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The work had been nothing short of brutal — seven months of sweat, pain, and relentless self-discipline. It was the kind of training that broke people, that left them on the ground gasping for air and wondering if they had the strength to stand back up.
Izuku Midoriya had stood back up. Every. Single. Time.
There were days when his lungs burned like fire, when his arms felt too heavy to lift, and when the coppery taste of blood clung stubbornly to his tongue. The aches in his joints, the soreness in every fiber of his muscles — they had become familiar companions, reminders of the price he was paying.
But even through the worst of it — through torn calluses, through tears shed when no one was watching — he never stopped. He endured. He adapted. He grew. Because he had to. Because he wanted it more than anything else.
Now, as the sun dipped low on the horizon, casting a soft orange glow across the beach, Izuku stood tall. His skin glistened with sweat, his breathing steady but deep. He wasn't gasping, he wasn't trembling — not like before. The trash-ridden wasteland that had once overwhelmed him was now a nearly spotless stretch of sand, reclaimed through his own grit and willpower.
He wiped his brow and let out a long exhale, a satisfied smirk tugging at the corners of his mouth. The sight of his progress filled him with a quiet, powerful pride. His back was straighter. His steps felt lighter. His body — once so frail — had become something hardened and honed.
'I'm really doing it...' he thought, chest rising with pride. 'I'm making real progress. Just a little more, and the whole beach will be clean. My training will be done...'
His eyes glinted with determination.
'And then... I'll finally be one step closer to becoming the hero I've always dreamed of.'
"Young Midoriya!"
The familiar voice broke the gentle rhythm of crashing waves — hoarse, yet filled with unmistakable presence.
Izuku turned, startled at first, but quickly lit up with recognition.
There, walking toward him from the path above the beach, was All Might — not in his awe-inspiring, muscle-bound form, but in the slender, gaunt frame of his true self.
"All Might!" Izuku called back, blinking in surprise. He hadn't expected to see his mentor again so soon today — especially not in that form. Still, despite his shock, he offered a warm smile, his exhaustion momentarily forgotten. "W-What is it? Something wrong?"
The Symbol of Peace stepped onto the sand with a slightly uneven gait, breathing just a little heavier than usual. Even in his weakened state, he had a presence that couldn't be ignored. But today, something about him felt... off.
There was a flicker of hesitation in his eyes. A rare sheepishness tugged at the corners of his mouth — the kind of awkward look you'd expect from someone who'd forgotten to buy milk, not from the man who once carried entire cities on his back.
"Well," All Might began with an awkward chuckle, scratching the back of his neck in that unmistakably humble way. "As embarrassing as it is to admit... I just remembered something rather important."
Izuku tilted his head, his smile fading into curiosity. "Huh? What do you mean?"
All Might cleared his throat, his tone shifting slightly, settling into something more serious. "The U.A. Entrance Exam..." he said, voice trailing just a little before continuing. "It's in three months."
Izuku's eyes widened. Three months. The words echoed in his mind like a bell. He knew the date — of course he did. It had been marked on his calendar, underlined twice. But hearing it now, spoken aloud by All Might, felt different. Heavy. Real.
"Y-Yeah," Izuku muttered, nodding slowly. "I know..."
The breeze carried a silence between them for a moment. The sun was almost gone now, sinking below the waves in a haze of gold and red. All Might looked out toward the horizon, his expression darkening with thought.
"I've come to a realization," he said finally, arms folding across his narrow chest. "By the time your training is complete — and I finally pass One For All on to you — the exam will be right at your doorstep."
Izuku blinked, the words hitting him like a soft punch to the gut. "Wait... what are you saying?"
All Might turned his gaze back to him, and the weight in his eyes was unmistakable — not disappointment, but concern. Calculation. "What I'm saying, young Midoriya," he began slowly, "is that while your body may be ready by then... you won't have enough time to actually learn how to use One For All. Not on any reliable level. Mastering that power? It's not something you pick up overnight."
