Chapter Summary: Izuku learns there's more to One For All than he thought.

Izuku wasn't sure how he was supposed to feel when he finally cleared out his section of the beach. With each day bringing him closer and closer to meeting his goal, he supposed he should have felt some form of gratification or at least a sense of accomplishment, especially when he had managed to do it with a couple months to spare before the exam. Instead, as he stood amongst the cleared horizon and faced the setting sun, he couldn't quite put a word to what he was feeling.

"Well done, young Midoriya," All Might told him, breaking him out of his thoughts. His piercing blue eyes shone with pride as he gazed at Izuku's sweaty face. "You restored the horizon for the whole section."

Despite his exhaustion, Izuku managed a smile. "I can't believe I did it… I thought it'd take me much longer."

All Might chuckled. "Well, it's a good thing you finished up in time for the exam. That gives us more time to focus on training you once I give you my Quirk."

Izuku should have felt excited. Every single day he was clearing out his section of the beach or he was working out with his mom, the one constant that helped him to push through the pain and exhaustion was the fact that it would all lead to All Might giving him his Quirk. He always figured that once the day finally came, he'd be jumping for joy or crying out of sheer gratitude, and yet…

His eyes trailed over to the hills and valleys of trash that still littered the beach. He pursed his lips and clenched his fists. 'Did I really earn it?'

All Might's hand fell onto his shoulder, making him jump. "I know what you're thinking, young Midoriya. But I assigned you only this small section because I knew that was what your body could handle at this point in time." All Might turned to the piles of trash with furrowed brows. "Clearing out the whole beach would be too much for you."

Although he knew it was true, it didn't make it easier to accept. "Yeah, I guess…"

"Relax, my boy," All Might assured him, smiling a bit, "you've done amazing work here these past few months. And just think: once you get the hang of One For All, the rest will come easy to you."

Then, it hit Izuku all at once. "Wait, so does that mean—"

"Congratulations!" All Might told him. He clapped his hands together and beamed at Izuku. "You've finally reached the end of this phase of training! That means you can graduate to the next one!"

"You mean…" Izuku began, stopping to swallow. "You mean you're going to give me your Quirk? Have I really earned it?" He felt his eyes start to burn and he tried to blink back the tears that he knew were coming. "You've done so much to help me… How did I get so lucky?"

All Might's eyes were soft as he gazed down at Izuku. "My boy, it was your hard work down here that did this, not mine. That's why I wanted to reward you properly."

Then, to Izuku's total surprise, his teacher pulled a small wrapped box out of his large jacket. The paper was a deep blue adorned with stars and red stripes, a bright, golden bow rested on the top of it. A tag hung from one of the loops of the bow and there Izuku saw his own name written on it in neat script.

"Surprise!" All Might proclaimed, and Izuku jumped when he took on his muscle form. "I wanted to get you something to commemorate today!"

Izuku did his best to choke back a sob. "Y-You didn't have to…"

"Nonsense!" All Might told him. He held the present out to Izuku. "Why don't you open it up?"

With shaking hands, Izuku took the gift from All Might. He gingerly removed the bow and wrapping paper, some part of him too afraid to see what was inside. Despite knowing All Might wouldn't do such a thing, he couldn't help but feel like this was all some cosmic joke and that when he opened the gift, he would be greeted with something to confirm his worst fears. It wouldn't be the first time he had gotten a joke gift from someone and become a laughingstock for assuming someone cared enough to get him a present. However, as soon as Izuku's fingers broke past the paper, his breath hitched.

"Is this…?" Izuku questioned, the words escaping him. As soon as the rest of the wrapping paper fell away, his eyes widened and his jaw dropped. Laying in his hands was a brand new notebook, the pages crisp and pristine beneath his touch. The emerald green cover was sturdier than the campus notebooks he used in the past and already had black text etched across the surface: "Hero Analysis of the Future, Vol. 14."

"I know you already have your other notebooks," All Might acknowledged, "but I figured you could do well with a notebook for one special hero in particular. So, I had this one custom-made for you to write about your own hero experiences and analyze yourself!" He pointed a finger at the cover with his trademark smile. "Becoming a hero isn't a distant dream for the future now, young Midoriya. It's going to become a part of your present quite soon!"

