Chizome Akaguro

Chizome Akaguro, also known as Hero Killer: Stain (ヒーロー殺しステイン) and formerly the vigilante Stendhal (スタンダール), is a villain and ex-vigilante that is notorious for having killed many pro heroes. He is the main antagonist of the Vs. Hero Killer Arc.

Appearance
Stain is an intimidating, muscular man who walks with a distinct hunch. He has black hair and wears it in a messy fashion that would drape over his face if not for his headband and mask. Stain's face is mostly flat because he removed his own nose, and his eyes are blood red. His tongue is unusually long and tainted with many small bumps.

The Hero Killer sports a dark combat suit, plated with metal armor across his body to holster his weapons. The torso is sleeveless, and Stain instead wraps his arms in bandages. He also wears long black wristbands and a watch on his left arm. His knees are protected with metal pads and the costume is completed with black, steel boots. Stain always dons his signature blood-red scarf and matching headband, as well as the tattered cloth he wears around his face as a mask.

As Stendhal, he had long black hair that he tied into a ponytail. Stendhal wore black clothing which looked similar to bulletproof clothing and had six pockets, three on the right side and three of the left side, with two pairs of pockets beneath them. Stendhal's most striking feature was his mask, which completely covered his face

Personality
Stain is a cold, unforgiving man with a sense of duty to cleanse society of false heroes. He believes that those who work as Heroes to collect income are unworthy of being called the name and only All Might is a true hero. Due to his strong ideology, Stain took it upon himself to become Hero Killer: Stain to stain his own hands with blood to purge fake heroes and change the current society.

Stain does not wish to kill those who are not targets for his own cause. He dislikes needless bloodshed and came to blows with Tomura Shigaraki because of it. He was reluctant to attack Tenya Iida before the hero in training provoked him. He even told Tenya the true traits of a hero in contrast of those who desire to use their Quirks in selfish ways. Stain spared Izuku Midoriya because he showed characteristics of a true hero. He believes heavily in creeds and convictions, stating that they are needed in order to accomplish anything and that without them people are weak and will eventually die.

In spite of his extremist views and beliefs, Stain does have genuine ideals about Heroism which he stands by firmly. He does not hesitate to save people he deems worthy of being called Heroes, does not like killing without reason, and will even give advice to his enemies. He seems to acknowledge that what he is doing is morally wrong, but believes that in order for society to be put on the right path, someone must be what he is, indicating he sees himself as somewhat of a martyr.

Stain's conviction gives him an incredibly murderous aura and bloodlust that paralyzed several heroes in fear. It gives him enough confidence to willingly challenge several pro heroes at once, even after sustaining major injuries.

As Stendhal, Stain believed that any who "wielded power without conviction" were automatically sinners deserving of death, and used this belief to justify his actions as heroic instead of hypocritical. That said, he was perfectly willing to work alongside villains like Kuin Hachisuka as a means to an end. Stendhal also appeared to suffer from a split-personality disorder of some kind that caused him to view his vigilante and civilian identities as two separate entities (his mental change signified by whether or not he is wearing his mask at the time). However, his confrontation with Knuckleduster caused him to change his beliefs, and start thinking that those who are not "true heroes" are the reason for society's problems.

History
All Might's debut as a Hero deeply inspired Stain. Since then, Stain aimed to become a Hero like All Might. He entered a private Hero course high school to train to become a Hero, however, he became hopeless and despaired after seeing the school's "fundamental decay", as the students there were becoming Heroes for the money and personal gain. Disillusioned by the reality of Heroics, Stain dropped out during the summer after his first year.

After dropping out of high school, the teenage Stain preached an ideology which he called the "Revival of Heroics" through street oratory speeches and soapbox speeches, but his words went unheard.

Over the following decade, Stain realized that only action could create his ideal world and change Heroics for the better. Stain researched and disciplined himself in the training of the killing arts through self-study in order to achieve his duty of "Revival of Heroics". During this decade, Stain's parents died. It is unknown what led to their deaths but it is believed that Stain was not involved.

