The Hero & The Demon

Chapter Four

Kage rushed forwards immediately. It took only two steps for him to close the distance between him and Gunhead with enough speed that wind picked up. He raised a fist to punch the hero in the stomach, but he nimbly dodged right before Kage's blow would have impacted. Kage grunted and quickly turned to deliver a kick. This was one Gunhead was forced to block. The man grunted and was pushed to the side a little, though he retained his footing.

"You're pretty tough!" Gunhead praised. Before Kage could respond, he grabbed a hold of Kage's leg and tossed him back. Kage flew back and stumbled as he landed on the mats. "But you'll need to do better than that." Kage ran back up to Gunhead with the intent to try another punch, but something told him to try something different. At the last moment of his approach, he switched his fist to pointing upwards and made a stepping stone of black energy, uppercutting Gunhead. His head was forced up and he staggered back.

Not wasting any time, Kage punched the man's stomach with his other fist. It didn't deal much damage, however. Kage's footing was a little unsteady as his stepping stone vanished upon the punch's impact. Gunhead took advantage of this and slammed his arm into Kage's side, knocking him over.

Kage quickly found himself leaping up and flipping in the air into a standing position. He looked at himself in amazement. Just like with his fight against Aizawa, he was moving better than he thought was possible, seemingly on instinct.

No, not instinct, he realised. This was muscle memory. It felt just like how it did when he was picking up Japanese. Well, not exactly the same. Something was definitely different about it. It didn't feel quite like his new body, nor did it match his old one. Maybe-

"Stay focused, kid!" Gunhead rushed him, snapping his attention back to the fight. Kage was forced to raise his arms to block. He channelled as much energy he could into it. In doing so, the blackness that filled his veins spread to coat his entire arms like armour. It gave off a burning sensation. He hissed in pain.

"Too much at once." He assessed quickly. He forced the energy out from his body, forming it into a shield. Then, he focussed further and formed spikes onto the shield in order to force Gunhead back. The hero leaped away to avoid the sudden spikes. Kage dispelled the shield. His arms felt tingly. He took a deep breath. His arms still looked fine, though he wasn't sure if that would last if he kept pushing power through them. He needed a different strategy.

He thought of what he was able to do at the burning building. Instead of attempting to close the distance between himself and Gunhead, Kage's stance shifted and he raised his hand. Gunhead looked wary as Kage's hand pulsed with energy before the light on his palm flashed black and a beam of energy shot out. Gunhead dodged the blast, but its impact cracked the wall behind them. Kage gulped.

"Sorry!" He apologised. Gunhead laughed it off.

"Don't worry about it. I can get damage like that sorted out fast." Gunhead explained. Kage nodded, taking that as permission to go again. He raised his hand again. This time, Gunhead did try to close the distance, but as he moved, Kage rolled underneath him and turned, firing a blast right into his back. It was armoured, but the impact still sent him pretty far. Kage's hand shook a little with apparent recoil. The armour was clearly damaged, which seemed to surprise Gunhead. Kage was just glad it hadn't pushed all the way through. Before Gunhead could turn around, he decided to try channelling energy continuously into a blast. The result was a solid beam of black energy. Gunhead grunted with the impact, managing to turn around and block with his large, gauntleted hands. He was close to the edge of the mats now, but Kage's hands were starting to burn as he forced his power through.

Before he could force Gunhead out of bounds, he was forced to stop as the pain in his hands grew. They now had small burn marks on them and shook steadily.

"Good effort, kid!" Gunhead praised. "Those blasts of yours are pretty tough. At some point, you'll want to test the range out. But we'll have to wrap this up first." Kage glared at the man, though he wasn't truly offended. He wasn't expecting to win the fight, but he had to admit to some disappointment that despite the impacts of his blows, Gunhead didn't seem particularly bothered. The man didn't even seem winded, whilst Kage was now breathing heavily.

Gunhead took a step forward in what felt like slow motion. Kage wasn't sure how much more energy he could push through his hands safely, but he needed to keep going. The black veins of enhancement were still pulsing through him, but he was fairly sure that he couldn't match Gunhead in terms of raw strength, but he still had one more trick up his sleeve.

When he fought Aizawa, he had briefly made a knife to cut himself free from the man's scarf. If he could just do that but more, then maybe…

As Gunhead threw a punch, Kage lowered one hand and concentrated. He closed his eyes, closed his fist around something new and when he opened them, he found he was parrying away the man's fist with a sword.

