Chapter 33

"Endo Akihiko."

Nezu said as he stood beside my hospital bed.

"The assassin who attacked you. He used to be a hero who went by the alias of 'Cannonball'. He went mad as he couldn't preserve himself by disassociating his persona from that of a man who kills. He killed his sidekick and everyone else working under him at his agency before going absolutely berserk. It took All Might to stop him and that too with a lot of difficulty."

I remembered watching the fight occuring around eleven years ago. A hero had gone rogue a killed his own allies. It was a very disturbing event.

"You not only survived, but, you eliminated a man wanted for the assassinations of many heroes and government officials. For all intents and purposes, you shouldn't be alive. But, you lived because of your healing abilities. Your quirk is quite an enigma."

I said nothing. I could say nothing. I couldn't tell him about the origins of my quirk.

"Seeing as you are in constant danger if you live in the city, I, as your superior, have decided to move your residence to U.A. campus. It's non-negotiable and I have already talked to your family."

Recovery Girl then walked in and said, "Nothing seems to be wrong with his body. All of his vitals are fine. Did you eat the gummies I left by your nightstand?"

"Yes."

"Good. I recommend that you take a psychological evaluation with Hound dog and do therapy if he sees fit. You're free to go."

I was escorted to Nezu's office with the staff and Tsukauchi following behind. As I took a seat, Nezu asked, "Alright, tell us everything that happened tonight."

I took a sip from my bottle of water and began, "I noticed something was wrong when I arrived at my appartment building. The watchman is an old man and that's what I saw tonight. Only, his shoulders were less hunched and he addressed me as 'sir' instead of 'Asui-san'. I was skeptical because of that, but, what sold him out was the complete absence of arrhythmia that the old man had. I decided not to act as the building manager might have changed the guard. Still, I remained vigilant."

"I went to sleep and an hour later, he intruded into my apartment. That was enough incentive for me to attack."

"So, you attacked first?"

I raised a brow at Aizawa and said, "People in America empty their damn machine guns if they see someone in their fucking yard."

"This is not America."

"And I'm not a normal civilian. I'm a provisional hero who is being targeted for his ability to heal others. I do not have the liberty to losen my guard at any moment."

Aizawa frowned and said, "You're overly paranoid."

"Better paranoid than dead."

Nezu clapped his paws and said, "That's enough!"

Both of us backed down.

"We are glad that you are safe, Asui-kun. It's terrible that you are being hunted because of your powers. You can do a lot of good with them and the villains don't want that. It's our duty to provide you with a safe environment for you to live in and grow stronger. It's our duty to make sure you are prepared as the grown ups and as the people incharge. You need to understand this, Asui-kun, that we are on your side, always. Do not feel that you are alone."

Nezu's words meant a lot as the worm of doubt got squashed in the depths on my mind. After that, I was escorted to my living space until the dorms were ready. U.A. was going to move all students into dorms as they wanted to prevent others as well from getting isolated by villains.

I had a long video chat with my family where I let them pour out their emotions. It pained me to see my family cry. Even my father shed tears for he feared of losing me.

I didn't sleep well that night.

(APIBNHA)

'U.A. student attacked at home.'

'Student defeats high profile villain.'

'Phantasm removes another villain. The streets are safer.'

'Student attacked. What were the heroes doing?'

'Phantasm; Kill count: 9. Promising hero, or, another mass murderer in the making?'

.

.

.

The news headlines didn't hold back... at all.

[Last night, U.A. student, Hero name Phantasm, was attacked at his apartment. Sources say that it was the hero turned villain Endo Akihiko a.k.a. Cannonball who had set his sights on the promising provisional hero.

Phantasm has won the U.A. Sports Festival and has been a part of a major raid in Odawara. Along with that, he was the one to apprehend the serial killer duo, Hairy Jaw killers, who had been convicted for more than twenty serial killings in the country.

Was his progress a threat to the villains? Is the publicity the U.A. students get detrimental for them? Is there a sinister plot behind the attack? Was the attack related to the raid?

Learn more about Phantasm on page 12..

Learn more about Odawara Drug Raid on page 9..]

'Well... I guess Nezu did his magic. They're going to link it to the raid and Torres Taipans T-09 unit while keeping the real reason hidden.'

*Ring* *Ring* *Ring*

[Sunao]

*Sigh*

"Hello, Sunao."

"A-Asui-kun?"

"Yeah."

"I-I'm so glad you're safe! I couldn't believe what I was seeing on the news! It was terri.."

"Sunao!"

"... Yeah?"

"I've been moved to U.A. campus for my safety."

"... Oh. I-I was going to tell you that I'll be moving to my University dorms as well."

"We can still meet, right?"

"I-I don't know, Asui-kun..."

".. I see. I understand, Sunao. I'll... Try to remain in touch. Goodbye."

*Click*