Green Scale
Chapter 18 ~ Shadow Of The West
Rated M
I Don't Own MHA
In the early hours of the morning, the beloved pro hero Ingenium was rushed to a hospital after being mysteriously attacked, and only now, in the aftermath of the sports festival, were his loved ones at his side...
The beeping sound of the heart monitor was ringing through the small room as loud footsteps echoed in the distance.
The Iida family were all gathered around the hospital bed, weeping and clutching the arms of Tensei as he laid there, his chest slowly rising and falling in rhythm with the sound of the beeps… All of them were worried that every breath he took could be his last...
His face was mostly obscured by the breathing mask, but he had a huge slash mark running straight through his nose and across his right eye. It was deep and supposedly made by a sharp object, but the cut was so finely made and must have taken incredible skill…
His arms were broken at the joints and were badly swollen near the elbow area, and his chest had what looked like burn marks around it…
Just looking at the fallen hero was hard, because Ingenium was an incredible hero rivalled by few, and he was taken out so easily… He was one of the greatest in Japan and trained a whole legion of sidekicks, and yet the whole lot of them were beaten by this one villain…
Apparently no one caught a glimpse of who it was, and when the rest of the agency got to the scene, not one of them was able to escape and report what they'd seen. It seemed that Tensei was the only person that actually knew who attacked him…
"Brother!" Tenya burst through the door at startling speed as he raced over to Tensei's side.
"Tenya, please don't make so much noise…" His mother could barely raise her voice over her grief and just looked at her children with teary eyes. She nearly had a heart attack after hearing of the news, and her more pronounced fear was how her younger son would react to it...
"What happened here!?"
The doctor's expression was shared by everyone else in the room as he looked down sadly. "Son, your brother was attacked by a villain-"
"Who!?"
"We don't know yet, but I'm sure that we'll have some answers tomorrow when your brother regains consciousness…" he looked to the mother and bowed his head.
In the corner of the room, there stood a tall man with a brown overcoat. He had his eyes fixed on the body as well, his expression a mix of concern and strangely...fear…
"Inspector! Do you know anything about what happened?" Iida's father asked frantically.
The man sighed. "Unfortunately, we have the bare minimum sir… The villain seems like the sadistic type, as they went to the bother of actually breaking down his joints and leaving him immobile, which is unnecessary, since someone that can have the time to strike Ingenium so precisely also has time to kill him. Why would the villain leave him alive and not even bother to take anything from him? That's the main question my men are struggling to answer."
"Y-You're suggesting the villain tortured our son!?"
Tenya flinched…
"That's the most probable thing that could have happened, because I don't see why this person would go to such lengths and take the time to leave him helpless. You see this with some animals in the wild, as they take their time to stalk and weaken their prey; the only difference being that this man here didn't die...or simply wasn't the prey…"
"So-"
"Correct. I suspect that this villain is attempting to bait a reaction from someone close to the hero Ingenium; perhaps a higher ranked hero with more strength…"
The mother gasped. "H-How terrible…"
"Rest assured ma'am. Your son will not be in any more physical pain and his recovery will be swift…" the doctor bowed.
That was obviously a half truth, because everyone already knew that Ingenium would never be able to walk again; much less save lives...
But how would poor Tenya react to this?
His brother was paralysed from the hip down and could never be a hero again…
How would he react to his idol not being the same shining figure he always was?
Iida saw his mother walk up to him and put a soft hand on his cheek, tears flowing from her eyes. "Son, your brother was out on patrol and was searching for a villain infamous within the area, but he sensed something. When he found what he was looking for, he was attacked and left on the side of a road…"
"A-And his agency!? Didn't they help him!?"
"They came as soon as he called, but they all had their communication cancelled for some reason… None of them made it out of that street uninjured, and every single one of them is resting in another facility…" his father gravely bit out
"Do they know who did it!?"
"I'm afraid we don't have enough material to convict or even strongly suspect someone… As for the agency, they all suffered the same injuries, and some of them might not even be able to live the same way after this ordeal… Your brother is lucky to even be alive…" the inspector said gravely. "It's all thanks to his will to survive. Those burns could have melted his entire body, but they stopped when the skin was gone, probably by design of the owner, and the villain probably could have crushed him into dust if it was able to do this much damage before the agency showed…"
Tenya could only stare at his brother in shock; his eyes watering against his will and his entire body trembling… On his way to the hospital, he'd seen what had happened to Midoriya and wanted to give the boy his full support, but this happened…
Why?
Why?
why?
Why would someone do this to his brother?
Why was it him!?
Why did he deserve this!?
Who was to blame for this!?
The boy's eyes began to get bloodshot from how intensely he was staring at the injuries littering his brother's body, and his hands formed fists as his nails dug into his palm, causing blood to seep out…
"We think he'll pull through today, and he won't suffer any additional hardships once he recovers…" the doctor then noticed that the boy hadn't moved from his brother's bedside in over a minute, and his eyes had something inside them that bothered him. "Many heroes and relatives will be visiting the facility in the next few days, so it might get quite busy… He is deeply loved by the public and his peers…"
"Who did this…"
"We don't-" the man was suddenly cut off
Iida grabbed his school blazer and hesitantly stepped away from his brother's body. "Who was the villain that sought out my brother…"
The inspector looked at Iida's mother and sighed. "We don't have any facts, but the Hero Killer was reported seen in Hosu City just days before now, where your brother was struck down…"
That was all the information the teen needed...
