Shirai Kuroko/Chronology (Toaru Kagaku no Railgun)

This article covers Shirai Kuroko's chronological history in Toaru Kagaku no Railgun.

Level Upper Arc
Kuroko is seen doing her duty as a member of Judgment detaining espers whose powers were enhanced by Level Upper. Due to injuries she sustained from fighting Level Upper users, she couldn't partake in rescuing Uiharu from Kiyama Harumi or help Mikoto fight the AIM Burst.

Big Spider Arc
Kuroko aids Mikoto, Konori Mii, and Kurozuma Wataru in fighting and putting an end to the Skill-Out gang, Big Spider.

Poltergeist Arc
Kuroko is first seen in this arc with Mikoto and Saten helping Uiharu's new roommate move in. Later they go to a festival where a Poltergeist happens, and after observing Erii's odd behavior right before the incident and some investigation, she begins to suspect that Erii is the one responsible, which strains her relationship with Uiharu. When the head of MAR, Therestina Kihara Lifeline's true intention for Erii and Kiyama's students was discovered, she slapped Uiharu to snap her out of her emotional breakdown. Later, she and Kongou joined forces to stall the MAR powered suits, then came to Mikoto's aid against Therestina herself. At the lab, they are again confronted by Therestina, only this time she use Capacity Down to disable them, except for Saten as she was a level zero and thus unaffected by Capacity Down, and went ahead to disable it, an act that earned her Kuroko's respect.

Sisters Arc
Although showing rarely, she is the one who opens up the question to Mikoto on what would happen if she were to meet a clone of hers, to which Mikoto gives an answer that she will soon regret. Throughout the story arc, she becomes concerned as to what Mikoto is holding and laments on how Mikoto cannot trust her enough to tell. Kuroko is forced to lie to and deceive their dorm manager for Mikoto's sake as she begins her one-man mission to take down the Level 6 Shift Project.

Later, after Mikoto believes she has shut down the Level 6 Shift Project for good, Kuroko calls Uiharu and Saten to determine what they should do with the current situation with Mikoto. Saten concludes that since Mikoto goes out every night and comes home tired, it can only mean that there is a boy involved, much to Kuroko's disbelief. After an alarm goes off in Vending Machine 7116, she immediately concludes it is Mikoto and proceeds to go investigate alone. She later finds Mikoto with Kamijou Touma leading to the now classic scene of their meeting. Regardless of her horror of Mikoto meeting with Touma, she is relieved that she has returned to her old self.

This is however short-lived, as Mikoto later discovers that the Level 6 Shift Project persists. Kuroko sees through Mikoto's change of behavior and suspects that Touma might have something to do with it, but is then asked by Mikoto a hypothetical question on what Kuroko would do if Mikoto were to do something irreversible to Academy City, to which Kuroko says that she will do her duty even if it is her Onee-sama. Kuroko's words relieves Mikoto but it doesn't help Kuroko's worry. Finally, as Mikoto goes off to destroy Tree Diagram to stop the aforementioned project, Kuroko lies alone in Mikoto's bed worrying about her. She recalls on how Mikoto acts normally when referencing "that idiot" (Touma), and wishes for him to come and do something. Her wish is seemingly granted, leading to their second meeting in the Sisters Arc.

As the Level 6 Shift Project is ended by Touma and the Sisters, Kuroko tracks down Mikoto on a bridge, whom has just met Touma but is unable to give the cookies she baked for him. Kuroko is surprised by Mikoto's reaction after she hears Touma say her name for the first time, saying that it is an expression she has never seen on her before.

Silent Party Arc
Kuroko plays a supporting role in the arc. As Mikoto returns back to normal after the events of the Sisters Arc, Kuroko welcomes her back with open arms. When Mikoto once again starts acting secretive, Kuroko is fine with it, believing that Mikoto will be back, and supporting in her endeavors. However, when she opens up to them that she needs their aid in helping Febrie from the dark side of Academy City, Kuroko jumps at the call to help her. She is the one who rescues Mikoto from the office building STUDY stuck her in after she was captured, using Uiharu as the one who tracks the nanodevice embedded inside Mikoto, and Saten as the lookout. She easily defeats the security robots stationed there. Kuroko gets involved when the group decides to take on STUDY and the Silent Party without any help at all from Anti-Skill for the sake of Febrie and Janie, Febrie's sister. She stands as a sole guardian of one of the Academy City Research Exhibition Assembly venue entrances, and faces off against several of the 20,000 plus STUDY Powered Suits controlled by Diffusion Ghost. After being joined by other Judgment members rallied by Yanagisako Aomi, she is shocked after all of them copy her famous catchphrase. She then does battle against the Powered Suits, and uses the javelins from Tokiwadai, easily defeating a Powered Suit with a single hit. She also uses her ability to rescue Judgment members who are in trouble.

