Hey guys! How're you going? I could have been better myself. I finally caught "the coof" last week, which really hampered by creative energy. Thankfully, this is why I only upload every two weeks, gave me enough time to recover, thus, the chapter is coming out on time! I hope it didn't impact the quality of my writing, let me know!

Borderlands is owned by Gearbox and 2KGames and My Hero Academia is owned by Kohei Horikoshi and Funimation. Please support the official release.

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"This means someone is talking."

'This means someone is thinking to themselves.'

This means it's a flashback.

This means it's a sound effect!*

Angel in a Gilded Cage

It had only been a few months since USJ, but to Angel and surely the rest of her class, it felt like a lifetime ago. Perhaps out of an innate desire to put that tense, horrifying hour behind her, a futile attempt to shelter herself from the stifling fear that she had felt that day. Even if it had been overshadowed by her confrontation with her past, she would still be shaken when remembering what she went through.

All because of Shigaraki, the man sitting before her at this moment, a single digit away from disintegrating Midoriya with his erasing touch.

Angel had hoped she'd never encounter the deranged villain ever again, but that was too much to ask for, apparently. Most people went their entire lives without meeting such an inhuman creature. She must have been born under a bad star or something, anything to explain how luckless her entire life has been, leading up to her running into him again so soon. She was a hero student, but at least let her wait until after graduation.

Regardless of her personal wishes, here she was, her quirk buzzing alongside the blood rushing through her veins, drowning out the sounds of the crowd. Said families and companions continued to move around them, blissfully unaware of the standoff unfolding within their midst.

Their eyes were locked, neither one of them daring to blink. The color of his iris, that pure red. She could see him barely restraining his urge to kill, his body slightly shuddering in sadistic excitement and his dry, severely chapped lips peeled back to show his wide, grotesque smile.

The young man's expression was too much like his, the only difference being one of them actually cared for his appearance enough to use moisturizer.

On his right, Midoriya was sweating like he was thrown into an oven and looked just as terrified. For himself? For her? For the oblivious bystanders? All three, knowing him.

That finger wavered over his neck, the only thing preventing him from being taken to the morgue in a jar.

A brief image of Aizawa's crumbling elbow flashed before her eyes and she grit her teeth. The buzzing turned to a burning.

Her arm instantly lit up, hanging loose against her side, her hand hovering near hip like she was reaching for her holster.

It was funny. The last time they had met, he had wagered that she wouldn't pull the trigger. But now… there was a part of her that dared him to ask again.

"Let…him…go." She quietly ground out.

Shigaraki simply continued to stare at her, not a twitch in his expression. As if giving her what she wanted.

Looks like they were both about to find out.

Angel's finger twitched.

Midoriya's eyes widened and he started. "I-I'm okay! D-D-Don't come any closer, I'm-!" Midoriya cried out despite the hand on his throat, just for it to suddenly pull away.

"Oh man, I didn't know you had company!" Shigaraki let out a raspy snicker, his smile becoming softer and more friendly as he waved his arms to defuse the tension. "Heh, look at me being the third wheel. You kids have fun shopping alright?" He said while he stood up, put his hands in his pockets and started slouching away.

"Izuku! Are you okay?!" Angel dove to Midoriya on the bench, frantically looking him over. He was coughing and rubbing his neck but he seemed to be fine. Rather than answer her however-

"Kaff! Hack! Hold it Shigaraki!" He raised his head and glared at the villain's departing form, who paused but didn't look back.

"What is he planning?! Huh?! All For One?!" He demanded.

Angel didn't know who this person was, why Midoriya was asking, or why someone named himself after a book reference, but she found herself feeling more curious of Shigaraki's reaction, turning her head.

The man stood there for a moment, glancing back a little. "...Don't know. Doesn't really matter to me…" He admitted, his low, dry voice just barely carrying over the din of the crowd. "Anyway… enjoy the days you have left, because the next time we meet… will be the last… afterall…" He turned and brandished his right hand, showing the bullethole sized patch of scar tissue on the back, his red eye boring into Angel. "... I still need to pay you back for this…" He pocketed the injury and faced forward. "...Later…"

With that, he melted into the crowd and was gone.

