The generic cheery chimes and jingles of a morning talk show blared from the speakers of a large monitor screen, complete with a bright coloured title-card. On-screen, two women—one of them having wings on her back in a tengu-outfit—sat across each other on separate couches with a small table adorned with mugs of coffee.

"Hello and good morning, everyone!" said the wingless woman with a professional smile. "I am Mika Sugiyama, and this is my co-host, Saya Shameimaru, and welcome to the 7:30 Breakfast Show! Bringing to you only the freshest of updates to start your day! So, Shameimaru, what's the story for today?"

"I'm glad you asked!", the one known as Shameimaru answered. "For today's topic, we are going to talk about the recent villain attack on the USJ, a UA High training facility."

"Oh dear! That's what every news outlet's been reporting yesterday! What a horrid thing, that was! So, what are we going to discuss? Knowing you, it's probably going to be something that hasn't been covered yet by any of the major outlets!"

"Indeed, Sugiyama, indeed! And what I'm bringing to you viewers today comes straight from reliable insider information!"

"Really now? Our closest competitors know little to nothing about the details of the attack. What could you possibly have that is exclusive?"

"Heheh. True, even I know little about what went down on that day. But! I do know something about the mastermind behind this so-called 'League of Villains', Shigaraki Tomura!"

"Eh?! Really?!"

"Really! Last night, the leader of the villains, who was reported to have been knocked unconscious by one of the heroes that arrived to help that day, had finally woken up and is now currently undergoing preparations to be sent to one of the high-security prisons in the country.

"Earlier today, mugshots of the villain have been circulating online after being leaked by an anonymous source and that is what we're going to show you today."

The screen then showed two pictures of an unmasked Shigaraki, clad in prison garb.

"Oh my, Shameimaru! He looks like he's in serious need of some lip balm! Those are some chaffed lips, I tell you!"

"Yes, yes," Shameimaru replied with some annoyance. "However, you're not wrong in starting off with his looks as that is what had spurred the internet into a frenzy! But not for chaffed lips.

"Many people on various online forums and message boards, most prominently the infamous 0-chan, have pointed out the villain's uncanny similarity with the late Nana Shimura, a former Pro Hero whose heroic sacrifice against the world's most notorious villain, All for One, paved the way for the hard-fought peace our heroes have worked for. Thanks to her valiant efforts, we now have a hero like All Might that has since fulfilled her legacy of bringing about long-lasting peace to our citizens with a smile, having defeated All for One once and for all.

"Now, a moment of silence to honour this proud hero."

Both commentators said nothing for a few seconds, looking wistful.

"That being said," Sugiyama began, breaking the silence. "This attack on the school, regardless of success, could it be a sign that villains are now growing bolder? Surely it would inspire some others lurking in the shadows to do the same, won't it?"

"You have a point there, Sugiyama but I think the failure of the attack would inform would-be villains that such an attempt is futile although the school's reputation will without doubt take a hit. In any case, it does bring up an interesting question: What would happen to the peace once the Symbol of Peace passes away? There will come a day when All Might would no longer be around to maintain the current state of peace we have today and our best candidate to step up to the role is unfortunately Endeavour."

"Oh my…"

"Yeah… Well, to further our discussion on this issue, we'd like to welcome Deputy Minister of Heroic Security, Josuke Higashikata to the stage—"

Click.

The large screen went dark with a resounding click of a button followed by a menacing hum from the near-faceless figure that held the remote. The only visible features on the figure's face were his mouth; the rest of his face being comprised of scar tissue. He donned a slick business suit and had pipes sticking out of his neck and jaw. He rested his chin on his hand with an amused grin.

"Interesting..." he mused. He then reached for his radio communicator and pressed a button.

"Sir," came a voice from the communicator. "Preparations are all done according to plan. Should we proceed with the plan?"

"Proceed," he commanded with a deep resonant voice. "The earlier we retrieve them, the better. Their return is essential in securing our influence with the other villains."

