Izuku's POV:
My body shot up violently, instantly jumping to my feet, frantically looking around. My breathing had involuntarily quickened prior to asking up. I may have had a nightmare due to my heart rate, but I didn't remember it. Strange.
"Deep breaths Izuku... deep breaths... in... an out," I thought, clutching at my chest, a seering pain shooting out of it as my heart began calming down.
In and out
In and out
I quickly regained my composure and steadied my breath. I looked up at the sky, only to be met with an assault of sunlight harshly burning into my eyes.
I rubbed my eyes gently and carefully, regaining focused vision.
"How long have I been out?" I pondered. Looking around at my surroundings, I quickly concluded that I was in the same spot I had been prior to passing out.
Searching my own body for any bite marks from any possible demons that attempted to eat me while I was out cold, I found that the only injuries I had were the ones I had garnered from my fight with the bone demon.
My eyes swept around the ground beneath me in search of my katana, reaching out an arm to grab it, only to wince in uncomfortable pain.
"Th-that's my broken arm..." I remembered, reaching out to grab the katana with my non-broken one. I got to my feet, legs wobbling ever so slightly from exhaustion. Most of the blood all over my body had dried at this point.
It's a wonder how I'm not dead from blood loss or internal bleeding.
I attempted to take a step forward, but I stumbled forward a bit, nearly falling flat on my face.
However, before I could, I swiftly pierced the ground in front of me with my katana, resting my broken and exhausted body on it. "I need to find my way back to the entrance quickly... before they assume that I'm dead," I thought.
I took a few more deep breaths, remembering how mom taught me how to properly do it to calm myself down whenever I ended up getting a panic attack. Yeah. I used to get a lot of those.
In and out
Inhale. Exhale
I pushed myself off of my katana, attempting to stand up as straight as I could, but instantly got back into a hunchback position.
"Oh right... my ribs are broken..." I muttered, wincing a little at the pain.
I yanked he katana from out of the ground, dragging it along as I slowly walked towards where I believed to be the direction of the front entrance.
I needed to get their fast. If I didn't, I would be left behind. Sure, I'd be able to escape the first and get back to the Butterfly Mansion, but I'm not sure I'd be recognized as an official demon slayer if I don't make it in time.
I began picking up the pace, limping into a sorry form of a run. Sure, moving this fast is causing me a lot of unwanted pain. And sure, my broken ribs have a chance of puncturing something.
But I had to push past the pain, ignore it, not even acknowledge its existence. It's presence.
I've don't it many times before whenever I was injured. This time would be no different. No difference whatsoever.
"Happy birthday to me, I guess..."
————————————————————————
Purple. Lots and lots of purple. The green of the trees, if the leaves and bushes and even of the grass. It was all slowly fading into a beautiful shade of purple.
When I reached the first wisteria tree, I knew I was save. I was saved. I am under this tree's protection. I knew that demons couldn't come anywhere near wisteria. I was officially out of the danger zone...
Thank God
I still had some wounds that I was bleeding out from... Thats a problem...
I had resorted to tearing off pieces of my clothing and wrapping them tightly around the areas I had been still bleeding from. Due to the position I was in while unconscious, not much blood had the chance to escape from my open wounds, but once I stood up and started moving around quickly, it wasn't hard to notice the pools of blood spewing out of these newly uncovered wounds.
I looked back at my fight with the bone demon.
"Some of the bone fragments and bone spears must've pierced me... I must not have noticed because of my adrenaline rush..." I thought.
I had begun slowing down ever so slightly to ease the pain a bit more. I was still moving relatively quickly, just not as quickly as before. I couldn't afford to.
I continued pushing past the tall, magical wisteria trees, a calming ethereal aura surrounding me on all sides. It was nice... It was wrong. I didn't deserve this. I deserve death. Not this comforting warmth...
I let them die. I stood silent as I watched them get brutally murdered and then eaten immediately after. I don't know how I won. I don't even know if I won.
This could all just be some hallucination I'm having in my final moments
I sighed at that thought.
"Then I'd be punished for my existence... my purposelessness."
I shook my head violently, snapping me out of my thoughts. In doing so a sharp pain shot out in my forehead. I stopped in my tracks, grunting in pain and discomfort.
This could either be a headache or a concussion. Either way, I need to get back before the pain overwhelms me.
I eventually did get back several minutes later, noticing a few of the last participants standing around in front the two creepy girls from before. In front of the participants looked like... a table. I couldn't see what was on the table, though.
I concentrated on my enhanced hearing to listen in on what was being said as I was still far away and am slowly limping over to the lay 3 participants.
"You three are the only survivors..."
"Please pick from these ores what you'll like your katana to be forged from."
I could just barely make these sentences out with my hearing, as the two girls have instructions to the last 3.
"W-wait!" I called out, finally just a few meters away.
The two girls and the 3 participants looked at me in shock. Well. The girls didn't, and their perpetual smiles remained on their faces. However, the 3 participants had looks of shock and disbelief on their faces.
As I thought, they all probably thought I died on the first day.
