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Back when I was in school, I went through something every kid in Japan with a mediocre life dreamed of; being invited to take part in education for ultimate students at Hope’s Peak High School. In my class I got to meet so many stellar individuals, all wielding a talent they’ve been chosen to hone while studying there. Things from leading a biker gang, to programming, to swimming, and even being a pop sensation! Everything about it felt like a plot put in place in a fanfiction, yet there I was in the flesh of it. One thing we were all told though, was that we were guaranteed success upon graduation. Mastering our talents would have us become sought after in the real world. Though we were all told that years ago, and now the huge question people seem to ask is “what actually happened to the graduates of Hope’s Peak?” Well, I suppose I’m here to answer that for you.
One of the most well-known answers to this has to be Miss Sayaka Maizono herself. Whatever your opinion of her is, we all know of how she peaked while she was still only a teenager. After a few more years of performing in the spotlight, she grew too old for the idol industry to promote, and was soon after replaced with upcoming groups to spark new attention. Miss Maizono quickly faded into obscurity, only really popping back up in news headlines for some pinch of drama the press could get their hands on. All of this until a few years back, she featured in a documentary about the exploitative nature of the idol industry, telling her story of how her and her bandmates were treated behind the scenes. It shook the country, and even more so in the west. It sparked the creation of some laws to be developed, but the sting of her trauma will stick with her regardless.
Speaking of the entertainment industry, Leon Kuwata, the once most acclaimed baseball star in Japan, transitioned into the music industry soon after graduating. Though only after about two years of working on his solo career, he tried to join a band called ‘Star Runners’, but they only created one song that hit the charts. After a few years of that, he moved on to become an actor in the film industry, and he actually stuck with that for a few years. He starred in one big movie, but the public’s attraction had its focus on a supporting role rather than his. He just never peaked in popularity again since his baseball days, so he tried to make a return to the game, but soon he found out that other prodigies have since taken his glory. Now he continues to ride that career until his retirement someday, casting in the occasional movie or commercial on the side.
On a more positive note, Chihiro Fujisaki has actually made a huge lasting impact on the world since graduation. They went on to create and polish the Artificial Intelligence program they had been working on during their days in school. It was a brilliant innovation, helping enhance important careers that could use the assistance of something that held no human flaw. Fujisaki was honored with many awards for their project, but soon found themselves to have some regret in their creation. Corporate greed got their hands on the AI, turning it into something to replace people instead of helping. Unemployment rates skyrocketed, and no matter how much Fujisaki condemned how it was being utilized, the public turned on them. They’ve since tried to remove features or take it down entirely but the impact was already clear. Some people say they’ve fled the country or they’re gone for good, but I personally hope they’re still around.
Remember when there were so many reports of gang activity years ago, and then one day it all just stopped? Well, it’s all because a couple years after graduating, Mondo Owada rebranded ‘The Crazy Diamonds’ gang into its own carpentry business. He and his previous gang members built multiple places of residence, some business facilities, and even a school. It was an amazing turnaround for the people our society deemed irreparable criminals. Though it didn’t last forever for him, during one project, Owada suffered a devastating injury to his back after a fall. The damage would be chronic, and he had to hand the company over to his right hand man, Takemichi Yukimaru, and retire early on. Owada constantly works on himself with physical therapy to this day, also with help from his roommate Kiyotaka Ishimaru, but due to the lack of work due to his disability, he suffers from bouts of depression. Yet another weight he has to try to lift, even after how hard he’s worked to better the lives of him and his peers.
On a similar note, Kiyotaka Ishimaru unsurprisingly went to university to further his education. He had originally pursued political science to follow an adjacent path that his family had been following, but the idea of investing his life in politics crashed down on him. He entered a massive slump that had made him feel hopeless, but in this bout of darkness, he rekindled his friendship with Mondo Owada. They ended up moving in together to help keep eachother afloat. Ishimaru ended up becoming a teacher at Hope’s Peak, hoping to educate potential world leaders into better decisions with their power. Life was going smoothly up until Owada’s accident at work, and once that happened, Ishimaru began juggling his time at work and time helping Owada recover. There have been multiple rough times mentally, but he still believes in the better times the future can bring. An aspiring example to us all.