Pausing for a moment, he remembered what his protégé told him about an odd incident during his mission to get information about the school a few days ago. Something about an individual with an incredibly interesting Quirk that could be of use to obtain.

"Once you're done executing the plan, send someone to infiltrate the school to be on the lookout for a person with an unusual Quirk."

"Unusual...sir…?"

"Yes. Unusual. There's a possibility this individual has a Quirk that can help speed up our plans considerably. Find this person and recruit them to our cause. By any means necessary."

"Yes, sir."

With that, the communicator buzzed into silence, leaving the figure to his own devices. The light bubbling of a coffee machine filled the air of the dim room he resided in.

"If this Quirk is what I think it is," he said to himself with a grin. "No matter how unlikely it is, if it really is there, I will be…

"Unstoppable."


Izuku shivered a little as he felt a cold sensation creep up his spine. Probably something bad about to happen. Then again, he already had an amusing start to his day by having to explain to his mother about his Stand while trying to keep her from passing out at the sight of the Stand's aggressive expression. It was funny yet also a bit exhausting because he had to convince her that King Crimson was not—despite its features—a malicious ghost but an extension of himself.

Speaking of extensions, Quirks were like extensions of the user's self, kind of like a limb. It occurred to him that he was now able to reach that level of being accustomed with his Stand whereas his mastery with One for All, the Quirk he was entrusted to inherit by his idol, was nowhere near that. Perhaps it had to do with how he thought about the Quirk? Diavolo told him that King Crimson responds to how you will it to do. Perhaps he could try the same with One for All? Maybe it isn't how he should be using it but how he should think about it instead?

Come to think of it, he had not used One for All at all since the training course with Bakugou. His body had also changed significantly in terms of build, so he would have to see how it would react to the self-destructive Quirk. Would it also affect his Stand?

Wait…react?

'Oh no! I just remembered my entire class had seen King Crimson!' he thought in a panic. 'What am I going to do?! How would they react to seeing me after knowing that? Oh man, oh man. It's ruined, all ruined! I'm going to be treated like an outcast again!'

Before he knew it, he was already in front of the door to his classroom. He looked at his watch.

8:20am.

Another ten minutes before class started. He winced. Everyone was going to be in class now. As far as he was concerned, nobody in his class ever arrived late to school so now he would be setting foot into a potential landmine of awkward stares. With a heavy sigh, he mentally prepared himself for the eventual bombardment of questions and fearful glares as he slid the door open.

"Ah, Midoriya, right on time. Have a seat."

Great. Not only was everyone present but his homeroom teacher was also there looking like he was fresh out of the hospital, all covered in bandages and what not! He did not even bother lifting his gaze from the floor as he gave a mumbled reply before shuffling his way to his seat. The whole class was quiet, he could feel an intense concentration of stares pointed his way even though all the attention was focused on Aizawa.

"All right everyone, listen up! I have a few short announcements to make before we can proceed with lessons." He paused for a moment to shake his bandaged arm for a bit, probably an itch he could not scratch due to his current state.

"Um…Sensei…" the blonde Kaminari asked with a worried smile. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Can you really call that 'okay', though?" murmured Uraraka who appeared shocked.

"Don't you worry too much about me," the bandaged hero waved them off. "More importantly for you, the battle is not over yet."

"What?! Are the villains attacking again?!" squeaked the purple bubble-haired midget.

"Battle?" muttered Bakugou, who appeared a tad too calm for Izuku's comfort.

The whole class then snapped shut when they saw Aizawa slowly unwrap the bandages covering his eyes, giving them a serious glare.

"The UA Sports Festival is coming up, boys and girls!"

A collective sigh of relief and joy was heard.

"Oh right! This is a school!"

"Man, a sports festival!" said the spiky red-head, Kirishima with a fist in the air. "I keep forgetting that this a normal school!"

"Damn right, my man!" Kaminari jumped in. "With all this craziness happening lately, it's almost like a shonen manga setting!"

