This AU follows Izuku Midoriya who never meets All Might or saves Bakugo from the sludge villain. He has grown through high school and still does not seem to have a quirk. Class 1-A and B have continued training and the LOV has proceeded to attack just like in the manga. However, everything that happens during the Overhaul arc has not occurred yet. The characters are just older and time has shifted. It's time to find out what Izuku's been up to all these years...

There will be OC's introduced, special chapters dedicated to other characters, but most of all, Izuku's journey to becoming a hero in his own way. I hope you enjoy it!

Prologue

Izuku came out of the arena feeling devastated. During the second part of the UA entrance exam, he had managed to get zero points. Not one, not even two, none. Even when he managed to knock a robot down with a piece of rubble he found on the floor, someone had pushed past him and grabbed the points for themselves.

The rest of the hour had followed a similar pattern.

Get up. Try to avoid getting hurt. Find a way to attack. Fall. Get back up again. Try to touch the robot and get points. Get knocked down by a student. Fall. Get back up. Too slow. Look out for that attack! Pass out for thirty-seconds. Get back up. Get pushed down. Get back up, and so on.

At one point, a robot exploded and sent him flying through the air. Izuku had blacked out, only to wake up as the buzzer went off. The exam was over.

Izuku angrily kicked at a rock but missed and nearly tripped over his two front feet.

He winced, staring down at his injured hands and knees. Falling so much had caused his middle school track uniform to tear, exposing the raw pink flesh that was now dripping with blood on various parts of his body. Recovery Girl, one of the medical heroes on staff, had started healing everyone once the exam finished, but Izuku had disappeared before anyone could see what state he was in.

There was no point in sticking around.

Izuku squinted up at the hill and trudged on, despite the fact that his body was in immense pain. He just needed a few more steps to reach the top and watched his bright red shoes, trying to focus. Just one… more… step…

"Hey, Deku!"

The familiar voice made him stop and Izuku looked up right as Katsuki Bakugo punched him.

Bam.

The blow was powerful enough to send him backward, as he rolled back down the hill, scraping the entire left side of his face in the process. Blood trickled into his mouth and he gagged.

"Hey! I didn't say run away from me, you damn nerd. Now get the hell up and look at me when I'm talking to you!" Bakugo yelled, rushing down after him.

Izuku's arms wobbled as he tried to pick himself up. He watched as Bakugo caught up to him again and panic overwhelmed his senses. "B-but you were the one who pushed me," Izuku coughed, accidentally staining Bakugo's shirt with blood.

The blonde didn't seem to notice though as he grabbed Izuku's neck and lifted him up by the collar. "Don't get smart with me, I didn't come here to make small talk!" Bakugo yelled in his ear, throwing him back. Izuku let out a quiet gasp as he landed on his tailbone.

He struggled to sit up and look at Bakugo, despite the pain. "Kacchan, what do you want?"

Bakugo smirked. There was an evil glint in his eyes as he took a step forward. "You're just a quirkless loser who'd never get into UA. So, I came to give you a little consolation prize," he cracked his knuckles and then his neck. Tiny sparks appeared in his palms.

Izuku gulped.

"But, since I'm feeling extra generous today, I'll let you get a head start before I rearrange your face. 3… 2… 1!"

Izuku didn't even realize what he meant until Bakugo leaped towards him. He barely managed to roll out of the way and scrambled to his feet, taking off despite the intense wave of nausea that had overcome him.

Every time Bakugo seemed to be getting closer, Izuku's heart would speed up and he'd try to push his legs to go faster and go farther. He had to get away, he had to outrun him.

Eventually, Bakugo stopped chasing him when Izuku turned into his neighborhood, but Izuku kept going. He even ran past his house. He didn't know where he was headed but he didn't want to stop. Stopping would mean he'd have to explain everything to his mom. And explaining would mean he'd have to relive the events of the exam in his head.

Even if he had managed to pass the written portion, Izuku knew there was no hope for him.

After a car honked at him while he crossed the street without looking, Izuku slowed down. His legs were on fire and he was wheezing, but it felt better to focus on the physical pain instead of the crushing realization that he had failed. The beach was right in front of him and he could smell the salty breeze, feeling as the salty water peppered his skin as he moved closer.

Izuku kicked off his shoes and let his toes soak in the warm sand, watching as the sun began to set. He remembered visiting the beach while he attempted to train before the exam. It all seemed so pathetic now.

Izuku Midoriya never stood a chance. Bakugo was right. He was just a quirkless loser.

—

[ One Year Later ]

After finding out that he was quirkless and failing to get into the school of his dreams, Inko Midoriya never thought her son would choose to become an elementary school teacher. Well, Izuku wasn't a full-fledged teacher yet, but he had been interning at Masegaki Elementary ever since the start of his senior year of high school.

And despite his recent graduation, Izuku kept going back and had managed to get an extension to teach his course over the summer. Hero Analytics. Inko had heard about it from Izuku but could never pinpoint exactly what it was that he taught because there were so many things that he told her. The best way Inko could sum it up to be was as a course where students analyzed heroes and developed their own alter egos for the future. There was probably more to it than that, and knowing Izuku he always had a plan, but that was also how he had explained it to the first batch of students anyways. She remembered the rough first day he had had. Had it not been for her support, he would have quit right away too. But eventually, the students had warmed up to him and Izuku had gotten the highest internship grade possible.

