A/N: See the end of the chapter for notes.

+1 STR

Izuku grinned at the floating box in front of him. This was the second time this had happened in the last week since he had obtained his quirk. By cleaning up the trash in the beach, he had started to acquire a solid physical build. He had actually started noticing it only after he acquired his quirk. Although it had gradually started to become easier to life heavier objects over time, he never really noticed the way it affected his body until now. He was glad to be slowly losing his scrawny build though it would be quite a while before anyone else started noticing.

Placing the broken television in the garbage truck, he wiped his brow off sweat and pulled out his stats.

"[Stats]!" he called.

Midoriya Izuku :: 4 ::

Quirk : The Gamer (One For All)

EXP : 400/1000

:: Stats ::

HP : 300/300

STM : 200/200

STR : 12

DEX : 7

INT : 15

WIS : 16

SPD: 10

Unspent points : 0

:: Passive stats ::

DEF : 0

LUK: 15

:: Skills ::

[Observe ] (Passive) Lv. 3/?

He nodded, thinking of the progress he had made. In the last week alone, his STR had gone up by two and his SPD and INT had gone up by one. Unfortunately, his other stats hadn't improved at all and he had to admit that is was his fault. Ever since he obtained his quirk, he wasn't really able to focus at school, too impatient to get to the beach to continue training.

Done for the day, he sat and waited for All Might to show up. He had seen the pro hero only twice that week, the man being too busy to supervise him. Unfortunately, that left Izuku with very little to go on, having little to no idea how to proceed with his training now that his quirk had manifested. All Might's training regime was pretty good he supposed; it allowed him to develop his overall physical prowess. He had experimented a bit with his quirk and he was hesitant to try anything drastic without All Might around. Having had no experience with having a quirk, he was a bit clueless about how to proceed.

"Guess he's too busy today too," he muttered and stood up. Putting his shirt back on, he was about to head home when he glanced at something out of the corner of his eye.

It was an old washing machine; a particularly sturdy and heavy one. He had tried to lift it to the garbage truck a day before he activated his quirk but found it too heavy to move. So he simply dragged it out of the way and left it there, thinking he would move it when he got stronger.

He thought about it for a while and shrugged, moving towards the machine.

"Might as well try again."

"[HUD]!" he called.

Sturdy broken washing machine

One unfortunate side effect of having [HUD] on he noted, was that it was too distracting whenever he was out in public. Names constantly floating above people's heads were strange for him to see and whenever he was in a crowd, a large portion of his vision was blocked even though the name boxes were transparent. So he always kept it turned off and activated it only when required.

Bracing his legs, he placed his hands on the sides of the machine and heaved. He hadn't really been expecting any progress but was surprised when he was actually able to lift the machine off the ground. Granted, he was not able to lift it very high but it was progress nonetheless. He noticed that his STM was steadily dropping the longer he held it.

HP : 300/300

STM : 170/200

He held it up for five seconds and spied the [Vital Bars] again.

HP : 300/300

STM : 100/200

He dropped the machine and frowned. That was a lot of STM consumed for a very brief time. He wondered if the STM drop would be lowed if his STR was higher.

"Another thing to talk to All Might about," he muttered. Opening his [Inventory], he checked that his bag was in there and swiped at it to close. This particular aspect of his quirk had made his life significantly easier.

The next day at school, he turned on his [HUD] for the first time. Luckily, the teacher hadn't come in yet and the class was quite loud. So luckily, no one heard him call it up. He noted with satisfaction that all of his classmates were at his level or lower. Some of their individual stats were higher than his which wasn't too surprising.

Curious, his eyes zeroed in on someone who'd been pretty much ignoring him for the last six months; his childhood friend, Bakugo Katsuki. The blond haired boy hadn't bothered him much since the sludge villain incident six months ago, save for the occasional glare or shove he received. It was an improvement to the way he'd been treated prior to in the incident. Why Katsuki toned down his aggression towards Izuku he would never know; perhaps out of gratitude or simply shame because a quirkless boy had tried to help him. Katsuki didn't tell him and he was in no hurry to find out.

