Chapter 3

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

"By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, wept, when we remembered Zion. Remember, O Lord, the children of Edom who said, 'Raze it, raze it, even to the foundation'. O daughter of Babylon, who art to be destroyed. Happy shall he be, that rewardeth thee as thou hast served us. Do you know what that means?" – [Joshua Graham; 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," he said, 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 pained 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. I still can't understand how he managed to kill my Nomu. That thing's built like a tank and all it took was a bunch of molotovs and down it went. Fuckin' unbelievable."

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."

"Seventeen, eighteen, nineteen…"

Throughout all his years as a detective, Naomasa Tsukauchi had never heard anything like it. This was a first in U.A.'s history. To have a group of villains that call themselves 'League of Villains' has managed to successfully invade U.A. despite its numerous security measures. No doubt the media would swallow up any information regarding this so it's best to keep specific details of this one under wraps. Another thing to take into consideration was the condition of the children. He can only imagine what sorts of trauma they've experienced going against villains. Then again, they are U.A. students.

As the detective was doing a roll call of all the students, most of them began chatting with one another, sharing stories of their encounters with the villains.

"Those villains sure had the nerve to attack us huh?" said a multi-armed boy named Shoji.

"Indeed. But it is by luck that we were not consumed by the darkness and brought back into the light," agreed a raven-head boy named Tokoyami.

"A bit cryptic there, Tokoyami-kun," commented a pink, alien-looking girl named Mina. "But yeah! We're alive! Heck yeah!"

"Please refrain from shouting profanities out of joy! This is a school for heroes! We are role models of society, and we must keep ourselves from being brash!" cried out a rather uptight boy called Iida. "However! I must agree that it is quite fortuitous of us to survive this encounter! Let us use this experience to strengthen ourselves and our bonds so that we may become better persons and heroes!"

"Geez, you're as loud as ever Iida-san!" retorted the energetic, pink girl.

"So noisy," grumbled Tokoyami.

"Calm down, class rep. No need to shout so loudly yourself," complained Shoji as he placed a finger onto his ear appendages to keep them from being damaged any further.

The blue-haired, bespectacled boy went red out of embarrassment and hung his head in shame. Uraraka pat him on the back and consoled him repeatedly.

"Nee, nee, did you see where I was?! Did you know where I am?" said a floating pair of gloves and boots, one that could only belong to Hagakure.

"Uhm… wh-where were you then?" inquired a boy with a tail appendage named Ojiro. He was a bit flustered by the invisible girl's approach towards him and took him a moment to compose himself.

"Hehe, I was in the landslide zone with Todoroki! You should've seen him! He froze over those villains in an instant!" she said, then with an invisible pout, "which also meant he froze me too, but I guess that was my fault for not telling him of my location."

The dichromatic teen sweat-dropped at that. "So that was Hagakure…" he muttered.

"What about me? Did you guys know where I went?" questioned a rather sparkly individual called Aoyama.

"At least you guys managed to get out of there safely, Hagakure-san. It would've been bad if you were hurt," said the tail-quirk boy, ignoring the human disco ball behind him.

"Aww… that's awfully sweet of you, Ojiro-san!" replied Hagakure, floating blushes appearing in the air.

"What about me? Did you guys think I got hurt?" questioned Aoyama, only to be ignored once more.

"Oh… u-uh… I was just saying that it's good you weren't hurt. Eh-ehm… A-Asui-san, hey! I heard you guys got the short end of the stick," Ojiro said, greeting the frog-girl.

Nodding, the frog greenette said, "It was quite harrowing. We were surrounded by the villains in the shipwreck zone when suddenly, a teen wrapped up in bandages from head to toe started shooting them and killing them. Suffice to say, it was pretty bloody and brutal, unconventionally so than what is taught to us, but I guess beggars can't be choosers. If it weren't for him, we probably would have been among the dead."

The three were silent after hearing Asui story of their encounter with the villains. They were equal parts, horrified, curious, and relieved upon hearing that their classmate was okay and the fact a mysterious stranger had appeared out of nowhere to help them.

