Greetings Everybody! I have a new story idea for those interested, and this includes My Hero Acadmeia, and an old 2000s anime/manga that has a huge cult following to my knowledge.
I do want you guys to know that I don't own My Hero Academia or Zatch Bell, so always support the official release.
And with that, enjoy this small little prologue!
For a long time, the history of the world remained very much the same. Humans lived on this planet we call Earth, expanded and formed their own countries over their long history. Much of that remained unchanged…until a certain point. A singular, individual point in time that marked the beginning of a change of an era and a long-standing change in human evolution and abilities.
Long ago, a young baby suddenly began to glow as bright as the sun. To call it a brief shock is an immense understatement. Because that young child would soon be the first of many individuals that started displaying superhuman abilities. From being able to use flames, to making explosions come out of their hands, and even something as simple as extending your eyes from their sockets.
Most of these powers are amazing, and some are just as benign. However, ever since that first child, the powers grew to be commonplace in our modern reality. A good 80% of humans displayed powers all over the world, and the remaining 20% are the humans that displayed no powers.
And what do we call these powers?
Quirks.
A term to refer to the unique ability or power every individual shares in modern society. For a long time, there was a massive upheaval of superpowered humans, but eventually laws and regulations were formed to keep this in-check.
And in this world, Heroes and Villains both arise from the mere fantasy of comic books and graphic novels, into reality. Fantasy had seemingly jumped straight from the pages into our real world, in a metaphorical sense.
Everybody with a Quirk, with enough hard work and luck, can be made into a Hero or even be born to be a Hero.
However, this isn't the case for the young man of this particular story.
A timid, young man, who had the biggest dreams of being a hero. Met with an insurmountable wall, one that many individuals reminded him of, belittled him for, or sadly had to accept. A young man who soon would be dragged into a conflict not just meant for his growth to be the number 1 hero…but a battle which would decide the ruler of a different world.
But all can be revealed in due time. As always, we start our stories at where they should always be.
At the beginning.
Izuku Midoriya isn't a special kid, and he certainly can't say he was born the same way as everybody else. It wasn't for lack of trying that he wasn't special, but simply a matter of fact of his birth and unlucky circumstances.
After all, what other reason would he have other than being picked on by Bakugou today? It wasn't like Izuku said anything specific to anger him, or even anything that might have annoyed Bakugou. However, Izuku regrettably knows more than anything that Bakugou has it out for him specifically. It's been that way ever since they were 4 years old, and it has not changed for 10 years at all.
Because Izuku was Quirkless. Without a super power to call his own, and already part of a percentage of the population that goes vastly under recognized at times, it was no doubt that Izuku would be picked on at an early age.
Still, Izuku had been used to the bullying, the whispers of disbelief and belittlement, and even Bakugou's heavy-handed tactics at putting him down. None of that really got rid of his enthusiasm for his one passion, however many people think he shouldn't have that.
Heroes. Especially that of All Might, his number 1 Hero. Heck, the number 1 hero of Japan, and the Symbol of Peace around the world.
For now, Izuku was just walking up the stairs to him and his mothers apartment in Musutafu, Japan. It was afterschool technically, but he needed to watch a few hero and villain incidents on his way back home, so the sun was about to set right now, as he arrived at the floor where they lived. It was around 18:15, so he needed to get back home quickly before his mother worried.
He wore his Gakuran Uniform from Aldera Junior High, and a yellow overstuffed back-pack that held his Hero Journal, specifically titled the "Hero Analysis for the Future'' journal. 13th edition.
Or at least, Izuku likes to call it the 13th edition, considering he has twelve other journals in his room. Completely filled and ready for that matter.
Izuku's passion for heroes and their deeds can border on complete fanaticism or admiration, but then again, what kid didn't have the idea of becoming a Pro-Hero in their mind? It was always a flashy, and amazing profession to have in this world. They get more respect, admiration and awe than even the police or firefighters.
Not that Izuku shared the same dismissal of the police or firefighters.
After all, to Izuku, he wanted to be a hero just like All Might. That…didn't necessarily mean only having a quirk, however unlikely that was to happen to Izuku. It meant being able to smile in the face of overwhelming odds, inspiring many civilians to take action and being able to smash villains and save people from catastrophe.
