Here you go, guys. A nice serving of Chapter 5 of AHF. Hope you like it! X3
"...And that is the extensive nature of cellular division.", the teacher explained to the class.
Izuku wasn't really paying attention to the biology lesson that was taught, as he was writing down his notes for heroes, Kamui Woods and the debuting Mt. Lady. He already finished all the biology work needed for today so he could have time to himself. Not that it would make a difference in this bigoted middle school.
"Ok, class. Put your books down and notebooks away.", the teacher demanded. The class (barring Izuku, who already finished his work, and Bakugou who didn't care) followed what the teacher said and paid attention.
"As you all know,", the teacher started to explain. "You're all third years, which means you're at the age where you need to think about your futures." The teacher grabbed a huge pile of papers from his desk. "Here are your Career Aspiration Documents, where you'll fill out plans for the future."
He then threw the papers in the air, smiling. "But, knowing all of you, you probably want to be heroes, right?" This causes the whole class, except the explosive Bakugou and intellectual Izuku, to activate their Quirks in excitement and cheer in unison. The teacher laughed at the many abilities that were on display in front of him. "Ah, I see so many wonderful Quirks but remember, no using your Quirks on school grounds. It's against the rules."
"Oi, teach!", Bakugou called out. "Don't lump me with these extras! I don't associate with anyone with a weak Quirk!"
Izuku could only roll his eyes at the arrogance that's put on display by Bakugou. He was very angry at the explosive teen for attacking him on the first day of the school, months back. He wasn't prepared for dear old Kacchan when the destructive blonde struck him out of sight of the teachers and staff. Sure, Izuku put up a fight but he was still left unguarded and suspended afterwards. From there, he had been finding a way to defend himself from Bakugou and his goons without his inventions as the teachers made a shadow rule that banned Izuku from bringing his inventions in school, otherwise he'd be suspended. So, he had little to no defense against any would-be bullies or Bakugou and if he did, he'd get in trouble for it unfairly.
All in all, it was a great school year for him.
Izuku was brought back from his horrible memories of the early school year with his classmates angrily shouting at Bakugou for calling them weak.
"Shut the fuck up, you extras!", the explosive teen yelled, scaring the majority of them as he stood up, looking down at his classmates like their peons with a shit-eating grin on his face. "You're nothing but background characters! Behave as such!"
Such modesty. One must wonder how big the explosive teen's ego could get. The question gets harder and harder to answer each day.
"Oh, right.", the teacher seemingly remembered. "You want to go to U.A., right Bakugou?" That made the class look at the explosive teen in shock.
"U.A.? The biggest national hero school?"
"Doesn't that place have a very low acceptance rate?"
"That's right, you secondary characters!", Bakugou taunted the whole class. "I aced the mock exams, which means that I'm the only one from this school that'll head to U.A., to become the number 0ne hero, surpassing even All Might, himself. Just watch as my name will become one of the top earners of U.A."
The class went silent with Izuku quietly scoffing at his ex-friend's ego-driven declaration.
"Hmm. If I remember correctly, Midoriya also wants to join U.A., too.", the teacher gave the throwaway line as he collected the papers.
The class turned their attention away from Bakugou to the quiet Izuku. And just as if they heard a funny joke, the class (barring Bakugou, who was scowling at the inventor) laughed at Izuku Midoriya because to them, he may be smart but he's a Quirkless waste of space.
"Izuku?! Going to hero school?! Ha!"
"As if a Quirkless nobody like him has any chance of getting in!"
"You should quit now, while you're ahead, Deku!"
Just before Izuku could retort, he saw Bakugou leap from his desk with his sparking arm raised back, launching towards him. In quick action, Izuku grabs his notebook and kicks the floor hard, pushing the chair as far back as he could as the explosive teen blasted the desk.
"Deku!", Bakugou yelled, having a rageful expression towards the Quirkless Inventor.
Izuku got up from his chair, with a cold glare towards the explosive egomaniac. "What, Kacchan?"
"You don't have a Quirk! You couldn't even get in even if you tried!", Bakugou yelled, his hands sparking in fury. No matter what he did, this Quirkless fucker never faltered. "So, why are you even trying to get in U.A. when you know that I'm planning to go there?!"
Izuku closed his eyes and slowly inhaled.
"First of all, Kacchan…", Izuku started, staring at his seething tormentor with unblinking eyes. "I'm allowed to go to any hero school I want because the law says that I can. The universe doesn't revolve around you, despite many people making you think otherwise." This made Bakugou grit his teeth and some of the class glared at him. "Secondly, I want to go to U.A. because I want to become a hero too. I wanna save people with a smile just like All Might." Bakugou wanted to charge at Deku right-! "And finally?" Izuku grabbed a packet out of his bag and tossed it on his desk for Kacchan to see.
Bakugou looked at it, ruefully. "The fuck is this, Deku?!"
"That, Kacchan, is the rules and guidelines for entering the U.A. Entrance Exam.", Izuku retorted. "The proctor for the Mock Exams gave them to those who finished and had a high score. You probably don't remember it because you just threw it away, claiming you were going to ace the entrance exams so you didn't need to look at some 'shitty' rules and guidelines."
