Hey guys, we're here for another chapter of In The Right Hands. I know that there are some worried about how All Might has the bleeding from the mouth thing before he had his confrontation with All For One. Don't worry. I got you. I figured that much like Izuku in canon, Toshinori had some trouble with controlling OFA. So much so that the first time he used it, he messed up some of his insides permanently. Thus, bleeding from the mouth. But as of right now, It's just some minor thing that he can take medication for. It doesn't become like in the show until later. But enough about that, I'm sure your just waiting to read the actual chapter, so have at it!

The cool thing about human evolution, is that all the little...flaws that they may have had, are usually taken out over time. As such, the little thing about children having permanent muscle damage when under extreme physical stress has been taken out of the equation entirely. Because of this, Toshinori has deemed it fit to push the two children to their limits. Why he knew such training methods, nobody knew. Though, as for both Izuku Yagi and Katsuki Bakugo...

"Thirty more push ups!"

"But we've already done fifty!"

"Then make it another forty!"

"Aw!"

...were not so thrilled. But more on Katsuki's side than Izuku's. Izuku was doing whatever his father told him and even then some. He did everything without complaint. The fire in his soul wouldn't allow him to slow down. Not since his father told him that he could become a Hero. He had trained from before dawn, starting with a long run, to pull ups, then to lunges.

From there, he would do some light training at school where he would use crunches and some body weights. Throughout the day, he would be using the crunches in class while studying notes while also making time for his Hero Notebook. The thing about that though, is that he never really got any real free time to himself. Though, he really did want to become a Hero just like his idol All Might. So he would gladly give up his own free time to further train his body. Though, Toshi was insistent that he take the weekends off. So he did as his father told him to...but also saw no harm in training ever so slightly when his father was out doing his job as a lawyer.

When both he and Katsuki would come home, they would be treated to a heart healthy snack by Mitsuki herself before being dragged into training by Toshi when he came home. Though, Katsuki would try her best to watch as much of her soap opera as possible. It was something that her mother had introduced her to three weeks ago. Since then, she had been positively hooked on it.

In the evening, they would do the most intensive part of the training. With lots of running, lots of pull-ups, more push-ups, and even more pull-ups. And that was just the beginning of the 'All American Dream Plan' that Toshi had made. Yet, Izuku never said a word about it. He never complained. He never so much as whined. He just kept with it and even went further than what was planned. And his father couldn't be any more proud of his son.

"Alright kids, we're done for today. You can head inside and wash up before eating dinner." Toshi said, looking at the two panting children as they finished their ninetieth push-up. Katsuki fell down in a heap, not really used to this training yet. It's been only two weeks since they had started this schedule and she was just starting to wake up on time for the start of her day. But when she looked over to Izuku, she saw that while his arms were shaking, and sweat was covering his entire body, he was still going.

"Ninety two...ninety three...ninety...four." Izuku strained, making Toshi smile at him. He knew how important it was to the little boy that he became strong, but he needed to know how to pace himself. Otherwise, he's going to tire himself out and run out of energy to do anything. He didn't want his son to collapse from exhaustion!

"Izuku, you can rest now. Head inside so you can wash up." Toshi instructed. Izuku did not respond, as he was still in the middle of doing his ninety fifth push-up. He stayed in that position for all of two seconds before he collapsed in a panting heap. Though, before Toshi or Katsuki could worry about him, he got up onto his feet, looking tired, yet content.

"Don't worry dad. I was just seeing if I could get to a hundred. That's my next milestone. I'll get to it eventually. I don't stand a chance as a Hero if I can't even do that much." Izuku said with a beaming smile on his face. Yagi listened to him before letting out a happy hum.

"That's a good mindset to have, Izuku. But you must learn to pace yourself. You cannot expect yourself to do everything all the time. You will collapse under all that work." Toshi said with mirth. Izuku smiled and nodded before heading on inside. Katsuki got up too, feeling motivated to match the Cinnamon Roll's goal.

"Yeah! I'll get just as pumped as Izuku and do a hundred push-ups too!" Katsuki said joyfully. As Izuku's official rial and best friend, she needed to be with him every step of the way so that they could push each other further and further each time. It was times like these that she really does appreciate Izuku's friendship. Though, Toshi had taken her declaration a little too seriously.

"Oh? Then you're 'Pumped Up' enough to do the final ten push-ups right now then?" He questioned with a sadistic glee. His features darkening into an almost villainous stare. Katsuki froze up when she heard the challenge and almost feinted when she saw the look in Toshinori's eyes.

