Chapter 22: To Hope for Condemnation
She tapered off, eyes distant and a frown on her face. The frown hardened, determination beginning to burn in her eyes.
"The world is a much scarier place than I thought it was, even though I was so sure I knew what I was getting into by becoming a hero. I need to be stronger if I'm going to help protect people from it." She turned to meet his gaze. "So. This Vestige Realm is where you've been getting all that extra practice time. Any chance there's room for another visitor?"
Her determination stoked his own, and he felt a smile stretch across his lips. "You know, there might just be."
"Oh ho ho! What have we here?"
Of all the people Izuku had been expecting to find waiting outside the 1A Dorms, Kayama wasn't one of them. He barely recognized her out of costume; Hair up in a messy bun and wearing a violet sweatshirt over black leggings, she looked almost nothing like her hero persona.
At least until she glanced between himself and Ochako, and her smile turned coquettish.
"What have you two been getting up to, hmm?" Kayama asked, waggling her eyebrows. "It looks like someone's just gotten her mind blown."
In a way, she wasn't wrong.
All things considered, Ochako had handled the absurdity of the story quite well, and had come out strong on the other side. Even so, she'd just been on the receiving end of a LOT of information, and was still reeling from it. As such, the walk home had been a mostly quiet one, punctuated by a few questions and clarifications. It had been clear she was distracted by her thoughts, though her grip on his hand had never wavered.
Unfortunately, that lingering distraction had blinded her to their teacher's teasing. As a result, she answered at face value, and with a bit more honesty than might have been advisable.
"Uh huh." Ochako murmured absently.
Izuku had already been on his way to a five alarm blush before she'd said anything, but afterwards? He felt like he must have been outshining the evening sun.
"Um?" Kayama's eyes went wide, and she looked the both of them over in alarm. "...Did you…? Ok, time out. Was that a misunderstanding, or do I actually need to run through the safe sex spiel here? You two were the last ones I thought I'd-"
"Wait. What?" Ochako blinked. Then, several octaves higher; "Safe WHAT?"
"Oh, thank goodness. You're both still innocent." Kayama sighed in relief.
Izuku tried to speak. He wasn't sure if he failed entirely, or if whatever sound he made was just too high pitched for the human ear to hear.
"Nonononono!" Ochako babbled as she waved her hands in denial, rapidly reddening. "We just went on our first date an' Izuku cleaned a beach and Quirks an'... an' we didn't do anythin' like… l-like…"
She dropped her face into her hands with a mortified groan. Had she not been wearing her gloves, she'd probably have started floating away.
"I'm sorry!" Kayama looked half way between genuinely regretful and like she wanted to squeal, which was… certainly an interesting combination. "I was just… I didn't expect that response-"
"Nem?" A voice called. "What did I tell you about corrupting Tenya's friends?"
"Eep!" This time, it was Kayama's turn to blush as she whipped around. She seemed to freeze for a split second as she caught sight of the speaker, but it was so quick Izuku wasn't entirely sure if he'd seen it at all. "Tensei! Hi! Um… no, no corrupting here! Just a misunderstanding!"
"Uh huh." Tensei grunted, sounding completely convinced as Tenya continued to push his brother's wheelchair further up the path from the track. "And I'm sure the fact that I can feel the heat radiating off their faces from here is purely coincidence."
"I wasn't trying to corrupt them! It was just a little teasing!" Kayama pouted, then gestured to them with both hands. "Can you blame me? They're adorable!"
"Be that as it may, and while I fully endorse teasing..."
"As I can attest." Tenya sighed resignedly.
"...Your teasing tends to be inherently corrupting." Tensei continued, unperturbed. "As such, I have no choice but to conclude that you were, in fact, being naughty."
Kayama grumbled something under her breath, but didn't argue any further as Tenya brought himself and his brother to a stop before them, then stepped around the chair.
"Hello Izuku, Uraraka." Tenya greeted them as Tensei and Kayama began talking lowly together off to the side. "How was your outing? Hopefully Nemuri didn't tarnish it too badly."
Izuku took a deep, albeit shuddering, breath to center himself. "O-our d-d-date went w-well."
Ochako, face still in her hands, nodded rapidly.
Tenya smiled broadly with a tinge of relief around the edges, then spoke a little louder than seemed strictly necessary. "That's wonderful! I'm overjoyed for the both of you. I'm sure you'll be quite happy together!"
Ochako peeked up between her fingers. "You're… not surprised? Did Izuku tell you what he was planning?"
"He did, but I knew what was coming long before he said anything." Tenya adjusted his glasses, then once again spoke slightly louder than necessary. "I'm sorry to say that neither of you were terribly subtle about your feelings. The only people who seemed wholly unaware of it were the recipients."
