered back the way he had come, ears listening for any danger.

He probably looked like a zombie himself.

The labs had been located on the third floor. There was a stairwell exit only a few doors down the hallway, but it led to the lobby below, which was no doubt swarming at this point. He hadn’t planned for a different exit strategy- he’d never needed a different exit strategy. And now he couldn’t even read the emergency notice signs.

This is not how it ends. He growled to himself, stumbling and letting out an unintentional yell as the movement jostled his head, giving his failing vision bursts of white pain. I will find that pathetic skeleton of a man, hold him down while my armies swarm his weak attempt at society, and rip his throat out myself-

“Woah, that’s a big one.”

All for One froze, stunned to hear a voice- a young voice, from ahead.

“Alright dead man, hold still.”

“Alive!” All for One grit out, raising his hands and doing his best to project his humanity. “Don’t shoot, I’m alive!”

He heard the soft ‘what?!’ of surprise from whoever the fellow survivor was- not one of the scouts, that was certain- then listened tensely as the soft sounds of clamoring over and around debris gradually drew near, until the voice, much closer, let out a gasp at his appearance. Shigaraki could only imagine- he could still feel the bits of glass, jostling with every step.

“Holy crap- I’m sorry sir, that looks… well, it was hard to tell. That you’re alive, I mean. Are you sure you’re alive? Are you bit?”

“Of course I’m alive.” All for One ground out, forcing himself to stand tall so the other survivor could assess his injuries. He could say he wasn’t bit, but the stranger would check him anyway, if they had any sense of self preservation. The last thing he needed was some teen popping one in his head in a misplaced attempt at mercy.

He felt the feather light pressing of curious hands checking him over just the same. Small, cold, and not particularly strong. “I’m glad you called out when you did. I’m here to help, so please don’t be scared.”

Hisashi would snorted at such an idiotic warning if not for the pain that came from every moving muscle of his face. The voice sounded like they hadn’t even hit puberty- let alone something to fear. “And why should I be afraid?”

“Uh… well, I’m a stranger, you know?”

Idiocy was not yet ruled out. Great. “Why are you here?”

“Doing a supply run for my group. What were you doing here? Do you remember what happened?”

The wheels in All for One’s head quickly turned, weighing the pros and cons for what he was about to do. “I was caught in an explosion. I had been sheltering in this building.” He evaded. Small or otherwise, this space was firmly in Yagi’s territory, and there was a good chance the child had connections with them, if he had been looking for supplies. Dragging the blind leader All for One back to came to face Toshinori’s retribution wasn’t on his to do list. “I was separated from my group a few weeks ago during the rainy season. We had been discussing going to Kamino ward, so I’ve been trying to seek them out again.”

“Oh man.” Well, the boy certainly seemed sympathetic to his cause. He flinched slightly when he felt one of the hands return, giving his own a soft squeeze. “And then you got caught in that crazy explosion…”

“Please,” The crimelord let his voice go soft, still stern but with a tinge of fear that wasn’t quite true. “I can’t see. If I keep stumbling around like this, chances are I’ll end up walking into the open arms of one of the hoard. You can help me.” His tone more a demand than pleading with whoever this survivor was. “I need a guide.”

He truly did, if he was ever to get back to the doctor and ring his neck for this farce of a mission. And All for One was ready to threaten and scare the stranger into submission, half tempted to reach out and hold onto them until they promised to assist. Instead he jumped, slightly, when his hands were immediately grabbed by ones half his size, waiting until he balanced himself before settling them against a pair of thin, bony shoulders. “Hold on to me, then.” The boy’s sympathetic, light tone had turned serious. “We’ll have to move carefully. Do you have any bags? Supplies you had with you? Weapons?”

“Likely lost in the debris.” The apocalypse survivor felt a thrum of surprise at the boy’s attitude. He wasn’t cowed by All for One’s demand, nor seemingly nervous by the destruction around them. Well, children have had to grow up fast these days. “There’s no point looking for them now, there was nothing worth saving anyway.”

The strange boy didn’t ask any more questions, rather he began moving forward, quietly dictating the layout, sometimes tapping the bigger bleeding hands on his shoulders as a signal to stop and stay silent. All for One could feel the taunting breath of warmth from the fires outside their space growing ever closer, the crumbling of the old facility as he hobbled behind his guide.

