Preparations

Izuku sipped at the steaming mug of hot chocolate wrapped in his hands, enjoying its warmth as it suffused through him. His eyes closed as he savored its taste; just on the edge of being too sweet and with a hint of cinnamon. He sighed, his breath condensing in the cold air, another reason why this café was his go-to spot for lunch; they had the best hot chocolate.

He'd never been one for tea or coffee, not with 'Insomnia' keeping him awake, but hot chocolate was always a welcome treat, especially when the weather started turning colder, as it was now.

It was early February, right at the tail-end of the winter months. Despite this, he wasn't having too much issue. It was cold, yes, but not unbearably so. Not even for him. Even with his slight weakness to colder temperatures, he could handle it, so long as he didn't spend too long outside and the necessary steps were taken to aid him.

Being properly dressed, with a thick overcoat and scarf added to his usual outfit, and being properly fed made a huge difference between how he handled the cold now and how it used to nearly kill him when they lived on the streets. Not to mention that he had a warm home to return to at the end of the day. Plus, he had a quirk or two that could help if he got truly desperate.

And of course, if he happened to be in a position where he could sip on a warm beverage while he was out, then all the better.

As it stood though, he still went out less during this time of the year, preferring to mostly stay in his apartment when he wasn't out as Oni. The one thing he really did like about the colder months was that the days were much shorter, meaning that he spent much more time out and about when the sun went down. His snake tail might make him more susceptible to the cold, but as Oni he had no such reservations.

Otherwise, the only times he really left his apartment were to run errands or enjoy the occasional lunch at the café.

Speaking of, Yagi was sitting across the table, mimicking him as he sipped at a cup of tea.

The two of them had been meeting fairly regularly to enjoy lunch together, once a week, nearly every week since the day Izuku learned Yagi's secret. There were, of course, times where Yagi couldn't make it, called away for one reason or another to fulfill his duty as All Might, but they didn't detract from the times he could. And Izuku had noticed that the hero's absences were becoming more and more infrequent as the year wore on. By now it had been nearly two months since the last meeting he'd missed.

Izuku had noticed this, along with Yagi beginning to arrive earlier than him, and All Might appearing in the news around Musutafu much more often. And when he brought it up, the hero had revealed that Nezu had approached him about taking on a teaching position at Yueii, so he was slowly shifting his life to move everything from Tokyo, his resident city, to here.

Well, technically he hadn't revealed that outright, but when Izuku asked him about it, almost immediately he'd started sweating and stuttering through a half-baked explanation that was so obviously a lie. It had only taken Izuku staring at him with a deadpan expression to get him to reveal the truth. The man couldn't lie to save his life.

Yagi took another sip of his beverage, before speaking up.

"So, are you ready for the entrance exams in a couple weeks?" He asked.

"Of course." Came Izuku's response, his tone resolute. "Academically, there's very little that they could throw at me that I would struggle with, and I've still been studying a bit in preparation. And I'm not concerned about fighting the robots. I doubt they'll pose much of an issue."

His knowledge of the basic school subjects – math, science, history, reading/writing, etc. – was above the level of an advanced college course. He wasn't expecting Yueii to use anything quite that difficult – and certainly not more difficult – when most of its applicants were coming straight from high school. But all the same, he was going over a few things he wasn't as familiar with just to cover everything. This was his dream, and he wouldn't accept anything less than perfection from himself.

Beyond that, he was even less concerned about the physical portion of the exam. More than anything else, he knew his physical capabilities. Even relying solely on his enhancement quirks, he knew he wouldn't have any issue.

A look of confusion spread across Yagi's face. "You already know that the exam has participants fighting robots? How? I was under the impression that-that is a closely guarded secret."

Izuku smirked at the question. "It is, but my position as a professional quirk analyst and licensed quirk trainer grants me certain privileges. I have a bit of a deal with Nezu, where I act as a talent scout of sorts, picking out people with interesting quirks or who otherwise catch my eye and bringing them to his attention, and in exchange he's given me inside information about the exam to better advise potential applicants. Of course, I'm not allowed to actually tell anyone what the test entails, but it's not much of a challenge to provide decent advice anyway."

