The prelude to the USJ relies on building a good amount of tension. As the students head towards the bus, they spot the storm clouds above them, wondering where it was supposed to come from since the forecast said that it would be sunny. Once they actually get to the USJ, the storm begins in earnest, with the students surprised that the weather seems to be pushing them inside. It's a tension-building setup for what's to come, as readers knowing what's about to happen can practically see Nine's pretty much urging them inside the trap he's made.
Once they're inside, Nine decides to set the mood as soon as Thirteen finishes her speech about the safe use of Quirks, using several bolts of lightning to cut the power to the building. And then Nine and his crew slowly make their way across Kurogiri's portals before Nine finishes the chapter with the following bone-chilling declaration.
Nine: It doesn't matter, we went through the trouble of bringing our entire cabal to meet the Symbol of Peace personally, and that's what will happen. We needn't worry if he's running a little late ... he'll come as fast as he can when he hears the screams of the children.
While things were pretty scary in canon during this arc, the whole idea is a group of villains invading a school and ready to murder teenagers who are not even a week into the hero course, here it's arguably more horrifying. First, the Villain Consortium is led by a far more cold, calculating, and sociopathic mastermind than Shigaraki, with Nine far more shrewd and calculating, and has a crew composed of several competent villains, confirmed to have killed both Pro Heroes and villains alike in the past. Not only did they bring the Nomu with them, but Nine also brought Hood for good measure.
Not to mention his use for the thugs he brought along. In canon, Shigaraki intended to use them to help him fight All Might. Here, Nine brings them along for one terrifying purpose: to take a syringe full of Trigger. Once they've taken them, they devolve into raving, monstrous beasts, unable to tell friend or foe apart as Kurogiri separates Class 1A and traps them with the monsters.
Chapter 16 is this on steroids. After Izuku refuses to take Nine's offer of peace, the villain decides to sic Hood onto Izuku to pass the time until All Might arrives. Props to the author for writing an absolutely terrifying sequence, or more accurately, one-sided massacre, and giving Izuku a beatdown more brutal than anything he got in canon, at least until the PLF War arc. It's a miracle he is still alive by the end of the arc.
Chapter 17 brings another horrifying twist: Turns out that Muscular has been used as a base body for Hood. Think about this. Two of the strongest, Ax-Crazy and bloodthirsty characters in the manga have been merged. And All for One reveals he is not even complete yet. God knows how much of a monstrosity it will be when the Doctor finishes upgrading it.
All For One is healthy. Who could be arguably the most powerful and deadly character of the series lacks his Drama-Preserving Handicap. And since it took All Might almost dying to stop his reign of terror years prior, and Itsuka just got One for All, is up to the readers to imagine how worse things will be when the villain decides to step out of the shadows.
By the end of chapter 18, Teko decides to go out for a walk to clear his thoughts. However, it's revealed that he is actually going to meet with someone to get information about the Consortium. And who are the people he meets? Hekiji Tengai and Shin Nemoto, from the Shie Hassaikai. This means that Teko, in the past, had ties with the Yakuza, which raises questions about the old master's past and creates a setup for the dark secrets of the Kendo family.
While Chapter 19 is mostly lighthearted, the beginning is not so much. Izuku wakes up after cuddling with Itsuka and Ochako much to his embarrassment, and Ochako's tone suddenly becomes sultry and flirtatious. You would think that it would lead to some Erotic Dream from this... if Ochako did not suddenly become Hood, grab Izuku's head and start to squish it until it explodes, prompting a Catapult Nightmare. Needless to say, Izuku can't bring himself to sleep again after such a nightmare.
Also in Chapter 19, Nine and Slice's scene seems far tamer than when they first appeared - up until Slice seems to get cold feet about going after Class 1A again. Once she shows even the slightest hesitation, Nine turns the charm on, reminding her that he helped save her from her Dark and Troubled Past and how he helped her see the world as it truly was. It's truly meant to serve to show the views that Nine and Slice's relationship is a very dark mirror of Izuku and Ochako's own relationship, and seeing the depths of Nine's Manipulative Bastard tendencies.
After a relatively light-hearted Chapter 22, the ending of the chapter is extremely harrowing. Itsuka, walking by herself, runs into Eri and soon discovers that she's about to be confronted by someone heavily implied to be Overhaul himself. What makes this even more terrifying is that, unlike Izuku who had Mirio with him, Itsuka is entirely on her own, and the street is even mentioned to be empty. Had Itsuka not trusted her senses and sprinted away with Eri as fast as she could, no doubt what would've happened if Overhaul got his hands on her ...
A bit of Fridge Horror. It's implied that Overhaul got a good look on Itsuka's face (something Midnight lampshades in the following chapter) and the Sports Festival will happen very soon. And to make things worse, Itsuka will make the opening speech. Even if Eri is moved to a safe location like U.A., as soon as she appears on screen, Overhaul will know who is the person that took Eri and he might want to go after her for pure spite. And maybe not even Teko's friendship with the Boss will protect her against the Capo's anger.
While this is mitigated by Itsuka simply dyeing her hair for the Festival, what no one else knows, is that thanks to Camie, the Consortium now has her address and can find out about Eri at any given moment.
While Overhaul's abuse towards Eri is not a surprise, there is something especially morbid about Eri's choice of words when she describes the Mad Scientist experiments on her:
Eri: He … he has a long pointy mouth, he never takes it off unless - unless he has to look into me. And - and then he wears a mask when he does that."
Everyone is quick to pick the words "Look into me." The way it draws parallels between this and sexual abuse is very surreal.
Chapter 23 ends on a rather disturbing note. Remember when Camie met Izuku and Nejire in the previous chapter? Turns out it wasn't a coincidence for her to meet them there. Camie is the newest recruit of the Villain Consortium and her first assignment is to track down all students from Class 1-A, which she succeeds. By the end of the chapter she and by extension, the Consortium, have a complete list of the addresses, routines, all of it. Nine was dead serious when he made all students his personal enemies and one can only fear when he decides to act on it.
