Capcom, Mega Man, and all related characters are registered trademarks of Capcom Co., Ltd. My Hero Academia is owned by Kohei Horikoshi, Shueisha, Viz Media and Studio Bones.
I originally planned to post only when I finished an 'Arc' but I guess this is okay enough to see if people are interested. I will post after arcs are completed. Please enjoy.
Chapter 1: Butterfly Effect
Midoriya Izuku wasn't having a good day. In fact, he never had good days. All men weren't created equal; He learned this lesson at the tender age of four. His entire life had been spent hammering that in, and yet he still had the dream of becoming a hero.
However he was what society called, Quirkless, one with no individuality, no power. He was a minority, one out of every five that would be Quirkless. This is why as time moved and he grew, things changed. The way people looked and acted around him changed.
Those eyes, those piercing eyes that narrowed and curled from the adults. At first he simply wasn't allowed to join in on some games that the other kids played, while sometimes they pulled him aside, asking that he stand by his teachers when a school event happened.
It started when they didn't want him to get hurt, because his peers often didn't have full control over their quirks until later in the school years. During school's early months, he would sit by as teachers helped every person with a quirk learn how to control their powers. He had to watch, and Izuku was aware of the teacher's eyes. They felt sorry for him. Pity.
When he was out and about with other people, the dreaded question he always had to answer was 'what's your quirk?' He couldn't lie, because anyone that had a quirk would naturally show it off. The eyes of whoever learned of his quirkless nature looked at him with those same eyes.
He still remembered the visit at the doctor's office like it was yesterday. The day when he found out he was truly quirkless. He sat there in his room, watching the video of All Might saving countless people in a crisis of fire and destruction, all with a smile that eased everyone around him.
He wanted that smile to help him through his strife.
Over time, the looks of pity turned to glares, the glares to sneers, and finally to mocking. Most of it from his own generation. The bullying started, the fights, the bruises.
Izuku hoped… he begged that one day he would have a quirk himself. That he'd be normal. The days were long as he waited for one day to get his own quirk. The days turned to weeks, months and finally years.
He was just… numb to it all.
Thankfully no one started anything with him yet; Kacchan kept to himself and his group of friends during class. And today, it was one of those days again. The teacher announced it was time for the class to start thinking about their plans and laying down hopes for their future. It wasn't surprising that everyone announced that they wanted to become professional heroes. Izuku joined in on it, albeit with a meek raise of the hand.
Kacchan went above and beyond with absolute confidence and declared himself to be 'at another level' than everyone else and that he'd make it into U.A. Kacchan liked to do that a lot. It would have been weird for anyone else, but Izuku believed Kacchan would make it. He was the one who got first hand experience with Kacchan's quirk many times and he knew how great and useful a quirk like that would be.
The day and class could have ended just like that but it didn't. Of course it didn't.
Someone noticed him and muttered how Izuku was also trying to get into U.A. Thankfully what happened afterwards was only a public humiliation and everyone in class was laughing at him. It wasn't bad to be honest, he was used to it. What actually bothered him was what happened afterwards.
Kacchan and his two followers stayed by the doors, waiting for the rest of the class to file out first. Soon Izuku's desk was destroyed, blown away by another example of Kacchan's quirk. He'd been beaten up numerous times before, whether it was from his classmates, people from other schools or Kacchan himself.
But this was a complete change.
"Heroes Analysis for my future number thirteen," Kacchan started with a mocking tone. His notebook was ripped from his hands as he watched wide eyed. The book dangled in Kacchan's hands. "What is this shit Deku?!"
Izuku didn't wince, being used to his childhood friend's crass nature.
"You still have that delusion?!" Kacchan yelled, one of his hands sparkling from his explosion quirk's aftereffects.
…
This was the first time Izuku's notebook was ever destroyed. And since he wasn't finished, Kacchan then threw it outside to land in a water fountain down below.
