This update took a while huh! I had to prepare a lot for the upcoming chapters, in short, the final act of this arc. In short, I was busy researching and planning fight scenes. In this, I discovered many new good mangas like Holyland, Rikudou, Sakamoto days and the legend Usogui. I also went back to reading Hunter x Hunter. If you haven't read one of these add it up. Thanks for the support and encouragement in the comments, it means a lot to me. I won't be abounding this project ever as my focus is just on this for now + I'm almost done with chapter 4 but have to edit it next. Anyways more information about this arc; it will be of 5 chapters so only 2 more remain now and those two will be heavy. Be ready to dwell in the world-building. For now, you are still stuck with the Midoriya family and finish up the drama. Have you guys ever heard of Hisashi? Yup, the dad anime blatantly ignored haha. ENJOY!


Inko stood by the flowers staring at the number on her phone which read Shinji Midoriya. She had promised Izuku that she would talk with his Uncle and make sure Izuku joined The Greenhorns but it wasn't as easy as she had made it sound. She didn't know how Shinji would react after years of no contact after Hisashi's death. She took deep breath after deep breath, her thumb hovering over the call button and yet she just couldn't click it. She put the phone down as she felt like crying from remembering Hisashi's death. She had kept Shinji's presence on the scene of his father's death a secret from Izuku, thinking that if he found out maybe he too would hate his uncle. She always feared Izuku's path of becoming a hero would also end the same way her husband's life had.

She grabbed a family album off the shelf. They used to be a happy family, Shinji included. She flipped through the pages and saw Shinji with his short spiky green hair holding Izuku, playing with Izuku in the next one where he had a photo with his brother. Her fingers softly moved to Hisashi's smile thinking back to how much happier they were and how Hisashi wanted to give the world to Izuku.

Hisashi Midoriya had been a normal citizen who worked a normal job to keep his family happy. His kind and helpful nature gravitated people to him like bees to honey. Inko fell in love with him in high school but never confessed, his happy-go-lucky attitude scared her and his popularity had seemed neverending. Compared to him she was just a shy introverted girl. Hisashi was the one who had approached her every time and his jokes always made Inko laugh. Finally, once they had graduated, Hisashi had proposed to her at the beach in the middle of the night. She still remembered that beautiful moment that she had ruined by crying for a few minutes leaving Hisashi waiting for the answer which he knew would be a yes.

Izuku had taken after her while getting his looks and smile from his father. He was outgoing and stubborn, Inko thought back and heard Izuku's voice in her head, "I'll be a Pro Hero too." She sighed with a soft smile as she whispered, "Stubborn!"

She flipped through the pages faster not wanting to get swept in her love story. She didn't stop until Hisashi vanished from the pictures. She always felt sad flipping through family albums as it hit her hard whenever Hisashi stopped appearing in them... She didn't let herself break into tears like all the other times. She stopped at Izuku's photo in which he was wearing All Might's outfit that she had made for him. Oh, that smile, she could die for it and this was what gave her the courage to finally pick her phone up and call Shinji.

Shinji was training with his students in his gym, beating the shit out of a punching bag; jab, cross, lead hook with quick footwork, landing another hook to the lower area and then a rear hook. He showed the combo to his student and told him to follow it when his phone sitting on the bench started ringing. He wiped his face with a towel as he walked up to see who was bothering him. He went pale as he read Inko's name, he picked up the phone in panic, throwing his towel away at a hanger that he missed and he ran to the door, grabbing his coat on the way and putting it on as he rushed to Inko's place.

"What happened, Inko? Is Izuku alright? Is someone bothering you guys?" He switched his hand that was holding the phone to shove his other arm into the coat. "I'm heading to your house right now, don't worry."

Inko on the other side blushed in panic and told him to stay where he was explaining to him that there was nothing to worry about, she and Izuku were doing fine. Shinji halted on the busy street, his frame almost blocking the footpath and soon he was asked to step aside.

He was confused, Inko hadn't called him in years and when he saw that she was calling he thought something bad had happened. The absence of an emergency threw him for a loop and he stood there, trying to process the situation.