It all became a blur after that. Angel immediately called the police and made sure Midoriya was alright. Any thought of chasing after Shigaraki herself was stifled by her friend. Apparently the villain threatened to take as many innocent lives down with him if they tried. So with a heart heavy with frustration, she stayed with him while they waited for the authorities, their classmates finding them soon after.

Unfortunately, despite the conjoined forces of the police and the local heroes, Shigaraki was long gone. With the immediate danger out of the way, Angel and Midoriya spent the rest of the day at the nearest precinct for a formal interrogation. As the witness to the whole incident, it was decided that Angel would be the second interviewed after her friend, the victim.

After waiting about an hour in a chair outside the interrogation room, her friend stepped out, looking tired and understandably vexed. Thus it was her turn and she waited inside at a small table, before being joined by one Detective Tsukauchi.

She faintly remembered him from the USJ investigation, though she hadn't been in the right mind to care back then after everything that happened. He was a relatively young man with a clean face, a short head of dark hair and a straight back. He was focused, yet was also patient and kind in his questions, making sure to be considerate of the harrowing situation she just went through. Angel felt guilty when she couldn't offer him anything useful, or at least different from what Midoriya probably told him, but he just gave her a smile and assured her that it was no trouble. He even offered her a bottle of water as he escorted her out.

"Oh right, I almost forgot." He said as he opened the door for her. "We called Moxxi-san for you. She'll be here as soon as she can, but apparently she got held up in traffic."

She nodded. "Thank you detective. Did you tell her I'm alright? She'll probably be worried sick."

He calmly smiled. "I did and you're right. I could hear how scared she was over the phone when I told her I was calling about you. Your mom really cares for you."

Angel grimaced a little to herself, but tried not to let it show. "Yeah… she really does." She answered, the amount of grief she had caused for her caretaker weighing heavily.

"In anycase," Tsukauchi continued. "Thank you for your cooperation and great job acting under pressure. Not many kids your age would have handled that situation that well."

"D-Don't thank me." She shook her head. "Shigaraki still got away, even though I had him, right there on that bench."

The man stopped them and looked her in the eye. "Don't be so hard on yourself. Yes, Shigaraki escaped, but you managed to save your friend and no one got hurt. That's really what matters here. Thanks to you and Midoriya's resolve, I didn't have to make any phone calls to someone to tell them their loved one was killed today." He gave her a gentle pat on the shoulder and smiled. "I'd call that a best case scenario."

Angel looked up at the genuine gratitude on the man's face, the earnestness in his voice. She didn't detect a single iota of anger or displeasure. He could be lying of course, but there was something that made her want to believe that he truly did care more about the lives that were spared, instead of the squandered opportunity to arrest a notorious killer. He was in law enforcement to make the world a better place, she could tell.

Even if there were members of the Japanese police forces in his pocket, she could safely say that Detective Tsukauchi was not one of them.

She softly smiled back. "Thank you Detective."

"Any time." He said as he pushed the front door open and they stepped out into the cool evening air.

"Ah, Angel-chan!" She turned to spot Midoriya sitting on the front steps, climbing to his feet upon her arrival.

Angel blinked in surprise. "Hey! What are you still doing here? Aren't you going to go home?"

He scratched his head and shuffled his feet off the pavement. "My mom's running a little late. She was working a shift at the hospital when things happened, so she's running over as fast as she can."

A bell rang and they both looked at Tsukauchi pulling out his phone. "Whoops! Sorry kids, I've got to take this. Stay right here, I'll be back soon." He said, giving a quick bow then ducking back inside.

The two teens stood there for a moment in silence, the air filling with the sound of crickets and frogs. Saying that it felt awkward would be an understatement. What did you say after going through an ordeal like that? "Hey, I'm really glad you aren't being swept up in a dustpan right now?"

Angel sweated a little and popped her lips.

"W-Well if we're waiting, we might as well get comfortable." Midoriya said, setting himself back down on the steps and she did the same.

