Garaki

Chapter 2: For Public Safety

University deepened the investment I put into my passion. I, and my parents, expected nothing less than the greatest university for me to enroll at. University of Tokyo was the obvious choice. There is no more prestigious school in all of Japan, so that is the university I applied to and also was accepted into. Despite my love of education, I can't stand General Education requirements in university. I am there for only one reason and one reason only. To look into the abyss of knowledge that is yet unlocked, Meta-Abilities. Gen-Ed was tedious, but I still would ultimately breeze through it like a flower in the wind.

My main area of focus, the physiology and anatomy of the human body and how Meta-Abilities played into all of it was very fascinating and eye opening. One of my professors, Mr. Hijōshikina, was very impressed by my work and drive in particular and offered help with extra projects, any lab internships, or even lining up a job after graduation. I of course began to work for his approval so I may actually end up in a place where my dream could come true. Though that is the distant future, I was also a person who tried to create as many alternatives as possible.

Despite the habits I formed in my youth that would have me keeping to myself, I managed to form a friendship with one Shachō Mirai. He too was very inquisitive, and a natural born thinker. Mirai was a taller, very active man that stood out in a crowd. He shares my similar fascination with Meta-Abilities and how they work. Though not having one himself, he was also a very big fan of Meta-Abilities. Despite his incredible mind that would rival mine, he did not dream my dream. He didn't desire the endless ocean of possibilities that could be acquired through the study of Meta-Abilities, he wanted a simpler goal, a world in which humans with and without Meta-Abilities were equal. While I could empathize with such a noble goal, it felt… bland. I think he was wasting his talents not pursuing what I hold dear. I had asked him once, why he did not use his full capabilities towards the sciences.

"Because there are enough people like that in the world." Mirai had looked up from his book after I asked him what kept me up at night. "And I don't mean that as an insult to you or the profession you are chasing, but I think that there must be people willing to stand up for others. The sciences will certainly advance with people like you, but very few people are leaders." He provided his reasoning.

"But does it have to be you?" I asked him.

"Let's say I thought like that. 'Someone else will do it.' What if everyone said that? I would rather not wait for there to be someone that magically appears to be a savior, I will be that person." To my puzzlement at his denying his true calling, he laughed a little.

"Garaki, you are smarter than me, which is why I think you should understand that leaders are necessary. Eventually, I believe, Meta-Humans will be more populous than those that are not. When that day comes, what will happen?" I was surprised by the sudden change in topic.

"The same thing that occurs now, oppression." I answered swiftly.

"The difference this time is that they will actually be powerless. No ability to defend themselves from the frightening world. That is individually of course. People are powerful together. If they are disorganized, nothing monumental will happen, if they have a unified front with a leader spearheading them, they have real power. That is my goal here and now, to give these people real power, not the supposed power that comes in Meta-Abilities, but the power to induce change." Mirai finishes his long-winded answer to my question.

"That was a lot of words just to say you're a quitter." I huffed out.

Mirai laughed at my response. "I guess you could put it that way."

Despite our differences, Mirai and I remained good friends throughout university, and I occasionally met with him over lunches and dinners to discuss various topics among genetics and politics.

Even among classes, internships, and friendships, I still found the time to indulge in my work. It was with Mr. Hijōshikina that we discovered the Meta gene. To put the gene simply, it was magic. Not like something we had just discovered, but an honest act of God. There was little rhyme or reason to how abilities first formed, several theories suggested radiation was the cause, mutations in DNA, or something in the water that turns the frogs into mutants. Whatever the case, everyone knew that these abilities were often passed down from parent to child, either a stronger form of the same ability, a combination of the parents, or a complete mutation that turned to something different. This didn't solve our problem that they were complete madness. Recently animal-based mutations were becoming more common to see amongst mutants, and sometimes the traits were too complex to be only one gene. It was then we discovered how the gene functions.

The Meta-Gene completely altered one's DNA. Every aspect could be altered, with very few exceptions. The gene itself seems to be present in most of the population, despite no ability actually existing for most of them. There might be a different 'activation' for each individual considering the differences in abilities from person to person. 'Activation requirements might be stressful situations that draw upon the unactivated gene, or in life-or-death scenarios where the ability is needed to survive. They also might be suppressed by trauma, and in order to reactivate the Meta-Ability getting over trauma is required. It is a unique case every time, so a concrete answer is more difficult than one might expect. There is no one solution.

For all my fascination with the subject it can't help but puzzle me. What is it that the body won't tell me? I brought my confusion to Mirai on one of our chats over dinner to see what he thought.