"I called you for another reason, Shinji." After a few seconds of silence, she continued, "Izuku wants to be a hero but…" She explained to him the whole story of Izuku wanting to be a hero like All Might to the harsh truth that struck him down and yet his resilience to not give up on his dream. All this was a huge info dump on Shinji who lingered on each word holding for his dear life to understand what was the purpose behind this call. "Even without a quirk he is going to give the U.A. High entrance exam among students with quirks..."

"What!" He screamed in the street, turning heads to him and he bowed to apologise. "What?" He whispered. "So, do you want me to talk to him and advise him not to chase after that dream?" He asked.

"No! I want you to train him for it. He insists on training under the best teacher and he knows how good you are." She gripped the phone tighter. Before he could even process that Izuku had turned out quirkless, another storm had followed. Inko, of all people, wanted her quirkless son to train for an exam where children with quirks get the best results. "Inko, are you hearing yourself? If Izuku is quirkless how would he…"

"He can!" She claimed boldly. "My boy can become a hero. I believe in him. Please, Shinji, this is a request. You'll understand when you see him for yourself. He has grown into a nice young man just like Hisashi."

Shinji hesitated and reluctantly told her that he was ready to teach him. This was followed by a longer silence between them, with neither one of them ready to end the call. "Should some things be left unsaid?", was the thought bothering each of them and Shinji was the first one to come up with an answer.

"I'm sorry, Inko… I know my apology changes nothing but-"

"You blamed yourself too, didn't you?" She interrupted and continued speaking, "I was too harsh on you. I'm sorry too. I was trying to cope and I just needed someone to blame. You ended up being that outlet for those emotions. I'm sorry."

"I don't blame you for how you reacted. If I had tried to help him maybe he would've been alive." He sighed as he walked into a narrow alley to lean against the wall as he felt dizzy.

"Does he know?"

"No, he doesn't." She replied and added in a softer tone stuttering. "It wasn't your fault, Shinji. He died protecting the kids. We both know he didn't regret any of it."

Shinji nodded as he covered his face with his arm, he didn't want anyone to see the tears trapped in his eyes. "Yes." He replied as he recalled his brother's final moments.

Shinji had tried his best to stop him, reminding him that heroes would come and handle the villain; he had a family to care for.

Hisashi didn't listen to a word he said.

When he saw the villain moving towards the school bus full of children, he did not think, his feet were already running towards the villain and he attacked him from behind. As a flame manipulation quirk holder, Hisashi had always carried a lighter with him and used it as a fidget toy throughout his days. That day it was to be his tool against a homicidal maniac.

So, a half-full lighter, Hisashi, and his resourcefulness had gone for the villain's face and burned his eyelids off. The school bus was forgotten as ice thundered towards him. He had dodged and rolled to the best of his ability, trying to use his precise control of fire to deal some more damage. He had taken cover from the villain's thundering ice but his hiding spot had been discovered by the furious villain. He had run in circles around the villain, who had the agility of a fridge and couldn't keep up with the nimble Hishahi. The villain had gotten madder at the bombardment of flames from different directions and Hisashi had seemed to be running out of stamina.

Even so, Shinji had hoped Hisashi would survive. He thought Hisashi would hold his own until the heroes arrived.

The lighter ran out of fluid before Hisashi's luck did, if only by a moment. He had taken his eyes off the villain. He had missed the enraged villain conjuring a wall of ice that had pushed Shinji's brave, brave brother off the bridge.

The next day, a newspaper report had read -:

'...Eyewitnesses reported that a middle-aged man, Hisashi Midoriya stepped on the scene as the villain aimed to attack a school bus and used his fire manipulation quirk to attack and distract the villain. He stood his ground against the villain and bought valuable time against a foe who wielded a powerful ice quirk. , Tragically, Hisashi was thrown off the highway with a massive attack and died on the spot. Endeavor arrived at the scene mere moments before Mr. Midoriya's tragic death but was unable to protect the man. The police and the National Hero Association have reached out to the family to award them with compensation and the medal of heroism. However, this shocking incident raises serious questions about the swiftness and efficacy of the heroes we entrust with the responsibility of our lives and the very mantle of society…'

No amount of praise or money had comforted Shinji or a widowed Inko. Nothing could replace Izuku's father.

