Chapter 22

Sitting on his bed in the medical ward of U.A. Tenya looked outside the window. The conversation he had yesterday with principal Nezu and Aizawa sensei, still repeating in his mind

Flashback

"The only reason that you're not outright expelled is because Manual, was kind enough to tell the public and the commission that he gave you orders to defend yourself, us expelling you will drag Manual's good intention in the mud" Aizawa sighed "Look Iida I get it, losing someone important to you… the rage, the sadness, all of it I get it… and that is the only thing making me not put you in general studies" Tenya looked up at his teacher with hope in his eyes

"You're young and grieving but don't misunderstand, you are on really thin ice. As far as I'm concerned you're on two strikes" Tenya nodded quickly and turned toward Nezu

"You'll have to take counseling with Hound Dog, and give me a fifty-page essay on vigilantism that I'll evaluate until I consider it enough" for a second Tenya thought that it wasn't that bad, only to look at the scared face of Aizawa "I'll be very meticulous while evaluating you" Tenya almost asked to be expelled when he saw Aizawa mutter a prayer. Tenya shook his head and decided to ask for new information

"Do you have any news about Midoriya?" He saw both their faces drop

"We don't. We're about to travel to the hospital to check on him, don't worry if I know something about Izuku, is that he is way too stubborn to stay down" Aizawa smiled softly for just a second "Take it easy, you dodged death by less than an inch, stay in bed. Your internship with Manual is over, so that gives you almost a week to recover if you need more tell Recovery Girl to send me a message" with his part said both left his room

End flashback

So, there he was looking outside the window just thinking about his decisions and how he could have been a better hero in training and person

"Do I even have the right to call myself a hero in training anymore?" Tenya muttered to himself

"From what I heard you're still a student, so I say you do," a very familiar voice said beside him, Tenya's eyes widened, and almost jumped out of bed when he turned around and saw Izuku sitting on the chair beside him with a smug grin on his face

"Izuku" Tenya whispered

"Hey man, I'm glad you're okay" Izuku's smug smile softened. Tenya was about to say something when his eyes landed on his friend's amputated arm. He couldn't stop the whimper coming out of his throat

"Oh Izuku, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. It is my fault that you're in that situation" the tears fall as waterfalls through his face. He was quickly enveloped in a tight hug "Please don't comfort me, I don't deserve it at all" Tenya refused to touch his friend

"If you don't hug me, I'm not going to let you go, and believe me we'll look awkward as hell!" Izuku shouted whispered, but still, Tenya didn't move. Izuku sighed "it would make me feel amazing to receive a hug from my friend you know" a few seconds later Tenya was hugging him tightly

"That has to be cheating" The bluenette whispered "Izuku, I know I don't deserve it but please forgive-" Tenya was cut by Izuku karate chopping his head from behind, and his arms were suddenly empty

"Is done I forgive you, don't duel about it" Tenya shook his head

"My mistakes made your journey to be a hero more difficult! I can't just stop thinking about that!" Tenya raised his voice

"You still think I can be a hero?" Izuku asked with an eyebrow raised

"I know you well enough to know that something like this wouldn't stop you," Tenya said shaking his head tears still rolling down his face "The thought of me being the reason for this new hardship is too much"

"You didn't ask me to be there, you didn't force me to go there to help, you didn't even give me permission to put a seal on you and I did" Izuku pointed out "Tenya all I did was on my own volition and some of them against your wishes, in all honesty, you should be mad at me"

"You saved my life and the lives of the other victims, I could never be mad at you"

"Then let's call it even!" Izuku smiled widely, at first Tenya stared at Izuku in shock but a few moments later he could help but shake his head fondly

"You're impossible my friend" Tenya suddenly frowned "No… even if you forgive me for your arm… even if I think he deserved it, you had to stain your hands" Izuku raised a hand to stop him

"Iida don't go there" Izuku took a deep breath "okay listen, what I will tell you is… a big secret, some people know about it mostly our teachers, and Kirishima and Ashido know about it too… I was planning to tell you and Uraraka about it soon but you need to hear it right now"