Finally, I joined the group... well. Trio.
"A-are you alright?" One of the 3 questioned.
I looked up at her, surprised that she actually sounded concerned for me. Yeah right.
I nodded my head at the girl who at least sounded concerned. Her hair reminded me sensei's. Hair white as snow. The only difference between sensei and this girl was that sensei has white hair fading into yellow at the tips. This one had white hair fading into green at the tips.
She had beautiful green eyes and was really pretty as well.
My eyes traveled to the other 2 participants, one of which was still eyeing me incredulously, while the other had turned away not too long ago.
Guess he lost interest.
The one who was still turned to face me was an... interesting looking man, to say the least. Firstly, he... well, I assume it's a he, was wearing a strange, black jester costume, instead of the normal colorful ones.
Secondly, he wore a black mask on with a wide grin on it, completely covering his face. These two things meant I didn't really know if it was a man or a woman under that costume, but the build is telling me it's a man. Thirdly, if all of that wasn't odd enough, he didn't have a weapon on him. Not a katana. Not even a variation of one either.
Either he was good at concealing weapons, or I was just blind. I turned my attention to the last participant, the one who had seemingly lost interest and turned away from me.
His hair was strange. It was coal black, but that wasn't the weird thing about it. It was weirdly formed to encroach around his head in a strange way. It was cool looking, but strange all the same. I guess I shouldn't be talking though... my hair is naturally green. Which I've been told is very strange.
There wasn't much to say about him aside from that, except that his eyes reminded my of Kachaan's. That inferno-like redness.
"It seems we have a fourth survivor." the creepy doll-like girls said in unison. I winced a bit at the unnerving synchronicity of their words, but quickly chose to ignore it.
"Are you certain you can move well with those injuries," the creepy one with black hair asked.
I quickly nodded, forcing my body to stand up straight, sheathing my katana to show that I didn't need it to lean on.
Of course I did need it as a form of a cane, but I'd have to power through until I'm told to go.
"As we were saying. Please choose one of these ores to be used to forge your katana. Choose wisely," the creepy one with white hair said.
Umm...
"Well isn't this unfortunate..." I thought.
My bullies would always mention how short and scrawny I was. And while I wasn't so much the latter anymore, I was still very much the former. I was actually shorter than the average 7... 8 year old kid, so I couldn't exactly see what was on the table for me to choose from.
This is awkward.
I tried to look by getting on my tippy toes, but it didn't really change much. I groaned in annoyance as the jester guy and the uninterested guy looked through the ores, trying to choose which one they wanted.
I couldn't help but pout at this. "Why'd they have to make the table so tall?" I pondered in my head.
The female participant, who had asked me if I was okay walked up to the table. I assumed she was going to ignore me and look for her own ores, but instead she...
"This is embarrassing..."
She had bent down and picked me up, holding me up high so that I could actually see the ores. Luckily, she had the sense to pick me up gently as I was still severely injured.
"You're so cute!" The girl squealed. I blushed slightly, pointing to the ore I wanted to be turned into my brand new katana. My current one is a bit damaged as well...
"Th-thanks..." I muttered, looking out to the side, not wanting to face the girl who picked me up.
"Humiliating..."
"You're welcome," she responded, placing me gently back onto the ground.
"I better get a massive growth spurt..." I thought.
Caw Caw
Caw Caw
I looked up into the sky, instantly feeling a pain in my neck from doing so, but I quickly ignored it. Birds? I looked closer, realizing that these were crows.
I've seen sensei with a crow before and some of the demon slayers who trained at the Butterfly Mansion had them. Is this how you get a crow? By passing final selection?
Three crows flew down towards the participants around me, each landing on their shoulders.
Soon after, a fourth one flew down to me, gently perching on top of my head, nuzzling into my free hair.
"These are Kasugai crows," the creepy girl with white hair said.
"They are used for communication and are the ones which will inform you of a mission you must complete," the one with black hair said.
"You are all now Mizunotos, which is the lowest rank possible for a demon slayer. As you grow and continue to slay demons, you will eventually rise up the ranks," the two creepy girls both said in unison.
"Welcome to the Demon Slayer Corps."
————————————————————————
It's been hours now... Its past noon at this point and I've been walking (mostly running) for hours now. It's not easy to ignore these amounts of injuries and the subsequent pain that comes with them.
"Thank god for my pain tolerance," I thought. Honestly makes me glad Kachaan and dad beat me up everyday. If they didn't, I wouldn't be able to do what I'm doing right now!
I sifted through the trees and bushes, limping my way out of the tree line, eventually reaching a very familiar building.
"I feels so good to be back," I muttered, staring up at the Butterfly Mansion.
I felt my body begin to grow weaker however. I fell onto my butt, dropping my katana by my side as my mouth gasped open in an attempt to breath in more air. Head facing the bright sky, eyes watching the large clouds. I wasn't going to pass out again, but I wouldn't be able to walk any longer. It's a miracle I even made it back.