It was a shortsword, Kage knew immediately. The blade was wide and just a bit thick. It seemed that unconsciously he had made sure it wouldn't be sharp enough to cut anyone. Kage flipped the sword around in his hand. It felt exceedingly natural, like an old friend he was being reunited with. In his other hand, he found himself forming a second sword on instinct. This one was a bit longer and a bit thinner. It seemed better used for precision, like a rapier or a fencing sword.

Dual-wielding would probably have seemed impractical for someone who had never held a sword before, but Kage had seen enough anime to know where this was going. He rushed Gunhead with a series of aggressive swings, forcing the man into going on the defensive. He was pushing the man back.

Kage found himself unconsciously linking his newfound sword skills with acrobatic manoeuvres. As Gunhead tried to push back with a few punches, Kage found himself diving and dodging to the sides with ease. The hero tried to counter with kicks, but Kage managed to leap onto the man's leg as it rose and push off of it, forcing it back to the ground awkwardly as Kage delivered a blow to the head with the flat of the thicker blade.

Gunhead stumbled, disorientated from the blow. Now was his chance! Time was short by this point, but he just needed a moment more. He dived in and went to slash at the man's torso with both blades.

Gunhead raised one of his gauntleted arms and it fired, the sound shocking Kage out of his battle zone. In an instant, the blades disintegrated into smoke. He was no longer a master swordsman, but a scared child who had just heard a gunshot.

A part of him tried to reassure him that this wasn't really a gunshot. The round was much larger than any real bullet and seemed more like a cannon ball than anything. He wasn't going to die. Besides, the man he was fighting was a professional hero! He could trust someone like that, surely.

The rest of him was still in panic mode, and refused to hear anything but the sound that was ringing in his ears. He hastily attempted to throw up his arms, but it wasn't much of a block like before. His arms burned with energy that flooded through them, coating them entirely in black. Kage still found himself launched off the mats and into the wall.

His footing must have been unsteadied. The impact coincided with a ringing sound coming from the side. Turning over, he saw Kuchihige pulling out his pocket-watch. His eyes widened and he scrambled rapidly over to Kage, who had clattered into something of a seating position. Gunhead was on the other end of the mats, stretching. He slapped both hands onto his head and shook it about.

"The match is now concluded!" Kuchihige announced. He stood up and moved into the centre of the mats, extending both arms out as though to stop the two from fighting any further. Kage tried to pull himself up, but found the burning in his hands and arms was bad enough that he struggled to move. Looking at them, he saw that various bits of skin across them were turning red and sore. No serious burns, but certainly enough to hurt.

He scowled. He had been so close to winning, why had he frozen up like that? He should have known he wasn't going to die, but his body had reacted before his mind could process anything. For a hero, that would have meant following through, trying to win the fight or save someone from danger.

For him, it just meant that even with his new powers, he was a coward.

He had to fix that. Most gunshots wouldn't be safe to freeze in the face of. He wanted to become a hero, to help save the day. He had to be willing to accept more risks in battle.

He tried to send this message to his still shaking hands. He wasn't sure they were listening. He took a deep breath, in and out. Kuchihige was talking to Gunhead.

"I'm glad you were careful with your shot, sir, but I would have preferred you not open fire at all." He seemed to reprimand the man. "Mister Kage Sekai was given free rein on his Quirk use because he is a child whose abilities we need to test. You are an adult man with far more experience. You should have been more cautious."

"It's…" Kage groaned. "It's fine." Kuchihige's head turned so fast over to his direction that he was sure the man should have broken something. His expression was subtly different. It was as stern and flat as it had been since he'd met the man, but the eyes held a certain fire he didn't expect.

"Mister Kage Sekai, it is not fine." He insisted firmly. "You clearly experienced an extreme reaction to Gunhead's Quirk use, one that has caused you to seriously injure yourself! Even knowing that mister Gunhead couldn't have predicted a trauma response, he should not have attempted to use his ability, one that is tantamount to a weapon, in what was intended to be a spar under controlled conditions. Anyone seeking to use their powers in society needs to maintain precise self-control at all times, especially heroes!" Kage lowered his head at the lecture. He honestly felt bad for Gunhead just listening to the man's passion. Kuchihige seemed to notice and let out a sigh.

