Disclaimer: I don't own My Hero Academia

Izuku was having a normal day. He had just been doing quirk analysis and had headed back to the bar for a break and a nice drink (Kurogiri always had his favourite soft drink).

However, when he arrived, he was greeted by the sight of Kurogiri using his quirk to stop Tomura and two others (a man in black with dark hair and a teenage high school blonde girl) trying to kill each other. A man dressed in purple was there smoking also. He seemed to be enjoying the scene before him. No one seemed to have noticed his presence yet. Kurogiri moved to speak with Tomura while still holding everyone in place.

"Please calm yourself Tomura Shigaraki. If your desire is to be realised, then we must increase our numbers. Now that we are in the limelight, this is the perfect opportunity. Don't reject them straight off, you should use them, and what there is of Stains ideology," the dark mist villain explained.

"Shut up!" Tomura snapped as he started moving towards the exit. "I'm going out."

He barged past Izuku while shooting him a murderous glare. As soon as he was gone Izuku turned to Kurogiri.

"Okay what the hell is going on?" he asked frustrated.

"Hey, Kurogiri is this that boy I've been hearing about recently, the one called Deku?" the guy in purple asked.

Izuku didn't know how this man knew about him. Either he was a member of the League or some shady information broker. The other two had different reactions.

"Deku," repeated the man in black. "As in the one who fought alongside Stain in Hosu."

"Oh, what's Mr Stainy like. What's his blood type? Was he bleeding while fighting? Wait what's your blood like? Can I taste it?" the girl asked with a crazed expression while also holding out a knife.

Izuku took a fighting stance in case she attacked him. He only just met her and could already tell she was a psychopath (being in the League taught him to recognise certain individuals).

"You can relax Deku. They won't harm you," Kurogiri informed him. "They are actually here as potential recruits."

And so Kurogiri explained the entire situation and who they were.

The guy in purple was called Giran a broker in the underworld who associated with League. The man in black was called Dabi and the blonde was called Himiko Toga. Both were here because they heard that Stain was affiliated with the League and was inspired by his ideology when they saw a video uploaded about him in which it detailed his past and ideals.

Izuku briefly wondered how a video like that got out since Stain wasn't the type for publicity. However, he was more concerned with why they were here.

Stain wasn't exactly affiliated with them, mainly just him and Razor. The media must have come to that conclusion based on the attack in Hosu where Stain and the Nomu were present at the same time. However, Kurogiri was motioning him to say nothing.

"You let kids join this organisation," the one called Dabi said surprised. "Are you that desperate?"

"We took him in when he was on the verge of death," Kurogiri explained. "Since then, he has proven to be a valued member of the League in providing both tactical and scientific support."

"Well, whatever the case I intend to be the one to carry out the Hero-Killers will. However, I don't want to do it while being led by a guy like that," Dabi explained.

'I'm guessing he means Shigaraki,' Izuku thought.

"Seriously, that guy makes me want to vomit," Dabi continued.

"He's just upset that's all," Kurogiri went on. "Twice in the past, he has been humbled, once by All Might, the other by Stain. That's why he left, to sort out his issues. Until he does though would you like to talk about recruitment at a later date?"

Izuku had been listening but kept quiet till now.

"Why don't you all wait here. I'll talk to Shigaraki myself," he offered.

Everyone turned to face him.

"Are you sure about this Deku? He doesn't like you very much," Kurogiri stated.

While Tomura usually acted polite towards Izuku but that was only because Sensei ordered him to be. Truthfully, he hated the boy, no longer because he was quirkless, but because it seemed as though Sensei favoured him more than himself. Izuku was aware of this, yet he never commented on the subject. Kurogiri couldn't understand why he would want to do this.

"I know, but still, I'd like to talk with him," he said with a look of determination.

Kurogiri chose not to argue. This may have been necessary for Tomura's growth, and by extension, Izuku's.

Kiyashi Ward Shopping Mall

It took him a while, but he finally tracked down Tomura. He received information on where he usually goes from (shockingly) Sensei. Kurogiri must have informed him of the situation but that didn't matter right now, finding Tomura did.

