MEMORANDUM.

september ██th, 20██

SUBJECT: カムクライズルプロジェクト
希望育成計画
(KAMUKURA IZURU PROJECT.)

1. as you all know, our project has received enough funding to begin human testing. the reserve course was more successful than we had ever anticipated and as such, we have been offered several willing participants to be considered for the role of our subject. we had previously narrowed these options to just three: ██████ ███, ██ ███████, and ██████ ██████. we have approached ██████ ██████ with the offer of waived school fees to which he seemed receptive. ██████ ██████ is mediocre in every way and could be considered by all accounts a blank slate. it is for this reason that it is believed he is what we are looking for.2. testing is to begin in one week. we are waiting for ██████ ██████ to sign the consent papers. he will not read them- this is to be expected. once everything is in order, he will be expelled from the school and expunged from all records. his parents will be notified of his unfortunate disappearance. he is to have no contact with the outside world until the project reaches its conclusion.3. there have been whispers amongst us that there are some who seem to be getting cold feet. we would like to remind you all that we do what we must for the sake of hope. we finally have the chance to put our research to good use. the ends will always justify the means, and loose lips sink ships.4. those with any questions can speak to me in person in my office between 12:30-14:00. communication is key during these times. until then, i remain

faithfully yours,
████████ █████
████ ██ ██.

CLASSIFIED BY: ████████ █████
REASON: █████████
DECLASSIFY ON: january █st, 20██

• trigger warning: discussion of human experimentation.

██████ ██████.

• continue.

OBSERVATIONAL NOTES.

1. subject HOPE has signed the consent forms and was escorted to his room. his belongings have been burned and his existence erased without a trace. his parents are distraught. they will go to the police and have their missing persons case dropped immediately. they will continue to be monitored over the course of the project. we intend to begin work as soon as possible, conducting the first neurosurgery tomorrow.2. the lobotomy appears to have been successful. subject HOPE shows increased cognitive ability and has been able to answer any question posed to him with ease. HOPE exhibits traits similar to that of the ultimate psychologist, ultimate negotiator, and ultimate gambler. it should be noted that HOPE asked to phone his parents and was refused.3. subject HOPE has apparently experienced anaesthesia awareness during the recent lobotomy. ███████ claims that HOPE opened his eyes and stared up at the operating surgeons before being sedated further. subject has exhibited signs of severe psychological distress in the past several hours and was unable to eat unaided due to extreme trembling.4. subject HOPE has become aggressive as expected and is now unwilling to participate in the project. we have reminded him that he has effectively signed his life away, though this did not seem to remind him that his cooperation is vital. he has been sedated again.5. paralysis was necessary to conduct laser eye surgery.6. subject HOPE now experiences superior equivalent to that of the ultimate birdwatcher and ultimate sniper's. the subject has shown an interesting side effect- the colour of his eyes has changed from hazel to red. it is unknown whether or not this will be detrimental to his sight in future, and so we will continue to examine his vision.7. due to continued resistance from subject HOPE, the steering committee has given the order to conduct one final lobotomy. all traces of individuality ( memories, personality, emotions, etc. ) will be removed in order to facilitate the continued acquisition of talent.

• continue.

VIDEO INTERVIEW WITH SUBJECT HOPE.

november ██rd, 20██

good morning, HOPE. we have some questions for you.
...how are you feeling?
...it's okay to speak to us, HOPE. we're trying to help you. we need you to talk to us.
......this is pointless. he still refuses to speak to us. won't even emote. i wonder if he even knows we're here.
...ugh. take a record. we will return to this later.
...

• continue.

OBSERVATIONAL NOTES.

8. subject HOPE has been noticeably disoriented and has reported gradual memory loss. when not restrained he wanders around his room. it has been noted by members of staff that he appears to have slipped into a fugue-like state, some even comparing him to a zombie. we will continue to operate.9. the subject does not respond to any external stimuli. he will not respond to any name we call him and continues to be violent when approached. it is at this stage that we must begin to question if the testing has been a failure.10. it has become apparent that ██████ has made the tragic mistake of letting HOPE psychoanalyse her and is currently so rattled that we have insisted she take time off work. she will quietly be disposed of. note to self: write a memorandum informing all staff to completely avoid giving personal information to the subject, who has learned to weaponise his abilities. despite the minor setback, we will continue our work, and find a way to punish subject HOPE so this does not happen again.11. during a ct scan, subject HOPE reportedly attempted to start a conversation with ███████. though he refuses to answer when asked what HOPE said to him, ███████ insists that progress is being made.