Kuroko is part of the little conference held after Mikoto defeats Aritomi Haruki, STUDY's leader, who has launched the AIM bomb. Here, she is the one who is to go with Mikoto and teleport her back after she has used the Ekaterina II S to destroy the AIM bomb. As they strap themselves in the mecha while waiting for launch, Mikoto apologizes to Kuroko for involving her, to which she replies that she doesn't mind for she is finally fighting side by side with Mikoto. With that, they are launched into space by Kongou's Aero Hand. Kuroko becomes visibly sick upon arriving in the upper atmosphere, but manages to teleport away as Mikoto begins to do her part. Kuroko teleports an exhausted Mikoto back to earth after she destroyed the AIM bomb. She is later seen asleep near Mikoto along with Uiharu, Saten, Kongou, Kinuho, and Maaya in the grounds of the Academic Assembly venue, most likely tired, as the Assembly begins in earnest.

As Janie and Febrie are in a Kongou Airlines runway, preparing to leave to the outside for body readjustments, Kuroko gives her the four leaf clover she found those many days ago for good luck. And thus, the fellowship, though bound by friendship and love, part ways.

Daihasei Festival Arc
Kuroko, Saten, and Uiharu appear right before Mikoto's competition in the three-legged race with her partner Kongou Mitsuko. Saten tells Uiharu of a substance known as Shadow Metal that is formed by the clashing of multiple espers, which can be sold for a large sum of money. Kuroko then appears right after, angry at Saten for spreading rumors again, to which forces her to distract and stay her anger by pointing out that Mikoto's competition is about to begin.

After the race, Kuroko is not present with the others as they meet Misaka Misuzu, explaining Kuroko's surprise in Toaru Majutsu no Index when she meets her later in the afternoon of the first day of the Daihaseisai. Kuroko doesn't reappear until after much later during the lunch break. She returns with Misaka Mikoto back to Judgment 177 Branch Office as the former have a bit of time before her next event. At the time Uiharu is communicating with Saten as she is in Kirigaoka Girls' Academy grounds in School District 18 looking for Shadow Metal. Immediately after, Saten is attacked by men in hazmat suits. Concerned, Mikoto asks Uiharu what is going on, to which he explains that Saten is being attacked by someone on the other line. Hearing this, Kuroko and Mikoto mobilized after Uiharu says that Saten is in Kirigaoka Girls' Academy grounds in School District 18. Uiharu is left behind for a backup as they might need to contact Anti-Skill. Arriving there, Kuroko notices them, but Mikoto, seeing Saten being held down angers Mikoto and attacks them. Mikoto and Saten later prostrate themselves in apology to them after it is revealed that they are the one who clean the grounds after an event to prevent the DNA traces of espers from being stolen by outsiders. Seeing Saten as a trespasser in the grounds, it was only natural for them to apprehend her. They are later let go by them.

Kuroko says that the rumors of Shadow Metal spread because of the fact that the grounds were heavily guarded to prevent DNA maps from being stolen, and berates Saten for being carried away by a baseless rumor, as well as Mikoto for the attack. The others later arrive back in the office, and much to Kuroko and Mikoto's chagrin, Saten then immediately asks Uiharu if she had found any new information. Uiharu then says that she has done some searching herself but couldn't find anything. Little did they know that Misaki paid Uiharu a visit and have read her memories that she and the others are Mikoto's friends, modified her memories so she forgets about the website and have her erase the data of it from her computer, and have programmed her to lead her and her friends to her on the next day.

Kuroko is with Mikoto during the Night Parade where Mikoto becomes as excited as a child when the Gekota float comes by.

The next day, she is with Uiharu and Saten for their patrols, completely unaware that Misaki has begun her move against Mikoto. Uiharu, as programmed by Misaki, takes Saten and Kuroko away from their proper patrol route. Kuroko realizes that they are in the wrong route, which surprises Uiharu truly believed she was going the right way. Then, Keitz appears behind them, pretending to be an outsider in need as a distraction. Misaki later comes out of an alley as they are distracted and uses her powers to freeze their movements, preventing Kuroko from using her powers, and later erases their memories of Mikoto. As Mikoto tries to escape Misaki's clique, she notices Kuroko, Uiharu, and Saten walk along by. She is relieved and comes towards them, but much to her horror, discovers that they too have been brainwashed by Misaki. Mikoto is greatly angered by this effrontery, but is unable to do anything even if she tries to convince them that she is truly their friend. Moreover, Mikoto has another event to partake in.

