Chapter 7: An Unexpected Offer
Izuku's jab plowed into one of Toshinori's punching mitts, and he quickly followed it with a right cross. His mentor shifted to catch the incoming blow easily, then did the same for his left hook. Their movements almost seemed choreographed as they shifted back and forth, a dance to the beat of muffled impacts and firm steps.
"Good!" Toshinori said in the space between punches. "Your form is better, and that's letting you put more behind each strike. I can almost feel those!"
Izuku prepared to dart another jab forward, but a sudden sound rang through the room.
"A Villain is here!"
In a now practiced motion, Toshinori whipped his hands upwards. The movement flung the punching mitts free, and before they even struck the ceiling, All Might was on the move.
"Switch!" Torino called, and Izuku spun to face the small man. Gran's hero costume had been replaced with a white button up shirt, jeans, and some boots. He held two polls, pads affixed to the end with a healthy layer of tape that had so far managed to keep them in place. Izuku was less familiar with kickboxing, as what little time he and Toshinori had dedicated to combat training on the beach was focused on how to throw a halfway decent punch. However, his training with Torino had highlighted just how useful adding his lower limbs to the equation could be.
With greater caution, Izuku snapped out one kick, then shifted to bring his heel back down towards the second paddle. Once he planted his foot, Izuku brought his opposite knee up into the paddle as Torino moved it to a new position, then leapt to once again strike the other with the first once more. His landing was a bit unstable, however, and Torino jabbed one of the paddles forward. Izuku swatted it away with a hasty swipe of his arm, then recovered his stance.
"Could be worse." The elderly man grunted.
Given that was a pretty significant step up from his initial grade of "God awful, did you just discover your legs?" Izuku opted to take it as a compliment. He still had a lot of room to improve in his melee skills, but at least the general consensus seemed to be positive, albeit begrudgingly.
All Might returned with a rumble, swept into the room, then retrieved his gloves as he shrank down. "Switch?"
"Sure." Torino called. "Brat, see if you can throw a kick in here and there."
Izuku nodded, then shuffled cautiously towards his teacher. Toshinori grinned at him, then did his best to make the 'Bring it on!' gesture through the thick pads on his hands. It didn't work especially well, but Izuku caught his drift. He sucked in a deep breath, then leveled his full focus on the man in front of him.
Izuku stepped forward with a quick jab, then twisted at the waist and snapped out a cross punch. Toshinori used his right hand to block each with casual ease, not bothering with his off hand. Izuku quickly stepped back, then snapped a straight kick towards his opponent's center of mass.
One for All pulsed twice, but the warning came too late.
Toshinori swiveled to the side, letting the kick shoot past him. He immediately retaliated with a shove to Izuku's extended leg that sent him spinning away, Toshinori's gaunt frame belying the strength he still possessed. Izuku stumbled for a few steps, then regained his footing and spun to face his teacher.
"Good try, but you overcommitted." Toshinori chuckled. "You're doing well. Keep it up, Young Izuku!"
Izuku's only response was another series of jabs, testing for any opening. As expected of the Symbol of Peace, even in his diminished state, there were none that Izuku could pick out. As such, he tried something else.
Izuku darted forward and feinted a right hook, then shifted to swing a low kick at Toshinori's ankles. The tall man danced back, and Izuku snapped out a straight punch as Toshinori's foot left the ground. His predecessor blocked the strike, but was forced to shuffle back slightly to try and regain solid footing. Izuku pounced on the opportunity, tightened his core, and swept a roundhouse kick towards his opponent's ribs.
Toshinori managed to ground his footing just before he blocked, but even so his gloved hand actually moved a little as he caught the blow. The result was equal parts gratifying and frustrating, but at least it was some evidence Izuku hadn't been sparring with an immovable bulwark. The maneuver earned him a nod of approval from Toshinori, which sent a warm glow of pride through Izuku. He hopped backwards slightly, then resumed his approach.
This time, Izuku opted for greater aggression. He led with a left hook, peppered Toshinori's guard with a series of jabs, then put just shy of everything he had into a right cross. Before his fist had even left the pad, he followed the strike with a stomp towards Toshinori's foot. The maneuver achieved exactly what Izuku had wanted; like the last attack on his legs, Toshinori opted to move backwards rather than block. Izuku chased him with an uppercut.
