Stendhal Arc

The Stendhal Arc is the second story arc in My Hero Academia: Vigilantes.

The Vigilante Stendhal enters Naruhata, and while he initially appears to be a helpful ally, once his deadly convictions are unveiled while doing Kuin Hachisuka's dirty work, it's up to the Naruhata Vigilantes to put a stop to his killing spree.

A New Vigilante Appears
In a bar, Rojiya Yonenaga, Tetsu and another member of the Abegawa Tenchu Kai drink while arguing that their organization, consisting of yakuza, has been registered under police jurisdiction and as such, they are going to be treated like criminals. Although Tetsu is mad, Rojiya is fine with it because he still intends on being a yakuza no matter since he believes that a man's life doesn't change with the times, even if that means facing All Might someday. After this Tetsu and Rojiya return to Tenchu gang's HQ in Tokyo's Danto Ward to continue with their routine.

One night, while the Abegawa Tenchu ​​Kai's four executives lieutenants (Rojiya, Tetsu, Soji and Haruhisa) were in the main office, the place is assaulted by Stendhal. Tetsu demands to know what he whats his deal, but Stendhal simply attacks in response. The four executives quickly activate their Quirks and counterattack the intruder, forcing him to jump into the air in order to dodge the barrage of attacks.

With the Vigilante cornered, the four executives prepare to deliver the finishing blow. However, Stendhal removes his mask halfway and licks the bloodied bandages on his arm. Suddenly, the executives of the Abegawa Tenchu Kai became inexplicably paralyzed and unable to move. In that fleeting moment, with a single slash, Stendhal cuts down the immobilized executives, killing them. The commotion attracts more members of the Yakuza into the room, where they see the dead bodies of their bosses, but before they could do anything, Stendhal cuts them down as well while telling them that he is the "Convictor".

After killing the four executives and several members of the Abegawa Tenchu Kai, Stendhal leaves the place and goes to an alley to change his clothes. At that moment Kuin Hachisuka appears, calling Mr. Judgment, only for Stendhal to correct her. Kuin knows that his name is Stendhal. However, Stendhal reveals that his name, "Stendhal", is an existence that has surpassed the confines of humanity and is a persona that severs the gap between good and evil; whenever Stendhal removes his mask, he is no more than an ordinary man who devotes himself to the ideology of Heroes and does not desire his "Stendhal" persona to mix with his ideology of Heroes.

Kuin finds her speech obnoxious, and asks her to return the blood samples of the Tenchu Kai executives she obtained thanks to their medical checkups. For her help with the extermination of the yakzas, Kuin demands that Stendhal return the favor by taking out specific targets for her. Stendhal warns her to not to push her luck since someday he will come for her head too, but until then, he will oblige to Kuin's demand.

Kuin shows pictures of four former Instant Villains that the Naruhata Vigilantes faced: Akira Iwako, Soga Kugisaki, Moyuru Tochi and Rapt Tokage. She asks Stendhal to hunt and eliminate them.

New Allies?
Koichi and Pop☆Step are patrolling Naruhata Streets alone, since that afternoon Knuckleduster had to be absent to take care of some business. They encounter an Instant Villain attacking civilians and both are surprised to learn that it is Akira Iwako again. Koichi thought he was thrown in jail, to which Pop comments that since Akira did not commit multiple crimes, he was not registered as a villain.

Akira is angered when he spots Koichi, calling him The Crawler, and try to smash him. While dodging his attacks, Koichi is pleased that he calls him by his true vigilante name, and not the Cruller like everyone else. Pop☆Step scolds him for thinking about such nonsense while being attacked. Koichi decides to lure Akira to a less populated area, while Pop calls Knuckleduster to ask if Koichi should defeat the villain on his own. Knuckleduster simply tells her that he doesn't have a chance so he better buy time until help comes.