Izuku stared at the title on the cover, his gaze unbreaking. He kept reading it over and over again to check the validity of it and ensure that it was real. When it finally hit him that he wasn't being pranked or that it wasn't a figment of his imagination, a shaky smile spread across his face and he could feel a lump begin to rise in his throat. Thick, hot tears started to roll down his cheeks and his attempts to hold back a sob were weak at best. He managed to bring a hand to his lips in time to muffle it, but even so, he couldn't stop the flood coming from his eyes.

"Oh," All Might said, "oh, do you not like it? I thought you'd like a new notebook since your last one got burned, but if you'd rather I take this one back—"

Izuku hugged the notebook to his chest. "N-No! Don't take it back!"

"Oh!" All Might exclaimed, retracting his hand. "So, you do like it?"

Izuku nodded, a small sob escaping past his lips. "I l-love it… I-I've never gotten such a n-nice present from someone b-before…"

All Might blinked. "Oh… Really? I… didn't think it would mean that much to you."

"Of course it means a lot to me!" Izuku blurted out. He swiped at his cheek furiously as he regarded All Might. "M-Most people think my notes are w-weird… The only p-person who ever b-buys me new notebooks is my m-mom." He thought back to the burns that marred his thirteenth volume and his face crumpled a bit. "I-I won't l-let anything b-bad happen to it, All Might!"

"Oh, my boy," All Might said softly. He placed his hand on Izuku's shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze, which nearly broke Izuku all over again. "I have no doubt in my mind that you'll take good care of it."

Izuku choked back another sob. "T-Thank you…"

His mentor said nothing for a long moment, his piercing blue eyes gazing down at Izuku's shaking form as he tried to gather himself. He hated that he could get so caught up in his emotions at times, but once the faucet got to pouring, it was hard for him to turn it off. The notebook remained flush to his chest like an old stuffed toy he never thought he'd see again and Izuku could only wonder what he'd fill its crisp new pages with.

"Young Midoriya," All Might began, causing him to blink, "there's… something I need to talk to you about."

Izuku faced All Might with wide, teary eyes. Had he changed his mind? Had he decided not to have Izuku as a successor after all? Was this gift just a consolation prize for all his efforts? Izuku hugged the notebook tighter and bit his bottom lip at the very thought.

"Come," All Might told him, releasing his shoulder, "take a seat. I have a lot to tell you."

Unsure of what else to do, Izuku followed after All Might, his feet dragging on the cleared sand. When his mentor took a seat at the bottom step, Izuku joined him, his hands still clutching his new notebook like a lifeline. Then, the silence was broken by a puff of smoke and there All Might sat in his true form, his jaw set in contemplation.

"I struggled with telling you this," All Might admitted suddenly, his eyes not meeting Izuku's, "but now that we've reached the end of the first phase of your training, I feel it wouldn't be right for me to keep this from you, especially before I give you my Quirk." His eyes stared endlessly out into the open horizon that Izuku cleared out and his hands clutched his knees. "The Quirk that I chose for you to inherit is unique in nature and… you should know of its origin."

Izuku's breath hitched. "Its origin?"

All Might nodded, though he still didn't turn to Izuku. "One For All has been passed down many generations and has been held by seven other holders than myself." His eyes fell out of focus for a brief second before he shook his head and they fell back into concentration. "But its beginnings came from another Quirk, one that is very old and came about when Quirks had just begun to manifest. Society had yet to find a way to navigate living with the newly powered among the populace and many struggled with knowing what it meant to be a 'normal' person."

"It… used to be something else?" Izuku asked. Were he not so transfixed, he would have tried to see if he had a pen or pencil on him. Instead, he stared at his mentor with rapt attention, his eyes wide.

"The name of that Quirk," All Might began, his voice growing firm, "was All For One. It allowed its user to take Quirks from others, either to pass on to others or to keep for himself."

A chill ran down Izuku's spine. "You mean… he could just take someone's Quirk? He wasn't just duplicating it or mimicking it, but actually just stealing it?"

