Disclaimer: I don't own my hero academia nor any of its characters. Please support Horikoshi-sensei by buying the manga when it comes to your country!

Note 1: Izuku is a first year in middle school at the start of the story.

Note 2: All for One and Allmight have not yet engaged in the battle where Allmight suffered his serious injury, meaning they are still okay.

Note 3: Story Timeline will not strictly follow the Canon's.

CHAPTER 1: THE MEETING

All he ever wanted was to help, but people always gets the negative vibe when he's the one doing it. Of course, he doesn't let it affect him. Struggles and criticisms are part of life.

"Kid, I know you like heroes but don't go off embarassing yourself when you're quirkless."

"What a waste of space, we only need quirked people in this world. What can a quirkless do?"

"He's just a few inches away from death. Always a suicidal kid and then claiming it to be rescuing. Dude don't even have his quirk."

"How can he even save others, when he can't even save himself?"

Okay, so maybe what others say does affect him but he's determined that his quirk will manifest, one way or another, and he'll be a hero soon enough!

"How about diving off a roof and wish that you'll have a quirk in your next life?"

Bad thoughts, be gone!

He won't do that stupid stunt, not now and not ever. He may have thought about it...

But he swears he wasn't even gonna try it. Maybe he planned to but that was it. Just Planned. Not even gonna make it a reality.

So why was he on the roof again?

He flopped down near the railings and took out his notebook. Aldera Middle School's classes had long been over but going home early isn't in his plans. His mother already knows this and just respects how he deals with his time, but sending a mail to her that he'll be late is something akin to a habit for him.

When the phone beeped, he knew his mother had replied to his message. Doesn't even have to check because it was only his mother who would message him.

Pathetic, yes, but what're you gonna do if he's just socially-inept?

He sighed and opened his notebook. He's going to have to find another notebook to fill because the one he has right now is almost full. What volume was it now? Ten? It was ten.

He started analyzing the what-if scenarios and few questionable traits of some heroes' quirks. It was a perfect time to do some thinking due to the quietness of the place and got too absorbed.

He didn't even notice that it was nighttime!

"I already texted mom so I'll be okay, but she might start worrying for some reason."

He wanted to stand up but he was fascinated with the stars in the sky. Unconsciously, his hands reached towards them.

"My dreams are too far away... like these stars." He muttered.

"Too far away, that it is... but you can see them, can't you?"

He jumped and looked around, noticing a man with a large build, dressed in a fancy suit. "I'm sorry to have startled you but I thought you looked like someone I know."

Maybe, he was panicking because the man is emitting some kind of dangerous vibes, but Izuku knows better. He's not judgmental and just settled that he was just shaking because he was cold. It was night already, afterall.

He was definitely not scared.

"How bad of me to not introduce myself. I'm All for One, but I like to be called sensei."

Izuku is not a bad kid and if someone introduces themselves, then it's just prudent that he introduce himself as well. So he stood up and said his name.

"I'm... Izuku... Midori...ya"

Okay, he said it, there.

"Tell me, why are you on the roof when it's already past the school hours? Playing hooky?"

The man had some kind of dangerous aura, unlike his playful words, which made Izuku reluctant to say anything.

As of now, rather than answering the man's questions, Izuku has some questions himself.

Like, how in the world did the man get to the roof?!

He swears he always locked the door so that bullies won't find him. Maybe the man had a phasing quirk and passed through the door?

Or maybe the man flew down, so maybe he had some flying quirk?

But how could he have not noticed? Well, he wasn't even paying any attention to his surroundings and didn't notice that it was nighttime. So maybe the man had a flying quirk after all, but he doesn't have any wings so maybe levitation? teleportation?

But those quirks are too useful for heroics, so he should be some kind of hero, but Izuku swears that he knows no hero with that quirk. He might have missed the man's name but he already researched the all past and latest heroes in Japan and the man isn't a newcomer to heroics because he's old. Newcomers are referred to as the fresh-graduates, who was given the ok-sign to work as heroes by the government.

That left three possibilities: One, he's a hero from overseas. Two, he's a citizen who didn't apply for heroics. Three...

It's the possibility that he dreads the most and has a high probability.

"A villain, right?"

Izuku stopped his thoughts and felt the hand on top of his head. He froze when he sees the man's face, just a few inches from his own.

"You didn't answer my question and just started muttering loudly. Had to say, you've got some big brains for someone so small."

Internally panicking, Izuku just stared at the man until the hand left his hair.