Bakugou sat up on the hospital bed, feeling a weak stabbing pain from his abdomen…
The scenes of the semi-final flashed on and off inside his head, not giving him a single wink of sleep...
'The fucking nerd messed me up that bad huh…' He glared down at his midsection. It was still like a dream; the idea of Izuku Midoriya actually making him pass out from exhaustion...
It had been a few days since the festival ended and the whole world was exploding with the news of what happened in the final… The whole entire earth feared that crimson dragon, so much so that even the slightest reminder of him made them all cower like terrified sheep in front of a hungry fox. The blonde hot head would find their reactions funny if he wasn't feeling that same pressure himself...
Bakugou remembered seeing something in those eyes of his, but refused to believe that it could be even close to the villain capable of destroying his idol, though it looked like his instincts were sharp as always… He should have suspected something when that huge blast went off at the USJ, and even more so when he actually faced him and looked into his eyes...or what was inside them…
He was a fool for not seeing it, and not drawing the connection, but there was nothing he could do about it now. Exposing the nerd would turn nothing in his favour, and trying to find an opening in a quirk so deadly was like playing with fire...literally…
Thinking about it now would only weaken his understanding on the matter as a whole...
His parents were sitting beside him; their faces a mix of anger and fear as they stared up at the monitor that showed Izuku releasing those green flames. Mitsuki and Masaru had grown up and seen the battle between All Might and Red Scale with their own eyes when they were planning their baby's birth. The utter devastation around them was unbelievable and it was horrifying for both of them to see their hero be toyed with like he was…
They hated that dragon with every fibre of their being and wished he would just vanish from the world, but seeing those flames again triggered the memories from that day to reveal themselves again…
Bakugou wasn't alive to see what his parents saw, but he still knew all too well about it from stories and pictures. Even he; someone that had never even experienced the true terror of the crimson dragon, felt the disgusting feeling of hopelessness and dread seep through him. If he was having this sort of trouble, he didn't want to think about what his parents were going through…
Unlike him, the two of them cared for Izuku, as his mother was their friend through many years. They didn't have the same hatred that most of the public did and only felt pity for the boy, saying that he didn't deserve to be screwed like that…
He couldn't understand what they saw in him…
This was the first time that Bakugou had ever suffered anything close to a loss, and it was to the kid he despised and looked down on his entire life. How did someone like Deku get so strong in the first place, and how did he have the same quirk as Red Scale? Should he have known his quirk beforehand, he would never have even talked to him, because even someone with Katsuki's ego could recognise a gap of power that large.
It was tearing him up inside, and not for the reason he would expect…
Somehow, he wasn't mad at all…
Just ashamed…
He lost to the kid he pushed down and bullied, and wasn't even bitter. There wasn't an ounce of foul play or trickery from the nerd this time, and he only won through his superior quirk and skill. It was almost an execution of the strong and powerful image he put out to the rest of the school when Izuku just blew through him with minor difficulty.
Even worse; Todoroki managed to at least get the upper hand once…
He had been beaten by both his class rivals, and now he looked like nothing more than a loser through the eyes of everyone he saw…
And now he knew that Deku was a filthy western Midoriya, and by that knowledge, he also knew that his overprotective brother was none other than the strongest hero in the world, Akira Midoriya, the man he had always feared during his early days in the world…
What would he do if he knew the things he'd done to the nerd?
He beat Uraraka beyond what was acceptable, and then Izuku did the same to him, exacting justice and turning the crowd onto his side, while pushing Katsuki down the gutter…
It wasn't even the loss that made him mad. It was how he won, and how he made him look...
"Katsuki…" Masaru quietly spoke up…
His parents had been sitting in silence for over an hour, trying to contact Inko and possibly console her about what happened, but it seemed like her phone was already being used to contact another person that whole time… It must have been a really serious call for it to take over an hour, but the couple knew better than to be rude and text her anyway…
Now though, they had turned their attention back to their son, and for some reason, Bakugou felt something stir in his stomach...
"The hell do you-!"
"Katsuki…" The man's eyes were different, and he'd never seen that glint in his father's gaze before… "What do you have to say for yourself…"
Mitsuki was also glaring at him; her face laced with anger…
But what had he done?
"You lost…" His mother said strictly, not even a single drop of sarcasm in her icy voice…
what?
"A-Are you serious!? You're pissed at me for getting beaten!?" The boy's voice raised in offence.
Masaru just glowered harder. "Do you not even see what you have done?"
Bakugou was confused...
"That girl…"
He blinked. "Who fucking cares about her?"
"Katsuki…" the man warned quietly.
"She's nothing to me or you, so why are you mad? I just won like anyone else would, and it's her fault for not lying down and giving up…"
"So you can just say that she's a fool for trying to win? That girl obviously had something to fight for… How do you think that more force is the right option?"
"If she doesn't stay down after knowing that she's not ever gonna get anywhere, then she deserves all that's coming to her. I'm not gonna halfass anything at all, and I use power to get myself noticed, so people know how strong I am…" Bakugou spoke in a matter-of-fact way while carelessly waving his hand around, treating the whole conversation with his father like it was a chore…
Masaru blinked in astonishment… "Are you even hearing the words coming out of your mouth?"
Bakugou didn't know what to say to that, so he just scowled.
"Son, I will support you no matter what, but this has to end now…"
"What does?"