"I-I-I-I think mom's calling me! Coming mother!" Katsuki quickly announced, rushing as fast as she could inside the house. Though, she wasn't as quick as she would have been, seeing as how she spent most of her day exerting her entire body so that she could produce more of her nitroglycerin sweat. That, and so that she could withstand more of the recoil of her more destructive explosions. So far, she has been showing great promise in her Quirk usage. She could blow up an entire building if she really tried.

Thank lord they were training on testing grounds. That would have been a hassle for Toshinori to deal with.

But as he looked at the retreating forms of his son and Katsuki, he saw the progress that they had made. It wasn't much, but it was honest work. They had each started showing signs of improving. From how much more they could do every day, to their drive to better each other. He couldn't be more proud.

"I haven't had to train that hard since...Nana..." Toshi said with a sorrowful tone. It had been some time since his mentor had passed away. But he knew that she had sacrificed herself so that he and Gran Torino could get away from...him. And speaking of him, he had heard recently that the same bastard was going to try something soon. He was formulating where he would strike before he would swoop in and end him once and for all.

Before he could mull over it any longer, he heard a call from the house and turned to see that Mitsuki was leaning on the doorway with two mugs of steaming coffee in hand.

"Hey there Yagi. I know how hard it can be to raise a kid. Hell, I had to raise the two for a while." Mitsuki said as she gestured for him to walk inside with her. Toshinori sighed to himself and graciously took the cup. He'd prefer tea, but he wasn't going to complain. IT\t was just the fact that he couldn't be there for his son when he needed him. Yet he decided to move forward and acknowledge the fact that it would allow his son to realize how much the world would need Heroes. He just needed to let it be a distant memory and make up for all of that abuse by being the best father Izuku could ever ask for.

"Yeah, but I at least have a good friend to help raise him. Thank you by the way. I'll be sure to pay you back some day." Toshi said as he took a sip of his coffee. Mitsuki giggled a bit before letting them walk in silence. When they had gotten to the table, they found that the room was mostly empty save for the food that was ready to be served.

"The kids are probably in the bath right now. Let's set up the table for them." Mitsuki said, moving to set the plates. Toshi nodded to her before placing the silverware.

"So Mitsuki, are you sure that my training of your daughter is alright? Especially with how hard I'm pushing her?" He asked as he placed the last fork. Mitsuki smiled before answering him, starting to serve the food onto the plates.

"It's alright Yagi. I was going to try and get her into a training program anyway. And if I can have her be trained by someone that can yield better results, then its all the better." She said, placing the last serving of green beans on the plates. Toshi felt content at that. It wasn't all that common that a person would let a stranger train their child to the bone.

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..

...

"That, and this way, I don't have to spend a dime!" Mitsuki continued with a cheeky smirk on her face. The older man just sweat dropped and shook his head.

'Of course that's what she would let it happen for.' He thought, holding his face in his hand before he heard a shuffling of footsteps. He turned to see that both Izuku and Katsuki were running into the room, ready to eat. The smile on their faces made Toshi smile again, feeling grateful that he had such children to mentor.

'Well, I don't think it matters all that much anyways. I'd be happy to train them for free. I get enough money from my job as it is.'

It had been a week since then and Toshi had finally found that person that he had been hunting for a few years now. They were going to be in the wayside of the country, ready to send out his first wave of minions to the nearest city. But if he got there before they could do that, then he'd be able to end it for good.

"Mitsuki, I'm terribly sorry for telling you on such short notice, but I just got a call from the firm that they needed my assistance on a case. I'll be gone for a few days. a week at the most. I'll leave a list of things that the kids need to do for their training while I'm gone." Toshi said as he was readying his suitcase for his long trip. Though, Mitsuki already had some concerns about this. Mostly due to how he was leaving on a business trip much like...Hisashi.

"Yagi, I'm sure that they can do without you. You can have someone else do it for you. You know how Izuku had to deal with Hisashi leaving without warning him. So why is this so important?" Mitsuki asked in a voice that was a mix of worried and frustrated. She just couldn't understand why a retired lawyer would need to be called in for a case. IT just didn't make sense.

Toshinori stopped what he was doing before sighing to himself. He knew what Mitsuki was worried about, but the difference between him and Hisashi was that he was actually going to come back. But she was right that it would be wrong jus to leave without saying anything to his son. But he needed to explain something to Mitsuki before that.

"Mitsuki, the reason that I need to go isn't just for some old case. It's one of the cases that has haunted me for the past two decades. I got a call telling me that I could finally put it to rest. I can't just ignore it. Mitsuki, If you had a chance to find something that you have been looking for the majority of your adulthood, would you take it?" Toshi asked, having closed his suitcase and looking right into the mother's eyes. Mitsuki immediately thought about how her husband passed away and closed her eyes. She really couldn't refute him on that.