"If I had to answer your concerns, i'm the first and second possibility. I'm just a citizen from overseas who didn't apply for the heroics. As for my quirk, seeing as you have some bright ideas, I'll let you guess what I used to get to this roof."

With that, Izuku somehow relaxed. 'Maybe he's a good guy afterall.'

"I'm sorry if I offended you..." He apologized.

"It's alright, I bear no ill-feelings. So, what do you think my quirk is?" The man asked.

Taking a huge intake of air, he composed himself. He raised his hand and raised four fingers. "I have four quirks in mind that you may have used."

"Ho?" The man said, sounding impressed. "What are those then?"

Izuku smiled and pointed at the door. "Seeing that the door is still locked, it means that you either phased through or just closed it upon entry, but you also said that you reminded me of someone when you saw me. The keyword being 'saw.'"

"You can't see me through a locked door if you're just passing through. I can't imagine someone who's still in the building at these hours because I always do this, meaning I'm always the last one in the school. In my whole stay here, I would've met you earlier if you were part of the school admin. That means not a phasing quirk."

"It can be an ocular quirk like an x-ray vision or one that can see far away, but if it was an x-ray vision and you walked in through that door, then you would have just closed it and not locked it. If it was a quirk that lets you see me from far away, then you wouldn't have been here. That means not an ocular quirk. Also, you said that it's what you used to get to this roof, so that means that it's your quirk that enabled you to get here."

Izuku then motioned to the railings. "If you would look at me from the ground, you'll only see a tuff of my hair or not at all."

The man gave an approving nod, opting him to continue.

"That means that you saw me from an angle above ground. It can be from a building that's near here, but that's not a probability since the nearest building that can be used to see this rooftop is a good few kilometers away. Here's my four guesses as to what your quirk is."

With the four fingers raised, he pointed to one of them using his other hand. "One, is that you have a flying quirk, something like gravity-cancelling or levitation."

He moved to point on the next finger, "two is that you have a wind-type quirk."

"Three is that you have telekinesis. You may have used an object to ride on and placed it somewhere."

"And lastly, a unique quirk that enables you to make tangible objects that you can use to fly. Something like a super strong bubble that has lower density than air."

Izuku noticed that he may have said too much and quickly apologized. "Well, that's just my guesses and... i'm sorry if I blabbed too much..."

He looked at the ground and waited for the man to say something. 'I bet he thinks I'm a weird kid!' Izuku thought while his hands clutch his uniform.

As he began to wallow in self-degradation, he heard a hearty laugh and applause.

"What a wonderful deduction. Then pray tell, out of these four, which is the most suitable to be named as my quirk?"

Izuku looked at the man and said, "Wind type."

"Ho? Would you enlighten me why?"

Still grasping the hem of his uniform, he answered, "As I said earlier, you couldn't have been on the ground because you couldn't have seen me. That means you've been flying and for some time too. Levitation, Gravity-Cancelling, and Telekinesis are too taxing as quirks, especially if not trained like how heroes do it. You're a citizen and since you didn't apply for heroics, then you're not too keen on understanding much of your quirk and therefore had not had the training like the heroes where you push past your limits."

"Plus Ultra... Right?" Izuku smiled.

Izuku pointed to the man, "If it was a typical flying quirk, you would have some appendages in your body, namely wings. You don't have them so that leaves flying by wind and unique quirk that makes objects."

He then spread his hands, as if trying to point at their surroundings. "If it was a unique quirk that makes objects, there would have been traces of that object like something that can be seen or something strange that I could have heard."

Izuku lightly chuckled, "but again, I wasn't paying attention as much as I like it so I wouldn't have heard much. Still, traces can be seen or even smelled. I don't see or smell anything strange."

The man smiled and quipped his own thoughts, "that just leaves the wind type, huh? But that can also leave some traces you know, how are you sure that it's a wind type?"

"Well... I... It's just a process of elimination and... well... I'm not even too sure of it myself." Izuku scratched his cheek, the confidence he had earlier vanishing.

"You are incredible, Izuku. It's like a famous saying by one of the greatest minds in history. If you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth."

"But Sherlock Holmes is just a fictional character..." Izuku slapped his hand to his mouth. 'I immediately replied without meaning to!'

The man smirked, "indeed, but quirks were also fictional before. Now, it's the norm... Ah, do tell me, if I may ask, what is your quirk?"

With that, Izuku froze, eyes downcast. He pressed his lips together, trying to keep himself composed and not cry.

"I..." He started, "I'm... quirkless..."

Izuku didn't look anywhere else but the ground. He's waiting for the man to sneer at him and jab the insults that he's always been so used to hearing.

