I don't own My Hero only thing I own are the OC's
Chapter 2: Resolve and Regrets
The first thing he noticed upon waking up was that he was laying in a white room,with white curtains covering the bed he was currently laying in .He did not remember how he got there .He did't remember anything after he escaped .The second thing he noticed was that his right arm was connected to a white bag by a plastic tube.
He tried to get into a sitting position to get a better look around his surroundings,but the attemp was cut short by a calm and kind male voice coming from his left.
„Easy there my boy,please don't get up .You need to rest and get hydrated,that's why this little „buddy" is here" He pointed at the bag. „But worry not,you are safe here,you are no longer in danger"
,,W-who are you mister?" Asked Issei,curious.
,,Ah,pardon me for not introducing myself first!" Said the man smiling,rubbing the back of his head with his palm. „My name is Tsukauchi Naomasa,and I am a detective asigned to your case"
,,My case?" Asked the boy,slighlt confused
„Yes,your case,the case of your kidnapping" Answered the detective.
Suddenly,the memories began to flood back into Issei's head .He remembered the people who imprisoned him,he remembered what they've said to him,how they wanted to take something from him and then dispose of him .He remembered how he got out of his chair and that he escaped .But he couldn't remember what happened afterwards.
„Y-you mean you look for the people that took me?" He asked.
„Well,not exactly .I lead the case,but my people are investigating the case,and I am the one to question sides of the incident"
„T-then you will have to q-question me about it?" Asked the boy with slightly shaking voice .He did not want to go through it again .It terrified him when he experienced it,and he didn't want to tell him all that happened,because he felt like he would break mid first sentence and-
„This will not be necessary my boy" Calmly responded Naomasa
„B-but why?" Asked Issei,confused.
,,You already answeared all the question I asked you the previous day"
Sometimes questions are more powerful than answers. How is this happening? What are they? Why them and not others? Why now? What does it all mean?
Issei froze at this statement .He did not remember anything after his escape,and he surely does not remember answearing police's questions .He thought that the detective was pulling a joke on him .He tried to ask him about it,but before he could open his mouth,Naomasa spoke again.
„You may have had answeared the questions I gave you yesterday,but due to your rather troubled state,I'll now have to ask you to confirm all the statements you made,to exclude the possibility for some of these to be the product of your stress or fear .Will you comply?" Asked the detective politely.
Even thought the man was using adult and hard words,Issei understood what he wanted him to do .He wanted to say if all the thing he apparently told him were true rather than made up because of being affraid .He nodded in agreement.
„Thank you for your help,with it we can tackle this case much faster!" Exclaimed the detective,with big grin .His enthusiasm and cheerfulness spread to the boy,as he smiled himself,for the first time in a long time .But it dropped the moment that Naomasa started reading his statements .The accuracy of them terrified the boy .He nodded to everything that the detective read to him .It was exactly what happened,exactly how he remembered .There were even things he stated he only remembered happening only after the detective read them to him .After what felt like eternity for Issei,but was in fact half an hour of nodding to what Naomasa was reading,the man in question stood up from his chair,and spoke to Issei again.
„I'm sorry,it took longer than expected,and I'm sure your father is dying to see you and to make sure you are ok,so I'll take my leave now .Thank you for your help,with it we'll catch them in no time!" Said the detective cheerfully,and waved to the boy as he opened the door .The boy returned the wave.
Well,only half of detective's last monologue was true.
His father indeed was dying to see him,yes,but not to see if he's ok.
„What were you thinking,letting those pests capture you?!" Shouted his father,sitting face to face to Issei
„B-but dad-"
„No but's! Do you know how much money I spent on you? Do you know how much money I spent to make you into a decent man up to this point? You know what? To hell with that .Do you know how much money did I spend on your security? The Bronze Guardians do not work for free!" Counted the man.
Issei's cheerfulness,the product of the talk with Naomasa was replaced by other feeling .Anger .How could he only see the money getting lost,instead of his son or his son's life?
Issei thought that if he could fight to free himself,he could as well fight to stand up to his father.
„Well,then those guardians do their job perfectly" Said Issei bitterly.
His father was stunned at that response,and Issei felt like he hit him where it hurts .But Karma is a bitch,and he felt that on himself .He felt it as his father slapped him across the face with a loud clap sound.
