Chapter 3

"When I am afraid, I put my trust in you." - [Book of Psalms]

"So, I take it you lost and failed in your attack?"

Kurogiri visibly flinched in his smoky form. The voice coming from the speakers of TV sent chills down his spine.

"Er… unfortunately, yes," answering the voice. "There was… a boy that took Shigaraki out and shot his arms. He was bleeding profusely and passed out, so I had to retreat and take him back. I've managed to stabilize him already with the help of the doctor, but he has not wakened yet."

Sighing behind the screen and causing the speakers to vibrate violently, the person the voice belongs to grimaced upon hearing that his apprentice was severely wounded. He frowned internally as he mentally scolded himself for not planning this out thoroughly and taking things like this into consideration. "You were supposed to be the one to protect him. I do not need to remind you of your role in taking care of my dear apprentice. Do not fail me again. Call me again once he wakes up. I have a few calls I need to make." The TV clicked off when the connection with the other side was cut.

Shivering slightly, Kurogiri composed himself and finished his glass of whiskey to steel his nerves. It was never a good idea to anger his employer and he had seen so many times what his employer did to those who failed him. He stared at the scruffy young man in front of him and sighed. How did they managed to fight them back? They have clearly underestimated the power these U.A. students had and that caused them their downfall.

A few minutes later, Shigaraki opened his eyes and sat up straight, ready to face his enemies once more. The pain in his arms and the sweltering headache in his head made him double over and seethe in rage. He remembers what happened now.

"Tch… that brat! I'll make him pay for his mistake! Guh…" he said, quickly realizing what a bad idea it was to be angry after waking up. "On second thought, I should lay back down."

The door to the room opened, causing Shigaraki to glance at who came in. It was Kurogiri, who appears to have come back from his grocery shopping and placed down a two paper bags filled with groceries and cleaning supplies for the bar. He then noticed that Shigaraki was awake in other room and immediately went toward him.

"Good to see that you're awake. How're you feeling?" inquired the mist villain.

"What does it look like? Of course I look and feel like shit," Shigaraki retorted, causing him to grimace in pain. "This damn headache is no fun."

"Rest. Your master would want to talk to you later. He wants to know what happened a while ago." Kurogiri watched as the facial expression of Shigaraki went from angry to pained back again.

"Goddamn it. I swear, I'm gonna kill myself if this headache gets any worse," growled Shigaraki. "And that damn brat! The one that shot my arms through. Stinkin' little shit."

Shigaraki growled in pain once more as he rubbed the side of his head as his accomplice side at his charge's impatience. "We'll have our opportunity next time. And when that time comes, we'll kill All Might. Besides, we still have the Nomu your master gave us. While I am disappointed that we were not able to utilize it to at least kill some of U.A.'s pride (because it only listens to you), I believe that we will be able to use it to its full extent for our new plan."

Nodding, Shigaraki closed his eyes, readying himself to fall asleep again, but not before uttering some last few words.

"Soon, Kurogiri. Society will crumble before our eyes."

With the recent villain attack that happened in U.A., the school has decided to give one day for the class of 1-A to rest and recover their strength. So, for the one day that U.A. has given them, some have decided to train, some have decided to regain some much-needed sleep, some just lazed around as though it were normal weekend, and some were gathering information about this world. And quite eventful that went.

Joshua stared at the large door in front of him. It was perhaps the largest door he has ever seen that lead to a single room. From his research the day prior, quirks had an effect on humans that either gave them comic book superpowers, transformations, and odd mutations. Given how the last one affects the person as a whole, a correct conclusion that can be drawn for the construction of such a tall door would be to accommodate those whose quirks changed their heights or size.

"It makes me think of what else I have yet to see in this world. Clearly goes to show that I am now in an alternate reality, one that I am not well-versed," Joshua said, musing to himself. He was about to enter the classroom when he heard a slight shuffle beside him.

He quickly grabbed his gun from its holster, only to find that it was no longer there. 'Damn. Better grab the other one.' He grabbed another .45 pistol from his back pocket (the one that didn't get confiscated for some reason) and pointed at the direction of the sound. He was met with a flurry of bindings that attached onto his arm, preventing him from firing his gun.