Izuku's shoulders sagged, just slightly — but enough for All Might to notice. Until now, he had been so focused on building his body and proving his worth that he hadn't considered what would happen after he inherited the Quirk. The idea of receiving that immense power and not being able to control it... the thought alone made his chest tighten. It was terrifying.
But All Might's next words broke through the tension like a crack of lightning.
"But, I've made a decision."
Izuku's head snapped up, eyes wide. "Wh-What do you mean?"
A small grin crept onto All Might's face, just enough to show that he hadn't lost his confidence — only redirected it.
"Take off your shirt."
"...Huh? W-Wait, what?" Izuku blinked, startled and thrown completely off guard by the request.
"I need to assess your physical progress," All Might said, gesturing casually as he took a step forward. "I want to see just how far you've come."
"Oh! R-Right! Of course!" Izuku stammered, cheeks reddening slightly as he awkwardly tugged off his sweat-soaked shirt.
The evening breeze hit his bare skin, and he instinctively tensed his body, flexing ever so slightly. Months of relentless training had finally sculpted something visible — the outline of defined muscle along his arms, shoulders, and torso. He still wasn't bulky, but he had strength now. His frame was lean, conditioned, ready.
All Might circled him slowly, brows furrowed, hand thoughtfully stroking his chin.
"Hmmm... yes, yes... Upper body strength has come a long way. Core is solid, and those shoulders — clearly no longer the same scrawny limbs you started with." He paused behind Izuku, nodding in approval. "There's definition. Control. A real base to work from."
Izuku stood still, the tension from earlier replaced with quiet anticipation.
"You've still got room to grow," All Might admitted, stepping around to face him again. "Legs could use more explosive power, and your overall endurance has to keep climbing. But..."
He straightened, voice firm.
"Your current condition — it's good enough."
Izuku blinked. "Good enough... for what?"
A new fire sparked in All Might's eyes, the familiar grin returning in full. "To inherit One For All."
Izuku's eyes went wide — impossibly wide — like saucers.
"W-WHAT!? Seriously!?" he shouted, his voice cracking with a mix of disbelief and uncontainable excitement. His heart thundered in his chest. "B-But wait! Didn't you say if my body wasn't ready, my limbs could literally fly off or explode or something!?"
All Might's expression shifted, becoming more serious, more grounded. He nodded solemnly.
"And I meant that," he said with gravity. "A few months ago, if you had tried to wield even a fraction of One For All, your body would've broken apart under the strain. It would've torn you to pieces from the inside out."
Izuku swallowed hard, the vivid mental image enough to make his knees weak.
"But now," All Might continued, his tone softening as pride began to bloom in his eyes, "you've built something solid — a foundation worthy of the power. You're not indestructible yet, not by a long shot... but you've got the strength, the discipline, and the heart to carry it."
He took a step closer, his presence towering even in his thinner form. "You're ready. Not because you're perfect — but because you won't give up when it gets hard. And believe me... it will get hard."
Izuku's breath caught in his throat. The weight of All Might's words, of his belief, settled heavily on his shoulders — but it didn't crush him. It empowered him.
"So I shouldn't use 100%... not yet," he said quietly, piecing it together.
"Exactly," All Might confirmed with a nod. "If you try to wield One For All at full capacity right now, your body won't survive it. But if we train, monitor your output, and figure out your threshold... we'll get there. Together."
Izuku slowly looked down at his hands — scarred, calloused, and trembling with adrenaline. He could feel something stirring already. The thought of wielding even a sliver of that legendary power made his pulse race. He clenched his fists tightly, grounding himself.
"I won't let you down," he said, voice firm with resolve.
All Might smiled wide, the kind of smile that made the world feel a little brighter. "I know you won't, young Midoriya."
Then, without another word, he reached up and plucked a single strand of his golden hair from his head — holding it between two fingers like a sacred relic.
He held it out toward Izuku with a grin that was just a little too cheerful for what he was about to say.
"Now... eat this."
"...HUUUUUUUUH!?" Izuku practically screamed, his voice cracking like glass as he stumbled back a step, nearly falling onto the sand. His entire face twisted into a look of horror and disbelief. "E-EAT YOUR HAIR!?"