"Alright. But at least tell Izuku that your leaving. I don't know how he'll react if you just up and leave." Mitsuki said, seeing Yagi placing his suitcase at the front door. He looked down to his watch seeing that it was only five past four thirty. A whole hour before either of the children would wake up to start their training for the day. And while he should really leave now to make sure that He won't be too late, he also figured that five, maybe seven minutes wouldn't be too bad.

So with a nod, Toshi made his way over to Izuku's room and quietly walked in before closing the door behind him. He looked over and saw that his little boy was sleeping peacefully. So with practiced stealth, he quickly sat onto his bed without a sound and made to wake up his son.

"Izuku, wake up. I need to talk to you." Toshinori coaxed. Izuku stirred in his sleep before his eyes fluttered open, not really knowing what was happening around him.

"Dad? What's going on? Is it time to train already?" He asked, already starting to get out of bed. But before he could remove the covers, Toshi gently placed his hands on his shoulders and layed him back down, smiling at the amount of dedication Izuku had in his training.

"No Izuku, not quite yet. I wanted to talk to you about something else. My job is going to take me out of the city for a few days. I promise I'll be back as soon as possible. Miss Bakugo will make sure that you keep up with your training schedule." Toshinori explained, placing a hand over his son's blanket covered one.

Izuku looked worried for a moment before Toshi also noticed a small bit of fear in them as well. Izuku's eyes started to water and his breath started to quicken before he voiced his concerns.

"B-but dad...please don't leave. I don't know if you'll come back. Whenever someone leaves me, they don't come back. Please..." Izuku silently cried, making Toshi feel even worse for having to leave. He knew that he couldn't let the opportunity go to waste lest he lose the lead all together, but he thought that he could at least ease his son's worries. So he quickly turned around to fully face him and wrapped his son in the most affectionate hug he could muster.

"My son. It's going to be okay. I will promise to you that I will come back. You have my word." Toshi said to his son. Izuku slowly quieted down but still sniffled for some time. He still had his doubts however.

"But..." Izuku weakly let out, still not fully convinced that his father wouldn't just disappear after leaving the front door. Hisashi did it, so what's to say that he wont either?

Toshinori held his son even tighter and rubbed his back in a soothing matter. He thought about something that might be of some use to help his son and reminisced on the history of it before pulling back and reaching into his back pocket. Izuku watched him carefully, not knowing what his father was doing until he saw his father showed him a ribbon. It was mostly green with a gold stripe going down the middle. It looked aged, as if it had been made long, long ago...

"Izuku, do you know what this is?" Toshinori asked the curious boy. When he shook his head no, the older man looked down to his hand before elaborating.

"This is a gift that I was going to give your mother a very long time ago. I was going to try and take her away from her father. To try and take her away from all the bad things in her life. That was before she was given away. It's something that I keep with me at all times." He said, looking back into his son's eyes. For a moment he saw some of that same light that Inko had when he saw her for the first time. He looked down at the piece of cloth before holding it out for Izuku to take.

"I lend this to you, Izuku. I want you to take care of it as I have. Keep it safe until I get home. Think of it as my promise to you that I'll come home to you. Alright?" He said, ruffling the boys hair as he held the cloth in his palms. He bristled a small bit before smiling brightly.

"Okay. I'll wait for you to come home papa. I'll keep this safe at all costs!" Izuku exclaimed quietly, hugging the cloth to his chest. Toshinori beamed at his son before hugging him again. When they separated, the father got up and headed for the door, letting Izuku get a bit more sleep before he actually had to get up again. While in the door frame, he turned his head and saw his son already lightly snoring.

"I love you my son."

And with that, Yagi Toshinori had left to deal with some long over due business.

Over the next few days, Izuku seemed to be pushing himself even more than usual. Katsuki would have layed back a bit seeing as her usual trainer was away, but...

"Come on mom! I've already ran five laps!"

"And you're going to be running another three! Now get to it!"

"Aw!"

Her mother was just as much as a sadist as Toshi was.

"Don't start complaining now. Izuku is still running even after seven laps! You don't want to be left behind now do you?" Mitsuki asked, seeing that the young Cinnamon Roll was in his own world, he seemed determined, but you could still see that he was a little discouraged due to...something.

Mitsuki knew what was making him like that. And she still had some of her doubts as well. It wasn't that she didn't think he could become a great Hero, It really wasn't. But he's going to be hard pressed if he wanted even a chance at being accepted. Hero schools normally wouldn't even consider accepting kids without Quirks. The best thing that they would allow would be their Support course with how intelligent he is.

