Then

"Blaze," the commissioner barks as the four return at midnight. "A word?" Touya nods, glancing at Keigo. Keigo frowns but doesn't object. He knows better than to fight the commission– Touya doesn't.

"I have a great name," Touya scoffs, crossing his bandaged arms over his chest. "Call me Touya."

"You lost all rights to your identity when your father signed those papers," the commissioner says with a scowl. He grabs Touya's arm aggressively and drags him to the elevator. Down to the basement. "You did good at training," the commissioner says, throwing Touya down in the steel chair. Some of the other guards strap the boy's arms and legs in, using special metals so he doesn't burn through them. "But you're still weak. You need to toughen up. How are you going to be able to fight villains if you burn yourself every time you use your quirk? Before you know it, we'll have to staple your skin back on after you melt it off!"

"Fuck you," Touya spits. "Fuck you, fuck the president, fuck the novices, and fuck the whole goddamn hero society! I hope you all burn in hell!"

"You really want those to be your final words?" the commissioner chuckles. "Alright, beat him to death, guards. No mercy, but make it slow." The commissioner strolls to the door, smirking back at Touya over his shoulder. "Goodbye, Touya. I wish I could say you'll be missed, but... well, no one even knows your name."

The next morning, Keigo wakes up groggily. His head is fuzzy and light from his outing yesterday, but today it's back to training. The six o'clock lesson, in half an hour, is the start of Keigo's infiltration unit. He'll learn how to manipulate people mentally and how to avoid mental manipulations from others. He's nervous, but it's better than more combat training.

He hops up and heads down to the cafeteria where the rest of the novices are getting their breakfast. "Hey," Etsuko says softly, placing a hand on Keigo's shoulder. "I'm so sorry about what happened."

"Yeah," Exodus adds, looking down at his shoes. "Me too."

"What are you talking about?" Keigo asks, brushing them off. "What happened?"

"You didn't hear?" Exodus says. Keigo can feel the anxiety swirling in his stomach. His mouth gets dry, and his heart is thumping in his ears.

"It's Touya," Etsuko says. "He went down to the basement last night and he didn't come back. The commissioner said he was executed."