Shinji hated himself for not doing more, for fearing for his life and not jumping in front of the villain. Until then, he had lived his life knowing when to run away when a situation got out of hand. He knew he was not even close to being strong enough to face the villain. Yet, Hisashi's hadn't been either, but his brother had put himself on the line nonetheless. Shinji hated himself more for being like every other person at the scene: helpless, scared and spineless.

"Send me, Izuku's number and he can visit the gym anytime." He replied, guilt roiling in his gut.

She tried her best to discuss fees but Shinji was having none of it. He ended the call and walked back to his gym thinking how Izuku looked now and still trying to wrap his head around the idea of a quirkless kid wanting to be a hero.


On the beach, Izuku was still struggling with the washing machine and at this point even he felt tired of returning to it. He looked over his shoulder at the much heavier stuff waiting for him to carry them to the pile and then he proceeded to think of a way to take it up the road. He moved on to piling up the stuff he could carry for today and later he could continue with his daily struggle.

In the middle of his thoughts, he heard Mei skipping down the steps as he dumped the trash onto the pile. He noticed her holding a box in her arms, looking happy and excited. She ran to the washing machine without saying a word before setting the box down on top of it. Izuku followed right behind her wondering what she was up to.

She grinned brightly at him, her face shining as she opened the box and pulled out from it, "Behold MagnetPull!" She held it high as all the trash bowed down to it and she crowned it the king of the dump while Scar cried in the corner (that's how it played in Izuku's head) Yet he kept looking at her blankly because the name she had given these ropes attached to two cylindrical objects didn't fit make sense to him. "What?" She asked when she noticed his expressionless face.

Izuku snapped out of it.

"I love it!" He yelled to match her excitement.

"What is it?" He asked, holding himself back from asking "Why is it?"

She chuckled as she watched Izuku ask her what masterpiece she had created now. He appeared to her like a baby having witnessed a toy for the first time that he would love. The grin didn't vanish from her face as she quickly turned around to the washing machine and showed him how the two cylinders were strong magnets that once stuck to something would never part until they were made to. She showed him how to attach them and then pushed him to the washer before bringing the ropes over his shoulders.

He couldn't imagine how she had done it and how long it took her to make it. The gratitude filled his chest up, ready to overflow when she patted him on the back and said, "Now move. You know what to do right?" She was greeted with a face that made her chuckle and she continued, "Alright, I hope the grip is comfortable, it is adjustable but I don't recommend playing around with it. I still think it could wear off easily if moved too much. Let me know if it needs any improvements; I kept the ropes long enough that you can use your full body to pull all the heavy objects you would need too. I considered the way your muscles would work if you used your chest, arms or shoulders to pull the weight, so you don't have to worry about anything."

"Mei." Izuku cut her off from going into details and continued, "Thank you. I can't tell you how much this means to me."

"You haven't even tried it. Go ahead, pull. I want to see if it is good enough or not." She ordered him while running circles around him assessing his posture and how MagnetPull complimented him.

Izuku sighed with a smile, his heart filled with butterflies and he started pulling on the weight behind him. He was shocked as he felt this was much easier than the way he used to do it before, of course, he had this idea but using a rope would cut his hand and that would make other exercises harder to keep up with but now this grip felt like a kiss of flowers, he could use his legs and arms at their full strength that they held right now. Within 5 minutes Izuku had dragged the machine half the distance that he usually managed each day. This took just five minutes and he could feel the muscles that had engaged in this task. He had barely recovered from this shock when Mei jumped in front of him after he dropped the rope, waiting for him to shower her baby with the praises it rightfully deserved.

"I love it. I wouldn't change a single thing about it. This baby is perfect. Thank you!" He replied, holding a smile on his face and bowing down to thank her.

"Haha, Yes, after all, it was Mei Hatsume who made it." She struck her hero pose; hands resting on her waist and head held high. "But, that's not the only thing. I convinced my dad to hire a truck in which you could load the trash and then it would drop it off.

