Eight Years Later

Inside one of Aldera Junior High's classrooms, a teacher had just entered the classroom and took his seat at his desk. The teacher pulled out a stack of paper after he had sat down at his desk before addressing the class.

"Now since you all are now in your third year, it's time for you all to start thinking about your futures." the teacher said in a bored tone as held up the papers, "I should be going over with you what you should be doing to get ready. I even had these career aptitude tests ready for you."

Suddenly, the teacher threw the papers in the air, making them go all over the place.

"But I know you all know you all want to go into the hero track!" the teacher exclaimed cheerfully.

Hearing this, the class cheered and started showing off their quirks. However only two students refrained from showing off their quirks. Those two being Katsuki and Izuku.

Katsuki simply leaned back with his legs on his desk whereas Izuku simply looked uncomfortable.

"Yes, yes, yes, you all have wonderful Quirks!" the teacher said, trying to calm the class down, "But using your powers at school is against the rules! So tone it down!"

Katsuki scoffed loudly from his chair before saying aloud, "Hey teach! Don't lump us all in the same group. Unlike them, I'm the real deal while everyone else would be lucky to be a sidekick to some washed up D Lister!"

Hearing this made all the other students, except Izuku, angry. They yelled at Katsuki for talking down on them.

"Let's go, I'll take you all on!" Katsuki smugly said.

The teacher flipped through some of his notes before saying, "Well you do have impressive test results. Maybe you will get into U.A."

Katsuki's smirk grew as the other students' anger quickly turned to shock.

"He's gonna try for the national school?!"

"It has a 0.2% acceptance rate!"

"It's impossible to get into!"

"That's why it's the only place worthy of me!" Katsuki smugly exclaimed before he leapt onto his desk and stood proudly over everyone else, "I aced all of the mock tests. I'm the only one here that stands a chance of getting in. I'll become the richest hero of all time and even surpass All Might! Then everyone around the world will know who I am, and it all starts at U.A.!"

"Well, you won't be the only one." the teacher suddenly said, "I believe that Midoriya also wants to go to U.A."

Those words suddenly made the atmosphere of the class change. Most of the class nervously turn towards Izuku, some of them getting a cold sweat. Feeling uncomfortable at everyone looking at him, Izuku hung his head down, hoping for a distraction.

Said distraction came when Katsuki suddenly slammed his hand into Izuku's desk and unleashed an explosion, which cracked the desk in half. Izuku was sent sprawling onto the ground. He looked up and found Katsuki looking down on him, an enraged and almost manic look on his face.

"HEY DEKU!" Katsuki yelled angrily.

Although startled, Izuku held his ground.

"You think you can insult me by believing to be in the same league as me?!" Katsuki yelled.

Izuku, despite appearing nervous on the outside, was trying to stop his quirk from activating. A part of him hated it whenever Katsuki thought he was trying to one up him. There were times Izuku wanted to snap at the ash-blond, but he knew that would only make others see him in an even more negative way if he should.

"No Kacchan." Izuku responded in a nervous tone, "I'm not trying to compete with you."

"Now, now, that's enough Katsuki." the teacher spoke up, "Points have been made, so let's get back on track."

Katsuki glared at Izuku before returning to his seat. Izuku simply sighed, he was not looking forward to how the rest of the day might be.

Classes had just ended and most of the students had already left for home. Izuku himself was just packing his stuff and was about to put his notebook away when it was suddenly snatched out of his hand.

"We're not done talking yet, Deku." Katsuki growled as he held the notebook out of Izuku's reach.

"Hey, what do you have there, his diary?" one of Katsuki's goons mocked, but it was clear from his voice that he was nervous.

Katsuki held up the notebook so that his two goons could see its cover. The both of them let out nervous laughs

"Seriously?" one goon jokingly asked despite his nervousness, "Are you actually taking notes on how to be a hero? That's so freaking lame."

"Man, are you delusional or what Midoriya?" the other goon jokingly asked, sounding just as nervous despite his mocking.

"Yeah, real funny, guys." Izuku said in an uncomfortable tone, "Just give it back."

