Iida and Manual walked side by side on the sidewalk, the regular sound of their footsteps echoing between the buildings. The city felt alive that afternoon — cars passing by, the distant murmur of the crowd, people in a hurry.
A woman holding her daughter's hand paused for a moment and waved timidly at the two. Manual responded immediately, raising his hand and offering a warm, almost automatic smile. Iida did the same, giving a slight reflexive bow.
"Normally," Manual commented, resuming the conversation as they walked, "we'd be at the agency waiting for a call to come in. But lately…" he let out a short sigh, "Hosu has been kind of in a panic."
"Is that due to the reduction in the number of patrols?" asked Iida, adjusting his posture.
Manual nodded.
"Exactly. Fewer available heroes and more areas to cover." He laughed lightly, scratching the back of his neck. "I have to admit, having Ingenium's younger brother patrolling with me is a huge boost."
While Manual got lost in thoughts about the honor of having Iida as an intern — something he would definitely tell his colleagues about later — Iida's mind was elsewhere.
On the Hero Killer.
"The shadow moving between alleys and narrow streets, ignoring laws, heroes, and punishment."
Iida observed the buildings across the street, the dark gaps between them, the alleys where the light didn't reach.
His heart tightened.
"Maybe all of this was in vain. Maybe chasing him was pointless..."
His fists clenched.
"Even so… I can't stop. After all, I can't forgive—"
The thought shattered, and for a moment, everything seemed to slow down.
The sounds of the city grew distant, muffled, as if submerged. In the middle of the street, directly in front of his eyes, a figure was there — a silhouette wrapped in a black jacket and crackling with green electricity, leaning forward in a runner's stance, a dark helmet reflecting the urban lights.
And then—
FOOM.
The figure shot forward.
An emerald flash cut through the air, leaving behind a luminous trail that dissipated almost as quickly as it appeared. The gust of wind hit Iida and Manual, making Manual cover his face and Iida take an instinctive step back.
"H-Hey—!" Manual exclaimed. "What was that just now?!"
The air stabilized within seconds, as if nothing had happened. The traffic flowed on, people kept walking… but Iida remained motionless, his eyes fixed on the spot where the figure had vanished.
"That green trail..."
"Iida?" Manual called out, confused.
Iida swallowed dryly.
"Takeda…?"
----------------------------------------
Ryo sped through the city at high velocity, his body leaning forward while his feet barely skimmed the ground. He weaved between cars with precision, ran along the sides of low buildings, and cut sharp corners like a greenish blur.
"I've already gotten the people out of the building," he said through the communicator built into his helmet, his voice firm despite the rapid pace. "None of them are hurt, as far as I know."
On the other end of the line, Anan was running alongside her team, already approaching the building now filled only with smoke and lingering flames.
"Good work," she replied, professional but with a clear note of pride. "We didn't expect to get stuck in that traffic jam… it delayed us more than planned."
She made a quick gesture to the rescue heroes as she continued:
"Keep heading toward Hosu's commercial district. We have a villain attack in progress over there."
Ryo took a sharp turn, cutting through a narrow alleyway.
"Are you sure it's okay for a student to handle this?" he asked, sincerely, while speeding up even more.
There was a brief pause.
"I am," Anan replied without hesitation. "Because I trust you."
Ryo smiled behind his helmet.
"Understood."
The holographic panel on his visor marked the route, and he picked up speed, the green trail intensifying as he raced through the city.
In Hosu's commercial district, chaos had already taken hold.
Police cars blocked part of the street, some tipped over, others damaged. Officers took cover behind them as a hail of bullets struck the vehicles.
The one responsible was a villain with an arm transformed into a minigun, spinning and spewing projectiles nonstop.
"Dammit!" shouted one officer. "He won't let up!"
Before they could react further, another villain appeared. His head resembled that of a grotesque bat, his enormous ears vibrating as he took a deep breath.
"Get down!" someone yelled.
A sonic blast exploded through the air, a shockwave that sent police cars flying back like toys and scattered the officers across the ground.
They tried to regroup, dazed, when a colossal shadow fell over them.
An absurdly tall villain, with rocky, uneven skin, appeared before the group. The bullets fired at him merely ricocheted, sparks flying with each impact.
"Heh…" he grinned, raising both hands. "Mosquito bites."
One of the officers kept firing, teeth clenched.
"Where are the heroes?!"
The villain brought his hands down to crush them—
Until a green blur arrived on the scene.