The quiet resumed for a while longer. It was a few minutes when Angel realized this was the first time she had been completely alone with her freckled friend. Normally they were accompanied by their other companions or classmates, but now? Just the two of them, sitting in the courtyard. Not a very significant observation, but an interesting one nonetheless.

Still, as she sat there silently, Angel began to remember something she had been meaning to ask for the last several hours. The question was how did she broach the topic?

She discreetly glanced at Midoriya from the side. He had a far off look in eyes, as if deep in thought.

Perhaps if she built up to it? It was worth a shot.

"S-So, so much for the shopping trip, huh?" Angel asked, making him start a little.

"Uh, y-yeah. I didn't really get the chance to go anywhere before Shigaraki nabbed me." He muttered, running a hand over his neck.

"Me either. Mina-chan and the others dragged me to a clothes store and I never did buy anything. Shame, I was actually getting into the swing of things." She sighed.

Midoriya paused. "T-Then how did you see me in trouble then? Why weren't you with the others?"

Angel pursed her lips, glancing away. "Something… happened and I needed some fresh air. Let's just leave it at that. Anyway, I was hanging on a balcony when I thought I spotted you and that man below me. Something about how you two were sitting there didn't sit well with me, so I decided to check it out and, well, the rest is history."

He nodded. "Mm. Guess I should be thankful for whatever happened. I don't know if I'd be here if you hadn't shown up." He gave her a smile. "Thanks again for saving my life."

She returned the expression. "Hey, it's what heroes do, right? Actually, what's the score right now?"

"E-Excuse me? Score?" He stammered.

"Yeah, how many times I've saved you versus you saving me. If this is just going to keep happening we may as well keep track right?"

The verdette laughed bashfully. "I d-don't think we should be competing like that. I don't like the idea of someone owing me for helping them. I just help people because I want to."

Angel's mouth fell open a bit in shock before she closed it again. Her friend's humility warmed her heart. Should she really be surprised by this point?

"Heh. Same for me. I was just thinking we could make a game of it at this point. But it's probably for the best. You'll probably beat me in the end."

His eyes bugged out and he pointed at himself incredulously. "E-Eh?! Really?! I'd win?"

"Sure you would! There's the time we met, where you helped me when I was, well, freaking out. Then not an hour after that you saved me from getting run over by the zero-pointer. And then there was USJ when you threw a punch at Shigaraki when I was unconscious, I heard about it from Tsu-chan. "She counted out on her fingers, each of her examples making him blush.

"T-T-The score i-isnt that skewed! Y-You saved me after I busted that robot, remember?! What about when you shot Shigaraki when he was about to kill me the first time? What about today?!"

"Huh, guess the score is tied, guess I need to retake math." Angel shrugged in faux concern, making him snort, which got her snickering along.

Taking a second to breathe, she decided it was time to go for the kill (metaphorically).

"H-Hey, Izuku-kun…" She started, her tone and the way she said his name immediately making him look at her in concern. "There's… been something that has been bothering me since the incident."

She met his worried eyes. "Who's All For One?"

Midoriya immediately stiffened and turned away, not unlike how she had a minute ago. It was somehow possible for him to be more uncomfortable than when he was held hostage earlier. "You remember that, huh?"

"Kinda hard not to, what with you demanding an answer from the crazed villain after he had you in a headlock."

"Yeah. Guess I should have expected you'd want answers." He answered quietly, still refusing to look at her, setting off even more alarms in her head. It might be her lack of experience talking, but Angel liked to think that she and Midoriya were close. But his hesitancy to tell her anything about this ominous sounding individual cast doubt on those thoughts.

Though… was she really one to talk? She was asking him out of concern, but she didn't have the right to pry into something that was obviously making him uncomfortable. She had claimed more than a month ago that she would reveal her own secrets to him and the others when she felt ready for it, but if she asked herself if she was, the answer was still a resounding no.

Afterall, bringing others into her world meant that they'd know everything he did. And she had witnessed time and again what happened to those who knew too much.

'No. That's not it, or at least the main reason.' She thought. 'It's because I'm still scared, aren't I? Of what he might think of what I've done.'