Izuku had not been lying when he said he wanted to talk to him, however, he had his own reasons. Mostly, he was curious about the man and his past.

Izuku knew Tomura was Sensei's protégé. The man once bragged about it and later Kurogiri confirmed it, yet they never said why. How did someone like Tomura, a spoilt, childish brat, become protégé to someone like AFO? How did he even join the League at all?

Izuku wanted to know.

His thoughts were interrupted by a girl bumping into him.

"Oh sorry. I wasn't watching where I was going," the girl said bowing her head.

"It's no problem," Izuku replied with no malice. "I wasn't watching where I was going either."

As soon as he got a good look at her he recognised her. It was the girl he had saved from the USJ Incident.

"Ochaco Uraraka," he murmured.

The latter stared at him surprised. As soon as he realized what he had done he quickly moved to correct himself.

"I recognise you from the Sports Festival," he said while grinning. "You put up an amazing fight against that explosion boy, Bakugo was it."

Her surprised expression didn't go away, however.

"Wow, I can't believe people still remember that," she replied. "A few minutes ago, these guys recognised me and my class saying we were awesome at the Festival."

That last part Izuku's attention. Class 1A was here. He kept calm however and continued talking.

"Class 1A is here?" he asked sounding like an intrigued fan.

"Yeah. Most of us are doing some shopping for a school field trip," she explained. "I was just going to buy some bug spray."

'Shit,' Izuku mentally cursed. 'Does that mean Bakugo is here also?'

While he was certain he could handle him, it raised the risk of exposing his identity and compromising the League.

He quickly calmed himself down. He needed to be sure if he was here or not.

"Hold on, most of you? Is there anyone who didn't come with you?" he asked.

This was a risky question likely to raise suspicion. Luckily, Uraraka didn't seem to notice.

"Just Bakugo and Todoroki. They aren't the most social in our class, Bakugo especially, but otherwise they're alright," she replied.

Izuku breathed with relief. He was safe for the moment. He then remembered why he was there.

"I have to go now I'm meeting a friend so please excuse me," he said politely.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to keep you up," Uraraka said apologetically. "Before you go can I ask you something? Have we met before? It's just that, there's something familiar about you."

She wasn't lying. There was something about his eyes that was just familiar, but she couldn't think of what it was.

"No, I don't think we have," Izuku lied. "I think I would remember meeting someone as beautiful as you."

As soon as the words left his mouth he froze. Uraraka started blushing.

"Uh well I really need to get going, so um bye," Izuku told her in a frantic manner as he started running towards another location.

Uraraka still stood there blushing. She then wondered why she hadn't bothered asking for his name. He seemed so nice.

Izuku was currently having similar thoughts.

'Why did I say something like that?' he wondered frustrated.

He didn't spend much time pondering about it however because at that moment he saw a familiar hooded figure. He reached for him only to earn a cold glare from the man.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Tomura angrily demanded. "In fact, how the fuck did you even find me?"

"Doesn't matter," Izuku said firmly. "We need to talk, like now."

Tomura grunted in annoyance.

"Oh really, and just why should I do that?" he asked arrogantly.

"Look I get you don't like me, and you've been screwed over twice," Izuku told him. "There are some things I'd like to clear up between us. So could you just please lend me five fucking minutes of your time."

Tomura flinched. He'd never heard Deku swear before, so he must have actually been serious.

Tomura would have liked nothing more than to disintegrate his face at that moment but then an idea came to his mind.

'Deku was with Stain,' he thought. 'So maybe he can tell me why people are more focused on him than me.'

"Okay fine let's talk. But not here, someone might overhear us," he said while walking towards an alley as Deku trailed behind.

When they were alone Tomura started talking again.

"Alright you little brat," he snarled. "Me and Stain, what's the difference?"

The question caught Izuku off guard.

'What's gotten into him?' he thought.

He genuinely couldn't understand Tomura's actions. The difference between him and Stain, why did he want to know?

"Why do you want to know? I thought you hated him," he responded.