Nevertheless, Izuku made a mental note to watch the latest video of All Might's rescue. It was only a few days ago, but Izuku had already recorded what happened that evening.
He had already made his way to the front door, unlocking it and entering the apartment.
"I'm home." Izuku announced his arrival, taking his shoes off near the entrance. It isn't a glamorous apartment, but its big enough for Izuku and his mother. A living room, a separate room for him and one room for his mother, along with a kitchen for the basic necessities.
It was home. It had been home ever since Izuku was born, and yet all he could think of today was just going back to his room. Still, he noticed his mother in the living room, taking her seat as she noticed Izuku and smiled with a sense of warmth. "Ah, Izuku!"
Izuku stopped in his tracks, but gave his mother a tired smile. She used to be relatively tall when he was a kid. At least that's what he remembered from his time as a young child. By now though, whether it was years of motherhood or a simple case of exerting so much support, Inko Midoriya had become smaller, rounder, and debatably much more caring and affectionate of her young Izuku.
It's a smile like that that gave Izuku much needed reminders that at least one person cared for him. Even if it was also a reminder that she was the only person who cared for him that much.
But she unfortunately couldn't say the words he always wanted to hear either.
Still, he responded with a small stammer but a tired, kind smile. "H-Hi mom."
Inko responded with her own smile, although she had a slightly nervous countenance with how she was sitting. And yet very eager too, but for what? It isn't something that Izuku wouldn't notice so he tilted his head. "Mom? Is everything okay?"
"H-Huh? O-Oh! Yeah, everything's okay! I just have something I needed to talk to you about!" Inko stood up from her seat, giving a pretty familiar.
"I-Important?" Izuku blinked, but he seemed curious all the same. But he needed to at least change out of his clothing. "W-Well, can we talk in a bit? I do need to change out of this, so…"
"Ah, wait, th-thats!" Izuku heard as he passed by his mother and went to his door, although he paused as he heard what seemed to be rustling behind it.
"Huh?" Izuku blinked, more confused if anything about what that noise behind his room was…before he actually opened the door.
Now, to preface Izuku's thoughts, the young man is easy to scare at times, and certainly much easier to catch in awe when Hero's are at work, and even when seeing the spectacles that are hero-versus-villain.
There are a lot of things he expected to see when he entered his room, even with the rustling and understanding that something was there. His futon, the desk that had his computer, and the innumerable amounts of posters, figurines, and All Might merchandise he had bought over the years. And for the most part, those were all there, that much wasn't a huge surprise.
But his eyes traveled to the broken window on his room. It already had him widening his eyes in surprise…but then it was when he turned his eyes towards the center of his room that he saw…something really strange.
An entire yellow-tail, 30 inches in length and dripping wet. But even more bizarre? There was a child eating the Yellow-Tail with surprisingly sharp teeth and noises that Izuku could only describe as 'if a gremlin decided to eat whatever was left of the ribs.'.
The young boy was clearly of small stature, tall enough to reach Izuku's knees. He wore what looked like a white t-shirt and shorts, as he grabbed the entire yellow-tail with his body and was munching on the meat…raw. And it seemed like he was biting off the bones!?
Izuku stammered, as his verdant eyes stammered and widened with shock, and absolute befuddlement. His voice was caught in his throat, and that seemed to catch the attention of the young boy that was eating its pescatarian meal.
The young boy flopped with the fish onto Izuku's bed, and from there stood up completely and stared at Izuku with round golden-orange eyes that had very distinctive black lines underneath. He almost looked like a puppet there, but more importantly was the short lightning blond hair that struck Izuku as distinct…and perfectly the color of electricity.
"Oh!"The young boy stared at izuku with a childish smile, laced with a serious look in his eyes that Izuku didn't know how to respond to. "You're finally home! I was waiting for you for the past hour!"
…
"W-W-W-W-WHO…!" Izuku stammered out, catching the young blonde boy off guard, tilting his head with curiosity.
