Shadows of the Past
Chapter 2: Power
(A/N): So last chapter was to establish Izuku's rough beginnings. Things may be slow or tough to read and I apologize, this is my first attempt at writing like this and I'm trying my best to iron it out. The early chapters are rough for me as I had an idea for who I wanted him to be and his quirk, and now I'm trying to portray how he gets there to the best of my abilities. I hope you understand and stay with me as I try to find my way along the path that is writing this story. Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoy!
The sky bled with a bright orange light, it's color piercing the blue like a blade, Above it the darkness of night. The day was ending soon as a beautiful sunset overlooked the city. One ray of light in particular shined on a young boy standing over three others in a school yard, his face covered in a shadow and his posture stuck in that of a boxer who who had just landed a mighty punch with his right hook. His breathes were slow and deep, he did not move and neither did the other kids on he floor. A chuckle escaped the shadow figure as his posture eased,
"Tch! Useless.", escaped his mouth. The figure brought his gaze to the blonde boy who laid in the middle of the three, his nose bleeding and eyes shut, he was unconscious.
The shadow figure stood over him and chuckled, "Who is the useless one now... Kacchan?".
The shadow figure now walked to where the sun rays were able to reveal his face, above Bakugou stood Izuku. His face sported a cocky grin, he glared at his old friend before boldly stating,
"This is the power of my quirk.", he made a fist with his bloodied hand, "The power to change the world!" he stated boldly, feeling nearly invincible now.
For six years these kids bullied him for being quirkless, all because he couldn't figure how to use his quirk. They called him a liar and compared him to trash. They constantly ridiculed him, calling him useless and that he was a waste of life. They went to such extremes as to try and make him kill himself, and he almost did it too, before something inside of him snapped. Before he always did try to stand up for himself and failed every time, but it made him stronger. He became a hero to the other kids who were quirkless, something that enraged Bakugo. This caused the bullying to escalate to the point where his mother questioned about taking him out of the school and either homeschooling him or sending him to another school.
Izuku however didn't want to give up, recently he had a new fire inside of him, it raged like the surface of the sun. He was no longer the shy little boy his mother knew but she still loved and supported him. He always came home with more and more scars, he even began to train himself on his own. He believed if he could hone his body, maybe then he could finally gain access to his quirk and show the world that he could be a hero. He knew his mother worried over him but he always assured her that he was fine, and that he only was pushing himself further to his goal of being a hero, like All Might.
-Flashback-
The sun poke through the young boy's window, causing the rays to land on his eyes. This gesture caused Izuku to open his eyes slowly before squinting them. He rose from his bed, stretching his body and shooting a glare to the mirror that rested on his dresser. He was amazed how much his body changed over the years, he use to look like a little toothpick who couldn't even lift a teddy bear. His focus was broken by the smell of breakfast coming from the kitchen, his mother had been waking up earlier now that her job gave her a better position, but it meant she was away from home most of the day. He knew how much she hated that but since she was a single mother she needed the money desperately. He walked into the kitchen hoping to see his mother before she left but judging by the note on the table, he was just too late. He frowned grabbing a couple bites of the american styled breakfast she made of two pancakes and some eggs. He got up, cleaned his plate off and got ready for school, he smiled as he stopped outside his front door. Despite how he was treated at school, he loved learning, In fact he was one of, if not the smartest kid, in his class. His genius however was focused on his notebook series he had, his studies of pro heros, both famous and not so famous. He began to write in his latest entry about a new hero he saw on the news, she called herself, he said her name in his head as he wrote about her as he walked to school. Little did Izuku know his life would forever change that day and so would everything from this point forward, and there would be no going back.
