Hello! Greetings! Salutations! Welcome! It seems like I'm on a role with this story, huh? Hopefully it stays like that. Knock on wood and all that jazz. Still, do not fret dear readers! This is the beginning of the Road to UA Arc! Expect a lot more action from here on out. There will still be lulls from it of course, and I intend to introduce a few characters before UA. Also, I will be writing UA as such from now on. The whole periods between letters bit is throwing me off. What does U.A. even stand for anyway? Whatever, that's not important! Now's the time for Action! Let's get right into it!
"So...how are we going to tell Go-chan and Kacchan about all this?" Izuku asked as they lounged about in their new home. It had been done for a few weeks now, if not a bit over a month. However, with Toshinori having been away for as long as he had, the Bakugo family decided that they would try to keep it tidy as much as they could until he was ready to come back.
Learning that little tidbit of news made the father feel even more guilty about his decision to stay away from home. However, whenever he tried to apologize for it, Izuku would always diffuse the situation by saying that he held no ill will towards him and that he understood why he felt the need to do so.
The house itself wasn't terribly lavish. Just a two story house with three bathrooms, two bedrooms, guest room, dinning room, kitchen, living room and basement. It was enough to be comfortable, but certainly not like those that had the ridiculous Idea to buy an entire mansion for either just themselves, or simply because they wished to have it.
Not unlike some rich folk he knew of.
*Cough Cough* Yaoyorozu *Cough Cough*
It wasn't like he disliked them for doing it, or that they were bad people. The countless amounts of checks they've written to charities speaking for itself. He just didn't see the point in buying all those things that they hardly ever used. Especially when it was something as large as mansion. Just didn't see the point. Besides, wouldn't you get lost in such a large space? He wondered if they ever slid around in just their socks and underwear. He was certainly guilty of doing that back in his school days whenever he had the chance. Or maybe...
"DAD!" Izuku called out, looking slightly amused. It broke Toshinori from his musings. Though, a realization came to him not a moment later.
"I...mumbled all of that out, didn't I?" The blonde asked, feeling ever so slightly sheepish at the fact. Izuku smiled at him and gave a nod, a small chuckle making it's way passed his lips.
At the very least, he knew that it wasn't just him where he got that from. Made him happy really, that he was so much like his father that way.
"Seriously though. Are we going to tell them about you being All Might, or about One for All? I get if we can't, because of...er, secret identity stuff." Izuku stuttered, wondering about the subject. He was right in doing so as well. He told Izuku because he believed that he was going to be the next to inherit it. With Katsuki and Mitsuki falling into a grey area.
On the one hand, they were close friends and family in all but blood. On the other, the less people that knew of something like this the better. If people found out that a power like All Might's could be passed on to another, there would be a massive outcry from the public, wanting that power for themselves. Villains would try even harder to try and attain it for themselves, either through direct force to the wielder, or through coercion by holding those close to them hostage. A real debacle.
"That is true. Telling others would only heighten the amount of danger the Bakugos would be thrusted into. So for now, we will keep this a secret. At least until we are done with our training. By then, with the both of us, we should be able to keep them safe from most harm." Toshinori stated, making his son realize that he had also gone into mumbling once more.
Seems to be happening a lot recently.
"Okay...I can't say that I like it, but under these circumstances, I can understand why. But what are we going to do now that you're back? Are we going to get right into training? It's already getting pretty late, but I can-" Izuku started, getting up to change into different clothes so that he could get ready for a late night workout. His father simply held up a hand to stop him.
"There's no need for that, my boy. You've already gone through a lot today. Mitsuki and young Bakugo should be coming home soon anyhow. We can worry about training tomorrow. Go wash up and prepare for bed. I'll meet up with Mitsuki and tell her that I'm back and I'll be back here in a bit." Toshinori stated, standing from his seat and walking past his son, patting him on the shoulder as he did. Izuku stared after him for a bit, seeming to debate on complying. He wanted to start training as soon as possible, but if his dad wanted him to rest for now...
"Alright. I love you, dad." Izuku proclaimed, making the older man turn to him just before he turned a corner into the hallway. The Yagi parent smiled back at him and let out a small chuckle.
"I love you too, Izuku. Now go, I'll be back in a bit." Toshinori stated, finally leaving. Izuku nodded to himself before heading to the shower. He was a bit tired. It was best that he did this now before he passed out.
Toshinori stood outside of the Bakugo residence, trying to look as least suspicious as he could. Though, it felt as though the more he tried not to, the more suspicious he felt. He was standing next to the small fence left of the driveway. He had planned to text Mitsuki and tell her that he was home and that he wanted to talk, but then he remembered that he didn't have his phone. Then he remembered that he hadn't had a phone of his own for the past few years. It was always either someone else's or a burner phone. So he had no real way to contact her.
He really should think these kinds of things through.
It wasn't like he could just go out and get one either. At this time, he would take too much time going out and getting one that by the time he came back, it would be late at night, and he didn't want his son waiting that long. But at the same time, he didn't want Mitsuki rolling into her driveway and see somebody on her property and either call the police or, knowing her, probably try to apprehend him hersel-
"YAGI!?"
"Holy!" Toshinori exclaimed, feeling himself try to leap out of his skin. He took deep breaths and quickly turned his head to see that Mitsuki was already in her driveway getting out of her car.
When did she get here!?
"Ah, Mitsuki. I've been meaning to-" He tried to say, but was punched in the shoulder by the rather irate woman before he could finish.
"Where the hell have you been!? All these years you've been cooped up in the hospital unable to even walk, and now here you are making casual conversation with me outside my house!? How the fuck are you even here!? You know what, no screw that! What are you doing out here trying to talk to me!? I swear if IO find out that Izuku wasn't the first person you tried talking to, so help me I am going to rip off your-" Mitsuki began shouting, making the blonde man wither under such fury.
And Katsuki was going to be like this when she grew up!?
"Mitsuki, please! I've already talked to Izuku. That's the first thing I did when I came back. I wanted it to be a surprise!" Toshinori pleaded. He wondered how Mitsuki could be a doting and caring mother one second, then a horrifying villain like monster the next?
"You...I'm too tired for this crap. It's been a long day. Katsuki's already asleep, I just need to get her out of the car. Welcome home, Yagi. We'll talk more tomorrow." The mother stated, letting out a tired breath as she went to the back seat of her vehicle and retrieved a sleeping Katsuki. Toshinori nodded, but wanted to say one last thing before they parted ways for the night.
"Of course. However, I do need to inform you that since I'm back, Izuku will be moving in with me in our new house. With that in mind, I also need to tell you that he will be receiving special training with me that I believe will benefit him greatly." The father stated. Mitsuki was already at her door fishing out her keys from her back pocket when she turned to Toshi with a curious gaze.
"Really? And Katsuki isn't in that regimen because?" The mother questioned, not understanding why as soon as he was home, Yagi would change up their training schedule so drastically. The man himself scratched the back of his head as he tried to explain himself.
"My training is more suited for what Izuku is aiming for. Young Bakugo wishes to use her Quirk in a Blitzkrieg tactic, using her Explosions to overwhelm her opponent and subdue them with quick and powerful strikes. However, Izuku wishes for a fighting style more suited for long, dragged out fights. He understands that he wont be able to compete with Villains head on, so he wants to build up his stamina and endurance while also investing in martial arts." Toshinori stated, causing the mother to nod along.
She supposed that made sense. Since Izuku didn't have a Quirk, he'd have to find alternative ways to fight as a Hero. It hadn't stopped some of the Pros who didn't have combat based Quirks. Why should it stop him?
"I will still train Katsuki, for clarity. However, I will need to focus on Izuku a bit more to make sure that he is prepared for the journey ahead." Dadmight finished. Though he had reasoning, Mitsuki could also tell that he was also doing it because he worried for his son above all. I mean, who wouldn't? Being a Hero was dangerous work, even for the most experienced of Pros. So she could understand, at least on a most basic level, what Toshinori was trying to do.
"Alright. I get it. Now please, Yagi. I'm sure we're all tired. We'll continue this in the morning. Goodnight." Mitsuki breathed out with a tired sigh. The man nodded, letting them go into their house before retreating to his own. He did need to talk to Izuku after all about what they were going to be doing for their training after all.