It was taking Izuku all of his might not to just erupt in surprise, but nevertheless, he had to do something really quick…
He screamed out loud, in both comedic fashion and yet outright abject shock and confusion at what he just saw. Coincidentally, as soon as he shouted his lungs out, the young blond boy flinched and began screaming in response. Whether out of fear or shock, Izuku didn't really know what else to say other than the following.
"WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN MY ROOM!?" Izuku asked with shock and admittedly a bit of a loud response.
"AAAAAHHHHHHHH!" The young blonde boy remained there shouting, but responded plainly and with straightforwardness. "I'M ZATCH BELL, I WAS SENT HERE BY YOUR FATHER HERE TO MEET YOU!"
"YOU KNOW MY FATHER!?"
"I SURE HOPE SO, HE SENT ME HERE!
"HOW DID YOU EVEN GET HERE ALL ON YOUR OWN!?"
"HAD TO TAKE A RIDE ON A DAY-TIME EAGLE!"
"WHERE THE HECK DID YOU FIND AN EAGLE WILLING TO DO THAT!?"
"I DON'T REMEMBER!"
And from there…that is where our story begins.
After 5 minutes of screaming, and with Inko Midoriya just intervening…the Midoriya family, and the now-named Zatch sat together. Inko and Zatch sat across from Izuku, the verdant young man himself owl-eyed and confused for a moment, pretty much stammering. "S-So…mom."
"Yes, Izuku…?" Inko gave a sheepish smile, while Zatch just remained seated with a smile on his face and a new pair of clothing over his white shirt and shorts. It looked like an olive green cloak with a ribbon at the collar and a gold jewel in the middle of said ribbon. He also had olive-green shoes that fit the young child nicely.
By all accounts, Izuku couldn't help what he said next.
"Mind explaining why we suddenly have a puppet child in our apartment…?" Izuku asked mostly curiously, but also confused and in need of an explanation. God forbid, he wasn't mad at his mother at all, but now he had a lot to process after coming home to…a broken window and a child eating a yellow-tail whole.
"I thought I already told you?" Zatch piped up with a childish voice and a pep in his tone. "Your dad sent me here, and he entrusted you to my help!"
"And that's an entire conversation we should have later…but seriously, mom, who is he?" Izuku turned to his mother, who seemed sheepish but all the same had a nervous but also eager smile.
"W-Well…there's no other way to say this but," Inko put a hand on Zatch's shoulder, beaming brightly. "He's adopted."
"Wait…as in…by who?" Izuku flinched at that.
"By your dad, and officially now by us!" Inko continued to explain, but she nevertheless tries to remain cheerful in a way that Izuku didn't understand yet. "Izuku Midoriya, meet your new younger brother!"
"Y-Younger…brother!?" Izuku blinked at that, but he almost seemed confused…his father is working overseas all the way in the U.K., and suddenly he just decides to adopt a young kid out of nowhere? Why? Where did he even get the paperwork for that? "M-Mom, since when did this happen!? W-When were you going to tell me?!"
"Oh, no worries Izuku!" Zatch piped up, as he hopped off his seat and trotted over to Izuku. "It was only a few days ago when your father found me!"
"Wait…he just found you?" Izuku blinked owlishly at that, finding it confusing if not practically concerning.
"Mm-hm! I even have a letter from him to you!" Zatch nods firmly and sincerely, as he runs off to Izuku's room.
"W-Wait!" Izuku reached out a hand, but stammered as he remained there shell shocked…before he turned to his mother and noticed her beaming but also sheepish smile. "...mom?"
"I'm sorry Izuku, it was…really recent when this happened. Zatch just got adopted officially today, but your father adopted him a few days ago. Plus, I couldn't really say no to Zatch when I first saw him!"
"You…You couldn't say no? Even with a broken window?" Izuku blinked, but he couldn't find it in himself to be upset. "O-Oh…he was joking about the flying eagle right?"
"No, surprisingly that actually happened while you were still at school" Inko sighed at that. "Thankfully, I think I can afford it."
"R-Right…" Izuku tilted his head, but he blinked away at his mother's…surprising acceptance of the entire situation. "But still, why did you suddenly accept him?"
