Chapter Four

A leg kicked out, kicking up sand as a wave of pressurized air lashed out. My body moved in a fluid motion and a second later, I was in the air, performing a drop kick.

As soon as my foot hit the ground, sand exploded from the point of impact.

One-fifth of the full power that was contained by my body crackled around me, slowly but surely rising in intensity and percentage as time ticked on.

The percentage went up, my body slowly adjusted and I was once again in motion.

The intensity of pressurized air increased, and so did the brightness of the lightning and punches hit nothing but air as my hand blurred slightly.

I was getting there. Slowly, I was getting there.

The percentage increased, to one-fourth of the full power, and finally, my limbs were blurring.

My muscles tensed and strained and finally cramped.

One for all fizzled out, and I dropped to my knees. It hurt, it hurt like hell.

Slowly, the pain subsided, and I let go of my bicep.

It still hurt, but I would live. I did it before.

Sighing and standing up, I shook my hand, getting the faint numbness out of my body.

Looking up at the brightening sky, I pondered on my situation. Everything wasn't fine, I needed to distract myself, even for a little.

Only a week was left and I could do nothing but train, two weeks got me stronger muscles, better control, and better muscle memory.

but I was tired mentally.

I couldn't sleep for more than three hours at a time, I didn't know why, but I just couldn't. It wasn't the nightmares, it wasn't that I felt the chills of something ominous. I just couldn't. I didn't need to.

So I trained, snuck out of the house, and trained, and since my mother knew that I was up and training early in the morning, she didn't worry.

I took a deep breath and released the pent-up oxygen slowly, One for all flared in response to my commands, powering up to twenty-five percent immediately.

Narrowing my eyes, I moved, and the world blurred. This time, instead of sand, water splashed around me as the soles of my feet impacted the surface of the sea.

My direction changed, and the splashes got bigger as One for All rose in power.

It wasn't enough. I couldn't survive with only this much.

I want to live.

My foot hit the sand again, and I skidded to a stop, looking back into the sea for a moment. Then at the sky.

Could... Could I leave? Move somewhere else? All Might left and Japan just fell into the dark age for a little while, but everything turned out fine. Why couldn't I leave?

Like... a vacation? Forever?

Obviously, japan wasn't the only country in this damn world, people could kill All for one later, just leave me out of it.

(Everything happening again and again with the same outcome is annoying.)

I shivered slightly.

Fuck.

(See you when you die!)

Oh, I would see you, you little shit.

I upped my output, resisting the urge to move, the urge to punch, the urge to run.

Thirty-five percent was too much, It still hurt, and I was still not used to it. Slowly, my hand extended forward and I clenched my fist, ignoring the pain that was pulsing through my entire right appendage.

The lightning died down back to twenty-seven percent and I sighed in annoyance.

Not that easy anymore.

__

"Izuku, are you alright?"

I curled the dum bell in my hand, a new one I bought that was quirk improved. Somebody used a quirk to permanently raise the weight of a single plate to a hundred kilograms and I had three plates on each side, and each one.

For once, One for All was deactivated.

Looking at my mother, I raised an eyebrow, wondering where this was coming from.

"What do you mean?"

She fidgeted, focusing her weight one one leg first and the odder, wobbling in place.

"You seem a lot less energetic... and you stopped paying attention to the quirks that come on the TV too... You forget things more often too."

She listed things off, and I just blinked... Was I?

Yes, yes I was.

"I'm fine, mom, just tired from training in the mornings."

I shrugged and continued my workout. I needed to do some leg training to get faster.

Thirty percent, thirty three at most was my maximum, I could push to fifty at the risk of damaging myself almost certainly. Damaging myself meant taking myself out of the fight. Taking myself out of the fight meant that I would be an easy target.

"Ah, I guess that makes sense, but don't overwork yourself okay?"

I blinked... and nodded, lying to her face.

I couldn't afford to slack off.

When she left, I sighed and fell back on my bed, and started lifting the dumbels again. Slowly, the weight got neglegable again, causing me to sigh. Sometimes, having a highly adaptable body was not the best. Quick results, but when you don't put in a good amount of work... it just doesen't feel fulfilling.

But I wasn't after fulfilment here.

"When did I become so fucking objective?"

I muttered, lowering the dumbells down and putting them on the bed.

Rubbing my eyes with the palms of my hands, I groaned out in exhoustion.

A few more days.

A few more days and I can get into high risk life and death situations...

"...Yay~!"

___

"Young midoriya!"

I cast my eyes to the side, looking at the lanky man that just walked up to me.

"...Youre not taking anything, are you?"

I just sighed and dropped my head in resignation. Seriously, was puberty such a bad excuse? Or was it too hard to come to that answer?