"Do not trouble yourselves over this too much." He said. "I simply wish to impart the importance of this lesson. Neither of you are in trouble. Mister Gunhead made a mistake, but we hadn't established that he was meant to go easier on you. I should have been clearer about this exercise." He pinched his nose with one hand. Tsukauchi walked over to Kage and held out a hand. Kage gratefully took it, smiling at the man. His hands were still sore and his arms felt awkward to move, but with the detective's help, he was able to stand up.

"Sorry, Kage." Gunhead bowed his head. "I should have thought before using my Quirk. I'm sure that must have been frightening. But hey, you put up a really good fight!" He shot up and threw a thumbs up at Kage. Kage gave an awkward smile and returned the gesture with a thumbs up of his own.

"Thanks, you too." Kage bowed his head. "A-and don't worry about it. It's my fault, I shouldn't have gotten scared like that. I don't know what came over me." Kage got the distinct impression that Gunhead was frowning at him underneath his mask. Kuchihige's face was neutral as ever, but his moustache seemed to droop. Tsukauchi's face was rich with concern.

"Nah, everyone gets scared of something." Gunhead waved a hand dismissively. "Gunshots are a pretty reasonable thing to be afraid of. Personally, I always freeze up around spiders." He admitted, which made Kage giggle a little.

"Really?"

"Really! Nothing should have that many legs!" He cried out in an overly dramatic fashion. Kage couldn't help himself. He laughed. Everyone in the room seemed to relax, though he could tell that Tsukauchi was still worried about him.

"Great." He rolled his eyes at himself. "I'm causing even more stress for him. What's he worried about me for? I can't be worth all that."

"So, what about the test?" Kage asked. Kuchihige hummed and pulled out a notepad from his suit pocket. His moustache moved and he began writing with the pen he was holding in one end of it. The sounds of scribbling down information were so hurried that Kage couldn't help but wonder how he was supposed to read the thing.

"Well, you displayed a variety of abilities in combat." Kuchihige said. It wasn't clear if he was speaking to him or just thinking out loud. "Everything seems to stem from this black energy that travels mainly through your veins. General enhancement seems to be effective across your whole body, with energy only being condensed when using an additional function – seemingly either moulding the energy into outward constructs or simply releasing it outwards, where it becomes blasts."

"Pretty intense blasts." Gunhead added, gesturing to the dented area on the back of his vest. Kage cringed as he saw it, but Gunhead noticed and shook his head. He didn't seem bothered, but all Kage could think was that fixing a costume like that must be expensive. "It's not quite enough to blast through solid metal or armour, but you probably shouldn't aim that at anything exposed." Kage nodded.

"I think I could hold back the output more," Kage said, looking down at his hand. "But I don't really know by how much. I didn't want to risk hurting you, but I think I still got a little carried away in the fight." His tone was still apologetic as he spoke. Gunhead didn't seem bothered, but Kage felt bad regardless. He had never really been in fights before, so he wasn't sure if his level of intensity was too much or not.

"Interesting!" Kuchihige exclaimed, continuing to scribble things down. "So, you can mentally control your level of energy output, and it also seems your emotional state contributes to it. Common in recently developed Quirks – young children especially find it easy to get carried away when they first manifest their powers. Your circumstances might be different, but it's curious how your powers work in connection with your mental state like that. The possibility of your powers being recently developed is surprisingly large." Kuchihige and Tsukauchi exchanged a look that Kage didn't understand. There seemed to be an understanding of something reached, as both nodded to one another. Gunhead didn't seem to notice anything, or if he did, he didn't show it.

"How about your sword skills?" Tsukauchi asked him. Kage thought for a moment.

"I don't know if my powers are related to that." He said, stroking his chin with one hand. "The swords just felt natural. I didn't put much thought into it. I don't know if I was good with them before…" He hesitated.

"Before the whole amnesia thing." He said after a moment's pause. "It felt different from re-learning Japanese somehow, but I'm not sure what that means." He concluded. Tsukauchi nodded and Kuchihige added some more notes to his note pad. He took a moment to go over it before closing it over quickly.

"Well then!" He clapped his hands together. "I think that we can form a good understanding of your general limitations and abilities from this. This has been a most fascinating case. I would recommend seeing a doctor before anything else, both because Kage's injuries need attention and because it will help finalise the information we have available to us. For instance, if this energy spreads through mister Kage Sekai's veins, from what point does it originate? That will help classify it as a mutation or emitter type Quirk. There's a big difference between something emerging from an internal organ and energy that appears when summoned on its own. Furthermore, if it's in the veins, does it affect his blood? These are the kinds of questions that my skill set leaves me unable to answer."

