Musutafu, Tokyo- 201X

Inko Midoriya was a sweet woman.

She didn't raise her voice.

She didn't curse.

She didn't smoke.

She hardly ever drank.

She didn't hit people.

She was, all-around, just a sweet lady.

Inko Midoriya was a caring wife.

She started dating her husband after their second year of high school.

Moved from Shizuoka to Tokyo with him before their first year of college.

And married him a year after they graduated, he and her with degrees in Quirk Sciences and Applied Ethics in Hero Society, respectively.

Their relationship only bloomed further when they found out, at age 26, that the better half of the couple was pregnant. And a couple of weeks after they celebrated Inko's 27th birthday, on July 15th, Izuku Midoriya was born.

Inko Midoriya was a loving mother.

From the moment she laid eyes on her son, she knew that she loved him.

His freckled cheeks, just like his father's.

Green tufts of hair, just like her's.

A fine set of lungs, as evidenced by his cries.

Everything about him made her love him, and the feeling only grew as he grew older.

She cheered enough to drown out a full baseball stadium when her son took his first steps.

"There you go, Izu! You're doing it! Just a little bit more!"

She busted her sides laughing at his first word.

"C'mon, Dekiru. Please just say papa."

"Jiji."

"Pftt!"

"It's not funny, Inko!"

And when he cried after being diagnosed as quirkless, she cried with him.

"I'm sorry Izuku! I'm so sorry!"

So yes, Inko Midoriya loved her son. That much was clear to see. Irrefutable, even.

And it was because Inko Midoriya loved her son that she was incredibly worried after he came in, in the state that he did, after a long day out.

"Izu." Her tone betrayed nothing.

"Y-yeah, mom?"

"What happened?" Her tone betrayed nothing, but the glint in her eyes said nothing short of, 'Tell me everything.'

"Well, i-it's a long story-"

"We have time."

Inko's usually comforting smile widened, as she gestured towards an empty seat across from her.

"Pop-a-squat. We need to talk."

Izuku gulped.

Hours earlier, near Tatooin Station…

Izuku Midoriya was having an alright day as he left the convenience store, smile on his face with a water bottle and bento in hand.

School was out.

The sun was shining.

The flowers were blooming.

And, best of all, there was no one crying out for-

"HELP!"

Aw, crud.

The shout had come from a nearby alleyway. Not quite dark in the light of noon, but secluded and far enough out of the way that he wouldn't

Now normally, a young boy of eight years wouldn't be put out by the sound of calling out for help.

Startled and curious, maybe. But, not put out.

Well, most eight year old boys weren't Izuku Midoriya.

The child's legs were moving towards the danger long before his actions could register.

He wanted to be a hero and his usual company often led him into strange situations.

Izuku liked to help people, so if he happened to hear someone shouting 'Help!', his instant reaction was to run on over and see if he could.

Most people would call that a lack of 'self-preservation', his uncle and Kiryu-san called it a 'moral compass'.

Whatever that meant.

As he neared the spot that he heard cry come from, he could hear someone saying, "-ut the hell up and empty your wallet before this gets ugly."

Ah, muggers.

In a world of superheroes and supervillains, there are often a good number of petty crimes that slip through the cracks.

Muggings, assaults, sometimes murder. If there wasn't a quirk being used in full view of a hero, it was free game.

Quirkless-on-quirkless crime was making a killing in hero society.

The police would try to keep up, but unless you were in a place with a high concentration of quirkless, villains would take priority.

Villains have the capability of doing more damage than criminals, after all.

So, if no one was going to protect the defenseless, Izuku was going to.

That's just what a hero does.

Reaching the point of the alleyway where he heard the cry for help coming from, Izuku quickly assessed the situation.

There stood two people, both men, one holding the other by his collar with a fist cocked back and the other quivering in fear.

It was definitely a quirkless-on-quirkless crime. Which made it the perfect time for a little quirkless hero's intervention.

Kiryu-san and Goro-jiji told him that supervillains were completely off-limits until he was older, but in the words of the latter, "Punks and jackasses with knives and guns are fair game. Go wild, champ!"

He'd taken these words to heart, and so he placed his bento off to the side, got low, and readied his fighting stance.