"..." Inko started sweating bullets, but she tried to hide her subtle motherly excitement. "W-Well, I couldn't help myself when he told me everything! He's so adorable, he even looks like a child's puppet!"
"Y-Yeah, I noticed." Izuku nodded with a sigh and a sheepish smile. "Still…it's been a while since I heard from dad at all…what made him suddenly adopt a child…?"
"Ah, found it!" Zatch shouted from Izuku's room, and trotted back in his little shoes up to Izuku and handed him an envelope with one hand and a serious expression. "Here, Here!"
Izuku blinked, but nevertheless took the letter. He needed to get some answers, and he needed to have a bit of context as to why Zatch is even here, and why his father sent him here. So, he took the letter into his hand, and with Inko's bated breath amidst his own, Izuku opened the envelope and proceeded to read the letter that was given for him.
And when he began reading aloud, he couldn't help but feel a sense of familiarity despite not seeing his father in years.
Dear Izuku.
It has been a long time since we've spoken with one another. I know this may be late considering, but happy 14th birthday! I know this may seem very sudden, but the child who gave you this letter is named Zatch Bell. If you meet him, and this letter reaches you in good health, I want to be honest with you. I adopted him into our family the very same day I found him. Which is to say, I found him dying in a forest in England, and I nursed him back to health. Of course, the young Zatch is grateful for me saving his life, so he was the one who offered to do me a favor.
And then, I couldn't help but think of you. Ever since the beginning you have been reserved and alone ever since we found out about your Quirklesness.
Izuku, I know how badly you want to be a Hero. I wanted to be there to support you, but you only had your mother at the time. But that's not an excuse for my lack of presence at home, and it certainly doesn't make me any less at fault for how your dreams were crushed that night. It's frustrating how I can't help you as a father, or as a family member other than providing you financial stability. It isn't fair for you and your mother to be struggling alone, and for me to be a failure of a father who can only help pay the bills. I wanted to be a father, but I can't go back home.
But that's exactly why, when I found Zatch and he offered to help me in any way…I was thinking of you. Because what I want Zatch to be for you, is to be a reminder of the times when you had bright dreams. To be a younger brother for you to help and to encourage you to be the best you can be. I want you to be able to regain that spark of your dream, and to gain back that happiness that you had before. I hope Zatch can do for you what I can't.
Accept this as my birthday gift to you, Izuku.
Sincerely,
Hisashi Midoriya.
P.S.: As mentioned before, Zatch seems to be exhibiting symptoms of amnesia, so he doesn't know much beyond his name, or his age. There doesn't seem to be much detail about who he is or where he came from. And the only hint is the Red Book he carries. I couldn't decipher the language, for I had never seen it before. Funny, even an Archaeologist like me couldn't find out about it. However, I think you can find a way to help him. I hope you make your way towards the future with Zatch.
At first, Izuku didn't really know what to say…or even what to think for that matter. It's not as if Izuku had a frown on his face, or even disapproved or felt any anger. But he just felt…confused, a bit unsure, but oddly enough accepting of this in a more resigned manner. If only because he could sense that his father could be sincere, and yet he didn't remember his father being in his life enough to know for sure.
His expression was that of confusion, and a neutral, albeit calm hum. But the words were…truthfully trying to resonate with Izuku, as much as the young verdant-haired man didn't know whether to believe. However, he was still confused on so many things regarding Zatch.
When he turned to Zatch, the child just stood there with a firm but also serious smile, and surprisingly insistent eyes. Izuku blinked, and couldn't help but feel off. Not in a bad way of course, but he did feel sympathy for the young man. Amnesia? At such a young age, and with no knowledge of where or how he got to England in the first place?
That must have been…hard. So how and why can he be so cheerful?
Either way, Izuku looked back at his letter, and folded it up again to re-read it again later. It talked about a Red-Book that Zatch had, but if that was true then what kind of book could it be?
Either way, he could ask more about that sooner or later.
"Okay…so I guess that explains why Zatch is here, and why my father sent him here…" Izuku started with slow but careful breaths, as he looked to his mother. "But mom, are you sure you're okay with this?"
