Hearing Shigaraki's blatantly malicious suggestion, Muscular—who had previously kept talking about challenging All Might and treating him as some kind of "feast"—immediately broke out in cold sweat.
He looked at Shigaraki resentfully and forced out a bitter smile.
"Shigaraki-sama, please stop joking around."
"If I go in there while All Might is that angry, I'll probably come back in pieces."
"I'm not even confident I could beat him normally, let alone when he's enraged."
"Besides, he isn't food. He's not even a proper opponent."
"He's clearly a monster wearing human skin."
At that point, Muscular nearly ground his teeth flat.
"He punched space apart with his fist."
"How is that not completely broken?"
Just thinking back to that scene made his scalp go numb.
He unconsciously pinched his own arm, trying to use pain to force the image out of his head.
Unfortunately, it was useless.
That terrifying scene remained burned into his mind like a brand, impossible to erase.
"A monster… yeah, he really is a monster."
Hearing that, Shigaraki nodded lightly in agreement.
He wasn't surprised by Muscular's shaken reaction.
After all, anyone who personally witnessed a demon-like figure tear open the wall of an alternate dimension with sheer brute force would have their worldview rattled.
Yes.
Anyone would.
Even him.
It was just that his mentality was strong enough to recover quickly.
Thinking of that, Shigaraki sighed softly.
"I already knew that since All Might could become Teacher's greatest enemy, he had to be unimaginably powerful."
"But I still didn't expect him to be this strong."
As he spoke, Shigaraki glanced toward the silver-haired young man sitting nearby.
"Kūgai's alternate dimensions can withstand missile-level bombardment."
"And yet they still couldn't endure All Might's punch. The space itself almost shattered."
"And the worst part is…"
"…we still don't know whether that was his full strength."
Yūhyo Kūgai.
Quirk: Alternate Dimension.
He could create multiple independent dimensions and seal people inside them.
He was also the support Shigaraki had specifically requested from All For One for this operation.
After all, Shigaraki's plan relied on separating All Might and the other Pro Heroes, then defeating them individually.
Kūgai's Quirk was practically perfect for that purpose.
That was why he was currently sitting in this conference room.
Thinking back to the report he had read from All For One, then comparing it to the reality of watching All Might nearly shatter a dimension that was supposedly durable enough to withstand missile bombardment, Shigaraki couldn't help sighing again.
"As expected of the Symbol of Peace."
"The strongest man alive."
"No wonder Teacher is so wary of him."
That said, Shigaraki didn't truly fear All Might's power.
After all, he possessed the system.
With the system in hand, surpassing All Might was only a matter of time.
Besides, his Quirk was Decay.
A Quirk even All For One had evaluated as unprecedented.
Once fully developed, destroying the walls of an alternate dimension would be nothing.
Perhaps one day, he might even decay the real world itself.
"But even though All Might is absurdly powerful…"
"…like some monster wearing human skin…"
At that moment, Yūhyo Kūgai suddenly said something unexpected.
"He actually isn't that difficult to deal with."
"Hm?"
Shigaraki gave him a strange look.
After witnessing that terrifying scene firsthand, this guy still dared say something like that?
Had fear damaged his brain?
Or did he genuinely have some kind of insight?
If it was the latter, then Shigaraki would have to reevaluate him.
Because even Shigaraki himself would never casually claim that All Might was easy to handle.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have gone through so much effort preparing specifically for him.
He had arranged for Muscular to be broken out of prison.
Then he had personally borrowed Kūgai, a Quirk user capable of creating alternate dimensions, from All For One.
Thinking that, Shigaraki looked at Kūgai again and asked with an odd expression,
"After seeing that with your own eyes, you still have the confidence to say that?"
"Looks like I'll need to raise my evaluation of you."
"No, no, Shigaraki-sama, you misunderstand."
Hearing that, Kūgai hurriedly shook his head.
He absolutely did not want Shigaraki misunderstanding him.
What if Shigaraki started thinking he was some fearless elite and began assigning him dangerous frontline missions in the future?
Wouldn't that basically guarantee a hospital bed?
That misunderstanding needed to die immediately.
After all, his Quirk was useful for ambushes, traps, and battlefield control.
But in direct combat?
He was weak.
So Kūgai quickly clarified himself.
"What I mean is that his identity is fundamentally different from ours."
"He's a hero."
"And the title of hero is the greatest restraint placed on that monster."
"No matter how terrifying a monster is, once it wears a collar, it can only become so dangerous."
"First, heroes are emotional beings. Even someone like All Might is still kind and humane."
"And kind people with humanity are the easiest to manipulate."
"As long as we grasp what they care about…"
"…they'll be forced to dance in our palms."
"For example, whether because of his identity or his personal beliefs, he cannot ignore danger happening right in front of him."
"If civilians are threatened, a hero must step forward."
"Especially All Might, the Symbol of Peace."
"Second, no matter how overwhelmingly powerful All Might is, his reach still has limits."
"There are places even he cannot protect."
"He's still human."
"Not a god."
"And that creates room for us to operate."
"Lastly…"
"Heroes cannot kill."
"Even when facing villains."
"So he cannot kill us."
"And he especially cannot attack someone who has surrendered or stopped resisting."
"That means even if we fail…"
"…our safety still has a certain degree of protection."
◇ BONUS & SUPPORT ◇
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 10 reviews — drop a comment!
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ Read 60 chapters ahead on P@treon → patreon.com/StrawHatStudios