Left arm loose at his side, right arm crossed in front of him. He'd gotten much taller since the first time he'd used this used this style. Almost four years of training and healthy dieting would do that, he supposed. Taller than most of his peers, at over 140 cm, not many people wanted to mess with him at the park anymore.

Didn't really translate well against adults, but that's what the whole "learning to fight" thing came in.

Oh, right! Safety first.

Closing his left eye, Izuku squinted his right and focused on the man's pants pockets and torso. He was searching for any 'suspicious bumps or bulges' as his uncle had called them.

The training for this particular skill was… interesting to stay the least.

"Alright, Izu-chan. What do they got?"

In a cleared area of the Junkbeach, Izuku stood beside his uncle and across from four men wearing yellow hard hats that said 'Majima Construction'.

Majima had told Izuku that they were some of his employees and they would be assisting in his training that day.

The boy didn't really need to hear much more than that, so he closed his left eye and focused on the group of four with his right.

As he swept his gaze from right to left, he called out the following:

"Gun."

"Correct."

"Knife."

"Right."

"Nunchucks."

"On the money."

"Banana."

"Ye- wait, what? Nishida, what the hell?"

"It's what you gave me, boss!"

The throttling that Nishida would receive soon after would be one that Izuku remembered for many months after the fact.

Snapping out of his thoughts of the year-old memory, the green-haired boy focused back on the situation at hand.

The perpetrator didn't have a weapon of any sort on his person, so Izuku wouldn't have to worry about any nasty surprises in what was sure to be a fight. He could feel the Heat burning through his body, as well. Now all he had to do was grab the mugger's attention.

Clearing his throat, he called out, "Hey! Why dontcha pick on someone your own size?"

Startled, the mugger whipped around, dropping his victim, and searched for the person who had clearly just challenged him. He couldn't seem to find anyone at first, if his confused countenance was anything to go by, but when Izuku cleared his throat he looked down and snorted.

"This is a matter between grown-ups, kid. If ya don't wanna get hurt, get the hell outta here."
At that, he began to turn back to his victim so that he could resume his nefarious scheme-

"Why? Scared you're gonna get laid out? Tch, chinpoko."

That seemed to grab his attention.

"...The hell'd you just say to me, brat?"

Izuku closed his eyes, rising slightly out of his low stance and giving the mugger his most innocent smile with a slight tilt of his head.

"Oh nothing… Chinpo-san."

The criminal was fuming now. He was grinding his teeth and his face was turning red. That was the moment that Izuku knew… he had him.

The man completely forgot about his original victim and turned fully towards the small child that happened to be taunting him.

"Ya got three seconds to say you're sorry, brat, before I kick your little ass."

"I'm sorry... Chinchin-chan."

"Grrrr! Gonna beat your ass! C'mere ya little shit!"

Pokochin-Sama

The man ran straight at the green-haired child, winding up a punch and swinging straight at the small boy.

Woosh!

Only to be left dumbfounded when his fist struck nothing but air.

"What are you aiming at?"

"The hell?"

The adult in the situation turned to see the boy that he had failed to assault, not only behind him but staring at him with a shit-eating grin.

So he swung again.

And he missed again.

Swing.

Miss.

Swing.

Miss.

Burabura Suru.

Shisokunau.

This would continue for over a minute or so, before the poor mugger found himself winded.

[!] Heat Move: Essence of Blindside

And as he bent over at the waist, hands on his knees, in an attempt to catch his breath, he heard a whistle.

Looking up to see where it was from, he was assaulted by the sight of a rapidly approaching small fist and a brief sensation of pain before it all went black for him.

"And good night."

As the criminal fell to the ground in a heap, Izuku turned to the victim of the mugging, who had been frozen in fear from the moment he had been dropped, and walked over to him.

He offered a hand to the man, which was quickly taken, and helped him up.

"Th-thank you. Thank you so much." He bowed repeatedly and thanked his tiny savior over and over again.

Izuku just offered him a big, toothy grin and told him, "Don't mention it, mister. It's what heroes are supposed to do."

That said, he walked away, retrieved his bento and drink, and went about his day.

Izuku wasn't even five full steps out of the alleyway, before he was stopped by someone calling out and saying, "Hey! You, with the green hair! Excuse me! Please wait up!"