"Yes," All Might said flatly, as if it were the most normal thing in the world. "In order for you to inherit One For All, you must ingest a piece of my DNA. Hair, in this case, is... well, frankly, the least revolting option."
Izuku's jaw dropped. His hands flailed as he tried to make sense of the words assaulting his ears. "T-This is insane! This is so not what I pictured when you said you'd be passing the Quirk to me! I thought maybe you'd, I don't know, channel it into me with a cool explosion or punch lightning into my chest or something, not—feed me your hair!"
All Might gave a small shrug and a helpless grin. "I never said it would be dramatic or elegant. It's... a bit archaic, I admit. But this is how the power works — it must be passed along through physical DNA. That's the law of One For All, no hair, no power." He held the strand out again.
Izuku stared at the golden strand like it was radioactive. His hand hovered in front of it, trembling like it had a mind of its own. "You've faced down sludge monsters," he muttered to himself, trying to find courage. "You've trained until your arms felt like they'd fall off... You can do this. You have to do this. For your dream... for your future..."
He closed his eyes for a second, exhaled sharply, and snatched the hair from All Might's hand like it was a live wire. He opened one eye and peeked up at the hero.
"Are you sure there's no other way? Like... saliva? Blood? A quirky handshake?"
All Might just raised an eyebrow.
Izuku sighed in surrender, holding the hair between his fingers like it was his last meal on Earth. "Okay... here goes nothing..."
With the speed of a man ripping off a bandage, he shoved the hair into his mouth and gagged instantly. "Blehhh—oh my god, it's so dry and stringy!"
He forced it down like a bitter pill, face contorted in agony the whole time.
"I can't believe I just did that," he groaned, clutching his stomach like it would rebel at any second.
But then— A sudden thrum echoed through his core. It wasn't loud... it was felt, not heard. Like a deep vibration in his bones, in his blood. A surge of heat — subtle but undeniable — began to swell in his chest. His heart skipped a beat.
"W-What is—?" he stammered, but the words caught in his throat as his toes left the ground.
He gasped.
His feet weren't touching the sand anymore.
"W-Wait—what's happening!?" Izuku yelped, his voice pitching in panic. He flailed instinctively, arms windmilling as he hovered nearly a foot off the beach, as if the air itself had decided to cradle him. "I'm FLOATING!?"
All Might's eyes widened with sheer disbelief. "What the—?!" he barked, stepping forward. "Midoriya! Calm down!"
"I CAN'T CALM DOWN, I'M DEFYING GRAVITY!" Izuku shrieked, his legs kicking like he was treading invisible water. He spun awkwardly in the air, drifting with no control. "ALL MIGHT, I'M FLOATING AND I DON'T KNOW HOW TO STOP!"
All Might clenched his jaw, confused and visibly concerned. "That's not—that's not supposed to happen! One For All doesn't grant flight!" He muttered under his breath, mind racing. "Unless... no. That can't be!"
Izuku twisted in midair, eyes wild. "What do you mean!? What's going on?!"
But before All Might could answer, the strange sensation — the electric warmth, the upward pull — vanished.
Just like that, gravity reasserted itself.
"AHHH—!"
Izuku crashed to the ground like a sack of bricks, slamming back-first into the sand with a thud that kicked up a cloud of dust. His body stiffened, but it wasn't the impact that knocked the breath from his lungs — it was what came next.
An invisible spike of pain shot straight through his skull, blinding and raw. He gasped sharply, eyes going wide as he clutched at his head, groaning in agony. It felt like something was burning behind his eyes — a pressure building deep within, throbbing, pulsing.
"Gah—! A-All Might...! M-My head...! It—It hurts!!" Izuku cried out, his voice cracking with every word.
His hands shot up to clutch his skull, his entire body trembling uncontrollably as waves of searing pain ripped through his mind, the kind of pain he'd never imagined was possible. His vision blurred, and the world around him spun like he was trapped in a whirlwind of agony.