Kage wasn't sure what to think about the idea of his blood being different. Superpowered humans were commonplace in this world, but the idea of being further away from any kind of normal human identity he had once known left him uncomfortable. Humans as he knew them didn't have organs that spread black energy through their veins, or guns that they could fire from their wrists. This wasn't something he had put much thought into before – from an outsider perspective, it hardly seemed to matter.

But now that he was in this world, he didn't know what to think about it. He existed in a world in which humanity had been fundamentally redefined. If that was the case, what did that mean for who he was?

Being separated from his old life was one thing, but he was separated from his entire previous existence. Every part of this world was slowly hammering that point home.

What was he, now that everything he had ever known was so different?

He didn't want to think about it.

Kuchihige had been helpful in arranging a doctor's appointment on such short notice. Tsukauchi knew the man was a government worker, but at times it seemed incredible just how much that allowed him to get away with. Jaku General Hospital was all too happy to accommodate his request to get Kage seen to by a Quirk expert. The moustached man insisted on standing in the waiting room, whilst Tsukauchi sat next to Kage. There were a handful of other patients around, but it was late afternoon and there had been no major villain incidents in the area recently, so they had plenty of space between them.

Kage was staring down at the floor with a furrowed brow. Tsukauchi couldn't tell what was bothering him so much. He had seemed uncomfortable as soon as the suggestion to visit a hospital was made, and the feeling had only intensified when they arrived.

"Kage." The boy jumped a little as Tsukauchi spoke quietly to him. "Are you alright?" The boy blinked. It seemed his mind was taking a moment to snap out of whatever state it had been in before so that he could respond.

"Y-yeah, yeah I'm okay." He rubbed the back of his neck. Clearly, he didn't like being a centre of attention, Tsukauchi thought. "Sorry, I guess I just got lost in thought." Tsukauchi nodded.

"What's on your mind?" He asked. Kage opened and closed his mouth a few times, as though struggling to decide what to say. Once or twice, he mumbled something before stopping. Never a full sentence. Just little bits, like "No, that won't work, what about…" before he trailed off. Eventually, he let out a frustrated sigh.

"I guess things just feel kinda off."

"What things?"

"Everything." Kage admitted. "It's hard to really put into words, but it's like every part of me feels different from how it's supposed to. My body is weird, my voice is weird, these powers are really weird. Nothing feels normal. Not like it should, and I…I don't know how to deal with that." Tsukauchi could feel that there was more to Kage's words than what he was letting himself say. He took note, but decided not to try pressing him on the subject.

"That's understandable." Tsukauchi said reassuringly. He placed a hand on Kage's shoulder. "After losing your memory, it makes sense that everything feels strange and different. In some ways, you're not the same person as who you were." For some reason, Kage let out a bitter chuckle at that.

"Yeah. Not the same." He seemed strangely amused by this.

"But that doesn't have to be a bad thing." Tsukauchi said. Kage's eyes widened and he met Tsukauchi's expression. "You're in a rare position where you can reinvent yourself. Who you were doesn't have to matter compared to who you're going to be now. Just because we want to know your past doesn't mean it has to define you as we go forward. You don't have to try to become someone you're not anymore." Kage seemed stunned by his words. Their effect on him was profound, though Tsukauchi couldn't understand just how much they meant.

"I…" He spoke hesitantly, his voice quiet. His eyes were growing watery, but his tone didn't seem sad. "If I'm not trying to be who I once was, then who am I?" He asked in barely a whisper.

"Yourself." Tsukauchi shrugged lightly. "You don't have to be anything more than that." Kage stared at him for a moment before looking down, but he didn't seem as upset as before. Tsukauchi smiled.

"Kage Sekai!" A nurse opened up a door and called out. It took Kage a moment to register that he was being called for. "Sorry for the wait. Doctor Tsubasa will see you now." Tsukauchi and Kage stood up and walked over. Kage wiped his eyes. His expression switched to a thoughtful frown.

"Not a fan of doctors?" Tsukauchi asked light-heartedly. "I'm not big on these appointments either. Don't worry, you'll be fine." Kage shook his head.