"I hope that you were hurt too much, mon cheri. It would've been bad if that had happened," said Aoyama after the long silence, forgoing his quest for attention.

"I'll be alright, Aoyama-chan. Thanks for the concern," said the frog-girl, thankful for her classmate's concern.

Detective Tsukauchi finished checking for any discrepancies and taking the students head count. He recorded his findings onto a notebook and turns his attention to the students.

"Well, seems like none of you are severely injured. Although, there were those who suffered some extensive injuries, but were healed miraculously like that green-haired kid. Then, there's also the other kid with bandages all over his body," he said, shaking his head. "Don't think the villains did that, but I'll be checking on him later."

"Uhm… Mr. Detective, sir? What happened to Aizawa-sensei and Thirteen-sensei? They were the ones that were injured gravely during the fight," inquired Uraraka.

"Oh. I have good news and bad news. The good news is, your adviser, Aizawa, has healed most of his wounds miraculously and is in the infirmary right now, where the bandaged kid and the green-haired kid are right now. You can visit them later after we dismiss you," replied Tsukauchi. "Now for the bad news…"

He takes out a recorder and plays it.

"Thirteen has suffered severe lacerations across her back. It may have gone up to the bone so she will require surgery immediately to close up the wound. She may be out for a while before she can be released."

He stops the recording and the students gasped and their faces filled with pity, gratitude and concern for their teacher. The bravery of their teacher inspiring them to become better individuals and heroes that will save everyone that they can.

"Right. That does about. Normally, by protocol, we're supposed to take each of your statements and keep you for a while. Buuuttt, that can wait now can it?" Tsukauchi turns to a police officer with a cat for a head and instructs him, "I trust that you can finish it up here Sansa. I'll be going to the infirmary now. I have some business to take care of."

"Understood sir!" replied the officer.

"It's a cat," mumbled Uraraka.

"Not a dog, huh?" mumbled Mina.

"Oh my."

Joshua was sitting by the bed as he was being inspected by an old nurse. She unwrapped his bandages slowly after he was made to surrender all of his belongings, his gun, his armor, and the different items he had brought from Zion. At first, he was vehement at being inspected on, but relented as he had no choice. He winced as his burns were exposed into the open air but tolerated it as he had ever since.

"Young man, how long have you been bearing these burns?" the nurse asked.

Joshua's eyes turned away from her as he remembered his past. Vividly. He remembered when he and his mighty force of centurions were giving chase to the remaining NCR troops towards Boulder City and thought they had won. He remembered when they walked right in, not noticing the trap set in place, and the buildings exploding around him. He remembered the countless lives of men that were lost during that battle, the lives that trusted him to bring them to victory only to die an explosive death, quite literally. He remembered being covered in pitch, set on fire, and thrown into the Grand Canyon as punishment for his mistakes. He remembered crawling back into his home, enraged and filled with revenge, went back after a few years, to hunt down Caesar's forces only to have them hunt his own tribe down. And now, just this recently, he had done it again with the pursuit against the White-Legs. Look at him now, dead in his own world and undeservingly alive in another. He sighed deeply as those memories flooded him, causing him pain and guilt in his heart for having left the place he called home and the people who looked up to him for guidance and leadership. If only he had done things differently.

The old nurse noted the teen's body language and puts hand over his. Joshua looks back at the nurse and saw in her eyes that she understands. Even without words nor experiencing what he experienced, he knew that she understood how he felt. And with that simple act of kindness, Joshua vowed to return these people's kindness to him tenfold and to protect them at all costs.

The old nurse finished adding ointment onto his burns and wrapped his body once more with fresh, clean bandages. He sighed in comfort as his burns were no longer exposed to the air and sits up more comfortably on the bed.

"Alright, I've finished tending to your wounds already young man. I have been told to bring you over to the principal's office for questioning. I apologize for doing this to you despite your condition, but I cannot do anything about it. It is standard protocol for the police to ask questions about what happened, and you are one of the strange cases. Now then, shall we?"

