Yokohama was assailed by a consecutive series of dangerous clashes between the Professional Heroes and the League of Villains.
Just as Tomura had insinuated to the members of his Organization, he was willing to vent his frustration on anyone, and he meant it.
As soon as he emerged, he found himself stripped of his lethal touch by Eraser Head, while a dense cloud of dark particles danced in the air, forming into sharp spikes that could descend upon his head at any moment.
That was enough to indicate to him that things would not end well for his group, no matter how much he despised the idea. They did not have the necessary strength, with or without Nomus.
So Tomura resigned himself to the idea of killing another Hero or UA student. It was not worth the price to pay. The civilians, however...
—Disperse and kill everyone you run into!— he hissed with malice. If he could not eliminate more Heroes, then he would further discredit them.
At his words, the Nomu leaped into the streets and charged at the officers below and the mediocre Heroes who were collecting the first wave of defeated Nomus.
—Tetsumaru, take them down and stop those monsters!— Aizawa quickly ordered, unwilling to take his eyes off Shigaraki Tomura.
Guiding the movement of the sand with surgical precision to conserve energy, Tetsumaru rained special needles down on the Nomu, hitting several in the process, while bringing his caretakers down on a platform of Satetsu.
He was a little annoyed by the fact that he was being sent to deal with the mobs again, but he understood Aizawa's reasoning: He and his aerial mobility could ensure that the monsters did not break through the police cordon and jump onto the civilians.
The sand Senbon swirled around him, constantly firing at the Nomu with the intention of penetrating their flesh.
Since many had seen his performance, the supposed secret of the poisoned Sand had been exposed, so he had no restraint in using it. He would not avoid an annoying interrogation later in any case.
Traffic Warden activated some support device in his suit, puffing out his chest in a manner similar to Iron Man and unleashing an intense red light that bathed the Nomu closest to the line of officers, who were opening fire with their weapons.
Tetsumaru curiously observed the effect of such a Quirk. From the man's brief explanation, his body could emit red light and green light, and his suit helped him focus it in a specific direction.
The green light accelerated the movement of everything it touched, organic or not, while the red light did the exact opposite. Tetsumaru had experienced it before and it still puzzled him.
The greater the intensity, the greater the effect on the targets. Like all things, the more intense the light, the more exhausted the Hero became.
However, Tetsumaru did not waste the opportunity, altering the direction of his sand Senbon to lodge them into the sensitive areas of the Nomu's bodies.
Piston Punch leaped off the sand platform, retracting his metal arms with an audible snap before unleashing a powerful blow onto a Nomu's head.
The creature's skull exploded, and its body merged with the ground with a wet smack and a burst of debris.
Claw Bolt also jumped off the platform, her arrogant attitude gone after the embarrassing moment when she had to be saved by the brat she treated with disdain.
Her agile figure traced an arc in the air as she spun gracefully, extended claws reflecting the sunlight before ripping off half of another Nomu's face.
Tide-Siren remained on the platform next to the shinobi, her legs firmly held by the Satetsu to prevent her from being thrown off due to the sudden changes in direction.
She concentrated her mind and stared at the monsters, unleashing an imperceptible wave of psychic energy that invaded the creatures' senses.
Tetsumaru paid special attention to this woman, as her ability made him realize a flaw he had not considered when he arrived in this world.
According to what he learned from the Heroine herself, her Quirk allows her to alter the perception of the individuals she looks at, causing them a sensation similar to being underwater: reduced movement, pressure, cold, humidity, an instinctive need not to breathe.
It sounded good, and it really was a useful ability, but that was not the problem. No, Tetsumaru's concern was that such a Quirk operated similarly to a Genjutsu, a Genjutsu that he tried to break by interrupting his chakra flow and failed.
Was it impossible for him to undo Quirks that affect his senses or mind?
It was logical, since Genjutsu had rules to operate. But that it was logical also meant that he was defenseless against mental/psychic attacks, since interrupting his chakra would not save him.
—Look out!— Midnight's voice resonated through everyone's communicator, causing them to look up just in time to see her jump off the rooftop, closely followed by a wave of thick liquid that quickly burst into blue flames.
Without much time or chakra to spare, Tetsumaru directed small amounts of sand to form solid disks that Midnight could step on to alter her course.
The flammable liquid, which obviously belonged to the greasy fat man reported by Mei, fell like a burning cascade onto the battlefield, forcing the local Heroes to run like crazy.
A moment later, Aizawa himself leaped from that location, using his scarf—which was no normal scarf—to swing like a certain spider-Hero.
—Tetsumaru, can you handle that fire?!— Aizawa growled with annoyance, shaking the shoulder that had been sprayed by the flaming oil stream in the air.
