A/N: The danger is passed (for now), but Kurai's problems are far from over. Let's see how our exhausted hero handles not one, but two rather unexpected difficulties directly...

Visionaries

Kurai was an unhappy camper as he lounged in his hospital bed with his arm in a sling. He had been taken to the nearest medical facility to be examined by a doctor, who declared that he would have no lasting damage to his body, despite severe bruises, some deep cuts that would leave him with at least three new scars, cracked ribs- by some miracle, none of which had been completely broken- and his dislocated shoulder, which had already been reset. However, he expected as much, and he knew that Recovery Girl would (hopefully) heal his wounds once he returned to the campus. No, what irritated him to the point of a glowering silence was his roommate, otherwise known as the new Number One Hero, Endeavor.

Half the man's face had been bandaged up due to a severe injury that may have rendered his left eye useless, and he was covered in casts to bind his broken bones. So far he had been unconscious, but now he was starting to awaken, and Kurai hoped that he would just stay quiet while they waited for the hospital staff to come and tend to them.

He did not. "Urgh…" the big man grunted as he blinked his good eye against the hospital lights. "What is…? Where am I?" He was lying on the bed next to Kurai's, but his bandaged side was keeping him from seeing the boy just yet. He fumbled awkwardly with his fingers before he managed to hit a button on the remote that doubled as a phone in order to alert the nurse to his need for help. Once he had done so, he let the device fall back onto the bed as he sighed, "Damned Nomu…"

In spite of everything, Kurai couldn't stop himself from asking, "First time?"

Endeavor seemed startled by the sound of another voice, so he turned his neck as well as he could to get a look at the younger hero, whose face remained passive while he stared at the wall. The Flame Hero grunted as he struggled into a sitting position as he asked, "You fought against a Nomu?" He seemed to only then notice the youth of his roommate, because he added, "It's… impressive, to be able to fight one of those monsters at your age. What agency are you with?"

He doesn't recognize me, Kurai quickly realized. In a way, he supposed that was fair- after all, the last time they had stood face to face, Kurai had been much more fresh-faced, uninjured, dressed in a PE uniform, and in possession of all his limbs. Now, he was a hardened hero prospective with a metal arm and several scars that bore a testament to his life's trials. None of these things stopped him from being aggravated that twice now, Endeavor had not cared to remember his face.

"I'm not with an agency," he muttered darkly. "I'm a provisionally licensed hero in high school. And I wound up in here the same way that you did- fighting a black Nomu."

"You what?" Endeavor asked, jerking his body in surprise before cringing from the pain. "There was… another one of those things out there? And you beat it?"

"Yeah, it sucked," Kurai answered as the man struggled to get a better look at him, though he refused to meet his gaze. "Most of the heroes in the city went to help you contain the situation- understandable, I admit, but still frustrating when you're fighting a monster of that caliber on your own."

"It took everything that Hawks and I had to beat that thing," Endeavor breathed heavily, though from pain or frustration, Kurai could not tell. "And you're telling me… that you beat one on your own?"

Kurai shrugged at that. "I don't know what the deal was with the one you fought, but mine was just about as dangerous as the one that attacked the USJ at the beginning of the school year," he said in a sour tone. "It had some kind of shadow quirk and could release Nomu-spores that mutated anyone that they came into contact with. Add that to the super-strength and regenerative capabilities, and you've got a recipe for a grand old time at Nightmare Central. Still, I'm in better shape than I was after I fought the first one."

"The first one?" Endeavor repeated, something finally clicking in his head. "You were there at the USJ? You're from UA High?"

Kurai finally turned his deadpan gaze to meet the other hero's as he said, "I shouldn't be surprised that you've already forgotten me, but I guess on some level, I'm still disappointed. After all, I'd have thought that you would remember the kid that told you to shove it in the hallway and then went on to beat your son in the tournament."

Endeavor's blue eye widened as full recognition registered in his mind. "You're the son of the former police chief," he said in surprise. "Hogo-sha… that's your name, right?"

"Only if yours' is Todoroki," Kurai replied blandly. "Call me Kai if you have to talk to me."

Endeavor, much to his surprise, did not try to bluster or assert his dominance by shouting at the injured boy. Instead, he frowned a little bit and said, "I suppose that we got off on the wrong foot, Kai. Perhaps in the interest of sharing information about the Nomu, we could-?"