As the glove came up to intercept, it momentarily blocked his mentor's line of sight. Izuku abandoned the uppercut and twisted, shifting the momentum he'd built into a knee strike that rocketed upwards towards Toshinori's gut.
Less casually than before, but nonetheless clearly unconcerned, Toshinori's other hand swept in to block the strike. "Nice try, Young Izuku!" Toshinori called from behind the pad that still blocked his face. "That might have worked on a less experienced fighter."
Izuku huffed, then reset his stance and chambered his next punch. Before he could throw it, another alert rang through the room.
"A message is here!"
Once again, All Might was nearly out of the room a moment later. This time, however, the hulking figure paused as he stared down at his phone. "...That wasn't mine."
Izuku, who'd already turned towards Gran Torino once more, hesitated for a moment before he plucked his own phone from his pocket. Sure enough, he had a new message.
"You may want to change those." All Might chuckled as he deflated. "Can't have you stealing my bit, now can we? The similar quirks people could dismiss, but the same ringtone? That'd be a dead giveaway."
Torino snorted. "That conspiracy nut friend of yours would have a conniption, Zygote."
"Who?" Toshinori cocked his head, an eyebrow raised. "I thought you'd only met Young Iida and Young Todoroki. Did you run into another friend at the hospital, my boy?"
"No, he's talking about Shoto…" Izuku muttered as he punched in his password, then navigated to HeroNet.
Toshinori pulled back slightly, the very picture of consternation. "That doesn't sound right. He's such a level headed boy, surely you're exaggerating."
Torino just hummed, smug amusement in his tone.
Tenya Iida: Good Morning, Midoriya! I am awake, and wish to discuss a rather interesting dream with you, at your convenience. I apologize if that seems odd.
Deku: That's completely fine, Iida. Does it have to do with the… meeting we had?
Tenya Iida: I believe it does.
Deku: I'll see if I can come visit you so we can talk about it in person.
Tenya Iida: That would be appreciated. I'm still in the same room I was the last time you were here.
"It's Iida." Izuku said as he looked up from his phone. "He's awake, and would like to discuss what he saw. I think it would be best to do it in person."
Toshinori and Torino both paused their squabble, then collected themselves.
"I completely agree. Let me change out of my costume, then we can be on our way." Toshinori shook the pads from his hands, then jogged off towards his room. "Best not to keep Young Iida waiting. I can only imagine the state he must be in, given whatever fractured information he received."
Izuku nodded hesitantly as he headed for the car, still on the elevating platform. "Yeah… I just feel awful that he got caught up in all of this."
"You can't blame yourself for that, my boy." Toshinori shook his head as stepped back out of his room, and Izuku had to do a double take. In the span of seconds, Toshinori had changed into a red t-shirt over jeans, and was in the process of pulling on a black leather jacket. Izuku absently retook the passenger side, despite Torino's displeasure, even as Toshinori caught up and clambered into the driver's seat. "The circumstances that conspired to bring Young Iida into this mess were absurd. No sane person could have seen it coming."
"I know, just… If I hadn't been paralyzed by Stain-" Izuku's words were cut off by a swift smack to the back of his head as Torino climbed into the rear seats.
"If your argument is 'If I'd just avoided any and all injury while fighting a prolific serial killer who targeted pro heroes, he wouldn't have found out' then I must have hit you harder than I thought. I was pretty sure you were smarter than that." Gran groused. "Sometimes, the best possible outcome still has pitfalls and unforeseen consequences. Just take the damn win, and accept that for better or worse you'll have another person who knows the secret."
"Fine…" Izuku rubbed the back of his head and sent a mild glare Torino's way, but nodded nonetheless. "I just hope this doesn't end in tears."
"We'll do our damndest to ensure it won't, Young Izuku." Toshinori said solemnly as they descended.
"I know you will. But thank you, regardless." Izuku let out a long breath, and leaned backwards into his seat.
For a time, he watched the car park, then the city, pass through the tinted windows. Tokyo was truly titanic, the buildings stretching up as if to pierce the sky. However, it didn't take long for the silence to start weighing on him. After a moment of consideration, he glanced towards the driver. "Care to share any more stories from years gone by? Maybe how you got Wall Fight of all things as a nickname?"
