Chapter 14:
Many years ago. Humanity went through an evolution. The first recorded cases of super powered individuals were reported. Then all across the world, powers became more common. We began calling these strange powers, quirks. Then, like wildfire, they spread through the entire world. Now it's believed that almost 90% of the world's population has some kind of quirk. Almost overnight, the supernatural became the totally normal. However, there remained a few who were born without a quirk, called the quirkless. I would know about them because I used to be one of them.
My name is Izuku Midoriya, and this is how I became the world's greatest hero. But you already know that story. You know about how I inherited the quirk One for All from my idol, All Might. You know how I went to UA to train to become a hero, and how I became the number one hero in the world. However, in life, you never know what your future may hold so this is not the story of how I became the world's greatest hero. Instead, this is the story of how a new generation became something greater.
My Hero Academia Next Generation: New Heroes:
Hana POV:
Throwing open the door to the small apartment I called home and crashing face first into the couch. I could only say one thing into the cushions.
"Is this how normal people relax?"
I giggled a little at this, but I was still so weak I could only move so much as to turn my head off the cushion, so I didn't suffocate. My entire body finally crashing after the insane day I'd had.
"Huh." I blankly uttered as I thought about my day.
I mean it's not every day you break you're arms and legs saving a boy from a giant robot. Miraculously get healed of all your injuries in an instant by a time altering doctor. Get punched in the face by a bitchy explosion girl. Meet a sparky clown and his many friends. And make friends with a British girl who's smarter than God.
That last one troubled me the most. I couldn't stop thinking about what Charlie had told me back at the school.
"After all, now that you have his power. You bear a heavy burden, Hana Izumi." The words echoed through my head as I still couldn't figure out how the British girl knew.
"Well, she is a genius." I whispered in an attempt to rationalize my thoughts. Still, it troubled me none the less.
Thinking back to the Chisaki girl, I remembered something else she'd said.
"Yes, I think I've made it. Just as you have Hana Izumi." The genius girl had informed me back at the school when questioned her about whether or not she made it into UA. She seemed pretty confident when she told me. Even throwing in a little explanation about how heroes must save people, and so they couldn't reject me for doing just that.
Me? I wasn't as confident.
"Uhhh." I grumbled into the cushions since I hated thinking about it. I mean, I'd spent months training and improving, all for it to go by in an instant. Looking back on it, I still felt like it hadn't even happened.
Who knows, maybe Charlie was right, and the school would award me points for saving Ronin. Or maybe they'd just kick me to the curb. Either way, I was gonna need some sleep, and while I wanted to check out this "Bed" my mentor had apparently been bragging about. I was so tired, I wound up just clocking out right there on the couch. All things considered; it was still more comfortable than anything I was used to.
But then came the nightmares.
"Something's wrong." I opened my tired eyes as I heard a shrill voice screeching out these words. However, I wasn't ready for what I saw.
"Something is terribly wrong!" Standing right in front of me were eight shadowy figures, each one seeming to have a different colored mist rolling off their transparent bodies.
I wanted to scream as soon as I saw them, but when I opened my mouth, no sound would come out. Furthermore, I felt like my limbs were shackled to the ground… That didn't exist. In fact, looking around, I was completely surrounded by darkness. It looked like I was trapped in some kind of void.
"What have you done!" I heard another; more feminine voice scream as I finally got a good look at the shades in front of me.
Each one seemed indistinguishable, their bodies being nothing more than silhouettes fading in and out. Every now and then I could make out a nose, or an arm. But the multiple-colored mist would shift so often that I could never get a good look at them. However, I could get a good look at their eyes.
Each shade had a set of bright yellow eyes that seemed to peer into my very soul. The rough yellow light contrasting against their ethereal wispy bodies deeply unnerved me.
That's when I realized they were staring at me.
"What have you done!" The same feminine voice repeated herself as I tried to see who had spoken, but the sound seemed to echo around, and caused the voice to get lost. Then, I remembered the question they'd asked me.
"What have I done…?" I was confused for a moment as I thought this and tried to open my mouth to respond, but much like before, no words would come out. That's when it hit me.
"One for All." I shouted in my head as my eyes widened, realizing this had to be some kind of side effect. It's just a shame Deku couldn't have put "Harassment by ghosts" on the label.
Then, against my own will, my body began to glow. The orange veins and sparks popping off my skin like firecrackers.
"No! No! Stop!" I tried to scream as I remembered back to what had happened when I'd activated my powers before. The feeling of my bones snapping under the pressure of One for All hitting me.
"Hmm. So, it is true." I heard a new voice respond as my panicked mind briefly forgot about the ghosts in front of me. As I met their gaze again, they seemed almost worried. Their eyes dropping the cold harsh yellowy color.