Katsuki slapped his hands together, scorching the notebook in a puff of smoke. Then with a casual flick of the wrist, tossed the book out the open window. Izuku gave a startled yelp as he watched the book tumble out the window. On instinct he reached out, but he was too far away to even hope to run and catch the notebook before it passed below the bottom of the window frame and out of view.

"Listen here you damn nerd." Katsuki said to Izuku, who still was at the window with his back turned to him, "Don't even think about applying for U.A. There's no way they'd allow someone with a villainous quirk like yours to join! If you really want to be a hero that badly, there's actually another way. Just pray that you'll be born with a non-villainous quirk in your next life and take a swan dive off the roof of the building!"

It was then that Katsuki and his goons felt a chill go down their spines. Taking a better look at Izuku, they noticed that his body was trembling and that his hair was darkening. The shaking increased as dark sparks began to surge around his body, becoming more frequent as time passed.

Nervously, Katsuki's goons took a few steps back while the ash-blond himself tried to hide his nervousness.

They all remained like this for a moment until the Izuku suddenly slumped his arms to his sides. His hair returned to its normal color as the sparks dissipated. Slowly, he walked away from the window before going to his desk, grabbing his backpack, then made out of the classroom.

Shaking himself from his stupor, a scowl formed on Katsuki's face before he yelled, "You'd better show your face at U.A, Deku! Otherwise, I'll fucking kill you!"

Izuku let out a sigh as he made his way home. He managed to retrieve his notebook, but it was wet due to landing in a koi pond. He felt some anger in the back of his head when he saw the scorch marks Katsuki made, but he quickly shook it away. It could still be usable once it dried off.

Not wanting to risk running into Katsuki again, Izuku decided to take a different route home, one that made him go through a tunnel. He hated it whenever he initially scared people with his quirk. He tried to refrain from using it, but there were times where it was easier said than done.

However, despite all the troubles his quirk gave him, Izuku still held onto his dream of becoming a hero. He'd show everyone who doubted him that he could be a hero, even if he had what others dubbed a "villainous" quirk.

"Even with a quirk like mine, I'll still be a hero!" Izuku exclaimed, his voice full of determination.

"Well would you look at that." an ominous voice said.

Izuku let out a startled yelp as he jumped, surprised to hear someone else with him. He looked up in horror as a mass of green sludge reformed into a huge mass and a sickening face looked down on him.

"A villain!?" Izuku exclaimed in a frightened tone.

"Looks like I found the perfect skinsuit for hiding!" the Sludge Villain said in a creepy tone.

Izuku turned to run, but he didn't even make it a few feet before the Sludge Villain launched himself and slammed down onto him. Izuku opened his mouth to scream for help, but the sludge took that opportunity to force a tendral of himself down Izuku's throat. The villain held Izuku tight, looking down on him with a twisted smile that showed his crooked teeth.

"Don't worry kid, I'm just taking over your body." the Sludge Villain said, "It'll be easier for both of us if you don't fight back. It will only hurt for a little bit. After that, you'll feel better soon. Cause you won't be feeling anything at all."

In both panic and desperation Izuku clawed at his mouth, trying to do anything to give himself a chance to breathe.

"Grab all you want kid, it's not gonna do you a bit of good." the Sludge Villain taunted, "My body's made out of fluid."

'This isn't good!' Izuku mentality exclaimed, 'If I don't do anything soon, I'll die! I could try using my quirk, but I might end up losing control if I do! Should I risk it?!"

Suddenly, a manhole cover that was in the group behind the two launched into the air before coming back down with a loud clang. The sludge villain turned in alarm, his eyes going wide in shock and fright.

"No, not you!" the Sludge Villain exclaimed in a panicked tone.

Emerging from the uncovered hole, stood none other than All Might himself.

"It's alright now young man!" All Might proclaimed, "Because I am here!"

The Sludge Villain let out a startled cry before lashing out with a tendril, but All Might simply ducked out of the way, letting the swing go wide and harmlessly smash away part of the concrete wall. A second tendril shot out, but All Might was ready for it.

Pulling his fist back, every muscle in All Might's arm tensed before he yelled, "TEXAS SMASH!" and punched at the air between the two of them.

The shockwave from the punch smashed through the tendril, ripping it apart, and kept going till it hit the villain who gave out one last startled cry.

"Wind pressure!?" the Sludge Villain said before he too was scattered by the attack and was ripped away from Izuku who fell to the ground, losing consciousness.