"That's more or less what Mina said too. I was kind of hoping she was exaggerating, but… apparently not." Ochako slumped with another small groan. "How was your day, Iida?"
"Fantastic! It was quite nice to see Tensei again, and his instruction on using my new Engines was immensely helpful, as you'd probably imagine." Tenya beamed. "I'm quite comfortable with both Engines in 1st and 2nd Gear simultaneously now, and have an acceptable amount of control with 3nd Gear individually. I must say, the way my new engines expand my options for mobility is incredible."
"You're a quick study, little brother." Tensei said as he rolled up, then stretched in order to ruffle Tenya's hair. "I'm going to give Nem a ride home in the Hot Rod, then head home myself. I'll try to make sure we can do this again next week, if you'd like."
Tenya paused his attempts to fix his hair in order to smile at his brother. "I'd like that very much!"
"Great! I'll hopefully see you next weekend, then!" Tensei wrapped an arm around Tenya's waist in a side hug, then muffled a yawn as he turned to Izuku and Ochako. "Izuku, good to see you as well. Uraraka, it's nice to meet you. Congratulations to you both, and stay out of trouble!"
"Thank you. Before you go, would you like a little bit of energy?" Izuku asked, extending a hand. "Just to make sure you can get home safe."
Tensei seemed like he was about to turn the offer down, then paused when he saw the intense way Izuku was looking at him. Realization dawned a moment later, though Tensei hid it quickly. "Actually, I'd appreciate that. I'm a little worn out from today."
A quick brush of his fingers later, and Tensei and Kayama were making their way towards a large silver SUV with obvious handicap accessibility modifications. The two of them continued to talk the whole way, laughter carrying on the wind in their wake.
"Tenya?" Izuku asked after a moment. "Was all of that some kind of scheme to goad one of them into making a move?"
"Making a move…?" Ochako asked, looking after the retreating figures with clear surprise. "Wait, they aren't already dating?"
"No, they're not. Unfortunately. And… maybe just a little bit." Tenya sighed. "It wasn't my original reason for letting her know we were finishing up. Tensei hasn't let himself rest anywhere near as much as he should have since he left the hospital. Mr. Aizawa is out on partol and Hizashi is currently at the radio station, but she finished her rounds for the day about an hour ago. She was always the best of them at cheering him up regardless, so I asked if she was available to try and get him to relax for a few hours. But when you two were here as well… I may have taken the opportunity presented. I apologize if that was uncouth of me."
"It's fine. I just wouldn't have figured you for a matchmaker." Ochako replied, bemused. "That's more Mina's thing."
"Is it playing matchmaker when they've been doing this for quite literally my entire life?" Tenya sighed. "The match is made. It's just that they're too caught up in their insecurities to realize it. Nemuri has always been worried that she's too wild for his tastes, and that being in a relationship with her would ruin his reputation. Tensei, on the other hand, is afraid that he's too plain for her, and that her entering a relationship would tank her popularity. They're both blatantly, objectively wrong about the other's tastes, but they're also so stubborn that no amount of anyone trying to just TELL THEM THAT has stuck."
Tenya pushed up his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose, then deflated with a groan. "I apologize. It's just… hard, to see him try to act like nothing's wrong, especially when I can see right through it. He's exhausted, and stressed, and understandably depressed, and… I just want something to go right for him."
There was a moment of quiet that followed Tenya's explanation. Gently, Izuku reached up to pat his friend on the shoulder. "He's lucky to have you, Tenya."
"Yeah! You're doing your best to help him when he needs it." Ochako added.
"He's always done so for me." Tenya smiled wanly. "The least I can do is try to return the favor."
"If you'd like to spend some more time with him, that bit of Boon will let him appear in the Vestige Realm tonight." Izuku murmured quietly. "If that works out how I expect it to, then it'll probably be a really good night for him. I'm sure he'll appreciate having you there."
"I would like that-" Tenya briefly went still, then another wave of relief visibly washed over him. "Oh, thank goodness. I assumed you would tell Uraraka everything if you made your relationship official, but it's a relief to know for sure. Will you be joining us this evening as well?"
Ochako nodded. "From what I've heard, this is absolutely something I need to experience. I trust what I've been told, but… it's all so crazy."
"I've known since a bit after the Hosu incident, and it still feels unreal most of the time." Tenya admitted. "That said, time in the Vestige Realm is invaluable. The freedom and safety it offers while training is unlike anything even UA could provide."
"So I've heard." Ochako said, then unsuccessfully tried to muffle a yawn of her own. "Well, let's head in before someone starts wondering why we're just standing out here."