Ryo appeared like lightning and punched the rocky villain with force. The impact sent the giant crashing into a parked car, crushing its roof before the villain's body was thrown into a clothing store. The villain lay unconscious beneath the debris.
Before anyone could blink, Ryo was already in front of the bat villain. He gripped the creature's face with one hand and slammed it into the ground, cracking the asphalt and knocking him out instantly.
"What—?!" the minigun villain tried to swing his arm around.
But Ryo was no longer there.
"Who're you aiming at?" asked a voice behind him.
CRACK.
A sharp blow struck his head, and the villain was slammed into the ground hard enough to crack it, falling unconscious on the spot.
Silence fell over the area—it had all ended in seconds.
"I've dealt with the villains," Ryo said through the communicator, straightening up.
"Already?!" Anan replied, genuinely surprised. "I knew you were fast, but… the commercial district is pretty far from here!"
"I… just ran faster," he answered simply.
On the other end, Anan sighed.
The officers began to get up and regroup, still stunned. Two of them approached the hero clad in a black jacket with neon accents, a faint green aura still lingering around his body.
"Thanks for the help," said one of them. "What's your name, hero?"
Ryo was silent for a few seconds.
"…Fourteen."
From the communicator, a muffled laugh escaped.
Ryo tilted his head slightly.
"What is it?"
"Nothing," Anan replied, amused. "I just thought… it was cute. A tribute to me, isn't it? After all, why would you call yourself Fourteen?"
"I-I didn't have any better ideas!" he shot back, clearly flustered.
But Anan kept teasing him.
"The other names were worse!"
"I chose this one because... because..."
"Hey! Stop calling it cute!"
"You're gonna make me change it..."
The officers glanced at each other, confused, until one of them cleared his throat.
"Sorry to interrupt… but could we see your hero license?"
"…License?" Ryo froze.
They both nodded.
"Show them your U.A. student card," Anan said calmly through the communicator. "Tell them you're on an internship."
Ryo complied, showing the card. After a few moments of verification, the officers let him go without issue—though they didn't hide their surprise.
"A 15-year-old kid…" one of them murmured. "Unbelievable."
Ryo rubbed the back of his helmet, embarrassed.
"Well, everything's fine here. Thanks for cooperating and for saving us, kid," the officer said with a smile, handing the card back to Ryo.
Ryo quickly tucked the card into his jacket, and before he could even step away, Anan's voice echoed in his helmet again.
"All settled with the officers?"
"Yeah, all good," he replied.
"Great. We have another villain attack a few blocks from your location."
Ryo gave a quick wave to the officers and took off at high speed, the ground cracking under his feet.
The officers watched in silence.
"…Did we just witness the birth of a star?" one of them murmured.
The wind roared around Ryo's helmet as his visor projected the route Anan had sent him.
"A small last-minute update," Anan said. "Two more incidents have popped up south of you, and another to the east."
Ryo frowned as he took a sharp turn between two buildings.
"Isn't this too much?" he remarked. "I solve one problem, and three more show up."
On the other end of the line, Anan chuckled softly.
"You'll get used to it. Sometimes it's like that. Hosu is short on heroes because of the Hero Killer… but overall, this is the basic routine of a hero."
Ryo took a deep breath.
"Got it…"
He ended the call and turned his full attention to the city ahead. The buildings, the alleys, the flashing sirens… everything blurred as he ran.
Meanwhile, his thoughts drifted.
"Hero Killer… What kind of person could be capable of striking fear into the heroes here?"
----------------------------------------
Inside a simple corner diner in Musutafu, the ambient sound of fryers and low conversations filled the space. Bob was sitting comfortably, holding a still-steaming burger while watching the movement outside through the window.
"Pretty quiet today," he commented, taking a bite. "Seems like All Might's return scared off anything ugly in the city."
He then turned to Dash, curious.
"So? What do you think of the internship so far?"
Dash was slumped over the table, chin resting on his hand, a tired look in his eyes as he idly poked at his fries with a finger.
"Boring," he replied bluntly.
He leaned back against the booth, continuing with a drawn-out sigh:
"Nothing happens. Just these stupid little problems… like that cat I had to get out of the tree earlier, or the old lady I had to help cross the street." He rolled his eyes. "Seriously, a villain robbing a bank, a jewelry store… even assaulting a dentist would do."
Bob let out a low chuckle.
"Don't think like that, kid," he said calmly. "Being a hero isn't just about beating up villains all the time."
