Training, Exams, and a Festering Wound

Izuku knew it was going to be a rough 10 months once he saw what project All Might had in store for him.

It also didn't help when the man sat on top of already heavy things in his muscled form. Making it even heavier.

"Hey kiddo, it sure is comfy up here." All Might grinned as he watched the young man yell and struggle to pull the fridge forward with the ropes he had tied around it. He sighed to himself when he saw the boy lose his footing and fall forward.

"You know kid, people move these on a daily basis. And they don't even have strength quirks." All Might said as he watched the boy sit up.

"Yeah, but there isn't an extra 600 pounds sitting on top if it when they do it you know?" Izuku asked as he rubbed some of the sand off his face.

"Nah, I've lost weight. I'm down to 560 these day in this form."

My point still kinda stands though…

"So, why exactly do you have me cleaning up trash on the beach? I thought you were going to give me your quirk." Izuku tilted his head in confusion.

"You wouldn't be able to handle the force of my quirk." All Might said simply, as if it was obvious.

"B-But I thought you said I was worthy!" Izuku cried, screaming in alarm, afraid he had already failed somehow.

All Might took a few pictures of him as he got down from the fridge. "No, I didn't mean that. I meant that if I were to give you my quirk in your current state, your arms and legs would probably be torn from your body every time you try to use it."

"Gah! Are you serious!" He yelled, shaking his head and shuddering as he rubbed his arms. "Okay, so that means this is all some kind of training...right?" He looked up at the towering figure.

"Yeah, you see I did a little bit of research before I came up with this plan of mine. It turns out this beach used to be beautiful." All Might walked over to the fridge and knocked on it, making a dent.

"Oh yeah. But then the trash carried in from the oceans currents made this the ideal spot for people to illegally dump their trash. Then it just kinda grew from there." Izuku muttered.

"You see young man…" All Might put his hand on top of the fridge, beginning to crush it. "Back then, before quirks, it was the people who did things for the community who were considered heroic." He grunted as he flattened the fridge, blowing away some of the trash as he did.

"This is your first step on your path to heroism young man."

Izuku paled and looked around. "Y-You mean all this? Is that even possible?" He asked.

All Might sighed and stood up, walking over to the boy. "You want to go to UA, right Midoriya?" He asked.

Izuku looked at him. "Of course, it's where you went. And it's where my sister went, it has to be the best school around doesn't it?" He looked down with a smile to himself. "I know it's a long shot, but I'm still gonna try my best." He said.

Your sister went to UA?

"That's the spirit fanboy!" All Might smiled, turning around to once again look at the ocean. "But listen, as I said being a hero without a quirk isn't easy. Sadly it's not fair, but that's reality. I'm sure you're aware that UA is the hardest course to get into...so-"

"UA's exams are in about 10 months!" He cut the hero off. "That means that I have to prepare my body really fast!"

All Might turned around quickly, pulling out a few papers. "No need to worry kid, I've got you covered with my Aim to Pass: American Dream Plan!"

Where was he keeping those papers?

"I made sure to detail it so you'd finish the beach just in time. I also took the liberty of detailing every other aspect in your life too." He smiled.

Izuku looked over the paper, eyes scanning each line again and again. His meal plans, how much time he spent studying...all of it!

"Oh jeez, even my sleep is scheduled." He muttered.

"I hope you're ware young man, this is going to be really hard. You think you're up to it?" All Might asked, a bit of nervousness in his voice.

Izuku nodded without looking up. "Yeah of course. I have to work even harder than anybody else in order to get in, so I'm going to have to give it my all." He answered, determination filling his voice.

All Might nodded, impressed by his unwavering resolve.

With that, his 10 months of absolute hell had begun.

It had been slow going at first, but once he got the ball rolling the days seemed to pass quickly. Whether it be night or day he'd be at the beach, after school and on most weekends.

All Might had always been there, ready to oversee his training and encourage him through the pained muscles and hottest days.

In one of the two months Izuku had a few setbacks, ones he quickly overcame. He was eager, and hasty with his training. Wanting to accomplish so much in such little time, he would often forget to take care of himself in the process.

All Might had been checking up on a few emails he had been letting pile up when he heard a loud crash and a cry of pain. He nearly dropped his phone in alarm as he rushed over to the source of the noise.

He rounded one of the piles of trash to see Young Midoriya lying on the ground next to a bucket with a bunch miscellaneous items spilling out of it. He had been gasping in pain as he held his leg, eyes clenched tight in pain.

"Woah, woah hey kid what happened?" All Might ran over, kneeling next to him as he scanned the boy for any injuries.

"I think...agh…" He groaned in pain, still holding his leg. It took his mentor a moment to put two and two together.

"Young man have you been drinking enough water?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I don't...think so." He answered, trying to think back to the last time he drank a full bottle of water. He couldn't really place it. He knew the water was there, but he never drank it; always saying he'll drink it sometime later.

"That's probably one reason why." All Might sighed, slowly helping him sit up. "Just relax, it's a muscle cramp." He said, taking his pupil's leg and slowly massaging the cramped muscle. He watched the boy's face as he no doubt thought over his mistake, flinching in pain every once in a while.

They had sat there in silence for a short while, before All Might broke the silence.

"So, you have a sister that went to UA?" He asked, almost hesitant.

"Huh?" Izuku looked up, snapped out of his thoughts. "Oh, yeah. She did."

"I take it she's a pro hero?" He asked, prodding a bit more.

"Y-Yeah. She's spends a lot of time away from home, she has to go overseas at times for 'special missions'. She's actually close to reaching the Top 10." He added, unable to hide some of the sadness in his voice.

All Might caught onto that quickly.

"I take it you miss her a lot?" He noticed Izuku tensed a bit at that.