————————————————————————
Hina Agatsuma's POV:
I paced back in forth, beads of sweat forming on my face as I co to use to worry and worry.
"Agatsuma-San, please calm down. I'm sure the kid is alright," the doctor said, attempting to comfort me in her own way. Her way being to speak with a frustrated tone.
I clenched my fists not halting my pacing.
Back and forth
Back and forth
"I can't just calm down... if he... if he's gone then..."
I couldn't bring myself to finishing that sentence. I breathed in and out.
In and out
"The final selection location is far from here. He's likely on his way back. Have some faith in the brat, he won't die that easily," the doctor reassured.
Deep breaths.
In and out
In and out
"You're right... you're right..." I said, finally beginning to calm myself down.
But how could I fully calm down..? I couldn't. Izuku reminded me too much of my... of him... I couldn't lose Izuku too... he had to survive. He just had to. I don't know what I'd do if I found out that he... didn't make it.
And the worst part is that it would all be my fault. MY fault! I'm the one who allowed him to participate in final selection. If he dies, his blood is on my hands. Just like with him.
I calmed myself down some more, before putting on my signature cheery smile once more. I knew the doctor pretty well at this point, so I knew that despite her brash way of speaking and the lack of concern in her voice, she was just as worried as I was.
She's just far better at controlling her emotions and thinking logically than I am.
Today is end of Final Selection... he has to come back today... if he doesn't, then... well...
"Sensei!"
I was instantly snapped out of my thoughts by the familiar voice. That... that had to be him... right? I looked around, the doctor also seeming to have heard the voice. It didn't come from inside the Butterfly Mansion, so-
I dashed at top speed out into the back of the Butterfly Mansion, kicking up dust and wind as I came to an abrupt stop outside.
And there he was. Sat on the ground in front of the bushes of the tree line. He was alive! He was okay! I rushed over to him, hugging him tight, a few tears streaming down my face.
"O-ow..." Izuku flinched back a bit.
My eyes widened, letting go of him, I noticed his injuries. I noticed his scars, bruises, and...
"Is that a broken arm?!" I yelled with concern.
He was alive but he definitely was no well.
"Y-yeah... but I'm f-fine though!" Izuku said.
I saw as his arm sleeve and leg sleeves were completely torn to shreds, some major puncture wounds being hidden by torn up cloth on various parts of his body.
Dried up blood covered a decent amount of his skin. Hair messy, filled with blood and dirt.
I looked down, his legs exposed, noticing all of the scars and scratches lining his skin. But they also seemed to be uncontrollably trembling, like the muscle fibers were damaged in some way...
Realization hit me soon after noticing this.
"He must've used the fifteenth form..." I thought to myself.
I breathed in and out, calming myself down a bit.
"We need to get you to the doctor," I said, quickly picking my student up, as he was clearly incapable of walking any more than he already had.
"I-I said I'm fine! I... I don't d-deserve to be h-helped anyways..." he said, quietly whispering the second part of that statement.
That was incredibly concerning. Why would he think that? His mental state was getting much better... something must've happened... Damnit, this is exactly why didn't want to let him participate in final selection.
A kid his age, no matter how strong, will easily get some form of trauma being out there for a whole week! And yet I still allowed it. I allowed for his mental state to fall back into a worse place.
I shook my head at my thoughts.
"That doesn't matter right now. I just need to bring have the doctor help heal his injuries..." I thought.
"Some birthday..." I faintly heard the boy mutter.
Eyes widening once again. My eyes glosses over the boy for a moment.
"It's your birthday...?" I carefully questioned, getting a surprised expression from him. He probably didn't mean to say that out loud. He's really got to get out of that habit.
I sighed deeply.
————————————————————————
Izuku's POV:
I have been laying in this recovery bed for hours now! I haven't been allowed to move around at all... Why are they being so protective of me...? It doesn't matter...
Once they find out what I did, or rather, what I didn't do... they'd hate me... they'll think I'm useless, and they wouldn't be wrong. I failed to save those people because I was scared. I wasn't a hero. I'd never truly be a hero.
The doctor had patched me up and used her quirk to heal me the best she could. My broken arm wasn't broken anymore, but was still slightly fractured. Plus, all of the strength was practically snapped out of it after healing, so I still need to have that arm in a cast just to be safe.
Sensei had left a bit ago, soon after making sure that my recovery was going smoothly. She didn't specify where she was going, only that it was somewhere important.
I've just been sitting alone for a while, apart from when I was given food and water by one of the assistant nurses. Unfortunately... being alone this long didn't really help me take my mind off of my experiences in Final Selection.
If the exam was this bad and gruesome and cruel and merciless... then I could only imagine the reality of working as an official demon slayer. They probably see things worse than that often.
No wonder demon slayers are generally required to see hired therapists every once and a while.
I feel weak. I constantly feel weak. Not just physically, but mentally and emotionally. Maybe even spiritually.
My whole life I've dreamed of becoming a hero. Being a hero is the number one most wanted profession in the world. Every single child looks up to heroes, unless of course they've had some bad experiences with them, like I have in the past.