The battle between Koichi and Akira continues in an abandoned parking lot, with some bystanders watching the confrontation and cheering Koichi, who tries to buy time until the authorities arrive. Koichi manages to evade Akira's attacks but notes that the villain is faster and stronger than before. Kuin Hachisuka watches the fight through a bee on a car's mirror. She gave Akira "TR-D2C", and while she is analyzing the drug's effects on the villain, two of her classmates ask her what she is doing. Kuin replies that she is making a report for her part-time job.

As the fight progresses, Koichi is finding it harder to evade because the villain's punches have created holes in the pavement. Koichi's foot suddenly gets caught in one of the holes and Akira moves in to attack. Just before Akira strikes, a masked figure with a katana intervenes and stops Akira's attack; this piques Kuin's interest. The masked figure slashes several times against Akira which leaves cuts on Akira's hardened body. At that moment Pop warns that the police is coming, so Akira decides to run away.

Koichi thanks the masked figure for saving his life, and asks him his name. His saviour reveals he is called Stendhal and is a fellow vigilante. Stendhal leaps over several buildings with ease and disappears from sight, which impresses Koichi.

Later, back at his penthouse, Koichi tells Knuckleduster what happened while gushing over Stendhal and starts thinking about also getting a katana. Kazuho receives a message from Ichimoku Samazu and Jube Namimaru, who say that Ichimoku's strong senpai, known for being good at fighting and for not tolerating injustice, wants to meet Koichi and his fellow vigilantes at the restaurant in front of the station.

Koichi is glad that there are more people out there with a strong sense of justice, although Knuckleduster warns him that there are dangerous guys who use justice as an excuse to pick fights, being nothing but troubles. Both Koichi and Pop think that he is the last person to say such things, and leave to meet with Ichimoku's "senpai".

At the restaurant, Koichi and Pop have an unpleasant surprise when they learn that Ichimoku's "senpai" is none other than Soga Kugisaki. Soga is disheartened by their reactions and questions why they think poorly of him, to which Kazuho replies that he tried to murder them.

Soga can't stand Pop's accusations and insults for another minute, so he decides to leave the restaurant, considering that there is no point in talking with them. Koichi wonders what Soga wants to talk about, but Pop says that doesn't matter and they shouldn't talk to him after what he did to them.

Elsewhere, Akira is running in an alley. Suddenly, a knife strikes him and he turns around, only to find a knife has been thrown into his right eye. Akira yells in pain as more knives are thrown at him, sticking in the back. The one who threw the knives at him is Stendhal and he sees that Akira's eyes do not harden, and that fear and pain make him losing focus, which causes Akira's hardening to slowly dissipate.

Stendhal knows why Akira is in pain and that is because he lacks conviction; wielding power without conviction is something he considers a crime. Fulfilling his beliefs, Stendhal delivers his judgement and cuts down Akira with his katana, killing him. At the top of a building is the person who ordered Akira's death, Kuin Hachisuka, who after witnessing the execution is quite impressed with Stendhal's ability to fight and kill.

With Akira dead, Stendhal decides to move on to his next target. He looks at the photos that Kuin gave him and decides that the next criminal to be executed will be Soga Kugisaki.

Soga's Turning Point
Soga Kugisaki and Moyuru Tochi visit Rapt Tokage in the hospital, which he has been in since the incident with Trigger dealer Mario Kugutsu. Moyuru gives Rapt a soda pop and an issue of Jump, although what Rapt really wants is a lighter, since his has been confiscated and he has not been able to smoke. Suddenly, a nurse barges in and berates Rapt for trying to smoke inside the hospital. Rapt decides to go outside.

Rapt, Soga, and Moyuru smoke outside the hospital and discuss Rapt's discharge from the hospital; Rapt is healing faster thanks to his Lizard Quirk, although he admits the Trigger he took also helped too, and found it to be cool flying in the air after taking it. Compared to that, Moyuru says that all he got was a little more firepower when the Trigger boost his Flame Quirk, but Rapt tells him he was cool.