He just nodded.

All Might watched him, seeing a glimmer of sadness in his eyes. An untold story.

"I just...I wanna talk to her. You know?" He asked, starting to fiddle with his hands.

All Might nodded. "Well it is reasonable, you haven't seen her in a long time. I'm sure if you were to call she might be busy with work. Every younger sibling likes to-"

"No I mean…" Izuku trailed off, stopping for a moment. "No, nevermind it's stupid." He mumbled, looking down.

All Might frowned, was there some bad blood between the two? Or perhaps did this negative feeling feel one-sided to the child?

"Your feelings aren't stupid young man. You can't change how you feel about something or someone in a heartbeat. I'm sure your feelings aren't as ridiculous as you feel they are." He smiled softly, removing his hands from the young man's leg. "Feel a bit better?"

Izuku nodded. "Yeah, a bit." He slowly got up and stretched out his leg. "All right, time to get back to work." He said, looking at the trash he dropped. Before he could get back to work he was grabbed by the back of his shirt.

"Not before you drink some water Young Midoriya."

-LotF-

4 more months had passed by like they were nothing. In that time he had gotten quite a bit done on the beach. He felt like he had made a small dent in the landscape of trash, despite All Might saying he was making good progress.

The two had gotten used to each other within those 6 months, knowing which subjects not to talk about. When to push or say certain words and when not to.

All Might had been thinking about what Midoriya had said that say. He wants to talk to her, and in the way he had protested his assumptions perhaps he had been looking at it the wrong way.

When he looked at Midoriya, he saw a timid young boy with no Quirk. Yet, there was a fire in his eyes that had been rekindled, as well as a kernel of guilt.

Why would there be guilt in his eyes?

Was it that it had something to do with his sister? If so, what on earth was the case with that? A promise to not go into hero work?

It left him with so many questions, and so little answers. His questions only grew when he had met with the boy one day.

He arrived a bit earlier than usual, knowing Midoriya would have gotten to work whether he was there or not. It was dangerous for him to be working there alone, and no matter how much he insisted the boy wait for him if he gets there early he'd be working anyway.

All Might stared at his phone before pocketing it.

"Where are you kid?" He asked aloud, pulling out his phone again and checking the schedule. Yeah, they were supposed to meet at 4 today.

15 minutes had already passed. If the kid was ever late it'd be by either 2 or 3 minutes from the exact time.

As he was about to shoot a text to make sure he was all right, he heard the sound of running footsteps before the boy suddenly shot out past him and nearly fell over from the momentum after trying to stop himself.

The startled man nearly dropped his phone, catching it before it hit the sand.

"Young Midoriya! There you are." He said, approaching the boy.

"S-Sorry I'm late A-All Might!" He apologized between his pants, trying to catch his breath.

"It's all right, it happens. Are you all right? You seem a bit flustered." He watched the boy stand up straight, still catching his breath.

"All Might I don't know if I can be your successor, because I am going to walk into that ocean and never emerge again." Izuku started, pointing at the water. "I think I'd be able to live a satisfying life exploring the depths of the ocean, you know. Not on land, away from people, and away from things you have to worry about and-"

"You're rambling Midoriya." All Might cut through his thoughts, looking over his pupil with worry. He looked tired. Was he getting enough rest? He knew the behavior of some people could grow erratic when they didn't have enough sleep. Was he eating well? He did look a bit pale.

"Gah! O-Oh, sorry…" He muttered, taking a moment to catch the rest of his breath.

"How about we take a minute and sit down, you look like you need it." All Might guided him to a clear space and had him sit down before sitting next to him.

The man let Izuku gather himself a bit more before speaking again.

"You know, I don't think you'd get very far walking in the ocean Young Midoriya." He chuckled after a moment. "I highly doubt you're equipped to be walking, let alone breathing in the water."

The mentor felt a bit of unease leave him when he heard Izuku laugh a bit in response. "Yeah...I guess that's a pretty bad plan."

All Might nodded before looking back to Izuku.

"You mind telling me what's got you all panicked kiddo?" He asked, watching the boy take off his jacket in preparation for the training of the day.

He noticed the boy froze for a moment before finished shrugging off his jacket. He was quiet for a long moment before speaking again.

"It's my sister…" He answered, not noticing the man perk up with more attentiveness.

"Oh, is everything alright? He asked, concern rising. Had something happened to her while she was on a mission? "Has she been hurt or…"

"Huh? Oh, no no. No, she's okay." He put the concerns to rest.

"Then mind telling me what the problem is?"

"It's just...well she's actually going to be coming home next month after this next mission...and yeah." He trailed off, it felt stupid now that he was saying it out loud.

"Oh, I think that would be a good thing. Is it not?" All Might asked, following the boy as he started to drag an old filing cabinet away.

"It...is." He grunted with effort. How are those things so heavy?

"Then why do you seem so flustered over-WOAH!" He quickly transformed into his muscle form and grabbed the cabinet before it could fall on top of Izuku. Izuku ended up losing his grip and stumbling back, falling on his rear before looking up to see the muscled titan set the cabinet down.

Izuku huffed in mild irritation to himself and got back up before going over to the cabinet again and starting to drag it again.

The hero had transformed back to his thin form and stayed near the boy in case the cabinet would fall again.

"You know what kid, how about we take today off?" All Might said as he put a hand on Izuku's shoulder.

"What?" Izuku asked.

"You seem kind of out of it, and training when your head's not in the game will end up hurting you more than helping you. Besides, when was the last time you had let yourself rest?" All Might asked, hoping he'd been sticking to the schedule.

"Uh...I think on Monday." It was Friday, so that was a no. "But-"

"No buts. Come on, it won't hurt you to take a day off. You've made such good progress in only 6 months. Besides, I think you kind of need this kiddo." He smiled at the young man before he saw him sigh in defeat, though with a hint of relief.

