Anguish... That was the only sensation that consumed him, an icy slab pressing against his chest. He had left his school for only an instant, and in that brief blink, chaos had broken loose. A villain, a hulk of muscle and fury, was attacking his classmates. His mind screamed, urging him to be brave, to leap into action, to do something heroic and honorable. But his body didn't respond. He was paralyzed, rooted to the ground by that drowning anguish, that helplessness he knew all too well. He couldn't do anything. Again.

You ran toward the villain, yelling at Kirishima to get out of the way. He seemed like stone, unable to react. This was a catastrophe, a tragedy waiting to happen, but then Mina leaped forward, saving the group with a bold move.

Kirishima stood still, a mere spectator, watching the scene in mute horror. Once again, he stood in the way, and he was of no help.

"Once again, I did nothing... and I want to be a hero," he whispered, his voice trembling. Anguish turned into a poison that burned his throat, the terrible certainty that his ideal, his deepest desire, was light years away from reality