"How can this be?" Another voice asked as I felt the power rising in my body. It felt just like I was back in the arena using my powers for the first time, only amplified by a thousand. It felt like every cell in my body was being clamped by a ten-ton vice.
"AHHHH!" I let out a primal yell as I couldn't take the strain anymore, and to my surprise it stopped.
I felt all the pressure leave my body as energy blasted out from me, a shock wave exploding out and releasing whatever was holding me down as I fell right on my butt and lay on the cold black ground.
"The time is not right." I heard the first voice call as a pure white shade loomed over me. I would have tried to move but all the energy had left my body.
"Now, fall" The white shadow told me as he extended what had to be an arm and tapped by forehead with a single ghostly finger.
Then, everything came flooding back to me. In an instant, my powers reactivated and slammed into my body like a Detroit smash. I felt my arms and legs explode as every cell in my body was super charged.
"AHHHHH!" I screamed again, only this time it felt real as I sat up from the couch I'd been sleeping on.
"Huh…?" I questioned as I hasty spun around looking at the dark room around me. All the memories coming back. Walking home, going to sleep, and the nightmare.
I took in many shaky breaths as I whipped the cold sweat from my forehead and tried to sit back down. My heart thumbed like a… like a…look I can't come up with a funny simile right now so screw you, but it was beating really fast.
Anyway, after calming down a bit and chugging a cup of water. I tried to lay back down again. Only, when I closed my eyes all I could see was those shades, and their cruel menacing gazes.
"Damnit" I whispered as I tossed and turned for a bit, my exhausted body only hurting more as my movement grew stiffer. Eventually, through pure exhaustion, my body gave out and my mind soon followed as I could finally rest.
One thought lingering in my mind as I fell unconscious.
"What have I gotten myself into?"
A Few Days Later:
From that point on, I found I could no longer remain stagnant. Every time I tried to close my eyes or go to sleep. I would always see those ghosts, see them glare at me, and hear their cold voices yell accusations or questions.
"What the hell is happening?" I asked myself as I continued doing my pushups for the day. Another thing I found, movement and exercise relived my mind, even if it was just for a moment. So, recently my normal daily training had almost doubled. Sure, it hurt like hell, but it was much better than being tormented by ghosts.
"Come on." I whispered as I turned my head mid pushup to look at the simple rotary phone sitting on a nearby table.
I'd called Deku a few days ago and left a message asking to talk. But he hadn't contacted me. Which was strange for him. These past months he'd always been excited whenever I would come to him for anything. I excepted he'd eat this up, but it seemed like he was busy.
"Grr." I grumbled as I turned to face the carpeting once more. My frustrated mind focusing on one thing
"Just twenty more."
I was so busy I didn't even notice the door opening.
"Hey, Hana! I'm Home…" I quickly stopped as I heard a voice behind me chirp out before quickly deadpanning. The sudden surprise causing my posture to fall as I crumbled and landed face first on the carpet.
"Whata Doin?" The voice asked as I turned around to see it was my little sister Yuko closing the door behind her as she'd just got home from school. Normally, the idea of her walking by herself or having to be self-reliant would have terrified me. However, one thing I'd learned over the past few days, she's really growing up, and I could trust her.
"Just, exercising." I told her in between shaky breaths as got to my feet and stretched a little.
"Weren't you doing that this morning?" My little sister asked me as I thought about it for a second and realized how late it was.
"Yeah… yeah I guess I was." I deadpanned as I too realized how long I'd been training for. I must have been so laser focused that time just disappeared.
"Well, don't work yourself too hard." Yuko responded as I turned to face her and quirked an eyebrow. Her face clearly showing a cheeky smile as she held something behind her back.
"Because I've got something for you." My sister happily yelped as I grew even more confused, till she whipped her hand from behind her back and I could see tugged between her fingers was a paper envelope with a gold U.A. stamp on the front.
My heart nearly stopped as I quickly processed what the small piece of paper was. Then, my mind was flooded with questions.
What does this mean? Am I in? Did I fail? How does she have it?
"Mrs. Ashido gave me this today and told me to pass it on." One of my questions was quickly answered as Yuko once more extended her hand offering it to me. However, I was still to busy processing all this that it took me a second to reach my quivering hand up and snatch the paper.
"Soooo… Are ya gonna open it?" Yuko's cheery voice didn't help my nervous energy. Even as I looked down at the gold stamp on the front, I felt oddly sad.
"Yeah, yeah. In a minute." I lazily told her as I didn't take my eyes off the gold stamp on the front.
"Well, I'm on the edge of my seat." She continued to encourage me as I could feel her sneaking up on me likely to try and peer over my shoulder.
"Yeah, I'll get to it." I spun around and told her all while folding the letter up and putting it in my pocket for later.
"Okay." The raven-haired girl responded as she looked a little disappointed but quickly transitioned back to her more cheerful demeanor.
