The room shifted like someone had kicked a dollhouse, and Hitoshi was one of the dolls. Setsuno was unconscious after getting hit with Ochako's gauntlets weighed down by ten times the regular force of gravity, Hojo had been kept in place with Rock Lock's Quirk while Ochako and Tsu had teamed up for a big hit on him to knock him out without a struggle, and Aizawa had been keeping Katsukame in check with his Erasure while the others tried to contain him. Katsukame was tough enough to withstand Tsu's kicks even without his Quirk, and he was agile enough to dodge Ochako's touch, so that meant that there wasn't a lot they could do. Hitoshi had been about to brainwash the guy, but then what felt like the entire building lurched and everyone lost their balance. The structure of the room changed as an ear-splitting cry could be heard through the walls. The floors became uneven, the walls lashed out and tried to crush them, and the heroes and villains were thrown all over the place. Hitoshi landed on his arm, and bit back a yelp at the jolt of pain. As he stood up, he rolled his shoulder and shook his arm out, finding that he retained the full range of motion. That was a good sign. Hitoshi looked around, and could hear fighting but the layout of the chamber had changed so much that he'd have to climb a ledge to join the others. There was one thing stopping him.

Shin Nemoto stood about ten metres away, the barrel of his firearm pointed right at Hitoshi's chest. The chaos just before must have set him free from the quick-dry trap he'd been restricted by earlier, and Hitoshi must not have brought him to unconsciousness with his kick to the thug's head like he'd thought. Hitoshi paused and tried to get his mind to work, but there wasn't a way out of this that he saw. There wasn't any cover he could dive behind down on that lower area, and it'd take too long to climb up the ledge without a point to swing off of. As well, no matter how quick his reflexes were, and they weren't extraordinary, Hitoshi would never be able to dodge gunfire. That may not have been a problem if Nemoto's ammunition weren't live rounds. He didn't want to find out what was loaded into that barrel either way. Hitoshi tensed, ready to react to anything, and frowned.

"You're no hero," Nemoto said with his velvety drawl. There was something there that tickled Hitoshi's brain, like his unconscious mind recognised something that he wasn't consciously aware of. Or maybe his subconscious had recognised something that his conscious mind couldn't. "You are a child, are you not?"

"Yes," Hitoshi unwillingly said. He clenched his hands into fists around a strand of his binding cloth at the realisation that he'd once again forgotten to activate his Quirk with his response. It was Nemoto, he was throwing Hitoshi off his game. It was because their Quirks were so similar, and Nemoto had the exact same Quirk as his mom. It was more than that, though, it was … Hitoshi prayed that his suspicion was wrong. He put his Quirk into it when he then said, "I'm not a hero, I'm just here because I want to feel better about the mistakes I made."

Nemoto nodded silently, and didn't say anything more. Hitoshi started panicking. Did he know about Brainwashing? It was always possible that some villains had watched the sports festival and learned about his power. Nemoto continued, "That you are. I've found that every hero is, deep down, a small person trying to make themselves seem big so that they do not have to face their own weakness." How was he getting the timing of Hitoshi's ability right down to the second? It made no sense unless he somehow knew when his Quirk timed out after getting no response. Was that part of his Quirk, or had he just done his research? But then again, Hitoshi had never told anyone that part of his power, so how? It made no sense unless … Hitoshi still didn't want to believe that. He tried to steady himself and ignore the panic that was slowly rising in his chest, but his hands, one gripping his binding cloth and another ready to throw a smoke bomb, trembled.

"You're beginning to understand, aren't you?" Nemoto said. "Psychic powers all work vaguely the same way. My own Quirk allows my voice to carry certain pitches and signals that slip by your conscious defences against suggestion. I target your animal mind. I can sense that you do, too. I get a little tingle at the base of my spine when you talk, but not always. Is your power the same as mine, or just similar? I wonder … if I get Master Overhaul to remake us as one when this is all over, would I become able to wield your power as my own? That would be fascinating."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Hitoshi asked. Did Chisaki have that power, the power to fuse people? It would track with his stated abilities, but that was such an alien idea to Hitoshi that he had a hard time reconciling it with his image of what Quirks even were in the first place. He hadn't even heard of a person who could do that. Truly a one-of-a-kind monster, Kai Chisaki.