In the following note, the Consortium now has a girl capable of casting hyper-realistic illusions on their crew. As if they weren't dangerous enough on their own. Not to mention Camie's infatuation with both Izuku and Nejire, which bears a disturbing resemblance to Himiko's interest in Izuku and Ochako in canon. Reviewers also noticed that since her illusions can create realistic items, she also counts as one for Twice.
At first, The Reveal that Stendhal is a hero sounds like a good thing, meaning that the heroes have one of the most badass characters on their side and that the Hero Killer won't stand a chance... until Akaguro takes a drop of Tensei's blood and he becomes far more morally ambiguous individual. And then Paranoia Fuel kicks in: There is a good chance that there is no "Hero Killer", and that this might just be a hoax used by Stendhal to murder fellow heroes without drawing suspicions. And to make the paranoia worse, it all could be an even bigger cover-up by the Hero Commission to get Heroes that are not aligned with their interests killed and pinned by somebody else. The fact that Tensei seems to be the main target from the blood quirk user, only adds fuel to the theory that Tensei is close to unfolding something he is not supposed to about the Trigger theft and heroes murdered by the Consortium and the corrupt organization wants him out of the picture.
More details about All Might's fight against All for One resurface. Apparently, the killing blow that he inflicted on the villain (a United States of Smash most likely), turned the entire forest into a crater. And after making sure that All for One wasn't breathing anymore, Nighteye arranged for the body to be cremated, and its ashes disposed of, which raises the questions over how Demon Lord managed not only to survive All Might's most furious attack but came back full recovery.
Gran Torino: I think the only assurance we have right now is that there's no chance in hell that he's in good shape. You smashed that bastard's head against the ground hard enough to reduce it to sludge - the best we can hope for at the moment is that he's clinically brain-dead, and this Nine guy is just using his quirk while he's busy laying around being a vegetable.
Gran Torino mentions that Tsukauchi's investigation has a new lead: Yuga Aoyama. It appears that the boy was found in a hospital in a similar situation that Nine and All for One's previous victims. While it may be a relief to find out the boy is not dead, or worse, Fridge Horror kicks in when you remember that All for One made very clear his family would pay for his failure, and how he will react when he finds out about it.
While Kaminari accidentally stunning down most of the contenders from the second event is not something that we spent much time on, that doesn't change the fact that the poor boy electrocuted nearly 15 people unconscious. If the boy unleashed something stronger with less control, so many people could have gotten hurt in worse ways.
Shoto expresses an unsettling level of Lack of Empathy after Izuku and Ochako crash into the ground. This becomes worse when he mentions that is a trait that he got from his brother Toya. Clearly, the eldest Todoroki behaves an awful lot like Sociopathic Hero for someone who went through a case of Adaptational Heroism, raising the question if Toya is actually that different from his villain canon self.
Apparently, the Hero Commission is not behind the Hero Killer. That doesn't mean they are any clean, however. Much to the contrary. In fact, the serial killer presents himself as such a threat to them, that they are willing to pull Lady Nagant out of prison in order to eliminate his threat. There is also the reveal, straight from the current Commission President, Kanshi Shiryoku, that any person who attempted to investigate Nagant's fake backstory about her imprisonment has been killed. And that has been happening for over a decade.
There is also the overall... disturbing feeling that Kanshi gives off. The fact that she is an Expy of Makima from Chainsaw Man, who herself is a very disturbing character on so many levels, only worsens this feeling.
Once again to amp up the feeling of creepiness that Kanshi gives off there is this line of her inner monologue while watching Nagant (clearly concerned about Ochako's well-being) during the Sports Festival: "The only time she had really done something other than sitting there like a good little dog was during the last match [...]". Anybody remotely familiar with Makima and her... affinity for dogs can't help but fear for Nagant's safety with someone like that controlling her life.
Chapter 32 sheds some light on the situation of how many villains the heroes will have to face in the future, and if you thought the PLF looked bad when it formed, this is even worse.
According to the Vigilantes, there is a secret cabal of major villain organizations called "The Inner Circle" that is operating in Japan and outside of it. As we find at the end of the chapter, said cabal is composed of All for One, Humarise, and soon, the Meta Liberation Army. And those are just the villains we are aware of.
Speaking of reveals made by the Vigilantes, there are also some insights into All for One's agenda regarding Nine and the Consortium. Apparently, All for One is building a machine that will allow a human body to receive as many Quirks as possible without the host going braindead and said machine is nearly complete. The mastermind, however, does not intend to use Nine as a host and is still in search of his proper vessel. So far no idea who this person might be, but if a healthy yet aged All for One is something to fear, a healthy and undoubtedly younger All for One is somehow even more dreadful (as the current manga can attest).
Ever since his introduction in the story, there isn't a single person, both in and out of it, that is not ticked off by Daikoku Yaoyorozu's personality, from being an Abusive Parent capable of making Endeavor and Kotaro Shimura look "not so bad by comparison" to his overall Manipulative Bastard act, everyone knows there is something profoundly wrong with the Yaoyorozu patriarch and now we find out why: The man is truly a villain, not only a key figure in the Inner Circle and good friends with Re-Destro but also acting as the middle man between All for One and the MLA. He even acquires a component for All for One's machine from Re-Destro and is going to arrange a meeting between the two villains to strengthen their alliance, which is already bad enough on its own terms but now is even worse.
Daikoku then proceeds to show his true colors (literally, if you pay enough attention) in his second Establishing Character Moment. Skip and Jin capture vigilante Rapt Tokage, who was sent by Leader to investigate the Yaoyorozu Corp., and then Daikoku attempts to bargain with the man in order to find out who he is working with. When Rapt spitefully refuses, Daikoku calmly drops his Affably Evil façade and decides to deal with him personally.
As Daikoku puts the mask on, Rapt believes his guard's down and tries to attack... only for the attack to reflect at him. And then we get The Reveal. From the description, to the Quirk and finally, his explanation about his backstory, we find that Daikoku Yaoyorozu, one of the most influential and powerful men in Japan and possibly the whole world, is none other than Flect Turn, the supposedly imprisoned leader of Humarise. This sheds a whole new light on how deep the Inner Circle and Humarise power goes. This villain conspiracy has officially reached nightmarish levels.
His explanation to Rapt over how his Quirk works is nothing more than a display of sadism.