Hm?

Substories 1

Dreamers on the prowl

Turning to address whoever it was that called out him, Izuku was soon confronted with the visage of a what had to be a middle school boy with short brown hair and kind brown eyes.

Izuku's eye for hero merch immediately made the Limited Edition Bronze All Might hoodie that the older boy was wearing.

The boy was also incredibly out of breath.

Izuku offered him his water bottle, before being waved off and putting it away.

It took the brown-haired boy a few moments more to catch his breath before rising up to his full height; he was taller than Izuku, but still pretty lanky.

He offered the younger boy a smile before saying, "That was an amazing fight!"

"Huh?"

"Back in that alley there. The way you took that guy down. It was awesome."

Oh. "Thanks."

"Like, you're just so tiny and unassuming. I never would've guessed that you'd have moves like that!"

"Thanks, I guess?"

"Are you a new hero or something?"

"N-no, I'm not."

"Then are you a…" He looked around and leaned in before whispering, "Vigilante?"

"No, I'm not. "

Technically he wasn't. Under the Rhode Island New State Statute, and many of its international counterparts, Vigilantism is stated as the act of using a quirk to apprehend criminals without a provisional or permanent hero license issued by the Hero Public Safety Commission.

Izuku didn't have a quirk, therefore his crime fighting was legal and completely quirk free.

"Hm, but how did you move like that? You had to have used a quirk, right? Some sort of speed quirk or reflex enhancer?"

"No, just…"

A seven year old Izuku stood across from Kiryu, who held a bundle under his arm, on the sands of Morning Glory Beach.

"Alright Izuku. We're going to work on your evasion today."

"Okay, so what are we doing?"

"Well first, you're gonna wanna tie your shoe. I'd rather you not trip during this."

"Oh. Thanks." The young greenette bent down and began to tie his laces.

As he finished the loop, he heard the sound of something light hitting the sand.

He thought nothing of it until…

Chk-Chk!

He had seen enough zombie movies with his uncle to recognize that sound and his head whipped up.

"K-Kiryu-san, why are you holding a shotgun?"

"For today's training, Izuku, you're going to dodge the bullets that I shoot at you. They're all rubber, so they won't kill you, but they still really hurt. Your objective is to not get hit by a single one. If you do, we do it again until you don't. We start on the count of three. One."

"Kiryu-san, this isn't okay. There has to be a bet-"

"Two."

"Can we please not do this?"

"Three."

"KIRYU-SAN!"

BAM!

"...Training. Lots of training."

"Huh. Well, that's pretty cool either way. The way you didn't even hesitate to help that guy was cool too. Didn't ask for a reward either. Are you planning to be a hero?"

"Yeah, I am. I'm gonna be the world's greatest hero! Even greater than All Might!"

"Woah, that's a tall order. Well I'm gonna be a hero too. I hope to see you in the papers sometime. Speaking of, I never got your name."

"Oh, It's Izuku. Izuku Midoriya. What's yours?"

"It's Koichi Haimawari. Pleasure to meet you."

"You too, Haimawari-san. So, if you don't mind me asking…"

"Something on your mind?"

"I-uh just wanted to-um ask what your quirk is?"

"My quirk?"

"Y-yeah. I have this thing for analyzing different quirks, ya see. Um, most people find it kinda weird when I start nerding out, so I try not to…" He began to taper off into mutters near the end.

Koichi seemed to take pity on the younger boy and said, "I don't mind, go right ahead."

The mutters continued.

"Um, Midoriya-san?"

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"Midoriya-san!"

"Ah! I was muttering, wasn't I?"

"Big time."

"Sorry that happens… a lot."

"Don't worry about it. Anyways, ask away."

"Okay, so-uh what is your quirk?"

"Well, I've taken to calling it 'Slide and Glide'. I can use it to glide over just about any flat surface in any direction, even backwards. I don't have much control over turns and braking, though."

Izuku's eyes shined as he started scribbling notes into a notebook that he definitely wasn't holding seconds before, "That's so cool! When you say just about any flat surface, does that mean walls and steep inclines and stuff? What about-?" His excited questioning would've continued had he not been interrupted by-

Vvvvrrr!