"Alright, I guess." Izuku nodded, grabbing his jacket and putting it on again.

"How about we eat something at the small sandwich shop down the street? I've been meaning to pay a visit over there for a while." He asked, seeing Izuku nod softly.

They had left the beach and walked forward in silence. There was the clear air of curiosity and worry around All Might, and the uncertain quiet around Izuku.

He figured he'd give Young Midoriya a bit more time to gather his thoughts before questioning him. Yes he was concerned with the training of the young man. But as his mentor he was concerned not only for his physical health but also his mental health.

Thankfully the shop hadn't been very busy by the time they got there, and had been able to grab a quiet booth in the corner. After they both had gotten a glass of water to drink and placed their orders they were left in silence.

All Might gave him a moment to settle in before he asked. "So, mind telling me why your sister coming home would want to make you walk into the ocean?" He asked, making the boy snap from his thoughts.

"Right, my sister." He hummed, taking a long sip of his water.

"Didn't you say you wanted to talk to her?" All Might asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Y-Yeah I did but...ugh it feels dumb." He frowned. "I mean, I want to talk to her, but...but about something that's been bothering me. And...I mean why should she care she has a lot more important things to be doing so...so yeah but still." He started to rip up the paper napkin.

All Might silently slid over his own napkin and watched the young man unconsciously grab it and start to rip it up.

"I mean I think she had a lot more to worry about than-than a quirkless little brother right? I mean, she's off being a hero and saving the world from those weird creatures wherever they show up." He started chewing at his lip, this had seemed to be bothering him for a long time. How long has this been going on?

"And, I take it when you want to talk to her you want to address how you feel?" He asked.

"Yes! But...but it feels so ridiculous. Why should how I feel really bother me? When it probably doesn't even matter?" He muttered, still ripping up the napkin.

All Might had to use every ounce of willpower not to gape at the boy. Did he really feel that way? What on earth happened that made him feel like whatever he felt was invalid, not important?

The man swallowed hard before looking at the still stressing boy. "How long have you felt like this?" He asked.

Izuku stopped for a moment to think about that.

"I...A long time I guess." He answered, looking down. "A really long time."

All Might frowned as he asked his next question. "Why do you feel so afraid to talk to her?" He asked, seeing the boy flinch slightly.

Izuku said nothing as he stared down at the mess up torn up paper napkins, still only making more of a mess as he continued to tear up whatever he had left. He was looking for the words, trying to make it sound coherent in words as it does in his head.

"It's just...I kinda feel like I'm betraying her? I guess is the best way of putting it?" He started, earning a puzzled look from All Might. "I mean back then, it was her who told me I could be a hero you know? And I believed her, I had been looking forward to the future when she's be able to train me." He stopped ripping up napkins, his hands idle.

"And she sorta started, but after a while she had just started to pull away. And her words kind of lost their meaning." Izuku looked at his hands, he frowned at the light frost appearing, reacting to his emotions, he quickly shoved his hands into his pocket. "I don't know why...but I just started seeing her less and less. I know she's a hero and all but…" He groaned, it still felt stupid to say out loud.

Words could not explain how grateful Izuku felt when he saw All Might waiting patiently for him to get himself together long enough to spit out the words he had been burying for so many years. He tugged at his hair for a bit, trying to form the words.

"It felt like she abandoned me." He finally said after so many painful seconds, the words felt louder than they sounded. "It just felt like she gave up on me. And, I know she's a hero but-"

"That's no excuse to make you feel the way you do young man. She may be a hero but she is your sister, she's family. Family shouldn't make you feel that way, even if it is unintentional. But, why would telling her this make you feel like you're betraying her?" He asked, that piece still wasn't connecting.

"That...well...I uh...oh look our food is here!" He looked up as the toasted sandwiches were placed in front of them.

After the waitress put down the plates she glanced at the ripped up napkins.

"Would you two like me to get more napkins?" She asked, getting a nod from the elder as the younger patron blushed a bit..

The two ate their meals in silence. All Might was thinking about what Young Midoriya had said so far. It was no wonder why he was so desperate to know if he could be a hero. To hear those words from his idolized hero, it would have meant a lot.

But why, why were his words of saying he could be a hero so different from hearing it from his sister?

After they finished their meal Izuku had decided to head home. Feeling the need to study for both the written exam of UA and the test he has next week.

"I'll see you tomorrow All Might." Izuku waved goodbye as they got onto the main road. "Thank you for the meal." He bowed.

"Oh there's no need for that young man. A thank you is just fine." All Might smiled.

Izuku nodded and smiled as he stood up straight. "I'll see you tomorrow." He said again, starting to walk away.

"If you get there early be sure to wait for me to get there!" All Might called after him.

"No promises!" Izuku called back, grinning.

For some reason, Izuku had felt like some kind of weight had been lifted off of his chest. It felt liberating.

-SotP-

There were three months left until the entrance exam, and Izuku felt ragged. He had been pushing himself harder, and harder with each passing day.

He had been staying up late at night to either continue his own independent training, or to study. Sometimes all he could think about was the dread he felt about his sister coming home. What would she say? What would she think?

He was running a few feet behind All Might, who was on a scooter of sorts, carrying a heavy item he had brought from the beach.

They were going through a mostly empty park in the city, more endurance training.

However, as they were halfway through the park he began to feel it.

Izuku had been listening to All Might chatter on about something, but as he kept running he noticed the world started to spin. The ground under his feet felt like it was starting to give away, one step after another.

The words of his mentor began to fade away into the dull ringing in his ears, one step after another. The exhaustion was starting to take over. His body felt like it was on fire as he felt himself fall to the ground.