The three made their way up the steps together, then stepped into the dorms.
Just as Ashido was walking by.
She wore a black tank top and yoga pants with a black and pink zebra stripe pattern, and had a bowl of Nato Rice in one hand and a spoon in her mouth. Her eyes immediately snapped to the three of them, then down to where Izuku and Ochako's hands were twined together.
Her eyes went absolutely huge.
"Uh-oh." Ochako squeaked.
Ashido did a little dance, then spun to look around frantically. Not finding anywhere convenient, she put her bowl on the ground, then spun back to face them.
"OU DIHD ET?" Ashido frowned, then swallowed hard. "You did it? You asked him?"
Ochako blushed, but gave a little nod.
Ashido squealed loudly, then did something between another celebratory dance and an abortive attempt to tackle them both. "I've been going nuts waiting for an update all day! You said you'd let me know what happened!"
"I meant to!" Ochako defended herself. "But I kind of got distracted by our date, you know?"
This drew more attention from the surrounding areas, including from Inko, who poked her head out from her rooms.
Her eyes immediately snapped down to their still linked hands.
"Uh-oh." Izuku muttered.
A second squeal joined the first. Unlike Ashido, Inko didn't hesitate to drag both of them into a hug.
Really, he should have expected the ambush. The Vestiges had been quiet during the date, which had been as suspicious as it was appreciated. But the moment Izuku managed to drift off to sleep and appeared within the Vestige Realm, that silence was broken.
"CONGRAAAAAAAA-"
Izuku didn't even fully register what was happening before he grabbed the arm rushing towards him. With a twist and a heave, he turned his assailant's momentum into a throw, hauling them up and over his shoulder in an arc. Daigoro slammed into the floor of the ruins back first with a crash and a wheeze, multicolored bits of something whirling up into the air around him.
Izuku stared down at the twitching, gurgling bulk of the Fifth Wielder, brain working overtime to try and parse what was happening. "...is that confetti?"
From behind, he heard En sigh. "We tried to tell him to keep it low key, but did he listen? No. Of course he didn't."
Izuku glanced back over his shoulder. Save for Daigoro, the rest of the Wielders were sitting in their thrones, looking varying degrees of bemused or exasperated. Yoichi, looking particularly sheepish, blew half-heartedly into a party noisemaker.
"Well, Daigoro?" Kudo asked, in the tone of someone lightly scolding a child. "What did we learn?"
"...don't…try…to noogie…" Daigoro forced out, then gasped. "...the…mini-Hikage…"
Hikage nodded in agreement. "That was good form."
"...Thanks." Izuku murmured. "So I assume this is about Ochako, right?"
"A genius of deductive reasoning." Kudo snarked, though there wasn't any actual heat behind the words. "Personally, I thought we should just keep our noses out of it, but En, Hikage, and I were outvoted because Kinenkō decided to abstain."
"In our defense…" Nana interjected. "We were just planning a little congratulations. This was something that obviously meant a lot to you. We're proud of you for going through with it."
"Even if she beat you to the punch." Bruce chuckled.
"Regardless, the plan was to get this out of our systems before she got here, so that we didn't overwhelm her like we did with your Mother." Yoichi took the noise maker out of his mouth, then flicked it into the void behind him. "As usual, Daigoro had a bit more in his system to work through, though."
"Bite me." Daigoro grunted, then dragged himself to his feet, confetti drifting off of him as he did so. He cleared his throat, then very slowly reached out a hand to pat Izuku on the shoulder. "Seriously though, kid. Congrats. You two seem like you'll make each other really happy, and that's something everyone could do with more of."
"She already does." Izuku smiled, heart swelling.
"Oh boy. Here comes the puppy love phase." From the way Nana was giggling, she didn't seem to see that as a bad thing.
"Speaking of…" Yoichi frowned in concentration, then brightened. "We now have incoming! Everyone, let's make a good impression this time, shall we?"
Above, two faint traceries of gold began to form. Slowly, one of the vague transparent shapes resolved into a small homey kitchen. The appliances looked old but well cared for, and the chairs around the heavy wooden table were each different from the other. A cake decorated in pink and white sat in the middle of the table.
Ochako opened her eyes, then looked around. A fond smile spread across her lips as she ran her fingers across the back of a chair with space-patterned cushions, then she looked upwards. "...woah. Tenya wasn't kidding about this being weird."
"It's certainly a surreal experience the first time." Tenya agreed as he took shape in his office, Tensei's power Vestige silent at his side. "Odd as it may be, however, it's a marvel."
