A Hero
What is a hero?
Was it a drunkard? No, apparently not. When the Carp showed up, he had told him he was destined to be some great hero. If the Carp was so determined to get him to stop drinking, then that couldn't be it.
Was it a coward? And lazy one at that? No. The Carp was determined to make him be the great warrior he was meant to be. A hero couldn't slack off.
Was it a traitor? No. The Carp had caused him pain when he kissed Yaeko. And heroes didn't cause people pain, villains did. So Hiro was a villain, right? Then it must have been a good thing to betray him. Hiro was the bad guy, right? But betray was still betrayal.
Was it Takezo Kensei? No. He had been a traitorous, lazy, drunken coward when he still went by that name. He had also been in love, but his love, along with any hope of him being a hero in that lifetime, was gone. And so was his friendship with Hiro.
Was it a murderer? No. No. What if they deserved it though? Wars, famine, disease; He had been around for hundreds of years. Mankind wasn't getting any better. So did that mean he should wash it all away? Kill it all? If yes was the answer, he wouldn't still be stuck in his coffin, would he? He wasn't a god. He shouldn't act like he was. But he was gifted, and that meant he was special; Chosen.
Was being special being a hero? No. Villains can be special and still destroy. He had seen it happen. He had made it happen. So was he a villain? For destroying? Heroes destroy too though. Hiro had cut him deeper than any blade ever could.
Was it being Adam Monroe? No. He was special-chosen-but he was a murderer. He had abused his power. He had hurt people with it. He was a villain. And now he was stuck in a coffin, left to think about what he had done.
Adam Monroe didn't know what a hero was, even after all of these years, but he knew it wasn't him.