AN: This chapter is devoid of any action. Expect a lot of talking and explanation. I wrote this chapter with the aim to give readers a better understanding of what is going on in this story. Everything appears to be veiled for now, and I hope this helps everyone to see the direction this fic is going.

Please don't take everything Naruto says at face value. When he says he's like an animal, he did not mean it literally. He has animalistic qualities, but is still very much human. I can't reveal why Naruto is attending the UA and pretending to be a regular student as of yet. This chapter will hopefully give everyone an idea.

Chapter 4

Answers

Out of the impossible things Izuku thought could thought could happen to him this wouldn't make the make the bottom of the list. It wouldn't even make the list. It was because what was happening to him was something he never considered. No, he hadn't even considered the off chance that such a thing would even take place in his dreams. Yet, here it was. Reality. Ultima sat casually on his bed, looking as comfortable as he would if he were the one that owned the place.

The bags of ramen cups that Izuku had seen him with earlier were placed by his side. He even had a flask by his side, that how comfortable Ultima had gotten in his house.

"Welcome back kiddo. If you don't mind I made myself at home. You look like a chill kid, so you probably don't mind. Take a seat, we've much to discuss." Naruto said. The blonde glanced about the dark room and whistled.

From Izuku's POV it looked as though two bright yellow light flashlights were being moved around in his room.

"There's way too many posters of Allmight in here, dontcha think?. I've counted six so far. Oh wow, you even got action figures and figurines of the dude. Huh. Another poster on the ceiling." Naruto said as he looked up. He turned back to Izuku and cupped his chin. "You're a Allmight fanboy aintcha?." Naruto asked.

The question while not rhetoric didn't require an answer. What else could a person who had over seven wallpapers of a single person be called if not a fanboy?.

"Aside from that the place is nice. I'd change a few things, though. Perhaps I should speak to Mrs Midoriya. Hero obsession is as dangerous as any villain."

It was those words that knocked Izuku out of his daze and straight into action. Up until then Izuku remained frozen in place, still in shock over the unbelievable reality that the suspect of the convenience store incident was in the same room as him. Naturally, it was for that reason as well as a mixture of fear and lack of confidence that Izuku had stood like a statue with a criminal under his roof.

However, all that changed once his mother was brought up. Izuku was scared, he understood that more than anyone. He was no match for Ultima in a fight either, he understood that clearer than anybody. Still...

He charged head first into battle.

Izuku cocked back fist lit up in a pinkish hue, thus signifying the activation of the quirk that had been passed down to him. One-For-All was unleashed at its full power. Izuku didn't bother trying to gauge his strength like Allmight had told him to. It didn't even cross his mind. All that was on his frenzied mind was a single thought. Stop Ultima all cost.

Izuku gave out a furious battle cry and rushed towards the surprised Ultima and unleashed a powerful blow straight towards the blonde's face. That single blow that could collapse a building on itself, concentrated to a single point. Izuku's fist released the gargantuan power of the legendary quirk along with all his bottled up emotions towards Ultima and all that was related to the store incident.

To finally strike the source of the grief of so many families. The terror that strutted without care around the grounds of the very foundations of heroes. Thinking about it made Izuku more pissed that he had ever been. Somewhere in his heart he had promised himself that he would do this. He wasn't sure whether it when he saw Ultima embarrass Mt Lady or after he found his victims in the convenience store, all Izuku knew was that he owed that bastard a punch. To finally pay that debt, though it was at a cost of one of his limbs it was a beyond refreshing feeling.

Alas, Izuku's relief was short lived when he realized that his powerful punch had been caught by Ultima. Izuku's eyes snapped wide in utter disbelief. 'How...?.' Yet another seemingly impossible action was completed right before his eyes. Izuku couldn't bring himself to believe it, he didn't want to believe it. 'That was Allmight's strength!. How is this possible...?.' Izuku asked himself in shock and distraught.

Looking up at the blonde Izuku felt his heart sink to his stomach. He had never imagined Ultima –no, he had never imagined anyone could catch a direct blow as powerful as Allmight's. But it at happened, and there to add even more misfortune to the experience was Naruto's casual expression. An expression of boredom.

Initially when Izuku attacked him, he saw that the blonde was surprised. Izuku had mistook that expression for worry and possibly fear. How wrong he was. Now as it would be, Ultima while initially surprised by Izuku's sudden attack was far from concerned about the green haired boy's attack. The blonde hadn't made a move until the last second. To him it was as though Izuku was moving in slow motion.

And as for the punch Izuku had so much faith in, it was easily blocked. He didn't even shake. Visibly, the punch hadn't done anything aside from rustle the blonde and Izuku's clothes. The One-For-All user's attack had no effect on the blonde whatsoever.

Izuku jumped back away from the blonde on reflex and in fear. A weight like he never knew descended on his shoulders. A depression like he never knew whelmed up in his heart and his spirit.

Complete helplessness. He wasn't merely unable to beat Ultima, he was unable to fight. He didn't come slightly close to injuring him, there wasn't even the slightest of bruises. His attack was blocked as though it was that of a baby's. He knew Ultima's quirk was certainly a overbearing on, but to this extent was simply...

...Simply terrifying.

'My punch did nothing.' Izuku thought in helplessness. 'Did I use it wrong?.' He wondered. 'Allmight's power couldn't be so powerless compared to him. Could it?.' Izuku stared at his wasted hand in distraught.

There was no way he could believe that the quirk of the greatest hero in Japanese history, the greatest hero in the world to him. Izuku could never believe his strength was useless against someone else. "Huh?." Izuku eyes shone in shock. The hand that he attacked Ultima with was still held in a clenched fist. There wasn't a trace of residue damage, not even a scratch. It wasn't broken, it wasn't wasted as he thought. It was completely fine.

'My hand... Did I gauge it right this time?.' Izuku asked himself. After the multiple series of shattering his limbs, starting from the first time in the entrance exam to the combat exercise against Bakugo and Ida, Allmight had constantly cautioned him to do his best to control his output. Though he spent eight months in preparation for inheriting the quirk, his vessel could barely be considered as fit to carry the legendary quirk.

Five percent. That was his absolute limit according to Allmight. A thought akin warmth in winter went through Izuku's mind. 'Did I gauge it by mistake?.'

If that were the case then it would explain a lot. If it was just five percent of One-For-All he used then it was only normal that he would not disfigure himself with one punch. It also made the crazy scene of Ultima casually catching the punch understandable. That was the most logical explanation and Izuku very badly wanted to believe that that was what had happened, however...

Knock knock knock

A series of knocks interrupted Izuku's thoughts followed by the concerned voice of his mother.

"Izuku are you okay?." The kind woman asked.

The sound of the woman took Izuku's mind off whatever thoughts of his quirk and him into a dilemma. On a positive note he hadn't ruined his arm with that attack, but the reality that he couldn't fight Ultima still remained. Now, Izuku didn't know know whether to make a break for it with his mother or send the woman away while he handled Ultima.

For the latter it largely depended on Ultima. From what the blonde had said and the appearance of things it didn't seem as though he was here for a fight. If that was the case and he was only here to talk then Izuku would be more than happy to oblige. The last thing he wanted was to drag his mother into this mess. On the other hand Izuku wasn't comfortable with leaving the fate of himself and his mother in the hands of a psycho. If he opted for this option, then he would be giving up on his best chance to make an escape with his mother.

For the former, it largely depended on Izuku's confidence and ability. Could he gauge One-For-All once more and escape with his mother?. Izuku wasn't sure, that was why he was the less inclined to this option. Best case scenario, he was able to control his quirk could escape with his mother.

Still, that brought him back to another question. Escape to where?. Surely they could hide but they couldn't run forever. He could contact Allmight, but then where could they hide from Ultima until the number one hero arrived?. There was just as well the fact that Ultima's speed was just as ridiculous as his strength, it wouldn't be easy to beat it.

To be frank, the chances of that happening were whimsical at best. Worst case scenario, he couldn't gauge One-For-All and ended up ruining his legs. His mother would then be at the total mercy of Ultima. That was a possibility that Izuku would never forgive himself for if it became a reality.

Either way a decision had to made.

Izuku was brought out his dilemma unexpectedly by Ultima. The blonde pointed at the door and then at himself before placing a finger against his lips in a hushing gesture. His message was clear as day.

Make her go away, don't talk about me.

Oddly enough, the blonde didn't look even the least bit offended by Izuku's surprise attack. In fact he took it quite sportingly. The blonde maintained a state of calmness that Izuku enviously wished he could.

Izuku shut his eyes in thought. Just because Ultima told him to do something didn't mean he would. In fact the last person he should be trusting was this guy. He had to make a decision, and one he would be able to bare the burden of.

"Izuku!."

Again it was his mother's voice. This time more urgent than before. Izuku eyes opened and appeared to be far more determined and calm than before he closed them.

He had come to a conclusion. "I'm fine mom." he answered. "I got a little too excited and ended up using my quirk by mistake, gomen." Izuku explained. It was quickly put together excuse, but in hindsight it was probably the best explanation he could give for the mini earthquake he'd caused in their house. Any other excuse that didn't have to do with his quirk would be far less believable. He couldn't afford any doubts, not just because of his mother but their neighbors as well. His clash with Ultima shook the very foundation of their home and the tremors must've spread to the neighboring houses. If the explanation his mother gave them wasn't good enough then they would involve the police and with Ultima present no matter how many uniformed officials showed up it would likely not end well.

