Origin Prologue: 7. No More Playing Heroes

The young boy Izuku ran as fast as he could, his small feet pounding against the quiet, empty suburban street. He ignored the orange, beautiful evening sky, his focus solely on escaping the turmoil inside him. The world around him blurred as he pushed his short child legs to their limit.

He didn't know where he was running to... nor did he care...

He just needed to run as far as possible, trying to hold back the tears that threatened to spill from his eyes. The weight of his emotions drove him further...

He was overwhelmed with a sense of weakness and helplessness. He felt like the most useless son in the world, having just made his own mother worry about him. As the eldest son, he was supposed to be there for both his mother and his sister, especially now that his father was gone.

The words of his father suddenly echoed in his mind, haunting him...

"Izuku, protect your mother and sister in my stead while I'm away, okay?"

That was the last thing his father had said to him before leaving for work that final time... before leaving them forever. His father had entrusted him with the role of protector for their little family.

But now... not only was he quirkless, he had also made his mother fearful and worried.

The young boy Izuku kept running, and running, until his legs grew tired and he finally had to stop... Coincidentally, he found himself at the empty public park where he, Katsuki, and Chisa used to play.

He gazed at the park with a pensive expression and slowly stepped inside. Memories of his time with Katsuki and Chisa flooded his mind. Memories of their fun times together, playing around... pretending to be heroes. That last memory ached deeply in his heart, and finally, he let the tears fall.

Izuku cried for the first time in what felt like forever...

He cried as he faced the reality of his weakness and uselessness...

"Izuku...? What are you doing here?"

A familiar voice broke through his sobs. Izuku quickly rubbed the tears from his eyes, trying his hardest to hide them before turning around.

There stood Katsuki, a worried expression on his face. Had Katsuki heard about him running away from home? Had he seen him crying in the middle of this empty public park?

"Katsuki..." Izuku replied, his voice trembling. He didn't even use his friend's endearing nickname like he used to, nor did he bother to look back at his friend. He didn't want him to see that he had been crying.

Katsuki took a few steps closer, his usually confident demeanor softened by concern. "Izuku, what happened...? Are you... crying?"

Izuku was taken aback by his best friend's exact prediction. He was indeed crying, but he didn't want to show it to his best friend. He didn't want Katsuki to see him at his weakest and most helpless.

"N-no... I wasn't crying..." Izuku tried to lie, but Katsuki wasn't exactly an idiot nor blind.

"Izuku..." Katsuki's voice was gentle but firm.

Katsuki knew that Izuku was definitely crying and it was most likely because of his father's passing away. He couldn't exactly understand the pain that Izuku was going through as his own father was still alive, but he understood that losing someone precious to you would be quite devastating for anyone.

"Izuku... please, cheer up, okay?" Katsuki tried to reassure Izuku, but Izuku himself still didn't want to face him. Seeing this made Katsuki even more worried for him, so he had to think of something that might cheer him up.

Then an idea crossed through his head as he remembered the fun times he, Izuku, and Chisa had when they played together.

"Izuku! Let's play Hero Vs Villain!" exclaimed Katsuki with a cheerful tone.

But... he didn't realize that was a big mistake.

"Hero..." Izuku echoed his word, but the word itself was filled with venom.

Katsuki was startled a bit as he sensed the slight venom in Izuku's word. He knew it had something to do with the rumor of Izuku's father getting killed because he was caught in a crossfire between a hero fighting a villain, but still, he thought that reminding Izuku of his dream might cheer him up a bit.

"Y-yes! You can be the hero this time! And I'll even play the villain-"

"Shut up."

"Huh?" Katsuki was shocked when he heard Izuku. "W-what do you mean-"

"Just shut up...!"

"I-Izuku...?!"

"I don't want to play this hero game anymore..."

"Izuku...?! B-but why?! Isn't this your favorite?!"

"No, it's not! I hate playing hero!"

Katsuki took a step back, his eyes wide with surprise and hurt. "Izuku... what are you talking about? You've always loved heroes..."

Izuku clenched his fists, his tears flowing freely now. "No, Katsuki! I don't! Not anymore! I can't be a hero! I'm useless! I'm quirkless!"

"Q-quirkless...!?" Katsuki was shocked when he heard the last revelation of Izuku being quirkless. He couldn't believe his best friend didn't have a quirk. "N-no way...! That's a lie! You can't be quirkless?!"

This was news to him. Katsuki couldn't accept the fact that Izuku was quirkless. "What do you mean, Izuku? How can you be quirkless? There's no way..."

"It's true!" Izuku shouted, his voice cracking with emotion. "I don't have a quirk, and I never will! I'm just a useless, quirkless nobody!"

Katsuki shook his head, trying to process what he was hearing. "But... if you're quirkless... you can't be a hero-!"

Katsuki soon regretted those words the moment they left his mouth.

"See..." Izuku's voice was barely above a whisper, filled with bitterness. "Even you understand how useless I am..."

"No, Izuku, that's not what I meant!" Katsuki tried to backtrack, his own eyes starting to water. "You can still be a hero! You can try your hardest and-"

"Stop it!" Izuku cut him off, turning away. "Even the heroes with quirks couldn't save my dad. They can't save everyone. How could a useless, quirkless kid like me be a hero? I don't want to be a hero!"

"Don't say that!" Katsuki's voice was desperate now, his heart breaking at his friend's pain. "You're not useless! You can be anything you want to be, quirk or no quirk!"

"Shut up, Katsuki!" Izuku screamed, his voice raw with emotion. "Just leave me alone!"

Katsuki felt tears rolling down his cheeks, his best friend's words cutting deep.

"Deku, you idiot!" he cried, turning and running away from the park. His footsteps echoed in the emptiness, his heart aching with the weight of Izuku's despair.

As Katsuki ran, Izuku was left alone in the park, the echoes of their confrontation ringing in his ears. The weight of his words, his emotions, and his reality settled heavily on his shoulders.

Suddenly, Izuku heard a familiar voice calling out to him. "Izuku!"

He turned to see his mother, Inko, rushing into the park, her eyes filled with concern. She saw the sadness etched on her son's face as he watched his friend run away.

"Izuku..." Inko said softly, reaching out to him.

Izuku stood there, the tears still flowing, feeling the full weight of his emotions as his mother enveloped him in a comforting embrace.