"Young Midoriya!" All Might shouted, his voice tinged with panic as he sprinted to his side, his eyes wide with alarm. "Are you alright!? Say something, damn it!"
But Izuku couldn't. He couldn't even think. His body felt like it was being ripped apart from the inside out, each breath a struggle as if his lungs were being crushed. The pain was unfathomable, a jagged force twisting in his skull, as though his very thoughts were being pulled apart and rebuilt with each agonizing throb. His arms and legs shook violently, muscles locking and then spasming uncontrollably.
All he could hear were fragments of All Might's voice, distant and fading, like they were being drowned out by the roar of a storm. He tried to respond, tried to tell him he was fine, but the words wouldn't come. His mind couldn't form them. He couldn't do anything.
Everything went dark.
The world around him blurred into a painful blackness, his mind slipping away from his body.
With a final, tortured wince and a staggered breath, Izuku's body collapsed forward, face-first into the sand with a heavy thud. His body lay still, unmoving, the faint sound of the waves crashing against the shore the only indication that time was still passing.
"Midoriya!" All Might's voice was a guttural shout, a mix of panic and desperation as he dropped to his knees beside Izuku.
He scooped the boy up, pulling him into his arms with the kind of urgency that only a mentor, a father figure, could muster. His hands trembled as he checked for a pulse, his breath shallow as his face twisted with concern.
"Young Midoriya! Can you hear me!? Stay with me, damn it!" His words were fierce, but his tone cracked with a helplessness he rarely allowed himself to show.
He gently shook Izuku, hoping for a response, but the boy remained completely still, completely unconscious.
All Might's gaze darkened, his face falling into an expression of grim realization. The power of One For All was far more than just physical strength — it was a force that could tear at the very fabric of a person's being if not controlled. Izuku was now paying the price for taking it on so quickly.
He clenched his fists, frustration bubbling to the surface. But even as he held Izuku's lifeless form, something strange began to stir.
In the silence of the moment, Izuku's consciousness drifted. It was as if he were being pulled away from his body, from reality itself. No longer was he lying on the beach in All Might's arms. The world around him shifted — the beach, the sky, the wind — they all disappeared.
He opened his eyes.
He stood—no, floated—in an endless void that stretched beyond the limits of sight. The space around him pulsed gently with a soft, emerald-green light, like the faint heartbeat of something ancient and alive. Mist curled around his feet, swirling and weaving through his form, wrapping him in a shimmering, otherworldly embrace.
He glanced down, startled to find his body no longer solid. Instead, it was made entirely of dark green mist, a hazy silhouette shaped like himself, but lacking any sharp edges or clear features. Ethereal. Ghostlike.
'Wh-Where... am I...?' he thought in the vast silence.
Before he could gather his thoughts, a figure emerged through the swirling fog ahead. At first, just a vague silhouette, but as she drew nearer, the outline sharpened. She was tall and poised, with black hair pulled back into a loose, flowing ponytail. Her eyes were calm, but filled with quiet strength—and something deeper, something almost like familiarity.
She approached with an amused, almost gentle smile that softened the eerie surroundings.
"So... you're going to be Number Nine, huh, kid?" she said, folding her arms casually.
Izuku blinked, surprised that he could speak so clearly in this strange place. "Number... Nine?" he asked, voice tinged with curiosity and awe.
She nodded slowly. "The ninth wielder of One For All."
His eyes widened as the weight of her words sank in. "Wait—are you... one of the previous users?"
The woman chuckled softly, a sound like a breeze stirring dry leaves. "You catch on fast. I am the seventh, or rather—I was the seventh."
Izuku floated a little closer, his misty form flickering with awe and confusion. "I... I don't understand. What is this place?" His voice trembled slightly, as if speaking aloud might help him unravel the mystery.
The woman's eyes softened as she glanced upward, toward the endless expanse of glowing green mist that stretched infinitely in every direction. "This is a fragment of the Quirk itself — a hidden realm where all of us, the former wielders of One For All, exist in a way. Not quite alive, but never truly gone." Her tone was calm, yet tinged with something like reverence. "You're here because something inside the power... has changed."
