Chizome Akaguro/Synopsis

History
All Might's debut as a hero deeply inspired Chizome Akaguro in his childhood. Since then, Chizome idolized the superhero and aspired to become just like him. He entered a private Hero course high school to train to become a Hero. However, he descended into anguish, despair and hopelessness after seeing the school and hero society’s "fundamental decay," as the students there were becoming Heroes for the fame, power, and fortune.

The disillusion by the reality of Heroics caused Chizome to quit at the academy and drop out during the summer after his first year. After leaving the academy, Chizome became a street activist as a teenager and preached an ideology which he called the "Revival of Heroics" through street oratory speeches and soapbox speeches, but unfortunately his words, protests, wake up calls and cries for help went, unheard, disregarded and neglected.

Over the following decade, Chizome realized that words, peace and diplomacy were useless and only action and violence could create his ideal world and change Heroics for the better. Chizome researched and disciplined himself in the training of martial arts through self-study in order to achieve his duty of "Revival of Heroics." During this decade, Chizome's parents died, something the police would label a tragic accident. It is unknown what led to their deaths but it is believed that Chizome was not involved.

Stendhal Arc
Chizome became a vigilante by the name of "Stendhal" and began hunting villains to make up for the heroes' mistakes, declaring his existence to sever the gap between good and evil, and doesn't desire his Stendhal persona to mix with his ideology of Heroes. He made a deal with Kuin Hachisuka to obtain blood samples of a Yakuza group, the Abegawa Tenchu Kai, which allowed him to easily wipe them out thanks to his Bloodcurdle Quirk. To return the favor, she requests his assistance in taking out several targets of hers, former Instant Villains: Akira Iwako, Soga Kugisaki, Moyuru Tochi, and Rapt Tokage, which he reluctantly agrees to.

Stendhal saves fellow vigilante, The Crawler, from an attack from Akira, before later brutally murdering him after his initial escape. Kuin sets up an encounter between her and Soga, forcefully injecting Trigger into him so he can fight Stendhal. The Crawler manages to arrive and save Soga from Stendhal, not believing in his methods or that he deserves to be killed, putting The Crawler in Stendhal's target as well.

The two are then saved by Knuckleduster, who Stendhal recognizes as the "Vigilante of Naruhata" and declares his respect for him as he believes the two of them share similar beliefs about their society. However, Knuckleduster shocks him by completely disagreeing, calling him a "mad slasher", leading them to prepare to fight. Knuckleduster takes Stendhal down with one punch, completely smashing his nose in, as he declares that people like him, especially those who wear a mask like that, lack true determinism.

Inspired by these comments, Stendhal makes his retreat, stating his resolve to target false heroes who he believes carries sins greater than villains. After stabbing Kuin's eye, seemingly killing her, he cuts off his broken nose and abandoning his mask, declaring his newfound resolve, and that he will dye the world blood with "stains that cannot be wiped away."

Sometime later, Chizome took up the mantle of Hero Killer: Stain and begun advocating the "Revival of Heroics". In this ideology of "Revival of Heroics", Stain stated the guidelines of being a hero: that heroes must not desire rewards or compensation, and that people can only have the title of hero when they commit the ultimate acts of self-sacrifice. The ideology stated that the "heroes" of the modern world are fakes who pretend to be heroes.

Stain then began implementing his "Revival of Heroics" by killing Pro Heroes, deciding that he would not stop his purge of the Pro Heroes until the world realized the flaw in the Heroics system. Stain's end goal of implementing his ideology "Revival of Heroics" was to create a just world filled with true heroes.

U.A. Sports Festival Arc
After having already killed seventeen heroes and injured twenty-three beyond recovery, Stain finds his way to Hosu City, where he is confronted by Ingenium. Stain heavily injures the Pro Hero and leaves him for dead after monologuing about his disgust over those he believes are not worthy of being called heroes. He believes the only person who is allowed to him is All Might, and that only he is a true hero.

Stain moves to a rooftop to scout potential targets, but he is suddenly confronted by Kurogiri. He threatens the villain with his katana and Kurogiri asks him to hold his blade. He proposes a meeting between the League of Villains and the notorious Hero Killer: Stain and then teleports them away.