"Wait!" chimed the class VP, Yaoyorozu. "Will it be alright, though? Wouldn't it be a huge risk to take after the school's infiltration? How can we know that all bases are covered?"

"Good question. On the contrary, the fact that we're going ahead with the festival shows that the school is confident in keeping its ducks in a row when it comes to security and crisis control now. Not only that, since the villains responsible for the USJ attack were successfully apprehended, the public has a more confident outlook on the school; seeing it as a secure place to send their children to.

"Which brings me to my next announcement. Thank you, Yaoyorozu for the providing the nice platform for me to segue into."

Yaoyorozu blushed lightly at that statement, slightly embarrassed, narrowly missing what the teacher had to say next. Izuku, however, had a feeling that the chill he felt earlier had something to do with this announcement. As much as he'd like to find out in advance using Epitaph, he would rather avoid arousing suspicion especially in a full classroom.

"As you all know, the media has been told that the apprehension of the villains in the USJ incident were due to the timely arrival of the Pro-Heroes and the support and strength shown by the students. However, what we neglected to tell the press was that most of it could have been made possible if it were not for the actions of a single student."

Izuku paled at this. 'Oh no…'

"I'm sure all of you know who I am referring to at this point, I have come here early specifically for the sole purpose of briefing you on this before the student in question arrived here."

'What?! Does this mean that…oh my god… Bakugou knows about it already?!' Izuku mentally blanched. 'That explains his eerie calm then…'

"It was because of the apparent foresight that this student had that we managed to get in touch with the other Pro-Heroes in time and minimise the potential harm the villains could have done to you. It was also by his hand that the ringleader of the group was knocked out by."

A grim silence hung over the air, eliciting an involuntary gulp from Izuku. At least, it felt grim. He felt like shrinking when he noticed Bakugou's silent glare.

"Now, how about the student in question come up front to make my job easier?"

Crap.

With an awkward creak from his chair, he got up and made his way beside the bandaged hero. His eyes never left the floor until he felt the teacher give a light pat on his back and an uncharacteristic thumbs-up.

"Thank you, Midoriya, for cooperating with me because what I'd like you to do today is give a demonstration on how your second Quirk works."

Snap.

Izuku could not help but shiver at the sight of the broken pencil on the floor by Bakugou's desk. To, hopefully, make it less awkward for himself, he asked the homeroom teacher what he had briefed his classmates on.

"I've only given them what the school knows for now, Midoriya. Besides they already know the floating humanoid-part, so I filled them in with the additional info All Might gathered from his observations."

Izuku's eyes bulged, remembering Diavolo's interaction with All Might.

'Additional info from All Might?! Does that mean that they also know of Diavolo's existence?! Oh boy, I'm really in for it now.' He cleared his throat before asking him for details, careful not to let his surprise show any more than he lets on, "And what info might that be, Aizawa-sensei?"

The bandaged hero only gave him a shrug. "The part where you can erase time."

"That's so cool!"

Kirishima pumped his fist in the air with a look of awe. Seeing his reaction made Izuku feel less anxious of what was to come next. Possibly.

"But, we can only know so much from mere observation so why don't you provide an explanation yourself?" said Aizawa before stepping aside and bringing out a pad and pencil, giving a clear signal to Izuku to what he had to do.

He took a deep breath to calm his nerves. He looked around and saw that many of his classmates—barring Bakugou—were all waiting his bated breath as though they were containing their intrigue and enthusiasm in finding out. Before he could open his mouth however, Aizawa cut him off with a quick reassurance.

"I've already sworn them all to secrecy on this matter, Midoriya, so don't you worry about privacy matters. Unless you decide to inform anyone to any level of degree, everything that you say will remain in this room and on classified school records."

The green-haired teen was not sure whether he should feel relieved, sad or scared. On one hand, only his classmates would know about King Crimson and the classification of this knowledge by the school would prevent it from being made known to potential villains. On the other hand, it also made him feel excluded from his friends, like he was some special individual with preferential treatment. He did not want them to feel as alienated from him as he was with them.

