The night after the exam, I barely slept. Not because of physical pain—my strange healing ability had already soothed most of my sore muscles—but because of the short message burning on my phone screen. A photo. A warning. A burden of responsibility that felt far heavier than the fight against All Might. Akame had given me knowledge, and with that knowledge came a terrible dilemma.
I knew I had to tell Ryukyu. My promise to her was still fresh in my mind: no more secrets, no more solo acts. Our new, fragile partnership depended on trust, and hiding a threat of this magnitude would be the final betrayal. Early in the morning, I used the encrypted communication device she had given me. My message was short and urgent.
"Contact from 'Ghost'. Received intel on a potential large-scale attack by the League of Villains on a future U.A. event. Confidence level: high. Require immediate meeting."
The reply came within minutes. "Usual location. One hour."
Our meeting took place in a small, quiet café in a corner of the city far from the agency, the same place where she had given me the communicator. She looked tired, but her golden eyes were as sharp as a hawk's. I showed her the photo of the training camp and the message from Akame. I didn't need to explain further. She immediately understood the implications.
"So," she said quietly after a moment of silence, "your ghost friend isn't just a killer; she's also an informant. And she just told us that the League of Villains is planning to attack U.A. students again."
"This isn't just any attack," I said, my voice tense. "The USJ was a test. This... this will be an attack aimed to cripple or kill. They will send their best forces."
Ryukyu looked at me, analyzing. "You know more than you're letting on. From your 'story,' what happens at this training camp?"
I hesitated. Telling her details of the future felt like playing God. But she had to know. "They will send their elite unit, the Vanguard Action Squad. Their Quirks are powerful and deadly. There will be severe injuries among the students. And... they will succeed in kidnapping one of us." I paused, unable to say Bakugo's name.
Ryukyu's face hardened. She understood the gravity of the situation. "We can't cancel the training camp," she said, more to herself. "That would cause mass panic and tell the villains we have a mole. It would endanger your information source—and you. The school and the Commission would never approve a cancellation based on information from an anonymous source linked to a murderer."
She looked at me, a plan beginning to form in her eyes. "In that case, we'll let it proceed. But we'll change the rules. We'll walk into their trap with our eyes wide open."
The plan was simple yet risky. She would use her influence to secretly inform Principal Nezu that there was a "credible but unverified threat" against the camp. She would suggest that additional pro heroes be stationed near the location as a rapid response team. She would not mention her source. And my role... my role was to be the fuse.
"You will go to that camp as planned, Tatsumi-kun," she said firmly. "You will act normal. But you will be our early warning system. The moment you sense their presence, the moment you are sure they are about to attack, you give the signal. You are our first line of defense, not with your power, but with your senses."
I nodded. The burden on my shoulders felt even heavier.
A few days later, the first semester ended. To celebrate and to buy the supplies we needed for the training camp, Class 1-A decided to go together to the massive Kiyashi Ward Shopping Mall. The atmosphere was cheerful and full of laughter, a stark contrast to the tension I felt inside. Everyone was excited, talking about tents, mosquito repellent, and hiking clothes.
I walked with my usual group—Momo, Toru, and Nejire, who had decided to join in on the "fun" with her juniors.
"Oh, look! That store sells backpacks with mini solar panels! So cool! Can it charge a phone? Or maybe a small laser gun?" Nejire exclaimed, pointing at a display window.
"I don't think we'll need laser guns at the camp, Hado-senpai," I said with a faint smile.
"You never know!" she replied cheerfully.
I myself focused on more practical items. A sturdy multi-tool knife, strong climbing rope, a magnesium fire starter. Toru noticed me. "You're shopping as if you're going into the wilderness for a month, not a school summer camp," she joked.
"Preparation never hurts," was all I replied. They had no idea how true those words were.
Momo, of course, was on another level. She wasn't buying equipment. She was buying raw materials. "This titanium alloy has an excellent strength-to-weight ratio," she murmured, examining a small metal bar in a specialty materials store. "And this chemical compound can be used to create a stable exothermic reaction or a non-toxic smoke screen." She wasn't shopping; she was restocking her ammunition.
As we were busy, we split up to find our own things. I was waiting for Momo outside a bookstore when I saw him. Across the crowded plaza, near a fountain, I saw a familiar mess of green hair. Izuku Midoriya was sitting alone on a bench, looking lost in thought. And then, I saw a second figure approach him. A thin figure wearing a black hoodie that covered his face.
My heart stopped. The dragon's heartbeat inside me, which had been calm, suddenly went utterly silent. It was a terrifying silence, a sign of a fundamental and wrong danger.
Tomura Shigaraki.
He sat down next to Midoriya, and before Midoriya could react, I saw the small movement. Shigaraki's thin hand wrapped around Midoriya's neck, four fingers pressing gently. I knew what that meant. One more finger touched, and Midoriya would turn to dust.
My entire body froze. I was too far away. If I shouted, Shigaraki might panic and kill Midoriya. If I tried to attack, I would never get there in time. The hundreds of civilians around them were completely unaware of the deadly drama unfolding in their midst. I felt helpless, trapped by my own knowledge.
But I couldn't just stand here. I had to do something. Not with muscle, not with armor. With my brain.
I turned, quickly scanning my surroundings. I saw two bored-looking mall security guards standing near an escalator. I immediately ran toward them. I pulled out my phone, quickly searching for an image from the Hosu incident news. I zoomed in on Stain's face.
"Excuse me!" I said in an urgent but controlled voice, showing them my phone. "This guy! I just saw someone who looks a lot like him in the crowd near the fountain! I'm not sure, but..."
The two guards' eyes widened. The name of the Hero Killer: Stain was still a hot topic. The possibility of a copycat or a follower was enough to trigger a response. "Where?" one of them asked.
"Over there, near that crowd," I said, pointing in the general direction, deliberately not pointing directly at Midoriya and Shigaraki. "He was wearing a tattered red scarf." I was lying, but it was a necessary lie.
The two guards moved immediately, speaking frantically into their radios, requesting backup and warning of a "potential high-level threat." Their actions created a ripple in the crowd. People started to turn their heads, whispering. The previously relaxed atmosphere began to turn tense.
The small chaos I had created was what saved Midoriya.
From where I stood, I saw Uraraka, who had just come out of a store, see a very tense-looking Midoriya talking to the man in the hoodie. She didn't know the danger, but she sensed something was wrong. "Deku-kun?" she called out as she approached.
Her call, coupled with the increasing security presence in the area, seemed to be the limit of Shigaraki's patience. He didn't want to cause a scene. With an angry mutter I couldn't hear, he released his grip on Midoriya's neck and melted into the panicking crowd, disappearing like a ghost.
I watched as Uraraka rushed over to a violently trembling Midoriya. A few moments later, the police arrived, and the entire area was cordoned off. I had succeeded. I had interfered and changed a dangerous canonical event without having to reveal myself. I had used information, not force.
I leaned against a shop wall, letting the cold adrenaline leave me. My hand, which I had used to hold my phone, was trembling slightly. I looked at the panicking crowd, at Midoriya's pale face, and at the empty spot where Shigaraki had just been sitting. Our peaceful summer break had ended before it even began. The threat was real. The threat was close. And it could strike at any time, anywhere. The summer training camp that awaited us felt like a one-way trip to a battlefield. I took a deep breath, trying to calm my heart. The cheerful air in the mall felt alien and mocking.