Joshua nods reluctantly and followed the old nurse. They walked a little ways off in the hallways until they reached a room with double-doors. The old nurse gave a knock on the door and someone from inside calls for them to come in. They both entered the room and were greeted by its occupants.

There was a thin, gangly man wearing a beige suit similar to the buff one he had met back in the facility they call USJ. Joshua narrowed his eyes as he saw how familiar the man looked to the buff man. He then noticed a detective sitting beside him and on the other couch, he saw Midoriya sitting there with a surprised expression on his face. Standing next to a small, white, mouse-bear wearing a suit was the scruffy man he had tended to back in the USJ. The man gave him a nod which he returned.

"Ah, Madam Chiyo, Recovery Girl, so nice of you to finally join us. How is your patient doing?" the mouse-bear asked.

"He's doing alright despite his condition. There are some things I would like to talk about, however," Recovery Girl replied.

"Of course, of course. Please, take a seat. Would you both like some tea?" inquired the mouse-bear.

Nodding, Recovery Girl motions for Joshua to take a seat by the couch, sitting beside Midoriya. "I'll have some, Principal Nezu."

"Splendid!" Nezu, the small mouse-bear, then hopped off his chair and walked over to where the teapot was and pours it over a teacup. He then hands it to the other lady and hands another one to Joshua, who took it and sipped gratefully.

"Wonderful brew as always, Nezu," commended Recovery Girl.

"But of course. Only the best for my guests," he replied. His face suddenly became serious and turns towards the detective. "Now then, to business. Detective?"

Nodding, the detective sets out a small recorder onto the table and takes out a pen and notepad and cleared his throat. "I will be recording this interrogation onto my recorder for documentation. If you have any qualms about this, I'd like to hear them before I start." When he was met with silence, he continued, "Alright, if there is none, I shall begin." He clicks the recorder on and began speaking.

"My name is Detective Naomasa Tsukauchi, and this is report #2365. The time is 3:00 PM on April 12, 20XX and the weather is clear and sunny. I shall now begin my line of questioning," he said. "Good afternoon, how are you two feeling today?"

"I-I'm okay, I think," stuttered Midoriya.

"I've been better," Joshua replied.

"I see. Can you tell me your names?"

"Izuku Midoriya." "Joshua Graham."

"Alright. So, Midoriya and Graham, where were you on the attack in USJ?"

Midoriya went first. "W-we were going to perform a rescue exercise with Aizawa-sensei, Thirteen-sensei, and All Might-sensei when the power suddenly went out. A-an inky portal appeared on the main plaza and the villains suddenly started pouring in. None of them were any serious threat except for the one that looks like the ringleader, the portal villain, and the scary, mutant villain they call a Nomu." Midoriya shivered as he remembered what it was called. "We were about to escape and retreat back into U.A. when the portal villain caught us with his quirk and scattered us around USJ! I was brought with Asui-san and Mineta-san to the shipwrecked zone and were quickly surrounded by villains. We would've been killed then and there if Graham-san had not come to our aid, although it was a bit horrifying what he did. Then, we went to the main plaza, saved Aizawa-sensei and I guess we killed the Nomu? I… I'm not entirely sure how but we did!"

The stuttering teen went on and on, explaining every part of his story in great detail. Detective Tsukauchi listened attentively to the greenette's story and took note of the little details that the boy relayed.

All Might, in his Toshinori Yagi form, clenched his fists in frustration. Had he been a second too late, his students would've been dead, and it would be their blood on his hands. It was only fortunate that they were saved by an experienced combatant and drove back the villain's forces. That said, he peered over to where Joshua sat, gauging over the bandaged teen's reactions. There was nothing to read over the boy's face. He held a hard-set expression that did not betray his true intentions, making it unreadable for even the most experienced of interrogators. Just who was this boy and how did he get here? When they looked over the camera recordings in the USJ, it was as if the boy had appeared seemingly out of nowhere. What's more puzzling is how effectively he dispatched the villains without wasting too much, albeit in a gruesome manner. While he had his fair share of heavily injured villains, All Might had never claimed someone's life, whether villain or nemesis.