"That it is. Ochako, welcome to the Vestige Realm!" Izuku called up to her. It felt wonderful to finally get to show her this place. "With the exception of Doctor Kinenkō, these are the previous wielders I've told you about. Everyone, I'm happy to officially introduce you to Ochako!"
"It's a pleasure to finally meet you!" Nana smiled warmly. "We've heard a lot about you. Both because of what he's intentionally told us, and because you've been on his mind in some capacity for most of the time we've been fully conscious."
"It's adorable, really." Daigoro chuckled.
"Nana! Daigoro!" Izuku whipped around, blushing furiously. "I thought you guys were going to behave!"
Nana's smile turned impish. "Oh, Izuku. You know very well that this IS us behaving."
"...Anyway!" Izuku moved on quickly, hoping desperately that the look he caught in Ochako's eyes wasn't curiosity. "Let's get you up to speed on the ways you can change your bubble of reality, and we can start some training!"
Izuku eyed the maze of wooden posts protruding from the sand in front of him. He had a vague idea of where his target was; A small bauble that periodically made a quiet beep. The back left was his best guess, though anything beyond that was unclear. That was the intent, obviously; He alone wasn't supposed to be able to find it.
Taking a deep breath, he raised an arm and focused. A curiosity to find the bauble. A desire to grab it. A disappointment for grabbing the posts. The expected satisfaction of success. Then, he and Blackwhip reached out.
Odd, disjointed impressions coursed through the connection between them. Flashes of not-quite-sight as it wove between the pillars, faint tactile pressure as it brushed against them but didn't grab, and alert flashes of interest at the same time he heard the faint beep with his own ears. Then, with a thrum of glee, the tendril honed in on the bauble and engulfed it. Quick as a whip, they swung it upwards and out from among the pillars, then pulled it into Izuku's waiting palm with a crisp snap.
"Yes!" Izuku cheered, then focused on his satisfaction and happiness, stoking them and sharing them. Blackwhip thrummed in unison with it, their mutual pride almost seeming to harmonize.
"Nicely done, Izuku!" A third swell of emotion rolled through Blackwhip in an oddly distant way as Daigoro clapped him on the shoulder with a wide smile, his own happiness tangible through their mutual link to the Quirk. "This definitely seems like the right route for working with Blackwhip. Communicating through emotions and using them as incentives is just abstract enough that I probably wouldn't have thought of it for a while yet, but it's exactly what Blackwhip needed."
Izuku shook his head. "I wouldn't have thought of it either without you running trials for me. All those results you gave me were what led me to the idea."
"Then I suppose we'll have to humbly accept co-credit for this breakthrough." Daigoro nodded soberly, one hand reaching up to stroke the strand of Blackwhip that protruded from his shoulder, much to Blackwhip's delight. "Go ahead and take a break. You've been at this for a while, and I don't want you to pop something with how hard you've been focusing."
Ordinarily, Izuku would have said he was fine. Which he was. But ordinarily, he didn't have something so… distracting going on overhead.
Izuku nodded, then conjured three extra-tall pillars spaced in a triangle. With a flick of will and desire, Blackwhip was happy to snap out three strands from his torso, each striking a pillar at their peak. With a yank, he was pulled upwards until he stopped just short of the barrier between his realm and Ochako's.
Once she'd gotten a hang on her ability to alter her realm, she'd gone absolutely hog wild. En had offered his input from years of experience with old training systems and courses, while Nana had made suggestions tailored around aerial movement before she'd gone to spend time with Toshinori and Sorahiko. The result was a complex course full of challenging terrain, spinning poles, traps, gaps, and countless other elements to simulate both a complex urban environment and a battlefield.
Ochako ran along a narrow walkway, leaping and ducking swinging arms as she approached the far end. Two swept in at the same moment, and she dove through the gap between while clenching a fist, removing her gravity. She soared forwards to the end of the path, where she curled and rolled in the air before slamming her hands down onto the ground. She shot skywards at an angle, roughly on course to reach the second section of the gauntlet that began near the top of her realm.
Once she neared the barrier between realms, she tapped her fingers together, and her straight line turned into an arcing trajectory that would let her fall into the large opening at the top of the structure. At the peak of her arc, she noticed him hanging only about 10 feet away from her, and gave him a little wave as she began to fall into the vertical section of her 3D Obstacle Maze. He briefly saw her once again remove her weight and jump between walls before she vanished within the complex structure.
Blackwhip matched what Izuku was feeling with a thrum of… An emotion that Izuku quickly and firmly clamped down on, blushing furiously. That had been a remarkable display, and was as… stimulating… as it was impressive.