Bakugo Katsuki :: 5 ::

"[Observe]," he whispered.

Bakugo Katsuki :: 5 ::

Quirk : [Explosion]. Allows him to produce explosions from his palms.

:: Stats ::

HP : 400/400

STM : 300/300

STR : 17

DEX : 18

INT : 12

WIS : 14

SPD: 15

Izuku frowned as he saw the stats. Most of Katsuki's stats were higher than his. The other boy's INT and WIS were the only stats that were lower than his but not by much. He could understand that a bit. Katsuki had been set on becoming a hero and he'd made sure that everyone in his class knew. It was only natural that his stats would be higher than Izuku's. He'd been training far longer than Izuku and it showed, both in his physical appearance and his stats. Nonetheless, it still stung Izuku to see the difference in their stats. He'd been working hard for the last six months and he only hoped that it would be enough for the entrance exam.

He narrowed his eyes, still staring at his childhood friend's stats. Those were the stats he should be aiming for, at least for the duration of his training with All Might. To do that, his current regime would not be enough. He resolved to talk to All Might about it if he saw the man that day.

"All right class, settled down!" his teacher yelled as he entered the room.

Izuku shook his head and turned his [HUD] off, intent on focusing in class that day, something he hadn't done in the last week. As he continued to listen to his teacher, he began to realize that he'd been falling behind too much. He chided himself for slacking off. Although unintentional, it would ultimately end up affecting his grades, which would in turn prevent him from applying to U.A due to low score. He sighed; he had some catching up to do.

"Oi, Deku!"

Izuku stiffened as the familiar voice called out to him. He slowly turned around; resigning himself to the inevitable bullying and name calling he was going to receive. It was too much to hope that Kacchan would leave him alone for the remainder of his days at school.

Katsuki marched up to him, the usual scowl on his face. "Where the fuck are you going?"

"Home," Izuku replied, getting nervous as Katsuki got in his personal space.

"Don't fucking lie to me," Katsuki shouted. "I know you don't go home after school! What have you been up to huh?"

"How would you know that," Izuku asked, careful to keep his voice low so that the other boy would have no further reason to lash out at him.

Katsuki hesitated for a second before glaring at him. "It doesn't matter. I'll ask you again, what the fuck are you up to?"

Izuku faltered at his heated gaze and shrunk bank. "T-training."

Katruku bared his teeth at him, grabbing his shirt and pulling him closer. "Training? Training? I thought I told you to fucking forget about U.A?! When are you going to get in your useless head that you'll never be a hero?"

Izuku avoided his eyes and looked down. He could feel the heat radiating off Katsuki's hands. "I-I'm not going to give up Kacchan. I'll be-become a hero no matter what you say."

Katsuki shoved him back and Izuku lost his footing, falling on his rear.

"Is this a fucking joke to you? You're qurikless! Stay down and do something else with your useless life."

Izuku risked a glance at Katsuki and immediately looked down. The other boy's hands were smoking and his eyes were full of fury.

"Stick to your fucking books and stay out of my way!"

Izuku expected a kick, more verbal assault, anything. When none of that happened, he looked up to see Katsuki already stalking away, shoving a bystander out of his path. He could see the anger radiating off the blond boy.

Izuku was, more than anything, confused by what just transpired. 'What was the point of all that?'

Katsuki paused, looking over his shoulder to glare at Izuku again. "I'll tell you one last time. I'll be the only one to get into U.A from this school. So stop wasting your time."

He continued to glare for a few seconds, making sure his point got across and then marched off.

It was not unusual for Kacchan to pick on him. However, this time he was more subdued, limiting his assault and letting Izuku off lighter than usual. Getting up, Izuku dusted himself off and frowned at the retreating boy's back.

'Six months and that's what you say to me? Why?'