All Might's hand clenched tighter on his knees. "Yes. During the era of chaos and confusion where the world's populace argued over human rights and laws about Quirks, All For One came about. The world already had its fair share of issues and the introduction of Quirks only exacerbated tensions, throwing a wrench into the mechanics of society as we knew it."

"Society stalled," Izuku observed aloud, "I… I remember hearing someone say that if Quirks didn't show up, people would be having interstellar holidays by now."

"It's true," All Might replied, "the progress society had made was overcome by discourse and debate amongst the world's powers and the populace faced the brunt of it. During that chaotic period, one person managed to rally the restless together. " His gaze hardened as he stared out into the setting sun. "That man went by All For One, the name of his power. He stole Quirks from others, gaining an overwhelming amount of power that granted him influence across the entire country. His followers fell prey to his manipulation while he committed unspeakable acts with little resistance and soon enough, he had gained control of villains all over Japan."

Izuku stared at All Might, his eyes unable to blink. In his years of analysis and research, he had delved into the origin of Quirks and how they manifested throughout the generations, partially out of some naive hope that he would find a sliver of a chance that he would manifest a Quirk of his own. Still, the early generations of Quirks were mostly shrouded in mystery and were brushed over in any history classes covering the subject. Speculation ran amok online and Izuku himself was engrossed in it as a young teen, but even so, he found most theories to be too unsubstantiated to be taken seriously.

"Isn't that all just made up theories?" Izuku questioned, his hands shaking a bit. "I've read about it online, but… If it was true, they'd teach it to us in school, wouldn't they?"

All Might's expression turned grave. "History isn't always told through a truthful perspective, young Midoriya. Much has been omitted to keep the newer generations unaware of the facts of that era." He looked down. "There were many campaigns and efforts made by organizations to lobby for that era of history to be all but struck from the record of the public out of utter shame for what took place."

"But…" Izuku tried to say. He swallowed thickly and clutched his notebook tighter. "But what does this have to do with One For All?"

"All For One was able to give Quirks to others, young Midoriya," All Might answered, and instantly, Izuku went very still, "he was able to get people to trust him or outright submit to his will by altering their abilities. Those who were unable to handle the power they were given became mindless puppets for him to use, incapable of even speaking." Then, he finally turned and met Izuku's wide-eyed gaze. "Meanwhile, some Quirks began to evolve as they were passed on or even combined with other power sets."

'Like Kacchan,' Izuku thought to himself. In Volume 2 of his notebooks, he had a full spread on the entire Bakugou family, with Auntie Mitsuki being able to secrete Glycerin from her skin and how Uncle Masaru would sweat acid in lieu of normal sweat. While Masaru couldn't sweat at will and would need to clap in order to cause explosions, Kacchan was able to secrete Nitroglycerin and cause explosions at will like how his mother could secrete Glycerin. It made for a terrifying combination and made him especially powerful in combat, as the more he fought, the more he was able to sweat and create bigger explosions.

"All For One had a sickly younger brother," All Might continued, breaking Izuku out of his thoughts, "and he was assumed to be Quirkless, but despite that, he had a strong sense of justice and doing what was morally right." He chuckled humorlessly. "The two couldn't have been more different." Then, his frown returned. "Despite his sickness, the brother fought back against All For One and deeply despised the man that he was."

"He fought back while being Quirkless? " Izuku blurted out.

All Might nodded, and something akin to a smile spread across his lips. "Remind you of anyone?"

Despite the burn in his ears, Izuku pressed on. "But… What happened to him? He couldn't have possibly been able to stand up to All For One while being Quirkless, could he?"

"You're right," All Might replied, "but he didn't remain Quirkless for long." His eyes fell away from Izuku's gaze. "All For One gave his brother a Quirk… One that would allow him to stockpile power. Whether it was a gift to aid his sickly brother or something he forced upon him to make him submit… I can only assume it was the second."

"That…" Izuku began, the shake in his hands returning, "that sounds like—"

"And you're right," All Might interjected, "it turned out that the brother wasn't actually Quirkless. After All For One gave him the Quirk, the brother realized that he had been born with a Quirk that was useless before his brother gave him that power… the ability to pass on Quirks to others." He finally brought his gaze up to meet Izuku's once again. "The brother to All For One… was the original holder of One For All."

