The morning sky above Aichi was still stained with drifting ash. Black smoke rolled from the ruined industrial district, carrying the scent of scorched concrete and molten steel.
The news helicopters lurched violently as another wave of hot air rolled through the smoke.
"...Can anyone confirm visual?" The cameraman wiped dust from the lens.
"I... I can't see anything!" For several agonizing seconds, nothing could be seen through the smoke but a cloud of dust.
The anchor back at the studio stared at the live feed, unsure whether to speak. "...Ladies and gentlemen..." she finally managed. "...we appear to have temporarily lost sight of the Nomu and ...."
Just then, the smoke slowly peeled away beneath the morning wind.
At first... Only a vague silhouette could be seen.
Then another.
The cameraman instinctively zoomed in. The first figure stood motionless amidst the shattered concrete, cloaked from head to toe in a pitch-black combat suit traced with thin white lines.
Several meters away, a woman lay bound beneath layers of hardened earth, unable to move.
Within the crater, Yuta stood with furrowed brows, looking down at the restrained female convict. Just then, the sound of helicopters drew his attention
"...There's someone down there!" the cameraman shouted.
"Keep zooming!"
".."
Looking at the helicopters above, Yuta tilted his head for a moment, then reached beneath the edge of his hood and pulled it back. A head of unmistakable crimson hair appeared before everyone, bringing back a lot of memories.
The masked young man gave a casual wave toward the helicopters before lifting a hand to his face and lowering his mask.
"Hey there, Japan." He said with a slight smile, without caring whether the Microphones could hear him.
"... Hope I'm not late."
"Is that ...."
Up above, the news crew were somewhat stunned, quickly recognizing who the young man below was.
"Him?"
"That's Akutami Yuta!"
"He's here!"
The cameras searched for the High end Nomu, but it was nowhere to be seen. 'It's gone? Don't tell me ..' The female reporter on duty was stunned while looking at the face of the young man just a few years younger than her below with mixed feelings. Her younger brother had been one of the unfortunate 715 on the YAMANOTE LINE.
Her feelings were towards this young man, who was indirectly involved in both The YAMANOTE LINE and Tokyo were quite complicated.
Regardless, professional ethics demanded her unbiased commentary while on duty.
"Ladies and gentlemen, this .... It would seem the Nomu previously terrorizing the city has been defeated. Repeating once again... the creature responsible for today's attacks has been defeated."
"Rescue teams are beginning to move in as Aichi prefecture's crisis has been resolved." Her eyes remained fixed on the monitor in front of her.
"The individual currently on your screen appears to be Yuta Akutami. The U.A. High School Hero Course student and sole confirmed survivor of the Yamanote Line Incident."
"This is his first public appearance since Tokyo two weeks ago where he fought alongside the symbol of peace, All Might in the battle against All For One..." The footage was live throughout Japan.
...
Hundreds of kilometers away...
Televisions across Japan displayed the exact same image.
In homes, hospitals, stations, electronics stores, Restaurants...
People stopped whatever they were doing. The morning programming had long since been interrupted by emergency broadcasts covering the attack in Aichi. After all, a Nomu appearance meant connection to the league of villains. With everything that had happened in the past two months, many had expected another disaster.
Instead, they were greeted by the sight of a sixteen-year-old standing calmly amidst the ruins.
"... Who's that again?"
"No way. Do you live under a rock or something?" Someone replied, recognizing the face beneath the hood. "That's the kid from U.A."
"The one from Tokyo?"
"... Yep. That's him alright."
Miles away... In Endeavours Hero Agency, the waiting room was equally watching the same thing. Bakugo Katsuki stood silently before the wall-mounted television. At the side, a large majority of the sidekicks were also watching the same thing. "So he did it again." Bakugo muttered, tone tinged with displeasure.
This wasn't the first time this had happened. After all, Tokyo was still fresh in his memory. It has only been two weeks after all.
The training camp ...
Even more so.
That however didn't explain how this guy could now cause explosions like him. Was he hiding anything else?
"Tch."
His fingers curled into fists. Every damn time ... That bastard showed up after disappearing from his field of view, he got stronger.
How
'Even away, that bastard just can't seem to stop pissing me off.'
Endeavors sidekicks were completely unaware of his thoughts.
"They sure do grow up fast." One whistled before turning to the others.