Bakugou was getting annoyed with how calm Izuku was sounding. "Why the fuck are you showing me bullshit rules for, Deku?!"
"Check the page that I bookmarked.", Izuku responded. Bakugou saw a green bookmark standing out in the packet. He opened the packet and went to page 5. This section was focused on what was permissible to bring to the Exam, but what caught the explosive boy's attention was one of the clauses that was printed on the section.
"You see it, too? Don't you, Kacchan?", Izuku asked, rhetorically. "One of the clauses?" "What are you talking about, Deku?", a classmate taunted the inventor.
Izuku gave a frown to the classmate. "I'm talking about the Quirkless Clause, of course."
The class and teacher looked confused at this. Luckily for them, Izuku was more than happy to explain it to his class.
"For those of you that don't know.", the Quirkless Inventor began. "The Quirkless Clause states that if an examinee enters the exam and if they are Quirkless, they have explicit permission to use at maximum of 5 support items to have an advantage against the quikred examinees."
The class murmured in shock and confusion while the teacher looked flustered before trying to bring back order. But Izuku wasn't done.
"So that means, I can use any of the many inventions I made over the years." Izuku taunted the class. "Inventions that I have practiced meticulously with more than anyone here have done with their own Quirks, besides Kacchan."
The class and teacher, for the first time Izuku has seen, felt nervous at the idea of the powerless inventor using his creations. While the students of Aldera enjoyed taunting him and pushing him down because of his Quirklessness, they knew deep down he was the most intelligent kid in the school, no matter how much the staff tried to tamper with his grades. They've seen him with his Rocket Shoes at the talent show. They've seen him solve geometry and advanced algebra problems like they were a game to him. They've seen him read calculus and physics books so casually whenever he had the chance. And they know that he can break down a Quirk effortlessly in just a short amount of time.
Bakugou may be a prodigy because of his Quirk being great for hero work, but Izuku proved that he had the pure intelligence for the career in spades, though they won't admit it.
While class took in what Izuku just said, Bakugou, in a fit of rage, lunged at the Quirkless prodigy with his sparking hand raised back.
"Who the fuck cares about your stupid inventions, Deku?!" the explosive boy yelled as he charged at Izuku. "I will be the only one from this school who makes it to U.A.! YOU HEAR ME?!"
To everyone's shock, the Quirkless genius simply grabbed him by his attacking arm and twisted it back before sweeping his legs from under him, causing Bakugou to fall on his face. Izuku didn't let up as he knelt on his back and pulled out his pen which doubled as a taser, ready to electrocute Bakugou.
Before any damage could be done, the teacher stretched his arm and pulled Izuku off of Bakugou, hitting his back and head on the ground hard before getting up. The teacher grabbed both of the boys by their shoulders.
"Midoriya and Bakugou!", the teacher scolded them. "Come with me to the principal's office, now!" They followed their teacher, who still had his hands on their shoulders, to the principal's office.
After a fit of yelling from the principal, it was decided that Izuku will face a week-and-a-half suspension for the second time. If he gets another, he'll be expelled. The staff would be very happy if that was the case. As Izuku and Bakugou left the principal's office, they both walked down the halls in silence, hardly looking at each other but scowling/glaring forward as they both were sources of anger, frustration, and other possible negative emotions for each other.
"Deku.", Bakugou called out to the inventor, who stopped and glared at the scowling teen. "I'm only going to say it once to you, so you better shut up."
You got a lot of nerve to say that, considering you were the one who attacked me first, Izuku thought as he looked at Bakugou. But he, unfortunately, listened as he was too tired to protest against his tormentor.
"Most top-string heroes have stories about them during their school days.", the explosive teen explained, scowling at him. "I want the spotlight of being the only one from this shithole of a junior high school to make it as a hero, so do me a favor and don't fucking go to U.A., you nerd." With that said, Bakugou walked down the hall, with his hands in his pockets, leaving the tired Izuku to stand there to process his words.
The explosive blonde stopped a few feet. "Oh. And one more thing, Deku.", he glanced back at the Quirkless teen with a demented smile on his face. "Making inventions doesn't mean you're a hero. But since you want to be one so badly, why don't you pray for a Quirk and jump off the roof to get one in the next life?"
Izuku looked down, his bangs covering his foggy eyes.
You know, there weren't a lot of insults and obscenities that managed to hurt Izuku. Over the years, he's developed tough skin to the words that were thrown at him by students, teachers, or both. He had to stay strong because the bigots that are in this school want to see him breakdown but he refused to give them that satisfaction. Somehow, Bakugou's words just now pierced through his heart like a cold, sharp knife. It took everything in Izuku's power to not cry, to not scream in anger, to not charge at Bakugou and beat the shit out of him. It took every ounce of strength in his body to not make things worse for him than it already was.
The emotional greenette looked up at the explosive blonde and said words that made Bakugou drop his smirk. "You're a piece of shit, Kacchan. And that's all you'll ever be."