"Alright fine! I won't lose to you Izuku! I'll train until you have to rely on me to save you!" Katsuki said in a friendly matter. Though, Izuku wasn't even paying attention. Katsuki knew he wasn't doing it on purpose, but that just made her want to train even harder to make him lose focus, even if for a brief second.

After their running, they came inside for a quick meal before they had to head out to school.

"So Izuku, are you sure that you're going to be alright without your father here?" Mitsuki asked as she drank her second cup of coffee for the day. She had already eaten breakfast, so she was just waiting for them to finish so that she could drive them to school.

"It's okay. I know he'll come home. He promised me!" Izuku said, happily eating his breakfast of fish, rice and egg-drop soup. Mitsuki smiled, taking a sip of her coffee. Izuku took the ribbon out of his pocket, showing it to the other two in the room.

"He said that he would come back to get this! It's really important to him because it's a gift to mommy!" Izuku said, making Mitsuki raise her eyebrow in intrigue. She would have to ask about that later. It was almost time for them to go to school.

"Come on kids, finish up your breakfast and get your things ready. I'll take you to school once you're done." Mitsuki said while walking into her room to get her purse and keys. She was well off thanks to her investment choices and compensation that she got from her late husbands passing. The only thing that came from that mess. Though, she does feel a bit bad about how that sounded.

Once they were out of the house, Izuku was going through his Hero Notebook. He was now on number three so far. He was looking at the page that he made just for All Might. He swore to himself that he would dedicate at least one page to him in all of his Notebooks. Though, he never got much on it. Somehow, the Number One Hero has kept most facts about himself a secret. It was as cool to him as it was frustrating for news reporters trying to get the next big scoop about the giant man.

"I'm going to be just like him one day." Izuku whispered to himself, placing a small hand on the drawing he made. He was happy as could be in that moment.

.

..

...

Until it started up again.

"Ha! You think you can become a Hero, Deku!? What a joke!"

"You don't have a candle's chance in a hurricane!"

"You can't even keep your first dad in check! I bet the next one will leave you too!"

"You want to be a Hero so bad? Jump off a bridge and hope for a Quirk in the next life you worthless Deku."

All of these voices rang in Izuku's head as he remembered what all of those kids at school would say to him on a daily basis. He mostly ignored them since he had the Bakugo family and his own dad to keep his spirits up. Though, they still lingered in his subconscious and reverberated in his mind at times. It just made him realize how much he has to do in order to accomplish his dreams. He thought that a Hero is supposed to be so confident in himself. To always show a smile. Never show fear or sadness. It's what All Might did. So he never mentioned it to anyone. But he held his head high. There wasn't much that could bring his spirits down for long.

"Alright, have a good day at school kids. Love you!" Mitsuki called as she dropped them off. The two children waved back to her with laughs.

"Bye mom! Love you too!" Mitsuki said, happily walking next to Izuku as he was mumbling to himself, going over some notes and making adjustments that he thought necessary. Katsuki just shook her head, amused with how Izuku could go on a tangent with those notes of his for who knows how long.

"Izuku."

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..

...

"Izuku."

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..

...

"IZUKU!"

"Huh?" Izuku said, being knocked out of his trance. He looked to his side before seeing that Katsuki was looking at him in a cheeky manner.

"Oh...was I mumbling again?" He asked, a small blush showing on his cheeks. Katsuki giggle a small bit before bringing Izuku into a side hug.

"Don't worry about It Izuku. I find it kind of cute! Plus, It's just one of the things that makes you unique!" Katsuki exclaimed, grinning widely. Izuku only made some small noises of embarrassment before Katsuki let him go. There was just too much about Izuku that made him such a cinnamon role.

The rest of their day was relatively normal. Or, normal for Katsuki. Katsuki would normally go to class, talk to some of her friends, stay close to Izuku, do her work, study, eat lunch, go to recess, check on Izuku, and then go home. Simple enough.

Though, for Izuku, his schedule was a bit more complicated. Of course, he went to class, much like Katsuki, but the rest of his fay was much different from that point on.

First, he would try to get to his desk as quietly as possible but fail. From there, he would be harassed by some of the other students. Then, they would back off when Katsuki came in. After that, he would study, but have the other kids constantly bother him and try to pick on him. most of the time with success. At lunch, he would always get something thrown at him and into his hair. It's mostly the reason why his hair was so soft. He had to wash it often. As for recess, he tried to stay away from the other kids...but failed horribly. That's where the kids would be the most relentless. But he bore with it. He had his resolve. He knew what he was going to be. It didn't matter how they made him feel like nothing. He had to keep on smiling. just like his Idol, All Might.