Daikoku/Flect: This quirk, has other capabilities. You see, I can also store anything I perceive as an attack inside me to reflect later, rather than immediately. And I have a small habit of … well, it's strange, but I have a habit of occasionally allowing others to touch me. A slap on the back, a small punch to the chest, a handshake, a hug from my wife … all of that gets stored up over time. Rapt: W-wait a minute … Daikoku/Flect: And, of course, I'll eventually need to reflect it. And this mask helps me focus where on my body I want to reflect the stored up energy. For example… through my hands. Rapt: You - you can't just - Daikoku/Flect: I can't? (smirks) Oh, Mr. Tokage, I believe you said it best. I can do whatever I want.
Flect then decides to end Rapt's suffering right then and there and uses his stocked-up energy from God knows how long to crush Rapt's skull in the most excruciating way possible. Skip/Rody can't bear to look at it, while Jin just stands and watches to whole thing emotionessly. And then Daikoku orders them to make Rapt's death look like a suicide and get the car ready so he can pick up Momo and Yukiri at the Festival. The author really spared no expenses to introduce one of the vilest monsters of the story so far.
The commercial that aired during Daikoku and Re-Destro's meeting, which looking back, is a chilling bit of foreshadowing. The last bit actually plays at the end of the chapter, as Daikoku orders his men to dispose of Rapt and find who he worked for:
Commercial: - and with you, our future is bright, Yaoyorozu Corporations - reflecting the future onto you.
The Paranoia Fuel and overall Realism-Induced Horror of Momo's (and quite frankly, anyone close enough to her like Kyoka and Shoto) situation. One thing is being stuck at a house with an Abusive Parent, the other is this plus the fact that said parent is a sociopathic mastermind willing to stop at nothing to achieve his will. If the poor girl's situation before, now it's the stuff of nightmares are made of.
Chapter 33:
A minor one during Nine's talk with Garaki. While reflecting on how he will soon make his wishes come true, Nine suddenly hears All for One's voice saying that soon he will be the next Demon Lord. He looks up and sees All for One, bearing his deformed canon appearance floating over him like a genie and promising that soon he will have answers about his past. The parallels between this and Demonic Possession are chilling.
Any doubts about whether or not Toya is a good person are officially thrown off the window in two casual lines of dialogue during different points of this chapter. First by Nine, who is revealed to be one of the children that grew up in All for One's orphanages, where the villain most likely picks possible henchmen or test subjects. Nine mentions that the orphanage where he lived was burned to the ground, and it doesn't take a genius to understand that it was Toya, much like he did in canon after waking from his coma and burning a building filled with kids around his age to ash with zero regard for their lives. The second instance happens during the last match of the Sports Festival, when Shoto, who is ready to bury Itsuka and Nejire under a mountain of ice if it means getting his victory, gets called out by Momo over his disregard for other people's lives, asking why if he really wants to emulate "the idiot who constantly burns people and then winks at the cameras as though that would make it alright". It's clear that with the Hero Commission to back him up and clean up his messes, Toya is even more of a monster than in canon.
Speaking of Hero Commission, you would think they probably wouldn't get any lower on their matter of villainy. You are wrong. Kanshi is clearly good friends with Yukiri Yaoyorozu, which can only mean one thing: The HPSC is part of the Inner Circle. The agency that is supposed to regulate and control heroics is part of a giant villain conspiracy that controls both sides of hero society. And that's not all, according to Kanshi, they are also backing up a man who is the self-proclaimed "Future Prime Minister of Japan", and considering how much control they have over society, this victory is pretty much certain. Of course, if you think this is bad, wait until you find out who is the candidate...
A retroactive example: In the previous chapter, Nezu mentioned that the Hero Commission currently controls all major hero schools in Japan (Ketsubutsu, Isamu, Seijin, Seiai) except for U.A. and Shiketsu. Just think about: Thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands of students from those schools combined, all of them possible recruits for the Inner Circle, ready to be molded into ruthless and uncaring henchmen, just waiting to receive authority and orders to enact them. The Inner Circle already has an army at their disposal, just waiting to comply, and if Daikoku's words are anything to go by, they will stop at nothing to control U.A. as well.
After winning their match, Itsuka, Nejire, Shoto, and Momo make their way to see Recovery Girl, only to be stopped in the hallway by a man. He is described as a giant, towering over the four teenagers together and congratulating them on their victory. He casually mentions that he is an associate of Daikoku Yaoyorozu (this alone is already a major red flag) and once he and Itsuka make eye contact, she feels a shiver down her spine. One Wham Line later, and we find out why:
Mugen/All for One: My name, is Mugen Shigaraki. Future prime minister of Japan.
The fact that the Symbol of Evil, Japan's Greatest Villain, The Devil Incarnate is inside of U.A. and no one other than these four students, who have no idea of who the monster in front of them is, and the Inner Circle members like Kanshi and Yukiri are aware is bone-chilling enough. All Might is completely unaware that his hated (and worst of all, healthy) nemesis is "amicably" talking with his students and successor, not even a couple of meters away from him. What really sells out the horror is all the horrible things All for One can do, but simply won't because it's both too early to enact his plans and because it is a lot funnier just to mess with his future victims like this.
Fridge Horror: Just imagine how the Vestiges are freaking out by seeing their killer and arch-nemesis not only alive but in full strength and health. It's clear that the chill down the spine that Itsuka feels is the closest thing they can do to activate Danger Sense and warn her to stay the hell away from this monster. Sure thing, at the beginning of the following chapter, Itsuka starts to feel a sense of dread and a sharp pain inside her head, meaning the Vestiges are desperately trying to activate Danger Sense, but since One for All hasn't reached Singularity yet, she doesn't know what exactly this feeling is. Akin to being inside of a soundproof room while people next door have a speaker blasting at full volume.