The woman's sigh of relief permeated the room. From the sounds of it, Izuku's mother bought it. "Okay, but try to be more careful. The exam reports did say your quirk is quite a powerful one, so don't use without care darling." The green haired woman cautioned.

Luckily for Izuku the part about crushing his arms during the exams wasn't in the report. Due to presence of Recovery Girl parents didn't mind sending off their children to the UA for trials, despite knowing how grueling they could be. With the guarantee that their children would be returned to them safely, parents felt at ease. It was the same for the UA's board.

By depending with Recovery girl they had the freedom to thoroughly test the trialists. As a result the school more or less kept the injury reports as brief as possible. As long as it didn't cause any lasting trauma, the report would simply have a checked injury box. If it had been any other way, then regardless of what he said Mrs Midoriya would rush straight into his room to make sure her son was alright.

"I-I'm sorry." Izuku stuttered out the words. In his heart he was truly sorry but for a whole other reason. He never felt good lying to anyone, especially his mother but tonight he had to tell her two lies already. He knew it was to protect her but he still felt terrible for doing so.

"I-It's alright Izuku!." The woman equally stuttered. Similarly to Izuku, though she felt it was being done for his own good she took no pleasure telling her son who was originally quirkless these words. "I can't understand your excitement, perhaps only you can but please don't overdo it. Remember, you're not used to having one, but quirks come with responsibilities you know." She said, and suddenly she felt a warmth of happiness in her heart.

Regretfully she had given up on her son getting his quirk and consequentially his dream, so she never thought she would get the opportunity to say such words. Saying them now felt oddly liberating. Perhaps Izuku wasn't the only one who suffered from his natural condition.

Izuku felt that his mother had put a great deal of her feelings in those words and while he still felt guilty for lying, he felt even more glad to hear them. "Yes mom. I understand." he replied.

"Okay, go to bed now. I love."

"Goodnight mom. I love you too." Izuku replied.

After that there was an interval silence. Mrs Midoriya had left. Izuku would've loved to maintain that silence a little longer. He wanted to bask in that feeling he thought life had robbed him off. It was the first time his mother had scolded him for being careless with his quirk.

His quirk. He finally had one. This was going to good down as his favorite scolding memory by far. Just for a few more minutes Izuku wanted to enjoy this reality, but there was another reality that wasn't inclined to wait for him.

Ultima's chuckled, garnering Izuku's attention. "Goodnight mom. I love you too pfffha!." he made a poor mimicry of Izuku's voice before breaking in a boisterous laughter.

Izuku had experienced mockery his whole life, the source was his childhood friend more often than not. So, Izuku wasn't a stranger to being ridiculed, mimicked or being laughed at, but somehow this turn was different. He couldn't put his finger on why, but it just felt different. Somehow, this whiskered teen had drawn something out of Izuku that no bully before him had ever before. His ire.

Thankfully, his laugh stopped as abruptly as it started, he did retain an annoying smirk though. "You and your mom have a great relationship, I'm jealous. Honest." Naruto placed his hand on his chest to vouch his honesty.

Izuku locked the door behind him and exhaled. Now wasn't the time to lose his temper. For better or worse he had managed to get his mother further away from this maniac, and that at least was good news. The One-For-All user's eyes darted across his room, his mind descending into deep thought. "Ultima's current location is more or less central. Including the door, there are only two viable escape routes. For the door that would unfortunately mean giving my back to a villain. Ruled out, it's too risky. For the windows, it's equally as risky considering Ultima is directly in front of them. Unless I can stun him with a punch and are fast enough to escape through it and into mom's room, then get both of us out of the house... Tsk. There's little chance of that happening. I can't depend on my quirk, my control is iffy at best and there's the off chance that even if I sacrifice my arm Ultima would still not be out of commission. I also can't expect him to just sit back and take another hit. He's faster than me, so he has a clear advantage. I could make an opening in the wall or the roof, but that's still dependent on my control of my quirk. It may also put mom in danger, so it's a no go. In conclusion, there's really no realistic escape route, for now I should stall until I see one."

"Since the conclusion is pretty sensible imma just ignore it, but you should know mumbling out your plans in front of the big baddy ain't really the way to go." Naruto remarked. He eyed the green haired boy with an amused smile. The kid was really one of a kind.

Izuku did his best to keep the redness out of his cheeks and gave the blonde the best glare he could manage. To Naruto he probably looked closer to a clown than intimidating. "You said you wanted to talk. What do wanna talk about?." Izuku asked.

Naruto raised a questioning eyebrow. "I didn't." he said. The words were enough to catch Izuku off-guard and rob him of the serious expression he struggled to keep. "I said we've much to discuss. I ain't never said I wanted to talk to ya kiddo. I ain't that lonely bruh." Naruto said while wagging his index finger. "Only reason I came here is cuz I figured you'd have a lot of questions, and since I'm a nice guy I'll answer what I can. So go ahead and shoot." Naruto said, he made a gun with his fingers and pointed it at Izuku to emphasize his words.

Izuku was taken aback by the blonde's statement. Normally, he wouldn't have believe a word of it. Why would a super villain seek him out just so he could talk with him?. Izuku knew of his true identity and was as well the person who reported his crime in the convenience store, so it was safe to assume he wouldn't be Ultima's favorite person. Yet, the blonde claimed he came in peace and only wanted to answer his questions. Just how ludicrous was that?. But it was exactly because it did sound ludicrous that Izuku believed it.

Common sense didn't apply to this particular individual, he was forced to learn that the hard way. If he was crazy enough to murder nine people and just waltz out of the crime scene with a shopping bag filled with ramen from the very same store, then he was just as crazy to come to find the person who called it in for a chat.

Now, Izuku had to consider very hard what he wanted to ask the blonde whiskered teen. There were a multitude of questions running through his mind already. Questions of the who, how and what nature; Who was he truly?. How was he able to block blows from Mt Lady as well as him?. And the question that had been gnawing at his mind since their first encounter, what in the hell was his quirk?.

There were those three and many more questions at the top of Izuku's head, however he knew none of them could be his first question. All those questions one way or the other had a direct connection to him, and to ask them would be mainly for his well-being. With this first privilege Izuku couldn't afford to be selfish. There was only one question he could and should ask. And so he did.

"Why did you kill all those people in that convenience store?." Izuku asked. This had it to be his first question. Though it wasn't close to a reconciliation, he had to put those unfortunate nine ahead of himself. He felt a great sense of responsibility for what at happened, and they deserved this at least. It wouldn't make up for the families that were forced to leave behind, but they would get the truth they all deserved.

For the first time since appearing in Izuku's room Naruto's face turned to one of seriousness. Though he maintained a small thin smile, his eyes told a different story from them. The clouds parted and rays of moonlight shone through the windows and unto the blonde's face. Those golden eyes became a spectacular terror under the moonlight. The blonde exhaled heavily before answering. "I didn't."

Izuku wasn't sure what he was expecting, but it wasn't that. Not that answer. In his mind it was already a foregone conclusion that Ultima was the murderer of the nine. And the blonde maniac should know he was aware of this, that much he was certain of.

The way he casually spoke to him after the deed, it was clear in his eyes that he had no remorse. Him showing up here was proof of his involvement. His name was literally written on it with the blood of his victims. So, Izuku couldn't understand why he was suddenly denying it now. He couldn't make sense of it.

'Unless...' Izuku thought. Unless he was saying this as a joke. Some sort of twisted joke. It fit into the blonde's depraved personality. A man without remorse could go about making sick jokes about the wrong things he'd done. Similar to the blonde's laughter earlier, Izuku emotions were again easily stirred by Ultima. The One-For-All user glared at the whiskered villain in resentment. "That's not funny."

After Izuku said that the blonde found his smile again, but contrary to the expected the blonde still denied the allegations. "It's not a joke. I'm not the killer, you can believe me if you like and if don't like..." the blonde shrugged. "Kay kay, I'm done talking about that. Next question." Naruto said.

Again Izuku was taken off-guard by the blonde's response. The death of nine people. The gruesome murder of so many people, he just wanted to skip the conversation about something so important just like that. Initially he looked as though he understood the magnitude of the discussion, but now he was tossing it aside like it was the least important thing in the world. Izuku couldn't understand it. He couldn't understand him, how this person processed things.

"W-wait!, I'm not done talking about it." Izuku said in panic.

The blonde knew better than possibly anyone else about how those nine went, and it was his duty to make sure he found how exactly how it happened. He couldn't have the blonde losing interest in this conversation. So, in a desperate attempt to get the blonde to remain speaking about what he wanted to know about, Izuku was forced to give the blonde the benefit of the doubt. "You can't blame me for saying its you, Ultima. Everything points directly it at you." Izuku defended.

"Does it now?." Naruto said whilst picking his nose in disinterest.

Izuku gritted his teeth in frustration. Holding a conversation with somebody so irresponsible was a pain. Izuku had never seen such a irresponsible person in his fifteen years of life. The blonde was like an embodiment of 'no fucks given'.

Left with no other option, Izuku decided that humour the blonde at least until he decided to open up about the convenience store incident. "Okay, just for arguments sake, let's assume Ultima wasn't responsible. Then what other possible reason would his name be graffitied to the store's ceiling in blood?. First possibility, it could be a frame. However, if it was a frame then what exactly was Ultima doing there around the time of the killing?. He shows no remorse for the deaths of victims yet claimed it was his favorite shop when he met me in– Wait..." Izuku trailed off and a memory flashed in his mind.