There was a loud thud that made the man stop his scooter and look over his shoulder.

He looked down to see his young pupil lying still on the ground, his breathing ragged and labored.

"Hey, hey. Don't give up kid, what you're going to throw all those months of training down the drain?" He asked, watching him.

Izuku came out of his momentary stupor, finding it hard to move. He shuddered, and reached a hand forward, trying to grasp onto something solid so he could stand up again, so he could keep going. He had to keep going!

"Hold on…" All Might watched him struggle to move, like his body was made of lead. "You're overworked, which means you haven't been following the plan I placed down for you." There was a slight scolding tone in his voice as he watched the teen struggle further.

"Kid, that's going to have the opposite effect of what we want. You're-"

"Harder…" Izuku muttered, still dragging himself up. "I have to work...harder." He panted as he looked up at the man. "I'm behind everybody else, years behind. I have to work harder." He insisted, the exhaustion clearly evident in his face.

All Might sighed. "Young man…"

"I don't just want to get into UA, I want to succeed." He struggled to push himself up, slowly getting to his knees. "I want...I want to be like you." He panted, on one knee, one foot planted on the ground. For a moment the hero thought he saw wisps of ice at his feet.

The hero moved forward, seeing him stand up for a moment. "I-I want to go beyond. And so...I have to work harder!" He yelled. No sooner than he had gotten that sentence out, he had fallen forward and was caught by the man.

"I see…" All Might muttered. He grunted and changed into his muscled form. "Don't worry about it kid. Leave it to this old man to adjust your plan." He slung the boy over his shoulder and picked up the old item with his free hand.

Izuku was half awake when he heard him say that. "You're not old...All Might.." He fell asleep as the man laughed at that protest.

Hours had passed, the seemingly long day had finally come to an end. The sun that had sat in the middle of the sky was now slowly setting on on the distant horizon.

Izuku groaned as he opened his eyes, confused for a moment as he looked around. He hadn't recognized the area. The last thing he remembered was being at the park.

"Ah, you're awake." A voice spoke up as he sat up, holding his aching head. "Feeling better young man?" All Might asked as the boy looked around.

"Where…" He muttered, his eyes still blurry from sleep.

"I laid you down on a bench. I wasn't sure where else to go, I'd probably get lost trying to find out where you live kiddo." He answered, handing him some water. "How'd you sleep?" He asked.

"Still tired…" Izuku mumbled, drinking a bit of the water.

All Might nodded. "Of course you are. You've been overworking yourself, and you haven't been taking your recovery periods." He watched the boy nod silently. He sighed before he continued. "Give yourself a day or two to rest young man. Let yourself get recover before we start up again."

Izuku nearly spat out his water when he heard that. "What? B-But I'll fall behind! I'm already behind on cleaning up the-" He stopped when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up to the thin man with an expression of worry.

"You need to take care of yourself Young Midoriya. You're not going to get far if you refuse to help yourself, and push yourself too far. There's a difference between going beyond, and going too far. Understand?" He asked.

Izuku sighed softly and nodded. "Yeah, I get it." He took another drink of water before speaking again. "I'll try to dial it back a bit." He promised.

All Might watched him for a moment before he sighed in relief and sat back, looking up at the sky. "It's late, you should get home, lest you worry your mother."

"Yeah, I should." He agreed, slowly standing up and stretching out his sore muscles. Honestly at the moment he wanted nothing more than to collapse in his bed and sleep the entire week away.

"You think you can get home okay on your own?" All Might asked, fearing the boy may fall asleep on the way.

"Yeah, I think I can-GAH!" He jumped in surprise as he phone rang loudly, surprising him. He pulled the device from his pocket and looked at the caller ID. He went a bit pale when he saw who it was.

"Young Midoriya, is everything alright?" All Might stood up, having seen the boy pale. He looked at the phone and saw the ID, someone named Aqua.

Before All Might could say anything Izuku picked up the phone, putting it to his ear.

"Hey Aqua." He greeted, seeing All Might look at him in surprise.

"Hey, there you are." She spoke up, she sounded tired. She probably just got to whatever place she was calling home for the moment. "I called you earlier, but you didn't answer. Everything okay?" She asked, there was a clatter on her end.

"Y-Yeah. Everything's fine, I was just really tired and I ended up crashing." He replied. There was a long sigh from his sister. One All Might heard from where he was standing.

"Have you been sleeping okay? I don't want you to overwork yourself Izuku." She asked, sounding concerned.

"Yeah, I'm good. A few late nights here and there, studying and stuff." He replied, starting to pace. All Might watched him.

"Ah, you...you decide on where you wanna go? Still set on UA?" She asked.

"Of course." He nodded, still pacing.

"...So, Izuku. I actually wanted to talk to you about a few things." She said after a moment, the clatter heard again.

"Yeah?" He asked, fiddling with his charm.

"Is...does your magic still hurt you? When you-"

"Subject change." Izuku said, cutting her off.

The two made a rule a long time ago, when Aqua had gotten busy with missions, and Izuku got a phone of his own. They would call each other and talk, and when a subject they didn't want to talk about come up they say 'subject change'. They could only use it once in a conversation. And no, hanging up and redialing didn't count as a 'new' conversation.

"Using that a bit early huh?" She asked, a hint of sadness in her voice. She sighed and moved on. "Alright...moving on I guess." There was another clatter on her end and a raised eyebrow from Izuku.

"What are you doing?" He asked.

"I'm making an attempt at dinner, ramen noodles, yum." She laughed.

"Be sure not to burn the water." Izuku said, getting a 'hey' from the other end.

"Well I can't exactly go out, not tonight…" She sighed after a moment. "So, moving onto the next thing. Izuku, I need you to be careful. Things have been getting a bit chaotic all over the place." She sounded serious.

