My Hero Academia: Tropic Thunder

-Narrator's POV-

Seven years ago, Kaminari Raio's life was forever altered by the shadow of true power and darkness. It was a night that remained etched into his memory, raw and vivid, a relentless spectre that haunted the deepest corners of his mind. On that night, All for One, the name whispered only with reverence or dread, came for the Kaminari family.

All for One sought to take Nikolas, Raio's middle brother, whose quirk held an allure strong enough to summon the presence of the most dangerous villain in existence.

Raio, barely more than a child at the time, stood frozen as the chaos erupted around him. His eyes, wide with the innocence of youth, caught only a fleeting glimpse of the villain—a silhouette framed in the moonlight, eyes hidden but presence suffocating.

Their father, Maxwell Kaminari—once the mighty hero Supercell—fought with every ounce of power and resolve he had. Lightning clashed with overwhelming force, storm and shadow locked in a battle that cracked the very air with its intensity. Maxwell's determination was a testament to a father's love, a hero's unwavering duty. But even the most formidable hero has limits, and the villain's power was boundless.

Nikolas screamed as he was dragged away into the darkness, a chilling sound that resonated in Raio's bones long after the night ended. Maxwell's valiant struggle saved his son in the end, but at a tremendous cost. The injuries he sustained were more than battle scars; they were reminders of a fight that no hero, not even one as great as Supercell, could emerge from unscathed. Forced into early retirement, Maxwell bore the marks of that night both on his body and in his eyes, which carried a shadowed look Raio would never forget.

...

For Raio, the brief moment when All for One's eyes seemed to meet his own was a memory laced with pure, unfiltered fear. It was an encounter that carved into him a deep, gnawing sense of powerlessness—a feeling that still clawed at him whenever he faced true evil. It was why, as he stood in Kamino, staring at the same face that had changed everything, a cold, primal terror seized him. This was the villain who had stolen peace from his family, a living embodiment of a nightmare that refused to fade.

...

-Kaminari's POV-

Every heartbeat felt like an eternity. Each breath was shallow, measured, barely daring to disturb the air around them. We were pressed close behind the cracked and weathered wall, its coarse surface digging into my shoulder as I leaned forward just enough to peer around its edge. The oppressive weight in the atmosphere was suffocating, an unseen hand gripping our throats as we strained to remain still.

All for One stood in the center of the chaos he commanded, an imposing figure draped in darkness. His voice—calm, almost amused—dripped with disdain as he addressed Best Jeanist and the gathered heroes.

"You've done well to hold this charade together." He said, the words crawling into my ears like ice-cold worms. "But heroes like you are all thread, no substance."

I felt my body tense as I witnessed Best Jeanist's stoic expression harden. The pro hero didn't flinch, even in the face of such palpable malice. But before any words of defiance could pass his lips, a sound like a crack of thunder shattered the air. In an instant, Best Jeanist was hurled backward, his body crumpling like a discarded puppet. The shockwave of the attack sent dust and debris skittering across the ground, stinging my exposed skin.

A gasp lodged in my throat, not daring to escape. Around me, Yaomomo's hand trembled as she clutched at my sleeve, eyes wide and glazed with terror. Kirishima's teeth were clenched so tightly I thought they might shatter. Todoroki, usually so composed, was frozen, his mismatched eyes darting between the fallen hero and the embodiment of evil before us.

We were powerless, bound by the reality that we were not ready—not for this. Not for him.

Then, a voice broke through the suffocating silence, hoarse but unmistakable. Bakugou. His rough tone was filled with defiance even as he was teleported alongside the other villains, thrown into the scene like a jagged piece of a puzzle.

I barely had time to register Midoriya's shift beside me. He was already poised to move, determination twisting his features into a mask of reckless courage. I reached out, my fingers tightening around his wrist. Our eyes met, and I didn't need words. I knew mine were wide with fear, the kind that comes from experience—the kind that screams at you with certainty that one wrong step would mean death for all of us.

The world seemed to pause, balanced on a knife's edge, until the sudden rush of wind roared above us, splitting the oppressive tension in two. A flash of gold and red hurtled into the sky, colliding with the villain in a burst of energy so fierce it crackled through my chest. All Might, our symbol of hope, clashed with All for One, sending a shockwave that whipped through the streets, tearing at everything that dared to stand too close.

It was only then that the paralysis loosened its grip, if only slightly. Even in this storm of chaos, one thing became clear: we were mere spectators in a battle of Gods.

...

Bakugou was a whirlwind of motion, his explosions lighting up the darkened street like bursts of defiance. The villains circled him like wolves closing in on prey. Every blast from Bakugou sent tremors through the ground, shaking loose rubble and dust that clouded the air.

I watched him twist and dodge, teeth bared and eyes blazing with fury. The street had become a warzone, the cacophony of shouts, blasts, and the inhuman intentions of the villains weaving into a symphony of chaos. It was clear they weren't going to give up. Their focus on Bakugou was relentless, a hunt that sought to bring him back into their grasp.

Midoriya's knuckles turned white as he gripped the edge of the broken wall, his eyes darting from Bakugou's desperate struggle to All Might's battle with All for One. The battle of titans above cast flashes of light and shadow across our faces, every shift and blow shaking the ground beneath us.

"We need to help him." Midoriya's voice cut through the noise, rough with urgency. He was ready to leap into the fray, ready to do what he always did—put everything on the line for a friend. But Ilda's arm shot out, blocking his path, eyes wide and desperate.