The shoulders under his hands were scrawny, thin and hungry. There was a backpack, clearly how he lugged supplies, but that felt more stuffed than the body itself. Every once in awhile he could feel the boy glance back at him, the tickle of soft hair brushing over his left hand. He never seemed to grow nervous at their circumstances, at the moans and hisses of the increasing number of walkers.

While he knew his life was in danger, it was hard to focus beyond the pain- every jarring motion of brick under foot or bump into the wall sent his nerves screaming. And he wasn’t even able to claim the serum the doctor had asked for- a miserable failure.

No. I will succeed in my goal. We will comb over the remaining labs across Japan if we have to. While there was no way to see at present, he felt hopeful that at least one eye hadn’t been directly hit. Hisashi was certain if he could make it back, the doctor would find a way to fix his sight, somehow.

(If they could control the dead, then surely they could bring an eye back to life. Even if they had to take it from someone else.)

An agonized scream came from somewhere below them, and the boy halted. All for One read this intentions clearly, clamping his hands firmly on the small shoulders. “Don’t bother with them.”

“But I could-!”

“Those,” he interrupted, as the screaming continued to rise in pitch. “Are the sounds of someone getting bit. Even if you found them and they were still alive, and you have the strength to fight off whoever’s devouring them, they won’t last long enough to thank you.” The fact that he needed his guide to remain alive, long enough to get him to safety, was unsaid.

The boy struggled for a few more moments, letting out a shaky breath as the cries grew weak, muffled no doubt by the mass of bodies it had attracted. He began to move forward, and All for One held on, listening intently for any further signs of danger.

The process was exhausting, and twice the boy had stiffened before turning them away from some danger- once Hisashi had even heard the shuffled groaning of the undead, the boy pressing them carefully into a side room until the hungry body passed.

Even as he battled the pain, all of his senses were heightened to a degree that was going to drive All for One mad. He was trapped in the prison of his own inability- any moment a yawning mouth could lurk from the sides and sink into him, a piece of debris fall or trip him. And there was nothing he could do.

Nothing but follow the careful, measured steps of a literal child.

Eventually, he was led down a floor, and his face stung anew as they reached an area where the breeze was stronger, and the sound of zombies louder. Belatedly, he realized the boy was leading him through one of the skyways that connected the building to another lab- one that had been destroyed months prior. No rational adult had been willing to attempt it; he could recall the dilapidated state of it in his memory.

Clearly, this child had been willing to take the risk.

And it paid off- while the structure groaned and did sway concerningly, his guide gave calm, careful instruction for their movements, eventually succeeding in them getting to the other side.

“Here.” The voice said an uncertain amount of time later, his small hands finally returning to cover the ones resting on his shoulders and giving them the tapping signal to stop. “I don’t think we can safely leave the building tonight- the turned have been worked into a big mess. We can barricade one of the rooms, and in the morning leave out the back. By then any that travel towards the epicenter of the explosion will have reached the area, and the rest will be calm enough to evade.”

All for One saw through the boy’s lie. His guide would be able to still easily escape- likely over the rooftops or fenced in parking lots with his small frame going unnoticed. But with a blind, relatively useless body to look after, he had to play it more carefully. Plus, the pain was getting to the leader. “Do you know how to read medical labels?” He asked, allowing the smaller figure to settle him into what felt like a plastic hospital chair.

“Yes, sir. Though I don’t know what all the terms are, necessarily.”

“This used to be a pharmaceutical lab. Go and bring back anything labeled as narcotic analgesics.” Morphine, codeine; any opioid to numb his face. “And any antiseptic and bandage materials- along with whatever instruments necessary to dose them.” He thought through his situation, recognizing he’d have to make allowances if he was going to get out of this alive. “My name is Hisashi Shigaraki. I’ve worked in the medical field, and will know how to apply things as long as you can describe them to me.”

“Right.” Again, All for One felt the thrum of satisfaction that the boy did not question him. A good little soldier, for whoever he fought for. A hand gently took his once more, and he allowed the touch to direct him to a door handle, showing the maneuvering to open and close it. “You can lock the door here- just above the handle. I’ll knock three times like this when I return.” He demonstrated closer to Hisashi’s ear. “There should be a stocking bay on this floor, so it shouldn’t take more than ten minutes.”

All for One listened to the door open, working to keep his voice light against the pain. “And what name should I call my resourceful guide?”