Despite All-Might's words, despite her friend's promises, the thought still terrified her. The chance that the people she had surrounded herself with, filled with understanding and care would reject her out of disgust or fear.

Was that the reason for Midoriya's secrecy, or at least a similar fear? Perhaps. And it'd be for that reason that she wouldn't cross that boundary, at least not yet. She will show him the same patience she had given her.

"Izuku-kun…" Angel called to him softly. "If this is painful for you, or something… you don't have to tell me."

His head perked up a little at that, she took it as an invitation to continue. "As much as I want to know about whatever is between you and Shigaraki, it doesn't give me the right to force you to spit it out if you're not ready. You've given me that much."

He didn't respond for a few moments. Angel just started to worry if she said something wrong when he slowly turned to her and gave her a thankful look, though she didn't miss the undercurrent of regret in his eyes.

"Thank you Angel-chan. You're right, I can't tell you, but not for the reason you think." He said, his voice low as he hugged his legs.

She raised a brow.

"It's just… this secret isn't mine to tell. The person who entrusted it to me, t-t-they, well, they mean a lot to me. They made me promise to keep it close and to not tell a single person." His gaze met the ground. "And I haven't. No one knows about it, not even my mom."

"I see. Must be a pretty big deal."

"You don't know the half of it." He sighed, shaking his head. "It's a really big weight. A responsibility. I…" He swallowed. "I hope you won't hold it against me, but I really can't tell you. I'm sorry."

Midoriya's words settled over Angel. So it was because of a promise. While she was glad that the boy wasn't dealing with the same problem as her, it just dug up more questions. Who had he made this vow to? Who was so important that he wouldn't tell her, let alone his own mother?

Was it someone they both knew, or someone from his past? It confounded Angel to no end, even after she told him she wouldn't pry.

But that wasn't what upset her the most. There was something else, something that made her fret the more she thought about it. A possibility that seemed very likely given recent events.

"Can you promise me something then?" She spoke, getting his attention.

"What is it?"

"Promise me…" She paused, trying to find the right words. "...promise me that if it comes between keeping this secret and your safety, you won't hesitate to save yourself."

He froze, a confused, panicked look on his face. "W-What do you mean?"

"Izuku, I know you." She frowned at him. "You'll do anything to help other people. You've proved that when you threw yourself to save me two times, when you destroyed your body to help Todoroki with his… family issues, or that mess with Iida and the Hero Killer. You keep putting yourself in harm's way without thinking of yourself. I'm not saying it isn't admirable, but at this rate it's starting to scare me. It doesn't matter how much this person means to you, I'm sure they're a wonderful human being… but their privacy isn't worth your life. Promise me that."

He stammered a bit and shrugged. "A-Alright, I promise-"

"No." Angel grabbed his hand, his right, the one that he had broken in his fight in the Sports Festival. He looked at her in alarm, at the serious glare she was giving him. "Look me in the eye and promise me that when push comes to shove, you won't throw your life away for this. A lot of people will be hurt if you don't come back one day."

She squeezed his hand and her expression cracked. "Including me. Please…" She begged and lowered her head, trying not to cry.

The silence returned for a moment. Angel felt the rough scars running over the back and his palm, an odd, twisted reflection of the blue markings on her body.

A left hand clasped them together and she glanced up. Midoriya was smiling at her ruefully, with an earnest look in his eyes as their gazes met.

"Okay. I promise I won't value this over my own life."

"Really?" She mumbled.

"Definitely."

She choked a little and wiped away at the tears welling up with her thumb. "Thank you. And I promise, if that weight gets too heavy, whatever it is, I'll be there for you. Okay?"

He nodded. "It's a deal."

Both teens laughed a little despite themselves. The moment was broken when the station's front door creaked open and they jumped.

"Sorry about that." Tsukauchi groaned, rubbing his neck while he slipped his phone into his pants pocket. " I swear, if forensics spent half as much time working as they do talking-oh!" He stopped, eyes flicking between the students and their joined hands. "Am I interrupting something?"