Izuku stared at the sheet of paper in his hands, narrowing his eyes at the contents written down. Looking up, he saw All Might looking at him expectantly.

"Well, what do you think," All Might asked.

"A new training regime? Why," Izuku questioned.

All Might gave a sheepish smile. "When I started training you, I tried to tailor you to suit my Superpower quirk. Now however, hearing your stats, I find some things severely lacking in the training I am giving you," he admitted. "I didn't even consider training you to be more dexterous and your speed could use some work as well."

Izuku nodded. The new training regime included, among other things, long runs and sprints along the beach, something which he hoped would improve his speed and stamina.

"Do you think you can handle it? This'll be even harder than before."

All Might sounded casual but Izuku could see it in his eyes that the man was once again testing his resolve. Thinking back to the previous day, he recalled how he was able to lift the heavy machine for a brief time.

He tightened his hands on the paper, determined to meet All Might's expectations. "I was going to ask you for a new regime anyway. I can handle it," he said with a firm nod.

All Might grinned. "That's the spirit my boy! Now, start running!"

"E-eh? Right now?"

All Might was already stretching. "Of course! Come, I'll run with you." With that, he took off. Izuku stood there dumbfounded. Even in his non-muscle form, All Might was surprisingly fast.

"W-Wait for me!" Izuku scrambled after his mentor, pushing the sheet of paper in his hand into his [Inventory].

Izuku collapsed on his bed later that evening. The first day of his new training had been brutal. He had barely finished the run and All Might had him running sprints and doing cart wheels after that. He was exhausted by the time he finished and the older man had then enthusiastically proceeded to direct him to clean the garbage. To add salt to the wound, All Might didn't seem to have broken a sweat when he trained alongside Izuku.

He glanced at the clock, groaning as he saw there was still quite some time before dinner.

:: Ding! ::

Clock is now added to your [HUD]!

Izuku stared at the notification. When All Might said that his quirk would be improving, this was not what he expected. It was a trivial but useful addition. At least he didn't have to wear a watch from now on. He already broke two during training.

Swiping the notification away, he slowly got up despite the ache in his muscles. He had resolved not to slack off after all and it was time to catch up on his studies.

A week into his new training, he received another notification that surprised him.

:: Ding! ::

Due to a healthy diet and constant exercise, +30 HP, +50 STM

He blinked at the notification, not expecting something like this to happen.

"What is it Midoriya? Why did you stop," All Might jogged up to him.

"Ah, I got a notification. My HP and STM have increased," he answered, swiping the box away. To All Might it must have seemed like he was waving at the air.

All Might raised an eyebrow. "Correct me if I'm wrong but don't you usually have to invest Skill Points in games to improve those?"

"Yeah, that's right," Izuku confirmed. "Now I know why these two were listed with my other stats like STR and INT."

All Might nodded. "That means your quirk doesn't function exactly like a video game. Fortunately, that eliminates quite a few problems that I was afraid of."

"Like what?"

"Well most RPG games restrict your character build if you spread out your stats correct? By allowing you to improve your stats without investing points, including your HP and STM, your quirk doesn't limit you to a specific build like say, a tank or a mage. With a high enough HP and STM, you could be both, in gaming terms of course."

Izuku stared at All Might in surprise. Just two weeks ago the man barely knew about gaming and now he was throwing words like tank and mage around.

"…I picked up some video games so that I can help you better," All Might explained. "Some of them are surprisingly good."

Izuku laughed, imagining All Might in his muscle form with a tiny controller in his hands. It would make for a comical sight he was sure, All Might frowning in concentration and cursing at the screen in frustration.

"Right, that's enough running. Go clean up." All Might waved him off.

+1 STR, +1DEX, +1 SPD

The notifications faded and Izuku idly noted that the broken engine in his arms became a tiny bit less heavy. He deposited it in the garbage truck, turning around to see All Might looking at the cleaned portion of the shore.