The door opening paused, and he was further intrigued by how the child seemed to weigh being honest. What use was hiding your identity during the apocalypse? “I, uh, my name is Izuku Midoriya, sir. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

Quietly, the door clicked closed, and Hisashi only allowed himself a moment to contemplate the name, and finding no interest in it, moved to decisively lock the entrance.

The good news, according to ‘Izuku’, was that one of his eyes would still be salvageable.

“You can’t see through it right now due to the swelling, but if we monitor your wounds and avoid infection, you should be able to see again!”

Hisashi Shigaraki did not particularly appreciate the cheery optimism, but he was relieved to know he wouldn’t have to rely on a child or some inept equivalent the rest of his life.

Izuku, he was discovering, was very eager. Eager to talk, to help, to please. If he was part of a group, then surely he had enough socialization, but his behavior was that of someone who rarely got a chance to speak to another. Most survivors of the apocalypse lost that zeal, or what little existed of it was killed out of them one way or another.

To help someone in this dead landscape more often led to their own demise.

As they settled in for the night, Izuku asked what every other survivor asked a new face. “Where were you when it all started happening?”

Hisashi gestured brusquely to what he assumed were his still relatively salvageable clothes. “I was a working citizen, off to a boring day of work.”

This was a simple paraphrase- he didn’t mention how he was one of the wealthiest men alive, before all this. He didn’t mention that most of his ‘work’ was to undermine the government.

(How it was his own labs that had caused the destruction they now lived in.)

“And what about you?” He asked instead. Better to humor your advantages than distance them.

But to his surprise, the boy didn’t respond right away. For most people, this story was their final moment of ‘true’ reality, of the time when things weren’t hell on earth. He’d lost count of how many people told excruciatingly painful details of their day (what was for breakfast, the color of their bedsheets, the inane chore they never got around to doing). Then if they were halfway decent at sharing their story, it would lead to the one moment when they thought ‘something was off’ that then turned horrifically into ‘there’s no way to stop it’.

For Izuku, he kept it to “The city was worried, but they still had us go to school. I guess that’s where it started for me.”

The brusque disregard, rather than appease Hisashi’s normally apathetic nature, only piqued his interest. Why had this clearly eager child suddenly become shy of interacting? “Ah, I did guess you were younger in years.” His voice was rough from pain, but the carefully dosed morphine was helping. He kept his tone charismatic, friendly. “Where did you attend?”

“Over in the Mustafu district.” Izuku responded, short.

All for One was not satisfied. “It must have been the people screaming in the streets, then.” He tried to lightly coax. “Or did the teacher try to send you home?”

“No, it…” Izuku trailed off, and Hisashi painstakingly adjusted his posture to show he was expecting further information. “… one of our classmates was late. Looking back, he probably got attacked on the way to school. And even though it would have been frightening, he just… kept to routine. Maybe he was going to come in and show the teacher what happened, before getting help. But he didn’t make it- well, ‘he’ didn’t make it. He went for the girl that normally sat near the door, and the teacher tried to pull him off. It went pretty downhill after that.”

Hisashi felt some level of fascination. He’d heard all about the woes of the by stander at the store, the office worker, the hospital personnel who realized this couldn’t be contained. Aside from his own protégé, a child’s perspective had not yet been shared.

There were precious few left of those in his new world.

“And how did you escape?” He felt that was the appropriate response.

Izuku made a derisive sound, as if he found the situation ironic. “Everyone ran. I wanted to help our teacher. And Harumi-san, the girl he’d attacked. Kaacha- uh, my friend tried to drag me away. And…”

All for One waited what he felt was the appropriate amount of time for the boy to stew. “And then you escaped?”

“… And then I survived, yeah.”

“Hmm. A good thing you managed that day.”

“Sure, a good thing.”

“What do you see our chances being to escape here?” Hisashi queried, curious.

The topic change seemed to put the child into a better mood, or at least one he felt was more tolerable. “It’s going to be tricky, I won’t lie. But I think I can get us out tomorrow, and far enough from the main hoard that you can safely recover.”

“I’d like to get back to my group before then.” Hisashi didn’t say it as a request. The longer they were without his leadership, the trickier things would become for Garaki and Tomura. While he trusted them to an extent, he would not let the empire he was building from the ashes crumble so easily. “How long will it take us for you to guide me towards the warehouse district?”

The child became rather quiet at that, and Hisashi had a suspicion as to why. Still, it was worth risking if his little tool could get him as close to home as possible, before he became of no further use.