"Are you listening to me, Deku? Are you so stupid that you don't understand English anymore? You really are worthless, Deku!" A kid said, snickering at the small child as Izuku was trying to ignore them and do squats. This seemed to be a bad choice as the kid along with three others grew angry. The oldest kid came up to him and kicked Izuku to the ground. They laughed at him some more as Izuku was starting to pick himself back up.

"Train all you want, Deku. It'll never be enough to become a Hero! If you really think that you'll be anything more than just a useless Deku, then maybe I can show you why people with Quirks are better!" The kid called as he brought up his arm as it started to glow with a dangerous heat. But before he could lay a hand on Izuku, they all heard a chilling voice.

"Oi."

They all turned to see that Katsuki was slowly making her way towards them with an open palm, clearly showing the small explosions going off. The kid with the glowing hand immediately backed away, feeling nervous around Katsuki. Anyone knew that a quiet Katsuki was a really pissed off Katsuki.

"Oh! Katsuki! What are you doing here?" The kid asked with a cold sweat. He didn't fully realize exactly what kind of demon he summoned when he kicked Izuku in front of her, but he did know that Katsuki was angry at something.

"What do you think you're doing?" She asked, still approaching the small group of kids. The four children slightly shivered in terror at the angry Bakugo. Yet the apparent leader of the group was left to deal with her as the other three quickly left and made their excuses. Katsuki didn't bat an eye at them. They were simply side characters compared to her. All of them were.

Except for Izuku of course. He was just as important a character as her.

"Oh, you know...I was just teaching D...Izuku that its going to be so hard to become a Hero since he doesn't have a Quirk." The kid said, a noticeable shake in his voice. He was sweating bullets now. Anyone and everyone was aware of how...protective Katsuki was of Izuku. Yet this kid seems to have forgotten this fact on this day. And he was going to pay dearly for it.

"Is that so? Well then, you won't mind if I..." Katsuki started, getting right up on front of the kid and grabbing his collar and bringing him to his knees. The kid's eyes widened, feeling terrified beyond belief. Katsuki looked him dead in the eye with fury glaring into the smaller child's soul.

"TEACH YOU THE SAME THING!" She shouted, heat being generated in the hand that was holding him while a slightly bigger explosion than before had gone off in her free palm. The smaller kid cried out in fear while tears started to stain his face. But before Katsuki could do anything to the bully, a voice spoke up from behind them.

"Kacchan, stop!" Izuku exclaimed, making Katsuki look to him. She saw the little tears in his eyes, obviously hurt over the words that the bully said to him. Yet he still had defiance inside of those big emerald orbs of his. For a moment, Katsuki stayed still. Just staring at him while the bully mostly stayed quiet, not daring to incur the wrath of Katsuki any more than he already has.

"Fine." Katsuki said, obliging with Izuku's wishes and letting the bully go. The kid himself scrambled to his feet and ran away while trying to hide the 'fear' that trickled down his pant leg, and the 'shame' that stained the back of his shorts. That left just Izuku and Katsuki to themselves with one of them letting out a small sigh of tiredness while the other stayed quiet, not really getting why they couldn't just teach that bully a lesson.

"Kacchan, I'm okay. You didn't have to do that." Izuku said, already walking away. Katsuki looked at him as if he was talking nonsense. Of course she had to do something! She couldn't just let her Cinnamon Roll get pushed around like that, could she? Hell no!

"Izuku, what are you talking about? Of course I had to! I couldn't just let them push you around like that!" Katsuki argued. Izuku sighed again before turning to her, a small smile adorning his features.

"It doesn't matter what they do to me Kacchan. It doesn't even matter what they say to me either. As long as I know who I am and what I am going to be, I'll be alright. You, Go-chan and dad taught me that." Izuku said, making Katsuki stare at him blankly or a few moments before adorning a small smile of her own.

"You really got to stop saying stuff like that, Izuku. It'll make you seem really old!" Katsuki exclaimed before wrapping Izuku into a tight hug. Izuku smiled and laughed with her, not really feeling up to arguing with her on that. He was always told that he was mature beyond his years. But he was also told that he was going to be one lucky boy in the future. He wondered what they meant by that...

Before he could ponder on it any longer, the bell to end school rang and the duo were off to get back home.

Today was stupendous! It was a Saturday, there was no school, he got to spend most of the day playing with his best friend and godparent. Everything was swell...though, he would have liked to be training. It wasn't that he didn't want to spend time with those that he cared about, it's just that he needed to train as much as he could if he wanted to get into U.A. at all. But, both Mitsuki and Katsuki had been able to convince him that he should take a break from all that training so that he could rest. It was a hard fought battle of wits, considering Izuku was smarter than any of his classmates and those in higher grades than him. Sure, Katsuki was almost as smart as him, but she didn't have the cunning mind as he did. Mitsuki was much in the same boat, though, she hadn't really had to use any of her schooling in years...that was a depressing thought. Though, what won the argument in the end, was a simple order from Mitsuki to stop training for the day or he'd be grounded. On a side note: Toshinori was supposed to come home today!