Miss Celestia Ludenburg is an odd case. Nobody’s seen or heard of her since soon after graduation. Throughout the school years, she had allegedly found herself at many underground gambling rings. Some say it was for the innocent reason of developing her talent, some say it was purely for the earnings. Either way, it was also rumored that her skills caught the attention of the Yakuza, whether that was a good or bad thing. But upon graduation, she completely vanished. Nobody had any contacts from her, the only thing we have are rumors. We have been unable to attempt at inviting her for any class reunions, but we all had a mutual agreement that she would’ve declined our offer either way.
Then there’s Sakura Ogami, who upholds her honor to this very day. Ever since graduation, she has taken over her family’s dojo, carrying its teachings, values, and solitude ever since. Now she accepts some of the most driven students in Japan to mentor, all while still maintaining her own training. Though it doesn’t even end there; Aoi Asahina has remained glued to Ogami’s side the entire time as well, and historians will say they were “just friends”. Jokes aside, they have been building each other up in their own lifestyles and have created a very successful relationship together, being eachothers’ peace no matter what obstacles life throws at them.
Mukuro Ikusaba… A name nobody seems to remember. Always shrouded in her sister Junko Enoshima’s shadow. Throughout school, I remember her being very quiet, keeping to herself. Most of the time it wasn’t her choice, with the way her sister took the stage before she had a shot. But within the last couple years there, she came out of her shell more, and embraced the idea of camaraderie. We were actually able to allow her to open up, and be herself for once. Though once we all graduated, a lot of us of course went our separate ways. I heard a few classmates such as Maizono and Naegi kept close contact with her, but communication from those who were focused on other things went scarce. When she was recently brought up, they mentioned that she was hired as a soldier for a force she hadn’t named, but had suffered a near fatal headshot that put her out of the field. She lost her right eye due to the injury, and has been looking for a new job to occupy herself ever since then.
As for her sister, Junko Enoshima, She has been quite the hot topic all over the media as of late. With both her upcoming summer clothes line, and the clip of her behind the scenes on a talk show, she has stirred up quite the conversation. We’ve all seen the clip; a few poor makeup department stylists got chewed out for doing a poor job to her standards. And the fashion line has been well received by the fashion community, though a few people online have pointed out that it appropriates some Native North American cultures in its design. That has led to a lot of the public claiming that the controversy gives her more publicity, while some say she truly does think and act the way she does. Back when we were at Hope’s Peak though, she had acted just the same then too. Though back then, you could just boil it down to teenage girls doing anything for popularity. Now we are at the real world’s equivalent, wondering if she simply hasn’t grown up, or if she’s relying on nobody else growing up.
On a similar topic with controversies, Toko Fukawa has also been a popular subject online for different reasons. Her writings have obviously been a favorite of the public, generally being bestsellers as soon as they hit store shelves. One of her series even had an extremely popular movie adaptation, which led to a constantly growing fanbase. Her popularity even reached heights where merchandise and references were seen everywhere, it even became a form of identity for a lot of people. Although, it wouldn’t last. Ms. Fukawa began broadcasting her opinions on social media, including some very headstrong political points that went against society’s progression. A lot of participating fans of her hit series revoked their support in light of this news, but many still maintain their grasp on it regardless. It has created quite the split in a whole generation, but the general public opinion of her has plummeted, and there’s no real chance of her recovering at this point.