In front of him, was a man who looked almost identical to himself, albeit only the bandages covering his face and wrapped around his arms. Despite them, however, he was still able to throw the binding cloth resting on his shoulders on to the bandaged teen even if only a small part of it.

Both figures glared at each other, waiting for the other's move. Seeing as neither was willing to give ground, they both disengaged from one another, throwing caution in the wind.

The first one to speak was the bandaged man. "I don't know why the principal thought it would be a good idea to bring in a murderer into this school. I'm beginning to see the errors of his decision," he said, continuing to stare down at the other.

"I'm sure that he has given you the opportunity to tell you of who I am. However, if you'd like to be acquainted with me yourself, then by all means, I shall indulge you. While the Lord dictates that all life is sacred, I will not hesitate to bring you down and bring you to him," retorted Joshua, treating the perpetrator with a cold glare.

Silence filled the air as the two stared at each other down. Finally, the bandaged man relented and if you could see behind the bandages, you could see that he was smiling. Joshua sensed the atmosphere had now changed and has holstered his weapon as well, but still a bit cautious as to who this person is and why they have chosen to sneak up behind him if they were going to talk normally in the end.

"You've got guts, kid. Not anyone would dare point a gun at a faculty of a hero school. I hope to see more of that soon." He shifted his arms a bit on the brace and grunted at the pain he felt. "I'd extend my hand over as a greeting but as you can see," he said, raising his arms a bit, "that's not going to happen anytime soon. I'm Aizawa and I'm the homeroom advisor for class 1-A. I was lead to believe that you were unarmed and relatively docile. Clearly I was mistaken and you have quite a bit of an itchy trigger finger."

Joshua frowned a bit behind his bandages. He clearly did not expect himself to grab a gun at the first sign of trouble. He was definitely a more patient man before the recent events.

"I apologize. Certain circumstances have led me to resort to quicker and violent means to solve my problems. I am quite ashamed of myself for being quick to do so. My name is Joshua Graham, and likewise, a pleasure to meet you," he replies, nodding at the man before him.

"Hm. That remains to be seen. You may have saved three of my students through your wits and quick-thinking, but the "heroic deeds" that you have done are questions your true intentions. If you hadn't done what you should have, I may have dragged you back to jail myself, seeing as you have done something a vigilante would do. But, I digress. You are here to train as a hero and learn the nuances of what not and what should be done. Understand?"

Joshua opened his mouth to counter but realized that would be for the best. Seeing as the boy understand the implications of the words he said, Aizawa nods and turns towards door, struggling to open it. Joshua then relieved Aizawa of his minor inconvenience and opens the door for him, earning another smirk from the bandaged man. They both enter the classroom but only Aizawa was immediately noticed.

"Good morning class," he drawls, as he hobbled towards his desk.

"YOU'RE BACK TOO EARLY SENSEI!" shouted the class in unison.

A bespectacled, blue-haired teen suddenly shot his hand upward, bringing his body to stand up as he greets the scruffy man up front. "Sensei! I'm glad that you're alright and feeling okay already!"

"Can you really call that 'okay', Iida-kun?!" retorted a short, brown bob-haired girl behind him.

Aizawa huffed a bit before speaking, preparing himself to bring some serious news. "My well-being is not important. While I do appreciate you looking out for me, you should instead focus on what's to come. Especially now that your fight isn't over."

The set the class on edge. First the villain attack, now this mysterious thing? What could it be? Another unexpected surprise? More assessment tests? Another villain attack?

As if on cue, Aizawa said, "The U.A. Sports Festival is about to begin."

Silence.

And then the storm.

"THAT'S AN ENTIRELY NORMAL SCHOOL EVENT!"

"OH YEAH! I can finally show the world what I've been training for! Whoop-!" cried out a spiky, red-haired teen before being shoved back down by a girl with earphone jacks for earlobes.

"Wait, wait, wait. Isn't it too early to host it now? What if the villains attack again?" she said, voicing out the unspoken concern.