—Aren't you asking for too many things lately?— the shinobi replied with a twitching eyelid. First, they treat him like shit, send him home, and now suddenly he is the problem solver.
—I'll pay 30% of your family's debt regarding the criminal who attacked you— Aizawa offered suddenly, which confused the local Heroes who did not have the context.
—50%— Tetsumaru bargained normally, turning his back on his Sensei and directing his sand to support Traffic Warden and Claw Bolt.
—Do you think I shit money, brat!?
—Do you think I shit sand, Sensei?
—Terumi Tetsumaru!— Midnight scolded with a grimace. —Do what your superiors order you to do!
—... 40%— Tetsumaru reluctantly accepted, mobilizing the chakra throughout his body and concentrating it in his legs and spine.
In a flash of speed that stunned everyone who kept their gaze fixed on him, both Heroes and villains, Tetsumaru disappeared from the sand platform and became a blurred streak that ascended the burning building, reaching the top in less than two seconds.
His figure rose even higher, soaring over the Villains dozens of meters up.
He identified the lizard guy, the zombie, the handyman, a man with glasses, the fat man, and the magician who captured Sero. All together, posing gallantly at the edge of the rooftop in a position of superiority.
The first to notice him was Shigaraki Tomura, whose crazed gaze drilled into the shinobi's forehead. The second was Dabi, whose arrogant smile disappeared the next second, replaced by a grimace of resignation.
Opening his seals and extending a considerable portion of his remaining chakra, Tetsumaru dropped a tsunami of Satetsu over their heads.
The sand moved like a living blanket, wrapping the top of the building with thick tendrils, crushing and suffocating the furious flames on its sides.
He made sure not to kill the villains by asphyxiation, but he did try to recognize their shapes within the sea of sand to wrap them in cocoons and crush some of their bones.
While he was busy with that, an intense flash caught his attention in the distance.
Tetsumaru saw a torrent of fire abruptly disperse in the air, sending a burning rain to the ground that would surely cause more than one serious accident.
—Edgeshot, Jeanist, Power Loader! Can anyone hear me!?— All Might's worried voice came through.
Tetsumaru divided his attention between the brief conversation of Aizawa and All Might and the task at hand, only to be scolded once more when he intervened.
But his mind completely disengaged from that incident when something strange was perceived in his sand. Specifically, the lack of something.
Chakra was drained almost to the safety limit of 30% to move the enormous quantity of Satetsu again, sending it in the form of a dense cloud towards the ground to appease the rest of the flames and leaving only a few cocoons on the rooftop.
Sweat beaded on Tetsumaru's forehead, a sensation of cold enveloping his chest and limbs. Chakra exhaustion was no bloody joke.
He watched as one of the cocoons lost its cohesion and the compressed sand particles disintegrated even more than normal, scattering in the air like dust with no trace of the chakra that permeated it.
Shigaraki Tomura emerged from the remains with a tranquil stride and a less crazed, but still ugly as sin, look.
Tetsumaru turned his attention to three other cocoons whose interiors felt different. He carefully dismantled them, noticing a strange sludge instead of the crushed bodies he expected.
The fat man, the zombie, and the magician disappeared, leaving only Twice, Magne, Spinner, and Shigaraki himself in the battle.
—Don't you get tired of playing with those duplicates? One of these days you'll start doubting your own existence— the shinobi commented with his arms crossed, still several meters away.
—They're quite useful— Shigaraki shrugged, his tone flat and disturbingly serene. He looked at Tetsumaru as if he were an idiot, as if he had lost and didn't know it.
—I must admit we underestimated you, Terumi. We believed, given the result of the Festival and your sister's decisiveness, that she would be a significantly greater threat.
—Decisiveness? You mean when she sterilized you?— Tetsumaru mocked, causing Shigaraki's gaze to sharpen further, but he didn't explode in childish rage.
—You two are strong. I have no idea where you learned to fight, or how you achieved such mastery of your Quirks at such an early age. I'm not even sure if you only have one. But what I do know is that you overestimated yourselves.
And that is something that brings down even the strongest— Tomura declared with a condescending tone that slightly irritated Tetsumaru.
—Get to the point. My stamina is running out up here— the shinobi urged.
—Kuku, of course... But you shouldn't have wasted your energy so stupidly. In fact, you should have been more cautious in your search activities, Terumi Tetsumaru. I knew you would come.
I knew you were going to annoy me with your damn sand, and I expected the brat to show up next to you too. But I suppose she was sent to the other location. Am I right?
A bad place, if you ask me. The worst place to be right now— the Villain said, looking in the direction All Might had rushed off to. Tetsumaru neither interrupted nor corrected Shigaraki, interested in seeing where he was going with this.
—She might be dead. She might not. Either way, I can't kill you right now, nor can my companions, but that's not what I'm after. No... I want you to suffer, Terumi Tetsumaru. Death will be nothing but mercy for you!— the guy hissed, and Tetsumaru was getting impatient.
