DISCLAIMER: I do not own the property used in this fic. My Hero Academia is owned by its creator. This story is just for fun.

Chapter 2: True Heroes

One could never know what happens after the eyes close. There is always uncertainty about whether or not they will open again, but Izuku had hope. He had given his all to stay alive and prayed that the man above him could resuscitate him. In this heroic world, one selfless action would lead to another. Fortunately, his faith in humanity paid off as the darkness of near-death slowly began to subside. Along with the blurry vision came with an odd sensation on his lips. Pushing past his grogginess, Izuku looked into the face of the man who was planting his lips onto him.

"BWHAAA!" Izuku pushed the man off and scooted away in reverse. He then rolled over to find that he was out of the underpass, concluding that the man moved his body. Before he could say anything, Izuku then felt slimy bile began to migrate from his lungs, through his throat, and fill his mouth. The streets filled with the sounds of the greenette spewing out the remains of the villian he had encountered earlier. Izuku began to cough as he tried to force whatever was in his lungs. Suddenly a hand began to pat his back, assisting him in ridding the slime from his body. With the help of the man, he was finally rid of his ailment.

A fast gust of wind suddenly pasted by and around Izuku as he began to turn and sit up. In an instant, he was shrouded by the shadow of a man larger than life itself. The savior of all those who cry out for peace. The greatest hero in all of the world.

"Sorry about that, young man, but it was the only way to get you back in good condition!" All Might stood above him, the villian contained in two plastic bottles in his pockets. Izuku was overwhelmed with many emotions as he looked upon his idol before him. He had to say something to the man, his hero, who had saved his life.

"A-A-ALL MIIIGHT!" shooting off the ground to stand on his feet, Izuku stood straight and showed the hero respect. "Sir, it is an honor!" he said as he composed himself and bowed to the large man.

"AHAHAHAHA! I am here and honored to meet any fan, my boy!," All Might said as he gave Izuku a thumbs up. "I would like to give thanks and apologize! You did outstanding work on subduing the villain, but I must forgive that I had not stopped him earlier! Although I am new to this land, I should have put more effort into my pursuit!"

"No problem at all, sir!" It was a dream come true for the greenette. THE All Might had thanked him for his assistance in apprehending the villain. This moment was almost perfect, except something was missing.

"Excuse me, sir. I know you must get this asked this a lot, but...CAN I PLEASE HAVE YOUR AUTOGRAPH?!" Izuku tried his best to withhold his inner fanboy as not to embarrass himself in front of the icon but ultimately failed. All Might was happy about the gesture. It showed that the people of the world looked up to him and thus made him fight harder for a better society.

"Certainly, my boy! Would you want it in this?" he then picked up Izuku's hero journal and presented it to its owner. Izuku could only nod his head furiously, his body screaming with enthusiasm. All Might thought to himself that he needed to make this quick. He wasted much of his time resuscitating the boy that he was feeling his transformation wear off. He briefly looked at the cover before finding a blank page to leave his signature.

'Hero Analysis for the Future? Volume 13? I suppose the boy wants to enter the hero business.' All Might thought to himself as he finished his signing.

"So, you want to be a hero?" he asked Izuku, who was living out his daily fantasy.

"Yes, sir! I want to be a hero, just like you! Saving people with a smile on my face!" Izuku stated proudly. With his mind and the training he put in, anything was possible. "That's why I'm applying to UA."

"My alma mater? Fantastic! You keep up your training and studies, A HERO YOU SHALL BECOME!" Izuku was speechless. He felt like he was going to lose consciousness again. All Might, the symbol of peace, had told him he could be a hero. Hope is a powerful thing to have. The hope that one could reach a dream they have been chasing their entire lives. Although Izuku had the strength to give it to himself, having it offered by others, especially his idol, was indeed a gift.

All Might then placed his hand on Izuku's shoulder before saying, "Well then, I must be off! Evil doesn't stop for no one! Follow your dream and achieve it! Who knows, we might work together on the field someday! Until next time!" With a salute, All Might leap into the sky, leaving Izuku on his own. The greenette couldn't contain his emotions anymore. He fell to his knees with a torrent of tears flowing from his face. To him, this was by far the greatest moment in all of his fourteen years alive. Even the day when his Quirk manifested couldn't match up to the recent moments. Little did Izuku know that the series of events where far from over.

'I don't mind mingling with my fans, but I was seriously pushing it!' All Might thought to himself as he began to soar into the air to find a discrete place to deflate. However, he began to notice that the power in his jump was not strong enough to propel him away from the area behind him fully. The dust kicked up from his launch was not dust, but rather steam from his body. Blood then immediatly trickled from his lips, signaling his doom.