Vs. Hero Killer Arc
Kurogiri brings Stain to the League's hideout to meet with Tomura Shigaraki. He insists that Tomura allow Stain to join their party. Stain questions the goals of the villains and Tomura replies that he desires to kill All Might and anything he does not like, including a particular U.A. student. Unimpressed by Tomura's childish nature, Stain threatens them both because he believes Tomura is the worst kind of person and that there is no sense in bloodshed without a cause.

Stain immobilizes Kurogiri and pins down Tomura while cutting into his shoulder with a knife and holding another to his neck. He preaches to his overpowered foe that he will remain a weakling who will achieve nothing with real convictions or desires. He goes on to state that the world is overrun by fake heroes and villains who flaunt their power and chase petty dreams and that they must all be purged.

As Stain's knife draws closer to the Tomura's face, the villain reacts by quickly grabbing the knife and disintegrating it with his Quirk. Stain retreats a short distance and Tomura responds to his ideology. Tomura reveals that he is driven by the desire to kill All Might and destroy the people who worship him. Although Stain thinks that their goals oppose one another, he agrees that they both want to destroy the present. Tomura demands Stain leaves, but Stain reveals that he threatened him to test his motives because people show their true selves while on the verge of death. He says he will allow Tomura to grow and demands to be returned to Hosu.

Kurogiri warps himself, Stain and Tomura to Hosu. Tomura asks what Stain plans to do there, to which he replies he will reform Hosu. He plans to do so by killing the false heroes whose only desires are money when heroes should be those who achieve great deeds. He leaps off the rooftop, stating that he will continue to appear until society realizes its error. In the seven places that he has appeared so far, Stain has attacked at least four pro heroes. He has only attacked Ingenium in Hosu and decides to attack the pro hero Native next.

After paralyzing Native, Stain notices the chaos ensuing in the city and connects it with the League of Villains. He says he will deal with them after Native, but is then interrupted by Tenya Ida. Tenya tries to attack Stain, but he notices the young man first and knocks him down. He demands the child leave, but Tenya declares that he will stop the Hero Killer in the place of Ingenium. Due to Tenya's selfish and vengeful desires, Stain decides to take it upon himself to purge him from the world.

Tenya attacks with a high-speed kick, but the Hero Killer evades and pierces Tenya's arm with his spiked boot. Then he kicks Tenya to the ground and says both Ingenium and his brother are weaklings. He reveals he allowed Ingenium to live to spread the word of the Hero Killer's exploits. Stain claims that neither of them has the right to be called a hero. Tenya refutes this and threatens to kill Stain for his brother. Stain responds by telling Tenya that he should be focused on helping Native and that his lust for vengeance is blinding him and becoming the furthest thing from what a hero should be. Just as the Hero Killer prepares to claim another victim and sacrifice Tenya for a more just world, Izuku Midoriya leaps in out of nowhere and punches Stain back.

Izuku found Stain by going by what he had heard on the news. He knew that Stain attacked all his victims in low populated areas and searched all the back alleys by Manual's office until he found them. Stain commends Izuku for saving his friend but warns him that if they clash the weaker of them will be culled.

Izuku decides to stand up to Stain as a hero, impressing the Hero Killer with his strong conviction. Their bout starts and Stain is further roused when Izuku closes the distance between them to negate his opponent's longer reach. Stain strikes Izuku with another blade but the young man narrowly evades by moving through Stain's legs. Stain adjusts by slashing behind him, but Izuku swiftly moves into the air above him and strikes Stain with a 5% Detroit Smash attack.

The Hero Killer is barely rocked by Izuku's smash and manages to lick a trace of Izuku's blood from his knife. Stain claims he saw through Izuku's plan, but praises the young man and says he is worth allowing to live. He decides to try and kill Tenya instead but is once again interfered with when Shoto Todoroki arrives to save his friends.