Chapter 34:
Picking from where we left off, Mugen proceeds to introduce himself and explains what his goals for politics are. His party's main goal is to provide Heroes with more power and authority than they already have. Example: Pro Heroes can only work with the police force, not properly lead them - they have the responsibility of apprehending and de-escalating villains, but they're not allowed to arrest them or incarcerate them - just standing aside so that the police can come in and make the arrest. That itself already sounds like a troublesome idea, if Real LifePolice Brutality cases are anything to go by, but once you remember that Hero Commission is already at the hands of All for One, you realize that his main goal is to give Inner Circle agents, posing as heroes, complete and absolute control over any situation. If Toya's case serves as any indication, Pro Heroes will become judge, jury, and executioners for this new regime. It will be a reign of terror to rival, maybe even surpass All for One's original one back at the Dawn of Quirks.
Mugen decides to cut their conversation short and leaves just as All Might arrives to take the kids to the awards ceremony. All Might doesn't catch his nemesis in time, but it's very clear he felt All for One's horrible presence and nearly had a freak out over it. Unknown to him or the students, the villain managed to escape using some kind of Blob Monster Quirk that allowed him to slip through the sewers. Once again, All for One could have caused so much damage but chose not to simply because it's way more amusing to play with his targets.
You can't help but dread Momo's situation whenever Daikoku is around. The man is an incredibly convincing bastard, fooling all the kids' parents with an honorable and nice man persona. Keep in mind, this is the same man who crushed another man's head with his bare hands not even two or three hours earlier. It's also clear that Yukiri is not as complicit to her husband's actions as it previously sounded, given how she flinches whenever Daikoku touches her.
Teko's POV puts a very realistic light on the jarring nature of the Sports Festival, which points out how screwed up the event is.
Teko: He had seen much today - students fighting each other, harming each other, getting shot by cannons and thrown down dark holes, fighting out in the forest surrounding them, fighting in an arena as though they were in some kind of death match that the crowds could cheer on. He had seen both Izuku and Ochako being injured, the teachers acting as though they were suddenly responsible even after purposely setting things up so that they would get injured. He had seen his own granddaughter be trapped in an ice prison, come out bloody and wounded with weird lightning flickering around her, and then just … awarded medals at the end, like nothing of consequence had really happened.
Teko's inner monologue also reveals a jaw-dropping piece of information: Before living in Musutafu, he resided in Jed'ha Island, the very place where All for One killed Nana. The Kendo Family patriarch seems to be more connected with the secret of One for All than he or anyone else can imagine. He arrives at home to find his oldest son, Rappa, waiting for him. Teko is not happy with him ignoring his order to not show up unless he wishes to complete his lessons but soon finds himself surrounded by Overhaul and his lieutenants, who claim to have information about the Villain Consortium. All of them were oblivious to the fact that Bubble Girl was spying on them and caught their interaction on camera, obviously to report it to Nighteye. The family secret seems to be closer than ever to being exposed.
Overhaul mentions that has been ages since he went inside Teko's dojo. There is a good chance the misanthropic sociopath has been trained by the old master and is far more skilled than just over-relying on his Quirk. As if the students needed even more reasons to worry about him. Painfully confirmed in the following chapter, where it's revealed he was trained from a young age by Teko himself, making himself even more dangerous than he already is.
Fridge Horror: Pray that none of Eri's toys were left around the house, because if Overhaul or one of his cronies catches up to it, no matter how close Teko was to the Boss, not even he or his family will be spared of his wrath.
More Fridge Horror: Nighteye already disapproves of Itsuka as a bearer of One For All. What if he suspects she isn't ignorant of her grandfather's obvious Yakuza ties?
Back in Chapter 31, Nine ordered Slice to locate someone from their past. She was not happy with it but went along anyway. This chapter reveals exactly who it is. Slice reveals the person is currently hiding in her old home, and despite not wanting to, she goes there to pick them up. Who is this person? Her father, Moonfish. She arrives just in time to see him having a... "late-night snack" to put it mildly. He is halfway through eating a person and is about to eat a traumatized teenager when Slice arrives and lets the kid go. She then picks her father up and promises to give him all the fresh flesh he wants if he follows her. As if the Consortium needed more wild cards besides Hood/Muscular.
Can you imagine the sheer horror that must have been her childhood? Slice grew up witnessing this kind of scene, if her line about how "he took his food to eat upstairs."
Chapter 35:
Overhaul briefs Teko, (and the readers) about the backstory of some members of the Consortium, such as Slice (which was revealed as above), Mummy, and Camie.
Mummy is the last survivor of the Abegawa Tenchu Gang, who instead of being killed by Stendhal, were killed by Teko in this story. Really shows that back in the day, Teko was a One-Man Army, and there is a good reason that he should be feared. After all, he did co-founded the Shie Hassaikai.
Camie's backstory is arguably scarier. What is she wanted for? Mind Rape. Apparently, Camie used her Quirk against her classmates back in the day, and messed their minds so badly, that they are still in a psych ward, unable to tell reality from illusions. Whether she did it out of self-defense or For the Evulz, it's unclear. With this little tidbit of information, Camie officially joins the likes of Scarecrow and Mysterio on the reasons why a terrible idea to have a Master of Illusion on the villains' side.
Once Overhaul makes clear that he might actually join the Consortium instead of hunting them down for the sake of Teko's revenge, the old master attempts to take control of the situation and exert authority. This proves to be a horrible mistake. Faster than anyone can see, Overhaul takes off his glove and uses Quirk to kill Rappa, reducing the man to Ludicrous Gibs in front of a shocked Teko. And with the same ease, Chisaki brings him back to life to drive the point home. Teko is no longer in charge, and if he tries something like this again, it will end up bloody. What's even worse is the fact that Teko is now indebted to the Shie Hassaikai, and Overhaul will be dropping by to check on him and Tenohira (whom he was promised to marry before she and her father left). In a single stroke, not only did Teko bring his family back to the Yakuza, but he also put the Kendos and anyone from their large circle of friends on the line of a very dangerous and ruthless sociopath. And of course, if things are bad now, they will get even worse when Overhaul finds out that Eri was living with them this entire time.
Despite his meeting with the MLA going awry, Nine still manages to secure an ally with Curious, who seems way more interested in following his leadership than Re-Destro. She mentions having control over 200 Liberation soldiers and offers her services as a journalist to target anyone Nine has it out for, and of course, being the petty bastard he is, Nine immediately puts a target on Izuku's back. Curious is about to dig up old wounds and will likely drag anyone close to Izuku through the mud just for the sake of Nine's grudge, as if the poor boy hasn't suffered enough yet.