Seeing the nod of approval from Aizawa, he took a deep breath again. Scanning the room, he then opened his mouth and summoned King Crimson, the livid red humanoid phasing into existence contrasting the timid teen standing in front of the class.

"Hello everyone, as you may know already, this is my second Quirk: King Crimson."

xxx

"…and that's is all that I know for now. Any questions?" said Izuku with a smile. His anxiety, fears and doubts melted away when he went into full detail on King Crimson's abilities including Epitaph. He even went out of his way to draw diagrams to help explain the process of time erasure and how it would look like from a bystander's point of view. It was fun to watch the looks of confusion and feigned understanding when he explained, especially during the 'film-reel' analogy. By the end of it, even Bakugou appeared interested, as though his hatred for him was momentarily forgotten for their mutual thirst for knowledge.

Rows of hands shot up. He could not help but smile at the genuine interest they had. Since Uraraka was one of his closest friends, he picked her first. Again, why did she look like she was about to laugh?

"Deku!" said the bubbly girl while stifling her giggles. "What is that tiny face on that thing's face?!" She then proceeded to laugh her lungs out.

King Crimson appeared to react to that statement as it leered at the laughing girl. Unfortunately for it, it only made her giggle even more.

"Oh, that?" he answered with a giggle of his own. "That's Epitaph. He's just kinda there. He allows me to see up to ten seconds into the future. After that, I can't use it for ten seconds. Next!"

"Did you name your Quirk and the small face after the band and the song they made?" asked Kyouka, her eyes glaring at the green-haired Stand user.

"Uh…yes," he answered, careful not to accidentally blurt out Diavolo's hand in that.

"I see, so you're a person of culture as well."

She sat down, looking pleased and enlightened.

"Midoriya!" shouted Iida shortly after, the bespectacled student practically shooting up from his desk. "This foresight of yours, Epitaph, as you call it, is that what allowed you plan so far ahead? Was that why you insisted on me running off to get help so early on?"

Izuku gave a slight nod.

"I am so sorry for not having enough trust in you when you have a lot of trust in us!"

"It's fine, it's fine," Izuku waved off, embarrassed. "If it were anyone else whose Quirks I knew were perfect for the job, I'd still enlist their help without a doubt because I believe in all of you."

"That's very kind of you to say, Midoriya, but how do we know that the person standing in front of us is actually Midoriya?"

Tsuyu's blank stare bore holes into his soul, his heart racing fast. A lucky break came when Iida reprimanded her for her outlandish (yet not wrong) remark.

"Tsuyu! What exactly do you mean by this? We were all scared that day and an unexpected change in behaviour is to be expected!"

The descendant of the Tenya clan sounded confident. The sweat on his forehead said otherwise.

"You say that now, Iida, but what I've seen that day was terrifying. When he knocked out the ringleader, it was almost like the Izuku Midoriya we knew was gone!

"Instead, in his place, was a ruthless being. His eyes, his expression, the force in which he delivered the blow; those weren't that of a hero, it was like an executioner dispatching a criminal without remorse!"

"It's true!" Minetta butted in. "He was super scary, guys! When we were down there tending to Aizawa-sensei, he kept talking to himself, you know? It was super creepy!"

"Isn't that his usual habit of muttering to himself?" Uraraka refuted, her brows furrowing.

"No, you don't understand. When he mutters, it's usually some sort of deep analytical breakdown. But that day…it was like he was talking to someone else. It might have been my irrationality acting up, but I could've sworn I heard that he nearly killed someone that day."

Several shocked gasps could be heard, prompting Aizawa to lean forward.

"Or maybe he has!" Minetta added.

"No, it's not like that!" Izuku protested. "Not like that at all!"

"Then explain yourself!"