Torino cackled. One for All pulsed merrily. Toshinori groaned.
"Even at UA, I was strong enough to easily punch through walls. Hell, I just walked through a few because I wanted to show off. But then, Nezu decided to take a personal hand in designing the scenario for me, and that involved ridiculously reinforced walls…"
"He lost a fight with an inanimate object." Torino crowed. "Got all huffy because he dented his noggin on it, then bruised his knuckles enough that he gave up and used the damn door he'd been ignoring. Never saw the rat so smug."
"Shut up, Sorahiko."
As Izuku walked into the hospital, part of him was relieved to note that the number of people in the waiting room had noticeably decreased. Another was horrified by how many remained. While there were no longer people leaning against walls for lack of seating, most of the lobby was still filled with civilians. He even recognized one or two from his exit the previous day, slumped in their seats.
'To think that casualties were relatively low from this incident, considering the area, and yet there were still so many affected.' Izuku thought, heart sinking. 'It's one thing to see rescue efforts on TV, but this… it's so much more real.'
Izuku was broken from his thoughts when a sudden movement caught his eye. A man relatively nearby had glanced at the door, then done a double take so visible it had grabbed Izuku's attention. When he met the man's eyes with a questioning look, he just gave a short nod, then started tapping at his phone.
'Well that was odd…' Izuku thought. Then, he caught another similar movement elsewhere in the room. A woman in the far corner was quickly looking between him and her phone, an odd force to her typing. 'Why do I feel like I should be worried?'
Izuku felt a hand fall on his shoulder, and glanced up to see Toshinori still at his side. He leaned down close to Izuku's ear. "They recognize you, kid. Guessing someone got a clear shot of you during or after the confrontation with Stain."
"Um…" Izuku wasn't sure what to do with that information. He'd received a bit of attention in the aftermath of the sports festival, but that had felt… different. Where before there'd been an almost casual feel to it, this was more… intense. "What should I do?"
"Not much, really." Toshinori replied as he ushered Izuku forward. "I just hope the vultures- er, the press don't decide to show up. We'd probably be able to leave another way, but things might get dicey if we have to. There's a 99.9% chance nobody here will recognize me from the Might Agency, but if the press show up, they'll make the connection in a heartbeat."
'Well that's reassuring.'
The three quickly checked in at the front desk, received their visitor wristbands, and were given directions to Iida's room. Though less so than the previous day, the hospital was a bustling place filled with staff and other visitors rushing all over the building, a disquieting number of whom gave Izuku lingering looks. Thankfully, Torino had evidently done some reconnaissance during his time in the ceiling, because he easily led them to a remote stairwell. Though their footsteps echoed loudly, it was still far quieter than the bustle of the main hallways, and before long they'd arrived on the appropriate floor. From there, the trio made their way to Iida's room with relative ease.
That ease lasted right up until Izuku opened the door. The moment he looked into the room, he found a very stern Iida glaring at the entryway like it owed him money.
The wrong Iida.
Tensei sat in his wheelchair between the foot of his brother's bed and the door, arms crossed over his chest and a stormy expression on his face. Behind him, a very nervous looking Tenya lay in his bed. On seeing Izuku, he gave a weak wave. "Ah… Midoriya… I'm glad you could make it…"
Toshinori stepped into the room behind Izuku, and he watched in real time as recognition, concern, and confusion flashed across Tensei's face. "Yagi?"
"Ah, Young Ingenium! I wasn't expecting to see you here. I was sorry to hear about your injury, though I'm glad to see you're on the mend." Toshinori said, though Izuku could clearly hear the hidden alarm in his tone.
"I appreciate the sentiment." Tensei gave a rueful shrug. "But it's just Tensei, now. The Ingenium name is Tenya's for the taking."
"It's in good hands." Toshinori nodded gravely. "I hear your brother has the makings of a fine hero."
"You know each other?" Izuku asked, surprised. "Actually… that makes sense. The areas Iidaten and the Might Agency generally cover overlap a bit, so I'm sure they've needed to interact a few times… Uh, even if just for incident reports."