'Is that… All Might?' Izuku thought to himself before his consciousness left him.

Sometime later, Izuku felt his consciousness return. He also felt that someone was slapping him? Groggily he opened his eyes to see what was going on.

All Might stood over Izuku, lightly tapping him multiple times on the cheek, a slightly worried expression on his normally smiling face.

"Hey, young man." All Might said, trying to wake Izuku up, "Hey, come on now, time to wake up. Oh! There we go. Thought I had lost you there for a second."

Izuku's eyes went wide as he yelled in surprise, "ALL MIGHT!?"

Izuku sat up quickly, shocked that the number one hero stood before him. He was even more shocked when All Might reached his hand out to him, but he warily took it.

"Sorry about that." All Might apologized as he helped Izuku to his feet, "I didn't mean for you to get you caught up in my villain fighting. Usually, I pay more attention to keeping bystanders safe. But it turns out the city sewer system is pretty difficult to navigate HAHAHA!"

Izuku was only partially listening thanks to his shock. But one couldn't blame him since All Might, the number one pro hero hero himself, was in front of him.

"Well, you were a big help keeping that villain, um, distracted!" All Might said as he held up a small shopping bag, which had plastic bottles filled with the villain from earlier, "Thanks to you, I've captured the dastardly monster!"

Although slightly caught off guard by this, Izuku suddenly remembered something.

"Wait wait, I need to get an autograph please! I know I have a pen here somewhere!" Izuku exclaimed as looked around before finding his notebook lying next to him, "Here, please sign my notebook!"

As Izuku flipped to find a blank page, only to find that All Might sighed it for him.

"AHHHH!" Izuku exclaimed happily, "You already did!? Thank you! Thank you! I can't wait to show this to my mom! Though, maybe I'll leave out the part about me getting attacked."

All Might laughed before saying, "Well it looks like you are going to be ok. So, it's time for me to be off. I gotta take this guy to the police so they can get him taken care of."

All Might exited the tunnel before giving Izuku a slight wave.

"You stay out of trouble now. See you around young man." All Might told Izuku.

"Huh?" Izuku asked before fully processing All Might's words, "Wait, you're leaving already?!"

All Might gave his legs a stretch before crouching down and said, "Heroes are constantly fighting time, as well as villains. Now stand back! I'm taking off. Thank you for your continuous support!"

'Wait, you can't go yet!' Izuku mentality exclaimed, 'There's still so many questions I have to ask you!'

All Might kicked off the ground and launched himself skyward, however almost immediately he felt something was off. One of his legs felt unusually heavy. Looking down, he was alarmed to find that Izuku had grabbed onto his leg and was hanging on for dear life.

"Hey, hey, hey!" All Might exclaimed as he began to try to push Izuku off, "What do you think you're doing? I love my fans, but this is too much. Personal space is important you know! You need to let me go!"

"No, I can't!" Izuku exclaimed in a panicked tone, "We're too high up. If I let go, I'll die for sure!"

All Might blinked and looked around as he remembered he was indeed many, many stories above the ground.

"Oh yeah, good point." All Might sheepishly replied.

"Please All Might!" Izuku begged, "You're my favorite hero, and I have something I have to ask you!"

All Might sighed and put a hand on Izuku's back, helping hold him in place so he didn't fall.

"OK, ok young man I get it." All Might said, "Just keep your head down while I find a spot to land."

As All Might scanned the city to a clear landing spot, he felt a tightening in his chest. He covered his mouth as he gave out a few coughs. He could taste blood in his mouth after his coughing stopped.

'Shit.' All Might thought to himself.

All Might quickly chose a building and landed on its roof. Once on solid ground Izuku detached himself from All Might and crouched over, holding his heart as his body shook in fear thanks to what he just experienced.

"Th-that that was too scary…" Izuku mumbled out.

All Might shook his head in disbelief. True, he had met his fair share of fanboys in his time, but no one had done something that crazy before.

"Young man, do you realize how incredibly dangerous that was?" All Might asked in a firm tone.

Feeling a bit nervous since All Might of all people was scolding him, Izuku could only reply with a nod.