But the public is never shown just how dangerous of a job it could be. Sure, disasters, collateral damage, and loss of life casualties can occur, they're not shown or recognized as often as everything else about hero society.
Authority and ignorance has funneled its way into entertainment. Heroes are everywhere. In real life, in movies, in video games, in merchandise, in shows, in advertisements. That is what's shown to us. That is what we are allowed to see.
But now, after experiencing just how dangerous of a job demon slaying is... I doubt any child would still want to become a hero if they've seen what I've seen. We're fed false information and imagery and ideals... it wraps our minds into ignoring everything else.
I don't know if it is intentional or not. I don't care if it is intentional or not.
Because for the first time in my life. I contemplated what I truly wanted. Do I really want to become a hero? Even after experiencing what I did in Final Selection?
I wasn't sure anymore. How could I be? A part of me wanted to say, "Yes! I do want to become a hero!"
But... another part of me wasn't as eager towards the desire. I... I don't know if I want to be one anymore... I don't think I can be one.
All of those innocent people's lives are on my hands. It was my fault that they died. How can I possibly be a hero, if I can't even act like one. Act how a hero is supposed to act?
In the words of Kachaan, I was nothing more than a wannabe loser. Someone who believed I could be something greater than what I am now. But this was untrue. I was born to be everyone else's punching bag. To be a stepping stone to their success.
I should've just let that demon ki—
Knock knock
I looked up at the door, snapped out of my train of thought.
"Come in!" I called out, already having a good idea as to who this was just by the aura alone.
The door gently opened up, Mr, Therapist walking in, hands by his side, a calming, warm smile on his face as he approached.
"Hi," I greeted simply, still replaying what that demon did to those poor people. It was on loop, replaying itself over and over and over again. And I couldn't get it to stop.
"Hello child, is your recovery going smoothly?" he asked, sitting beside me on my bed. This was the first time he had sat directly next to me, usually opting to just sit in a chair across from me. But my mind didn't linger on it, assuming that there was nothing of it.
I nodded after realizing I was just staring at the man, not answering his question. The man chuckled slightly as I turned my head away from him.
"Are you feeling alright?"
I looked up at him, nodding my head yes.
Lie.
"Sorry for coming here without informing you or someone else. I had heard that you returned, so I set aside my work to come visit you," the man explained.
"You... you didn't have to do that if you were busy..." I muttered quietly, fiddling with my fingers as my mind continued to replay these horrid memories. I doubt I'd ever be able to forget what happened...
"While that may be true, I assumed this would be as good a time as any for us to... talk," he said, in more of a serious manner but still sporting that calm smile and serene presence.
"What do you mean...? We've t-talked before..." I responded, not understanding what the man was getting at.
"We have," the man agreed. "And you have done great in fighting back against your depressive tendencies and thoughts, but you have yet to truly understand your worth, nor have you accepted yourself as... well... yourself."
I tilted my head in confusion, going to sit up on the edge of my bed to at least attempt to give him my full attention. However, it was difficult to do so as so many voices, voices of my past bullies and abusers berated me for being useless in the one situation that would've signified my worthiness of being a hero.
I wasn't quite sure what the ma was talking about. My self worth? I have no worth. I thought by becoming a demon slayer I'd find that worth, but instead, I just ended up even more lost than I already had been.
"Tell me, child. What do you think of yourself?" the man questioned. I froze for a moment or two, not sure if I wanted to answer the man truthfully or ignore him or lie to him. All three options felt wrong to me.
My body and mind grew tense. Brutal images of mangled corpses continuing to pop up in my head.
I clenched the cloth of my shorts, gripping it tightly as I kept my head down, eyes glued to the ground below. I didn't answer for a good minute, neither of us uttering a word. The man only sat patiently, awaiting an answer. I gulped as I finally decided that it would be best to just tell him the truth. He always seemed to know everything anyways...
It was unnerving to say the least.
"I... I don't... like myself..." I said, unable to articulate my thoughts any further then this. If I did, I'd be admitting to the relentless voices in my mind that everything they said is correct.
The man didn't reply, his calm presence not faltering on the slightest. In fact, the calming nature of his presence felt as though it increased. The calming serenity that was his aura filled the entire room.
For some reason, it... helped my mind calm down a bit. Those graphic images, popping up less and less in my head the longer I was within the man's presence. I had never felt this level of intensity from his calm demeanor. It was comfortable... it was secure... it helped to loosen up my body a bit as well, so that I was less stiff.
"I'm worthless... useless... I hate myself..." I said honestly.
The man nodded. "And why do you feel this way?"
I bit my tongue, holding myself back from the simple answer of, "Everyone said so".
I thought on it for a bit. Why do I think like this. Why do I believe everyone else was right? Why do I believe that I'm worthless?
Did it start with dad? Or have I always felt this way? Even before it was revealed I was quirkless?
I quickly realized that it was the third option. I've always felt this way. Sure, my thoughts may not have been as intense as that are now , but even before I gained my quirkless status, I felt like I was less than average. Why was that?