"Wrong foot?" Kurai repeated, cutting the man off. "Wrong foot? Endeavor, my uncle died taking a shot to the heart in your place, and you didn't even have the decency to honor his memory! You didn't even care to remember his name, and he saved your life." He was tempted to bring up the subject of Enji's wife, Rei, and how their children had been raised, but he knew that it was not his place to do so, no matter how much the man infuriated him. He could only hold the man responsible for crimes against the Hogo-sha family, not the Todoroki's.

Endeavor was quiet before he said in a lowered tone with a downcast eye, "I would offer you my apologies if I thought that it would make a difference, but I get the feeling that you would just view it as an insult at this point. So I will only say what I should have said at your uncle's funeral: that I am grateful for his actions, which allowed me to continue living." His honesty surprised Kurai again, but he still kept up his defenses against the man's new approach.

"What's the deal with you, Endeavor?" he asked roughly. "You're not one to offer apologies to anybody. What, did becoming Number One suddenly make you realize how much of a jerk you are compared to All Might?"

Endeavor flinched at that, and Kurai thought that he saw a spark of anger in the man's good eye, but he kept it contained in favor of saying, "I actually had a talk with All Might a while back. I wanted to know what being the Symbol was really about, and it proved to be… enlightening. I am not All Might, nor will I ever be- and I don't need to be. But I also know that the way that I've always done things isn't going to be good enough anymore. So I'm trying to change certain things about me, in order to be worthy of the lofty title that I've been given."

Kurai snorted at that. "At least you learned how to talk pretty," he muttered as he leaned back in his bed and stared up at the ceiling, a thought occurring to him. "To be honest, Endeavor, I doubt that I'll ever approve of you, and I'm sure that there are many out there that agree with me. Ironically enough, that's a circumstance that you and I both share."

"I don't take your meaning."

"The public hates me because of what my father did," Kurai told him. "People at UA have flat-out accused me of being a traitor. People dislike you because you're so different from All Might, among other factors. Thing is, I don't think that either of us cares."

Endeavor seemed confused now. "Why are you trying to draw up similarities between us if you hold such an intense disliking of me?" he asked.

"Do you have any idea how many cops my dad had working under him?" Kurai replied. "How many bureaucrats he had to put up with in order to get his job done well?"

"What does that-?"

"He didn't like a good number of them," Kurai interrupted. "I can remember him grumbling about a few of them more than once, in fact. But he never allowed that to interfere with his work life, because he knew that they had a job to do that was bigger than their issues with each other." Kurai reaffixed his flat gaze on Endeavor as he said, "Despite the smear campaign the media ran against my father, he was a good cop who made one bad mistake, and Japan is a safer place because of him. So here's how it is, Number One. I hate you, but I will work with you when the situation calls for it, because in the times that we are facing, the public needs all the unity it can get between its heroes. We can't afford to be squabbling with each other over popularity charts or who has jurisdiction in what part of the country. So if you stop trying to be my friend because you suddenly grew a conscience, I will acknowledge you with the respect that your title deserves."

Not for the first time that day, Endeavor surprised him by being amenable. "All right, Kai," he rumbled. "I can accept that, nor do I really have time to waste on trying to make a good impression on everyone I come across."

That caused Kurai to smile wryly. "That sounds more like the Endeavor we all know," he chortled. "In any case, you were talking about the Nomu. I heard that you took out a black one in Hosu without too much trouble. How'd you end up like this?"

"This one was different from any of the others I've fought," Endeavor grunted as he gingerly touched the bandages on his face. "Aside from having a half-dozen quirks, this Nomu was intelligent."

"He what?" Kurai replied, clearly startled. "What, like it had awareness of itself?"

"He could talk, think, and even strategize," the pro hero answered. "I don't know how much self-awareness it actually possessed, but it was not like the mindless brutes that we've faced thus far. I take it from your reaction that the one you fought was not like that?"

"No," Kurai answered with a negative shake of his head. "No, this one was powerful, but it was as mindless as I expected. What made it a difficult opponent was the fact that it had some kind of spore quirk that allowed it to turn others into half-Nomu. I don't know if those people can be turned back into to normal, so I had to avoid using lethal force against their leader until they were all out of the way. I'm fairly certain that the thing had orders to capture me, because it never went straight for a kill shot with me, though it had no problem doing so to other heroes."

