Something Different

12: Visions

A pale hand reached out to him, a muffled voice reverberating in his ears. "So, you are the ninth..."

Izuku was only able to stare at the individual with unpigmented hair that matched his skin. He intertwined their hands, the pale fingers ghosting into his own. A chill ran down his spine as the figure vanished into thin air.

What followed was even more puzzling, as Izuku looked to the side. Eight whisking figures, lined out beside him like a queue; a queue for power. Beside him was All Might's weakened form, followed by Nana Shimura, a male with short dark hair, Daigoro Banjo, Hikage Shinomori, a guy with a black bandana covering his head, someone with a nasty scar that painted an 'x' on the centre of his face... and Yoichi Shigaraki, who was the pale individual from earlier.

Izuku recounted the many times that All For One sat down with him and repeated the same names, over and over again. That was one way to engrain their names and weaknesses into his brain, he supposed. Izuku vaguely understood what this whole... scenario was. He was inside of One For All. The vestiges that stood beside him were the previous holders; based on his knowledge of them and which holder was first and last, he easily deciphered who they were despite never seeing them before.

"You already know..." Yoichi's voice whispered all around like an echo, "You were once my brother's protégé."

"I'm..." Izuku grimaced, trying to find the words to say. Technically, he was still in All For One's control. Considering that he had killed a bunch of commenters because they talked shit about Tomura. "He's still... there."

"Don't let him influence you anymore," Nana Shimura, Tenko's grandmother, shook her head slowly. A hand settled onto his shoulder, bringing him away from his thoughts of All For One.

Izuku's brow creased. "I... I know."

"Please defeat him, Ninth," Yoichi said, green eyes that were similar to Izuku's own illuminating the darkness. "Don't let him ruin this world."

Izuku gasped and held his chest, sitting up abruptly in his hospital bed. The blinding light of the room reminded him of when he had woken up after his death. What the hell was that...? Well, he knew, but at the same time, he had many questions.

Was that One For All reaching out to him?

Well, he supposed that it was about time. Izuku was slightly worried that the users of One For All would reject him because of his connection to All For One. Then again, both the Quirk and himself had the same goal, so he was their best chance. Whether they liked him or not, it wasn't their choice to rid themselves of him so early in the game.

Based on Yoichi's final words, 'Don't let him ruin this world,' they had learnt about the future through Izuku. They lived in his head, after all. They had access to all of his memories and experiences. That, of course, included his past... or the potential future.

Izuku clutched his head in his hands, eyes squinting as they registered the light shining into his eyes. It felt like nails were being hammered into his brain, changing displacement after every hit. His fingertips brushed against a smooth fabric on his head, and Izuku managed to acknowledge that they were bandages.

...Right, the USJ incident. Everyone had gotten out alright, he hoped.

His knee was bandaged as well, he vaguely remembered relocating a patella dislocation. Damn it. He was still so weak... The Nomu he fought was a prototype, yet Izuku had gotten gravely injured regardless. He had to rely on Aizawa's capture weapon.

"Pathetic," if Master had eyes, he would be glaring at Izuku. He had been so lenient on him, caring for him the most, but Izuku will always be a disappointment.