Two years passed like a silent breeze, but Shin Karasuma was anything but still.
Now twelve, he stood slightly taller than most of his classmates—shoulders more defined, posture straighter, movements sharper. His face had matured ever so slightly, still carrying that soft handsomeness that often drew comparisons to a younger, cuter version of Eren Yeager—but with a calmer gaze. Calculated. Watchful.
The ordinary uniform of his middle school hung neatly on his frame, but underneath it, his body had become a well-honed weapon. Strength surged through his muscles thanks to the quirk inherited from his father—physical enhancement that amplified every punch, every step, every breath. And woven into that strength, like lightning through metal, was the raw, crackling power of his mother's quirk.
He had learned to wield it in sync.
Not just hit hard or move fast, but to do both at once, with precise bursts of voltage stimulating his nerves, sharpening his reflexes, and reinforcing every movement. Controlled surges. Accelerated strikes. Lightning-boosted strength.
He was no longer just training—he was mastering.
And no one knew. Not even his best friends.
---
"Oi, Shin!" Yuki called from across the schoolyard, waving a hand. Her strawberry-blonde hair was tied in a messy braid, her eyes sparkling as always. "Lunch on the roof again?"
"Coming," Shin said, adjusting his bag.
Toma jogged beside him, still lazy as ever but taller now, with longer legs and sharper features. "Yuki made egg sandwiches again. You know she's trying to bribe you into joining her future hero agency."
"Shut it, Toma!" Yuki yelled back. "It's called networking!"
Shiro, still quiet and brooding, followed behind the group. His sharp gray eyes were even more observant these days. He didn't talk much—but he watched. Shin could tell. Sometimes, he wondered if Shiro suspected something.
They all gathered on the rooftop like they always did, laughing, teasing, eating. Just four kids hanging out.
But even as they laughed, Shin's mind never strayed far from his goal.
Every morning before school, every night after homework, he trained. He had built a second dummy rig out of weighted training bots and old metal scaffolding in an abandoned shed behind the neighborhood. There, he tested his limits. Muscle endurance, electric conductivity, precision control.
And just last week, he'd learned to supercharge his leg muscles for a split-second flash step.
He called it "Bolt Drive."
He hadn't used it in public. Not yet.
Still too dangerous, he thought. Still too raw.
---
That night, lying in bed after another brutal training session, Shin stared at the ceiling. Lightning tingled faintly under his skin. His arms were sore. His legs ached. But it was good pain—the kind that reminded him he was closer than ever.
"Three more years until U.A.," he whispered to himself.
His voice was calm, but his eyes burned with determination.
"I'll be ready."
******
The school trip was supposed to be simple—an overnight nature retreat to a quiet, forested area outside the city. Just two days of hiking, team-building games, bonfires, and lots of embarrassing photos taken by overly enthusiastic teachers.
For the students of Class 2-A, it was a chance to relax.
For Shin Karasuma, it was a rare opportunity to observe. To scan terrain. Measure his stamina in higher altitudes. Track the instincts of others.
He was constantly training, even in moments of rest.
But even he hadn't expected this.
---
It started on the second day, just past noon.
Shin was walking ahead with his group—Yuki, Toma, Shiro, and a few other classmates—following the teacher's lead down a narrow path lined with tall pine trees and moss-covered rocks. The sunlight filtered through the leaves, scattering golden patches across the ground.
"Ugh, my feet are gonna fall off," Toma groaned.
"I told you not to wear low-tops, dummy," Yuki huffed, readjusting her backpack.
"Do you guys hear that?" Shiro suddenly asked, his voice cutting through the noise.
The group paused.
Shin heard it too.
A strange buzzing hum—like static mixed with a low, rumbling growl.
No birds. No wind. Just… silence.
His instincts screamed.
"Everyone—get down!" he ordered without thinking.
A split second later, a massive blast ripped through the forest trail ahead, sending trees toppling and dirt flying into the air.
"W-What the hell?!" one student shouted, scrambling back.
From the smoke stepped a masked figure, hunched over, body twitching with bursts of violet electricity. He looked unstable—like a walking surge of corrupted energy. His eyes glowed behind the visor, wide and wild.
"A villain? Here?" Yuki gasped, stepping in front of one of the smaller students.
"No way... how did they get past security?" Toma muttered, backing up.
The villain's voice rasped. "Too much noise… too many brats… but one of you…"
His gaze stopped directly on Shin.
"…you're different. I can feel it. Power. Hidden. I want it."
Shin's heart pounded—not in fear, but in anticipation. He knows. He can sense quirks. That makes him dangerous.
But he couldn't reveal himself. Not yet.
Teachers were shouting from the rear. Students were scrambling. Some froze. Others ran.
The villain charged.
Shin had no choice.
In a split-second flash, he dashed forward—not fast enough to be inhuman, but faster than a normal kid. He collided with the villain shoulder-first, redirecting the charge just enough to knock him into a tree.
"Run!" Shin shouted to the others. "Get help!"
"But—!" Yuki hesitated.
"I'll be fine!" Shin lied smoothly.
The villain recovered quickly, his body twitching, arcs of unstable lightning leaking from his fingertips.
"You're holding back," he hissed. "Why? Show me what you really are!"
Shin's eyes narrowed.
He's pushing me. Trying to make me slip. But I can't go all out. Not here.