"Oh man… That would be a total bummer tho… Those villains mean business back then!" agreed a yellow-haired boy, earning murmurs of agreement from some members of the class.

"Maybe they'll tighten up security more. I mean, back then they didn't have All Might, so maybe those villains might think twice before attacking again!" countered black-haired boy who had odd-looking canisters for his elbows.

With a flash of his quirk, Aizawa grunted a bit in pain as he silenced the whole class. "That's enough, you're making me use quirk even if I shouldn't have to. As for the Sports Festival, Sero, you're right. U.A. will be doubling security compared to the past four years and will be pushing through with the festival." When he was met with confused looks and faces, he explained. "I understand that most of you aren't over the villain attack last two days, but heroes face different traumatizing scenarios each day. We can't let this opportunity pass either as well. This will be your steppingstone to tell the world that we are here, to protect and keep them safe. It will become an important mark in your career as this event will provide you with opportunities that will help you in the future."

A ponytailed girl at the back agreed with Aizawa's sentiment. "That's right! This event will allow us to be recognized by pros and allow us to work with them!" She made a fist with her hands and with a determined look, said, "This is definitely an opportunity we can't miss!"

"Uh, hello? Didn't you just hear what Jiro said? I think it's a logical idea to postpone this event when our lives are at stake right?! I mean, it's just a Sports Festival…" cried out a purple, ball-haired midget who seemed to be ready to cry.

"Mineta-san, don't you know what the Sports Festival is? I m-mean, Yaoyorozu-san is r-right! This is an opportunity we can't miss!" retorted a familiar broccoli-haired boy.

"I know what it is, Midoriya! It's just, aren't you concerned for yourself too? What if that guy back in the USJ comes back? oh… my stomach feels a little queasy from remembering it too…"

"kero…" croaked a green-haired girl sadly.

In truth, Midoriya also remembers what happened. But, one thing did stand out to him, however. He saved them.

"I r-remember that time too, Mineta-san… it's not something I will just forget. A-and his w-words too. But, if not for him, I don't think we would've been able to get far, even if he did... that." Midoriya turned a way and rubbed his arm, remembering the gruesome image in his head.

"So, you agree with me then! Maybe we should sign a petition sayi-"

"GODDAMMIT YOU PURPLE MIDGET! SHUT THE FUCK UP ALREADY. WHY THE FUCK ARE YOU EVEN HERE IF YOU'RE JUST GONNA KEEP CRYING BECAUSE OF FEW STUPID VILLAINS, HUH?! JUST GO HOME ALREADY!"

Joshua flinched at the sudden brashness and loudness of that teen's voice. It's like hearing… he's not sure how he knows this but, a loud, angry Chihuahua or a Pomeranian. Now that he thought about it, more of a Pomeranian seeing as the teen looked like one. 'Bad Joshua,' he mentally scolded.

It seems that Joshua was not the only one who was irritated by the outburst. Aizawa restrained the angry Pomeranian from shouting any further by throwing his bindings onto him, despite the pain that it gave him.

"Bakugo, that's enough! I don't need to remind you each and every time you throw a tantrum like a child." Bakugo simply said 'tch' before turning away from the two teens and grumbled on his chair. Aizawa sighed. He clearly wasn't being paid enough for this shit.

The blonde teen significantly calmed down after that but kept the scowl on his face. If Aizawa could rub the bridge of his nose now he would've done so. Shaking his head, he clears his throat once more as he continued with his announcements.

"Alright. I believe you lot already know the significance of doing well in this event. I highly recommend training to the fullest and give your best when the festival comes. Now, aside from the upcoming Sports Festival, you are going to have a new classmate starting today. I suggest treating him with respect and with fear. All in good reason that is." Turning towards Joshua, who had been leaning over at the blackboard undetected the whole time, Aizawa motions for him to come forward and introduce himself. "I believe that some of you have been acquainted with him already and not in the best way either. Go ahead."

