MHA : Architect Of Time [Rewrite]

I watched as the opportunity slipped away from my hands. No, this wasn't good. If I had stayed a second longer… I didn't want to imagine what would've happened.

The Nomu escaped my grasp.

Dash.

I moved before it could retaliate, narrowly dodging a swipe meant to tear me apart. Damn it. That was my one chance. But at least I had learned something. The Nomu was powerful—stronger than me, stronger than anything I had faced before. But it wasn't invincible. I just needed to hold out until All Might arrived.

Counter.

The Nomu lunged again. I shifted my stance, barely redirecting its monstrous hand with a quick parry. Its fingers grazed my uniform as I twisted, gripping its outstretched wrist. With a sharp jolt, I tried to throw it to the ground—tried being the key word. The thing barely moved, its sheer mass resisting my attempt to take control of the fight.

"Deku, watch out!" Uraraka shouted.

I snapped my head up just in time to see a blur of red—Kirishima—crash into the Nomu's side with a hardened punch. "Oi, birdbrain! Pick on someone your own size!" he yelled. The impact barely made it budge, but it bought me enough time to disengage.

Adapt.

I clenched my fists, my mind racing. It could regenerate. It could absorb damage. But there had to be a way—no, there was a way.

"Guys! We need to keep it distracted!" Iida's voice cut through the chaos. He blurred past, his engines roaring as he aimed a kick at the Nomu's leg. It landed, but the creature barely acknowledged it.

Bakugo didn't wait for any signal. "Like hell I'm letting you have all the fun!" He launched himself into the air with a blast, aiming a massive explosion at the Nomu's head. Smoke engulfed it, but when it cleared, the monster stood unfazed, its charred skin knitting back together in an instant.

"Tch, what the hell—" Bakugo clicked his tongue, landing beside me. "This thing just won't die."

Stop.

The world froze.

Everything around me came to a standstill—sparks from Bakugo's explosions lingered in the air, Iida's afterimage remained locked mid-step, and Kirishima was caught mid-shout. Even the dust suspended in the air refused to fall.

The strain hit me instantly. My body screamed, my vision swayed, but this… this was my moment.

I exhaled.

A second of absolute control. That was all I needed.

I shifted through the battlefield, stepping around my frozen classmates until I was face-to-face with the Nomu. My fist tightened as I focused every ounce of One For All I could muster. Energy crackled around my arm as I twisted my body, preparing for a strike.

Resume.

Time snapped back into motion.

A deafening boom erupted as my punch connected squarely with the Nomu's torso. The force was magnified—One For All plus the acceleration of time. The shockwave tore through the air, sending the Nomu hurtling backward. It crashed through rubble, skidding across the ground before coming to a stop.

The battlefield fell silent.

For a moment, I dared to hope. Maybe—just maybe—

Then the Nomu twitched. Its body writhed as its regeneration kicked in, undoing my efforts in seconds.

My stomach dropped.

Shigaraki's laughter echoed through the space. "Ohoo~, that was fun to watch. But it's pointless, you know. This Nomu was made to kill All Might. You brats? You're just an appetizer."

'Deku," Uraraka called, her voice trembling but steady. "What do we do?"

I clenched my fists, forcing myself to stand tall. My arms ached, my legs felt like lead—but I wasn't done. I looked around, chaos all around. Aizawa was fighting off the bulk of goons and the hero, Thirteen was struggling to keep the warp villain, Kurogiri, from assisting Shigaraki. The rest of my classmates were scattered, trying to fend off the smaller villains while staying out of the Nomu's reach.

We were barely holding on. But... perseverance alone triumphs. 

That was the truth I had to believe in.

I took a deep breath, pushing past the exhaustion clawing at my limbs. If the Nomu was designed to kill All Might, then that meant it had limits. It could regenerate, but regeneration wasn't instant. It could absorb impact, but not indefinitely. And most importantly—it wasn't invincible.