"Interesting, so why are you worried about the uniqueness of each individual's abilities? There is nothing inherently wrong is there?"

"Not really, but there is too much variation, I can't help but feel something is very wrong. There is no possible chance the human body is capable of this much evolution in such a short time frame. The bodies would simply fall apart if this is to continue!" I explain my frustrations to Mirai, though he seems not as distressed as I.

"What do you mean 'fall apart'? The people wielding these abilities seem fine, no?" Mirai seemed skeptical of my hypothesis.

"I mean literally. If these abilities are to become more powerful with each generation as I predict, then I think humans will either forcefully adapt or be unable to handle the pressure. I mean look, as cool and awesome as we both think they are, they might be getting to the realm of… catastrophe." I ominously intone. Mirai goes deep into thought, then returns a look at me with softened green eyes.

"Garaki, look… we have all known about troublesome and scary abilities. Take the Abominable Snowman for example, even his ability, one of the most powerful in the world, can't take in more heat than of a room. He couldn't become a walking natural disaster like you suggest. The Meta-Abilities have limitations to not endanger the user, and any reasonable person won't destroy the world just because they have the ability to. People have goals and like it or not destroying things in rage is not the way to achieve that, I'm sure even maniacs have some sense in their heads." As Mirai finished, something clicked in my head, a revelation, sent to me from above. I realized as I listened, that Mirai, while very intelligent, had no clue how desperate some people are, and how depraved some men can be.

"No Mirai, you don't understand. The level of horror that can be achieved. Even if there isn't one man that can take over the world and destroy it, there will be your average criminal with the power to take out a small city. The AVERAGE! If you have that many people running around there is no chance any police force or military in the world could stop the madness from enveloping every crevice of the globe!" I finished my rant ragged for breath, my voice a little sore. Mirai stared at me, brow crinkled, the usually calculated expression in shock.

"Well then, what if more of these people instead of hurting others, decided to be kind? What if the normal person, the average as you said, wanted to help others instead of hurt them? Not every man for himself game, but a kind of system where people are rewarded for being good. For being heroes?" Mirai said with an optimistic gleam to his eyes.

I paused, though he makes a good point, how could anyone think like that after the first quirk boom?

"And if you're wrong?"

He shrugged his shoulders and leaned back in his seat.

"You tell me, it's like you said. Madness."

We finished our dinner soon after, and parted ways. That night, I couldn't stop thinking about what he said. Frankly the idea of being rewarded for being good nagged at me. It was a good idea, but didn't that take away from the actual deed itself? Sure, it might incentivize good behavior, but only if people knew about said behavior. If they weren't being seen doing something good, would they even do it at all?

No, that system simply wouldn't work. Maybe it would for a little bit, but surely some bad eggs would slip into the equation and mess everything up. Corruption would surely take place as a result to stop rumors of misdeeds or screw ups by these heroes that aren't the greatest people willing to sacrifice themselves. As smart as Mirai is, he didn't think this one all the way through.

Throughout the rest of my university days, my time was consumed by an internship I managed to gain thanks to Mr. Hijōshikina. I was part of a medical group of doctors that primarily handled strange cases that are caused by Meta-Abilities. Said group was competent and I gained plenty of experience operating, giving aid, and learning the anatomy differences of those with abilities versus those without. It was an eye-opening experience. Through this internship, I forged the connections necessary to set me up after graduation.

Set me up how? Well, I was deemed such a bright, young, upcoming doctor that the medical group I interned with, Furonto Kaisha, wanted me as one of the leaders of an upcoming project they were starting soon. A hospital in Jaku. Jaku, a former battleground between the Japanese Armed Forces and the Meta Liberation Army, was very rundown. They wanted to help the inhabitants of Jaku and thought this was one permanent way to do so.

They were certainly taking a gamble with me but considering how fast I was able to get through med school, they didn't really see an issue with my lack of field experience. I was elated to high heavens. One step closer to my vision. Another step towards my destiny. Jaku General Hospital, here I come.

In your typical official meeting room, a meeting that would decide the future of the Metahumans took place. Between the very stoic expressions, coupled with black suits and no-nonsense bodyguards waiting outside, one could tell this was a gathering of high importance individuals with plenty at stake. With one outlier being the tall lanky man with green eyes and blonde hair that held a very satisfied, relaxed expression.

"Thank you all for coming today. I'm sure you are all anxious about what results our investigations produced, so I'll be getting to the point very shortly." The man who sat at the head of the long table that seated everyone started the meeting calmly.