"A-and, my injuries were all healed! Graham-san had these strange syringes that had a gauge on top and when you injected it on a person, their wounds healed outright. It's like having Recovery Girl's quirk but handheld! N-no offense, ma'am," finished the stuttering green-haired boy.

"None taken."

All Might had been pondering about the details his apprentice had relayed. First off, was the Nomu. According to Midoriya, the Nomu was unlike anything they had ever seen. From his description, tt didn't look like a human and more like a heavily mutated monster instead. What troubled him, however, was when Midoriya explained how many quirks the Nomu had as claimed by the villain mastermind. Shock absorption, regeneration, and super strength? It was already rare for someone to hold two quirks, much less three. There was only one person who had the ability to hold so many quirks and give them to others and that thought made All Might clench his fists.

On the other hand, there was the case of Young Joshua Graham. From the reports of several of his students and Young Midoriya, Young Graham suddenly appeared out of nowhere. From the second he appeared, he had already left a trail of blood in his wake, much to his unease. However, when he heard from Young Midoriya that the reason for his swift execution of the villains was to save his students, his perception of the young man before him improved. But that wasn't what made him uneasy. Oh no, it wasn't. It was actually because of how swiftly he dealt with the villains. Whatever or whoever turned the boy into an efficient killing machine must have left a long-lasting impression onto him. He could only feel pity for the boy. For him to act the way he did made All Might wonder how much of the boy's childhood has been snuffed out of him. If only he knew.

Detective Tsukauchi looked over his notes once more and finished writing up some of his thoughts. When he finished, he closed the notepad then looked at Joshua and then at Midoriya. He sighed lengthily and went silent as if he was deep in thought.

Clearing his throat, he said, "Well, that sums up most of the villain attack. Seems like we have a serious matter in our hands, Principal Nezu. For an organized group of villains to simply waltz into U.A. and claim to have the tools to kill All Might is no laughing matter considering they were successful with most of their plans. It would've been nice if the mastermind behind this operation had been captured but at the risk of the students, we're lucky enough to get a name I suppose."

He opens his notepad again and scans it quickly. "The League of Villains. That's what they were calling themselves according to Midoriya. From his description, the mastermind is a scruffy, pale-skinned, chapped-lip, blue-haired man with several dismembered hands covering his arms, face, and head. I'll put out an APB out once this interrogation is over. In the meantime, let's talk about you, Joshua. Is it alright if I call you Joshua?"

Nodding, the bandaged teen said, "I don't mind."

"Good. According to Mr. Midoriya's account of the USJ attack, he explains in detail of your arrival. Would you mind telling me how you got there?"

Joshua looked a bit uneasy and unsure of what to say. He couldn't just say 'Hey, I'm a brutal and deadly 40-year-old man transported from another world into yours as a brutal and deadly 16-year-old and I vow to kill more to avenge your fallen.' They would've thrown him into prison for that or worse, executed. Well, there's also that off-chance they would believe him and do something far less worse to him, but the risks outweigh the benefits so in the meantime, he'll have to settle with a half-baked lie.

Clearing his throat, he started. "I'm not fairly certain how I arrived there, nor do I know what brought me there. The only thing I remember was facing one of these villains who tried to threaten me. I dispatched him quickly and realized there were more of them. They were holding three students hostage, one of them is Midoriya," he said, pointing beside him, "and two more, one girl and one boy. I rushed to their aid by dispatching the villains surrounding them, allowing them to use their… mutations to escape and approach me. We formed an alliance, saved their teacher, defeated a super mutant, and sent their leader and his accomplice in retreat. It is quite unfortunate that I was not able to stop them from retreating and only wounded their leader with minor wounds. I fear that once he has recovered, they may try again in their attack."

