Episode 16 - Academy City
Konori tells Kurozuma that she thought he was dead, and angrily asks why he never contacted her. Rather than answer, he glances at her Judgement armband and says he'll get out of her way. As he walks off, Mikoto and Kuroko, who have been watching all this, try to make sense of what just happened.
A few days later, the pair fill Saten and Uiharu in on events; they all wonder what Konori's connection to Kurozuma might be. Uiharu mentions that Konori hasn't been to work at Judgement for several days. The four girls decide to visit her at home to try and get some answers.
Konori's roommate Aomi answers the door and tells them Konori is out. They apologize and start to leave, but she hears them mention Kurozuma and invites them inside. After they explain their concerns, Aomi tells them that years ago Konori used to be a member of Big Spider — which in those days was just a rough but good-natured gang of Level 0s. At the time, Konori was struggling with her ability development and feeling like she didn't fit in anywhere. Although she had to hide the fact that she was an esper, Big Spider was a group where she felt accepted and free to be herself.
Leaving Konori's dorm, Mikoto is upset about what they learned. She wonders how such a responsible and dependable Judgement officer could have been part of Skill Out, and says Konori should just put the past behind her. But Saten points out that Konori's past is part of who she is today.
Meanwhile, at Big Spider's hideout, the members are wondering who Kurozuma really is. Hebitani comes in and orders them to hunt Kurozuma down, saying there's only room for one of them. After they leave, he gets a call on his cell phone. He tells the person on the other end they've been successfully using Capacity Down, but complains that they have other problems now.
That same day, Judgement receives word that Anti-Skill plans to perform a major sweep of Strange the next morning. After seeing this message, Konori goes back to Strange. She ends up on the same rooftop as before, and finds Mikoto waiting there for her.
Konori tells Mikoto that two years ago, Kurozuma's lieutenant, Hebitani, was kidnapped and held hostage. In spite of Konori's pleas not to walk into such an obvious trap, Kurozuma went off to rescue him. There was an explosion, and while Hebitani made it out, Kurozuma was apparently killed. Mikoto tells Konori that, whatever happened in the past, she has responsibilities now. Kurozuma appears as they talk, and agrees with Mikoto. He tells Konori that while he survived the explosion, he was so badly injured that he was in rehabilitation until a few months ago. Konori asks if he's planning to charge in recklessly once again. Kurozuma replies that he was the one who originally created Big Spider, and it's his responsibility to bring it down. He tells her things have changed now, and says she shouldn't get involved. Konori responds that her position may have changed, but her feelings have not.
That night, Mikoto asks Kuroko if she thinks feelings between people can stay the same even when everything else changes. Kuroko says that even if feelings change, what they are in the present moment is what counts. Mikoto considers this, then says she wants Kuroko's help.
The next morning, Anti-Skill mobilizes and moves into District 10 to begin their sweep of Strange. Konori heads there too, wearing the red leather jacket from her Big Spider days. She is surprised when Mikoto and Kuroko appear and join her. Kuroko puts a Judgement armband on Konori and Mikoto says she looks much better that way.
At Big Spider headquarters, Wataru Kurozuma calmly walks in and tells Hebitani he's going to end this. He dispatches several goons, but some of the others draw guns on him. At that moment, Konori walks in and orders them to stop. Hebitani recognizes her, but she tells him he's fallen a long way from the person she used to know. He calls Konori a traitor and orders his men to open fire, but their guns are suddenly incapacitated by familiar-looking metal darts.
Kuroko and Mikoto show themselves, and Mikoto uses her railgun to destroy the Capacity Down machine. However, Konori tells them to stand back as Kurozuma takes on the remaining goons. Konori herself intervenes only once, disarming a man with a hidden gun. The rest are no match for Kurozuma, and soon only Hebitani is left. He opens his jacket to reveal a suicide vest and threatens to blow them all up, but Kurozuma calls his bluff and disarms him. Hebitani makes one last attempt to attack Kurozuma with a knife, but Kurozuma's fist is faster and Hebitani is knocked cold.
With Big Spider taken down, they go outside to wait for Anti-Skill. Kurozuma surrenders to Konori, who reluctantly arrests him on "suspicion of assault". As they stand there, he remarks that her leather jacket seems tighter around the chest than it used to. She laughs and replies that she's been drinking Musashino Milk every day.
In the aftermath, Mikoto and Kuroko stand on the rooftop one more time, enjoying both the breeze and the view. Thinking about how feelings can reach across all kinds of divides, Mikoto looks out over Academy City and smiles.
Tropes
- Dark and Troubled Past: Mii Konori is revealed to have had one.
- Desperately Looking for a Purpose in Life: This is why Konori used to hang out with Big Spider.
- Foreshadowing: Hebitani gets a phone call from a mysterious person, implied to be the one who provided Big Spider with Capacity Down and their other weapons. Eventually revealed to be Therestina Lifeline.
- Funny Background Event: In the final scene, Kuroko can be seen drinking from a carton of Musahino Milk.
- One-Man Army: Wataru Kurozuma. He takes out a couple of dozen guys barehanded, some of them armed with metal bars, knives, and worse — and barely breaks a sweat doing so.
