The Mad Gear Incident:

"Izuku."

Ryoya's training kicks in, ensuring that he doesn't not to show his unease, but it's there. He continues to eat his food as though no commotions are taking place, munching away at the slightly greasy fries and well-done meat.

Izuku himself is more rigid and unnatural, trying and failing to keep his composure as the chaos reaches its crescendo. He tries to eat, but his hand shakes.

The Mad Gear woman sees this and takes it as a personal affront. She shouts across the small eatery, holding her disk in her hand and leveling it at him. "What are you? Fuckin' dumb? I said, empty your bags and wallets now."

Ryoya makes eye contact from behind his glasses and gives the woman a good natured smile, "Sorry about your drink earlier. I can buy you a new one, if you want."

The woman glares at him and swipes his own drink over, spilling it on the table and across his lap.

"Do you think this is a joke, boy?" Her hand twitches and the strange disk starts humming and then collapses in on itself until it's small enough to fit in her palm. "Do you know what this is? It's a machine called a 'Bass Boost', and do you know what it does? It amplifies sound and..." she pauses and a malicious grin spreads across her face. "Actually, let me show you."

Ryoya activates Visionary and watches the woman's open palm fall in slow motion, watching it slam onto the table and the sudden implosion and soundwaves and energy. The table shatters immediately, sending food, soda and wood everywhere. Izuku, having been used to explosions, tilts back to avoid the worst of it. Ryoya quietly laments the loss of his lunch.

"Sure is scary there, miss." Ryoya says, unimpressed. "Might I ask why you're here? Surely, Mad Gear hasn't fallen so far that they need to stage a mass robbery."

The woman seems surprised before raising a palm over Ryoya's head, "And what the hell do you know about Mad Gear?"

"Enough. I know of your three leaders, your ideals, and what you want. Which is why I can't fathom why people like you would do this."

"We don't give a shit about the people here, our target is something greater."

"Something in this area."

"A politician, Shizuka Yoshimori. The bastard has been passing laws that continue to segregate me and my quirkless brothers and sisters for years, and it's about time he got his due."

Izuku's eyes widen in shock as he absently mouths something, "Quirkless...?"

"That's fuckin' right, I'm quirkless, so what!?" She turns and gives the entire room the evil eye, challenging them to say something. "Do you know how hard shit is for us? I had to move all the way from Hiroshima to join these guys, and let me tell you, best decision ever. Mad Gear seeks equality, and I'll be fuckin' sure to get a piece of that pie."

"Hiroshima? Why? Why travel this far? Why risk your life so many times just to kill one man?" Ryoya questions, tilting his head down so that she can look him in the eye. His sky blue and golden eyes of Visionary regard her, not with malice, but genuine curiosity and sympathy.

"I just told you, he threatens my quirkless brothers and sisters."

"Ah, vengeance then."

"No, not vengeance," the woman spits, "Justice. So that we can finally have peace."

Ryoya raises a brow, "This is what you fight for? Peace? Surely, you see the contradiction?"

"Some men can't be reasoned with," The woman responds resolutely. He sees nothing but conviction in her eyes, and senses it even in her very soul. Ryoya snorts.

"Ain't that the truth?"

He then stands up and dusts himself off, gesturing for Izuku to do the same. Weirdly, the woman seems unaware, gazing intensely at the spot he once was. Izuku wastes no time in checking on everyone in the room. There are no injuries that he can see, but people are rightfully shaken.

"How much do you see?" Izuku asks.

Ryoya understands him immediately. He looks outside. "More than I'd like to. Looks like most of the block is held hostage. Streets are clear, but I'm guessing that's for a reason."

"We need to help these people, Ryoya."

"How do you plan on beating them?"

Izuku makes a face, putting his finger on his lower lip and muttering something that Ryoya misses.

"Together?" He says, hopeful.

"We could lose."

"We'll do that together too."

Ryoya can't help but to smirk at that. "You're such a dork. But first," Ryoya turns around, seeing the Mad Gear woman deep in an intense conversation with an invisible man. One swift blow to the back of her head drops her unceremoniously to the ground. "We can't go out looking like this, you'll get arrested and ruin your chances at UA. We need masks."

"You'll get arrested too..."

Ryoya ignores him, instead looking around in the restaurant. Aside from the single shattered table, the place is as still as the grave. The customers are still there, huddled on the ground near the kitchen door, staring at them with widened eyes. One girl in particular, however, catches his eye. She has extremely long, black hair, weirdly divided in three angular bangs at the front, and twin ponytails held back tightly by a topknot. She's wearing a school uniform, not unlike their own ,with a dark blue jacket giving away her age. Importantly though, she has a red scarf.