The Hero Commission/Inner Circle attempts to ambush the Vigilantes at the airport while they are trying to bring Knuckleduster and Soga back to the country and it goes bad. We never see the botched attack on page, but we do see the end result: The airport's lobby was left in shambles. Splashes of blood were over on one wall while several shaking citizens were being comforted by the police, having taken them over to the seats near the luggage pickup to try and calm them down and ask them what they had witnessed. Several of the windows were smashed through with the Beros' projectiles, with crunches underneath Hawks' boots. Outside, ambulances flashed as several people were looked over by the paramedics, with injuries ranging from glass sticking out of their arms from the shots and general concussions, but no one had died, fortunately. Although eighteen people got close too. How did it happen? Beros just opened fire against the crowd once she spotted the Vigilantes, and the only reason no one died is because she was too busy going after Twice and his clones and got distracted. What's even worse is the fact that officially, Beros is a Pro Hero. We knew the Inner Circle had agents everywhere, but to see a Professional Killer walking around with a Hero License is a whole new level of horror. And if All for One's plans go the way he wishes so, situations like this will happen all the time. She also mentions that Wolfram and his crew were brought in by Kanshi to help hunt them down, so more trouble to look forward to.
Chapter 36: We finally find out the fate of the Aoyamas. Two days after the Entrance Exam (which Yuga failed) the entire family was found by their neighbors in their living room, completely catatonic. Yuga and his father are pretty much braindead while his mother can only lash out whenever someone questions her about her son. Gran Torino compares their state to when he, Nana, and All Might first started to investigate All for One, coming across people who had multiple Quirks shoved onto them at once. Yuga's expression is both scary and heartbreaking at the same time, he is just staring blankly up at the ceiling while having tubes connected to his not moving at all, but the way his face and eyes bulge in their sockets, looking manic yet blank at the same time. Whatever All for One did to him was excruciating, and it's clear he is still feeling it.
Chapter 37: Despite being a Breather Episode for the most part, some details take away the lightheartedness from it.
As the party reaches its end and everyone starts to pack their things to go home, we get a shot of someone watching the kids from a distance... and it's Camie, who has been hiding under an illusion and watching the classes the entire day. No doubt so she can keep an eye on both the traitor as well her hero crushes. This girl really takes Paranoia Fuel to a scary new level.
More details about the Hero Killer's attack against Tensei surface. The Hero Killer didn't just cut down his spine, they stabbed Tensei multiple times just to make sure. It's a miracle Tensei is still alive after it. And there is still no official confirmation whether or not Stendhal is the Hero Killer, working with them or not. Whether this is the case, the Commission already decided to eliminate him just in case and if he is innocent, just add him to the pile of victims from the serial killer. They already got Wolfram, his mercenaries, Beros, and all the HPSC agents hidden amongst the Task Force heroes ready to take Stendhal and the Hero Killer by the time the hunt in Hosu officially begins.
Speaking of Hosu, All for One and Kanshi also seem to have their own plans for the city during the Hero Killer Hunt: With so many Heroes such as Endeavor, Ryukyu, Mirko, and whoever is amongst the Task Force joining them, plus their interns and sidekicks, the Inner Circle leaders decide to use the city as a testing ground. For what? The High-End Nomu. Remember how much trouble those monsters caused during the hospital fight? Those were just six of them, who had barely been awakened. This time, they will be fully active and ready to engage any hero that crosses their path, and it's unlikely it will be only six of them. Think of the destruction in Hosu from canon, mix it with the chaos from Endeavor's fight against Hood, and multiply it. Hosu is going to become a war zone, and that's the best-case scenario. And once that test has been concluded, All for One will turn his attention to the "Vessel Project", whoever it is.
As for the Hero Commission, we finally find out more about Kanshi's true identity. The new Commission President and Inner Circle High general is none other than Saiko Intelli. That's right, one of the key figures of the most powerful villain organization in the world is a woman with an intelligence Quirk that can equal or even surpass Nezu. But the bad news doesn't end there. We find out Kanshi/Intelli is also related to someone very close to the first-year students: Neito Monoma, who of course, didn't take his loss at Itsuka and Nejire's hands well at all, and decides to entertain his half-sister by telling her everything about the two students, as well as anyone else on his bad side. It's bad enough for the kids to have a traitor (who at the very least seems to be forced to act as such by All for One) hidden amongst them, but having petty and spiteful manchild like Monoma targeting them deliberately? Things are set to become even worse for the students.
Fridge Horror: What if Monoma decides to bring more people to help with his spiteful smear campaign against Class 1-A and whoever from Class 1-B that stands against him? Shinso is a prime candidate.
Chapter 38 features a Mood Whiplash at its finest. At one moment, we have a quite wholesome and funny interaction between the Squad and their newest member, Shoto, making plans to help him find his mother and support him with the situation about Endeavor. The scene then cuts to All for One, or rather "Mugen Shigaraki", live on TV, announcing his campaign for Prime Minister. All Might is obviously pissed beyond reason, and only Gran Torino's reasoning prevents him from going to Tokyo and repeating what happened at Endor Forest. The worst part is how easily All for One manages to sway people to his side, thanks mostly to his Metaphorically True backstory: He grew up in a time before All Might, never met his mother, lost his brother at a young age, you know, the typical sob story that makes someone relatable and the public loves, which means he has a great chance of winning the election. Nezu advises them to be cautious and believes that due to his newfound good publicity, All for One will have to tread lightly in his next actions, so for the time being, both sides are in a stalemate. Of course, readers know better, the next move is already set to happen, at Hosu, where so many students and heroes will be caught in the crossfire. And to make things even worse, Nighteye decides to double down on his position about Mirio and One for All, so much that by the end of the chapter, he goes behind All Might's back and reveals the truth to his student, if only to prove the point about him being right. The heroes are already in a very bad situation with All for One and the Inner Circle making their moves, but Nighteye's arrogance is set to make things even worse for them and better for the villains.
How far goes All for One's pettiness? The name of his political party is "The Yoichi Party". He named the party he would use as a front for his criminal activities after the brother he killed, just to spite him and his successors.