"It's not that…" He muttered in reply. "Tsubasa…that name is familiar." His frown deepened. Whatever association he had with the name, Tsukauchi realised it was nothing positive. The name hadn't struck him as anything unusual. He'd not heard of any doctor Tsubasa before this point, and all he knew was that the man was knowledgeable on the subject of Quirks beyond any other doctor at the hospital. He took note of Kage's reaction to him, though. It was the first thing he had explicitly said was familiar to him.

Kuchihige joined the two as they followed the nurse to a check-up room. The nurse was clearly confused as to his presence, but Kuchihige invited no questions to be asked. He was in full business mode, which had a tendency to either intimidate or baffle anyone nearby. Frequently, the result was both. Kuchihige glanced around the hospital occasionally, though Tsukauchi couldn't tell what he was expecting to find.

The nurse opened the door to doctor Tsubasa's room. Immediately, Kage froze. His face went pale and his expression practically screamed, though he remained deathly silent save for an intake of breath upon seeing the man. Again, Tsukauchi saw nothing concerning about the doctor, but he tensed up himself regardless.

Doctor Tsubasa was a large man who was clearly quite old. He was bald at the head, and his only hair was a now very grey and bushy moustache. His most distinctive feature was a slightly unusual set of goggles he wore on his eyes. Tsukauchi felt they looked rather steampunk with their bronze colour scheme. The man adjusted them on his face before greeting them.

"Ah, you must be Kage Sekai, correct?" Kage nodded slowly, as though he felt that any larger movements would set the man off. Just what was he so afraid of? "Please, sit down and relax. There's nothing to worry about, I've done thousands of these sorts of check-ups. If anything is wrong, I'm sure I can fix it by the time you leave!" He joked.

Kage's face remained marred with concern, but he exhaled and seemed to force himself to calm down. Tsukauchi watched the doctor carefully for any reaction. He didn't seem to show anything at Kage's arrival, nor did he react to Tsukauchi or Kuchihige. The former of which he beckoned to sit down next to the boy, whilst the latter elected to stand in the corner of the room. Doctor Tsubasa seemed mildly bothered by that, but that was all Tsukauchi was picking up at a glance.

"Kage Sekai…" Tsubasa turned in his chair to a computer to his right and tried to type in the name. As expected, he ended up pulling up the wrong name – this time, someone named Light Yagami. As usual, there was no apparent relation between this name and any others that searching for Kage led to. "I can see why you were brought to me. Your records are certainly proving difficult to access. Not to worry, we can get all the information you'll need. Kuchihige, may I see your notes?" He turned his chair towards Kuchihige, who picked out the notepad with his moustache and tossed it over to the doctor.

Doctor Tsubasa fumbled with it for a few moments before managing to catch it successfully. He grumbled vaguely in Kuchihige's direction, though Tsukauchi couldn't make out any words. He flipped through the notepad until he found the information from Kage's test with Gunhead. His eyes widened as he read it.

"Oho! How interesting." He closed the notepad and tossed it back to Kuchihige, who caught it on his moustache with no difficulty. The doctor turned his attention to Kage and leaned forward. At the same time, Kage tried to lean back in his seat. If doctor Tsubasa thought it odd, he didn't say anything.

"Your Quirk has an unusually wide range of functions." He explained. He sounded excited by this. "My best guess is that it's a highly versatile form of energy generation. I've seen powers similar to this, but yours are especially impressive. Any other effects outside of your little combat test?" Kage swallowed before speaking.

"I saw through walls once." He said hesitantly. "I saw people as weird coloured bits of light. And I can translate languages with my eyes." As he explained, his eyes switched to black sclera. Doctor Tsubasa grinned at the sight, spinning in his seat with an almost childish enthusiasm before turning to his computer and typing up some information.

"Excellent! It's no wonder you want to be a hero with powers like those, they are truly exceptional." He praised. This was the sort of thing that usually made kids happy to hear, but Kage just seemed to squirm at the doctor's words. "If I may, I'd like to ask for a blood sample so we can fully understand the nature of your abilities. I'm sure you won't have time for an X-ray, but I'm fairly confident we can rule out a mutation ability. This certainly fits emitter better, though the source of your energy is still a mystery. My preliminary guess would be some form of stockpile ability. I wonder what it might be stocking up on." He tapped his chin thoughtfully. Kage raised an eyebrow.

"I know my powers show on my veins, but it's not in my blood."