"We've handled a report or two together, when All Might accidentally stepped on his toes." Toshinori chuckled.
Tensei looked sheepish for a moment, his fingers fidgeting with the arms of his wheelchair. "Actually, I'm pretty sure I stepped on his toes."
"In a literal sense, maybe. You only ran into him because he popped around a corner and snatched up the villain you were pursuing at the last second." Toshinori chuckled. "He felt bad about that one for a while. I hope you don't harbor any hard feelings."
A smile snuck its way onto Tensei's face. "Are you kidding? I have a helmet with All Might's abs imprinted on the front. I keep that thing on a shelf in my office so I have an excuse to tell people about it."
Tenya let out an embarrassed groan from his bed, and flopped an arm over his eyes. The sound seemed to remind Tensei why he was there, and his gaze hardened. "That aside, I'd very much like to know what All Might's agency has to do with whatever has my brother so frazzled. I do hope it's nothing to do with the poor optics Stain's ideology has doubtless caused."
Izuku glanced up at Toshinori, only to find the lanky man looking down at him with a raised brow. The staring contest continued for an awkward moment before the man's other brow raised as well. "This isn't my call to make anymore. The choice is yours, Young Midoriya."
"Wait… That sounded like…!" Tenya's head shot up, and Izuku's attention snapped to his friend. Tenya's eyes were wide, and his gaze swept up and down Toshinori's figure. He pointed at Toshinori with a trembling hand. "All M-"
"Don't panic!" Izuku stepped into his friend's line of sight, hands raised placatingly. Once Tenya had closed his mouth and lowered his hand, Izuku sent a quick nod over his shoulder at Toshinori.
"I'll keep anyone from barging in." Torino grunted, then stepped outside and shut the door behind him. Izuku almost felt bad for inflicting the old curmudgeon on anyone who tried to check on the Iidas, but at the same time he didn't want any more surprise additions to the situation. Hopefully they'd be able to wrap things up before Torino's intervention became necessary.
"What's going on here?" The former Ingenium snarled, hands shakily gripped around the wheels of his chair. "I won't let you intimidate us into any-"
"If someone could please tell me what's wrong with All Might?" Tenya nearly shouted over his brother, gaze still locked on the skeletal man in the doorway.
Tensei turned slightly, somewhere between surprised and baffled. "Tenya, what are you-"
"I'm sorry to startle you so badly, Young Iida." Toshinori sighed. "I was intending to ease you into this, but things haven't exactly gone to plan…"
Tensei's head snapped back around to stare at Toshinori like a deer in headlights. "What?"
Toshinori grimaced, then swept his gaze around the hospital room. Evidently satisfied at their privacy, he took a deep breath, then swelled into All Might. With a sharp snap, his visitor band ripped from his wrist, and limply flopped to the floor. The colossus stared at the ruined bit of plastic for a long moment, then released his breath and shrank down. "Crap."
Izuku kept a careful eye on the Iidas as Toshinori retrieved the remains of his visitor's pass. Tensei hadn't moved since Toshinori had revealed himself as All Might, save for a few abortive attempts at speech. Tenya was similarly gaping at Toshinori, though he recovered faster. "...Ah. I apologize, but I believe my questions are growing in number, rather than shrinking. I don't suppose…?"
"We'll explain everything." Izuku reassured his friend, then glanced towards the still stunned Tensei. "To both of you."
"I apologize emphatically, Midoriya." Tenya ran his hands down his face, then met Izuku's eyes through slightly askew glasses. "I… didn't intend for Tensei to be here. But when I woke up, I was… unsettled, and he picked up on it immediately. I thought I could convince him to go get some rest after I sent you the message, but the harder I tried to convince him everything was ok, the less he believed me. I fear that, despite keeping my promise in spirit, I'm responsible for your current position."
"Don't worry about it, Iida." Izuku sighed, though he sent his friend a small smile. "I can't exactly blame you for freaking out at what you'd experienced, much less for your brother picking up on it. How much do you actually remember?"
"My memory of the events is a bit fuzzy, enough that I wasn't completely sure of its veracity until you confirmed it." Iida pinched the bridge of his nose for a moment, then readjusted his glasses. "Overall, however, I believe I remember most of it, as well as a few of my questions."
