So that was the reason.
After hearing Tsukauchi's explanation, Best Jeanist and the other heroes finally understood why they had instinctively disliked the blue-haired man the moment his face appeared on the screen.
Because they had all lived through that era.
The age of darkness.
Naturally, they were familiar with the presence—and the ideology—of the man who had once ruled Japan from the shadows.
And no matter how much time had passed, that disgust had never completely faded.
After all, that man had once been the greatest enemy hero society had ever faced.
Which meant one thing.
Anyone connected to him would never be welcomed lightly.
The atmosphere in the room grew subtly heavier.
Because Tsuki Sengen was not merely another criminal.
He was a remnant of that age.
At that thought, many of the heroes unconsciously glanced toward one person.
All Might.
The man who had personally shattered the rule of darkness with overwhelming force.
The hero who had brought an entire era to an end.
Back then, many of them had believed that once All For One disappeared, the poisonous ideology he had spread throughout Japan would eventually vanish with him.
Like smoke carried away by the wind.
But now, reality had proven otherwise.
There were still followers left behind.
And not only had they survived—
they had quietly continued existing in the shadows all this time.
Like weeds growing through cracks in stone.
Stubborn.
Persistent.
Difficult to uproot completely.
Perhaps…
they were even beginning to spread again.
Noticing the gazes directed toward him, All Might remained silent for a moment.
As the man who had ended that era himself, how could he not understand what everyone here was thinking?
Truthfully, after defeating All For One, he had once hoped to completely erase every trace that man left behind.
But reality had not allowed it.
His body had broken down after that battle.
His injuries had become permanent.
Even maintaining his hero form now was limited to only a few short bursts each day.
In that condition, even if he wanted to destroy every remnant of All For One's influence…
he simply no longer had the ability to do it alone.
Besides—
beliefs were not something that could be erased through violence.
Once someone's worldview took root, changing it became extraordinarily difficult.
Even for the Symbol of Peace.
That was why All Might had ultimately chosen a different path.
If he couldn't force darkness to disappear completely…
then he would guide the next generation toward the light instead.
Little by little.
Patiently.
And judging from the current generation of children who dreamed of becoming heroes, his efforts had not been meaningless.
At least hero society had changed.
Unfortunately…
the poison left behind by the old era had never truly disappeared.
Otherwise, a man like Tsuki Sengen would never have existed.
And Muscular would never have escaped prison.
Thinking of that, All Might's gaze returned to the frozen image on the monitor.
Blue hair.
Calm eyes.
A composed expression that made him look more like an educated elite than a dangerous criminal.
Nothing about him outwardly resembled a fanatic.
And yet…
for some reason, looking at him now made All Might think of someone else.
Shimura Tenko.
The two didn't resemble each other physically.
But there was something strangely similar about them.
Not appearance.
Temperament.
The same detached confidence.
The same sense of standing outside ordinary rules.
The same faint traces of that old darkness.
As someone who had lived through the chaotic years when hero society first rose into existence, All Might had encountered many kinds of people.
People who rejected conventional ideals.
People who believed society itself was flawed.
People who walked paths completely different from the mainstream.
For example—
All For One.
And more recently—
Stain.
The self-proclaimed Hero Killer who judged heroes according to his own twisted standards.
In All Might's eyes, Shimura Tenko belonged to that same category of person.
Someone with firm beliefs of his own.
Someone who didn't particularly care about society's accepted rules.
Someone who viewed the current hero system with obvious disdain.
But even so—
All Might had never believed Shimura Tenko was evil in the same way as All For One or Stain.
Because from everything he had seen so far, that boy's actions always carried a strange contradiction.
He walked through darkness.
Yet the things he did often protected people.
His methods were extreme.
His logic dangerous.
But his goals…
were not entirely wrong.
That was why All Might had never completely rejected him.
Nor had he arrogantly assumed that every belief different from his own was automatically evil.
What truly worried him—
was the possibility that no one would guide him properly.
Because people like Shimura Tenko were dangerous precisely because they stood on the boundary line.
One wrong step…
and there might be no turning back.
That was why, despite everything, All Might kept seeking him out.
Again.
And again.
Trying to pull him toward the side of heroes.
Unfortunately…
the results had been minimal.
Thinking about it made All Might sigh quietly to himself.
At that moment, Tsukauchi's voice broke the silence once more.
"I believe everyone now understands the threat level posed by Tsuki Sengen."
He adjusted the files in his hands.
"In that case, let's move on to Muscular."
Then he paused briefly.
"Though honestly, there isn't much to explain regarding Muscular himself."
"I assume everyone here already reviewed his profile before arriving."
"So I'll skip the repeated details and move directly to tactical deployment."
"Any objections?"
"No."
"None here."
The gathered heroes shook their heads one after another.
There was no need to waste time repeating information they already knew.
Muscular's combat style was straightforward.
Brutal overwhelming force.
Simple.
Violent.
Deadly.
Seeing no objections, Tsukauchi nodded lightly.
"Good."
Then he picked up another stack of documents and handed them to nearby officers for distribution.
"First, however…"
"We need to discuss how to deal with Tsuki Sengen."
The papers quickly circulated throughout the room.
"These are analysis reports prepared by the police intelligence division regarding his Quirk."
"Read them carefully."
Soon, the room fell silent again.
Only the sound of pages turning echoed softly through the surveillance chamber.
Several minutes passed.
Once Tsukauchi judged everyone had finished reviewing the material, he slowly raised his head.
Then his calm, steady voice rang through the room once more.
◇ BONUS & SUPPORT ◇
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 10 reviews — drop a comment!
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ Read 60 chapters ahead on P@treon → patreon.com/StrawHatStudios
