While Shigaraki was sitting there with his eyes closed, quietly sensing the changes in his body, Hitoshi Shinso finally returned from the nearby vending machines.
"Um… sorry…"
Seeing Shigaraki sitting there silently with his eyes closed, Shinso assumed the other boy was still angry about what had happened earlier.
Guilt immediately crept across his face.
Truthfully, he really did feel bad.
Using his Quirk to control someone, then digging through their private information without permission—there was no way to justify that.
The problem was…
He had no idea how to make up for it.
After thinking about it for a while, the only thing he could do was try to make things right little by little.
So, awkwardly, he held out the drink he had bought.
A simple bottle of soda from the vending machine.
If he wanted to make amends, he had to start somewhere—even if it was something small.
"Here… this is for you."
Hearing Shinso's apologetic voice, Shigaraki slowly opened his eyes.
Almost instinctively, he took the soda from Shinso's hand.
And when he finally focused—
What he saw was Shinso standing beside him, staring at him with a painfully guilty expression.
Shigaraki's mouth twitched slightly.
He hadn't expected Shinso to still be hung up on that incident after so long.
But he couldn't tell him the truth either.
Because if he admitted that he had never actually been controlled, then a whole chain of troublesome questions would follow.
Why wasn't Brainwashing effective?
How did he know how to counter it?
Why did he pretend to be controlled?
Any one of those questions could create unnecessary complications.
So for a moment, Shigaraki didn't know how to handle the situation.
After thinking about it for a bit, he decided to fall back on the most basic solution possible.
Start with a simple greeting.
After all, greetings were the easiest way to ease tension between people.
And they were also basic manners.
So Shigaraki spoke gently.
"Hey… you don't have to feel that guilty. I'm fine now."
Then he added,
"By the way… I never asked your name."
"What's your name?"
"My name?"
Shinso blinked.
For a moment he seemed surprised that Shigaraki wasn't angry anymore.
Then he straightened slightly.
But before answering, he took a moment to compose himself.
If he wanted to leave a good impression, he should at least introduce himself properly.
"My name is Hitoshi Shinso."
"My Quirk is Brainwashing."
"It… sounds kind of villainous. I know."
"But my dream…"
Shinso's voice became firmer.
"My dream is to become a hero."
"Become a hero?" Shigaraki repeated, eyebrows lifting slightly.
"Well, that makes you the same as Midoriya."
"Midoriya?"
Shinso immediately caught the name.
"Wait—Midoriya Izuku wants to become a hero too?"
"But he's Quirkless, isn't he?"
"How can someone without a Quirk become a hero?"
"And if he knew that, why did he run into that fire to save someone?"
"That's basically suicide!"
Faced with Shinso's barrage of questions, Shigaraki fell silent for a moment.
Then he spoke slowly.
"That's because… becoming a hero has been his dream since he was a child."
"And even after learning he was Quirkless…"
"He never gave up."
"He kept trying. Kept moving forward."
Shinso listened quietly.
Shigaraki continued.
"Because a hero isn't defined by their Quirk."
"A hero is simply someone who steps forward when others are in danger."
"That's all."
"If you're willing to save people when they need help…"
"Then you're already closer to being a hero than most."
"Quirk or no Quirk doesn't change that."
For a long moment, Shinso said nothing.
He just stared at the ground.
Because suddenly—
He felt ashamed.
Midoriya Izuku was Quirkless.
Yet he still held onto the dream of becoming a hero.
He still ran into danger.
Still kept moving forward.
Meanwhile—
Shinso possessed a powerful Quirk.
One that gave him an advantage from the starting line.
Yet he had spent years doubting himself.
Avoiding his own ability.
Even hating it.
All because of what other people thought.
Compared to Midoriya's determination…
His hesitation suddenly felt ridiculous.
But thankfully—
Shigaraki's words had cleared away the fog in his mind.
For the first time in a long while, Shinso felt like he could finally face his Quirk without resentment.
And because of that—
He felt deeply grateful to the boy sitting beside him.
After chatting for a while longer and exchanging contact information, Shigaraki eventually stood up.
The sun was already lowering.
It would be evening soon.
If he didn't leave now, he'd miss the train.
So he said goodbye and headed toward the subway station.
His destination—
The bar.
As he stepped onto the train, Shigaraki reflected on the day.
And overall…
He was very satisfied.
He had eliminated the cannibal villain Butcher.
Raised his level.
Acquired Brainwashing.
And even gained a potential ally in Hitoshi Shinso.
All things considered—
Today's outing had been incredibly profitable.
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