And then Izuku started to tell him about the story of his power, how he found Minato's cave, without mentioning younger Bakugo's bullying, he told him about Fukusa sensei, his training in chakra, and how Stain somehow managed to get access to it. When he finished Tenya's eyes almost popped out of his sockets

"Crazy story, I know," Izuku said scratching his head

"Yes… but I trust you" Tenya whispered

"Now you understand part of the reasons I did what I did" Izuku grimaced a little

"He would have been unstoppable" Tenya whispered "The means the police and hero commission have to stop criminals would have been nothing to him" Izuku nodded at him

"Yeah, he needed to be stopped, I don't like it, I wish I were stronger to somehow do it in another way" Izuku sighed "But I can't change the decision I took, I have to learn to live with it"

"If you allow me, I'll be glad to share the burden with you Midoriya my friend" Izuku smiled softly at Tenya

"Thanks, Tenya, it's a promise!" Izuku was on his feet again "Now that I think about it… to do that you'll have to become a hero" Izuku said with a hand on his chin "You can't take it back Iida!" Izuku smirked

"I fell directly into that one huh" Tenya chuckled "Is a promise, my friend"

"Good! Now there are still five days of internship that I plan on using to create something, so I guess I'll see you in five days in class" Izuku jumped up from his bed and took a step towards the door but suddenly stopped "Wait I still need to do something" Izuku turned around and walked towards Tenya who raised an eyebrow. Izuku poked his forehead harshly "Recover quickly, we're training as soon as we have time" Tenya nodded slowly confused at Izuku's sudden declaration

"I was hoping we could do that" Izuku nodded

"Good, that's good planning right there Iida see you soon!" Tenya couldn't help but notice the mischievous glint in Izukus eyes while he teleported away

"What the-" Tenya's eyes widened in urgency, he started tapping his bedside table looking for something when he heard the doorknob moving "No, wait!"

"Tenya sweetheart I brought you dinner-"

"No mom wait I can explain!"

"IIDA TENYA, explain to me right now, where did you get that tattoo from!" His mom yelled pointing at the Hiraishin seal on his forehead, Tenya was speechless

"Goddamnit Midoriya" Tenya muttered under his breath

"LANGUAGE, YOUNG MAN!"


Izuku appeared in Nezu's office who was chuckling while looking at his tablet

"Something funny, sensei" Izuku asked smiling

"You could say that, Midoriya. Would you consider an occasional job giving punishments to rowdy students?" Izuku just chuckled

"I would think about it sensei"

"You seem in a better mood Izuku," Nezu said softly

"Yeah, I have a goal now sensei. That's why I came to ask for the next five days of our internship together" Nezu nodded

"You're going somewhere to achieve this goal then"

"Yes! I'm going to Mt. Myōbokuzan with Fukusa sensei, we have a really crazy idea, but I think I can do it" Nezu looked at the brightness in Izuku's eyes and couldn't help but smile looking at the renewed fire in his pupil

"I'll allow it Midoriya, but you'll have to be back in five days to give your statement to the press" Izuku visually shuddered "Worry not, the interviewer will be Toshinori's favorite, she is good at her job, doesn't prod more than it needed and goes straight to the point. And it'll be broadcasted into an internet social thingies"

Izuku couldn't help but laugh at that, somewhere else All Might sneezed

"I'll see you in a few days sensei wait for me" Izuku smirked

"Please don't be late Midoriya" Nezu smiled and saw Izuku nod and teleport away

Five days later

"He's late," Eraserhead said with his usual bored tone. He, All Might, and Nezu were in the back of the classroom that was going to be used to conduct the interview. He looked towards the small sofas in front of the cameras and crew who seemed a little annoyed

"He was supposed to be here half an hour ago" Nezu scratched his head "Did Mrs. Midoriya tell you anything, Yagi?" All Might turned off his phone

"No, she doesn't know why he is late; she is coming here right now. Apparently, the small frog that lives with them wants to tell us something" Aizawa held his head with one hand and muttered "Of course, the frog knows something"

