Chapter 3 (Vigilantes)

Nice Guy Reborn (マン) is the third chapter of Hideyuki Furuhashi and Betten Court's Vigilante - My Hero Academia: Illegals.

Summary
Koichi Haimawari thinks back to when someone said that a society with Quirks is a society which Quirks must be suppressed. If everyone was allowed to do as they please with their Quirks, society would descend into chaos. This is why there are iron-clad rules in place to restrain people from abusing their Quirks and they must use their Quirks moderately to live out normal lives. However, there are people who are an exception to this rule; Heroes, people with Quirks who are authorized to use their Quirks to their hearts content for the sake of the people and the world. All young boys look up to Heroes and aspire to become one because its the only way to unleash their Quirks. However, reality isn't kind as not everyone can become Heroes. As a result, some people with Quirks with nowhere to go head towards a place outside the law.

Ichimoku Samazu and Jube Namimaru are fighting each other. Watching them from above, Pop☆Step tells Koichi that there is a fight. Koichi heads to the scene using his Slide and Glide. Having arrived, Koichi demands that the middle schoolers cease their fight, but his speed due to his Quirk causes him to hit some garbage. As the middle schoolers check to see if he is alright, Koichi gets up and is not hurt. At his home, Knuckleduster asked about the speed of Koichi's Quirk; Koichi stated that the speed is that of a bicycle and if he goes any faster than that, he will lose control since his Quirk does not have any brakes, displaying a scar on his arm. Knuckleduster gave Koichi protective gloves that motorcyclists use and suggested that Koichi practice the art of falling safely. Knuckleduster told Koichi that he needed a new name, as "Nice Guy" would cause evildoers to make light of him.

The middle schoolers ask for Koichi's identification. Koichi tells them that he is The Crawler. However, the middle schoolers know him as Nice Guy who always picks up trash, which causes Koichi to start repeating that he is now known as The Crawler and not The Cruller. Seeing that this is going nowhere, Koichi tells the middle schoolers to break up their fight, but Juubei just pushes Koichi, who laughs because his padding protects him. As the middle schoolers start kicking Koichi, Knuckleduster comes in and prepares himself for a fight, but Koichi tries to stop him as there is no need for him to beat them up. Knuckleduster prefers to beat up on sight as it makes the evildoers cooperate instantly and above all it is refreshing. Koichi tells Knuckleduster that it is not okay to beat up someone because it is refreshing, which confuses Knuckleduster. Annoyed that it is taking too long for them to stop the fight, Pop☆Step arrives and uses her appeal to stop the middle schoolers' fight which works.

As the middle schoolers prepare to get Pop☆Step's autograph, Akira Iwako starts attacking innocent civilians with his Trigger-enhanced abilities. When Akira's rampage causes a baby to fall out of its carriage, Koichi manages to save the baby in the nick of time. Knuckleduster punches Akira but fails to inflict any damage, and Akira retaliates with a punch of his own, which sends Knuckleduster flying back. As Akira admires his great defense and shows his blackened tongue in the process, Knuckleduster gets up and is happy to see that Akira is a user of Trigger. Pop☆Step informs Ichimoku and Juubei about the drug Trigger and that Koichi and Knuckleduster are two volunteers who are trying to stop Trigger from circulating through the black market. Akira kicks Koichi, who recovers quickly thanks to the protectors. Knuckleduster criticizes the impromptu villain for not growing accustomed to his Quirk and as a result he is full of openings; one example being that his Hardening Quirk, having hardened his body too much, has caused his movements to become sluggish and that losing focus removes the Hardening. As Knuckleduster grapples Akira, Koichi slides into Akira's knee, causing the villain to fall. Due to losing focus and thus his hard defense, Knuckleduster begins beating up Akira with a flurry of punches. Defeated, Akira returns to normal.

Akira's face does not ring a bell to Knuckleduster. As Koichi restrains the villain and Knuckleduster searches for identification, Pop☆Step returns the baby Koichi saved to its mother. Koichi prepares to take a picture of the villain's face and tongue, and Pop☆Step tells the middle schoolers that people who use Trigger have blackened tongues. She adds that the middle schoolers should not take drugs, with which they agree. When they hear police sirens, Koichi and Knuckleduster scram and Pop☆Step leaps away and tells the middle schoolers that she will see them next time.

Since not everyone can become Heroes, some of them fire off their powers in their every day lives while others change themselves into monsters. The middle schoolers ask who they are. Koichi tells the middle school boys that they are mysterious new Heroes, Knuckleduster and The Crawler.

At the crime scene, the Police Force investigate Akira. According to information, the villain's Quirk is a mixture of Gigantification and Hardening. The detective Naomasa Tsukauchi notes that Akira's tongue is black, a side affect of Trigger. His assistant Sansa Tamakawa realizes that Akira is an impromptu villain. Naomasa wants to know who gave the villain such severe injuries and wants to know the Heroes who responded to this villain's crime. Sansa states that there are no reports of Heroes being dispatched to the area, so Naomasa concludes that the people responsible are unapproved, illegal Heroes; Vigilantes. Sansa is glad that the Vigilantes took down the villain since it works in their favor, to which Naomasa tells Sansa to watch his words as they have something called the law and carrying out personal acts of vigilantism is a crime.

At Koichi's house, Pop☆Step checks the internet and informs Koichi that there are rumors circulating on the web about today's incident, which excites Koichi as they are starting to get some fame. Pop☆Step says that everyone is calling Knuckleduster and him "Weird Fist Grandpa" and "Cruller", much to Koichi's annoyance.