"Good grief." All Might said before sighing, "I'm sure if you talk to the people downstairs they'll help you on your way. Now I really must be going. I am seriously outta time here."

Izuku's head snapped up in alarm before he exclaimed, "No, please wait!"

All Might was already walking away as he curtly replied, "No! I will not."

Izuku watched as All Might walked away. In his mind he could hear everything that had been told to him by most who saw or heard about his quirk.

"What a scary quirk."

"That's a quirk a villain would have!"

"That quirk is too dangerous!"

"STAY AWAY FROM ME YOU DAMN VILLAIN!"

Shaking those thoughts away, Izuku summoned his inner strength as he took a deep breath before screaming, "Is it possible to become a hero even if I have a villainous quirk?!"

Hearing this made All Might stop in his tracks.

"Ever since my quirk manifested, people have been scared of it." Izuku explained, "But despite that, I want to be a hero! And I just want to know for certain, could I ever hope to be someone like you? Could I become a great hero?"

All Might turned back to look at Izuku. His head was bowed, and he looked desperate and almost scared to hear any kind of answer.

'A villainous quirk huh?' All Might thought to himself.

Before he could respond however, All Might felt a jolt of pain as his body began to let off great plums of steam. It was a pain he knew all too well.

'Shit!' All Might mentality exclaimed, 'Come on. Not here. Not now!'

Not noticing any of this Izuku continued, "You see, most people think I don't have a chance because they are scared of my quirk. Most of my classmates don't even want to get close to me because of it. But you know what, that makes me want to prove them wrong. To show them that I can do it. Ever since I was a kid, I would watch videos of you saving so many people and I thought it was the coolest thing. And now I want to do that too. I want people to see my fearless smile and know that everything will be ok. That's the kind of hero I want to be. Just like…"

Izuku finally looked up, just in time to watch as the steam surrounding All Might clear away, leaving in his place, a skinny and emaciated man.

"...HUH!?" Izuku exclaimed in pure disbelief.

Izuku was having trouble wrapping his head around what he just witnessed. He had only taken his eyes off of All Might, a giant of a man, for only a few moments only to see an emaciated man in his place.

"Wait... Who...? What happened?" Izuku stuttered out, "You deflated? Where did All Might go? You... You're not him. You're a fake, an imposter!"

The man stood up straight and said, "I assure you, I am All Mig…"

All Might was cut off as blood poured out of his mouth, making Izuku let out a horrified scream at the sight. He then wiped the blood away with little care.

All Might sighed before saying, "Listen kid, you know how guys at the pool are always sucking in and flexing to try and look all buff? I'm like that."

Izuku was having a mental crisis as he tried to wrap his mind over everything that was happening in front of him.

"THIS CAN'T BE REAL!" Izuku exclaimed in disbelief, "All Might is, um you are, you are a giant who saves everyone, you overcome all obstacles and win the day with a fearless smile."

All Might let out a sad sigh as he sat down and said, "Young man, There's plenty of fear behind that smile."

All Might contemplated what to do for a moment before deciding that he may as well give Izuku an explanation. Sure, he knew that he didn't have to, but it would at least prevent the boy from trying to discover the truth himself and get himself in possible trouble.

"Listen I'm going to show you something but I'm counting on you to keep your mouth shut." All Might said, "Don't go talking about this online or telling your friends. Do you understand?"

Izuku gulped but he nodded his head. That was good enough for All Might as he lifted the side of his shirt up, exposing a huge and disfiguring scar on his side. Izuku covered his mouth in shock, taking a sudden breath through clenched teeth. All Might nodded in understanding as he glanced down at his scar.

"Yeah, it's pretty gross, huh?" All Might asked rhetorically, "I got this from a big fight about five years back. I lost a lung so my respiratory system is basically shot to hell. I also lost my whole stomach. All that on top of all the surgeries I had to go through have reduced me down to this. Nothing can be done to fix it either. Right now, I can only do hero work for about three hours a day. The rest of the time, this is what I look like."

Processing the information, he was just given, Izuku thought back five years ago. After thinking about it, he came up with one battle that could have left his hero in such a state.

"So does that mean it was the fight with Toxic chainsaw?" Izuku asked, "I remember you looked kinda beat up on the news…"

This actually got a small chuckle out of All Might, who lowered his shirt back down.