"You're making quite the progress," All Might observed. "Just six months ago you could barely move a thing."

Izuku shrugged. "The training's paying off," he said.

All Might turned around to face him and shook his head. "No, I mean you're getting better at this faster and faster," he explained. "I can see a marked improvement from two weeks ago when you got your quirk and now." He waved at the portion of the beach Izuku had cleaned since he obtained his quirk.

Izuku had to admit, he'd cleared a lot more than he expected to in two weeks. "My… stats are affecting me real time. My STR has increased by three in two weeks and it's easier to lift heavier things now."

All Might thought about this for a few seconds. "Could it be that your quirk doesn't just monitor your stats but also speeds up their improvement?"

"My thoughts exactly," Izuku said, nodding. "I don't know if there's a threshold for this. I mean, it's easy to increase your stats in games if you're low leveled."

All Might sighed, sitting down. "Are there any actual drawbacks to your quirk that you've observed?"

Izuku sat down as well, glad for the break he was getting. "Yeah, I don't have any combat useful skills yet and my STM regeneration sucks," he said grimacing.

"How much is it at now?"

"Right now, it's at one per two seconds," he said, rolling his head to relieve some of the tension on his neck. "Jogging consumes about half STM per second but sprinting at full speed consumes five STM per second."

"I see. So based on your current STM, you have to wait about eight minutes to regain your full STM after a full sprint," All Might observed.

"Yeah. I can go in bursts but I doubt that'll be effective if I get into a long fight."

All Might chuckled. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves. There's a long way to go before you actually get into any fights."

"I guess you're right," Izuku agreed with a sheepish smile. He hadn't even gotten into U.A yet.

"Now go along. Your exams are coming up aren't they? Better not lag behind," All Might said, dismissing Izuku.

Izuku got up and dusted himself off.

"Don't worry, I got that covered. [Inventory]!"

From his inventory, he dragged his school uniform to his 3D model and he felt it replacing the track suit on his body.

"That's… convenient," All Might observed with a wide eyed stare.

Izuku grinned. "You have no idea." He swiped at the inventory and started heading home. "Good bye All Might."

The training continued for almost three more months. Izuku's initial trouble adjusting to the new training had not gone away easily. Every day he would train, clean up, go home eat and sleep. He barely had enough time to study but he forced himself to do it. Catching up on his studies proved to be useful as it improved his INT by quite a bit. The only way to improve his WIS he observed, was doing his homework. If anything, his teachers did not make it easy for him to think of answers.

Izuku grinned in anticipation as he approached the beach. By his estimate, if he pushed himself, he would be able to finish the task that day. Depositing all the items on his [Inventory] on the ground, he set to work. He would need all the space he could get.

He marveled at the ease with which he could move heavier things now. His significant improvement in strength was apparent as he moved the washing machine to the garbage truck. It was still heavy, but he could now lift it without too much strain. He eyed his [Vital Bars] as he dumped the machine.

HP: 360/360

STM: 280/310

He grinned. He was right about his STM consumption reducing while lifting if his STR improved. Whereas three months ago it had taken a significant portion of his STM to just lift the machine, now he was able to carry it to the truck for a lesser amount.

"Looks like you're done."

Izuku turned around to see All Might with a huge smile on his face. Behind him, the shore was spotless. Nothing was left as far as his eyes could see.

"I-I guess I am huh?"

All Might nodded, the smile turning into a grin. "Look at that Midoriya," he said gesturing to the shore. "The fruits of your labor."

Izuku took a moment to admire his work. The setting sun was shining brightly on the shore, bringing a shine to the beach that he had never seen in all his time in the town. The waves crashed along the shore uninterrupted, no obstacle in its path. With a clear sky, he could actually see birds flying overhead, something which he had never seen when the beach was full of junk.

"This is your doing," All Might said. Izuku snapped out of his stupor to look at him.