"Indeed," replied Tsukauchi. "While I agree and find no lie with most of your words, I sense that you are holding something back. Particularly, your arrival. You said that you have no clue as how you arrived here and that is true. But, the part where you say you only remember arriving there and the subsequent events is a lie." When Joshua raised a barely visible eyebrow in confusion, Tsukauchi then elaborated. "To answer your question, I have a quirk that detects when a person lies. Right now, you were lying to us about not remembering anything prior to your arrival. That, combined with your description of quirks as 'mutations', goes to show that you are either taught differently or, the more outlandish of the two, absolutely clueless of this world. Meaning to say, again, as outlandish as it is, you are of a different world than ours."

Joshua's eyes almost widened and gave him away. His face twitched, obscured behind his bandages, yet slightly noticeable. The same goes for everyone else in the room, giving out various expressions of shock, awe, and confusion. When Joshua gave no response, Nezu then spoke.

"I'm not sure I quite follow you, detective. What do you mean, 'different world'?" inquired the principal. "Did you perhaps mean that he is from a different country instead? Or perhaps you most definitely are suggesting the theory of multidimensional realities?"

Detective Tsukauchi shifted in his set. "Yes, I did mean to suggest the second option, principal. I understand that it is quite bizarre that said theory is possible but with the range and variety of quirks we have now in our society, do you think that having parallel or non-parallel universes is impossible?"

Shaking his head, Nezu said, "Not really. The theory of multidimensional realities has several evidence and proof of its existence though not enough for everyone to believe in it. No, what I mean to say is, how are you sure that Joshua is a resident of this different world?"

Detective Tsukauchi was about to speak but was cut off by Joshua. "To think that I would be found quite easily. Very well, I will recount the full tale."

…

When Joshua finished, the room was left silent. No one dared to make slip and no one dared to utter a word. Finally, someone spoke, breaking the tension.

"Young man, is that why your whole body is filled with burns? Because a friend of yours once ordered for you to be covered in pitch and set on fire?" inquired Recovery Girl.

"Yes. Failure is not to be tolerated in the Legion. I had taught them that and to my misfortune, used against me," Joshua replied.

"S-so, you're actually o-older than you look?" asked Midoriya curiously. "N-no offense, sorry."

"None taken. Yes, I am already 40 years old in my world, but, as you see now, I am a 16-year-old."

"That would explain why you killed those villains instead of incapacitating them," commented All Might. "To think that you would be the right-hand man of a brutal and destructive, ehm, tribe."

"I was once the right-hand man and I deeply regret my time doing so. I have made many mistakes throughout that time. Slaughtered many innocent people too," he said, shaking his head. "When Caesar ordered for me to be thrown into the Grand Canyon, I realized how badly the Legion had become. How I had become. When I survived that fall and crawled back into my home, I vowed to change my ways for the better and follow the road to righteousness once more, whatever the cost."

"What happened to you then? You said you died and was brought to our world. What happened before that?" questioned Nezu.

"I was repeating history again," Joshua replied. "When my tribe, the New Canaanites, were almost wiped out by the Legion-backed White-Legs, I took it upon myself and with the help of a third party to wage war against them using the tribe I have led. In those moments, I have turned yet another peaceful tribe into a war-stricken, brutal one. My death will only prove to strengthen their increasing militancy if they choose to honor me as their hero. Had I shown mercy to the White-Legs' leader, things would not have gone astray."

The bandaged teens words were filled grief and regret. There was only so much a man can suffer and it was clear that he had suffered more. For his whole life, he was lead to believe a lie and then he was betrayed by the person he had trusted. When he was presented an opportunity to redeem his mistakes, he threw it away and pursued the trail of death, despite wanting to believe he had done so to protect his tribe and to avenge his people.

"I wanted to have my revenge against him. I… wanted to make my anger against Caesar God's anger. To justify the things that I had done." A pause. "Sometimes I tell myself that these fires will never go out, never stop burning. And yet I am the one who starts them. Not God, not them."

