Chapter 1 – The Shackles Called All Might
"All For One, huh?" Izuku muttered, burying his head in his arms.
In the moment, he said he'd do his best, and even if he spent more time thinking about it, he wouldn't change his answer.
But…
What could he actually do?
Someone who All Might struggled to fight against in his prime… The source of those inhumane creatures with multiple quirks called Noumu.
Was there really a place on the battlefield for someone like him who couldn't use One For All properly yet?
Izuku recalled his slipup during the rescue training. If he had just focused a minute longer, he wouldn't have fallen. The memory stung, a sharp reminder of how he still lagged behind his classmates.
Clenching his fists, he felt a wave of frustration but also a surge of resolve. "I can't keep making excuses," he whispered. "I'll do what I can."
"First, I need to be smarter about my training," he grabbed a brand-new notebook from his bookshelf titling it "Superpower", the cover name he had thought of when registering One For All.
Surprisingly, it was the first time he had considered writing down what he knew about the quirk. Anytime he considered analysing it, he would remember All Might saying it was a well-kept secret and suppress his instinct to write notes.
But… 'It should be fine if I leave out the key details, right?' Izuku thought as he started to write down what he knew about the quirk, leaving out details such as the previous users or it being transferable.
Less than two minutes later, he finished writing. Looking at his notes, he bitterly smiled. It was barely half a side of A5.
For someone who considered himself a quirk nerd… someone who was dreaming about a quirk his entire life, it was strange he didn't know much about the quirk he was gifted.
Yet even on this short list, there was only one thing he had discovered about One For All himself, rather than being told it.
"To use Superpower without causing damage, I visualise an egg in a microwave while channelling energy across my whole body to strengthen it. Since the egg is fragile, I need to limit the amount of energy accordingly.
"Current limit: 8%
Method of improvement – Physical Training"
*Tap tap tap*
Izuku subconsciously smacked the pencil against the paper as he kept re-reading that note. There was something missing.
His eyes focused on "channelling energy across my whole body to strengthen it."
The 'strengthen' was… vague.
What did he actually mean by that?
Thinking deeper, Izuku realised that he didn't have an answer. He was too focused on how to limit the power output of One For All, he hadn't even considered the details of using the energy.
Izuku's thoughts drifted back to what All Might had told him about One For All. 'He said it was a strength enhance–'
Suddenly, a piece of advice Gran Torino had given him during his internship interrupted his thought process. "Your admiration and sense of loyalty to All Might are like shackles."
To this day, he still didn't quite understand what the old man meant by that, but he always kept it in his mind.
Therefore, instead of assuming something based on what he was told by All Might, Izuku decided to figure it out for himself.
Channelling One For All, he visualised an egg in the microwave, but didn't think about enhancing his strength.
The floodgates of power opened slightly as green lightning sparked on his right arm… before moving to his left leg… his chest… his head.
Yet the familiar feeling of empowerment wasn't there.
Izuku stood up and moved around, occasionally throwing a few punches when he saw the lightning crackle over his arms, but he still didn't feel a difference.
Slowly, he increased the output, causing more and more sparks to crackle around him.
This time the energy appeared across his whole body at once as if he was using Full Cowl, and although he was using far more energy than he could usually handle, he wasn't harmed.
Eventually, Izuku deactivated One For All. The energy inside his body merging back into the core, while the lightning outside fused with the surrounding atmosphere.
When the last of the sparks faded away, he slumped onto the floor, his tense nerves relaxing. There was no Recovery Girl around, and he was fairly certain he had used enough power to break a limb.
One wrong move, and he would be taking a visit to the hospital.
But although risky, it confirmed one thing.
The usage of One For All's power was based on his ability to visualise. The reason why even with Full Cowl there was still some clunkiness because his mental image was poor.
So thinking in reverse, if he visualised his power usage better, then that feeling should go away.
Optimistic, Izuku started jotting down his discovery and potential ideas for an image to focus on.
Instead of something vague like "be stronger", he pulled on his understanding of biology and separated the body into its core components.
Closing his eyes, he imagined the human body in as much detail as possible. It was a slow process, but each step was done meticulously.
Skin, muscle, bone, nerves and internal organs.
Izuku didn't just want to enhance his strength, but also his speed, durability and reaction speed.
When he felt like he was ready, he activated One For All once more, eyes closed while deeply concentrating on the image in his mind.
*Bzzt Bzzt Bztt*
Opening his eyes, Izuku was greeted with the sight of green lightning crackling across his body. To the naked eye, it looked the same as before, but only he knew it was an entirely different sensation.
Rather than feeling like a cloak surrounded his body, Izuku felt his very being change. No longer did he feel a sense of incongruity.
"Now… let's test the changes." Izuku dashed out of his room, appearing a moment later with a sharp knife in his hand.
Slowly, he pushed the knife against the palm of his hand, gently adding more and more pressure.
The moment he broke the skin, he retracted the knife and covered the wound with a plaster.
"It took about 20% of my strength" he estimated, uncaring about the small cut. He had gone through far worse against the battle with Stain, he was used to small injuries like this now.
Reaction speed was more difficult to test, so Izuku settled with using a website. Comparing it to without One For All, with the original Full Cowl and the upgraded version, he saw a sharp increase in his ability to react.
Izuku smiled in elation, barely withholding the impulse to cheer. He didn't think that simply just by changing how he used One For All would improve Full Cowl that much.
Turning to his notebook, he wrote down his observations and ideas, generating a list of things to experiment with.
