It's been ages since I'd posted anything to this story. Figured I'd rectify that. Just a heads up posts for this story will be slowing down even more given I'm starting to commit to writing my first original story so I need to make time for that. With that out of the way let's get on with the chapter.

Chapter 5: A Day in the Life

It was a dark dreary night. Rain was pouring as the wind howled. On this night, several men and women were gathered in a warehouse. They were villains, the criminals of society. They were going through their wares and planning out their next move. They, like many villains, had to lay low due to the heroes and other rival criminal organizations. However unlike many times when these particular villains gathered, there's an unusual tension in the air. A feeling of dread that permeated the building.

"Geez… its nights like these that really send chills down your spine." One man noted.

"I know what you mean. Ever since HE came on peoples payroll the nights have gotten me especially antsy." Another added. "What do you think Takashi?"

He looked to his right to see no one there.

"Takashi?" He asked again.

He went around some crates to look for the man, only to find his body decapitated and lying within a pool of his own blood.

"SHIT!" He shouted.

He rushed back out.

"Guys we've got…" He began only to stop when he saw the state of the room.

Everyone was dead. Blood was everywhere and many were killed in a brutal manner. The only sound that could be heard was the dripping of blood. The man's own blood ran cold as he began to hyperventilate. He looked around frantically. His head was darting from one spot to another. He kept looking around, his breaths becoming more panicked. Then his head left his body and he crumpled to the ground dead. The only indication someone was there was the blood that pooled around an area that outlined boots. A trail of footprints were made as the invisible figure walked away, stopping only a brief moment to wipe the blood off of his boots. It left without a trace.

The next day…

A now fourteen year old Izumi was browsing through her phone as she got ready to leave. She was a peerless beauty that looked mature for her age. She kept her hair short.

"Hey Izu, what are you looking at?" Katsuki asked as he walked up to her.

"Hmm… oh… just some recent hero news, apparently there was another attack made by Hunter." Izumi explained.

"Uh oh… it wasn't a hero again was it?" Katsuki inquired.

Izumi shook her head no.

"Some villain organization this time. From what I've seen despite its prevalence in the news cycle, he tends to hit villains and villain organizations much more often than heroes." Izumi explained. "Even when going after heroes it's usually the head hero in an agency and not the whole agency."

"How comforting." Katsuki replied sarcastically.

Izumi rolled her eyes as she made her way out the door with Katsuki in tow.

"I'm surprised you're not going on about how 'you're the best' or 'I could take him down'." She stated in a mocking tone.

Katsuki rolled his eyes.

"I'm pridefully not stupid. That guys probably a Destroyer like you. I'm just glad he operates internationally or Japan would have a lot of bodies to bury with that nut job running around." He noted.

"That's… one way to look at it I guess. Though from what they've gathered he's actually just a really skilled mercenary/bounty hunter not a crazy psychopath." She explained.

"Oh yes, I'll sleep soundly at night knowing he'll only come after me if someone pays him enough." Katsuki retorted.

"Just stating facts Kacchan." Izumi replied.

The two made their way off of school grounds.

"So you gonna walk with me to go train or head off elsewhere?" Izumi asked.

She looked at him with a small cute smile that, with her natural beauty, had single-handedly earned her the title of 'The Great Beauty of Aldera'. Katsuki's face heated up into a bright red.

"Oh… I ahh… ah… nah… I'll ah… go elsewhere and train, yeah… train… elsewhere… need to… work on my solo abilities." Katsuki quickly stated before rushing off.

Izumi giggled.

"I wonder when he's finally gonna ask me out." She muttered to herself before making her way down home.

She decided to take a different, longer route today so she could enjoy the beautiful spring day. As she did, she passed under an overpass. As she just exited it a villain made of sludge slithered up out of the manhole cover.

"Ohhh… a fine looking skin suit. And she's not even paying attention. This is perfect." He declared. "Time to take your body for myself."

He quickly went to attack, only to be frozen solid.

"I wonder what I should make for dinner tonight after training. If I want to be a good wife I need to master as many dishes as I can. And make a few of my own." She noted.

She continued walking down the street when suddenly she stopped, grabbed a lamppost, and braced herself as a powerful gust of wind blew past her. She quickly turned around ready for whoever it was only to stop. Her eyes went wide and she squealed in pure joy.

"ALL MIGHT!" She exclaimed.

All Might looked up in surprise from his punching position. This only grew as Izumi zoomed up to him.

"It's really you! I haven't seen you in person since you visited me in the hospital! That was the best by the way. Especially since you sent me your autograph later which I still have framed in my room hanging on a wall." She stated.

She then realized what she just admitted and her face turned a bright red. She quickly went sulking over to a wall and lightly pounded her head against it.

"Stupid, stupid, stupid, why would you just admit something so creepy like that." She muttered. "Stupid, stupid, stupid…"

She continued to berate herself as All Might watch in mild confusion. He cleared his throat.