"Wow, you really are quite the fan boy huh kid." All Might said, "Nah it wasn't that fight. That punk may have landed some hits, but he isn't anywhere near enough to take me down. The fact is kid, I did everything I could to make sure the world never heard of this fight. Only a few people do, and each one has sworn to never tell another soul."

Understanding how impactful this information is, Izuku nodded his head, showing All Might that he understood.

Certain that Izuku was with him, All Might continued, "You know how I'm supposed to be the guy who always smiles, right? Be the symbol of peace and all that? I do it so people everywhere think that I'm never afraid. But honestly, I smile to hide the fear inside. It's just a brave face I put on when the pressure is high. Because the truth is kid, this job isn't easy. If you aren't up to it, either you die or worse, you'll let someone else die."

Izuku shuddered at the thought, the color draining from his face.

All Might let that sink in a while before he stood up and said, "Sorry for being philosophical, but I thought it would be best if you heard it. Anyway, back to your question. I may not know what your quirk is or why people are scared of it, but I will say one thing. I don't think it's villainous."

Izuku did a double take. How could All Might come to that concept without even knowing what his quirk is?

"Personally, I don't think a quirk defines a person, what does is their personality and intent." All Might expand, "Let's use Endeavor as an example. Obviously, as the number two top hero, he uses his quirk to help others. But just as easily could have used his quirk to begin a villain, and I'm certain you know how strong and skilled he is with his quirk."

While unsettled by the thought, Izuku nodded.

"Now let's apply that to you." All Might said, "You say that others are scared of your quirk, but despite that, you have a good personality and the intention to beat a hero. With all that in mind, yes, I do believe that you can become a hero."

Izuku couldn't believe his ears. All Might actually believed that he can be a hero. He knew that he shouldn't cry in front of the number one hero, but he couldn't stop the tears from forming.

"...Thank you All Might." Izuku said after regaining his composure, "Aside from my mom, you're the first person to really believe that I can be a hero."

"Just because others doubt your dream doesn't mean it's impossible, kid." All Might said, "You need to have more self confidence, otherwise you'll end up falling apart when under pressure. Anyway, it's about time we go our separate ways. I'm counting on you to not tell anything my secret, kid."

With that, All Might made his way to the roof exit before entering the building, leaving Izuku alone with his thoughts.

'All Might himself just said I can be a hero…' Izuku thought to himself, a determined look forming on his face, 'In that case, I won't let him down!'

Suddenly, an explosion went off in the distance, startling Izuku. Looking around, he saw smoke billowing up not too far from where he was. Figuring that a villain fight was happening, Izuku quickly made his way off the roof, not wanting to miss the action.

Not long later, Izuku finally arrived at the scene. Quickly joining the crowd, he was about to ask someone what was happening before freezing in his tracks. It was the Sludge Villain from before, in the middle of the burning street. The sight made Izuku gasp in horror.

'Why is that guy here!?' Izuku thought to himself, 'Did he somehow get away from All Might? But how is that possible? I saw him in those bottles from before!'

Dread filled Izuku as he tried to recall what could have happened. He remembered seeing them in All Might's pockets before he had leapt into the air. But as he thought back to the roof, and All Mights deflated form, he couldn't remember seeing them.

'Did...did he drop him when I grabbed onto him!?' Izuku dreadfully thought, 'Then...then this is all my fault…'

Around him, Izuku could hear other onlookers talking. He heard that none of the heroes here could do anything, and they just had to hope a hero with a better quirk would show up soon. But when someone said that a junior high student had been taken hostage. Hearing this made Izuku remember what it felt like being in the Sludge Villain's grasp, and it made him feel sick to his stomach.

'If someone was caught from that first explosion…' Izuku thought to himself, 'How can they bear that? I thought I'd die just after only a few seconds...I'm so sorry this is all my fault. But I'm sure someone will come soon.'

"Hey, isn't that the villain All Might was chasing earlier!?" one bystander called out.

"Oh yeah!" another called out, "He is here! I saw him earlier!"

"But where is he now?" yet another asked, "He'd be perfect to save that kid!"

Izuku felt even worse now. All Might used up his time for the day, he won't be able to do anything now.

