A/N Welcome everyone to my new story Null, I truly hope it exceeds your expectations. For those that haven't read Villainous Quirk, Heroic Soul, this is going to be a side story that I write when I get writers block with my main. Regardless this story is one I've mulled around in my head for quite awhile now, and I'm excited to finally share it. I want this story to be the best it can possibly be, so please feel free to give any constructive criticism you have, just please be polite and civil. Also a special thanks to my beta readers who help me make this story better Silenthorse, Gamer_kid1609, and Zurgboy2!
I also wanted to warn you that I fully understand and acknowledge that the prologue is a bit on the generic side. But it's so I can set the stage for the rest of the story, so I hope you'll give the next chapter a chance.
Disclaimer! I do not own My Hero Academia!
The world is a cruel place. It was full of people that happily steal from, assault, or even outright murder others. They don't care about the harm they cause, or the damage they leave in their wake. But at least those are the horrors that people look down upon. What's worse is the cruelties that people widely accept. For thousands of years, humanity would discriminate against certain groups. Race, gender, sexuality, all have been used to justify people doing horrific acts.
The world is a cruel place. This is a fact that people learn at some point in their lives. And for the people that face discrimination, they learn that lesson time and time again. Just like one Yagi Izuku was facing at this very moment as he mindlessly walked down the street. He had no real destination in mind, just going where his feet take him.
Izuku was just a 17 year old boy in his final year of high school, son of Yagi Toshinori and Yagi Inko. For as long as he could remember, all he ever wanted to do was become a hero and save people, like his idol All Might. But because of one thing he had no control over, his dream was deemed impossible. What's worse is that he also faced constant bullying and outright hate crimes for the same reason.
You see, Izuku was a quirkless person in a world where 80% of the population has a quirk. So just like every other quirkless person, he was considered bottom of the food chain, and not worth any sort of kindness. In fact, putting them down in any way has almost become a form of entertainment for the quirked. Lord knows he bears many scars from such acts. He mindlessly rubbed each scar as the memories of how he got each one ran through his mind, including the laughter from others as he writhed in pain.
Today was the worst day of Izuku's life since the day he was diagnosed as quirkless, and it left him feeling lost. He didn't know what to do or where to go as the beliefs he held for so long, the only thing keeping him sane, turned out to be nothing but lies.
As Izuku walked his mind replayed the day's events for what felt like the millionth time, as if his own mind had turned against him.
It all started this morning, waking up to the familiar sight of his barren bedroom. All he's had for many years was an old mattress he's had since childhood, an alarm clock that sat atop a beat up dresser filled with clothes that anyone else would throw away, and a dingy desk with a very uncomfortable chair he made himself after his old computer chair broke. Aside from that, there's all the school supplies that he had to buy himself, and his hero notebooks. While he would never admit it, those notebooks were the only lifeline he's had since the day everyone turned on him.
bang bang bang* "shut that damn thing off!" Screamed a familiar female voice.
With a sigh at the regular routine he slowly shut off his alarm before lying back down and stared up at his ceiling, gathering up his determination to get through another day. "You can do it. You're almost there. Just a few more months until the entrance exam." He muttered to himself over and over.
Unfortunately today was a day his brain decided to fuck with him and bring up his more negative thoughts, reminding him of how pitiful his life has been. You'd think having two parents working good paying jobs would mean he didn't live a life of poverty, but that wasn't the case. While he didn't know exactly what his parents did, he knew they made a lot of money.
bang* "Shut the fuck up! I can hear your stupid muttering through the wall!" Screamed the voice once more.
Suppressing a sigh Izuku sat up, already feeling like today was going to be a bad day. Well, worse than normal. As a last ditch effort Izuku pulled out his trump card from his wallet. A picture of him and his parents embracing from when he was about 3. While neither of them were dead, he missed them something fierce. Or at least the people they were before his diagnosis.
Shortly after that fateful day, his parents told him they had to go to another city for work, but he had to stay there so they left him with a nanny. At first he thought they'd only be gone for a few days. But those days turned to weeks, then months, and eventually years. He only talks to them every few weeks, and they visit only 5 times a year max. And most of those were mainly to see the Bakugo's. But the little time they do interact with him are his most cherished memories. They always give him large smiles, cheer him on, and build up his confidence. Except when they were upset with him, in which case they just come with a lecture and a grounding. Though it's not like being grounded was any different than his regular life. But those few times they are kind were the only warmth he felt, as everything else left him feeling cold and empty.
The two tell him all the time they wish they could live together, but circumstances they refuse to explain kept them apart. Internally, he knew it was a load of crap, but he wasn't ready to admit it to himself. Instead he shifts all the blame to his nanny. The same one they left him with all those years ago. The same one who abuses him and forces him to live in squalor. He knows his parents send them just enough money to live off of, but hardly any of it goes to him. Basically the only money spent on him was what was required to keep him alive with the cheapest stuff possible. The rest the Nanny keeps for herself.