Being the son of the Number One was still making his head spin.
All this time, the one person that he had idolized his entire life, was his own father.
Him, the son of the NUMBER ONE HERO.
It was a humbling experience if he ever had one. On top of all that, his father wanted to give him the power that allowed hi to become the Number One in the first place. It's apparently what his father was training him for his entire life, even!
Even if he did accept, and he wouldn't go back on his word, he still wondered if he was the best candidate for the position. Despite himself and what Mitsuki, Katsuki and his dad himself would tell him, it never was able to completely shake off all the doubt and negative emotions he felt for himself. He didn't think it would for a long time either. Still, he needed to be strong for this. If he can't even keep himself together, how could he expect to become a great Hero like his dad hoped he could be?
"Izuku my boy, I'm back. I need to talk to you about what exactly it is I'll be training you in." His father's voice rang in the house. Izuku snapped himself out of his thought process as he got up from his bed and put down the dumbbell and cruncher he was using. He placed them neatly on the rack and shelf respectively, before heading into the living room to see what his father wanted to talk to him about.
"Alright, so what do you think I should do for training. I imagine it would have to be different than what I'm doing now, right?" Izuku asked as he walked around the corner and saw his father putting up hos coat and heading for the sofa. The house itself didn't have too much in it yet, but there was basic furniture and kitchen appliances, along with a few pieces of training equipment that had been transferred over here from the Bakugo residence.
Mostly due to lack of storage area, but still.
"Yes, that is correct. Initially, I needed to make sure that your body would be able to handle my Quirk, however, thanks to your diligent training, I'm sure you can take it without the fear of your limbs exploding off your body." Toshinori stated. For a moment, Izuku stared at him, before looking down at his hands, then back to his father.
"...Are you sure that I don't need to train a little bit more, just to be safe?" Izuku asked, understanding now exactly why not just anyone should be able to attain this power. Risking your entire body exploding limb from limb didn't seem all that flattering. Still, if his father said that his was ready, then he would just have to trust him.
"I'm sure my boy. I can tell just by looking at you that you'd be able to at the very least hold it without serious injury. I just wouldn't try to bring it out yet, is all." Toshinori stated, as he brought a hand up to his head. He focused a bit, his hair starting to stand up, but before he pushed his Quirk beyond it's limit for today, he plucked a single strand and let go of the power. He let out a breath as he stood up and walked over to his son.
"I would have liked to make this more of a dramatic moment, maybe give you an inspirational speech, but I'm more than confident that we're both burnt out after today." Toshinori said, seeing that Izuku was nodding in agreement.
"Y-yeah. I'm not exactly looking for anything extreme for the rest of today." Izuku admitted. Yagi shrugged his shoulders before telling his son that he would have to do one last thing before today was over.
"I hate to pop your bubble, Izuku, but there is one last thing I need you to do before you head to bed for tonight." Dadmight said, making Izuku look up at him with curious eyes.
"What do you mean, da-"
"Eat This!" His father exclaimed, holding out the single hair that he had plucked. Izuku seemed to be caught off guard for a moment, looking between his hand holding the strand and his face, trying to see if he had heard him right.
"...I'm sorry, What?" Izuku questioned with a face that told of the amount of questions that he wanted to ask. Not to mention, EW.
"Er...that sounded a lot better in my head. I didn't realize how strange that might have sounded to you. My master certainly made it sound a lot more tantalizing..." The Hero stated, rubbing his chin. At that, Izuku looked at him with even more curiosity than before
Tantalizing?
"Ah, that is to say...I didn't mean...I wasn't into her like...you need to intake my DNA and this is the least gross way to do it!" The flustered father stammered out as he tried to explain himself. To his luck, Izuku seemed to understand, completely missing the rather obvious innuendo that was being implied with his father and his mentor.
That...he had to have gotten that, right? There was no way he didn't. He was thirteen, for heaven's sake! His hormones were starting to kick in and-
He didn't have anyone to give him the talk.
'Ah... super crap.' The father thought to himself. It seemed like just another thing that he needed to make up for in his time away. That was going to be an...awkward talk. He himself knew all the workings of course, the evidence sitting right in front of him. Though, knowing what to do and trying to explain and teach it to another were two completely different things altogether.
"Alright then. I guess that makes sense. So, I just...have to eat this one strand, right? I don't have to keep eating one every day?" Izuku asked as he took the hair. His father shook his head, seemingly still in his own head. He herd slight mumbling, but he chose to focus on the hair in his hand. To think, all he would have to do is swallow this one strand, and he'd become the very embodiment of every wielder before him.
The coalescence of their hopes. Their dreams of a better future. The aspiration of every Hero that fought tooth and nail to make sure that those that they were protecting lived long and happy lives. The wishes of those that gave their lives so that others could go on...
He shoved the hair into his mouth and swallowed as hard as he could. He made sure to gather as much saliva into the action as possible to try and hide the taste and texture of the foreign object. Eventually, he managed it, and let out a haggard breath. He felt a little queasy, but that was mostly due to the knowledge that he had just willingly eaten another person's hair.
"Are you alright, Izuku?" His father suddenly asked, appearing next to him with a glass of water. The green haired boy nodded in appreciation and took the drink before taking a few drinks from it.
"Y-Yeah. But...what should I expect now? Is anything going to change?" Izuku asked. Toshinori simply patted his shoulder before gesturing him to go to his room.
"Not yet, my boy. Your body has to completely digest the DNA first. For now, you really should go get some rest. Tomorrow, we start our real training." The blonde smiled. Izuku seemed like he wanted there to be more, or that something a bit more dramatic would happen, but decided that it really had been a long day and conceded.
"Okay. Goodnight, dad." Izuku said as he went to his room. He closed the door behind him and thought about the weight that he was going to have on his shoulders now. How he was going to have to give his all in order to not let his father down. How he needed to make sure that he really was a worthy successor. He lay in his bed with thoughts of the future as he drifted off to sleep, the fatigue of the day finally catching up to him.
"Wake Up, My Boy! It's Time To Train!"
The loud shout from his father was enough to snap him awake, already scrambling to get ready. It wasn't like this was the first time he had been waken up like this. Still, it did give a bit more of a pep in his step to hear that his father, All Might, wanted to stress that point there, was training him.
He did what he normally does when he wakes up in the mornings. Light stretches, going to the bathroom, taking a shower, looking out the window to admire the sunrise...
Only, it was practically pitch black out there.
He turned to his father, only to be greeted by a shining smile. He wanted to question it, but decided that it probably wasn't a good idea. His father usually liked to keep surprise exercises like these just that. A secret. Still, it didn't matter even if he did know, he supposed. He'd still have to do them either way.
"Today, We Begin My 'Schedule For Success: All American Dream Plan'!" All Might stated as he held up a rather thick looking packet that Izuku could only guess was a detailed plan for his training. He tilted his head to the side, not entirely awake yet, and briefly questioned why his dad was so enamored with America in the first place. They were a great country to be sure, as all nations around the world had grown better on a general basis since the manifestation of Quirks. But still...It was by no means the best one to live in.
"First, We Must Make Our Way Over To Dagobah Municipal Park Beach. From There, I Will Fill You In On Our New Training Regimen." All Might stated, making Izuku nod. He really didn't have much other choice. Even if he wondered why they would be training at a beach of all places. Though, the name Dagobah did ring a bell somewhere...if he could just remember where he remembered it.
"Now, No More Wasting Time! Hop Onto My Back!" The Symbol of peace ordered. Izuku remembered the last time he did that and almost smiled at the memory, thinking back to how beautiful the scenery was from so high up in the clouds. He climbed up, still a little clumsily, but better than he had the last time.
"It's still so stunning, even at night." Izuku whispered to himself as he soared through the air. The nightly bustle of the city along with the lights that accompanied them making his eyes widen in awe. His father smiled at that, knowing that for a while, he just couldn't get enough of this kind of view when he first learned to leap this high.
"It Truly Is A Marvelous Sight, Izuku. And Think, One day, You Will Be Able To Do This As Well. Who Knows, You Might Even Be Able To Jump High Enough To See The Stars!" All Might boasted, knowing that he himself was jumping far higher than his mentor Nana had been able to without the aid of Float. He could only imagine how high his own son would be able to jump at his prime.