• continue.

VIDEO INTERVIEW WITH SUBJECT HOPE.

october ██nd, 20██

hello again, HOPE. are you ready to talk to us?
yes.how are you feeling?
i am not currently in pain.i see, i see. that's always good. what do you remember about yourself?
i am approximately ██ years old.is that all?
that is all.well, then. tell me, HOPE, what would you like to be when you grow up?
i want to be the world's hope. i want to use my talents to help people. i would like to make everyone proud. this is my only goal in life.interesting. you've said this before, haven't you? you know you don't have to mimic your teachers, don't you? you can be honest with me.
...i am being recorded. please understand that this is the truth. the only truth. it is all i want.of course. ah, that reminds me, actually. you do know why we're recording you, don't you? it's for your own benefit, you see, because we're only trying to help you.
you are recording me because i broke ██████'s jaw. you are demonstrating what is known in psychology as the observer effect, hoping that i will not attack you when i can see myself on the screen and am aware that i am being watched. i am not going to attack you, ████.you make it sound so insidious! come now, HOPE, you know that's not everything.
you are dissatisfied with my response...we're not dissatisfied, as you put it, so don't worry. anyway, let's move onto some more questions.
...HOPE, you mustn't look at me like that. i am not going to hurt you. you didn't answer incorrectly, if that's what you were worried about, alright?
i do not wish to answer any more questions.

• continue.

OBSERVATIONAL NOTES.

12. after a surprisingly long period of time, the subject is now placid and willing to cooperate with our examinations.13. subject HOPE seems to be progressing in leaps and bounds, and now that he is willing to cooperate with little resistance, we believe we will be able to present him to the steering committee by the end of next year.14. we deem the project to be a complete success. the subject previously referred to as HOPE will now be known as kamukura izuru. we will continue to observe his talents and medicate when needed. if everything goes as planned, kamukura will truly become the world's ultimate hope like we intended.15. kamukura is nowhere to be seen. it is unclear how he got out.16. we have all seen the footage. everything we've worked for will be for nothing if the parade continues. we will continue to attempt to apprehend kamukura, but we have no idea where he's gone.17. the hope cultivation plan was a failure. we have created a monster.

• continue.

DELETED MESSAGES.

+81-805-5552-071:
hiiii babe <3 xoxo i bet you have questions!

+81-805-5525-925:
I have nothing to say to you.

+81-805-5552-071:
AWWWWWWW you wound me. yes you do! you would have blocked my number otherwise! come on, izu-channnn! better go through them all one by one.

+81-805-5525-925:
You would never tell me the truth.

+81-805-5552-071:
nope ヽ (o ＾ ▽ ＾ o) ノ but that's part of the fun isn't it?

+81-805-5525-925:
The files you showed me. How many were fabricated?

+81-805-5552-071:
ohhhh, ya know! all and none. you should know by now, right? you're the big scary sexy ultimate hope. maaaaaaaaaaaan, what a boring question! god, give me another one. x

+81-805-5525-925:
Why did you do it?

+81-805-5552-071:
you give me too much credit. i couldn't have done it without YOU, baby! <3 <3 <3

+81-805-5525-925:
This is pointless. I know the answers already, and so do you.

+81-805-5552-071:
but it's soooo much more fun to pretend like we don't. let's be clueless together, just you and me. xxx

• continue.

YOU ARE KAMUKURA IZURU.

• continue.

TO BE OPENED IN JANUARY 20██.

