The sky was beginning to turn orange as Reiji reached the outskirts of Musutafu.
The city stretched out behind him like an ocean of buildings, roads, and lights that were slowly beginning to awaken as dusk fell. In contrast, the barren land before him seed to belong to another world. Vegetation grew unchecked among the remnants of cracked concrete, old industrial structures, and power poles abandoned years ago.
In the middle of that forgotten landscape stood an old communications tower.
Rusty.
Weared out.
But still standing.
Reiji ascended the structure with calm and precise movents. Due to Hawks's growing popularity, using public places was no longer a good idea; he had beco part of the select group of Japan's top ten heroes, and that also ca with unwanted dia attention most of the ti.
And that place was far enough from busy areas to avoid onlookers, and high enough to detect unwanted visitors well in advance.
Upon reaching one of the upper platforms, he found exactly what he expected.
Hawks was sitting on a rusty beam, his legs dangling precariously over the air.
He looked like soone enjoying a free afternoon.
Not the country's most promising pro hero.
"How punctual," Hawks remarked without even turning around at first. "I thought U.A. would take up more of your ti, you know, new challenges and new schedules."
Reiji placed a hand on the tal structure.
"You're the one who's always late."
Hawks chuckled.
"You're right, though it's a habit I had to start breaking as a hero." He dropped from the beam with a careless leap, his wings unfurling just enough to cushion his fall.
"It's about ti..."
"You're getting cheeky."
"No."
"Yes."
"No."
"Definitely."
Reiji decided to ignore him.
'Why does everyone around like to tease ?'
Himiko, Nejire, i, Shinso, Hawks... The list was long.
That annoyed expression seed to amuse the hero even more.
"So," Hawks held out a hand. "Did you bring what we talked about?"
Reiji took a folded piece of paper from the inside pocket of his jacket and handed it to him.
Hawks caught it mid-air.
He unfolded it.
And began to read.
Little by little, the amused smile transford into a more interested expression.
"Wow," he whistled under his breath. "You took this quite seriously."
The list contained nas.
Many nas.
So accompanied by brief comnts.
Others were simply noted.
Katsuki Bakugo.
Shoto Todoroki.
Momo Yaoyorozu.
lissa Shield.
Ochaco Uraraka.
Mina Ashido.
Fumikage Tokoyami.
Eijiro Kirishima.
Denki Kaminari.
Camie Utsushimi.
And several more.
"Are these the students you consider the most promising?" Hawks asked.
Reiji nodded.
"The most outstanding ones, anyway, I thought they were all good."
Hawks continued reading.
His eyes flicked from the description of Bakugo's Quirk, his mindset, and his promising potential to be among Japan's top 10 to the vague description of Mineta as a short, whiny kid with decent talent.
He finished reading.
And then he smiled slightly.
"There seems to be a lot of promising material here, and it's only one class out of the two in your generation..." He said, glancing up at Reiji, who was gazing at the horizon, taking in the magnificent view. "And there's also a suspiciously high number of girls."
Reiji already knew where the conversation was headed. After everything that had happened the day before after lunch and that very day, Hawks obviously had to add the cherry on top.
Unfortunately.
"Any of them interest you?" Hawks asked.
"No."
"Too quick an answer."
"I don't care."
"That wasn't a convincing denial."
"It was."
Hawks burst out laughing.
"Co on." He crossed his arms. "You're at the best academy in the country, surrounded by attractive, talented students, more or less your age."
He tapped the paper.
"And you're telling you're not attracted to anyone?"
"I'm not here for that."
"Ah."
Hawks raised a hand.
Then he began to mimic him in an exaggeratedly serious voice.
"'I have a mission.'"
Another hand.
"'I must protect the future.'"
Another.
"'There's no ti for distractions.'"
Reiji watched him.
"You're having too much fun."
"A lot," Hawks replied shalessly. "I can't believe a teenager is much more bitter than ."
Then he smiled.
"But if you ever fall in love with soone, let know."
"Why?"
"Because I want to witness the miracle," he revealed instantly. "And besides, I could give you a couple of tips. You don't seem particularly romantic."
Reiji sighed.
Hawks continued to chuckle to himself.
Eventually, the conversation returned to more important matters.
"What about the teachers?" he asked. "Any problems?"
Reiji took a few seconds to reply.
"Aizawa is very observant..." He paused briefly. "I think he knows I was the one he found in that basent during the investigation against Giran, but without proof, he can't fra ."
From day one, more specifically, since he tried to erase his Quirk during the entrance exam, Aizawa seed to have a constant eye on him. It was normal; he was probably the only person whose Quirk he couldn't deactivate.
That's without considering mutants or those with passive Quirks.
Clearly, that alone was enough for him to make the connection. However, asking Reiji directly only gave the boy the chance to feign ignorance and simply be more cautious. The hero knew this, and that was the only reason he had remained silent on the matter.