"To see the stars..." Izuku pondered. Never mind the idea of going that high would pose a great threat to his health as oxygen thinned the higher you went in altitude. Or how deathly cold it got as well, the mere idea that he'd be able to get a closer look at the space beyond their own horizon.
Breathtaking.
Without much else in terms of conversation, they landed in the parking lot of Dagobah Municipal Park Beach.
Or...what was supposed to be their destination. Really, even before they landed, Izuku could start to smell a foul stench, only getting stronger the closer they got to the ground. It was when he got off of his father and looked forward that he finally understood why.
As far as the eye could see, giant heaps and piles of trash littered the area. If he hadn't heard the occasional and feint sounds of ocean waves, he would have doubted that this was actually the place. He then turned to his father, wanting to ask why it looked like this. Only, Toshinori wasn't smiling. If anything, he looked...morose. Melancholic, even. It wasn't something that he saw on his father that often. He was always so carefree and lived life like it were his last day. So what got him like this?
He only needed to wait a few moments before the Hero spoke up, his tone somber.
"Izuku, I Brought You To This Beach For Two Reasons. One Of Which Is So That I Can Tell You That Cleaning This Beach Is Going To Be Part Of Your Training. Many Heros Have Forgotten The Roots Of Our Duties. That We Were More Than Just People Who Fight Villains. When We Take The Pledge To Become Pros, We Dedicate Ourselves To The People Entirely. That Includes Keeping The Community Safe, Secure, And Most Importantly, Clean. Which Fits Perfectly, As We Can Further Develop Your Body And Test The Limits Of What You Can Do And Even Expand Upon Them." The Number One explained, looking at the near endless mountains of trash that covered the beach. He let out a sigh as he continued, getting to the other, more personal reason he wanted to get rid of all this clutter and filth.
"The Other...Is Because This Beach Is Held Near And Dear To My Heart. The Reason Behind This Is...This Is Where I Met Your Mother, Izuku." All Might revealed. It caused his son to become shocked at the news. You meant to tell him that his father met his mother on this landfill? What kind of circumstances made that happen?!
"It Didn't Always Look Like This. It Was Once Clean And Pristine. The Pearly White Sand Was Soft To The Touch, The Waters Crystal Clear And The Sun Shinning Everything In A Wonderful Glow. Of Course, None Of It Could Have Compared To Your Mother. From The Day I Layed My Eyes On Inko, I Was Instantly Enamored With Her. As I had Found Out, She Was The Same With Me. We'd Take Trips To This Beach, Just Lazing The Day Away. But Then...She Was Taken Away. Not Long After That, I Gained The Attention Of My Master, Attained One For All And The Rest Is History." All Might finished.
Izuku was looking at his father in a new light. He wasn't just his father anymore, or even just the Number One Hero either. He was his own person with his own past and personal achievements. He had gone through his own hardships and losses. This place obviously had so much significance to him that seeing it in this state must have been heartbreaking.
The overall lesson also resonated with him on a personal level as well. It was true that when people hear Hero, they think of epic battles between them and Villains. However, as his father also pointed out, their original purpose was to serve the public. That didn't just mean saving them either. It also meant doing volunteer work and community service. Like volunteering at the soup kitchen and helping out the homeless, going to see sick kids at hospitals to try and make their day better, or even going to an orphanage to read to the children. In any case, Izuku had made it a goal to try and help the community as much as he could, even if it meant that he had to do all those things. He was going to be a true Hero!
"Don't worry dad, I'll make sure that this place is spotless in no time! I promise!" Izuku exclaimed, giving his father a determined smile. The Hero looked back at his son and couldn't help but give his own beaming smile as well. He let out a boisterous laugh as he clenched a fist in front of him.
"That's The Spirit, My Boy! Now, Let's Get Started! That Trash Isn't Going To Clear Itself!" All Might challenged, making Izuku nod and walk over to the nearest trash pile with his father. Of course, as much as All Might wanted to clear all of this up himself based just off of principle, he wanted Izuku to do this. Part for training, and part for the fact that this will make him feel closer to his mother. He may not remember her much, if at all, but he felt that he needed this. Thinking on it now, he decided to start telling him about who she was as a person when he knew her.
Oh, the stories he could tell.
"D-dad, I think I'm activating your Quirk!"
"Izuku, I Passed It On To You. It's Your Quirk No-WHAT!?" The Number One Suddenly exclaimed, looking to see that an orange energy started to envelop his son. He was currently trying to lift a particularly large piece of scrap, and in his struggling had unintentionally activated One for All. He almost leapt with excitement, but reigned it in. He knew how dangerous the first use of it could be. Though admittedly, he had almost forgotten that he had given his son the Quirk last night. Still! He needed to make sure that he didn't hurt himself like he had when he first received it.
"W-whoa. It feels...amazing." Izuku said in awe. He put down the piece of scrap and looked down at his hands. They glowed with a low hum of energy. It seemed like a static orange, with closer observation showing his veins turning a solid hue of red energy. He looked up at the trash pile in front of him and felt like he could just punch it into orbit. He smiled, as he actually intended to do that.
However, as he pulled back his fist, he felt a hand on his arm stopping him. He turned to see the still smiling form of his father, and gave him a confused stare.
"Now I Know The Power Is A Little Overwhelming At First, But Please Refrain Yourself From Doing Anything Rash. Though Your Body May Be Able To Hold It, You Are Far From Being Able To Use It. You May Think That You Can, But Trust Me, I Believed The Same, And Ended Up Injuring Myself. It's The Reason I Spit Up Blood Every So Often." His father warned. It made Izuku look down at his glowing arm before deciding to listen to his idol. He knew more about this than he did, so he'd have to trust him.
He still really wanted to punch it though.
"Don't Worry Too Much About It, My Boy. We Will Get To That Level Eventually. But For Now, We Must Get Moving. We Are Already Behind Schedule. So Move It!" He Hero suddenly shouted. It was here that Izuku forgot how scary his dad could be sometimes. Especially when he was training him and Katsuki. Speaking of which though, he wondered briefly what she was doing at this hour...or what hour it was in the first place.
"Did I Say You Could Take A Break!? I Said MOVE!"
"YES, SIR!"
Katsuki woke up, feeling surprisingly refreshed. She figured that from yesterday, she would be feeling like shit. She got up from her bed, figuring that she must have dozed off in the car and had been carried into her room. She took a deep breath, simply because she could. That Sludge attack only flashing through her mind for but a moment, until she dashed it away. There was no room for looking back on stuff like that. It just meant that she needed to get stronger in order for stuff like that to never happen again.
That was to say, she should make sure that she's keenly aware of her surroundings, even when she's distracted in trying to find-
"Izuku!" She exclaimed, throwing the covers off of her and rushing down the stairs. She got to the hallway leading from the staircase to the door, with the kitchen off to the side. She dashed towards the door, going to try and slip her shoes on before a voice called to her.
"He's fine, Katsuki. From what I heard, he's probably training as we speak." Mitsuki spoke from behind her. She turned to see that her mother was holding a plate of food for her. Though, it looked more like something for lunch than breakfast. The older Bakugo must have seen her confused look, because she just chuckled at her before gesturing for her to follow.
"While we went to the clinic to check up on you, one of the Pro Heros said that they would escort him home. And when I brought you back, a certain somebody was waiting." Mitsuki hinted, making her daughter mull over that bit of news for a moment. She tried thinking of anyone that they knew that would want to talk to her mother at that time of night. It had to have been late, seeing as she had been awake for a while and passed out in the car. Still, as much as she thought about it, she just couldn't think of who her mother could possibly be referring to.
"It's okay if you didn't get it. I was surprised with who it was too. Honestly, If I wasn't so tired from that day, I would have beat Yagi until he was black and blue." Mitsuki stated as she took a drink of her coffee.
Damn that is some good coffee.
"Wait, uncle Yagi came back?" Katsuki asked in bewilderment. Last she checked, he was still in the hospital recovering from his injury. She still didn't know the specifics of why or how he got so injured in the first place, but that had been a long time ago. Hardly felt important anymore. If she didn't know, she didn't know. Still, it was rather surprising, not to mention great that he was back, but there was still something that she wanted to know before she continued this conversation.
