Ketsubutsu Academy third-years Yo and Tatami enter a nearly abandoned city in order to evacuate the remaining civilians, having received reports of a jailbreaker causing destruction nearby. Yo attempts to convince them, but they refuse, no longer trusting in Heroes and believing they can fend off danger and protect themselves. Shortly after they encounter the aforementioned jailbreaker, Muscular, who Yo attempts to fight off while Tatami goes to protect the civilians. Yo is pinned down, but even after using his Quirk at full power, Muscular has the upper hand and nearly kills him, until a hooded Deku, covered in purple smoke, appears to save him. Muscular recognizes him from their fight in the forest and excitingly prepares to fight him. Deku hands the unconscious Yo to Tatami and re-enters the fight. The sixth user, En, warns him to not overuse his Quirk, Smokescreen, as Deku uses his new arsenal of abilities and experience to get the upper hand on Muscular. He attempts to reason with him, asking him why he causes trouble and even referring to him by his real name, but Muscular declares all he cares for is wanton destruction. Taking advantage of his muscle fibres being damaged by Yo, Deku punches him with a Detroit Smash, knocking him unconscious. While Deku brings Muscular to prison, the civilians agree to evacuate with the Ketsubutsu students, not wanting anyone else to get hurt. Deku temporarily reunites with All Might before heading off to deal with the next threat. Several days prior at the hospital, Izuku awoke to learn the injuries on his body were not as fatal as they initially believed due to his increased in strength in his body. He and All Might then tell Inko the truth behind One For All, with Izuku saying he won't be returning to U.A. in order to protect everyone with Shigaraki targeting him. He comforts his tearful mother telling her he will return to her, with All Might saying he will stay by his side. They decide to team up with Endeavor, Hawks, and Best Jeanist, using Izuku as bait to lure the villains out of hiding. Before leaving the hospital, Izuku visits Gran Torino who tells him killing can be a way to save, and hands him his scarf to wear.

All Might is cornered by two thugs, they are scared away by his sheer tenacity refusing to leave Deku behind. Deku swings through the city to reach Lady Nagant's location, only to be caught off guard by more bullets coming from behind him, realizing she was given an extra Quirk by All For One to lure him closer to her. With no other option, Deku unleashes Smokescreen on the ground and begins to build up energy in his legs, which the third user recognizes as him using his Quirk, Fa Jin. He warns him about using it since he has no experience, but he's successfully able to feint out Nagant in the smoke and use the energy boost to blast through a building and grab her. He demands to know why she follows All For One despite originally being a Pro Hero, and as she continues to shoot away at him, she explains her history. She was an assassin sent out by the Commission to kill corrupt heroes taking advantage of the system, as well as villains before they committed any crimes. All of the blood on her hands began to eat away at her mentally, considering everything about their society to be a sham. When she confronted her superior about this, he threatened her with silence, so she killed him in retaliation; this incident was covered up by saying she killed a fellow hero in a dispute. In response, Deku admits that everything isn't as black-and-white as he initially believed, but that's why he still intends to land a hand. To catch him off guard, Nagant suddenly aims her rifle at the nearby Overhaul; he had provided her information on who Deku was in order for her to take him to his Boss. She shoots at Overhaul, but with no hesitation, Deku uses the power of Fa Jin to become faster than a speeding bullet, knocking him out of the way, and uses his remaining strength to defeat Nagant. He saves her from falling, asking her to join their fight, believing she still has the heart of a hero within her. But before she can respond, her body suddenly explodes from within, due to a failsafe All For One left inside her. Hawks arrives just in time to rescue her, and with her last remaining strength, tells the Heroes of All For One's location. Endeavor apprehends Overhaul, and after hearing him rant about apologizing to his Boss, Deku says he will follow Nagant's promise if he shows that same regret to Eri as well. As he sees Nagant's charred body, rage towards All For One begins to swell up within Deku.