“Your group…” the child started, just as Hisashi predicted. “That area is awfully close where the followers of All for One go; they control a large detention center there.”

Yagi-san, spreading fear in your followers to keep them from real power. “For the sake of supplies, my group has agreed to work with his for the winter.” Which was a common enough tactic- All for One did regularly allow outside groups to enter.

(Rarely were they allowed to leave, or even stay alive.)

“Sir.” Izuku’s voice had taken a hesitant note. “Is there anywhere else that you can think of to meet up with your group?”

“No.” All for One leaned back, offended. “Are you telling me you can’t do it?” He should have guessed- a child in that despicable Yagi’s group would be too cowardly to chance such a thing.

“Of course I can, I’ve been there countless times.” Hisashi got ready to be offended- the very idea that one of Yagi’s little followers had been skulking about his territory- but the boy continued. “But I’ve heard that All for One tends to… he believes that only the strongest should survive.”

That gave the leader pause, a lightbulb going off in his head. “You are referring to my injuries- you think he won’t accept me.”

They both paused as a groaning body entered the hallway on the other side of the door. Both stayed carefully quiet, listening to the steady shuffle of the body, it’s abrasive sniffing as it grew closer, closer. Both jumped when it slumped against the door, pausing as it seemed to smell. Midoriya whispered something under his breath, too soft for Shigaraki to hear. Before he could think to reprimand him, the zombie was moving on, staggering further down the hallway.

Izuku waited until the sounds were well off. “If you can, I think your group will need to leave. I heard,” He murmured, voice getting muffled (likely tucking his neck down). “All for One does… these experiments. He’s trying to understand walkers better. He dissects them, takes them apart. I know most people have no reason to mind that, but lately he’s been doing it with people, too. He even keeps a whole stadium full of the turned and forces his people to fight or die by them.”

Hisashi immediately waved his had dismissively. “Whoever told you these things clearly just wanted to frighten you to stay away.” He’d rather his current set of eyes didn’t realize that was true- and far worse than that. “But please don’t worry. My group will protect me; and they should be along that border for the next three days, waiting for my return.” He could feel the child’s indecision and did his best to be reassuring. “I know that there’s a lot of danger, even among those of us who are still living.” He didn’t have to feign pain as he reached up towards his head, delicately patting the bandages. “It would be too dangerous for my group to try and find me, since we’re unfamiliar with this area.” Ha. “You had no obligation to help me, and I understand if you’re too frightened to, but-”

“Of course I had obligation.” Izuku cut off, voice heavy.

Rather than feeling irritation, Hisashi felt amused. “Oh? Do you fancy yourself a hero, Izuku?”

He heard the boy bluster at those words, and felt a smile stretch the sensitive skin. It’d been quite some time since someone dared be more than silently respectful with him. “No, a hero would be able to save everyone. But I…” The boy’s tone seemed to withdraw again. “I’m the only one who can risk it- it’s not right to ask others to when I’m capable of doing it myself.”

The arrogance of this child! He could rival Tomura with that confidence of strength. Though unlike his growing lieutenant, this boy didn’t seem to be attempting to brag. “What makes you think you’re the better fit to help others in the apocalypse? Have your elder’s been so incapable that you feel stronger than them?”

Izuku didn’t answer, but the crimelord was content to wait him out. It’s not like he had anything better to do than play mind games against a child (ugh- he needed to get back to the doctor).

“I don’t, sir. My group- my leader is one of the strongest people I know.” All for One bit back a sigh, letting the boy continue about his greatest rival. “When the world collapsed, I almost died several times. I did my best to just stay hidden, but trouble had a way of finding me. But Yagi Toshinori and some of his men found me. Yagi’s a good man- he’s protected me, when others would have left me for dead, or tried to kill me.”

Of course a child would say that- if they found an anchor in a storm, anyone would say that. “But you still don’t appreciate their methods for handling the living dead?”

“The turned…” The boy’s voice had grown very hesitant. “Most adults, they- they freeze, they panic when they see one of the walkers. But I know how to work around them, how to get what we need and get out without dragging more of them closer.”

That was certainly an interesting skill to claim. “Should I assume you mean you’re an effective killer?”

The boy sighed, rather than proudly affirm it. “I try not to, if I can help it. Sometimes I can… when they aren’t worked up, it’s pretty simple to redirect them.”