Nemoto waited with a devilish look in the eye that had been revealed when Hitoshi had ruined the plague mask. When he had waited out the time limit on Brainwashing, he laughed, jostling the gun he still had pointed right at Hitoshi. "Master is such an impressive man. Not like myself. Can you imagine what filth like myself would do to serve a shining beacon of yakuza superiority like him? I'd do anything, even debase myself in deeming your power intriguing to me, you sick brat. Tell me, what is your name?"

"Hypnos," Hitoshi said, even when he tried his hardest to shut his mouth. At least he'd remembered to use his Quirk that time.

"The sickness has taken root that deep in you that you do not even respond to my Quirk with your own name. Tragic, but not surprising," Nemoto said after a long pause. Damn it! This guy really could sense Brainwashing. "Hypnos, does your power induce hypnosis, put your enemies to sleep, or something else?"

"My Quirk is Brainwashing, I can control the actions of people who respond to something I say," Hitoshi said, his voice shaking. There had to be a way for him to avoid Nemoto's Quirk like that bastard was doing for Brainwashing. It had to work both ways! Hitoshi's mind was frozen, though. He couldn't come up with a plan. Hitoshi was panicking. "If you're gonna shoot me, just do it already."

"Ah, but the kind of bullets I've got loaded into this gun are special, Hypnos. They do not strike your flesh, but your Quirks themselves. Firing upon you right now would get rid of the Quirk that I am so fascinated by," Nemoto said with a smile in his voice. "Besides, you're not nearly so brave. You're shaking in your little costume. You said it yourself before, you're not even close to being a real hero, right?"

A massive impact caused another wave of chaos to erupt around the chamber. The room's structure shifted one more time, and a shockwave erupted out of nowhere. Hitoshi was sent flying, and landed in a roll that allowed him to leap back up to his feet. Looking around, he realised that he'd been thrown closer to the others. The other Bullets were still down, it was just Katsukame they were trying to contain, though he was putting up a massive fight. It didn't help that none of the present heroes were power types to contend with his massive physical strength regardless of Aizawa's Erasure cancelling his Quirk. Hitoshi was still compelled to answer Nemoto's question as the man himself landed a few dozen metres away, though he wasn't able to prevent himself from flailing about and landing painfully. He was between the other heroes and Nemoto, and the truth-telling yakuza bastard didn't seem to miss that fact. "I'm not a real hero. I'm so far behind my classmates. My power isn't flashy, or strong by itself. I'm not selfless like them, either. I do the best I can but it's never going to be enough when I have such incredible friends. But what's your excuse?"

Hitoshi ran at Nemoto, who brought his gun back up and aimed dead centre at Hitoshi's chest. Out of nowhere, a giant crash came from behind and the ground shook. Katsukame bounced along the ground and made both Hitoshi and Nemoto dodge, ending their conflict prematurely. To further tip things into chaos, it looked like Hojo and Setsuno were getting back up. Hitoshi got distracted from Nemoto by Setsuno, the closest villain to him after that change of pace. Setsuno lunged at Hitoshi and ripped the stun baton out of his hand mere seconds after Hitoshi had pulled it from his belt.

"That's not exactly fair!" Hitoshi said, activating his Quirk.

"You don't know what's fair!" Hojo said, running up behind Hitoshi for a sneak attack. Hitoshi's heart skipped a beat, as he hadn't realised he'd left his flank open. Hojo then stopped moving in the blink of an eye, his entire body becoming still.

"Attack him," Hitoshi said shakily. That had been close. If Hojo hadn't been stupid, Hitoshi likely would've died.

Hojo took off in a sprint toward Setsuno, who looked utterly terrified of the bulky, crystal-covered man rushing toward him without a word. "Hojo?" Nothing. "Dude!" Still no response. Setsuno gestured with the electric baton. "Don't make me use this, man!"