She was unbelievable, the amount of lengths she was going to help him almost moved him to tears a second time but he held back, not wanting to cry in front of her (again). That whole morning Hatsume couldn't stop talking about her inventions and Izuku had no complaints as he dragged the bane of his existence from the moment he started cleaning up the beach to its final destination. He took off the ropes and couldn't believe his eyes, he had reached the first goal and today it felt so much easier. He glanced at Hatsume who had gone back to searching for parts in the mountains of trash, he smiled at her feeling thankful for all she was doing for him and he called out to her when he spotted a truck pulling up on the road.

She introduced him to the driver and soon the driver helped him to load up all the trash he had collected for the day. Izuku watched the truck driving away, his eyes locked on that washing machine. It was the end of one goal and the beginning of the next one. His phone rang and Inko informed him that his Uncle was expecting him.


Izuku stood at the door of the Greenhorns, staring through the glass and saw people training with machines and in pairs. In the distance, he could see a boxing ring but it was empty. He took a deep breath and walked in, nervous about how people would look at him and what his Uncle would think of him. Once inside, his eyes searched for a spiky green-haired man that he remembered seeing photos of but he found nobody matching that profile. So then he looked for someone in charge. Finally, Izuku pulled out his phone and sent a message to his Uncle saying that he was there. He heard a door open on the right and a bald man standing there covering the whole frame of the door. The man greeted Izuku with a smile as he walked up to him. He could see a younger version of Hisashi that almost made his throat fill up but he kept his composure. After all, he couldn't ruin this moment of seeing Izuku after years.

"Oh, you've grown up well, you resemble him so much," Shinji said as his hands slapped on his arms shaking him up.

Izuku blushed as he realised that this unfamiliar man was his Uncle, he looked nothing like the photo he had seen; with his head that reflected the lights on the ceiling, his thick brown beard, and his bulky arms. Arms that crashed down on Izuku. This man was built like the Greek gods he had read about. Izuku was overwhelmed by his presence alone.

"I… oh, I do?" He stumbled over his words, feeling more nervous as everyone's attention turned to him and Shinji. He glanced from one person to the other looking at them curiously before he felt his feet leave the ground as Shinji had lifted him off the floor like a doll. "Uncle…"

"Oh, I can't believe I'm meeting you after so long." He hugged him, squeezing out his life with his strong arms.

Izuku still didn't let it show on his face as everyone was staring at them, he held his breath while getting his ribs crushed and he whispered, "You're squeezing too hard." He was placed back down.

Shinji smiled at his nephew, he couldn't believe how much he had grown and looked like Hisashi. He took his sweet time noticing that Izuku felt nervous, so he took him to his office where he gave him some water to drink. "How have you been, boy?'

Izuku replied with a smile, "I have been doing good, Uncle." It felt strange, seeing him after so many years.

"What about the part that you want to be a hero?" He chuckled before he continued without waiting for an answer. "So, how far are you ready to go to gain a strength that can go toe to toe with others?" Shinji asked as he stared at him.

"Anything it takes." Izuku replied, placing the glass on the table and continued, "As far as I need to go. I want to push my body to the extreme and beyond."

Shinji sat on his desk, he nodded softly and said, "Call me Shinji from this moment forward. I'll be your instructor and I won't go easy on you at all." Izuku nodded in agreement. This was all he had wanted.

"Inko told me that you've been training, mind if I take a look?"

"I don't mind at all." Izuku stood up, ready to get assessed by Shinji and hoped that his training had shown some results. Shinji's hand softly brushed his beard, lips curled up in disgust making Izuku's confidence plummet rapidly and his heart pounding. He knew about Shinji's quirk, X-ray vision. It was titled by the Midoriya family a noble quirk that could be used in the medical field to save lives but Shinji had different plans. Izuku didn't blame him for choosing what he loved knowing that most parents would want their kids to be engineers or doctors. Yet, he was a bit curious why his Uncle had chosen a path of crime rather than becoming a doctor and saving lives.

Shinji had mastered his quirk over years of training with it or so he had heard. He could use his quirk to see a person's muscle structure and make a plan that would complement them. This was also the reason why Izuku was T-posing while sweating buckets from nervousness ready to faint any minute.