"Y-you…"
Kacchan snorted, "What can you even do Deku? Forget about having crappy quirks, you're quirkless!" Rather than waiting for an answer, he continued, "Being a hero, all you're gonna end up doing is being rescued!"
Izuku didn't say anything. He couldn't refute it as Kacchan stepped forward with a smile on his face, putting a hand on his shoulder in a way that could have been interpreted as friendly, if not for the steam rising from his palm.
His eyes were fixated on it, his body shaking with fear.
"Forget about U.A. little nerd."
As quickly as it came, Kacchan retracted his hand and strode to the door with his two followers. Izuku stood there like usual, a silent look on his face as his mouth went up and down, trying to find a response.
Izuku choked.
"Just leave him. He's a sad sack that even being a senior… he can't even face the reality in front of him." One of the two followers sighed.
The second jeered, "As usual, he can't even talk back."
But Kacchan's words stung in a way that hit deeper than the rest.
"Ah, Deku, If you really want a quirk so badly, there is a way to get one."
What? How, Izuku wanted to know.
"If you wanna be a hero so bad, why don't you do everyone a favor and go swan dive off the roof!" Kacchan roared with laughter.
That was it! That was the last straw!
He snapped around, fresh tears starting to fall as he glared. Kacchan scowled back menacingly, casually setting off miniature explosions in his hand.
"You got something to say?"
"Won't... give up."
"Huh?"
This time he spoke louder, "I'm not going to give up! It doesn't matter how hard it'll be! It doesn't matter if I'm quirkless! I will become a hero!"
Kacchan's glare twisted into pure rage. "DEKU!"
"You can't stop me!" He shouted back.
The next thing he knew a sick crack echoed into his ears, a dull throbbing formed as he reared back from the heavy punch. Kacchan was there, right at his face as another hand gripped Izuku's collar. He tried struggling free but Kacchan was a whole head taller than him. The hold was so rough and high that his feet left the ground.
"Man can you believe this? After all that, you're still delusional." One of the two that normally followed Kacchan mocked, heard throughout the one sided beatdown.
"Guess it wasn't just a rumor that Midoriya's old man abandoned his own son cuz the kid was some quirkless invalid." The second jeered.
Izuku's tears continued to flow, not just in anger but in shame. It was a fact that his home only had him and his mom. His father was nowhere to be found.
Kacchan paused from hitting him again. Izuku peered through an already swelling eye, awaiting the next blow.
"Oi." What was different was that Kacchan switched the target of his ire towards those that normally followed him. A crazed eye stared unblinkingly at the two. "Which fuck said that?"
"B-baku-" Before the kid with elongated hands quirk could continue, a huge explosive encrusted fist blew into the kid's face. The boy flew out into a wall, colliding into it. They could see a huge gush of blood dripping down his nose. "G-guh."
Everything seemed to stop for Izuku as he felt the grip on his shirt loosen. Kacchan turned around to sneer at the pair who usually were so 'supportive' of the bully.
Kacchan's voice was dangerously calm.
"You've got three seconds before I smatter your skulls across the pavement."
They didn't think twice before running. Kacchan scowled briefly before going back to Izuku.
"One of those idiots was right though." A chill ran through his spine as Kacchan raised his fist, "You're fucking delusional!"
It took all Izuku could to raise his arms up in a weak attempt at protecting himself. The first hit went to his stomach, next the ribs and then the shoulder. He felt his legs pulled from under him as Kacchan made a sweeping kick.
A painful thud smacked his back, making him cough up spittle. Izuku struggled to get up but fell right back on his ass. He looked up to see Kacchan stare at him, one hand raised threatening the use of his quirk.
"You'll never be a hero."
He couldn't help it. It was his dream, ever since the first time he saw All Might, ever since he was a child. His head throbbed, he could taste iron, and one of his eyes was getting dangerously swollen, enough to make him half-blind.
"Just like All Might won't give up, I won't stop." His words seemed to get a reaction.
Kacchan muttered, "Just like All Might huh?"
The next thing Izuku saw was another fist colliding with his face. A sickening crack echoed in the empty classroom.