"Izuku, are you excited to have your father come home today?" Mitsuki asked the small child as he was writing in his notebook about a new Hero that made their debut that day. Izuku looked up from the paper and nodded with vigor. a big smile plastered onto his face.

"Of course I am! And when he gets home, we're going to go out for muchi!" Izuku said, laughing in joy. There was no greater joy to him than being reunited with his father again. The only thing that would make it better for him, is if his dad came home with the muchi...just saying.

"Is that right? Is it just going to be the two of you or are we invited too?" Mitsuki asked as she was slicing up a few apples for him and Katsuki to have as a small snack. Izuku shook his head in mild amusement, finding it funny that she even had to ask.

"Don't be silly Go-chan, of course you can come! I wouldn't want any of my family to feel left out!" Izuku claimed, making the mother nod her head in contempt. She really was grateful that Toshinori came around when he did. Though, anyone could argue that he should have showed up sooner, it was completely out of his control. Thankfully, all of that was past and they don't have any more worries to think about. It was all smooth sailing from here...

It was late at night and Toshinori hadn't come home yet. The entire family had stayed up for hours, waiting to see that blonde man come through the door and give Izuku a great big hug. From there, he would make up for lost time and take him out for a day on the town. A father-son day if you would. But he never came through that door. It concerned them on a number of levels. But to Izuku, he was almost resolute that his father would come home.

"It's going to be alright. He made a promise. He has to come back. If not today, then maybe tomorrow." Izuku said as he layed in his bed all tucked in. He reached into his pocket and took out the same ribbon that his father gave to him before he left. He held it close to his chest, feeling assured that his father was going to come home.

Though, maybe not in the condition he would have hoped.

Just as Izuku was going to drift off to sleep, he heard a loud commotion in the house. It sounded like the front door was slammed open.

"Dad?" Izuku thought out loud, getting out of bed. He was fully aware of the possibility of it actually being a thief trying to rob the house, but for some reason, he felt like this was different. There was no way in...heck that he would do this normally, seeing as he was a smart enough boy. But something inside of him, a base instinct if you will, was telling him that this was different.

So as he made his way from his room and out into the hall, he saw the tail end of Mitsuki rushing down the hall and into the living room. He slowly followed with the ribbon in hand. When he reached the end of the hall, he heard some more commotion coming from the front of the house. It was then that he heard the voices of his mother and...his father?

"Toshinori! What the hell happened to you!?" Mitsuki quietly shouted as she saw the older man. Izuku was worried about what she was talking about when he peeked around the corner to see that his dad...was bruised and bloodied!?

"I...ugh...It doesn't matter right now. I need...to get to U.A." Toshinori said as he nursed the sizable injury that was embedded int his left side. It was bleeding profusely. A sizable chunk was visibly missing from his body. He was coughing up blood and his skin was a ghastly pale shade of white. He was looking even worse for wear with just how...still he was. He was hardly moving.

Izuku put a hand to his mouth, feeling appalled at the sight. It was traumatizing. Seeing the one of the people that took him away from his old house and took care of him. The person that served as his trainer. The person that said he could become a Hero. The same person that trained him and believed in him was now currently bleeding out in the living room.

"U.A.? What the hell are you talking a out!? We need to get you to a hospital!" Mitsuki said, going to the house phone and call for an ambulance. But before she could do that, Toshinori called for her to stop.

"No...not the hospital. Just use...my phone." Toshinori said, weakly holding up a blood stained phone. Mitsuki looked at it for a moment, then to him before seeing the amount of pleading in his eyes. She didn't really know what his deal was with not wanting to go to the hospital, but if he wanted her to call U.A., then she was going to trust him. She took the phone from him and looked through the contacts, seeing only a select few names and saw a contact under the category of 'Emergency'. When she dialed up the number, the other end immediately picked up.

"Yes? Who is this?" The voice asked, sounding like an impish person. Mitsuki shook her head of the confusion before stating her situation.

"Hi, this is Bakugo Mitsuki. I'm calling on behalf of Yagi Toshinori. He's...badly injured. He said to call this number. He needs immediate medical attention. Can you-" Before she could say anything else, the same impish voice from before uninterrupted her in a much more serious tone.

"I'll have someone head down there as soon as possible." The voice said before they hung up. Mitsuki wondered how they were going to find her house before a sudden thought rang through her head.