"The timing of this is no coincidence," Endeavor mused. "Right after I'm officially recognized as Number One, the League targets me- that part makes sense. What I don't understand is why they would choose to target you, too."

Kurai shrugged at that. "I almost killed Shigaraki during our first meeting, and he strikes me as the vindictive type. It doesn't surprise me that he'd try a pot shot while I'm separated from the school, not to mention in a city where everyone would be freaking out while you fought another Nomu; a two-for-one special, as it were. I just wanna know how he knew where you and I were. It's not like we announced our trips."

Almost as an afterthought, he looked a question at Endeavor, who immediately shook his head and said, "My trip here was unofficial, so it's more than likely that they've been tailing the both of us for a while. The only question is 'how'?"

"Beats me if I know," Kurai sighed. "I just wanna get out of this hospital and go home. I don't have my phone on me, so I haven't been able to call my friends- not that I know any of their numbers off the top of my head." He cursed his over-reliance on his phone's memory bank, not having taken the time to memorize any of his friends' contact information. If he had done that, he could have called Mina from the bed phone to let her know that he was okay.

"I can give you Shoto's number," Endeavor volunteered, causing Kurai to look at him in surprise. Seeing this, the large man said, "If I do, you'll owe me a favor, seeing as we aren't friends, right?"

"Fair enough, but it depends on what the favor is," the younger hero replied.

"I want you to deliver a message to Shoto for me," Endeavor answered him. "He won't answer my calls, so I need another way to tell him something." The request intrigued Kurai, but seeing as it was hardly a large favor, he agreed to the exchange.

Once Endeavor had fed him the number, he punched in the digits to call his friend, hoping that the boy would accept a call from an unknown number. While the phone rang in his ear, the nurses and doctor came in to speak to Endeavor. One of the nurses had a sound quirk that prevented anyone from hearing anything that was said from outside of a ten-foot radius around him- a handy quirk to have for preserving a patient's privacy- and putting Kurai just outside the range of the muted conversation, which was fine with him.

Just as he was certain that his friend would not pick up, the phone clicked and he heard Todoroki ask, "Hello? Who's calling?"

Kurai's face broke out into a big smile as he heaved a sigh of relief. "It's the mochi delivery guy," he chuckled. "Who the heck do you think it is?"

"Hikari?!" The other boy sounded shocked, and Kurai could hear the sounds of muffled shouts in the background. Before he could ask what was happening, Todoroki said, "Hold on, I'll put it on speaker… Okay, the whole class can hear you now."

"Hey, guys," Kurai chuckled again. "Don't tell Mister Aizawa I stayed out past my curfew, okay?"

"He saw the fight on the news," a familiar voice said shakily. "We all did."

"Mina?" he asked hopefully. "Is that you?"

"Yeah." She sounded like she had been crying. "Are you okay?"

"I'm safe at the hospital, and the doctors have already told me that I'll have no lasting injuries," he replied, which resulted in many sounds of relief and even some cheers from the others in the background. "They're not even gonna make me stay overnight. I'll be home in just a few hours, I promise."

"Seriously?" Kirishima could be heard to ask. "That's seems pretty lax given the fight we just saw. They don't wanna double-check you or anything?"

"I'm just waiting on the release papers," Kurai said with a shake of his head. "There are a lot of people hurt worse than I am, and the hospitals are trying to keep up with what's just happened. Recovery Girl will have to give me the okay to resume physical activities at school, but somehow, I didn't snap any of my bones, though most of my ribs are cracked, and I managed to dislocate my shoulder."

"You sound like somebody else we know," he heard Ruby giggling.

"We were all cheering for you during your fight," Izuku added. "We're so glad you're alright, Kurai."

"I know you were," he chuckled softly. "Sorry I didn't call sooner, but I don't have my phone on me, and I don't have any of your numbers memorized."

"Then how did you know to call my phone?" Todoroki asked.

Kurai paused, wondering how his friend would take it if he knew that he had been talking to Endeavor. After a second of indecision, he replied, "A mutual acquaintance of ours' gave it to me. I'll tell you guys more about it when I get back, but for now, I just wanted you all to know that I'm going to be okay, and that I'm coming home, soon."