"You have been training your body a lot and not giving it the rest it needs to recover and rebuild. Amateur mistake, everyone thinks doing more exercises means more muscles, but that's just training, you would need good nutrients and rest to let your muscles get the time to grow. If you just keep doing exercise without a break you'll just make your body more fatigued and it would take longer to get the result that you hoped to see." He walked around him and continued, "Have you been doing full-body training?" Izuku nodded; too nervous to speak up. "Stop doing it! Full-body training is good for building endurance. For a beginner like you, you should be focusing on selective muscles per day and get good rest to let the muscles grow."

Izuku nodded in agreement. Shinji walked back to his table and sat down. "To be honest, I'm happy you have been training yourself but leave the rest to me. Go out and introduce yourself to others and warm up. I'll make a plan for you that we'll change once I see how your muscles are recovering." Shinji walked to his chair and started typing up a plan for Izuku.

Izuku stood there for a few seconds before he found the confidence to speak up, "Shinji…" Izuku felt so weird calling him by his name when he hadn't talked or even seen him. "Senpai!"

"Yes, boy?"

"The U.A. exam is just 9 months away."

"You'll be ready for it in 5, boy. I just need you to be dedicated and not skip the diet and workout."

Izuku's face sparked up with joy that Shinji missed as focused on making the plan. "Thank you." He bowed before walking out of the office and starting his workout without introducing himself to anyone.

Later, Shinji explained to him the plan in detail making sure Izuku understood the value of treating a muscle like a plant. Shinji made sure to reiterate the point that he shouldn't be over-exercising or doing any bonus exercises other than the planned workout. Izuku had to object. "I have been training at the seaside beach, I'm cleaning up the waste there and I can't stop doing that." Izuku couldn't abandon the beach that helped him discipline himself. Shinji stared at him but ended up agreeing to it with a disappointed grunt.

Izuku began that day's workout where he focused only on his biceps and triceps. The training was two hours long under Shinji's supervision. Izuku tried the pull-ups with many other exercises for the first time, and as he expected he did poorly. Yet he didn't feel any judgment being directed at him from Shinji or others though everyone did send curious glances at him. Once he was done, Shinji sat him down near the wrestling ring and sat beside him as two guys got in the ring for training.

"Are you sure about this, boy?" Shinji asked and to answer Izuku's puzzled look he added, "To become a hero means to face villains who want to kill you."

Izuku nodded without giving it much of a thought as he had faced death already, "Yeah, I know. I still want to be a hero. I want to save people."

Shinji stared at him he reminded him of Hisashi so much. These words felt like something Hisashi would have said. He couldn't let Hisashi's son meet the same faith as him even though Inko trusted her son's judgement. Shinji didn't share the same view having seen first-hand how facing a villain ends up. He would train him regardless of that fact. He rubbed his head and told him to watch the boxers fighting in the ring. Shinji showed him some footwork drills and told Izuku to practise the basics slowly. He observed him from his bench.

"You should also watch others wrestle in the ring. It would be good to learn a thing or two by watching them." Shinji got up from the bench and added, "Just know a real fight won't be like the one in the ring. A real fight doesn't have rules or morals." He looked at his face realising it was too early for Izuku to understand that. "Well, I'll teach you when the time comes. You are done for today but if you want to stay and watch. You are most welcome to stay." He turned on his heels and walked back into his office.

Izuku watched the fight and even though he wanted to avoid talking to people a few approached him to ask who he was and why Shinji was so friendly with him. It seemed like Shinji had earned himself an angry serious dad image and everyone was shocked to see a smile on his face let alone see him be so friendly with someone. Once Izuku explained his relationship with Shinji everyone understood why Shinji reacted like that but this only caused him to attract more attention. He chuckled in his head thinking he didn't know he would be getting physical and social training at the same time. However, he was curious too so he asked them about his Uncle and the stories he heard were a mix of funny and horrifying.