Shoto Todoroki nearly blasts Stain with a stream of fire, forcing him to dodge. He continues to attack with ice and fire to continue forcing the Hero Killer away and declares that the villain won't kill anyone tonight. Stain grazes Shoto's cheek with a throwing knife and rushes him while uses his sword as a distraction to get in close and lick the blood from his face. Shoto uses his fire to keep Stain away, garnering the villain's praise, and the pair battle it out. Stain consistently evades Shoto's attacks of fire and ice and manages to pierce his arm by throwing two knives into it. Stain plans to use the opening to kill Native, but Izuku is freed from paralysis and throws the villain away.

Izuku and his allies deduce Stain's Quirk gives him the ability to immobilize people by ingesting their blood, and its time limit is based on blood type. Izuku and Shoto decide to protect Native and Tenya together, and Stain comments that the commencing fight will be difficult. He and Izuku battle in close quarters while Shoto supports him from a distance with his Quirk. Stain eventually cuts Izuku's leg and paralyzes him before attacking Shoto again.

Shoto counters by shooting flames at Stain, but he evades and claims that Shoto fights too recklessly because of his powerful Quirk. He nearly cuts the student down, but Tenya comes to the aid of his friend after being freed from Bloodcurdle's effects. He uses his Recipro Burst technique to save Shoto by kicking Stain's sword in half and then repealing the villain with a subsequent kick.

Tenya apologizes to his allies for their injuries, but Stain refutes Tenya's reformation and calls him a fake to society that must be killed off. Stain becomes flustered and becomes more ferocious in his attempts to kill Tenya and Native. Shoto keeps him at bay with his elemental attacks and Stain tries to get him out of the way with a throwing knife. Tenya throws himself in front of it and it pierces his arm. Stain follows up by pinning Tenya down with a second dagger and dives down at the pair of young heroes in training.

He doesn't notice Izuku's time limit is up and the latter rushes him with his power. Tenya does the same, using Recipro Extend to clash with Stain. They both attack the villain at the same time, with a Quirk enhanced punch and kick respectively. Stain makes one last ditch effort to kill Tenya, but he evades and kicks Stain into the air. Shoto uses the opening to burn Stain with a blast of fire. These additional blows cause Stain to fall unconscious and lay on top of a pillar of Shoto's ice. The students take his weapons and tie Stain up to restrain him.

Izuku, Shoto, Tenya, and Native leave the alley with the unconscious Hero Killer in tow. They are met by several pro heroes when a winged Nomu swoops down and grabs the injured Izuku before flying away. The Nomu was injured by Endeavor and its blood gets on the cheek of one of the pros. Stain wakes up and licks it off to paralyze the beast before freeing himself and leaping into the air to stab the Nomu's brain and save Izuku. Despite being heavily injured, Stain kills the Nomu and states that the "fake" Pro Heroes and the pathetic criminals in society are his targets for his purge to create a stronger society.

Stain notices Endeavor's arrival and decides to confront the "false hero" despite being outnumbered. His mask falls off and he shouts his convictions to his opposition. He tells them that the streets must run with the blood of hypocrites, that he will reclaim the word "hero" and goes on to challenge the fakes to stop him, all while slowly stepping towards the group of heroes who are frozen with fear by the Hero Killer's bloodlust. Stain's malefic aura sends chills down their spines as he shouts that only All Might is worthy enough to stop him. He only stops when his lungs are perforated by a broken rib and he loses consciousness. Although unconscious, Stain was the only one present at the scene with enough fight left in him to stand against his enemy.

The next day, the Chief of the Hosu Police states that Stain sustained several burns, bone fractures, perforated lungs, and other serious injuries but he is still alive and is undergoing treatment for his grievous injuries. The news of Stain's defeat and arrest spreads like wildfire throughout Japan. Stain's true name and backstory are revealed in published articles and become a major topic. His ideology inspires villains to rally and unite themselves under the League of Villains.

Hideout Raid Arc
After undergoing treatment for his injuries, Chizome is incarcerated in Tartarus, a special prison for criminals for whom the death penalty is not enough. He watches in silence as All For One is brought in.

Paranormal Liberation War Arc
While the first years are having a Hot Pot party, Shota Aizawa comes to tell Toshinori Yagi that Naomasa Tsukauchi told him that he should delay his meeting with Stain.