"I got a whole week plus of detention for breaking outta school to go buy ramen in my favorite store."

Izuku's eyes widened in realization. Naruto stared at the greenette in interest. All of a sudden the kid started mumbling to himself and then next thing he made an expression like a scientist that just cracked a made a major discovery. Izuku paid no mind to the blonde nor the childish 'cuckoo' sounds he was making.

Those words. Specifically the gesture he made after saying those words. "He... He literally pointed out the convenience store to me. Why would he do that?. He was clearly bringing my attention to that exact store, but for what reason?. It's safe to say he already knew that I knew of his secret identity since I called him Ultima in school, yet he pointed out a crime scene with his name inscribed on it to a person who knew of his true identity?. He might be crazy, but crazy enough to not be wary of the entire police force plus pro heroes coming down on him?. I don't think so. There has to be some other reason, some other reason I'm missing." Izuku insisted.

The teen went silent momentarily in thought before resuming to his mumbling. "It can't be that someone is framing him. If that was the case he's powerful enough to solve his own cases, why would he involve me?. It makes no sense that he'd want to police to have his other identity while 'Ultima' was under suspicion for manslaughter. It is certain that he is trying to use me somehow. But to what end?.

After drawing anyone into that, the natural response would be to sing like a canary to the police. He surely understood that, yet still told me. Did he want that to happen?. He... Maybe he knows who the one who's truly responsible is and wants to cover for them?." Izuku mumbled in thought.

He said those words casually but when they reach his ears his eyes shone in realization. It was the same for Naruto, who was staring at him like he was some sort of alien for a brief interval. The blonde then smiled broadly, this time he was staring at Izuku like an excited dog looked at his favorite chew toy. "Oh... You're actually really astute ain'tcha?. Color me impressed." Naruto said.

"Ermm it was just... I stumbled upon it by mistake." Izuku said humbly.

Truly he had never expected to arrive at a plausible scenario for the blonde's innocence. In his mind he felt he was responsible, and all this talk was just nonsense. But after those parts that didn't add up were laid bare, he couldn't help but ponder on whether he was right or wrong. And now, with this possibility Izuku could no longer say without a doubt that Ultima was responsible.

"Just take the compliment kiddo. You came to that conclusion at your own merit." Naruto said, brushing aside Izuku's words of humility. He saw no sense in such actions. Why would a person turn down praise they deserved, he would never understand. "Still, while that's a nice and good theory you got there, it shouldn't be enough to clear my name, now should it?."

Izuku's eyes sharpened. It was as Naruto had said. That line of thought was in support of the notion that Naruto was innocent, but it still wasn't enough to confirm his innocence. Under Naruto's gaze Izuku felt like a star student who had been given a test by a teacher that favoured him. It was a strange feeling, one that Izuku didn't understand. I

zuku felt an indescribable urge to give more strength to his new theory. And thus the mumbling begun once again. "Okay think, what could you have missed that could exonerate him?. Starting from the very beginning... From what I saw from his fight against Kamui Woods and Mt Lady, Naruto-senpai is mainly a fist fighter. According to the autopsies I heard the forensics talking about, all nine victims were killed with an edged object. That really isn't a sound defense as Naruto-senpai could've simply used an edged weapon this time around. Also when I bumped into Naruto-senpai he was just exiting the convenience store, a site of nine gruesome murders, yet he wasn't stained. There wasn't a single bloodstain on him. If he were responsible then it would be unlikely that he would come out of the scene spick-and-span. That's a solid point, but not nearly enough to exonerate. On the other hand he exited the store with a bag filled with instant ramen that was confirmed to have been missing from the store. That gives power to the notion that he was the killer. If not, then what was he doing with stolen items from the shop of the late Mr Yamada?. It's assumed from the amount of the ramen cups Naruto-senpai carried that he has an addiction for them. Possibly he just took them out of scene because he felt they would be wasted there... There lies a huge contradiction in that line of thought, as that would mean Naruto-senpai was there after the killing, and judging by the timeline no other assumption would be valid. Naruto-senpai exited a particularly bloody murder scene with a fresh bag of unsoiled store wares. Hardly believable. What else is there... Aside from the ramen, there was nothing out of place– Ah!." Izuku's eyes lit up. Something he had totally forgotten about had come to mind.

"The register." Izuku said. He couldn't believe he forgot about, it was such an obvious clue yet he'd missed it. Izuku didn't bother brainstorming anymore. All the dots connected once he considered the cash register. Izuku looked up at the blonde who was grinning at him in a very disturbing manner, he would say.

"You figured it out. Can't chalk this one up as a fluke, can ya?." Naruto joked.

Izuku however was feeling too foolish right now to laugh. In a quest to prove his intelligence he'd discovered his own stupidity. "It was you who left the money in the register." Izuku said.

"Guilty as charged." Naruto jokingly rose his hands in surrender.

Izuku still couldn't believe he hadn't seen it. The register. Thinking back there were two things in the convenience store incident that stood out as strange, at least strange in the sense of not falling in line with the assumed line of events that may have occurred during the murders.

The first was the single empty shelve that was oddly not covered in blood. From Izuku's personal observation of the scene and the police's forensic analysis he concluded that the assailant made a conscious effort to get blood all over the store. For some reason that single empty shelve was left out. Initially that was why Izuku was so convinced in his heart that Naruto was the killer. The shelve was reserved for the ramen cups, the same cups Naruto suspiciously exited the store with.

This obviously placed him as the killer. It wasn't hard to believe a ramen obsessed criminal would make an exception not to stain the shelve containing his favorite food with the blood of the victims. However, that theory was crushed by another. The other theory was anchored by the second oddity of the convenience store incident. The cash register.

Izuku had forgotten all about mainly because he was in shock and too distracted by the loudness of his own mind speaking to him to pay much attention. But he could vividly remain detective Tsukauchi ordering a lower ranked officer to put a more 'reasonable amount' within the reports, while the rest of the money from the register went to late Mr Yamada's widowed wife and single only child.

The case of the cash register was as goes; the cash register was discovered not too far from the counter that had been partly smashed to splinters. Said registered was filled with stacks of clean wads of cash. There laid an obvious inconsistency in the story. The register itself was stained in blood and was visibly damaged, proving that it was a part of the counter at the time it was destroyed. It had been pulled out by the assailant, but it wasn't empty, contrary to expectations there was money in it.

Money that late Mr Yamada couldn't get an eighth of even if he sold the store and everything in it. It was worthy of note that the stacks of cash weren't stained with blood in contrast to the register they were inside. This could mean only one thing. Though from the evidence it was clear there was a single assailant, it didn't mean only a single person aside from the nine entered that store. The assailant was the one responsible for the murderers and just as well robbed the late store owner of his day's earnings. Whoever the second person was, he was responsible for the wads of cash.

To Izuku that person was clearly Naruto. And since he saw the blonde carrying out the ramen and he was now certain he wasn't the killer, then that meant whoever the one responsible was, they knew of Naruto's ramen obsession. It was highly likely that they also knew him as Uzumaki Naruto. The tag on the ceiling made it obvious that they knew of his secret identity as well.

This person, whoever they were had no intention of framing Naruto. The blonde wouldn't try to put himself in harms way if that was the case. This meant that they simply wanted to draw the Naruto's attention or leave a message for him. And despite their actions, Naruto badly wanted to shield this person.

Izuku worked out as much in his mind and felt an incoming migraine. Uzumaki Naruto was Ultima. Ultima was a powerful villain that appeared to take a sick measure of enjoyment from beating two pro heroes to near death. Yet he was also the person who left a huge amount of money for an unfortunately widowed woman and her daughter. Still, he was actively shielding the one responsible for widowing said woman. To say he was complicated would be a massive understatement. Izuku wasn't sure which Uzumaki Naruto was anymore. A villain or a good person.

"Can I ask why you're protecting this person?." Izuku boldly asked.

Naruto's eyes turned slightly serious. He stared at Izuku with a light lukewarm smile and for a moment it seemed as though he wanted to say something, but in end he held his tongue. "Next question."

Izuku sighed. He knew he wouldn't get an answer, but he just had to give it a shot. Now that his doubts concerning the convenience store incident were mostly cleared Izuku felt at ease to ask the more personal questions he had. At first he thought to ask one of the first three questions that had popped up in his head, but while he was brainstorming something else he hadn't given due priority came to mind.

The mystery of [Notes]. Izuku wouldn't say he had completely forgotten. On the contrary [Notes] was one of the first things that had come to mind. However, it lost priority after a bit of thought. There was no guarantee that the blonde would know about it. Though [Notes] had led him to Naruto, that didn't necessarily mean he knew a lot about it. It was likely he was connected to it, but it could just be the same way Izuku was; merely as a user. On first observation [Notes] seemed like a scam or a hack, but after it was showed off just what it was capable of it became far more terrifying than that.

A single account that inserted itself into the mobile devices of multiple individuals without their permission and could access their GPS, and those were just the more simple functions of [Notes]. Izuku suspected that [Notes] was linked to what it led him to, namely the [Jump Gate] and the strange dimension it transferred him to. For a single app or virus to take charge of something so complicated like spatial travel, holding DNA, fingerprints and quirk signature records via the [Jump Gate] and just as well collecting information on multiple users and distributing to nearby ones live.