Kongou, fresh out of her latest event, later meets up with Kinuho and Maaya and later stumble upon Kuroko and the others. Kuroko later airs her frustration on Mikoto coming up to her, making an accusation, and then asking them if they were joking. This surprises Kongou, Kinuho, and Maaya, wondering if Kuroko and Mikoto had a fight. Back with Kuroko and the others, she wonders on how Saten and Uiharu knew Kongou. They point out to her that they met when they were visiting Kuroko in the hospital, though this confuses Kuroko as she is not close with Kongou. The others can only conclude that there was a mutual acquaintance but cannot remember who.

The girls go their separate ways for the moment, with Kuroko likely doing her Judgment duties independent of Uiharu's help. Kuroko doesn't appear until after Saten becomes involved with the incident with Kongou Mitsuko and Baba Yoshio and discovers that she has Mikoto's number in her cellphone. Seeing this, Saten later contacts Kuroko and would talk to her about on how they are friends with Misaka Mikoto, much to her disbelief. Kuroko questions Saten's theory on Shokuhou Misaki manipulating their memories. Kuroko then asks why she didn't contact Uiharu. Saten, who has already suspected that Uiharu has been the first one to have been brainwashed by Misaki, says that she is hesitant in telling her. In the end, she tries to call Mikoto as she has a message for her.

Mikoto later receives a call from Saten with Kuroko eavesdropping on the conversation as Mikoto continues to search for clues regarding her "sister". After Saten introduces herself, she tells Mikoto about the information they had gathered from Misaka 10032's cat. Mikoto says that she has no clue what that girl with the man from the cat's memories, who she says is likely Misaki, is talking about. Just then, Saten says that there is something that she is knowledgeable about that came about in the conversation that the cat has heard, and that she also wants to know whether she and Saten know each other. Saten requests that they should meet each other, to which Mikoto says her location and it is in School District 15, which Saten notes is quite close. Saten asks for Mikoto to stay there as she'll ask Kuroko to teleport her to where she is, much to Kuroko's frustration. After Mikoto discover that Kuroko is with Saten, Kouzaku Mitori's Liquid Shadow dummy approaches her, telling her that she wants her to tell her something. Mikoto, already suspicious, says that she is quite busy and has no time to talk to strangers, but she'll make an exception to those who are connected with the guy (Baba Yoshio) who hurt her friend. Kouzaku is unperturbed and shows that she has Uiharu hostage.

Saten then contacts Uiharu to know what's going on, to which Mikoto detects using her powers. As Uiharu didn't answer, Kuroko quickly teleports to where Mikoto is and hides on a rooftop. She later sees the negotiation between Mikoto and Kouzaku breakdown, ending with Mikoto declaring that she will definitely save Uiharu Kazari, which Kuroko notices that it may be directed towards her. Kouzaku laughs and asks if Mikoto's mother was expendable. As she remarked how cruel that was, Mikoto attracts some pipes with magnetism to pull Uiharu away while attracting her phone to block the knife, before moving in and attacking with electricity.

Seeing that the negotiation had failed, Kouzaku attempts to carry through with her threat, saying she wouldn't like it to end with Mikoto underestimating her and telling Misuzu to resent Mikoto for abandoning her. At that moment, Shirai Kuroko teleports in and smashes her wheelchair down at her. Jumping out of the way, Kouzaku throws a knife at Kuroko, who evades it. She then escapes as Kuroko was teleporting Misuzu to safety. Kuroko wanted to apprehend her but knows that keeping civilians save is the greater priority. She later takes Misuzu and hands her over to Mikoto, thinking that she can just apprehend and interrogate the one that held Uiharu hostage. After Kouzaku escapes, she has her Liquid Shadow puppet to attack Kuroko as she moves in closer, though she misses. Kuroko tries to attack with her darts though they simply right through the puppet. As the puppet comes closer, Mikoto tells Kuroko to take Uiharu and Misuzu to safety, though before she can do so, the puppet merely points towards her with a smirk before it dissolves as Kouzaku moves out of range.

After the conflict, Kuroko demands from Mikoto an explanation. Mikoto says that she didn't know who was that either, to which Kuroko explains that she wants to know why Mikoto acted like she knew she was there, saying that the line about Mikoto saving Uiharu was meant for her. Here, Mikoto explains that she noticed Saten calling Uiharu after she hung up through the electromagnetic waves, likely to see what had happened. As she has told them where she was, she expected Kuroko to come over as she can teleport and that she would be nearby. Mikoto thanks Kuroko for letting her save Uiharu, to which Kuroko says that Uiharu is part of Judgment and that it is only natural to prioritize visitors. Kuroko references that Mikoto left her mother's life in the hands of a stranger, to which Mikoto notes on her mother would be mad if she chose her instead of friend. Moreover, she tells Kuroko that she trusted her to protect her mother. Hearing this, Kuroko blushes and tries to shake it off, but it aggravates her injuries. Mikoto apologizes for letting her fight when she was injured and tries to help her walk, much to her embarrassment.