'No! Damnit, not now!' It was too late to act upon the situation at hand. Within an attosecond, the hero deflated to his skinny form, plummeting to the earth below. With the ground coming closer and closer, nothing could stop the incoming demise of All Might except a miracle. Suddenly his body landed on something but didn't feel harm. At first, All Might believed that he hit the floor but quickly realized that he wouldn't survive the impact. He then looked up to find the boy that he had saved just a minute ago was holding onto his back with his arms around his waist. Still falling towards the earth, Izuku instinctively turned his body so that his back would hit the ground first. This act would hopefully ensure that All Might (or whoever this was) would not endure any damage as their fall finally stopped.

The two's bodies jolted as the concrete beneath them indented and cracked. Izuku's head was on fire, having to reactivate his Quirk and pushed it to the limit once more. But with someone falling to their death and no time to recover, he had no choice. He had to fight off unconsciousness to make sure that the man he caught was ok. Izuku then heard the sound of the man violently coughing as he rolled off his body to the side. Lifting his head, Izuku saw that the skeletal figure was vomiting blood and instantly went into action.

"Please hold on, sir! I'll call for help!" he then reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. As he began to dial for an ambulance, Izuku was interrupted by a shaky voice.

"N-n-no! Please don't, kid. I'm fine." the blonde man said as he wiped the blood from his lips. He then slumped back on the wall behind him, catching his breath. "Please," Izuku looked into the dark eyes of the man with concern, unsure of what to do. Part of him wanted to follow through on the call, but something about the man's response and desperate look made him put his phone away.

"T-thank you, my boy. I understand your concern, but I'm alright. It's just a medical condition I have." the skeletal man said as to explain his coughing up blood. "The real important thing is, are YOU ok?"

"Yes, sir, I am." Izuku nodded. Just then, a severe pain struck his brain, contradicting his diagnosis. The greenette hissed and rubbed his head as he then took off his backpack to find some medicine.

"Young man? Is everything alright?" the man asked as Izuku shuffled the items in his bag.

"I just need my- there! Tylenol." Unscrewing the lid off the bottle, Izuku popped two translucent blue pills into his mouth. Then he pulled out a bottle of water to wash down the medicine. The fast-acting tablets went to work right away to relieve the pain in Izuku's head. Needing to rest himself, he then sat across the man he saved from falling.

Many questions were floating in the air for Izuku. Who was this man? Is he a hero or a villain? Was he truly All Might? Deep down, he was struggling to either believe or deny that the man before him was the symbol of peace. His weak form was not one of the great heroes, yet his power was undeniable. Who else could jump the way he jumped? Taking a risk, Izuku broke the silence between them with a cautious question.

"Excuse me, sir. I don't want to offend you, and please try to understand where I'm coming from" Izuku discretely prepared himself to use his Quirk to defend himself or run away from the man if he was not on the up and up. He wasn't going to take any more chances after the villain attack he endured earlier. "Are you really All Might?"

The man closed his eyes and huffed out a breath of defeat. After what felt like an eternity, he opened his eyes and answered. "Yes. As much as I hate to admit it, I am All Might."

Izuku frozed in shock. The revelation that the skeletal figure before him was his hero was earth-shattering. He began to formulate excuses as to why this man wasn't who he said he was. His mind was a mess, racked with disbelief and the still-present pain from his Quirk usage.

"I know that it's hard to believe. I'm still struggling to come to grips with it myself." All Might said to Izuku, hoping to get any kind of response. Luckily he didn't have to wait for too long as the greenette finally responded with a question.

"What happened to you? How did you end up like this?" the question was phrased in a way to imply that he believed him. All Might would have to explain to the boy how he came to be.

"Look, kid. What I'm about to tell you can never be leaked anywhere. This must strictly stay between you and me." All Might told in a serious tone.

"I promise, All Might. No one else will ever know." All Might decided that the boy sounded sincere enough that he could share his secret. He only hoped that he wouldn't faint when he saw what he was about to show.

"I warn you. This is not a pretty sight." The man let out a sigh, pulling up his shirt. Izuku could only let out a shocked gasp as All Might revealed his mutilated stomach.

"Five years ago, I engaged in a battle with a villain. It was the most brutal and toughest fight in my life. Ultimately I won but at the cost of my stomach and respiratory system. Over the years, my power has severely dwindled, to the point in which I can only do hero work for three hours a day."

"Your fight with Toxic Chainsaw?" Izuku asked.

"Heh. You know your history, but no. This was done by another villain, in a battle that I requested was never made public. The people must think that the symbol of peace could never be daunted by evil!" he briefly smiled, but his face then turned solemn as he turned away. Then he turned to Izuku to continue the conversation on a different topic.

"By the way, how did you save me without us both dying? What is your Quirk?" the symbol of peace asked, wondering how he was also able to defeat the villain from earlier.

"My Quirk? It's pretty cool. It's called Tactikenisis!" Izuku said as he winked and posed with his fists on his waist.