I just had to be faster. Stronger. Smarter.

"Bakugo, Iida, Kirishima—we're taking this thing down!" I barked, my mind racing through every possible strategy. "We can't overpower it, but we can outmaneuver it! We need to separate it from Shigaraki and Kurogiri. If we keep it isolated, we can stall until All Might arrives!"

"Tch. Like I need you telling me that," Bakugo scoffed, but his palms were already sparking with renewed intensity.

Kirishima cracked his knuckles, his grin sharp and determined. "Hell yeah, let's wreck this thing!"

Iida gave a firm nod. "Understood! I'll handle distractions and make sure the others stay safe!"

We moved.

I dashed forward first, forcing the Nomu's attention back to me. It reacted instantly, swinging a monstrous fist my way. Time slowed in my mind as I twisted, letting the attack brush past me before countering with a full-powered kick to its knee. The impact landed—but instead of trying to overpower it, I used the force to push myself back, resetting my stance.

Kirishima followed up immediately, his hardened fists slamming into the same spot, his strikes relentless and precise. "Oi, come on, you big freak! That all you got?!"

The Nomu roared and swung wildly, but Iida blurred in, using his speed to weave between its attacks, forcing it to split its focus. And Bakugo? He was already airborne, setting up his attack.

"Move it, extras!" Bakugo snarled.

I ducked just as a massive explosion engulfed the Nomu's upper body, the sheer force sending it staggering back. Smoke and fire erupted, momentarily obscuring it from view.

We weren't stopping.

I clenched my fists. One more push.

"Now!" I shouted, surging forward.

Kirishima and Iida flanked the Nomu, keeping it locked in place. Bakugo soared overhead, priming another blast. Uraraka, from the sidelines, clenched her fists—her eyes shining with determination as she prepared to assist. 100% O.F.A. 

A familiar power surged within me. One For All—at its absolute peak.

My body screamed in protest, muscles straining under the sheer force coursing through my veins. But I had no choice. This was it.

The Nomu's regeneration could keep up with anything less. But against everything I had? Against the full power of One For All, combined with the acceleration of time itself?

No. This thing was going down.

I dug my heel into the ground, the earth cracking beneath me as I prepared to move. Electricity arced across my skin, the sheer pressure of my energy distorting the air. The Nomu—despite its mindless nature—hesitated.

It sensed what was coming.

"Deku—?!" Uraraka called, eyes widening.

I vanished.

In less than a blink, I was there—right in front of the Nomu, my fist pulled back. Time slowed. No—time bent.

Stop.

Everything froze once more.

The strain tore through me like wildfire, but I ignored it. This was my moment. My final strike.

I twisted my body, every fiber of my being aligning for this single, devastating blow. All my strength. All my speed. The culmination of everything I had trained for.

Resume.

SMASH!

A shockwave detonated outward, ripping through the battlefield like a hurricane. The air cracked, the very fabric of reality bending under the force of my attack. The Nomu's torso caved in, the sheer impact warping its monstrous body as it was launched skyward.

It didn't stop.

The creature shot through the air like a comet, blasting through the roof of the USJ.

I couldn't contain myself, channeling the power of O.F.A. through my legs as I launched upwards, swiftly grasping the Nomu by its leg. With a swift spin, I tossed it to the ground. 

The Nomu crashed into the ground like a meteor, sending shockwaves through the USJ. Dust and debris erupted in all directions, momentarily obscuring my view. My lungs burned, my limbs felt like lead, but I forced myself to stay airborne for just a second longer.

Because I wasn't done yet. The big fish is cooked. 

A blur of motion caught my eye—Shigaraki. His hand twitched, fingers splayed as he reached toward me from below. His eerie, fragmented voice cut through the chaos.

"You're really annoying, you know that?"

I didn't hesitate.