"The investigation, as plenty of you already know, was to gauge the likelihood of another Meta uprising, if we continued to pay no heed to the still small Metahuman population. While it was elected here previously to just continue to stomp out uprisings before they could reach the magnitude that Destro reached, the Prime Minister has decided that we couldn't continue with this method, as discontent is already high enough as it is without more wars going on."

The man briefly paused to look at the faces of the occupants around the room. Plenty were still cool as can be, but some began to look anxious. The blonde man's expression remained smiling, much to the annoyance of the speaker.

"The investigation run by an unaffiliated company, Furonto Kaisha, has revealed to us that if the growth rate is to continue among the Metahuman population like they predict, that in around 100-150 years, the Metahuman population will reach eighty percent of the human population worldwide." The speaker drops the bomb. Several breaths of air expel from around the room, as the politicians take in the news.

"How is that possible? They simply must be off in their calculations!" One of the senators exclaimed in disbelief. Murmurs and chattering began around the room.

"This was also a concern of Furonto Kaisha, but they addressed their own disbelief in their findings stating, 'However improbable it seems, we have found that despite Meta-Abilities not being found in the vast majority of the population, the gene responsible for the usage of such abilities is indeed found in nearly all humans on earth. More and more seem to be activating with each passing generation.' they concluded." The speaker then pauses again, looking at the congressman.

"Truly?" He sputters in disbelief. "If such is the case and they are correct, we need to seriously reassess our stance on this issue!"

Sounds of agreement began sweeping through the room, as the congressmen and politicians voiced their concern over the current policy. The blonde-haired man decided now to speak up.

"I have an idea then." He elevates his voice over the chattering of statesmen. Although their voices quieted, several didn't hide their displeasure of the idea of him in this room.

"Instead of restraining them in fear, we make them restrain each other?" His green eyes sparkling.

"Elaborate."

"Did anyone here ever read superhero comics or manga as a little kid?" Without waiting for a response, he continues. "If we make heroes out of them, and give them glory for catching the supervillains, we can effectively stomp out any ideas of 'human versus metahuman' and create a 'heroes versus villains'. No more revolutions."

"How do you make heroes out of them?" One of the congressmen asks.

"Give them a superhero name, costume, branding, and let them use their abilities to catch the bad guys. Simple as that. We create a department dedicated to the safety of the public using superheroes that get paid based on how many rescues they have, or how many villains they stop." The man got up from his seat from all the excitement he was having envisioning it.

"The public might not like it. Most of them see Meta-Abilities as inhuman. Cursed or infected." A woman describes the popular opinion amongst the public.

"Maybe right now, but what if we rebrand Meta-Abilities while we are at it. Make them sound more friendly, like something that isn't capable of harming others, something everybody has. A Quirk!" The man exclaimed excitedly.

"Do you really think people would change their opinions just like that? Hatred and fear towards enhanced abilities still dominant public opinion and even if they have short memory, it isn't that short." One representative continues pressing the major issue.

"As much as I make my opinion clear about this optimist, I think he has a good idea here. If the world is really shifting in such a dramatic manner, we need to be ahead of the curve." Another representative chimes in, defending the blonde's radical idea.

"How would we even handle all these... quirks? Plenty are already dangerous, and if more start emerging, how could we ensure the safety of the public?" The same woman from before remained skeptical of the idea.

"I understand how scary it might sound, but technology and research regarding quirks is progressing at an incredible rate, we will certainly develop countermeasures if some people become threats. A department dedicated to ensuring public safety, as you put it, could be created so it doesn't become a pivotal issue." The eccentric man explained.

The woman furrowed her brow in thought. After a moment, she looked up and shrugged. "I actually am not opposed to the creation of such a department. As long as these people are kept in check." She adds with some spite.

The others around the table, even the ones with evident disdain for the man, began nodding their heads. As the atmosphere in the room changed and the people in the room began envisioning the idea in their minds, they began one of the greatest deceptions in all of mankind. A deception so great, that even the long lived, even the wisest men on the planet couldn't see through. Some would merely believe it to be about money, when it began with so much more than that.

"And if we gave you the resources and your own new department, do you think you could pull it off?" The speaker at the end of the table solemnly asked.

The green-eyed man practically jumped out of his seat for the second time today.

"Of course, I could begin as soon as today!"