It took a second for them to process, then they turned bright neon red as they realized what the detective was implying and leapt away from each other, waving their arms frantically.

"N-N-N-No! W-W-W-We were j-just talking!" Midoriya sputtered.

"Y-Y-Yeah! Just t-t-talking about hero s-stuff!" Angel squeaked, just as flustered.

Tsukauchi raised a brow and snickered, but didn't press further. Then something caught his eye.

"Ah, it looks like your ride is here, Midoriya-kun."

The boy and Angel stopped their little freakout to turn where he was facing, noticing a police officer escorting a short woman down the path. She was a little round around the edges, her straight, dark green hair tied into a bun. She was wringing a handkerchief, completely distraught if the reddened cheeks damp with tears was anything to go by. She bore a striking resemblance to her friend, meaning-

"Mom!" Midoriya called out, running over.

"Izuku… I'm so glad you're okay! You have to stop doing this!" The woman sobbed, wiping at her face with her cloth, her son reaching out to console her.

"M-Mom… I'm so sorry." He apologized, holding her close and patting her on the back. "I'm completely fine. No one was hurt. Please don't cry."

Angel watched on, taking in the sight of her friend attempting to reassure his anxious mother. Tsukauchi's words echoed in her head, about how he wouldn't be giving any tragic news to someone's family, thanks to her.

She shivered. It just occurred to her that this woman might have been crying for a very different reason tonight.

'Don't think about it.' Angel shook her head while the younger Midoriya helped clean his mother's face.

"There, is that better Mom?" He asked, getting a nod.

"Y-Yes." She sniffled. "T-Thank you Izuku."

He nodded, then caught Angel out of the corner of his eye. "Mom, I want you to meet someone."

"O-Oh?"

He took her by the arm and gently led her until she was a few feet away. She looked at Angel in confusion, making her shift a little.

"Angel-chan, this is my mother, Midoriya Inko. Mom, this is Hodunk Angel-chan. She's one of my friends from school and she's the one who saved my life today." He announced.

His mother's eyes widened.

Angel gave a little wave. "H-Hi."

The next thing she knew, the woman had crossed the distance between them and-

"A-Ah!" Angel gasped as she was suddenly wrapped in a tight hug.

"Y-You saved my little b-boy? From the bottom of my heart, t-thank you!" Inko choked, a fresh waterfall of tears pouring down her face.

Trapped in the mother's strong embrace, Angel was overwhelmed by the sheer amounts of gratitude washing over her. It was a similar feeling to when she had been approached by the three hostages from the Pretty Penny raid. However, it felt more than a hundred times stronger in comparison.

She was instantly reminded of the fire from all those years back, to the mother reunited with her toddler, thanking the hero profusely.

She didn't need to use her fingers to smile this time.

She relaxed, returning the embrace.

"N-No problem Miss. I-It's nice to meet you."

"Likewise! I-I've heard so much about you from Izuku! I-I wish we could have met under nicer circumstances!"

"S-Same!" She laughed.

"Oh, this is too much!" Inko wiped at her face again. "I-I'm just so overwhelmed! My Izuku has such good friends and one of them is such a nice, pretty girl! I thought I'd never see the day!"

"M-Mom!" Izuku yelped, sounding horrified and a little insulted. Angel just sputtered, her face taking on the hue of a lump of flaming coal.

"I don't mean it like that honey. It's just that you were so shy for so long that a mother gets a little worried is all."

"Mom! Please stop!"

Tsukauchi stood forgotten and off to the side, a skeleton of a man with a wild bird's nest of blonde hair trudging over to him.

"We were lucky this time." He said to the number one hero, his secret friend. "We should be glad their meeting with Shigaraki was an accident. This isn't going to be the end of it though, he'll be back with a plan next time. I recommend that the school starts taking more drastic counter measures in the future."

"I'll speak to Nezu-san about it." Toshinori agreed, his sunken eyes not leaving the boy and girl trying to assure the former's parent that they were simply friends. "Hah… I've only been teaching for three months, look at what's happened."