Soga then asks Rapt if he would like to fly again, as a way of hinting if he would use Trigger again, but he refuses the proposal because that was the reason he ended up hospitalized. He has already learned the lesson from his past experience and her does not want to repeat the experience again.

At night, Soga meets Kuin Hachisuka in an alley. The girl asks him about his friends, but he tells her to leave them alone. However, Kuin is adamant on Soga inviting his friends to take Trigger again because of the recent news; the attack on Danto Ward's villain organization's office by a viscous criminal who murdered the Abegawa Tenchu Kai.

Kuin warns Soga that he and his friends may be the next targets of the assassin, so they should team up agaist him. Soga orders Kuin to drop the act and assures her that he will take on the criminal himself. She praises his motivation, but her talk is cut short when the criminal himself announces his presence, to Soga's surprise

Stendhal is tired of their charade, deciding to cut down Soga and move on to his next target. Kuin gives Soga the offer to inject Trigger to be able to fight against the murderous vigilante, but Soga rejects it, breaking the drugs and declaring that he will defeat him with his Spike Quirk and without any kind of help. Faced with his refusal, Kuin is disappointed with his decision, finding it to be boring and decides to make things interesting.

She activates her Quirk to releasea swarm of bees that inject Trigger into Soga by force. While he transforms against his will into an Instant Villain, Soga sees Kuin leaving the alley with a grin on her face, which incites him. In his childhood, Soga suffered from discrimination due to his scary looking Quirk and people making mocking grins at him. Enraged at the discrimination he suffered and the effects of the Trigger, Soga's Quirk is enhanced and he transforms into a beast while screaming in rage.

Seeing that Soga has shown his true colors, Stendhal prepares to strike down the villain.

The True Nature of Stendhal
Koichi Haimawari was patrolling the streets when he hears someone screamings. He decides to go to investigate the origin of the screams, and when he reaches the place, he is surprised to find Stendhal ready to fight Soga, whom he can barely recognize due to his transformation.

Stendhal tells the Crawler to step aside as he kills the foulfull villain, but Koichi thinks he takes the situation to far and would like to talk things out, since Soga is not a good person, but not horrible either. Ignoring his words, Stendhal draws his sword and slashes Soga's torso, which shocked Koichi. At that moment, Koichi realizes that Stendhal isn't jocking about killing Soga.

Stendhal charges against Soga, but Koichi uses his Slide and Glide quirk to tripping him. Then, he manages to pick up the transformed Soga while Stendhal makes a quick recovery. Koichi tries to get away taking Soga while complains about his spikes, but Stendhal throws a knife into Koichi's leg, causing him to fall down.

Stendhal approaches the Crawler and warns him not to get in his way as there is no value in saving Soga's life. However, Koichi manages to activate his Quirk and slides away from Stendhal.

Koichi plans on sliding into a huge crowd of people. Stendhal praises Koichi's innate act of goodness but still considers him evil since those who side with evil have evil within themselves. Stendhal strokes his finger on Koichi's blood and licks it, activating his Quirk, Bloodcurdle, paralyzing Koichi. Stendhal tells the villains to draw their last words as they will be scattered to the dust by heaven's judgement. Stendhal tells the villains they are sinners and because of that, no one will save them.

Just as he is about to finish them, Knuckleduster arrives just in time to save Koichi Haimawari and Soga Kugisaki, telling Stendhal that he is wrong. Stendhal dodges Knuckleduster's flying kick, who quickly puts himself in a fight position, between Stendhal and his targets, proclaiming that he is already there.

Convictions
Stendhal recognizes Knuckleduster as the "Vigilante of Naruhata" and has no intention of fighting him because he views him as someone who is forging the path of justice in this warped society and as a result they share similar ambitions. However, Knuckleduster disagreed totally with his opinion, views himself completely different to Stendhal: he is a badass ally of justice while Stendhal is nothing more than a mad slasher.