The attendant approached and placed their orders on the table. Bob thanked her with a nod, picking up his second burger as he continued:
"Helping people, even with the small things, is also part of it. Sometimes… it's even the most important part."
Dash grumbled.
"I know, I know…" he said, not fully convinced. "But today is just too boring."
Just then, his phone vibrated in his pocket.
Dash pulled it out almost reflexively and opened the screen. It was from the group chat with Ryo and Kirishima.
Ryo had sent a picture of three villains knocked out on the ground.
"Hosu's intense. Already the fifth group of villains."
Dash's eyes widened.
Before he could react, another photo appeared.
It was a selfie of Ryo in his hero costume, his black visor reflecting city lights, green lines glowing across his black jacket.
"Here, for whoever wanted to see my costume."
Dash practically buried his face in the screen.
"…Damn it?"
Bob watched this with a raised eyebrow. He finished chewing his burger before speaking:
"Hey, put that phone away for a bit and eat. We'll go back on patrol later."
Dash slowly looked up, staring at his dad… then at the burger… and back at the phone.
He furrowed his brow.
And the next second, he devoured his burger in one go.
"Done," he said, swallowing. "I ate. Now I'm gonna go find some guys to punch."
And before Bob could react, Dash shot out of the diner at high speed, leaving a trail of wind and the door still swinging.
Bob blinked, stunned.
"HEY—!"
He scrambled to his feet, shoving the rest of his burger into his mouth.
"GET BACK HERE, KID—!"
And he took off running after his son, chewing awkwardly, while Musutafu remained calm… unaware that soon, it would escape from the storm that is approaching.
----------------------------------------
In the rundown Gran Torino building, more specifically in the narrow alley between it and the neighboring building — Midoriya was bouncing from one wall to the other, desperately trying to replicate the old hero's erratic, almost unnatural movement.
"You're too tense!" Gran Torino shouted from below, leaning on his cane. "Relax your body! It's not about brute force, it's about vision! You need a mental map of the place!"
Midoriya gritted his teeth, his body enveloped in a faint green aura as he kept ricocheting between the walls like a rubber ball. One jump went too high, the next too short, until he completely lost his rhythm and fell to the ground with a dull thud.
One For All dispersed into greenish sparks as he sweated profusely, breathing heavily.
"I-I… how was I…?" he asked, panting, slowly getting up from the ground.
"A disgrace," replied Gran Torino without a shred of mercy.
Midoriya simply fell flat on his back, defeated.
"Your movements are still all sloppy," the old man continued. "You might be using 10% to make faster, higher jumps… in terms of speed, you're almost catching up to me. But in technique? You're still a crawling beginner."
Midoriya forced himself to stand, nodding.
"I… understand—"
Mid-motion, a sharp pain shot through his legs. He immediately doubled over, gripping his thighs tightly.
"Ngh…! This… must be the result of using 10% jumps about… forty-seven times in a row. It hurts… but I can take it."
Gran Torino gave a lopsided grin.
"That's nothing, kid," he said with cruel nonchalance. "Today, I'll work your legs until you can't walk. Tomorrow, your arms. The day after, your torso. And so on."
Midoriya's expression completely withered.
"…Now I understand why All Might is so afraid of you."
And so, three days passed since the internship began.
Midoriya was sprawled on the apartment floor, his entire body aching, covered in small bruises and muscle micro-tears. Every breath seemed like a conscious effort after yet another "training" session that had, in practice, been a one-sided beating.
Gran Torino looked down from above.
"Well…" he said casually. "I guess you've finally started to pick up my fighting style."
Midoriya groaned softly.
"Started…?"
"You've still got a long way to go," the old man added. "But that doesn't matter now. We're moving on to the second step."
Midoriya struggled to push himself up, his face pressed against the floor.
"S-second step…?"
Gran Torino smiled.
"The real internship," he replied. "Facing villains."
Midoriya blinked.
"What…?"
"Go put on your hero costume," the old man said, already walking out. "You've learned a lot these three days, but nothing replaces real experience. Real danger. Real blood and sweat."
Midoriya stood up slowly, still wobbly.
"I… don't know if I'm ready for that…"
Gran Torino didn't even turn around.
"You've faced villains before, haven't you?" he said. "The ones we're going after now don't even come close to the hell you must have gone through at the USJ."
Midoriya stood still, watching the old man's back recede.
His gaze fell to his own clenched fist.
Memories of the USJ came flooding back: the chaos, the fear, the sentinel… and finally, Ryo. How he had thrown himself at danger without hesitation, even in the face of something clearly terrifying and dangerous. How hard he had pushed, even when everything seemed impossible.