„You do not get to talk to me like this!" He said from behind his gritted teeth. „The Bronze Guardians are the most elite private security in Japan,and it was clearly not their fault .But I won't even waste my time explaining it,because if you were that stupid to get caught,then you probably won't even understand it!"
Issei was clutching his right arm on his right cheek .That's where he was hurt the started crying not long after.
„And of course,when you do something wrong,even when you know it is your own fault,you start crying,thinking that it will get you anywhere .But it won't happen with me .Do you know why? Because you dissapointed me" Said the man,and he spat the last sentence as angrily and coldly as he could.
Issei's tears turned to a waterfall as he held a pillow up his face and he hugged it as hard as he can.
„I will take my leave now,I will send Kozuki to pick you up tomorrow .So be a man and get out of this pathetic state before he shows up,so I will not have to deal with the shame of my son being a crybaby." Said his father as he was leaving.
Issei was crying for around one more hour,before he ran out of tears to shed .He curled into a fetal position,gripping his pillow tight.
„Why are he thi-this mad at me? He never a-acted like this! I-i didn't ask to get c-captured .It's n-not my fault that someone wanted to g-get something from me"
„M-maybe when they catch the-these villains father will f-forgive me? When th-they'll get caught by the nice dedective's people,he will see that I d-did nothing wrong!"
Issei thought.
1 year later
„I'm deeply sorry,but it's like they vanished completely from this plane of existence" Said Naomasa,from behind his desk.
Issei looked at the detective as if he just killed his parents before his very eyes .He thought he was joking.
„B-but how? But you said that m-my help will help y-you c-catch them quickly?" Said Issei,both hope and sadness in his voice.
„Well,I said it because I thought that it will an easy case .But even with all the information from you,we never managed to locate single one of them .It's as they never existed. We've send additional patrols to the area,and every hero in bordering prefectures got the informations how said villains look,and they are told to apprehend them at sight .It may take longer that usually,but we'll get them soon!" Said Naomasa,trying to sound cheerfull.
But Issei noticed that he did not sound the same cheerfull as when he visited him in hospital .Somehow,he sounded sad behind his mask of happiness.
„Im really sorry for the intrusion Sir,but Master Issei was dying for the information,since it's been around a year since the incident" Said Kozuki,Issei's supervisor and his father's most loyal butler .Issei basically draged him to the detective's office,and he was too scared to loose his job if he refused,especially since his little ,,Master" was a very stubborn five year old „But I'm sure that both heroes and police are excelling in their searches and will surely sooner or later tackle these foul villains"
„That is true .We will not stop untill they're taken down and locked behind the bars .You've got my word" Said Naomasa,suddenly serious.
This has rekindled Issei's hope .He thought that his father will again look at him as a son rather than a failure when the villains get behind the bars,right? Right?
10 years later
A soon to be fifteen years old Issei got out of his bed .He swayed his black hair from his eye. „Damn do I need a haircut" He thought .He looked at the calendar .He frowned when he noticed the date. „So it's a round 10 years since then,huh?" He said,deep in thought .He remembered that day in Naomasa's office .He remembered when he told the four year old him that they'll catch the villains in no time .He smiled as he thought of how ironic it sounded,10 years later
„We'll catch them in no time"
Yes,that was true,they caught them in no time.
In ,,no time'' as they never managed to find even a trace of them.
It's not like he gave up coming to Naomasa for info after the first time .For the whole week after the visit he kept calling his office,asking if they found out something .The last time he phoned he was scolded by the said detective for keeping the line busy and possibly preventing some very important informations from getting to him .That convinced him to restrict his ,,information hunting" to once in a time visits to the detective's office with the supervision of Kozuki .He visited every 3 months,because Kozuki told him that visiting more often than that might disrupt Naomasa's work,and he did not wished to make the case harder for the man .But every visit,he got the same response as the first time,but always in other form,to not hurt his feelings .As the time went and he began to get older,he started to understand that the case was not moving anywhere .He only heard that ,,they've got a clue" or „they were found a lead" but he soon understood that was just Naomasa being polite.
He was either polite or he did not want to show Issei how incompetent the law can be at times .Heroes were not helping either .After a year and a half,they were ordered to focus on tasks at hand,instead of blindly chasing unnamed and unlocated villains.
To survive in this world, we hold close to us those on whom we depend. We trust in them our hopes, our fears... But what happens when trust is lost? Where do we run, when things we believe in vanish before our eyes? When all seems lost, the future unknowable, our very existence in peril... All we can do is run.