Was her son qualified to teach such a course? Surely not, but it was an elective that only met every other afternoon for an hour. Plus, the turnout had exceeded expectations, and apparently, there was already a waitlist for next year.

Inko looked over at her son who was mumbling as he wrote in his lesson planning notebook. She smiled sadly at the memory of when he used to use it for his own hero research. As much as she loved to see him happy, especially after the intense depression that had taken over him when he got rejected from UA High, Izuku had failed to enroll in a university upon graduating. Once again, he had become consumed with his passion. This time, for teaching students about heroes.

She worried for him though. Surely the school wasn't going to waste time and money by making Hero Analytics a full course. Since it had started as an internship, Izuku hadn't been able to earn any money except for the amount he would be making during summer school. And even then it wouldn't be enough to count as a job. If he chose not to go to university, Inko wanted to see him employed soon. She wasn't the person she used to be and with Hisashi's frequent increase in business trips overseas, Inko didn't want her son having to worry about the future. Yet there he was, completely lost in his own little world. It was like he was still 14.

"Izuku… honey, you haven't even touched your food and it's probably cold now," Inko sighed and reached over to grab his katsudon, ready to warm it up for the third time that day.

Izuku looked up quickly and gave Inko a sheepish grin. "Sorry, mom. It's just that tomorrow's the first day of summer school and I'm getting a new student. Principal Mori suggested I prepare extra hard just in case," he laughed and then picked up his fork, but still continued writing vigorously. The table seemed to shake every time he filled up a row.

"Alright. But let me know if you want anything else from me. I'll be in the living room, looking into more colleges for you. I just know there are some that accept late applications," Inko added the last part quietly and Izuku finally stopped writing. He looked up at Inko slowly and shook his head.

"College? I don't think I'll have time to enroll anyway. Maybe next year? I really want to get this new lesson plan structured before I teach the course again in the fall–" he began excitedly.

"If you get to teach it that is," Inko fidgeted with her apron.

Izuku blinked, a confused smile on his face. Inko didn't look up at her son however as she continued talking. "Izuku. Do you really think they'll let you teach it again? You're not in high school anymore and it's not fair of them to freeload off of you that way."

"But mom, it's okay. I already told you I applied for a job at the convenience store near the school. I'm sure I can convince Principal Mori to pay me for the fall term even if I don't have the credentials. I got her to let me teach the course anyways, how is that any different?"

Inko smoothed out her apron. "I understand that Hero Analytics and the children are very important to you honey, but you have to start thinking about the future," she said.

"The future?" Izuku asked quietly. Inko looked up at him but he wasn't watching her. Izuku's eyes were downcast and he was staring at his red shoes. Out of everything from his childhood, they were the one thing that never changed. That and all of his All Might merchandise he had stored away instead of sold. Now, his room was covered with drawings he had made for his students or ones they had made him, along with countless lesson plans and schedules.

"You are so talented Izuku. I'm sure any university would be lucky to have you if you just enrolled. Then, you could get a professional degree and maybe become a… a police officer or something. You know, so you could still be a hero like you've always wanted," Inko added sweetly. She knew her son still dreamt about having a quirk and getting to help people in need even if he didn't explicitly talk about it anymore. It was apparent in the way he had stood transfixed years ago when All Might had said, "Next, it's your turn" on the screen after a horrific fight with a scar-faced villain that had marked his retirement.

But Izuku never talked about All Might anymore. After the UA Sports Festival that happened during his freshman year, Izuku stopped watching them. Inko knew it was too painful for him to see the other kids shine and stand out, but she also wished he could have been honest with her about everything.

"Mom," Izuku began firmly, turning to look at her. His face was blank though and she couldn't read him.

"You know I don't care about any of that hero stuff anymore. Right now, my students need me. I can't let myself get distracted with–"

"But honey it's your life!" Inko protested.

Izuku suddenly stood up and slammed his fist on the table. "Why can't you just let me do this then? Finally, after years of feeling useless, I find this job… and the kids… and you want to take it away from me?" he asked shakily.

Inko shook her head. "No honey. No. It's just that I'm worried for you and I want what's best for my son–"

"Yeah. Your quirkless son. Your disappointment. Guess things haven't changed at all. Guess I'm still not enough. I have to go finish this up. I'll be in my room," Izuku mumbled quietly before rushing upstairs without another word.

Inko reached out her hand, about to call him back but thought against it. She felt tears appear in her eyes and wiped them away with her apron. Then, she started clearing the table. "Oh, Izuku. I could never be disappointed in you," she whispered before breaking down into tears.

—

Thanks so much for reading everyone! This is an updated version of the first Prologue I posted. I didn't really like how disconnected the original felt so trust me, you aren't missing anything important. I just felt like this was a better way to introduce Izuku's story. But I hope you all stick around and keep reading. I have a lot planned and I can't wait to share Izuku's quirk with you all. Things might seem slow at first, but I promise it's gonna pick up real soon.

Updates will be random and since I have a lot of this written already, probably fast. I also have some OC's planned and new developments for Class 1-A and B. I don't want to spoil anything, but let's just say some of their quirks have evolved (and some of them haven't).

Also, in this AU, Izuku doesn't save Uraraka from the robot, the test just stops before she gets hurt. The other differences will be gradually explained as the story moves on.

As always, I appreciate any kind of comments. I love reading them and they help me gauge interest and/or general reactions to what I'm writing which is always nice. See you in the next chapters!