They later return to Judgment 177 Branch Office, and later lets Uiharu and Misuzu have some medicine and some sleep. With that they discuss about the situation at hand. Mikoto confirms to Saten that the girl that Misaka 10032's cat saw is definitely Shokuhou Misaki and has abducted her "sister. Saten then mentions Auribus oculi fideliores sunt, an urban legend website she knows of. Kuroko questions why Misaki would be interested in that, to which Saten says that the site not only gathers information about urban legends but has people go out and verify it. She relates on how yesterday after the midday break, the time after Mikoto's sister was abducted, she was out looking for Shadow Metal and had Uiharu look up the site. When she returned Uiharu says that she couldn't find it, prompting her to find it on her own only to find that the website got buried by a bunch of dummy sites. Saten explains that once something is on the Internet it can never fully be deleted. She says that somehow someone is trying to hide the website by making dummy pages that will have higher spots in the search results. Mikoto can only assume that there must be something in that website that someone doesn't want to see. Kuroko then mentions that Uiharu would have noticed something and had the skills to search for the cause of it. Mikoto conjectures that someone had detected her actions and attacked her. She imagines Misaki doing it, manipulating Uiharu to delete the data and then searching her memories to find that she is friends with Mikoto. Saten says that they have to force the clues together to reach the conclusion, but says that there still must be something remaining in the computer that could help them.

Using her powers, Mikoto recovers the deleted data. She finds a picture of Misaki from the website, confirming her suspicions. Mikoto asks Kuroko if she can identify where she is, to which Kuroko says that it might be School District 2 due to the building in the background. Before Mikoto can run off to confront Misaki herself, Saten asks Mikoto if their memories were truly altered, and that if they are truly their friends, to which Mikoto says that she will drag Misaki here and that they should wait.

Saten becomes restless at waiting, to which Kuroko says that Mikoto was the one who told them to wait and that she shouldn't worry. Moreover, she is still honestly unbelieving that they had their memories erased. Saten comments on how having her memories of her friends erased would be bad and that she'd hate it. She later finds Kuroko looking up a list of girls in the Bank, to which Kuroko says that she saw the one that attacked Uiharu, and that she had been looking for her in the Bank based on her powers, as well as her sending the liquid metal and knife for forensic analysis. Saten becomes excited over this, to which Kuroko says that she is merely acting as a member of Judgment, and that she cannot hand over the investigation to a normal person. She then says, with much embarrassment, that she can make an exception as the situation is urgent and that sharing information would be beneficial. Saten then has a smug look on her face, much to Kuroko's consternation as Saten begins helping her.

Saten later discusses her hypothesis regarding Uiharu being controlled by Misaki since yesterday, leading to them to conclude that is the reason why Uiharu took them to the wrong patrol route. Saten then says that they should keep it a secret from Uiharu, saying that she is the type that to feel responsible when no one is to blame. Just then, Uiharu has woken up from the infirmary opens the door and asks them to tell her exactly what they are talking about, to which Kuroko agrees, much to Saten's shock. She however, says that Uiharu should first make some tea. Kuroko whispers to her that she admires that she is protecting Uiharu, she says that she isn't that weak to have that break her.

After being briefed about it, Uiharu is dismayed for being manipulated. Kuroko however says that after their break they should restart their investigation, and asks Uiharu if she can look through the Bank for anyone suspicious. Uiharu asks if she is sure that she can trust her, to which Kuroko says that they do not have time to have a detailed examination as they need her skills now. She then tells her that if she is really worried, then she can do her work in front of them. Uiharu goes right to it, impressing Saten.

As they investigate liquid metal, Saten notes that only two companies that have developed liquid metal have survived. Kuroko says that the companies have no record of loss or theft, which opens up the possibility that someone inside the company is helping the esper using liquid metal (Kouzaku). Just then, Uiharu has finished the search according to Kuroko's specifications and they discover that the name of their attacker is Kouzaku Mitori. Finding information about her, Uiharu says that Kouzaku is in the Reformatory for an attempted terrorist attack 14 months ago. Saten asks if she escaped, to which Uiharu says that if she did, then Judgment should've been notified. Uiharu asks again if Kouzaku truly was the culprit, to which she confirms. Regardless however, Kuroko wants to double-check and says she wants to go to the Bank's control center. Uiharu then asks what Saten would seeing as she will likely not be allowed there as she is not a member of Judgment. Saten says that she will pass and asks about Misuzu, to which Kuroko says that she has explained the situation to Konori Mii, their senpai. She says that Mikoto wished for Misuzu to be told that she collapsed of heatstroke and that she will be kept in the office for protection under the guise of getting a new ID issued.