"Any of you think you can beat that thing if you were there?"
"Why the hell would you ask that you fool? You wanna make me feel bad on purpose?"
Listening to the words of the sidekicks, Bakugo resisted the urge to scoff. Every time Yuta fought, people discovered something else he could apparently do.
The Sports Festival.
Tokyo.
The training camp.
Now this. It was like trying to catch someone who refused to stop climbing.
'Fine. Keep getting stronger. Just don't expect me to sit still while you do.'
'All I need is my own big break. And I'll show everyone that I'm the better of us.'
Just then ...
"Shoto probably stands a chance. Where is he anyway?"
"On a mission with Burnin in the east sector. He's probably seeing this wherever he is right now."
"There's a lot of controversy concerning the kid. With this though, Shoto's gonna need to do a lot to catch up in terms of public image. Else he's only going to remain second best in his class."
"..."
A small vein erupted on Bakugo's forehead.
"...Second best? ...The hell does Half-and-Half have to do with anything?"
The waiting room fell silent.
Several sidekicks slowly turned toward the blond teenager, immediately realizing what they had just said in front of him.
"...Uh..."
One of them awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck, fully aware of Bakugo's personality in the past few days.
"I wasn't talking about ..."
"I know exactly what you were talking about." The boy sneered and turned away "...Public image... What a stupid way to measure strength."
Obviously, his encounter with Best Jeanist back then hadn't borne much fruit ... Or any for that matter.
Meanwhile... Back in Aichi, emergency responders and supporting heroes finally arrived.
Rescue workers rushed through collapsed hallways carrying stretchers. Police officers secured the perimeter as more patrol vehicles arrived one after another.
Medics hurried toward the handful of survivors, while support heroes spread out to ensure no hidden Nomu remained among the ruined areas.
Several officers approached the restrained woman buried beneath hardened earth. "She's secured."
"Careful. We still don't know what her Quirk is."
Luckily, the woman had no thoughts of resisting after everything she had been through today. Her gaze remained fixed on the area the young man had disappeared to earlier. 'Why is their aura the same?'
In the far distance, Yuta watched paramedics load the unconscious Inasa onto a stretcher.
"...He'll live?" he asked.
One of the medics looked up.
"Oh don't worry about him. He'll be fine." The older man replied. "A few broken bones, severe exhaustion, internal injuries... but he'll pull through."
"...Good."
Yuta let out a sigh of relief.
At least that was one less thing to worry about. Unfortunately... His moment of peace lasted barely a few seconds.
"Mr. Akutami."
A female reporter hurried beneath the police tape, microphone already in hand while her cameraman struggled to keep up. "Just one question!"
A nearby officer raised a hand. "Ma'am, this area isn't ..."
"It'll only take a minute!"
Without waiting for permission, she stopped a few meters before Yuta. The camera immediately focused on him. The live broadcast continued. "...Akutami Yuta. I'm Watanabe Akari from Asahi Television. Where you were the one responsible for the Nomu's destruction earlier?"
Yuta looked toward her. Then towards the camera and finally nodded his head.
"...Yes."
A murmur immediately spread among the nearby officers.
The reporter's brow furrowed, a flicker of irritation crossing her face at his brief answer. She stepped closer, pushing the microphone forward. "According to publicly available information, your Quirk doesn't possess explosive capabilities. So... how exactly did you defeat something of that caliber?"
'Oh, this finally came up.'
Yuta was stunned for a moment. "...That's a little difficult to explain."
"Difficult?" Her eyes narrowed. "...There has been considerable public speculation regarding your abilities. Not only is your quirk not supposed to be capable of generating localized explosions, but the majority of what you have displayed since your first appearance doesn't fit the records. Do you have anything to say concerning that?"
Yuta lowered his head, looking thoughtful for a second.
"My quirk is a bit more than what I initially thought it was, hence the difference. Everything I have done is all just an extension of my original quirk."
"I'm afraid that isn't much of an answer."
"For my privacy, that's all I can say."
Her expression visibly stiffened. "Are you refusing to disclose the nature of your Quirk?"
"I ... Guess. It wouldn't be nice to explain all my abilities for everyone, citizens or not to understand, would it?"
Her eyebrows twitched. The answer clearly wasn't the one she wanted.
"Then allow me to ask something else."