"Huh?"

"Those creatures, they've been multiplying as of recently. I think something might be going on...and I don't want you getting hurt." She said softly.

"I'll be fine. There haven't been any sightings around here."

"But that doesn't mean they won't appear. Izuku...y-you can't defend yourself against those things. I don't want you getting hurt, or worse."

Izuku frowned at that, he bit his lip to bite back a snap. He felt a painful itch, a burning underneath his skin.

"Yeah well, I think I'll be fine. So, I take it you're not coming home?" He asked, coming off a bit more irritated than he meant to. He winced a bit after that response.

"...No. No I'm not going to be home for a little while more. Maybe next month."

"Or the one after that?" Izuku sighed. "Or even the one after that?"

He heard a small huff from her. "Is there something you want to tell me?" She asked.

"No. No there isn't I'm just...I'm...I'm fine. Listen, I have to get back to studying. I'll talk to you later okay?"

There was a noise of confirmation from her and he quickly hung up, pocketing the phone. He didn't look at All Might as he gathered himself.

"Are you alright my boy?" He asked.

"Yeah. I'm good." He looked at the sky with a sigh. "I'm gonna head home. I'll see you in a day or two." He sighed softly.

Without a word he treaded home silently as the sun set. Casting a long shadow behind him.

"I'm not helpless…" He muttered to himself. "I'm not…not anymore."

-LotF-

He had a month left, time was ticking and he was starting to stress out. It felt like he still had so much left to clean up, it felt like he's made no progress.

He was dragging a bag of old trash across the way, trying to make his way across the beach as quickly as possible. It probably wouldn't me long before All Might had him do swim laps again, or run laps around the beach again.

He dragged the bag up the stairs and quickly put it onto the back of the truck All Might owns, and uses to dispose of the trash properly. He was about to run back to another trash pile when All Might called him over.

"Young Midoriya!" The man walked over, meeting his pupil halfway. "It's half past noon, perhaps we should eat something. It's not good to skip meals."

Izuku shook his head, panting. "N-No...No I'm…" His stomach betrayed him with a loud growl, making his mentor raise an eyebrow.

"Ok, okay maybe I could go for something to eat." He admitted, standing up straight as he took a deep breath.

All Might nodded, glad the young man was seeing reason. "Alright, how about-"

"Maybe, you could pick something up? I mean...it might be more effective to eat here. So we can get back to work, right after eating of course." Izuku suggested, fiddling with his hands.

All Might looked over the young man, then looked over the remaining trash. He was a bit behind, and he could see it starting to stress him out. But it'd be no use in trying to get him to unwind over lunch, it would just eat away at him and make him even more anxious to get to the beach.

"Fine." All Might conceded. "But I want you to take this time to cool down, drink some water, and don't move around any trash without supervision. Understand?"

"Yes sir!"

Izuku watched him walk away and sat down after a moment. He sighed and held his head as he looked at the beach. There were still a few trash piles that he had been having a hard time to get through.

Almost no time passed before he got up and started to pace, unable to sit still. He was already itching to get back out there and get as much done as he could. He had already made his way back on the sand with his pacing, slowly getting closer to the water that soothed him in a way.

"I'm behind, I'm not moving fast enough. The deadline is going to be here before you know it, and you'll still be far from finished. But All Might doesn't want you to do anything without supervision, afterall you almost got crushed by a filing cabinet. A filing cabinet!" He was lost in his thoughts as water splashed at his feet, somewhat pulling him from his thoughts and making him realize his hands were starting to let of a few sparks.

He grunted, and was about to snuff out the power when he paused. Maybe he could actually try to use it? It's been a while since he's actually tried to use the magic that only harmed him. Maybe now that he was training he could have a better control over it?

He drew his lips into a thin line and shook his hands, dispersing the sparks. He kneeled down, water splashing onto his knees as he held out his hands, a bit nervous.

He held out his hands, closing his eyes. He slowly dipped into the shallow pool of power that had grown little by little as he grew up. He bit his lip as he felt a heat starting to emanate from his hands, the flame not quite there yet.

He pushed it a bit further, grunting as he felt a bit of pain from his hands, slowly travelling up his arms. He opened his eyes and yelped in surprise, seeing the flames burning at his hands and at his sleeves.

He let out a strangled yell as he felt the agonizing burning, it was hurting him again. In his panic he tried to quell the flames but only succeeded in making them flare out. He quickly doused out the flames with the ocean water, sighing in relief at the cool water.

He waited for a moment before taking his arms out of the water, looking over the damage. His hands got the worse of the burns, causing a bit of pain as he slightly flexed them. His arms were mostly unscathed, just a few minor burns.

He bit his lip, and stared at his hands as he tried to summon a light frost over his hands. Instead he iced most of his hands over. It somewhat soothed his burns, but it got uncomfortable real quick.

He bit his lip and paced as he tried to thaw the ice, he kept dipping his hands into the salt water; trying to get it to thaw faster.

"Come on...Come on…" He muttered, growing increasingly frustrated. It had felt like forever before the ice melted enough for him to start warming his hands. He rubbed them together furiously and muttered to himself as he paced.

"I should have known. Of course it wouldn't be any easier to control, of course." He hissed, looking at his hands. He couldn't help but feel defeated.

Part of him had hoped that maybe, maybe the physical training would help him control his magic. He should've known better.

"No…" He said softly to himself, shaking his head. "No, no more." He clenched his fists. "I don't...I don't need this power anymore. I don't need her power…" He bit his lip and shoved that power deep down inside him.

The same power that failed him time and time again, did nothing but hurt him. He silently shoved the power down, deeper and deeper until he could hardly reach it.

He wouldn't use it, never again. That wasn't his destiny anymore.