With that they all leave the office, with Kuroko and Uiharu going to the Bank's control center. When they arrive, Kuroko discovers that Kouzaku has been dead for at least two months due to heart failure. Kuroko wonders if she was wrong in her assumption, but then finds something odd. She discovers that her body was incinerated immediately after she was found instead of getting an autopsy.

Then, the a minder in the Bank comes up to them and says that Kouzaku may not have one. She explains that they might have something to hide and that they destroyed her body, evidence, before the true cause of her death could be found. She also says that Kouzaku might not even be dead. When asked, the minder says that there is a rumor about the Reformatory, and on how student suddenly disappear for some reason. When the guards report it they are waved off and ignored and it is always high level espers or excellent students who disappear. She says that Academy City makes a deal with the esper or student and releases them in secret and then fake their deaths as it is far more convenient, though she says it is just a rumor.

They are later contacted by Saten Ruiko after getting information from Xochitl regarding the situation Mikoto is in. Kuroko then teleports to School District 2 as the Level 6 Shift attempt on Misaka Mikoto takes place.

Kuroko arrives at the rooftop of the building which holds Exterior, just in time to save help Misaki from being abducted by Kouzaku and her Liquid Shadow puppet. As Kuroko declares her intention to arrest and question everyone present, especially Kouzaku for falsifying of the Bank's data, Kouzaku attacks with her puppet. Kuroko evades her attack and on Misaki's request, teleports Keitz and Misaka 10032. Kouzaku attempts to attack the two but Kuroko teleports herself and Misaki away into the building, who knows that the puppet is at the maximum control range she has for maintaining control over both the puppets and Mikoto. Inside the facility, Misaki uses her powers on Kuroko to quickly brief Kuroko on what was going on, that Kouzaku is not a mere bodyguard but a guide for Mikoto's psyche, the likely place where she is hiding through the range of her control of her puppets, as well as the fact that they can stop Mikoto if she stops Kouzaku.

As the battles for Misaka Mikoto goes on in other places, Kuroko meanwhile teleports from building to building trying to find Kouzaku. She recalls Misaki's informing her, in that Mental Out isn't very effective on Mikoto, and as such the Liquid Shadow puppet cannot give Mikoto orders. This leads her to conclude that Kouzaku can only guide Mikoto's psyche if she is nearby. However, with such a high concentration of research facilities near where Mikoto is, Kuroko contacts Uiharu and asks her to check every camera within 800 meters of School District 2's Judgment building. She tells Uiharu to see if she can find Kouzaku on one of the cameras as well as a list points the cameras do not cover. Uiharu asks Kuroko if she needs backup, to which Kuroko says they do not have time.

As Kuroko teleports into one of the buildings, Kouzaku has her puppet slice through a door to attack her. Kuroko then proceeds to engage the puppet in combat. As she battles, she finds out where Kouzaku puts the camera on her Liquid Shadow puppet so she can see, which is on her neck. She attacks it with her darts, disabling Kouzaku's secondary senses, and forcing her to use echolocation to grasp the situation, Kouzaku's primary sense for her puppet. She then uses a small device to deafen her ability to echolocate. Kuroko then teleports away as the puppet is preoccupied, trying to search for Kouzaku. However, the facility is so vast, she requires the aid of a clue. Back in Judgment 177 Branch Office, Saten manages to find Kouzaku in one of the cameras. Uiharu contacts Kuroko, telling her of Kouzaku's moving into an alleyway three minutes ago, though she can't tell what building she's in as she hasn't been seen in the other cameras. Kuroko then rushes toward the likely location of Kouzaku. Kuroko asks if they're sure Kouzaku hasn't been seen in any other camera, to which Saten confirms. Kuroko notes that Kouzaku would show up in the cameras if she moved into another building. Seeing this, Kuroko manages to pinpoint the building where Kouzaku is likely hiding in. She orders Uiharu and Saten to turn all nearby movable cameras toward the building as she teleports in.

Back with the puppet, Kouzaku is able to pierce the device, but then realizes that the security cameras likely gave her location away. She then has her puppet slice and enter a sewer pipe to head to where Kuroko is going. Uiharu notices this as well, and reports it to Kuroko, confirming to her that the place where Kuroko is in is where Kouzaku is hiding. Kouzaku, turns her attention to Kuroko, and uses the cameras of the Homing Cameras that is used for Daihaseisai events to target her. Kouzaku observers the battle directly during the puppet's confrontation with Kuroko in the building. After Kuroko uses the anti-listening device on her puppet again, Kouzaku uses the puppet to attack her, though could only spread her attack as she could not tell how high up Kuroko is. Despite being hit on the side and on the arm, Kuroko teleports away and applies a small a balm on her injuries using the same ointment she used to tend her wounds from her first encounter with Awaki. While doing so, she believes that Kouzaku is in the building based on the puppet's actions and that she is in the upper floors. After treating her wounds, Kuroko pursues Kouzaku from below, though notes that she may be overlooking something.

