Izuku looked out the window of his classroom. Most of the other students were busy either talking or arguing about one thing or another. Katsuki's voice easily rose above the rest given his habit of shouting over the people around him. Isuku rested his elbow on his wooden desktop and admired the small tufts of white that floated by outside. He always felt lucky to have a window seat in the classroom. It really helped ease his wandering mind. It helped take his mind off of the roughness of his clothing, the sound of peoples pencils scratching, the contemptuous and mocking voices that tended to float words towards him and most of all it helped him relax.
Fluorescent bulbs hummed above him as the chatter in the classroom continued. He let himself get lost in all of it and his mind wandered to other things. He wondered once more what he may be able to do to become a hero. He wondered if it was even possible. His lips thinned and turned down at the edges of his mouth. Frowning always made him feel uncomfortable. He turned back towards the front of the class when he heard the door to the classroom slide open. The homeroom teacher walked in dressed in a blue button up shirt, brown slacks and glasses. A plain looking man for a plain school.
"Alright class, listen up! Today we will be handing out evaluation sheets to help you decide what you want to be…" The teacher grabbed a thick stack of papers, holding them in his hand as he cast his gaze towards his students. He smirked as he threw the papers into the air.
"Why bother? I know you all want to be heros anyhow! Haha!" Laughed the the teacher. The class cheered and laughter followed. Several students started up new conversations and one even called across the room.
"Hey! Bokugo? Aren't you applying to U.A.?" Asked one of the students, a plain looking girl with black hair and grey eyes. If Izuku was remembering correctly she had a quirk that gave her exceptional smell. The class all turned towards Bokugo, his face smug, as they looked at him in awe.
"Woah, is that true Bokugo? Isn't it supposed to be super hard to get into U.A.?" Asked a boy on the other side of class. Bokugo laughed sharply and scoffed. He set his eyes into his patented scowl as he stood up form his chair and looked around the room.
"Maybe for all you extras, but I'm gonna destroy that entrance exam! I already aced the mock exam!" Shouted Katsuki confidently. That's something Izuku always admired about Katsuki. He was confident to a fault. Of course it all stemmed from his powerful quirk, explosion. If Katsuki had been gifted with a quirk similar to the ones half of the class had he'd be much more humble. Izuku like to think about if Kaachan had developed a quirk like his mothers glycerin, would he have been more humble or would he have found something about that to flaunt as well?
"Wait, isn't Midorya applying to U.A. also?" Asked the teacher. The entire class fell silent as they turned to face Izuku. For his part, Izuku was still too distracted pondering the things that could have been to notice the dramatic shift in the atmosphere of the class. He remained this way until Kaachan came up to his desk and slammed his open palm down on it, making an explosion rock the desk and bring Izuku out of his stupor. Izuku looked straight into the rage filled glare of one Bokugo Katsuki. He returned the glare with his own bloodshot dry-eyed stare.
"Something I can do for you Kaachan?" Asked Izuku. Bokugo growled and grabbed Izuku by his collar, pulling him close to his face and narrowing his eyes.
"What makes you think a quirkless, pill popping, basket case like you could ever be a hero?!" Demanded Bokugo. Izuku stared at him, mostly unaffected by the shouting. He went over it in his head and took a moment to reply.
"Because it's what I want to do Kaachan." replied Izuku. He smiled at Bokugo, the drugs in his system making him unafraid. Bokugo tightened his grip on Izukus collar and growled louder as he ground his teeth together.
"Aagh! You're a fuckin' useless piece of shit Deku! Why don't you just take a swan dive off the damn roof! Maybe then you'll get a damn quirk in the next life and take your fuckin' crazy with ya!" Hollered Bokugo, throwing Izuku to the ground. Izuku slammed into the floor and winced in pain as he watched Bokugo walk away.
'Sometimes...I wish I had Kaachan still…' thought Izuku somberly. He truly did miss his childhood friend. He sighed and picked himself off the ground as the bell rang, the rest of the students laughing and calling him names and leaving. He grabbed his bag off his desk and reached into his bag, pulling out an orange bottle. His phone started signalling a bell to tell him it was medication time. Izuku pulled his phone out, silenced it and returned to his bag, then proceeded to open the bottle. He shook one of the red pills into his hand and staring at the blue line. He tilted his head back and swallowed the pill. Replacing the cap and then putting the bottle in his bag, Izuku began to make his way home for the day….
