BNHA: I am Reiji Toga

And summer passed without incident, which for others means free time. For Reiji, it was simply a time where he could act all day without trying to maintain a stable facade, which was relaxing.

He usually kept busy, with daily routines, but they were necessary for distraction. In the mornings, he trained daily with Shinso, day after day demanding that he give his all to improve his physical condition to at least one acceptable for a hero of his ilk.

It didn't make him superhuman, able to withstand any damage and continue fighting. On the contrary, his Quirk forced him to engage in conversation with someone, and that often took time. What he did was focus his efforts specifically on that, prolonging fights, taking as little damage as possible thanks to his flexibility and agility.

He still required brute strength, but being able to stay in combat was vital. The physical deficiency could be compensated for with the thousands of experiments Mei performed during this time, but it would be useless if he came up against a force that could neutralize him in seconds.

That didn't mean his Quirk was set aside. After much trial and error, Reiji had finally understood how his friend's Quirk truly worked and how to get the most out of it.

It was inherently useful under a mentally impaired person or already affected by a serious psychological disorder, but it affected any sane person.

As long as Shinso's commands were in line with the user's wishes, then he would have a better chance of winning. Furthermore, his will to control and for him to obey his command must be greater than his desire to regain control of his body.

This exhausted him mentally, which had made meditation a better way to increase his concentration.

Although cruel, Reiji's training methods worked. His mind, somewhat distorted by his own regeneration, had pushed Shinso to the limit, and the boy's deep desire to be a hero had ultimately yielded wonderful results.

Which was ideal for laying a good foundation.

Outside of the training camp, Reiji maintained his usual vigilance. It had been a quiet few months in the city, which led the Commission to assign him minor, almost routine missions. Hawks himself in Tokyo had suffered a similar situation.

Coincidence, perhaps. But it was clear to Reiji that AFO was moving in some way. During the first attack by the League of Villains, a large number of villains had been deployed to the U.S.J. It wasn't strange for something similar to happen again.

Or he could simply be delusional; after all, there was still more than a year until that event.

Likewise, some crimes periodically occurred off the radar of the city's multitude of heroes. Whenever he could, he intervened to help people. He tried not to overuse his Quirk when doing this; his training and regeneration were sufficient for most situations, which was convenient.

He hadn't stood out too much, but he could slowly overhear a casual comment from the city's new "Vigilante." Nothing too remarkable, and nothing directly aimed at him, but it was a start.

With his busy mornings and evenings, he had a little time left in the afternoon where he would normally be at home, taking advantage of the peace afforded by the evenings when neither of his parents were home.

Himiko was usually there too. Sometimes silently, reading. Sometimes talking to him nonstop while he tried to maintain his concentration.

During that summer, she dedicated herself completely to preparing for her second year at U.A. She had taken her studies seriously. She spent hours organizing notes, reviewing content, and solving mock assessments. She showed a dedication he hadn't seen at her previous school, as if something inside her had been activated even more strongly upon entering the academy.

She didn't need to say it: she wanted to stand out. Not just for herself, but to stay close to him, in this world where everything revolved around heroes and villains. A new obsession, by now. Reiji knew it was part of her very psyche... Although he didn't know if it was really because of her Quirk, or something more internal.

Reiji sometimes watched her while she reviewed data or talked to herself in front of a mirror. She was diligent, methodical, and persistent. Everything someone without a traditional combat Quirk needed to excel in that environment.

Her way of acting with him hadn't changed at all. She was still too close. She touched more than necessary. She looked for excuses to sit next to him, to sleep in his room, to enter his space without asking permission.

She never crossed a clear line. But she was always one step away from doing so, tempting Reiji to accept it. They didn't talk about it. They never had.

And Reiji preferred to keep it that way.

Not because he didn't understand, but because he didn't know how to stop it without destroying the most precious and stable thing he had around him.

He didn't reciprocate that way, but he didn't firmly push her away either. Sometimes he thought that closeness helped him stay connected, even if it wasn't entirely healthy.

And so, the summer progressed.

Between training, surveillance, minor investigations... and that domestic routine with Himiko, where affection and discomfort coexisted without resolution.

There was nothing explosive, beyond the occasional visit to Mei, which inevitably resulted in a failed project. No major conflict of note. And no shocking revelation either.

Life simply went on, and with it, the summer ended.

***

The sound of the train announcing its arrival broke the monotony of the platform. Reiji watched silently as people began to move. It was the first day of the new semester, and although the summer hadn't been particularly remarkable, returning to the school routine had a weight he couldn't ignore.

The car was packed with students. Voices, laughter, bulging backpacks, and comments about how little sleep they'd had the night before. Reiji stood in a corner, not drawing too much attention to himself. He wore his uniform with the expected neatness, although there was something about his posture that set him apart. A controlled stiffness. The same one he displayed every time he had to return to feigning normalcy.

His school building was the same as always, although now his year was different. Second year. One step away from what, for many, would be the final stretch before becoming adults. For Reiji, it was just a change of classroom.

He entered silently. Several greeted him casually, some out of obligation, others with a certain respect.

The class began with the typical formalities: introductions, schedule review, recommendations for the new term. Nothing out of the ordinary.

During the day, he watched as everyone resumed their lives as if nothing had happened. Some talked about beach vacations, others about special training, some even mentioned rumors about incidents in other cities.

Reiji just listened. He analyzed. Not because he cared too much, but because it was part of the role he had to maintain.

The normal student. A little more popular than he should be, but normal. That was what counted.