Izuku was at a loss. He wracked his brain trying to figure out the best way to explain this without giving Diavolo away. Every second that passes in silence was another two seconds of allowing the murky cloud of doubt to flood. His eyes scanned the room and locked on to the only person whose Quirk is somewhat similar to his: Tokoyami. An idea was already forming.

"It's like how Tokoyami can converse with his Quirk, Dark Shadow! King Crimson, while he doesn't visibly speak, does communicate with me…in my head, I guess? Not sure what the term is for that but yeah, it's sort of like that."

He felt a bit of relief when he saw Tokoyami nod in understanding along with several others, allowing him to move on to address the other part of the allegations: the eavesdropped conversation.

"As for the part where Tsuyu claimed I was talking to King Crimson about killing someone, yes. Regrettably, I almost killed someone with my Quirk."

"I knew it!" Minetta chimed. "I knew we couldn't trust this guy! The innocent patch of grass we all know is gone and an identical copy replaced him!"

"Shut the hell up!" barked Bakugou, surprising everyone. "You keep that up and I wish he was the murderer you think he is!"

"Bakugou…" Izuku blurted, his tone shaky at the unexpected kindness from his childhood friend-turned-bully.

"Don't get me wrong, Deku: You're still a damn worthless pebble to me!" Bakugou snapped. "But, what I hate even more is denying a person their right to defend themselves! Look at you, purple diaper, so quick to throw the guy that hauled your sorry ass under the bus all because of what, he nearly killed someone? Cry me a river! Batman nearly kills criminals for a living and Gotham is peaceful for it!"

"Uh, Bakugou? I'm pretty sure Batman is an old comic book character."

"Shut up, discount Pikachu! I know what I'm talking about!"

"…right. So, Izuku, you were saying?"

The green-haired teen gave a nod and told everyone about what he saw in the erased time on that day. It became evident that the longer he went on, the more solemn he got. He poured his heart out, every word and every sentence carrying a weight that no teen should be carrying. It was an unreal yet harrowing feeling that he was emitting to his fellows, especially to those in question, when he described in detail the condition in which he found the bodies of Tsuyu and Minetta in the realm of erased time.

Not a single person blamed him for giving in to his anger, no matter how wrong it was.

He was young and so were his peers. All were in this esteemed establishment to receive a first-class education in being a saviour, not being the helpless saved. For him, who did not have anybody he could truly call a friend until he came here, it must have been devastating.

"Oh…wow…" was all Tsuyu could mutter. "Midoriya…I'm sorry I…didn't know that…"

"It's okay, Tsuyu, it's okay. All that matters is that you're alive. Same goes for you, Minetta."

"Man…" blurted Kirishima, looking sober. "Guess those villains weren't messing around huh…"

"No, they were not," stated Aizawa, gesturing to Izuku to return to his seat. "Which is why I made it a point that you take your studies and your Quirks seriously during your physical tests. Actual villains won't take it easy on you just because you feel like you needed a chance. There are no chances: only your skill and your wit.

"That being said, I do realise that I don't have much time left so I'll make this quick. You have two more weeks to prepare for the UA school festival. Use that time wisely. Feel free to ask your class president more about his Quirk but do remember what I briefed you on earlier."

He then shuffled towards the door, sliding it open. However, just before he left, his eyes lit up and peeked around the door. "Oh, I almost forgot! Midoriya!"

"Y-y-y-yes!" Izuku stammered, looking like a lost squirrel.

"Come see me tomorrow after school."

With that, he left the classroom in a hurry. As he paced down the hallway towards his office, he whipped his notepad and examined the notes he made. Then, upon reaching his desk, he fished out a document All Might sent a few days ago when he first made contact with the boy's intriguing Quirk. He compared his notes with All Might's document.

The words, [Unidentified Second Quirk] and [Stand], stood out to him in the document along with the old dusty book on pre-Quirk powers that All Might lent to him. He circled those words with a red pen and snapped the book open, skimming through the chapters until he came upon the one with a seemingly innocuous image of a few children playing by a rock formation in an open grassy field. Nothing about it stood out. He flipped a few pages back and found more graphic and clear images of a battle between these 'Stand' users and its aftermath. One image in particular jumped out at him.