Eventually he managed to psych himself up enough to start his day. After quickly getting dressed in his workout attire he made his way to the kitchen to grab a quick snack. Looking through the mini fridge that acted as the only place he could store his food he noticed it had been raided. Again. "Just a few more months." He quietly said to himself again as he grabbed a banana and made his way out the door.
This was easily his favorite part of the day. He woke up really early every morning before the sunrise, so as he ran to his morning job he could watch the sunrise at Dagobah beach. Not only was it a beautiful sight, it filled him with a sense of accomplishment. A few years ago the place could have easily been classified as a dump, but as one of his workouts he cleaned the beach himself. It took him a couple years as he had to physically carry it all to the actual dump, but the euphoria when he finished was immense. It made him smile every time he saw it, especially when he spotted people enjoying the fruits of his labor.
It wasn't much longer before he made it to his workplace, a newspaper delivery company. First thing first he made his way to the boss's office to get his paycheck. His hopes weren't too high on anything decent as his boss was a total scumbag and frequently shorted him by lying about how often he worked. No matter how much he tried reporting it, he always got the same answer from everyone. "A quirkless brat like you should be thankful to even have a job." The only ones who didn't tell him that were his parents, but they always just accused him of lying.
Grabbing his check from his boss, he waited until he was out of sight before looking at it. He really didn't feel like listening to another lecture. Seeing the total, Izuku couldn't hold back the sigh as he quickly saw his boss only paid him about two thirds of what he was actually owed.
As he grabbed a load of papers and stuffing them into a couple carrier bags he was deciding on where to cut back his spending. Considering he trained practically every day he couldn't cut back on the food. The nanny wouldn't give him any more than the bare minimum and he had to keep his intake up. Despite his current notebook almost being full, he decided he'd need to hold off as he needed new pens. A group of classmates stole the pack he bought last week and he still needed them for school.
He was in desperate need of some new shoes as his were worn completely flat and one has a hole in it. But if he split the cost between this paycheck and the next, he should be able to stretch the money he received. It'd mean wearing ratty shoes for a couple more weeks, but it wouldn't be the first time.
Hefting up three heavy carrier sacks and adjusting them to sit a bit more comfortably, Izuku went back to running. Considering his lack of workout equipment options, he tended to pick up jobs that could double as a workout. And to say it's paid off would be an understatement. While no one would admit or even acknowledge it, he was actually the strongest student in his school without quirk assistance. How did he know? He's seen the people they claim are stronger lift weights in the gym, and he can out lift all of them. They always say his muscles aren't big enough to be strong as he never went for bulk training. He focused more on proper muscle gain that wouldn't forego speed or skill.
When it came to speed, he was sure he's the fastest, but hasn't gotten any proof. As for intellect he was actually pretty smart, but he had to make sure to get lower scores than the golden boy Bakugo Katsuki, His ex-childhood friend and current main tormentor.
He had actually known the guy since birth since their parents are friends, he even had a nickname he used to use. But after some hard introspection in his early teenage years, he'd come to accept the reality of their relationship. It was difficult to accept, but the scars littering his body were even harder to ignore.
This had been his life for thirteen years, thirteen long hard years filled with torment. The only bright side was he had plenty of time to train to be a hero. He spent all of his free time either physically or mentally training. He'd even managed to teach himself several martial arts styles. It was difficult at first as his only resources to learn were books and the occasional video at the library. At first he did try going to a dojo, but none would take a quirkless student, calling it a waste of time. Thankfully as he managed to learn more and more fighting techniques, it became much easier to add new skills to his repertoire.
With a quick look at the time Izuku noticed he was starting to run behind. Maybe adding a backpack filled with bottles of sand was a bad idea. Hustling through the last of his route he made his way back home hoping to get ready for school before the nanny woke up. Well, the world decided he wasn't going to have any good luck today as he started getting screamed at as she hurled insults at him the moment he walked through the door.
Having heard her arsenal of insults a million times before, he barely managed to tune her out as he got ready. Didn't stop the headache from forming unfortunately.
On his way to school Izuku recited his mantra over and over again as he walked to school trying to brace himself for the shitstorm he knew he was walking into. As he got close and didn't feel anywhere near ready, he pulled out a trick that always worked. Ducking in an alleyway he hid behind a dumpster and closed his eyes, digging up an old memory from his childhood. It was an interview with All Might, one that has inspired so many. There was actually a spike in hero school applicants after the interview aired. It was all because of one line. A line that many deemed a huge turning point for heroics.
"Anyone can be a hero!" He mentally remembered All Might say so passionately. It was such a simple thing, but hearing it so emphatically from the number one hero lit a fire in many hearts. That included Izuku.
