A/N: I wrote this story with my friend ForestProductions and she was a big help with coming up with the plot and other really important things. Since this is our first story, feedback would really be appreciated. Chapters will probably be out every Sunday unless I end up procrastinating lol. ForestProductions will probably have side stories up on her account at some point, so make sure to check her out too. I'm also super new to all of this artist stuff, but the artist that drew the cover art I used is celtis-art on tumblr.

I hope you enjoy!

Midoriya

Izuku Midoriya had wanted to be a hero all his life. He still remembered the first time his mother read him that book of legends, telling the tales of great heroes of the past and present. But out of all those great heroes, only one stuck out; All Might. He was a renowned mercenary and a hero among heroes. But he had almost completely disappeared from the public eye. He had started isolating himself a number of years ago after an incident with Nebulones, a group of assassins who had been planning to kidnap the king of Indumentis and hold him hostage. Despite all this, Midoriya still wanted to meet his idol, even if it seemed near impossible. Midoriya followed all of All Might's ideals and dreamed that he could maybe even become a mercenary himself.

But Midoriya didn't have a quirk or magic, and that posed a big problem.

It was already rare for someone to not have a quirk, but to not have magic either? It was almost unheard of. Since the day he was diagnosed quirkless and magicless, he felt completely powerless. Over the years he had been picked on by the other kids in his village. They often called him names like 'Deku', which he didn't particularly mind, but it still hurt. Midoriya had slowly started to lose his ambition, but he never let go of his childhood dream, no matter what anyone else said. Midoriya had heard rumours that some people had seen All Might out and about in his village so he set out to look for him. Harvest season had just begun, and the village was crowded with people.

Fate set into motion the second he set foot outside the cozy confines of his home.

Midoriya was about halfway down the hill when he heard screams from below.

"Fire!" Somebody shouted from down the path. Curious, Midoriya took a few steps forward and stared down at the marketplace. Frightened shoppers were pushing and shoving their way up the hill to get away from the burning building. The smell of smoke burned his nostrils as he got closer and closer to the scene. He froze with fear. These were the biggest flames Midoriya had ever seen.

"My son! Can someone please save my son!" A townswoman cried. Tears streamed down her face as she knelt down on the grass. Midoriya quickly scanned the surrounding area, looking for help. Nobody else was nearby. He started panicking, frantically looking for help from someone other than himself - someone with a quirk, magic, anything.

It felt like the world was closing in on him. Without thinking, Midoriya took off down the path and charged straight into the burning building. It felt hot, unbelievably hot. Every breath he took was filled with smoke. "Is there anybody in here?" He called, coughing. A muffled cry came from up the stairs. Midoriya ran up the stairs calling out to the boy again. He scanned every corner of the only room left, flames closing in around him. He spotted the boy's small frame hidden behind what was left of a desk. "Hold on, I'm-I'm coming!" Midoriya choked, starting to crawl under the smoke.

He inched closer and closer to the boy, each movement becoming slower as the flames closed in. It got harder and harder to breathe, but he finally reached the boy and scooped him up in his arms, as they both coughed uncontrollably. Midoriya put the boy on his back and wrapped the boy's tiny hands around his neck.

"Keep your hands around my neck," he said. "Don't let go."

The boy didn't respond, but Midoriya could feel his hands squeeze him tightly. Midoriya crawled on his hands and knees towards the window. His vision got blurry as burning tears rolled down his cheeks. He tried to take deep, heavy breaths as flames licked at his boots. He couldn't move anymore. There was nowhere left to go.

So this is how I die.

Every breath felt like his last as his vision faded away. Just before he blacked out, he could hear the unmistakable laugh of his one and only idol. It was almost a floating sensation as Midoriya felt himself being picked up and then being set on the soft grass. One minute passed. Then two. Then ten. He groaned and slowly sat up, still coughing out the last remnants of smoke. The little boy he had attempted to rescue was now hugging his mother tightly, but he didn't remember carrying him out of the building. What had happened? He turned around to see All Might standing right beside him.

Was he dreaming? Was that really All Might standing above him? He rubbed his eyes, but the figure before him didn't disappear. Midoriya opened his mouth to say something, but it was completely dry. Complete shock and awe overtook him for a moment and he passed out.

Midoriya awoke to All Might standing directly above him. He remembered running into that burning building to save the boy and faintly hearing All Might's voice, but everything after that was a blur. But before Midoriya could fully process what had just happened to him and the reason his childhood hero was in his bedroom, his mom burst through the door, tears in her eyes.

"Oh Izuku, I'm so glad you're safe! Do you know how worried I was?" She exclaimed as she pulled him into a tight hug.