Izuku's form shivered, as if the weight of her words echoed through his very essence. "Changed...?" he repeated, his voice barely above a whisper.
She nodded, her expression growing more serious as she stepped closer, her gaze locking onto his. "Yes. One For All is no longer what it once was. We've been waiting for the right moment to evolve — to grow beyond the limits we knew, to become something stronger, something new."
A pause lingered in the air before she continued, her voice lowering with significance. "And it seems that with you — a Quirkless host, just like Toshinori — that moment has finally come."
Izuku was utterly speechless. His thoughts stormed wildly through his mind, trying desperately to process the enormity of what she'd just revealed.
'One For All... has changed? It has evolved? And I'm the reason?' The realization crashed over him in overwhelming waves, too vast and complex to grasp all at once.
The woman's lips curled into a sly, knowing smirk — the kind of smile reserved for those who hold secrets too big for the world yet can't help but savor the moment. There was a glint of playful confidence in her eyes, as if she knew something Izuku was only beginning to glimpse.
"Lucky you, kid," she said with a soft chuckle, the corners of her mouth curling into a knowing smile. "Looks like you're getting a whole new One For All."
Almost instantly, the void around them began to shift and hum—a deep, resonant vibration that rolled through the endless expanse like ancient gears turning after centuries of silence. The soft green mist that surrounded them pulsed with renewed life, growing brighter and more vibrant, as if countless tiny stars were awakening from a timeless slumber.
Wisps of light—like glowing fireflies—drifted lazily, then swiftly, orbiting Izuku's ethereal form in mesmerizing patterns. Some of these orbs flickered gently before fading away, vanishing like dying embers dissolving into the night.
But others—brighter, sharper, bursting with raw intensity—shot forward like shooting stars, piercing through the haze of Izuku's misty body. Each one sent ripples of energy surging through him, waves of power that crackled like electricity across his form. The sensation wasn't painful—it was overwhelming, divine, like the spark of creation itself igniting within his soul.
Izuku gasped, eyes wide as the power settled deep inside him. It felt like he was being filled with lightning, memory, and unyielding will all at once—every fragment of the past wielders' strength flowing through his veins.
The woman's voice returned, steady and calm, yet layered with something deeper—pride, reverence, and hope.
"We didn't just pass One For All to you as it was," she explained, her gaze steady and sure. "No... we reforged it. Reshaped it. Each of us gave up something—our quirks, our strength, pieces of ourselves. We had to choose carefully: what to keep, what to discard, and what to blend together into something new."
Her eyes locked with Izuku's, filled with quiet determination.
"You're not just inheriting a power—you're carrying the legacy of evolution. And with you, One For All will become something beyond anything we could have imagined."
She stepped closer, and though Izuku's body remained little more than green-hued mist, he could feel it—her presence. It pressed in around him like gravity itself, ancient and immovable, as if all of her strength, wisdom, and resolve were condensed into every step she took.
There was warmth in her smile, but behind it, a fire — quiet, yet unyielding.
"But don't worry, kid," she said, her voice steady but laced with amusement, a cocky grin curling across her lips. "You're already set to be stronger than Toshinori ever was."
Izuku's mist-like eyes widened, the sheer weight of her words crashing into him like a wave. 'Stronger than All Might?'
The very idea shook him to his core.
She smirked, arms folding across her chest, her dark hair swaying gently in the swirling current of energy around them.
"In fact..." she continued, her voice carrying that same bold certainty, "You'll be at least a hundred times stronger than Toshi. Maybe more."
The world around them responded. The swirling lights surged, blazing brighter with each passing second. The mist churned and pulsed as raw, untamed power danced through the void, eager to take shape. It was like the Quirk itself was awakening alongside him, recognizing its new vessel.
She tilted her head with a knowing glint in her eyes — equal parts reverence and challenge.
"Heck, who knows, kid," she said, her grin widening as her voice swelled with pride and excitement. "You just might be the one who finally pushes this power beyond anything it's ever been. You just might be-!"
[INVINCIBLE]