Tomura glared at Izuku.

"Of course, I hate him. I despise everything about him," he growled. "However, he seems to have outshined me in that everyone is now more focused on him and have forgotten about the attack on the USJ and the Nomu I released in Hosu. Why is that I wonder? In the end all he really does is destroy the things that he hates like me. Yet he's got sympathisers and people willing to support and look up to him, and they couldn't even give a shit about his ideals. I can't understand it, and it really pisses me off."

Izuku was beginning to see a different side of Tomura. He was willing to change so he could improve, in essence, he was growing.

"So Midoriya what do you think the difference between us is?" Tomura asked again.

"Okay I'll tell you, but I want something in return," Izuku replied causing Tomura to growl. "I want you to tell me about how you joined the League, about how you became Sensei's protégé."

If Tomura wanted him to give an answer, then he should give one in return. God Razor was really rubbing off on him. That whole if you want answers then earn it thing, she pulled on him before was now coming into play.

Tomura on the other hand was stunned at what Deku had just demanded from him. Why the hell should he tell him about his life prior to the League? Then again this was his only chance to understand why people noticed Stain more than him. Suddenly an idea formed in his mind. If this kid wanted his life story so badly then fine, but with a couple of conditions.

"Okay I'll tell you, but only if I find your answer to my question good enough," Tomura declared.

"Fine then," Izuku accepted. "I will."

He spent a minute thinking about his answer before speaking again.

"Well, you I don't get at all. I don't understand your goals and ideals," Izuku said carefully. "Stain is a different matter. He doesn't just destroy things that annoy him, he has genuine reasons for doing what he does, unlike you. During my week with him, I learned that he and I had a lot in common, one of which was the defining factor in what we became, All Might, who inspired us both. Also, despite what he encounters Stain never wavers in his beliefs unlike you. That is the difference between you two, that's my answer."

Izuku hadn't noticed it before, but Tomura was actually smiling now, and it looked very disturbing.

"Uh that feels like a weight off my chest," he exhaled. "I see it now. Why I hate him so much and why you irritated me. Everything makes sense, it's All Might, he's the problem. It was in front of me the whole time and yet I couldn't see it. He's the reason these morons are smiling like they haven't got a single care in the world. They feel so safe because their so-called Symbol of Peace is smiling like there's no one in the world he couldn't save."

He then faced Deku.

"Thanks. I'm glad we had this chat. I feel better Deku since I don't have to change my ways at all. Because now, now I know what I must do," he told the boy.

'You know it's ironic Hero-Killer. In many ways, I'm your opposite but you let me live. And now your convictions and ideals will become a steppingstone for me,' he internally monologued. 'I had those things myself, I just never realised it. Create a world without All Might. And show them all how fragile their justice system truly is. That's my conviction, my ideal. From this day forwards, it's all about destroying All Might.'

He started to walk away but called out to Izuku at the last second, "I find your answer acceptable Deku. However, I need to do something first, so I'll tell you about my backstory later. See ya."

When he was gone Izuku just stood there.

'I swear this is Razor all over again,' he thought.

Izuku hadn't seen her in a while because she was still away on business. He did what she asked and yet she still had not talked to him.

Admittedly, he found it frustrating. He nearly died fighting Katsuki, the least she could do was uphold her end of the bargain.

Razor aside he really didn't know much about the others from the League. Even with Kurogiri, who was the nicest member by far, he didn't know much about or how he had even joined the League. To be fair their relationship was more of a professional one, they weren't friends.

'I wouldn't know what that's like though would I since I've never really had friends,' he lamented. 'Sure, here was Bakugo when we were children, but then he got his quirk and I never got one. And that's when my life went to hell. Since then, I haven't had friends.'

It was sad, but it was the truth. His mother had made it all bearable though. She loved him unconditionally and tried to be there for him through all his struggles. In all honesty, she was the one thing about his former life that he missed, the only thing. Whenever he saw her out on the streets looking for him, he always resisted the urge to run over and go back to her. He missed her so much, and he hated hurting her like this.