He looks down at his hands and continues speaking, "These hands were given to me by the Lord to do His bidding and spread His goodness to all. Yet, I have only spread hatred and death with them."

He felt a hand be placed onto his shoulders. He looked up and saw Midoriya's pitying eyes before him. "I-it's going to be a-alright, you know? Y-you can still do God's will here. I-I… I think that He gave you another chance to fulfill your destiny and save the lives of others who have been misled like you." Midoriya puts down his hand and looks at it as well. "I would have been like those villains had I was not given a chance. I was quirkless, you know? Then, someone gave me one because they believe I can become a hero and save others with a smile." He looked at his mentor, who was smiling proudly at him. "And that's what I intend to do."

Silence permeated the room. The adults were proud of hearing Midoriya's heartfelt speech, and it made them want to do their jobs well.

"Well said, Mr. Midoriya, well said," said realized it as well and with new eyes, he looked back at Midoriya and said, "Thank you. Perhaps… you are right. I can always see the fire in my mind. The warmth and the heat. It will always be a part of me. And now, it shall be used to rekindle the kindness and mercy I had once removed from my soul."

With that statement, everyone in the room knew that this boy, no… man, was a new spirit. A spirit that was once consumed with hatred and loathing. With only a few words from a kind soul, the spirit had once found its purpose and has vowed to do what is right, for the sake of everyone in this world.

"Well, that is good to hear," replied Tsukauchi. He clicked the recorder off and pockets it. "That about does it. Normally, I would bring you back to the police station to detain you for your crimes, but a promise is a promise. You have answered truthfully, and I believe you'd be one of this country's greats."

"Indeed. I would like to second that," said Nezu. "Now, there is the matter of where you should stay considering you aren't from our world. I have already decided to enroll you into our fine institution and will find someone who would let you live with them. I understand that you are capable on your own, but it would be wrong to let you sleep out into the streets when you have been a savior to our students. Let this small act be a token of our gratitude for your service."

Joshua raised a hand and waved it dismissively. "You are too kind. If anything, I am grateful for your generosity and for listening to my story. I will never forget this."

"I g-guess we're going to see each other more o-often then, Joshua-san," said Midoriya.

"Yes. I hope to teach you some things throughout my various experiences, and you could teach me to be kind," he replied back.

"Well, I suppose that settles things," said Nezu. "I don't have to tell all of you to keep this under wraps. We can't have this kind of thing being shown to the public. They are already causing a bit of a scene with the recent mess the villains have left behind." Sighing, Nezu takes another sip of his tea, letting out a lengthy breath as he found a semblance of comfort from the warm drink. "Right then, no sense keeping everyone here. Mr. Graham, you'll be staying with me for a while until I can find someone to be your caretaker. If nothing else, you are all free to go. Thank you for your time as well."

Everyone else stands up and bows towards the mouse-bear, with All Might, Tsukauchi and Midoriya saying their goodbyes. Recovery Girl simply nods towards the principal's direction, who nods right back at her.

"Uhm… see y-you next time, J-joshua-san," Midoriya said, as he bid the bandaged teen goodbye.

"Farewell," he replies.

With the four having left, Nezu turns his attention to the bandaged teen.

"Now… as for your caretaker. I think I know just the person to act as a guardian for you…" he said musingly.

"Let me get this straight. You want me, to babysit a 16-year-old who isn't really a 16-year-old but a rather capable 40-year-old in a 16-year-old body?"

Aizawa was utterly dumbfounded. After hearing the story of Joshua Graham, he just stood there with a blank look on his face. There was only so much craziness that the average human mind can allow before it started damaging the user. While Aizawa is not an average human being by any means, it doesn't mean that he was used to this level of craziness. Crazy villains sure, but interdimensional beings being transported from another world to theirs? Now that… that was just outright, out of this world crazy.

Nezu placed down Joshua's forged files onto the table and clasped his paws over it. He looked at the pro hero with a serious face and said, "Precisely."

