"Then we must be thankful that was not the case."
The silence was broken by principal Nezu.
"Yeah. We dodged a bullet on this one. But ... this just takes the stakes to a whole new level "
"Indeed. We were lucky this time, but who knows what else our enemy has in store for us. We can't take our chances lightly."
"Enemy? Aren't the leaders of this thing already gone?" I interrupted at that moment. Absolving myself from future problems wasn't just the purpose of my entire act. It was also to point at the much bigger threat.
All For One.
There was no doubt, Nezu would figure it out if he hadn't already, but I wasn't taking any chances.
"Perhaps." Nezu replied. "However we can never be too cautious. I highly doubt those two were the masterminds behind all this. After all, a move like attacking the campus was much too bold. There is likely someone else behind them."
Everyone carried frowns.
Everyone but me.
Understandable. In their eyes, or maybe everyone else but Nezu, I was the only one unaware of the existence of All For One.
Detective Tsukauchi finally spoke, his tone careful but probing. "Ken, I need to ask—when exactly did Shigaraki try to activate these commands?"
"During the fight. After his initial plan fell apart." I recalled the moment carefully, mixing truth with necessary fabrication.
"He pointed at .. well, most likely me, and said something like 'Project Forty... Something. Obey' That's pretty much it."
"Interesting. The fact that it didn't work means they're operating on outdated information." Nezu observed, his analytical gaze never leaving my face. "From the reports, it's highly unlikely they had the time to send this information back, meaning if there's someone else involved, they don't know their conditioning was removed.That's a significant tactical advantage,"
The principal continued.
"If this organization believes you're still compromised, they may attempt contact again. Which could give us an opportunity to—"
"Absolutely not."
Everyone turned to look at All Might, who despite his weakened state, had pushed himself more upright on the hospital bed. His black eyes were hard with determination.
"We are not using a student as bait, Nezu. I don't care what tactical advantages it might provide."
"Toshinori, I wasn't suggesting—"
"Weren't you?" All Might's voice was quiet but firm. "I know how you think. You're already calculating odds and potential outcomes. But this is a seventeen-year-old boy who's been through ten years of experimentation and trauma. We protect him. End of discussion."
The room fell silent. I'd never seen this side of All Might before—not the jovial Symbol of Peace, but the man underneath who'd lost too much already.
Nezu regarded him for a moment, then nodded. "You're right, of course. My apologies. Sometimes the strategist in me forgets the most important considerations." He turned to me. "Ken, your safety is our priority. We'll find another way to track down this organization."
I resisted the urge to give Nezu the stinkeye.
This is why I had my reservations telling him in the first place. Regardless of whether he really had the idea or he didn't but conceded blame just to calm all might, it wasn't pleasant. "This is ..." all Might started, then stopped, his voice thick with emotion. "Young Takumi, I'm sorry you had to go through all this. If I had been there ... If I had known .." I chuckled. "It's ok. You couldn't have possibly known. It's not your fault at all."
How could I blame him for that? We didn't know each other then. And even if we did, I doubt he could do anything once I was taken. It would be a dick move to pull an Obito on him
"Is there anything else you remember. Like how you got out? Or a possible location?"
"No. My memories stop at the experiments. Just pain."
"What about the others who were taken with you?"
".."
I paused.
From his words, I could tell All Might wanted to save others as well. " I'm not sure, but from what I can tell, I was the only survivor." The atmosphere turned gloomy.
"Detective Tsukauchi. I believe we need to contact the hero commission immediately. This information changed everything about how we approach the investigation."
"Indeed." Recovery girl said. "They've already tried to kill All Might. This organization is much to dangerous to remain hidden." Detective Tsukauchi nodded, already reaching for his phone.
"Young Takumi. We'll need a full detailed statement about everything you remember. I know it's difficult, but —"
"I understand," I cut him off. "Whatever it takes to stop them from doing this to other people."
As Tsukauchi stepped aside to make his calls, Nezu approached my chair.
"Young Takumi, I want you to know that U.A. will provide whatever support you need. Counseling, additional security, anything that helps you feel safe while we investigate this matter."
"Thank you, sir. But honestly, I feel safer now that I remember. At least now I know what I'm dealing with." From the moment I opened mouth, there was no way this could be kept hidden.