"Mom, I'm so sorry." Midoriya cried. A wave of guilt washed over him. What was he thinking running into danger like that? He couldn't imagine the distress his mother had felt once she had heard her son had run into a burning building. She looked up at him and burst into tears.

"Please don't ever do that again, Izuku."

"I won't mom. I promise. I know it was a bad idea but the lady…" he trailed off. "The lady's son! Is he alright?"

"The boy is fine. You should be more worried about yourself though," a deep voice boomed behind him. "You got some pretty terrible burns from that fire."

Midoriya turned around to see All Might standing just outside his bedroom. So it wasn't a dream after all. He almost passed out again from the shock of seeing his hero standing inside his house.

"I think I'll leave you two alone," Mrs. Midoriya said, smiling as she left the room.

"All Might?!" Midoriya could barely spit out the words. "Oh my gosh. Y-you're here? And-and you just saved me! I'm such a big fan. Do I - I don't have anything for you to sign, I-" He looked down. All Might's had a piece of parchment in his hand with his signature scribbled on it in black ink.

"You already signed something too?! Wow, you really are great!" Midoriya shakily took the piece of paper and cradled it in his hands. All Might gave a small chuckle.

"Your name's Midoriya, right?" All Might asked. Midoriya just nodded slightly.

"Just make sure you don't get in any more trouble like that again, you hear me boy? That was a very risky move you pulled there."

"I-It won't happen again sir!"

All Might turned towards the door, as if ready to leave.

"Wait! I-I have so many questions! Please just let me ask you at least one thing!" The fanboy pleaded, as he held onto All Might's shirt.. All Might paused for a second, and much to Midoriya's horror, coughed up blood and deflated.

"All Might! I-Is that you? What happened? Are you alright?" He questioned the deflated figure standing in front of him.

"It's, ah...quite a long story." All Might sighed as he sat down next to Midoriya.

"Do you think you could tell me?"

The hero gave the boy a reluctant smile, and sighed.. "It started after I had made headway in the information that I had collected on Nebulones."

"You mean Nebulones, the group of assassins?" Midoriya eagerly inquired.

"You know about them?" All Might asked in surprise.

"Of course I know about them! Nebulones is the group of assassins that targeted the king a few years ago." He responded, tapping his chin as if in deep thought. But before he could ramble on, All Might interrupted him.

"Yes, but as I was saying, I stormed their headquarters without any backup. It was a foolish decision. I got into a big fight there and got a severe injury, and the attack just narrowly missed most of my vital organs. It's a miracle I'm still alive, really." He lifted up his shirt to reveal a huge scar along the side of his body. Midoriya slightly recoiled at the sight.

"But the worst was that I lost One For All."

"Wait! You lost One for All?" Midoriya paused for a moment. Wasn't One For All a quirk? How can someone lose a quirk?

"I'm not done explaining yet, young Midoriya." All Might continued. "One For All isn't exactly a quirk. It's a weapon that has been passed down through the ages, and it grants the user immense power. But if you go too long without using the weapon, the power it grants you slowly starts to fade away. And a couple years back during that fight I mentioned earlier, I...lost it. I've been hanging on to what remains of my power ever since."

"So that would explain why you've been keeping yourself away from the public these past few years!" Midoriya exclaimed. All Might gave him a tired smile and a nod, confirming the boy's assumption.

"But an undercover group like Nebulones messed you up that bad?" Midoriya asked. "I mean I've never seen you lose a fight, and I think I would have heard about something this big. So who exactly from that group were you up against?"

"That's something better kept as a secret," All Might answered. "Even from you, my boy."

"What? But why? Why can't you tell anyone?" Midoriya questioned.

"It's too dangerous, that's why."

"But I can help! I-I mean, if you let me, I'm sure I can help you find the group again, or maybe even locate One For All, or-"

"The answer's no, alright young Midoriya?" All Might raised his voice. There was a moment of silence.

"Do you even have a quirk, or magic? Do you use any weapons?" All Might asked.

"Well, um...no," Midoriya answered sheepishly. "But I've always wanted to learn how to use a sword."

All Might gave him a blank look and started laughing.

"What's so funny?" Midoriya asked, confused. "Why are you laughing? Did I do something wrong?"

"You ran into a burning building and you didn't even have anything that could help you, let alone a plan." All Might chuckled..

"Well, someone needed help. It was an impulse decision," Midoriya retorted.

"You have to do better than that if you're gonna save someone, kid. Maybe…" All Might trailed off. Midoriya looked at him expectantly, waiting for him to finish his sentence.