"Sure. Go ahead."
She took a deep breath. "Over the past two months, your name has become associated with nearly every major incident in the country. Hosu, the Yamanote Line, Tokyo, and now... today's attack in Aichi. Whether fairly or unfairly, many people have begun to associate those tragedies with you."
Yuta looked somewhat taken back. "...I see. I'm sorry they had to experience that."
The reporter nodded. "But do you understand why some members of the public have begun asking whether events might have unfolded differently had you never become involved?"
Several nearby officers exchanged uneasy looks.
"...Maybe." The answer caught everyone slightly off guard.
"I've thought about it before."
"If I hadn't been there... maybe some things would've happened differently."
His gaze drifted briefly across the ruined district.
"...Maybe some would've been better. Maybe some would've been worse."
"I don't know. There isn't a world where I get to compare both outcomes."
He had thought perhaps that would have been enough to sate them.
"Even so..." Unfortunately however, media reporters, no matter what universe, we're never satisfied.
"Following Kamino, the Symbol of Peace was forced to leave the country for several hours."
"During that period, the League launched attacks across multiple prefectures. Several top heroes permanently lost their Quirks, numerous civilians lost their lives, and public confidence in hero society suffered another severe blow." She paused. "Many viewers are asking where responsibility begins and ends."
"As someone directly connected to those events..."
"...how do you view your own responsibility?"
There was a short moment of silence. The wind swept a thin veil of gray ash between them, rustling the fabric of Yuta's black combat suit. The camera remained locked on his face, broadcasting his every micro-expression to millions of stunned households.
'No ..' The female reporter thought with slightly wide eyes, only realising she had gone too far. 'Dammit Akari. You let your emotions get the better of you.'
In U.A high, the teachers' lounge at U.A. had gone completely silent. The television mounted high against the wall continued broadcasting the interview live.
"Damn reporters." Aizawa's eyes turned red from pure fury.
The faces of the other staff were equally unpleasant.
"They're really asking him that..."
"Do they really have no sympathy? He's sixteen."
"They want to ruin his career." Present Mic folded his arms, his usual energetic expression nowhere to be found.
Across the room, Toshinori Yagi stood motionless before the television. A bead of sweat slowly traced down the side of his face.
"...Young man..."
Back in Aichi... The surrounding officers remained silent.
Even the reporters standing farther back stopped talking.
Yuta didn't answer immediately. Instead, he slowly lifted his eyes toward the smoke-stained morning sky.
"...You know... I've actually thought about that... a lot."
The answer caught everyone off guard.
"For a long time... I kept asking myself whether things would've turned out differently."
"...If I hadn't gone to Hosu that day, or called my teachers after I found myself dropped into the ocean .."
His lips curved into a faint, bittersweet smile.
"It really is my fault, isn't it?"
Akari immediately stiffened.
"Maybe..."
"...maybe you're right."
"Perhaps I really do bear part of the responsibility."
"... I never thought my dream would lead to this. If I hadn't wanted to become a hero in the first place."
"Maybe all of those people would still have their Quirks."
"Maybe fewer families would've lost someone. Perhaps Japan wouldn't be like this." The wind quietly swept between them.
Yuta lowered his head, looking at her. "From what I can tell, you probably lost someone dear to you as well, didn't you?"
".."
No reply was the best reply. Yuta's smile seemed to grow three shades sadder.
"I've felt guilty about it for a long time."
"...Actually..."
He scratched the side of his cheek awkwardly.
"That's why I've been doing all this."
"I thought..."
"If I kept saving people..."
"...maybe I could make up for some of it."
His shoulders rose and fell in a quiet sigh.
"...But maybe I was wrong. Now that I think about it, perhaps I should have just died in that attack with everyone else."
The cameraman's hands were practically trembling at this point.
The reporters face had gone deathly pale.
"That's... That's not what I—" She stammered frantically, trying to cut in, but the sheer emotional weight of Yuta's narrative completely pinned her in place.
Of course, Yuta wasn't going to let her finish.
"...I think I've finally figured out the obvious answer."
"...If my desire to become a hero caused all of this..."
"...then perhaps I was chasing the wrong dream."
The cameraman froze.
"..."
Yuta gave a small, apologetic bow toward the camera.
"I'm sorry, Japan."
"I can only apologize by..."
"...Retiring."