"This notion that power means everything…"
He had never seen his father mad before, so it was a shock, but he still couldn't understand why he was so furious. Things like this had happened before, so why is he so enraged all of a sudden?
"I don't see why it's any of your business old man. I'm gonna be the greatest hero there ever was, and I'm only gonna be able to do that by crushing every little bug that challenges me!"
Mitsuki growled at him. "Don't talk to your father like that, you little shit… It's your fault that the fire is breaking news…"
"My fault!? The hell have I done!?"
"You were the fool that angered him far enough to make him use up all his energy. It's your fault that you're in hospital, and your fault that this boy we saw grow up is being hazed by people that know nothing but fear and bitter hatred…" Masaru calmly responded.
"You're both taking that fucking loser's side!? Aren't you supposed to be my parents!?"
"Pipe down, you loser…" his mother snapped back. "You were defeated, not him, and you can't even accept it. I heard from some of the parents in middle school that you and Izuku got into fights a lot, even though he was so kind, so you probably pushed him too far this time…"
"Exactly. Izuku probably let loose all of his strength on you and then was left defenceless against that ice user. He had to choose either death, or people wishing for his death, and this wouldn't have happened if it weren't for you and your arrogant ways…"
"ARE YOU SERIOUS!? THIS IS BULLSHIT!"
"Your mother and Inko have been friends since they were kids, and even when she married Michael over in America, we kept in touch." the man's tone changed from anger to almost grief as he looked Bakugou in the eyes, and the boy's red eyes grew wide with shock as he analysed his father's words…
'T-They knew about Deku...about his family, and didn't even tell me?'
"She's been suffering ever since he left her, and now she only has Izuku to lean on… What do you think she would have done to herself if Shoto Todoroki killed her son on live TV… What do you think a woman like her would have done if she had nothing left in the world?" Mitsuki spat out.
"She'd-" For the first time, Katsuki stopped himself. "Wait… What are you talking about?"
His father took a shakey breath. "We value Inko as a friend, and when Michael found out that we knew about his connection to her, he forced us to keep it a secret from everyone we knew. If we didn't, he said he would have killed you and drained our family of everything we had, so we chose to preserve our dignity to our friend and protect you…"
For some reason, Izuku's dark eyes flashed in his mind...
"You mean...his old man was really like that?"
"It is hard to believe when you look at the facade both he and his eldest son wear. They pretend to be the most saint-like people in the world, only to transform into disgusting demons at the first sniff of danger. We couldn't tell Inko of what he was like, because he had eyes everywhere and even several of his genetically enhanced heroes watching us. We were prisoners for five whole years, and I was afraid he would have just killed us anyway if he knew his wife wouldn't find out…"
Masaru continued…
"We don't know why, but both he and his eldest son left Japan when you were five, abruptly and without any notice, leaving poor Inko to fend for herself. I do believe that he loved that woman, but the only thing he ever did for her was keep her family safe. He has more money than any sane person would know what to do with, and the resources to give her anything, and yet he left her in the streets of Musutafu with only a brief goodbye… Now, she only has Izuku to lean on, and that has obviously taken a toll on even that little kid's mental health…"
Bakugou doubted it. "He's the same as ever, just pretending to be nice while glaring at you from behind."
"Looks can be deceiving, especially when the child has Michael's blood running through him…"
The blonde paused his ranting again, wondering what his father meant by that…
He knew Deku and knew that he wasn't weak enough to cry, so why did he feel guilt after hearing that?
"She relies on Izuku's strong mental strength to keep living, but that only makes them worse. Don't misunderstand son. Inko is stronger than you know, both physically and mentally, but after the love of her life was snatched away and her step-son following him, she could only turn to the young one as her depression increased rapidly. Honestly, I don't even think she'll be alive much longer without her husband…" his eyes dimmed in shame.
"You're l-lying… She's fine!" this horrible feeling of guilt was hurting him now, and he wanted to be rid of it…
"Is she?" Masaru asked quietly. "Is she really?"
Mitsuki put a hand over her shaking husband as he shielded his eyes. "We're mad because she means so much to us kid, and if Izuku died back there, she would have followed him into the afterlife. It's wrong of us to blame you for this, but you need to stop this violent behavior now, before it really destroys something you can't hope to repair…"
Surprising both of them; Bakugou put his head down and didn't uttering a single word or sound…
"We want you to improve yourself Katsuki, and we truly want the best for you, no matter what you might think. For whatever reason, you may not get along with Izuku, but please, for our sake, try to keep him safe…" she finished.
Bakugou felt something touch his leg, and he looked down to see a brown piece of paper. "What's this?" he asked quietly; the fire all gone from his voice.
"We accepted a request on your behalf from a top ranking hero. They were interested in making you a better person, so you will be spending your time with them, as the school has ordered everyone to find an agency to intern with…"
His eyes widened. "Who is it?"
Masaru smiled at him, gripping the boys hand. "We don't know who he is yet, but Inko was the one who suggested him…saying he was a good friend of the family..."