Meanwhile, back in Judgment 177 Branch Office, Saten and Uiharu becomes worried of Kuroko's injuries. Uiharu, as she watches the cameras, later catches the Daihaseisai Homing Cameras surrounding the building where Kuroko is in despite being no events. Uiharu researches that Anti-Skill apparently used them to see if anyone has yet to be evacuated but notes on how the powerful electromagnetic waves there are too powerful for the cameras to approach. Saten then gets the idea in having them use the cameras to aid Kuroko, leading Uiharu to eureka moment. She asks Saten how long the cameras were there, to which she says that they have been there since Kuroko entered the building. Uiharu then reports this to Kuroko, giving to her the possibility that Kouzaku is not inside the building but somewhere else.

With this new knowledge, Kuroko continues her pursuit of Kouzaku inside the building. Kuroko finds the last blindspot of the building, only to find that she isn't there. Kuroko goes over thoughts once more, and discovers that Kouzaku may be hiding in the sewers and that she was led into a trap by Kouzaku. Kouzaku's puppet later catches up to Kuroko a ventilation duck. As Kuroko uses another anti-listening device to seal her echolocation, Kouzaku turns one of the Homing Cameras she has hacked toward the blind spot. Considering the lag when Kuroko teleports and the locations where she is likely to jump to, Kouzaku has her puppet fire a knife hidden inside it towards Kuroko. However, unbeknownst to her, Uiharu has hacked that particular camera to display dummy footage, allowing Kuroko to escape. With this, Kouzaku then sees Kuroko teleport behind her puppet, the only safespot for her to teleport to, as she predicted. She then sees Kuroko hit by it through the camera, and later has her Homing Camera roll to see Kuroko's body on the floor below. In the sewers, she laughs madly. Kouzaku apologizes, saying she wouldn't have killed her if she didn't interfere, though she added that she'd still meet the same fate when the city gets destroyed.

Suddenly, Kouzaku then hears something behind her, and turns to see Kuroko, who has now discovered Kouzaku hiding in the sewers. Kouzaku is shocked that her camera, out of the thousands around, had been hacked with dummy footage, to which Kuroko replies that she had the ultimate partner for that. Kuroko then declares that she has nowhere left to run. Cornered and with no time to call her Liquid Shadow, Kouzaku reaches for her knives, thinking about how she didn't just come down there to hide but also in case she was tracked down, as the passage limited teleportation. She then plans to shoot Kuroko with her ballistic knife when she teleports to avoid her first knife, taking advantage of her lag, taking both of them down if she attacks via teleportation instead. As Kuroko moves forward, Kouzaku throws the first knife, but to her surprise instead of teleporting Kuroko intercepts it with her hand. Not reacting fast enough, Kouzaku is then punched then kicked down by Kuroko. Screaming, she lunges at Kuroko with the second knife but Kuroko teleports and kicks her in the back of the head. As she falls in battle, Kouzaku could only think of Dolly before losing consciousness. Kuroko later handcuffs Kouzaku, but due to her sustained injuries, she cannot have the calculations and strength to teleport her away so she instead plans to call Uiharu to request someone to pick her up in the sewers to be taken into custody. Thus, with the help of many people, the destruction of Academy City through the shifting of Misaka Mikoto is averted.

Misaki later uses her power to restore the memories of Kuroko and the others' memories of her, though modified the events somewhat for them, making them believe that they were out trying to catch terrorists targeting the festival to avoid contradictions. Apparently all to hide the existence of both Exterior and the Sisters from public knowledge, as well as passing along the information on the virus to Heaven Canceller to treat the sisters. Mikoto's not participating in the festival events on the second day was changed as well to that of her eating too much and having her stay in the bathroom all day, much to her chagrin.

Now with the waning days of Daihaseisai coming, one night the girls come upon the bonfire where the folk dance is happening, where they note on how they cannot participate. Mikoto goes away to buy them all drinks. In the meanwhile, Kamijou Touma later meets up with Saten, and thanks her for the protective charm she lent. Touma offers her to buy her some food to make it up to her, though she says that it is all right. Mikoto later comes around with the drinks, and finds Touma talking with Saten. Touma says that he borrowed a protective charm from her, confusing Mikoto though later figures out it was for the borrowing race. Mikoto's stutters and awkward way of presenting herself to Touma does not go unnoticed before the eyes of Saten and Uiharu.