It was quiet and he's been too anxious to what the man's reactions would be so he looked up.

Izuku didn't know how to describe the man's reaction. He knows he's a good judge of what people thinks, as he's always been an observant boy, but the man had so much emotion running through that Izuku can't pinpoint how to feel about it.

"Is that so?... It... I was right when I say that you looked like someone I know."

The man looked up in the sky and said, "My brother and you are so alike, especially that light in your eyes."

He then turned to Izuku. "Tell me, Izuku, is quirk really everything? A quirkless like you is so impressive. You wanted to be a hero, right? Only a Hero-wannabe would write notebooks about quirks and entitle it as 'Hero Analysis for the future.' One can never be a hero if not for his quirk. Yet, why do you still believe that you can be a hero?"

Izuku looked directly at the man. "I... I want to save people! Being a hero is what makes me able to save people... And I still believe, no matter how impossible that I'm..."

He smiled as he said his next words, "I'll save people with a smile!"

The man moved closer to him, "You can only see the stars, but you won't reach it. The distance is too great and you'd die before you can even reach it. Izuku, you're fueled by your belief that you can be a hero but you're missing the most fundamental requirement to being one. How would you achieve your dream?"

Izuku gulped and looked at the sides. "I... I don't... I don't know but if there's a will, there's a way. I've been working non-stop to build my foundation towards heroics and I..."

He looked down as tears slowly fell. "It's impossible... right? I mean, yeah, a quirkless like me can't be a hero, I know that but I guess I just... I want to save people like Allmight does and... I... I'm sorry, I don't want to stop hoping but I guess it was just stupid of me to keep on pursuing what can't happen but-"

"Izuku."

"-Is it that bad to dream? I mean, yes, I am quirkless and maybe I should take Kacchan's words to dive off a roof and-"

"Izuku."

"- wish that I'll have a quirk on my next life, but I can't do a stupid stunt like that! My mom is all I have and if I leave and make her cry too, then how am I any better than those villains? I-"

Izuku stopped with his ramblings when he felt someone hug him. "Izuku, you truly do resemble my brother so much."

The man loosened himself from Izuku and looked at him. "Tell me Izuku, do you want to be a hero?"

Izuku, with tears still falling from his eyes, slowly answered, "I... I still... want to be a hero... but..."

"Then tell me, what kind of quirk would you want to have?"

Izuku just felt numb from crying and he just answered what was on his mind. "Something that will help me help people, like Allmight."

In that moment, he felt drowsy. Before he can process what was happening, he fell unconscious and fell in the man's arms.

Just near the two, a black figure appeared. "Master, I have come to fetch you. Shigaraki Tomura is waiting for you to come back." The person surrounded in black mist, dressed in a bartender's clothes, slowly made his way until he noticed the boy in his master's arm.

"Master, the boy is?"

All for One held the boy in a more comfortable way before slowly laying him on the floor. "Fix the boy's things and get his address. Drop him and his bag near the door, but be careful with him. Ring his doorbell before you leave, whole making sure that his mother would open the door. Make sure no one sees you in the act."

"But master..."

"Do it Kurogiri." All for one said with a firm voice, opting Kurogiri to not inquire anymore.

"Yes master, as you wish."

Kurogiri took out the phone from Izuku's pockets and searched for any information about the boy. He also inspected the boy's things. When he had found the address via the student handbook, he informed his master immediately.

All for One nodded and bid goodbye to the boy by placing his hand on Izuku's head, lightly patting it.

As Kurogiri witnesses it, he can't help but feel that it's too peculiar for his master to act this way.

"Kurogiri, I can feel what you're thinking."

With that, Kurogiri profusely apologized. "I'm sorry master, I have overstepped my boundaries."

"You must be wondering why the cruelest man alive is being soft on a kid? Let me tell you Kurogiri, while I maybe the height of evil, I am still human."

Kurogiri opted to listen more. "I felt nostalgic and this boy reminded me so much of my brother. He was the only person I cherished and loved... but he's gone. Think of this as feeling guilty, if you must. The only time that I'll have such humane feelings is when it involves family."

All for One took one last look at the boy before motioning Kurogiri to do his job. Kurogiri made a portal and went about his way, leaving his master at the rooftop.

"The boy certainly has promise, if not for his inability." All for One looked at the forming portal where his subordinate came from.

"I have safely delivered the boy to his home," Kurogiri reported. "What are your next orders, Master?"

Smiling to himself, All for One walked towards his subordinate. "I'm feeling a bit too generous. How about scheduling a fight with All might? I'm rather fond of giving gifts to my brother."