"I'll do my best to answer those, though I'll be limited to my own knowledge, which isn't all that much." Izuku shook his head ruefully. "All Might can probably fill in more holes, but there's going to be things that neither of us-"
"WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED TO ALL MIGHT?!" Tensei exploded, arms flinging out to gesture at the entirety of Toshinori's body so violently he nearly tipped from his wheelchair. He hissed as his back shifted, then returned his hands to their grip on the arms of the chair.
Tenya opened his mouth and raised a hand, then wilted. "I'll let you have that one, but please keep your language in check, Tensei."
"I think if there was ever an occasion to curse, now is probably the time!" Tensei let out a sharp laugh that sounded a hair's breadth away from hysterics. He tried to run his fingers through his hair, but found only stubble. "Is this what freaked you out? If so, I completely understand. This has to be a national secret or something. How'd you find out?"
"Yes, brother. This is the extent of it. I found out because… uh…" Tenya faltered, and Tensei shot him a flat look. "There was a… um… a conference? That I stumbled into? During my internship. Yes."
Awkward silence.
"Ok, so THIS is somehow not the end of it." Tensei shook his head in disbelief and waved a hand in Toshinori's direction. "So what else has my brother managed to get himself mixed up in? If it's more shocking than All Might being the skeleton in his own closet, I'll eat the abs helmet."
"...That's an inadvisable wager to make, Young Tensei. Are either of you aware of any interruptions that may be coming up?" Toshinori asked as he moved to take a seat in one of the chairs by the wall. Tensei shifted, eyes darting between Toshinori and Izuku warily.
"I have physical therapy in fifty one minutes." Tenya offered. "I apologize, I wasn't aware of that fact until a few minutes before you arrived."
"So we'll be doing the abbreviated version, to leave time for questions." Toshinori waited for agreement, then settled into his chair. Izuku opted to stand, though he moved to do so near his predecessor. "The story begins at the dawn of quirks, with two brothers…"
The abridged rendition of One for All's legacy went surprisingly quickly. Though much of the fanfare and deeper explanations were stripped away, the story still left the two inductees stunned. Izuku's explanation of Kinenkō's death, his acquisition of Boon, and how it resulted in Tenya's surprise visit to the Vestige Realm hadn't made anything better. Tenya was visibly unnerved by One for All's history, but had the benefit of prior knowledge and having experienced the latest development himself. His brother, however, had been left reeling.
"So there's some kind of insane quirk kleptomaniac who's been running around since the dawn of quirks. Your quirk is basically a mythological super weapon passed down the generations to fight him, except now it can shuffle quirks around too." Tensei clarified, eyes burning a hole in Izuku's skull as his hands clenched around his arm rests. The flustered former hero then switched his gaze to Toshinori, laser focused. "You nearly got yourself killed taking the thief out, but now you only have an hour of hero work in you per day, and they're back to take pot shots at you and everyone around you."
Toshinori blinked, then furrowed his brow. "That's… more or less correct, unfortunately."
"And my baby brother got mixed up in this because you…" His haggard eyes bore down on Izuku once more. "Accidentally picked up a quirk from Doctor Kinenkō, and it let him spectate you and your weird quirk ghosts."
"Uh… yes?" Izuku responded hesitantly. "But it saved his life, so I'd say it's worth it."
"I'm in full agreement there. I'm not sure if I thanked you yesterday, as it's all kind of a blur, but I can't possibly do so enough for what you did." Tensei responded somberly, but with no less intensity than before. A second later, his mania reignited. "Tenya!"
"Yes, Tensei?" The younger Iida asked warily.
"I'm not just hallucinating all of this because the doctors hooked me up to the good stuff, right?" Tensei asked, deadly serious.
"...Not unless we're both hallucinating the same thing, which I find to be rather unlikely." Tenya rubbed his brow tiredly. "Also, with how long you've been in here, I'm reasonably confident anything like that would have worn off."
Tensei nodded as he brought a hand to his chin. After a long moment, his eyes narrowed to slits and his mouth pressed to a thin line. "How long ago were you injured?"
