A sudden change in style

A gentle breeze drifted in, the surroundings were quiet and peaceful, the spacious rooftop was free of noisy crowds, and an adorable young child lay sleeping...

"Boom!!!"

Everything that made up that beautiful scene was shattered by a thunderous boom in the distance.

Uraraka Shige sat up on the small platform, his head lowered. He rubbed his eyes and yawned, his mind still a little hazy, and murmured instinctively.

"What happened...?"

He sat in a daze for a moment before fully waking up, then turned toward the distant sound.

"...What happened?!"

The first things he saw in the direction of the distant boom were thick smoke and flames billowing into the sky. Loud booms and explosions still sounded from time to time... no, those booms were the sounds of powerful explosions.

Uraraka Shige stood up on the small platform and leaped down onto the school building's rooftop. Gripping the wire fence meant to prevent accidental falls with both hands, he stared unblinkingly toward the distant explosions, his voice full of disbelief.

"Is this... a 'villain'?"

Yes, a 'villain'.

A 'villain' was a 'criminal' in this world who possessed a 'Quirk' but did not use that power properly or choose to become a 'hero' and use their 'Quirk' to help others, instead using it to commit acts of destruction and break the law.

Uraraka Shige now had a vague idea: the loud noises, billowing smoke, flames, and occasional explosions in the distance were very likely destruction caused by a 'villain' committing crimes.

"In that case... a 'hero' should be here soon!"

As he thought, Uraraka Shige instinctively muttered his thoughts aloud. Once he reached that conclusion, his eyes lit up with an astonishing gleam, full of longing and anticipation.

"I have to go see it for myself!!!"

That was the thought that suddenly popped into Uraraka Shige's head after he reached that conclusion. After all, this was his first chance in this world to see a 'hero' bravely subdue a 'villain' with his own eyes, in real life rather than on a television or computer.

Of course he had to seize the opportunity, get a good close look at a fight between a 'hero' and a 'villain', and gain some experience from it!

He might even find some inspiration in the fight and use it to develop his own 'Quirk'!

"Phew..."

Uraraka Shige exhaled and took a long look in the direction of the incident, committing it firmly to memory so he wouldn't take a wrong turn on his way there and miss this chance to watch a 'hero' fight up close.

He then let go of the wire fence meant to prevent falls, took several steps back, and charged toward it.

"Rise!"

Making good use of his 'Quirk' and the momentum of his charge, Uraraka Shige leaped high into the air and cleared the wire fence, which was three times his height. Under the influence of the gravity regulated by his 'Quirk', he slowly descended toward the pedestrian street beside the school building, like a feather drifting down from a height.

"Tch... once I'm a little older, I'll definitely be able to fly with this excellent 'Quirk'!"

As Uraraka Shige slowly drifted down through the air, he watched the smoke and flames in the distance, which were about to disappear behind the tall buildings. He suddenly felt a little anxious, afraid that his slow descent would keep him from reaching the scene in time.

That sudden anxiety also made Uraraka Shige long for the ability to fly freely through the air.

"Forget it. In that case... level!"

Uraraka Shige suddenly removed some of the gravity he had applied to 'rise' and adjusted it to 'level' instead, making that portion of gravity act horizontally on his body. Together with his momentum, it pushed him toward the scene more quickly.

But as a result, his falling speed also increased sharply. If he continued at that speed, he would probably be seriously injured when he hit the ground.

Of course, this was no problem for Uraraka Shige, who could manipulate gravity. All he had to do was change the portion of gravity whose direction he had made horizontal with 'level' back into the upward-directed 'rise' just before he landed, and he could avoid the problem entirely.

In fact, if he weren't so young, and if his 'Quirk' hadn't awakened only three years ago, leaving him able to manipulate gravity only within a one-meter radius of himself and still unable to control it completely...

Uraraka Shige had no doubt that he could even use 'rise' and 'level' to fly freely through the air, just as he had wished moments ago.

"Rise!"

Even with all those thoughts running through his head, Uraraka Shige smoothly used his Quirk just before landing. He redirected the portion of gravity he had taken away to use 'level' back upward into 'rise', allowing him to land safely on the ground, almost without making a sound.

Uraraka Shige was now on a business street, roughly halfway to the scene of the incident.

"Hiss..."

Listening to the loud booms that still accompanied the occasional explosion in the distance, Uraraka Shige suddenly bent down into a crouch and rubbed both calves with his hands. He didn't know if he had landed in the wrong position, but his calves seemed to be cramping up?!

"No... it should be because of excitement and fear..."

Uraraka Shige worked to ease the cramps in his calves. He didn't think they had been caused by his landing position or where he had landed.

It was more likely that his body had instinctively reacted to his hesitation between the thrill and excitement of soon seeing a 'hero' and a 'villain' fight up close, and the fear that he might be endangered by the aftermath of their battle.

After a moment, the cramps in both calves had eased considerably. The huge explosions coming from the scene had also grown more frequent, making it hard not to think that a fierce battle was underway there.

"Level!"

The clear, somewhat childish voice rang out from Uraraka Shige's mouth once more. To reach the scene as quickly as possible and avoid missing the moment the 'hero' subdued the 'villain', Uraraka Shige used 'level' again. Then, using the gravity he had redirected horizontally, he kept increasing his speed and raced like the wind toward the sounds.