"Huh...hey, what time is it anyway?" Katsuki asked as she continued to eat her food. Mitsuki looked down at her watch after taking another sip. She hummed before shrugging.
"About five past two." Mitsuki stated, going back to drinking her coffee.
Damn that is some really good coffee.
Katsuki seemed shocked at the news, but settled down soon enough. She still grumbled to herself though. Thinking on all the training she had missed. Pissed her off.
"So you said he was training, right? I don't hear anything over in the workout room. So where is he?" She asked after a bit of cursing under her breath. Mitsuki hummed at that, remembering what Yagi had told her the other night.
"Oh, that's right. His father said that he was going to be giving him special training from now on. Said that since you two are going to have such different fighting styles, he was going to try and accommodate that. Though, I think he'll be focusing more on Izuku. Probably, because he doesn't have a Quirk, he needs all the help he can get." Mitsuki claimed. Katsuki looked at her with slight annoyance, mostly because she probably could have deduced that herself...if given enough time, and because she mentioned that Izuku would need special help just because he was Quirkless.
"It's not like he's helpless, mom. Lot's of Pros don't have combat based Quirks. Like Eraserhead!" Katsuki argued. She was getting a little more heated. Any more and she might start one of her regularly occurring shouting matches with her mother. The older woman just shook her head, letting out a sigh.
"I never said that, Katsuki. I hear about those Heros enough from both of you to know that. However, each of them have fighting styles based around their Quirks. But Izuku doesn't have that luxury. Still, that just means that when he shows all of them up, It's going to be just that much funnier!" Mitsuki finished with a laugh. Katsuki stared at her for a few moments, thinking about that scenario before laughing with her.
"I guess that's true. Still, does that mean we wont be training together?" The daughter asked, saddened by the news. At this, Mitsuki places her hand on her daughter's, getting her attention.
"Of course not. You'll still be training with him, just not as often as before. You both have to start creating your own styles separate from each other so that you can kick some serious ass." Mitsuki said with a grin. Katsuki smirked in turn, feeling a little better at the news. She finished her food and decided that she would at least get a little bit of a workout today. Maybe starting with a few laps around the block to really get her sweating.
"Alright, I'm going for a run. I'll be back in a bit. By mom!" Katsuki called back as she left her dish in the sink and headed for the door. Mitsuki got up to see her daughter off, a smile on her face. She really didn't know how different Katsuki would have been if she had been a boy. Would he be different in the first place? Would he be more like Izuku? Or would he...
"Stay safe out there will ya? Love you." Mitsuki called out as her daughter closed the door behind her. The mother stood there for a moment, closing her eyes. The silence that washed in was almost soothing. Though, she thought about her late husband and sighed. She really did miss him.
"Don't worry Masaru, we're doing just fine. Our little girl is growing up to be a kickass woman. One I know you'd be proud of." she said softly as she turned to the small shrine in the living room dedicated to the man, a picture of him standing behind an urn and a few sticks of incense. She still didn't know how he died, but she would imagine he went down swinging. He was like that.
She wiped a tear in her eye that threatened to break free. The time for tears had long since passed. She'd stay strong for the both of them. So she smiled, going to take another sip of her empty cup of coff-
.
..
...
"God Fucking DAMNIT!
"And...We're Done! Great Work, Izuku. You Did More Than I Expected!" All Might bellowed as he stood over the collapsed form of his son. Izuku was taking deep breaths as he squinted his eyes, trying not to let his sweat get in them.
Since he started trying to clear out the garbage in the area, he had seen the sun rise form the horizon, move through the sky, and was now perched itself high in the sky...if not slightly askew.
"What...what time is it." Izuku asked as he lay there, panting. His father looked down at his All Might themed watch - A gift from the boy himself, from before he knew about his alter ego-, and smiled.
"Fifteen Till Three!" The Hero stated, making Izuku groan in exasperation. It was already two forty-five!?
"I've been at this since four! I've been doing this for almost eleven hours!?" Izuku asked incredulously. It only made Toshinori smile even wider before letting out a bolstering laugh.
"I Know! And It's Amazing How You've Been Able To Go Until The Very End! You Should Be Proud Of Your Achievement, Izuku! Not Many Have The Work Ethic You Do. Now Here, Let Me Help You To Your Feet." The giant offered, giving his son a hand to grab. With some effort, Izuku was able to move his arm enough to take hold of it and was promptly lifted to his feet. He groaned again at the sudden movement, but shrugged it off. He had muscle aches like this before. It came with the territory of intense work-outs. Still, he didn't think he'd been this sore since he first started training his body.
"I'm glad that no one comes here because of all the trash. Otherwise, I think it would be pretty hard to try and explain why you were training me." Izuku chuckled. His father laughed along with him. It was true, if anyone found them and saw that the Number One Hero himself was training a boy personally, there'd be rumors spreading faster than any fire Endeavor could have possibly hoped to do. That was another reason All Might chose this location. The privacy.
"In All Seriousness, We Are Done Here. We Will Be Taking A One Hour Break Before I Take You Somewhere Special." The Hero said with a thumbs up. Once again, Izuku was left guessing as to what his father had meant by that. It could mean anything really. He was too tired to try and figure it out either way.
"Okay, I could use a break...but what now?" Izuku asked, not really knowing what to do. They could go home, but he didn't really feel like doing that. Looking back, he had barely made a dent in the massive wall of garbage. Speaking of which, he had asked his father about what they were going to do with the trash that he had moved.
"Ah...I Didn't Think That Far Ahead. I'll Just Go Fetch A Pickup Truck To Move What You've Gathered To The Dump."
"You mean you haven't thought this through!?"
It was interesting to see this part of his father. The drawbacks of being this carefree being that he didn't really think that far ahead when it came to planning...no, that was wrong. It was more that he overlooked certain details in a plan that he hadn't thought about. He was perfectly capable of coming up with plans and strategies, but the fact of the matter was that he sometimes left out small things that made the overall execution of said plan a lot harder.
"How about we actually go out for mochi. No distractions this time."
Oh, his father reverted back to his original form again. Probably because he didn't need to watch out in case Izuku hurt himself or was going to be crushed by some falling debris. Still, the prospect of finally going out for his favorite treat with his dad was more than appealing to him.
"Sure! Let's go!" Izuku said giddily, walking next to his father as they walked towards the truck that All Might had rented out for the...foreseeable future. He didn't tell him how he had gotten the vehicle so fast, or how he had gotten the dealership to lend it to him for as long as he wanted. Perks of being the Number One he guessed.
"Sweet ambrosia!" Izuku cried out as he took the first bite of his pineapple mochi ice cream. The sweetness of the mochi and cream mixed with the slight sourness of the pineapple bits was heavenly! It had finally happened. He was out with his father eating mochi like he had promised...how many years ago? Didn't matter, they were doing this now, and nothing was going to interrupt it!
.
..
...
Better knock on the wooden table just to be sure.
"I almost forgot how much you enjoyed this stuff, Izuku. I'm sorry it took this long, but I promise I'll make this a weekly thing for us." Dadmight promise his son. Izuku was just happy that he was able to do this with the only other blood family he had. Barring his own mother of course. He had gone to visit her a few times a year, always catching her up on how his training had progressed. He should go visit her soon, get her up to date on what's happened.
"It's alright, dad. You're making up for it now, right? So don't worry about it. Though, I was wondering, when do you think I'll be able to work on my Quirk?" Izuku asked, trying to sound as nonchalant as possible. His father smiled at his protégé, liking how even on his break, he was thinking about his future.
"Based on my schedule for you, I believe we will be able to start training it half way through cleaning the beach. With how much training you've been doing up until now, I'm sure you might even be able to do it even sooner!" Toshinori stated, handing Izuku the packet that he used to plan out their training. Izuku took it, and flipped through the pages, seeing that even his sleeping time was scheduled. He saw that the plans had three stages to them. The first was more about getting his body more to make sure that his body could use One for All, the second seemed to be the shortest of the three, focusing on cleaning up the beach, with the final phase being the longest. detailing how he would go about trying to master as much of One for All as much as possible before the entrance exams for UA.
Though, there was some thing that he hadn't seen in any of the planned days that he saw.
