Taste of Poison Paradise

Chapter 5

Somewhere in a dingy bar, Shigaraki Tomura slams his fist on the bar, startling Kurogiri and knocking over his glass.

"Who is killing all of the Nomu?!" He growls. "Every single time we send one out, it's killed within hours!"

"I could be that poisoner at the USJ," Kurogiri muses.

"That harlot is in U.A. right now," Shigaraki mutters. "Nowhere near us. It can't possibly be her." His hands itch at his neck. "Before the corpses disintegrated in the sunlight, only their heads were cut off. Killed instantly. There was no poison anywhere.

"That girl...she's a CHEAT! How did she even know that wisteria was their weakness?! And we still don't know if All Might was any weaker..."

A voice buzzes from the T.V. "And after all we did to make the Nomu stronger, only for it to be defeated by a hero-in-training...Looks like we have some work to do, Tomura."

"Like what, Sensei?" Shigaraki asks eagerly.

"I just have to find a particular thing first," the voice hums. "It could hold the key to our success. It'll even make you stronger, Tomura."

"What kind of substance is this?" His voice is filled with wonder at the possibilities.

"A flower, actually," chuckles the voice. "A blue Spider Lily. According to a scientist named Hashibira from centuries ago, they died out. But, I'm going to recreate them and create a drug that will render the body invincible. But for now, continue to gather the villainous elite. Don't you worry, Tomura, the world will learn to fear you."

The door to the room slams open and out walks Dabi, scarred flesh and ashy hair. There are large gashes on his chest and arms. "I'm back. Another Nomu has been killed, but I engaged in battle with whoever killed it."

"What were they like?" Kurogiri asks.

"Wasn't the poisoner," Dabi growls. "This one was male. My height, white hair. Scars. He showed up and within a second the Nomu was in pieces. I shot the alleyway with a blast of fire, but he was on the roof in the next moment. He landed a couple of blows on me with his sword, but left soon after. Didn't seem too concerned about fighting me."

"You sure it wasn't your inverted twin?" Tomura smirks.

"Shut up. I don't have a twin." Besides, the closest person he had to a twin was a part of that wretched family he left behind.

"Curiouser and curiouser," the voice from the TV hums. "Looks like we have some nuisances to kill."

None of them noticed the miniature icy figure in the corner.

———

The morning she is supposed to start training her classmates, Shinobu receives a text from Sanemi, saying that he has samples for her to study. Unfortunately, Sanemi is currently in Yokohama at this time and it would take a while for him to meet up with her. The two of them agree to meet at a midpoint over the weekend.

Training has her heading to one of the many gyms of U.A. Even though both Hero Classes are here today, Midnight is Shinobu's Homeroom Teacher, so she will be overseeing their training. Shinobu also requested the training gourds the Demon Slayers used to be remade and ready, so they are leaning against a wall. Instead of her katana, she's armed with the bokken she uses for sparring.

"Alright, let's get warmed up, shall we?" Shinobu beams to her classmates. "I won't hold back today, how about that. Come at me, all of you, all at once."

"Are you sure?" Tamaki asks, unsure

"Quite," she answers. "One hit and you're out. Agreed?"

"Sure," Togata shrugs, cracking his neck.