Unfortunately I haven’t heard much of a word from Yasuhiro Hagakure since graduation. The last time I had heard from him, he was gloating about how he had a plan to make it big and repay the debt he had dug himself in while in school. Rumor had it that he had gotten off on the wrong foot with the Yakuza, and he had been trying to pay them back ever since. While researching for this article, I heard a few words from my classmates that he had actually attempted to reach out shortly before his disappearance, though apparently “reaching out” was actually his attempts at begging for money from everyone. Though I have to wonder why I never received a message about it, but I suppose I can’t complain. A few of my classmates had actually speculated that the Yakuza was through with being patient with him, and Mrs. Kirigiri had actually mentioned that she had seen him around, but suspiciously in areas with high Yakuza activity. She concluded that he must’ve been forced into their ranks as a part of paying back his debt. We can only really hope for his safety if he ever makes it out of this.
On a much lighter note, Miss Aoi Asahina seems to be living a much more peaceful life. Since we last saw her, she continued her career in swimming athletics and even went on to compete for Japan in the Olympics! Continuing our country’s honor by bringing home a few medals in her participating years. Though a few years ago, she took a step back into retirement, instead moving her focus to enjoy relaxing with Miss Ogami at her family dojo. Spending her retirement helping teach some students and enjoying sweets with her best friend. It truly is so wholesome seeing how close those two have become. I’m almost envious! Those two truly got a nice lifestyle that they truly deserve.
This part actually pains me a little to write, but we all knew it was coming. I believe most of us remember when we saw the news a few years ago when they announced that Byakuya Togami had passed away. Although he made a point in avoiding close connections with most people in our class, we all still saw him as a friend. So when the news broke out, we were collectively devastated. He was only 26 years old when he passed, and later it was found out that it was due to drug abuse, more specifically a cocaine overdose. It was discovered that due to the immense workload he shouldered as the head of the Togami Conglomerate, it became quite overwhelming for him as he continued to bite off more than he could chew. He was intensely focused on growing the power of his name, so he chose to use substances to try and keep him awake and alert. This unfortunately proved to be a grave error that resulted in his unfortunate passing. May he rest in peace…
Kyoko Kirigri is an amazingly cunning detective, back in school and long afterwards. She helped solve multiple cases across Japan, and even broke some cold cases that the police force figured impossible. After high school she actually ended up with Makoto Naegi and they wed a few years later. They were definitely a couple everyone knew would end up together for life. Though while catching up with her, Mrs. Kirigiri informed me that she had been the detective called to the scene of Mr. Togami’s passing. For such a high figure in society passing away so young, she had been assigned to ensure there was no foul play occurring. She usually kept a very stoic demeanor during her cases, considering she had been trained to hold no emotion in her work since she was a young girl, but she mentioned to me that working on Togami’s case had nearly cracked that part of her. I have nothing but utmost respect for her and her line of work.
On a related note, Makoto Naegi, as we already know, found a happy marriage with his wife, Kyoko Kirigiri. Alongside that, once he got out of school, he went right into EMS training. He always had a captivation with helping others. Luckily, he knew upon going into the job that all he could do was his best, and sometimes that didn’t work out. Though unfortunately, he was on duty when the emergency call came in at the Togami residence. Naegi was the one called to aid Togami when he went into cardiac arrest. Despite Naegi’s attempt to revive him, he was gone. For years he knew what his job entailed, but watching a very close friend of his die in his arms, it broke him. He left his job and had to attend therapy. The trauma that encapsulated him was severe, and ever since then he’s seemed like a drastically different person. It breaks our hearts seeing him like this, but we do notice the improvement shining through. If I could be personal for a second, I’m very proud of him.
Now after such a dark topic, I suppose I should mention myself here. Though you may already know my name from the printing of this article, I am Hifumi Yamada. Back when I was a teenager, I spent most of my time writing fan content on some of my favorite anime and manga at the time. While most creators who grow and look back on their teen years may cringe, I find slight pride in my past. It led me here; producing facts and entertainment for this here Tokyo News Outlet. I love my work, I get to continue my creative outlet but in a way that also passes along important information for the public. It gives me opportunities to go places, meet people, and overall step out of my comfort zone. It even allowed me this excellent opportunity to reconnect with old friends when I was assigned this very topic. If you take away anything from this, I hope you can follow life to your passions, and connect with those you care about. You never know what’s going on with them and what kind of support they need that you could offer.