….
A small figure appeared beside All Might; barely 85 centimeters tall, emerging so quietly that even the Symbol of Peace was startled.
"Hello..."
?!All Might jerked slightly, caught off guard.
"Easy there, All Might." Nezu's high-pitched voice hummed with a touch of mischief. "It's just me, your Principal. I didn't mean to startle you."
"Please don't call me that when I'm in this form," All Might whispered reflexively, his hand clutching his chest as he gestured to his gaunt, sickly appearance.
Nezu didn't argue. Instead, he simply extended his small paws upward in a wordless, familiar request. All Might sighed, a sound of fond resignation, and reached down to hoist the principal onto his shoulder.
"There is no one else here." Nezu assured him, settling comfortably against the collar of All Might's oversized suit. "I've ensured the feeds are looped. No need to worry about exposure."
All Might nodded, his gaze returning to the training ground below where Midoriya stood like a statue in the center of the concrete floor. He didn't bother questioning Nezu's security measures; when the smartest creature on the planet said a room was private, the room was private.
"It seems our Dabi is trying something interesting again."Nezu observed, his paws folding behind his back. "He truly is a man of many layers. Utterly fascinating to observe, wouldn't you agree?"
The statement hung in the air, weighted by a nuance that only someone of Nezu's intellect could truly appreciate. To the world, Dabi was a survivor; a phoenix risen from the ashes of a tragic childhood.
But to Nezu, Dabi was a statistical anomaly.
He was, by every metric the principal possessed, the 'Most Interesting Human' currently walking the earth.
….
According to Nezu's carefully calibrated assessment systems, Dabi was the most interesting human he had ever encountered.
Nezu's conclusion wasn't a matter of fascination.
It came from how Dabi had become the singular point of failure in every predictive model Nezu had ever constructed.
The boy was a walking contradiction.
He was a child who had survived medical impossibilities, awakening from a coma with a personality reconstruction that defied standard trauma recovery profiles.
Even his survival was an insult to probability.
Nezu had calculated the odds during the USJ where he fought against two highclass Nomu's; an particular instance, Dabi's chance of survival had hovered somewhere below 15%.
Yet, he continued to stand and violate every behavioral model Nezu could throw at him. For a creature who lived in a world of predetermined outcomes, Dabi was an exhilarating, infuriating variable.
And Nezu respects the child's tenacity more than anything.
….
Their relationship hadn't started this way.
Far from it.
When Dabi first arrived at U.A., fresh from a long sleep and a broken home, Nezu's initial assessment had been cold, clinical, and utterly damning.
He had assigned a 95% probability of villain infiltration to the boy's profile.
The logic had been sound: a traumatized child captured by villains during his most formative years, abandoned by a family that had moved on, and given a 'miraculous' recovery that hinted at dark, external intervention.
Dabi was the perfect candidate for a deep-cover operative.
Nezu had monitored him intensively that first year, waiting for the inevitable betrayal.
It never came.
But the betrayal never happened. Instead, Dabi kept doing the one thing Nezu's models couldn't account for:
He kept choosing to be a Hero, and had demonstrated moral principles that were genuinely held, not performed for surveillance.
Nezu had been forced to recalibrate his assessment: Not a spy. Genuine hero aspirant.
However, probability of completing training: 23% due to catastrophic medical instability.
The math behind that prediction had been a simple, brutal fact.
Dabi's body was damaged beyond limits due to Quirk overuse that was devouring him from the inside out; cancer cells had been detected in his lungs and skin, and his projected lifespan had been capped at five years, maximum.
And yet, he had been wrong again.
The kid somehow survived, and reached his graduation day only to get himself involved in a villain incident while trying to save two Heroes who he isn't related to by any means.
It was him risking his life… which hadn't ended with this single incident, and will probably continue until his last breath… just like how his predictions failed over time and time.
Fortunately, the now turned man went through a Quirk evolution.
His cancer disappeared. His overall strength had seen a massive jump.
And until and unless Dabi does something reckless, he wouldn't be able to be defeated by normal means.
He is too strong, and can be on par with All Might.
….
Nezu allowed himself a small, dark smile thinking about the Hero Public Safety Commission's current assessment of Dabi.
The Commission thought they had him controlled, and the most iconic assumption of considering his family connections was leverage; thought they could manipulate him through standard pressure tactics.
Idiots.
His family was his only aspect that is keeping him stable.
But they were also his trigger point.
If the Commission so much as touched a single hair on anyone Dabi cared about, Nezu thought with cold certainty, they would be making the greatest mistake in the history of hero society.
Because Dabi, when truly angry, wasn't bound by the rules that constrained other Heroes. His personality might have someone easygoing, but the animal in him is still somewhere deep within him.
….
Nezu's expression soured remembering the attack on Dabi's residence just days ago; it remained one of his most bitter failures.
He wouldn't have guessed, there are villain groups, multiple groups, that had the nerve to infiltrate U.A.'s, multiple times.
Hm, maybe I should really share my conclusion with the rest of the U.A. staff, Nezu thought.
The fact that the villain group was specifically targeted when Dabi was absent suggested inside information.
Hmm, it might just not be a student traitor, Nezu concluded grimly. Possibly staff-level compromise.
The investigation was ongoing, but the implications were disturbing. U.A.'s security had been considered impenetrable, and now that illusion was shattered.
Nezu had personally apologized to both Dabi and Rumi.
They had been dissatisfied, rightfully so, but had respected his position enough not to make the meeting awkward.
Small mercies.