"That's more than we could have hoped for," Iida chimed in. "We're all very proud of you, Kurai. You handled yourself like a true hero out there. I think even Mister Aizawa was impressed."

Kurai's smile faded a little as he thought of the people that had been mutated, leading him to say, "I'm glad that someone was."

"What's that?"

"Nothing, sorry," Kurai said as he shook himself, noticing that the door to the room was starting to open. "Hey guys, I think the papers just got here, so I'm gonna have to go. I'll see you all soon, okay?"

"Understood," Todoroki answered. "See you soon."

"I love you, Kurai."

The boy's face reddened as Tsukauchi walked in just in time to hear him say to Mina, "I love you, too." He hit the disconnect button and swung his legs over the side of the bed as he looked at the detective, who seemed rather amused. "What's up?"

"Nothing," Tsukauchi chuckled as he handed the boy some documents. "Here, these are your discharge papers. They already forwarded the necessary stuff to Recovery Girl so she can see you in the morning." The man looked none the worse for their experience with the Nomu, and he had even been able to direct some of the citizens to a safer area while the monster had fought against the young hero. It was also him who had managed to grab the attention of the local heroes and send them as backup for his young charge, though it had largely wound up backfiring on them.

"Sounds good," Kurai grunted in response as he stepped off the bed to head for the bathroom. "I'll get changed, and then we can get outta here."

"There's one thing you should know," the detective said before he could reach for the bag containing a fresh set of clothes. "There's a lot of reporters outside the building, and I doubt that I can get you out of here without being seen. My car was totaled, but I managed to request a squad car to get us to the train station."

"Thank you for letting me know," Kurai nodded as he grabbed up the bag. "Guess it can't be helped, but even so, I'm gonna try to keep my head down. No telling which way the media is gonna want to throw me this time."

"I dunno," Tsukauchi said with a little smile. "I hear a lot of people singing your praises out there." This seemed to do little to ease the boy's mind, so he assured him, "If it looks like things are getting sour, I'll tell the cameras to take a hike, okay?"

"Okay."

"Good. Now, go get changed so I can get you home and start the paperwork that this day is gonna cost me."

"Young man! Kai, do you have a comment on today's fight?!"

"Is the League of Villains targeting Fukuoka for some reason?!"

"How does UA plan to handle an event like this if it comes to their doorstep again?!"

"Do you have a message for the League?!"

"Your name already had a small following, but the events of today seem to have attracted new fans by the tens of thousands! How does it feel to know that people are already looking to you as the new rising star of the next generation of heroes?!"

Kurai blinked at the cacophony of noise and flashing lights that had come to greet him in the nighttime atmosphere outside the hospital doors. There were reporters everywhere, most of whom he had assumed would allow him to pass by in favor of waiting on Endeavor to make his exit from the building. At the most, he had expected a handful of questions to be directed at him, so that he might be used as a way to pass the time while they waited on the Number One hero. Evidently, this was not to be the case.

Hawks was smart enough to dodge this media circus before they gathered, he thought wearily as he kept his head down and started to make his way toward the squad car that would provide him an escape. He had hoped that the popular hero would still be around in order to take away some of the attention, if not Endeavor, but it seemed that he had exhausted all of his luck for the day. He was also moving slowly on account of his injuries, and he just wanted to be able to lie down again and not move for several days.

"Okay, people!" Tsukauchi shouted as he waved the camera crews back. "That's enough! Kai has clearly had a day of it, and he's not interested in taking questions at this time!"

"But, sir!" one of the reporters protested. "Kai has just held his own in a battle of the same caliber as Endeavor and Hawks'! Viewers are dying to know what he has to say about it!"

"What do you want me to say about it?" Kurai responded, surprising Tsukauchi as he straightened his posture and stood in front of the reporter who had posed the inquiry. "That we can look forward to a brighter future thanks to the efforts of today's heroes? That things weren't as bad as they seemed?"

The crews around him started to quiet down while more of the microphones were aimed at him in anticipation of his next words. At least I'm being given the floor, he thought wryly as his shoulder and chest ached. Out loud, he continued, "It was awful out there, people. I saw heroes and civilians alike warped beyond recognition by the power of a monster that I don't even understand, all in aid of trying to capture or kill me yet again. I won, yeah, but the people around me definitely lost. I don't see that as a reason to celebrate a victory."

