Katsuki knew something was off, but he wasn't sure exactly what. Everything had seemed okay when his parents got back, but then Deku pulled out of Aldera and went fully online for the rest of the year. Hell, he hadn't even seen the shitty nerd since that day. While he was glad he didn't have to deal with that pebble in the road anymore, he couldn't fully enjoy it. As much as he didn't want to admit it, there was something wrong here. While it had been eight months after Deku's seemingly complete disappearance off the face of the earth, a vigilante near his neck of the woods started to gain a lot of traction recently. While the vigilante had a strong quirk based on the footage he could nab, there was no way in hell these two events weren't connected. He just didn't know how they lined up.

"God dammit!" the blonde boy shouted in the middle of class, hands sparking even more than usual.

"Is something the matter, Mr. Bakugou?" his homeroom teacher questioned nervously. "You've been off for months."

"Yeah, I gotta problem, teach! That shitty Deku's got something to do with this new "Thunder" vigilante jackass, or whatever, and I'm trying to figure out what role he's playing!"

All the class could do was stare at the kid with a mixture of bewilderment and pity. Sure, they all knew that Bakugou and Midoriya went way back and that the former held a grudge against the latter for persisting in his dreams to become a hero despite his quirklessness, but this was a new low for his obsession.

"Come on, Bakugou," the long-fingered lackey piped up. "There's no way they're connected. Thunder is like a god and Deku's just a quirkless weakling."

Before Bakugou's "friend" could even react, he was blown out of his seat by a powerful explosion fired off on his desk. "You don't get it, dumbass! No shit there's no way that Deku is Thunder, but it seems a bit too convenient that the shitty nerd almost completely disappeared just a couple of weeks before he showed up!" The blonde stood up and took a breath, choosing his next words carefully before the teacher could wrangle the class back together.

"I hate to admit it, but Deku's smart. He may be a quirkless extra, but he could have helped Thunder become a vigilante in the first place, and he may be using him dropping out of physical school to cover for his involvement and so he can help out Thunder more than he normally would be able to."

Nobody was expecting that first sentence to ever come out of Bakugou's mouth, but what he said after was making a lot of sense. Even the teacher's jaw had dropped as he started to think more about it before clearing his throat. "A-alright. With that all settled, can we get back to the lesson?" Surprisingly, Bakugou sat back down in his seat without any hesitation or resistance. The rest of the school day continued as normal as it could go with that (for once) metaphorical bomb from Bakugou.

/

"Is the coast clear, Mom?" Izuku asked as he got into his uniform and grabbed Mjölnir.

Inko turned to face her son and nodded. "You may have to dial it back a bit though, Izu. Katsuki's starting to get suspicious." She held up her cell phone and played the voicemail she had queued up in preparation for this moment.

"H-hey, Auntie Inko. I know you don't normally hear much from me… a-and don't get any ideas about getting more calls, got it?" Izuku had already gone wide-eyed and pale in the cheeks on hearing the voice. The voicemail continued following a cough from his childhood friend. "You know about that new vigilante Thunder, right? Well, I think Deku has something to do with him. I know he can't be Thunder, what with the obvious lightning quirk, but… I-I think he dropped out of school to help Thunder more without any suspicion. I don't know what you know, but I know you worry about the nerd, so… there. Bye."

The greenette took a seat halfway through the message to collect himself. As he listened to the rest, he only just managed to keep his hyperventilating under control. His mother sat on the couch with him and held him tight, unsure of what to say so choosing to say nothing. Her son finally calmed down as her fingers gently ran through his viridian locks.

After what felt like an eternity but was in reality only a minute or two, Izuku let go and stood up. A new determined look spread across his face. "I'll do my best tonight, and I'll take a break for a couple of weeks. Hopefully, Katsuki doesn't link the break I'll take to me, or the jig might be up. Am I still good to go, Mom?"

Inko got up and checked the window facing the neighbors, giving a thumbs-up to her son who proceeded to slide through one of the back windows and climb out. Once he got his footing on the grass, he sprinted towards the fence in front of him whilst twirling Mjölnir rapidly in his right hand. He flung his arm upwards as hard as he could and soared through the sky towards the center of the city.