Maybe it could before Shigaraki attacked U.A but not anymore. Thankfully, I didn't need secrecy with the mental implants gone and my mind finally free even if All For One found out.
Nezu studied me for a moment longer than was comfortable. "Indeed. Knowledge is power, as they say. Though sometimes the most dangerous knowledge is that which we possess but others don't realize we have. Of course, it is remarkable how your memories resurfaced at such a fortuitous time."
The words sent a chill down my spine, but I maintained eye contact. "I suppose that's true, sir."
"Well then," Nezu said, his cheerful demeanor returning like a mask sliding back into place. "I believe we've covered the immediate concerns. Young Takumi, please do join your classmates. I'm sure they're eager to hear that you're safe."
"Well not so fast. I still haven't done that brain scan yet."
"Wouldn't dream of refusing Ma'am."
Recovery Girl harrumphed as she wheeled over the scanner, a compact device that looked like something between a helmet and a colander.
"Sit still. If there's so much as a trace of neurological tampering left, I'll find it."
I obeyed. Cold metal touched my scalp, humming faintly as the machine lit up.
The old woman studied the readings, lips pursed. After a tense moment she finally leaned back with a sigh.
"Well. No foreign signatures. Whatever conditioning was done to you, it's gone. Though…" she tapped the screen with her cane, "…your brain activity shows signs of long-term stress. Deep trauma patterns. You'll need counseling, young man. Don't think sheer stubbornness will carry you forever."
"I'll keep that in mind," I said, though I had no intention of lying on a couch talking about my feelings to a stranger.
"See that you do," she muttered.
Tsukauchi stepped back in just as Recovery Girl finished removing the scanner. He looked more serious than usual, phone still in his hand.
"I've contacted relevant personnel. They want full transcripts and medical confirmation. I've also asked to dig into case files of disappearing Quirkless individuals around the time of your kidnapping. I'll be filing my report immediately. For now…" His gaze flicked toward me. "Ken, you'll be under heightened observation. Nothing invasive. But if the League tries to make contact again, we'll need to know."
I nodded. "Understood."
"Now," Recovery Girl said briskly, "out of my infirmary before I whack you all with my cane."
Nezu's tail twitched as he smiled up at me, a little too sharp to be comforting.
"Splendid. Then it's settled. Young Takumi, your role from here is simple: be a student. Train, learn, grow. We will handle the rest."
"Easier said than done," I muttered.
"Life always is." His eyes glinted.
That was my cue. I slid off the chair, legs still unsteady but holding.
"Guess I'll, uh… go find my class."
Nezu nodded. "Yes. Rejoin your peers. They'll be relieved to see you alive and well."
___
The door shut softly behind Ken, leaving the room in weighted silence.
For a long moment no one spoke. The faint hum of medical machines and the scratching of Tsukauchi's pen as he jotted notes filled the void. All Might's gaunt eyes stayed fixed on the closed door until his features hardened.
"So," he said at last, voice low. "What do you think?" He shifted his gaze to Nezu, sharp and unyielding. "It's him, isn't it."
Nezu's voice lost all warmth. "The pattern is unmistakable. Systematic abduction of quirkless individuals. Long-term experimentation. The attempt to weaponize a child against the Symbol of Peace. This bears every hallmark of his methodology."
All Might's fist clenched against the hospital sheets. "I never expected he'd try something like this. Using children as weapons ... Though it sounds like something he'd do .. "
Tsukauchi set his pen down, expression tight. "Explain. What about this points so directly to him? We've had other organizations attempt quirk research before."
"Indeed. But there's more to consider here." Nezu hopped down from his chair and began pacing, his small form moving with agitated energy. "Let's examine what Young Takumi revealed about himself. Four distinct quirks: Meta Eye, which he inherited from his mother. A barrier ability. Superhuman physical enhancement. And those quirk-nullifying rods."
"Four distinct quirks, none related to each other, in one boy who was born quirkless."
"Four quirks in one person," Recovery Girl muttered. "That shouldn't be possible. Not naturally."
"Precisely." Nezu's eyes gleamed with cold analysis. "Meta Eye is clearly his original quirk—the only one with documented hereditary lineage. But the other three? They have no correlation to each other or to his parents' quirk factors. Which means—""All For One gave them to him," All Might finished grimly.