Ryoya approaches her casually, keeping a small, friendly ghost of a smile on his face. He extends his hand and helps her to her feet. She's much shorter than he is. Petitie, yet athletic. "'Cuse me, lovely." He drawls, "Can I borrow that scarf?" His head tilts down to meet her wide, brown eyes and his glasses slide down his nose. For a moment, Visionary is exposed to the world, its eerie, captivating glow making the girl's awe more apparent. When the girl does nothing but stare at him with her jaw on the floor, Ryoya wilts a bit. "Miss?"

"Wha...?"

"Your scarf?"

"Oh!" In an instant - almost too fast for Visionary to track - the girl's scarf is removed from her neck and thrusted into his hands. In her haste, he notices something, the glint of a kunai in her jacket sleeve. "He - here you go! Sorry, I just, uh -" She continues to sputter until her face glows a brilliant scarlet. It was almost adorable. Like watching Izuku trying to talk to that girl.

Ryoya allows a smirk to grace his face and adjusts his glasses. "Something tells me that you didn't need our help anyway," he says, pulling out a kunai and spinning it between his fingers. The girl audibly gasps. Ryoya swiftly turns away, not letting the girl respond. "You ready, Izuku?"

Izuku's wearing a bright red cap that somehow manages to keep his curly mane of hair tamed and hidden, as well as a pair of sunglasses wide enough to hide his freckles and dig into his cheeks as he speaks. A black medical mask completes the look and had Ryoya not known any better, he would've mistaken his friend for someone else.

"Let's evacuate these people first," Izuku says.

After leading the people through the back door - and being moderately surprised at the scarf girl's fixation on his friend - Izuku rejoins Ryoya in the main eating area to see him sliding a few bills into the register.

"What? The fries were alright."

Izuku gives him a flat look, not that Ryoya can see it.

"What's the plan?"

"We have to clear out the streets so the heroes can get in," Izuku explains. "There's a lot of them, so I think we have to move from building to building until we get enough leeway. I wish we had more eyes though..."

"I can cover that," Ryoya says. Izuku raises a brow and turns to him, watching him make several intricate hand signs and clap his palms together. A puff of smoke and the cry of an eagle make Izuku stumble back. When it clears, Ryoya is standing there with said bird on his shoulder, seemingly proud of himself. "Do you think you're the only one who's leveled up this past year?"

"But - but... how?"

Ryoya sighs heavily and relaxes his body, "With difficulty. There's a ninja who trained me, Zeku - I know right? I kept calling him Deku by mistake - and well, I'll explain later. The gist is quirks and contracts and -" he trails off, waving his hand in the air as he does. Ryoya tilts his head and gestures wordlessly, opening the door to allow the eagle to spread its wings. "He'll circle. I'll follow your lead."

"What the fuck is takin' Louder so long?"

"I don't know. She was supposed to cover point one fifteen minutes ago."

"Don't tell me she got taken down by some chumps. This area should be devoid of heroes!"

Amidst the confusion, a tall, obese man with a small, bald head, large pink nose, and even larger mustache sits with his legs crossed and his mouth set into a thin line. His gaze is set, unmoved from the series of large monitors before him.

"Dr. Roboto," someone calls. Roboto hums. "What is the plan?"

Roboto remains silent for a moment, watching the screens with great interest. Hacking into the city's camera system took barely any time at all, and watching the way the heroes floundered around under Mad Gear's tech provided him unending satisfaction. Something stuck out though; two people in disguises that he hadn't accounted for. They had originated from Point One, and he had guessed that they were the reason for Louder's silence.

Roboto grins and chuckles, slowly reaching a crescendo until he erupts in a loud, boisterous laugh. "That's the exact thing you asked me earlier, and the exact thing you'll ask me in a few more minutes," He says, "Nothing's changed! We still move forward as planned! A variable has arisen that we haven't accounted for, but what is science if not adapting to new information!? Ohoho, don't worry, ladies and gentlemen, nothing will stop our plans this day." He continues to eyeball the screens, watching in amusement as the Pro Hero Backdraft is easily flattened by Tricity's whips. Slugger tries to intervene, only to be engulfed in Hothead's flames. "Ah, how easily quirks can be replicated. And crushed. It's so poetic!"

"Perfect!"