Whatever [Notes] was, it was no joke. Information on such a hack wouldn't be so easily accessed. Izuku had his doubts whether Allmight would know much about [Notes] as well. He would say the same for Naruto, but now he wasn't sure the blonde could be so easily ruled out. He knew things. Just looking at him, it was clear to Izuku that behind those golden eyes filled with mischief and barbarism were innumerable amounts of vital information.

At that time Izuku didn't know just how true his suspicions were and just how rare the opportunity to pick this blonde's brain was. Even then there was a certain individual who would have given anything to just get one answer from the blonde. However, he was rejected and denied the opportunity while Izuku, an unassuming fifteen year old UA student was granted the greatest wish of many.

"What is [Notes]?." Izuku asked.

Naruto's face lit up when the words reached his ears. The blonde gave an uncharacteristically deep chuckle. Listening closely it sounded like suspiciously villainous laugh. "I knew you didn't stumble upon that virtual world by mistake like Yu-Yu did." Naruto said with a bark of laughter. He seemed quite happy about something. Unfortunately for Izuku, he didn't know what or perhaps he was far too tiny right now to see things on such a scope.

"Who's Yu-Yu?."

Naruto yelped in alarm. He got too excited and said something he shouldn't have. 'The goal involves both of 'em, so I guess that bit is aight.' Naruto thought. "None of ya damn business." Naruto snorted and brushed off Izuku's question. "Back to [Notes]. If I'm to make you understand what [Notes] is I'm gonna have to explain some other stuff first. So, take a seat." The blonde said.

Yet again he was offering Izuku a seat in his own house, and still he didn't feel the slightest inkling of shame. One thing was different this turn, however.

Izuku complied this time around and took a seat on the single chair in his ro'om. Naruto grabbed two ramen cups from the shopping bag, along with a pair of chopsticks. He casually mouthed 'catch' and tossed one cup to Izuku and ripped off the seal from the one in his hand. He used his free hand to pick up the metal flask near him and filled it up with a bottle of water from the shopping bag. Within the interval it took for Naruto to toss the bottle away the water in the flask begun to produce steam and boil.

'Heat manipulation!.' Izuku thought in shock. 'Super strength, super speed, immense durability, animalistic eyes and now heat manipulation. Just what in Kami's name is his quirk?.' Izuku wondered.

He wasn't given time to ponder too long, Naruto threw the covered flask to Izuku and had already begun wolfing the ramen. Izuku barely managed to catch the piping hot task and set about preparing his instant ramen. His actions weren't nearly as symmetrical as Naruto's but after some time the job was done. When Izuku divided his chopsticks he realized the flask Naruto had thrown to him was back in the blonde's hands. Izuku hadn't seen how it happened.

By the time Naruto started speaking he was about finished preparing his second cup. Izuku hadn't even taken a bite of his yet. "You'd be surprised to know that [Notes] is a app created by the JHA." He revealed.

With his first words he had dropped a metaphorical bombshell of an information on Izuku. Naruto showed of an impressive talent of speaking clearly with his mouth full. He had eaten more instant ramen than he could remember, and many times he had to do it whilst caught up in something else since he loved it so much. As a result of it, Naruto developed a talent of multi tasking eating ramen and some other fast food and doing something else. He could eat while he was on the run, while he was in class, while he was writing a test, even while he was fighting. Speaking well as he ate was actually one of the easiest actions he could pull off.

"The JHA?!." Izuku said in shock. He spoke with his mouth full like Naruto, but unlike him he didn't possess the talent of speaking as he ate. He didn't possess any talent in the area whatsoever and ended up sputtering bits of chewed up ramen into the air and on Naruto's face. The unfortunate blonde had leaned forward to pick up the flask to reheat the water and fix up his third ramen cup. "Ah s-sorry!." Izuku apologized, but only succeeded in getting even more spittle on Naruto's face.

"Please stop talking." Naruto said. The blonde took out a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped his face clean with it before tossing it out the window. "Yes, the JHA made [Notes]. It may sound unbelievable because of the integrity of the reputation the JHA portrays, but you should bare in mind kiddo; things aren't simply black and white." Naruto's words caused Izuku to take a pause and ruminate on the things he had said. "While we're on the topic, what do you know about the JHA?." Naruto asked. "Swallow before you speak." the blonde quickly added.

Izuku scratched the side of his head in embarrassment. After swallowing Izuku made to speak but then paused. Having just realized that his knowledge on the JHA was paltry at best, the green haired boy was as well surprised as dissapointed in himself. "Uh... I don't know much." Izuku confessed. Naruto nodded at him, signifying that he should go on anyway. "Well, what I do know is that the JHA is an old organization that was established in 2018. Since then they've been in charge of hero registration, licensing, deployment and they also fund all the hero academies in Japan. That's all I know, sorry." Izuku said.

He hadn't realized until now but the JHA for such a huge organization was quite unknown. That wasn't to say many people didn't know about the JHA, on the contrary it was the most popular organization in Japan. However, that was as far as it went; fame. Not many people knew nor were interested in the details of the JHA, so while it was a public organization it maintained a great deal of privacy and secrecy. The public's attention and curiosity belonged to the pro heroes and hero academies, so much so that a gargantuan like the JHA could make their moves unnoticed by the masses.

"No it's alright. Hell, I'm even surprised you know this much. Most kids your age only know the full meaning of the acronym at best." Naruto said.

The way he spoke it was as though he was far more advanced in age than Izuku, but in reality the age gap between them was a mere three years. Upon hearing Naruto's words, much to Izuku's shame the image of Bakugo Katsuki flashed in his mind. He couldn't confirm, but he was willing to bet Bakugo didn't know anything more than the meaning of the acronym. He wouldn't care to know about a bunch of office workers.

"While I'm impressed that you have some basic knowledge on the JHA, most of what you said is either incomplete or wrong. For example, the JHA wasn't established in 2018. It was established in 2000." Naruto said. As soon as the words left his mouth, Izuku was already at the corner of his seat vehemently disagreeing.

Naruto raised a hand placatingly at the One-For-All user. "Cool it. I know what I said. I understand to you that would mean that the JHA was formed even before quirks were a thing, which would be impossible. But here's the thing, it wasn't. Quirks were a thing long before they were officially stated to have emerged in 2014." Naruto revealed. Izuku regained his composure and quietly listened. "They say the first quirk to emerge was apparently a glowing baby in China, like c'mon. You can't seriously tell that that's not suspect. Facing what would be an announcement that could lead to civil unrest, the governments all over the world were lucky enough to announce that the first baby of the new generation was a shinning miracle baby. Surely you spot the bs in that story." Naruto said.

Izuku stroked his chin in thought. Thinking about it, he had to admit it was a little fantastical and quite convenient for the government. A possible state of civil unrest as Naruto had said. Before announcing that the human race was at the watershed of evolution. Information that could easily lead to panic and chaos.

Nobody wanted to be told they weren't good enough, or they failed to make the cut. Announcing to the world that from here on out people with a natural born superiority would begin to emerge wouldn't sit right with them. Before the government could go far as making such an announcement, they would have to be sure it wouldn't lead to chaos, and that heavily depended on the first of these alleged evolved humans. If it was a dragon or fire based quirk then there wouldn't be any way to stop the riots.

Nobody would be comfortable with the idea of people who could breathe fire and set their homes ablaze with the flip of a hand. This would surely lead the masses to fear and discriminate the evolved species. Parents would fear and abandon their children, quirk users would be treated like witches and demons, they would be ostracized, isolated and perhaps even hunted down.

Luckily, or conveniently for the government it didn't lead to that. The first quirk was light related. Light if manipulated could be far more deadly and hazardous than fire, regardless humans never perceived it as such. Fire, while a great help to the development of man was revered as a god of destruction in its own right. A great servant but a terrible master. There had been far too many tragic cases that came into being due to fire. Far too many reminders that the great servant could easily turn into a tyrant of a master. Naturally animals were afraid for fire. It was the direct opposite for light.

Light was revered as an essential part of life, adding growth, life and took a place in the heart of humanity as a protector. The presence of light deterred the actions of the wicked. Most evils were committed at night, when people could not see it. So to man, light was like a protective god, a saint, pure, holy and kind. While fire was a loose cannon. The fact that the glowing baby was the first case of humanity's official evolution was quite fortunate for the government. It allowed them to ease the masses into the era of quirks.

It all started with a miracle glowing baby as Naruto had said. A glowing baby wouldn't come off as a threat to anyone, rather it would be a beacon of change. Change that many religious people would interpret as a heaven graced change. An omen from a higher power.

It was convenient. Too convenient.

"Guess you've seen it now, huh." Naruto said. He saw the doubtful look on Izuku's face and knew the boy had begun to doubt the information the history books fed him. "The truth is that quirks came into existence in the early 1900s. It's unconfirmed as at when exactly, but a few quirks did pop up during those hundred over years before the governments of the world made their announcement." Naruto said.

Izuku stared at the blonde in shock. "That long ago?. How could they keep it all a secret for so long?."

"It naturally wouldn't have been easy. But apparently, during that era quirks were a rarity. For those who know the truth that era is called the era of gods, and the quirks born from it are called the quirks of the old religion. That era was one in which those with quirks dominated the world, more so than the era of villains during the mid 2000s. The ones born with quirks during that forgotten era rather than being ostracized were worshipped as gods. Soon they became to society just what it had painted them as, and thus ruled the world from the shadows. As you would guess these people weren't necessarily good people."