Never again. Not anymore

-SotP-

All Might hummed to himself as he drove down to the beach, a bit of worry gnawing at him.

It was the day of the exam, and Izuku had called him in a hurry. Speaking in clipped words and hanging up without any answers. He quickly parked the truck once he made it to the parking lot and stepped out.

Before he could even take a step forward he heard a loud scream resonating not too far away. He grunted as he ran forward, recognizing the scream and began to worry if he was hurt.

He stopped in his tracks at the sight before him.

Above the beach, standing on top of a huge pile of trash, was Izuku Midoriya. Screaming at the sky as the run rose behind him. Sweat pouring down his face as he drew in another breath and screamed even louder.

"Woah...Woah kid!" All Might muttered, looking out onto the beach marvelling at it. It was spotless, there was absolutely no trash on the beach. "You even cleaned outside the area I had told you to Which just a few minutes to spare!" He marvelled. "You exceeded my expectations!" He suddenly gasped as the boy went quiet and fell forward.

He rushed over, going into his muscle form and catching the boy with ease, saving him from what surely would have been a hard fall.

Izuku looked up at him with a tired smile. "All Might...I did it." He said, being slowly set down. "D you think I'm ready now?" He asked.

"Yeah, I gotta say kid I'm impressed! I knew you had it in you, but this is going beyond!" All Might quickly pulled his phone from his pocket and showed it to his successor.

"See this?"

Izuku looked up, a bit confused. It was a picture of him, 10 months ago.

"Uh…"

"It's you, crying 10 months ago." All Might stepped back. "Now look at you, such progress you've made! It's a long road until you can inherit my entire power set, but it's starting to look like you can do it!"

Izuku looked down, feeling his eyes stinging with tears. "All Might, are you sure? Do I deserve this?" He asked, getting a confused look. "You...You put so much time and effort into training me." He sniffled. "How did I end up so lucky?" He looked up at his idol, beaming with tears streaming down his face.

All Might merely gave a laugh, wondering why on earth he would be thinking that after all these months.

"Young man, it was your hard work that did this, not mine." He patted the boy on the shoulder. "Now Izuku Midoriya, for your reward."

Izuku straightened up and nodded. "Yes sir!"

All Might thought over his next words and he plucked a hair from his head, looking down at the boy.

"Somebody once told me, there is a difference between being lucky and deserving. One is an accident, while the other is a reward. Never get the two confused. Take that to heart young man."

"This gift, you have earned it with your own valiant efforts."

Izuku looked at him in awe, before nodded and wiping away the rest of his tears.

All Might held out the hair strand to him.

"Now, eat this."

There was a moment of silence.

"Huh?"

"To inherit my power you've got to swallow some of my DNA that's just how it works." He explained.

"This, this isn't exactly how I imagined it."

"C'mon kid! There's no time. You'll be late for the exam! Eat. Eat! Eat!" He said, as Izuku yelped loudly in alarm.

-LotF-

Izuku gasped as he looked upon the gates of UA, his dream school. The school of heroes.

The same school All Might graduated from.

He stood in awe for a moment before slapping his face and shaking his head.

Focus! You barely got here in time, you have to head in!

He grunted to himself as he started to walk forward, think about his newly received Quirk. He frowned at himself and covered his mouth as he made his way forward.

"I swallowed the hair, but I don't feel any more powerful. Did not not work?" He mumbled to himself a sudden worry making his gut churning. What if it didn't work? What if somehow the power refused to transfer to him? What if he was going into this Quirkless anyway?!

As his worry grew and grew, making him ready to freak out right then and there he tripped over his feet, sending himself falling forward.

Or I guess I could die...

As he prepared himself to get a face full of concrete he realized he had stopped, no longer falling. He made a noise of confusion and looked down, gasping as he realized he was floating. He started to panic and tried to get back on his feet when a voice cut him from his thoughts.

"Sorry about that!" A girl smiled, helping him back to his feet. "I-I guess I should have asked if it was okay to use my Quirk on you, although I guess falling down kind of would've been bad luck huh?" She clapped her hands together, deactivating her power.

Izuku said nothing as he looked at her in awe, seeing her look around.

"Wow, it's really nerve wracking to be here huh? Makes you kind of nervous." She laughed nervously. "Well, good luck out there, I guess I'll see you later!" She waved and walked off.

Izuku stayed silent for a moment before smiling to himself. "I talked to a girl!" He exclaimed quietly.

"Stupid Deku." He flinched as he heard an all too familiar voice, looking over his shoulder to see Katsuki glaring daggers at him.

"Get out of my way before I set you on fire nerd!"

"O-Oh! Hey, good morning!" He stammered putting his hands up as Katsuki walked past him.

"Hurry your ass up nerd! Before I throw you in there!" He yelled over his shoulder.

Izuku nodded quickly, and started to make his way forward. Trailing behind Katsuki, a few feet away. Fearful to incur his wrath over the smallest thing.

It didn't take them long to get their things and settle down in a large auditorium, able to squeeze into a few seats before the entire room filled up.

There was a bit of chatter and talk between a few people as they looked around, wondering when the presentation would start. Meanwhile Izuku looked over the papers they were given, their own examinee number and a paper outlining four types of enemies.

Katsuki studied the paper beside him silently, glaring at it.

Neither of the two noticed the young man a few rows below them, looking over his shoulder time and time again. He looked confused for a moment, as if trying to recognize them. After awhile he shrugged to himself and went about his own business.

All of a sudden the lights went out, plunging the room into darkness. A moment later a bright light turned on, focusing on the stage and the figure standing there.

"Hey, hey, hey kiddos!"

Izuku gasped in surprise as the figure walked forward, revealing himself. "It's Yamada!" He said, excitement in his voice. Katsuki scoffed and rolled his eyes, remembering the times Aqua had him and his friends over for study sessions.