An image of a deceased red-headed Japanese teenager with a hole in his torso, water and blood flowing through it from the water tower where authorities found his body.

Aizawa has had his fair share of dishing out hits as well as receiving them, his bandages being a testament to yesterday's battle. He knew it took a lot of force to slug a punch that could stagger an average person. A lot more to send them flying like most augmentation-based Quirk users do with All Might being a good example of that. Yet, to imagine what monstrous power it took to penetrate the human body in a single punch…these 'Stands' were not to be trifled with.

The image also struck to him as odd. What was a Japanese teenager doing in Egypt and why? Why is he in school uniform and why was there very little media coverage of these 'Stand' battles aside from the rare photograph and news clippings of strange occurrences that were present during that period of time.

Skimming through the chapter on the subject, he noted that the Egypt incident, while the most well-known and the best documented, was not the only one of its kind. While the rest of the examples given had little to no photographic evidence, the newspaper clippings were a tell-tale sign that these 'Stands' had been involved and their powers were not limited to their bodies.

A string of disappearances spanning a decade in a small town in Japan in the 90s along with a slew of bizarre happenings; a mysterious sudden mass death in Rome caused by an unknown flesh-eating mold; a prison pastor found dead by the base of a rocket in Cape Canaveral in 2012 with numerous witness accounts of time appearing to pass by faster than normal and conspiracy theories about gravity manipulation technology; all appear to point towards the supposed 'villains' who had this power.

What of the 'heroes', then?

These findings had solidified his initial assumption that 'Stands' have unexplainable broken powers, but it did not answer how they came to be. What sort of catalyst was needed for one to have this pre-Quirk era power? Quirks themselves were mysterious enough on their own even with extensive scientific study and the best they could come up with was checking for an extra bone in your toe.

It made no sense at all to assume that this bone was a sure-fire indicator of a person's ability to have a Quirk, but people love correlation even if it had little causal evidence. Sure, the majority of the people who had Quirks had this bone but why then has nothing special been found when examining it? It had a marrow and was solid, just like the rest of the bones in a skeleton.

Could it be that these Stands were a pre-cursor to Quirks? It was plausible but until he could find out more about Stands, he had to take every possibility into consideration. Midoriya, up until the Hero Exam, was registered as Quirkless. It was possible that he might have lied about it but his interaction with Bakugou said otherwise.

He checked his watch. It was almost time for him to go to his next class to teach.

So far, he gathered that these Stand users, while their battles were either destructive or highly discreet, must have had a good grasp at controlling their powers. After all, from what he heard earlier in class, Midoriya managed to use his Stand to safely dispatch Shigaraki despite it piercing through the Noumu in a single strike not long prior.

Then there was the issue of the boy's mental health.

What he had seen and done was something only a hero under duress would experience. He might look fine now but there may be a time when the trauma resurfaces.

He gathered his things and put the book away in a drawer in his desk before heading off to educate some brats.

Hopefully, when he meets the boy tomorrow, he would not have to expel him for the safety of his peers.


"Man, that was quite intense!"

Kaminari stretched his arms as he returned to his seat. Lunch break had just ended so there were only a few people present in 1-A.

"No kidding. That was a bit much for me to process," said Kirishima. He was lounging by his desk along with Bakugou and the lanky Sero. Handa Sero, while not the most talkative of people next to Midoriya, found himself comfortable in the company of such brash talkers. He, like many in the class, were shaken by this new Quirk that their class president had two Quirks and a wholly unknown one too.

"Yeah, same here," he added. "Still though, erasing time… Where do you even begin to wrap your head around that? I mean, time is immaterial and therefore cannot be destroyed. But, erasing?"

"Dude, no. That's just too much theoretical nonsense in there that I do not want to touch with a ten-foot pole even if I harden my entire body. What's your take on this, man?"