The sun was shining brightly today, too bright for Izuku. He ducked into the underpass to get into the shade. As much as he loved beautiful days, the sun could still get him overheated. He stared down at the grey concrete as it contrasted with the light that struggled to reach into the tunnel. Izuku sat down against the wall of the tunnel. Today hadn't gone very well, but he supposed they almost never did. At least Bokugo hadn't injured him today, so there was that.
Izuku let his eyes wander the tunnel as he thought back to his one time friend. He couldn't count the number of times he'd tried to get Kaachan to believe that he had a quirk, but like everyone else they just called him crazy and told him to be a good boy and take his crazy pills….figures. Izuku was getting tired of all of this, but he had his dreams. He had to try to become a hero, if not for himself then for everyone else. He made to stand up when the sound of rattling steel entered his ears.
"A medium Vessel to help me escape this city! Exactly what I needed! Hahaha!" yelled a voice that seemed to originate from the growing pile of ooze that was pouring out of the manhole cover on the ground. Izuku's breath hitched, his body froze for only a second before he did that only thing he knew he could do. He ran.
As Izuku was turning to sprint away the Ooze lounged at inhuman speeds towards him and wrapped itself around him. Izuku tried to close his mouth, but he was too late. The ooze was forcing itself into him as it's evil laugh filled the access tunnel. What kind of villain was this!? Izuku felt the world around him fading away as he was slowly losing consciousness. Sparkles of white and white butterflies filled the edges of his vision as he started fading…
"Texaaaas...SMASH!" Thundered a voice as izuku felt the world around him finally fall away.
"Uuugh, my head…" moaned Izuku as he got on his hands and knees, slowly standing with a hand gripping his head. He opened his eyes and looked around the tunnel. Only thing here was concrete and All-Might…
"All-Might!?" shouted Izuku in shock. Sure enough, standing just a few feet away from him in all of his smiling glory was All-Might, number one hero and the pillar of justice and peace. Was he just saved by his childhood idol?
"Have no fear! For I am here! Haha!" shouted All-Might with a laugh at the end. He held two bottles up in Izuku's line of sight. Two eyes floated in one of the bottles. Was this the villain?
"I've apprehended the villain! Thank you for distracting him young man! I apologize that you had to go through with that." said the number one hero. Izuku struggled to come up with anything to say, his mind drew a blank as he stared up at his hero.
"A-all-might, I-I-I'm a huge fan! T-Thank you for saving me!" choked out Izuku. He was seeing stars he was so stunned. All-Might laughed once more and struck a pose.
"Of course citizen, anything to help! Now, I must be off. This villain needs to be put into custody!" shouted All-Might as he squatted, ready to leap. Izuku reached out to stop him. He had to ask him the question!
"All-Might! Wait, I have a question!" shouted Izuku. All-Might's grin faltered for a moment.
"I'm sorry young man, but justice can't wait. Good day!" shouted All-Might. Izuku couldn't just let this chance slip by because he was meek. He did the only thing that came to mind. He jumped and grabbed All-Might's leg as he leapt into the air. Izuku held on for dear life as the two rocketed through the air. All-Might looked down at him in a panic and shook his leg.
"Your fanaticism is appreciated, but you must let go young man!" shouted All-Might. Izuku just held on tighter as he struggled to stay attached. The wind whipped by his face as the duo shot through the air. They rose high above the buildings and into the blue sky and he'd never felt more afraid than at this very moment.
"I can't let go! I'll die! I need to ask you just one question, please!" begged Izuku. The wind whipped by so fast that his tears vanished before he ever felt them leave his eyes. All-Might hesitated, but made the decision to allow this boy his one question. Something at the back of his mind told him that it'd be best if he did.
"Alright, young man, what is it you'd like to ask me?" questioned All-Might. The duo had landed on a rooftop a few moments before and Izuku was still catching his breath. That had been terrifying. All-Might did that all the time?
"Y-yes. All-Might? Is.." Izuku hesitated. The wind blew across the rooftop and the sun felt hot on his skin as he stood across from the world number one hero. Breathing deeply and clenching his fist, Izuku looked All-Might right in the eyes as he asked the biggest question he'd ever had.
"Can I be a hero?!" shouted Izuku, only to notice that instead of All-Might there was a terribly thin man in his place. Confusion washed over Izuku. Smoke was being blown away from the man as he coughed roughly into his closed fist. The man was blonde, blue eyes with black sclera, and terrible sharp features due to his being thin. Also, he seemed to be swimming in his clothes. He had a deep frown on his face as he faced Izuku. It took a moment, but Izuku realized...this is the true All-Might.