My eyes widened slightly and suddenly, my breathing became shaky, realizing why I had originally thought this.
I looked to the man, my therapist, the person who acted more like a father to me than my father did.
"I... I always obsessed with Allmight and my best friend Kachaan... they both were my idols growing up... and I thought that... I thought that they were the strongest. Allmight, the current strongest, and Kachaan, the future strongest," I began, thumbs twirling together as my nervousness and anxiety only rose as I came to terms with how and why I felt the way I did.
"I always wanted to be Kachaan's best friend, both of us striving to become the next No. 1, the other would have to settle for second place."
I smiled slightly as I remembered all of the memories I made with Kachaan, the memories from before he became my tormentor. From when we were actually best friends, and not just me clinging onto to that false hope I had after being diagnosed as quirkless.
"But... Kachaan always has the drive and potential to become number one, he always worked to become the best even before he got his gifted quirk. But me? I always settled for the bare minimum... I thought that I'd be handed an opportunity and didn't work for it the same way Kachaan did. I never had the drive to," I explained.
"So even before I found out I was quirkless, I always saw myself as a worthless follower of Kachaan, at best becoming a sidekick or something... But the quirklessness made it worse... I was constantly reminded of something that I already knew but would constantly deny."
"I was told how worthless I was. How Is never become a hero. How I wouldn't make it into a hero school and even if I did, I'd die on my first day out on the field. It was all true. Nothing they said was wrong. It was honesty. Brutal honesty, but still honesty all the same."
I paused for a moment, breath still trembling as I came to terms with the fact that despite trying to deny everything they said. Despite putting up a facade of dedication and determination, I wasn't willing to become more than what I already was, because I was scared... I was always scared. Tears threatening to well up in my eyes, not because I was sad, but because I was me, I was weak, I was Deku.
Letting those people die in Final Selection on backs up this unwanted but much needed realization. I was never truly driven to become a hero like Kachaan, and because of that, I had no motivation and no strength to jump in and save those people.
Sure I wanted to but I wasn't able to. I had no resolve to actually go through with it. And that was my problem. That is why Kachaan hates me so much. That must've been the reason. Other than my quirklessness of course. But it must've been annoying to him that I'd always dream about being something I had no desire to put the work or effort into becoming.
He had the desire. He put in the work. He put in the effort.
"Then dad... he..." I couldn't bring myself to say it. I just wanted to spit it out already. I felt a painful lump grow in my throat as I fought back the tears. The tears of disappointment, not sadness.
"If the topic of your father is too much for you to say out loud, you don't have to. You can move on if you'd like," the master calmly informed me in a gentle and whispering voice.
I nodded slowly, head still hung low in disappointment towards myself and my entire existence.
"I guess after I found out I was quirkless I internally gave up, but I ignored it and attempted to prove everyone wrong without actually trying to prove them wrong... I didn't do anything that would prove them otherwise, because, they were right..."
"Then I failed to protect myself and mom from... him... and I failed to protect mom from that demon... It made me feel weaker than I ever had before... I was scared... I was too scared to protect my loved ones."
"And now I find out that even now. I'm too weak to save a few innocent people from a single demon! I let my fear get in the way of my priorities, of what I was supposed to be doing! How can I call myself a hero if I allowed all of those people to die?!" I exclaimed.
Tears that once threaten to betray me had finally succeeded, in endlessly streaming down my face. Yet another resort why I am so weak... I can't even stop myself from crying.
"So that's what happened at Final Selection," the man stated calmly. "I assumed something must've happened there, but I didn't think it would be something like this."
I wasn't listening anymore. My mind was drawn back to what had happened to them. I remembered how free flying entrails hung themselves over tree branches in a sickening way.
How skulls were crushed into bone fragments that littered the ground and the bodies. How their blood has splattered on me while I hid behind the bush frozen, unable to jump in to help them as well as unable to run away.
The fight or flight response wasn't relevant to this situation as I didn't fight, nor did I flee. I froze.
"I hate myself. I hate myself. I hate myself. I hate myself. I hate myself. I hate myself. I hate myself. I hate myself."
I repeated this phrase over and over again out loud, each time I said it it would slowly get louder and louder. Red was all I could see. Red of blood, red of anger, red of rage.
I couldn't see properly. I couldn't feel properly. I couldn't think properly. How could I?
I continued to repeat this phrase more and more. It got to the point where I was no longer consciously saying it anymore, it was just perpetually leaving my lips as the only thing I said, as if something was possessing me to continue this phrase until I'd stop my breathing. My blood boiled in anger towards my own inaction. I continued to repeat this phrase until—
Before I could realize what had happened, an arm wrapped around my small body, pulling me closer to the owner of the arm.
I looked up incredulously at Mr. Therapist, as he brought me to his side, allowing me to rest my head on him. I continued to break out into tears as I clutched onto the man, burying my face into his kimono.
It was probably disrespectful to do such a thing, but I needed this...