"A little over six years ago, now." Toshinori said. "If you're trying to figure out which fight it was covered up with, there wasn't one. It was recorded as an unknown facility exploding."
"Six years ago?" Tensei breathed in horror, wide eyes briefly darting towards where Toshinori's wound was concealed. "You've been working through your injury for that long ?"
"Yes. My condition degraded gradually over time, to the point I only had a few hours left about a year ago." Toshinori grimaced. "After the USJ… I was already at my limit for the day when it started. That's why I wasn't there at the beginning. I was able to push myself past my limit long enough to defeat the Nomu, but it worsened my condition afterwards."
Tensei didn't look especially pleased at the reminder of the USJ attack, but before he could say anything, his brother spoke up.
"...How long do you think…?" Tenya asked nervously. "I-I mean, if it wouldn't be impolite-"
"It's alright, Young Iida. It's an understandable question." Toshinori rubbed his brow, eyes narrowed and staring blankly at the far wall. "Probably no more than half a year, assuming I don't have to push too many boundaries. The teaching job actually helps quite a bit in terms of moderation. It strains me physically to stay in my heroic form, but it uses up very little of my remaining power."
Ice ran down Izuku's spine. "Six months? No, that can't be right. I… You… I know you said your power would fade over time, but… it can't be that fast."
Toshinori rested a hand on Izuku's shoulder, large and warm. "I know it's a shock, my boy. Retirement isn't exactly something I look forward to. But it's an inevitability. I wanted to ease the public into the idea a bit slower, but… fate has conspired to make that impossible."
Izuku collapsed into the second seat, feeling faint. "I… have my work cut out for me, if I'm going to take up your mantle by then."
"Oh goodness no, my boy!" Toshinori spluttered a surprised laugh. "For all my encouragement to let the world know you're here, I never expected you to be able to take my place before my retirement, or even soon afterwards. Nana continued hero work for three years after she passed One for All to me, but she scarcely used her embers in that time. She relied on her own quirk, saving her power for the inevitable confrontation with All for One. I don't have that option, unless I retire effective immediately."
"Ok. That's more than a little relieving." Izuku released a shuddering breath. "Regardless, I need to make progress on everything. One for All. The other quirks. My technique. Even if I don't need to master everything in a few months, the sooner I'm able to make headway, the better."
"You have my complete confidence, my boy." Toshinori gave him a hearty pat on the shoulder. "Just do your best. I'm sure the other heroes will be able to keep the world together for a bit longer after I'm gone."
Tensei stared at the older hero, gaze contemplative. After a time, he leaned forward slightly. "How can I help?"
Toshinori blinked. "Pardon?"
"How can I help keep Japan together in the interim?" Tensei clarified. "I may not be able to continue my heroics career as I am, but I can still run the Iidaten Agency. If there's anything I can do personally, or a task I can set my agency on that will help Japan handle the transition, I'll do it."
Slowly, Toshinori smiled. "Well, for one, if you could start expanding your partols further into the Might Agency's normal area, that could help a great deal. With your brother in my class, some increased interaction between our agencies wouldn't be especially unusual. It would help a great deal to know that other heroes are familiar with the area I usually cover."
"Would that not draw undue attention to Tensei and his agency?" Tenya asked, brow furrowed.
"Even if it does, we're heroes. It's our job to protect the citizens of Japan, even if we're at undue risk. The people here deserve safety. If it falls to us to ensure they have it, then that's what we'll do." Tensei responded, then turned back to face Toshinori. "I'll start looking into recruitment opportunities."
"I can't thank you enough, Young Tensei." Toshinori bowed in his seat. "You are a fine hero, regardless of your present condition. If there is any help I can offer in preparing your agency, all you have to do is ask."
"Thank you." Tensei blinked hard, eyes momentarily misty. "It's an honor to hear that from a hero of your caliber, All Might."
"It's well earned." Toshinori smiled softly.
A quiet moment followed, but before long Tenya raised a hand. "May I ask a question, and possibly make a request?"
"Go ahead, Iida." Izuku nodded.
"You can call me Tenya, Midoriya." The blue haired teen smiled wanly. "I'm not entirely sure where all of… this… falls in terms of interpersonal relationships, but I'm confident we're well past surnames at this point."