/

Shouta Aizawa has just about had it with this new vigilante running around. Out of nowhere, a very powerful person decides to not use their potential to become a proper pro hero? Such a notion is illogical, and what pisses him off even more is that he exclusively operates in one of his three main patrol areas. Due to his Erasure quirk, the police tasked him with capturing Thunder and bringing him in eight months ago once he started to catch the eyes of the police in the first place. What's weird is that when he asked Tsukauchi for any information that could lead to an arrest or capture outside of Thunder's operating hours he got nervous and dismissive. All the information he claims to know is that some sporadic activity started a month prior to the more regular appearances now.

Could Thunder be threatening the police so he could continue his illegal heroic work? he questions as he watches over the streets from the local cat café's rooftop. No, that doesn't seem logical. He'd have no reason to do that. Detective Tsukauchi must know more about Thunder than he's saying. Is he protecting Thunder? I better try to find him fast, I start teaching again in just over a week...

His thinking was interrupted by an explosive boom coupled with white-hot streaks touching the ground a few blocks away. "That's Thunder!" The veteran pro gripped his capture weapon and charged towards the source of the lightning. While he normally only managed to catch a glimpse of Thunder fleeing, this time he was able to see a chunk of the fight. Continuing to watch, Aizawa realized why this villain was giving Thunder a harder time than normal: a strong mutant quirk that seems to give him very thick skin.

"Come on," the arrogant villain taunted. "Is that all you got? I've felt stronger attacks from trees blowing in the wind!" Saying this seemed to peeve Thunder more than Eraserhead has ever seen. It was hardly a second after the words slipped from the poor soul's lips before they met the cold touch of the vigilante's signature hammer as he was slammed into the ground. A strong bolt of lightning crashed down only a couple of seconds after the hit connected, forcing Aizawa to jump back to the center of the roof and return after.

"You dare to insult the power of a god?!" Thunder shouted in a venomous tone. This phrasing took Shouta off-guard. Does this problematic fool really think he's a god?

"You call y-yourself a god? P-pathetic! And I thought I was cocky!" Despite the villain's posturing, it was clear that the hit did a lot of damage. His voice was shaky, and even from the rooftop the blood and bruises were clear to see.

"Mjölnir seems to disagree with your comment, scumbag," Thunder said as he twirled his hammer between his hands. "It's time to end this fight, I don't want to get caught." Thunder spat out the insult with the same tone as before, but the rest of his words held an indescribable weight and condescending attitude. Wait, did he say Mjölnir? Where have I heard that name before?

His internal question was answered as Thunder called down a final lightning strike. "By the power of Odin and Thor before me," the vigilante called out triumphantly, "I smite thee with my divine lightning!"

/

An intense yet concentrated bolt of lightning struck the hammer Izuku was wielding, making the weapon glow as he struck the villain clean on the crown of his head, knocking him out cold and into the asphalt under them. He let out a sigh of relief and seemed to unravel as the tension in his body melted away. "Finally, I can go home and stop this for a couple of weeks. Thank the gods I wasn't caught-"

All that Izuku could do next was scream out in terror as he was bound from above. His eyes darted up only to be met with the bloodshot, glowing red eyes of the smirking pro hero Eraserhead. "You thanked your so-called gods a bit too early, Thunder. You're under arrest for vigilantism. A shame, too. You could've easily been a phenomenal hero with your quirk."

Izuku sighed before closing his eyes, making his hero captor pause and furrow his brow. A fatal mistake for the senior, as Izuku used the slight falter in Aizawa's guard to break through his capture weapon. A fairly weak lightning bolt – considering what Aizawa had witnessed the resisting vigilante unleash upon the still unconscious villain beside them – struck down and tore Izuku's binds to shreds.

"Sorry to say this, Eraserhead, but I'm quirkless." The boy - smaller than Aizawa had really expected now that he paid attention - let out a dry chuckle and shrugged matter-of-factly. "This power was bestowed upon me by the gods."

The smirk on Izuku's face and the overall confidence in his statement gave Aizawa pause. This was the first time he'd genuinely felt nervous facing down a vigilante. His quirk was activated and neither Thunder's strength nor his lightning abilities faded or weakened at all.

Try all he might, he couldn't fully hide his growing apprehension. "S-so, what are you then, Thor? That's illogical, he's j-just an old mythological god."

Another laugh escaped Izuku's mouth as he spoke again. "I'm not Thor, Eraserhead, but I am his successor."