Yagi seemed partially stunned at his explanation. "A-and that's not considered cheating? You'd be going into the exam with prior knowledge about what you'll be facing."

"Not in a legal sense." Izuku explained; he'd already thoroughly looked into this to make sure that there wasn't any issue. "Nezu is allowed to share information regarding his entrance exams to anyone that has the proper qualifications, and I do. There isn't even any rule against him telling an applicant so long as they meet the requirements. But even if there was, there are only two people that know that Deku and I are the same person, and one of them is you."

He took a breath, pausing his explanation. "Of course, some people would still probably consider it amoral to have information that no one else does. But I have no such limitations. It's a leg-up that I've been given by pure circumstance, and I intend to use it to its fullest. It is very unlikely that anyone else ever has, or ever will be in the same position as me. And at the very least, I have earned my position as Deku, so it's not as if I've been given a handout."

One might think that Nezu, being the owner and principal of Yueii, would be able to share any information he so pleased about his school, but the entrance exams were one of the only things he couldn't.

With Yueii being a hero school, the Hero Commission had its hand in how they selected their students. Not so much as to decide the specifics, but enough to make sure that Nezu couldn't simply let anyone and everyone walk through the doors. They set guidelines on the academic requirements – though that extended only to list the bare minimum that must be included. After that, Nezu could add anything he pleased. – and they set certain rules for the physical portions, that mostly pertained to setting minimum requirements and maintaining its secrecy. Nezu had the freedom to make applicants fight giant robots if he wanted to, but was limited in how far the information could be spread.

As far as Izuku was aware, he was the only one beyond the Yueii faculty, and current and former students that knew what to expect.

Actually, he wasn't sure what exactly kept everybody from leaking information. Faculty members could lose their jobs, students could lose their position as such, and former students, assuming they went on to be heroes, could face disciplinary action from the commission. But what stopped failed applicants from telling people? Even he could be faced with legal action if he were to tell anyone.

'Whatever.' He thought to himself with a slight shake of his head. 'It doesn't really matter. That's a mystery for another time.'

"I see." Yagi responded, a thoughtful expression on his face. "I can see the reasoning there. If there's nothing legally wrong with that, then it comes down to personal preference. And if that's how you view it, then no one can tell you otherwise."

Izuku shrugged. "It's not as if I'd really even need it. Even without knowing about the robots beforehand, I doubt that they would've given much trouble."

He took another sip of his beverage. "I don't see myself having much difficulty – if any at all – in the exams. I'll be attending Yueii soon enough, and then I'll be on my way to becoming a hero, and we can get to work finding you a successor."

Yagi nodded. "Yes. That is why I initially took on the teaching position, to search for someone. The sooner I find them, the better. It won't be long before my injury catches up to me and I lose control over One for All entirely. I'd like to still have time left when I pass it on, so that I can give them ample time to get it under control."

He looked at Izuku. "I will say that it is slightly disappointing that you don't want it, but you have made your decision, and I will respect that."

He seemed to think for a moment. "Actually, I wouldn't be able to do anything anyway unless you accepted it; just as One for All cannot be forcibly taken, it also cannot be forcibly given to anyone. The recipient must be fully willing to accept it."

Izuku nodded, a small smile on his face as he filed that bit of information away, all while ignoring the thought that rose unbidden at the man's words; that he would kill anyone who tried to force him to do anything as serious as that.

After a full week of thinking the offer over, Izuku had met up with Yagi for the second time to give him his answer. He didn't want that power.

He knew very well just how powerful he was already. He was by no means invincible, but as it stood, at his strongest, he likely already outclassed most pro heroes in terms of raw combat potential. And he was still only eighteen. He still had who-knew-how-many years left to take quirks, and would continue to grow stronger.

Not only did he not need that much of a boost, but it wouldn't really sit right with him if he took it. He'd achieved his strength through hard work. Each and every quirk he'd taken had been pushed and tested until he knew exactly how it worked, and then he used them in particular combinations to achieve the desired effect. It wouldn't feel right to suddenly gain a single power that would outclass all of his quirks, all of his work, by itself. No, he was content to grow steadily stronger at his own pace.

