Overhaul's Broken Hands and My Stalled Fingertips

A long time ago, when I was learning piano, my teacher told me: if you skip one day, it takes three days to make up for it.

I thought it was just a way to educate a child who didn't want to practice, but I was wrong. It wasn't just piano; I realized well past my mid-thirties that writing is exactly the same.

I've actually been feeling unwell for nearly three weeks and haven't been able to sit properly in front of my computer, so I can't write at all right now. I haven't been writing words, so it's only natural, I suppose. Well, I've been writing a little on my smartphone while in bed, but it's more like spilling out my feelings, and my work mode was off.

Now that I've recovered and finally sat down in front of the computer, my brain isn't working at all. It's like staring blankly into an empty refrigerator. I want to eat or drink something, but I don't know what to do. That's the situation.

Ah, so this is one of the benefits of daily updates. Like muscle training or playing an instrument, if you don't write, you lose the ability to write. There's a knack to putting your thoughts into words. That knack fades quickly if you don't keep at it.

It feels like muscles atrophying when you're bedridden. Daily updates aren't about willpower; they're more like keeping the fire burning.

It's a fine skill. It's not easy, but it's not a talent; it's a skill anyone can acquire through effort. That's why I intend to write again today.

Well, even so, since my brain isn't working, I'll talk about an anime I watched recently. Actually, while I was resting, I watched quite a bit of My Hero Academia anime. I didn't want to waste my time just lying there, so I watched it casually, but it gave me something to think about.

The story of Overhaul. I really like that man. There it is again, my habit of liking villains. Of course, I like the heroes too. I sobbed during All Might's scene in Kamino. No matter how desperate the situation, he never broke. I suppose I like people like that.

Well, I'll talk about All Might another time.

Back to Overhaul. What I like about him is that he pushed forward for his own ideals. No matter what people said, even when his benefactor told him he was wrong, he pushed forward. I really love that madness. I like it even more because he's voiced by Kenjiro Tsuda.

That knowledge, combat ability, and personality—though flawed—were all the fruits of his effort. While others were playing, and surely while he was sleeping or eating, he spent all his time on it.

In the end, he lost both arms and became quirkless. Given his actions, it was only natural. Retribution. If I were the author, I would do the same. To kill a devil like that while he's still alive, you have no choice but to make him quirkless.

But even so, when I imagine the effort he put in, I felt a little bit of sympathy. If his path had been different, his abilities and he himself might have been praised. Even if he was wrong, his effort wasn't a lie. That's what's heartbreaking about it.

And suddenly, I felt afraid. Perhaps the more effort a person accumulates, the less remains when they lose it all.

A villain who is just crazy is honestly bland. What's interesting is the madness that bites into an ideal. And that villain's ideal must always be broken. When what you've worked for, believed in, and obtained crumbles, what remains?

Does nothing remain, like with Overhaul? Does it transform into something else, like Toga-chan saving her enemy, Ochako?

Right now, I'm stuck in the middle of a story. The exit is decided, but the questions and answers aren't settled. It's important, but it's not a flashy scene. I don't know why I got stuck in a place like this.

The solution is probably simple. I just need to write. Even if I can't write, even if I'm stuck, I must write. No matter the reason, whether I'm busy or sick, the only way to get back the time I didn't write is to write.

It doesn't matter if my brain isn't working. As long as I keep lining up these words, the fire hasn't gone out.

Effort is lost. But it can be accumulated again. Because the world is unfair, there may come a day when you can never stand up again.

At that time, I want to be able to say that although I have regrets, I did my best and gave it my all. That's why I'm thinking of writing a little bit today, too.

Even so, why can't I write this part in the middle? I want a novel-writing mentor. I want a mentor who can give me advice like, 'What should I do here?' Isn't there a teacher like Eraserhead just lying around somewhere?!!