Little did Katsuki know…
The hero himself was listening behind the door…
"So you broke your promise, Masaru…"
(A Few Days Later…)
{Message Received!}
From ~ Momo Yaoyorozu
Hey Midoriya. I saw everything from the stands and wanted to see how you were. I understand you might not want to see anyone right now, but I'm really worried about you; as are the rest of the class. You did nothing wrong, and I just want to tell you that you can reach out to me if you want, just to let me return the favour xxx
{Message Received!}
From ~ Eijiro Kirishima
Hi man. Sorry I couldn't catch you after the festival. Don't stress about that quirk you got. I heard your speech and it was pretty damn manly, so you're still more than good in my book. Come by my place and grab some of my pop's soba if you feel like it.
{Message Received!}
From ~ Tenya Iida
Midoriya, I was quite shaken by the news, but I have come to understand your circumstances through your speech. Please note that I don't think badly of you for the power you have, and I would check in if family complications hadn't got in the way. My brother has been attacked by the hero killer, so I'm in a sorry state right now, but once I've set things right, I'll make sure to spread your words of innocence across the school.
Best of luck to you, my friend, and pray for my safety in the days to come, if you could.
{Message Received!}
From ~ Mina Ashido
Hey Izuku. I Know we aren't really that close, but I wanted to wish you well. You're probably getting a hard time from everyone now, and that sucks, but all of Class 1-A have your back. I didn't trust you back at the USJ and want to get some things off my chest about the whole thing, so hit me up when you're free x
{Message Received!}
From ~ Ochaco Uraraka
Just got out of the hospital today and heard about your match. I'm so sorry you had to go through that Izuku, and I should have been there to support you. My mom and dad thanked you for fighting for them and they say they're gonna get by just fine. I hope we see each other in class soon, but if not, I'm interning with Gunhead at his agency, so please drop by xxx
{Message Received!}
From ~ Mitsuki Bakugou
Hey kid. Sorry for just texting you outta the blue, but me and Masaru wanted to apologize on Katsuki's behalf, since he is probably to blame for your situation, and we wanted to see how you were. We're also worried about Inko, so please check on her if you can xxx
{Message Received!}
From ~ UA
Good Morning, Izuku Midoriya.
The school has decided to give you a choice in the upcoming internships. If you so wish; you may intern with a pro that accepts you, but the choice is yours. Since the incident with your quirk; thousands of pro heroes have withdrew their offers for you, but there are still a large amount of high ranking ones looking for your power. You are the only student who has a choice in this programme, so please choose wisely…
Yours sincerely, Ectoplasm
Izuku stared blankly at all the messages and didn't feel a single thing from them…
It was the early hours of the morning and he'd woken up to the news of pro hero Ingenium, Iida's brother, being attacked by a villain rumoured to be the infamous Hero Killer, Stain. He'd been attempting to contact his friend for a while now, but had no luck with it, so he just laid motionless on his bed; his green eyes glaring up at the ceiling…
What was he going to do now?
He couldn't possibly find a hero strong enough to train him and his fire, because that power was just too dangerous, and there was also the issue of patrol, which just wouldn't happen since the public was so utterly terrified of him…
He was originally going to look for a capable hero inside the top 100, but that whole thing went awry after the green flames exploded from his hand and scared most of them away. He couldn't blame them, since the older members of the group had actually faced the minions of Red Scale and had their asses kicked thuroughlly, but it still angered him.
There was always the option of Gran Torino, All Might's mentor, but Izuku wasn't the holder of One For All, so it wouldn't be right to insert himself into the lives of those dear to his idol…
Perhaps he just shouldn't bother with an internship…
He was already strong enough to get into the top 50 heroes of Japan, but he lacked the experience to be truly effective on the field…
His main goal was to get to Red Scale's level in terms of quirk power, but he could only do that if he mastered his fire at his current level. Using both of his quirk powers simultaneously would work for now, but he was so weak that even the slightest inch of dominance from one power on the balance scale would kill him…
To be able to control the monstrous power he possessed, he would need to find someone capable of handling his fire, and the problem was that there was no one like that in Japan...or even Asia for that matter…
The only thing he could do was find his own path, at least until Akira and his father landed in Japan...
Deciding he'd had enough thinking on that topic; Izuku got out of bed and headed downstairs. He was tired from all the days of training his arms and legs, and the strain of his muscles were making him wince with every step, but he made it to the front room without any issue.
"Mom?" he called out into the seemingly empty house.
He hadn't seen his mother since the night of the festival, all because she'd been in a horrible mood after seeing his fire quirk in action, but he'd noticed her feeling far worse than before. She'd been in her room since that night and was always talking to someone over the phone, and while he was suspicious, he didn't care to intrude…
"Mom-" he quickly moved his foot away and avoided stepping on one of his heavier dumbells…
Hold on…
Why were they in the front room?
His eyes narrowed to slits as he suddenly grew scales on his forearms, pumping them up and down to loosen the strain and make it easier to throw punches…
If there was an intruder, they would surely be dead... Because this house was never supposed to be seen by anyone but the Midoriya family. If someone had snuck in, then his mother was at risk-
"Oh, hi Izuku!" he heard an all too familiar voice from behind as he turned, and before he could register the strange happiness in her tone, he received a bone crushing hug from the waist.
Confused, he pushed the woman off him and looked at her dead in the eyes, watching her flinch slightly at his gaze. "Mom, what are you doing downstairs? Are you feeling any better?"
Inko was standing there, beaming at him with an excited smile on her face that really made Izuku question what had happened since the festival. "Couldn't be happier son, now that I know you're safe!"
"But you saw me come home from-"
"Not that silly! I'm talking about all those nasty people talking all that garbage about you! You're fine with ignoring them, so that makes me happy!"