Still, he couldn't afford to let the others get hurt.
Charging lightning just under the skin of his legs, he activated Bolt Drive, vanishing from sight for a brief instant before slamming a reinforced punch into the villain's gut—calculated, clean, and just below full strength.
The impact sent the man sprawling, crashing through roots and stone.
Shin stood over him, panting quietly, electricity crackling along his arms.
The villain twitched once… then went still.
Before anyone could return, Shin vanished into the shadows between the trees, powering down his quirk and slipping back toward the group from another angle.
---
By the time the teachers arrived, the villain was already unconscious. Authorities swarmed the site within the hour.
"How did he get taken down so fast?" one investigator asked, confused.
"Was there a pro hero nearby?"
"No," said a local officer. "Just middle schoolers."
"Then who…?"
---
Later that night, Shin sat near the campfire, surrounded by his friends.
Yuki was animatedly retelling the story, even though she had barely seen the fight.
"And then—BOOM! The villain flew through a tree! It was like a flash of lightning!"
Toma added, "Maybe a wild animal helped us out."
Shiro, however, just watched Shin silently, his eyes narrow, unreadable.
Shin smiled calmly, sipping warm tea. "Maybe it was just luck."
But deep down… he knew.
That was just the beginning.
******
The following day, the class was still in a whirlwind of excitement. Teachers spoke in hushed tones, students murmured in small groups, and some of the more excitable classmates tried to piece together the events from the previous day's encounter with the villain. But for Shin Karasuma, things were starting to feel... different.
---
Back in school, during first period, the principal's voice came through the loudspeaker, startling everyone into silence.
"Attention, students. We've just received information from the local authorities regarding the incident during the school trip. A villain was apprehended, and the situation has been handled. We thank you all for your cooperation."
Yuki leaned toward Shin, whispering with wide eyes, "Handled? More like knocked out! That guy looked like he was gonna tear through the whole camp!"
Shin, pretending not to hear her, simply gave a small nod, continuing to scribble on his notebook. He'd made sure not to show his quirk during the fight, but the electricity under his skin had nearly surged out of control. The power—he could feel it still, buzzing faintly, trying to break free.
---
During the lunch period, students crowded around their phones, watching the latest news coverage on the school's mysterious savior.
"A young hero intervened during a villain attack yesterday, neutralizing the threat in minutes. Authorities are baffled by the identity of the child, and while no one was seriously harmed, the question remains: who is this mysterious 'kid hero'?"
The report continued with images from the forest, the villain being loaded into a police car, and students standing by in confusion.
"We have no confirmed leads on the identity of the child involved. Witnesses report that the child moved with incredible speed and precision, yet no one could identify them before they vanished into the trees."
"See?" Yuki said, tapping Shin's shoulder. "It's gotta be one of us! You didn't happen to punch a guy in the face, did you?"
Shin forced a smile, trying to keep his voice light. "You're really into this mystery stuff, huh?"
"I'm serious, Shin! You were acting all weird when we got back to the bus. Maybe you did do it and are just playing dumb! I knew you were hiding something!"
"Maybe it was someone else," Shin deflected, carefully keeping his voice neutral.
Meanwhile, Toma was grinning from ear to ear. "Yuki, I'm telling you—it's probably just some pro hero passing through. Who needs to worry about a bunch of kids, right? I mean, come on, a middle schooler taking down a villain? Sounds like a stretch."
---
That afternoon, the principal called an emergency assembly for the entire school. The large hall was packed, with every student from every grade squeezed into seats, murmuring excitedly.
The principal, flanked by several teachers and local authorities, stood at the front of the room, speaking seriously into the microphone.
"We are aware that yesterday's events have raised questions, and we understand that some of you may be concerned. I want to reassure everyone that the situation is under control, and there is no immediate danger. The authorities have requested that we remind all students to remain vigilant and report anything unusual."
Shin sat back in his seat, his eyes darting to the teachers who were watching the students carefully. He couldn't help but notice that some of them—especially the ones in charge of the trip—seemed to be glancing at him more than once.
One of the teachers cleared his throat, adding, "While we encourage curiosity and heroism, please remember that your safety is our number one priority. And we must respect the boundaries of pro heroes. That said... the hero who responded to the situation is still unknown, and we ask that no one speculate irresponsibly about their identity."
---
Later that evening, news coverage continued to dominate the airwaves. On Shin's TV, the story repeated, now with expert commentary.
"It seems that the child who neutralized the villain in the forest yesterday possessed remarkable strength and speed—qualities usually seen only in the most talented young heroes. Some are even speculating that this child might be a prodigy—someone who's either been training secretly or, perhaps, even a child of one of the pro heroes."
Shin sat on the couch, expression unreadable. The implications were starting to sink in. This wasn't just some random villain encounter. This is going to make waves. And if the wrong person figures out what I did… I might have more than just training to focus on.
---
The next day, the whispers in school had intensified. Everywhere he went, there were murmurs, eyes glancing over at him. Yuki was bouncing with excitement, her eyes practically shining as she kept talking about the news coverage.
But it was Shiro who really caught Shin's attention during lunch.
The quiet, observant boy had a look in his eyes—one that was sharp, calculating. He didn't speak as he sat beside Shin but instead pushed a small slip of paper onto his desk.
Shin looked at it—three words written in black ink: "I know, Shin."
'fuck!'