"It was to be expected. His Quirk has been infallible his entire life, and now two individuals capable of outsmarting it have appeared. Naturally, he'll think that both individuals are actually the sa person," Hawks replied matter-of-factly. He wasn't particularly worried. Without evidence, suspicions were just empty argunts.
"Yes, anyway, I have nothing to hide from him..." Reiji dismissed, watching the birds fly by. Silence filled the air for a few seconds until the boy spoke again. "How are things with the commission?"
"Good. Your position at U.A. certainly benefits them. If you finally manage to beco Japan's number one hero, then their vision will have capitalized on the entire hero landscape," Hawks replied. "He'll keep using you like he did during those underground fights, but only to show who's boss. They do the sa to ..."
Hawks leaned against a rusty railing.
"So you've been spared the Nagant treatnt..." The hero paused briefly. "For now, at least."
Reiji watched the lights of Musutafu slowly co on.
That was good.
He needed ti.
And ti was exactly what he was buying.
By the ti he finally had the strength to be number one, if he ever beca so, he wouldn't have to answer to the commission anymore. His public image would be such that it could reach a stalemate, where he could give them a choice: either complete control of the organization or complete freedom.
Even they had a limit on how much they could command Japan's top heroes, with Hawks being a tiny exception since he wasn't particularly interested in being any freer than he already was.
Hawks continued to observe him for a few seconds.
"You're adapting quite well," he comnted. "You're starting to look like a normal student."
"That was the goal."
"More or less."
Silence settled for several seconds.
The wind rattled the tal structure.
Hawks' wings flapped slightly.
Finally, Reiji spoke again.
"There's sothing else." This imdiately caught the hero's attention.
"I'm listening."
Reiji remained silent for a few seconds.
Arranging his words.
"On my last mission," Reiji scoffed, frowning. "There was a person."
Hawks waited.
"Tomura Shigaraki." The words ca out quickly, with a tone that seed to convey absolute seriousness.
"Who is he?" the hero asked seriously.
"That's what I want to know."
The answer was imdiate.
Hawks frowned slightly.
That was strange.
Very strange.
"And why the sudden interest?"
Reiji gazed at the horizon.
"Do you rember when you... You used to watch when I was little?"
Hawks nodded.
"About your absurd intuition?"
"Yes."
A lie. But a well-constructed lie.
"I felt the sa way about this guy..." He paused. "Only a thousand tis worse, a feeling of danger and heightened alertness, like nothing I'd ever felt before."
Now he got a reaction.
Hawks remained silent, his brow furrowed, his face completely serious.
He knew Reiji perfectly well; he'd only seen him this serious once before, and that was precisely with the previous drug incident. They'd finally stopped, and he hadn't gone any further, but that didn't change the fact that whatever they were trying to do was dangerous and could continue to develop.
That made sense; sothing like this could ruin the entire hero system if villains used it consistently.
But now he was feeling that sa hunch about a single person, soone he'd barely observed for a few seconds... Now he really believed sothing was wrong.
"How much worse?" he asked directly. "Enough to overshadow even All Might."
That was undoubtedly an exaggeration; Hawks detected it instantly. Nevertheless, he didn't soften the ssage.
And that's precisely why it was more convincing.
Hawks remained silent for several seconds.
Finally, he sighed.
"Alright." He put his hands in his pockets. "I'll investigate and see what I can find out. Getting the na was a good start."
"I understand. Just let tell you, I feel like sothing big is coming," Reiji finally warned.
"Then be careful."
"You too."
"If anything related to that na cos up again..."
Hawks smiled slightly.
"You'll be the first to know."
Reiji nodded at the response; that was enough.
"You know where to find ," the boy said to the hero, who already seed to be leaving.
"As always..."
And without another word, he left the tower.
Reiji watched him fly away until he disappeared among the structures.
'I hope he takes the warning seriously this ti. If they'd done that with drugs... the world would already be saved.'
***
The bar remained shrouded in constant gloom, illuminated only by the dim light of a few lamps and the bluish glow escaping from the television in the corner. The news had been on for almost twenty minutes, focusing on the sa thing: All Might's unexpected appointnt as a teacher at U.A.
Analysts, journalists, and so-called experts were trying to find a logical explanation for a decision no one had seen coming.
Tomura Shigaraki watched the screen from one of the bar's sofas.
A severed hand rested on his face, partially covering his eyes as he listened to the speculation with an uncharacteristic tranquility. Behind the counter, Kurogiri was cleaning a glass for the third ti in a row, more out of habit than necessity.
The atmosphere was heavy with silence, as if they were both waiting for sothing.
All For One's voice finally broke the stillness.
"Is that your plan, Shigaraki?"
There was no disapproval or surprise in his words. Only curiosity.
Tomura didn't answer imdiately. He remained watching All Might's smiling face on the television as the screen's lights reflected in his reddish eyes. Finally, he leaned slightly forward and rested both elbows on his knees.
"Yes, Master." His voice was calm.
More calm than Kurogiri was used to hearing.
"Hero society exists because people believe that soone will always co to save them. No matter how bad the world is, they wait for soone to co..."