The boy's eyes flashed green as he saw through her fake smile. She was certainly happy, but not for the reason she was claiming… "What are those weights doing there? Were you moving them for me?"
"No, they're with me for the time being." she smiled.
"But you don't excer-"
And his mother proceeded to nimbly do a handstand with almost no struggle…
"eh?"
With her frame, you wouldn't expect her to manage even a few basic things like that, but it looked like he was the fool in this situation… She had put on so much weight since her husband left, but somehow she was still able to move like a silvercat. He always remembered that his mother was incredibly athletic and strong for someone who played the role of a housewife, but this was unnatural and made him suspicious...
Was it really because of a phone call?
"What brought this on?" he couldn't help but smile at her as she punched the punching bag with all the force of a wet noodle.
"I'm just excited for the future…"
He blinked in confusion. "The future?"
"Yeah! I feel like getting back in shape, back to my old self! I'm 41 years old and dammit I can still move! Do I look like a skeleton to you young man!?"
"Alright...easy now…" he sweatdropped. "I'm glad you're feeling better about our situation, but why the sudden change mom?"
There was a strange pause as she stopped what she was doing, seemingly flinching from the question...
For a second, he thought he saw a tear in her eye, but dismissed it…
"Its nothing… I just had a feeling…" she smiled warmly at him. "Now go to wherever you need to go son…"
He hesitated, wanting to ask her about it, but shook his head and opened the door, only to receive a notification on his phone…
{Message Received!}
From ~ Unknown
Hey Izu, it's been a while.
Sorry I couldn't contact you sooner, but there is a lot going on that you don't know about. Things are about to get quite nasty down in Japan in the next month, so I'm expecting that you stay safe and keep progressing like you always do. I'm warning you because there is a price on your head, and the man that set the bounty is none other than our little red friend, and he will not send anyone but the best out to snatch you up…
All For One is slowly regaining his power, and with that, his army is multiplying at a rate you can't even fathom. He's the threat you need to focus on, and not that dragon you can't hope to reach right now, so don't be a fool and jump into a pit of suffering just cause you want answers… He's the sworn enemy of All Might, but his arms are beginning to tighten around you as the days go by, and he won't just wait for you to get stronger like Red Scale…
That's the difference between the two, and it's a difference you need to look out for. His goal is to erase all traces of One For All, and that means killing your favourite hero, though what he really wants is to make All Might suffer for what he did, and turning you into his successor would be just enough to break the poor blonde fool. He's gonna send his best to catch you, and you must do everything you can to avoid him, even if it means letting yourself go…
Me and my associates will be arriving in Japan in a month or two, so try to hold out until then…
I wish you the best, Green Scale…
It was dusk in Musutafu and the loser of the final festival match was standing outside UA's grounds with a newly made sling, an absent expression on his face as he flinched from the stinging pain of his injury.
He'd been discharged from the hospital just an hour ago, though he wasn't in any mood to move from where he was standing. At least not after what he did in the final against Midoriya…
He had been winning so easily in the final fight until he lost his cool and unleashed a lethal amount of force onto his opponent, then unintentionally triggering his quirk to activate and turn the tide of battle instantly. It was almost horrifying seeing how quick that fire could render the match won, and Todoroki wasn't deluding himself in that moment, because he knew that ice would do nothing…
In a moment of desperation, just before the terrible scaled fist stopped in front of him, he had activated his fire and tried to shoot it up at him…
But he couldn't do it…
Because he was too afraid…
The fear of what that monster would do stopped him from making a mistake, and it was like his body just refused to go on the offensive. Looking back on it, he realised that Midoriya was probably resistant to fire and perhaps wanted him to use his fire as a form of breaking his spirit. With Todoroki using his trump card and finding that it did nothing, it would have really made the fight flip on its head…
But that wasn't what he was bothered by…
He really didn't care about the loss as much as he thought he would have, though that was probably because of his other problem…
He looked so empty for one reason and one reason alone, and that was because he broke his own promise and used his father's power. Although Endeavor didn't know about it, Shoto still thought that he'd betrayed himself and his mother by igniting those flames in a futile effort to stay in the fight…
He'd vowed never to use his fire and become a hero with just his mother's power, but it seemed that he couldn't even do that. Not when faced with a monster like Izuku Midoriya…
What could he say for himself? Even though the man was unaware; his father had won their little bet…
He wanted to go out there and beat Midoriya; a kid that was incredibly skilled and powerful with strength far surpassing his own. If he had beaten that boy in the final without the fire breaking out, he would have finally got one point over his dad, but he was crushed, and so easily that it looked unbearable from the outside…
"I'll fix you up, but for that to happen, I will have to beat you into the ground…"
Those were the words Izuku spoke before the start of the tournament, and they were still empty, as he thought… He said he would save Todoroki from the hell he was in and fix his family, but how could that even happen?
After he won? How could he do anything if he was hated by the world? He was the living reminder of what happened at Musutafu, so any chance of conversing with Endeavor was gone, as his father had serious PTSD from that night, attributing to his domestic violence…
Just what was Midoriya planning?
"Todoroki?"
The boy felt his body grow cold at the sound of his voice and turned around to see the kid himself staring right at him…
"What're you doing at school? Its late, so get back home before someone suspects you of something."
Why was he here, or even out in the open like this!? He was a public enemy of the world for his power, and even his convincing speech wouldn't erase that… So why!?