A block wall shatters and falls under the might of his fist, startling everyone inside. In that moment - no more than a fraction of a second - a blur descends upon them. A variable tornado of knives and ki passes over, disabling any threats before anyone is allowed a second of reprieve.

"An ambush! Shaker, now!"

The man called Shaker knocks his metal fists together in a loud, satisfying boom, sending concussive waves exploding outwards like ripples in a pond. Izuku moves quickly, racing before the group of hostages and projecting his ki outwards in an attempt to protect. An attempt to save. Neon green paints a brilliant display and splatters everywhere, covering walls and people in a thick cloak before fading away.

"Fuck!"

Shaker pulls his fists apart and attempts to pound again, but Ryoya is faster, darting across the room in the blink of an eye and driving his heel into the base of the man's skull with enough force that his large body glides across the dusty and dirty tile floor.

"Heroes and Mad Gear are coming." Ryoya warns. "We have time to get these people out of here."

"Right," Izuku wheezes, trying to catch his breath following the exertion. "How many?"

"Fifteen. The heroes are outnumbered, but they have Kamui Woods and Mt. Lady."

Izuku swears under his breath, "Mt. Lady can't use her quirk in an area like this. She'll be too big."

"You're right. I'll go and drive back Mad Gear, you focus on getting these people out of the way."

"Drive back? How? There's still so many of them and those support items are crazy!"

"My bird found their main spot," Ryoya says, "It's a few blocks away. I can't confirm, but that's the most heavily guarded area. That's probably where Yoshimori is. I just need to get there and cause a stir. They'll fall back."

"That's very risky."

Ryoya snorts, "No more risky than you fighting a murder robot."

"That's not the same thing and you know that!" Izuku protests. "That was, uh, carefully planned and calculated!"

"... you couldn't pay me to believe that."

"Ahem."

Izuku and Ryoya go still.

"Sorry to interrupt your..." It's a girl with bright orange hair styled into a ponytail. "...debate. But aren't you two supposed to be helping?"

Izuku has the grace to awkwardly laugh. Ryoya clears his throat.

"...right. I'll be fine. I'm a ninja, after all."

"Since when?"

"Few months ago. Here, let me show you." Ryoya makes a hand sign and a puff of smoke appears in the middle of the ruined eatery and when it clears, Ryoya is gone. Izuku blinks once. Then twice.

"For Mad Gear!"

Boom!

'There's so many...' Ryoya thinks absently. He's infiltrated the main bank lobby where Yoshimori is and, as he expected, is surrounded by many Mad Gear members. The vast majority of the hostages are bound and gagged, but thankfully away in corners or against walls, leaving Yoshimori by his lonesome in the middle of the room. Someone - a frankly massive man - is shouting something at him in broken Japanese.

"You'll send a same!"

He's far taller than anyone else the boy had ever met, towering at least a full head and shoulders over even Ryoya himself. He's wearing a tabi and a zori, samurai gauntlets, blue jeans, body armor, and a samurai kabuto with a mask that, annoyingly, obscures his eyes enough that Ryoya doubts Visionary's illusions can get through. On his front, a very poorly drawn kanji. Across his back are two katanas in an 'x' arrangement.

Yoshimori cowards and shrinks as best as he could, but it's futile. Too many people surround him, throwing jeers and accusations. Ryoya watches it all happen, hidden from the world. And then, when the man is struck, he moves.

Visionary had once been written off as a weak quirk by his peers, but now, he uses it to its strengths. Everything is so slow, yet crystal clear. He can see it all and everything at once and he needs to be able to. His first move comes when he moves as fast as he could in a single bound, swiping Yoshimori from his torment and throwing him over his shoulder before anyone could stop him and sliding to a stop on the other side of the room.

"Sorry I'm late," Ryoya drawls, "I got lost on the road of life."

"What the - ? Who the hell are you!? How'd you get by the guards?!" Sodom shouts, taking several steps forward and drawing his katanas. "Answer me, foreigner!"

Ryoya's eye twitches. "Sodom of Mad Gear. Bold of you to throw foreigner at me when you yourself are American."

Sodom's reaction is unreadable behind the mask, but Ryoya can tell from his body language that he hit a nerve. "How the hell do you know who I am? Bah, whatever. Dead men tell no tales. You will not interfere with our plans! Get him!"