"Greetings," Joshua said. "I'm sure you're all curious as to who I am albeit for those who have met me. Quite frankly, I should've given you a better impression of myself then, but I suppose it is better to be late than never. For those who do not know, I am Joshua Graham, and I am a transfer student from the States. I hope that we will all get together and work towards a common goal. I look forward to be in your care."

The class muttered amongst themselves. They have heard from their classmates of how brutal the bandaged teen was in dealing with the villains. They couldn't believe their ears at first that someone their age could stomach taking someone's life and have the eyes and words to back it up and now that the very same person was in front of them? Suffice to say, they weren't all that happy. Some were slightly disgusted, while some looked at him with fear and reverence. Others, well, were as loud as they can be.

"WHAT THE FUCK?! How did…? Why did…? HAH?! IS THIS SOME KIND OF U.A. JOKE THAT WE'RE SUPPOSED TO GET?" screamed Bakugo. He points towards Joshua and says, "Who the fuck let this guy in U.A.?" Then, he stood up and walked towards Joshua. "You got some nerve on you huh? Thinking you can just stroll up here after all you've done, eh? Then what? You gonna spy for your villain buddies once you're in well guess what!" He stabs his finger on Joshua. "You're gonna wish you never got here, punk. NOW DIE-" he said, activating his quirk only to be stopped by Aizawa.

"BAKUGO! If you use your quirk now, I'll have you expelled. You're a hero-in-training so act like it!" the older man said, eyes glaring red.

"Tch! Fine! But don't think it's over ye-" Bakugo yells as he turns around back at Joshua. When he felt a cold sensation down on his nose, he momentarily stopped and was shocked at what he saw.

The class had their eyes' bulging out of their sockets when Joshua suddenly pulled a gun out of thin air. What's more was that the gun's barrel had found a new home right on the nostril of Bakugo's nose.

The blonde boy looked at the bandaged teen in both shock and fear as he realized how quick it all happened and he never noticed it coming for him. Even Aizawa was surprised. 'Color me impressed. That was faster than when he pulled that one on me a while ago,' Aizawa thought. 'I probably should stop this, but if what Nezu says is true, then… well, this might be interesting.'

'Wh-what the fuck…' Bakugo felt a shiver down his spine. He was looking directly at Joshua's eyes and only found a cold, hard stare. It was so chilling that Bakugo couldn't utter a word nor make a move. Never in his life had he felt like this, and it was not a good feeling. Is this what that nerd Deku feels whenever he slams him down?

"You're not very prudent, are you? Not only did you let your emotions get the best of you, but you also jumped into conclusions quite easily. That will be your downfall in a battle. Now, if you could calm yourself significantly, would you mind if I explain myself and why I do things the way I do?" asked Joshua in an oddly calm manner.

Gulping the lump that formed in his throat, Bakugo slowly nodded and let out a breath of relief that he didn't know he held when Joshua holstered back his weapon again. Aizawa was once again, needlessly impressed. Bakugo went back to his chair again and sat down sulkily.

The class waited with bated breath as they waited for Joshua to speak. Once he had their full attention, he began.

"Now that all of you have seen what I can do and what I am willing to do, allow me to enlighten your minds. I was born quirkless. I had no quirk that allowed me to fend off the harsh environment that I grew up in and had to train in my tribe's ways to survive. As such, the use of guns isn't foreign to me, and I will use force if necessary and only if necessary. This goes to show why I have taken the lives of those villains. I have a deeper reason as to why I did so, but the bottom line was because they threatened the lives of your classmates. It was either by sheer bad luck or by the will of the Lord that I too was affected by one of the villains' quirk and brought me there when I was simply touring around your school. It was more fortunate, however, that I did get warped there and helped get your classmates to safety and prevent one of the villains from killing them." He looks towards the three he was talking about. "I'm sure you know how close you were to death, and it would not have been pleasant." Then, back at the class, he says. "I now understand from your expressions and reactions that it is a taboo for heroes or anyone else for the matter to take another's life and for that, I'm sorry. You should not have to hear or see someone die in front of you. But such is the way of life. This is the waking world we live in. You must understand that there are certain types of situations will make you do something unspeakable or displeasing to your eyes. But, I have one thing to say to you all."