Vigilante - My Hero Academia: Illegals
Stain had a brief stint as a vigilante by the name of Stendhal. He hunted villains to make up for the heroes mistakes. During this time he worked with the vigilantes such as Knuckleduster, The Crawler, and Pop Step. For some time, Stain became more and more disillusioned with hero society to the point where he began to work with a villain who was supplying the Quirk enhancing drug Trigger to several small-time criminals. He brutally murdered Akira and several Yakuza members before going after Soga. In a single battle with Knuckleduster, Stain's nose was completely smashed in and he was forced to retreat, causing minor injuries on the Vigilante. However, his defeat was not a complete loss, as became enlightened after hearing Knuckeduster's comments on resolve. After retreating, Stain betrayed Kuin by trying to stab out her eye and soon after, he cut off his broken nose.

Sometime later, Stain took up the mantle of Hero Killer: Stain and begun advocating the "Revival of Heroics". In this ideology of "Revival of Heroics", Stain (now known as 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 with 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, Tokyo 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 do him in 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 Iida. 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 Izukus 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 repeling the villain with a subsequent kick.

Tenya apologizes to his allies for their injuries, but Stain refutes Tenya's reformation and calls him cancer to society that must be killed off. Stain becomes flustered and acts gets 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 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 bone 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 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, Stain was incarcerated in Tartarus, a special prison for criminals for whom the death penalty is not enough.

Quirk and Abilities
Bloodcurdle (凝血): Stain can paralyze his target by ingesting samples of their blood. The amount of time a victim is paralyzed for varies depending on blood type, with B having the longest duration, then in decreasing order, AB, A, and O. Regardless, the maximum amount of time anyone can be paralyzed is eight minutes. Stain uses blades to draw blood from his opponents in order to use his Quirk.

Overall Abilities: Stain is an extremely powerful villain who has claimed more lives than any other since All Might's debut. He was able to critically injure Ingenium, who is a strong and popular pro hero. Stain also was able to murder 17 known Pro Heroes and crippled 23 others to the point of being unable to make a full recovery. Shoto Todoroki commented that Stain is a strong combatant who likely allowed he and Izuku Midoriya to live. It took the combined efforts of Izuku, Shoto, and Tenya to briefly knock Stain unconscious.

Enhanced Speed & Reflexes: Stain's most notable ability is his unmatched speed. He was able to evade Tenya's high-speed kick when they first met and was even able to partially block Tenya's Recipro Burst during the ensuing battle. Shoto was unable to land a single strike on Stain using both attacks of fire and ice. He mentioned that Stain was so fast that he couldn't even consider running away as an option.

Enhanced Strength: Stain has considerable strength, enough so to cleanly slice through many of Shoto's ice attacks.

Immense Endurance: Stain also appears to have a high pain threshold, he took a direct blow from Izuku's 5% Detroit Smash to his head and remained mostly unphased. Despite Stain's lungs perforated by his broken ribs Stain remained standing even after falling unconscious.

Highly Perceptive Combatant: Stain has shown creativity and mastery over his fighting style. Able to deal with close and long-ranged opponents through a mix of misdirection, aggression, prediction, and use of the environment. Izuku Midoriya mentioned that Stain's tenacity completely changed his movements after getting desperate to kill Tenya before reinforcements arrived.

Equipment
Weapon Arsenal: Before being arrested, Stain carried various weapons with him: A worn and partially damaged katana, five daggers, throwing knives, toe-spiked boots and folding knives.

All Might
Stain seems to have a great deal of respect for All Might and even states that he is the only true hero in the world. His respect towards him came from his respect he had towards him when he was a teen, All Might be the reason Stain decided to become a Hero. Stain's respect and admiration for All Might runs so deep that before finally falling unconscious, Stain declared that only All Might is allowed to defeat him.

Tenya Iida
Stain despises Tenya for his desire for revenge against him. He scolded the young hero over his selfish desires of revenge over saving the Pro Hero he was about to kill. Even after Tenya learned from his mistakes Stain stopped at nothing to kill him, claiming that people don't change their views easily.