Ryoya scoffs, using his free hand to throw a kunai at the nearest member, hitting him squarely in the shoulder. He shouts out in pain. In that brief pause, he tosses Yoshimori aside like a ragdoll, letting him painfully slide to safety. "Don't die. I have some words for you myself." Ryoya says, keeping his eyes on the people before him.

Sodom, despite his size, moves at a pace much faster than Ryoya is prepared for. His ki explodes when he does, and in a moment, both of his swords are held over his head and swinging downward over Ryoya's head. Speed and experience are what prevent him from being bisected right then and there, moving to the side on reflex alone so that the only damage he took was to his uniform's sleeve.

Sodom pivots on his heel, turning his shoulder and stabbing forward. Ryoya parries the blade with his kunai, gritting his teeth when sparks fly when metal meets metal. He retaliates as best as he could, using a blade hidden on his hip to stab into Sodom's lead foot. The man screams in pain and Ryoya attacks, but is forced to jump back when a strong gust of wind hits him squarely in the chest. It's a woman with a giant folding fan and a dirty glare.

"For Mad Gear!"

Ryoya scowls. 'This will be tougher than I thought…'

"Who are you?"

Izuku flinches under his mask, but training keeps his body still. The heroes had advanced to the room he had just cleared out after evacuations were done, and had met him standing still in the middle of the room muttering to himself.

Izuku chews his lip, wondering how to respond. "I'm an underground hero," Izuku says, lowering his voice a few octaves.

Kamui Woods regards him curiously, "Bit young to be a hero, aren't you?"

Izuku laughs sheepishly, "All Might always says the sooner the better, right?" Kamui gives him a flat look. Izuku internal winces, knowing he chose the wrong dialogue option.

"Well, you helped clear out the last two places, so you're fine with me. What's your name?"

"Haven't thought of one yet."

"Well, when you do, give me a shout."

An explosion rocks the building and more civilians scream. Mt. Lady's large form is thrown backwards, stumbling and nearly falling over. Another explosion rocks the block and the electric sound of thousands of birds chirping at once is even louder than that. Kamui darts outside and into the fray with Izuku in tow, but the teen stops when an idea springs into mind. He glances upwards to Ryoya's bird and waves at it. It parks itself on the crown of his head, picking at his hat. "Can you do something for me?" Izuku says slowly. "Can you understand me?"

The eagle nods.

"Oh wow. Good. I need you to -"

Ryoya jumps out of the way of Sodom's leaping strike, covering his eyes when chunks of marble and dust fly everywhere. He barely has time to compose himself upon landing as Sodom darts forward with his swords ready. Ryoya spins on his heel with his kunai, letting the first blade sail harmlessly past his person, while parrying the other. Sparks fly and his muscles feel the pain of exertion. Sodom is relentless in his offense, slicing and moving and jumping and blocking far too much for Ryoya's comfort, even with Visionary active. Seeing the man's movements is as easy as child's play, but reacting and blocking the powerful strikes is a much harder task. He does his best with his kunai, keeping the man at bay until he hears a frustrated roar. Sodom flips one of his katana's into a reverse grip and swings, not with the weapon, but with his fist.

It lands on Ryoya's guard and sends him rocketing across the room and into the wall with enough force to leave cracks and a loud smack. The boy gasps in pain but composes himself quickly enough to not be impaled by Sodom's following attack.

He rolls over and and when the man's sword gets lodged into the wall, aims a stab at his shoulder. Sodom screams in pain and jumps back, leaving the weapon in place and yelling a string of swear words in english.

"You...! Why won't you die!?"

Ryoya takes a breath and grabs the hilt of the blade and with a single, strong tug, pulls it from its concrete sheath. It's an almost entirely black blade with a black and gold guard with a gold wrapping around a black and white handle. It has weight, Ryoya feels, and slots perfectly into his hand.

"Now, it's an even playing field."

"Get your grubby hands off of my Masamune!" Sodom grips his other blade in both hands and runs forward with a battle cry. Ryoya smirks and runs forward, meeting the man head on. Ki erupts outward in an invisible explosion of power that brings lesser men to their knees and those weak in ambition lose consciousness entirely.

The swords grind against one another until Sodom wins the exchange, pushing Ryoya back enough to throw another powerful punch. Ryoya is ready this time, using his superior speed to dash forward and burying his fist into the man's chest. Sodom grunts and Ryoya swings the sword upward with malicious intent. Sodom leans back just in time to avoid his head being split in two, but his mask isn't as lucky. A clean half of it falls off to reveal his glaring right eye and half of his mouth in a tight, thin-lipped frown.