He pauses then says this:

"Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all."

He then finished talking and the room was filled with silence. The class felt the gravity of the words Joshua said. They couldn't help but agree with the things he said and while they had some disagreeing thoughts, they now looked at him with new eyes. He was no being above them. He was just human like they are, prone to do mistakes and always tries to strive for the greater good. As future heroes, those words gave them a new insight to the things they need to do.

Aizawa looked at Joshua then back at the class. These were words that a normal teenager couldn't say. He now believes the story Nezu told him about Joshua and knows that there is more to the teen that meets the eye.

After the bell has rung signaling the end of class, class 1-A huddled around Joshua and began asking him questions regarding the things he said while some couldn't care less and were still nursing their hurt pride.

Joshua did his best in answering each question. They were mostly basic ones after all. Places where he was from, where he trained to use a gun, why he needed to use a gun, stuff like that. There was one question that was a bit personal, but he did answer that once already.

"Uhm… w-why do you have bandages w-wrapped all around your body, Joshua?" inquired Midoriya, resulting him in getting a bonk from Iida.

"That is way too personal of a question Midoriya! I don't think our classmate, let alone someone who has suffered extensive injuries, should be asked something of that level!" Iida said, chopping the air as he went.

"Ah! I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I d-d-d-didn't m-mean to a-ask so early! Y-you don't have to a-answer that i-it's fine haha. I mean, you saved m-my life and all and I don't want to be rude-" Midoriya abruptly stopped talking when a bandaged hand covered his mouth. He looked down at it then at the person who did and saw Joshua had a finger over his mouth.

"Shh… It's alright. Calm yourself now." He slowly removed his hand from Midoriya's mouth. "It's not something I enjoy talking about, but I hope to learn from my mistakes. What would you like to know?"

Fidgeting in his seat, Midoriya cleared his throat and asked again. "W-well, we've seen you in the USJ covered in bandages and thought that it was just a disguise of sorts. But, now that you're here, I f-feel like that's not the case. Why is that?"

"Would you really like to know?" A hesitant nod came. "Very well." He slowly unwraps the bandages on his arms. When they saw what was underneath, they all gasped and some covered their mouths.

Burns. All burned skin. That was all there is underneath his wraps.

Joshua wraps his arm again and fastens it. He looks up at the concerned stares of his classmates and sighs a bit before shifting in his seat.

Midoriya looks away for a bit then looks back at Joshua. He had another follow-up question but has no idea if he should push through with it or no. Seeing as Joshua was looking at him as though he was waiting for the question he was going to ask, Midoriya then, with a reluctant inhale of a breath, spoke.

"Oh… I-I didn't know you h-had awful burns under those bandages… I'm sorry if I offended you for asking…" Midoriya said apologetically.

"Like I said, it's quite alright. It's the least I could answer since my arrival is a bit uncanny. I believe you still have another question to ask of me?" said Joshua.

Nodding, Midoriya then asked, "H-how… did you get those burns?"

Suddenly, a dark look of pain and sullenness washed over Joshua's features. It was as though he had recalled a painful memory from his past. Midoriya was about to say sorry again when Joshua began speaking.

"I was given these… by one who I once considered my friend."

The room went silent and even those who wasn't listening before, did now.

"I was once a member of a ruthless, merciless, yet civilized tribe after my time as New Canaanite. I helped shape that tribe into how it was today and regret many things I have done under it. One day, we were at war with another nation and fought against them. We overwhelmed their forces and were chasing down the last of their soldiers when they lured us into trap, costing the lives of many men in that tribe. Because I was the commander of this tribe's army and have led these men to their demise, I was punished, to set an example for the others that failure was not to be tolerated." He winced as he remembered his past in detail. He then looked down on his arms then back at his classmates. "I was covered in pitch, set on fire, and thrown off the Grand Canyon upon orders of my own friend, the leader of the said tribe and from then on, I vowed to renew my ways and repent for the things I've done."

When he was finished, some of his classmates looked down at their feet out of shame, some looked at him with pity and tears in their eyes, and some grit their teeth at the person who ordered the bandaged teen to be burned alive. They muttered amongst themselves that the teen was fortunate to have lived despite his injuries.