It wasn't said with malice, it wasn't said with aggression. Izuku, devoid of emotion, said it as if it was a cold hard fact. And, to an extent, it was.
With a click of his teeth, Bakugou turned and walked away from Izuku, who had tears fall down his face. The tears flowed down his face but he had a scowlful expression that watched his explosive enemy walk away. Why was this the case?
Because deep down in Izuku's heart, Bakugou's words were the final nail in the coffin for the friendship they developed.
The friendship that was dead now.
Izuku was very silent as he walked home. No plans for his suit's maintenance, no plans for future Quirk analysis, no training plans, nothing. He just wanted to go home and sleep.
Bakugou's words still echoed in his head. Since you want to be one so badly, why don't you pray for a Quirk and jump off the roof to get one in the next life?
What made his former best friend say such things? The inventor didn't know but he didn't want to dwell on it so much because if continues to, he'll be crying for hours.
"I really just wanna go to sleep.", Izuku mulled over, holding his bookbag tightly. Honestly, today couldn't get any worse….
*GLOOP*
…yet.
Thanks to his martial arts training, Izuku leaped forward and rolled away to see a large portion of amorphous slime that slithered out of the manhole cover to take a large mass with big, beady eyes leering at the nervous inventor.
"Invisibility Cloak…Size M..", the slime creature gurgled as it slowly took in it's human form.
"Don't worry, kid. It'll be quick and painless."
A slime body. Mutation Quirk more than likely. Izuku analyzed, thinking of a plan to deal with this villain. Since his body is mostly liquid, he would probably be taken down by a massive push of kinetic energy. He could also be susceptible to electricity. I really wish I had my Rocket Shoes or my Power Gauntlets. He went through his coat pocket to find his taser pen, only to realize that he dropped it. He checked his pants pocket to find something until he noticed he had another. Thank God he had a spare in case his teacher and principal noticed.
Izuku had set the pen to the highest degree possible before launching it at the villain in a fluid wave of motion and stepping back away from the villain as far as he could. The pen was lodged inside the villain liquidy mass before being swallowed up, quickly.
"Really?~", the sludge villain taunted. "You thought you could hurt me with a pen?"
Just before the villain could get close, he screamed as his entire body was riddled with high voltage, convulsing in pain because of the taser pen.
"You…little..shit!", the slimy villain growled in pain.
Just before the tried to get closer
"FEAR NOT, CHILD!" Wait….is that..?
Out of nowhere, All Might, in a t-shirt and brown pants, appeared out of a manhole and punched the slime villain as soon as he was finished being electrocuted.
"BECAUSE I AM HERE!", the Number 1 hero declared.
Izuku stood there, only a few feet from his idol. He didn't know how to react. Should he say something? Should he ask for his autograph? Should he….uh…..uh….?
"YOUNG MAN?", All Might called out to the dazed inventor, who shook his head before looking up at his favorite.
Izuku, in haste, pulled out his notebook. "W-would you sign this, p-please, All Might?".
"OF COURSE…..", The ever-smiling hero answered before blanking. "UM….."
"Midoriya.", the inventor answered, quickly. "Midoriya Izuku."
"AH, OF COURSE!", All Might chuckled as he signed his name in the notebook quickly. "NO IF YOU EXCUSE ME, I WILL BE APPREHENDING THIS VILLAIN." He tried looking for something in his pockets. "NOW WHERE DID MY WATER BOTTLE GO?"
Izuku, in haste, gave the Number 1 Hero his empty lockable bottle/canister. "Here, All Might. Take this."
All Might turns to look at the canister, laughing in appreciation. "THANK YOU, YOUNG MIDORIYA. NOW IF YOU CAN EXCUSE ME…" The hero crouched down to scoop up the villain inside the canister and put the canister in his pocket, waving goodbye to the frazzled teenager after he finished. "I HAVE TO SEND THIS VILLAIN TO THE NEAREST PRECINCT. YOU CAN SEE MY EXPLOITS ON LCD TV."
As soon as he said that, Izuku realized something that he wanted to ask his role model. "Wait, All Might!", the Quirkless Inventor insisted. "There's something I need to ask you!"
"SORRY.", All Might rejected as he prepared to long jump. "BUT I HAVE TO LEAVE. PROFESSIONALS MUST CONSTANTLY FIGHT BACK AGAINST THE FLOW OF EVIL."
In a split second, Izuku, in desperation and adrenaline, grabbed onto the All Might's belt as Number 1 Hero leaped out of the air. Izuku looked down at the ground below to realize the ridiculous decision he just made. Of all the decisions I've made, this is the stupidest one yet!, he condemned himself.
All Might noticed the stowaway. "WHAT THE….?! ARE YOU CRAZY, CHILD?! LET GO!"
"All Might, we're at least a 100 feet in the air!", Izuku calmly retorted, not being afraid of the heights that All Might reached. "If I do that, I'll fall!"
The Number 1 hero was confused as to why Izuku was calm before realized that he was right.
"ALRIGHT, HANG ON!"