"Hey, what about school? I don't see that anywhere in here." Izuku questioned, flipping through more and more pages, making sure that he didn't miss anything that would prove him wrong. He looked up to his father to see a smile almost reminiscent of his Hero form.
"That's because I have pulled you out of your school!" The father said proudly. He had made the call while Izuku was working on the trash. He even left for almost an hour to sign the paperwork and such. When he came back, his son was still working hard on trying to clear what he could of the trash. Still, it made him so mad that they didn't even try to question him as to why he wished to do so. It almost seemed like they wanted him gone. The bunch of pricks. He wondered just why they treated him so harshly? Just because he didn't have a Quirk?
The Hero took a moment to himself, really thinking on that. Something of this magnitude would never happen if it was simply an isolated incident. The other parents would have eventually found out, and the school board would definitely know that something was up. So for something like this to happen...
It occurred to him, that in his wish for a better world that he could usher in, the safety and hope he wished to give everyone in their day to day lives, he was blind to the problem that he inadvertently caused.
With his own silence on his Quirk's standing, he made people believe that he was naturally gifted with a powerful one. That in turn made them believe that it was simply a luck of the draw, that one's own potential was determined by what power you were born with. It couldn't have just been him that made the world think this. He was just one man, regardless if he was the Number One Hero. This had to have been happening for years, perhaps even dating back to the Glowing Baby. Those with Quirks were seen as powerful and the epidemy of human evolution. So when you put somebody who didn't have a Quirk, they were seen as inferior. Useless. Expendable.
Less than twenty percent of the world's population was Quirkless, with over fifteen percent of them being from the previous two generations and deteriorating quickly. Even so, the remaining five percent that were being born in this generation was also depleting. It had always made him wonder how or why that was. He always frowned at the idea that they were simply casualties in the larger fights between Villains and Heros. But when he looked at his son and everything that he had told him, the realization as to the true reasoning dawned on him. And it made him sick.
They were committing suicide.
In a system where those with Quirks were becoming the norm and put on a pedestal which height is determined by strong it is, those without Quirks were seen as freaks and mistakes, ridiculed from the day it was found that they were Quirkless. Even beyond that, Toshinori had heard problems from those that had inherently 'Villainous' Quirks. Things that made them seem out of the norm, or rather, 'evil'. He had always believed that it was a bunch of nonsense and simply stated that being a Hero or Villain was always a choice made by the individual and them alone.
He had been terribly ignorant.
Thinking on it now, with his eyes opened by his own son, he realized that in a system like this, it might have been made worse by the things that he had said. By everything that Izuku had told him, there were unseen consequences that he never realized. With how ingrained it was in the system, he knew that even if he started trying to change all of that by himself now, it would be a long fought battle that would span more years than he had left on this earth.
But...if he had the right help, the right minds in the right places, then might actually be able to make good progress. Hopefully being able to atone for how reckless he had been with his words.
"Dad, you alright? You spaced out there for a moment. I asked why you pulled me out of school and you didn't answer me." Izuku asked his father, worried. He seemed to be in deep thought, much like how he would when asked a rather deep meaning question. His words seemed to break the secret Hero out of his trance and smiled at his son.
"Y-yes, I'm quite alright. Sorry about that, my boy. I was just thinking about what where I'm going to be taking you after this. It actually answers your own question, Izuku." Toshinori brushed off easily. He'd worry about serious problems like that when he was on duty. Perhaps make a conference ant talk about those things on another date. For now, he did need to get them over to the surprise location he was going to take them today. It did involve his schooling, but how exactly it did all that, he'd keep a secret until they were already there.
"Oh...Is it already that time?" Izuku asked, looking over to a clock on the wall of the small ice cream parlor they had settled in. It had been almost an hour since they left the beach. Only about five minutes remained of their break. He quickly finished what was left of his treat, having had three servings of the stuff, upon his father's insistence that it was to make up for the two times he had to cancel. Afterwards, they left, his father leaving a hefty tip on the table for the waitress that had served them. It was a nice young lady that seemed to overworking herself. Probably had other jobs to try and make a living.
Still, the woman was not expecting to find that the father-son due had left a two hundred thousand Yen tip for her on top of the price for their food. She almost hyperventilated at the thought before thanking her lucky stars that she would be able to pay her rent and feed her child for the month. She stared after the two who had left and smiled, a few tears escaping her eyes before she wiped them away and went back to work.
"Where are we going, dad? We've been driving for over half an hour already." Izuku asked as he saw the different buildings pass him by through the window. His father simply chuckled, glancing at him before turning his eyes back to the road.
"Don't worry, my boy. We're almost there. Just a little bit longer." Toshinori stated, turning into a rather barren looking road. Izuku wondered what they were doing here, but was surprised to see that The father then turned into another street, this one seeming to incline towards a rather large campus. Upon further inspection, Izuku saw a large building almost completely made out of glass, with sky bridges connecting them. He was amazed at what he saw, though he couldn't quite shake the feeling that he knew where he was...
Oh
"YOU'RE TAKING ME TO UA!?" Izuku practically screeched, his eyes sparkling with almost blinding wonder. He was practically vibrating in his seat as they made it closer and closer to the campus. To his father's credit, he was able to keep his cool and simply smiled. He had already anticipated this kind of reaction anyway. It's why when he went out to get this truck, he also stopped by his house to pick up Izuku's Hero Journals and a few other empty notebooks. and placed them in the back seat. He knew that his son would want autographs from any other Pros that he might come across while here. Not to mention the fact that he'd also want to add or edit notes in his existing entries.
"That's right. I'm taking you here so that I can see if a friend of mine will be able to help with your schooling. He already knows we're coming and should be meeting us at the parking lo-"
"I'm already here!"
"HOLY-"
"Sorry about that Toshinori, I probably should have waited until you were parked. My bad." A small...creature stated as all three of them were out of the now dinged up car. Luckily, no one was hurt, and the truck suffered minimal damage, but the father was still a little mad at the rodent for nearly causing them to crash in the first place. Izuku on the other hand, was already fanboying to hell and back.
"Oh my gosh! You're Nezu! The Genius Hero, Headmaster of UA! I'm such a huge fan! Can I get your Autograph!?" Izuku spat out at the speed of sound, fumbling over himself to get one of his notebooks. He noticed that they had been in the back seat along with Nezu himself, so he had grabbed them as they exited the vehicle. The only reason he had been able to hold himself back before was because he had been stunned by the near crash. Now however, he let it go full throttle.
Nezu himself seemed amused at the child before him. He simply took the notebook from the son of Toshinori and scribbled his own signature into the page that had been dedicated to him. When he was done, he didn't give it back immediately, instead choosing to flip through the different pages and finding various entries on different Heros.
He was impressed by what he saw.
"I haven't been a Hero in many years. I'm surprised you know of me. And this journal...'Hero Notes For The Future #10'. There are ten of these? It seems like you've done your research young man. Very impressive." Nezu praised as he handed the notebook back to the child. Izuku felt like exploding in joy at the praise of one of his favorite Heros.
"Of course I've heard of you! You might not have done much of the main fighting, but the way you were able to almost perfectly predict every Villain Plan you were taking down, It was like you never needed to! And you were pivotal when you were able to come up with a plan to take down Rampage Typhoon!" Izuku stated, referring to the Villain that could summon hurricanes and control the winds and water. It was only thanks to Nezu's quick wit and cunning strategy that they were able to take him down without any casualties.
Nezu smiled up at the boy, letting out a small chuckle as he did. He liked this kid!
"Well, It seems like you are rather well versed when it comes to history. Now, I'm sure you have so many questions for me, but All Might brought you to me for a reason, no?" Nezu questioned, making Izuku freeze in his tracks. He knew that his father was All Might!?
"Relax, Izuku. He's one of the people that know about One for All. I told him that I had chosen you as my successor." Toshinori explained, easing Izuku's worries. Then it made the boy realize that he hadn't even formerly introduced himself yet!
"R-right! My name is Yagi Izuku, It's an honor to meet you, sir!" The boy stated as formally as he could. Even used his last name before his first like the era before Quirks. Strange how different but still quite similar the world had changed since then.
"The pleasure is all mine, Izuku. Now, let's head over to my office so that we can talk more about why you are here." Nezu offered as he gestured for the two to follow him. They did so, with Izuku trying to suppress the excitement he felt in being able to actually visit the school of his dreams!
