This AU follows Izuku Midoriya who never meets All Might or saves Bakugo from the sludge villain. He has grown through high school and still does not seem to have a quirk. Class 1-A and B have continued training and the LOV has proceeded to attack just like in the manga. However, everything that happens during the Overhaul arc has not occurred yet. The characters are just older and time has shifted. It's time to find out what Izuku's been up to all these years...

There will be OC's introduced, special chapters dedicated to other characters, but most of all, Izuku's journey to becoming a hero in his own way. I hope you enjoy it!

Chapter Ten: The Awakening Part II

Izuku burst through the flames with gritted teeth. Even with his sweater over his head and shoulders, he could still feel the heat singeing his exposed body. While the fire extinguisher didn't do much, it did help disperse the flames and smoke a little.

No matter where he turned though, Izuku was met with blocked paths and rising flames. The smoke was the worst in the hallway and he felt like passing out with each breath.

"Kota..!" Izuku yelled, as he stumbled towards the staircase that led to the second floor. The bathrooms near the classroom were still under construction, so Izuku had to assume Kota had gone upstairs.

He felt the flames licking at his calves as he climbed. Every now and then, a piece of the top floor would come down and block his path, causing him to jump. By the time he reached the top, his body had no more energy to react quickly, however, and a piece of burning wood knocked him to the ground.

Izuku felt the plank burn through his sweater and he screamed. Tears squeezed out of his eyes and he used all of his strength to roll to the side, barely putting out the flames that had started burning his body. It took him a while to move again, but he eventually stood up, Nighteye's worlds circling in his head. Mocking him. Making him want to stop and give in to the flames.

Useless.

"Shut up," he grumbled, wiping at his eyes and dragging his feet across the floor. Izuku couldn't tell where he was going because the flames made everything look the same, but he didn't stop. If he did, he risked being caught by another falling object.

"Kota… where are you?" Izuku cried out weakly, finding a piece of wall that wasn't on fire and leaning on it for support. He looked at the burning bathroom door in horror. Had he been too late?

Okay, relax. He might still be alive. If he managed to make it out of the bathroom and the stairs were inaccessible, where could he have gone? Izuku wondered as he squinted through the smoke. In the corner of his eyes, he noticed one of the classroom doors was slightly open. It was hard to tell because most of that side of the room was on fire, but he figured Kota must have been the one to open it.

There. He has to be in there.

"Kota, I'm coming for you. Just hold on!" Izuku yelled as he rushed back into the flames, letting out another piercing shriek when the fire skimmed his limbs.

The soles of his shoes were completely burned off and he could feel the floor scalding his feet. But Izuku kept trudging towards the door, biting down on his lips to keep from screaming. He could feel blood mixing in with his saliva and he ignored it, only swallowing when he could no longer hold his breath.

Izuku then kicked at the door until there was enough of an opening for him to get inside. As soon as he entered, the wall behind him collapsed in on itself, sending him to the ground.

He fell with a thud and scraped his chin on the floor. For a while, all he could see were tiny white stars. "Kota..? Are you in here?" he called out, trying to lift himself from the ground. His body was sweating so badly he slipped and slammed his head on the floor again. This time the world turned black for a couple of seconds.

Izuku weakly rubbed at his eyes and started to regain his sight. This classroom seemed to be in worse shape than his own. Almost all the desks were up in flames and all of the bookshelves had toppled over. The ceiling was also caving in and Izuku assumed it was going to collapse any second now.

"Kota?" he tried again, but he could barely speak.

Izuku crawled forward on shaky arms and legs, frantically looking around for a place the flames hadn't reached.

And that's when he saw him.

Laying near the opposite side of the room, right underneath where the roof was dented with flames. Izuku's heartbeat quickened and he tried to stand but the sudden movement made him dizzy.

"Kota," he breathed out. The boy seemed unconscious, laying on his side with his eyes closed, but Izuku swore he heard him cough.

"I'm here now, Kota. I'm… here," Izuku said, but the more he talked, the weaker he felt. It was like his body could no longer let him move, just like in his dream. He was stuck.

He was truly useless.

Izuku weakly stretched out his arm, staring at it in horror. It was covered in burn marks and there were parts where his skin was peeling.

Then he fell on his stomach in a coughing fit. It hurt to breathe, it hurt to move, it hurt to think.

Kota… I'm sorry. I couldn't save you, I–

"H–help," despite the hiss of the flames all around, Izuku heard Kota's frail voice clearly. He was asking for help. He was still alive.

Izuku looked up, right as the ceiling collapsed. But everything after that moment happened in slow motion.

At first, he felt his body start to tingle, specifically his legs. Am I on fire? He wondered as he managed to pick himself up and started running towards Kota, arriving in what seemed like the blink of an eye. His speed shocked him but Izuku had no time to think about it, as he reached out his arms to pick Kota up before the ceiling fell on top of them. Then, he started running again. He didn't know why, and he would've stopped, but a part of him told him to keep going despite the fact that he was about to run into the wall in front of him.

I need to get out. I need to help Kota escape.

He felt the tingling spread to his arms and upper body as he held onto Kota tightly with one hand, and reached out with the other. When the wall was just inches away from his face, Izuku made a fist and punched through it with all his might. A slight tingle of pain blossomed from his fist, but then his whole body started vibrating with a mysterious feeling. He watched as the bricks came apart and everything exploded.

Izuku pulled Kota into his body tightly and squeezed as the two fell through the air. Kota felt surprisingly light in his hands. In that brief moment, Izuku also felt no pain. He was well aware of how fast his heart was beating though.

The smoke started to clear as they fell and Izuku braced himself for impact watching as the ground grew closer until…

Thud.

Izuku's shoulder slammed onto the floor and he rolled off to the side, letting go of Kota from the power of the impact. Once his body stopped thrashing about, Izuku laid with his back to the floor, staring up at the burning skies. In the distance, he could hear an ambulance and the sound of children screaming.

He closed his eyes, unable to keep them open anymore. Then he heard someone calling his name. A girl. She sounded familiar but Izuku was in too much pain to figure out who it was. All of it seemed to have come back, crashing down on him again. The tingling sensation from before was gone and his body felt extremely weak.

"Midoriya, Midoriya! Oh my god, he's not breathing. Principal Mori, he's not breathing. Please. We have to help. We have to do something!" the girl's voice screamed and he could feel someone shaking him. Kiho.

Izuku wanted to answer her cries, but the rough landing had knocked out all of the remaining air in his body. Slowly, he felt the pain spreading throughout his body consume him.

All he could do now was hope. That Kota had survived. That Lemillion would find Eri. And that everyone would be okay without their sensei.

Then, he blacked out.

—

Place your bets on what Izuku's quirk is now or forever hold your peace! I'm actually really excited to tell you what it is, but that won't happen until he realizes it for himself. It's actually inspired by his relationship with the kids, but that's the only hint I'm going to give you. There will also be some clues in the upcoming chapters so remember to read closely! Hope you enjoyed this chapter and that I didn't make you wait too long for the outcome ;)

I just wish everything gets fixed on this site and everyone can read chapters again. I heard it's not affecting the app so maybe you can try that? Either way, I'm going to start cross-posting too. See you soon!