"Maybe you could help me. You have your heart in the right place, young Midoriya. What you did back there was risky, but taking a step forward and pushing past your fear is a true sign of a hero. And now that I've told you my secret, I could start mentoring you. You could help me find One For All. What do you say?"

Midoriya was awestruck. First he gets to meet his childhood hero, then learns about the reason he's been gone for so long, and the truth about his power. And now his hero was offering mentorship! All Might, debatably the greatest hero of all time, was asking a nobody like him for help.

"Really?! I-I mean, yes! Of course, I would love to. Oh, especially if I get to use a sword!" He finally answered.

"Of course I'll teach you how to use a sword," All Might said with a chuckle. "Alright then. Your training starts tomorrow, at the crack of dawn." He suddenly burst into his large form, hitting his head on the ceiling. Midoriya softly chuckled, and didn't have time to wave goodbye as his hero jumped out the window and disappeared.

Midoriya stared up at the ceiling in shock. He still wasn't sure any of this was real. Everything that had happened that day felt like a dream. He looked down at his hand with the piece of paper with All Might's signature. Smiling, he stuck it up on the wall above his bed. The moon had just started to peek above the townhouses. Midoriya lay down, deciding to get some sleep before he had to wake up early the next morning. Now he would finally get to be somebody.

The next few months of training were rigorous. Midoriya got up at four o'clock each morning and met All Might in the small clearing at the edge of town. That first morning, All Might started the training by having Midoriya run laps. Next, he did upward, forward, and side swings followed by some forward thrusts. After this All Might proceeded to attack Midoriya, initiating a duel. Unfortunately Midoriya didn't foresee the attack. He lost his footing and fell.

"When fighting, your feet should always be at a 30-degree angle, young Midoriya." All Might instructed as he tapped Midoriya on the head with his sword. After Midoriya got up, All Might attacked again, all while shouting pointers and correcting Midoriya's faulty moves.

Almost every day after that was the same; running laps, sword fighting, and then heavy lifting. All Might didn't really have proper training equipment, so he just handed Midoriya every heavy object available. Sometimes they were too heavy. He could recount all the times he had almost been completely crushed by boulders and even trees at times. After that there would be something new each day: survival skills, swimming, learning how to use a different weapon, even doing tasks for the townsfolk. Midoriya pushed himself harder and harder every day, but sometimes it seemed like it was never enough. But he knew one day it would pay off.

~Seven months later~

He'd done it. Izuku Midoriya had trained seven whole months for this day. Since day one, he had been training to become strong enough to tackle anything that could be thrown his way. Helping All Might find One For All would be a large task. The hero didn't really know the exact location of the legendary weapon, but he had a general idea. That still would be a lot of ground to cover, and even travelling to the site would be a challenge. Not to mention the fact that it was somewhere in the Nebulones headquarters.

"Are you ready?" All MIght asked Midoriya, as they both stood outside the boy's house.

"Just about," Midoriya answered, looking through his bag of supplies for the fifth time. He had a couple of coins, smoked meat, a skin of water, first aid materials, and his sword.

"I just have to say goodbye to my mother before we go." Midoriya hesitated.

"We?" All Might questioned. "Oh, you're going by yourself."

"WHAT?" Midoriya exploded. "B-but there's no way I'll be able to do this on my own!"

"Of course you can," All Might reassured hAim. "Your training these past few months have prepared you for this. This is your chance to prove yourself. And honestly, I'm proud of you young Midoriya." The boy lit up at the praise. Even though he'd gotten to know the hero over time, he still couldn't help being a fanboy.

"Izuku!" The unmistakable voice of his mother's voice came from behind them. Midoriya turned around as he felt Mrs. Midoriya's tight hug. Her eyes welled with tears. "Just know that I couldn't be prouder of you, son. Be safe out there, alright?"

"Don't worry mom," He answered, blinking back his own tears. "I'll be fine."

This journey would mean leaving his home, for who knows how long.

"Here. You'll need this," All Might said, handing Midoriya a rolled up piece of parchment. As Midoriya slipped out of his mother's tight grip.. He unrolled the parchment, revealing a map of the kingdom. A bright red circle marked his destination - the city of Calidi, the capital of the kingdom.

"I'm gonna head out now. Thank you both so much for everything." Midoriya started walking down the path then sped up with excitement. He turned around one last time to see All Might and his mother waving and shouting goodbye. He gave one last wave before disappearing over the hill, towards his adventure.

His journey to becoming a hero had begun.

A/N: Thank you so much for reading! This really means a lot and I hope you're enjoying the story so far. Leaving a feedback would be really helpful because I know we can always improve.

Thanks again!