Rejected Stones

Rise, Young Man

"I get that," Bakugo said, looking down at his hand. "But how the hell am I supposed to do all this? I mean, shit, the last time I tried, I broke my damn arm and about bought the farm just using it. And why didn't you tell all this to Togeta? He was better at this shit than I am."

"Actually, that kid was as bad at this shit as Yagi was," Banjo said, jerking a thumb at All Might. When Bakugo glared at him, Banjo raised his hands. "Alright, alright, as bad as every one of us bearers were. Shit, we didn't know what we had on our hands. But things have changed. And you're, well, you're different."

"You recall I called you an empty vessel, Bakugo?" All Might asked. "That's why you are different. Each of us had an agenda, a reason for wanting One For All. And so, it gave us what we sought, and we looked no further than that."

"Plus, you know, quirk gets stronger with each bearer. Hell, we weren't even all that awake until Yagi took over, but he never bothered to learn all that much about his quirk. Nana died before she could explain shit to him, which is sort of a runnin' them with us bearers."

"I was, perhaps, too adept at using the base power set of One For All," All Might admitted. "It granted me near limitless strength, stamina, and durability, so I did not seek its deeper secrets."

"Well why the hell am I different? What's this shit about being an empty vessel?" Bakugo demanded, looking back and forth between the two older men.

Banjo shrugged. "You ain't got a plan beyond keeping your girl safe. You don't care about power. Hell, you didn't even want it. You weren't telling the quirk what it could do for ya. So you listened. You were the first one. And it's gonna save your ass."

"Become the bearer we were always meant to be, Bakugo. Do not just carry One For All. Become it," All Might said, putting a hand on Bakugo's shoulder.

He formed a fist. "Alright, I agree to be your One for All or whatever. Mostly 'cause no one else seems to want the job. And I can guess what this shit entails. I get to take down Shigaraki. And make sure that All For One is dead, for good this time."

"Yes," All Might agreed soberly. "That is the essence of what you must do. I will not lie to you, Bakugo: None, save myself and Togata, have put down this burden, short of death itself. I passed it on only once it was clear to me I could no longer serve as a worthy bearer."

"And I passed mine on about eight seconds before I started pushin' up daisies," Banjo said with a shrug. "Other's 'll tell you basically the same shit. Right now, it's just me and knucklehead. 'Cause him you knew in life, and me, well, let's just say you ain't the first delinquent piece of garbage to get saddled with this job."

"Yeah, let's not have a dick measuring contest on who's the bigger asshole. I'm not up for that kind of stupid right now," Bakugo declared, jamming his hands back in his pockets. "So, what. You teach me how to hit stuff real good, All Might, and Country Fried here teaches me how to make Uraraka squeal?"

That made All Might blush, and Banjo laugh so hard he doubled over, slapping his knees. "This kid! I like 'em, Yagi! Shit, that's the same thing I used to do with my lady! Oh, have I got some stuff to show you, kid!"

Then Banjo straightened, adjusting his jacket and growing serious. "Look, this ain't fun and games. I won't bore you, but you know what you're signing up for. We ain't got time to goof around. So yeah. I'm gonna show you how to use the Black Whip. How to use it to move. How to use it to kill. Cause son, you're gonna have to snap some necks in the near future, unless I very much misread what the hell's goin' on out there."

"I never liked to kill," All Might sighed, looking down at his large open hands. He tightened them into fists, his expression growing grim. "But you...you face a challenge just as I did in my early days. Worse, perhaps, than any of us have before. The bearer of All For One rules Japan openly."