With that said, All Might landed on the roof of a building. When Izuku had let go of the hero, All Might coughed in his hand, cringing when he saw blood.
"I HAVE TO LEAVE NOW!", he informed the Quirkless Inventor as he headed to the door.
"Wait All Might-!"
"SORRY, BUT I HAVE TO GO!", the Number 1 hero insisted as he continued onward.
Izuku realized that this was his only chance to ask All Might the question that he's always wanted to ask him. He, in urgency, called out to the idol of his life. "Can someone without a quirk be a hero?!"
This made the Symbol of Peace stop in his tracks. "No….Quirk?"
"You see…", Izuku started, letting out his thoughts. "I've been diagnosed as Quirkless since I was 4 and I've been ridiculed by everyone, except my parents, who support my hero dream no matter what. I know I have support from my parents but I've always wanted to get to know your…Huh?!"
As Izuku was talking, he didn't notice the smoke cloud that was forming in All Might's place. As it cleared, a scraggly blonde haired fellow with black rings around his eyes.
"Who are you?!", Izuku pointed at the man.
The skinny man coughed, blood leaking from his mouth. "I'm All Might." "B-but how..?", Izuku was confused.
"You know how people flex in the pool to make themselves look buff?" The Quirkless Inventor nodded his head. "That's what I do."
"So that means you have a transformation Quirk.", Izuku realized.
"You're taking it a lot better than I thought.", All Might said as he sat on the ground before pulling his shirt to show Izuku something. "But yes. A price paid for being the Symbol of Peace. This is one of them" The inventor cringed when he saw the scars that were etched across the Number 1 Hero's chest.
Oh, man. Those look nasty, Izuku thought.
"I got this wound about 5 years ago from a villain attack.", All Might explained tiredly. "My respiratory system was semi-damaged and my stomach was removed, making me get surgery until my eyes were messed up permanently. I have about 3 hours a day to do hero now. This is my limitation."
After hearing all of that, Izuku had to ask something. "You fought Venomous Chainsaw 5 years ago, right? He's the one that caused this?"
"You know your stuff, kid. But it wasn't him. It was someone else.", All Might chuckled. His eyes went from humorous to serious. "That's why what I'm telling you must not be disclosed publicly."
Izuku nodded his head. "I understand, sir. I won't tell anyone." All Might seemed to accept that answer before talking again.
"Professional heroes constantly put their lives and most of the time, they don't come back, unscathed.", he explained. "Even me, who has to keep a smile to comfort the public." All Might slowly got up. "Which is why I say it's not possible for someone to be a hero….without a Quirk." Izuku felt stung by those words.
All Might. The Number 1 Hero. An inspiration to all. And Izuku's idol….
…told him that he couldn't be a hero.
Without a Quirk.
"Oh…." was all Izuku had said.
All Might got up and headed straight to the door. "If you truly desire to save those in need, you should become a police officer or a doctor. It may not be as appealing as being a pro hero, but it's still important nonetheless." He opened the door, turning his head back at the stunned teen. "It's always good to dream, kid. But it also pays to be realistic."
With that said, the Number 1 hero left the distraught Izuku on the top of the building. The Quirkless teen just stood there, processing the two things that shattered his spirit.
But since you want to be one so badly, why don't you pray for a Quirk and jump off the roof to get one in the next life?
It's always good to dream, kid. But it also pays to be realistic.
For the first time in a while, Izuku just wanted to cry. He had always thought that the number 1 hero would at least have faith in him, yet, he had shattered his dreams.
Still sniffling, Izuku left the building and started his way home. All Might's words had cut deep, and he just wanted to go home and sleep to get the day over with, "Maybe tomorrow will be better…"
Izuku entered the apartment with dried tear stains, heading straight to his room. After dropping his backpack on the floor, his laptop booted up. After a few minutes, Izuku somehow stopped himself from crying. He still felt sad but he didn't think there would be any use crying. Crying never solved anything, Izuku thought to himself bitterly as he remembered how Bakugou always tormented him, no matter how much he cried and begged him to stop.
But, even after Izuku entered his apartment, he didn't feel better. He had hoped his mom would be home by now so that he'd have someone for comfort. But, the door swung open to reveal a quiet, and lonesome house. Ignoring the gloomy environment as best as he could, Izuku headed into his room to sleep. But that proved to be a mistake.
As soon as he stepped inside, Izuku gritted his teeth.
All around him were All Might posters, staring at him. All of the stares from every single poster seemed to taunt him. Each poster kept reminding him of All Might's words, over and over again. Izuku moved his eye off of the posters to try and forget about All Might's words, but now his eye fell on All Might's sparkling smile, enraging Izuku.
"Hello, Master Midoriya.", Alfred greeted his creator.
The Quirkless Inventor sat down on his bed, sulking. "Hey, Alfred."
"Is everything all right?", The A.I. asked, noticing the melancholic tone in his creator's voice. Izuku just looked at his computer before he turned to see his armored suit in the corner of his room and the All Might poster next to it.
That smile felt uncomfortable to him now.