Rumi Usagiyama was your typical, run of the mill girl that liked to do typical run of the mill girl stuff.
Like beating the shit out of her class mates.
Or beating the shit out of people that weren't her class mates.
Maybe the occasional beating somebody's shit in, but generally wasn't all that different.
You know, typical stuff.
The tan woman very much liked that she was able to prove her strength to just about anyone that asked. Being a prodigy destined to get into UA hadn't really sit well with her though. Being a prodigy would imply that she was born powerful and that things had come natural to her. Or some bullshit like that. With how strong she was, you'd think that was true about her.
Hell no! She had to train her ass off to be this strong! Have you ever heard of a bunny being able to beat somebodies ass half way across the country with a single kick? She didn't think so! So whatever crap somebody tries to say about strength being something that people are born with, they can go shove it back where they found it. The only way someone was strong, was if they earned it.
That being said, she never respected anyone that wasn't at least strong enough to give her a good fight. So far...not too many people were on that list of respectable figures. Though, there was one potential candidate. She had seen him on the news yesterday. A kid looking about as old as her, if not a year younger, had ran towards the disgusting sludge Villain that had captured a hostage and was able to keep the other weak Heros at bay.
The kid had some serious balls...and she could respect that.
He was even able to distract the disgusting monster and try to get the hostage free, before All Might of all people showed up and blew the fucker to pieces.
Besides all that, she was immediately intrigued by the kid that ran in without a single moment of hesitation. Had been since she also read that the guy was Quirkless. Must have been hard to run that fast with how fucking huge his balls were. She of course got angry that people were writing him off just because he didn't have a super power. She was almost stunned by that. Were they just envious that he did something the other Heros didn't even try to do? What snobs.
Still, she really wanted to test his mettle. Before that though, she had to wait here, outside of UA's Hero Course Building for her elder brother. He was already in his last year before he went Pro. He had the same mutation type Quirk as her, but focused more on speed than power, like her. He got on her nerves sometimes. Being all cocky and shit. Pissed her off.
"Hey there, Rumi. Watcha standing around for? We gotta go catch the train." A voice behind her stated. She huffed, knowing that to be her brother. She turned to see him walking up to her, slightly sweaty from his workout.
He was tall, but mostly lanky. Like she said, he focused on speed. Still, he did pack quite a punch when he did hit you. She should know. He also wore a sleeveless compact shirt that was grey in color, matching his short hair. His rabbit ears being the same color, looking to be alert at all times, seeming to be a thing that they teach you here at UA. His pants were a little darker than his shirt, but followed the same color scheme. If the ears on his head weren't enough evidence to convince you he had a rabbit Quirk, the bunny feet certainly would.
This was Hayate Usagiyama. Her ass of an older brother.
"Whatever man, you're the one that took so damn long." Rumi stated, turning her back on him and already making her way towards the exit. Hayate just made an overly confused face and cupped a hand over his ear, leaning down.
"I'm sorry, what's that? I couldn't hear you from down there." He teased, making fun of her height. Where he himself was a tall six foot without the ears, she was a puny five foot two. She bristled at the jab, knowing that he was just doing that to get a rise out of her.
But god damn if it didn't work.
"Shut the hell up! I'm plenty tall with my ears!" She shouted as she stared up at him. Hayate just chuckled before rolling his eyes.
"Sure, sure. But if we're going to start counting out ears, then you're even shorter than me when we don't count them." The older brother boasted. He was right. He He actually had longer ears than her, if only my a fraction of an inch. She was going to retort back, but a voice to her left distracted her and made her turn her head. What she saw made her break into a devilish smirk.
It was him. It was the kid from the news yesterday. Even looking at him, she could tell that he had been working out today. The sweat on his clothes still slightly damping them. She could even see the lean muscle that he was building up. That was some real muscle going on under there...
"Rumi? You there? What are you..." Hayate tried asking as he looked down at his younger sister. Then he saw that she was looking over at something and turned his head to see where her gazed was directed. He was surprised to see the Headmaster there along with a blonde man and a green haired kid. He briefly remembered hearing something about a kid with that hair color on the news. He turned his head again to look at his sister, only to see that she was currently power walking towards the three figures, or more apparent, the green haired kid. His mouth twitched into a smirk before he gained a smug and teasing smile.
"Ohoho, It seems like my little sis' interested in a guy...I'm going to have so much fun with this." The Hero-to-be said in a low voice as he went to follow his little sister.
So, I'm going to be taught by you, sir?" Izuku asked, floored by the prospect. Two times in a row that happened. First the revelation that he was the son of the Number One Hero, then the fact that he was going to inherit One for All and now being taught by Nezu himself.
He didn't deserve this.
"Hey!" A voice to his right sounded. It caused Izuku to turn just in time to see a foot flying at his face. He barely had time to register the act before he immediately swayed back, letting the kick miss him by such a small margin that he could almost feel the material of the shoe graze his nose. However, that didn't matter right now, he was being attacked!
With as much grace as he could muster, Izuku moved to the side, still coming up from the sway backwards. He then looked to the person that had tried to decapitate him and almost chocked on his own spit.
'P-pretty.' Izuku thought to himself as he stumbled back.
"Hey! What do you think you're doing!?" Toshinori exclaimed as he tried to get in between the assailant and his son. Nezu on the other hand was enjoying the apparent chaos.
"Ah, miss Usagiyama! It's nice to see you again. Did young Yagi catch your eye?" Nezu asked, making the blonde parent look at his friend with an incredulous expression. The woman in question simply let out a chuckle. ever looking away from the child of Toshinori with a near predatory grin.
"You could say something like that. I saw you on the news you know. Really got me interested. I want to fight you and see what you can do." Rumi stated, already in her fighting stance. The young boy stammered for a moment before looking between the two adults for some form of guidance. It seemed that his father had the same idea and looked to Nezu, silently asking what to do.
"I don't see why not. I want to see what your boy is capable of as well, Toshinori. Very well! Go ahead miss Usagiyama. I'd get out of the way old friend. She has quite the kick, if you catch my meaning." Nezu stated. Rumi's smile only seemed to widen as she made to leap. Toshinori seemed conflicted for a moment before he had to duck out of the way of the young woman, leaving Izuku to try and defend himself.
"R-really!? I have to fight you?" Izuku yelped as he once again had to dodge another kick from the tanned woman. Even if he wasn't entirely understanding of the situation, his brain was already at work.
'Strong legs, bunny ears, likely mutation type Quirk. Main fighting style revolves around kicks. Fast, but obviously trading speed for power. Based on the speed, arc, velocity and effort in the swing, she isn't going all out yet. Still, with the same data, I can deduce she can crack the concrete bellow me. Shouldn't let her get a hit in. Dodging her is my best bet. If things get dicey, I'll try and get her with pressure points.' Izuku thought to himself as time seemed to slow down enough for him to process everything. However, his habit of mumbling nearly everything he thinks seemed to kick in again. Though Rumi was too focused on fighting him to hear. Nezu however, heard him loud and clear.
"He really is a wonder, Toshinori. Not a minute has passed since he's met her and already he can decipher her strengths and weaknesses. Truly fascinating. I look forward to working with him." Nezu spoke, praising his friend's child. The Hero next to him still seemed concerned and mildly upset that Nezu would let this happen out of the blue, but knew that he couldn't stop them even if he tried. Not without turning into his Hero form at least. Still, he smiled, knowing that Izuku's smarts had certainly not come from him.
"He get's it from his mother, actually. She was always a smart cookie." The Yagi man stated. Nezu's smile faltered for a moment, knowing her condition. It was a tragedy what happened to his friend's family. First the separation, the conception of Izuku, the inability to get Inko back...speaking of which, he had his suspicions as to how Hisashi had been able to stay legally immune for such a long time, involving his apparent deterioration of mind.
Though the man had been normal in most senses of the word, he started to spiral down a dark path that would eventually lead him to commit the deplorable crimes to both Inko and Izuku himself. It all began after the confirmation that Inko was pregnant with Izuku. He had started becoming more and more violent. With the escalation of physical abuse to Inko herself, and then eventually Izuku.