"Well… Ah… that's nice to hear young lady. And don't worry, trust me I've heard weirder from people who've admitted it with no shame." All Might replied.

"Still embarrassing." She mumbled.

"A-a-a-a-anyways I should clean up this villain. Though for your sake I hope he's alive given he was frozen." All Might noted.

"Only the exterior, I left most of his body liquid so he hopefully wouldn't die." Izumi stated, still banging her head against the wall.

She pointed to the liquid sludge splattered across the street.

"Also he attacked me with the intent to take over my body. Even I'd have trouble surviving that, so it can easily be covered under self-defense if he dies." She pointed out, still hitting her head against the wall.

"Right…" All Might replied.

All Might continued to watch as she banged her head against the wall, thinking of a way to get her to stop. Then it came to him.

"Young lady, how would you like to help me clean up this villain?" All Might asked.

"REALLY?!" Izumi exclaimed in excitement, finally stopping her wall banging.

"Yes really." All Might replied.

"AWESOME! Oh man no one's gonna believe this but I don't care. Oh… if you have something to put him in I can use my quirk to move him in there all in one go." She explained.

"Right here my girl." All Might stated, pulling out two empty two liter bottles of soda.

"Ohh… I get to practice, my water control it's not very precise right now so this'll be good." She noted.

With a movement of her arms and hands she willed the scattered pieces of sludge, melting the ones she had frozen, before carefully sending them into the two bottles. While she got most in, some missed but was quickly put in by All Might. Not much later, the villain was sealed within the bottles.

"Impressive, Young Midoriya I see you've been training hard to become a hero." All Might noted.

Izumi's eyes lit up with stars.

"You remember me!" She squealed.

"Ahahaha… not right away but when you got a good look at your hair and quirk I realized it was you. With some of the other Destroyers already running amok, it's good to see at least one join the side of the heroes" All Might noted.

"Just following my dream." She expressed.

"Then I wish you good luck. Now I need to get this guy to the police. Take care." All Might stated before he leapt away.

Izumi merely watched as he continued to fly away, leaping from building to building. A bright smile plastered on her face.

"Welp best not dilly-dally. Off to training." She declared as she continued on her way.

Later, Dagobah Beach…

Izumi stepped onto the beach with bare feet and in workout clothing. She looked out at the pristine beach with a small proud smile. The beach used to be a dump in everything but name only due to the currents bringing trash to it and the illegal dumping. When Izumi and Katsuki discovered this about three years ago, she suggested they both use it as a training ground and clean it. After about two years they had managed to clean the beach. Despite it being somewhat more popular now, she still comes here to train since it's a good spot to practice all aspects of her quirk.

She walked out to the water, took a deep breath through her nose, and breathed out through her mouth. She shifted her feet and thrust her fist forward. A section of sand moved with the motion. Whenever she controls her elements as she calls them, Earth, Fire, Water, and Wind, she finds it much easier to do so when her movements or intentions are conveyed through her body. While she can do it without these, it's oftentimes more wild and less controlled. For earth it works best when the movements are more stacado and forceful. The rigidness of rock reflected in the rigidness of her movements. For fire, the movement retains some of the force; yet there's a bit more fluidity in the movements. The power of fire projected through movement. For water it is the fluidity of the movements that matter. It is best controlled when the very nature of water is expressed through her movements. For air, her movements lose their restrictiveness, becoming as free as the wind itself. She continued through her motions, cycling through the elements for about ten minutes. Then she stops.

"Alright all warmed up." She muttered. "Time to work on my precision and accuracy."

She formed a target out of sand and made it solid. She began controlling a small wipe of water which she sent to strike the target. After doing this for 15 times she stopped to take a look at her work. On the target there were several hit marks around the center of the target, however they were spread out around it instead of being more so around one spot.

"Your accuracy is better but your precision still needs a lot of work." A voice noted from behind her.

Izumi smiled.

"Still knew you were there though." Izumi replied.

She turned around to see a young woman who appeared to be in her late twenties. She had long dark blue and pink hair tied into a wild ponytail. She was dressed casually. She had a small smile.

"It's good to see you again, Lady Nagant." Izumi expressed.

Nagant sighed.

"I told you that you can call me by my real Izumi." She replied.

Izumi giggled.

"I know but, I've always known you as Lady Nagant and I'm gonna keep calling you that." She replied.

Nagant chuckled as Izumi got back to practice. She looked at the scene with a fond smile remembering back to the day her life got changed by a chance meeting.

About five years ago…

Lady Nagant took several seconds to calm her breathing. I need to calm down. She stood in an alleyway away from the public eye, her hand on her chest. She looked down at her bloodstained hands which she nearly held out to a group of innocent kids. This society… it's just a sham. She thought bitterly. She was about to move when she felt a pair of arms wrap around her legs. She looked down to see a young girl no older than ten hugging her legs. She had short hair with the left half being a dark red, the right half an ocean blue. Nagant blinked for a few seconds in surprise. The girl tightened her grip.