Then there was the issue of whether he would even make a decent successor to the greatest hero in history in the first place. Obviously, if he had the quirk he would use it for good – however good his vigilante work could be considered – but there were most likely others that could do better.

Izuku was far from the most heroic person. He had no interest in giving people hope, or inspiring them, or in serving as any sort of symbol or model for others to follow, and he didn't want to be in the spotlight. He just wanted to stay in the shadows, and do his best to make sure that people didn't suffer like he did. For every criminal he took down, from high-profile villains to lowlife drug dealers to corrupt heroes, that was one less person that could bring harm to someone else.

A quirk such as One for All should be given to someone who would stand in the spotlight. To someone who could stand as a symbol to others. Someone that others could look up to.

He had no idea who that person might be, but he knew with absolute certainty that it wasn't him.

But that was why, once he was attending Yueii, he would use his skills as Deku to assist Yagi in finding a successor. And then once they had, he was more than willing to help train them if he needed to. So long as it wasn't him wielding the power, he was happy.

"Hopefully it won't take us too long to find someone. There's no shortage of exemplary people in Yueii. Three years' worth of hero students, and plenty more regular students besides. One of them is bound to meet your expectations."

Izuku was just about to add something else, when a yawn worked its way through him. Damn, the cold was finally starting to catch up with him. He might only be half reptile, but that didn't stop him from slowing down in lower temperatures.

He rose up, followed a moment later by Yagi. "Unfortunately, I'm going to have to cut this meeting short. The temperature is starting to wear on me, and I'd like to get back home. Besides, I still have to submit the last of my application paperwork."

"Of course!" Yagi responded immediately. "Not a problem! I was actually just about to suggest that myself."

The hero already knew of his weakness to the cold; this wasn't the first time they'd separated early because of it. Actually, they'd even had to leave early before because of Yagi. Just as the cold was unfavorable for Izuku's tail, the same was true for the other's wound; evidently it aggravated it quite a bit.

Izuku wrapped his coat tighter around himself. "Same time next week then?"

"Unfortunately no, I won't be able to come any time soon. With the exams approaching, Nezu has requested my assistance in preparing for them. Evidently, the next few weeks are going to be busy for everyone involved."

"Alright." Izuku responded. "Then the next time I see you will likely be after I've been accepted."

Yagi grew a smile at his confidence. "I look forward to celebrating it!"

With that, the two separated, heading off towards their homes.

---

Izuku sighed in audible relief as he entered the apartment from his balcony, the floor already heated to drive away the cold. Stripping off his jacket, scarf, and gloves, he exited his bedroom, crossing the hallway to his office. His computer booted up immediately once he was settled and he got to work on putting together the final bit of information that he needed to submit as a part of his application to Yueii, his quirk registration.

Until very recently, he hadn't had anything registered at all. In fact, the only reason it had been at all was because Yueii required it. It hadn't ever been required before, so there had been no reason to.

Had he attended an actual school at any point during his education, or if he didn't work for himself entirely online, then he would've had to earlier, but he hadn't, so he didn't.

Now though, each applicant to the hero school was required to send that in along with records of their education.

Not that it had been overly difficult though. He'd had the same visible quirks active as 'Izuku' for years now; the tail and the wings. All of the others that he kept active in his day-to-day life were invisible. And all that he'd had to do to get it registered was fill out an online form with a description of his 'quirk' and then wait for someone to process it.

According to his records, his quirk was now officially registered as a partial-body animal mutation quirk that also granted him enhanced physical capabilities. He'd chosen the name 'Naga,' after a mythological creature, present in several cultures, that shared his and Rei's appearances almost exactly; being half-snake, half-humanoid.

He'd had to wait a little longer, once his registration had been processed, for the official documentation to be sent back to him so that he could then send it to Yueii. They'd just sent it to him that day, so he set to work sorting that out on his computer and, before long, it was submitted and he was locked in to attend the entrance exams in three weeks' time.

He leaned back from his computer a bit, thinking the whole situation over.