"Wait. You mean telekinesis?" All Might asked, confused as to what the boy was saying.

"No, no. It's a variant of telekinesis, which is what my mom has. Instead of being able to use my Quirk from a distance, it can only be activated by touch. Using a field of telekinetic energy that surrounds my body, I can mimic the things you can do. Strength, durability, jumping. That was how I was able to catch you in the air. As to how you weren't hurt, I can expand the field to whatever I'm touching, giving it the same invulnerability as me! Sweet, huh?" Izuku said as he gave a smile and a thumbs up.

All Might was astounded by what he had just heard. Tactile telekinesis, the ability to mimic his Quirk and to make things invulnerable by simply touching it. If this kid ever became a pro hero, he would be a POWERHOUSE!

"Incredible. Simply incredible. Your Quirk is amazing, my boy!" Izuku blushed as All Might complimented his Quirk. There was no doubt that he couldn't be a hero now.

"Thank you, All Might! It is an honor to hear that from you!" The day was unlike any other, indeed. He witnessed a hero fight, revealed he was applying to UA, got attacked by a villain, and defeated him and to top it all off, met All Might, saved him, and learned his secret. There was indeed nothing that could ever happen that would ruin this day.

"Well, my boy. I must be off. I still have a job to do." the hero then stood up and offered a hand to the young man with a bright future. "By the way, I never got your name."

Izuku smiled as he took his hero's hand and stood tall on his feet. "My name is Izuku Midoriya."

"Well, Izuku Midoriya. I would say that you can be a hero, but that would be wrong," Izuku's face squint with confusion and worry. That all change when All Might smiled and said: "YOU ARE A HERO."

Izuku dared not cry in front of the number one hero. This was a moment that would last forever in his heart and didn't want it spoiled by being over-emotional. The path to becoming a hero was not an easy one, but knowing that he believed in him made Izuku want to fight for his dream more.

"Alright, Midoriya. You go on home, and as for me, I have to get this guy to-" it was at this point did the blonde man realize that both of his pockets were empty. The bottles containing the polymorph were gone, deducing that they fell out during his fall. He began to panic and cursed wildly under his breath, concerning the greenette. Once he realized what was going on, Izuku started to panic as well. Muttering to himself about the dangers of the sludge being free, he, unfortunately, jinxed himself and All Might as a scream of terror echoed through the streets.

"No. No, no, no, NO!" The two heroes didn't hesitate to run towards the sounds of destruction, needing the stop the evil they had inadvertently unleashed.

Both Izuku and All Might were still exhausted from the events earlier, but never the less kept running. The greenette was distraught, believing that if he reacted faster, then none of this would have happened. Even though All Might was next to him, he couldn't console the boy at the moment. All that could be done now was to rectify the situation before any life is lost.

Eventually, the two found the scene of the destruction, and despite the greatest hero in the world there in the crowd, all he could do was watch. No heroes had yet to show up, and that proved fatal to the innocent caught right in the middle of the chaos.

"Where the hell are the heroes?! There's a kid in there!" a bystander asked

"I heard they're on the way." another answered. "Personally, I don't think the squirt will make it," they said cynically. Izuku gaped at what he just heard. A child was going through the same pain he felt! He only escaped due to his Quirk, but even then, it took all he had and lost consciousness afterward. He cursed himself for not securing both All Might and the villain when he had the chance! All Might was not fairing well either. He was cursing himself for not taking the villain in custody properly and calling himself pathetic. He was supposed to be a hero, but now he was a spectator, unable to fulfill his duty. Deep down, he knew that if he turned in the villain without helping Izuku, the greenette boy wouldn't have made it. Forsaking the life of a child was no way a hero should act, but neither was standing idly while another child suffers.

"There's nothing we can do except pray the boy can hold on." Not wanting to prolong the anxiety any longer, the two began to push past the crowd to get a better view of the scene. Sadly the sight before them only made their feelings of guilt and inadequacy even greater than before. The sludge had taken a boy no older than five as a hostage. His limbs were restrained, and his mouth covered by the sinister smile of the horrid monster suffocating him. Tears spewed down his face as he struggled to escape to no avail.

"Listen up, meat! I see anyone that resembles even a LITTLE BIT as a hero, and this brat dies. DO YOU HEAR ME!" the villain tighten his slimy grip on his hostage, screams of terror muffled through the putrid layers.

"Please! Don't hurt my baby, please!" a dark-haired woman sobbingly pleaded with the villain in hopes that her child would be spared any more pain. Desperation overtook rationality as the heroes had still yet to arrive. Something had to be done. Someone had to intervene, even at the cost of their own life. Realizing the severity of the situation, Izuku pulled out two pencils from his bag and whispered to the frail man next to him.