"Damn…" muttered All-Might. He sighed as he stood up as straight as he could manage in is powered-down state. He looked to the stunned silent young man. The boy was thin, taller than most he'd seen his age, and his eyes were bloodshot. The young lad's green hair seemed to fall over his eyes. He looked like he needed a damn haircut. Said hair moved about in the breeze the blew across the concrete rooftop.
"What...what happened to you All-Might?" asked izuku in a small voice. His hero look to be wasting away. He'd never imagined that the number one hero could be in such dire straits. Was this why he was being seen less and less? Was there some sort of time limit that his condition placed upon his power? It only made sense given the evidence thus far…
"You've already seen, so there is no point in hiding the truth from you young...:" said All-Might, waiting for Izuku to give him his name.
"M-midorya Iz-zuku." Izuku flushed and stuttered out his name. All-Might nodded, eyes closed as he memorized the name of the young man before him. He lifted his head and locked eyes with young Midorya.
"You must promise me young Midorya that what I'm about to tell you never leaves the two of us. Can you do that for me?" asked All-Might. He was about to give away his most greatest secret. If his enemies knew the extent of the damage done to him, then they no doubt would increase their efforts to take his life ten-fold. The eyes of the young man hardened and filled with a resolve he seldom witnessed in youths like himself. Maybe there was something special about this young man.
"You can count on me All-Might, I promise that anything you tell me will stay between the two of us." promised Izuku, his voice strong, resolute and unwavering. All-Might smiled sadly as he nodded, lifting his loose white shirt to reveal the hideous scarred wound beneath. Izuku's face froze as he inspected the damage to his biggest Hero.
"Several years ago, I was in a fight and I was injured. This-" All-might pointed to his wound, "-was the result of that fight. I lost my stomach, sixty five percent of my lung capacity, and several metres of intestine." said All-Might as he lowered his shirt. He cringed as the scar pulled his skin and muscles.
"Your fight with Toxic-Chainsaw five years ago? There's no way his attack could have done that! The wounds he inflicted wouldn't have that point of impact…" said Izuku in response to the information that All-Might had revealed. All-Might cast his gaze downward as a mirthless smirk adorned his face.
"You are quite correct young Midorya. This was indeed a wound inflicted by a foe other than Toxic-Chainsaw. This fight was kept out of the public eye for the sake of peace. If anyone knew that I were injured so...the villains of this world would be far too bold." said All-Might. He cast his gaze once more to young Midorya. The boy had a dire look on his face as he opened his mouth to speak.
"All-Might, I understand the need to hide your injury. I still need to know, is it possible for someone without a quirk or without one that's strong, someone like me, to become...a hero?" asked Izuku, hope filling his voice even though he had a feeling what All-Might would say next.
"Now that you know the truth young Midorya, do you understand me when I say that...no, someone like you can not be a hero." said All-Might, eyes hard and sadness pooling behind his black orbs. He never wants to be the one to crush dreams.
"There are so many other honorable professions out there. You could become a teacher, a doctor, maybe even a police officer. One need not be a hero to save people Izuku." spoke All-Might as he stepped forward. Izuku had his eyes cast down, hair casting a shadow that made his expression unreadable. All-Might raised a hand and grasped Izuku's shoulder, making the young man jump and freeze. All-Might took a deep breath and continued to speak, "Some people are born to be heros Others, as much as they may want to be, are meant for other things." Izuku was shaking at this point, tears falling onto the pavement, "You seem like a fine young man Izuku, I'm certain you could put your mind and heart to good use. Some people just can't be Heros." said All-Might, squeezing Izuku's shoulder.
"You..you don't get it…" whispered Izuku. He whipped his head up and his stare bored right into All-Might's soul, " I can't be a Police Officer, or a doctor, or even a damn teacher! No one would ever hire me! Not when I have records going back to when I was six years old saying I'm a Psychotic Schizophrenic that hallucinates and sees things that aren't real!" shouted Izuku with his fists clenched. He felt his nails digging deep into his skin and he ground his teeth as he tensed his jaw. All-Might's eyes widened as he took the information in.
