"Filthy bastard," Bakugo said. "You're still alive."
Shigaraki was lying on the floor, barely able to move.
"It's over, Shigaraki Tomura," said Endeavor. "No matter how much power you gain, we will never bow to pure destruction without any belief."
Shigaraki slowly raised his head and used Search. Yeah... he's here...
"Ahahahah..." Shigaraki laughed weakly.
"What are you laughing at?" Endeavor asked.
"You made a mistake, heroes," Shigaraki said. "You thought I was the only one who had to be kept at bay by you, but you were wrong. I'm not the only one who gained this power."
"What do you mean, Shigaraki?" Izuku asked.
Look behind you and find out," Shigaraki said.
Izuku and Bakugo turned, and all they were able to see was the palm of a hand smashing their heads into the ground.
"About time you came..." Shigaraki muttered weakly. "...Mato."
Izuku got up and noticed Satoru. "Hideki! You're here too! This means Oro-san rescued you!"
Satoru didn't say anything. He stayed silent.
"Hideki...?" Izuku repeated.
"Don't call me that," Mato said, without even turning. "That's not my name."
Satoru walked up to Shigaraki. "Rest for a bit now, Tomura-nii. I'll handle them."
Shigaraki did not faint, but he completely relaxed his body and rested on the ground.
"Tomura-nii? What the hell are you saying, Hideki!?" Bakugo asked.
"I already said this to Hikaru, but I'll tell this to you, too," Satoru said, turning to face the two boys. "How could you not notice?"
Izuku understood what Satoru meant by that phrase.
"How could you not notice? Especially you, Izuku," said Mato. "We literally lived in the same house for a lot of time before being brought into the dorms. Did you really not notice some strange behavior coming from me? Something strange coming out of my mouth? Did you really never start to suspect I could have been a villain?"
"You... you're telling me..." Izuku muttered, his voice shaking. "...That you've been by the villain's side all this time...?"
Satoru smirked. "Exactly."
Endeavor's eyes widened. Eraser Head, Manual, and Rock Lock stood in disbelief.
I can't believe it... thought Eraser. The boy who helped us rescue Eri... was a villain this whole time...
"Izuku, does this mask remind you of something?" Satoru asked, extracting his rabbit mask. "That's right. I'm the villain named Mato, the one you fought at the USJ at the beginning of the year!"
"No, I don't believe you!" Bakugo said.
"Feel free not to," said Mato. "The one you've seen in the past months was a past Satoru, a past Mato. I'm a new person, a new being. You can call me by my real name now: Satoru Akiyama. Honestly, I'd gotten tired of being called Hideki... that's not even my real name..."
"W-what did you do to Oro-san...?" Izuku asked.
"That's a great question," said Mato. "I killed him."
Everyone gasped.
No... the Number One Hero can't be dead... thought Bakugo. The hero I've always looked up to... he can't be dead...
"Look at you," said Mato, pointing at the Heroes. "All of you standing there, pretending you're still in control. You really thought that ignoring the people you didn't manage to save would make it disappear. No. It won't. I wanted power, and unlike you might think, power isn't something shared. Power belongs to the one bold enough to take it."
He clenched his fists. "I didn't come here to negotiate. I came here to announce the end of the illusion you've been living in. I got tired of living in the shadows. Tomura-nii and I want a society where villains like us can live properly. This society... kind of sucks."
He looked at the sky. "I didn't enlist in U.A. because I wanted to. I was ordered to. And I'm done pretending I fit inside them. Soon, the reputation of you Heroes will be shattered like a glass of water by me."
"Izuku, Katsuki... I can't lie to myself: I was starting to like that lifestyle. I was starting to like your company, your presence, and I even started to think I wanted to become a hero."
Satoru looked up at the sky and laughed. "But my new self wanted power over friendship! And as I said before, you must be ready to sacrifice something to gain power! In the past months, I've been tortured by Garaki's medical cures, because my body wouldn't have been strong enough to bear the power. Power is something beautiful, and I wanted it!"
"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH! YES, THE POWER OF ALL FOR ONE IS MINE!"
Izuku and Bakugo stood in fear.
