MY HERO: NEW AGE OF HEROES
~ Part 07: Aku: Origin ~

Izuku and Ochaco's search for Kazuto's brother brought them to the sandy shores of Takoba Municipal Beach. Memories of his training with All Might came flowing back to Izuku as he stared on at its white sands and beautiful view of the ocean. To his surprise, near the sidewalk overlooking the shore, stood a large dark green statue of him. Seeing it made Ochaco giggle.

"I still can't believe they made a statue of you, Deku. They even got your color right." she laughed. Izuku smiled.

"Well, when the news learned it was my training with All Might that the beach was cleaned, they wanted to erect a statue of me as a way of thanks." he said "If All Might didn't train me, this beach would most likely still be a garbage dump." Kazuto observed the conversation before he felt a sudden jolt come over him, his eyes widening momentarily.

Heeeellpp….meee….

"H-Hey! Did you feel that?" he asked. Izuku and Uraraka turned to him.

"Feel what?" she asked.

"Do you see anything, Kazuto?" Izuku asked. Kazuto shook his head.

"No. But…I had the weirdest feeling just run down my spine." he said. He began scanning the sands before the same feeling came again with the similar voice. He quickly turned back to the heroes.

"I…I think my brother might be nearby! T-That has to be the only explanation!" he shouted. Ochaco gasped.

"Are you sure?" Izuku asked, kneeling down to his level. The boy nodded. They turned their gaze back towards the beach before, out of the corner of his eye, Izuku noticed a strange lid laying amidst the grains. They rushed over as Izuku picked it up.

"This looks like…a hatch door. But…where'd it come from?" he muttered, examining it to see the hinges had been torn off. Looking back, the three noticed a peculiar hole. Believing it to be the lead to his brother, Kazuto encouraged the two heroes to help him look.

~ Below the Sands ~

With Kazuto close by, the three descended down in a mechanical elevator that surfaced once Izuku approached. It took them deep below the sands of Takoba Municipal Beach and straight into the now abandoned lair of Dr. Garaki, where he and Aku were recently confined to. The sight of his tools, machines and other notes surprised the two heroes.

"W-Whoa! Look at this place! How did something THIS BIG stay out of the radar of the police, let alone the other Pro Heroes?" Ochaco exclaimed, her voice echoing. Izuku noticed a pile of torn paper by his feet, looking down to see it was the remnants of the newspapers he shredded out of hate. He saw a shred featuring his smiling face sticking out beneath his boot.

"No doubt about it, Uravity. This has to be one of Dr. Garaki's secret lairs. But…it doesn't look like one of the facilities he used to breed Nomu." he muttered. Kazuto turned to him.

"N-Nomu? What's a…Nomu?" he asked.

"They aren't a thing anymore, but Nomu were essentially the remains of deceased people that the man who owns this lab performed experiments on. He reanimated them into monstrous creatures that wielded multiple Quirks at the same time and mutated their bodies in the process. He sent them to attack innocent people and to cripple the Heroes to further his plans." Izuku explained. Ochaco nodded, saying it was at the command of his former employer, the deceased All For One. Kazuto gasped.

"T-They were ZOMBIES?!" he exclaimed out of fear.

"But, like Deku said, they're no longer being made as the doctor doesn't have the means or funding backing him like he previously had." Ochaco added. Just then, Kazuto heard a voice nearby groaning in agony. They all turned to see the unconscious boy from before, the one spat out by Aku.

"B-BROTHER!" the boy screamed, rushing over to him. Izuku gasped before following close behind while Kazuto crouched down to prompt him up.

"Tetsuo! Tetsuo! Wake up! It's me! Kazuto!" he shouted, shaking his body. He did not respond however. Izuku looked over Tetsuo's body and noticed the fluid dripping off him. Ochaco approached before looking disgusted, covering her nose because of the fluid's vile smell.

"Ohhh…that REEKS. Don't tell me Dr. Garaki was trying to experiment on kids now?" she asked. Kazuto put his head to his chest, hearing a heartbeat. He let out a heavy sigh.

"H-He's only asleep. Thank…Thank goodness." he muttered with teary eyes. Izuku smiled and patted the boy's head.