"But, Kai," another reporter interjected. "If you hadn't been here, wouldn't the monster have just attacked even more people? Are you saying that things would be better if you hadn't been here to fight?"

"I'm not saying that at all," Kurai answered with a negative shake of his head. "Things could have been much worse, don't get me wrong. But the results of today's battle are far from 'good'. I don't plan to rest on this victory, nor should anyone else, because days like this are always just around the corner. The unfortunate truth is that we will never live in a world without evil in it, which is why I am training to become the best hero that I can be. The next time that something like this happens in front of me, I can only promise to do better than I did today."

"So is there no hope, then?" asked yet another reporter. "Why fight at all if there will always be evil in the world? Why be a hero?"

"Everyone has different reasons for wanting to become a hero, sir," Kurai answered firmly. "I have a friend who believes that he can save everyone that he comes across. I have others who want to do their family name proud, while another peer wants more than anything to defeat every villain that gets in his way. I want to be a hero because I want the sacrifices of the heroes past to mean something to the people of the future. As for why we fight, despite the fact that there will always be evil seeking to tear us down? Well, it's simple, really."

He drew in another deep, painful breath before he said, "If we don't fight to maintain the good in the world, there would be nothing left but evil. On the grave of my father, I will not allow that day to come." He turned away from the cameras as he muttered, "No more questions, thank you."

"Wait, Kai!"

"What about-?!"

"Alright, you heard him!" Tsukauchi yelled as he waved the news' people off, even as a few more officers showed up to assist with the escort. "It's been a long day for this young man, give him his space!" Despite his insistence, it was still something of a struggle to make it back to the car.

Once they were on their way and behind the locked doors, Kurai breathed out a huge sigh of relief. "Dealing with those circus monkeys is always a hassle, no matter what day it is," he muttered.

"At least they seem to like you better, now," Tsukauchi pointed out. "That could've been a hate mob just now, but everyone seemed genuinely interested in getting to know their new hero a little better."

"Ugh," Kurai groaned at the thought. "I think I'll take Mister Aizawa's approach and try to stay outta the spotlight."

"Given the scope of the fight you just had, I wouldn't hold my breath on being able to keep that goal."

The trip home took a little longer than Kurai had hoped for, given the fact that the news networks had somehow stationed crews at the train station where he got off, which led to another squad car having to come to escort him back to campus, where he would not be bothered by the media. By the time he had been dropped off in front of 1-A's building, it was past midnight, and the boy was beyond dead tired.

"I'll have to turn in a written report from you about today's events, but that can wait until tomorrow," Tsukauchi said as Kurai got out of the vehicle. "You did good, Kai, and I'm not just talking about with the fight."

Kurai paused long enough to acknowledge the man's words with a simple nod before he walked past the hedge that surrounded his class' building. Home at last, he thought tiredly as he heard the squad car drive off behind him. The lights were dimmed in the common room, so he imagined that most- if not all- of his classmates had already gone to sleep.

He was immediately proven wrong when he opened the door to find the majority of his friends looking down at their phones, clearly fighting to stay awake in spite of the late hour by staring at the bright little screens. The second that he stepped in through the entrance, however, the light clicked on and a voice could be heard saying, "Our comrade returns."

"Gah!" Kurai yelped, startling many of the others into a more wakeful state with his own surprise. "Tokoyami, you almost gave me a heart attack!"

"Good, cos that's what you gave all of us today!" Kaminari said as he approached to give the other boy a rough embrace. "Seriously, dude! You just don't seem to know how to stay out of trouble!"

"Ow," Kurai grunted as his shoulder and damaged bones flared with pain, but he couldn't keep a smile off of his face. "Take it easy, pal. I'm damaged goods right now."

"How're you holding up?" Kirishima asked as soon as Kurai had been released.

"Sore, but like I said, no permanent damage," he told his friend. "Although I'm sure that I've got fresh nightmare fuel in my head, now. Yeesh, it's been a day."

"What happened out there?" Izuku asked him as he approached. "How did you end up in a fight like that?"

"Before I answer that, where's Mina?" Kurai asked as he looked around the gathering of his classmates, unable to see his girlfriend anywhere.