"Promise to call my mother. Don't ask how. By then, you'll already know." All Might looked down at Izuku quizzically, not understanding what he meant at first. But as the gears in his head began to move, Izuku looked him in the eyes and finished what he needed to say. "Tell her I love her," All Might had to stop him from doing something rash, but it was too late "and that I couldn't deny who I was." Finally finished, the greenette ran pasted the crowd and towards the monstrosity, ignoring the pleas from All Might, the police, and the citizens to stay back and not engage. The pleas fell on deaf ears as true heroes do not head the warnings of death; they instead face them head-on. Those who are heroes must be able to lay down everything they have and are to save a life, for nothing is nobler than self-sacrifice!

The villain spotted Izuku running towards him and instantly left unimaginable fury. "You again! I made the mistake of underestimating you once! Now, this brat's blood is on your hands!" Izuku knew that he would get a rise out of the sludge and that he would take it out on his hostage. But that was just the first part of his plan to save the young child. Activating his Quirk, Izuku aimed his hands at his target, revealing the two pencils at the tip of both index fingers. Just as if he was firing twin pistols, he propelled the bullet-like writing utensils with his TK straight into the eyes of his enemy.

"AAARGH! YOU LITTLE GREEN BASTARD!" the villain yelled in agony, unable to keep a firm hold on his captive. Finally, reaching the villian, Izuku plunged his arms in the slimy mass to grab the child. His TK field kept him from being absorbed into the slime while he dug into it save the boy. It took all of Izuku's strength to push off the semi-liquid, all the while fighting off another headache that was twice as painful as the last. Despite this, he grabbed the boy and pulled him out quickly, thanks to him extending the field around the small body. Izuku carried the boy in his left arm as he ran back to safety, struggling to stay on his feet as the pain continued. The rescue was short-lived as the villain finally removed the pencils from his eyes and began to move towards the two with wild swings of destruction blindly.

"YOUR DEAD! BOTH OF YOU!" this wasn't unexpected, as Izuku used his brilliant mind to counter this situation if it should arise. As soon as he pulled the young hostage out, he charged his right arm as he did with his whole body earlier. Glowing radiant blue, it showed that it was ready for attack. Izuku and the child were then covered in the shadow of the massive sludge wave that would envelop them in death. Izuku wasn't going to let it all end today. He was a hero, and heroes don't die until their duty is done. Turning with blinding speed, he launched his devastating attack on the villain, emulating his hero with a mighty shout.

"SMASH!" the contact with the sludge immediately rendered him unconscious, but he did not fall. He and the small child were held up by All Might himself, inflated in his hero form. What Izuku didn't realize is that at the same moment, he threw his punch, All Might spring into action and attacked as well, hitting the villian with a tremendous amount of power. All that remained were splatted green stains all over the street and stores in the area. The immense force of both attacks shattered glass, fractured buildings, and blew a torrent of wind that caused everyone else in the vicinity to stagger back. The sky darkened as rain fell from the sky, a signal as to how much power was output. A force that changed the course of nature itself

"I-it's raining!" "He changed the weather with a single punch!" "That's All Might for ya!" the civilians clamored as they gawked at the symbol of peace. Still carrying the two boys, All Might made his way towards the mother of the small child.

"Here you are, ma'am. Safe and sound." All Might said as he reunited the family, now holding Izuku's unconscious body in his arms. Twice now, the greenette didn't hesitate to save a life regardless of his condition. All Might wasn't wrong in believing that Midoriya would become a great hero, but now an idea began to form in his head. Perhaps he was the one to carry the torch to the next generation.

"Bless you, All Might! Bless you!" the mother sobbed happily as her child was safe in her arms once more. The young one himself was glad he was saved, but he didn't take his eyes away from Izuku's body. Although the number one hero returned him to his mother, he didn't ignore the one who freed him in the first place.

"Hh-he saved me. He saved my life." One would assume that he was speaking about the large man, but he was referring to the person in his arms. He stepped up when no one else would, not even the greatest hero in the world who stood right beside him. Of course, no one else knew that, but it never the less told something about Izuku Midoriya. He was indeed worthy of being a hero and something more.

Sorry about the beginning there. I know it's unlikely that Izuku would be passed out for long and that All Might would definitely not run out his time like that, but honestly, I just needed to move the plot faster. Sorry for the inconsistencies, but with my school and job taking up my life, I have to try to stay motivated to write this story. I hope you can understand.

Also, and I can't stress this enough, but PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW WHENEVER YOU READ THIS FIC. It keeps me motivated when I know people read and leave me feedback. That's how I know what kind of job I'm doing at writing.

Stay tuned, folks! We're going to see what kind of new stuff Izuku can do with his TK next chapter. Then we begin the kissing! Just kidding that comes later ;)

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed reading this fic. Thank you for the support, please review and until next time...

- Bran