Ryoya tilts his head down just enough so his eyes, Visionary, can be seen from behind his glasses. They make eye contact and a pained smile comes to Ryoya's face.

'Sometime soon would be nice, Izuku.' He thinks to himself. Sodom roars and violently swings his sword all over the place, attacking someone who doesn't exist. 'I can't maintain this illusion for much longer. I've used my quirk too long as is.' His eye twitches and he can feel an intense migraine coming on. There are only a few members left standing that he can see, and all of the civilians are accounted for. He raises Masamune in a defensive stance in front of him. 'Hurry up.'

"Listen," Ryoya says, "Can't we just talk this out? Violence is tiring."

When the only response he gets is someone yelling 'get him', Ryoya sighs in defeat.

"I hate it here."

Wings flap, wind blows and an eagle cries three times. The street below is largely empty, save for fallen heroes and three Mad Gear commanders standing triumphantly in the middle of the road.

Tricity and Hothead pay it no mind, but their third commander, a bullish man with dark clothes and a box over his head, trains his eyes upward.

"Bird."

Tricity and Hothead ignore him. He frowns under his box.

"Bird," he says again.

"Why did we have to get partnered with the foreigner?" Hothead mutters. Tricity scoffs and rolls her eyes.

"Because," she starts, knowing their partner is all but deaf to their language, "He's big and he's strong. Andore was the only one the boss trusted with the explosion dial."

"Bird." Andore says again, more stubbornly this time.

The eagle cries three times again.

"Bird. Not from here. Trap."

"What are you -?"

"Sand Blast!"

A sound comparable to that of a rifle echoes through the desolate street and a Sand Blast follows it with the force of thunder. Hothead is it's unfortunate target; being struck so hard in the stomach that the man vomits up his breakfast and bile. He falls to his knees and Tricity's head snaps to the source of the sound just in time to hear it again. She expects an impact and braces for it, but a shadow looms over her and a grunt makes her flinch.

"Andore...!"

The box had been knocked off his head to reveal long flowing curly locks with high cheekbones and a gaunt face with shadowed eyes.

"Leave. Strong."

Andore says in broken Japanese before holding out a hand and bracing himself. He can't see anyone, nor does he know where the attacks are coming from, but he doesn't need to see them. Not when Roboto trusted him. The device in his hand is similar to Louder's; a large disk with holes and a spiral pattern on top. It glows brighter and brighter and squeals with the high-pitched melody of hummingbird until it pops.

A gargantuan explosion rocks the sidewalk and everything in Andore's field of vision. Unconscious bodies are thrown unceremoniously like ragdolls and the shockwave shatters every glass on the block.

When the dust settles, the city block is in ruin. Rubble, dirt and dust decorate the area and a strip of charred ash lines the roads from his palm. Still, he sees no one.

An eagle cries thrice.

Izuku erupts from a nearby alleyway with his arms steaming and ki dripping off of him in waves. A bright, luminescent neon green coats his form as he goes, making his steps faster, and allows him to side-step an electric whip without slowing down.

His right arm steams more until it turns red and his veins are visible through his skin. He slides to a stop in front of Andore.

"PERFECT!"

Andore makes an 'x' over his chest with his arms, but the force of Izuku's strike is enough to make the man's eyes widen and teeth clench. He slides back a full two meters, knocking Tricity down as he does, but remains on his feet. There's a deep, ugly bruise forming on his forearm, but yet, he remains standing tall.

Izuku grits his teeth and clenches his fist. His arms are aching and his hands are starting to go a bit numb, but the end goal is in sight. He just needs to last a little while longer...

Andore, for all his size, is thankfully pretty slow. He moves at Izuku and swings wildly with impressive strength, but his hits never get near, save for when Izuku tries to examine the device in his hand. To create an explosion of that size and force from such a small point? He had only seen Katsuki do that. It gives him a pause until he remembers something, quirkless.

"What is Mad Gear after?" Izuku asks while Andore swings and misses yet again. He says nothing and attacks again. Izuku moves to the side to intercept an attack, but he knows it's a feint. Unfortunately for Andore, he had plenty of experience studying someone who could generate explosions from his palm. The feint prediction is correct and instead of a left jab, Andore throws a big right hook. Izuku dodges easily and grabs the man's arm and throws him over his shoulder and hard into the asphalt. He keeps his arm bent in a painfully unnatural angle and his palms pointed away from him.

"What's Mad Gear after?" Izuku askes again, more forcefully this time.

