Izuku was out of the hospital before the nurse had time to clean his fingernails. He had almost cleaned them off himself, while getting ready to extract the next batch of DNA, when he realized it came from the Nomu. Out of curiosity, he made an extra sample, isolating the monster's DNA. It looked no different than the others once it was done, just a thin layer of clear liquid upon the striations of centrifuged blood. Yet, that tiny droplet of liquid sloshing around held the key to power that could rival All Might.

In the end, he set the sample aside. The mere memory of the monster's brain jutting from its malformed skull was enough to warn him away from using its blood.

Strapped into the chair, needle filled and ready, Izuku hesitated. His skin crawled, and his body shivered as he remembered the last time he had plunged the needle. Once was hell enough. He had his Quirk. Could he really put himself through that again?

He made himself remember Aizawa's crumpled body and Tsuyu's crushed tongue, took a deep breath, and plunged the needle in.

His heart hammered in his chest as he waited for the agony to begin. It pumped the treatment faster, and within ten minutes, Izuku felt the first twinge of pain. Yet, the pain felt muted, like an echo of the agony from before, weak enough that he remained conscious as it burned through his veins. Where before had been a mindless, all-consuming haze of immolation, now he felt each heartbeat like a hammer in his chest, pounding his body like raw molten iron, beating out the impurities until only steel remained.

Once the treatment ran its course, he tore himself free of the restraints. The makeshift binding of teeth-tied gauze fell apart easily as expected, but Izuku felt a glimmer of surprise when the thick leather strap tore with a sharp snap. He felt even more when he looked closer and saw a faint pattern of scales running along his skin.

Izuku ran to the mirror. The jagged shards remained from the first time, but enough glass remained for Izuku to see yellowed, lime-colored eyes and vaguely slitted pupils. His teeth were sharper, his nose a hint flatter, and his body felt heavier, more solid. Eyeing the cracked concrete behind the mirror, Izuku picked another spot on the wall and punched. The impact rattled his bones, but the wall shattered with a satisfying crack, spilling grit and pebbles from a fist-sized indent gouged into the concrete.

When he pulled out his hand, the skin was unblemished, yet a few droplets of blood glistened amongst the rubble. Puzzled, Izuku dragged a sharp fingernail over his skin. It took substantial pressure to break the skin, and when he did, the flesh knitted together within a second. Emboldened, Izuku raked his nails along his arm, digging long, deep gashes. He barely felt the sting, and the arm mended itself without a mark before the blood could even pool up from the wound.

Izuku gave himself a toothy grin through the shattered mirror and went to tell his mother the good news.

He had returned to class to a chorus of shocked gasps and muttered awe. The chair creaked under his new weight.

"Dude, how did you get so jacked?"

Izuku curled an arm for Kirishima. "My Quirk went into overdrive after the USJ attack. It fixed everything up better than normal."

His classmates openly gawked at his muscled, vaguely reptilian figure, and Mina even worked up the nerve to run a hand over his bicep. Bakugo took one look at Izuku, met his eyes, then promptly turned around and ground his teeth loud enough for Izuku to hear.

Aizawa, wrapped in layers of gauze and sporting a cast over his whole face, flicked his gaze across Izuku. His eyes withheld any hint of emotion at the sudden changes. "Nezu asked for you to visit his office. You may leave immediately."

Nezu had a cup of tea waiting for him. Izuku sipped on it while he waited for Nezu to reveal what he wanted. The rodent let the silence stretch for a few minutes, furiously typing on a miniature keyboard and pausing to drink straight from the kettle.

"Are you aware of any labs experimenting with man-made Quirks?"

Izuku felt the question hit him like a sledgehammer. His thoughts spun wildly as he struggled to parse out exactly how much Nezu might know, whether or not Izuku should tip his hand, and how he would react.

Realizing he was too slow to react, Izuku covered up his shock by asking, "Is that because of the Nomu? I know it had at least two Quirks - the absorption and the healing. They're too mechanically different to be aspects of the same Quirk, unlike Todoroki where both are mechanisms of adding and removing heat, which rules out-"

"As fascinating as it is to hear your hypothesis," Nezu cut in, "The Nomu isn't why I ask that question."

The mechanical babble gave Izuku enough time to work out what to do. Part of him wanted to reveal what he had accomplished. Sure, the lab's previous occupants had already made it work, but it had taken Izuku almost ten years to replicate their efforts. As intelligent as Nezu was, he had to recognize the achievement.

Yet a sliver of doubt held him back. Nezu might claim it's too dangerous and remove him from the hero program, or think he's associated with the villains.

Lying is its own risk. If Izuku was caught in a lie, Nezu might take it as proof he's a threat to the school. Being honest and upfront about it might earn him Nezu's support.

What decided him between those two sides was the simple fact that he could easily reveal the lab later. There wasn't a way to un-reveal it.

"I've looked into the subject. What Quirkless kid hasn't dreamed about it? But everyone says it's impossible."