"Hideki, I..." Izuku muttered. In that moment, every funny moment he had spent with Satoru came to his mind.
Their first meeting at the school canteen. When Satoru came to live with him. Their adventure at the Shie Hassaikai. Their training sessions.
He's been manipulated by All For One, thought Bakugo. I have to believe this way, because the alternative is terrible.
"Everything you've built denied me," Mato concluded his speech. "This is why I destroy. This is why I deny you, too. This is why I chose power over you. This is why I'm a villain."
He clenched his fists. "BECAUSE IF A HERO CAME TO SAVE ME WHEN I WAS ONLY FOUR YEARS OLD, I WOULDN'T HAVE BECOME WHAT I AM NOW!"
Mato dashed forward. He punched both Izuku and Bakugo in the stomach, making them spit blood.
You're telling me... I trained a villain all this time, and I didn't even realize...? Endeavor thought.
Hideki, I thought we were friends... Izuku got up. "YOU... YOU TRAITOR!"
"ONE FOR ALL: FULL COWL!"
Izuku punched Satoru in the face. The boy didn't have the time to land on the floor when Endeavor wrapped him in his flames.
Hideki... I'm sorry, but I must kill you now...
Suddenly, though, Mato jumped in the air, getting away from Endeavor's flames.
How can he be so fast?
Mato was about to punch Endeavor in the face, but Gran Torino arrived and smashed him to the floor with his Jet Quirk.
Poor boy, Gran Torino thought. I knew him, too. He's Hikaru's brother... I can't believe how much he suffered...
Mato got up and attacked Gran Torino. His eyes were pupilless.
Before Gran Torino could get away, Mato grabbed him by his foot and smashed him on the ground. "I'm sorry I must harm an old man, but this is what happens when you don't mind your own business!"
"Gran Torino!" Izuku screamed.
I know he's not evil... he's just mentally unstable... thought Gran Torino.
"Follow the student of your student in hell, old man!" Mato screamed. Then, he punched Gran Torino's stomach, gravely injuring him.
Izuku, Endeavor, and Bakugo were sprinting towards Mato.
Taking One For All is Tomura-nii's job... thought Mato, getting up. So I'll just beat them up a bit.
Mato rushed forward, getting past Izuku. If there's something I can do, though, it's to erase Eraser Head's Quirk!
In his hand, Satoru had an anti-Quirk drug. If I manage to get rid of Eraser's Quirk, then Tomura-nii won't have any other problem... I must do this...
Mato got bricked by Ryukyu's hand. Dammit... stay away, goddammed dragon!
The villain pierced through Ryukyu's hand, creating an opening. Ryukyu's dragon-like leg grabbed him from behind.
My body's aching... why can't I regenerate...? Is my body still trying to acknowledge how to? I'm drained from the battle with Hikaru... but I can't stop now. I have to... accomplish my duty...
Izuku grabbed Mato's hair from behind. "TELL ME WHY, HIDEKI! TELL ME WHY YOU DECIDED TO DO THIS?! ANSWER ME!"
Mato could clearly hear that Izuku's voice was broken by the pain. Even if he wasn't looking at his face, he could tell Izuku was crying.
"I told you..." Mato muttered. "That my name is Satoru, not Hideki!"
"Tie him tight, Black Whip!" Izuku exclaimed, tying Mato with Black Whip.
"Hold on, Deku!" Endeavor exclaimed. I'm sorry, Hideki... but I have to do this. I'll wrap all my remaining strength in a final, devastating blow.
Suddenly, Satoru's body moved. They didn't notice I have the anti-Quirk drug here... I'll just throw it and get the job done...
An anti-Quirk bullet? Izuku thought. No, I won't let you fire it! One For All, 100%! Wyoming Smash!
Izuku tried to knock Mato out by punching him on the neck. Mato was fast enough and grabbed Izuku's arm with his mouth, biting it.
And now... take this, Eraser Head!
Mato threw the anti-Quirk bullet. It hit Eraser Head in his right leg.
"SENSEEEEEIII!" Izuku screamed.
I did it... Satoru thought. Now it's all up to you, Tomura-nii...
Chapter 64 - End