Chapter 39: More details about All for One and the Inner Circle's agenda come to light.
Forty years before the events of the story, All for One got his hands on a precognition Quirk that allowed him to foresee five different futures, one of which could become reality. To his annoyance, however, all the five futures he foresaw ended with his defeat and death, so the villain mastermind started to take measures to ensure his victory, which led to the formation of the Inner Circle. All for One then explains more about the Circle's plan to Take Over the World. In the upcoming weeks, starting with Hosu, the High Ends will be unleashed throughout Japan, souring chaos to destabilize society, using the Villain Consortium as their scapegoats, while the Hero Commission will tighten their grip over the public, Detnerat will supply them with support items and weapons to keep them safe, and Humarise will use the public's disillusion with heroes to recruit more people into their ranks. Driven to despair and with their faith in heroes destroyed, the people will turn to the one man they believe will save them: Mugen Shigaraki.
Once Nine leaves to prepare his forces for the upcoming operation, Garaki comments with All for One how he conveniently left certain details about their agenda off. Once the Inner Circle's empire has been secured, Flect Turn will have Europe, Intelli will take over North America while All for One rules Japan as the capital of their empire. Of course, Mugen is more than aware that the High Generals are just waiting for the right opportunity to betray each other and take control of it for themselves (as Nine points out, they are a bunch of cutthroats and backstabbers), but All for One has no problem letting his lieutenants fight and destroy each other, since by the time victory has been achieved, his Vessel will be complete, and he will be the one to control them all. Given that when such a thing happens Mugen will be as, if not more powerful than he was in his prime, it's justified for him to think so.
The chapter ends with what is arguably one of the most nauseating and horrifying scenes so far. All for One and Garaki check on Hood, who just went through several upgrades and is likely as powerful as he was during his fight against Endeavor, and then All for One uses Forcible Quirk Activation on the High End and then...
Looking back down at the High-End, they watched as blood shot out of the beast like a geyser, drenching the floor and splashing the front of All For One's white button-up shirt, but to their pleasure, the skin of the beast began to ripple, and change. The hooded man's true face poked out from under its hood of black skin, showing the exposed brain, yellow insane eyes, and jagged teeth as the creature clawed at himself again, shrieking in agony as it rose up to its knees and roared at the ceiling - - and then, from under the hood of black skin that made up its head, came several strands of pink fiber muscles. All For One and Garaki watched in curiosity as the muscles spread across the High-End as he fell and thrashed around the ground, bones crunching and blood splashing against the floor as its body began to shrink down. Its hunchbacked spine crunched as it forced itself back down to the normal human curve, the clawed hands shrank down and the nails shrank, and from the exposed brain that made up the creature's head, blonde hair began to grow out, and the pink fibres slowly allowed skin to crawl out from it. Its inhuman growls slowly quieted down into low, agonized grunts, until finally, the transformation was complete. And laying there on the floor, naked and sprawled out on the floor, was a large man, who slowly moved to roll onto his hands and knees and breathing heavily through his nose and mouth.
That's right. Hood can shift back into his "human" form as Muscular, who despite the excruciating pain from the transformation, is relishing with his new power, and ready to cause a bloodbath. And keep in mind, that's just one High End. There are several of these monsters have the same shapeshifting that can just be dropped anywhere amongst a crowd and with a snap of fingers, become abominations capable of slaughtering people by the dozens and even take on Top Heroes. The chaos the Inner Circle is ready to unleash will be near-apocalyptic.
Chapter 40:
During his call to Melissa, David mentions that Sam has already left I-Island and has currently found work in a support company... in Otheon. You know, Otheon, the very same country where Flect Turn and Humarise use as their base of operation. And it doesn't take a genius to figure out that the company that hired him is more certainly Yaoyorozu Corps., which means now the Inner Circle has a greedy and spiteful genius who worked on several top-secret projects for I-Island, including the Power Amplifier, working for them. And not only, there is a high chance Sam could his knowledge to help All for One to finish his machine earlier than expected, which could make things even worse for the good guys' side.
Kanshi reveals her true character in this chapter and it's about as disturbing as you could expect. Ochako calls Nagant to intern with her and get some answers about why her biological mother abandoned her, but Kaina shuts her down quickly, hoping that if she pushes Ochako away, she won't get herself in trouble with the Commission. It's all for nothing, unfortunately, because Iguchi hears their argument and hands the phone to Kanshi, who in an especially petty move, convinces Ochako not only to intern with Nagant but also work for the HPSC after graduation, much to Kaina's horror. What really sells how much of a monster Kanshi is, is the morbid delight she expresses during the whole ordeal. She keeps a very friendly, almost mentor-like, attitude towards Ochako during their talk, and once it's over, she is ecstatic over the prospect of making Kaina's daughter go through the exact same suffering she went through, her smirk growing more psychotic as she keeps getting under the former hero's skin. Nagant attempts to threaten her at gunpoint, only for Kanshi to shut her down by pointing out that even if she kills her and Iguchi, the Commission will simply toss her back on Tartarus and have another of their agents, like Hawks, Sol, or Yoroi Musha to take the girl under their wing. Intelli then gives her an ultimatum, and when the assassin refuses to give her a straight answer, for the first time during their talk, her sadistic playful demeanor becomes of cold fury.
Kanshi: Which one, Nagant? Answer me. Prison, or mentoring your daughter - which do you want? (Beat) Answer me. Now. Kaina: … mentor her. Kanshi, smilling again: There you go, good girl. You had me worried for a moment that you were seriously considering your answer - I'd have thought you would have agreed to mentor your daughter at once. Maybe that's the real reason why you left her - you just didn't love her enough to stay. Now then, she'll be your intern for the hero work program, and you'll make sure that she agrees to sign paperwork by the end that says that she'll begin working for us after school. Kaina: No, no, I - I won't do it. Kanshi: You really don't have a choice in the matter. If I say bark, you'll bark. If I say jump, you'll jump. And if I say that you'll get your daughter to work with us … you'll do your damndest to do so. And if you don't, then I'll just have to lean on her other parents.