'I'm sure a hero is on their way.' Izuku thought desperately, 'So please just endure it just a little while longer... I'm so sorry... Please forgive me, this is all my fault. But I'm sure, a hero will come soon….'

It was then, a few people in the crowd shifted to the side, and Izuku got a clear look at the Sludge Villain, and his hostage. Suddenly, the world around him just stopped. It was Katsuki. The ash-blond's eyes were pleading for help.

He didn't know when it happened, but when Izuku felt the world move again, he saw that he was pushing through the crowd with his quirk active. Although worried about his quirk getting out of control, he decided to ignore it for now as he finally cleared the crowd.

"KACCHAN!" Izuku screamed as he rushed the Sludge Villain.

Turning towards Izuku, the Sludge Villain sneered before saying, "This brat again? I don't need you anymore! I got the perfect body now! So get lost!"

The Sludge villain extended a tendril to swat Izuku away, but the boy dodged out of the way. Izuku then formed a ball of dark energy in his hands before throwing it at the villain's eyes, making him shriek in pain and cover his eyes. Taking that as his opportunity, Izuku closed the distance.

"Kacchan!" Izuku exclaimed as he tried to grab the ash-blond, but the sludge was making it hard to get a good grip.

"Deku?!" Katsuki exclaimed, "What the hell do you think you're doing!? Get-"

"Just shut up and let me help!" Izuku yelled as he finally got a good grip on Katsuki.

Charging his quirk, Izuku pulled Katsuki while jumping back, having enough force to send the two of them halfway back to the crowd.

Izuku Midoriya, Quirk: Dark Force. He can produce an unusual form of dark energy that he can use in a variety of ways, the most passive being able to boost his speed and strength.

Seeing his hostage being taken from him enraged the Sludge Villain.

"You little bastard!" the Sludge Villain angrily roared, "I swear I'm going to kill you. I'll rip you from limb from limb. DO YOU HEAR ME!"

With that, the Sludge Villain rushed the duo with murderous intent. Izuku, having powered down his quirk, could only watch as the villain got closer.

Fortunately, before the Sludge Villain could reached them, All Might in his buffed-up form appeared and blocked the villain's attack.

"Have no fear, because I am here!" All Might said in a calm, but confident tone.

Startled by the top hero's presence, the Sludge made a desperate attempt to attack him. Showing no fear, All Might simply pulled his fist back.

"DETROIT SMASH!" All Might exclaimed as he punched the air.

The force behind the punch scattered the villain and easily put out the fires around the street. The heroes were able to protect the onlookers from the rest of the wind and shock wave. When the wind finally died down, there was a silence that fell over everyone. Then, a few raindrops fell. Slowly people began to regain their senses with a few people looking up. The very sky had darkened with clouds from the force of All Mights attack. Soon though a cheer erupted from the crowd as they celebrated All Mights victory.

With the villain defeated and collected by the police, it wasn't long till reporters crowded around All Might for a statement or interview. Katsuki and Izuku were moved to a less busy section of the street. Several of the heroes stood around Katsuki, praising him for his bravery and power he had displayed. A couple were even offering to take him as a sidekick when he got into a hero school. Izuku was not so lucky. Two heroes, Death Arms and Kamui Woods stood over him, berating him for his actions. Although upset that he was being scolded for helping out, Izuku was at least happy to know that had done good with his quirk.

Sometime later, Izuku was making his way home. After the heroes reminded Izuku it was illegal to use his quirk without a license, they had decided to let him off with a warning since he did help save Katsuki.

However, Izuku was brought out of his thoughts when he heard someone yell, "Hey Deku!"

Turning, Izuku mentally groaned when he saw that it was Katsuki.

Taking in a silent breath, Izuku asked, "Yeah Kacchan?"

"Don't think this changes anything." Katsuki said, confusing Izuku, "I'm still above you. So don't even think about looking down on me with your villainous quirk. It was All Might that saved me, not you. So I don't owe you. You understand me!?"

Finishing his rant, Katsuki turned around and stomped away, leaving a confused Izuku.

"...What was that about?" Izuku asked himself aloud.

Despite his confusion, Izuku decided to just move on and make his way back home.

"I AM HERE!' All Might exclaimed as he skidded to a stop right in front of Izuku, startling the boy.