The sound of a phone vibrating came from Koichi's hoodie pocket, so the boy to boy reached in, took it out, and flipped the phone open.

His eyes scanned across the screen and he had broken into a sweat by the time he reached the end of it.

"Uh, sorry Midoriya-san. That was my mom. I just remembered that I'm supposed to be grabbing some vinegar and it's been an hour and I haven't been to the store yet. So, I've gotta go or…" He shuddered here.

"Oh, okay. It was nice meeting you again, Haimawari-san."

"You too. Oh, and before I go, are you planning on trying for the U.A. Entrance Exam next year?"

"Um, no. I'm 8."

"Ah, I see…" He nodded and closed his eyes, before they snapped and he stared in shock.

"Wait, you're what?!"

It was on that day that Koichi Haimawari learned that heroes come in all shapes and sizes.

Substories 1

Dreamers on the prowl-END

After bidding his new friend farewell, Izuku continued on down the street. He was on his way to the Children's Park to eat his bento and play for a while before he went to the clear more of the Junkbeach for the day.

He was about to turn the corner onto the street, when he recognized a certain someone sitting on a bench and called out a greeting.

"Hey there, Tsukauchi-san!"

The man, who was wearing a green polo over brown slacks, looked over to see the young boy approaching him.

"Oh, Midoriya-kun, hello." The man had been the Midoriya family's neighbor for just over a year and always had a smile and kind word for the young boy.

Which was why Izuku was concerned when he saw the man looking like death. His usually well-kempt hair was completely bedraggled, his clothes askew, skin pale, and eyes bloodshot.

The officer looked like a dead man walking.

"Um, Tsukauchi-san? Are you doing alright?"

"Hm? Oh, yes, I'm fine Midoriya-kun. Just fine."

You sure don't look fine. Izuku wisely kept that comment to himself.

He still wanted to see if he could help his neighbor though. The man had always been truly kind to him.

"Are you sure? You look like you have something on your mind."

"No, it's really-uh nothing." Looking closely, Izuku could see a silver ring flash around the man's pupils.

Huh, weird.

He could tell that the man wasn't going to tell him what the problem was, unless he got out the big guns. So he tapped the forlorn officer on his shoulder to grab his attention and waited for the man to look at him. When he did, the plan was on.

Blinking several times to prepare himself, he puffed out his cheeks, widened his eyes to almost frightening proportions, and…

Stare.

"Midoriya-kun, what are you doing?"

Stareee.

"M-Midoriya-kun, you're making me kind of uncomfortable now."

STARE!

"Alright, alright. If I tell you what's up? Will you stop doing… that?"

Izuku let his eyes go back to normal, before smiling wide and responding with, "Yep! Now spill!"

"Jeez. Kids these days."

Izuku just kept smiling and waited.

Tsukauchi sighed and said, "It's my mother."

Substories 2

The Good Son

"Your mom?"

"Yeah, my mom."

"Is she… sick?"

"What? No! W-well, n-not that I know of..."

"Oh. So what's the problem?"

"I'm single."

"Huh?"

"I'm single, 29, and have no friends my age."

Oh…

"My mom knows this, and she's not pushy about it or anything, but… I can see that little bit of disappointment in her eyes whenever I tell her I don't have a girlfriend yet. But it's not my fault! I'm just so busy studying up for the detective's exam and I haven't had time to get out and..."

This was starting to bum Izuku out a bit. He also didn't really know how he could help at this point, seeing as he was 8.

And a boy.

But Tsukauchi was nowhere close to done with his rant, as he looked down and gripped his hair, "And I swear that I heard her crying one day when I told her that I wasn't planning on having any kids time soon. I mean, c'mon! I can't bring a kid into my bachelor lifestyle! The only kid I know that really even likes me is…"

He turned to look at the boy he was talking to.

And Izuku immediately decided that he didn't like where the situation was headed.

Figured I'd split this up so I could have one half out today and edit the second half for release by the end of the week.

Definitions and Terms to know:

Chinpoko/Chinpo/Chinchin/Pokochin: Penis. They all mean penis in some way, shape or form.

Buraura Suru: Swing.

Shisokunau: Miss.