"She was understandably worn out from the stress of worrying over you, so she fell sleep a couple of hours ago," Iida informed him. "She tried to stay up to wait on you, but she passed out on the couch. Uraraka took her upstairs, so she's resting now."

"Ah, thanks," he nodded as he looked around the room again, trying desperately to stifle a yawn, and failing. "Sorry," he mumbled. "If we're gonna talk about what just happened, I need coffee."

"Here." Blake surprised him by holding out a warm mug full of the strong-smelling brew. "I made it a little while ago, just in case you needed it when you got back."

"Thanks," Kurai grinned.

"It was Ashido's idea, but she passed out before she could do it."

"Come on, man!" Sero said impatiently. "What happened out there? Did the League try to jailbreak All For One?"

"No," Kurai said before he sipped at the potent brew. "Even they don't have the firepower to try that. I'm pretty sure they were targeting me with that Nomu. Whether or not Endeavor's fight happening at the same time was a coincidence or an attempt to divide and conquer, I don't know. All I know is that the Nomu I fought wasn't trying very hard to kill me, especially after I saw what it did to the other heroes that showed up to help." The boy gave vent to a shudder at the echoes of some particularly vivid memories, and his friends looked at him with sympathy.

"We were really worried about you," Asui croaked. "I thought you were gonna end up with something permanently hurt again, ribbit."

Kurai looked down at his metal arm, which had held out remarkably well, even with all the pounding it had received. "Never again," he murmured. "I kept telling myself as I fought that I couldn't afford to put you guys through that again. I came close to giving in, but on some level, I knew that you guys would be watching me, waiting for me to bring home the win. So I did."

"And we're glad that you did," Izuku said as he smiled at his friend. "I guess with all the craziness, I nearly forgot to ask, but… How did it go? At Tartaros?"

Kurai's smile wilted, and Izuku immediately regretted asking the question. Still, it was too late to take it back, and the other boy seemed ready to answer. "I'll be okay," he nodded glumly. "But I learned a lesson in getting more than I wished for."

"You actually went through with it?" Jiro asked, looking equal parts surprised and impressed. "You talked to the leader of the League of Villains?"

"I did," Kurai nodded. "He actually wanted to talk to me about my quirk before I even asked him about it. I learned where it's from, and worse, what it led to."

"What does that mean?" Iida asked with a slight frown.

"It means that creating my quirk and successfully implanting it into a person was only a small step in All For One's plan to create someone powerful enough to counter heroes like All Might and Endeavor," Kurai sighed as he stared down into his darkened reflection in the coffee. "Before he could invest in the mass production- for lack of a better term- of people that could contain the power of three or more quirks, he needed to prove that he could do it even once. Since he succeeded with me, he went on to create the Nomu, in order to have powerful servants that would obey his every whim."

"Holy-!" Yang gaped. "You're telling us that… what, you were like the blueprints for those things?"

"Essentially."

"Well… what does that mean for you?" Ojiro asked worriedly. "Are you okay, man?"

"I'll get there, thanks to you guys," Kurai chuckled weakly. "Seriously, just being able to talk about this stuff helps. As for what it means for me, it means that every time I fight a Nomu from now on, I'm going to get an unpleasant reminder of what my survival created, and what I could have become, were circumstances even a little different." He tightened his grip on the cup as he added, "But that also means that I have a responsibility to put an end to the suffering of every person who is turned into a Nomu that I can."

"Don't try to take that on alone," Izuku said as he laid a hand on his friend's shoulder. "I'm willing to help you save them, and the others that could become like them. I know Ochaco and Mina will say the same once they hear about this."

"Don't count us out, either," Kaminari grinned as he jerked a thumb at himself. "We still got a way's to go before we can really set out on this mission of yours', but we're with you all the way. Right guys?" There was a general chorus of agreements from the class, which put another smile on Kurai's face, though only for a moment.

"I appreciate that," he told them. "To be honest, there was a while where I had been thinking that being a hero might not be what takes up the rest of my life. But after talking to All For One, I know that being a hero is all that I should be, especially given the sacrifices that went into making my quirk. I have a duty to use it to help the people of the world in place of those that lost their lives to make Energon."

The others grew somber at that piece of news. "So the original owners are dead, then?" Iida inquired.

"Yes," Kurai said heavily. "I had wanted to find a way to return their powers if at all possible, but since that won't happen, I'll do the next best thing and use their powers to destroy everything that the League stands for."