Nagant's overall situation is both horrifying and heartbreaking for anyone, but especially for a parent, being completely helpless as your kid is about to fall over the exact trap that ruined your life and there is nothing you can do about it.
The chapter ends in a rather shocking turn as Mirio, alongside Nighteye, shows up at Itsuka's house, and Mirio is the one ordering her to give up One for All or he will take it from her by force. It's not completely clear if Mirio is completely on board with Nighteye's manipulations, but the thought of someone like Mirio falling for his mentor's whims is both haunting and depressing.
Chapter 41:
The chapter starts off with Oboro's POV right after he is brought back to life. Apparently, Garaki was using him as a test subject for when All for One meets his eventual demise at the hands of All Might, so he just healed Oboro's most life-threatening injuries like fixing his skull and making a blood transfusion. Once it seems to have worked, All for One takes back the original version of Hyper Regeneration for Oboro to heal in the old-fashioned way, because they don't have copies of the Quirk. That is just a petty move for the sake of it, because healing from a goddamn crushed building will be an excruciating and long process, and as soon as Oboro wakes up, he nearly passes out from the pain over again.
As it turns out, thanks to learning about the future, All for One learned that Izuku was supposed to become the Ninth Wielder of One for All and sent Garaki to keep an eye out on the kid, but not just because he will become his enemy's apprentice. Oh, no. It's for an even more horrifying reason:
Garaki: He's … well, I'll say that he's relatively a normal baby boy. But I'll continue to keep an eye on him - there must be some reason that All Might chooses him as his successor, if your visions were correct. All for One: Excellent, Doctor … our plans will be continuing to go forward, then. If All Might is to choose this boy as his successor, it would serve me well to choose him as my successor as well! He would make a fitting Vessel, would he not?
Izuku is the Vessel. It was bad enough having All for One on the trio's tail because Itsuka has One for All, but the villain mastermind wants Izuku as his personal Soul Jar. Once again, it is just another move to spite All Might, once that surpasses even corrupting Tenko into villainy to ruin Nana's legacy in terms of cruelty and pettiness. Speaking of Tenko, going by the popular (and as of Chapter 419 of the manga, painfully confirmed) theory that All for One gave Decay to him, does that mean he always intended to use Izuku as his new body and was going to leave Tenko to die in the streets after indirectly causing his family's death, or All Might truly saved him before the villain could find and corrupt the boy into evil?
Given the extreme lenghts All for One went through both in canon and on this story to spite the One for All users he hated the most like Nana and All Might, the first option seems to be more plausible. He most likely never intended to make Tenko his apprentice/vessel and nearly just ruined his life beyond repair because he could.
Oboro mentions that Atsushiro Sako/Mr. Compress was the one to help him escape his fate of becoming Kurogiri, but he never made out of Garaki's lab. This leaves the high implication that Compress was the one to take his fate and became the warp villain, which is both horrifying and heartbreaking.
While thankfully it turned out to be a Secret Test of Character to Itsuka and a ruse to fool Nighteye, Mirio's demeanor at the beginning of the chapter really made some think he just bought his mentor's crap and was willing to beat Itsuka and take One for All from her by force.
For the Heroics exercise, Class 1-A receives the students from Isamu Academy, and here we get a first look at what the students from an HPSC-controlled school look like in the form of Romero Fujimi. While the rest of his classmates are courteous, Fujimi is nothing but a condescending douchebag, and it gets even worse by the time the exercise happens; he starts acting completely fanatical, ranting about the greatness of the Hero Commission and gladly infecting anyone with his Zombie Quirk. Not only that, Monoma enlists him and his other classmates (minus Habuko who is not a Commission agent) to go after the main trio, plus the whole exercise was training for him to properly use his Quirk, which can only spell disaster for the heroes when it happens.
Fujimi, and later All for One's Vestige, mention something called "Day of Genesis", which according to Monoma and the supervillain will be when the Inner Circle's Evil Plan will come to fruition. A rather Ironic Name, because despite being called Genesis, this event is setting itself to be apocalyptic.
Monoma's involvement in this plan raises a horrifying idea in addition to painting a grim picture of the future. The former is that, with All For One having dealt with Aoyama for failing to get into U.A., and with his relation to a leading member in the villain conspiracy, Monoma could very well be the traitor in this story, and if his attitude here is anything to go by, he is more than willing to act with malicious intent toward at least 1-A if he is acting on All for One's orders. And if his thoughts on the "Day of Genesis" indicate anything, the HPSC fully intends to wrest full control over U.A. from Nezu and turn it into another HPSC-controlled school, wanting to turn its students into more people like Fujimi at the very least.
Curious is still writing the article to slander Izuku, which she plans to release once Izuku becomes the center of attention again, just to ruin any good fame he wins eventually.
Chapter 42:
We find out who was the MLA leader killed off-page in the previous chapter: Re-Destro. And his killer was none other than the Hero Killer himself, who managed to infiltrate Deika City and engage the MLA Commander in combat (even if Re-Destro wasn't wearing his Claustro Powered Armor) before brutally murdering him with brutal stab wounds to make sure he wouldn't survive. Whether this is a statement that Re-Destro is nowhere as powerful as he loved to present himself as, or that the Hero Killer is even more dangerous than his canon self, there is no denial that the serial killer is a formidable enemy, and will present themselves as a nightmare for the students to deal with during the Hosu arc, on top of all the struggle they will face when the High Ends attack. And of course, Re-Destro's death opens way for Curious seize control of the MLA for herself and Nine.
Trumpet mentions that the "Genesis Machine" has been shipped off country, most likely to Otheon where it will be assembled and allow the Inner Circle's plans to move faster.
You can't help but feel scared for Kyoka during her visit to Momo's place, especially when Daikoku is around. While the man makes a good job hiding his true nature, you can see his mask of kindhearted man slipping off, like when he recalls the events of the Humarise arc (which happened two years before canon) and Kyoka is quick notice his eyes getting cold, he clearly doesn't like being reminded of having his plans ruined, especially by a first year student. It's also revealed that Rody's father, Edward Soul, was used as a scapegoat for the attacks and he died when the Humarise mansion collapsed after his fight against Mirio, which means Rody is not only working for Daikoku to provide for his family, but also as a way to pay back for his father's failure, as if the kid needed more trauma. As Kyoka leaves the house, she spots an unmasked Beros (who has a nasty Glasgow Grin under her mask) talking to Daikoku, most likely about Re-Destro's death, and for the first time, the young girl gets a glimpse of the patriarch's true nature.