"God damn it Deku! How many times does it have to be drilled into you?!"
"Gaaaaaaah!" Just as he reached up to cover his nose, a foot jutted into his stomach, making him crash into a nearby desk. Izuku coughed a few times as the rustling and the sharp tug from his hair had him fully aware of what was going to happen.
"You wanna be a hero so bad even though you're quirkless, how about you get a first hand experience!?"
"Bwaaa-" His forehead crashed into the desk that he hit seconds ago. A wet smack echoed again into his ears, letting Izuku feel warm blood dripping to the floor.
"This is what happens when a weak piece of shit goes against a villian! I was going easy on you before but I guess this time I have to really give you the dose of reality you need!" Kacchan roared into his ear.
A rough outline of a hand painfully gripped the side of his head, a greyish white canvas shone from the sun's orange glow told him it was the wall.
And he was going to smack it.
"Without a quirk, you can't do shit!"
Kacchan made sure to hit him on the wall or the floor more often than any other piece of furniture. He tried to resist, to get off of him, swinging back wildly but to no avail.
"What would you expect was going to happen? For such a nerd thinking about hero and villain powers, you can't get it in your head." Kacchan kept angrily screaming at him, adding more punches and kicks as he continued, "Doesn't matter what happens, you can't beat raw power!"
A rough scrape with the wall again had Izuku scream when the concrete tugged at his ears. His vision was bloody and weak.
"You might as well take a swan dive if you're trying to be a hero. You'll die on your debut like the Deku you are!"
And suddenly it all clicked. Izuku felt his weight lessen as he was gruffly thrown back on his feet. He wobbled unsteadily, turning to the sounds of bags landing by his feet.
"... I won't stop you from that fucking death wish of yours anymore."
"Kacchan…" He whispered.
The boy scowled, "Go home Deku."
When he realized Kacchan was just going to stand there, he slowly and tenderly reached for his school bags, walking outside to where the fallen notebook laid. He steeled himself before looking over it.
Years of research compiled into one book, completely destroyed from front to back. Pages that weren't sogged or burnt to a crisp were illegible. He expected as much but it hurt to see the damage for himself.
Izuku sighed despondently, drying the pages as best as he could before returning it to his bag. He could have thrown it away, but his mind was racing with so many thoughts; One part of him wanted to write another book, start again and run in search for more hero/villain battles. Pretend that today didn't happen.
The other part of him was more obvious. The glaring ache all over his body forced him to go back to that moment earlier, as he ignored everything around him on his walk back home. He ignored the commotion of a battle on the other side of the block and just trudged along.
Kacchan let him go, after a lengthy beatdown of course. But it was different than before. And there was that moment where Kacchan defended him before sending him home bloody.
"You've got three seconds before I smatter your skulls across the pavement."
The instant where Kacchan went into a state of pure unadulterated anger spewing like he wanted to kill someone was fresh on his mind.
Just as he was heading back closer to his home, his phone rang. He fished it out and answered, "Hello, mom? It's Izuku."
"Izuku, baby, I'm sorry to call on short notice but something came up so I need to stay out longer than normal. I'll be home late today."
"Sure, don't worry mom!"
"I already have dinner made so just warm it up when you're hungry! I'll see you soon dear, I love you!"
"Love you too mom!" Izuku hung up. He wouldn't have to try and explain his wounds or dodge her questions when he got home, so it became a happy accident.
"God damn it Deku! How many times does it have to be drilled into you?!"
Kacchan did care, Izuku thought. In his own tactless Bakugo way. Ignoring everything around him, he moved forward. Closer and closer to his home as he waited for the elevator to stop at his floor.
"You might as well take a swan dive if you're trying to be a hero. You'll die on your debut like the Deku you are!"
Izuku felt conflicted about that. He knew Kacchan didn't mean it as an insult and an instigation to suicide, but he somehow knew Kacchan cared. Maybe Kacchan was right in some way. But it was another thing to face off someone with an incredibly powerful quirk with nothing aside from your fists. His ruminations led him back to his room, turning on his monitor to watch the same video he kept on bookmark since he was a kid.