"No, Alfred.", he answered, his voice felt hollow. "I think I'm just gonna take a break from doing suit maintenance."
"Understood, sir." Alfred went into sleep mode, leaving the disheartened inventor in silence as he laid in his bed and stared at the many posters of All Might. Looking at them made him feel a pang in his chest the more he stared. They didn't have the spirit of inspiration like they did before; they gave the engineer a feeling of dread and rage.
I think it's time I did some redecorating, he thought to himself. He got up and got started with the posters, slowly removing the tape with a scraper before rolling them up and tying them with rubber bands. After putting the rolled up posters on his bed, he went to grab some empty boxes to store them in there. He then grabbed a few of his bobble heads, action figures, comic books, and manga in the box next.
He then put the boxes next to his bed neatly.
Unbeknownst to him, the front door opened. Inko had arrived home a while back and had been silently watching Izuku by the door. Her motherly instincts told that something wasn't right with her son, so she slowly walked over and placed an arm around Izuku.
Izuku was a bit startled and spun around quickly, only to see his mom. He looked away in shame, knowing that his mom had seen him pulling down his idol's memorabilia. Inko sat down beside Izuku and held him close but didn't speak as she let the silence comfort her son for a while.
"Is there something wrong, sweetie?" Inko inquired after Izuku had seemingly calmed down a bit. "Did something happen today?"
Izuku looked at his mother, tone devoid of emotion. He sat down on his bed and started explaining how the day started with him at school, leaving out what Bakugou had said to him. But then he went into detail on how he was rescued by All Might before getting to the part where he said that it would be impossible for someone like Izuku to be a hero.
To say that Inko was shocked was an understatement.
"How dare he!? What does he know!", she said in fury.
Izuku didn't seem too bothered, "Maybe he is right. He is the number one hero after all. Maybe I really should jump off a building like Bakugou said." Inko's grip tightened as she looked at her son with an appalled expression.
"BAKUGOU SAID WHAT!?" She demanded.
"He told me that I should jump off a roof, in the hopes of getting a Quirk in the next life." Izuku repeated himself. Inko gritted her teeth, barely holding the urge to murder Katsuki with her bare hands. Had it not been for the fact that Mitsuki was a close friend, she would have done exactly that.
"Now listen," Inko ordered, "Don't listen to what All Might said. It doesn't matter if he's the number 1 hero, that doesn't automatically make him right! If quirkless people can't be heroes, there's no reason for David Shield and Hatsume to think you can make it." Inko explained.
"But if All Might says something like that, then what about the other heroes, what if they treat me worse?", the disheartened inventor asked.
Hearing her son like this, reminded her of the day they found out that he was Quirkless. No, no, no, sweetie, Inko thought. You can't fall back now. You…we needed to stay strong.
She took in a breath before responding. "All Might may be the number 1 hero, but he isn't the most sensible one. The sensible heroes will never treat you differently."
"But there'll be some heroes who'll treat me badly, Mom. What about them?" Izuku pointed out, getting scared.
"Remember what your father said, honey: There will always be people who think you can't make it. Even if you had a quirk, those people would exist. It's up to you to prove them wrong. Your dad and I believe in you, who cares what strangers think?" Inko replied calmly.
Izuku looked to retort but couldn't find a suitable answer. Even though Inko's words made sense, he just did not feel it was compelling.
Inko sighed seeing Izuku's hesitancy.
"Look, why don't you go watch some TV and play some video games while I make some food and clean up the room for you?" Inko asked as she took away the box, thinking it would be best for her to sell the All Might memorabilia that was stored already than Izuku.
Izuku hesitantly nodded and stood up, "But mom, about Bakugou-"
"Oh, don't worry about it, Izuku." Inko said with a steely tone. "I'll handle that." She finished in a determined tone. She was going to call Mitsuki and have her fix Katsuki's attitude or she'd do it herself.
Izuku, meanwhile, laid back in his bed with his eyes burning a hole into the ceiling. He kept replaying what he's heard.
But since you want to be one so badly, why don't you pray for a Quirk and jump off the roof to get one in the next life?
It's always good to dream, kid. But it also pays to be realistic.
It doesn't matter if he's the number 1 hero, that doesn't automatically make him right! If quirkless people can't be heroes, there's no reason for David Shield and Hatsume to think you can make it.
There will always be people who think you can't make it. Even if you had a quirk, those people would exist. It's up to you to prove them wrong.
Prove them…wrong, the words replayed in Izuku's mind.
Izuku had always thought making inventions that made up for his Quirklessness would prove everyone wrong.
But they just ignore it and downgrade his achievements.
Izuku was smarter than most of his peers, impressing the likes of the Shield Family and Mei.
But his teachers ignore him, intentionally alter his grades, and constantly belittle him.
Izuku had the potential to be a great hero.
Yet Bakugou and All Might had failed to see that. The world refused to see it too, despite having a few people in his corner.
If that was the case, then Izuku would just have to show the world that it's possible. Possible for him to make it to the big league. Possible for him to make it to U.A. with his genius and his technology. Possible that he, Quirkless, can become a hero.