"Well then Shachō Mirai, you can have your Hero Public Safety Commission. Let's begin streamlining this proposal of yours. Another thing, do not fail." The speaker warned, but Mirai wasn't even listening anymore, he had finally begun what he set out to do. He won.

I stalked the hallway of the Nohga Hotel. My footsteps weren't present, as the ability I was using silenced them, no matter how heavy my steps. Tonight, I was here to add to my collection, a very powerful piece as well. The target was in room 213, on the second story of the building. Not ideal for an aerial escape, but if I was quiet about this, I would be able to walk out the front door with no issue. I entered the elevator, and quickly disrupted the camera that was peering its little lens into small space. I doubted this would cause a commotion, for the security team was certainly asleep as of now, and not paying heed to this small camera malfunction.

I exited the elevator on the second floor, and then reached the door labeled 213. Seeing the electrical door lock, I then override the system and use a 'key' to grant me entry into the small hotel room. The first room was very simple, a couch with fluffy pillows, a flat screen television, a small coffee table with a plant and two remotes and the whir of the air conditioning had a dull humming that would easily put one to sleep. There was a small divider between that space and the bedroom, which I crossed to see two neat beds, with no hint of anyone sleeping there, as if they were freshly ironed and cleaned. Upon one of the beds, a piece of paper laid.

I made my way over to the bed and picked up the note. Upon it was a small stamp of a cherry blossom with the front reading, 'To the Thief,'.

I frowned but flipped the card over, inspecting the entire thing before reading: 'I hope I ruined your mood today; this is only the second of my attacks against you. I have several demands, lest your accounts be drained, and your identity exposed for the government to find you. Return the Quirks you have wrongfully taken, and dissolve your human trafficking rings. I will have more instructions waiting for you in my next message. -Cherry'

I crumpled the card in my hand and stormed out of the building, careful to further hide my presence here. How could he have known who I was targeting? I never told anyone, not even Chui knew. Could someone close to me be hiding a Me–Quirk from me? I still don't have defenses against mind reading quirks, and I don't have one myself yet. Someone with one could easily hide it and then use it to feed the Cherry Blossom information. I grimaced, knowing how compromised I might be.

It didn't matter, I would not bow to the demands of some old vigilante that somehow came back from near death. Also, "Quirk Thief"? What kind of lame name is that? If I am to be the greatest villain to ever shake the earth, I need a better name than that. My subordinates know me as Shigaraki, but frankly I don't want anyone to have even the slimmest possibility of finding out who I am.

Even though it is distasteful, Cherry is right in using the government as a threat against me. No matter how powerful I am right now, I have no army yet, and I can't take out an army by myself. I need to play the waiting game, to increase my arsenal before I am discovered. Though the government has been implementing laws to accommodate Quirks, as everyone calls them now, the population remains limited. Once more people have quirks, I will be unstoppable.

My current array of quirks is this: Silent Step, Nocturnal, Thought Acceleration, Springlike Limbs, Platelet Drive, Strength, Blood Memory, Scanning, Computer Memory, and of course, All for One. I have plenty I have loaned out to others for their services to me, but I doubt I will get those back without resistance. The quirk I would have gotten tonight would have been Memory Scanning, which would have made background checks infinitely easier and less time and resource consuming. What a loss.

Cherry Blossom's quirk is of little importance to me, but I will certainly rip it out of him when I get the chance. He has robbed me of Saba, and now this. Getting Saba out of his hands was important, though if Cherry Blossom is now into kidnapping innocent, mostly, men to get what he wants, I assume Saba is going through hell right now. Cherry Blossom's former areas of patrol were in Tatooine, and Saitama mostly, he knows I would think to look there, so I want to cross off areas where he wouldn't hide. He wouldn't hide in any prefecture in Kanto, considering that is where I am most active as of now. The areas he is reaching in such a short distance mean he isn't in the south which means he is in the Tohoku region.

He likely wants a region that is rundown, where most won't be questioning his activities and even if they did, won't do anything about it. The closest one that fits that description the greatest leads me to Jaku. If he thinks he can hide from me he is mistaken. I will catch Cherry, take back Saba, take what quirks I want, and I will become the demon lord of this country! Everyone will tremble at the name All for One!

Garaki is finished with University, the HPSC is formed, and All for One continues his search for Cherry Blossom. I gave a small list of quirks that I think All for One could potentially acquire and that suits his personality well. The more complicated quirks for combat I feel he would loan out, as it is easier to gain a lot of strength related quirks rather than train the complexity required for some. If you see any mistakes that I missed or anything that seems out of place, please give me some feedback. Thank you.