My repeating of the same phrase over and over again had finally stopped. Every time I attempted to say something else, I instead hiccuped or stuttered, body not wanting to talk, only sob and sob until my eyes were devoid of all moisture.
The man shushed me gently, patting my back in an attempt to comfort me. It was working, my crying slowing more and more.
"Child, no one blames you for being scared. No one blames you for freezing up when you likely shouldn't have. You strive to become strong, to be devoid of weakness, but you must realize that you are but a child. No one is going to expect you to complete such a heroic deed as saving those participants from death," the man said in a quiet and gentle tone of voice.
I wanted to argue, I wanted to say otherwise, I wanted to rebuttal against that, but I couldn't. I knew he was correct.
"I apologize for making you remember such a horrible and gruesome memory, however, you were likely never going to open up. Never going to get that guilt off of your chest. That kind of burden and grief should never be felt by a child."
I listened intently to the man's words, tears becoming less and less frequent until they eventually stopped coming. My eyes stung like crazy, and I could feel my body heat up from embarrassment of having practically a mental breakdown right in front of this man.
My breathing steadied, no longer as shaky as before.
"You are not worthless, Izuku. And you should not hate yourself the way you do. Do not allow yourself to be overwhelmed with depression. If you truly want to become better, you must first come to terms with your self worth," the man explained.
Finally, I looked up at the man, feeling warmth as I stared at the warm and comforting smile he offered me.
Did he truly believe that? That I was actually worth something? Have I been denying and doubting these people's kindness?
"I-
But before I could say anything, the door opened, sensei leaping into the room, radiating some much needed positive energy.
"I'm back Izu-
Agatsuma-Sensei pauses as she looked over at Mr. Therapist, a look of shock on her face.
Instantly, she bowed respectfully.
"Evening, Kagaya-Sama. It is good to see you in such good health. My apologies if I interrupted a therapy session," sensei greeted.
I tilted my head in confusion, looking between Mr. Therapist and sensei, unsure at what was happening.
"H-Huh?" was all that could escape my lips. I've never seen sensei act like this. She's usually got a fun and cheerful personality, but she got all serious and apologetic so quickly. And why did she refer to Mr. Therapist as "sama"? So he is someone important. His name is Kagaya?
"Ah, it is quite alright, you need not worry, you may raise your head," the man said. "We were just about wrapping up here." He went on to pat my head gently before getting up to his feet.
I quickly tried to wipe away any tear marks on my cheeks from my prior sobbing.
"Please take what I've told you to heart, child. Trust me, you will become an amazing hero," the man said, walking away from my bedside, towards the door.
Sensei raised her head, smile returning to her face, as she waved the man goodbye. I couldn't help but smile a bit.
Sensei then turned to me, her bright and cheerful smile now back on her face. "Sorry about that, Izu."
"A-are you okay?" She asked.
I tilted my head once more at the sudden stutter before realizing what she was referring to.
"Were you crying?" She continued.
Must've noticed my red eyes and the tear marks on my face.
I decided to just tell her the truth, nodding in confirmation.
"But... he cheered me up..." I reassured sensei. "I feel much better now!"
Of course there was a deeper meaning to that. I didn't just mean I felt better than I felt when I was crying. No.
I feel better! Like my mental state has... improved by a lot. I felt better than I ever had been before. Happier than I ever had been before. A quick switch from how I was just feeling about myself just minutes before.
I wasn't completely better, obviously. But... actually taking one of these talks with the therapist seriously for once really opened my eyes.
I smiled brightly up at sensei. I think surprised her wit the smile though. It makes sense that I did, I don't think I've ever shown that much positive emotion in the past 9 months.
"Where did you go anyway?" I asked, genuinely curious on why she left so abruptly.
"Well... I had to go get something very special..." she began.
It was then that I noticed a bag in her hands, with what looked to be a hire box inside. My enhanced sense of smell picked up some very good scents coming from the box. I could already take a guess as to what was inside. If I was right, then I'd be very surprised she actually cares enough to get me this.
She removed the box from the bag, handing it over to me, sporting a big happy smile.
"I couldn't just not get you something for your birthday," she said.
If my smile wasn't bright before, it definitely was now, as I opened the box, being met with a delicious chocolate fudge cake!
"I didn't know what flavor you liked, so I kind of just took a guess? I hope you like it though," she explained.
"Thank you!"
I began eating a bit, still very hungry after being stuck in that stupid fires for a week straight, not being able to eat as much as I needed to.
Of course I didn't eat the whole thing, but I cut myself two slices. Sensei seemed really happy at my happiness. Sure, it sounds cringe, but I think I've been a bit to dismissive and indifferent to most things the past 9 months, only focusing on becoming stronger. I think she's just happy that I'm acting my age.
I instantly felt bad as I realized that my dismissive ness to everyone's worry, concern, and kindness wasn't the best of ways to show gratitude to my caretakers.
"S-Sorry..." I apologized, looking to the side.
Sensei sounded confused when replying with, "For what?"
"For... everything..." I replied.
She seemed to catch onto wha I meant, quickly shaking her head, assuring me that it was alright.