Enhancements
- S̶t̶r̶e̶n̶g̶t̶h̶
- S̶p̶e̶e̶d̶
- D̶u̶r̶a̶b̶i̶l̶i̶t̶y̶
- R̶e̶f̶l̶e̶x̶e̶s̶
- Senses (eyesight, hearing, taste, smell, touch)
- Brain processing speed
- Healing factor
*Ding*
The sound of a notification rang, interrupting Izuku from his writing. Pulling out his phone, he saw it was a message from Iida.
"Yes Iida-kun, I have finished my homework." He chuckled with mirth. Iida had been a lot more talkative since their encounter with Stain. Although almost every conversation started with him asking about schoolwork.
Iida: You have been distracted in class today. Is there a problem?
Iida: As Class Representative of 1-A, it is my duty to ensure all students are on track!
Tapping on his phone, Izuku sent a response.
Izuku: Thanks for the concern, was thinking about training. I want to get Full Cowl perfected.
It wasn't a lie. Although he was distracted by the discussion with All Might about All For One, he was still thinking about training.
*Ding* Almost immediately a response was received.
Iida: Don't forget that academics are important too! But training? Would you like to pair up tomorrow?
Izuku smiled. He hadn't sparred with Iida for quite some time.
Izuku: Sounds good ^_^
Iida: I will ask Aizawa-sensei first thing tomorrow! It should be fu
He tilted his head curiously as the message cut off, but soon realized the answer as he looked at the message.
Iida: It's 10pm, I must be heading to bed. Goodnight, Midoriya-kun.
Izuku: Goodnight
"That's just like Iida-kun," he muttered. It didn't matter what the topic was or how deep they were in conversation, the moment it hit 10pm, Iida would cut the conversation short and get ready for bed.
He asked about it once, Iida was apologetic stating that it was hard for him to change a habit engrained in him since he was a child. Not that Izuku minded of course, everyone had their quirks.
"I might as well do the same." He dropped onto his bed face first, his breathing soon evening out.
…
"Gunhead Martial Arts!"
Izuku watched in fascination as Ochako launched Kirishima in the air causing him to float aimlessly. Without any footholds for the boy to launch from, the match was considered to be over.
"She's really improved during her internships," Izuku murmured with a smile. "The grappling style suits her well."
Ochako really was a menace to fight against for anyone who couldn't maneuver in the air or fight at medium-long distances.
Next to him, Tsuyu nodded. "She's been training hard. It's definitely paying off."
"Yeah," Izuku agreed. "Seeing everyone's growth is amazing."
As Ochako helped Kirishima back to his feet, Tsuyu turned her gaze to Izuku. "Speaking of improvements, you've come a long way too, Izuku-chan."
Izuku rubbed the back of his neck, slightly embarrassed. "Thanks, Asui-san."
"Your moves are a lot like All Might's," Tsuyu observed, tilting her head thoughtfully. "It makes sense, given your admiration for him and how similar your quirks are."
"Are they? I haven't paid att-"
Before Izuku could finish, Bakugo's voice cut through the air.
"Similar moves? The shitty nerd's moves are more like an inferior copy!" Explosions crackled in his hands as he glared at Izuku. "He's just a worse version of All Might."
"Bakugo vs Todoroki" Aizawa called out, interrupting the conversation.
"You're going down, half-and-half!" Bakugo screamed, storming off to the fight, still fuming. Izuku watched him go, confusion in his eyes. He turned to his friends, "Do I really copy All Might's movements?"
Kaminari shrugged. "Well, you do call out a lot of smashes."
Sero nodded. "And you've got that whole punching thing down."
Ashido smirked, trying to lighten the mood. "Don't worry about it, Midoriya. Bakugo's still prickly since his internship with Best Jeanist."
Kaminari and Sero gave similar nods.
'They didn't deny it…' Izuku thought, feeling a pang of self-doubt.
Gran Torino's words floated to his mind once more. That his admiration to All Might was like shackles.
He started to understand what the man meant. Even with his improvements of Full Cowl, he was still constrained in his thinking.
As the next match began, Izuku found himself lost in thought. He had always looked up to All Might to the point he started to unconsciously emulate him. But if he were to fight against All For One like All Might had stated was possible in the future then…
'If I can only do what All Might can do, but worse, would it even be of any help?' Izuku pondered, his brow furrowing in concentration. 'All For One has many different quirks at his disposal. If I mimic All Might, I'll always be a step behind.'
The realization hit him hard, but what else could he do? The only thing he could think of was to change his fighting style. He was using One For All correctly… as an enhancer, right?
Izuku remembered his visualization training, how he had discovered that for One For All to work effectively, he needed a clear image to strengthen himself. Up until now, he had focused on improving his image for enhancement.
But what if he... changed his image?
Would it be possible to use One For All in a different way?
'Maybe I can start from there,' Izuku thought. 'If I can visualize something other than just enhancing my strength... Maybe I can create new techniques, new ways to fight that aren't just copies of All Might's moves.'
"Midoriya vs Iida" Aizawa's voice broke through his thoughts. He stood up, giving his friend a nod of acknowledgement as they made their way to the center of the training ground.
"Read, Midoriya?" Iida asked, his usual seriousness evident.
"Yeah," Izuku replied, his voice steady. "Let's give it our best. Iida-kun."
End of Chapter 1
Hi all, I don't really have any plans for this story in particular but I wanted to try my hand at writing a story. I don't really have a planned update schedule, but I will probably just be writing in my free time. Feel free to take any ideas (if you like them), no need to ask or credit me.