Normally, Hisashi should have been outed long before he did, but he always had some kind of loophole to slip though. Always an excuse to get out of trouble. However, even so, the method in which he did left many questions and speculation. With the kind of life and personality Hisashi had, there was no way he could have done it on his own. There was also the fact that various coincidences seemed to happen so that it benefited him and him alone. The only exception being that he was never able to pull the plug on Inko's life support. So that begged the question as to who was helping him from the shadows.
It could have been a number of people. But only so many came to mind. It could have been one of the Yakuza currently starting to rise in power, but their reach didn't quite reach this far. Even so, they wouldn't have that much power. then there was talk about a gang of Villains secretly joining together to try and form their own sort of organization.
A stray thought came to mind, one that sent chills down his spine. With the fact that the trouble started only after Inko became pregnant, and exactly who was the father...
It could have very well been All for One.
The mere idea that the Devil King himself was still around was terrifying. It should have been impossible, seeing as how All Might had blown the top part of his head off. Still, it actually wouldn't surprise Nezu if he was able to survive. With all the insane feats the monster was able to pull off, coming back from the dead didn't seem so far fetched. So if Hisashi really was receiving help from All for One, then why? What was so important about Hisashi that would warrant protection from the man?
Thoughts for later. He'd have to bring this up Toshinori and the rest who knew about it. For now, he needed to observe the future potential in the son of All Might.
"Would you stop dodging and fight already? Or are you too chicken?" Rumi taunted, trying to goad a reaction from Izuku. The boy himself seemed to be in a trance, looking her over with such an intense gaze that she almost felt like blushing.
She was definitely interested.
Without a word, Izuku dodged the next kick and struck. Her eyes widened as she didn't think that he would expose the one opening she had in this move. She had only used it once before in this fight. She even tried to cover it up as much as she could with a quick jab of her fist, but nothing was landing. So for him to be able to exploit it like he had...
Now she was definitely interested!
With speed that had her nearly reeling, Izuku had struck her three times on her leg. She quickly jumped back with her other leg and expected to feel some sort of pain...only, she didn't.
"Aw come on, I didn't even feel any of th-grk!" Rumi started, feeling a little disappointed that he didn't meet up to her expectations, only to be interrupted as she felt her entire leg start to cramp up something fierce.
'The hell!? My legs never cramp up!' Rumi thought to herself as she placed her weight on her other leg, trying to fight through the pain. In her brief distraction, Izuku had moved in and got into her personal space. She tried to lash out with a punch, but was met with more quick jabs along the outstretched limb. She growled before trying to knee him by jumping up with her one leg. He was easily able to lean to the side and do the same thing he did to his other limbs. She would have tried to strike again, but the boy struck even faster than before. Using his index fingers to leave a flurry of carefully placed strikes on her body. By the time he was done, he had jumped back and stood there waiting for her to move.
To her credit, she was only confused for a moment before she get fed up with the mind games he was apparently trying to play, and tried to jump forward with the strongest kick she could muster. Key word being tried.
That was mostly because when she tried to tense her muscles, they instead went lax and limp. She also realized that the same went for the rest of her body, causing her to fall to the floor limp before she could even register what had happened. She tried to get up, or at least get her arms under her, but nothing was responding to her commands. At this point. The only thing that she could move, was anything above her neck.
"What just happened?" She asked as she blinked. As far as she knew, he hadn't even thrown a real punch during the entirety of their fight. He just poked her with his god damned fingers! So what gives!?
"You just got your ass handed to you, that's what happened! Ha! Oh, I'm never going to let you live this down. And save." Hayate stated, having just recorded the whole thing. The other two adults turned to the older brother before Nezu perked up in recognition.
"Ah, mr Usagiyama! I had a feeling you would join us. It does seem that your sister has lost. Are you not upset at this?" Nezu inquired. At that, Hayate scoffed at the notion before walking over to his limp sister.
"Hell no! Are you kidding me? That as hilarious! Serves her right anyway. She's got an ego that's double her size...though, that's not saying much. Aint that right little sister?" Her brother stated in a condescending voice at the end. It made her pissed. If she could move her anything, she'd have tried to kick his ass. Didn't stop her from trying to bite his wagging finger though.
"I am going to bite your face off!" Rumi threatened, trying to do just that. Hayate on his part just leaned back and laughed at her expense. Though, he turned to see that the same kid that had beating his sister was approaching with a nervous look on his face
"Hey there kid. That was one hell of a performance there. I don't think I've seen a martial art like that before, so what gives?" The older rabbit student asked. Though, Izuku was nervous for more than one reason now. One was because he realized that he needed to fix what he had done to the girl on the floor. Two, he was being faced with not one, but two new people when he really couldn't even handle the first. And Three, the person in front of him was also another upcoming hero that he already know of and had made a recent entry on in his latest journal...which had been burned to a crisp by Michael.
"Y-y-you're the Cocksure Hero: Rabbit's Foot! I saw your first appearance in the Sports Festival two years ago! I'm a huge fan! C-can I get an Autograph?" Izuku asked, stars in his eyes. Hayate was a little surprised at that. He hadn't gotten much traction yet in terms of popularity, on account that he wasn't an official Pro yet, but the fact that this kid seemed to be so excited to see him just made his day all that much sweeter. He had kicked his little sister's ass and looked up to him? Awesome.
"Sure, why not. Maybe it'll be worth some serious dough later when I get into the top ten. So anyway, what was that crazy technique you used there?" Hayate questioned again. It made Izuku realize that Rumi was still on the floor grumbling to herself about something along the lines of 'Yeah, well I'll get into the top five, then we'll see who's laughing', or something. He didn't quite catch that.
"R-right. I've been studying a fighting style that utilizes pressure points to incapacitate the opponent. T-though, I haven't been able to use it on anyone until today." Izuku muttered at the end. The older boy in front of him heard him all the same, making him bark out a laugh. He squat down so that he could face his sister, who was now doing her best to look away from him out of spite.
"You hear that, Rumi? He hadn't even practiced it on anybody else and you still lost! So much for being strong, huh?" Hayate prodded. His sister had just about had it with his shit and was finally able to headbutt him when he got close enough, causing him to recoil.
"Screw you!" Rumi exclaimed, trying to ignore the pain throbbing in her head from the action.
"Ow, geez, Alright. No more jokes." He stated as he rubbed his forehead. He did enjoy teasing his little sister, but knew when enough was enough. Still, he wanted to know when his sister would be able to move again.
"Seriously, how long is this going to last though. I don't like the idea of having my sister becoming a carrot for the rest of her life, thank you very much." Her brother asked in a half serious manner. Izuku stumbled over his words for a moment before kneeling down next to Rumi's body, trying to mentally place where he had to apply pressure.
"Well, normally, It should wear off in about an hour or so. Like I said, I haven't tried this out on anyone. But If I were to hit here, here...and here." Izuku started, gently touching the small of her back, the left of her upper spine and then her right shoulder blade.
"It should let her move again." Izuku finished, relieved that it had worked. It seemed like his practice had payed off. As Rumi stood up and rolled her arms and shook her legs, she realized that she felt even better than she did before the fight.
"Huh, that actually felt pretty good. What's your name, hot stuff?" Rumi asked as she turned to Izuku. The boy himself, while not terribly versed with things of the romantic department, could tell when someone was coming onto him. Though he immediately wondered why they would make the mistake of choosing him of all people.
"M-m-m-me?!" Izuku stuttered, feeling his face heat up to insane degrees. Rumi just laughed at him before giving him a smug grin. She really liked this guy. How he was carrying himself earlier, he was obviously a fighter. Not to mention he didn't have a Quirk to speak of, so he had beaten her with his own physical abilities, even when she had the advantage of her own Quirk.
"Yeah you. What's your name? Gotta know the name of the guy that beat me." Rumi repeated herself. It made Izuku nearly shut down, but he was able to squeak out an answer.
"Izuku Yagi." He answered stiffly. She giggled-giggled, and nodded, giving her own name.
By god was he adorable.
"I'm Rumi Usagiyama. But you can just call me Rumi, Izuku~." She nearly purred. That had been the straw that broke the camel's back, as Izuku became a stuttering mess. It was at this that Hayate stepped in to stop...whatever the hell was happening here.