When Hojo got within arm's reach, Setsuno lashed out with Hitoshi's stun baton that he'd stolen just moments prior. The shock made Hojo jerk, stumble backwards, and scream out in pain. Hitoshi scowled and pulled his other stun baton out at the same time as he tangled his other hand in his binding cloth. He could always feel it the second his control over a person was broken, and Hojo had been freed by the shock from the baton. Setsuno's Quirk was scarily useful against low-power heroes like Hitoshi, who needed tools to fight — tools he could steal easily. Hitoshi got low, prepared for a brawl. It wasn't his strong suit, but he was ready to get into it with these guys if it meant keeping them away from the others.

"I think I'll be taking those as payback for messing with my buddy here," Setsuno said. He gestured with both hands, and Hitoshi's binding cloth unravelled itself from around his neck and shot through the air toward the yakuza thug.

Hitoshi felt a tug around his neck once again, this time due to his Persona Chords shifting slightly, but they were held tight by the headband he wore around the back of his head to keep the mask in place. He was going to attack and reclaim his binding cloth when Tsu came out of nowhere and kicked Setsuno in the head, knocking him out right away. A grin took the place of his hidden scowl, and he watched as Tsu also took the chance to defeat the still-dazed Hojo with that powerful kick of theirs. They landed next to him and frowned.

"Eraser needs your help!" they said.

"My binding—"

"Now!" Tsu said, eyes urgently fixed on him as pinned both villains down.

"Okay!" Hitoshi said, turning around and sprinting away.

Aizawa and Ochako were not handling Katsukame well. It was all Aizawa could do to erase his Quirk, but even then, he was forced to blink every now and then when the massive brute landed a glancing blow and sent him flying. Ochako was flying around and trying to tag Katsukame with her Quirk, but he was quick enough to evade her, and when he wasn't, he was strong enough to somewhat resist her Quirk's downward pull. He was a real monster. Hitoshi ran and stopped beside Aizawa, who glanced over at him and grimaced.

"What's the deal?" Hitoshi said.

"The only way we're stopping this guy is through Brainwashing," Aizawa said with a strained voice. His eyes couldn't have been holding up well against the constant activation and deactivation of Erasure.

"Alright," Hitoshi said with a shrug of his shoulders. "Hey, big guy!"

"Raagh!" Katsukame bellowed, turning his whole body toward Hitoshi and Aizawa. He crouched down, almost as if he were about to pounce, and then stayed there. He didn't move or say a word after that.

The room fell silent, with all three of the problematic Bullets down. Ochako and Tsu high-fived as they landed on Aizawa's other side. Aizawa finally blinked and sighed in relief. Hitoshi, though, was still on alert. "Careful, there's also—"

An ear-splitting bang echoed across the chamber, and all eyes turned to a battle that had been going on without the knowledge of the majority of the heroes. Rock Lock fell to the ground, clutching his arm and staring as he managed to pull a red dart from his skin. The heroes froze, and Hitoshi instantly assumed that he had to have more than one shot in that handgun of his. Nemoto watched as Rock Lock writhed on the ground, his one visible eye turning to the other heroes assembled dozens of metres away. He swung his gun around and took his aim more casually than he had at Hitoshi before, and then laughed.

It was like everything slowed down to a snail's pace as Hitoshi realised what Nemoto was doing. He was going to try and shoot one of his friends, maybe even his teacher with the Quirk-destroying bullets. Nemoto's one visible eye gleamed like a kid on Christmas as he pulled the trigger. Hitoshi knew that the closest person to Nemoto other than him was Aizawa. Tracking Nemoto's aim had Hitoshi realising that his mentor must have been the target. The flash at the end of the barrel seemed to illuminate the entire room. They couldn't lose Erasure. He couldn't lose Eraserhead. Hitoshi knew what he had to do, but he didn't know if he had the courage to do it. He could almost track the red dart through the air as it sailed in his direction at an angle that would soar right past him if he didn't move right that very instant. He knew what he had to do, and it didn't matter if he had the courage to do it. A hero did what he needed to in order to keep others safe. That was what Izuku had taught him time and time again ever since they'd met.

