The salty breeze brushed against Arata's face as he stepped off the massive cruise liner and onto the sleek metal docks of I-Island. He slipped seamlessly into the long line of tourists and students, blending in perfectly as nothing more than a lucky middle-schooler who had somehow gotten his hands on a seven-day pass.
His posture was relaxed, his expression bright and harmless.
But beneath the cheerful smile tugging at his lips, a faint arrogant smirk flickered each time his fingers casually brushed the marble bracelet at his wrist.
'Mr. Compress… honestly an underrated villain. That quirk is ridiculous.'
His eyes glinted.
'Good thing the DNA samples had his data. Compress Quirk + tech = perfection.'
Ahead of him, multiple security officers were checking belongings with practiced precision. Each one clearly had a quirk suited for detection—some sniffed for biological anomalies, others scanned with glowing eyes, a few tapped the suitcase locks and made them phase open.
Arata remained calm.
He walked through the security gate… and nothing beeped.
The officers barely even glanced at his bracelet. They tossed it beside his wallet, belt, and watch as if it were nothing more than a kid's fashion accessory.
He collected everything smoothly.
A quiet exhale escaped him.
'I could walk in carrying three miniature nukes in marble form and they would never know… incredible.'
Once past the gates, he stepped fully into the island—an engineering heaven glittering with chrome and glass. A genuine wonderland for scientists.
Arata's eyes widened despite himself.
Hoverboards zipped overhead.
Pogo sticks launched people ten meters up.
A scientist barely older than twenty excitedly demonstrated a new invention: Bubble-Gum Cushion—chew, spit, and it inflated into a giant beanbag perfect for soft landings.
"Damn…" Arata whispered under his breath. Even he had to admit—it was impressive.
But the excitement stayed only on his face.
Inside, his mind was already calculating energy grids and potential blind spots he can use to get the sufficient energy needed for his space stone.
He reached his designated hotel, checked in like any ordinary guest, and entered his room. The door closed behind him with a muted click.
Instantly, his warm tourist smile vanished.
His eyes sharpened.
His posture straightened.
A cold, business-like expression replaced it.
He walked silently into the center of the room, observing every corner for several seconds before pulling a single marble from his bracelet.
The sphere glowed.
A flash of light—FWUMP!
A compact, metallic box—about the size of an apple—materialized on the floor.
Arata crouched and tapped the top.
WHOOM!
A transparent forcefield bloomed outward, expanding until it covered the entire hotel room in a shimmering dome.
"Good," he murmured.
Next, he raised his watch and pressed the dial. A thin blue beam shot out, scanning the walls, ceiling, lights, vents—everything.
After a few seconds, the watch beeped.
No cameras. No spy devices. No transmission signals.
Satisfied, Arata deactivated the beam.
Then—
He grabbed his bracelet—
And snapped every remaining marble.
One by one, with tiny bursts of light, the machines, tools, wires, panels, and equipment he had brought compressed inside the marbles expanded back into full size, filling nearly half the room in an organized arrangement.
His expression hardened into focus.
He began assembling the Space Stone Generator Chamber.
Hours passed.
He tightened screws.
Adjusted quirk chips.
Inserted energy stabilizers in precise order.
Wired the circuits exactly according to the compatibility sequence he had discovered back in his lab.
All while his mind wandered to his next task.
'I need to scout the island. Check the layout. Find a spot to tap into the power grid. The chamber will need insane energy…'
While Arata worked, the narrative shifted—
---
At the Docks
A masked man wearing a cowboy hat stood in the shadows between stacked crates. He raised a phone to his ear.
If Arata saw him, he'd recognize him instantly.
Mr. Compress.
But this time… a different Mr. Compress.
A man already working under All For One, not the one who would later join the League.
Around him stood several subdued criminals—villains Arata remembered from the original movie timeline. The metal-controlling villain was among them… except now their actions had been intercepted by All For One due to the butterfly effect caused by Arata's existence.
Mr. Compress spoke politely into the phone.
"Boss, I have brought those brain monster things on the island, and one of their quirks to control the security worked just as you had anticipated."
All For One's cold, oily voice vibrated through the speaker.
"Excellent. While the Nomus cause chaos, you and the others will retrieve the Quirk Enhancing Device… and kidnap David Shield."
Mr. Compress bowed theatrically, despite the fact no one could see him.
"As you wish, boss."
The call ended.
Somewhere far away in his hideout, All For One's quiet laughter filled the room.
"Let's see how you handle this… when you can't even save your best friend, All Might."
---
Back to Arata
Five hours.
That's how long it took him to finish the chamber.
He wiped sweat from his forehead and exhaled shakily as he stared at the completed generator.
"Perfect…"
Using careful, steady hands, he placed the digital quirk chip of the Space Stone in the center of the circuit.
A faint hum filled the room.
Arata stepped back and let out a deep breath.
'I need food… I'm starving.'
He reached for a black glove—similar to his telekinesis glove, but this one was darker with glowing purple lines.
The Compress Chip Glove.
He slid it on.
"Activate."
Purple veins of light crawled across the glove as he placed his palm on the massive chamber.
POP!
Instantly, the entire machine shrank into a single blue marble, which rolled neatly into his hand.
He clipped it back onto his bracelet.
Then he compressed the remaining equipment.
Then the forcefield box.
Only once everything was minimized into marbles did he deactivate the glove—letting it fold into a normal wristband.
Both gloves—the telekinesis glove and compress glove—stayed on his wrists. Always ready. Just in case.
He grabbed a hoodie from his bag, tugged it on casually, and unwrapped a lollipop.
The sweet candy clicked between his teeth as he stepped out of his room.
Time to scout.
Time to plan.
Time to begin the next phase.
And with that, Arata walked out into the night-lit streets of I-Island, hoodie up, lollipop in his mouth, ready to explore.