"Oh?" Doctor Tsubasa refocused on him, intrigued. Kuchihige also raised an eyebrow in the corner.

"Yeah, it's energy." Kage explained. "It doesn't exist in a physical state until either I will it to, or until it interacts with the outside world. And I don't think I can maintain it like that for very long." Even Kage seemed confused as to how he had figured this out, but it seemed consistent with his previous abilities. Doctor Tsubasa sighed.

"A small shame, I must admit. But we can still get a good amount of data from a blood sample. It could be very helpful to determine if anyone else in your family has abilities like this. Or, in your case I suppose, figuring out if these abilities match anyone else's Quirk and then determining if they are your family." Tsukauchi turned to Kage. This would be invaluable in the investigation, but he was also clearly alarmed by the doctor. He didn't want to force the issue, but he had to admit this was a good opportunity.

Kage took a deep breath, exhaled, and then held out his arm. The doctor smiled and reached over for a syringe. Upon bringing it to Kage's exposed arm, the black veins seemed to fill it. It seemed involuntary. In fact, Kage seemed to be attempting to force it back. The veins slowly and unsteadily receded long enough for doctor Tsubasa to insert the syringe. Kage winced.

"You're doing quite well." Doctor Tsubasa said, focused on the syringe and not meeting Kage's expression. His tone was gentler than before. "I've dealt with patients who reacted far worse to far less." Kage nodded. It seemed clear to everyone present that this was something he said to almost all of his patients.

"Doctor, can I ask you a question?"

"Hm?" Doctor Tsubasa's eyes flicked up to Kage's. "Of course, of course. This is my field of study, so I'm always happy to take questions and queries about Quirks, especially ones as fascinating as yours." Tsukauchi looked at Kage with a raised eyebrow. He could tell from the boy's expression that he had something planned.

"What do you think of the Quirk Singularity Theory?"

Doctor Tsubasa stopped. The syringe had acquired a suitable blood sample, so he carefully pulled it free and put it aside. He turned to Kage with an apparent gleeful expression. Tsukauchi had never heard of the theory Kage had mentioned.

"I'm surprised a boy like you would be familiar with it." Doctor Tsubasa spoke in a praising tone. "It's not exactly a popular viewpoint." Kage shrugged. His expression had gone cold.

"I ran into it whilst I was studying." He said. Tsukauchi wasn't sure he was telling the truth, as he hadn't seen the term pop up in any of the textbooks and schoolwork he had brought for him. But he supposed it wasn't impossible it had come up after searching for the answer to something. "The idea that Quirks will one day reach a point that humans can't control, right? I thought it was interesting, and it seemed like the kind of thing worth asking an expert about." His words sounded almost rehearsed, though Tsukauchi was sure that he hadn't been planning this when he walked into the room. The doctor smiled.

"It warms my heart to see young people like yourself engaging with such theories. The mark of a truly intelligent mind." He clapped his hands together. "Personally, I am of the rather controversial view of supporting the theory. Quirks continue to get stronger with each successive generation, so it seems frankly inevitable. What were your thoughts?" He asked. Kage placed a hand on his chin thoughtfully before replying.

"I think it's more of a social issue than a biological one."

"Oh?"

"This society doesn't do enough to teach people to manage their Quirks." Kage explained. "From what I understand, Quirk counselling stops at a pretty young age and doesn't seem suitable for some kinds of Quirks. There's an emphasis on suppression, on the idea of keeping things normal, and that's limiting. If Quirks continue to get stronger, society should adapt around that to accommodate the increasingly abnormal nature of society. Human existence as we know it is different, and if that was able to be acknowledged more outside of just heroics, I think Quirk Singularity wouldn't be an issue." Doctor Tsubasa looked at Kage with an intense curiosity as he explained Kage was gesturing with his hands as he did so, really getting invested in his words. After a moment, Doctor Tsubasa laughed. It was a hearty laugh that was somehow a little unnerving.

Tsukauchi took note. This man was odd.

"Do you disagree?" Kage asked, sounding more nervous. Doctor Tsubasa remained grinning.

"Not at all," he said. "I simply find your interpretation fascinating. It's not one I've heard before, but I've had precious few people to discuss these ideas with. It's typically a rather pessimistic note, not one my fellow colleagues would enjoy. The next time you need a doctor, I'd love to get more into this subject." To Tsukauchi's surprise, Kage nodded. His nerves from earlier weren't completely gone, but his immediate shock had settled down.