"What am I going to tell-" Mitsuki started to say, but was interrupted again when another voice spoke up, but this time, it was from someone that she thought that she had put to sleep already.

"Dad!" He exclaimed as he ran out from his hiding spot and rushed to his father. Mitsuki was going to stop him, but Toshinori slowly waved her off.

"It's okay. This...will probably...be the...only time I can...talk to him..." Toshinori wheezed out. Mitsuki looked between the two before she wearily backed off and went to look outside for any sign of that transportation.

The older man let out a sigh before turning to his teary eyed son. He hated seeing him like that. It didn't belong to his face. His son deserved nothing but to be happy.

"Son...don't cry. It doesn't suit you." He said, bringing up a hand to his face. It was the only one that wasn't bloody. Izuku leaned into his touch, bringing up his own hands to hold his bigger one. When Toshinori noticed the ribbon in his son's hand, his features fell a little bit more. He knew that he was going to be out of commission for a few months. He wouldn't be able to fully take care of his own son for that long either. But he knew that he couldn't just leave him either, so he had to do something. He would have to make another promise.

"D-dad. You're going to be okay, r-right? You're going to be okay?" He asked, tears streaming down his face. Toshinori had to catch his breath for a moment before responding.

"Of...of course, Izuku. I'll always get back up. No matter what. But...just know this. I'm not going to be able to...spend time with you for a few months, alright?" Toshinori said, looking Izuku right in the eyes. His son nodded, holding onto his father as tight as he could. Toshinori smiled at him before taking his hand away from the boy and gripping the palm that held the ribbon.

"Until I get back...I need you to hold on to this for me...for just a little longer...okay? Work hard. Don't let anyone...bring you down. And most importantly...don't ever forget that I...I love...I love...you..." Toshinori breathed out before he slipped into unconsciousness. Izuku started to shake, thinking that his dad had just died. He went to check for his breathing, and was slightly relieved to see that he was still breathing, if only weakly.

Just then, he heard a commotion going on in the other room and saw that a rather lanky man make his way into the living room. They wore mostly black, baggy clothes with a peculiar scarf around their neck that looked more like bandages than anything. They had black hair at an average length. a stubble of a beard growing out and his crimson eyes that looked like they had a small case of insomnia. He quickly locked eyes with Izuku before looking to Toshinori's body and quickly strode to him. He then, without hesitancy, unwrapped his bandages and wrapped them around the unconscious man and started carrying him out the door.

Izuku was going to chase after him and tell him to give his dad back, but Mitsuki came up from behind him and held him back.

"Izuku, it's okay. Don't worry about it. He's going to be okay." Mitsuki tried to reassure him. Izuku looked from her to the receding form of his father, weakly struggling in her grasp the whole time, before stopping, suddenly feeling the mental exhaustion of the entire situation and from the lack of sleep. Before long, Izuku had passed out in Mitsuki's arms. She picked him up and rested his head in her shoulders, planning on putting him back to bed. she was lucky that Katsuki was such a heavy sleeper. Otherwise she wouldn't know how her daughter would react to all this. But before she could go anywhere, she looked towards the man that was carrying Toshinori out the door and saw that he had turned his head to her, looking her right in the eyes with his crimson eyes. They never said a word, but she understood the message.

'It will all be fine in the end.'

She didn't know whether or not it would be. But she prayed to whatever god would listen that it would.

The next few days were...stressful to say the least. Izuku wouldn't say a word to anyone. He would only eat, go to school, do his work, come home, take a bath, eat again, and then sleep. All the while, he upped his own training. He did double the push ups, double the sit ups, triple the running and quadruple the squats. He never allowed himself any rest further than eight hours of sleep. When Katsuki learned what had happened, she grew worried about Izuku. Even more so when he started with this attitude. She still trained of course, but when she tried to chat him up, he would just give her the cold shoulder. It hurt her. It really did. they were lucky enough that he was able to bounce back from that torture he had to endure from Hisashi, but now that his actual father, the one that actually cared for him, was going to be gone for an undetermined amount of time, they didn't known if they would be so lucky a second time. She was just so worried about her friend that she was almost sure that he would drift away from both her and her mother.

That was, until one day, Izuku finally spoke. Three weeks later.

"Izuku," Katsuki tried for the umpteenth time that week. He still hadn't spoken a single word since his father went to get medical attention three weeks ago. The green haired boy was currently doing one-handed push ups. He had a stone cold look on his face. Never telling of what he was feeling. It was unnatural for him. He always wore his heart on his sleeve.

It was at this point that Katsuki decided to push a button that she didn't really want to push, but thought that he caused her to push it in the first place. It would be considered a bad or good decision depending on who you asked.