Tenya, though he hates him immensely for paralyzing his brother, acknowledges Stain was right about him and resolved to start over as a Hero.

Tomura Shigaraki
Stain views Shigaraki as an immature child who wants to cause needless bloodshed all for nothing. He did not hesitate to pin him down when they conversed and refused to join his alliance, which earned him Shigaraki's hatred. However, he was amused by Shigaraki's desire to kill All Might and destroy those who worship that caused him to see the latter had potential to grow.

Shigaraki also despised how Stain's capture was the main news story instead of the Nomu attack.

Izuku Midoriya
Stain, like All Might, respects Izuku for his convictions and bravery he displayed in his fight with him. He acknowledges Izuku as a true hero. Because of his respect, he both spared Izuku when he first fought him and risked his life to save the young hero-in-training from a Noumu.

Izuku seems to also share a similar respect for Stain. When speaking with Shigaraki at the mall, Izuku confessed that while he didn't accept Stain's methods, he did at the very least understood Stain's desire and the ideals Stain stood for. Izuku also seems to be grateful towards Stain for saving his life from the Nomu.

Shoto Todoroki
Stain seems to also respect Shoto for his skills and convictions as a true hero. Shoto, however, despises Stain for his ideologies about "fake" Pro Heroes.

Kuin Hachisuka
Kuin and Stain were once allies, but Stain betrayed her by stabbing her in the eye.

Vs. Hero Killer Arc

 * Tenya Iida & Izuku Midoriya vs. Stain: Interrupted
 * Tenya Iida, Izuku Midoriya & Shoto Todoroki vs. Stain: Loss

Vigilante - My Hero Academia: Illegals -

 * Koichi Haimawari and Soga Kugizaki vs Stain: Interrupted
 * Knuckleduster vs Stain: Loss

Trivia

 * Stain's dark outfit, choice of weapons and violent ideology are most likely derived from the comic book anti-heroes of the 90's, a trend galvanized primarily by creators like Rob Liefeld and Todd McFarlane. His mainly black costume and long, flowing, tattered red scarf are particularly reminiscent of McFarlane character Spawn.


 * Stain's design, bandanna, samurai equipment and perhaps even his lack of a nose may have possibly been inspired by the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, given that they debuted in a comic with a much darker tone than what they're known for today.
 * Interestingly, Spinner, his admirer, has a similar apperance, furthered with the green skin, reptile attributes and wild teenage motivations.


 * Additionally, Stain's personality and premise are very similar to the Marvel anti-hero Frank Castle, aka The Punisher. Both are seasoned warriors (Stain a vigilante, Frank a Vietnam War veteran) who resort to murder to act upon their absolutist ideals of "justice", both with a strict moral code conducting their actions that separates them from outright villainy (The Punisher only kills criminals, while Stain only kills corrupt heroes)


 * Stain's name contains the kanji for "red" (赤), "black" (黒), "blood" (血), and of course "stain" (染).


 * The two middle kanji for can be combined to form "venous blood" (黒血)

Quotes

 * (To Tomura Shigaraki) "To truly accomplish anything... one needs will and conviction. Those without it... the weak ones.. They'll be weeded out. It's only natural. That's why you're about to die."
 * (To Kurogiri) "Hero is a title reserved for those who perform truly great feats! Too many are undeserving... Just money worshipers playing hero! Until this society wakes up and rectifies itself... I will continue to do my work."
 * (To Tenya Iida) "Forget about yourself for a second and try saving others. Don't wield your power for your own sake. Because getting trapped by your own hate and acting out of pure self-interest... makes you the furthest thing from a hero."
 * (To himself) "Both this sham-filled society... and the criminals who wield their power in the name of petty mischief... are targets of my purge... All for the sake of a better society..."
 * (To various heroes and U.A. students) "If I don't fix it... if someone isn't... stained with blood...! If heroes aren't restored...!! Come! Just try me... you fakes! The only one allowed to kill me is... All Might, a true hero!!"

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Chizome Akaguro