—Would you mind finishing already? The chapter is getting long— he demanded.
—... It's not that hard to understand— Tomura said, pointing to the empty Satetsu cocoons. —My colleagues were never here in the first place. As I told you, I knew you were going to come, and I also know I can't kill you right now. But I don't need to kill you to make you suffer, rude brat.
Tell me, Terumi... Did you say goodbye to your parents before you came? Did you tell them you loved them? I hope so. Otherwise, even I would feel bad— Shigaraki Tomura sentenced in a chilling tone.
However, Tetsumaru's reaction was not what he expected.
The shinobi blinked a couple of times, as if he didn't understand Tomura's words. They both remained in an uncomfortable silence for a few seconds, unsure how to proceed.
—Let me see if I understand... You sent the fat man, the magician, and the zombie to my house to kill my parents?— Tetsumaru questioned after a while.
—That's right, Terumi. If I'm lucky, today you'll lose everyone you love, all while you stay here, wearing yourself out and playing the Hero— Tomura affirmed.
—Ah, I see... Uh, yeah, well, I hope you told your friends you love them— Tetsumaru said, scratching his cheek awkwardly.
It was Shigaraki's turn to blink several times in confusion.
—Excuse me?
—Well, friend, who exactly told you Mei was here? And I mean in Yokohama, for this operation and all that— Tetsumaru clarified.
—Are you saying she isn't?!— Tomura asked with a touch of surprise, though not a welcome one.
—Yes, I mean no. We had some differences, and well, she didn't sign up for this adventure. I think some of my classmates tried to convince her, but I doubt they achieved anything.
You see, we don't like the clichés of saying NO to something, only to change our minds at the critical moment and appear out of nowhere with a witty line. She said no, and NO means No, you understand me— the shinobi explained honestly, understanding Shigaraki's confusion.
It was logical to think that Mei would accompany him even if no one had seen her. They hadn't exactly been discreet about showing their bond, being practically joined at the hip.
—That... That's not possible... I, the Master, the Master's plan, the opportunity... I I I can't fail again!— Shigaraki muttered to himself, and Tetsumaru felt the guy entering a kind of panic about failing again.
What did he expect? He was a Villain, failing is his thing. Everyone knew it, otherwise the world would be a chaotic place. Well, more chaotic.
—Good talk, I guess, but I'm seriously running out of gas here— Tetsumaru said, interrupting Shigaraki's unbalanced murmurs.
The Villain's danger instinct activated, and he spun around abruptly only to notice sharp blades made of sand heading in his direction, the trajectory locked onto his hands.
Tetsumaru wanted to cut off his hands and end this nonsense once and for all.
At the same time, the ground at Tomura's feet cracked and burst, more sand surging from the hole and wrapping around the man's legs, the pressure increasing rapidly.
—Hnngh!— Tomura groaned, feeling intense pain in his lower limbs as they were mercilessly crushed.
In that instant he realized the blade was a distraction.
The sand rose up to his torso and shot toward his forearms, chaining them and preventing him from touching his own body. The pressure seriously increased and a wet crunch echoed in Tomura's ears, a wave of pain even greater than the previous one suddenly assaulting him.
But the sensation lasted less than a second.
Tetsumaru couldn't rip the villain's hands off in that brief lapse, which gave Kurogiri—who hadn't appeared since capturing Ragdoll—time to save the day once again.
Chakra exhaustion caused the shinobi to react too slowly, and he couldn't do anything about the gate that swallowed Tomura and the other idiots, taking them out of his effective range of control over the enveloping sand.
—...Damn it... We have to kill that guy first or this will never end— Tetsumaru muttered in annoyance, slowly letting himself fall to the ground while watching the end of the tough battle between the local Heroes, Aizawa, and Midnight against the remaining Nomu.
At least one of the problems had been solved, or rather, they had escaped. No one should be left at the base now, and they could look for Pixie-Bob.
Remembering something important, Tetsumaru brought his hand to his ear and contacted the individual on the other end of the communication line.
—Did you hear that?— he asked boredly.
—Yes. The police received an alert a few minutes ago about an incident in your locality. It seems the attack was real, but very recent— Nezu reported calmly, which further relaxed Tetsumaru.
—But why now? They had plenty of time to act— Tetsumaru asked no one in particular.
—I don't know, but we'll look into the matter. Don't worry, Tetsumaru-kun, I'm sure your family is fine. Your sister is very strong— Nezu encouraged.
—Just Tetsumaru— was the shinobi's brief reply.
*******************************
Long chapter for being Number 100 in the original version (And because the Author was overcome by laziness at the idea of splitting the chapter in half and giving it two titles).