Naruto paused to swallow before continuing. "If the official first set of humans to be born with advantageous quirks used it for their personal goals and enrichment, just imagine what people would were worshipped as gods descended would do. They were children born into massive wealth, the undeserved reverence of man, granted power as rulers in the dark and the natural power to crush whoever stood in their way. Just imagine for a second, what you do if you were granted such power from birth?." Naruto asked.

Izuku paused to think. To his shame what he imagined wasn't anything noble. He had a noble spirit and a compassionate heart, but that was only as a result of the way he was brought up. He was born into an average family, with a caring mother. He was taught the important things of life, like humility, kindness, discipline and forgiveness at a tender age so he turned out a good child and person in society.

However, what if from the second he was born even his parents would look up to him as a supernatural being. As an entity descended from a higher dimension. Who then would teach him the values of life?. Who then would discipline him when he was wrong?. He wouldn't be as he was now, socially distant by choice.

Even in this era of quirks where eighty percent of the world had quirks, there were many quirkless socialites who interacted just as comfortably as any popular quirk users. People just or even more charismatic than Allmight. It was just Izuku's personality that stopped him from making friends. However, for a child born with a quirk in the era of gods, socializing wouldn't be an option. None of his age mates would be fit or worthy enough to be his playmates. They would be too scared and respectful him to be his friends. He would have to seek out others like him if he wanted to have an equal to call friend. That would be impossible, though.

As Naruto said, they were incredibly scarce, thus those who had quirks would be naturally born rivals to their kind. In such a world children with quirks would be unable to be normal no matter how much they wanted to be. They wouldn't have friends, they would have worshipers and subordinates. They wouldn't have anyone to discipline them, they would only have educators to direct them on the ruler's path. People they could easily execute whenever they wanted. They wouldn't have love either, only women to sate their carnal desires and devote themselves to them.

The burden of gods, you could be loved by all but no-one would truly ever love you.

"So you can imagine how it must have been back then." Naruto said. "With these individuals who played as gods, society was manipulated, violated, stepped on and used. Even without realizing it they were all slaves in their own world. The quirks of the old religion controlled everything and they were behind almost every tragedy recorded by history. The World Wars, The Holocaust, The Cold War, The Great Depression, famines, plagues, genocide, the rise and fall of nations and even some natural disasters. It was an era of blood. It was up until around the late 1900s when all the gods suddenly disappeared. Some say they were wiped out by a tyrannical rival, some believe they ascended to a higher realm of existence, some believe they died out due to a disease only they were susceptible to. All that's confirmed is since then there hasn't been a single whisper from those forgotten gods." Naruto said.

He suddenly broke into a smile. "Well, we're done with the mostly depressing parts. Let's go back to the JHA, shall we. Hero organizations like the JHA, those suckers, came into being after the old religion faded out. As I said during 2000. They more or less replaced the old religion, and though thankfully they're not as bad as those guys, some of them still maintain the manipulative nature of the old religion. Japan, Germany and China being prime examples. For Japan the JHA hides in plain sight and controls society through heroes and through [Notes]. You must've guessed [Notes] isn't so simple. The main function of [Notes] is to gather seeds that the JHA deem fit to be planted into the real world."

"The real world?."

"The world you've stepped into now kiddo. The world where it's harder to tell whether a hero or a villain is the good or bad guy. I can't really explain it, and I don't have to. Eventually you'll see it with your own eyes." Naruto said.

He stared at the curiously listening Izuku. Right now the boy was just taking in his words as mere information, however in due time he would realize just how important this chat he had with Naruto was.

"Within the JHA exists a group of influential men and women, who call themselves the board. They are a joint association of standout men and women from top influential corporations, families, organizations and parties. These old bastards are responsible for all the things you stated. Hero registration, licensing, deployment and they do fund a lot of hero related establishments. They do more than that though, for example they are also in control of the police force and have their hands in the politics of the country. You could say that this board controls the entirety of Japan. With the aid of [Notes] they are able to ensure that control remains intact. [Notes] is used as means to gather people of value and draw them into the grasps of the JHA."

Naruto pointed at Izuku. "You kiddo are being drawn into deep waters by a couple of geezers you don't even know." Naruto said and chuckled. "It's funny now I say it out loud." The blonde chuckled. Izuku sweatdropped. It appeared Naruto couldn't stay serious for an extended period and had to make a joke or laugh or smile about something from time to time. "Hmm, is it just me or do you look a little skeptical about what I've said so far?." Naruto asked Izuku.

The green haired boy was maintaining a curious but neutral expression, much like someone who was listening to story they knew wasn't true but was interesting enough to keep them listening.

Izuku looked away awkwardly. What did he expect?. He called the case of the glowing baby fantastical, yet his following words sounded like things that were pulled straight out of a fantasy novel. It was interesting to listen to, and was quite detailed and even oddly logical.

Regardless, Izuku would be too gullible to just take everything that came out of the blonde's mouth as facts. No matter what, he still didn't know much about Naruto, he didn't even know who he really was. It was only normal that he wouldn't jump to believe in the blonde. Though Izuku felt like that, he also hadn't realized he had stopped referring to the blonde as Ultima and now called him Naruto or even Naruto-senpai. His mind had subconsciously exchanged the image of the vicious Ultima with the image of the big brother-like Naruto, a senior in school and a relatively decent human being.

Though Izuku was still not clear on whether he was a villain or not, he was without knowing it putting his trust in the blonde enough to give him the benefit of the doubt. Ultima was a crazy and violent battle maniac, and without a doubt Uzumaki Naruto was that person. But he had never seen Ultima do anything despicable other than demean a defeated Mt Lady, yet he knew he had done something kind and selfless by helping out a woman's whose world had suddenly come apart the best he could.

Though his reasons whatever they were would be questionable, he still proved his selflessness and put himself in harms way to protect a friend. Finally, regardless of his reasons he was here with Izuku. He was the only one who had realized what was up with the One-For-All user, and the only one who made an effort to explain things to him. He may have ulterior motives, but Izuku's heart had already established this deed of Naruto as a good one. Uzumaki Naruto or Ultima, no matter what he called himself, so far he'd done more good than harm.

Still, though Izuku subconsciously developed a measure of belief in Naruto, it didn't mean he would accept everything he said. Especially when it had to do with the organization behind the heroes he looked up to. "It's not that I don't wanna believe Naruto-senpai, it's just..."

"It sounds like bullshit." Naruto completed the sentence for him.

Izuku looked away to avoid the blonde seeing the agreement in his eyes. Naruto didn't have to. He already knew.

"Let's talk about JHA's top ten heroes then." Naruto said. Izuku perked up at the mention of the top ten. They were the most popular and influential heroes in the whole of Japan. "You're a hero otaku so you should know a lot about top ten heroes, not only in Japan." Naruto said. Izuku nodded in agreement. He prided himself in the knowledge about the top heroes around the world. As for Japan, he naturally had a more in depth knowledge about heroes home than abroad. "Okay. So use your dorky super otaku mind to make a quick simulation of a fight between the top ten of the JHA, Allmight and Endeavour excluded, versus the top ten of the USA their top two excluded as well."

Izuku immediately went on full-on nerd mode. He started by listing out the participating heroes in his mind, and then did a rundown of each and every one of their individual quirks. He highlighted their natural and combat advantages and how it could affect the battle. After that the battle simulation begun. But then Izuku froze in shock. He went through the process from the top and still arrived at the same conclusion. He looked up to find Naruto who was grinning at him smugly.

As expected, the blonde knew the outcome before he asked the question, and now that Izuku had arrived at the conclusion he envision the blonde made a proud expression. "Disappointing conclusion, huh?." Naruto said in amusement.

"They... they don't even stand a chance." Izuku said with a downcast expression.

"That's putting it mildly hehehe." Naruto giggled. "They would fucking get demolished to be blunt. Fuck a team battle, just the number three of the USHA (United States Hero Association) would solo them. It's a fucking embarrassment to be real. Their bottom rank would roll our eight like they were frigging meatballs in a strategic battle. Top ten heroes my ass. Allmight and Endy aside I call pummel them to fucking dregs. On my grandma they–"

"I get it!." Izuku yelled in annoyance and pounded his fist into the armrest of the chair. This marked the third time Naruto stirred up his feelings, only this time he couldn't stop himself from blowing his top. Considering the blonde was far more powerful than him and was basically holding him hostage, it wasn't advisable to raise his voice at the unpredictable provisional villain. Izuku knew that. He knew that he was possibly endangering himself or even his mother. He knew, but... He just couldn't bring himself to sit back and listen to Naruto belittle the heroes he had been looking up to since he was his kid. His role models.

He was distraught to find out that just one hero from the top ten of the USA could destroy eight heroes out of their top ten. It was never a pleasant experience when you found out your heroes were mediocre compared to others. Still. Despite their combat inferiority, those heroes had risked their lives to save tons of people. They got up every morning knowing that they could be too late sometimes, with the burden of those who they were too late to save. A burden the young Izuku found almost to heavy to bare. They carried it everyday and like champions won over their demons and went on carrying out heroics, saving lives, healing people, preventing tragedies and giving hope and peace of mind to the masses. No matter what they were heroes!. No matter what they were his heroes. The proud heroes of Japan and no matter what they deserved the respect of each and every Japanese citizen. This was an irrefutable fact.