He wanted to watch new and upcoming heroes, pick up and write down everything he could about all the quirks he could find. Categorizing their strengths, weaknesses and ways to improve or disable quirks like it was nobody's business, outside of professional institutions. Just seeing good triumph over evil, he felt that he needed some of that lately.
"Doesn't matter what happens, you can't beat raw power!"
On the other hand he knew Kacchan was giving him tough love. At first he was just an inkling but now, this time it was plainly said for all to see and hear. He didn't like it, he didn't accept it, but he understood.
"Fear not! Why, you ask? Because I am here!"
The sounds of the video played back for him again. He watched All Might brave through the devastation of fire and ruin, all with a smile on his face as he searched for as many survivors as he could. Never stopping, never giving up even when he faced the most dangerous and powerful of villains.
Because Izuku was always a crybaby, always a coward... Kacchan didn't want him to die. Didn't see that he'd stand up for himself. And if he couldn't stand up for himself, how could he stand up for others?
Izuku began to mutter things, ignoring everything around him, as he sometimes did without noticing. He had to work on his problem the other way. Just simply watching and learning did little to solve the actual problem. If he couldn't be a hero without a quirk, maybe… no, fighting evil with martial arts or a bow and arrow would just get himself killed. There were heroes like that before, when only half or less of the population had quirks. Their time passed long ago.
It would really be exactly like taking a swan dive off a roof like Kacchan said. Even though he hated how it was stated with zero remorse or care.
But there was technology for it to be somewhat possible. A tech based hero? Fighting villains with high tech gadgets or even a power suit? A large number of heroes out there often fought with a slew of support items on them. Some were even big names overseas.
Izuku shook his head; it was just as implausible as going out as a non-powered hero. A crazy plan like that would need money. Lots and lots of money. Cash he did not have, unless he somehow obtained some unrealistic inheritance or suddenly won a lottery. Unless he gained help from some inventor benefactor that idea was- what was that?
Izuku froze, his eyes raised at the monitor. Windows popped up with chat screens in blue and red text.
You can do it!
You think this little thing is going to keep you down?!
Believe in yourself!
A frown appeared on Izuku as he scrolled through all the new pop-ups, reading them all to see what the next scam was. He closed them off only for them to reappear again just as quickly. Click, click, ding, they kept coming.
Grow a spine!
Think outside the box, anyone can be a hero!
Get some help! There's this place-
Being unable to close them all had Izuku check his virus scanner. The pretty no-substance words belonging in a fortune cookie shone with a mocking brightness that Izuku couldn't stand anymore, and when the program gave the sign of the 'all clear'; It had him growl in frustration. There was something wrong! Wasn't it obvious?!
Wet lines fell on his cheeks that Izuku wiped away with his sleeve. Everything came crashing down on him. He sniffed, features wrinkling away from the dim hope of before. The frustration turned to sadness and then to anger. Izuku balled his fists and slammed it onto his desk, earning bruises on both hands.
A surge of bitterness and anger towards himself grew more powerful. The shame he felt when old wounds from that one bully who broke his nose from Kacchan's fist reared its ugly head, overpowering any delusions,
Izuku realized becoming a hero was really, truly impossible.
"I won't stop you from that fucking death wish of yours anymore."
A sob escaped Izuku as he failed to reign his feelings, the efforts from many years of bottling up his emotions came tumbling into a solid lump in his throat. His eyes were so swollen he couldn't see what was left, right or front and center anymore. His knees felt so weak he couldn't even pry himself off the desk. If he was honest with himself, he didn't want to try.
The drowsiness following his breakdown was swift and Izuku was lulled to sleep with his cheek still flattened on his desk. The video of All Might saving over a hundred people within seconds of his debut replayed time and time again, the auto replay icon doing what it was supposed to.
No one was there to see a light begin to shine around his forehead.
3,311 word(s)