"No, Midoriya! We can't—if we go out there, we'll be caught in the middle. We'll make it worse for him and for All Might. We'll—"

"But he's outnumbered! They're going to take him!" Midoriya's voice cracked, raw and frantic. I could feel the indecision gnawing at us all, the weight of our own limitations crushing against the need to act.

My mind raced, watching Bakugou's explosive resistance weaken under the relentless assault. The scene felt like it was closing in, the sounds muffled under the pounding of my heartbeat. The bitter taste of helplessness was familiar, too familiar.

Then, a glimmer of realization sparked in my mind—a way out, a way to get Bakugou clear without turning this chaos into an all-out fight that we couldn't win. I glanced at Midoriya, meeting his gaze as the first threads of a plan wove through the adrenaline haze. The plan would have to be precise, coordinated, and above all, it had to work.

There was no room for failure.

The scene before me began to blur as my focus turned inward, every detail of the crumbling street and the figures darting through it etched into memory. Bakugou's life depended on this, on us.

...

-Narrator's POV-

As the battle between All Might and All for One raged on, the students crouched behind the remnants of the building, their hearts pounding in their chests. It was clear that their plan—risky as it was—had to be executed swiftly, before any further danger could emerge.

The villains, still focused on Bakugou, had managed to temporarily corner him, but the tables were about to turn.

It's time, Midoriya puts his plan into action:

He and Ilda held onto Kirishima, with Midoriya using Full Cowl and Ilda using his Recipro Burst, they burst through the wall while Kirishima uses his Hardening to protect himself. The second they did so, Todoroki used his Quirk to create a giant ice ramp. Midoriya, Ilda and Kirishima jumped off the ice ramp and head into the sky above the battleground.

Kaminari's blood ran cold as he sees All For One, noticing the trio sky above and attempting to attack them, but, just as Midoriya expected, All Might intervenes by blasting his arch-nemesis through a wall.

After clearing the battlefield at a great distance from the ground, the most important part of the plan comes in: Kirishima called out his friend, perhaps the only one within 100 kilometers that Bakugou considers not killing, to take his hand. Midoriya knows that Bakugou is too stubborn to listen to anyone besides Kirishima. 

Bakugou uses a giant explosion to fly to an unreachable height. With impeccable timing, Bakugou grabs his friend's hand, and the group flies away from the chaos that has ensued.

...

Seeing that the plan was successful, Todoroki calls for Yaoyorozu and Kaminari to flee while the villains are distracted. Two of them get up to run, but one stays behind.

"Kaminari, let's go!" Yaoyorozu calls out to her colleague, distressed by his lack of urgency.

"You guys go ahead, I need to make sure they get away. Go!" Kaminari doesn't think the villains will give up on Bakugou easily.

And he was right.

The villains were in complete disarray. They were aimlessly searching for their long-range fighters, both of whom had been knocked out. At this point, one of them comes up with an improvised solution.

Magne, the magnetic villain, brings two others to her heels when she activates her Quirk, the two villains are enveloped in a blue aura, until one of them flies towards the students at an absurd speed.

...

TITAN CLIFF

Mt. Lady, who had been knocked out by All for One's initial attack, activates her ability to quickly gigantize herself and intercept the magnetically repelled villain. The rumble of the collision between the two reverberated in the surroundings, the impact so great that even the colossal hero was knocked out again.

It was here, at this moment, that Kaminari saw the opening he had been looking for. Upon seeing Magne gather two more villains, Spinner and Twice, he found himself forced to break his promise to Ilda.

"I'm sorry, Ilda. I won't be able to avoid getting into the confrontation."

Kaminari's quirk, which had been dormant for three days since he had used all of the stored up to stop the Nomu, had charged just enough for a small skirmish, now it would serve its purpose.

In a split second, his body was already in motion, his limbs moving faster than thought, the air crackling with the electrical charge he was building. With a thought, his electric surge intensified, his body flashing like lightning as he blitzed toward the villains.

In a blur, Kaminari was upon them.

First, he targeted Spinner. The villain barely registered his presence before a blinding flash of electricity exploded in his flank, sending him crashing into a nearby wall, his limbs seizing as the current surged through him. He was out cold before he could even comprehend what had happened.

"Three."

Twice was next. Kaminari didn't even slow down, his body darting past the debris that swarmed the area. The moment his hand made contact with Twice, an electric shock went through him, short-circuiting the villain's body. His eyes went wide in panic before his body went limp, collapsing in a heap, unconscious and completely incapacitated.

"Two."

Finally, Magne. Kaminari wasn't sure what drove him to target her last—perhaps it was because of what she did to Pixie-Bob at the training camp, but in the span of a second, he had her. With a swipe of his hand, he sent a jolt of electricity straight through her, her body locking up and dropping to the ground in a heap, her magnetized arm twitching once before going still.

"One."

By the time Kaminari's electricity seized, it was over. The area was clear of the villains who had been trying to capture Bakugou, their bodies sprawled in defeated positions across the rubble-strewn street. Kaminari didn't stick around to bask in the moment. His task was done, and he was already retreating into the shadows.

As his figure blurred and disappeared into the night, there was a moment—an unsettling moment—when his gaze met the one person he hadn't expected to see. All for One, hovering in the air, locked eyes with him.

"What a wonderful surprise, Raio..."

Time seemed to stretch, and Kaminari felt a chill run down his spine as the villain's cold, calculating eyes studied him, a small, knowing chuckle escaping his lips.

But before anything could escalate, Kaminari vanished from sight, leaving the battlefield in his wake, as All for One's attention turned back to All Might. The two titans clashed once more, their battle continuing without interruption, the storm of chaos swirling around them.