He paid his final visit a month after he turned 10 .When he arrived with this supervisor at the office he did not even had to open his mouth in order for people to understand why he was here .When he plopped down onto the chair in Naomasa's office,the visibly older than the first time when they met detective started his speech how they were doing their absolute best and they were taking on every possible leads they come across.
„Lies,why won't you just say the truth to me?" 10 year old Issei thought to himself.
He stood up from his chair in the middle of Naomasa's speech and walked to the door .Both Kozuki and the detective stared at him confused.
„Kozuki,we're leaving" Were the only words he mustered in that building.
The butler followed the order without question and followed his Master .They left Naomasa in his office,looking confused like he just saw Big Foot.
„Master Issei,you shouldn't have just walked away on the detect-"
„Do not speak to me. Just drive me home."
Said Issei,sounding tired and dissapointed.
The butler complied,and did what his young Master ordered him to do.
Once they arrived home,or rather in his familly's mansion Issei quickly ran up the stairs to his room .He plopped down on his fancy american waterbed and curled up in a fetal position,gripping his pillow .It reminded him of that day 5 years ago .After the hospital room incident,his father did not apologized to him for the things he said,nor did he changed his approach towards him .He still treated him like it was his fault,and that he was an idiot for even letting himself get kidnapped .He was even colder and meaner than when Issei's mother died due to collateral damage from a hero's and villain's fight .He started to treat him coldly,but that's because he treated everyone like this since her death,but he tried his absolute best to be a good father and an example for his son .Well,until the kidnapping.
,,WHY CAN'T THEY DO ANYTHING?! THEY COULDN'T CATCH 3 VILLAINS IN 10 YEARS?! WHY CAN'T THEY JUST LET THEM HAVE WHAT THEY DESERVE?!" Shouted Issei,face burried in the pillow.
He kept asking himself those kinds of questions .He rambled to himself for good hour or so before he stopped .He stopped,because in the middle of his ramblings about how heroes can't do anything and don't want to do anything,he got an idea .An idea how to fix all of his problems and stop whining about the incompetence of the law enforcement.
„Maybe if I'll become a hero,then I'll could look for them and bring them to justice myself!" He happily exclaimed as he jumped from his bed .He started jumping all over the room,chanting „I will become a hero!" for some time .Then he realised can not become a hero just because you really want to .To be a hero you need to work hard and train your body and your quirk equally,and you need to have hope and will to help inside of you .At least that's what he once heard from an interview with a pro hero.
He decided that starting tomorrow he will start training hard ,like the hero said .He was actually not in the worst ,he had no visible muscles,but he had no dingling fat either. „Maybe they will let me use the school's private gym if I ask?" He thought .His school,private of course had an entire building filled with equipment destined for after school activities .Now since he probably got that one covered,he needed to focus on his quirk .Since the incident,he was only able to (as he called it) ,,fortify" his right arm,and after over a year of trying to figure out how it worked,he managed to fortify his left arm .But that was the extend of what he could do for now.
„I'll need to try and learn how to fortify other parts of the body .Hands alone will not protect the rest of the body,and hero costumes are not indestructible" He noted along with his previous statement about the gym in a notebook he pulled from his desk .He decided that he will keep his workout plan and any updates on his quirk and body in it,in case he needs to check his progress.
„It all starts tomorrow" He said.