"I didn't know you suffered excruciating pain in your age. It must be painful for you to keep living on with them," sympathized a raven-haired girl who calls herself Yaoyorozu Momo.

"Yes. Every day that I remove my bandages and replace them with new ones, my burns are exposed to the air, and I relive those moments every time. As I've said with your school's nurse, it is better to be clean and comfortable than to suffer having… worse, like infections," the teen replied.

"Such a villainous friend you have! Do not worry, my friend. We, as heroes-in-training, help bring to justice this friend of yours and make him see the true errors of his actions! Mark our words!" cried out Iida upon hearing Joshua's story.

"Thank you for your concern, but such actions may not be needed. Our Lord teaches us to turn our cheek when we are slapped and to forgive the actions of our peers as he would've done. Hate the sin, love the sinner. While I may not wish my old friend ill will, fate would say otherwise. I have recently come to hear that he has contracted a brain tumor and may die soon. The tribe may fall with his, but I fear that might not be the case. If HE replaces my friend, then I can only pray for the Mojave's inhabitants. For the one that will replace him is will cause many more atrocities far more atrocious than the ones created back then," Joshua said, his tone getting serious and dark. He blinks and stands up. "That's it then. I hope that my story did not leave too much of negative impression on you. I would hate to think that you would see me as a heartless person despite certain circumstances. I believe it is time for us to go home."

Everyone else got up from their seats but not before a certain blonde boy shoved past everyone and headed to the door. When he opened it, the path out was blocked by hundreds of other students who seem to have come and check their class.

"Whoa! There's a lot of people out here."

"Hey! Could you guys get out of here? We can't get out!"

"Indeed! You are clearly in the way. Do you all have a business with class 1-A?" inquired Iida from behind.

"Tch, you idiots. They're obviously here to scout out the competition seeing as we just survived the villain attack," replied Bakugo. He turns back at the door and says towards the other students, "Move out of my way, extras."

"OI BAKUGO DON'T JUST MAKE ENEMIES OUT OF OTHER PEOPLE."

"Yeah, and don't just call other people extras! That's very unhero-like of you!" berated Iida.

Joshua decided he should intercept and clear a path for his classmates when a purple-haired youth from behind the crowd spoke up.

"I heard that the hero course was a place to aspire to, but it seems like it's only filled with people like you," taunted the teen.

The crowd gave a wide berth to who spoke, and the purple-haired teen walked forward, staring down at Bakugo as he went.

"You're definitely right. We're here to scout you out. We were told that this Sports Festival is a chance for us to earn a place into the hero course. Well, looks like that won't be as hard as I thought if it's this loudmouth braggart that we're fighting," he said, earning a giggle from the crowd.

Bakugo visibly seethed. He opened his palms and made his quirk pop off mini explosions as he returned with a withering glare of his own. "You wanna go punk? I'll make sure you know your place and make you eat your words after I'm done with you."

"Woah Bakubro, don't be so rash," Kirishima said. Turning towards the purple-haired teen, he said, "I'm sorry for my friend here. He's more fiery than usual haha." Then back at Bakugo, "Come one bro. Let's just go home yeah? You'll have plenty of time to show your stuff in the festival."

Looking at the red-haired teen, the ashen-blonde teen scoffed and removed the other's hand from his shoulder. "Don't tell me what to do, Shitty-hair. I'm just telling Insomniac here a fair warning. Besides, you don't get to tell me shit if you ain't got nothing to show for it, got it? We're heroes and we're trying to do our best, not stand up to some extra like you." The latter part he said to the purple-haired teen as he stabbed a finger at him. "Let's go Shitty-hair."

The crowd roared in disagreement and agreement at the blonde's words. Class 1-A was shocked and impressed at hearing their classmate just take a declaration of war so smoothly and so rudely that they can't help but feel pumped up for it. Joshua could only shake his head at the craziness of the blonde and followed suit.

Just as he was heading back to Nezu's office, Joshua heard a voice call out to him.

