Izuku Midoriya's life had always been defined by one word: dreams.* From the time he was old enough to understand what a hero was, he had dreamed of becoming one himself. Yet, in a world where most people possessed quirks, Izuku had been born without one. The harsh truth had crushed him, but it had never been enough to extinguish the ember of hope that burned in his heart.
At fourteen years old, Izuku was still the same wide-eyed dreamer. His room was a shrine to heroism, the walls plastered with posters of the greatest pro heroes, and shelves stacked with notebooks meticulously filled with analysis of quirks and battle strategies. The pages of his latest notebook were slightly dog-eared, evidence of his relentless research and the hope he refused to let go.
Yet, as he walked home from school that day, his thoughts were clouded with doubt. His classmates' cruel taunts echoed in his mind, particularly Bakugo's, whose sneering voice often reminded him of his inadequacy. The gnawing question plagued him: could a dream survive when the world kept telling him it was impossible?
Izuku's thoughts wandered to the past—to the day his life had been saved. Not by All Might, the Symbol of Peace, but by Akio Takeyama, a boy barely older than he was now. Yūma had been a U.A. student at the time, and his courage had left an indelible mark on Izuku's soul. Tall and lean, Akio's presence had been a beacon of hope. His tousled teal hair and piercing green eyes radiated determination. That day, Akio had been everything Izuku aspired to be: selfless, strong, and unwavering in his resolve to protect others. That moment shaped Izuku's understanding of what it truly meant to be a hero.
The streets of Musutafu buzzed with activity as Izuku made his way to the overpass. His notebook was open in his hands, and he scribbled furiously, jotting down notes from the latest hero battle he'd seen on the news.
"Another reckless charge," he muttered, sketching a diagram of the hero's movements. "They should've gone for a pincer maneuver. The villain's quirk had a clear weakness on the left side."
Lost in his analysis, Izuku didn't notice the shadow that fell over him until it was too late. A slimy, putrid presence loomed behind him.
"Perfect timing, kid," the sludge villain growled, its grotesque form bubbling as it advanced. "I need a body, and you'll do just fine."
Izuku froze, his heart hammering in his chest. The villain lunged, its ooze-like tendrils wrapping around him, cutting off his air. Panic surged through him, his limbs flailing uselessly as darkness encroached on his vision.
Just as his consciousness began to fade, a booming voice shattered the chaos.
"Have no fear…because I am here!"
The next moment was a blur. A powerful gust of wind exploded through the overpass, and the sludge villain was blasted apart, its gooey form splattering against the walls. Gasping for air, Izuku collapsed to his knees, his vision swimming.
All Might, the Symbol of Peace, stood before him. Towering and muscular, his golden hair seemed to glow under the sunlight, and his iconic smile radiated confidence. He was larger than life, and for a moment, Izuku could only stare in awe.
"You're safe now, young man," All Might said, offering Izuku a hand.
Once the danger had passed, All Might secured the villain into a pair of soda bottles and prepared to leave. But Izuku, driven by desperation, clung to his idol's leg as he leapt into the air. When they landed on a rooftop, All Might turned to leave again.
"Wait!" Izuku called, his voice trembling.
"I don't have time," All Might replied, walking away.
"I have to know!" Izuku's voice cracked with emotion as memories surged in his mind: the doctor's diagnosis, his mother's tears, Bakugo's relentless taunts, and the memory of Akio's heroic sacrifice.
"Sometimes," Izuku began, his voice barely a whisper, "I feel useless and weak, like there's no hope for me. But even so, I'll never give up. Ever." He paused, mustering his courage. "Is it possible to be a hero even without a quirk?"
All Might stopped in his tracks, his expression shifting. A jolt of pain shot through him, and he began to grunt, steam radiating off his body.
"Not now… not here," he muttered.
Izuku's eyes widened in shock as All Might's muscular form deflated, revealing a thin, frail man with sunken cheeks and a weary expression. His golden hair hung limply over his forehead.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHH!" Izuku screamed. "Who are you?! What happened to All ,Might?"
"I assure you, I am All Might," the man said weakly, though blood trickled from his mouth, prompting another scream from Izuku. Eventually, All Might calmed him down and explained his condition.
"Some villains can't be beaten without powers," All Might said. "So, no, I don't think you can become a hero."