Every kid grew up hearing stories from famous heroes about how they'd all had a single moment in their childhood that had given them their desire to be a hero in the first place. Hitoshi had never had that kind of moment. Maybe it was because he wasn't a real hero, he wasn't selfless like Tsu, and Izuku, and even Aizawa were. Nemoto was right. Hitoshi had wanted to become a hero out of spite, to prove all the middle-school bullies wrong by becoming a respected hero. None of that mattered anymore as thoughts swirled around in Hitoshi's mind in that fraction of a fraction of a second. What he did next was guided by none of the intelligence, logic, and rationality that he'd been taught to follow. It was only emotion that pushed Hitoshi forward at that moment — a wish, really. Hitoshi wished that none of the people he cared about would ever be hurt if he could do something about it. It was the first time he'd really made that wish, even to himself. He'd never had that kind of heroic moment that every pro talked about until that very second, when his body moved before he had a chance to think.

Hitoshi shifted his weight to the side, and less than half a second later a massive force crashed into his collarbone, forcing him to take a step back. He only registered the sting of the needle a moment later, after the overwhelming power of the impact had dissipated. Those tiny little bullets packed a massive punch.

The wall broke apart easily under a combined strike. Dust flooded the room as debris clattered to the ground and came to rest with a series of loud scraping and slamming sounds. Izuku and Katsuki followed after Lemillion and emerged from the dust cloud to find that villains had indeed been encountered by the rest of their team. Toya Setsuno, Yu Hojo, Rikiya Katsukame, and Shin Nemoto had been defeated and arrested with zero casualties. Sir Nighteye followed them through and the heroes reunited in their totality. Izuku and Katsuki walked up to the heroes they'd been separated from, who were all huddled around something as they spoke in soft tones. The two boys got closer and realised that it was Hitoshi who was at the centre of their little huddle, his arm wrapped in a makeshift sling using his own binding cloth. He had the biggest grin Izuku had ever seen from him on his face, and he was the only one who wasn't affected by the grim atmosphere the others seemed to sense.

"Hey, what's up?" Lemillion asked.

"I got hurt, but I'll be fine," Hitoshi said, forcing himself to his feet. Everyone around him reached out to help, but he swatted their hands away with his good one. "I'm not dying, calm down."

"We don't know if we'll be able to secure any antidote, so don't act as though your fate is certain," Aizawa said.

"Wait, what are you talking about?" Izuku asked.

"Nothing, you don't need to worry about it," Hitoshi said, giving the heroes he'd been separated with a stern look.

"Hypnos got hit with a Quirk-destroying bullet, didn't he?" Sir Nighteye asked.

Hitoshi groaned, and Izuku's heart skipped a beat. That couldn't be right. He looked over at Hitoshi and tried to look for a difference in his appearance to signify the loss of his Quirk, even though he knew that wasn't how it worked. He scanned the floor and found it, a little red dart that sat on the ground where his feet would have been before he'd stood up and walked a short distance. Izuku worked to control his breathing, and clenched his hands into fists. It had happened again. A person had been made Quirkless again and he'd been unable to protect them. His fists shook, and he met Hitoshi's eyes.

"We can use our antidote," Izuku said.

"Indeed," Sir Nighteye said, retrieving a blue dart from a pocket on the inside of his suit jacket. Izuku had to stop himself from making a face when he realised that he'd meant the antidote that they hadn't given to Sir, whereas Nighteye had interpreted it differently. "Take it quickly. We do not know if the effect is lessened by time passing."

"Wait, but Rock Lock was hit, too," Ochako said. "If there's only one …"

"Give it to Rock Lock," Hitoshi said, at the same time as Rock Lock said, "Give it to the kid." They both gave each other a hard look, and frowned.

"I'm hurt aside from the deleter round. If I get my Quirk back, I still won't be able to help anymore," Hitoshi clarified. "Give it to Rock Lock."

"Your Quirk alone is way more valuable than mine," Rock Lock argued.

"Come to a decision quickly, please. I legitimately do not know if the antidote will work if we wait any longer," Sir Nighteye said calmly, though there was a tension to his expression that told Izuku of anxiety and worry.

Hitoshi marched over and took the antidote from Sir Nigheye's hand. All the heroes seemed to relax a bit, thinking that he was going to take it himself, but he then walked right over to Rock Lock and jabbed the needle of the blue dart into his exposed arm. "Problem solved."