Part of him – a significant part – was quite excited for it. He'd never really let go of his dream to become a hero, the one he'd had before he even got his quirk. Of course, the circumstances had changed since then, with him no longer having Bakugou by his side and no longer having any desire to be the greatest hero, but it didn't detract from his excitement in the least.

Izuku had been preparing for this for quite some time now. In the last six months, he'd started kicking everything into a higher gear to better prepare himself. He had picked up the pace when he went out as Oni, taking down more criminals than ever before. Every bit of combat he went through only increased his experience as a fighter, and fighting criminals, who could have any type of quirk and made a habit of fighting dirty, made sure that he was used to improvising and dealing with whatever came his way.

He'd even taken two new quirks that he was quite fond of, one of which had already been added to the collection he always kept active. The other wasn't quite subtle enough to have out as Izuku, but that didn't stop him from using it to terrorize people as Oni.

He'd also been taking on more requests than before. Part of that was because of the influx of hero school applicants looking for advice that he experienced every year, and part of it was him wanted to push himself to think and analyze faster than normal.

On top of that, just about any free time he had was being dedicated to studying as many subjects as he could, adding it all to the pool of knowledge that filled his head. He had access to the wealth of human knowledge through the internet, and was doing his best to absorbing as much as he could before the exams came.

He stretched his arms above his head, a small smile forming on his face. He would be more than amply prepared by the time the exams came around. No one at Yueii would know what hit them.

---

Eventually, it was time for Izuku's daily discussion with Nezu. This would be the last time he would be able to until the exams had passed, and the results had been sorted out. Because just as Yagi would be busy with the preparations, Nezu would even more so, being the one who had to oversee it all.

They would have this chance for Izuku to give information about the people that had caught his eye, and then it would be a few weeks before they could discuss the outcome.

So that's what he did. He told Nezu about the more interesting quirks he'd seen, such as the copying quirk and the gravity nullification one, and the many others he'd seen since this same discussion a year before. He didn't know any names, as he didn't require anyone to give them, but all of the quirks were easily distinguishable, the rodent wouldn't have any issue figuring it out, if not from seeing them in use, then from the quirk registrations that everyone was required to submit.

They then went on to enjoy the last opportunity they would have for a game of chess for a while, with Izuku taking the win, adding it to his score.

Once it was time for both of them to get off, the sun had begun to sink into the horizon, and he could hear Rei moving around. He got up from where he was settled, and made his way into the kitchen to get to work preparing dinner.

---

Izuku sighed as he got up from his spot in the living room. The two of them had spent the last hour or so watching the tv together after eating dinner. But now, it was time for Rei to get back to work with her classes and for Oni to set out for the night. Rei was much less happy about it than he was.

Her finals were quickly approaching. She'd holed up in her office from nearly sundown to sun rise just about every day to study and it was starting to wear on her.

She still helped him when he went out though, despite her ridiculous workload. Actually, she'd very nearly thrown a textbook she was reading from at him when he suggested that she at least hold off from that. That was the last thing she wanted, because she needed something to take her mind off of studying every once in a while.

To return the favor, he made sure to help her as often as he could, both while at home and while he was in the middle of fighting people.

He had a near-perfect memory, it was easy enough to memorize studying points or flash cards or anything else he needed in order to help. He would recall them to quiz her while he was out and about. Anything to keep her from having to stare at a book or the computer screen all night long. And really, it was kind of fun for him at times. Watching criminals become confused as he listed off law codes or court rulings while he threw their friends around was something he wouldn't forget for a long time.

Balancing on the railing of his balcony, he looked out over the city. He took a deep breath, taking in the cold air, which had only gotten colder after then sun went down. For this part of the year he donned an overcoat on top of his usual outfit, similar to the one he'd worn out earlier but slightly shorter, stopping just above his knees so as to not hinder movement, and pitch black instead of tan.

It was much easier to maintain his body heat in this form, but damn if he didn't like the warmth his coat brought.

Spreading his arms out to the sides, and with a smile on his face, he tipped forwards, dropping towards the ground. After a moment, his wings extended, catching on the air, and propelling him upwards as he drove them down.

Time to get to work.