Izuku gasped, the words piercing through him like knives.
"It's not bad to have dreams," All Might continued, "but make sure they're attainable." With that, he left, leaving Izuku alone on the rooftop, tears streaming down his face.
Fire and explosions consumed an alleyway. A slime monster rampaged, its grotesque form engulfing a small figure.
Death Arms, a tall, muscular hero with a bandana and gauntlets, arrived alongside Kamui Woods and Backdraft. They stared in horror at the chaos.
"It's taken someone hostage," Death Arms growled. "How dare you prey on a child!" He charged into the inferno, his fists slamming against the slime, but it was futile. The villain's form simply absorbed the blows. Retreating, Death Arms clenched his fists. "We need someone with the right quirk!"
Above them, a group of figures stood on a rooftop. One of them, a tall man with teal hair and a sleek black and silver tactical suit, watched intently. Blue energy pulsed faintly around him, highlighting the sharp angles of his high-tech visor. His sharp green eyes narrowed as he observed the scene.
"Look at him," he muttered, disgust evident in his tone. "Standing there, doing nothing because he doesn't have the 'right quirk.'"
"At least the others are trying," replied Gentle Criminal, a well-dressed man with a refined voice."Look at Kamaui Woods and Backdraft"
A girl with wild, blonde hair and an unsettling grin leaned closer. "Hey, Akio, isn't that your sister down there?" Toga's voice was teasing.
"Yeah." Akio replied wistfully. As he watched his sister clear debris and help civilians to safety.
"Dam fakes, we should go down there and purge them." Another said hatefully.
"No Stain. We'll only draw attention to ourselves and also if we killed them who would save the boy." The former hero Lady Nagant replied condescendingly.
"Why are we here again? Just kidding, I don't care." Another one of them asked Akio.
"We are here to scout out potential targets for the future and to give La Brava time to figure out where Inferno Blade is going to be before we go after him tonight." Akio replied to Twice as his focus shifted as he spotted Izuku in the crowd. Memories surged, but before he could act, Nagant stopped him. "Wait," she said, nodding toward a thin blonde man steaming at the edge of the crowd.
To their shock, the man transformed into All Might and obliterated the villain with a single punch. The group stared in stunned silence before they all heard La Brava on their coms
"Guys I got Inferno Blade's location,"She said.
"Time to purge some filth." Stain growled as they all left the rooftop and went back to their lair to prepare for their battle tonight.
Izuku's walk home was a whirlwind of emotions. The events with the sludge villain had left him shaken, but it was All Might's words that haunted him most. "Some villains just can't be beaten without powers." Those words had been a dagger to his heart. Yet, he couldn't let them define him.
His path home crossed with Bakugo and his gang, as it often did. Bakugo, still fuming from his own encounter with the sludge villain, lashed out at Izuku. "Don't think for a second you're better than me, Deku! You didn't save me. You didn't do anything!"
Izuku's fists clenched at his sides, but he didn't retaliate. He knew better than to fight back, not with words or fists. He simply endured, as he always had.
The evening air was cool, the sun dipping below the horizon, painting the sky in hues of orange and purple. Izuku had barely begun to process the day when he heard that familiar, booming voice again.
"Hey, young man!" All Might's voice startled Izuku out of his thoughts. Turning around, he saw the towering figure of the hero, though it was clear he had pushed himself. Steam was still rising faintly from his body.
"All Might?" Izuku asked, his voice trembling.
"Yeah, it's me," All Might said, smiling warmly. "I came to talk to you."
Izuku's eyes widened. "Me? Why?"
All Might knelt down to be at eye level with Izuku. "Because what you did today—running in to save that boy—was the essence of heroism. Even without a quirk, you acted when no one else would. You showed courage that can't be taught."
Izuku's breath hitched. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest. "But… I'm quirkless. I can't… I'll never—"
"Stop that." All Might's tone was firm but kind. "Do you know why I am the Symbol of Peace? It's not just because of my power. It's because of my resolve to protect others, no matter the cost. And today, I saw that same resolve in you."
Tears welled up in Izuku's eyes. All his life, he'd been told he couldn't be a hero. And now, the greatest hero of all was telling him otherwise.