“Redirect.” All for One repeated, curious of the word choice despite himself. “Like creating a distraction, diverting their attention?”

“Yeah.” Izuku seemed to settle more against the door, voice growing sleepy. “Yeah, something like that.”

Hisashi figured he had pushed enough of his luck for tonight. “I’m afraid I need to point out, I can listen pretty well, but I won’t be a very good set of eyes for keeping watch.”

He felt the small cold hands pat against his good knee. “It’s okay. You should get some sleep. In a few hours, I’ll have to wake you to change the bandages, but the swelling will start to go down soon, hopefully.”

All for One made a non committal sound, letting himself recline in the seat. He’d kept most of his questions neutral, but perhaps the good hearted Midoriya will tell the confused survivor more about his camp, why he thinks it’s better than All for One’s. Perhaps he’ll even give ways to enter, inadvertent weaknesses worth exploiting.

Part of him wanted to demand the information now, but rest really would be what he needed, especially after the amount of blood loss from the earlier explosion. He had time- the little survivor hadn’t the heart to abandon him.

And eventually, when he did guide Hisashi to the northern border, he would have his men capture Izuku Midoriya, and he’d take great delights in torturing him for all the information needed to get his revenge on Yagi Toshinori.

The morning came in the form of grey blobs.

It gave Hisashi a brief thrill of relief- one eye was still too swollen (and perhaps too damaged) to see anything from, but Izuku’s meticulous work over the course of the night had cleared most of the coagulated blood, and one eye could weakly begin discerning again.

“It would probably be best to still have your eyes covered.” Izuku had pointed out, when Hisashi reported the progress. “It would prevent sudden darkness or light changes from exacerbating the wound.”

Hisashi saw the logic in the boy’s words- surprisingly practical for one so young. But he also sensed there was something else- something Izuku was hoping he would avoid picking up on, as long as he couldn’t see.

In the end, the great man applied the provided cloth himself, content to know he could pull it off with ease if needed. Before doing so, he caught one last glimpse of the greyed-out image of a scrawny young boy before him, the slightly dulled green of his hair still standing in stark contrast to their bland surgical surroundings.

Once again encased in darkness, Izuku dictated to him what their strategy was. True to his word, he would be able to get him to the northern border mark. The best route would be through the buildings, rather than the streets, and Hisashi would have to climb several ladders for this to succeed.

“Whatever gets me back to my group fastest.” He’d stated, in good spirits. By the end of the evening, he’d be home.

They had been so close.

The first five buildings were a very careful game. They paused to split some rations Midoriya had, then kept going. But the sixth building had once been multi story Koban. It was one of the areas many residents flocked to at the beginning of the outbreak, and no one had been willing to clear it out as of yet.

Izuku had been confident they could cross the rooftop, but his bridge choice had fallen at some point, and they’d been forced to carefully navigate to the ground floor so they could continue to the next building through a backway.

“Try not to make any noise.” Izuku had said, more tense than he had been the day before. “I don’t know how many we can expect, and I never really explored the layout of this building.”

The long and short of it was, there were too many. While they managed to pass a few, Izuku locked a whole group into a side room so they could take the stairs, they unexpectedly burst into a lobby, where All for One was immediately met with a cacophony of groans and moans from the undead. He heard Izuku curse, heard the unclipping of a weapon (the child had a gun?) and five shots fired. Hisashi was herded backwards, and he almost stumbled twice before pulling the wrapping off, seeing the blurred flash of teeth as the shadowed things lurked closer in the dark.

“There’s eight left!” Izuku didn’t bother to keep his voice down- the gun shots doing more than enough damage. “I see a- stay back!- A door to the far side where there’s light coming through it, so it should lead us out of here!”

Hisashi stayed behind the boy, turning and managing to discern the dusty rectangle with an unlit ‘Deguchi’ sitting above it.

In that moment, he realized there was a logical decision to be made. All for One was ready to make the sacrifice, to throw the blurry shadow of the boy forward and let them feast on him while he made his escape. It wouldn’t be easy (perhaps even a little risky) but he was more confident in making it out half blind than-

He saw Izuku turn after shoving a few of the walkers away, saw a few more details of the boy’s face. Freckles and smudges of dirt, green eyes. They were looking towards Hisashi- he couldn’t make out the boy’s expression, but it was as if the greyness of his sight receded a touch, and the boy’s eyes seemed to glow-

“STOP.”