He sighed as he let his bag rest on one shoulder, allowing him to turn it and let him place his notebook inside. But before he could zip it back up there was a loud crash as a building on the street, a bank from the looks of it, suddenly had an explosion go off in front of it and once the explosion cleared a pile of sludge hastily made off and down into a sewer drain. Everyone around him were in a state of shock about the sudden explosion and they ran to escape, almost trampling each other when suddenly a loud voice rang through the area, causing everyone to stop,
Izuku turned around and his eyes widened, "I-it's All-"
"It's fine now. Why? Because I am here!" shouted All Might as he struck his famous pose, his legs wide and his hands resting on his hips.
The chaos had stopped and everyone was cheering at All Might, Izuku stood blinded by his inner fanboy before hearing All Might say something,
"Now where did that slimy sludge go?!" All Might muttered to himself, Izuku just close enough to hear it.
"H-He went into the sewers right there." Izuku said as he pointed to the drain that was a couple feet in front of them. -OHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGODITALKEDTOALLMIGHT- he thought in his head, his inner fanboy struggling, trying to take control in this very moment so he could let All Might know how big of a fan he was.
All Might turned to the young boy and laughed with jolly, "HAHAHA! THANK YOU YOUNG MAN! WITH YOUR HELP I WILL BE ABLE TO DELIVER THIS VILE VILLAIN TO JUSTICE!" and with a quick gesture of his hand to show thanks, he was off with incredible speed.
Izuku stood there, his legs not able to move, "A-All Might th-thanked m-m-me?" he stood there dumbfounded before he screamed and remembered he was on his way to school! He is going to be late! He quickly turned around and bolted towards the direction of his school only to run face first into something... bouncy?
He fell over on to his rear and rubbed his head. He looked up at the sudden voice he heard, it was as if an angel spoke to him "Oh my! Here I thought it was some pervert grabbing my rear but it was just some young cutie-pie all in a rush and didn't look where he was running!" stated the voice. That voice belonged to Pro Hero .
Izuku suddenly blushed at the cute remark, he wasn't very good at talking to girls, "I-I'm s-sorry! I-I got di-distracted by All Might chasing that sludge guy when I suddenly realized I was going to be late for school!" he got up and started dusting himself before bowing over apologizing, he screeched now red as an apple "I'm so sorry I ran into your b-b-b-b-b-b-butt! I didn't mean to come off as a pervert! I swear!" his face was now covered with his hands, trying to hide his shame.
giggled and turned her head away and placed a finger on cheek playfully, "Oh I don't know, how do I not know your some kind of secret pervert?" She moved her gaze to Izuku who was looked like he was going to die at this very moment from all the blood rushing to his face.
"But I'll let you off the hook since you're such a cutie~!" Her hand moved from her cheek and to her lips as she blew a kiss to young Izuku who immediately fell over, passing out from embarrassment.
She immediately cupped her cheeks as she looked over the kid who had just passed out, "Oh maybe I over did it a little?" before looking around at the gathering crowd and news reporters who had filmed the whole thing. She picked up the boy bridal style and looked at his uniform noticing it was from a local school, Aldera Junior High. She smiled at the young boy before running off with him shouting to another hero on the scene that she was bringing the child to his school so he wouldn't be late.
arrived at the school in record time thanks to her quick speed and her quirk which allowed her to grow to varied heights, giving her walking stride a huge change in distance compared to if she were to move without growing. She giggled at the boy in her arms before taking one of her hands and flicking his forehead causing him to wake up, "We made it to your school cutie!" she smiled at the boy who immediately begna blushing again, "Hey, hey! Don't make all the blood rush to your face again and cause yourself to pass out for a second time!" she managed to get out in middle of her laughter. Izuku's blush calmed down to a light pink,
"C-can you put me down now? I need to get to my classes before I'm marked late." He said with his confidence somewhat returned.
blinked a couple times and realized she still held him bridal style, "Oh! Right! Apologies young boy!" she placed him on his two feet and turned to leave the scene before she brought attention to her and Izuku. She stopped turning her head to look at him before heading off, "Oh, by the way. A notebook dropped out of your bag when you passed out, I couldn't help opening after seeing the words, "Hero Notebook" written on the cover. You got some talent there kid! Those notes you got there about quirks are amazing! With a brain like that and your cute face, you could easily be a hero!" She smiled at Izuku who smiled at her kind words before tears formed in the corner of his eyes and his blush returned.