Back to the present
Issei grabbed his notebook,opening it on the first page .There was a big notice,made in black marker,which read „UA High Entrance Exam,remember,important" with the date under it .He looked at the date,and then the calendar. „Four days from today,huh?" He thought „Time sure flies by" He quickly scrolled through his notes .In those five years he made quite the progress .He was physically stronger,and his arms,legs and stomach were showing muscles .His stamina has improved as well .Aside from getting his haircuts less often,nothing changed about his still had those ocean blue eyes,the most noticable thing about his rest of it was fairly normal,nothing out of the ordinary .But the thing that changed the most in him by the years,was his quirk .After years of training,making thesis and proving them right or wrong and intense workout,he learned how to fortify other body parts .He could now fortify his arms,legs,and entire torso .He could not fortify his head,which he tried multiple times,some of them resulting in a few of his milk tooth getting ,,removed",but he was still not giving up on it .He could also fortify two of his limbs at the same time,but it was limited to either both arms or both legs .He noticed,that the armor was doing what armor should do,and reduced damage he received .He tested that with his fortified legs and jumping from noted that when the regular fall would at least damage his legs to some extent,he was left with no damage at all .The armor was a few milimeter thick,but was very protective and weighted around 2 to 3 pounds depending on the fortified body part .He did not know what material it was made from,but he did not care as long as it provided protection .The armor on the rest of his body was the same colour and structure as on his arms .They however did not carry any blades,or other forms of offense. „I need to limit myself to hand-to-hand combat,as every other part of my body aside from my arms is purely defensive" He read from one of the pages .He quickly skipped some of the pages which contained his attempts on making a hero name for himself .He still have not decided yet on one,but that was unimprotant right now .He needed to prepare himself mentally for the exam,as he was prepared physically pretty well .And what better thing to prepare yourself with four days prior to an exam than drinking a big fucking mug of coffe first thing in the morning .He walked to the kitchen and booted up his coffee express .He put the little cup containing the brown ambrosion in the machine and put a mug in under it so he can do nothing as it is automatically brewd and filled .He waited a while,and when it was done,he added his reasonable fill of sugar and milk .He stirred it up a little and let it mix .He then sat in his armchair and started to sip it then,his cellphone rang .He lazily took it out of his pocket and put it to his ear after hitting the green icon on his screen,not even bothering who was calling.
„Hello?" He said,lazily.
„Is this Issei Shishido?" Asked a familliar male voice.
„Yes it is,who is it?"
„Long time no see or hear Issei,Detective Naomasa here" Answered the man.
Issei almost lost his composure and also almost dropped his mug hearing the man's name .He was both angry,confused and a little hopeful at the same time .He decided not to express any of these feeling as he calmly asked the detective a question.
„What is the call regarding to?"
There was silence at the other end of the line,but only for a while.
„I know that I should call your father and tell him this personally,but I rather tell that to you,because you were the one to always come to my office,and not him,and I'm probably breaking some important rules doing this,but here goes" Said Naomasa,taking a deep breath „I'm calling to notify you that the case is being closed and will no longer pe investigated"
Issei dropped the cup on the floor .It broke with a loud crack .He immediately ended the call and blocked the nubmer as to prevent it from ever calling again .He felt so fucking angry .The last time he felt that agitated was two months ago,when his father called him into his office to discuss his highschool situation .He wanted Issei to go to some sort of school for stacked up snobs,but Issei cut him mid his explaining the boy's daily routine.
„I don't want to go to this school.I want to go to UA" He answeared bitterly.
His father looked at him,dissapointed,and answeared both bittelry and angrily
„Oh,is that so? You want to be ,,independent" don't you? Fine,you can go to if you do,I want you out of this house .I will provide you with another place to live and I will keeping you maintained until you're adult,but I won't take you back when you come back to me on your knees begging for a second chance .Understood?"
Issei noded,taking that as a win-win situation .He can go to UA and move out from his pain in the ass father.
The next day his things were transported to his new house .It was a moderate size familly house .He noticed that it was only 2 miles from UA,so he could go there on foot instead of taking the train .He quickly unpacked his things and took a look around the whole house .It looked so normal compared to the place where he grew up .He noticed it was fairly empty,but with the monthly monthly allowance of around half a million yen he could get some furniture going and also save some money for his living .And he managed both of these things just fine,much to his own amazement .It was slowly but surely becoming a home .His home .Home he never really had.
Back to present
Issei was staring blankly forward .The case was closed .They suspects were never caught .He will never see them behind bars .His eyes started to water,and he was close to crying .But then he remembered the thing he said five years ago.
„That's right .I don't need the police,or heroes,or Naomasa .I will go to UA .I will become a hero myself .I will bring them to justice .I will personally lock them up" He said,sadistic grin crawling up on his lips „I will personally capture them and bring them to justice .Legally or not"
„Brace yourself UA,for here I go! I will beat that bloody test of yours just as I will beat all three of these assholes who kidnapped me!" He shouted,determination in voice .He threw his fist in the air,repeating the Number One hero's motto.
„PLUS ULTRA!"
Now this was a really long chapter,but you can't fit characters backstory in under 1k words,but I promise that the next chapter (and hopefully all other) will not be that long and angst filled... I hope so at least.
Anyway,remember to R&R and as always all criticism is welcome
The story will continue in chapter 3: The UA Exam