The room, filled with the starving undead, with relentless killers, went still.

All for One counted his breathes, trying to grasp what was happening, and realized several things very quickly.

-The walkers had stopped moving, at Midoriya’s shout.

-Izuku wasn’t looking at him, he was looking behind him.

-Behind him, where a rattling breath matched his own.

Shakily, he turned his head ever so slowly, the yellow rotting eyes of a zombie only inches away. The lurker was newer with less injuries- probably how it managed to maintain silence upon approaching. It’s hand was still outstretched for his shoulder, decaying teeth barred and ready to sink into his throat.

“Mr. Shigaraki.” Izuku murmured, his voice carefully unprovoking. “I want you to slowly come towards me.”

Mind in a whirl, he listened to the child. His movement sparked some groans and interested shuffles, but none of the zombies approached. Through his still struggling vision, he saw his guide reach out and take his hand.

The zombie that had come up behind All for One snapped it’s teeth, letting out a hiss in what could almost be read as dissatisfaction.

Izuku stared hard at it, before pointing towards the back hallway. “Leave.” He commanded, voice delving into its own guttural rattle.

And to All for One’s astonishment, they did. All of them began to shuffle away, staring at Hisashi with barely contained bloodlust.

The moment enough of an opening was made, Izuku wasted no time. He moved them forward- directly bumping into a woman who’d lost her lower jaw- then firmly shut pushed out of the space and into the open air.

All for One kept his peace; still coming to grips with how close the attack had come. The open sunlight burned against his recovering eye, and he hastily covered it while Izuku continued to guide him with more urgency.

Eventually, they had a moment to collect themselves in an old alley, and All for One decided to no longer bide his time.

“Alright.” Izuku murmured as he kept an eye on the walkers lumbering nearby. “The northern fence is in sight. We’ll want to stay in here so we don’t attract the attention of All for One’s guards, for now. Where do you think would be the best spot to meet with your group? We’re still about half a mile from the entry, but-”

“You told me you caused distractions.” All for One cut him off. “You told me that you felt more capable than your other friends because you knew how to redirect a walker.”

“Mr. Shigaraki, I don’t want to talk about it. I’m not supposed to.”

“You controlled that zombie.” Hisashi reached out, but the boy dodged out of his way. His disbelief turned to frustration. “You controlled that whole group to stop them from eating us!”

“It’s not as easy as that!” He sensed Izuku turn around saw the shadow of his figure throw hands in the air, angrily hissing out his words. “This time we were lucky- normally when they sense the living, I can’t stop them. But- but he was going to attack you and I had to at least try-”

“How?” Hisashi reached out blindly, managing to grasp the front of the child’s clothing. Izuku immediately fought the hold, but the crimelord held on. “Answer me, boy! They’re soulless, mindless killers. Why did they listen to you?!”

“I don’t know!” Izuku shoved against the taller man, and he grit his teeth against the flair of pain to his injuries as he hit the back wall. The green haired boy continued to fight against him. “’Souless, mindless’. All you adults keep dismissing them as lost causes, when we don’t even know why this happened in the first place! And maybe the walkers do listen to me, but that’s because-”

Both of them startled as a the brick a few feet from them burst, spraying shrapnel. The accompanying sound made Hisashi’s grip on Izuku immediately slacken. A bullet!

“Don’t shoot!” He called up. “Kurogiri, do not shoot!”

“All for One, the walker was attacking you!”

“All for One?” Izuku’s voice went small, horrified. “The All for One?”

Another ping! Went off, bursting at the ground near where his guide would have been, and he heard the boy scramble further away.

“I said stand down!” Blast this wrapping! Wincing against the pain, Hisashi brusquely ripped away the bandages, trying to gage where his team was. The lighting was turning towards twilight, which was much kinder to his vision in the one remaining eye, but it was hard to focus on the details.

He could see his men- Tomura and Kurogiri with that night’s patrol. They were on one of the opposing battlements, Tomura quickly shimmying down the metal while the men kept zombies attracted by the noise at bay. “Sensei!” It was hard to make out Tomura’s expression, but his voice was filled with murderous intent, along with worry. “Hurry, follow my voice! Move towards me- we’ll kill the walker if it follows you!”

“All for One is hurt!”

“It must have been the walker!”

“He said hold fire, hold fire!”

Ignoring his second in command, his head swung to find the little guide, hoping he was still in one piece.