His thoughts were interrupted by someone groaning.

Izuku turned to see three students kicking another student to the ground. They were ganging up on him using their quirks.

The Ringleader summoned fire to his hand. He was going to burn the other student. Izuku started walking away since it wasn't his problem. There was also no need to attract attention in this place.

"That's right you quirkless reject just stay down and it won't hurt as badly," the leader threatened.

Izuku stopped dead.

The other boys were snickering and jeering "God he's so pathetic. So useless he can't even defend himself, though I guess that's to be expected from a quirkless person."

Izuku didn't say anything, but in that instant, a variety of thoughts were flowing through his mind.

Memories of the abuse he had endured for being quirkless flowed through him like a river. He remembered how helpless and weak he had been, the injustice of it all, and the scars he bore (not all of which were caused by Bakugo).

When he remembered all this, he pulled up his hood and his scarf to cover his face. He then turned to the bullies and charged at them.

They never saw him coming.

He went for the leader first. He delivered a powerful punch straight to the jaw that sent him crashing to the ground.

The bullies were caught off-guard by the sudden new arrival. Before they could react Izuku turned and performed a back rising kick into one of the students. The kick connected with his stomach and sent him up into the air (slightly vomiting) where landed on his back.

He was clutching his stomach in pain afterwards.

This time the third student did react and so he manifested some spikes from his body and shot them at Izuku. Izuku easily dodged the projectiles by flipping forward over them. While doing so he spun quick and close enough to the student to land a solid axe kick on his face, thus sending him crashing to the ground.

The kick split a part of his lip causing blood to ooze out, however, the rest of his face was left unscarred by the impact.

'Wow. I'm a lot stronger than I thought. That's Stain and Razor's training for you,' he thought. 'Ruthless but effective.'

"Hey, you! What the hell do you think you're doing?" yelled the leader who had gotten back up.

"Stopping you guys from beating up this kid," Izuku stated honestly. "What did he ever do to you to deserve this?"

"That quirkless runt wants to become a hero which is complete bullshit," the leader barked furiously. "Someone like him has no right to be a hero. That's something only people like me deserve. He even wanted to go to UA which is dumb. There's no way a prestigious school like that would ever let in a weak pathetic loser like him. It would be a disgrace to their reputation."

Izuku was pissed as hell. This guy was a lot like Bakugo. Arrogant, cruel, abusive, prejudiced, a complete and utter bully.

In short, he was the sort of person who Izuku hated, the sort who had driven him to become a villain.

"He can't be a hero because he's quirkless you say. Well, that's funny because I happen to be quirkless and look at what I just did," he said catching the boy's attention. "A hero can be anybody, even someone quirkless, but not you no. A scumbag like you could never be one. Wanna know why? It's because you're a coward who only preys on the weak to boost your own ego. If you came face to face with someone stronger, you would run away because that's the kind of person you are."

The leader's face contorted with anger. He activated his quirk and prepared to attack but Izuku was too quick for him. He grabbed the leader's arm, twisted it, and brought his knee up sharply to it.

It snapped like a twig.

The leader howled in pain as he clutched his now broken arm. His two sidekicks had recovered and moved to aid him. The three of them glanced at Izuku fearfully and started running with hopes of reaching a hospital.

Izuku didn't even bother to pursue them because he had made his point perfectly clear.

"Why did you help me?" asked the victim who was staring at Izuku in awe.

"Because I understand how you feel," he replied simply. "I too was bullied for being quirkless. For so long I allowed it to happen, and most of the time it felt like I was dying. It was only when I learned how to defend myself that I took a stand."

The victim said nothing. He was still staring at Izuku in amazement.

"Let me give you some advice that someone gave me a long time ago," he said now looking at the victim. "Go to someone for help, or at least try to defend yourself. Otherwise, they will always torment you as they tormented me."

The victim just stood there completely stunned.

Having achieved his objective Izuku departed towards the hideout.

Hi there. Well, what did you think of that? What did you think of Izuku? The next chapter will be him hearing the backstories of Razor, Tomura and Kurogiri. Pleases review.