We began to have our first real conversation that wasn't focused on training or demons or demon slayers. It was nice. It was relaxing and comforting.
However, my mind quickly wandered to things I had wanted to talk about with sensei that I never had a chance to ask. Mostly because I wanted to have a genuine conversation with my sensei. Unfortunately, none of what I had originally wanted to talk about was... good per say. It wasn't bad it was just mostly about demon slayer or demons, which meant that I was never really interested in talking about topics outside of demons and demon slayers.
The more I thought about it the more I realized just how obsessed I was with getting stronger, to the point where nothing else mattered. Even when I thought that I wasn't going too far with the training, I most definitely was.
There is still one thing that I do want to talk about with sensei that is demon slayer related. I don't want to bring the conversation back to this, but I think this is highly important.
"S-sensei..." I said, smile fading a bit. "I was wondering if you could tell me a bit about the... the D-demon K-king..." I said.
Sensei noticeably flinched at the sudden question to want to know such a thing.
"So you've heard of him?" She asked, getting a quick nod in response from me.
She sighed deeply, before turning back to me. "Alright. Since you are an official demon slayer, you should probably know," she said.
I closed the box with cake in front of me, placing it to the side, so that I could give her my full, undivided attention.
"The Demon King, the ruler and controller of all existing demons," sensei said. "Well... not all," she muttered that very very quietly, so inaudible that I almost couldn't hear, but I did catch it.
"What did she mean by that?" I pondered in my head.
"He is capable of transforming any human into his demon underling merely by transferring a portion of his blood to you."
"Once he does this, that demon will be under his full control, unable of going against him. If a demon even utters his name with ill intent, that demon will be inflicted with a curse, a curse that will kill the demon on the spot," she explained.
"So there's no way of getting information about the demon king from a demon?" I asked.
She nodded in response. "That's right."
"If one gets enough of his blood, they'll be able to unlock what is called a blood demon art, a magical ability that specifically suits the user. If a demon becomes strong enough, they can eventually rise up to the Twelve Kizuki, which In certain you have already heard about," she said.
I nodded.
"We haven't seen the demon king in person yet, but, we do know that his influence doesn't just span throughout his demon subordinates, but also through many parts of the underground society, such as gangs, mobs, mafias, yakuzas, etc.
"We don't know anything about his appearance, personality, abilities, or possible location. He's shrouded in complete mystery. The only thing we can truly know for certain about the demon king is his name."
This man sounds incredibly powerful. To be able to control and command all existing demons must require a large amount of strength and a powerful presence.
I decided that I had to know who this man was. What he was. How he rose up to acquire this amount of strength.
"What's his n-name?" I questioned, ready to learn just who was behind all of this.
"The Demon King generally goes by the name of—
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Tsukaiuchi's POV:
Today is the day.
I looked up intensively at the large building in front of me.
Alder Junior High.
Author's Note: In this au, Alders Junior High is from grade kindergarten to, well... junior high, or middle school.
It's been a long time coming, and they definitely deserve to be exposed like this. I looked back at the number of police officers I had behind me, nodding at them.
I adjusted my tie and placed my hat on top my head. This wouldn't close the Midoriya case, however this would pin some much needed reprimanding of those involved with the child's suffering.
The school was surprising large, so it took a while for us to arrive at the principal's office, getting stares from the students around us. Of course, we put on a nice and gentle facade towards the kids so that they wouldn't be scared.
Despite what the teachers have previously stated about Midoriya's behavior, we've gathered just enough information that would point to the contrary.
I opened the door to the office, granting the man inside a slight scowl of disgust. Unfortunately, I couldn't beat the man where he stood, much to my dismay, but if he were to try anything, I'd likely get the go ahead.
"I-oh, Detective Tsukaiuchi. What brings you h-here today? More questions I assume?" The principal questioned, nervousness obviously lacing his voice.
"No, no more questions. I have all the answers I need. I've come to make some arrests," I responded smugly, eyeing the man down as he noticeably shifted a bit in his seat.
"W-What ever do y-you me-mean?"
I nodded to the officers behind me, sending them off to collect every other criminal that worked in this school.
"What is going on h-here?!"
My eyes traveled back to the man who had attempted to get up from his seat. I quickly pulled out a pistol, aiming it at the man's head.
"Don't move. If I feel threatened in any way, my fingers may end up slipping," I informed the bastard, walking a bit closer.
The man immediately sat back down, fear evident on his face and in his eyes. Beads of sweat secreted from his forehead and his body began to tremble and shake.
"Sir, are you aware of how Midoriya was treated in and out of school?" I asked, pistol still pointed at him.
"I-I already told you th-that—
"Lie." I interrupted.
"Before, I didn't inform you of my quirk. It is called Lie Detector, allowing me to instinctively know when someone is telling the truth or not," I explained, watching fear continue to creep into the man's expressions.
"Why don't you answer my questions. Truthfully this time."
"Why was Midoriya neglected by the teachers in this school?" I asked.