Which I took note of.
"Hey, you want me to cook that thing you like?" I hastily asked my sister while winking at her. My "Motherly" tendencies coming back as I saw her saddened attitude, even if it was just for a moment.
"You'd do that?!" Yuko excitedly asked me as her peppy attitude flashed right back.
"Cross my heart and hope to fly. Stick a cupcake in my eye!" I smiled as I preformed our little ritual and ushered my little sister over to the kitchen. Still, felt weird to think we actually had a kitchen to cook in.
"So, how were your classes today?" I asked Yuko while I fetched a pot and pulled out some broth and noddles. Yeah, in case you were wondering "That thing" was just and old soup recipe I'd learned from a friend a while back. It wasn't much but Yuko ate that stuff up.
"Pretty good, Mrs. Ashido says my quirk is getting really strong." She informed me while I continued to prep the food. She rambled on for a bit more as I cooked the rest of the food for both of us. It didn't take long. In fact, by the time I was done she was still talking.
"Oh, and then Aki used her quirk on Yang, and let's just say she's not gonna try cheating on a test ever again." Yuko finished little story as she giggled a little, and I placed the soup in front of her and myself. Though I might have spaced out for a bit, I still nodded my head and simply acknowledged her.
However, my mind being elsewhere. All I could think about was the little envelope in my pocket. If they were sending me a letter, that could only mean one thing. I did it… I really did it. But what does this mean?
"Anyway, enough about me. What happened to you?" Yuko confidently asked me as I came back to my senses.
"What do you mean?" I asked her as my mind had been so busy, I was confused about her phrasing.
"Come on Hana! Ever since I gave you that letter you haven't been able to look me in the eye." I should have realized how unsubtle I was being, and that my smart little sister would see through my facade.
"What's on your mind?" She asked as I scoffed a little. I was supposed to be the one taking care of her, but here she was asking about my problems.
"Just, stuff."
"What kind of stuff."
"Things."
I very clearly averted my eyes as I tried to dodge her questions. Playing with my bowl of soup with my spoon in one hand, the other laying weightlessly on the small table.
"You know, one of the things I've learned recently is that it doesn't do well to keep things bottled up." Yuko emphasized "Things" when she said it both times. While I should have been impressed all I could think was "When did she grow up?"
"If they sent a letter that probably means it's good news." She informed me as I finally looked up to meet her gaze.
"Yeah, that's what I'm worried about." I finally found the right words as we met eyes. As I peered into her innocent blue eyes smiling at me. I felt a palpable amount of that joy leech off from her and soak into me. Even if it was just a little.
Still, I couldn't help but think about what I'd just said. Why would I be worried about that? As she said it's "good news." So, why did it feel like someone had punched me right in the gut? Like there was a grenade in my pocket about to go off if I opened it.
"Well, don't be! Cause I know you'll always do you're best!" I was brought out of my thoughts yet again when I looked across the table and saw my little sister giving me a thumbs up that caused a tiny grin to spread across my face.
"I will." I happily told her as we both laughed for a moment at our cheesy little antics.
From there we simply ate and talked for a bit, I told her about my days of training and "Homework" Deku had left me. Apparently, the studying I'd done for the entrance exams written test wasn't gonna cut it in the actual school. So, we wanted to make sure I could "fully" read and write before then. If I got into the school, of course.
However, I did leave out the nightmares I'd been having and the scary ghosts, cause my little sister really didn't need to hear that. Then, before long it was bedtime.
"Now make sure to get some sleep alright!" I told Yuko as I tucked in her blankets. Making sure to set it just right.
"Okay, okay. You don't have to do that." I was a little surprised when my sister shoved me off her and fiddled with the covers a bit.
"I mean, I'm not a little kid anymore." She told me as I thought about that. Sure, she might have only grown a little in the months I'd been busy training, but clearly, she'd matured far beyond what I'd ever thought.
"Fine, fine." I threw up my hands in a defeated tone as I backed away from my sister's small bed.
"But if you're really "not a little kid" anymore, then I'm gonna start putting you to work around here." I playfully mocked my sister as she cartoonishly threw up her hands in mock surrender.
"Oh no, anything but that!" Yuko managed to say between giggles as we both laughed a little bit. Before I backed away and shut off the lights.
"Now go to bed before I really get mad." I whisper in mock anger as we both just giggled again.
"Goodnight, Hana!"
"Goodnight, Yuko!"
Shutting the door, I immediately remembered back to the last time we'd done this. Many months ago when I was still a petty thief and Yuko was still incapacitated.
It felt like ages ago and thinking about what had happened since then brought a smile to my face. Still, thumbling my hand back into my pocket and feeling the small paper envelope caused my heart rate to skyrocket. I couldn't forget all of this came with an asterisk.
