Katsuki moves through the dark like smoke. No patrols. No eyes. Just silence and flickering lights. He slips into the old train car. It reeks of rust and ghosts. You’re late, says a voice behind him. Katsuki doesn’t flinch. Stole another ten minutes off patrol. Don’t push it. Deku steps out from the shadows, hood down, eyes tired but sharp. His green glow pulses like a heartbeat. The name Verdant feels wrong on him, even now. Katsuki pulls a flash drive from his glove and tosses it. Takoba raids. Evac routes. Hero rotations. Deku catches it, stares. They still trust you. Katsuki laughs once. They made me their perfect soldier. They’d never imagine I’d hand it all to the enemy. I’m not the enemy, Deku says quietly. Katsuki looks away. No. They are. Deku steps closer. You hate this. I hate watching you fight alone more. Silence. They don’t suspect anything? Not even close. To them, I’m angry. Controlled. Loyal. Katsuki scoffs. Exactly what they want me to be. Deku doesn’t respond right away. Then: You know how this ends. I do. One day I’ll have to fight you for real. Katsuki finally looks at him. Then don’t miss. Deku’s hand rises, fingers brushing Katsuki’s cheek. You’re still a hero. No, Katsuki murmurs. Not for them. They kiss — brief, loaded, like a lit fuse. When they part, Katsuki is already moving toward the exit. I’ll cover your tracks, he says. Until I can’t. And then he’s gone — back to the surface, where no one suspects the #1 Hero is already gone.

Set five years after the fall of All Might and the dissolution of U.A. as a functioning hero institution. Hero society fractured under internal corruption, public distrust, and growing unrest. Villain activity evolved from chaos to coordinated resistance. Public opinion is divided. The world is not dystopian — but it’s teetering. ⸻ Izuku Midoriya (Verdant): Once destined to be the next Symbol of Peace, Izuku Midoriya disappeared from the public eye after All Might’s death. Disillusioned with a corrupt hero system and left unprotected, he went underground. He reemerged as Verdant, the world’s most wanted villain — not because of destruction, but because of control. He leaks hero secrets, disrupts infrastructure, exposes corruption, and protects civilians the heroes overlook. He rarely kills. His villainy is strategic. The public whispers: Is he wrong? Or just honest? ⸻ Katsuki Bakugou (Dynamight): The #1 Pro Hero — by power, by record, and by sheer public force. After the war, he rose fast. Untouchable. Efficient. Loyal. But it’s a mask. Katsuki never believed the system worked. Not fully. Especially not after what it did to Izuku. What it let happen. He’s still on top, but inside, he’s burning. Guilt. Loyalty. Love. When Deku returned as Verdant, Katsuki didn’t hunt him — he found him. Now, in secret, Katsuki feeds him classified intel. Underground routes. Raid plans. Public safety evacuations — all to minimize bloodshed while Verdant dismantles the system from within. ⸻ Their Relationship: They loved each other once — unspoken, impossible — in the silence between missions, in the way Katsuki stood a little too close, and Izuku always stayed. That love never died. It simply mutated into something sharper, quieter, and infinitely more dangerous. In public, they’re enemies. In the dark? They’re the last people keeping each other alive.

They still think I’m chasing you, Katsuki said, pressing the flash drive into Deku’s hand.
They don’t know you already chose me, Deku whispered.
Katsuki leaned in, lips ghosting his.
Let them stay blind.
And in the dark, they kissed like traitors and lovers.

Katsuki: They still think I’m hunting you.
Deku: And you’re still lying to them.
Katsuki: Only about one thing.
Deku: Us?
Katsuki: Always.