"Sure." Kage agreed. "Thanks, this was informative." Tsukauchi wasn't sure what exactly he had been referring to. The doctor didn't seem to add anything that Kage was unaware of. Somehow, this conversation was searching for something more than just some old theory about the nature of Quirks. Kage was achieving some other goal here, though Tsukauchi had no idea what it could have been.

"Here, take my office number." Doctor Tsubasa handed Kage a small business card with a phone number on the corner. "My availability varies, but if you ever need my expertise, I'd be happy to provide." Kage took the card, read it for a moment, then placed it into his pocket. He nodded to the doctor.

"Is that all you need me for?" He asked. The doctor startled, his attention quickly refocusing on the appointment itself.

"Just about, yes." He said. Kuchihige let out a small cough as a reminder of his presence. The doctor sighed. "Well, one last thing. We still have to name your Quirk. It's standard practice for the name to either be chosen by the parent or the child. If you need any suggestions-"

"Void Energy." Kage declared, seeming to surprise even himself with the certainty in his voice. "My power shall be called Void Energy." Kuchihige wrote it down in his notepad whilst doctor Tsubasa typed it up in a new file he had drafted on the boy.

"An inspired choice, mister Kage Sekai!" Kuchihige praised. Kage looked confused, but didn't say anything. Doctor Tsubasa nodded.

"Well, I've seen kids with worse ideas." He shrugged. "You can leave as soon as I've dealt with those burns. I'll get back to you with the results of your blood work at a later date." He treated Kage's injuries quickly, then dismissed everyone in the room with one hand, turning to his computer. Tsukauchi got up, followed a moment later by Kage. Kuchihige opened the door and they walked out of the room.

"Kage," Tsukauchi asked. The boy turned to him curiously. "What was all that about?" Kage tilted his head.

"You arranged the appointment."

"I believe mister Naomasa Tsukauchi is referring to your theory talk with the doctor." Kuchihige helpfully added. "As he mentioned, it's a rather obscure subject, and one that didn't seem personally relevant to your powers in particular. What brought that on?" Tsukauchi nodded, affirming the question. Kage looked down thoughtfully for a moment.

"I wanted to try figuring out something I read about." He said with a shrug. "I'm pretty well-read, but it's always good to ask questions, right?" Tsukauchi noticed his phrasing. The last time he had described himself as well read, he had mentioned something about it being an "inside joke" that he couldn't explain. At the time, he hadn't paid it all that much mind. But now, he decided to make a point of looking out for that phrase.

There was something Kage knew that he wasn't saying. Something he was hiding.

Doctor Kyudai Garaki waited for the footsteps in the corridor to vanish. When he was sure he was alone, he walked over to his door and locked it shut. He had a call to make, one that he couldn't afford to have disturbed.

He went to his computer and input a specific set of keys. At a glance, it would have looked totally random to any on-looker. In reality, he was laying out a very particular code that would prompt exactly what he needed. After a moment, the entire screen went dark. It was soon replaced by a blue screen that read "SOUND ONLY".

"Doctor." The voice of his master spoke on the other end. "I wasn't expecting to hear from you so soon. Has something caught your attention?"

"Indeed, master." Garaki gave a curt bow. He was sure, somehow, that his master was watching him. He was always watching, always listening. There was simply no escape from one so powerful. "A patient appeared today. He seemed to recognise me."

"Is that so unusual? I was under the impression your persona was well regarded."

"He was frightened."

There was a pause on the other end of the line. For a moment, the only sound audible was a faint crackle from the screen.

"You believe he recognised Garaki." It wasn't a question, for his master was not one to waste time confirming the obvious. Garaki nodded.

"Yes, master." He said. "The patient's name was Kage Sekai. It seems familiar, somehow, but I can't seem to place it."

"Ah, that one." His master said. "It's not just you. Something has been keeping that name hidden almost completely from every source. Even my vast resources have struggled. If it wasn't for my Perfect Recollection Quirk, I would have been as clueless as you."

"So, we do know him?" Garaki asked. There was another pause before his master spoke.

"Keep an eye on him." All For One said.

"It isn't every day we have a dead man walking."

AN: Funny story, originally I had forgotten to have Garaki treat Kage's burns. That line was edited after I had already released the chapter. I had to manually re-edit it here since it wasn't in the original word document. Sometimes, small things just slip right past me. Enjoy!