Naruto saw the rare anger in the eyes of the boy that he would otherwise consider a wimp. He was surprised. Though Izuku had stood up to him more than once today, the boy always had that wimpy scared expression when he did. Whilst doing something courageous he wore the expression of a frightened person. It was a mixture of patheticness and courageousness. This time it was different. He was once again standing up to him, but he didn't have that wimpy expression. Right now he looked surprisingly fearless. Those heroes must have meant a great deal to him.

Naruto smiled. "Calm down kid, it's not all bad." Naruto said. "I only brought that up to prove that the JHA are a secretive bunch. Japan became an official world power after the emergence of quirks and remain so til date. It wouldn't make any sense if the very quirk users we depend on are crap compared to other countries, now would it?." Naruto said.

Izuku's eyes shook in realization. "Does that mean..."

"Yep, there are other quirk users within Japan that could go toe to toe with the top heroes of any country. Personally I call them the secret top ten." Naruto revealed. "Though it's only an eight secret since Allmight and Endy are still included." he muttered to himself. "Anyways, though this guys don't have the popularity of the public top ten they're far more formidable in battle."

Izuku listened on with great interest. He felt a little guilty about the top ten heroes knew, but he couldn't help but feel excited over news that there were more heroes out there with powerful quirks. People like Allmight and Endeavour, who could hold their own against the top heroes of foreign hero organizations.

Though he hadn't heard of such a group before Izuku was excited to know more about this secret top ten. A thought went through Izuku's mind. Considering the strange description Naruto had under [Notes] and his statement about heroes and villains not being so different in the real world, as well as his outrageous battle prowess, Izuku begun to suspect that the blonde was perhaps one of these secret ten.

Izuku hadn't really gauged the blonde's battle power, but in terms of fighting prowess and quirk, Uzumaki Naruto was at the very top without argument. The nature of his quirk or quirks was still a mystery, but the byproducts it had shown so far were overpowered enough to convince anyone that he had a formidable quirk. As for his battle prowess, it was exaggerated to say the least. Izuku thought he'd seen a freak of nature when he saw Bakugo in combat, then upon watching Naruto he understood that much like himself Bakugo was still a rookie. While the boy's battle senses were on a astonishing level, Naruto was far more refined than him.

Despite the blonde's young age it was apparent that he had a lot of combat experience, to the point that fighting was second natured to him. Izuku was willing to bet he was strong enough to challenge many heroes within the top ten of any nation.

"Are you one of the secret top ten?." Izuku asked.

Naruto raised an eyebrow in curiosity at the green haired boy before grinning knowingly. "I'm flattered but no." Naruto confessed.

Izuku was shocked by the revelation. 'If he's not in the top ten, then does that mean those other eight are stronger than him!?.' Izuku wondered. The strength of Ultima was no joke. It was a well known fact in all of Japan that aside from the top ten the heroes were not ranked by their strength but their mission effectiveness and popularity.

For example; Mt Lady ranked 29 just last week possessed the raw power to walk straight into the public's top ten, However her quirk was too limiting and caused far too much collateral damage, as a result her stock rise was impeded by it. Still, to go from relatively unknown to the top 30s in the whole country in the span of eight months even with the collateral damage handicap was a testament of how powerful her quirk was. In combat it was safe to say Mt Lady could punch way above her own weight

(AN: Hehe)

The woman's greatest deterrent including her collateral damage problem, appeared to be her attitude. For a person with a gigantification quirk she was far too tame, elegant and moreover lacked the heart of a giant. During the fight with Ultima, when she put aside her ego and was reduced to her base instincts by the blonde's relentless onslaught, Mt Lady looked and even greater threat than the ranked number ten Kamui Woods. So, for the blonde to say that he couldn't make top ten despite beating two heroes with strength that surpassed their ranks was quite astonishing.

"Forget about me. You should know one of the secret top ten members, though I rank him at the very bottom, he's still a real strong fella." Naruto said.

"Who?." Izuku asked in excitement.

"I'll give you a hint. Shaggy hair, sleepy eyes, looks like a wasted hobo every single minute of the day."

"Aizawa-sensei?!." Izuku said in surprise.

"Ding ding ding. You've won three points!." Naruto said and gave the green haired boy a thumbs up. The blonde then noticed that his freckled junior had gone silent and saw the skeptical look on his face. Naruto barely resisted the urge facepalm. 'Why are you named Izuku and not Saint Thomas?!. You fucking doubt everything!.' Naruto groaned. "Don't you know what that guy's quirk is?." Naruto asked.

"Uh... I do."

"Then why so skeptical?. It's even more illogical that a dude who can erase the quirks of whoever he looks out doesn't make top then, yet a literal fucking jean maker is ranked 4 for some fucking reason." Naruto nearly pulled his hair out in frustration just from thinking about it.

He wondered just how stupid the people of Japan were. They knew of the badass heroes with badass quirks abroad yet sung praises to mediocre poster heroes in the country. They literally put a dragon hero in rank eleven then gave a killer whale a top ten rank. It was like the JHA was intentionally trying to troll them, and somehow –just somehow...

'These frigging idiots don't see it!.' Naruto couldn't hold himself back any more and facepalmed. He slapped his face so hard it left a red hand print on it.

Izuku was about to respond when Naruto suddenly smacked himself in the face. He cringed at the sight. That really looked like it hurt. Clearly the whiskered teen didn't understand how he could doubt the strength of Aizawa. And truthfully, it wasn't as though Izuku didn't see sense in Naruto's words.

It was logical that Aizawa's quirk would be like a cheat code against other quirk users. In a one on one fight he could theoretically beat near anybody, so it was understandable that he'd be ranked so high. However, that was just considering Aizawa's quirk and not Aizawa himself.

The man was cut out to be a teacher, but was far too unmotivated to be a suitable hero in Izuku's opinion. His quirk was a cheat code, but his method of approach was far too limited to be considered a threat. Simply put he could only briefly restrain his opponents at best, and if his eyes were taken out he was like a sitting duck against powerful quirk users. It may sound really broken, but all his quirk could do in the end was level the playing field against other quirk users.

He didn't get any amplifications from his quirk, all he had was a binding equipment and good hand to hand skills. Against a crowd he would be relative to a quirkless individual. Against mutant types his quirk was completely useless.

When Izuku made that skeptical face it wasn't simple because he was doubting Aizawa because he had a better impression of the public top ten. It was because objectively speaking he couldn't see Aizawa in the top ten. A person with a quirk that took out advantages but didn't increase the user's combat ability at all should not jump into direct combat, at least that was Izuku's opinion.

If he had such a quirk, despite his fanaticism towards Allmight he would avoid direct combat and put his efforts towards marksmanship and become a sniper or archer or something along those lines. He wouldn't try to restrain villains with a limited equipment at close range, rather he would rely on tranquilizers and other drugs for that.

He would prioritised sight enhancing equipment more than anything to increase the range of his quirk, and take the role of a support hero who always maintained his distance. Though he wouldn't be a fan favorite his effectiveness would go through the rough, and even top 3 in the public's top ten would be easily achieved. That was why Izuku couldn't accept what Naruto said.

Aizawa had an outstanding quirk but his laziness and lack of imagination greatly limited him. Izuku explained as such to the blonde.

With every word Izuku said, more and more of Naruto's frustration was exchange for astonishment. Before he just casually called the younger teen perceptive and smart, but now he thoroughly believed it in his heart. Izuku Midoriya was a genius.

While he still underestimated the effectiveness of Aizawa in combat since he hadn't seen it for himself, if Aizawa could implement the suggestions the kid gave his combat effectiveness would triple at the very least. This kid was a gold mine for quirk related ideas.

"Let's just agree to disagree for now. I'll leave you to decide if I'm right or wrong after you've seen Aizawa fight." Naruto said. "I've spoken about the true history of quirks, the secret of JHA's top ten. Now let's talk about what the JHA uses [Notes] to do. To put it simply, [Notes] was created with the sole purpose of pulling people like you into grasps of the JHA and keeping tabs of whoever is involved in the process." Naruto started, his expression as well as Izuku's turning serious. "There are two ways to be drawn into this world." Naruto raised two fingers. He then lowered one finger.

"You fall into the first category. Which is integration via vote. The JHA picks out individuals with outstanding feats and records, more often than not they're fast rising pro heroes. After selecting said individuals, they draw them into the their world using [Notes]. After that is done, they begin the observation process, and feed the candidate morsels of information that they know would entice them. Like a fool the candidate would go down the part the board set out for him or her, relying on their very own creation to do that. Their seductive words can come in many fashions. They could claim to be offering the truth about the world to entice the revolutionist type candidates. They could make themselves appear as a criminal organization to draw in the more righteous types. They could even go as far as exposing a bit of their nature to draw in those who are drawn to the abyss." Naruto said.

He stared at the thoughtful Izuku and wondered what form [Notes] had approached him in. Considering the boy's age, Naruto assumed they put in a great deal of effort and thought before attempting to rope him in. If only the blonde knew young Midoriya Izuku had been seduced in by the mere mention of pro heroes. Not only that, the blonde was also unaware that Izuku wasn't actually a true candidate and only got into the virtual world by mistake like Mt Lady.

"After observing the candidates long enough, the board host a meeting and make a pool for each candidate before deciding by majority whether or not they should be brought into the fold." Naruto said.