"Never. Tell."

He applies a bit more pressure. "You're quirkless," Izuku says, "So am I. Tell me. What is Mad Gear after?!"

"We're after many things, my boy."

Suddenly, something cold and metallic slams into his back and grabs him tightly around the torso. It's a massive, three pronged claw connected to long, chrome tendrils that disappear behind a man's back. He's dressed in a green trench coat, black two piece suit and matching black shoes. Izuku struggles against the claw, but the man has three more all aimed at him.

"Always so dramatic, Cephilo!" Someone says from above. They're hovering in a white, egg-shaped cart with a sad clown face painted on the front. "Why couldn't you have just ended the brat right there?"

"Because," Chephilo says calmly, "The boy is quirkless like us. I figured I would give him an opportunity to join before ending his life. He has power, unlike the rest of us."

"I - I would never join you!" Izuku says defiantly.

"Oh, and why is that? Is it because we harm innocents? Is it because we fight for equality?" Cephilo askes coldly, "Mad Gear is nothing if not progressive, boy. You want to know what we seek? Order. Purpose. Direction. No more than that. It's your heroic lot that means to confound with this nonsense talk of equality. Time was, the world before quirks professed a far more sensible goal, that of peace."

"Peace? You think killing people will bring peace!?"

The claw around Izuku's body tightenings to an uncomfortable degree. "How naive. When I was young, I too believed that peace begets peace. But I was wrong. If you're not capable of violence, you're not peaceful; you are harmless." The other three claws all start to whirl like saw blades. "You are blind to the plight of your brethren. May you have a quirk in the next left."

"Smash!"

A gust of wind far too strong to be natural slams into the appendage holding Izuku and snaps it clean off. He drops to the ground unceremoniously and gasps for breath. Cephilo hums in disapproval.

"The big oaf is here," he says, annoyed. "Tell me Roboto, did we eliminate the target?"

"'Fraid not," Roboto says with a casual shrug. "Someone took down Sodom and grabbed Yoshimori. We got data on our tech, so today's not a total loss."

"Agreed."

In a single moment, Izuku goes from in front of the villains to a full fifteen meters away. He blinks once and then realizes that a red, white, blue and yellow spandex stands in between him and Mad Gear.

"Never fear, civilian! For I am here!"

"All Might!" Izuku shouts before realizing his mistake and clearing his throat. "I mean, All Might!" He repeats in a deeper tone. All Might's smile falters ever so slightly.

"You again, kid? We need to have a serious talk when this is all over."

Izuku slumps in defeat.

"But before that, Mad Gear! Your end is here!"

"Is that right?"

The remainder of Cephilo's tendrils all turn and point at All Might.

"Isn't it so interesting how even the world's strongest can be undone by simple technology?"

In unison, three beams of light fire and slam into All Might's chest an instant later. He shouts in pain and surprise and tries to get his bearings, but the lights are too bright, the beams are too hot.

He takes one step forward, and then another, and then a third. The beams get more intense and focused, like a fire compressed down into a single point.

All Might powers through it and eventually finds the strength to clap his hands together with each force that the shockwave disrupts Cephilo's aim. By the time his eyes readjust to the world, the two men are already countless meters high and floating away. All Might jumps at them, but only meets another beam head on. He is forced back down to earth, less in pain and more in surprise.

"...let's get you out of here, young Midoriya." All Might says quietly, not taking his eyes off of the skyline.

An eagle cries once more and Izuku watches as it swoops down upon a nearby building. He can vaguely make out Ryoya's form as well as a weapon he's holding, but he can make out when the boy waves at him just fine.

"Yeah." Izuku lets out a sigh of relief. "Yeah... I have, uh, to get ready for school anyway."

"You do," All Might concedes. "U.A. is right around the corner. Do try your best to make it there in one piece. I won't always be around, you know?"

"I know."

"Good." All Might still hasn't looked at him but his tone is thoughtful. "...are you truly quirkless, young Midoriya?"

"Yes, sir. I am."

"I see... they're quirkless. Does that -"

"All Might," Izuku cuts off. He chews on his bottom lip and carefully searches for his words. "I don't know yet. I... just want to go home right now."

"Of course."

A/N: Feel free to leave a review if you enjoyed, I greatly appreciate them. Happy 2024 everyone, here's hoping for good years and good vibes. I have a discord server for fighting games, if anyone is interested. I can't post links here, so you can find it on AO3. Just look for this story and it's athe very bottom. Cheers.