Fridge Horror: Daikoku doesn't seem the kind of man to let go a grudge. What are the odds he will go after Mirio to get revenge for the boy's interference with his plans?
A couple of chapters ago, Ms. Joke mentioned a couple of villins pretending to be students from Shiketsu operating around Musutafu. We knew Camie is one of them, and now we find out who are the others: Inasa Yoarashi and Seiji Shishikura and much like Camie, they really fell off slippery slope.
Inasa's grudge against Endeavor has reached a new level of insanity, as it turns out he didn't simply refused to join U.A. because of Shoto's cold personality, but because he wouldn't be capable of holding back his urge to kill him. What in the everloving hell Endeavor did to this guy make him this pissed?
Not much is known about Shishikura's reason, but Camie mentions something related to daddy issues. Given the fact his father is a strict by the rules guard from Tartarus, it doesn't pay a good picture. He is introduced casually cleaning off blood off his costume, and given how his Quirk works, this guy has become walking Nightmare Fuel.
We already knew Camie's stealth skills are good, but she officially makes them unnerving during her talk with Chimera and the rest of her crew. How? She was inside U.A. the whole time during the past chapter. That's right, she is keeping a close eye on all the students (especially the current and future members of the Clover polycule), even inside the supposedly safest place in the country. She also found a secret way to infiltrate the school via the garage on the other side of the campus, which will no doubt be exploited in the future, most likely during the Training Camp arc.
Many readers have been wondering what has happened to drive Camie to villainy, and the answer is truly horrible: During her internal monologue, Camie mentions how she is simply manipulating the other two members of the Shiketsu trio in order to get access to someone with All for One, but this time, things will go her way. She then proceeds to dispose an illusion over her eye that reveals the truth: Her left eye is gone and from the hole inside of it bees start to crawl out. Camie is the new Queen Bee. Nezu already mentioned back in Chapter 12 that the infamous villain has survived her canonical death after being removed from Kazuho and was currently locked on Tartarus, but Kuin mentions the false Queen Bee is a weaker version of her. It was bad enough to have psycopath with incredible infiltration skills lurking around the characters, but someone as deranged as Kuin Hachisuka obsessed with them is incredibly is non-stop Paranoia Fuel.
Fridge Horror: There is a good chance that the real Camie is trapped somewhere inside her mind. Just imagine the poor girl's horror watching that monster using her face to commit countless atrocities, not to mention forcing her to watch her mother's pleas for help on TV and being unable to do anything.
Chapter 43: Tenya is still blinded by his rage and wanting revenge against the Hero Killer, but things are arguably worse here. How? He is working alongside Stendhal. It still not clear whether Akaguro is working with the serial or is actually hunting them down, but given his outright scornful look when he meets with Tenya, this leaves two possibilities: Stendhal is either waiting for the right time strike against Tenya, or he is going to use him as bait for the Hero Killer. Either way, Tenya's situation became way more dangerous than in canon not just for himself, but also to Yui, who went to Hosu trying to dissuade her crush from going on a warpath.
Chapter 44:
The meeting between the Consortium and the Shie Hassaikai ends up even bloodier than canon. When Teko attempts to kill Nine once the villain leader realizes he nearly his grandaughter during the USJ attack, Mummy steps in and tries to kill Teko, recognizing him as the one who killed his clan. At first it seems like Mummy has him on the ropes, only for Nine and the others realize too late that is the other way around. Faster than anyone in the room can see, Teko breaks free from his bindings and punches Mummy in the face so hard, his head is ripped off his neck. The situation then becomes an all out brawl, that ends with Overhaul blowing up Bearhead's leg and Nine crushing Rikiya Katsukame with his Air Wall Quirk, and the death is incredibly slow and painful, leaving nothing but a pool of blood behind. After Overhaul leaves, Nine contacts Curious and tells her to get Trumpet to investigate Overhaul as part of a Xanatos Gambit: Either the MLA ends killing the Yakuza, or Overhaul kills the lieutenants that are not gonna be loyal to him, whichever happens, Nine gets rid of competiton. And finally, Nine realizes that Itsuka is related to Teko, which means now he knows exactly who to target to get revenge against the former vigilante.
Stendhal's behaviour around Tenya. Even if he is not the Hero Killer, you can see his canon self personality slipping through it, especially on how he goes on his rants about true heroes and materialism. There is also the confirmation that if he fails to lure the Hero Killer out by "conventional" means, he intends to use other heroes as bait to do so. Manual seems to be on top of the list, given Stendhal's disgust towards him, which means Yui could get caught in the crossfire of Tenya's revenge quest. That is not counting how Tenya himself is not safe from being used by the hunter.
We get a small POV moment from Hood near the end of the chapter. It's very unsettling to see how much of a bloodlust monster he is, and keep in mind, he was like this even when he was just Muscular, if anything the aditional Quirks only made slightly more unhinged. And he is still out for Izuku's blood when the time comes.
By the end of the chapter, Nine makes very clear he is tired of not being taken seriously by the heroes or other villains, so he gets new orders out. Since Volcano and Gast Boy made very clear they can't be relied on after the fiasco with the Shie Hassaikai, Nine orders Chimera to give them all the Trigger they want and make sure they won't wake up after it wears off. Between a Magma Man and guy capable of unleashing powerful wind blasts overdosed on Trigger, not mention three Nomus and Hood loose on the streets, you gotta wonder if there is there gonna anything but a smoking crater of Hosu by the time the attack is over.
A subtle one, but Nine once again manipulating Slice to do his bidding. While it's clear he is angry and upset about Mummy's death, the ambition surpasses it all, and he wastes no time to bring his lover to his side and promise her the world by the time the operation ends, which is specially jarring given how little thought he paid her while flirting with Curious a couple of chapters ago. No one is really safe from being his pawns, not even people he supposedly cares about.