Recovery Girl's frown deepened. "So you're saying the experiments weren't just torture. They were… grafting?"
"Precisely," Nezu said, his eyes gleaming darkly. "The project's goal was likely to create someone—anyone—capable of surviving multiple quirk implantations. Perhaps a successor, perhaps a prototype. And of course, who better than the quirkless? They lack the genetic interference of an existing quirk. Theoretically, that gives them a higher survival rate, though… Ken's case suggests the odds remain abysmal. Out of however many they took, he's the only one left."
The implication hung over the room like a weight.
All Might closed his eyes. "…So many lives lost."
"Or worse," Nezu murmured. "We don't know how many attempts were made before reaching him. We can assume others with quirks were tested on too, likely with even more catastrophic results. It's difficult to imagine the scale of the bodies left in the wake of this endeavor."
Tsukauchi rubbed the bridge of his nose. "If what you're saying is true, then Ken himself is walking evidence. A survivor of something we've never been able to prove."
"Yes." Nezu's tone sharpened. "And therein lies another question. Why give him such powerful quirks at all? Think of it, Toshinori. With even one of those abilities, All For One could have tipped the scales against you years ago. Yet he placed them in an unstable experiment—then released that experiment back into the world. Why?"
All Might's jaw tightened. "You think it was deliberate."
"I think nothing All For One does is without reason," Nezu replied. "Perhaps he intended Ken to be a weapon against you—a sleeper agent that would finish the job when the time was right. Perhaps he simply wanted to test whether his control methods would hold under real-world stress."
"Young Takumi said his clear memories end with the experiments, then nothing until he woke up on the streets. All For One supposedly had him in captivity, experimented on him for years, installed mental conditioning to make him a sleeper agent—and then just... let him go?" Nezu's voice dripped with skepticism. "Simply to orchestrate a surprise attack on All Might at some undefined future date? It's simultaneously overcomplicated and wasteful."
"Maybe he was that confident in the mental implants," Tsukauchi offered, "he was simply arrogant enough to believe it was unbreakable."
Nezu shook his head. "Possible, yes. But unlikely. You cannot tamper with a mind so completely without leaving traces. I had Dr. Tanaka and Agent Yoshida forward me Ken's assessment files several months ago. At that time, his results were entirely clean. No neural anomalies, no irregularities. Yet he mentioned himself that he found radio wave residue when he performed his self scan."
"That means ..."
"The conditioning must have been applied after those final tests—some time before the school year began. However, if that is not the case, the the alternatives are more troubling. Those scans were conducted with state-of-the-art equipment at Hero Commission headquarters—the best medical technology available in Japan. There were also periodic check-ins over the following months. All clean."
Nezu's tone grew grave. "But here's the problem: Ken described detecting radio wave energy remnants with his Meta Eye. Yet our advanced medical scanners found nothing before, and Recovery Girl's examination just now confirms the conditioning is gone. "Tsukauchi's face paled. "You're saying..."
"I'm saying we have three possibilities, none of them comforting." Nezu held up a paw, ticking off scenarios. "One: the mental conditioning is so sophisticated—either through experimental procedure or a specialized quirk—that it's undetectable by our best medical technology. Which means anyone could be compromised without our knowledge."
"Two: Ken is still under conditioning despite his claims otherwise, and this entire confession is part of a deeper plan we can't yet perceive." All Might started to protest, but Nezu continued. "Or three: someone in the Hero Commission falsified Ken's test reports. Someone with access to high-level medical records deliberately altered the results to hide the neurological tampering. Which would mean—"
"There's a traitor in the Commission itself," Tsukauchi finished, his voice hollow.
___
Enjoying the story? Want to read ahead?
Support the novel and unlock early access to unreleased chapters by joining my Patreon!
💧 WATER TIER (5$) – Read 3 chapters ahead of public releases
🌍 EARTH TIER ($7) – Read 5 chapters ahead, with bonus lore, author notes, and behind-the-scenes content
🔥 FIRE TIER ($10) – Read 8 chapters ahead, get full access to all extras, and vote in exclusive polls for bonus content
📎 Patreon.com/Future805
Even a small pledge makes a huge difference — thank you for reading.