He had also ensured the incident wouldn't leak beyond those directly involved. The HPSC especially couldn't know.
But the real concern was Dabi's reaction.
He had been too… calm during the aftermath.
Sure, he had requested permission to personally interrogate the captured attackers. Nezu had granted it, because denying Dabi at that moment would have been both useless and dangerous.
The interrogation had been... brutal; people forgot that Dabi's gentle demeanor with students and colleagues was a choice, not his nature.
Regardless of the methods, the information extracted had been valuable. But more importantly, it had confirmed something:
The League of Villains had made a permanent enemy.
Next time they appear, Nezu thought, watching Dabi coordinate the training exercise below, he will be going for kills. And stopping him when he's not holding back is... difficult.
He thought specifically of Kurogiri, the purple mist with the teleportation quirk. If that creature crossed paths with Dabi again, the probability of its survival was effectively zero.
….
"How is the investigation going?" All Might's voice was reluctant, clearly uncomfortable with the topic. "Any results yet?"
"What are you expecting, Toshinori?" Nezu replied with a touch of his characteristic bluntness. "We began digging only hours ago. These things require a delicate touch and significant processing time."
He tilted his head, studying the skeletal hero's pained expression. "But you seem more curious about this than you're letting on."
"....." All Might remained silent, staring down at the concrete; the silence was an answer in itself.
The investigation Nezu referenced concerned Nana Shimura; the Seventh User of One For All, All Might's mentor and mother figure.
Dabi had proposed the search that morning, immediately after All Might had disclosed what little he knew about the predecessors. The suggestion had been met with immediate, vehement refusal.
All Might had explained his reasoning: Nana had intentionally severed ties with her family. He didn't know details about her child or descendants. She'd made that choice to protect them from All For One's reach.
Investigating her family would violate her privacy and potentially endanger people she'd sacrificed everything to keep safe.
Dabi had listened to all of this, nodded.
"I'm doing it anyway." His voice is flat and unapologetic. "I'm just letting you know in advance because I'd rather not go behind your back."
The sheer audacity had actually impressed Nezu.
Most people, even Pro Heroes, would have folded the moment the Symbol of Peace said no. Dabi had simply informed him that his opinion was noted and would be ignored.
Eventually, All Might had agreed to cooperate, partly because he knew Dabi would be going ahead regardless, and partly because some small part of him wanted to know.
But neither All Might nor Nezu understood why Dabi was pushing this so hard.
It wasn't the first time Dabi had insisted on something that made no logical sense. Previous instances had eventually revealed hidden reasoning, but never immediately.
….
Anyway, the primary objective of the investigation was to confirm if Nana Shimura had surviving descendants; the secondary, to find where they were currently hiding in Japan.
Also, were they aware of their connection to One For All's legacy?
Nezu had already begun cross-referencing the Shimura household registry with Nana's final known movements before her death.
He was currently bypassing security protocols that technically required high-level warrants, but in the Principal's mind, legal flexibility was a small price to pay when the alternative was All For One finding a target first.
….
Watching the training exercise below, Nezu's bead-like eyes shifted to the back of Dabi's head.
He knows something, Nezu concluded. Something about Nana's descendants, that is urgent enough to justify pushing All Might this hard.
The earlier they discovered whatever Dabi already knew, the better positioned they'd be to respond; that much was clear from Dabi's body language during the discussion.
Why not just tell them?
The most logical answer: He couldn't explain how he knew without revealing something else. Some other source of information that would raise more questions than it answered.
Nezu's attention returned fully to the training ground below.
Before arriving here, both All Might and Dabi had requested permission to use the facilities; mostly formality, but also seeking Nezu's assessment of Dabi's proposed methodology for helping Midoriya.
The theory was sound: If One For All truly stockpiled previous users' quirks along with raw power, then creating conditions where Midoriya's consciousness was trapped might force interaction with the vestiges.
Using Shinso's Brainwashing to create that scenario is simply marvelous.
Nezu had immediately approved, as he was also curious to see the outcome.
Dabi's going to show us something interesting today, Nezu thought with anticipation.
….
Below, Midoriya's body suddenly convulsed under Shinso's quirk.
Green lightning erupted, but it wasn't the steady, controlled Full Cowling; it was jagged, chaotic, and tinged with a dark, secondary energy.
Then black tendrils burst from his arms, and they moved like organic, predatory limbs, whipping through the air.
"There it is." Nezu murmured.
All Might's intake of breath was sharp. "Is that—?!"
"A new quirk manifestation," Nezu confirmed. "Dabi's theory was correct. One For All is evolving."
The black tendrils lashed out wildly, one narrowly missing Shinso, who stumbled back, his concentration shattered by the sheer primal force of the output.
Shinso's concentration broke from shock, and the Brainwashing was released.
As the mental fog cleared, the black energy hissed and retracted into Midoriya as he collapsed to his knees, gasping.
All Might was already moving, vaulting the railing with speed that belied his skeletal form. "Young Midoriya!"
Nezu remained on the railing, watching everything with calculating eyes.
Did he predict the outcome?
Which raised the question: What else did Dabi know that he wasn't sharing? And more importantly, should Nezu be worried about the answer?
For now, he decided, the benefits outweighed the risks. Dabi had proven himself repeatedly. Whatever secrets he kept, they seemed aligned with protecting others rather than harming them.
Most interesting human indeed, he thought, watching All Might reach Midoriya while Dabi approached from the opposite direction.
Let's see what other surprises you have in store.
.
….
[To be continued…]
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