Capitalizing this new found knowledge, Saten approaches Touma and asks him to dance with her around the bonfire as a way to thank her for lending him her protective charm. Touma is fine with the idea, though asks if she is sure with it, to which confirms. Saten then tells Touma to go on ahead, leaving the girls alone. Mikoto is utterly shocked by what has transpired, but with a knowing look between Saten and Uiharu, they make their move. Saten fakes an ailment finally catching up to her, prompting Mikoto to ask her if she is okay. However, Kuroko suddenly figures out their ruse and tries to tell Mikoto, but Uiharu comes up behind her and covers her mouth. With this ruse finally set up, Saten says that she can't move but tells Mikoto that she can dance with Touma in her place. Mikoto becomes embarrassed by this, and makes up a bunch of excuses. Fed up with this, Saten forces Mikoto to say that she wants to dance, to which she does.

The girls later see Mikoto dancing with Touma which is unceremoniously interrupted by Kuroko, teleport dropkicking Touma away, much to Uiharu and Saten's disappointment.

After the festival, Kuroko celebrated her recovery from her injuries with her friends at the Judgment 177 Branch Office, which is also the same day she is released from using her wheelchair.

Dream Ranker Arc
When Mikoto is about to go to sleep to use her first Indian Poker card, Kuroko hides in her blanket and Mikoto has to kick her out. She watches Mikoto as she sleeps, unaware that she is experiencing a bad dream from the card. She monologues dramatically and eventually offers Mikoto her body and heart, only for Mikoto to wake up and shout that she doesn't want that (referring to the dream, not to Kuroko). Kuroko is stunned by this.

The next morning, Kuroko is still depressed over seemingly being rejected. She goes on a patrol with Uiharu, and the latter has to snap her out of her dazed state. They discuss a treasure hunting app that has recently been popular. Uiharu tells her that the app can show images of incidents that have previously happened (which Kuroko considers to be poor taste) and supposedly even incidents that will occur in the future.

Kuroko decides that they must investigate this. They head to one place where an incident is predicted to occur. After some false alarms, Kuroko sees a vehicle accident and teleports to save a bystander from being hit by a car. She tells Uiharu to direct traffic until Anti-Skill arrives, then tracks down the app's creator, Miyama Shaei, who was watching from the roof of a building.

Kuroko brings Shaei to the Judgment office where he explains his power to her and Uiharu: he uses his power in conjunction with a camera and a smartphone application to predict a future event. He also explains that he was never able to prevent the incidents from occurring even with this foreknowledge, and theorizes that Kuroko's ability to move in 11 dimensions allows her to change the future. To prove his ability, he makes a prediction in front of them, which allows Kuroko to find and save a drowning girl. Kuroko and Shaei work together to resolve several more incidents, though Shaei fails to predict the group coma incident.

Shaei eventually predicts that two incidents will occur in the same park the next evening, and fire will be involved. Kuroko enlists the help of more Judgment members to set up checkpoints and search the park. Uiharu gives Kuroko a device that lets her see a real-time satellite image of the park. Kuroko notices the cherry trees blooming out of season, but is then called away by Shaei. He hands her two new predictions set in the park and then collapses. Kuroko takes him to hospital and learns that he is harming himself through power overuse.

Kuroko and the rest of Judgment are at the park just before the predicted time of the fire. She sees the fire and begins teleporting people out, but the fire spreads with unnatural speed. She realizes that the cherry trees were tampered with to make them more flammable and Uiharu uses this information to predict the fire's spread. Kuroko finishes evacuating the people. However, Shaei staggers over and begs her to save a stray dog. Kuroko agrees and successfully saves the dog, handing him to Shaei.

Afterwards, Kuroko hears from Uiharu that the culprits behind the cherry tree tampering were trying to make make the trees bloom year-round, and they had learned how to produce the chemical used from Indian Poker. The two of them meet with Shaei, but he now calls Kuroko a pervert and reveals that Uiharu had told him to stay away from her. Kuroko punishes Uiharu for this. She then talks to Shaei, telling him to visit Judgment again if he ever learns to use his power safely.

When Mikoto stays up late after her failed attempt at getting the rumored Bust Upper card, Kuroko tells her that they need to get to sleep soon.

Kuroko takes part in a Judgment meeting where they discuss Indian Poker. She learns that the cards are being used to leak classified information on organisations such as the Garden.

Jailbreaker Arc
Kuroko and her friends watch an announcement about a Jailbreak Trial: an event in which espers compete to try and break out a pretend prisoner from a private juvenile hall, to test its security system. Kuroko only plans on competing if Mikoto does, and she disapproves of Mikoto taking part in what she sees as a lowly exhibition. However, Mikoto is goaded by the boasts of the juvenile hall's director, so the four of them end up competing. As they line up for the event, Kuroko stares disapprovingly at Mikoto.