Izuku shook his head to clear it, then conjured another set of three pillars next to Bruce's column beneath Tenya's realm. He sent Blackwhip that way, though it was slightly irritated with him for cutting off such a powerful emotion. Thankfully, it accepted his desire to check on Tenya as sufficient motivation to work with him, and the dark threads snapped out with relative precision. Izuku swung down, then swept upwards as they pulled taught and brought him into position.
Just in time to see a red flash, followed by Tenya tumbling across the track and through an already mostly destroyed section of foliage.
Izuku winced. He knew from experience that Tenya would be fine; Injuries within the Vestige Realm seemed to be superficial things that faded quickly. Nothing really broke, and the pain faded far more quickly than it would have otherwise.
That didn't mean they hurt any less initially though.
Tenya dragged himself upright with a groan, then staggered a few steps away. From the swath of annihilated foliage and the variety of larger craters along the wall beyond them, this was far from the first attempt. If anything, it seemed like an improvement.
"Well, I think I finally managed to utilize the FaJin reserve without also using Recipro Burst." Tenya spat out a leaf, then conjured a new set of glasses to replace the ones that had likely been lost in his tumble. "Moderation will be my next goal."
Bruce nodded. "It's understandable that it's not intuitive for you. Your Meta Ability starts low, and requires that you push in order to get a larger output. FaJin defaults to going all out, and requires that you restrict it to get anything other than a singular massive burst. Don't feel bad if you have a hard time getting the feel for it."
Tenya nodded, then with a wave to Izuku set off around the track with all four Engines roaring. The difference between the Rescue Race video and what Izuku was seeing now was remarkable; Tenya ran with confidence while in 2nd Gear, angling his arms just so to help him stay on course while rounding the end of the track. Each bounding stride covered large swaths of ground, the combined propulsion giving him just a bit of lift. As he rounded the bend a second time, his Engines dropped to the bottom of 1st Gear, then flashed red. Tenya was launched forward once more, though this time he managed to stay on his feet when he landed.
Granted, he was still moving too quickly to completely avoid skidding into one of the few remaining topiary shrubs lining the track, but progress was progress.
Bruce chuckled, a vaguely nostalgic cast to his face. At Izuku's questioning look, Bruce shrugged.
"I couldn't practice out in the open, and I couldn't practice at home because of my Mother. My Dad always loved camping, and his favorite spot back before the world started ending was this little clearing a few miles into the woods outside town." The nostalgia was tinged by sadness now, but hadn't faded. "But when I say little, I mean little. Didn't give me a lot of room for error, and my control was pretty shit in the beginning, so Tenya's tree-hugging is a pretty familiar experience. I'd advise we practice in your realm rather than mine when we get there, unless you really want to continue the tradition."
"I might just take your advice on that. I think I get blasted through enough trees when I'm training with Hikage." Izuku nodded, then winced when he saw Bruce go still. "Sorry, I know things are strained between the two of you. I shouldn't have mentioned anything."
"Strained?" Bruce looked at him askance, then his eyebrows rose. "You haven't asked him, have you?"
"...No." Izuku admitted. "I know that whatever happened, it's one of the only things that actually seems to upset him. I didn't want to dredge it up unless he said something first."
Bruce gave him a flat look. "It's Hikage."
"...Yes. That was a pretty glaring flaw in the plan." Izuku admitted.
Bruce seemed to mull something over for a time, frown pulled tight and to the side. Then, he let out a hissing breath. "I'll tell you. If you want to ask him about it afterwards and he's upset, blame me."
Izuku eyed Bruce warily. "Won't that just make things worse?"
Bruce barked a single grim laugh, then shook his head. "I forced One for All on him, and everything that came with it by extension. There isn't really much worse I can make anything."
Izuku sagged as his stomach roiled. He'd suspected as much. It was one of the few things Hikage had almost outright said on the subject, but it had still only been heavily implied. When Bruce had seemed relatively nice, had helped him with figuring out the changes to Tenya's Quirk, and had displayed a fascination with Quirks similar to Izuku's own… he'd hoped desperately that it wasn't as bad as it sounded.
He liked Bruce. The idea that someone he liked could have done something like that was… unsettling.
"You'd figured that much out, then. I'd be worried if you hadn't." Bruce nodded, staring down at Tenya. His face had gone hard and blank. "The Resistance rescued Hikage from some of All for One's thugs. Apparently, they'd cornered him while they were sweeping the forest for us, and there wasn't much he could do against the ground turning liquid, warning or no. They were keeping him prisoner for whenever All for One swung by to make collections."
Held hostage, with the knowledge that something intrinsic to you was going to be stolen. Izuku didn't want to think about how terrifying that must have been.