"Of course I am." Inko nodded firmly, looking down at her lap for a moment. "I know that Hisashi isn't usually here as often as he'd like to be…and I know you may not have a deep bond with him as I'd like you to, but this could be a good thing, you know? Having a little brother who looks up to you and cares for you?"
"Yeah, Izuku!" Zatch suddenly piped up, jumping up once onto the table, eliciting a bit of surprise from both members of the family. "Your father sent me here to help you, and that's what I intend to do!"
"W-What? But you don't really have to do that, Zatch." Izuku waved his hands back and forth with a sheepish look. "I-I mean, you don't even remember anything yet right?"
"Hmmm…" Zatch hummed, looking up at the ceiling and then back at Inko and Izuku while shaking his head. "Nope. Not a thing."
"Not even…about Quirks?" Izuku hesitantly asked, almost feeling silly for asking such a question. Who doesn't know anything about Quirks in this day and age? They were everywhere.
"What's a Quirk?" Zatch bluntly asked with a tilt of his head, but nevertheless had a smile all the same. A very innocent smile that reminded Izuku of his own back when he was four. And it almost made him wince, if he wasn't good at hiding that reaction at first. "Like
So he really doesn't know…? Izuku blinked, thinking the amnesia was something more related to his past…but not knowing anything about Quirks? That almost seemed impossible, if not outright silly. Because even a two year old starts noticing that everybody around them has superpowers.
They are raised thinking they may have superpowers by the age of four! They do manifest at four to begin with. But Zatch doesn't even know that? Zatch is 6 years old, so it's most likely he already manifested a Quirk. However, if he doesn't even know what a Quirk is, then why didn't his father explain it to him before sending him here?
"...and that doesn't bother you at all?" Inko asked carefully, as she stood up and grabbed Zatch by the waist and set him down on his feet to the floor, before an idea popped into her head with a smile. She clapped her hands and stood up from her seat.. "Because if you want, Izuku can tell you about how everything works!"
"Really?" Zatch widened his eyes, beaming with curiosity and excitement.
"Wait, what?" Izuku blinked at that owlishly.
"Yes, Zatch!" Inko chuckled as she grabbed Zatch under his arms and put him down on the floor. "I'm sure Izuku would love to tell you more while I'm making dinner for the three of us!"
"W-Wait, Mom where is this–"
"Yipeee!" Zatch hopped up on his feet, nevertheless pretty excited and jubilant as he bounced up and down the floor and ran over to Izuku. "You'll really tell me? You'll really tell me everything?"
Izuku just looked wide-eyed and a little bit surprised by Zatch's enthusiasm. While he is confused as to why Zatch is here, and admittedly his mother putting him on the spot is not appreciated. But…with Zatch's wide smile, and easily excited face, Izuku couldn't help but sigh and give a shaky but earnest smile.
"Y-Yeah, Zatch…I will tell you a bit more." Izuku nodded honestly, and stood up from his seat as Zatch backed up with an excited pep to his step. Inko smiled widely, beaming with a huge sense of accomplishment and relief that Izuku couldn't tell where it came from. However, Izuku is nothing if not earnest and genuinely a bit excited himself.
After all, how many chances does one get to potentially gush about Quirks to a child who might be willing to listen. Let alone someone who seemed very friendly and scarily willing to accept them as a family.
Either way…
"Yahay!" Zatch cheered out, as he dashed with laughter towards Izuku's room, and Izuku followed suit with a smile of his own. Even if he didn't know how to feel about his dad, and about his mother easily accepting this turn of events…
Izuku Midoriya couldn't help but admit, he's kinda curious to see where this all goes.
Greetings! I hope everybody enjoyed this neat little one shot of a fanfiction I ended up writing! For those familiar with anime, My Hero Academia is a recent tv show with a popular following. Zatch Bell, however, is a 2000s anime that only recently got a sequel comic manga. However, I wanted to express my interest and excitement in the idea of a story like this.
For now, however, I wanted to work on the one-shot of a prologue chapter. This is mostly a first-draft if I will be honest. However, if anybody is interested and excited to hear more about this fanfiction, and potentially make it into a series, then I will put up a poll for those who want to.