Disappointed by the fact they cannot reach a mutual understanding, Stendhal decides to face Knuckleduster. Knuckleduster tells Stendhal that he lost the chance to launch a surprise attack after noticing Stendhal gauge the distance between them. Being a nice guy, Knuckleduster lays down a line of wire to help Stendhal easily gauge it. Knuckleduster gives Stendhal the option to withdraw but if he chooses to cross the line to fight him, he will drive his fist into his face.

Despite Knuckleduster's warning, Stendhal steps back and charges, with the clear intention of crossing the line and strike down Knuckleduster. As he runs, Stendhal is sure that his opponent will have no chance to avoid his strike, because a hero is an extraordinary being.

When he is about to cross the line, Knuckleduster catches Stendhal off guard when steps over the line unexpectedly, punching him so hard that he shatters his mask and sends Stendhal flying back whith his face badly injured. Koichi is surprised, because he thought that his master would only attack if Stendhal crossed the line. Knuckleduster points out that he never said that he wouldn't cross the line himself.

Knuckleduster picks up Stendhal's mask and comments that people like Stendhal put on some sort of disguise and become convinced that they are a completely different person, believing that they are invincible. Knuckleduster comments that these people can be troublesome to deal with since they lack regard for their well-being but conversely stepping into their territory makes them fragile. Knuckleduster comments that people who forget this fact, like Stendhal, lack determination.

Lying on the ground with blood all over his badly injured face, Stendhal feels enlightened by Knuckleduster's statement. Stendhal suddenly charges at Knuckleduster with great speed and attacks him with knives. Knuckleduster blocks Stendhal's attack but is cut in the process. Stendhal retreats onto an air conditioning unit, having realized that there are people whose sins are greater than that of villains, who lack any resolve whatsoever; false Heroes.

Stendhal licks his bloodied knife and activates his Quirk, which immobilizes Knuckleduster. Stendhal thanks him for his lesson because now things are clear to him. He resolves to target the false heroes he despised, whose sins he considers are even greater than that of villains. Stendhal jumps towards a building and disappears.

Pop☆Step arrives with a first aid kit and Knuckleduster asks Kazuho to tend to Soga's injuries, which she begrudgingly does. With everything that happened, Koichi tells Soga that he is glad that they both come of this alive. Soga is annoyed by Koichi's optimism and questions Kazuho about it, to which she replies that he is nothing but a idiot while blushes. Soga seems to understand what's going on.

The Birth of the Hero Killer
Back at his run-down apartment, Stendhal realizes that he lacks many things such as power, speed, weapons, and tactics but most importantly: Determination. Kuin Hachisuka mocks him for his statement, bugging Stendhal for which he throws a knife at her to shut her up, sticking it right where she has the eye patch, and apparently killing her.

As proof of his new resolve, he saws off his own nose with a trench knife. He sees that he no longer has a mask and finds it to be most suitable. He walks away and notes that he can finally see the truth of the world with his own eyes. Walking in a passageway, Stendhal mutters to himself that he will dye the world with not only his blood but the blood he draws from his victims and wherever he travels, he will leave guiding blood stains that cannot be wiped away.

Kuin gets up and takes the knife out of his eye socket, completely unharmed. Kuin decided not to retaliate, considering he will makes things all the more interesting.

Story Impact

 * More details about Chizome Akaguro are revealed.
 * Before he became the Hero Killer: Stain, he was a Vigilante going by the name Stendhal. He still had his murderous tendancies, however.
 * He cut off his own nose after it was broken in a fight with Knuckleduster. This same fight is what inspired him to begin hunting down "false heroes".
 * Soga Kugisaki's past is shown.
 * He originally wanted to become a Pro Hero, but was looked down upon for his appearance, violent attitude and dangerous Quirk. As a result, he developed both a violent personality and a sensitivity for people laughing at him.

Characters Introduced

 * Stendhal
 * Rojiya Yonenaga
 * Tetsu
 * Soji
 * Haruhisa