Izuku had used the coming of new recruits as a leverage to let Sensei touch the lab. He had reasoned that they could need something made for them and he wished to get better at crafting objects of destruction. He also said how thay would aid Tomura in his goals. He had just gotten to how much blood it would spill when Kurogiri appeared and dragged him off to said lab.

The weathered steel door closed behind the both of them with a creaking sound. Rust was climbing up at the edges of it, for it was cheap steel. Empty and broken retorts littered the room. Chemicals were neatly arranged in a cabinet. Different kinds of metals shone on a separate shelf. A stainless steel table stood in the middle of the room, colouring long disfigured with the repeated spillages of acids and other strong chemicals.

Izuku remembered how he had received his Quirk.

As if it was yesterday.

The lab was the same as ever, only the table was empty. A seven year old Izuku Midoriya had been made to sit on it, eyes full of wonder and some shadows of fear. All For One had stood before him, hand outstretched to grant him his Quirk, None For All, which he claimed would enable Izuku to seek revenge for the injustice he had faced. He hadn't gotten his injuries yet, it was a few days before his catastrophic battle with All Might.

It had felt like being zapped by lightning. His entire body felt on fire, and he could feel something changing, something new being introduced to his Quirkless self.

Before he had passed out, he remembered All For One's voice saying,

"At long last, he regains that which is rightfully his."

He had been confused then. The memories were incredibly fuzzy of that week, so he couldn't be sure whether those words were real or something crafted by his delirious brain.

Shaking his head clear, he picked up a few retorts and asked Kurogiri to give him a specific chemical. They worked in silence for the entire day, while the new recruits bonded over video games with Tomura.

Todoroki had gone for a walk to clear his head before he got roped into another game of Among Us. Stain had quietly followed him, claiming that he was growing incredibly tired of Toga's "Mr. Stainy, you do be so hot." He was, thankfully, in civilian clothes and they were walking in the alleys. It was odd, Todoroki mused as the Hero Killer walked beside him. In another lifetime, they would have been enemies.

However now, they could easily pass off as uncle and nephew.

That is, if Endeavor hadn't been a huge jerk.

Fixing the wig in place for what felt like the millionth time, he could literally feel Stain's pitying gaze land on him. Distinctly uncomfortable, he opened his mouth and asked the first question that came to his mouth.

"So, how did you came into this?"

Stain's head snapped around so fast that he was afraid that he had broken it. His posture was the same hunched kind, but something flickered in his eyes.

"Hasn't Midoriya already informed you of this?" he asked genuinely, because he was pretty sure Izuku had written his backstory in that notebook of his.

"I wish I could really make sense of his rapid fast mutterings, Stain-san."

"Ah. Makes sense."

"So....?"

"Well," Stain looked up, preparing himself for a grand speech.

"People are dumb," he began, like any normal villain would, "They have forgotten the essence of what it takes to be a hero. One must have the right heart to be one. Most heroes are just greedy and cowardly. They don't have any concern for the common, who they are supposed to be protecting. I started off as a Vigilante, but after an eye-opening moment with another Vigilante named Knuckleduster, I realised the path laid out for me. I donned the name of Stain, the Hero Killer, who will remind hero society of what it takes to be a hero."

"That's....nice, I guess," Todoroki's eyes had spotted a hero. He hoped that said hero hadn't spotted them. Otherwise this alley would be painted red.

Unfortunately for the hero, he had spotted them, and recognised them too.

Stain drew a knife.

The hero's eyes widened and he ran, not caring for the scared civilians.

"See what I mean?" he said, venomously, "All Might is the one and only true hero. And that hero's blood will be shed for this cause."

"Stain—," Todoroki began but he had already taken off in pursuit of the Hero.

Irritated, he activated his ice and leapt up behind him, trying to catch up.

Stain's beautiful ideals were getting worse than Izuku's.

His left eye twitched.

Knife met flesh and a grand speech tore itself out of Stain's mouth.

Todoroki paused at a rooftop directly above him, texting Kurogiri to pick them up.

Izuku looked up at the sound of Kurogiri's phone buzzing.

"One sec," the misty man spoke, "It's Shoto Todoroki and Stain. Apparently Stain has killed another hero, and now everyone is staring."

"Todoroki-kun must be annoyed that his walk got destroyed again," Izuku mused, carefully checking the colour of the solution.

Kurogiri warped off to Stain and Todoroki's location and warped them back to the bar.

"My point is that, we have to respect each others' boundaries," he said for what felt like the millionth time, "Stain, let Todoroki get his walk in peace. Tomura stop trying to make Twice's console malfunction on purpose. Toga, stop trying to stab Dabi's fingers to make him not kill your character. Magne and Mr. Compress, please stop breaking the glass. I have to clean this thing up at the end. I really wish that you would show some respect for my efforts."

Done with speaking, he warped away to an enthusiastic Izuku who was speaking of how he had found a way for Dabi to use his Quirk without burning himself from the inside out all the time.