"It had been about 7 years since Kudo's death at that point, and I was the one running the show. Presented with someone who could detect malicious intent, while being hunted by the most malicious people on the planet, I popped him into a guard position at the main base. He was more than happy with that…" Bruce paused for a moment. "Well, as happy as he is about anything. And it worked. He saved all our asses from discovery hundreds of times over the next few years. Right up until All for One wised up that we were getting some kind of warning whenever he or his men got close."
Bruce's facade of blank calm cracked, then shattered. Hate and rage boiled from his eyes as a sneer crawled across his face. "Hikage's range wasn't that insane back in the day, even when he pushed it as far out as he could. Maybe a half mile. Unfortunately, whatever fuck off massive laser beam Meta Ability All for One fired through the heart of that bunker had a much bigger range than that."
"...Shit." Izuku muttered, at a loss for words.
"The good news was that the bastard didn't follow it up himself. That let most of the survivors escape his ground crews and make it to another safe location." Bruce spat. "The bad news was that the upper combat leadership of The Resistance was almost completely annihilated. That included my second in command, Yoko, whom I'd intended to be my successor. Her backup, Kagami, had died covering a retreat in the last big fight. Third string was Minato, who was crippled in the fighting while we tried to get away from the ground crews, and was barely there afterwards. I could go on, but it would keep to the theme."
"So you chose Hikage." Izuku said.
"I did." Bruce agreed. "He was, in my estimation, the best possible choice in order to keep One for All alive. That entire assault was effectively an attempt to get around him in the first place, which was the best possible resume he could have as far as I was concerned."
Bruce stared off into the distance for a long moment, the anger seeming to fade slightly.
"So, I called him to my office right before dinner for a long meeting. Gave him a ration bar that had a few slivers of hair in it. Told him to eat while I explained the history of One for All to him, what little of it there was at the time." Bruce sighed. "It was going well until Danger Sense started going into overdrive."
"The Quirk amplification?" Izuku asked. "Or was it another attack?"
"The former." Bruce nodded soberly. "He figured it out pretty quick after that. Understandably flipped his lid. Told me he'd have accepted if I'd just asked as a friend rather than taking away his choices."
"Why…" Izuku hesitated. "Why didn't you just ask him?"
"A wartime general mentality. A knowledge that all he really wanted was a quiet life. Numerous other reasons that seemed wise at the time." Bruce shook his head. "I hadn't anticipated Danger Sense getting noticeably more sensitive during the explanation. I was going to ask him at the end, even though it was already done. If he'd said yes, I'd have given him a hair and sent him on his way. But I couldn't risk him saying no, and being wary of anything I did from then on. I'm not proud of it, but I had to make many, many decisions I wasn't proud of to keep the fight against All for One going back then."
"So… what happened?" Izuku warily asked after a long pause.
"He said exponentially more to me in one sitting than he had before or has since, all of it understandably furious, then deserted. I moved to assassinate All for One while my source said he was recovering from whatever that laser was, in the hopes I'd kill him and end the war." Bruce replied bluntly. "Evidence suggests I almost succeeded, because Hikage never even had to hide from the bastard. But he did eventually have to deal with other messes I was indirectly responsible for, which didn't help anything. And, of course… One for All eventually killed him."
Bruce let out a hissing breath between clenched teeth. "So yeah. Things aren't strained so much as he rightfully hates me. I agree that I was wrong morally and accept his hate, but history shows that it was almost certainly the right strategic decision to make."
"That's…" Izuku searched for words, but struggled to properly articulate what he was feeling. "That's horrible. Doing that to a person, to a friend and ally… even if it got the best results in the end, it was wrong."
"It was. But it was something necessary, like so many horrid decisions before it, and so many the others were forced into since. I lived in that gray zone for most of my adult life, fighting tooth and nail to make a future that would condemn me for my actions. Because if it did, then it was a better world than the one I lived in." Bruce turned to look at him, and suddenly Izuku realized something. Bruce's anger hadn't faded, not even slightly. It had simply turned inwards."I hope you can hold onto that conviction that the ends don't justify the means. The world has a way of crushing that out of people, especially when the world itself is what's at stake."
The weight in Bruce's words was oppressive. The rawness of it. The longing. The blend of resolve and regret. It left him at a loss for words.
The moment was shattered as Yoichi appeared in the air next to Izuku, then dropped like a brick with a startled yelp. On instinct, Izuku snapped out a few tendrils of Blackwhip to grab him, his roiling emotional state thankfully not enough to fowl his aim. A moment later, a somehow even more pale Yoichi was settled on a platform next to Izuku.