"You can never account for the insane and the wicked. All you can do is get them ready. You can't coddle them forever."

Toshinori hummed.

"Hey." His friend nudged him. "We're going to get him this time. All For One, you hear?"

"Yeah." He said, determined. "It's about time we ended this, him and I."

Miles away, the wanted man of the hour walked along the empty sidewalk. Cars whizzed past, the occupants unaware of the dangerous criminal walking by. They wouldn't be able to tell of course, with his back slumped over and the hood pulled over his head.

It had been hours since Shigaraki left the mall, but the wide grin had yet to leave his face. He could barely keep the excited tremors down, the events of the day running through his head, over and over.

It had started off with him bitterly cursing the Hero Killer for what had happened three weeks ago. Kurogiri had invited the murderer to their abode with the intent to induct him into their ranks. Rather, what happened was the man started getting preachy, calling Shigaraki out. In his words, he called him a child, wanting to kill All-Might and destroy hero society just for shits and giggles. Saying that to kill without a creed was the murder's equivalent of throwing a tantrum, just randomly lashing out for some perceived slight and giving up as soon as he hit a roadblock. The encounter ended with him getting multiple stab wounds before the killer left, leaving him with his wounded pride.

In retaliation, Shigaraki released a pack of Nomu upon Stain's hunting ground in Hosu in the hopes that the idealist would get overshadowed by the carnage. Rather, what happened instead was that All-Might fanboy showing up and inadvertently setting the spotlight for the Hero Killer's claim to fame, bellowing an impassioned speech about the influx of "fake" heroes and how only those enacting justice for justice sake could be considered the genuine article, his body broken and gushing blood the entire time until he passed out.

It pissed Shigaraki off to no end as effectively, Stain had lost the battle, but won the war. Videos of him spouting his convictions while appearing as a dead man walking popped up all over the internet. The authorities tried their best to stem the flow, but for every post they deleted, another two popped up. Both those factors together had elevated Stain to a martyr in the eyes of the downtrodden and outcast, seeing him as a revolutionary of the modern age.

At that point, Shigaraki thought himself over the whole debacle, wanting to lock himself up in his room and bury himself in video games while he tried to figure something out. His respite was cut short however, as Sensei instructed him to make his own video on Stain's history and convictions, like some kind of infuriating homework assignment. He never stopped complaining during the whole process, but he did what was asked.

He didn't think anything would become of his work, but it seemed like he underestimated the pull one could get from claiming to follow the Hero Killer's message. Within days, the League had been approached by almost a dozen of Stain's supporters, all of them wanting to enact his will.

Shigaraki didn't care. It was just another reminder of his humiliation at the hands of the man, one that stung more than the stab wounds he had gouged into his shoulders. It all came to a head that morning, when he was introduced to his two most recent "recruits"; some psycho girl with a knife and an emo poser that called himself "Dabi" of all things. The only thing that pissed him off more than that ridiculously edgy name was how both of them would not shut up about the Hero Killer. Stain this, Stain that. It made him sick.

Kurogiri stepped in before he could kill either of them and suggested he went on a walk to clear his head. So he wandered about with no destination, all the while trying to make sense of everything, specifically why people were paying attention to Stain and not them. They both did the same things, destroying the stuff that they hated. Yet he went off, got himself beaten up by a trio of hero students, gave a speech and people began to worship the ground he stood on, while the League was forgotten.

By the time he made it to the Kiyashi-ward shopping mall, he still hadn't come up with answers.

That's when HE showed up. The green haired, freckled hero brat. Seeing an opportunity to liven up his trip, he had pulled the kid aside with a hand at his throat. Out of curiosity or boredom, he didn't know, but he asked him what he thought was the difference between the League and the Hero Killer and why only one of them was flourishing.

He hadn't expected a legitimate answer, let alone one that set off the revelation in his mind. The only reason people flocked to the Hero Killer was because of his creed, his unstoppable determination to see his mission through. As loath as it was to admit, Stain was right about him. He had been too fickle, too lax. He needed a purpose, a reason for what he did.