The comntators were still talking on the television.
No one in the bar was paying attention.
"Hope is a drug to them..." Shigaraki continued, extending his hand in front of his face. "And All Might is the biggest distributor."
His fist clenched tightly, giving the illusion that he was crushing sothing.
His gaze slowly shifted to a nearby wall.
There hung a poster of All Might.
Old.
Wrinkled.
Riddled with multiple holes from darts launched with precision at the hero's face.
"All Might isn't just the number one hero. He's the symbol that sustains that entire illusion. As long as he exists, people will continue to believe that everything is alright. That there will always be soone capable of solving their problems."
A smile slowly appeared on his cracked lips.
It wasn't a smile of amusent.
It was one of conviction.
"Destroying All Might isn't killing a man. It's destroying the idea that holds this society together."
The ensuing silence was long.
Even Kurogiri stopped swirling his glass for a mont.
On the other end of the transmission, only All For One's chanical breathing could be heard before he finally spoke.
"I understand."
His voice sounded calm.
Satisfied.
"You've been thinking far beyond the attack; it seems your ti with Professor Suzuki has paid off."
That remark made Kurogiri turn his head slightly. He had spent enough ti with All For One to recognize when sothing truly pleased him.
And this seed to please him quite a bit.
"I'll get you what you need," the villain continued. "However, All Might won't be alone. If he truly intends to teach at U.A., the academy's heroes will be by his side. Even in the worst-case scenario, he'll still be All Might."
Tomura listened to those words without changing his expression.
It was a reality he had already considered.
That was precisely why he had spent the last few weeks moving through alleyways, speakeasies, and criminal networks.
That was precisely why he had sought sothing more than re numbers.
Kurogiri then intervened.
"The recruitnt operations have been successful, Master." He placed his glass on the counter before continuing. "Thanks to the funds provided, we have managed to attract nearly fifty individuals willing to collaborate with the League. They aren't particularly talented, but they represent a considerable force for such a young organization."
Tomura closed his eyes for a mont. Then he slowly shook his head.
"No."
The word made Kurogiri stop.
"Shigaraki?"
"They're not fifty anymore." That imdiately caught the attention of the other two souls who heard his words. Tomura slumped back against the sofa, staring at the ceiling.
"I discarded them."
For the first ti in the entire conversation, Kurogiri showed a visible reaction.
"You discarded them?"
His tone wasn't aggressive. It was genuinely puzzled.
After all, those people had been gathered over weeks. They were resources. Contacts. Manpower for an organization that was barely beginning to exist.
It was already quite sothing that fifty villains believed they could take down All Might himself.
Tomura looked back at the television.
"I observed them," he said simply. "I heard them talk. I saw how they acted. What motivated them. What they wanted."
His smile vanished.
"And I realized that most of them were useless... Good-for-nothings."
Kurogiri frowned slightly.
"I didn't expect to hear that."
"You can't snatch away Japan's greatest hope with just fifty idiots looking for a quick buck." The response ca instantly, tinged with glee.
The hand on his face slid slowly away.
His red eyes fixed on the screen.
"I need people capable of single-handedly changing the outco of a battle."
That statent brought another silence.
A much heavier one.
Kurogiri trembled slightly at Shigaraki's words; his usual childish and capricious behavior was completely absent from that statent.
All For One's chanical breathing was heard again.
This ti accompanied by a small laugh.
"I see." There was satisfaction in his voice. "So you found sothing."
Tomura smiled again, his cleft lips stretching in contrast to his white teeth.
"Yes," he replied. "I found an interesting piece."
Kurogiri imdiately turned his head toward him. As Shigaraki's caretaker, his lack of awareness was a problem, but at the sa ti, it ant Shigaraki didn't seem to need a constant babysitter.
Tomura didn't continue. He seed to relish the mystery of his own words.
Finally, it was All For One who broke the silence.
"I suppose Giran has done his job."
Tomura's smile widened slightly, instantly giving them both an answer. All For One's satisfaction beca even more evident.
For years he had observed criminals, heroes, leaders, and monsters. And he knew how to recognize the exact mont soone began to think for themselves.
"Excellent," the symbol of evil murmured proudly. "I'll be waiting for your debut, Tomura Shigaraki."
His chanical breathing echoed again, his words sinking deep into his apprentice's bones.
Tomura remained silent for a few seconds.
Then he nodded.
"I won't disappoint him."
A small laugh ca from the transmitter.
"Disappointnt?" The word sounded almost amused. "You fight for your future, Shigaraki. Not for my approval. If you fail, you'll learn. If you succeed, you'll advance. The only unforgivable thing would be to stop walking."
The transmission ended shortly after.
Silence filled the bar once more.
Kurogiri stared at the television screen, then at Tomura. Finally, he returned to the glass he'd left on the counter.
He didn't ask who that special piece was.
He didn't ask what he'd found.
Because he knew Shigaraki well enough to know he wouldn't answer; he hadn't even ntioned All For One.
He could only think that things were finally going to spiral out of control.
***
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