"Another admirable goal," Yaoyorozu said approvingly. "One that I would also be glad to assist in."

"Yeah!" Kirishima grinned. "The League had better watch out when we get our hero careers started, cos they're going down, hard!"

"I agree, but in order to do that, we must first commit to our academics," Iida reminded them. "And to have energy for our schoolwork, we must have proper rest! Let's get to bed everyone- Kurai has had a long day, and it's past time we all got some sleep. We've had more than enough answers out of him for tonight. We can resume this discussion in the morning, should you have any lingering questions."

Some of the others complained at this, but they knew that he was right. So they all started to drift toward the elevators, bidding Kurai a good night as they did. Before Todoroki could leave, however, Kurai stopped him in order to have a more private conversation.

"I'm sure you can guess who gave me your number at the hospital," he said in a lowered tone before he drained more of the coffee, knowing that he needed it if he was going to get through even a few more minutes of conversation.

Todoroki's face remained neutral as he answered, "My old man approached you?"

"We actually were in the same hospital room," Kurai explained. "The place was packed with injured people, so we wound up having to share. But yeah, he gave me your number so that I could call you guys, in exchange for a small favor."

"And what was that?" the other boy asked with slightly narrowed eyes.

"He wanted me to pass on a message to you, since you keep screening his calls," Kurai shrugged. "I won't say what it was if you insist, but I'd prefer to keep my word."

"…What does he want?"

Kurai took a moment to recall the wording of the message before he recited, "He wants you to know that while he's aware that he is far from perfect, he is doing everything that he can to become not only a man worthy of the number one spot, but someone that you can look up to as the man you call 'father'."

Todoroki was quiet for a moment before he asked, "Is that all?"

"Yeah, pretty much," Kurai nodded.

"You're a good person for keeping your word," Todoroki said as he started walking toward the lift, with Kurai close behind him. "I don't care for that bastard, though. He can talk all he wants, but my memories will always be a testament to the person that he really is."

"…I'm inclined to agree," Kurai said as they waited for the lifts to come back down, as they had just missed them. "And I can't believe that I'm about to say anything even remotely in his defense, but… People can change. We're proof of that, you and I, plus a lot of other people in our lives. I'm not saying that he'll ever be a saint, but maybe he meant what he said."

"Whether or not he meant it doesn't change my view of him," Todoroki shrugged. "I'm not like you, Hikari. I don't have it in me to forgive my father of his sins."

"Pretty big difference between our fathers, pal," Kurai chuckled tiredly. "Yours' is a giant asshole, and mine made a really bad mistake because he wanted better for me. One's a lot easier to forgive than the other. Then again, I shouldn't really talk- I don't know that I have completely forgiven my father, or that I ever will."

Todoroki sighed deeply before he said, "I suppose only hindsight will tell us, in the end."

Kurai was not surprised to find Mina already curled up in her bed, fast asleep, though her expression was a troubled one. With a little smile, he shut the door behind him and moved to change into the sleepwear that she kept tucked away for him in one of her drawers, glad to be able to get out of his sling. He knew that he needed a shower badly, but he was too tired to care at this point.

Once he was ready for bed, he climbed into the furniture, relishing in the warmth that Mina had already generated as he scooted into his usual spot next to her. "Good night, sweetheart," he whispered.

"Mmm…" she mumbled. "'M I dreaming…?"

"Nope," he chuckled as he closed his eyes. "I'm here, safe and sound with you."

"Thank goodness," she sighed as she turned and leaned into his embrace. "I was so worried about you…"

"I know," he murmured. "And I'm sorry that I scared you again."

"…Can you make me a promise?" she asked in a small voice.

"If it'll help you sleep easier, then ask me for anything," he assured her with a slight smile. "What can I do, Mina?"

"Promise me that no matter how much danger we're put in… no matter how impossible it might get out there…" Mina shuddered as she drew even closer to her boyfriend and whispered, "Please promise me that you'll make it out alive. I want to know that I'll get to see you grow old before you die again. I know that I can't ask for you to make it through every disaster unscathed, but I need to know-"

"Mina, I promise you that I won't die until all of my hair has turned gray," he interrupted as he squeezed her tightly against himself. "I'm gonna be an old man by the time I go to join my ancestors. I promise you that."