"I didn't see you after the festival and wondered where you ran off to, but it seems you just decided to brood about it… How disappointing..." Izuku sighed in an almost bored way, his hair slowly waving in the wind as his eyes remained creepily locked on the boy across the pavement.
Todoroki didn't answer and tried to look for any place he could be attempting to attack from…
He was shaking again, just like in the final…
'N-No… I-I can't show fear…'
"There's no need to feel bad over what you did Todoroki." Izuku watched the student's eyes open in surprise. "I knew about your fire. It's quite a strong power…"
"The hell are you doing here Midoriya? I recognise that I've lost… Have y-you come to rub it in?" he spat out bitterly.
"I've come to finish the business we have. That's all…"
'Business!?' Todoroki thought he knew what Izuku was getting at and tried to activate his ice, but his hand pulsed with pain, "kaaahh…"
"Don't bother trying to fight. You won't get anywhere but the hospital…"
The two of them stood there, glaring at each other.
"What business do you mean? Are you here to finish me off? Kill me and cut off one of your loose ends?" he snarled.
Izuku almost looked hurt by that. "What? Because I have the power of a villain you're scared of?"
"N-No...but why else would you be here?"
"Why else? It's because I made a promise to you…"
Todoroki hesitated.
"We don't have to be enemies Todoroki. Just because my quirk and your father are a terrible match doesn't mean we have to hate each other, or even dislike one another. Normally, I operate in "an eye for an eye" and only punish people who wrong me, but I got a little out of hand and managed to make everyone around me feel the same terror you did, only to a lesser extent…"
"You would have killed me if it weren't for my fire activating, and I won't lie to you; I did consider murdering you after that…" He half-joked while keeping a single reptilian hand out for safety. "From my point of view, we're even, so there isn't any need for us to hate each other. I have a quirk from the worst scum in the world, and you have an asshole father that wants to make you his puppet, so I guess we could be considered equally hard done by…"
"I don't have anything against you Midoriya…" Todoroki gritted his teeth. "I'm just trying to advance with my own power, like you are. It's just difficult, trying to ignore my father's cruelty and preserve the smile my mother used to have…"
Izuku didn't look impressed. "You're just wasting your potential, putting it down the drain because of a grudge against your father."
"That isn't-"
"It is, believe me… I hated Bakugou throughout my childhood and wanted rid of him in my older years, so much so that I was considering applying for Shiketsu high...but I managed to block the simmering rage out of my system and focus on my future. Moving to Shiketsu, while beneficial for me, would be taxing on my mother, and she can't leave her house. It means too much to her."
Todoroki was inclined to believe this story about his mother was real this time, partly because Izuku had nothing to gain from even lying to him anymore…
"So I applied to UA and even though I've had my run in with that asshole, I pulled through."
"So you're saying that I should just grin and bear it? You think this is a fucking joke?" he looked almost offended at the prospect.
"Not exactly… It's obvious that Endeavor will confront you after you activate his quirk, but that's not something you can't ignore and walk past. I managed to mostly ignore Bakugou's existence, so surely you can ignore your father and progress in your own way. I'm not telling you to forgive him, because what that bastard has done is nigh unforgivable, but I am telling you to move past it and focus on your future as a hero of Japan. Don't shackle yourself to your father's dream of surpassing All Might, because if you stick to just your ice, you will never be the number one hero, and that means not only breaking apart his dream, but also yours…"
Todoroki glared. "And what would you even know about me!?"
"I know enough…" Izuku glared back, making Shoto flinch. "You must be close to your mother, right? How do you think she would feel if you didn't fulfill your potential and climb that mountain to the top of the hero world, or if you were killed by a villain because you refused to use your fire?"
"Shut your mouth…" He suddenly growled, making frost come from his arm.
'So they are the same as me and my mom… I shouldn't be pushing his buttons like this, but he needs to know before he starts sabotaging his own career…' Izuku's eyes narrowed as he thought.
"By not using the flames of Endeavor, you will be halving the amount of strength you have Todoroki, and you will be more vulnerable to any weakness you already have. You're strong; only a fool would deny that, but you will never get to the heights you wish by just relying on your mother's side."
"D-Don't say another word Midoriya…"
"She probably wants an end to this conflict between you and your dad, so for her sake-"
Todoroki suddenly stomped down on the ground with his right foot, shooting out a huge wall of ice at Izuku, as fast as he possibly could…
"Foolish…" Izuku hissed as he raised his right arm in the air and made his palm glow green.
Todoroki saw the emerald hand descend down with black flames beginning to burst from the skin and felt the fear come back to him…
The ice melted before it even got halfway towards Izuku and turned into a puddle on the ground as Izuku walked towards him, not even having unleashed the emerald blaze that haunted the world. He was unharmed, not even close to being touched by the ice and just calmly strolled towards the boy who was once his rival…
Now it was clear…
The gap in power between the two of them was too vast to even see…
He resisted the urge to collapse to his knees and attempted to stare Izuku in his eyes, but couldn't…
"Hey...didn't I tell you? We don't have to fight here…" Izuku spoke softly as he stopped just a meter from the other boy.
Todoroki just gritted his teeth, knowing that anything he tried would just be completely deflected… "Just get it over with…"
"Go and visit your mother and ask her about it." Izuku suggested, watching Todoroki raise his head in surprise. "Test my beliefs and ask her if she wants you to spite her husband while destroying any legacy you could have with both powers… If that is what your mother truly wants, she isn't deserving of your pity..."