Compared to the other method of entering the true world of the JHA, this one was just a little more humane in the blonde's opinion. If you were tough enough then you could get in without any serious mental or psychological damage. Those who didn't make in still had a chance to at least lead a normal. For the unfortunate, their hopes and dreams were crushed to fine dust in those few weeks to months of observation.

"The second is through nomination. The requirements is a child that can't be any older than six with an outstanding quirk and the nomination of said child by at least one of the board members." Naruto said, his eyes twinkled in a foreign emotion before he went on to say more.

"These children are dubbed children of value. Mostly they're orphans but there are cases of parents who feel they're either incapable or unwilling to raise their children. So they abandon them, leaving them behind for the JHA to turn them into whatsoever they wished. From the tender age of six, these children are put through a strict and intense educational system. They are taught socialization, economics, politics, combat and other things which are more specialized.

–This training only increases from intensity as the child grows, and when they reach the age of eleven they are brought ahead with their patrons and before the board. Their records through out the five years are handed out to every single board member to assess. After that, the children with the exception of the top student are forced to duke it out with their fellow children of value. Those who win are integrated into the JHA's body. Those who don't are cast aside right back into the orphanages they came from." Naruto finished and took a pause to gather himself.

Izuku stared at the blonde teen in thought. It was the first time he had seen such an expression on his face. They had only known each other a day, and quite the action packed day it was, yet Izuku felt like he'd known him longer.

In just the space of a day, he had gone from a battle crazed provisional villain, to a murderous villain and then to a kind person whose status Izuku was unsure of. After spotting that emotion in his eyes, Izuku still wasn't sure what to make of the blonde. He fought against Kamui Woods and Mt Lady like a man possessed, he took hits that would put anyone else out of commission for a while with a smile on his face. He was without a single doubt a battle crazed madman.

Now that Izuku was sure the blonde was not responsible for the convenience store incident, he could not say he was a killer. He proved to be a kindhearted person as well as brave and loyal. Though he was shielding a criminal, the blonde gave off the presence of an ever dependable friend. His school personality appeared to be the same, though he acted like a clown. Momo was drawn to him, and obviously very dependent on him. He had his good parts and bad parts. Uzumaki Naruto and Ultima.

However, none of that was relevant now. When Izuku looked at Naruto he was able to read from his eyes that he was one of the children those board bastards had nominated. He could see the trauma in his eyes. Having to endure five long years of harsh training, being robbed of their childhood and freedom, and after that, forced to battle and step over their friends or be kicked right back into a society of ignorant people you knew very well we're being manipulated. Unable to say the truth. To do anything or change anything. Judging by Naruto's talent, he likely passed the test or even topped his set. That didn't make the experience any less traumatic, especially if what Izuku suspected was true.

"...Mostly they're orphans but there are cases of parents who feel they're either incapable or unwilling to raise their children. So they abandon them, leaving them behind for the JHA to turn them into whatsoever they wished."

'Did his parents abandon him...?.' Izuku wondered. His expression fluctuated when he said those particular words. It sounded more like he was speaking from experience, rather than stating the cases of the children of value.

Izuku feared that Naruto was a child of value of the worst kind. A child who knew who his parents were but was abandoned by them and left at the mercy of several manipulative bastards. Not Naruto-senpai, not Ultima. A child. A six year old child who was still struggling to process the reality that his family didn't want him. A child, going through all that pain was forced into a disgusting and cruel system created by men and women who were still influenced by the old religion.

All that power and experience he had came at the price of a sizeable chunk of his soul and innocence. To Izuku that expression could be only one thing. He understood that look very intimately. It was the same one he had after he called in the Yamada store massacre. An expression that spelt hopelessness, eyes of a boy that had been let down by the world and that soul searing pain as a reminder that you would never be the same again.

He didn't look like a dependable big brother at that moment. Nor did he look like a villain or even a noble person. All Uzumaki Naruto looked like at that moment was a victim.

Izuku looked away from the blonde so he wouldn't see the pity in his eyes. He knew he wouldn't appreciate it. There was a short interval of silence. An interval broken by words Izuku didn't know when he said. Words that came directly from his heart and didn't bother asking his tongue for permission to escape his mouth.

He wore a solemn expression as he stared at nothing in particular and said; "It hasn't been easy on you huh, Naruto-senpai?."

Naruto froze in place with wide eyes. The words broke the silence, and reached his ears. Though not all of it. He missed the 'senpai' Izuku had attached to his name. To him the green haired boy called him Naruto, without any honorifics.

'Those words... Why did he say that?.' Naruto asked himself. He stared at the green haired who was looking away in wonder. 'Did I imagine it...?' Naruto questioned himself.

Unsure of what to believe, the blonde tossed himself down on the bed and stared into the ceiling. A myriad of emotions could be found in those golden eyes of his. Shock, disbelief, happiness, grief, annoyance, fear and hatred.

'Why am I feeling it again?.' Naruto placed a hand on his chest. He thought he would never felt this thing again. Not after everything that had been done to it. How many times had he experienced the cruel reality of his existence. How many times was he forced to understand what it meant to be born into such a world. The fear of the old religion. The fear of the unknown. The hatred. The isolation. The despair. He thought it all those experiences in that hell had finally turned this stupid thing off. 'So why do I feel so bad right now...?' Naruto wondered.

"Uh... Naruto-senpai. Are you okay?. You've been quiet for several minutes already. Are you sleeping over there?."

That wimpy voice reached his ears again. This time it was full of concern, similar to the voice of the wimp's mother. Naruto felt like he should be frowning right now but he was not. He didn't know why either.

The blonde blinked and made to push himself up then felt a bit of moisture in his eyes. Naruto raised a hand and felt the corners of his eyes with it. He stared at his raised hand in surprise. 'Tears?.'

After a few seconds the blonde's expression turned bored and he casually dried his eyes. He sat up, faked a yawn before making his way to the window. "It's late, I better get going." Naruto said.

"...I still have questions." Izuku said reluctantly. He knew the blonde had been beyond kind and helpful to him, and it was very ungrateful to insist that he continued to do so, but Naruto was the only person he could depend on for answers on this new world he found himself in.

"I'm going back to the dorm not to my death. You'll see me tomorrow in school." Naruto said offhandedly. He crossed one leg outside of the window and sat on the window frame. He turned back to Izuku who was now standing with a questioning expression. "What did you wanna ask anyways?."

Izuku took a deep breath and stared at the blonde with eyes filled with determination. "Your quirk!. Tell me what it is!." Izuku practically demanded.

The blonde stared at Izuku in amusement, his smile returned to his whiskered face. "Will you tell me yours if I do?." Naruto asked.

Izuku sputtered gibberish in panic. He hadn't expected the blonde to turn the question on him. He had always been interested in heroes and quirks in general as a kid. so much so that he developed the habit of wanting to know all about any quirk that interested him.

Izuku's natural lack of a quirk only made his obsession for quirks greater, to the point that Izuku had notebooks filled with nothing but information on heroes and quirk analysis. Presently, he wasn't the same as before and had inherited a quirk. The quirk, however was not something he could liberally speak about, so if Naruto insisted on a trade of information then he would have to back off.

"Quick lesson kiddo. Don't go asking people to talk about stuff you ain't comfortable talking about yourself." Naruto advised. Izuku looked away in embarrassment. "Why don't you try mumbling away, maybe you'll guess what it is–hehehe." Naruto said with a giggle.

Izuku became red from embarrassment. Naruto's way of laughing was as well as creepy as it was annoying. Chances were the blonde could send a disciplined monk into a rampage with just a little teasing and laughing.

"I did a little psycho mumbling in my mind about your quirk. I ain't a genius like you, so all I could get from it is that you think it should measure up to mines at least." Naruto revealed.

Izuku looked up at him in shock and was about to refute his words but he was having none of it.

"Save it kid. You literally saw me in a slug fest with a two hundred thousand pound and sixty seven feet and seven inches giantess and still looked shocked when your puny fist didn't have any effect on me. That could only mean two things. One, you're retarded. Two, you actually rate your strength far above Mt Lady's." Naruto said, feeling proud of his analysis. He saw the look on Izuku's face and frowned in annoyance. "What's so funny bitch?!."

Izuku covered his mouth to keep his laughter and bay but couldn't stop himself from smiling. When Naruto caught him he panicked. "No I'm not laughing at you!." Izuku denied.

The blonde stared at him expectantly and he gulped and scratched the side of his head with a nervous smile. "It's just... I didn't know you knew so much about pro heroes. You even know Mt Lady's exact height and weight in her giant form. Naruto-senpai must be a hero otaku like me." Izuku said. He wore what could only be described as a silly smile on his freckled face.

"Wipe that gross smile off your face your simp virgin ass crack munching bitchass fuck." Naruto said with a disgusted expression. Izuku deflated from having so many cuss words directed at him at once. "I ain't no fucking hero otaku..." Naruto spat out the words like they tasted like bile. "I'M A SUPER HEROINE OTAKU!." Naruto declared and pumped his fist into the air with a smile just a silly as Izuku's.

Though there was a clear difference in them, as Naruto's smile hid a substantial amount of depravity within it. "I know all the needs to know about sexy heroines!. My top ten heroes are all women, and they're ranked by the size of their milkers and yams!." Naruto said and thumped his chest in pride.

"Isn't that a little too misogynistic Naruto-senpai?." Izuku weakly said with a giant sweatdrop on his head.