Jin told him the best story. He had skipped two days in a row because he went on a date with his girlfriend and the next time he showed up at the gym he was made to jog a mile on the treadmill before being made to do 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups and 100 squats, felt a lot like the one punch man workout, Izuku thought and claimed in his head that his Uncle did go bald. Jin caught his attention back and continued the story; he pulled his gym bag on his shoulders once he was done as he walked to the door at a sluggish pace he saw a shadow growing towards him. He looked up and blocking the door frame stood Shinji with his arms crossed holding the most pleasant smile that could be expressed in two words; true terror. "I see you are done with your warm-up. Let's get to the meaty part, shall we, Jin Boy?" This had brought Jin to his knees begging for forgiveness. Shinji didn't stop until he made Jin confess his mistake and told him he could miss a day but at least inform him so he could change the workout plan accordingly. One of Jin's friends chimed in to tell Izuku about the phenomenal ass-kicking Shinji had handed out to Jin.

Izuku managed to escape them and return home without being asked about his quirk. He discussed the plan Shinji had made for him with his mother before having dinner and retiring to his room. He sat down on his study bench, catching up with his studies and time seemed to slip by. At midnight, Izuku shuffled on his feet, slid to the sides and bounced back working on his footwork with hands raised to protect his head. He mimicked Jin's footwork that he had seen earlier.

He closed his eyes to focus on the fight playing on repeat in his head. Jin's footwork was exceptional. Izuku's footwork was a poor slow imitation of it yet this had made his list for the things to do before sleeping. He could see the gap between him and Jin. He noticed that his body wasn't balanced and when he managed to stick the posture the footwork would slug him down. So, he loosened up his upper body, focusing on his legs and feet. He followed the shadow of Jin weaving in his hooks, straights, roll out, slide uppercut, pivot on one foot to get behind, elbow, and knee. The shadow in Izuku's vision was faster and he tried his best to keep up, he lacked the weight of a punch and the frame that were the basic parts. This still became a routine and as the days went his form improved, his stance got stronger and his speed moved up a notch thanks to the training with Shinji. His speed and stamina had improved over the months too. He was also clearing more area at the beach with the help of Magnetpull which still didn't roll off his tongue but he wasn't going to change the name. After having his breakfast at home he would head to the gym and train under the watchful eyes of Shinji.

Shinji was observing how his footwork had been improving faster than most, he could see now why Inko was so confident in his son but Shinji still couldn't bring himself to agree. He walked back to his chair and sat down. A quirkless kid dreaming of defeating someone with a quirk would be a good plot for a movie but that's not the reality of the world they live in, he thought and agitated he jumped off the chair. He walked out to watch Jin in the ring training for his upcoming boxing match where no one could use their quirk, on the side Izuku was mimicking the footwork while being helped by others and at that moment Shinji got an idea.

"Boy!" Shinji grabbed Izuku's attention. "How about we get you in that ring next week? Are you ready?"

Izuku was frozen, he didn't know he would be stepping in that ring so soon even though he had been gunning for it and yet he felt nervous. He agreed to everyone's shock but Shinji.

"Your opponent will be Jin," Shinji announced. Everyone protested when they heard Shinji pair Izuku up against the best student in the gym. They knew that it wouldn't be much of a contest. Izuku silently watched people defending him for the first time. It was strange for him to see how much they liked him. They hadn't met a more honest and dedicated to his dream kid before. They tried to reason with Shinji but he wasn't having it, so even Jin stepped out of the ring, removed his gloves and asked him in a whisper that was inaudible to Izuku. Whatever the two ended up discussing resulted in the match being fixed.

"Izuku, are you alright with this? If you are I won't mind facing you." Jin replied.

Izuku felt a bit overwhelmed in this situation, he wished he was alone, or that no one cared about him but they did. They looked at him with their mouth shut yet he could hear them, their eyes told him to decline but it was his decision at the end. "I'm ready." He replied. He wanted to test himself against the shadow he had followed. He knew his chances of winning that fight were zero to none but that wasn't the question, the question was how far he had come and how far he needed to climb.

The following week he let himself get consumed in training; his footwork saw steady improvement, and he learned more basics and combos that he picked up quickly, Jin himself decided to help him out with his training and his jabs hit with the weight of a hammer. He didn't want to step in the ring thinking this would be practice, he wanted to win it, that's the mentality he had as he punched the sandbag rapidly in his little corner at closing time.

Shinji looked over at Izuku sitting on the floor with his fist flat on the ground lost in his thoughts for tomorrow. He approached Izuku and said, "Did you practise the footwork? Remember to keep the chin down," He hits him with a foam rod.