Shinso was clearly with him; his physical change didn't go unnoticed either. When your physical appearance changes, so do the people you interact with. And for the first time since the hellish training began, he sincerely thanked Reiji, though he didn't say it outright.

***

The second week of school had started passed uneventfully, at least on the surface. Summer was over, but the feeling of heat lingered heavily on the streets of Musutafu. Reiji walked with Shinso after lunch, unhurried, commenting vaguely on his new routine. The sky was clear, the city was moving along, and for a moment everything seemed balanced.

However, Reiji had that feeling. That same feeling he got when the commission was watching him, the same one that warned him of bad things happening.

Reiji stopped slowly, his mind scanning everywhere. Trying to find who was responsible for this feeling.

Shinso blinked when he couldn't feel his footsteps in step with him.

"What's wrong?"

Reiji didn't respond. His eyes remained fixed on the sudden column of smoke that rose in the distance, billowing, dirty, too thick to be any fire.

"Is that an explosion?"

"No…" Reiji muttered without looking at him. "Not exactly."

His heart raced, and his breathing became ragged, as if he'd just witnessed something major.

"It's just starting…"

He quickened his pace. Shinso followed with nervous steps, asking no more questions.

The streets grew more hectic as they moved forward. The usual sounds of the city began to distort: ​​raised voices, running footsteps, a siren too distant to be useful.

They turned a corner. And then another. The smoke was no longer a distant dot. It was a living presence, seeping through the buildings, enveloping the air with a suffocating humidity.

When they reached an intersection, they saw the makeshift security tapes, civilians huddled behind a poorly formed barrier, and several pro heroes trying to contain the situation from the edges without entering.

Reiji made his way through the crowd, his instincts guiding him. He stopped in the front row.

There he was.

Katsuki Bakugo.

Suspended in the air, his body enveloped by an amorphous mass of mud that squeezed him like a living prison. The villain laughed, enjoying the boy's every failed attempt to break free. Bakugo's explosions were drowned by the substance, which seemed to absorb them, becoming denser, stronger.

Reiji didn't breathe. He didn't blink.

It was this scene. Exactly this. Right here it must all begin.

Beside him, Shinso watched, not fully understanding. He could see half a dozen heroes fighting the fire, while making sure the civilians were safe, but... None of them seemed to be fighting the villain who was suffocating the teenager to death.

"That boy... you're helping him, aren't you?"

Reiji looked down for a moment. The heroes didn't move. Only one was giving instructions to contain the perimeter. Another was talking to the civilians. A third was analyzing the wind.

No one came closer.

The excuse was clear: too dangerous to interfere. Waiting for someone suitable was the best idea in their minds.

"Why don't they go in?" Shinso insisted, annoyed. He was even considering using his Quirk on someone to get them to help, just as a hero should. "That villain is killing him!"

"Let's wait a little longer... We don't want to put him at any more risk. The boy seems strong, but his Quirk is also strong, and the villain is using it against us."

"Let's keep the civilians away, put out the flames for now."

"Some reinforcements, someone capable of neutralizing him... or at least distracting him..."

They waited.

They waited for the boy who would burst in without logic or power, with only courage.

They waited for Midoriya Izuku.

And he wasn't there.

Reiji began searching desperately for him. His eyes scanned the crowd, the alleys, the rooftops. He knew this was the moment. Midoriya must already be running this way, driven by that blind will that defined him.

But there was no one.

Not a small figure in a school uniform. Not a loose backpack. Not a gasp of breath pushing against the tide.

Nothing.

'Come on... Show up. You... you have to be here.'

Reiji's heart beat faster.

Not from excitement.

From a deep terror, beginning to rise from a corner he'd sworn to keep sealed.

A pang struck him in the temple.

'What if he doesn't come?'

He looked back at Bakugo. The boy was still struggling, but with less strength. Each explosion was weaker. Each scream more muffled. The muddy mass was now partially covering his face, and his eyes were barely open.

One of the heroes took a step forward and stopped.

"We can't go in. If we make a mistake, he could kill him instantly."

"Do something, the boy is dying in front of you!" someone from the audience shouted.

But the heroes stood firm. Not out of cowardice. But out of uncertainty, an uncertainty that was currently costing a life.

And Reiji understood.

This was the point where the story had to fork. Where the fracture was revealed in its starkest form.

There was no heir to One for All running into danger.

And without him, there was no certainty that this story would have a happy ending. He'd analyzed it every way possible: Izuku Midoriya was the right fit for the OFA, he'd always thought so. Even if he did nothing, the world would be in good hands.

Once he was involved, he was strengthened by the resolve to save Himiko's future and to support Izuku in defeating the world's greatest villain! And now all of that was going straight to the trash!

Another puff of smoke covered the area. The villain roared.

And it was in that instant that Reiji noticed. Bakugo's struggles… had ceased for a second.

Just one.

But it was enough.

His arms dangled for a moment. The explosions didn't come. His face, covered in sweat and mud, had lost some of its expression. His body was beginning to sag.

Reiji felt an invisible blow to his stomach.

His throat closed. His hands clenched. And in his mind, there were no words. Only one phrase pounding like a broken bell:

'He's not coming.'

Shinso looked at him worriedly.

"What's wrong with you...? You're pale."

But Reiji didn't respond. His eyes remained fixed on Bakugo, and on the villain who wrapped himself around him like a parasite. On the heroes, who didn't know what to do. And on the empty space that should have been occupied by a boy with green curls and a clumsy heart.

Clinching his hand, he looked at Shinso once more, and his resolve changed.

'He won't come anymore...'