Naruto made an exaggerated surprised face and place a hand on his chest. "Oh no!. I'm sorry. Oh I'm soooo sorry I like tatas and ass, and thighs and bad bitches. I'm so sorry for coming off as misogynistic wuhuwuhu... I'm misogynistic?. Then why don't you sucko-mi-dick-bitch?." Naruto said sarcastically.

Izuku's face turned slightly green.

"Who gives a fuck?. So what, I objectify women boohoo. At least I don't rape them, points for me!."

'His standards are so low...' Izuku thought and stared at the blonde, speechless.

"There are far more worse things in the world than being a lecher." Naruto said proudly.

'He has no shame whatsoever...' Izuku thought.

"Half of these pros got only fans that I pay for. I've earned the right to be a degenerate and lust after their sexy bodies goddammit!."

Izuku's eyes widened like saucers at Naruto's revelation. "Uh..." he stuttered.

"Hohoho, you didn't know?. Midnight had an only fans account. And her content was muah!." Naruto said and kissed the tips of his fingers in emphasis. "Mt Lady does too. Though it's gonna be down soon enough since I'm gonna make her my woman." Naruto mumbled the last part to himself.

The blonde looked outside the window and ignored Izuku who was equally mumbling but in a daze with blood red wide eyes and slob dribbling down his chin.

"One last thing before I leave." Naruto said, earning Izuku's attention. "When you punched me that time I was able to tell your quirk gave you even more physical power than Mt Lady. However that was about it. Your punch was terrible, your technique was ass, you were moving as slow as a snail and you basically telegraphed your entire move. That brings me to the conclusion that you're a literal asswipe when it comes to combat."

Izuku facefaulted. 'Harsh criticism...' Still everything the blonde said was true.

The eight months training he did with Allmight could be considered to have just barely managed to make him a vessel that could carry One-For-All. Anything short of that and he would've died gruesomely. Aside from carrying One-For-All, his body wasn't ready to do anything else with it. Izuku knew he could not afford to make excuses now but he really couldn't help it. "I can't control my quirk." Izuku confessed.

It was common knowledge in his class and probably amongst all the teachers. But Izuku knew the reason was because he was only a simple quirkless boy months ago, and as such he wasn't ready to use such a powerful quirk. Compared to his classmates that had their quirks from a tender age, Izuku was at a disadvantage. But that didn't demotivate him.

Because Izuku knew with the nature of his quirk if he could just get past that watershed of control and learn how to gauge One-For-All he would more than close the gap between himself and his classmates. Even Bakugo. That was how he felt and though it sounded arrogant, it was the truth. Five percent of One-For-All. That was all he needed. If he could just learn how to grasp control of that meagre five percent, Izuku was confident he would instantly stand head and shoulders above his peers. That was how much he believed in this quirk of his.

"Why are you trying to control it?." Naruto asked.

Izuku was confused by the words of the UA senior. Perhaps he didn't understand how bad it was when he used his quirk without restrain. He was about to explain when he saw that Naruto was looking at him like he was an idiot.

"We don't control quirks. We let them flow through us and our body naturally adjusts it to the safest level. We break through that barrier with effort. The more the effort the more we squeeze out from out quirks. With effort towards the opposite direction, the more we restrict our selves." Naruto explained with a clenched fist.

He was surprised that a smart kid like Izuku didn't understand something so basic. He didn't judge him though. Nobody was perfect. "It's like taking a piss. You don't need control the intensity of it. Your body does it for you. If you try to control the intensity to less or more then either way it requires effort." Naruto explained.

He saw that Izuku appeared entranced by his words and smiled. The kid had caught on to something. Though he used a crude analogy, it was still perfect for Izuku to understand.

"According to what Momo told me, you use your quirk like a kid who's still in the learning process. You think there's a secret behind controlling it, but there really isn't. When you gotta take a piss and you try to control it, what happens when it finally breaks free?." Naruto asked.

Izuku stared at him with eyes filled with realization, shock and childlike excitement. "It bursts out violently!."

"Exactly." Naruto nodded. "Then it becomes far more difficult to reel in and you notice after that you feel a little sore for holding it or trying to control it when it's bursting out." Naruto pointed at Izuku who was now staring at him with starry eyes of worship. "That's why you damage your arms you baka. You're trying to control it when all you gotta do is let it course through you at its own pace. Only when you get used to the flow should you try channelling it differently." Naruto finished.

Izuku felt rejuvenated by Naruto's words. It was like a lid had been opened and his mind was more clear now. It finally made sense. Putting together what Allmight had said with Naruto's explanation gave Izuku the answer he had been searching for since he used his quirk for the first time.

According to Allmight, his vessel was not powerful enough to unleash the full power of One-For-All. That was what the number one hero had said, however, Izuku mistook his meaning as; he wasn't powerful enough to use One-For-All. All this time he had been searching for a trick while in truth there was no trick to it. Allmight told him his vessel was barely able to contain One-For-All. Barely, but still able to do so. To contain One-For-All meant he could channel the quirk freely, and though he couldn't unleash all of its potential just yet it wasn't as bad as he initially thought it was.

The more he used One-For-All, the more his vessel would improve, that was another thing Allmight had said. That was a clear indication that he should be able to use One-For-All safely at least, but Izuku didn't understand it then. He had made the error of thinking he was not ready for One-For-All at all, and could only carry the quirk in his person for now. He relegated himself to using a quirk like a finishing move, only channelling it just before he took an action. He was using a quirk like a gun, like it could only be triggered from time to time to complete a task.

Quirks didn't work like that, as Naruto had explained. Those who were born with theirs were made to understand as children. Quirks aren't weapons that you could harness from time to time. They were a part of you, and regardless of whether they were in activity or not they were there existing within you. Quirks weren't guns, they couldn't be exhausted. Guns ran out of bullets. Quirks ran on the stamina of their users, the only time a quirk would stop working was when the user's stamina was too low to sustain it.

The power within guns, bullets could be exhausted. But for quirks it was the exhaustion of the host that put them in a state of inactivity. After pondering on Naruto's words, Izuku realized that he had been the one limiting himself all along. He only channelled One-For-All before an attack, and tried to reel it in while it was already set on a safe level for his body. His actions caused a backflow of energy that caused One-For-All to flow of energy to become chaotic and ended up wrecking his arm from the inside out when he released it.

For the first time he used One-For-All, he did the opposite and tried to squeeze out an much power as he could and ended up releasing more than his body could handle.

There wasn't a gimmick, no trick. Nothing at all. All he shouldn't be doing was letting One-For-All flow and going about his actions naturally. It was an enhancing quirk, he didn't need to command it to enhance his strength or speed. Simply activating it meant it would do all of that automatically.

"...Just let it flow and do the rest like you'd normally do it. I understand." Izuku said to himself in excitement.

He literally couldn't wait for an opportunity to try out using his quirk now. He would have if not for his mother. The first incident could be written off as a mistake, a second wouldn't be so easily explained. If the neighbors got involved then the police would be at their doorstep within the hour. The green haired boy was feeling very impatient but he knew he had to wait till tomorrow. He could already imagine the look on his classmates face when they saw that he too could use his quirk without problems. Even the face of Allmight would be no doubt epic when he made the revelation. He couldn't wait.

"It's all thanks to you Naruto-sen–" Izuku turned to thank the blonde but he was already gone. Izuku stared at the window in a daze and worried that he had been too absorbed in his epiphany to realize that the blonde was leaving.

After getting over the surprise and shutting the window, Izuku turned to his messed up room. There were empty ramen cups scattered across his bed and on the floor. Naruto had eaten it all!. Izuku was quite engrossed in their conversation and hadn't even noticed when Naruto ate through the sixty over ramen cups. The blonde's addiction was borderline scary.

Izuku didn't make a fuss and set about tidying up his room. Compared to what Naruto had done for him cleaning up his mess was nothing. Izuku was in the process of picking up the ramen cups that had somehow gotten on his desk when he spotted a piece of paper with an orange U shaped metal lying on it.

Izuku picked up the U shaped metal first to observe. The metal felt fragile in his hand, like it could snap if he put in a bit of pressure. After he had inspected the metal plate of to his satisfaction, Izuku picked up the piece of paper. It was a letter, or instructions left behind by Naruto.

'You were off to mumble land so I had to leave. Come find me in class 3 tomorrow kid. I was serious about you figuring out my quirk. If you do then tell me what it is, and I'll teach you something cool. The U shaped thingy is not a tracker, or a bomb so don't worry. If you're ever about to die or be murdered break that and help will be on the way. ONLY BREAK IT IF YOU'RE ABOUT TO DIE. I'm entrusting you with this.

-Naruto.'

Izuku stared at the U shaped object in his hand one more time before putting it away. After tidying up his room Izuku threw himself on his bed and sighed heavily. What a day. So much mystery, so much action and so much information. So much more had happened in this single day than in his entire last year.

What a crazy day. Izuku would never forget this day. It was the day it all begun for him and the his blonde haired senpai. The day the foundation of their friendship was laid, and the beginning of a long an eventful story they would share. The aspiring successor of Allmight and the mysterious kind hearted provisional villain called Ultima. Their story would be a crazier one than this day. Believe it.

End.

AN: There's hardly any reviews on this. Please review. Also if you're interested in any other of my works, I have a current ongoing Naruto fanfic. It's called BiG Konoha. Be advised, chapters on it are significantly longer than the ones on TWITAUP.

Til the next update. Have a fantastic weekend.