"Good," she said as she felt a few tears of relief slide down her face. "I love you so much, Kurai."

"And I love you, Mina. Sleep tight."

"Mmm…"

Less than thirty seconds later, she was snoring softly with a more peaceful look on her features, and Kurai had another smile on his face. He wasn't sure if she would remember their conversation later, but he would. I won't leave you again, he vowed. Whatever comes, and whenever it comes, I'll find a way to make it back to you… no matter what.

Kai: That was honestly less stressful than I thought it would be.

Mataras: After what you just had to go through, I doubt that there's much that could have made you feel stressed out, short of Shigaraki coming after you, himself.

Deku: Please don't do that.

Mataras: Ah, relax. I'm not ready for that to happen just yet.

Kai: "Just yet?" How far off are we from my endgame?

Mataras: How many times are you going to ask that question before you understand my inevitable response; 'I'm not telling you!'

Kai: Man, up yours'!

Mataras: How dare-?!

Deku: Wait, let's stay on task, guys!

Mataras: ...Fine.

Kai: I will if he will.

Deku: Okay, good. I think Mataras did something in the way of a new video for the next phase?

Mataras: Indeed I did! It's been my favorite one to make so far, and I'm sure that it'll help some of you guys understand what's going to be covered in the coming arc.

Kai: Speaking of which, what's the theme for the next one?

Mataras: Self-acceptance.

Deku: Umm... Didn't he just do that?

Mataras: No, Kai here has now cemented his hero identity, but what remains is for him to be at peace not only with that, but also with his sense of self. It's one thing to know who you are, but another thing entirely to be accepting of it.

Kai: Speaking from personal experience?

Mataras: Yep.

Deku: Huh... I was expecting a snappier answer from-

Mataras: Have fun figuring out how to be okay with the fact that you're a prototype monster hell-bent on getting revenge on his creator.

Kai: There it is.

Deku: This feels oddly 'Frankenstein'.

Mataras: Yeah, that does seem weird, considering that I haven't read that novel since I was a kid, and I've certainly never seen any of the films...

Kai: Haven't you watched 'Hotel Transylvania'?

Mataras: That hardly counts.

Deku: Next time- Indomitable

Mataras: Class 1-A is in for a very... 'Aizawa' surprise.

Deku: Did you just use our teacher's name as an adjective?

Kai: Take a look at the script for next chapter; it makes sense.

Deku: ...Oh no.

Mataras: Oh yeah! Get ready for an original sequence of chapters designed by yours' truly!

Kai: Every one better be ready to Go Beyond!

Deku: Plus Ultra!

Next time on Your Hero Academia: Ipseity...

"The principal has given me permission to use training ground Alpha for an extra-credit test for your class," he began. "This will not harm your grade should you fail, but it will be a chance for those of you doing less than exemplary to make up some lost ground."

Mina and Kaminari exchanged excited looks at that piece of news, but they knew better by now than to interrupt their homeroom teacher. Aizawa then went on to say, "Part of the reason that this will not affect your grade in a negative manner is because it will pit you guys against each other in a way that even I consider to be a little unusual." This gave his students collective pause for a moment. Just what could he be planning that he would admit to unorthodox constraints?

"This test is also contingent upon your willingness to take it as a class," Aizawa told them, interrupting their silent suppositions. "If even one of you decides not to take the exam, it's off. So if any of you want to let the others down, do it now."

Way to make whoever wants to take it easy into the bad guy, Kurai grumbled internally. He hadn't necessarily been planning on abstaining himself, but he thought that it seemed a little unfair to deny everyone else a chance to bolster their grades just because one or two people would rather use their free time to unwind. Then again, it was Aizawa they were dealing with- of course he'd make it hard on them before they even got started.

"Can we at least know what the test is going to be before we decide?" Blake asked.

"No," Aizawa replied blandly. "You're all in, or else there's no point."

2023 A/N: It has been revealed to the world just who Kai is and what he stands for- but not everyone will applaud him. Some will question his motives, some will outright refuse to acknowledge his worth as a hero, and as always, the villains will seek opportunities to remove such a dangerous threat from their path. Kurai's final hour may be upon him...

Find out for yourselves in the next instalment of Your Hero Academia: Ipseity!