Midoriya tightened his fist harder.
"…That's right," he murmured to himself.
He took a step forward.
"I can't fall behind," he said quietly but firmly. "I want to be capable… capable of keeping up with Takeda."
----------------------------------------
In a dark and forgotten alley, the air twisted into a living smoke. A black portal opened, swirling in spirals of thick mist, and Stain was spat out of it without any ceremony. His body hit the wet ground violently, rolling through dirty puddles until it came to a stop against a brick wall.
Before he could even stand up, Shigaraki's silhouette emerged within the portal.
"I hope you enjoyed the ride back home."
Shigaraki gave a lazy, almost mocking wave of his hand.
"And I hope you like your present~"
The portal closed with a muffled sound, leaving Stain alone in the alley, breathing heavily.
The next instant, the mist opened again—this time atop a tall building, right above a huge water reservoir. Shigaraki stepped out of the portal and took a few steps forward, watching Hosu stretch out below him under the orange light of dusk.
"So this is Hosu…" he murmured. "More lively than I expected for a city haunted by the fearsome Hero Killer."
He let out a short, dry laugh.
"Seems like he's not doing as good a job as he likes to pretend."
The mist behind him condensed again, forming Kurogiri. Before he could say anything, Shigaraki continued, irritation seeping through as he scratched his own neck roughly.
"The society he wants to change with his conviction…" he snarled. "Is adapting to his actions. Shaping itself. Creating even more heroes just to stop him."
A crooked laugh escaped his throat.
"Hero Killer?" he said with scorn. "More like Hero Creator!"
He pulled his hood back over his bald head, his gaze filled with cold hatred.
"All of this pisses me off." he added. "But I have more important things to do now."
Shigaraki made a brief gesture with his hand.
"Bring the Nomus, Kurogiri."
Kurogiri slightly inclined his head before dispersing into a portal much larger than the previous ones. From within it, one by one, eight ordinary Nomus emerged, their deformed bodies and twisted muscles taking position on the rooftop below the reservoir.
Finally, two last footsteps echoed.
The High-Ends.
To Shigaraki's right was Robot—a High-End Nomu with large robotic parts implanted in its body. Unlike the others, its brain wasn't exposed; its entire head was wrapped in a smooth metal helmet, with cold, artificial lines that hid any human trace.
To the left was Woman.
A female High-End Nomu, dressed in something resembling a reinforced straitjacket. Her body was curvaceous, with prominent breasts and a disturbing presence. Like the other Nomus, the brain remained exposed on top of her head; the scalp had been torn away there, but the rest of her long hair remained in the back, chaotic, wavy, resembling irregular flames. It also has a fin-like structure made of flayed skin on the sides of the top of its head, and similar structures on the back of both elbows.
Shigaraki watched the ordinary Nomus below.
"Go." he ordered. "Spread chaos in the city."
The eight Nomus immediately moved, leaping from the building and dispersing throughout the city, leaving trails of imminent destruction.
Then Shigaraki turned his attention to the two High-Ends beside him.
"You two…" he said, his voice dripping with hatred. "Find and capture Rito Takeda."
Robot nodded slightly.
"Understood."
Woman let out a low, guttural sound.
"This will be fun~"
The next instant, both lunged forward, disappearing into the urban sprawl of Hosu.
Meanwhile, Stain finally managed to stand up in the alley where he had been thrown, his body protesting with every movement. His feet slipped slightly on the wet ground before he steadied himself against the wall, breathing heavily and unevenly.
"Damned brat…" he growled through his teeth, his voice filled with pure hatred.
He brought his right hand to his face, his fingers carefully feeling the area covered by blood-soaked bandages. A tremor ran down his arm as he felt the rough texture of the cloth stuck to his skin, still warm, still throbbing with pain.
His right eye, now hidden, seemed to burn even without sight—a constant reminder of the humiliation he had suffered in that strange laboratory.
Stain gritted his teeth, his left eye blazing with near-fanatic fury. A grunt escaped his throat before he punched the wall beside him with force, the impact echoing through the narrow alley.
The pain in his knuckles was irrelevant compared to what boiled inside him.
"He dared to profane me…" he murmured, his voice low and venomous. "Dared to stain my ideal."
His fist remained pressed against the wall, his body trembling not from weakness, but from restraint. Slowly, Stain straightened up, his hard gaze fixed on the emptiness ahead.
"I'm going to kill that brat for what he did to me!"