"Welcome everybody to UA, thanks for tunin' into me, your school DJ. Now lemme hear ya!"

He turned his head and put an ear to the crowd, expecting to hear a loud cheer. Only met with silence.

"Well it's nice to see he hasn't lost any of his energy over the years. Still as lively as ever." He smiled.

"Loudass cockatoo." Katsuki grumbled.

"Keeping it mellow I see. Well that's cool, I'll just skip to the main show. Let's have a chat about the practical exam, and how it's gonna go down 'kay?"

"Are you all ready? Yeah!" He yelled loudly, trying to get them all hyped up. Once again he was met with silence.

Izuku grinned. "It's so good to see him again. You think he's going to be one of our teachers? You think he'll recognize us from back then?" Izuku had begun to mumble to himself, much to the irritation of Katsuki.

"Will you shut up?"

"Like your application says, you're gonna be conducting 10 minute mock battles in these hip urban areas that we've set up for you! Get ready, cause once I drop this mic you're all gonna be heading over your designated battle centers sound good?"

Katsuki frowned. "I see, they're spitting us up so we can't work with any of our friends." He huffed, looking at his card that said Center A. Meanwhile Izuku's card said Center B.

"Get your eyes off my card before I blow you up Deku." Katsuki hissed, making Izuku nod quickly and look down.

"Damn it…" He muttered, narrowing his eyes. "I was looking forward to kicking your ass." He mumbled, but it sounded almost half hearted.

"Huh?" Izuku looked at him.

"You heard me loser!"

"Alrighty kiddos, let's take a look at your targets. There are three types of these faux villains you gotta face off with. Each one grants you a different amount of points based on the difficulty." As he spoke the screen displayed three types of robots. Their value of points above them.

"Your goal in this trial is to raise your score by using your Quirk for shredding these villains like a mid-song guitar solo! But check it, be sure to keep things heroic and not attack any of your fellow examinees!"

All of a sudden a young man spoke up, standing up.

"Excuse me sir but I have a question." He spoke clearly.

Izuku looked up, he sounded familiar.

"Hit me!"

A spotlight sone on him.

"On the printout, You have listed four types of villains, not three. With all respect, if this is an error on official UA materials it is shameful. We are exemplary students, we expect the best from Japan's most notable school. A mistake such as this won't do."

He turned around.

"And you, with the unkempt hair." He pointed at Izuku, who gasped. No wonder he sounded so familiar. "You've been muttering this...whole...time…" He stopped after a moment, squinting at him. After a second he continued. "Stop that. Some of us are trying to pay attention." he spoke firmly.

Izuku covered his mouth. "Sorry…" He mumbled, looking up at him. Before he sat down he saw his old friend give him a smile before facing forward again.

"Alright alright, examinee number 7111. Thanks for calling in with your request. You see, this fourth enemy is actually worth 0 points. That guy's just an obstacle that we'll throw at you. There's one in every battle center, just think of it as a hurdle you should try to avoid. It's not that it can't be beaten, it's just that there's no point."

"I recommend you all just try to avoid it and focus on racking up those points!"

Tenya bowed.

"Thank you very much. Please continue."

"Now that's all I've got for you today. I'm gonna leave you off with a little present. A sample of our school motto. As General Napoleon once laid down, 'A true hero is one that overcomes life's misfortunes.' Mhm, now that's a tasty soundbite."

He grinned at them. "You ready to go beyond? Now let's hear a Plus Ultra!"

Once again Present Mic was left in silence. After a moment he spoke up again. "Good luck!"

Izuku smiled down at his paper.

Izuku looked up at the gates as he tried to ready himself.

"Alright, time to put those 10 months of training with All Might to good use." He mumbled to himself, feeling a bit nervous. He shook and smiled feebly to himself. "It's time to give it my all. To become a hero, just like I've always dreamed." He slapped his face, getting himself to focus before looking around.

"None of these guys seem nervous, are they really that confident?" He muttered, looking from person to person.

He gasped lightly as he saw the girl ahead, the one who saved him from his fall. He walked forward slowly, with the intent to thank her. Before he could get very far though he stopped himself. She looked like she was trying to focus, what good what it do to bother her now?

He slowly walked back to where he had been waiting. He shouldn't bother her.

"Hey look, it's that guy who nearly bit it out at the entrance."

"Yeah, he practically wet himself in the lecture hall."

"What a loser. Well at least we don't have to worry about him being that much of a rival."

Izuku looked down, hearing them speaking about him. Already he's been written off as not a threat. He grit his teeth and clenched his fists, looking ahead of him. Trying to push their words out of his mind. He was going to do this!

"Already, let's start!" A voice announced, stunning everybody for a moment. "What are you waiting for, get moving! Real battles don't have countdowns!"

"Run run, run listeners!" Mic flailed around, looking at the contestants. "You're wasting time heroes!"

Izuku looked from the man to the group that had previously been in front of him. Only to see them already running. "I'm already behind!"

"Oh crap." He muttered, taking off at a sprint. "Hey, save some villains for me!"

He felt himself start to panic as he ran, far behind the large group.

Alright, calm down. Calm down. You'll catch up to them soon and there's no point in freaking out. Besides, you've got All Might's power in you.

He recalled back to that morning, when he had swallowed the hair. All Might had warned him about the physical backlash of One For All. How he had prepared himself in a hurry, and to be careful.

He was quickly snapped from his thoughts as a robot crashed through the wall.

"A one-pointer!"

The robot had looked at him for a moment before charging towards him.

Izuku gasped and tried to dodge it, only to find himself unable to move. It was upon him before he knew it, panic overtaking his system. He gasped and put his hands up to try and block the blow in some way.