-This kid gets flustered way too easily.- she thought to herself before laughing as a sweatdrop appeared on her head.
She began to run off when she shouted, "By the way! I signed your page about me! To my number one fan~!".
Izuku stood there for a moment in silence, "Wow." he managed to finally get out.
"What are the chances I meet TWO Pro Heros in one day, AND get one of them to sign my notebook! Plus I got to talk to All Might!" He put away his notebook and started walking through the front gate of his school, the words of echoing in his head.
"You could easily be a hero!"
"You could easily be a hero!"
"You could easily be a hero!"
His thoughts however, were interrupted as he felt himself shoved into a wall. Kacchan and his goonies laughed, "Get out of our way shitty Deku!" and they continued walking through the halls.
Deku rose from the floor and felt a newfound courage, inspired by 's words he would stand up to Kacchan after school, and this time he will make them stop their bullying crusade.
-Later After School-
The school day went by fast for Izuku, he finished all his work with ease, not a single class proved themself to be a challenge. The real challenge would be what he assumed would lead to a fight after school, but he was ready. All though his efforts to bring his quirk out failed, the training he did made his body strong, and he worked out basic hand to hand combat after researching it. Even if he couldn't get his quirk to work, he would stand up to those who preyed upon the weak. He was going to be a Hero no matter what, even if hurts him.
He ran through the halls and towards the dirt courtyard on the side of the school, Izuku knew this is where Bakugou and his goonies hung out after school, most likely bullying some quirkless kid to make themselves feel superior, like villains. As he made his way over he saw the trio picking on a young boy with blue hair and he halted to a stop. His hands turned into fists and he yelled,
"HEY! WHY DON'T YOU PICK ON SOMEBODY WHO CAN STAND UP FOR THEMSELF!". He screamed as loud as he could as they boys turned their gaze to him, giving time for the younger boy to run away.
It was time to prove he could be a hero.
[Izuku PoV]
I stood there at the ready. I saw Kacchan mutter something to his goonies before the three ran forward at me. I ran forward as well, ready for this fight. I would prove I wasn't a useless piece of trash right here, right now! I don't think they were expecting me to fight because as soon as I got close enough I brought up my right fist slamming into the first goonie who came at me.
I felt the adrenaline kicking in, my blood was pumping, and the fire inside grew quickly. As soon as I landed the punch, the boy fell straight onto his back, he didn't brace himself so he was knocked out, with just one punch. I snickered to myself, this felt so good. I looked to the other boy who looked surprised and I did not hesitate to lunge forward at him.
"You like picking on those who don't have the power to stand up against you? Do you think that makes you better then them? That you are superior?" I shouted as my right fist went for another punch, causing the boy to bring his arms up to block it but I grinned, he fell for the feint. I twisted my foot in the dirt and slid to his side where he was wide open,
"Ha! You fell for that so easily! Your technique is pathetic!" I shouted, driving my left fist into his side, causing him to get the wind knocked out of him as he was launched backwards,
-Two down, one to go.- I thought to myself, my gaze meeting Kacchan's gaze. -This is where I can finally prove myself, to everyone and to Kacchan!- I grinned before charging at him.
-Knowing Kacchan he will open up with a strong right hook and then try to blast me with his quirk.- I knew his fighting style better than he did, I didn't just stand there all these years and take his beatings for nothing. I worked towards a goal, of proving myself to everyone, and to become a hero!
"Shitty Deku! DIE!" he lunged with his right fist aimed at my face, I grinned at him.