A few moments later the door opened and Inko along with Eri and Gamabu entered the room

"Ah, Mrs. Midoriya I'm glad you could join us!" Nezu said Inko smiled nervously

"Yeah, sorry we got lost; your school is a maze. Gamabu please tell them what you know" The small frog on Eri's shoulder started signing quickly. All Might looked confused but Nezu and Aizawa nodded in understanding

"So… what did the small one say?" All Might asked

"First her name is Gamabu, secondly she said that Izuku lost track of time getting accustomed to his new technique, apparently his training was a success but he still needs to practice a lot"

"Ah my bad I'm sorry… young Gamabu" The small frog nodded at the number one hero "So we don't know when is he coming back" All Might sighed but Gamabu started signing again

"Not necessarily apparently Gamabu can summon him, but she needs permission to do it. Izuku could take his summoning as a prank and that would make Gamabu break her rules" Nezu nodded in understanding, All Might was just confused

"Well, I, as his homeroom teacher and sensei of Midoriya Izuku, give you permission to summon him here" The three teachers raised an eyebrow looking at the smirk on the small toad's face

They saw in wonder how Gamabu started to make seals as Izuku did, and then suddenly she slapped her paw on the ground and with a smoke explosion Izuku appeared in the middle of them, without a shirt and covered in dirt, he seemed to be… sleeping. Before anyone could say anything Gamabu signed quickly again. Aizawa smirked

"I allow it" Nezu snickered and before anyone could ask Gamabu spit a stream of water at Izuku's face who jumped startled with his arms raised

"Wha- where- how- I don't" Eri crashed into his leg

"I missed you!" Izuku seemed to snap out of his funk and smiled at the small girl

"Eri, you saw me yesterday," Izuku said softly, Eri didn't say anything just hugged him tighter. Izuku then narrowed his eyes at Gamabu "So you decided to break the rules huh"

"No, I allowed it" Izuku turned and his eyes widened

"Sensei, All Might, Principal what are you doing here?!" All Might laughed, Nezu snickered and Aizawa sighed

"You're supposed to be a ninja… you need to be more aware of your surroundings Midoriya" Aizawa said while Midoriya scratched his head nervously

"Sorry I was asleep" then he frowned "So why you summoned me here?" he felt Eri tugging at his pants; Izuku looked down and saw Eri pointing to the other end of the classroom where the camera crew and interviewer were looking at him entertained

"THE INTERVIEW IS TODAY?!" He then looked at his dressing state "I'M HALF NAKED!" this time the crew in the front of the classroom laughed fully "I'll be back in a minute!" Suddenly a female in the front shouted at him

"You have 30 seconds!" Izuku screamed and teleported away unconsciously taking Eri with him. Twenty-five seconds later Izuku reappeared dressed in shorts, a t-shirt that had the kanji for singlehandedly written in it, and a towel he was using to clean the dirt from his face

"I'm ready!" he then turned to his teachers who were looking at him strangely "what?"

"Of all the shirts with words you have… you had to choose that one" His mom said in an exasperated tone while picking up a smiling Eri who went on a quick adventure with Izuku

"I thought it was funny" suddenly a hand dragged him toward the front of the classroom

"I'm glad you finally got here I'm Takowa Sakura, and I'll be your interviewer today. Sorry to be this pushy but we are behind schedule" Izuku watched nervously as the black-haired woman dragged him to the front

"I'm sorry"

"Don't be, actually when All Might called me I thought it was too soon to give your statement but they insisted. Something about you not having a lot of free time in the future" Izuku felt scared of what their teachers had planned for the coming months

When they got in front of the cameras Izuku felt his nervousness spike to a dangerous degree for a second only for a powerful feeling of easiness appear out of nowhere, he looked with a raised eyebrow at Takowa who smiled softly at him

"So you noticed it huh"

"You're doing something to me… I'm not as nervous anymore" Izuku raised an eyebrow, not mad but genuinely curious

"My quirk allows me to calm people. Only to a state of tranquility that let you think clearly" Izuku's eyes shone