Pivoting mid-air, I twisted my body and kicked off a piece of floating rubble, launching myself toward him. He reached for me with a decaying hand, but I reacted instantly, halting time for just a fraction of a second—enough to reposition myself out of his grasp. The moment resumed, and my fist shot forward, aiming straight for his gut.

But then—

A void swallowed my arm.

Cold. Empty. Weightless.

My vision blurred as my punch never landed. Instead, my entire forearm vanished into a swirling black mist.

"Kurogiri!" I gritted my teeth, wrenching my arm back just in time before it could be severed clean off. The warp villain materialized behind Shigaraki, his metallic eye glinting from beneath his smoky form.

"You're quite troublesome," Kurogiri said calmly. "But this farce has gone on long enough."

I barely had a second to process his words before multiple portals burst open around me. From them, a barrage of villainous arms emerged, swinging weapons, claws, and fists in a synchronized attack. My instincts screamed at me to move—

Stop.

The world froze once again, the strain nearly unbearable. My head pounded as my veins felt like they were on fire, but I pushed through. I twisted in midair, stepping past each attack before they could connect. With every movement, I calculated, shifted, adapted.

Resume.

Time snapped back. The villains' attacks missed entirely, their momentum carrying them forward as I landed behind them, already moving.

"Midoriya!" Iida's voice called from below. "They're regrouping!"

He was right. Even with the Nomu down, Shigaraki and Kurogiri weren't retreating. No, if anything, they were getting desperate.

Which meant they were about to get even more dangerous.

I landed beside my classmates just as a fresh wave of villains charged toward us. Kirishima stepped up first, his arms hardening into jagged stone. "Come on, then! I can take all of ya!"

Iida didn't waste time either. His engines roared to life as he blurred through the enemy ranks, kicking villains aside with precision. Bakugo, meanwhile, was already midair, sending explosions raining down on the battlefield.

"DIE, YOU EXTRAS!"

Uraraka hovered nearby, her fingers tapping against broken chunks of rubble. "Guys! I'll make the debris float—just say the word!"

I nodded, my mind racing. We needed to split them up. If Kurogiri was active, he'd keep warping people in and out of the fight. And Shigaraki? If he managed to grab anyone for more than five seconds, that was a death sentence.

"Bakugo! Drive Shigaraki back! Force him away from Kurogiri!"

"Tch, like I need you to tell me that!" He rocketed toward the villain, launching another massive blast. Shigaraki barely dodged in time, rolling away as the explosion shattered the ground.

"Kirishima, keep the small fry off Iida!"

"On it!" Kirishima barreled forward, slamming his hardened fist into a villain's gut, sending him flying.

"Iida, keep moving! You're our fastest shot at rescuing Aizawa if things go south!"

He didn't hesitate. "Understood!"

I exhaled sharply, turning back toward Kurogiri. He loomed nearby, his misty form shifting ominously as he prepared to warp another villain.

I clenched my fists. No more games.

Dashing forward, I activated One For All: Full Cowl, lightning crackling along my body. My speed accelerated, and just as Kurogiri prepared to open another portal—

Stop.

The world froze.

The strain nearly knocked me unconscious. But I gritted my teeth and pushed forward, phasing through the mist and reappearing behind him.

Resume.

With a burst of strength, my fist shot forward, smashing into the armored brace around his neck—the only solid part of his body.

CRACK!

A distorted hiss escaped Kurogiri as his mist flickered, his form unraveling for a brief moment. He staggered, the disruption throwing off his warping ability.

Now was our chance.

"Uraraka! Now!"

She clenched her fists—every piece of rubble she had been levitating suddenly dropped at once, slamming into the battlefield like meteorites. Shigaraki barely dodged, clicking his tongue in frustration. "Tch! You kids are getting on my nerves!"

The villains were scattering, their formation broken. We had control now.

And then—

BOOM!

The entire USJ shook.

A presence—overwhelming, suffocating—filled the air.

I turned, heart pounding, and saw him. I can rest finally and the rest is settled.