"Hm."

Kaminari held his chin for a moment while Bakugou appeared to be disinterested as he was staring out the window. His ears were perked up, though.

"I agree with you to an extent, Kirishima my good friend, as I cannot fathom how time can be in a state of non-existence. That being said, I do believe that time can be manipulated in the sense that one could use it travel into the future, the past or explore multiple probabilities that can be brought upon with a change in decision.

It is highly likely that the realm of 'erased time' that Midoriya enters upon activating King Crimson is one that actually removes the [cause] of any undesirable action. Since we've all agreed that the very idea of time erasure makes little to no sense, any change to this cause will result in anyone and anything acting out in a predetermined [effect] as it does not sense this change. This then ends up in the feeling that something had skipped, thus the mistaken assumption that time had been erased."

A beat of silence hung in the air. Kirishima, Sero and even Bakugou stared blankly at Kaminari, who was now looking very confused. The three listeners looked at each other, then back at him, then turned back to each other and back at him again.

They then nodded in an unspoken agreement.

'Midoriya's muttering has spread!' was what they all thought but none dared to voice their opinion on the matter-

"Kaminari, you sounded a lot like Deku for a moment there!"

-Until now.

'Uraraka!'

They felt their collective burden be lifted from their shoulders thanks to Uraraka's sudden giggly exclamation.

"Eh?! Really?!"

Kaminari flustered a little, rubbing his hair for a while but went back to his 'wannabe-cool-guy' attitude after a minute.

"Guess he's beginning to rub off on me, huh?"

"Haha! Kind of!"

"Hey guys! What's up with all the fuss?"

They turned to the door to find Kyouka greeting them with a wave along Tsuyu and Mina.

"Eh, not much," replied Kaminari. "They were just talking about how I was pulling a 'Deku' earlier."

"What do you—"

"He went full on mutter-lecture, man!", Kirishima exclaimed.

The three newcomers' eyes grew wide with shock. They then turned to Uraraka who was then confused by this.

"Um…why are you looking at me like that?"

Their gazes were not one of malice but of concern. It was as though they were wanting to defend the corruption of a pillar of innocence.

"Uraraka, do you usually spend much time with Midoriya?", asked Kyouka, breaking the silence.

The gravity manipulator's hair immediately puffed up and her cheeks grew pink as she stammered, "W-w-what do you mean?"

"What I mean is do you usually talk to him?"

"Oh! R-right," she answered, sighing. "I walk together with him and Iida whenever possible after school and we have lunch in a group too."

The three interrogators glanced at each other and then at the boys who were listening in. They then nodded in unison.

"Uraraka, it is for best of your interests that you minimise contact with him from now on."

"Eeeeeh?!"

Uraraka glared at them half-surprised, half-flabbergasted. "Why?!"

Mina answered, in a serious and solemn tone that betrayed the glint in her eye, "Because we have every reason to believe that his prominent trait might spread to you."

"I see."

Everyone present into snapped their heads in shock. Their shock grew into fingers that gripped their hearts with inexplicable shame and guilt as they stared at the class president, who had actually been by the open door the whole time, silently walk away.

Kaminari and Kyouka, who were the first to shake off their shock, dashed out to explain the whole thing to Midoriya but it was too late:

As soon as they saw him descending the staircase, they suddenly found themselves at the foot of the staircase.


A/N: Hey there! I know the previous chapter had diverged greatly from the canon by having Shigaraki be arrested but this is the point where the divergence becomes more prominent. Tell me what you think about it and I'll respond accordingly! I would like to thank those who have stuck with this story and those who have left feedback as your support is what keeps me going.

To Lawless, your thoughts on future chapters are eerily similar to my own that I am tempted to go completely against them and subvert them. XD

Just kidding. Seriously though, they're so similar that I wonder if you would've written this very same story if I hadn't done it first. In any case, it's fun reading your ideas and thoughts. They're highly appreciated.