"You're a damn fool, kid!" Rock Lock said.

"What have you done?" Tsu asked, tears forming in their eyes.

"I did the right thing. I'm done. If that means forever, then I accept that. I just hope that this guy can help you finish this thing. Don't you have a kid to save?" Hitoshi said, meeting the eyes of everyone present as he swept his gaze across the team. He looked over at Rock Lock and forced out a breath. "Get it done."

"You got it," Rock Lock said grimly.

Izuku felt sick. His mouth tensed and his lips quivered — he wanted to cry. He wanted to scream about how unfair this was. Hitoshi had wanted nothing but to help people with his power, and this was what he got? He could understand the argument that he'd made, but the part of Izuku's brain that was more selfish than he liked rejected it in favour of its desire for Hitoshi to have taken the antidote. Izuku walked over, fists trembling, expression dark, and wanted to do and say so many things. Instead, he just said in a shaking voice, "I'll get an antidote from Chisaki if I have to rip this whole place apart to find one."

"Then go on," Hitoshi said back, his voice trembling just as much as Izuku's.

"Overhaul is gonna pay for everything!" Katuski yelled as he took off using his explosions and blew a hole in the wall that Sir Nighteye pointed him towards. The wall came down without much effort on Katsuki's part, and he landed with a grunt. "Let's go kill this bastard!"

"We can't kill," Aizawa said, as though that were a disappointing reality. "We can tear his empire down, though."

"Let's go, guys!" Ochako said, rising off the ground and falling through the air sideways after Katsuki.

Tsu walked over and hugged Hitoshi tightly, whispering something in his ear that nobody else heard. They kissed him on the back of the hand, since leaning down would hurt him, and blinked tears away. Hitoshi smiled and said something that was also inaudible, and Tsu went hopping down the corridor to catch up to the others. Rock Lock clapped Hitoshi on his good shoulder and nodded gravely, which got him a nod in return. Sir Nighteye was long gone, leading the others toward Eri as fast as he could. Izuku hesitated to leave Hitoshi, not in his vulnerable state, but he waved Izuku off casually. "Go," he said, "I'll keep an eye on these guys until the cops catch up and arrest them."

Izuku turned around and brought One For All to twenty-five percent from nothing. He launched forward and allowed his anguish to empower his leap further. Katsuki was right — Kai Chisaki would not escape. He'd hurt so many people with this plot of his. Overhaul was going to pay for everything he'd done to hurt innocent people who had only ever tried to live in the world he occupied. Izuku promised that he was going to make Overhaul hurt.

Hitoshi watched the flashing green lightning get further and further away. He sighed as he let the smile drop from his face. His shoulder was throbbing, aching like hell. His collarbone was definitely broken, maybe another bone, too. Those little bullets had a massive amount of force behind them. He'd thought they would just inject the Quirk-destroying drug, not shatter the bones around the injection site. That was a real pain in the ass, but not more so than losing his Quirk. It didn't feel as bad as he'd been expecting, knowing that an antidote existed and where they could find it, but it was still pretty crappy. Even if the heroes didn't find any more samples of the antidote, Hitoshi and Izuku still had their Plan B. A little murmur brought Hitoshi out of his own head. He looked over at the villains that they'd caught and forced a puff of air out in agitation. It better be who he thought it was. A smirk appeared on Hitoshi's face as he sat before the handcuffed form of Shin Nemoto, who was becoming more lucid with every passing second. Tsu had kicked him real good after the guy had shot him. Nemoto sat up and seemed to realise that he'd been beaten. He looked at Hitoshi, both of his eyes now visible through the mask after Tsu's devastating kick.

"What are you doing, you diseased child?" Nemoto asked.

Hitoshi didn't even try to fight Confession. "I wanted to talk to you. After all, we're connected."

"Yes, we have the same type of Quirk. Interesting how that works, isn't it?" Nemoto asked again. He seemed to be prone to talking to his enemies, for some reason. Hitoshi would never understand what drove villains to monologue, even when they were beaten.