"I promised you we'd find him. Now that we have, you boys are going to be all right." he said, comforting him. But nearby, Izuku saw a trail of black drippings heading back towards the elevator shaft they just used. He also noticed the main computer was still active and, beneath the table, was the doctor's broken glasses. Ochaco then glimpsed at the opened capsule where Aku was previously.

"Deku? I...I got a bad feeling about this." she said "I think…the doctor must've been working on something new recently. Izuku hurried over and began attempting to open the files left behind on the computer, eyes glued to the screen. He was able to find a recorded video file within a sub folder titled "Project: Superior Nomu". Bringing it up showed a recording of Dr. Garaki in the dimly lit laboratory, looking squarely at the camera with a serious expression in his eyes.

I have…recently found out that my master, All For One, has fallen and our grand plan to have him merge with Shigaraki, becoming the Demon Lord of Japan, has also flopped. The heroes have, once again, won….much to my total DISGUST. However, there is "one" in particular…that I will dedicate the rest of my life, if needed, to make sure he DIES an agonizing and brutal death. And that…is his killer, "Deku"…or should I say, IZUKU MIDORIYA.

Izuku gasped.

If that boy thinks he can get away with ending the life of the man I hold immense respect for…in the name of "justice"…he is sadly mistaken. So he and his classmates have graduated from U.A. High and are no longer "students". He will DIE all the same. One For All…if you are hearing my voice from the other side, rest assured that your death will not go unanswered. For that, I have begun work on what I hope will be my crowning jewel among Nomu. But this one, ohh…he will NOT be like the rest. I plan to create an unstoppable demon, not restricted by the limitations of its body…with the sole purpose of KILLING Izuku MIdoriya and the rest of the Heroes. May this log of video evidence be proof that evil never rests.

The video ended there before Izuku began another one, Ochaco and Kazuto approaching from behind. The unconscious Tetsuo was being carried in Ochaco's arms. The new video showed Garaki looking on at the beginnings of Aku forming in his pod before looking towards the camera.

It has been about a year since I began this project…and things appear stable for the time being. The specimen has been quiet for a while now, only active when it senses the feeling of hate coming from other organisms. THAT will be what fuels its destructive rampage. Luckily for me, the remains of what I granted to that fool, Shigaraki, will be of vital use for the specimen's growth.

Izuku forwarded the video a bit, skipping over more self monologuing.

A long time ago, I was fortunate enough for All For One to bless me with a sample of his primal DNA. From it, I extracted and fostered a seed of pure hate from it. While I do not know of its origins, I will assume it was a result of the Master's overwhelming hatred for All Might, the man responsible for seriously crippling him. After I learned of his demise…I began funneling similar seeds of hate I created from DNA samples of the League of Villain members into its construction. Along with what can only be described as "the physical embodiment of evil", I am planning to introduce the specimen to other Quirks I previously had planned for future Nomu. Heh heh heh. As if the Quirks of Shigaraki and his co-horts weren't enough, I do this to assure Izuku Midoriya…has NO CHANCE of winning.

Izuku and Ochaco gasped.

"T-The hatred extracted…from the League of Villains?" she muttered, eyes widened. She thought back to her battle with Himiko Toga as well as their previous encounters with the League's members, ending on when the misunderstood Toga gave her life so she could live and donated her blood. Izuku lightly growled, clenching his fists.

"Garaki…what were you THINKING? Is that how you planned to remember Shigaraki and the others All For One used for his own purposes?" he thought. Just then, there was a most recent video recording that he brought up. Though it was short, the contents had Izuku shielding Kazuto's eyes because of the levels of violence. All that was recorded was the screams of Dr. Garaki as Aku, now freed and having rejected Tetsuo, consumed the doctor entirely and fused his body into his own. Aku let out a deep growl before undergoing a freakish mutation, growing larger after absorbing Garaki. He then looked towards the camera and roared loudly, damaging the devices enough to cut out. The sight left both heroes utterly horrified.

"It…It KILLED him?" Ochaco whispered softly, covering her mouth.

"That must be what escaped from the hatch before! He…He must be loose in the city right now!" Izuku thought, backing away slowly. He quickly tried to send a warning over his ear piece, but he only heard static.