"Note to self." Yoichi said through a forced, shaky grin. "Look before I just pop myself in next to you."
"Yeah, that seems like a good plan." Izuku agreed. "So, what brings you by?"
Yoichi's eyes lit up, and his smile widened. He turned to stare down into Tenya's realm, which had fallen quiet without Izuku having noticed. He turned to follow the First's gaze… and saw Tensei's Vestige solidifying, much as Toshinori's had.
Tensei had only ever been a morning person in a 'fake it til you make it' context, unlike his brother. He'd always treasured the days where he could turn off his alarm and just let himself sleep until he woke up naturally rather than having to drag himself across his room to make the accursed device stop screaming at him.
His Quirk might have run on Grapefruit Juice, but the rest of him ran on Caffeine.
As such, when he blearily opened his eyes to find himself on the Iida family track, he was nowhere near cognizant enough to understand why. The last thing he remembered was hoisting his barely conscious self into his new bed after spending a few more hours with Nemuri than was probably wise. He'd still been riding the high of her wicked smiles and contagious laugh when he'd drifted off.
Of all the dreams he'd expected after that, one starring the family track was certainly not it. Which probably meant this was going to be one of the oddball weird ones.
"...so." Tensei glanced around languidly. "When are the ninjas going to start attacking? Or is it going to be Aliens this time?"
"Tensei?"
Ah. Tenya was part of it, apparently. Tensei turned to see his little brother, kitted out in his hero costume and with a few twigs and leaves sticking out of his hair, staring at him with a look of awe.
That was odd. Tenya had moved past the complete hero worship of him years ago. Why was he looking so…
"Tenya? What's wrong?" Tensei's mind began to clear at the sight of his brother tearing up. He rushed over to him, putting an armored hand on Tenya's equally armored shoulder with a clang. "Is everything ok? Why are you-"
Tenya wrapped him in a hug that would have been crushing were it not for his own hero costume. "Tensei! Tensei, you can walk!"
The pit opened up in Tensei's stomach once more at the reminder. Apparently his subconscious hadn't caught up with his reality, and was dangling this in front of him. He pushed it aside, instead focusing on consoling his dream-brother. "Yes, I can walk. It'll be ok Tenya."
Then, he caught an odd reflection in the back of Tenya's armor. Distorted figures against blue and tan that definitely didn't look like the sky. He looked upwards… and found Izuku, along with several unfamiliar figures, hanging disorientingly above a beach in the sky.
Clarity dawned.
Izuku had given him a bit of Boon. Boon had let Tenya and several others enter the abstract reality they called the Vestige Realm while they slept. He was sleeping.
Suddenly, the onslaught of sensations seemed overwhelming. He could feel his legs, rather than the aching nothingness. His back didn't have that constant horrich ache. He could smell the familiar scents of the Iida track mixed with the oil and polish he always used on his suit, a scent he'd started to miss dearly.
This might not have been reality, but it felt far too real to be a simple dream.
And he could walk.
He could run.
He was whole again, even if only for a little while.
Tensei sagged as the full understanding struck him, but thankfully Tenya was there to hold him up. Tensei pulled his brother closer as the tears began, much as they had in the hospital.
This time, they were tears of joy.
"So. What's been going on in that head of yours, Toshi?"
Toshinori blinked, then dragged his attention away from the window and back to Nana. He wasn't sure how she'd made it open into Izuku's realm to let them watch the training session, but he wasn't about to complain. Watching Izuku figure out his copy of Engine under Tensei's watchful eye had been quite interesting, even if the Quirk barely did anything in its current state.
"Not much, really." He chuckled. "Mostly just marveling at Young Izuku's progress. The strides he's taken in such a short time… he's incredible."
"Two peas in a pod, you and him." Nana stepped up next to him, a nostalgic smirk on her face. "I remember thinking the same thing when you mastered One for All in a few months. The way you were able to squeeze more out of it than I ever could one moment, then apply it with delicate precision the next was something else."
"I'm not sure anything about him could be called delicate,Airhead." Sorahiko snarked from above. "But I guess it was kinda impressive when he stopped blasting out structures whenever he jumped."
Nana snorted, but then turned a slightly more serious look his way. "Regardless, that's not quite what I was talking about."
She leaned towards the window to aim a pointed look upwards, to where he knew Young Uraraka's realm to be.
He slumped. "Do you think Young Izuku noticed as well?"
Nana shook her head. "He was a little surprised by how much you were hamming it up, but no."
"That's a relief." Toshinori blew out a breath, then stooped down to look upwards as well.
Young Uraraka slowly spun in the air of her realm, twisting and turning to gain and lose momentum until she faced a new direction. From the greenish shade of her face, it was clear the night's activities were taking their toll, but that didn't seem to be stopping her.