"I've had this damn quirk for almost ten years and all it's done is make everyone think I'm crazy. For ten years I've endured it all. I've put up with pills, doctors, examinations, lab studies, medical trials and experimental drug after experimental drug!" shouted Izuku. Years of pent up anger surged forth as he laid his heart out in front of his number one hero, " I've had to put up with my mother, my best friend, my teachers and fellow students telling me I'm just a nut job who sees invisible things that aren't real when all i wanted was a quirk so I could be like you All-Might! So I could save people with a smile! So I could put myself before others and be a true Hero like you!" yelled Izuku. He panted as he ran out of breath from yelling. His chest heaved and the wind blew strongly once more across the rooftop, picking up dust and blowing in into the distance.
"I'm sorry...young Midorya." said All-Might, a look of sadness in his eyes. Izuku just hung his head and turned away.
'You can't be a Hero...I'm sorry young Midorya…' Izuku walked down the crowded street as the voice of All-Might played back in his head. His whole body shivered as he walked down the street. He needed his meds. He searched his bag, sifting through the pens, pencils, erasers, dozen notebooks and loose papers. He searched again, and again, and again. Izuku began to panic as he dumped his bag on the concrete and couldn't find the bottle of his meds. Where were they?!
'They must have fallen out when I flew through the air with All-Might!' yelled Izuku in his might. He hurriedly shoveled his belongings back into his bag and sat down in the middle of the sidewalk, legs drawn up to his chest. He didn't notice the stares people were giving him as he started to cry. The warm sun, the gentle breeze, the sound of the city all fell away as voices filled Izuku's head. His panic was taking over.
'I'm so sorry my sweet angel, It's all Mommy's fault! She w-wasn't strong e-enough to give you a g-good quirk!" the voice of his mother echoes in his head. He sobbed and muttered to himself.
"It's not your fault mom…" choked out Izuku, the tears falling down his face and staining his lets.
'You can't be a Hero Izuku...I'm sorry' Echoed All-Mights voice in his head. His eyes were burning as he cried harder. His ears filled with the sound of static. He started rocking back and forth gently.
'Stupid Deku! I can't be seen hanging out with some basket case! Get lost your psycho freak!' shouted the spectre like voice of Kaachan, his once upon a time friend. He missed having his friend so much. Izuku cried even harder and opened his mouth, biting down on his knee to stifle the cries of anguish.
An explosion ripped through the afternoon air, immediately ripping Izuku out of his panic. People were running by him and shouting. He noticed the crown forming at the end of the block. He stood on shaking legs and started running towards the explosions that started to fill the air. Izuku was praying that he was wrong as he made it to the crown and began pushing his way through. The air was thick with smoke and he could see fires burning just beyond the crowd and smoke was darkening the sky.
"A villain attack!" shouted a man to his left. He shouldered his way past a portly man that was recording the event.
"Isn't that the villain All-Might was chasing earlier?" Asked another woman to his right. Isuku ducked underneath the outstretched arm of police officer.
"Where is he? Why aren't any of the Hero's doing anything?" questioned another woman.
"The villain captured some middle school student, they can't do anything without risking hitting him!" Shouted another man. Dread filled Izuku and his stomach dropped as he broke out to the front of the crowd and finally got a good view of the scene.
The slime villain from earlier was in the middle of the square. Entombed in the sludge and much at front of this abomination was Kaachan. Izuku froze. The Hero's weren't able to save Kaachan. All-Might wasn't coming, he'd already used all of his power for the day. Kaachan was going to-
At that moment Bokugo Katsuki locked eyes with Izuku. Tears were streaming down his face and his eyes screamed one thing, 'Save me!'
Izuku felt the static fade away and clarity fell over him when he realized he had leapt over the barricade. He was sprinting faster than he ever had when the cries of the Hero's and officers reached him telling him to stop. He refused. He may not be Kaachan's friend, but Kaachan was still his. Even then, someone needed help and refused to stand by.
Unbeknownst to anyone, Izuku included, All-Might was in the crowd watching the events unfold with shock. He clenched his chest as he felt something burning inside of him.
'You have the gall to call yourself a hero when this boy, no, this young man charges into a fight with nothing but the will to save the innocent?!' he growled as he felt something burning and growing deep inside of his heart.
Wind rushed by Izuku as his red boots slammed down into the ground. He ran faster than he ever had before. The world around him was sharp, clear and perfect. He could see everything from the grains of wood in Kaumai woods branches to the dust on the back of his hand. The sunlight shone brightly down upon him as he ducked into a baseball slide to get underneath a tentacle that was sent his way. Using his momentum he righted himself and kept running. He saw the fear in Kaachan's eyes, but he also saw a small glimmer of hope fill them as he got nearer to him. Electricity felt like it was flowing through his body. He jumped over another tentacle and after landing he reared back with his bag.