"All Might…" Izuku's voice cracked.
"I've made a decision," All Might continued. "I want you to inherit my power. My quirk, One For All."
Izuku's world seemed to stop. The words hung in the air, almost too surreal to comprehend. "I-Inherit your power? What do you mean?"
"One For All is a quirk that can be passed down," All Might explained. "It's the culmination of strength and the will of its predecessors. And I've chosen you, Izuku Midoriya."
Tears spilled freely down Izuku's cheeks now. He thought of all the times he had been ridiculed, all the moments of despair. And then, he thought of Akio Takeyama—the boy who had saved him so many years ago, sacrificing everything for a stranger. Akio's face flashed vividly in his mind, his determined smile and unwavering courage.
"I…" Izuku struggled to find his voice. "I don't know if I'm worthy. Akio… he was everything I wanted to be. He gave his life to save me, and I—"
"You honor him by continuing to fight for your dream," All Might interrupted gently. "The fact that you remember him so vividly shows the depth of your heart. He would be proud of you, young man."
Izuku's knees buckled, and he fell to the ground, overcome by emotion. "Thank you… Thank you so much, All Might."
All Might placed a reassuring hand on Izuku's shoulder. "You have a lot of work ahead of you, but I know you'll make me proud. Now, let's get started. We've got to get you in shape to inherit One For All."
—
Akio Takeyama stood on the rooftop of an abandoned factory, his crimson eyes scanning the streets below. The cool night air did little to calm the simmering intensity within him. Beside him, the members of the Revenants prepared for their next move, a collective of outcasts and renegades bound together by shared disillusionment with the hero society.
Tonight, their target was a pro hero known as Inferno Blade, a man who had built his reputation on his quirk—the ability to summon and control flaming swords—but who had also used his power to extort and intimidate local businesses. He was a symptom of the rot that plagued the system Akio sought to dismantle.
"Are we ready?" Akio asked, his voice calm but commanding. His dark teal hair caught the faint glow of the streetlights, and his imposing presence was enough to still linger any lingering doubts.
Lady Nagant stepped forward, her sniper rifle quirk at the ready. "Always," she said, her sharp eyes locking onto his for a brief moment before she looked away, her expression unreadable. There was a tension between them that neither dared to acknowledge, but it lingered like an unspoken truth.
Stain sharpened one of his blades, his fanatic intensity palpable. "A so-called hero preying on the weak. Tonight, justice will be served."
The others—Twice, Toga,Gentle Criminal, and La Brava—nodded in agreement, their diverse quirks and personalities united under Yūma's leadership. Each of them carried scars from a system that had failed them, and tonight, they would strike back.
The attack was swift and precise. Inferno Blade stood in the center of a dimly lit alley, flanked by his hired enforcers. Flames danced along the edges of his summoned blades as he barked orders, his voice dripping with arrogance.
"You'll pay double this month, or your shop burns," he snarled at a trembling shopkeeper. The man's pleas for mercy fell on deaf ears.
From the shadows, Akio raised a hand, signaling the start of the assault. Lady Nagant's rifle cracked first, a bullet whizzing through the air and striking one of Inferno Blade's lackeys, killing him instantly. Chaos erupted as the Revenants emerged, each using their quirks with ruthless efficiency.
Twice's duplicate of Akio quickly overwhelmed the enforcers, Toga darted through the fray, her knife flashing as she incapacitated enemies with surgical precision. Gentle Criminal and La Brava coordinated their moves, Gentle's elasticity quirk creating barriers and escape routes while La Brava's support boosted their effectiveness.
Inferno Blade roared, summoning a barrage of flaming swords and hurling them toward the attackers. Akio stepped forward, his quirk flaring to life. The swords struck his body, their kinetic energy absorbed and stored within him.
"You dare challenge me?" Inferno Blade sneered, his confidence wavering as Akio advanced.
Akio didn't respond. Instead, he unleashed the stored energy in a concussive blast, sending Inferno Blade crashing into a wall. Before he could recover Stain stalked over and stabbed him in the chest, killing him. The flaming swords fizzled out as their master fell unconscious, the fight ending as quickly as it had begun.