"Young Uraraka is a wonderful young lady, a fact I'm even more certain of after seeing how she handled today's revelations. But… It still unsettles me how many people are learning of One for All." Toshinori leaned back, then released a sigh. "Before, there were extenuating circumstances; Either ones that forced our hand, or which seemed a necessity such as with his mother. But with Young Uraraka, it was a choice. An understandable one, but still a choice."
Nana watched him from the corner of her eye. "Do you think it was a mistake?"
"That's the crux of it. Objectively, his reasoning is sound, and is more or less the same argument I made regarding his mother. She'll be a target. Her knowing could save her life some day. But that doesn't change the fact that after years and years of my trying to keep this secret to as few people as possible, it sets me on edge to have so many learn of it so quickly, logic be damned. It feels like a mistake to me, even if the facts present indicate it isn't."
Toshinori slumped onto the couch with a groan. "But I also don't want him to think I don't support his decisions, because I do. I've told him over and over that the power is his, and with it the secret. He's finally accepting that, and this is a sign of it, even if he still asked my permission."
He ran a hand down his face, then looked back out the window. Izuku threw a series of jabs, then swept into an Engine accelerated uppercut. Though the difference it made would be negligible with One for All, Izuku seemed as dedicated to mastering it as he was any other Quirk.
"Young Izuku has made so much progress, and I'm so proud of him for it. I don't want to jeopardize that progress and the confidence he's finally gaining just because I clearly have issues about secrecy."
Nana floated over next to him and slung an arm over his shoulders. She looked at him with a small smile and soft eyes, sadness and nostalgia and a hundred other emotions swirling within. "That's parenthood, Toshi."
That brought his train of thought to a screeching halt. "That's… what?"
"Putting your own feelings and desires to the side so that you can do what's best for your child, even when it's hard. Especially when it's hard." She squeezed his shoulder, even as her eyes misted. "Because you want them to become who they're meant to be, even if that means things change in ways you weren't prepared for."
He knew she was talking about Kotaro, but something about the way she'd looked at him said that parts had applied to him as well. He pulled her into a hug, which she returned as best she could. She didn't cry; Though he could tell the pain was still as agonizing as it was before she died, it wasn't as raw. This was a familiar pain for her now. When she pulled back, she was composed despite the faint redness of her eyes.
"Honestly, I'm surprised that you're surprised. Have you considered that there might be a reason multiple people have jumped to the 'Izuku is your son' conclusion?" Nana smirked. "Let me tell you, Toshi. Nothing I've seen behind closed doors would help you beat the allegations. I don't need to be literally in your head to see he's your pride and joy. You want to nurture him and support him, even if it means he moves in his own direction instead of following in your footsteps. Hell, I think part of you WANTS him to follow a different path than you did, even if that entails things that unsettle you right now."
His conversation with David flashed behind his eyes. Not just when they'd touched on Toshinori moving away from the 'second Symbol of Peace' idea, but the rest of it. Suddenly, the number of times his old friend had related Toshinori's stories of Izuku to his own experiences with Melissa took on an entirely different meaning.
It also explained that damnably smug knowing smirk David had worn the whole time.
'... And that's another to the tally.' He inwardly sighed. "So… what do I do?"
Nana shrugged. "More or less the same thing you have been, just with more awareness? Putting a label on the feeling doesn't have to change it or the way you express it. It just means you understand it better."
Toshinori nodded slowly. It was an odd concept to grapple with. He'd never been particularly interested in a romantic relationship, and had by extension assumed he didn't want kids, given the two were generally intertwined. No matter how much he cherished the chances he'd had to see Melissa, he'd never been envious of David and Cathy, which had further supported his assumption.
But now that Nana had put a name to the feeling of protective adoration he held for his successor, it made sense. Much as it had been when he'd jokingly called Nana 'Mom,' only to realize how accurately it summed up his feelings, it was simultaneously jarring and relieving. Perhaps that wasn't a great sign for his emotional intelligence, but that didn't make the realizations any less real when he finally arrived at them.
She was right, naturally. The revelation didn't change anything between himself and Izuku. He'd already been prepared to do anything and everything he could to help Izuku in his journey, after all.
But it did renew his determination.
He wanted to watch as Izuku's mastery grew. He wanted to witness the moment the meek child he'd met under a bridge fully blossomed into the self assured young man already beginning to take shape before him. He wanted to see his successor become the unstoppable hero he knew with utter certainty he would become.
He would crush All for One and defy fate itself if he had to.
No matter what it took, he would be there for his boy.