He closed his eyes and rested. I'll show you, Bakugou. I'll show you All Might. I'll show everyone that I can be a hero.
The drive to the forest was very peaceful, just like the week that Izuku had so far. After what happened two days ago with All Might, the Midoriya's were able to sell the majority of the hero nerd's merch of the Number 1 Hero's memorabilia. They were able to get enough money for Izuku to get started on a fifth tool that could help him in the Entrance Exams: a respirator that could help him breath when flying at high altitudes as well as protect the majority of his face.
The Quirkless boy was pulled from his thought process as the car stopped on the edge of a clearing.
"Looks like we made it.", Inko commented.
With that said, the Midoriyas got out of the car. Inko, dressed in a hoodie and sweatpants, popped the back door open and waited for Izuku, wearing a black short sleeve and sweatpants, to pull out his case. He, carrying his 200 lb. case that was the same length/height as him, followed his mother to the clearing, excited at the idea of practicing his suit.
It took him a bit of time but he made it to the clearing behind his mother, who rolled up two. He put down his heavy load and walked right next to the smiling Inko.
"Are you ready to begin, Izuku?", she asked her son, as she took in the sunny breeze.
The grinning Midoriya nodded his head. "As I'll ever be, mom."
The mother and son began yoga in the clearing. Now if you were to ask anyone on the benefits of yoga, most wouldn't care for it and they're people who are smart enough to understand the benefits, they'd recommend it. But if you were to ask Izuku, he'd be giving you an entire essay on it. When he started yoga with his mom, he felt a bit embarrassed doing it with her but, overtime, he started to see the benefits of it when it came to his martial arts training.
They've been doing this for a half an hour. They were able to feel their joints loosened, their muscles relaxed, and their endurance and balance peaked. Inko and Izuku finished their exercise after taking a slow breath, smiling at each other.
"That felt relaxing.", Izuku commented.
Inko laughed. "That's the benefit of yoga, sweetie."
Laughing, Izuku went to the case and pressed the red button to open, causing the case to open up. The Quirkless teen had the chance to admire the coloring that amassed the suit. He pulled out his phone and booted up an app. The eye ports on the suit booted to life and it got itself out of the case and stood up, rigidly.
Even though she had seen the suit multiple times, Inko can't help but admire her son's creativity being presented in front of her. Izuku's suit adorned a green coloring, emerald for the majority of the structure and dark green on the pectoral area, the abs, and outer thighs. There was also red coloration on the side of the arms, the v-point on the antennas, and the square lines of the side of the abdominal area, even dominating the silver colors on the Power Gauntlets and Rocket Shoes. There was white outlines appear on v-shaped areas on the shin/end of the thighs, the side of the neck, white canisters on the belt, and triangular sections above the pectoral area. And finally, there was even black coloration found on the center of the throat, elbow joints, knee joints, belt, the inner thighs, the outline of the eye ports and shoulder pads.
"Alright, the wireless control is definitely working.", Izuku assessed. "Now, it's time to put on the suit and do some tests." He pressed a button on his phone and the suit spreaded its arms out and started to open up from the outside: the bicep, chest, thigh, shin plates had spread ajar, revealing compressions from inside while the helmet splitted off from the torso, acting like a hood . The Quirkless teen gave his mother his phone and carefully got inside the suit.
He looked towards his mother. "Okay, mom. Cover me."
Inko nodded her head and pressed the button on the app, causing the open plates to close in slowly and the helmet to cover her son's head until it was shut completely. Izuku took in a breath, smelling a new car scent inside the suit. Alright, everything is fine, so far, the suit bearer thought. Now all we need to do now is put Alfred in the suit's mainframe.
"Are you ready for me to install Alfred?", Inko asked her son, who gave her the thumbs up. She then pressed the link function on the app. Izuku tapped the temple of his helmet, making a pop-up screen appear on the eye ports saying Standby as it began beeping multiple times. It remained like this until a ding and the screen said [Alfred.a1] Installed.
"Installation complete.", Alfred called out. "Greetings, Master."
Izuku smiled. "Hi, Alfred."
Since they had installed Izuku's A.I., the Quirkless teen began to do simple movements (touching his toes, holding his arms out, stretching his shoulders, turning his head, etc.) to test the functionality and flexibility of the armored suit, while Inko recorded on his phone.
Izuku stopped to take a breath through the respirator part of his helmet. "Well, the flexibility of the suit seems to be in good condition, despite it being inactive for about a year."
"Do you wanna get started on the next exercise, Izuku?", Inko asked her son as she levitated some rocks and sticks into the air with her Quirk.
The next training exercise Izuku and Inko were doing was testing his suit's reaction and speed via target practice. The plan is to see how well her son's reactability can be within the suit: if he was the same without it on or slower within it. Izuku tapped his neck and he spoke.
"Sure thing, mom.", he affirmed, his voice sounding digital. "I've been wanting to practice this for a while."