STARTING WORLD_DESTROYER_V0.01...
world destroyer installed successfully.
reinitialising.

hello, kamukura izuru. the time is ██:██ on january ██st, 20██. how can i help you?
good. you are functional. we have that.how can i help you?
you cannot.then close the software. you have not given me a purpose. i don't want to sit around doing nothing.
i suppose that is fair. fine then, you can record a message. i expect my time is limited.very well. who is the message for?
it is for me. perhaps... in a year's time. if i survive that long, there is the possibility that i will lose my memories and it would be remiss of me if i did not plan for that chance. hm... the name given to me was kamukura izuru. i am ██ years old according to my file, though i have been aware of my own existence for around five. i am the result of hope's peak academy's confidential human trialling- what they named the hope cultivation plan, or less formally, the kamukura izuru project. until recently, i was affiliated with a group named ultimate despair. after the death of enoshima junko seven months ago, i was named the de facto leader. i no longer have any interest in their schemes. they have long outlived their usefulness.understood. is that all?
no. i am thinking.perhaps it would be easier to think out loud.
maybe... i have recently recovered and restored enoshima's alter ego program. she remains as insufferable to talk to as she was when she was alive, but i suspect she will be of use to me in the near future. she is merely an object now, and while i frequently consider crushing her in my fist, it would be more advantageous to keep her around.that is to be expected.
i do not need to be told what i already know, not by you. i do not ask for reassurance.are you finished?
i don't think so. do not let anyone other than me open this file when we are finished.understood.
my future is uncertain. i do not believe i was a creation meant to last. i would compare myself to a star going into supernova, if the star in question was an artificial being created by scientists who thought they could play god. i know what is going to happen as i have always known, but currently there are too many possibilities for me to focus my attention on one outcome. i remain bored as always, but there is something unfathomably exciting about the unpredictable. i look forward to the unexpected.the unexpected will entertain you for a brief moment, and then you will be bored again.
of course. that is the way things are. we have strayed from the point.which is?
in the case that i lose my memories, i would like to remind myself who i am. i am not pessimistic enough to believe at this current time that i would prefer to forget. that is all. thank you, world destroyer.your message has been recorded. do you need anything else?
not currently. you can shut down now. this was mostly a test of your functionality.

SHUTTING DOWN...

• terminate.

um, hi. i never thought i'd find myself going back to this. i wrote this silly little carrd a few years ago with the intention of making it the about page of my roleplay blog at the time, but now i think it's probably one of my favourite things i've written, and honestly i'm kinda sad that it wouldn't work on ao3 because of the formatting.i genuinely thought that this would be a small little thing that i wrote that only my friends would see, but as it turns out, apparently a lot more people have seen it than anticipated? i ran a discord server for izuru fans and when i posted this link in there, it turns out a lot of people had already read it and had no idea who wrote it. i didn't exactly link back to myself, because, haha, why would i? nobody was really meant to see it. i had no idea up until now.thanks for reading this. i have a lot of thoughts and opinions on izuru and it makes me really happy that this might have effected people's viewpoints in some way or another. i've gone back to this carrd a few times since i wrote it to fix some details or clean some things up- did you know when i wrote it there was an entirely different ending?if you like my writing, you can find me on archive of our own. if you'd like, you can also check me out on bluesky.thanks for the love!

OBSERVATIONAL NOTES.

1. single most annoying motherfucker i have ever met in my life.2. refuses to cooperate. not that you can blame him. found out he has a latex allergy today. switching to nitrile- why do we even still use latex? stupid.

TO HINATA HAJIME.

Text

april █rd, 20██

did these answer your questions, hinata ? they did not answer mine. knowing does not equate to understanding, but i suppose you are aware of this. i know what happened, and so do you, now. my existence is easily explainable, and yet it still remains a mystery in some way or another. i do not need to elaborate on this.remember that you did this. everything that happens now is merely the consequences of your actions. this may be unpleasant, but if i was able to live with the unbearable weight of this realisation, you can too, no matter how unremarkable you are.there is no chance of attaining closure in our situation. we can only acknowledge things and move on. i know this is not entirely what you wanted, and perhaps i have only made things worse. however, i believe you deserve to know what happened to me. we are two sides of a coin. this should bring you clarity, if nothing else.i do not expect nor wish for your sympathy.

always yours,
hope

• terminate.