"The world needs it's symbol of peace. The world needs you, Hana." I flash-backed to what Deku had told me a few months ago when I'd caught him training and seen his scarred arms. That's when he'd confided in me the nature of his power, and how he was gradually losing his strength.
"What have I gotten myself into?" I whispered to myself as I continued to flip the envelope in my hands stopping when I got a good view of the gold U.A. stamp on the front. I of course, knew what waited on the inside. I knew what the letter meant, but I still had that lingering question in the back of my mind. "Do I even want this?"
Pretty bad time to be asking this, but when faced this the impending future, it was all I could think about.
Nevertheless, I knew I was going to have open the letter sooner or later, but every time I reached for the paper to tear it open. My hands started to shake again as I remembered the feeling of my bones breaking under the power of One for All, and I couldn't do it.
"I need to go." I whispered again as I knew I needed to do anything else, even if it was just walking. So, I got up and left, left for anywhere.
Grabbing my leather jacket, and running out the front door, I just needed to clear my head. I knew there was only one place to go.
Moments later:
Once again, whether it be the bustling crowds or the bright lights. Something about the Shibuya district was oddly calming.
Sitting on a bench off to the side of main crosswalk, I was able to truly relax just watching normal people walking to and fro. Their thoughts being on simple things like what to have for dinner or what homework they had to do.
In a way, I envied them. Not having to think about controlling a power so you don't break all your bones or ghosts tormenting you.
"Oh no." I remembered that little detail as all those troubling thoughts came flooding back. All of it concentrated into a single piece of paper in my pocket.
Then as I closed my eyes, the shades appeared once more, and the tremors in my arms went off. My limbs shaking like a rattlesnake. All I could opt to do was fold my head in my hands and try and settle my beating heart.
"Uh, Excuse me?" I looked up when I heard a masculine voice speak, and I was a little surprised by what I saw.
A middle-aged man was standing over me as he looked almost concerned. He wore a long brown coat with a dress shirt and a tie. If I didn't know any better, I'd say he looked like a classic detective. His long brown hair was fixed into a pony that went oddly well with the rest of his attire.
"I didn't mean to interrupt your, whatever it is you were doing." The stranger chuckled a little as I followed suit. While I normally would have been offended by something like this. The man had a type of charm that practically radiated from his body.
"But could you tell me where exactly I am?" He blankly asked while looking around confused.
"Uhh, yeah. This is Shibuya." I told him sounding unintentionally cold. "You know, the crosswalk."
I pointed to the giant crosswalk as he let out a big "Ohh" which made me laugh a little.
"Right, of course." He awkwardly said while scratching the little amount of stubble that was coming out of his chin.
"Something tells me you're not from around here." I told him as we once more laughed.
"Really, what would give you that Idea?" The stranger sarcastically asked as he pointed to the spot next to me, a clear invitation which I nodded to.
"I was actually supposed to be seeing a friend that lives here, but I guess he's busy since he hasn't been answering any of my calls." He told me as he plopped down right on the bench, and I could tell he was quite tired.
"Yeah, I know that problem." I replied as I thought about how hard it'd been to get in touch with Deku these past few days.
"That's not the only thing on your mind though, is it?" The stranger asked me as I quirked an eyebrow at him. Of course, he was right, but I found it odd how he seemed to understand my mind from just a look.
"Well, that's very personal." I informed the stranger with a bit of venom on my tongue.
"And I don't think a middle-aged stranger would really be the best person to confide in." I continued as he simple chuckled at my words.
"Well, I'd disagree." He told me as his eyes turned to the big crosswalk. "I think I'm the best person to confide in."
"After all, you won't have to worry about what I think of you. Since we're never gonna see each other again." Then, it was my turn to chuckle as I followed his eye line out to the sea of people simply living their lives, and I thought about it for a second.
All my thoughts of these people, none of them mattered cause it wouldn't affect anyone but me. So why should my thoughts affect him?
"I don't even know your name." I blankly stated as it was all I could manage between my thoughts.
"That all?" He asked me as we met eyes once more. "Cause that's real easy to fix."
I chuckled again and looked away as he extended his big hand out to me. I just shook my head lightly while shrugging my shoulder and taking his hand in mine.
"I'm… Hana. Hana Izumi." I paused for a second as I once more considered not answering or finding some sarcastic joke, but much like with Katsumi and the rest of the students. I realized I was gonna have to start trusting people if I wanted to do this hero thing. If being the operative word.
"Nice to meet you, Hana." The stranger replied as he flashed me a cheeky smile.
"The names Rody. Rody Soul." He informed me as we broke off our handshake.
Then, suddenly a small pink bird popped out from Rody's jacket and looked around like it was almost confused. Before happily chirping and landing on his shoulder.
"And this is Pino."