Viridian

Chapter 1: Farewell

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Chapter 1: Farewell

"You have to go!" The older man shouted urgently, shooting a fierce glare towards his companion.

"If I leave you, you'll die!" The younger argued, green eyes brimming with tears.

"You know as well as I do, that we don't have a choice, here. We always knew one of us would have to stay behind to destroy the portal."

"So why should I be the one to go?! You're the teacher! The Hero!! What good could someone like me do?!"

"Izuku." The man's voice was harsh, and his sharp tone made the younger man's eyes focus on his friend. The elder's eyes softened. "It must be you. You're not who you were back then. You aren't useless. Remember this: You are a Hero. And the world is counting on you—even if nobody realizes it."

"But..." Izuku sniffled. "What about you? I swore... I promised I'd look after you!"

"Here. When the time comes... give this to him. You'll know he trusts you when he calls you 'Problem Child'." He smiled fondly, handing Izuku a pair of rings on a chain.

Deranged laughter filtered down the corridor, making the two stiffen. They hadn't expected him to show up. With that man in the building, they knew their defenses wouldn't hold for much longer.

"You need to go, now." He pulled Izuku into a hug, as the smaller man clung to him for all he was worth, tears streaming down his face. "This isn't goodbye."

"Yes it is." Izuku's fingers dug into the man's shoulder. "You won't be... you."

"That's ridiculous. I'll always be me. And you'll always be my Problem Child." The man then violently shoved Izuku backwards, making him stumble into the swirling vortex. "Save the world, Midoriya Izuku." He smiled, a bright hopeful grin that looked so out of place on the man's exhausted face.

The door behind him disintegrated into dust as a blue-haired man covered in severed hands grinned in glee, only to screech in rage upon seeing Izuku in the portal. With an indomitable fury, his hand latched onto the older man's face, covering his eyes so he couldn't escape his fate.

"SHOUTA!"

With a smirk, Shouta clicked the big red button. The last thing Izuku heard, before being entirely consumed by the portal, was the Gateway exploding.

Pain. Pain was all that Izuku knew. It felt like his atoms were being torn apart and thrust back together. The first thing he was aware of, as the pain started to fade, was that it was unusually bright outside. And someone was there. He tried to fall into a defensive crouch, but his body wouldn't obey. Instead he found himself on his butt as he blinked up at... All Might?!

"I cannot simply say you can become a hero even without power."

Oh. Oh. This was that day on the rooftop. Of course I had to go back to one of the worst moments of my life. OF FUCKING COURSE! He only looked back up when the iron door closed behind the blond figure.

Izuku winced as he staggered to his feet. He looked down at his hands—younger hands. They were smaller than he was used to, but there was still that scar he'd gotten when he was 23 after he stupidly participated in a drunken round of the Knife Game.