"Joshua."

He turns around upon hearing his name and found Aizawa standing behind him. The older man motions for him to follow, which the teen reluctantly does. They both walked a little ways off the corridor until they reached a door that says 'Support Department.'

"What are we doing here?" the teen asked.

"Remember when the principal said they've confiscated your weapon and they'll be giving you a new one? Well, we're here to get that," the older man replied, opening the door with his foot.

Inside the room were dozens of piles of metal scrap, discarded equipment, and wacky inventions that littered the place. It was a weird cacophony of chaos and order somehow managing to coexist with one another and not affect the other. They both walked towards a short man wearing what seems to be construction equipment on his body. Aizawa cleared his throat and got the attention of the short man.

"Ah, Eraser Head, you're just in time. We've just finished repairing your binding cloth and your goggles so you can just grab it over there," the pro hero says, pointing his thumb over at a locker.

"Thank you, Power Loader, but we're not here for that. I believe Nezu has already notified you of our arrival," replied the scruffy man.

The shorter man paused for a moment then remembered what was being said. "Oh, right. Of course. Follow me." The trio moved across the cacophony of chaos and order till they reached an isolated area of the workshop where a messy, pink-haired girl was hunched over and tinkering with something.

"I must say, it's quite rare for the school to request something like this. A pistol that can be converted to a stun gun and back again? I thought that was impossible until now." The man then turned around towards the messy girl and poked her. "Mei." When the girl didn't answer, Power Loader frowned and this time shouted, "Mei!"

That got the attention of the pink-haired girl and whatever she was working on suddenly exploded right before them, catching them off-guard. When the smoke cleared, the four were hacking off the smoke off their bodies before Power Loader scolded the pink-haired girl.

"Dammit you brat! Why do you keep forgetting to open the vents here? I gave you this room specifically so you could stop blowing stuff up or at least keep the stuff that blows up away from the main area and somehow that became worse! What do you have to say for yourself, young woman?" ranted the short man at the messy girl.

The messy girl, Mei, turned towards the pro hero and gave a rant of her own. "Well, I'm sorry that the things around here get blown up that easily! And besides, I was working on stabilizing one of my babies when you arrived so that's on you- ouch!"

Mei was bonked on the head by Power Loader for being so frank and outright rude towards someone older than her. "Show me some respect will ya? Anyway, we're not here to talk about your tendencies to blow things up. We're here to get the item I asked you to remake the other day. Have you gotten to it already or have you destroyed it already?" The last statement made Joshua stare at Power Loader with a slight fear upon hearing his favorite toy had been destroyed. Luckily for him, it seems that the pink girl was successful in doing whatever it was that had to be done when she visibly brightened from her seat and started opening the lockers on her side and rummaged through it. For a good five minutes or so, she found what she was looking for.

She placed a down a small green box on the table and popped open its locks. The container hissed a bit before opening on its own. Inside was a short-barreled .45 auto pistol with a snakeskin grip and a strange Greek phrase on both sides. Mei takes the box and presents it to Joshua as though a blacksmith presenting a sword to a king.

"Please, take it! I want to know what you think about me adding my babies onto your baby!" 'Ah, so that's what she meant by "baby",' Joshua thought. He gratefully accepted the weapon and experimentally looked down the sights and immediately noticed that something was different from it.

"Hm. This looks different from before. The slide is somewhat longer, and the gun feels oddly lighter than usual. What did you do with it?" Joshua asked.

"Allow me to demonstrate!" the pink-haired girl said. She then grabs a battered-up mannequin from one of the lockers and props it onto the wall. She snatches the gun from Joshua's grip and pulls the twice trigger onto the mannequin. What came out from the gun were two bolts of blue that made the onlookers hairs stand. Joshua now knew what happened to his gun, but he waited for the girl to say it to him.