"This place is once again beautiful because you took the effort to clean it up," he continued. "This is what we work for, my boy. As heroes, that is all we do. In the end, we try to clean up when it gets dirty and keep the world beautiful. This," he said, waving at the clean beach," is just an example. You have accomplished something in trying to become a hero. Look."

All Might pointed at a small group of people in the distance, playing in the waves.

"They are able to enjoy this because you worked hard. Never forget this."

Suddenly, Izuku realized why All Might had picked this particular place to train him. Not only was it to training him physically it was also to make him understand what it felt like to accomplish something. He had to admit, he did feel quite proud having accomplished this task.

:: Quest Completed: Clean Up! ::

Izuku was startled by the notification that he took a step back.

800 EXP gained!

Level Up!

+10 Skill Points!

He smiled and closed the notification, only for another to pop up.

Congratulations, you have completed your first quest and reached level 5!

Reward: New Skill [Pull]!

He stared at the notification for a few seconds, his mind slowly comprehending the words in from of him. He had acquired a new skill.

"Hell yes!" he whispered, unable to contain his excitement.

"Pardon?" All Might was looking down at him with a strange look on his face.

Izuku straightened, swiping the notification away. "S-Sorry All Might," he said, bowing. "I completed the quest! I leveled up!"

All Might laughed. "Congratlations, young Midoriya! You did it with three weeks to spare to boot. I'll have to think of a new training plan for you."

"W-Wait! That's not all. I got a new skill. I think it's my mother's quirk!"

"What? Your mother's… quirk?" All Might asked him in confusion.

Izuku nodded excitedly. "Yeah, [Pull]. That's what it said."

"I see," All Might said, frowning. "Can I see it?"

Izuku's smile dropped a bit at that. "Actually, if you don't mind, is it okay if I show my mother first?"

All Might nodded in understanding. "Of course, no problem," he said. "Why don't you come back tomorrow and we'll discuss how to proceed."

Izuku nodded enthusiastically and ran off, not even bothering to change his track suit and throwing a hasty 'Good bye' over his shoulder.

All Might stared at his retreating back, a strange smile on his face. "A quirk that gives you a quirk huh? Who would've thought?"

Izuku burst into his house, startling Inko who was quietly enjoying a cup of tea.

"Izuku! You're early today," she said looking at her stained clothes. "Don't startle me like that. You made me spill my tea."

"Mom!"

Inko looked up to see her son's excited face, the smile threatening to split his face.

"What is it sweety?"

"You wouldn't believe what just happened," Izuku said, moving closer to his mother.

"What happened," Inko asked, tilting her head in confusion. In response, Izuku looked around, noticing the television remote at the far end of the room.

Frowning in concentration, he held out his hand to the device. "[Pull]!" he called.

The remote floated to his outstretched hand steadily, just like what his mother's quirk could do. He turned back to look at her and laughed at the dumbfounded expression on her face.

"You- You got my quirk?"

"I got your quirk," he confirmed, nodding excitedly.

Inko squealed, latching on to his neck and embracing him tightly.

"You got my quirk!" she scremed.

Izuku could only laugh, hugging her back.

Midoriya Izuku :: 5 ::

Quirk : The Gamer (One For All)

EXP : 200/1000

:: Stats ::

HP : 360/360

STM : 310/310

STR : 17

DEX : 11

INT : 17

WIS : 18

SPD: 14

Unspent points : 10

:: Passive stats ::

DEF : 0

LUK: 15

:: Skills ::

[Observe ] (Passive) Lv. 3/?

[Pull] (Active) Lv. 1/?

A/N: Izuku steadily improves and acquires a new skill. I meant what I said about him having a limited number of skills, [Pull] being one of them. It only seemed logical for him to have that as his first skill because I see it as a kind of way of inheriting from his mother. More will be explained in the next chapter.

Also, any criticism regarding my writing is hugely appreciated. Is the pacing not good? Are character interactions not proper? Am I delving into game mechanics too much? Any criticism, good or bad would be a huge help to me.

Comments and reviews appreciated.