"Alright. That's enough, Rumi. You're going to scare him off. Now, come on, If we if we hop to it, we might be able to make it to the train on time." Hayate stated, dragging Rumi away from the freckled boy. He wasn't entirely opposed to seeing his little sister becoming interested in a boy, but even he had to admit that she was laying it on just a little too thick.
"Later Izuku, I hope we can see each other again!" Rumi called out as she turned to follow her already sprinting brother. By the time they had gone out of sight, Izuku was starting to calm down from the shameless flirting he had endured. Though, his father had his own two cents to contribute to the conversation, an almost...excited(?) look on his face.
"Did she just..." He trailed off, almost not believing what he witnessed. Inside his head, a conversation was being had between himself, himself, and himself.
'Alright. Let's Address The Elephant In The Room. Our Boy Was Just Hit On By A Girl.' All Might in his prime asked the rest of himself. the current him in his true form nodded, almost too excited.
'I know! Isn't that great? I can already see the grandkids now! All the children to spoil and carry on the family name!' No Might stated, grinning from ear to ear. Prime could share the sentiment, but knew that it was still much too early for any grandkids. Izuku still needed to start his training in the first place, so that was a no-no. Still, it was nice to see that his son was starting to receive the attention that he deserved, god damn it! He was a great kid!
'I wouldn't rush into things like that quite yet. We need to get him to UA first. Not to mention we still need to have 'The Talk' with him.' His current Hero form pointed out.
Prime and No Might had to agree with All Might on that. It would be better to focus on training for now. So with that in mind, they decided that they would glance over the current altercation and just move on...
'We're definitely setting him up for as many chances at grandchildren as possible though, right?' No Might wanted to clarify. At this, the other two answered with almost frightening swiftness.
'Of Course We Are!'
"You will have your chance to do all of that later, old friend. For now, we really must get to my office to finalize our plans." Nezu stated, breaking the Hero out of his thought process.
Wait, did Nezu just-
"No, you mumbled all of that out. You really should work on that along with your son. It might get you in some trouble. Anyway, Young Yagi! I am rather impressed that for someone who has never sparred with anyone before, you were able to take down miss Usagiyama so quickly. I have high expectations of you. I hope you're able to match up to them." Nezu praised as he walked up to the teen. Izuku was only able to give a small smile and blush at the compliment. To be hearing that from the Headmaster of UA of all people, it made his entire person feel...nice. It was a foreign feeling to be sure. Not something that he was quite used to yet. He was told by his father that it was only normal to get compliments for his hard work. Of course, that was after he had also apologized again for letting his bullying and abuse go on for so long that he didn't know how genuine compliments from other people would make him feel.
"T-thank you, sir. I promise I wont let you down!" Izuku said as he clenched a fist in front of him. Nezu let out a small hum at that before turning and walking towards their original destination.
"I'm sure you wont. Now, without any further interruptions, let us head for my office. There, we will work out a schedule for you to come see me for personal lessons while you train. If those notebooks of yours were any indication, It would be a waste of a perfectly good, healthy brain if I didn't." Nezu stated. Though the comment about his brain was a little strange, Izuku still nodded and followed suit, followed closely by his father as well.
Today was going to be a great day.
It had been a week since his first visit to UA, to which he still had a hard time believing that it was going to be a part of his normal schedule to actually go there, and he had been taught by the Headmaster of the prestigious academy every other day since then. Being taught by the mouse-bear-dog...thing, had been a challenging experience all on it's own. He loved the challenge of it though. It was a great workout for his brain in parallel to his regular workout regime.
Speaking of which, he had once again spent from before dawn to mid evening cleaning trash up again in the proceeding days. Each time, he had felt nearly exhausted beyond belief. Even so, he wasn't just going to be cleaning trash for the day. He also had to do insane amounts of cardio in the most extreme of conditions. Either with All Might on his back, having to pull the truck loaded with the last batch of trash for the day, or even having to climb a sheer cliff with no equipment to speak of.
He never complained once.
How could he? When he had asked to be trained until he was able to become a Hero in the first place. He was getting exactly what he asked for, and by golly if he was going to back out now, he didn't deserve to even look at his father in the eye.
In the mean time, with the days he was supposed to be resting, which was also the days that his father would have to be on patrol, he decided that he was going to expand on his duty to the community. First starting with a local Soup Kitchen.
"Thank you for coming by, and I hope you have a great day!" Izuku stated as he handed over another bowl to someone. He had felt a little awkward coming here to volunteer, as he hadn't done so in the past, but they had been accepting of any help they could get. It was also heartwarming to see someone so young wanting to help them out like this. Not many kids his age were so willing to give to those less fortunate.
So far, the kid had been doing great. He was doing everything that they had told them to do with great efficiency, not to mention that his cheery disposition had brought up the moral of the whole building by a wide margin. As much as they try to keep up a good mood in this environment, some of the homeless people here were rather set in their negative ways. Still, even they were having a hard time bringing the mood down with how bright this sunshine child was.
His schedule then went on like this for another two weeks. Cleaning trash and insane cardio one day, being taught by Nezu and helping out at the Soup Kitchen the next, rinse and repeat. Eventually, he had began to get used to the insane workouts, and had started to become a regular at the kitchen. With that in mind, his father had ramped up the training.
"Now, My Boy, I Know We Have Been Getting Into A Steady Groove These Past Three Weeks, But Now That You Are Getting The Hang Of It, It's Time To Address Something Very Important!" His father said in his usual boisterous tone. Izuku turned to his father, already trying to move a piece of scrap. He still did so anyways, but stopped from doing any more until his father had said his peace.
"What's that, dad?" Izuku questioned. They had gotten here at the usual time, and they hadn't even begun when his father decided to speak up.
"I Just Remembered That You Have Something Very Special. What Did You Call It Again? A Stand, Was It?" All Might questioned, making his son widen his eyes in realization. With everything happening in the past month, he had almost completely forgotten about it. He of course still summoned it occasionally, but he had really been slacking on trying to train with it for all this time.
"Oh yeah! I forgot about it too, my bad. But it's...interesting to say the least." Izuku stated, feeling a bit guilty that he had forgotten it in all the activity happening in the past month. Still, he should get back to trying to find out everything about it and train it. Now more than ever, as he needed to make sure that he was ready for UA.
"Yes, I Remember Everything You Told Me About It In Your Visits. And I Will Once Again Have To Adjust Your Schedule To Fit In Training With It." His father stated, making Izuku a little exasperated. He knew that the plan was made in only a night, but you'd think after three weeks he'd have been done with all the changes.
"That Will Be For Another Time, However. For Now, We Must Continue On Cleaning The Beach. Get To It!" All Might ordered. Izuku nodded as he moved to another pile of garbage that he was just barely able to pick up. His body straining to give him the strength needed. But he'd pull through. After all, he still had to last until three in the afternoon, and it wasn't even sunrise yet. No matter how many times he's done it already, he'll never get over the fact that he was able to do such amazing feats on his own.
All Might looked at his son with pride, seeing him work so diligently. He wondered briefly, if things would have been different if he never met Inko, or if Izuku wasn't his son. Would he still have met him. Would his son even be the kind child that stood before him.
'No Time For That Now. I Can't Distract Myself With The Past. I Must Look Towards The Future. The Future Where I'm No Longer Needed...Until Then, I'll Make Sure You Are Ready, My Son.'
Hey there. It's me. Now I'm not too entirely sure if I should keep his Hero name Deku anymore. Now hear me out, the only reason I say this is because he won't be called that incessantly anymore. That, and the only reason he wanted that name in the first place was because Katsuki would always call him that, and Ochako changed it's meaning for him. But none of that happened in this story, so I don't think it fits anymore. Either way, I can keep it that way...or I can change it to something else. I even have a cool alternative name and everything. I'll leave it for you to decide in another Poll I'll set up for until I either get to that point in the story, or I need to put up another Poll for another story of mine. Speaking of which, you should go check them out.
As for the Poll Itself, I'll have one of two options.
Either keep it as Deku: The Hero of Hope
Or
Change it to Grit: The Durable Hero of Hope.
You'll understand why I chose that name later. Still, the choice is entirely up to you. So with that said, I'm done here. I need to get over to another one of my chapters in development. Love you guys. Stay safe, it's a dangerous world out there. Toodles~!