And just like the Hero Killer and Midoriya, his reason all had to do with All-Might! He was why people felt safe and ignored the problems lying below the surface. He was the Atlas holding society together, covering the cracks with his giant hands as he hefted it over his head. It was at that moment that his plan came together, which Sensei likely wanted him to figure out all along. He would use the Hero Killer's following for his own ends! The perfect revenge and the best way to get the support he would need for finally killing All-Might and rotting this fake, happy world to the ground!

He had been overflowing with so much joy that he almost disintegrated Midoriya right there on that bench, if he wasn't confronted by another familiar face, Hodunk Angel.

He snickered to himself.

Soon. Soon he will get back at her, Midoriya and everyone else. First, he had work to do.

Turning down a dark alleyway, he finally returned to the bar, newly found resolve in hand.

Speaking of hands, he retrieved one from his pocket and set it over his face, the soothing feeling of the cold fingers helping temper his bloodlust. Flipping his hood off his head, he pushed the door open.

"Ah, young master. You've returned." Kurogiri greeted, swirling a cloth in a glass tumbler. "I trust your stroll was productive." He said, probably learning of the incident on the news.

"Heh… like you wouldn't believe…" He glanced about. "Where'd that blonde chick and Staple Face go..?"

"After you left, I prepared their lodgings." The bartending warp gate answered, placing the cleaned glass on the shelf. "But while you were gone, we had another visitor."

"Another one of Stain's groupies..?"

"No. A mercenary actually."

Shigaraki raised a brow. A contract killer then? On one hand, it meant that whoever this gun for hire was, they'd likely have a lot more combat experience then the small-time thugs and psychos he was accustomed to. The risk however was the very nature of their occupation. They cared only for the money and once the funds ran out, so would their loyalty.

"Are they any good..?"

"From what we've gathered, he's one of the most notorious enforcers in the world. He has killed for nearly every mercenary company there is, with a body count to match."

Shigaraki mulled this over. Whoever this man was, he seemed perfect for the job, a little too perfect. Then again, the benefits were too great. He'd just need to keep an eye on whoever this person was.

"Where is he..?"

The question was promptly answered by a dull click and a snap. He turned his head to the back of the bar to one of the booths, covered in shadows. A pair of crossed legs wearing steel combat boots reclined on the table, the metal cutting notches in the wood. The rest of the man's form was hidden, save the two large hands holding a blocky lighter up to a cigar clenched between their owner's teeth, as well as the dutch beard growing from their chin, a white stripe running down the middle.

"So yer the crusty runt that tried to off the big guy…" The man stated, his voice deep and jagged like a rockslide. The small flame ignited the stogie and he flicked the lighter closed. He took a deep puff and let out twin streams of smoke from his nostrils. "Gotta say, not impressed."

Shigaraki's hackles rose at the offhanded slight, but he kept himself calm, choosing not to let the stranger get the better of him. "I could say the same about you... If you're so famous, why haven't I ever heard of you..?"

"Let's just say I've been on an exclusive contract up until recently." The man said, sticking the smoldering cigar in his mouth, the glowing end bobbing with every word he said. "Just swung by the neighborhood, looking for some work."

"I'm guessing you're from elsewhere..? You don't sound Japanese…"

"Yeah, it's been a while since I've been in a country that I'm not wanted for murder. Guess we'll be changing that real soon."

"Depends... Is money all you're in this for..?" He asked, taking a seat at the bar, his finger tapping off his knee. "We're going to be killing All-Might, not to mention all of his students, a bunch of teenagers... Makes you kinda… monstrous, doesn't it..?"

"What can I say? I'm a simple man." The mercenary took another drag, expelling the smoke in a satisfied wheeze. "There's two things that get me up in the morning. Killing people and money to buy toys to kill more people. It's a dirty life, but it's mine. Plus, if I help kill the big guy, I can drive up my asking price."

"I see… then you're in..?"

The man snorted, pulling his boots off the table and leaning forward. A wide smirk stretched across his face, a cloud of smog leaking out from between his teeth.

"You had me at killing teenagers!" He chuckled darkly, the light reflecting off the lens in his right eye.