He had pushed himself further down the alley, towards a barrier of rubble that helped keep the lurkers from bottle nosing any survivors. The child was for all intents and purposes backed into a corner, now. The fear in his eyes was expected- appreciated even, now that Hisashi’s true identity was revealed. But from there, Hisashi was at a loss. It was a boy- in the kinder light he could finally see his clothes were dirtied, but relatively well kept. Now, his dulled green hair shimmered against the sunset, ears slightly too big sticking out of the curls. He was as small as Hisashi thought, and even slighter than predicted. This was his Midoriya, who’s voice had joked and teased and comforted him when he could not see. This was his little guide.

He was also, clear as day in the evening light, one of the living dead.

His skin hadn’t just appeared gray from when he spied a glance in the hospital, it was gray. The flesh was sunken, giving the eyes an almost haunted look. Yet at the same time, Shigaraki could see no decay, no true signs of rot.

“You’re the man who’s been hurting all those innocent people? Conducting the experiments?” Izuku shook his head in disbelief, staring down the person he had protected with raw betrayal. “And I saved you?”

“What…” Hisashi let his one good eye stare, wide and disbelieving. “What are you?”

But the walker- Izuku, only paled further, turning and sprinting for the rubble barrier.

“No!” Hisashi glared towards his recruits, half of whom had managed to follow Tomura down the wall. “Stop him! Detain him immediately!”

But even as they moved forward to do so, the walkers filled the gap between them. The priority immediately shifted, and Shigaraki could only rage as Tomura approached and dragged him towards the wall, ordering his men to break through. The boy continued on, not drawing the slightest attention from the hoard as he shifted rubble in his desperate climb.

Hisashi pulled himself out of his protégé’s hold, only to trip, his face hitting none gently against the ground. A white burst of pain left him momentarily stunned. He listened through the high ringing in his ears as Tomura called worriedly to him, felt as he and Kurogiri picked him up, got ready to raise him over the barrier. Meanwhile, his interactions with Midoriya echoed through his mind, the boy’s sweet and naïve voice echoing almost mockingly through his head.

“Please don’t be scared.”

“I want to save them, if I can. They could have a soul, trapped in a corpse body.”

“And then I survived, yeah.”

“Yagi’s a good man- he’s protected me, when others would have left me for dead, or tried to kill me.”

Don’t be scared of the monster that can talk- the monster that wants to believe those lifeless husks out there might be like him. How had it happened? Had his classmate attacked him before he could escape? Did he wait, abandoned and afraid, waiting to turn into one of the living dead, only to retain his humanity?

And Yagi. Yagi who somehow found him, protected him from trigger happy buffoons like his own men, and probably brainwashed him against All for One and any potential interest he might have turned to. Izuku was a living anomaly, a variable he could never have predicted. Did he also have to eat meat like the lesser evolutions? Did he ever loose himself to bloodlust? Why do the zombies listen and recognize him as a figure to obey? No matter what, it’s clear he had greatly underestimated his young savior.

Not to much time could have passed since they moved him from the battlements to the doctor’s lab, but Garaki was muttering around the examination table about mild concussions and lost time, so he supposes something like that took place. He stared at the door, practically glaring, waiting for his men to drag the small walker through, to strap down to his own examination table and learn what made the creature tic.

Instead, eventually (inevitably, he chided himself), the remainder of his men minus one unlucky sound trudged back through, shaking in fear of his reaction. “I’m sorry sir- we followed him over the rubble, and pursued for several blocks. But it’s about to be nightfall, and he’s moving through them like they don’t even know he exists. We couldn’t cut through them fast enough to keep up.”

While he thought of sending them to the colosseum for not being able to stop a waif of a child, All for One instead dismissed them, mind still churning.

Out of a whole hoard of walkers, lumbering across the remains of Japan, fate brought him the one being that could change the tide of his war. The serums, the precious chemicals and experiments they had been conducting- Izuku Midoriya was living proof that it was possible. More than that- getting ahold of him again would accelerate their success. But the boy he had met by sheer chance had already disappeared. Back to Yagi’s group. Fitting, that the blasted man still held the greatest weapon against All for One’s reign.

He had been so close.

"Kurogiri." Hisashi rumbled, waiting until he saw his loyal servant move to his side. "I have a new mission for you and Tomura- one that will change the course of our future."

So close, but next time- next time they would succeed.