"Uhmm… hey there… Are you okay?" Nagant asked, slightly concerned.

"Mhm…" The girl replied. "But you needed a hug."

Nagant was taken aback slightly by what the little girl said.

"I needed a hug?" Nagant questioned.

"Mhm… giving hugs usually makes people feel better when they're sad or upset." The little girl answered. "So I'm gonna hug all the badness away."

Nagant was too shocked to say anything. After a little bit, a small smile found its way onto her face.

"I see… thanks little one. I guess even the heroes need help sometimes." She expressed as she ruffled the little girl's hair.

Said little girl let go of Nagant's legs and looked up to her with a smile.

"Mhm… that's why I did it. Because that's what a hero should do." She expressed.

Nagant could feel her bitterness, guilt, and tiredness from before bubbling up but she suppressed it and kept it hidden.

"I'm guessing you want to be a hero then?" Nagant inquired.

"Yep… I want to help as many people as I can, just like All Might." The little girl expressed with a determined smile.

Another one. Nagant thought bitterly.

"Hate to say it kid but being a hero isn't all sunshine and rainbows. It's not an easy job." She replied.

"I know, but that won't stop me." Izumi declared. "Bad people will continue to do bad things and other bad things will happen even if they don't, so someone has to step up and do something." Izumi declared. "I might have to make a lot of tough choices and face horrible things but I've already decided that's what I'm gonna do."

Nagant's eyes went wide at the surprising maturity of the little girl before her. I see… she's different. She's seen past the fog and is willing to charge through regardless. She smiled at her courage.

"You've got a good head on yourself kid." She replied. "Now let's get you back to your parents. I'm sure they're worried about you. I have to set a good example as your senior."

Nagant held out her bloodstained hands to the little girl and she took it. Nagant proceeded to lead her out of the alleyway.

"By the way I never got your name, little one.? I'm sure you know me?" She asked knowingly.

"Yep, your Lady Nagant." The little girl answered. "And I'm Izumi Midoriya."

"Izumi huh…" Nagant noted.

The two continued out into the street with Izumi pointing to where her mother would be. As they walked a question came to Nagant's mind. While it was one she thought the little girl couldn't answer she felt compelled to ask it.

"Hey Izumi." Nagant began.

"Hm?" Izumi replied.

"I have a question of sorts for you to consider as a hero." Nagant stated. "How would you defeat a villain who is so powerful no amount of power you have will ever be enough to beat him?"

"I'd think of another way to win." Izumi answered immediately.

Nagant was surprised by her quick response.

"Could you elaborate on that?" She asked.

"I mean… not really. If he's too powerful for me to beat head on then I just have to think of a way around that. That'd still be hard but no one's invincible so there'd have to be a way to win."

Nagant was surprised by her answer again.

"I see… ha… some senior I am." She muttered quietly.

"What was that?" Izumi asked.

"Nothing, just realized I was being silly." Nagant expressed.

Izumi tilted her head to the side in confusion. Nagant giggled at her. I see… I think I know what I have to do now. I have to set the example as her senior.

A few months later Nagant would release many internal documents from the Hero Public Safety Commission revealing all the things both she and others did in the shadows. She took full credit for this release and recounted her tale in the media. Because of her, others stepped forward to further corroborate the release, preventing the HPSC from covering it up. When asked why she did this in an interview this is what she said.

"I knew the risks. I knew this might destroy our whole society. But I knew it was more important for us to stop living a lie. One way or another our society would have crumbled into ruin because it was built upon a mountain of lies and blood that I would have been complicit in. Such a society is doomed to fail, even if none of this ever came out, because it's very foundation is an illusion. That's not to say the ideal of the great and noble hero is wrong. In fact, it is what all heroes should strive to be and what our society should expect heroes to be. But we shouldn't lie and pretend that heroes aren't human too and are prone to fall short or make mistakes or even do awful things. Which is why I'm gonna lead the way. I've done things I'm not proud of and had to lie to keep this sham going. But I won't let that stop me. I'll carry on being a hero no matter what. Because as one little girl said, 'Bad people will continue to do bad things and other bad things will happen even if they don't, so someone has to step up and do something.'"

Present day…

Nagant smiled fondly at the memory as Izumi continued to work on her precision.

"Howdy ya'lls." Someone greeted from behind them.

Both Nagant and Izumi were shaken out of what they were doing and looked behind them to see a slime floating along the water towards them. He hopped out of the water and his formed shifted into that of a boy about Izumi's age with long slightly messy blue hair. He was dress in a more rural manner.

"Name's Yudai Arashi. It's good ta meetcha." He greeted with a bright smile.

And that's a wrap. If you want me to be able to produce more content, please consider supporting me on subscribe star. (search zmanxv and the link is on my deviantart page). Til next time.