"I-I can't…"
"You can't?" Izuku raised an eyebrow. "Why?"
"I can't face her...after what she did to me…" He paused. "It was my fault, and she probably thinks of me as an abomination… It's best to just leave her in peace."
Midoriya hesitantly put a hand on Shoto's shoulder and was saddened to see him jolt back slightly. 'Poor guy's had it rougher than most. He won't even let me touch him…'
"You can't be sure though, can you?"
Todoroki stopped. "W-What?"
"Don't just assume that your mom hates you. I'm no expert, but don't most mothers have a maternal instinct that prevents them from truly hating their offspring? She can't just hate you for being born, and if she truly does feel remorse, you shouldn't deny her the chance to see her son…"
"But...what about my father?"
"You can deal with him after. Just make things right and don't hold yourself down anymore…" Izuku said slowly. "The only thing slowing your growth is your inability to move on from your past."
"Then what about you? Why did you relate to me so much, and why did you go to such lengths just to win that stupid tournament? You couldn't care less about that piece of metal around your neck, so why bother with this? With me?"
Midoriya hesitated, but gave in.
"I said it was about my family right? Well I wasn't lying… My half-brother and father were very dear to me and left Japan when I was still a small child. They were the two people that inspired me to become a hero, and the people that made me doubt the rule that quirkless people can't make a change in the world. I believed in their words and it led me to where I am now, and I wouldn't have these skills and powers without them. I wanted to win this competition to show the both of them that I wasn't a weak link in the legendary triad, and to make them notice me as a man worthy of their name…"
"What do you mean worthy? You are a Midoriya with incredible physical talent and mental strength… How could you be anything but a success in their eyes!?" Todoroki grew concerned over that statement, wondering how brilliant the two others were if he was the weak link… It would honestly terrify him if there was a person with more skill and potential than Izuku at the same age...
"I'm a member of the Midoriya family. My father is the man who has the entire continent of North America in his pocket, while my half-brother is a hero that even the greatest villains fear; a man without equal… Even my mother, who is drowning in misery, seems to have some amount of power that I'm not aware of… I had this disgusting quirk forced on me by some strange event, and even though I have all this strength that a quirkless person could only dream of, I feel like I don't deserve it at all…"
…
Todoroki wanted to shoot that down, but he himself was born into a wealthy family with an incredible quirk… He would only look like a hypocrite if he dared to refute Izuku's fears.
"If I just go on acting like some kind of great hero, I'll be making a mockery of the name I was born with. I don't want my father and brother to think of me as a failure or a fortunate boy with no talent. I wanted to repay the kindness they gave me, and the hope that not even All Might could give to me! If I didn't win the whole thing, I would have been a disgrace in the eyes of the people that I adore…"
"Can't you just take your own advice and presume that they wouldn't think that way?"
Izuku's brows furrowed in anger. "Not a chance... I don't even think they would care if I was arrogant or even weak. It's my fault that I feel this way, not theirs, so it's different from you Todoroki. I want to make my brother and father proud and thank them for the inspiration they gave me. Without them; I wouldn't have ever gotten to where I am, and I might not have even lived to this day with the crushing loss that I suffered, so the least I can do is show them that their words and actions weren't in vain, and that they had created someone who can carry on their legacy…"
"I-I see…"
Midoriya scowled after the words came from his mouth. "I've revealed everything to you, so do you have any other questions?"
…
"Good…" he said almost thankfully.
…
"What will you do now?" Todoroki asked after a small delay.
Izuku turned around and put his hand out, feeling a drop of rain hit his finger… "I have my own issues, so I can't be burdened by your troubles…"
…
The boy turned back around and faced Todoroki, putting out a fist close to the other student's chest. "Go find your mother Shoto…"
Todoroki looked up to Izuku's eyes and looked conflicted.
"Find her and make that smile you talked about return. Get your life back together and don't ever look back on the past you have, because I'm about to do the same…"
The boy looked confused…
"My brother and father will be arriving in Japan in the next month or so, and they'll be coming to tutor me on my quirk, since they once worked directly under Red Scale…" Shoto's eyes widened with shock. "Once they arrive, my broken family will be fixed and we can finally look to the future, together…"
'T-Those people… They're coming to Japan!?' Todoroki couldn't hide his concern.
"In a way, our paths are similar… You and I both need to reform our family in order to progress forward in both the hero world and in our own lives, so once you have your family restored in full, you will be able to really kick off your journey…"
Todoroki remembered his words from before the tournament… "Is the restoration of my family going to be of your design?"
Izuku smiled. "Not entirely. I expect you to put in the necessary heavy lifting, but I'll make sure all of you live a normal life, and prevent anything like your childhood ever happening again…"
"You can promise that, Izuku Midoriya?" Shoto said almost in a hopeful tone…
"Of course I can, you idiot…" he chuckled, raising his fist to meet Todoroki. "Mark my words… Some day, the two of us will be the greatest heroes Japan has ever seen, and once you leave your father's wishes behind and finally use your fire to save lives, I believe that we can be rivals...Shoto…"
Todoroki's eyes widened as he saw the fist in front of him, and with a look of determination, he met it with his own…
Izuku then turned around ready to make his way home...
"Midoriya…" the student called out.
"..." Izuku looked back, waiting for a response.