"I'm sorry if I didn't get that the first nor the second time. Almost dying does that to the human body," replied Aizawa curtly. "Not only are we dealing with a dangerous villain at large that has the ability to wipe out all of society judging by how they casually strolled into U.A. and now we're also dealing with non-parallel universe habitants?"

"That is correct."

Aizawa's head was throbbing. He needed a drink desperately to try and wrap his head around this situation. What's worse is the fact that said 16-year-old is in the room with them now, reading a bible.

"Uhm, no offense, kid, and Nezu," said Aizawa, foregoing the use of honorifics. "I doubt I would be the most capable of adults to take care of another human being. Like you've said, Joshua is an 'interdimensional' being transported to our world as a 16-year-old despite being a 40-year-old. Wouldn't it be much better if we gave him an apartment to live into instead?"

Nezu drummed his fingers onto the table as he thought of it. Coming to a conclusion, he then said, "Well, that would be sensible as well. But, as much as we try to keep this under wraps, there would always be some information that would be leaked out into the public regarding this. It would do Mr. Graham well if he were subdued by the hungry fangs of the media and the withering gazes of the public if he were all alone. I am asking you to act as his guardian so he may know of our ways and not be instantly devoured. Well, not really, but I think you know what he's capable of. He might accidentally kill someone that he shouldn't as such is his way of life. No offense."

"None taken," replied Joshua as he flicked through the bible's page.

"I… I understand what's at stake here and I suppose this would be a way for me to repay him for saving my life, but how are you so certain that he came from another world?" retorted Aizawa.

"There is much to be skeptical of in this world and I do not blame you if you find yourself questioning the bizarreness of this as well," Joshua suddenly said. "In truth, I find it hard to believe that I am indeed alive in a world different than mine. It was only through the confirmation of Principal Nezu that I have come to believe. For whatever reason the Lord has for raising me back to the dead, it is clear that there is much to be done." He closed the bible and looked directly at the man. "It no longer surprises me to learn how many people don't really believe and of course, we all have doubts. The light of the mind alone cannot fill in the darkness. But, we must try to illuminate and find the path in the dark to find the truth."

He stood up, walked to the man and faced him. "In these trying times, I know that it must be hard for all of you to trust a stranger coming to your land. Yet, in spite of this, I extend my hand to help you with your troubles and problems. After all, we can all learn to trust each other and walk through the darkness unafraid."

Aizawa looked at the teen before him and felt what seemed like a forgotten emotion inside of him. He felt like crying then and there but resisted the urge to do so. Even Nezu, the animal with a dark past, was moved due to Joshua's speech.

"So, what will it be?"

Taking a deep breath, Aizawa rubs the back of his head, undecided. He then put out a hand in front of him and reluctantly said, "Fine." Joshua took and shook it firmly.

"Alright. That settles it," said Nezu. "Once again, I welcome you to U.A. and, dare I say, our family, Joshua Graham."

"Thank you."

And with that, the Burned Man walks the world again, vowing to spread hope to those who need it and fear to those who deserve it.

Ello! Arbiter101 here and this is chapter 3 of Reaper's Lament!

So, some filler chapters before the U.A. Sports Festival, hope that it's to your liking. I have made it as realistic as possible as to make the story feel better for you my dear readers and so that it doesn't feel as rushed. Joshua will now be integrated into the BNHA society and he will be a student.

Again, for those who didn't like the de-aging trope for old characters, I'm sorry. I'm not that good of a writer yet so think of this as a trial run for me before I move on to more works. As such, I hope to make the story even better by the time the Meta Liberation Army arc comes around so stay tuned.

I don't own Fallout, the character of Joshua Graham, nor BNHA. They are owned by their respective creators.

As always, leave a review of your thoughts and your suggestion on how to make this story even better.

Edit: I may have accidentally deleted the last part of the story after the line "Farewell" and I couldn't recover the document from the doc manager. Luckily, I have a spare in my computer and pasted the deleted part so now it should feel complete.

With that said, this is Arbiter101, signing off. Buh-bye.