He felt a harsh jolt go through him, electricity along his skin. He felt something slam into him, sending him flying a few feet away. He yelled in pain, looking up only to see the robot was twitching violently before suddenly crumbling to the ground.

Izuku gasped and looked down at his hands, seeing small sparks. He grunted and once again shoved it down. He didn't need it!

He got up, groaning for a moment as he held his side. Probably bruised his ribs.

He coughed and started running again, he couldn't sit still! He had to rack up points! He ended up running past a blond kid who stared at him in shock for a moment. It looked like he had been preparing an attack.

"Six minutes and twenty seconds left!"

Izuku started to run faster.

Not good, not good, not good!

He surrounded by the rubble of broken robots.

He looked around in a panic as he tried to find a way to get some points. Only to be met with piles and piles of destroyed robots. He grunted as he ran into another street, once again catching sight of that girl.

He stopped in his tracks and watched her as she touched robots as she ran running away before they could catch sight of her. As she ran they started to float upwards, and once she figured they were high enough she put his finger-tips together.

"Release!"

They all came crashing down, kicking up dust.

"Okay, that should be at least 28 points."

"28 points?!"

He heard a few more people announcing how many points they had, starting to fight over the villains.

"Hey back off!"

"That one's mine!"

"First come first serve!"

Soon there's going to be no more enemies left. I'm gonna fail!

Izuku didn't get much time to panic before a loud rumble was heard, and something came bursting out of the ground! Making windows shatter, and buildings topple as it emerged. Everybody gasped and looked up at the beast before them.

Izuku yelled as the rumbling continued, falling over from the force.

He fell onto his rear, and looked up at the giant robot before him. He felt his limbs lock up, refusing to obey his command of running away to safety. He suddenly snapped out of it, still unable to stand up he began to scramble away.

"T-This is a disaster! I gotta get away and find some smaller villains. Crap. Crap. Crap! I'm still at 0 points."

"Two minutes remaining!"

He looked up in shock. He was running out of time!

Everything All Might did for me. All that training. His encouragement. It'll be wasted!

He barely made it to his feet when he heard a loud cry of pain, making him freeze in his tracks. He looked back in shock to see the girl from before struggling to get up. Her leg pinned by some rubble.

Before he could think about it he was already racing towards her, and that giant robot.

After he figured he was close enough he felt something rush through him, immense power.

He grunted and suddenly took off into the air, wind rushing through the street.

He growled as he clenched his fist, pulling it back while his sleeve was torn apart. He raced towards the robot, feeling something deep inside him flare and push against its limits. It thundered within him, raring to go.

Izuku paid no mind to the burning sensation in his fist, feeling it grow more and more powerful as he ascended.

"SMASH!" He roared, his voice echoing through the battle center as he landed a single devastating blow to the robot. He watched as the gargantuan beast fell back, falling apart under his power. Fire following the impact, raging through the robot and assisting in tearing it apart.

In the stands where observers watched, a blonde man grimaced at the sight. He watched the flames snuff out no sooner than it appeared.

"Just one minute left!"

He looked up in shock and realized he had begun to fall. He screamed as he fell, his mind rushing miles a minute.

Okay, I jumped using One For All. Maybe I can use it to get back down too. Yeah, just like All Might! Landing should be a piece of cake, right? Right, right, right, right?

He yelped with a painful realization.

I'm broken!

He clenched his eyes shut as he shook his head, still trying to think of a way out.

Even after 10 months, I can barely contain this power! He warned me, I should have listened! I got way ahead of myself taking on that robot. I'm acting like a hero when I don't even have enough skill to be a sidekick!

He groaned as he raced closer and closer to the ground, desperate.

What would All Might do? What would All Might do?

For a single moment he had thought, 'What would Aqua do?'

It couldn't be over, there had to be something. He gritted his teeth as a solution came to mind.

A Detroit Smash.

He figured it was the only way to save himself, with both legs and right arm broken.

He pulled his left fist back, trying to figure out the timing. He had to live, to somehow get out of all this and pass the exam. He had to!

He screamed as he watched the ground come closer, readying himself for the immense pain and whatever came after.

Yet before he even had the chance to put his plan into action he felt a hard slap across the face that shut him up. He gasped as he nearly fell to the ground, floating a few inches above it.

"And...release…" The girl mumbled, setting them both down.

Izuku sighed shakily with the realization that he lived. He looked up and saw the girl barely awake has she sort of hung off the piece of robot.

"S-Seemed to take a lot out of her…" He muttered. He gasped as he realized the test was still going on.

He grunted, thanking her for the chance he still has.

He was barely able to drag himself forward by a few inches when he heard Present Mic's voice again.

"And that's that. Time's up!"

A loud siren rang out.

Izuku would have bursted into tears if he hadn't passed out right then and there.

-SotP-

Hello everybody, I'm sorry that I haven't posted in a while. I've been juggling this fic and a few others at the moment.

I don't really have that much to say, other than a question. So, for the next chapter I'm thinking of either dividing it from the first day to the USJ incident. It'd be a longer read, and take a bit longer to get out. Or would you guys prefer it if I did it in smaller segments like the first day as one chapter, and then USJ as the next? They'd be shorter reads and probably come out sooner.

Another quick question. Are any of you having trouble if FFN app? Or just FFN in general? I usually use the app on the computer (I use a chromebook) in order to post, but this time I'm using the website. Is anyone else having this issue or is it just me?

Also, I finished KH3, and holy shit was it a wild ride. I did have just one issue with part of the story near the end in the Keyblade Graveyard. I'm not going to say anything in case you guys haven't played/finished it yet. But for those who have, I think you might know what I'm talking about. Other than that, the game the freaking great.

Anyway, I hope you guys have a good day/night.