During the aftermath of the Paranormal Liberation War, All For One, using Tomura's body as his vessel, sends his army of Near High-End Nomus to invade Tartarus to retrieve his original body and free the prisoners located there. When the prison breakout occurred, Chizome was one of the many prisoners set free. Chizome escapes from his cell, and along the way, he encounters a prisoner who is excited to go out and chase women, and quickly slits him with a sharp object.

Seeing the mass breakout at Tartarus, Chizome's aware that something has happened beyond the prison walls, so instead of joining the escapees, he seeks to acquire information and heads straight to the monitoring room. Upon arriving there, he finds the place destroyed, and all the guards dead except one, Seiji Shishikura's father, desperately cradling a box. When he takes the box, the dying guard recognizes him as an "ally" of Tomura Shigaraki, and orders him to give it back.

Chizome opens the box and sees that it contains a data disk regarding Tartarus' security records. As he leaves the room with the records, the guard takes a weapon and threatens to shoot him if he does not return them, as it must reach the right people. Chizome assures him that his conviction will reach the right man, as the prison crumbles all around. The guard asks him if he is a beast or a man, which Chizome responds he’s an ally to what the world should be, but still a beast.

Once outside, Chizome watches as most of the prisoners gather around All For One and Tomura Shigaraki to escape. However, unlike the other criminals, Chizome chose not to join All For One's growing forces of villains. Instead, he jumps into the raging waters. He manages to swim ashore, and promptly learns about the state of the country since his capture, including All Might's retirement, and thinking about while he may not know if the data has any value, he is determined to carry out the last will of the guard and deliver the data to All Might, the only person he can trust.

Later, he enters an abandoned building where he grabs a new blade while smiling enthusiastically at the turn of events; now that people are starting to question heroes like he always wanted.

Dark Hero Arc
About a month later, Chizome, sporting a new costume, listens in on a conversation between Izuku and All Might, as the latter tries to convince the former to take a rest, while Izuku insists All Might doesn't need to follow him anymore, leaving him behind, while Chizome contemplates his next move.

He follows Izuku to the site of All Might's last stand in Kamino, where he awaits the arrival of the former Symbol of Peace. Eventually, Toshinori arrives, berating "All Might" for being able to do nothing but just drag everyone down, as Chizome appears, holding his sword to his neck, demanding he take back his slam against All Might.

Toshinori notes how Chizome never went after him when he was active and they never got to meet until now, leaving Chizome confused at what he's talking about, until Toshinori clarifies that he is All Might. Chizome reacts in extreme disbelief, and when Toshinori quickly transforms into his muscle form to prove it, Chizome reacts in disgust, refusing to believe it is him and asks why he calls himself a "hero."

Toshinori responds back in agreement, as he believes that now that he's reached his end point as a hero, with the world in shambles and unable to do anything, he has gotten further away from heroism than anyone. However, Chizome suddenly leaps forward and pulls Toshinori behind a nearby ice block, pointing him toward the All Might statue, where they see a girl cleaning up the vandalism.

Chizome reveals that the girl has been coming by to clean the statue everyday, and when Toshinori is confused why she would put herself in danger for just that, Chizome reveals that she was the last person All Might saved. He continues that what All Might did as a hero had nothing to do with his Quirk, but that he always kept a smile on his face and did everything he could to help people. That the embers of inspiration he left behind continue to burn within those who followed him, including both the girl and the members of Class 1-A, and have now started to form a great fire that they all must continue to stoke so it won't die.

Chizome proceeds to imply to Toshinori that he was already aware of his current state, telling him that if he is a true hero, to make use of his information from Tartarus, throwing a knife containing the data disk, as well as a personalized letter to All Might attached, toward him. He concludes by telling him that once he's ready, to come end "the man who murdered 40 heroes", all to fix this society, before walking away.

Final War Arc
By the time of the Final War, Stain is still in Kamino, now equipped with a glider, and observes Shoto and Tenya, who are determined to keep fighting even after Dabi's rampage and escape. He watches them as they prepare to blast their way toward the Gunga Mountains in order to save the civilians in proximity of Dabi's incoming explosion, and thinks about how they are "acting for the sake of others".