"Just as I predicted." I watched as his eyes widened. I brought my body low to the ground as I twisted both of my feet in the dirt, I grabbed his arms and used his own momentum to throw him over my shoulders and into the ground. Making him land with a loud thud and causing dust to rise off the ground. I jumped back and ready myself again, there was no way he would stay down. I would have to land a solid hit to end this fight.
Without warning he bursted from the dust, enraged that I managed to pull that trick off. He now was depending on his quirk to beat me, now I'm at a disadvantage. He blasted me with his left hand breaking my stance and then used his right to launch me towards the wall with a stronger blast. I felt a sharp pain in my back as I found myself slammed into wall, causing me to lose my breathe and focus. Then without warning, I found myself pinned against the wall by Kacchan. H held me there as took in deep breathes,
"You think you're better than me? Tch! Think again shitty Deku. You're just a quirkless loser, someone who is just another obstacle in my way. You should have stayed down the first time and learnt your damn place!" he shouted at me as he readied another blast with his left. I braced myself, wishing I had reacted faster and avoided this situation.
I felt the all so familiar pain of his blast burning the front of my shirt off, sending pain throughout my body as it scorched my flesh. he then brought his fist into my stomach without hesitation. I coughed up saliva as he readied another blast with his right hand. I could only look in fear as he sent me down on to the ground with the next blast. He knelt above me and began an onslaught of melee attacks against me. With each blow, my body resonated with pain. I laid there helpless, all my training, all my planning, all the encouragement, Was for nothing. I began to hear the words of others that drove me on, what made me want to fight.
"Useless!"
"Reach deep down inside you and find the power. Find a way to pull it out, force it to if you have to. Harness your emotions and fight back. Show them that you're not useless, rather it's them that are beneath you!"
"USELESS!"
"YOU ARE THE FUTURE, YOU HAVE THE POWER TO CHANGE THE WORLD!"
"USELESS!"
"WITH YOUR HELP I WILL BE ABLE TO DELIVER THIS VILE VILLAIN TO JUSTICE!"
"USELESS!"
"You could easily be a hero!"
"USELESS!"
"You could be a hero!"
"USELESS!"
"Be a hero!"
"USELESS!"
I screamed out in rage, and I felt something take over me, I felt so much power in that very moment. My left fist rocketed out without me even thinking about it, landing into Kacchan's face and sending him backwards.
"NO MORE! I'VE HAD ENOUGH. STOOOOOOOP!" I screamed at the top of my lungs.
And then, everything did. I blinked in shock, Kacchan was just floating there, one moment he was falling backwards from my punch and then the next he was frozen like everything else. I looked around for a moment, nothing moved. I looked up to the birds in the sky, their wings stuck in their full span as if someone took a slow-mo picture, freezing them in that very moment. I got up, I felt a strain in my chest, my heart felt like he was going to explode. But I turned my gaze up to Kacchan as I walked towards him, I felt a dark aura surround me as I stood over him, ignoring the pain in my chest. I formed a fist and I brought it down with every ounce of strength left in my body against Kacchan's face. Suddenly, he moved for a moment after I hit him. But he did not unfreeze. I stood there stuck in the pose I used to strike him and that's when everything unfroze, and I felt as if my heart was going to burst.
-End of flashback-
I stared at my fist, with pride swelling from every ounce of my body. I finally did it, I was finally able to use my quirk. The sensation I felt during it was breathtaking, I felt as if the world was in the palm of my hand, at I had the power to control it.
I stumbled backwards, the pain I felt from the beating I received from Kacchan and using my quirk was catching up to me. I looked over to Kacchan and his goonies who laid there unconscious and a smile grew on my face. I didn't know what today would bring, I never would have guessed in a million years I would meet two pro heros, gain access to a powerful quirk, and defeat Kacchan. I managed to let out one hearty chuckle before fatigue overcame me. I fell on to my knees right before I blacked out, I heard a voice
-You have the power to change the world-
And with that, darkness took me.