While the memory helped him many times, he didn't want to rely on it. Sure it gets him through his worst days, but he worried if he used it too much it would eventually stop working. It felt silly to him to think in such a way, but it's how he'd done it the last thirteen years, and he wasn't going to risk failing when he's so close.
As he finally felt prepared he opened his eyes, fiery determination blazing inside before he schooled it into a meek look. He didn't like pretending to be scared of everyone, but he learned long ago that showing no fear only made the bullying worse. Last time he didn't Bakugo assaulted him, and for the first time in his life he fought back.
And won.
The victory ended up being very short lived as he got in major trouble with the school. It didn't matter that he was defending himself, how dare he harm their top student. The school never told his parents that Bakugo started it, so he got in even bigger trouble at home. He got grounded for a full year and told by his parents he was very lucky they weren't pressing charges, but they would next time and they wouldn't defend him. Because of the incident, Izuku knew fighting back was useless and would just take the hits, showing no fear or signs of pain. Bakugo of course didn't like that and just kept doing worse and worse things to him, so he decided to pretend to be meek again just like he was as a child. He really didn't like it, but he knew he had to choose between pride or survival. He chose the latter.
School ended up being just as bad as he had expected. The sensei announced they would be taking a career aptitude test before making a big showing of tossing the papers and declaring he knew everyone wanted to be a hero. I mean, he wasn't wrong, but he really didn't need the theatrics. Though thinking about it, maybe it was a ploy as he remembered the teacher smirking at him after Bakugo made his usually egotistical speech and how UA was the only school for him. Immediately after, the sensei revealed to everyone his own intent to take the UA entrance exam. Which started the usual slew of laughter and mocking followed by Bakugo burning his desk with his quirk again, one of his standard intimidation tactics. Of course he played along, but how he wanted to just prove to Bakugo that he wasn't weak.
That wasn't even the worst part. After classes were done and Izuku was packing up his meager supplies, his backpack was ripped from his hands by Bakugo. Before he even had a chance to protest, the pomeranian was already rummaging through it. He knew he was looking for his hero notebooks. Despite the fact that he started leaving them at home after he stopped calling him Kacchan, to ensure he is "staying in line."
Staying seated Izuku did his best not to let his annoyance show. This always happens at least once a week, usually after Bakugo gets extra annoyed with him for one stupid reason or another. Except this time seemed different. Usually he'd be acting all smug like he was doing the world a favor, but this time he was frantically going through it, like he was desperately looking for something.
Izuku hoped letting him get it out of his system would just have things play out like they usually do. Bakugo searches his things, finds nothing, then throws punches or explosions at him before leaving. This time though he kept searching until eventually he actually started ripping his backpack apart with the help of his quirk.
Seeing one of his few possessions getting destroyed made Izuku lose control of his emotions as he yelled at Bakugo to stop. The only thing stopping him from taking on Bakugo's challenge for a fight was the look he got from his teacher who'd been in the room the entire time. The asshole looked smug and was already writing a slip given to students when they're in trouble. It was obviously for him and not Bakugo, so he put his annoyance aside. Thankfully he hadn't done anything that could be spun against him. So schooling his features once more he took on his usual meek persona.
After Bakugo finished destroying his backpack and still finding nothing he started screaming at Izuku. Telling him to withdraw his application to UA. That he was the only one allowed to go to UA from their school. Of course he falsely agreed, thinking he could probably contact UA to tell his current school his application was withdrawn. Though he held out no belief that they would even care.
After a round of suicide baiting from Bakugo telling him to take a swan dive off the roof, something he's heard many times from many people, he finally left with his cronies. Of course before Izuku could leave, the teacher called him over and told him he'd be serving detention the following day. He didn't even bother arguing knowing it was futile. Looking at the slip he was in trouble for 'causing a disturbance.' Not the weakest claim he'd seen, but it was definitely up there.
Resolving himself for another round of lectures from his parents about how disappointed they are, Izuku finally got out of the classroom. Looking at the time he noticed he had a bit of free time before he had to be at his second job. So he took his time walking, trying to make sure he didn't lose anything from his tattered backpack.
As Izuku walked under an overpass, he was mumbling to himself as he mentally planned out tomorrow now that he had to take the detention into consideration. He was so wrapped up in his head, he didn't notice the slime villain seeping out of the sewers until they started speaking. The villain called him a meatsuit and declared his intention to take Izuku's body. Well he wasn't about to let that happen, so he quickly used his most valuable tool in his Arsenal. His analysis skills. It was easy to see what the weak point was as he doubted he could actually injure the sludge.
When the villain launched several tendrils at him he reacted quickly, dodging out of the way and using the opportunity to close the gap. When the villain launched another attack before he could reach them, Izuku used the wall as a launch pad to not only avoid the attack but to get him closer to his target. His plan worked perfectly as he managed to deliver a good blow to one of the villain's eyes, causing him to freak out in pain.