Izuku couldn't stop himself from gasping aloud. He stared at All Might in total shock and bewilderment, unable to find what to say. His mind was running a mile a minute, faster than his words could possibly begin to catch up to, and he was only left grasping for dear life as the full weight of everything All Might said came down. For years, he wondered what the source of All Might's power and ability came from, but he couldn't possibly ever have imagined it being anything like what he was hearing. To think that something that made All Might so powerful once came from something so evil… it felt wrong .

"What happened to All For One?" Izuku found himself asking. "He's not still alive, is he? He can't be, it's been generations— "

"There are Quirks to halt aging, young Midoriya," All Might reminded him, and instantly, Izuku felt a weight settle at the pit of his stomach, "and due to the sheer number of Quirks he stole, he was practically immortal."

The tremors in Izuku's hands only grew. "But… h-he's not still around, is he? W-We'd know if he was."

All Might met Izuku's fearful gaze with a steely stare. "The original holder of One For All knew that he wouldn't be able to stand up to his brother in his current state… So he entrusted it with the future generations so that it would grow in power and eventually, one of the future holders would hold the strength necessary to stand up to All For One." He brought his fist to his chest and closed his eyes. "I was the one to finish it… once and for all."

"You fought All For One?" Izuku exclaimed.

"I did," All Might answered. Then, when he opened his eyes, they fell out of focus, like he wasn't looking at Izuku anymore; it was almost as if he were in a completely different time and place. "It took almost everything in me to do it, but… I finally finished it."

The twisted scar that marred All Might's side flashed to the forefront of Izuku's mind. "Was… Was he the one who…?"

All Might's knuckles turned white. "Yes. He was."

Suddenly, it hit Izuku just what All Might meant by "finished it." The fight had taken place five years prior, long before he met Izuku or could have possibly been looking for a successor to take on after him when he eventually lost his power for good. With a hole blown into his side and no successor to take on the burden, he could have only been left with one option…

"You had to kill him, didn't you?" Izuku whispered.

All Might's focus snapped back onto Izuku. His mentor said nothing for a long moment, his eyes widening with shock. Izuku could only guess what was running through his mind at the moment and for a flicker of a moment, he thought he saw fear flash in All Might's eyes. Finally, All Might's expression settled into something not quite calm, but not entirely pensive, either.

"I'm not proud of it," All Might said finally, "I didn't go into the fight with the intention of killing him, but… I had no other choice. I hadn't been able to find a successor by that point and I knew that if I didn't finish him then, there'd be no one else to take on my burden." He closed his eyes. "Perhaps someone without the power of One For All would have been able to stand up to him if I hadn't been able to finish him, but… I couldn't risk dying if it wasn't a total guarantee."

Izuku's brows furrowed. As reprehensible he found the act of killing to be… he ultimately understood what All Might meant. It was a situation where no matter what he did would have had terrible consequences, but… would the death of a villain who had wrought generations worth of chaos onto society really weigh heavier on the heart than countless innocents who would continue to suffer under his wrath?

"Now you know the truth, young Midoriya," All Might said, breaking him out of his flurrying thoughts, "I… I know that you'll never have to worry about facing All For One, but… It didn't feel right keeping this from you." His expression turned into something softer, though Izuku thought he caught a hint of sadness within it. "I was about your age when my mentor passed One For All onto me… and while I was faced with the possibility of having to go up against All For One, I still wanted to grant you the same honesty she did me."

"It's…" Izuku tried to say, swallowing a bit. "It's a lot to take in, that's for sure."

"You've done some amazing things while training, young Midoriya," All Might told him, "but, as honored as I would be to have you as a successor…" He closed his eyes. "You need to know the full weight of this Quirk before you decide to inherit it. It is an incredible power that must not be taken lightly… And it will only grow stronger once you have it. I don't want to force such a burden—"

"I'll do my best!" Izuku proclaimed.

All Might's eyes snapped open and he stared at Izuku with wide eyes. "What?"