"Are you alright?" Akio asked the terrified shopkeeper who managed to barely nod, still in shock. He turned to La Brava. "Call the police and tell them to come here and once they get here release the documents about Inferno Blade's crimes to every news outlet you can find." She nodded and then they all went back to the lair leaving a terrified and confused shopkeeper behind.
Later, Back at their lair, the Revenants gathered around an old, flickering television, its screen casting pale light across the room's patchwork of salvaged furniture and makeshift equipment. The adrenaline from their earlier clash had begun to ebb, replaced by a tense quiet. Lady Nagant leaned against a wall, cleaning her rifle, while Stain sat nearby, sharpening his blades. The others milled about, their attention drawn to the news broadcast.
The screen displayed footage of the recent slime villain attack, focusing on a young boy with messy green hair standing beside All Might.
"The Symbol of Peace once again saves the day," the anchor announced. "Eyewitnesses say the boy, Izuku Midoriya, was nearly consumed by the villain before All Might intervened."
Akio Takeyama's sharp teal eyes lingered on the image of Izuku, his heart tightening. Memories of a young boy clutching a notebook, tears streaming down his face, surfaced unbidden. Izuku had been the last person Akio saved nine years ago before the building collapsed. Seeing him now, alive and seemingly thriving, sparked a bittersweet solace amidst his storm of thoughts.
Beside Izuku, All Might's towering figure loomed, a stark reminder of everything Akio had once aspired to be—and everything he now opposed. His jaw clenched as his thoughts turned to his sister, Yu Takeyama, better known as Mt. Lady. Did she still believe in the flawed system he sought to expose, or had she begun to see the cracks?
"Thinking about the past?" Lady Nagant's voice broke his reverie. She had approached silently, her sharp gaze studying him.
"It's hard not to," Akio admitted, his voice low. "Every time I see someone like him, I…" He trailed off, unable to articulate the weight of his emotions.
Nagant nodded, her expression softening. "We're all carrying something, Akio. But you've given us a purpose. Don't forget that."
Before he could respond, La Brava's voice interrupted him "Hey guys you need to come see this"She said as she was seated at her monitors, leaned forward, her fingers flying across the keyboard to replay the scene. "Did you see that?" she exclaimed. "He's giving him his quirk. This changes everything."
Akio's eyes narrowed behind his visor, his body tense. "The great All Might found a successor," he muttered, bitterness and admiration lacing his tone. "And it's Midoriya of all people."
Toga tilted her head, her golden eyes alight with curiosity. "Isn't it kind of sweet? The quirkless little hero gets a power boost from the biggest hero ever. It's like a fairy tale."
"Fairy tale?" Stain scoffed, gripping his blade. "It's an insult. All Might, the so-called Symbol of Peace, handing his power to a child who doesn't even understand the true meaning of heroism. Disgusting."
"Calm yourself, Stain," Nagant interjected, her voice sharp but measured. "This is a calculated move. All Might sees potential in the boy. Whether that potential is justified remains to be seen."
Gentle Criminal adjusted his cravat thoughtfully. "Potential, indeed. Young Midoriya has faced adversity his entire life. Perhaps All Might sees in him a resilience forged by hardship."
"Or," Stain growled, "he's just a pawn in a larger game. A weakling like that can't possibly carry the weight of being All Might's successor."
Akio remained silent, his gaze fixed on the screen. As the recording replayed Izuku's tearful acceptance and vow to prove himself, Akio's expression softened, though only slightly. Memories of his sacrifices and of the boy he had saved flashed through his mind.
"You're wrong, Stain," Akio said finally, his voice steady but filled with conviction. "Midoriya's strength isn't in his quirklessness or his new power. It's in his heart. He'll carry this burden because he has to. Because people like us didn't get the chance."
The room fell silent, Akio's words hanging heavy in the air. Even Stain seemed momentarily subdued, his usual scorn replaced by grudging respect.
"So, what do we do now?" La Brava asked softly, breaking the silence. "This changes everything, doesn't it?"
Akio straightened, his resolve clear. "We watch. We wait. And we prepare. If Midoriya becomes the hero All Might believes he can be, he might tip the scales. Until then, we focus on our mission."
The Revenants exchanged uneasy glances, a flicker of determination igniting in their eyes. As La Brava turned off the monitors, the faint glow of their shared purpose burned brighter in the shadows of their lair.