As Izuku got ready to continue the attack the manhole cover blew off the ground and out popped his idol, the number one hero, All Might. After a short back and forth between All Might and the villain, Izuku got to witness one of the heroes signature moves and was geeking out as the villain was defeated in one punch.
After breaking free from his awe at the display he immediately ran up to All Might as he was collecting the villain into a 2 liter bottle. At first he was surprised All Might's wife, the number 8 hero Attract wasn't with him but quickly wrote it off. After realizing he had nothing to ask All Might to sign he settled for asking him a question he desperately wanted validation for. When he tried to talk to him, All Might picked up his pace in collecting the villain, saying something about how evil never rests. Before Izuku could even get his question out, All Might had taken a leaping posture. Out of instinct Izuku grabbed the hero's leg mid leap, taking him with it. After a quick reminder to All Might that he'd die if he let go, the two landed on a roof. All Might quickly tried to leave Izuku, but stopped when the greenette quickly spat out his question. After asking All Might if a quirkless person could be a hero, he nearly broke at the answer he received.
All Might told him no.
After a short lecture from the hero that it's alright to dream, but to be realistic, Izuku was left feeling broken. His idol, the man who said anyone could be a hero, told him no. He cried for what felt like hours before being able to gather enough energy to even move. Desperately trying to get it together, Izuku kept reminding himself that his parents believed in him. That his parents told him he could be whatever he wants to be. He even took a few glances at the ledge as Bakugo's words rang in his head.
Eventually he was pulled out of the abyss of emotions by the sounds of a large explosion. Without thinking Izuku ran to where he heard the explosion happen. It helped that there were several small explosions continually happening.
When he eventually got to the scene, he was horrified to find the sludge villain holding a captive. A captive he recognized instantly. Bakugo Katsuki. Taking quick mental notes of the scene before him, he was disgusted when he heard the heroes on duty complain about not having "the right quirk" and were just going to wait for one to show up. After spotting the fear in his tormentor's eyes, Izuku's feet started moving before he could even think. Even if he hated the guy's guts, he wouldn't let him die.
When Izuku's brain finally caught up with him he formed a plan on how to handle the situation. Taking his last pen from his pocket, he threw it at the villain's eye. Years of target practice with objects of various sizes and shapes really paid off as he got the villain right in the pupil. The villain's reaction and screams of pain were enough of a distraction for Izuku to plunge his hands into the sludge, grab hold of Bakugo, and pull him out. Barely a second later All Might appeared, defeating the villain and even changing the weather with a single punch.
Izuku didn't expect accolades for his actions, it was enough to know he at least contributed to saving a life. Well the heroes didn't see his actions that way and scolded him. Including All Might. All while they praised Bakugo for his bravery and powerful quirk. But he didn't let it get him down, even All Might telling him to give up being a hero and revealing his quirkless status for all to hear. Which only added to the scoldings he got from the heroes and even a few civilians.
It hurt, it truly did, but Izuku refused to let it get him down. He knew what he did, and he knew he did good. He was riding that high as far as it would take him until it all crashed down around him when he stumbled upon what would be the final nail in his coffin.
As he walked down the street he heard All Might's booming voicing coming from just around the corner. Not wanting to see the hero again, Izuku hid behind the wall, causing him to overhear everything. When he heard a weird poof sound and Bakugo exclaim not only his surprise, but yelled his dad's name, that drew Izuku's attention. He couldn't believe it. There was no way that his dad was All Might. Carefully peeking around the corner he was horrified to, infact, see his dad. Much skinnier than he remembered, but what he heard next solidified it was truly him.
All Might explained his injury to Bakugo, and how his quirk that he kept secret from the world, is transferable. And he deemed Bakugo to be a worthy successor and offered him his quirk. The angry pomeranian did ask his dad why he didn't choose Izuku, but he could hear the smugness in his voice when he asked. When his dad said both him and Inko discussed it but decided Izuku wasn't a worthy successor he could feel his heart break from a million pieces to a trillion.
He stood there in stunned silence as he heard his mom join them, scolding Toshinori for leaving her behind, and reaffirming everything he just overheard. At which point he couldn't take it anymore, he simply walked away, not knowing where he was going.
Every positive thing that he cherished with all his heart was ripped from Izuku in a single day. No. They were just all lies, and he blinded himself to them. So he kept walking, just letting his body go where it wanted as his heart and mind tried picking up the pieces of his shattered reality. Eventually he found himself regaining focus, and where he ended up solidified a decision he debated on time and time again.
"Just...just a few...more..." Barely said Izuku, unable to get the words out as tears poured from his eyes. He was done and just so so tired. He kept trying to say his mantra, not even believing a single word of it anymore as he walked back into the building All Might left him on the roof of earlier.