Meanwhile, inside the surveillance room of N City Police Headquarters—
"Sorry. Looks like I'm a little late."
All Might stepped through the door with an apologetic smile, offering a quick explanation as his gaze swept across the room.
Something unexpected had delayed him on the way here.
Still, the moment he took in the scene before him, his expression shifted slightly.
The room wasn't particularly large, yet it was already crowded with people.
And most of them were familiar faces.
Best Jeanist.
Kamui Woods.
Edgeshot.
Several other high-ranking Pro Heroes.
This wasn't just a response team.
It was practically an elite gathering of Japan's top combat heroes.
Seeing that lineup, then remembering the target of today's operation, All Might couldn't help feeling slightly impressed.
Part of it was because Muscular apparently commanded enough attention that this many heroes had been mobilized just to deal with him.
The other part was because the arrangement itself clearly showed how seriously the higher-ups were treating the situation.
Against a monster like Muscular, numbers alone meant nothing.
Without heroes whose abilities specifically countered him—or heroes strong enough to overpower him head-on—sending ordinary forces would only result in casualties.
Muscular wasn't a criminal who could be handled through conventional means.
So instead of deploying quantity, they had gathered quality.
Heroes whose Quirks could restrain, suppress, or outmaneuver brute-force enhancement.
Heroes with enough combat experience to survive close-range engagement.
Heroes strong enough to guarantee victory once they cornered him.
All Might's gaze slowly moved across the room again.
Best Jeanist.
Edgeshot.
Kamui Woods.
Several others.
If everything proceeded smoothly, these people would form the core force responsible for taking Muscular down.
At that moment, Tsukauchi Naomasa—who had been standing at the front of the room briefing the heroes—noticed All Might's arrival and paused.
Then he smiled faintly.
"It's fine. You're not late," he said. "Deployment time hasn't started yet, and the fish still hasn't taken the bait."
A second later, curiosity appeared in his eyes.
"Though this is unusual for you. You're normally early to everything. What happened?"
"Nothing serious." All Might laughed awkwardly. "Ran into a mugger on the way over and handled it."
Then he stepped closer to the monitors, looking toward the surveillance feeds.
"More importantly, what's the target's current status? I don't see Muscular anywhere."
Tsukauchi didn't press further.
He knew All Might too well.
Stopping to deal with a criminal along the way sounded perfectly believable.
Besides, Tsukauchi also suspected another reason for the delay.
Avoiding cameras.
Very few people knew the truth about All Might's condition.
After the battle against All For One, his body had been devastated. Half his respiratory system was gone. His stomach had been removed entirely. Multiple surgeries had barely managed to keep him functioning.
Now, even maintaining his muscular hero form for extended periods had become difficult.
And if the public ever learned that the Symbol of Peace was weakening…
society itself might start to crack.
So Tsukauchi wisely chose not to dwell on the matter.
Instead, he answered the earlier question.
"No point staring at the monitors," he said. "Muscular has already gone to ground. You won't catch him wandering around openly anymore."
As he spoke, Tsukauchi gestured toward the central display.
A nearby officer immediately brought up surveillance footage on the main screen.
"In the last twenty-four hours, the police side has made major progress regarding the Bloodthirsty Muscle Maniac."
The footage flickered to life.
"Yesterday morning, a civilian reported spotting a suspicious individual near the commercial district shopping center."
"According to the witness, the man strongly resembled the escaped fugitive we've been tracking."
The image sharpened.
And then—
Muscular appeared on screen.
The room immediately grew quieter.
Even among veteran heroes, the atmosphere changed slightly the instant his face came into view.
One functioning eye.
A jagged scar slashing across the ruined one.
A savage expression filled with naked violence.
Even through surveillance footage, the man radiated brutality.
There was no mistaking him.
It was Muscular.
The escaped killer they had all gathered to hunt.
The footage showed him pausing briefly beneath one of the cameras inside the shopping center.
For just a moment, his visible eye lifted slightly—
almost as if he had noticed the camera watching him.
Then he turned the corner and vanished from view.
The clip ended there.
Short.
Simple.
But more than enough.
Nobody in that room doubted the identity of the man on screen.
Because the figure captured in that footage—
was unquestionably the Bloodthirsty Muscle Maniac himself.
Tsukauchi folded his arms and continued calmly.
"After identifying him, we immediately reviewed surrounding surveillance routes and traced his movements through several districts."
"Unfortunately, the target demonstrated strong anti-tracking awareness. He deliberately avoided major roads and repeatedly entered camera blind spots."
"However…"
His eyes sharpened slightly.
"He still made one mistake."
Another image appeared on screen.
This time, it was a city map.
Several routes had been marked in red.
"All of Muscular's movements eventually converge toward the abandoned industrial zone on the eastern edge of N City."
"Specifically…"
Tsukauchi tapped the highlighted location.
"An old underground waste processing facility."
The room stirred faintly.
Because everyone understood what that meant.
A hidden location.
Plenty of cover.
Complex underground structure.
Minimal civilian presence.
From a criminal's perspective, it was practically perfect.
"Based on the investigation team's analysis, there is an extremely high probability that Muscular is currently hiding somewhere inside this area."
Tsukauchi's tone became colder.
"Which means this operation ends tonight."
He looked around the room slowly.
"Our objective is simple."
"Capture Muscular alive if possible."
"If resistance exceeds acceptable danger levels…"
A brief pause.
Then his voice hardened.
"Permission for lethal force has already been approved."
The moment those words fell, the atmosphere inside the room changed completely.
Because everyone understood what that meant.
Muscular was no longer being treated as a normal criminal.
He had officially been classified as a disaster-level threat.
All Might remained silent for a few seconds while looking at the map.
Then he spoke quietly.
"…What about the accomplice who helped him escape?"
"That's still unclear," Tsukauchi replied immediately.
"We know someone assisted the prison break, but we haven't identified them yet."
"However, if they really are connected to Muscular, there's a good chance they'll appear tonight as well."
At that point, Best Jeanist adjusted his collar slightly and spoke for the first time.
"In other words…"
"This operation isn't simply an arrest."
"It's bait."
Tsukauchi nodded.
"Exactly."
Then a faint smile appeared on his face.
"We've deliberately leaked enough information to pressure them."
"The announcement about the 'trump card' wasn't just for public reassurance."
"It was also meant to flush them out."
"If Muscular still has outside support…"
"They'll move tonight."
"And once they do…"
His eyes swept across the gathered heroes.
"The moment they appear…"
"The operation ends."
For a second, silence filled the room.
Then—
All Might slowly smiled.
A calm smile.
Confident.
Steady.
The kind of expression that reassured everyone around him without effort.
"Well then," he said, rolling his shoulders slightly, "let's bring this to a close."
"The day heroes gather…"
His eyes sharpened.
"…is the day villains fall."
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