"I'll do whatever it takes to become a hero," Izuku vowed, holding his notebook close to him, "all my life, all I've ever wanted to do is help people and be a shining beacon of hope like you." A smile spread across his face. "And it's because of you that I'm able to focus on fighting other evils beyond All For One. So, I want to be able to use this power for more than what it was made for!"

"You…" All Might began, his voice trailing off for a moment. "You still want to be my successor?"

Izuku nodded. "Of course I do! I want to be able to help as many people as I can and I can only do that with your Quirk to help me!" He faltered for a moment. "I know what it's like to be helpless… To not be able to save the people you care about…" Kacchan's wide terrified eyes flashed across his mind. "And I don't want anyone to ever feel the way I did during those times."

All Might's bewilderment didn't fade. "You… You really mean it? You still want me to train you?"

"Of course!" Izuku replied. "Before you, everyone kept telling me I never had a chance of becoming a hero…" He looked down at the emerald green cover of the notebook in his grasp and his smile only grew. "But then you gave me one… and now, I want to see it through to the end." He faced All Might with a bright smile. "With you by my side, I'll be able to do anything! "

All Might's hand went to his heart, his mouth falling agape. Words seemed to escape him, as nothing fell past his open lips for a long moment and Izuku wondered if he had said something wrong. Had All Might told him the truth in an attempt to get him to back out of it? Was Izuku not wanting to back out of it not what he expected, or, worse, wanted? Was he asking Izuku if he wanted out not out of concern, but out of a desire to end their training?

Then, a soft smile spread across All Might's face and all of Izuku's worries went away. "Thank you, my boy… I'm happy to hear that you still want to train with me."

"You are?" Izuku replied. He tried to ignore the burn in his eyes. "You… You don't regret picking me?"

"Of course not," All Might answered instantly, and his lack of hesitation sent a wave of great emotion through Izuku, "I don't regret that one bit, young Midoriya." He laid a hand on Izuku's shoulder. "I know you said that you're lucky to have me a mentor, but if I'm honest, my boy, I'm the lucky one. I'd be lying if I said I didn't sometimes wonder how different my life would be if you hadn't grabbed a hold of my leg and didn't let go."

Izuku snorted and clapped his hand over his mouth to smother a laugh. "Not exactly my best moment, All Might!"

All Might chuckled. "Be that as it may, it certainly made an impression, and I'm glad for it."

Then, his mentor stood up straight and his bulky muscles returned with a baritone laugh that made Izuku fall back in surprise. Despite being in a casual outfit, All Might had never looked more heroic under the light of the setting sun, his fists rested on his hips in his signature pose.

"Now!" All Might proclaimed. "It's time for your award ceremony!"

Izuku straightened up and scrambled to stand up. "Y-Yes, sir!"

All Might laughed as Izuku managed to stand up before him. "My boy, someone once told me that there's a difference between being lucky and being deserving! One is an accident, but the other is a reward! " He clapped his hand onto Izuku's shoulder, nearly making him fall over. " Never get the two confused. Take that to heart, young man!"

The tears began to blur Izuku's vision and his smile started to waver as a sob threatened to bubble up in his throat. He could only wonder if All Might once stood before his own mentor with tears in his eyes and heard those same words be spoken to him, his future becoming as bright as the smile that inspired Izuku's own.

"This gift," All Might continued, his form growing blurry, "you earned it with your own valiant efforts and determination!"

Through his tears, Izuku could see All Might's hand reach towards him and Izuku reached back towards him, his tired, Quirkless hands ready to take All Might's power into his grasp. All the work he had been doing for the past several months had culminated into this moment, granting him the ability to continue running down his path to become the world's greatest hero. He stopped trying to blink back the tears and let them flow freely so that he could face All Might clearly. Izuku wished his mother was here to be able to see this incredible moment.

"Now," All Might proclaimed, and it was then that Izuku saw a long, blond strand of hair in his grasp, "eat this!"

A/N: Y'all know I couldn't leave out that last line. It's too good for me not to. Also, yes, I am aware that this chapter relays information that we the readers are aware of, but it was still important to include this conversation at this point in the story. It didn't feel right to have it done as an off-screen conversation, so here it is.