Izuku softly nodded while getting back up, his thighs cramped up and body barely holding up. Shinji pushed a water bottle into his chest and Izuku emptied it.

That night he had a headache, he had pushed himself harder than ever and in doing so he had forgotten that a fighter needs a good rest the day before a fight. He had trained himself to step in that ring and now that it was a few hours away, he felt a jolt of confidence in himself. This was his first chance to show what had come out of his long hours of workout and training. He had messaged all this to Hatsume who had wished him luck and showered him with support. He wasn't at a disadvantage, he had observed Jin from day one and his study of Jin was top-notch, he didn't see why he wouldn't be able to take Jin down a few steps and show that he wasn't here just to watch but stand among them.


The crowd gathered around the ring while Izuku sat on a stool tying up boxing hand wrap, he felt a bit nervous knowing that everyone would be watching but they had been helpful during his training here. It was a nice change of pace from the school that felt like a morbid reality.

Shinji walked out of his office and patted Izuku's back who was getting in his warm-up before the fight. "It's time."

Shinji liked Izuku and was impressed with how fast Izuku learnt, no doubt he had a talent for boxing or maybe fighting in general. Shinji got on his knees in front of the boy and started to wrap his other hand. He didn't want him to give up fighting but just stop with the nonsense of becoming a hero. Shinji could tell Izuku had a talent for non-quirk wrestling and boxing matches. He was sure Izuku could become one of the best if he just invested his time in it.

"Are you ready, Boy?" Shinji asked and Izuku nodded. He patted his back and got him up in the ring.

Izuku slipped his gloves on while Jin got in the ring. His heart was pounding. The 20 feet wide square ring felt spacey, Izuku could feel the vibrations of his heart from the canvas, the odour within this piece of the square was different than the whole gym; it was sweat and struggle that filled the place up like a gladiator's ring and it didn't scare Izuku. It filled him up with a fighting spirit that he could never grab onto while training, the difference between standing on the ground and boxing and standing in the ring to fight an opponent was more than he had ever imagined. Jin stepped into the ring and stepped closer to touch gloves before retreating to their respective corners.

Jin would be using his quirk. Izuku agreed and explained to them his goal with less embarrassment they embraced his courage even if it wasn't to their liking how things were going to play out. They all shared mixed feelings about letting a quirkless fight fairly against a quirk user.

Jin had told Izuku about his quirk a week in the training when he had joined. His quirk was Haste; he could accelerate his movement from any point of his body with joints giving the best output of his power. He explained it to Izuku by taking an example of a nitro in a racing car. Jin could control it and decide how much acceleration he wanted to put behind a punch to make it stronger and faster, the same went for his movement. The setback was that he couldn't focus on more than two spots at one time and this burnt his stamina a lot both of which were overcome by his training here. So, did Izuku have a plan or was it, Fuck it and ball?

The biting silence and the pressure of the ring were slowly making his body heavier. He felt his feet dragging on the canvas as he looked at Jin who was comfortably bouncing on the spot with his arms waving around to warm up. Izuku did his best to relax his stiff body while thinking over his plan.

His quirk had no weakness. The weaknesses that were there years ago had now faded away due to Jin overcoming them with his training. Izuku couldn't see when Jin would use his quirk to send a punch that could knock him out in one hit, this was the reason why he had his arms high and closer to his face to guard his face from the first few jabs Jin would throw at him. He observed Jin take an attack stance with his arm out in the front ready to throw a jab, cross or a hook. This quirk was annoying before the match had even begun, he could use the quirk on his heel to make his footwork faster, cut the distance and then choose to hit him with right and left; it was like an unscratchable itch.

He took a deep breath as Shinji stood between them asking if they were ready. He nodded and Shinji rang the bell on his phone. So, began the long 15 seconds that he still remembered vividly.

Neither of them made a move until Shinji shouted at Jin to not hold back. Izuku had his guard up, covering his face as both approached the centre of the ring. Izuku's hawk eyes were locked on Jin's footwork making sure he didn't get out of his sight.