"Izuku you can't live like this forever...what would your da-" Katsuki started to say, but Izuku cut her off with such swiftness and chilling anger that it made her flinch.

"My dad is god knows where right now. I don't know if he's going to come back. But if It's taught me anything, it's that taking a break does nothing but cause trouble." Izuku started, his brain connecting the cause of his father's injury and the fact that he stopped training that day, together. Katsuki felt a little awkward with how cold he sounded.

"I mean..." She trailed off, not able to look him in the eyes again. She didn't really know how to continue this conversation, but Izuku seemed to know.

"What? Katsuki you are set up for success. We both know this. Everyone knows this. You have arguably one of the strongest Quirks out there. Me on the other hand, have to train day and night to even be considered as a Sidekick. I am supposed to believe that without a powerful Quirk, without a Quirk at all, that I'm supposed to turn my cheek and let everything pass me by." Izuku said, he voice never leaving out that cold sting. Katsuki didn't know what to feel more hurt by. The fact that he called her by her first name, or that he wasn't wrong. Though, she's pretty sure what the answer was. She stayed quiet as Izuku finished his rant.

"But I say forget all that. I am going to train, and train, and train until I'm strong enough. I am going to train every second of every minute, of every hour, of every day until I'm strong enough. Until I'm strong enough to protect my father. Until I'm strong enough to protect myself so that I don't have to be babied by you or anyone else. I am tired of being the damsel in distress." Izuku finished, taking some of his things before taking his bag and headed for the door. Mitsuki was almost in tears from how bad she felt for him. she reached her hand out to him, as if trying to keep him there.

"Izuku..." She croaked out. There was obvious desperation in her voice, though, they fell on deft ears. All Izuku did was stop to give her his final few words before he left the house.

"Tell Go-chan that I'm going to be gone for a few hours. I want to be alone for now. Goodbye." He said before walking out and closing the door behind him. Katsuki stayed there for a few moments before she collapsed to her knees and cried.

She just wanted everything to go back to the way they were...

As Izuku made his way over to his own private place, so many things were going through his mind. He didn't want to snap at Katsuki like that, but with all that had been happening recently and with how stressed out he felt, he just couldn't control it. There was a lot that he had to work through. He figured that if he took some time to himself, then he would be able to calm down some.

When he finally made it to his Generations Headquarters, he dropped all his stuff down on the rather sizable bed. He'd be worried about any bugs that might be in it considering this was an abandoned underground tunnel, but he got rid of those as soon as he had the chance, thanks to his...dad.

"Damn it." He said to himself, balling his hands into fists. Thoughts about all the fun times he had with his dad filled his mind. Of when he first met him.

"For him."

He punched the inflatable punching bag he had as he thought about the day that he and his dad went to a traveling carnival as a reward for getting an 'A' on an exam.

"Work hard..." His dad's voice reverberated in his head. He clenched his teeth, not trusting his voice anymore. He remembered when his dad lent him the ribbon that was supposed to be a gift to his mother.

"Don't let anyone...bring you down..."

His memory seemed relentless today. It was really getting to him now. He could feel something well up in his soul. Something that was just a hairs away from being unleashed. He had thought nothing of it, being too distracted by how his memories were causing him an array of emotions. It all built up, with more and more memories being dug up. He almost couldn't handle it. He brought up his fist, fully intending to punch the inflated dummy again before the last memory was brought up.

"And most importantly...don't ever forget that I...I love...I love you..."

And like that, that same energy that was building up inside him unleashed alongside his emotions as he brought down his fist on the inflated dummy.

*Bvroooooooom*

He closed his eyes, trying not to let the tears flow, even as they stained his cheeks. He breathed heavily, as he felt winded from all that energy that he exerted both physically and emotionally. He kept his eyes shut until he thought about how that last punch felt. He didn't actually feel any resistance from it. And he heard something that didn't quite sound right. It was almost as if something was being distorted somehow. When he opened his eyes, he looked to his punching bad only to see that it was...gone.

He looked around the room to see if it landed anywhere, but couldn't find it...but he did find something else that made him backpedal.

"What the!?" Izuku exclaimed as he landed on his rear end. There, floating above him, was a humanoid creature that just stared at him.

Whether or not Izuku knew it, he just unlocked a power that would not only solve his own dilemma, but it was also his next step in becoming the Number One Hero and the Symbol of Peace.

Okay, cool, another chapter done. Ya'll happy? I am. I originally intended for this chapter to only be 5500 words. But you know how it goes. Inspiration hits like a truck. Anyway, that's all for today. I'm kind of tired. So I guess I'll see you all in the next chapter of one of my stories. Until next time. Toodles~!