Tensei huffed a small laugh at his brother, a fond smile wrinkling his eyes.
"I can't exactly fault that logic, Tenya." Izuku scratched the back of his head as he gave his friend a smile of his own. "Likewise, feel free to call me Izuku."
"It would be my honor." Tenya nodded, then turned more serious. "Many of my questions from before were addressed with the overall explanation of your quirk's history. However, after your explanation of Boon, I have to ask. Do…" Tenya swallowed thickly. "Do you believe that it could help Tensei recover?"
Izuku shot a glance at Tensei, who's expression was unreadable. He hesitated for a moment. He suspected he knew the answer, but… One for All remained still. Izuku focused inward, hoping he'd get some kind of answer, but the quirk remained quiet.
'That's odd…' Izuku thought. 'Usually, they can communicate with me. Is something stopping them?'
Two pulses. With so much of his attention stretching for any sign, the sudden response startled Izuku enough to make him jump slightly.
"Izuku? Are you alright?" Tenya asked.
"I'm ok." Izuku responded. "I'm just trying to get a response out of One for All, and it wasn't pulsing like it usually does until just now. I'm not completely sure what's going on."
"Is it possible it… er, they… don't know?" Tensei asked hesitantly.
"Given that Kinenkō is in there somewhere, to my understanding, I'd be shocked if he doesn't at least have a guess…" Izuku paused as a quick pulse hit, followed a moment later by three pulses. "Ok, the issues with a yes/no/maybe answer system are coming to a head here. I have no idea what I'm meant to take away from this."
Many pulses, tinged with frustration.
Izuku sighed, then reviewed his options. 'Clearly, the Vestiges are trying to tell me something, but the pulse system isn't really getting it across. They could pulse to count out letters, but that would probably take all our remaining time for any kind of meaningful conversation. I have a pretty solid track record of direct communication when I'm asleep, but that's not exactly an efficient method either.' Izuku absently pinched at his chin in thought, churning through ideas. Finally, a relatively obvious thought occurred.
Carefully, Izuku activated Full Cowling at a fraction of a percent, then returned his attention inward. With One for All coursing through him, he was once again confronted by the flows of power he'd encountered the first time he'd done so. He examined them with his mind's eye, letting the power wash through him.
Izuku found that, on closer inspection, the strands had a color to them. When he focused on the pure white strand, he felt an intertwined sense of generosity and power, much as he had when looking into the expanded core of One for All. Another strand, this one a pale yellow, radiated an anxious feeling that pricked his skin in a familiar way. A dark green chord felt like anger, though a chorus of other emotions thrummed beneath the surface. The last he could properly sense was a dim gold color, a faint glow carrying with it a sense of persistence. The remaining strands were oddly hard to focus on, though he was briefly able to focus on a strand of deep purple.
As he watched, the strands seemed to ripple, and a pulse rolled through him. Izuku pressed deeper, his attention focused on the intertwined lines of power. Another pulse hit, and Izuku could feel that it coursed along a single line within the braid of power that made up One for All. As he watched, more pulses raced down the other strands, each distinct in a small way.
Hesitantly, Izuku reached out.
"NINE!" Yoichi's voice burst into Izuku's mind, and he leapt to his feet.
"Young Izuku?" Toshinori reached up to steady him, voice concerned. "Are you alright? What just happened?"
"I just heard Yoichi." Izuku said, stunned. Quickly, he dropped back into his seat and returned his focus to the power as he had before. "Yoichi? Can you do that again?"
"Nine! Finally!" Yoichi's voice returned on a pulse. "We've-"
"We've been trying to reach you about your vehicle's extended warranty!" Daigoro's words thrummed down another strand of power, quickly followed by his laughter.
"Can someone mute him?" Nana groaned, though she sounded amused.
"I really should have seen that coming." En sighed. "He looked way too smug."
"Pretty sure we don't have a mute button…" Daigoro said. After a moment, his voice returned. "Oh come on En, Hikage, don't- Gah!"
"...Should I be worried?" Izuku asked, already concerned.
"No, he's fine." En said, a bit of strain in his voice. "Daigoro's just excited he has someone new to joke around with. He'll probably calm down before too long… hopefully."