Jin charged from the front. Izuku knew he had used his quirk. Izuku blocked the jab and cross but Jin had already worked his way to Izuku's left side yet hadn't avoided Izuku's following eyes – accelerated hook directed to Izuku's head – Izuku raised his elbow and barely blocked the hit with his left arm. Izuku hadn't considered how much weight was behind that hook, he was shot off balance and barely managed to land a good footing, this was the time for the counter – Izuku twisted his feet to face Jin and with a twist of his hip he sent a cross – Jin slipped out under it and using haste on his right elbow he shot a strong uppercut.

"In a fight, you need to keep your chin tucked in close to your neck. You do this to avoid any uppercut from hitting the chin. It is a basic defence a boxer should never forget."

Izuku had made a mistake in the excitement of landing a cross while thinking he had Jin right where he wanted. The uppercut hammered his chin, and his vision blurred. He stagg backwards from the hit and he had no idea what had just happened. He felt the ropes on his back bouncing him back on his feet and he regained his balance but his stance was already broken. The match was over the moment Izuku had made a mistake and Jin had taken full advantage of it.

Jin quickly cut the distance between them and knocked on a hook using Haste. It connected with Izuku's unguarded head with a whack that echoed throughout the gym.

Izuku crashed down onto the canvas with a thump!


Izuku woke up in Shinji's office with an ice bag resting on his head, he grabbed a hold of it while sitting up running his mind back to understand what had happened. He remembered throwing a cross at Jin, it should have connected but he had vanished from that position and then an uppercut. He slowly recreated the fight in his mind finally realising how Jin took advantage of a minor mistake and then within the two seconds of it, he took him out. He pressured the icebag on his cheekbone as it stung up with pain. He realised that his plan might have been childish and he was nowhere near as polished as Jin, everyone was right to think this was a hopeless match. This realisation made Izuku wonder why Shinji even decided for this to take place.

Soon, he walked out of the office and was greeted by most that were still present, Jin was one of them, he looked a bit apologetic but Izuku made sure to clear that he was happy that Jin had helped open his eyes.

"That's great that you took it that way but still. I don't want you to stop coming here because of this loss. It's just a difference between a well-trained and a beginner. Plus, you are a quick learner so I'll be disappointed if you give up now." Jin said with a slap with a slap on Izuku's shoulder.

He understood that too as he walked back to his home, the gap between them and the gap between what he had imagined and how it turned out in reality was a massive one too. He couldn't distance between the thoughts of how Jin had held himself back during the fight, if he wasn't holding back Izuku would have had broken ribs with the hooks and jabs he would have received when he had left his body open to attacks. Jin was right, Izuku had a lot to learn but he didn't have that much time. This was about time, he needed to put as many hours into this as he had in a day.

He thought that he was climbing the mountain in front of him but in reality, he was still at the foot of that mountain. How could he be satisfied by this? He was pathetic in that match. He wasn't satisfied with this, he wasn't satisfied with himself. He needed more, He needed much more. At that moment, He had decided what he needed to do next.

Shinji watched him walking with his head down and he did feel bad just a little bit but told himself that it was for the better. Once Izuku gave up on becoming a hero, he could train him to become a boxer. He was certain he had gotten rid of the pipe dream inside Izuku's head and as he rested on his bed he felt a sliver of doubt. No one would return to the same gym after getting such a beating. Shinji felt his palms get sweaty as he sat up, there was something about Izuku that worried him still, maybe it was the fact that Izuku was Hisashi's kid that they weren't so different and there that was the problem that was troubling Shinji. He tried to adjust his breathing while thinking that maybe he was worrying for nothing, his nephew would never jump in front of a villain even when he knew he would lose.

"Why wouldn't I go back to the problem I lost to? That's the fun part, once I know how bad I am at something I know exactly how far I need to go." an 8-year-old Hisashi.

"Ah, Fuck!" He sighed.

The next morning his ah fuck thoughts came to reality and he found Izuku sitting on the steps of his gym with a packed bag resting next to him.

"Ah, Fuck!" His eyes met Izuku's and he saw the burning desire, the hunger of a lion itching to consume and break his own body if he had to. Shinji felt a cold shiver down his spine as a smile spread on his face. His nephew was insane!