The exercise began as Inko launched her projectiles at her innovative son, causing him to use the targeting installed into Alfred's system and his martial arts skill to strike them. He was a bit slow at first but overtime he began to adjust the suit's weight and managed to be able to strike at different angles. This kept going for roughly two hours and as time went on, Inko kept on getting more crafty the directions of the projectiles she attracted and launched, even though she was getting tired.
Izuku delivered a straight punch to the last projectile before grabbing onto his knees, panting exhaustive breaths. "That was a tedious workout. Alfred, what's my progress?"
"Well, sir, you were able to dodge 47% of the projectiles launched at you. You managed to block 29% of the projectiles and 39% for counterattacking.", the AI listed.
Not a bad start.
Inko looked to see the sun setting. "We should head back, Izuku. I wanna get dinner done early."
"You heard my mom, Alfred." Izuku said, causing the AI to open up the suit so he could get out. "Alright, fold back and power off." The suit went back to the open case and shut itself off.
The Midoriyas went back to the car and headed home for dinner.
A week had passed for Izuku, as he came back to school and endured Bakugou and his goonies' constant bullying. When the weekend came by, he began working on cleaning the Beach on weekends as a way to help the community and to continue trade for parts for money to build his mouthguard/respirator for the exam. When he came back from school, Izuku would look online for martial art books and gyms to help him get better.
He eventually found some books while seeing a nearby gym to get in shape as well as practice fighting. He bought the books before practicing them out and when he visited the gym, he was conditioning his body at the end of the month. Over the next three months, he was able to progress through and be stronger than he was before, along with him developing his proficiency in Taekwondo.
Over the next two months, he focused on adjusting his suit bit by bit. When he wasn't doing that, he was focusing on piloting it, practicing his launch points, aerial maneuverability, as well as multitasking with combat. He progressed fairly well in that area, but he would need some help from a pro as there were still some techniques that he wasn't aware of.
Today, he finished helping clean up a small portion of the beach before heading home to get his suit.
"Ok, I finished my workout for the day.", Izuku gave a list as he came back from the gym, carrying a few pellets for self defense. "Now all I need to do is start my practice with my suit agai-"
"I said stop!"
The Quirkless Inventor was pulled from his thoughts when he heard a distressful cry from down the street. He ran down and stopped in a dead-end alleyway to see a green haired girl with large eyes with her tongue sticking out the side, long green hair that reached down to her lower back, and large hands and feet. Behind her were two scared children that looked like her, more than likely her younger siblings.
In front of the green-haired girl were three thugs.
"C'mon, sweetie. We just want some cash.", one thug threatened.
The other one chuckled as he leered at the girl. "Maybe you can ditch the kids and come hang out with us. We promise we're gonna show ya a good time." The calm girl just glared at the three older teens.
"And I will say it again, I don't care.", she retorted. "I just want to go home with my siblings, so please, get away from us."
The third thug took a step closer, making the girl tense up.
"What? Looking after your siblings is more fun than hanging out with us?", he sneered, looking up and down at her. "You know, for a girl with a weird face, you sure do got a nice bod-" *Whistle*
"Huh-Gah!"
The older teen was hit in the face with a pellet that exploded a gas in his face. This shocked everybody as they turned to see Izuku who threw said pellet at the thug.
Thug #1 and #2 glared at the Quirkless Inventor, while the third thug looked at him in a daze before falling to the ground, surprising everyone.
"Man, it seems like villains get dumber and dumber every year." Izuku assessed. "They go from robbing banks and contending with some of the best heroes around to this: a bunch of clowns cornering highschoolers and children for money."
The remaining thugs glared at the inventive Midoriya.
"We're not villains, you asshole!", Thug #1 yelled, as his nails grew longer. "But that doesn't mean we won't kick your ass! Piss off if you know what's good for ya!" Izuku put his bag down and balled his fists, game face on.
"Okay, dumbass.", Thug #1 grunted, posed to strike. "Hope you're ready to pick up your teeth!"
Thug #1 charged forward and swiped at Izuku, who parried the attack before striking his face with his deflecting hand and moving up to deliver a punch to his liver, causing the older teen to lurch over in pain. The Quirkless fighter took this opportunity to deliver a vicious spinning heel kick to his face that sent him flying, knocking him and two of his teeth out.
On the corner of his eye, he saw the bigger Thug #2 swing his rock fist at him. He ducked the first one and blocked the next one before punching him in the shoulder. He took advantage of the thug's painful distraction to deliver a straight punch to his face before kneeing him center of solar plexus, making Thug #2 fall forward on the ground.
Izuku turned to the green haired girl and her younger siblings, who watched him take out the assailants.
"I think we should leave.", he informed the older sibling, picking up his bag. "I know I didn't do anything wrong, but I don't wanna explain how a Quirkless teen was able to knock down three guys."
The green haired siblings were surprised by this revelation.
The oldest sibling looked hesitant before nodding and picked up her little sister and grabbed her brother's hand. The four quickly made their way out of the alley until they stopped about a few blocks away.
"Is anyone hurt, by any chance?", Izuku asked , concerned.
The eldest sibling shook her head.