"All Might?!" Izuku exclaimed in shock, "You're here? Why are you here!? But you were surrounded by reporters when I left. They couldn't have been asking you questions already."

All Might laughed before replying, "Please young man, ditching the press is easy for me. Why do you ask? Because I AM ALL MIGH-!"

All Might's monologue was cut short as he suddenly reverted back to its weakened form, spitting out blood after it happened. Even after seeing this transformation before, Izuku still cried out in alarm. It took a few moments for All Might to recover himself, wiping the blood with his hand and getting his cough under control.

"Young man, I've come here to offer you my thanks, to ask you a question, and make you an offer." All Might said, gaining Izuku's interest, "You see, if it hadn't been for you, if you hadn't showed me that bravery, I doubt I would've summoned the will to stand up to that villain one more time. Even when I lost the will to fight, your actions helped remind me that I shouldn't never stop fighting til the very end. For that, you have my thanks."

Izuku blushed at the praise before saying, "While I appreciate the praise All Might, none of what happened back there would have happened if it weren't for me. If I hadn't been so selfish and got in the way of you taking that villain to the police, none of this would have happened to begin with. Plus, I took a gamble using my quirk, I'm just glad I didn't lose control."

"Lose control?" All Might asked, "Tell me, what exactly is your quirk?"

Izuku wanted to hit himself for letting that slip. As much as he wanted to not reply, he knew there was no going back now.

With a nervous sigh, Izuku explained, "My quirk is called Dark Force. I can produce an unusual form of dark energy that use in a variety of ways. What I can currently do is increase my speed and strength, throw balls of dark energy as projectiles, and can transfer it into technology as a substitute for electricity. But I have to be careful, because the dark energy tends to be volatile. Which brings me to my quirk's main drawback, it makes me susceptible to anger and violence."

All Might was both intrigued and concerned after hearing what Izuku's quirk was. Intrigued because the quirk itself sounded very powerful and versatile. He even believed the boy could learn to do even more with it if became more adept at it. But being susceptible to anger and violence was one nasty drawback that one certainly should be concerned about. Such a weakness would most certainly be exploited by a villain who knew about it. The boy would need special training to overcome it.

"All Might?" Izuku spoke up.

Realizing how long he remained silent, All Might said, "Apologies my boy, I was jumping lost in thought. Anyway, if using your quirk is a gamble, why did you do so back there?"

Izuku blushed in embarrassment before responding, "To be honest, I didn't even mean to. When I saw Kacchan, he looked so...so desperate. The next thing I knew, I was just running while having my quirk active. I still have no idea why I did it. I just knew I had to help."

"Your body moved without you thinking about it huh?" All Might asked.

"Yeah, it wasn't until I was halfway when I realized what I was doing." Izuku continued, "By then I just decided to launch a dark bolt, the ball of dark energy I made, at the villain's eyes, figuring it was the only weak spot he had. After that I had to grab Kacchan then use my strength to launch us back. And, you know the rest."

"Young man...would you like to know what I saw out in that street?" All Might asked.

"What did you see, All Might?" Izuku asked, confused by the question.

"I saw a young man act in a way some of the greatest heroes had said they had acted when they saved someone their first time." All Might explained, "Their bodies moved before they had a chance to think. Almost like they moved their own. And you, my boy, have done just that."

Hearing this, Izuku's heart clenched in his chest.

"Young man, it is for that reason, I have chosen you to be my successor." All Might said.

"Your successor?!" Izuku exclaimed in absolute shock.

All Might nodded and pointed right at Izuku before saying, "That's right. What you showed me today are all the traits I needed to see. I deem you worthy to become my successor. My quirk is yours to inherit."

Izuku's jaw dropped slightly and his head tilted to the side.

'Inherit his quirk?' Izuku thought to himself.

"Hey hey what's with that look kid?" All Might asked, "I told you I had an offer for you. So you need to decide what you want to do."

"All Might I don't understand." Izuku said, "What are you saying? That's impossible."

"Impossible huh?" All Might asked rhetorically, "Do you even know what my quirk is?"

"Your quirk?" Izuku asked in an uncertain tone, "No, I don't think anyone does. There are a bunch of theories out there, but no one knows for sure. I know stuff like super strength and invulnerability are the two top runners. And whenever you get asked about it during interviews you always find a way to dodge the question."