"Ok, everyone. We can experiment with this later." Yoichi cut back in, and the other voices faded slightly. "Izuku, we didn't have an answer because Kinenkō isn't active right now."
Izuku frowned. "What do you mean?"
"Do you remember what we said about him fading in and out?" Yoichi asked. At Izuku's confirmation, he continued. "Well, that happened again. After you woke up, he was in the vestige realm for a few minutes before he faded away. When you split boon up between Eight and Gran Torino, he appeared for a time, but faded away again after a while. I think his vestige only appears when you're actively using it, or trying to draw it out."
"Why would it work that way? You guys are always there." Izuku asked, confused. "Is there something different about Boon?"
"It's probably more a matter of US being different, more than anything." Bruce responded. "Technically speaking, we're-"
"I guarantee we don't have time for that explanation." Nana cut in. "Izuku, could you try to actively focus on Boon? Like you're about to use it?"
Izuku shook off his curiosity over whatever Bruce had been about to say, then nodded to himself. Splitting his focus, Izuku examined the threads of power of One for All. Within the coil, he found a chord of gold, dim but lustrous. He reached for it, calling on it, and Boon responded.
"Well this has been an interesting experience. Being split three ways is like having three movies playing in different rooms, and having to keep up with all of them." Kinenkō's gruff voice finally joined the others. "As for your question, seeing as Tensei's in a sufficiently recovered state that he's able to use a wheelchair, Boon would do little to help his spine. Any lingering injuries he's suffering from would heal faster, but it can't do anything about what's already been healed. If everything was still fresh, that would have been one thing, but even a few hours after the injury would have left him with lingering mobility issues."
"That's what I was afraid of." Izuku slumped. "Thank you, Doctor Kinenkō. Also, if you're uncomfortable with being split like this, I can consolidate Boon again."
"I'm sorry it can't do more, Deku. I'm sorry for putting you in this situation at all, which I'd like to discuss in greater depth at a more opportune time." Kinenkō said. "As for splitting Boon up, it's not all that bad. Given how much it expands our ability to help people, I'm certainly not going to ask you not to utilize the new property. It will simply take some getting used to."
"I would… appreciate that." Izuku said after a moment of consideration. "Now to tell Tensei and Tenya."
A wave of sympathy and reassurance rolled down through the connection as Izuku pulled away, words shifting back into a series of pulses as his focus on the power faded. When he opened his eyes, Izuku found the room staring at him in interest. Toshinori, in particular, looked flabbergasted.
"What?" Izuku asked.
"You were muttering again, Izuku." Tenya responded. "Though it sounded more like half a conversation, as opposed to your usual rapid flow of consciousness."
Toshinori shook himself, slightly, then nodded. "From what I could make out…"
"It doesn't sound like you can do anything." Tensei finished, a sad half smile on his face. "I wasn't really expecting you to. Regeneration quirks are even rarer than healing ones are. Regeneration that can be shared so easily? I think Recovery Girl would tie you up and drag you to every hospital and disaster site in the country, super strength be damned."
"I didn't think I could, but wanted to know definitively before I said anything." Izuku shook his head morosely. "I'm so sorry, both of you. I wish I could do something to help."
This time, Tenya shook his head. "I apologize, Izuku. It was unfair of me to put that on you. If you thought you could, I'm sure you would have already tried."
"I could still use some of Boon on you. It helps with pain, and would speed along any recovering you still have left to do." Izuku shrugged slightly. "Unfortunately, it comes with some extra energy, which may not be pleasant while bound to a wheelchair. It's not bad in small doses, but in full effect, it's… uh… more than a little maddening, even when you can work it off."
Tensei grimaced, then shook his head. "I'm getting enough of that from my own quirk. Engine does a lot of things beyond the obvious, and one of them is giving me a drive to move. The only thing keeping me from climbing the walls is experience."
Izuku considered for a moment, then blanched. "I'm so sorry, Tensei. That sounds awful."
"Yeah, it's not great." Tensei said grimly. He stared at Izuku for a moment, gaze piercing. "...There is something that might be able to help, though."
Izuku blinked, then met Tensei's eyes as his own flew wide.
"Would you be willing to take my Quirk?"