"I suppose that's true." Nezu returned his attention back to the computer. "I take it you have no real knowledge of how your body underwent its recent changes?"

"I only learned about my Quirk recently. Its effects were dormant, so there's no telling what other changes I might go through."

Nezu twitched when he said that, but the principal didn't respond otherwise. He tipped the teapot until every last drop poured out, then set to brewing a new batch. "That's all I wanted from you, Midoriya." With a playful smile, he said, "Head back to class before Aizawa gets upset with me.

Heart hammering in his chest, Izuku did exactly that. The deception made him feel vastly uncomfortable and exposed, but he kept telling himself it was necessary. He couldn't risk his dream being taken away because people were too afraid of what he could achieve with his work.

Izuku plowed through the first event of the Hero Festival. Mere ice couldn't hold him back, the robots were too slow and clumsy to catch him, he forwent the ropes in favor of leaping across the chasms, and the mines felt like love taps compared to what Bakugo could dish out. He had gotten himself a drink from the vending machine by the time Todoroki and Bakugo staggered across together.

The cavalry battle proved tougher. The battle favored ranged attacks and mobility, and Izuku was held back by his slower teammates. Shoji's arrangement gave him an idea, and a tap from Ochako let him carry everyone for a last-minute dash to reclaim his million-point headband.

Shinso was good at needling people and goading them into an unwise response. Izuku was better at keeping his mouth shut and throwing him over the arena's edge. Todoroki nearly beat him, but Izuku found out he could flex his way out of a glacier, and it didn't take long for Todoroki to exhaust himself making nothing but ice.

Izuku felt tempted to help him realize he needed to use his fire, but if he wasn't willing to do anything to be the best hero possible, then he didn't deserve it.

Iida was fast, but him running at Izuku full-tilt amounted to about the same as a cheetah sprinting face-first into a brick wall. His Recipro Burst packed enough oomph to make Izuku feel the first twinge of pain all tournament, but the sudden lack of give slowed him enough for Izuku to grab his leg and hurl him out of bounds.

The final round felt like destiny, like all his childhood fantasies bundled together in a single, glorious moment. Him and Kacchan, facing together as equals to decide who was the better hero.

And what a disappointment it was.

Bakugo no longer had his gauntlets. It was only natural after nearly killing everyone in the practice building, but Izuku really wanted to see how well he held up against that kind of force. Without it, Bakugo could barely put a scratch on him. Izuku even let him get in some free hits, weathering his punches and explosions without letting his feet budge a millimeter. The punches didn't leave bruises, and any burns from his nitroglycerin healed before the smoke cleared.

Izuku's punch caught Bakugo square on the chin. The crowd cheered as Bakugo flew off his feet and landed in a graceless heap. He spat a glob of blood on the arena and woozily rose to his feet.

"How?" Bakugo roared. "You… you're cheating, you must be! You were just a weak, pathetic Deku. So, spill it? We're you looking down on me this whole time? Laughing at me? Huh?"

Izuku took one, slow, predatory step forward. Bakugo flinched. Another step, and Bakugo shifted back. A third sent him scurrying back, and he tripped over his own feet. Izuku hauled him up by his own shirt collar and looked him in the eyes.

"I got this far through my own efforts. Ten years, I worked for this moment. Don't you dare call me a cheater when you're the one who's been coasting on their Quirk this whole time."

Still holding up Bakugo, he took a step forward. Bakugo glanced back and saw the arena boundary creeping closer and closer. He struggled, clawing at Izuku's hands and blasting him with explosions, but Izuku kept holding tight. Once he had Bakugo over the edge, he held him at the edge of his grasp while Bakugo's feet skittered across the sloped arena boundary.

"Fight me properly, Deku! Or are you too much of a wimp to face me?"

"You're not worth the effort. Goodbye, Bakugo."

For a moment, Izuku remembered a bridge, a river, and his own outstretched hand. Bakugo had slapped him away then. Izuku felt a perverse sort of poetry seeing the inverse of that day play out. His fingers loosened as Bakugo clutched at him. The fabric of Bakugo's shirt slipped through his fingers. Bakugo let loose one last explosion, trying to blast himself back onto the arena, but Izuku's hand kept him from moving forward.

Exhausted, out of sweat, and beaten, Bakugo tipped backwards. He pinwheeled his arms, but nothing could stop the slow, inexorable pull of gravity. Bakugo never tried to brace for the impact. He kept reaching for the arena's edge until the back of his head smacked against the ground below.

The crowd erupted in cheers.

He felt no small sense of vindication when he received a gold medal from All Might himself. The very man who crushed his dreams, who spurred him on to rewrite his own DNA, had now handed him his first step towards becoming the number one hero of Japan.

He felt no sympathy for Bakugo as he struggled to hold back his tears and anguish, standing beneath Izuku with the bruises from his defeat. Nor did he care to wonder about Iida's blank-eyed, grief-stricken expression as he cradled the bronze medal to his chest. He had more important concerns to worry about. He had training to do, homework to complete, and an internship to pick out.

It was the last time he ever saw Iida alive.