Facing the sudden appearance of a group of bizarre-looking intruders, most of Class 1-A—except for a handful—still hadn't formed proper vigilance. Their expressions were largely relaxed.
They didn't realize the danger at all.
Some even thought it was part of the lesson arrangement and were about to step forward for a closer look.
"Don't move—gather immediately!" Aizawa Shouta shouted sharply, stopping the students who were about to approach. His voice turned cold and decisive. "Those are villains. This is an enemy attack!"
"What?!"
Shock rippled through Class 1-A.
Villains daring to directly attack U.A. High—where All Might was teaching—was simply unbelievable.
Villains. Enemy attack.
To Hero Course students who had only just enrolled, these words were unfamiliar, almost unreal. They had no psychological preparation at all.
In this superhuman society, they had all seen criminals labeled as villains.
But seeing them, facing them personally, and becoming their targets—
Those were completely different feelings.
Looking again at the villains, their fierce appearances radiated chilling malice. Most of the students' bodies began to tremble.
This wasn't cowardice.
When facing a true life-or-death crisis, fear was an instinct no ordinary person could avoid.
—
On the villains' side.
Yamamoto—built like a massive ape—looked at Lock and the others, frowning deeply.
"No. 13… Eraser Head… and Lock the mage?" he muttered. "That shouldn't be right. Why are these three here?"
According to the intelligence they'd obtained, All Might should also be participating in the USJ disaster training.
Yamamoto glanced at Kurogiri. His Warp Gate Quirk was crucial—whether for a surprise assault or retreat, everything depended on him.
But the boy beside Kurogiri was another matter.
When Yamamoto had been rescued by Kurogiri at the bar, he had already disliked Tomura Shigaraki's behavior.
Now, this guy had lost All For One's favor—and yet he was still the chief planner of this USJ raid.
"You useless trash," Yamamoto snarled, suddenly kicking Tomura Shigaraki in the chest.
Tomura was sent flying, crashing to the ground and curling up in pain.
"How did you gather your intelligence?" Yamamoto continued coldly. "If All Might isn't here, then everything we planned is meaningless. Shouldn't you bear responsibility for this failure?"
Yamamoto's anger wasn't just personal vengeance—it was anxiety.
This mission was meant to probe All Might's limits. Failure was unacceptable.
Their stronghold had already been destroyed once. Escaping that disaster had been pure luck. The price, however, was over a year of sleepless days and nights, pouring everything into researching Quirk-enhancement drugs.
And finally—
There had been a breakthrough.
Quirk Enhancement Drug: For a limited time, increases both Quirk output and physical ability by roughly fifty percent, with no immediate side effects.
Quirk Berserk Drug: Directly doubles Quirk power and physical ability, at the cost of the user's vitality. Once vitality is exhausted, death.
A way to make up for everything.
Yamamoto's research achievements had balanced out his past failures.
But if this mission failed again—
The doctor who maintained All For One's body would never tolerate a subordinate who failed twice in a row.
"Then kill the students," Tomura Shigaraki said hoarsely as he struggled to his feet, wiping blood from the corner of his mouth. His head was lowered as he spoke. "All Might will definitely appear. He's the Symbol of Peace."
"…That's true."
Yamamoto nodded, accepting the suggestion. He prepared to command the villains he'd brought, leaving Tomura behind.
What he didn't realize was that the Tomura Shigaraki standing there with his head lowered was suppressing himself to the extreme.
His eyes were bloodshot, filled with endless hatred.
He had learned how to stay calm without clawing at his neck—forced into it by experience.
Just like now.
The teacher he once respected had treated him the same way Yamamoto just had.
That boundless resentment condensed into a cold, terrifying calm, buried deep within his pupils.
"Hm."
Kurogiri observed everything silently, making no move to intervene.
He knew exactly what was happening.
In a sense, he was like an old butler—dutiful and restrained.
But the only one he truly obeyed was All For One.
And because he knew Tomura Shigaraki so well, Kurogiri understood something deeply unsettling—
A Tomura who endured humiliation, indifference, and cruelty without exploding was far more dangerous than before.
—
Back on Lock's side.
"No. 13, protect the students and evacuate them," Aizawa Shouta ordered in a low, urgent voice.
But the villains' appearance sensors showed no response.
It seemed they had someone capable of blocking and intercepting communications completely.
The villains had known All Might would be here.
And the worst part was that USJ was far from U.A.
Reinforcements wouldn't arrive easily.
Originally, Aizawa had asked All Might to attend this class as insurance.
But earlier that day, the main gate had been destroyed, allowing reporters to flood into U.A.—clearly a reconnaissance move by the villains.
And now, at this critical moment, All Might had exhausted his daily transformation limit.
There were plenty of Hero agencies nearby—was he really trying to put every other Pro Hero out of work?
Complaining was pointless now.
What mattered was buying time until help arrived.
Aizawa pulled the combat goggles hidden within his neck bandage over his eyes. They concealed exactly who his Erasure Quirk was targeting, making it harder for enemies to react.
His body tensed as he forced himself fully into combat readiness.
He was about to charge directly into the villains alone.
"Wait!"
Lock stopped him.
In the original course of events, Aizawa had survived through a series of coincidences.
But this world had already diverged.
No one could say what changes—or accidents—might happen now, especially with Yamamoto and the enhancement drugs he'd developed.
Even those villains who looked like disposable fodder could become serious threats once boosted.
"Aizawa-sensei," Lock said calmly, "are you planning to face them alone? Your Quirk isn't suited for dealing with multiple enemies at once."
Lock understood Aizawa's Quirk very well.
Erasure nullified the Quirks of anyone within his line of sight.
But the moment he blinked, it deactivated.
It had two fatal weaknesses.
First—Quirks that were mutation-type or already manifested physically couldn't be erased.
Second—Aizawa himself.
Because of his Quirk, he suffered from severe dry-eye syndrome. He couldn't keep Erasure active for long periods.
That was why he always looked half-asleep in front of the students.
"…True."
Aizawa shook his head helplessly.
As expected of Lock, a mage who had become a Pro Hero at such a young age. He'd noticed even this.
But even so, Aizawa couldn't retreat.
If even the teacher stepped back for safety, who would the students behind him rely on?
To give them confidence—
He had to fight head-on.
---
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