"That's an amazing quirk! Have you ever considered being a hero?! You could help in a lot of situations, a lot of villains are people that have their minds in a bad place, you could calm them and they most probably surrender, also in hostage situations you could calm the villains to make them think clearly about what are they doing! Oh, oh also if you take the rescue route-"

"I thought about it, but I love what I do. I wanted to interview heroes since I was a kid, so here I am"

"Ah I'm sorry" Izuku scratched the back of his head

"Don't worry, actually I have to thank you, most people won't think that my quirk would be useful in heroics" Izuku felt his blood boil for a second

"That's ridiculous! Everyone can be a hero if they put their heart into it!" Takowa smiled softly

"That's an amazing way to start an interview Midoriya" Izuku was confused he then turned towards the cameras; he noticed the red light above them on

"You should have told me" Izuku felt at peace but couldn't help the whining in his tone

"Don't worry about it, what about we start with the questions?" Izuku raised an eyebrow

"Don't you have to ask my name and all that?" Takowa chuckled

"Well we had thirty minutes to give a small debrief of you Midoriya" Izuku slumped into his seat and muttered an apology "Now let's start with the first question. Why did you want to be a hero?"

That question took Izuku by surprise. He expected to dive into Stain's situation quickly, not a question like that, he thought for a few moments before answering

"I want to save people with a smile, I want to become someone people would turn to and feel safe, I want to create a world where people understand that there's always hope," Izuku said smiling softly

"Ah really good answer Midoriya, I like to think that the majority of the people of japan feel that you can do it, after all, everyone is still amazed by your feats. You won first place at the sports festival and even if it was an awful situation, you managed to come victorious in your battle with the S-ranked villain Stain" Izuku just nodded

"Tell me Midoriya, why did you decide to engage with Stain" Izuku took a deep breath "Here we go, keep it simple Izuku"

"When I saw the situation in Hosu I just wanted to help. People were in danger also my friend who was in his internship in Hosu was in danger. What other reason I needed to intervene" Takowa nodded

"Well the pro heroes and your friend who was on the scene must be thankful for your decision"

"I like to think they are" Izuku chuckled

"I'm pretty sure they are Midoriya, now, from what we saw in the sports festivals you use some form of teleportation. I'm sorry but I have to ask. Why not teleport the injured then get the hell out of there yourself" Izuku chuckled and scratched his head

"My technique for teleporting has limitations, I can make it instant when I teleport myself short distances, but the more the distance the more time I take, when I need to teleport someone it requires time, teleport someone to a distant place requires more time. If you saw the fight against Stain you could see easily that he didn't exactly give me time for that"

"Yeah from what we caught, he was fast," She said

"Fast is not even close to what he was. The only way I managed to keep up with him was teleporting, and as I say close range teleporting is instant" Izuku knew that praising a villain's skill wasn't his best idea, but remembering how terrifying Stain he just couldn't help it

"Now the hardest part of the interview, you had to take a really difficult decision and you certainly pay the price for it" She signaled Izukus's left arm "What told you that you make the right decision"

"It wasn't" A silence overcame the room "It wasn't the best decision; it was the only one I could make that meant to stop the killings… taking Stain's life wasn't something I did because it was the right action. it's something I did because I had no other choice, I knew that I wouldn't be at peace knowing that he'll recover and when that time comes again more innocent will die to his blade"

"It was the hardest decision of my life. I wish that I could have made something different… but I wasn't strong enough to stop him in any other way. So I decided that if drowning in guilt was the price to pay for saving countless lives… well" Izuku let his words linger

"You're so young to carry that weight in your heart Midoriya" Izuku looked at Takowa who looked sad for him

"We're training to be heroes… my sensei always told me that being a hero isn't flowers and rainbows, people's lives are on the line. Every decision you take can change the situation between the life and death of innocents"

"A little cold there Midoriya"

"I like to call it logical" Izuku smirked looking at Aizawa who nodded solemnly

"I see… Midoriya, be honest with me. After your injury… what is your next step?"