"Not really," Hitoshi said. He considered his next words carefully, now that he'd fulfilled the requirement of responding to Nemoto's Quirk. If Izuku, the most stubborn guy in Japan, could do it, then Hitoshi could give it a shot, too. "That's more my buddy's area of expertise. What I'm interested in is why you are the way you are." Nemoto's eyes widened, and Hitoshi chuckled under his breath. "I mean, don't you have a family? You'll never see them again now."

"I would be the luckiest man in the world if I was to never see my family again," Nemoto spat, almost choking on his own anger.

"Oh?" Hitoshi asked.

"My parents were con-artists. Not hard to guess what their reaction was to a child who they couldn't lie to," Nemoto said. It was the first time that he'd spoken with genuine hatred in his heart since appearing, rather than that smarmy, dull, fake amusement that he'd put on like a mask, seemingly. "They abandoned me, and I was forced to work pathetic, purposeless jobs where I saw the worst of humanity. I had a job as a couples' counsellor. So many marriages ended because unfaithful partners were unable to resist confessing in front of their loved ones. Then I was a fortune teller, though my client ended up telling themselves what they wanted more often than not, and what they wanted to hear was not pretty. Those meaningless careers did not make use of my magnificent Quirk the way I had always dreamed. Master Overhaul found me when I was at rock bottom. I'd been fired from a police precinct as a secretary after one of the detectives there confessed to falsely arresting heteromorphs on villain charges. He gave me a purpose, a dream to fulfil, even if it wasn't mine. Of course I'd follow him. I'd be a fool not to."

"That's pretty intense," Hitoshi drawled. "So this Overhaul guy is pretty cool, huh?"

"He's my saviour, my shining light," Nemoto said, tears coming to his dark, bruised eyes. "He's the only person who has never lied to me, never even tried. If you had my Quirk, you would know how rare that is."

"Huh," Hitoshi croaked, feeling lightheaded. He must have been crashing from the adrenaline earlier. That, or the pain was really getting to him. Either way, he thought he might have to take a nap soon. "You don't have any regrets about the way you've chosen to live your life?"

Nemoto was silent for a long time. "One."

"What?" Hitoshi asked, having zoned out briefly.

"There is one regret," Nemoto said, sighing. "I had a sister, once. I was not able to take her with me when I left my family. I never knew if she'd turn out to have a Quirk similar to mine, or if they might abandon her, too, because of it."

Hitoshi swayed slightly, but kept himself upright. "So, listen … what if I told you that I know someone else with your Quirk?"

Nemoto looked at him silently for a moment. "Why would you tell me that?"

"Because it's true," Hitoshi said automatically, Confession bringing the answer out of him. "There's a lady I know, she's about forty, though she doesn't have a birth certificate so she doesn't actually know for sure. Blonde, curly hair, dark eyes. Her name's Aki. That doesn't happen to be this sister you're talking about, does it?"

"Why are you telling me this?" Nemoto asked, meeting Hitoshi's eyes for the first time without any malice. "You've got the worst hero syndrome I've ever seen. You shouldn't think twice about me."

"Maybe that just happens to mean that you're dead wrong about heroes, idiot," Hitoshi spat. "What even got that stuff into your head in the first place?"

"Master Overhaul says that heroes are a corruptive force acting upon our world, and that it is the right of the yakuza to claim back power in Japan," Nemoto said.

Hitoshi grimaced. Kai Chisaki sounded like he was better at brainwashing than he was. "Master Overhaul also tortures a little girl and turns her body into bullets. Doesn't sound like he should get the talking stick in discussions about what a hero is, yeah?"

"That doesn't answer my question. Why?" Nemoto said.

The facade was up. He couldn't run from it any longer. Hitoshi had all he needed to make an informed guess, and unfortunately, the suspicion that had been building in his mind since he'd first gotten his hands on the description of Confession. It was time to face the music. It was too bad that Hitoshi didn't like music all that much. It was hard for him to say the words.

"Isn't it obvious, you moron?" he asked, meeting Nemoto's eyes. "Your sister is my mom. We're due for a little family reunion, wouldn't you say, uncle?"

Author's Note: A little bit of a twist here, which I actually have been foreshadowing since early on in this fic way back in the post-internships arc. Hope you enjoyed! See ya next time, where we get back to Izuku and company and their mad dash for Eri and Kai Chisaki!