"Guys! Are you there?!" he shouted "Drat! Dr. Garaki must have something jamming our comms! Uravity! Take the kids and get them somewhere safe! I'll meet you in the city later!" Before Ochaco could say a word, he made a break for the shaft leading above and, using boosters in his boots, wall jumped his way up. Ochaco groaned.

"Don't do anything reckless, Izuku." she muttered.

~ Kamino Ward - All Might Statue ~

Izuku rushed out and towards the city, using the rising smoke in the distance as a beacon to find Aku. His ear piece began to ring as he leapt across buildings.

Bakugo: ABOUT TIME YOU ANSWERED, you DUMB ASS!
Izuku: Dynamight! We found a secret lab under Takoba Beach belonging to Dr. Garaki! Something escaped from there and is most likely running rampant in the city!
Bakugo: What?! That damn doctor is behind this?! Tch! Either way, you're LATE reporting in!
Izuku: I'm sorry! He had some kind of jamming device in place so I couldn't call from inside! I'm on my way over!

But just as he hung up with Bakugo, his ear piece rang again.

Ojiro: Deku! There's this…big black monstrosity attacking civilians close to U.A. High! I'm here with Red Riot, Grape and Cellophane trying to contain him!
Izuku: W-What?! I just got word that Dynamight was fighting him! I'm seeing smoke rising from Kamino Ward!
Ojiro: Are you kidding me?! Does this THING have some kind of duplication Quirk then?!
Izuku: Maybe! It's one of Dr. Garaki's mutants! Watch out!

More and more calls kept coming in from his friends, all saying they were engaging "Aku" at different locals around the city. He also received word that other Pro Heroes were hurrying to help. Izuku then made a call to Officer Tsukauchi.

Izuku: Officer Tsukauchi! Do you copy? It's Deku!
Tsukauchi: I'm here, Midoriya! Are you calling about the black monster running rampant?
Izuku: Yeah! A little while ago, I was patrolling with Uravity and we found a secret laboratory that Dr. Garaki was using to make this…THING! But we found video proof that it turned on and KILLED his creator before breaking out!
Tsukauchi: What?! Garaki is dead?!
Izuku: As for his final creation, it's called Aku and was made using hatred fostered from the League of Villains and All For One! He also armed it with whatever cloned Quirks he had made! All for the purpose of killing me!
Tsukauchi: Most likely because you were the reason All For One perished. All right! I'll send anyone I can your way and make sure they're informed! What's your location?
Izuku: Nearing Kamino Ward! Dynamight is there too!

He abruptly hung up as he stopped on a rooftop overlooking "ground zero", the site of All Might's statue following his battle with All For One. In no time, he found Bakugo aiming his gauntlet at Aku, jumping down to his friend's side. Bakugo flashed a glance his way as the monster eyed him. Aku had grown to about the same size as All For One's adult self and had the muscles to match. His white hair grew even longer, the ends colored blood red. The monster was hunched over, walking on its knuckles like a gorilla.

"So…anything you'd like to report, Deku?" he asked, armed and ready.

"It's a Nomu with about as many Quirks as All For One…built for the purpose of killing "Deku"." Izuku replied "He also killed Dr. Garaki after being awakened." Bakugo looked back shocked.

"W-What?! The damn freak killed the doc?!" he shouted. Realizing the new person before him was Deku, the doctor's sole focus, Aku grew a large grin across his face as black ooze leaked out the gaps between his sharp teeth. A look of insanity bore daggers towards the hero. However, Izuku heard another voice call out to him.

"What the? Where'd you come from, kid?!" the voice yelled. Izuku looked and saw Atsuhiro and Shuichi ready to go, the reptile man armed with a katana.

"K-Kacchan! Why are they here?!" he asked. Bakugo groaned before explaining he found them engaging with Aku before he came to intercept him. Their fighting caused the civilians to flee in no time. The heroes turned their gaze back to Aku as he began to laugh in a deep, menacing beast slowly adjusted its body as to stand upright, laugh becoming unhinged as his sadistic gaze focused solely on Izuku.

"So…YOU'RE Deku." Aku said in a distorted voice, head cocked to the side "You didn't waste your time finding me….HERO." Izuku's gaze narrowed, assuming battle stance as more black fluid secreted from Aku's gums.

TO BE CONTINUED…