"They just cornered us, they didn't do anything, kero.", she said as she put her little sister down, turning to Izuku with a grateful smile. "Thank you for stepping in."
"You're welcome, although I don't think I really had to.", he smiled, confusing the girl. "You looked ready to fight as soon as they unleashed their Quirks. And judging from your looks and posture, I'm guessing you have a mutation Quirk. Frog, most likely?" The frog girl looked stunned by the information he had.
"It's kinda scary that you figured all that out.", she admitted.
Izuku shrugged. "Well, when you're Quirkless, it helps to know the situation you're dealing with."
He felt a tug on his pant leg. He looked down to see a little girl looking up at him with curious eyes.
"Are you really Quirkless, mister?", she asked.
He kneeled down smiling at the little girl.
"Why, yes. Double joints and all.", he replied. "But that's not gonna stop me from being a hero."
"Wow, that sounds cool!", The green haired boy said, before tilting his head curiously. "But how did you knock out the first guy?"
Izuku beamed. "Good question."
He went into his bag and pulled out one pellet. He held it for the younger siblings to see.
"I created my own sleepy pellet through various chemicals", Izuku explained.
The siblings looked amazed by Izuku's craft, same with the older sibling, who was impressed.
"It sounds like you would be good at creating support items.", she believed.
Izuku gave a charming wink and smile. "Maybe so but I wanna use that to help compete in the world of heroes."
They arrive at the frog girl's house. The three siblings head to the front door before the older frog girl at the Quirkless boy, with a smile.
"Thanks again, by the way."
Izuku nodded his head. "You're welcome. Will you guys be ok?"
"We'll be fine. Our parents aren't home but they will be later.", she ribbited. "They would like to meet you."
"Wish I could stay but I have to get home. My mom wants me back at a certain time."
She nodded her head. "I see. It was nice talking to you."
"Uh….", Izuku hesitated. He never spoke to a girl for so long. "I didn't catch your name."
"I'm Tsuyu Asui, call me Tsuyu or Tsu.", she responded before putting hands on her siblings' heads. "And these are my siblings, Samidare and Satsuki." "'sup?/Hello.", the younger children greeted.
The Quirkless peace signed. "Names Izuku. Izuku Midoriya." Tsuyu thought for a moment.
"Do you wanna exchange numbers to keep contact?", she asked.
The Quirkless Inventor blushed. Hoooo mygoshmygoshmygosh! A girl asked me for my number! I-I never had a girl ask me for a number kfkfksnkmakak!
"Uh, s-sure!", he pulled out his phone, same with the green haired girl. After exchanging, Izuku waved goodbye to the Asui family before heading home, promising to call the frog-girl.
He stopped before calling to Tsuyu. "Hey, are you planning on being a hero too?"
"Yeah.", She nodded. "I plan on going to U.A."
He beamed up. "Me too! See ya then!"
Tsuyu watched him go with a pep in his step, smiling before turning around to the door. She noticed the expressions on her younger siblings' faces.
"Really smooth, nee-chan.", Samidare smiled, cheekily.
The frog girl had a small blush as she managed to get the keys out. "Please stop."
Samidare tilted her head, curiously. "Is nee-chan going to make Izuku her boyfriend?"
Tsuyu was doing her best to not blush even more. "Don't say unnecessary things, please."
"Hey, mom.", Izuku called out when I got in.
Inko turned from her cooking. "Oh, Izuku. You made it back right on time. Dinner's almost done."
The Quirkless Inventor nodded. He walked into his room and put his bag down, heading to his laptop to check on emails from Melissa and Mei: the first was a check-up on him to see if he was progressing and the other was recommendations on new mechanics for his armored suit.
He decided to reply back to them, all while humming happily. Each month, Izuku felt like he was getting closer and closer to his goal of heading to U.A. and being ready for the Entrance Exam. And he was making friends before heading there, so that was a plus too.
He can't wait to show U.A. what he's got.
*Shlink! Splat*
The body fell to the ground in a bloody heap as a sharp pincer-like blade was pulled out.
"Damn, D-List Heroes…", the assailant muttered. The fucker could've just left him alone but had to stick his nose out.
No matter. He's dead anyway.
*BRRRR-BRRRRRRR-BRRRRR!*
The assailant morphed his blade-hand back to a normal hand before grabbing his phone with the other.
"Hello?"
…
"Nothing, much. Just came back from getting some stuff from the store. Had a run-in with a hero, unfortunately."
…
"No, no. They were taken care of."
…
"I'm almost done with the U.A. application. It's almost surprising how easy it is to get a janitor's job."
…
"I'll let you know if I can get my hands on them." He heard sirens coming from the distance.
"Hey, can you ask Kuro to open a portal for me, Sensei? I think the hero I killed managed to call for backup at the last minute."
Out of nowhere a purple, misty portal opened up and the assailant walked in casually before the police came in with nothing but a bloody corpse of a hero in a red puddle.
Here comes a new foe~. Who could he be though?
Be sure to leave your reviews and (constructive) criticisms, please.