Using all of the strength he had in his arm he swing and hit the eyes of the sludge villain. The effect was immediate.
"Aagh! You fucking nuisance! I'm going to end you with this new vessel of mine!" shouted the villain. Izuku ignored him, bringing the bag back across the sludge villain's eyes and letting the bag fly off as he leapt up. His instincts told him where he needed to slide his hands in, his arms diving into the sludge and grasping Kaachan tightly under the shoulders. The electric tingle in his body made him pull with more strength than he ever knew he possessed.
"Aagh!" yelled Izuku, his arms, legs and back muscles bulging and pushed to their maximum. He kept pulling with all of his might as sweat began pouring down his face. He only had a few more seconds. Kaachan's eyes were starting to grow dimmer as he lost his oxygen supply. Izuku had to pull harder!
"AAAHH!" he bellowed, voice straining as he used every last ounce of power and energy he had. Kaachan looked up into his eyes with tears as the slime and sludge started to pull away from his body as Izuku pulled him away. Finally, after what felt like an eternity a loud squelch and pop was heard as the two teens flew backwards, Izuku holding his friend close to him as they landed, rolling so that he could protect Kaachan from the attack that was guaranteed to follow. Izuku stood propped up on hands and knees and Kaachan was already weakly beating against his chest trying to get him to run.
"Move you f-fuckin' Baka! Fuckin D-deku! Why!?" begged Kaachan. Izuku just smiled down at his first and only friend. Bokugo choked up and felt anger flare at that damn Izuku only grin. That anger melted away when Izuku spoke.
"Even the best hero's need help sometimes Kaachan." said Izuku, a smile in his eyes. The villain finally recovered. Bokugo Katsuki was stunned into silence. He'd tormented Izuku since they were kids. He'd bullied him, beat him up, berated him and made him the lowest of the low, but Izuku had still risked his lift to safe Katsuki's.
"I'm gonna kill you, damn brat!" shouted the villain. Izuku tensed as he readied himself and waited, but the blow never came.
"I'm sorry...I took so long." said a voice. Izuku whipped his head around. Before him, blood pouring from his mouth, but a massive grin on his face, was All-Might. All-Might was holding the villain back with one arm!
"All-Might!" shouted both Izuku and Katsuki.
"I was wrong, young Midorya." said All-Might. He turned to face the villain and reared his fist back. All-Might grins at the villain.
"It's fine. Why? Because, I am here!" shouted All-Might. The crowd and even some of the Hero's began to cheer. This only angered the villain as it roared and began to slam it's tentacles down towards All-Might.
"Texas SMASH!" shouts All-Might, fist flying forwards and creating a massive cannon of air. The giant air bullet created by his fist shreds the villain and ascends to the heavens, twisting the clouds and causing rain to fall in a downpour and put out the fires surrounding the fight scene, aweing the crowd as cries of joy filled the air.
Izuku was walking away from an officer when All-Might, in his weaker form, walked up to him.
"Young Midorya, may I have a word with you?" asked All-Might. Izuku nodded his consent as they walked away from the crowd. The sun was finally coming back out. All-Might put his hand on Izuku's shoulder.
"I want to apologize young Midorya. I was wrong." said All-Might. Izuku felt his breath hitch.
"W-what do you meant?" asked Izuku. All-Might smiled as he searched Izuku's eyes. The sun was getting bright and beginning to break free of the clouds. The sound of a flourishing city echoes all around them.
"When you rushed to save your friend, what happened?" he asked Izuku.
"I don't know, I just moved. All I knew was that someone needed me." responded Izuku. All-Might grinned. Just as he suspected.
"Young Midorya, the greatest heroes all speak of a moment in their past. A moment where they didn't think, they just acted. You, young man, just had that moment." said All-Might. The bright light filled Izuku's eyes, Yagi swore he saw them turn grey for a moment.
"D-d-do y-you m-mean?" asked Izuku. All-Might smiled warmly at him.
"Yes, you can be a great Hero Izuku." said All-Might. Izuku's eyes filled with tears as he trembled. He could be a...Hero?
"Yes, I believe you can be the best Hero Young Midorya. So much so that I want to help you get there." said Yagi. Izuku looked up at All-Might as the sun started to shine on the hero. He swore he caught a glimpse of that heroic smile.
"H-how?" asked Izuku.
"By earning my power. You, Midorya Izuku, will be my successor and you shall receive my quirk!"