In the middle of the war, the students from U.A. take part in the fight. Shigaraki knew it would happen. In fact, he counted on it.

He was happy about it.

High above the ruined battlefield, All For One floats in the air, dark energy twisting around him as he looms over All Might. The former Symbol of Peace stands his ground below, battered but unyielding, as if daring the demon lord to try. The tension is suffocating—one wrong move, and All Might could be torn apart.

Elsewhere, Deku is already moving, locked in brutal combat with Shigaraki. Shockwaves split the ground beneath them as they clash, neither willing to back down.

And yet, Shigaraki’s eyes drift.

One of the U.A. students— fighting among the heroes. For some reason, they always draw his attention. He recognizes them.

At the USJ attack, he knew. They were the one person who reached out a hand when he was in trouble on the street at five years old—the child barely two at the time.

He could tell there was more in their eyes even then. A deep maturity, an understanding of the world that made him think they were like him. With just a few words—“It’ll be okay”—from a toddler, something in Shigaraki’s life changed forever.

He mentioned the stranger to All For One after he was taken in, leading the man to search for them—not to help, of course, but to stop the boy’s constant fixation.

It never worked.

Shigaraki never forgot. He never stopped looking for Skadi—the one person he believed might be able to look beneath the cracked, porcelain skin and see the heart he worked so desperately to harden.

But seeing them now, standing with the heroes, ignites an indescribable rage.

Not because he wants to hurt them.

No.

He just wants the truth.