"What are you talking about this?" Izuku raised his left arm "Nothing but a flesh wound don't worry about it"

"So you plan to keep being a hero student after all this? A lot of people would not want to continue through this path after losing an arm. And I like to think that a lot of people would agree with me that you earned a rest"

"Is more like a third of an arm" Izuku muttered "As I said the world is cruel and unforgiving. But if I let something like this keep me down… my reasons to be a hero would be nothing but words. Also, my fellow students from the support department are helping me by building a prosthetic for me!" Izuku smiled widely

"Now that you mention it… you do are just a hero student. Did you have permission to act in Hosu?" Izuku smiled softly, he knew that she knew about his hero permit and he was grateful for how quickly she changed the topic of Stain

"Well I have a special hero Permit actually"

"Oh, and what does that mean?"

"Well, it means that I somehow managed to impress two heroes enough to put their necks in the line for me" Takowa smiled knowingly

"Well, we'll love to talk with the heroes that have their faith in you" a booming laugh was the last thing he heard before Izuku turned his brain into autopilot and let his teachers take the interview from him

He would happily admit that he cried when both his teachers said that they were proud and don't regret giving Izuku his permit. Izuku watched intently the interview he wanted to learn how to answer quickly and briefly like them. Izuku knew the interview was about to end when Takowa finally asked All Might what was surely the most asked question

"All Might, why did you decide to sponsor Midoriya?" All Might sighed heavily

"As much as I don't want to admit it… my time as a pro hero is going to end sooner or later, after all, I'm just a man and I'm not getting younger. Young Midoriya and I had a conversation and he pointed out something that stuck with me… he said that he wanted to take some of the weight off my shoulders, I thought that if a young man wanted to help me, what kind of symbol of peace I am if I don't do the same by giving him a helping hand"

"And I plan to keep doing it with more young heroes, it's time for me to take a more serious role in the future of heroics!" All Might sent a thumbs-up to the camera

"The future seems brighter knowing that you have so much fate in the younger generation of heroes All Might" Takowa turned to Izuku one last time "Midoriya any last words for the people?" Izuku thought for a few moments

How much he dreamed of being a hero even when no one was on his side and finally smiled at the camera

"Dreams save us. Dreams lift us and transform us. And on my soul, I swear, until my dream of a world where hope would never waver becomes a reality we all share" Izuku stood up and put his fist up "I'll never stop fighting."


In a bar on Kamino, Tomura scratched his neck furiously, first, the league of villains has barely been mentioned in the news thanks to Stain, and now everyone was looking at All Might's protege, making his efforts null as their involvement in the attack of Hosu was completely overlooked now

"I don't like it, I hate him!" Tomura growled

"Please refrain from dusting our home Shigaraki Tomura," Kurogiri said a little exasperated

"I need a new plan... yes a new approach to this situation" Tomura practically hissed "Yes, I know what I have to do, Kurogiri call Giran we need to talk business" Kurogiri nodded and saw Tomura leave towards his room

"What do you think Sensei" Kurogiri asked

"I don't think he is the next holder if that's what you're asking Kurogiri" A voice came from the computer in the room

"He is stronger than he was when we invaded U.A." a hum was the only sound that came out of the computer for a while

"Then, the growth of Shigaraki has to be... speed up" Kurogiri shivered at the sound of that "He already failed twice... Let us see what he'll do with his third and last chance... in the meantime, I have to contact an old project of mine. keep me informed Kurogiri" after that the line went dead

"Shigaraki Tomura... whatever you're planning... you better succeed. You already had one more chance than the others had before sensei got rid of them"


A/N a Christmas miracle! this is what this chapter is haha. I dug my own grave by deciding that I wanted Izuku to be interviewed... I don't know anything about interviews but I decided to try and do it (Have to admit that I was kind of inspired at the moment by the story Razzmatazz by xylophones, Amazing story you should check it)

But yeah another worldbuilding chapter, next chapter is the final exam! it would be an extra long chapter so please be patient with me hehe

As always, I love you guys. Thank you for keeping up with my story and liking it and leaving a comment you guys are amazing