The trial begins, and Kuroko watches the other competitors try and fail to breach the juvenile hall's outer wall. Kuroko teleports the others over a pitfall, but further use of her power is difficult due to the AIM Jammers. When Kongou, who is also competing, tries to use her power to shoot logs at the wall, the Jammers cause her to lose control. One log plummets towards Kuroko and she chooses not to dodge to get Mikoto to save her (expecting to be embraced by her in the process). This fails as Mikoto instead kicks Kuroko out of the way and embraces Uiharu. Kuroko is annoyed and jealous at Uiharu for this.

Finally, they open a hole in the wall by working with other competitors and enter the juvenile hall. Uiharu is caught in the crowd and tells them to go on ahead. Mikoto receives a one-shot airgun from another competitor and, at Saten's suggestion, hands it to Kuroko as she has training with firearms. However, Kuroko uses up the one shot on one of the juvenile hall's robots that catches them by surprise, leaving the group with no weapons.

While walking through the grounds of the juvenile hall, Kuroko complains about Uiharu's lack of stamina. The other two tease her by saying that Uiharu should quit Judgment, tricking Kuroko into praising Uiharu in response. Saten is attacked by a security robot and neither Kuroko nor Mikoto can get it off her. They are secretly helped by Yakumaru, a member of Scavenger who was ordered to assist Mikoto and her group, who destroys the robot. The trio continue, with Yakumaru taking out other robots several times without them noticing. They finally arrive at the prison building only to discover that it's the boys' building - the target is in the girls' building.

Kuroko and the others finally arrive at the girls' building, and she notes that other competitors are already inside. They run into the ninja Oumi Shuri, who tricks them into escorting her by pretending to be a helpless little girl. However, Oumi accidentally drops one of her smoke bombs in front of them, and Kuroko confiscates it as she doesn't want a child to carry something dangerous. They encounter another group of competitors about to use their power and try to intervene, but Oumi persuades them to stay away (so that she can see the effects of an AIM Jammer on an esper). The resulting out-of-control power sends rubber bullets flying everywhere, so Mikoto and Kuroko block the bullets with makeshift shields while Saten covers Oumi. Despite their efforts, Oumi is hit and decides to flee. Kuroko tells the others not to worry about her as they have problems of their own. They are surrounded by robots, but the War Armadillo robots attack the others, revealing that Mikoto had reprogrammed them in advance to fight on her side.

With the robots, the group easily advances through the prison and eventually runs into Kongou Mitsuko and her group. Kongou offers to give them special suits that hide them from the sensors, and Kuroko is excited at the prospect of seeing Mikoto in the skintight suit, but Mikoto declines because of how the suits emphasize one's figure. They finally reach the room where the target is supposed to be, but find it unlocked and empty. It turns out that Uiharu had used her hacking skills to break out the fake prisoner before any of the others.

After the trial is over, they reunite with Uiharu. Uiharu says that she'll donate the prize money to Asunaro Park and jokes that she could always hack a bank if she was interested in money, causing Kuroko to take out her handcuffs with a serious expression. However, they are unaware that the person Uiharu broke out was an actual prisoner in disguise, and that said prisoner has plans for the skilled hacker.

When Uiharu later skips out on her patrol duty, Kuroko angrily confronts her in a restaurant. Uiharu makes the excuse that she's obtaining energy to maximize her performance, but Kuroko stuffs food in her mouth and drags her off to work.

Later that night, Kuroko gets a call from Saten and learns that Uiharu can't be found. She and Mikoto head over to Uiharu's apartment where they meet Saten and learn that Uiharu isn't there either. Kuroko asks the other residents in the apartment but none of them have heard a commotion. Mikoto finds from the camera footage that a recreational vehicle (RV) left the dorm. The three of them head after the vehicle.

Kuroko catches up to the RV and lands on the roof. She debates what to do, since they aren't sure the kidnappers are in the RV yet. This is resolved when Tsurigane emerges from the RV and attacks Kuroko. Kuroko teleports away. Mikoto arrives, brings the RV to a stop and gets into a fight with Kimi. However, Kimi's dragon proves too much for her and Kuroko has to teleport Mikoto to safety. Kuroko sees two vehicles drive away and along the road to District 11, suggesting that the kidnappers are planning to leave the city. She feels that something is unusual about the situation. Saten then proposes an idea, which involves the two of them continuing the chase while leaving her behind.

They catch sight of the two vehicles and find that they are splitting up. They decide to split up and each pursue one vehicle, with Kuroko taking the one carrying Kimi. Mikoto tells her to avoid fighting and to focus on rescuing Uiharu.

Kuroko eventually catches up to the car, which has hit a tree and is smoking.