"If you keep your promise, and your vision becomes a reality…" he smiled. "I'll be taking the number 1 spot…"
The scale user couldn't help but smirk at that. "Guess we'll see…" he shrugged as he popped open a small umbrella and began to walk away into the rain…
...
But while his back was turned, he opened his phone and looked through his messages, re-reading the text sent from the unknown contact…
His eyes glowed darkly and his face twisted as his hand shook violently…
'Akira…'
Quick note lads: I've changed the Midoriya Family Tree slightly, as Akira's age doesn't match up well with Inko's canon age of 41. Akira was planned to be 30 in this story and I'm not gonna change much info on canon characters, so I decided to make him unrelated to Inko.
He'll still have an emotional connection to her, like he does with Izuku and his father, but they won't be blood related. He does have a mother, but don't expect her to be significant or even named in the story, as I already have a big blood related reveal planned for the later arcs of the story.
Apologies about this change, but if I left it unaddressed, we would have Inko giving birth to Akira at age 11, which is pretty fucking messed up if you ask me. I'm bad with numbers (or author-san is just too fucking lazy to count) so please forgive mistakes like these!
Anyway; that was the chapter!
This isn't the end of Todoroki's character arc, but it'll take a pause for a while so that the story can progress, so stay tuned for his fire usage later in the story (I decided not to rush it because I couldn't write a talk-no-jutsu like Horikoshi-sama can, but the fire will deffo happen soon).
We will get more on the Drones Endeavor found last chapter. I couldn't include it because I had other things planned for the next chapter, and that would fit nicely in the middle of it…
Bakugou's new (very fucking temporary) teacher… Who do you think it is? Feel free to take a guess, loyal readers! We are gonna see the meeting between the two, and see why this hero requested for Bakugou specifically, but more importantly; this marks the very small beginning of Bakugou's long awaited redemption. I know that some viewers have voiced their dislike of how I amplified his asshole trait, but those people can rest assured, as he will now undergo the character development that Horikoshi kinda forgot about after his fight with Izuku.
He's not gonna be Jesus, or even that nice of a person after this, but he will change from the almost -murderer he is in canon to someone you can actually feel pity towards. His parents were pretty harsh on him, but I think that level of criticism is the only way to get through to Bakugou, and I tried to make his conflict more believable when I began mentioning Inko and her struggles with depression.
As you have probably guessed; both Inko and Izuku have severe mental health problems, and their only cure is seeing their family again. Now this is something that will turn heads and make people take a second look, but I genuinely plan on making Inko a real force in the story and not just the worrisome housewife she is right now. She has a quirk that is basically the force from star wars, and its damn weak right now, but it would be very fortunate if she was...I dunno...married to a man that makes and boosts quirks for a living?
So yeah, best mom Inko is gonna be pretty powerful after a while, though not at the level of some of the other characters in the series…
Anyway, the last thing we will be covering is Iida's brother and how Iida reacts to it. It's obvious he's gonna hunt down Stain, but is he the villain that really attacked Ingenium? Lol no
In the next chapter, everyone will get their hero names and we will see the real aftermath of the Sports Festival, starting with the UA staff and Endeavor discussing the drones found in the room that the americans used to watch the match, followed by Bakugou's meeting with the unknown and powerful hero, and then, the chapter after next will be Stain's time to shine.
Hope you all enjoyed, and feel free to voice your thoughts on the chapter.
Thanks a bunch for reading!
Side note before the responses: some account names don't appear on the chapter. I don't know why that is, but you can probably guess who I refer to if you read my replies. Sorry for the confusion ;)
Sinister10tails ~ no need to apologize for the long comment. I say longer the better (as long as it isn't pure hate speech lol). As you can see; the class reactions are all positive (barring Baka-go and Icy hot) and they have nothing against him. The reason for this is quite simple, as the students weren't alive to witness Red Scale first hand. And episode 13 was wild as shit! Great to see some saucy animation in a pretty OK season art-wise, and the fight, for once, was done so much better in the anime. I'm a manga reader and I agree that it's getting dark, but that's just the tip of the iceberg my friend. Of course, I am edgy like a pissed Demon Slayer fanboy so I'm gonna try and one-up Horikoshi in the twisted aspect. That'll be something to look forward to!
HAIL KING DELIRIOUS ~ I've tried to not borrow ideas from other fics and the show, so thanks for the praise! I really should tag mystery as well, would be fitting for a series that has a cliffhanger every damn chapter (͠≖ ͜ʖ͠≖)
The last airbendr ~ it did sound kinda out of place when I re-read it, but I wanted Izuku to sound intelligent when he spoke, and I try and implement that by making him sound mature. Weird writing tool, but if it works? Thanks for the kind words!
Raven Mordrake ~ that was an error on my part. Thanks for the heads up!
Kaemisa ~ in the early stages of this story, I wanted him to be pretty edgy, but now I'm favouring him being broken down from a hopeful person wanting to be a hero, to a straight villain or anti hero. That will come soon dude, but I want Izuku to have a future before it gets nuked in front of him ( ͡◉◞ ͜ʖ◟ ͡◉)
MIKE202303 ~ Thank you for the kind words! Thanks for reading!
Yohnos ~ calling them all cowardly (while justified) would really sink any chance of people getting behind him and supporting him. I would have went with that if Izuku were to be a villain instantly, but I want a really slow build up to that point.