"H-he would bully—
"Lie." I interrupted once more.
"Did you know that withholding information from a officer of the law is a punishable offense?" I inquired, raising an eyebrow at the man.
The man stuttered, unable to say anything as a counter, clamming up. "The reality of your situation must finally be dawning on you," I said.
"Now answer the question. Why was Izuku Midoriya neglected, bullied, belittled, and abused during his time here?"
"Because he was quirkless Damnit! He was quirkless and someone like that doesn't deserve my staff's kindness!" the man finally admitted, shouting so loud, it drowned out all of the noise coming from the hall.
I narrowed my eye incredulously at the man.
"Do you admit that all of the reports of bad behavior and horrible grades were indeed false?" I asked.
The man simple nodded.
True.
"Did the child's teachers purposefully lower Midoriya's grades in order to paint him as a below average child?" I asked.
"Yes."
True.
"Do you admit that Midoriya was often bullied, teased, and insulted because of his quirklessness by the other students?"
"Yes."
True
"Did you or your staff promote discriminatory messages or rumors of quirkless people towards your students?" I asked.
"No."
Lie
I moved on.
"Did you or your staff actively participate in abusing, insulting, or even down right hitting the child along with the other students?" I questioned, voice taking on a much darker tone than before.
"No."
Lie
"Sir. The last two answers you have given me were both lies, even after telling you what my quirk is, you still choose to withhold information... I would appreciate it if you would be honest here. If you answer all of my questions truthfully, I may consider a lighter sentence," I informed the man.
The man visibly winced at my words, nodding in agreement shortly after.
"Are you aware of Izuku Midoriya's disappearance?" I asked.
"I heard of it, but I don't know much. I don't much care about the brat..." he admitted.
True.
Disgusting. But at least he is being honest. That's something I can appreciate after he blatantly lied to my face twice in a row.
"I'm going to repeat a previous question," I said. "Did you or did you not spread false propaganda on the nature and inferiority of the quirkless population to your children students?"
He hesitated for a moment before finally nodding in confirmation.
I blinked before moving onto the next question.
"Are you or are you not aware of what your staff gets up to inside and outside of school?" I asked.
The man's eyes widened, foolishly responding with, "How do you know about that?!", quickly realizing his mistake mere moments later.
He head his hung low in shame as I couldn't help but chuckle.
"I think I know everything I need to know," I said, door opening behind me.
I turned my head, my fellow officers returning, every single other staff member in handcuffs, either hanging their heads low or turning their heads to the side in defiance.
I approached the principal with a pair of handcuffs. The man foolishly tried to resist, but he was physically weak, not able to put up much of a fight. I yanked the man up to his feet, escorting him to join the group of Sorry asses that were his staff members.
"All of you are now under arrest for, child abuse, neglect, assault, defamation, brainwashing of children, mental abuse, verbal abuse, coaxing multiple suicides of minors, withholding evidence from officers, and bribery," I listed off.
Some of the staff members looked fearful and others had a look of relief on their face, as if they were safe.
I couldn't help a sadistic grin gracing my face.
"Don't think I forgot about your crimes," I said, pointing at the few staff members that had looked relieved, now being replaced with a look of terror and disbelief that I could possibly know what they had done.
"Money laundering, tax fraud, disorderly conduct, embezzlement, theft, drug trafficking, human trafficking of quirkless or weak-quirked individuals, solicitation, extortion, forgery, and manslaughter of quirkless, mutants, or weak-quirked individuals..."
I looked over at the criminals, blood boiling and feeling nothing but anger and disgust.
"You will have your teaching licenses revoked. All of you will be sent away to prison for a very, very long time. Don't think that any amount of good behavior will get you out of there any time soon. And trust me, we have a lot of damning evidence that I'm sure will reveal a plethora of even more crimes you people have committed..."
Walking past the Sorry excuses for humans and my fellow officers, I gestured for them to follow.
"This school system will be shut down effective immediately. As of today, Aldera Junior High is no longer a legal educational institution within Japan."
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Author's Note: Thought I would end this chapter off on a positive and satisfying note. Great job, Tsukaiuchi!
Anyway, I do hope that you enjoyed this chapter. I also wanted to thank you for the sticking with me as I write this story. I put a lot of work and thought into each chapter, so I'm glad my work is getting recognition.
Speaking of which, at the time I'm posting this, this story now has 736 reads and is ranked number 1 in quirkless deku! I honestly can't thank you guys enough for that, even though that ranking probably won't last for long.
The first phase of this book is complete and I'm currently brainstorming ideas of where the story will go after this. I will say now that there will probably be a time skip, but I'm not entirely sure how many years I want to have passed.
I will also say that the next phase of the story will be exploring Deku as a technical vigilante, as I have vigilantedeku as one of the tags on my story but haven't yet explored it.
This chapter was mostly to show Izuku coming to terms with his self-worth and him truly feeling better with himself, now showing him starting to act his age.
If you have any ideas or advice on the story itself, now would be the best time to voice them as I will be brainstorming where the story should go next.