'A power that can be passed on, and All Might wants to pass it to this kid? This is something straight out of a comic book!'
Hawks stopped thinking and focused intensely on All Might's next words.
Izuku was shaking his head repeatedly. "Th-That's… that's impossible…!"
Midoriya was muttering non-stop, a torrent of frantic denial pouring from his lips about the impossibility of such an ability. All Might cut him off mid-mutter.
"I may hide a lot of things, but I don't lie!" All Might's eyes held absolute, unshakeable honesty. "The power to transfer power, that's the true essence of the Quirk I inherited!"
He lifted his palm, facing the sky. Midoriya swore he could see a faint, colorful light emanating from it, but when he blinked, it vanished, leaving only the sight of the frail hero.
"I was crowned with One For All!"
"One… For… All…" Midoriya repeated the name in a low whisper, his eyes wide with wonder and amazement, the sheer weight of the words settling over him.
Hawks rested his chin on his hand, the hidden feathers of his wings instinctively tensing against the brick. His brain began to furiously analyze the new data.
'One For All… All For One… There has to be a connection... Passing down strength… maybe even quirks? But All Might never showed anything except brute force. What is he hiding?'
Midoriya clutched his chest, overwhelmed.
"Why are you… why are you giving something so great, a power like this, to me?"
Though happiness was blooming inside him like a fragile flower, Midoriya's lifelong low self-esteem made him feel profoundly unworthy. Wouldn't it be better if it was given to someone with an already powerful Quirk, like Bakugo, or one of the top Pro Heroes?
It was exactly what Hawks was thinking.
Hidden behind the wall, Hawks' brow furrowed in serious disagreement. He folded his arms tightly across his chest, his posture shifting from casual observer to tactical analyst.
'A power like this, a world-class nuclear bomb of strength, and he's offering it to a Quirkless kid?'
Hawks thought.
'logically, It's an absolute waste of resources. With the intelligence I have on hand, we're facing a potential crisis. We need that power active, stabilized, and ready for deployment right now.'
'If I had the superhuman strength of All Might, plus my Fierce Wings Quirk… becoming the new Symbol of Peace wouldn't just be possible, it would be a guaranteed piece of cake. Maybe a student at the top of a hero program, someone proven, with a few years of solid training?'
Hawks shook his head in disappointment.
'This kid is a civilian. He's brave, sure, but he's zero-capacity right now. All Might's heart is too big, it's clouding his overall situational awareness. He's choosing based on raw, instinctive guts, not tactical necessity.'
Hawks took a deep breath, the serious expression instantly dissolving back into his easy, almost lazy smirk. He unfurled his arms, leaning slightly off the wall.
'Ah, well. Not my problem to solve, is it?'
He gave a slight, almost imperceptible shrug.
'It's his Quirk, his choice. And if he wants to gamble the world on a teary-eyed fanboy, I guess I don't have a say in it.'
All Might clenched his fist, the sinews in his gaunt arm straining. "I have been looking for a successor, and after that incident, I realized you are the most suitable one to inherit it!" His voice cracked with genuine pride. "You are just a Quirkless hero fanboy, but your body moved instinctively! You were more heroic than anyone else back there!"
Tears gathered in Midoriya's eyes again, but he resisted the urge to sob this time, taking a deep, shuddering breath. "B-But… I wasn't the only one who took action. In fact, that black-haired boy with the darkness Quirk was far more heroic than me, and he was the one who defeated the villain, both to save me and save Kacchan."
All Might nodded his head in acceptance. "That's right, young man, but you only saw things from your perspective. That young man took action because he saw you take action. Your courage infected him, and it infected me. Moreover, that young man has a powerful, dangerous Quirk. I'm afraid if I gave him One For All, it would run out of control and cause a disaster." All Might placed a heavy hand on Midoriya's shoulder. "Alright. The final decision rests with you. It's up to you to decide whether you want to inherit my power or not."
Midoriya clenched his fist, breath trembling with conviction.
'He said all that… he shared his secret… he chose me. There's no reason to hesitate. None!'
He wiped his tears and snot on his sleeve with a frantic swipe, then stood straight, face set with a seriousness that looked too big for his freckled features. He drew in a breath—
And then—
"Wait."
The voice came from directly behind them.
The word was quiet, almost conversational, yet it detonated the solemn atmosphere like a flashbang.
"NANI?!!"
All Might and Midoriya jolted so violently it looked like their souls tried to eject themselves from their bodies.
PUFFFF
All Might's eyes bulged, a jet of blood spurting from his mouth like a cracked fountain.
Midoriya didn't spit blood, but the effect was similar. His eyes bulged so wide they looked like they might detach, and the color drained from his face entirely. For a sickening second, he felt his literal soul try to exit his mouth, leaving behind nothing but an empty, trembling shell.
They whipped around in perfect synchronization, faces pale and horrified.
Their exchanged glance screamed one, unified thought:
We. Are. Finished.
All Might's neck creaked as he turned, stiff as a poorly oiled machine.
In a flash of panic, he genuinely considered transforming into his buff form, blitzing forward with a knife-hand chop, and praying amnesia was a real thing you could induce manually.
Midoriya peeked out from behind All Might...
—and froze.
"H-Haa—H-Hawks!!"
The Number One Hero and his number one fanboy screamed the name together like a duo caught doing something illegal.
There he was.
Standing casually with his back against the wall like he'd been waiting for someone to offer him popcorn.
Hawks lifted a hand in a lazy wave, smile bright and unbothered.
"Yo, All Might," he chirped. He cocked his head slightly toward Midoriya. "And Greenette. Sorry to interrupt the dramatic destiny talk, but, uh…" Hawks paused for emphasis, letting the silence stretch for a while before he said :
"Inheritance, huh? Should I take a number, or is this one of those exclusive VIP lines?"