"I do that so people will keep thinking I'm just like them." All Might explained, "A regular person with a quirk that became a hero. But the truth is there's nothing regular about me or my quirk. I wasn't born with this power, it was passed to me."

"Passed to you?" Izuku asked, disbelief evident in his voice, "That's not possible. Sure, children can inherit their parent's quirk, but it's not guaranteed. But what you're suggesting breaks our society's current understanding of quirks. And…"

All Might watched as Izuku continued to rant for a moment before saying, "Kid, I think you might be overthinking this a bit...kid?"

However, it was obvious that Izuku wasn't listening anymore. Deciding to fix this, All Might leaned forward and clapped his hands together in front of Izuku's face, shocking the boy enough to get him to stop talking to himself. The boy looked around before a sheepish appeared on his face.

"I'm sorry, I'm just having a hard time wrapping my head around this." Izuku said sheepishly, "It just doesn't seem possible."

"But it is possible." All Might countered, "I can transfer my power to someone else. You are going to need to accept this fact before we move on to the next secret of my power."

Izuku took a breath to calm himself down and returned his complete attention to All Might.

Satisfied, All Might continued, "The name of my quirk is One for All."

'One for All.' Izuku repeated in his head, not daring to interrupt All Might.

"This quirk goes back generations." All Might explained, "One person takes the power, and improves it, before they then pass it onto the next person. They too will improve the power before they pass it on. As the quirk is passed from torch bearer to torch bearer the power increases and grows. Each person adding themselves to it. It is with this power of generations that I can save people who so desperately need a hero. This young man, is the truth behind my power. I have been searching for someone worthy to pass this power to, and today you proved that you are that person."

Izuku was dumbstruck. This was really happening. All Might just offered him what many would be considered a once in a lifetime opportunity. He honestly wasn't sure what to say. But after thinking about it for a moment, he made his decision.

"This is quite you've given me All Might, but I'm going to have to decline." Izuku responded, shocking All Might.

"After everything I just told you, you're saying no?" All Might asked, completely dumbstruck.

"Don't get me wrong, it's an honor that you've chosen me as your successor." Izuku said quickly, "But the reason I'm declining is because of my quirk. I'm already struggling to properly use it and still have a long way to go before I can perfect it. And I believe having another quirk alongside it will only make it harder to master. So forgive me, but I can't accept your quirk."

Although still shocked by Izuku's response, the boy's reasoning made a smile grow on All Might's face.

"I see, you're declining so that you can get a better handle on your quirk rather than struggle with mastering two at once." All Might said, "Well said, I'm certain most people wouldn't even consider that if they were in your position. While I am a bit disappointed, I'll respect your choice."

With that, All Might began to walk away, certain he'll find another possible successor soon.

"Actually, All Might.' Izuku called out, making the top hero stop in his tracks, "Do you think you can help train me for the U.A. entrance exam? I know that I'll need to use my quirk during the exam, but I want to get better at using it before then. I know this might be a bit much to ask, but please, help me master my quirk."

At first, All Might didn't respond, making Izuku believe the answer was no. But the top hero slowly turned around, a large smile on his face.

"My boy, I'll gladly help you master your quirk." All Might responded, making Izuku smile himself, "By the way, we never fully introduce ourselves, my name is Toshinori Yagi."

With a bright smile, Izuku responded, "Izuku Midoriya. I look forward to your teachings, All Might."

It was soon after this that the two parted ways, with All Might promising to contact him again soon once he had put together a plan on how to improve Izuku's grasp on his quirk. Until then he made sure to have Izuku promise not to mention anything that had been said between them. Izuku himself was on cloud nine the rest of the way back to his home. He was so distracted that he never saw his mother running at him, the moment he walked through the front door and all but tackling him in a panicked worry. This confirmed that she must have been contacted by the officers or paramedics who had been on the scene.

While he wouldn't be attending school for the next week due to his mother being overly concerned, Izuku was happier than he ever has been in years. And his newfound happiness brought forth a new resolve. Once he becomes a pro hero, he will serve as an example. He will show that there's no such thing as a villainous quirk. He'll show that no matter what, anyone can be a hero, even if other people doubt that they can.