"See? I amped up the firepower of your gun! So aside from having to use bullets to effectively use it as a weapon, you can now fire supercharged bolts of plasma and sear through anything, even thru armor! Sadly though, you still need to reload it and charge it. I've only replaced the clip with a specialized energy cell that you can charge should it run out. So uhm, give or take you can fire off 1-7 shots depending on how powerful you set the plasma to. Oh right, the switch setting for the plasma. It's found on the right side of your gun, and you can switch it from three power levels: stun, burn, and kill. Stun is obviously the cost efficient of the three while burn gives a bit more punch but consumes twice than that of stun and kill, well, I don't need to say it, but it will consume the energy's cells power and condense it into one powerful bolt. Keep in mind though that the bolt may explode so try to watch out for that. I still have a lot of things to fix on that but with the budget I have now, that'll have to do," she said, explaining in detail how the gun now works. She then hands the gun back to Joshua, who inspected it and tinkered with the controls a bit until he was satisfied. He holsters the gun back onto its holster and turns towards Mei.

"You have quite the talent for inventing things. It is quite a blessing that you are with us," Joshua said, causing the girl to smile sheepishly at the praise. "Though, I kind of wished that I could still switch back to bullets when I run out of power, but nevertheless, thank you."

"Hehe, if you ever have the time to test your new baby you can always come back here so I can improve it! Maybe we'll find a way to switch from bullets to energy cells and back, yeah?" Mei said excitedly.

Joshua simply chuckled at the girl's enthusiasm. "Of course. I'll be looking forward to be working with a fellow tinkerer."

Mei bobbed up and down erratically before being bonked on the head by Power Loader. Aizawa said his thanks at the pro hero and his apprentice then moved towards the exit of the department. Before they went out, Mei called out from after saying, "Hey! Wait!"

Joshua turned around and saw Mei looking at him. She paused before him and panted a bit before saying, "Hey, I forgot to ask. What's that written on the side of your gun? Is that Greek?"

"You're quite right. It's Greek for John 1:5 meaning, 'The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it'," Joshua replies.

"Ooo~ that sounds pretty cool! Alright, I won't hold you here any longer. Byeee!" Mei said before turning around and going back inside the workshop.

Joshua shook his head and chuckled before turning around himself and walking with Aizawa towards the exit.

"Right. We should head home now," Aizawa said after exiting.

"Hm, indeed," he replied. 'Wait' "We?"

"Yes, 'we'. The school and the police have asked me a favor to take care of you for now until you can support yourself. You said it yourself. You have no one to go back and you're quite far away from home."

Being reminded of that caused a twang in Joshua's heart to be felt. He ached for the feeling of being back home with the tribe and family who accepted him despite his errors and had to bite down on his lip to keep his adolescent emotions from getting the best of him. He took a deep breath and looks towards the older man.

"You're quite right. If you will be alright in having me then I have my full gratitude for your kindness and generosity. I will try to repay once the time comes," the bandaged teen said, humbly.

The pro hero shook his head slightly as he turned to look at the teen. "You need not do that. It's just part of my job to do so. Youth such as yourself should be guided as much as possible."

"Nevertheless, thank you. And besides, I'm no child. I only look like this, but you know that I most definitely am not," retorted Joshua.

"I know. But right now, you are. Come on, we should hurry. We'll miss the train."

"Very well. Lead on."

Hello! Arbiter101 here.

So yeah... I finally added a new chapter. I am so sorry for delaying this for so long. I had come up with a bad case of the writer's block and had to rely on your reviews to figure out what comes next.

So, no quirk Joshua is going to be the go to and a slightly less lethal A Light Shining in Darkness for the plot. Might make the gun slightly more hard hitting than usual or not, who knows.

For those who didn't like having Joshua as a teenager again, I'm sorry if this story did not meet your expectations but I hope that you lads and lasses would give this another try and look at it from a different perspective and with a fresh mind. This is only a fanfiction after all and I only turned him into a teenager because I'm not that good of a writer so in other words, it's easier for me to think of situations for him.

Did I forget something? Hm... no idea :3

Oh! I'm thinking of making a Megamind/BNHA fanfic tho maybe not. Still thinking about it.

So... that's chapter 3. Hope you guys like it. Leave a review if you have any thoughts on how to make this story better because that helps me out a lot. Cya!

- Arbiter101