9 Chapter 9: Sports Festival
It was about a month later that Aizawa came into the room with a couple of folders in hand and told me to get ready for the UA sports festival.
Honestly, I don't know what to think of it. In some ways I can understand why professional sports events like the Olympics banned the use of quirks in their events. Quirks were too varied, too wild and uncontrollable, but they were also a novelty and if humanity loves one thing it's a new shiny thing it can play with. Still, I have a few doubts as to why this event involves 15-year-old kids from the nation's top hero school. I mean, I get why the third years are in the sport festival, it helps with their brand and allows them to draw attention from the bigger hero agencies and other corporations that are willing to sponsor an aspiring hero. Heck, I can stretch it to second years as well, but fist years? Not everyone is me or even Bakugou, since I know that the kid has battle instincts that would be praiseworthy in any martial arts club, but the rest of the students? They barely have a month of training to use their quirks offensively. Heck, they even lack basic combat training, something that is especially difficult to surpass if you're in the General course since they don't get a heroics class and whatever PE that they do is standardized across all non-hero high schools.
Let me put this into perspective. I scored well over 300 points in the exam, and the majority of those were villain points. This was not very surprising since I trained my butt off and abused the hell out of my Sharingan for years to get to this level of martial ability. Not everyone began their training at six-years-old. In fact, the next score after I was a measly 67 points, out of which only about 40 were villain points. Heck, the lowest score that was admitted into heroics was 30 points out of which 22 were villain point and 8 were rescue points. Talk about being overpowered. And to be honest, their quirks would most likely get stronger with age, but so again will my chakra. Right now, I'm just entering puberty. In about two to three years, I would have expanded my reserves of chakra exponentially from their already relatively massive size and alongside quantity, the quality will also be improved, my chakra will be denser, making my jutsu that much more powerful.
Anyways, enough about my moaning. In this month I have managed to get the school to let me do my own thing. They really don't have anything other than hero law to teach me, and even that is most often than not something that I already know. I did train in PR and combat and otherwise I mostly develop new jutsu for my water style, fire style, and earth style. I also sparred with All Might once and managed to hold my own, though to be fair he was holding back quite a bit, while I was doing my very best to beat him. Still, I managed to push him in a way no one before All For One really did. That fills me with hope. I may not be on the level of monsters like All Might or All For One, but at least I'm capable enough to take down and beat several of the more high-ranking heroes and villains. At least that's what Aizawa-sensei and Nezu tell me and was confirmed by All Might. I swear, Izuku couldn't stop fanboying over me when I told him this, and judging by the smug looks he was sending Katsuki for the next few days, and Katsuki's brooding I figured that he was just happy to know that I'll be one of the great heroes of Japan.
The things I do for the sake of stability in this world.
First though, I must deal with this sports festival
Ugh
I was currently waiting for the festival to begin in class 1-A's lockers. It was kind of lonely, being the only one in my class. didn't realize it before, but was relying quite a lot on Izuku to keep me company. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy solitude more than I normally should, but I'm beginning to miss the arguments I used to have with my brother over even the most insignificant detail.
There wasn't really any heat in those arguments, just two brilliant minds bouncing ideas off one another. Did I mention that Izuku was brilliant?
Sure, he's not on my level, but he's still far above the rest of the commoners he calls classmates, even Katsuki. I suspect that's the reason he's so prickly with Izuku and I'm sure that were it not for my intervention and threat to kill him and his family should anything happen to Izuku, he would have bullied all of Izuku's self-confidence out of
him.
"Hey, kid, you ready?" asked Aizawa from the doorway
"Yeah, let's get this over with" I said with mild disinterest
walked down the tunnel to the arena while putting on my gloved forearm guards. A neat little thing to keep me from hurting myself too much in taijvesu and to keep my arms intact. Developing two handed hand seals was enough of a pain in the ass, one I have no desire in repeating with it's more difficult sibling in the form of one-handed seals.
As I entered the stadium, I was assaulted with the roar of the crowd in the stands
"And here we have, ladies and gentlemen, the only student to pass Eraserhead's tests. The current holder to the record of highest Entrance Exam score in UA history, a record that previously belonged to All Might. Here to deliver the athlete's oath is the genius child that makes even the best and brightest look like idiots, Madara Midorya!" yelled out Present Mic through the speakers
Thank you, free publicity.
The crowd cheered and I placed a smile on my face as I waved at them, making the cheer even louder.
I sensed some animosity from class B, but I could see the support and management departments looking at me with hunger in their eyes. All Might was a nigh godly figure in this world. Comparing anyone to him is bound to draw attention.
Something I was planning to take full advantage of today.
I walked up the podium steps where Midnight was waiting for me with the mic. I took my place and waited for the crowd to subside.
"Everyone you see before you today has earned their place in this school though their own hard work. I pledge this today. I, no we, will not stop until the work of our predecessors is done. We are the ones that carry forth their will when they themselves are no longer able. I cannot speak for everyone in every hero school but, I will not stop until every man woman and child on this world can stand at ease and without fear of what lurks in the dark corners of our society. I will give my all to this cause, I will become the Pillar of Strength that holds up our society. And when that's not enough, I will dig deeper and go beyond, PLUS ULTRA!" the crowd roared the words of UA along with me
This is my resolution, one that I will carry out with my dying will if needed.
This is what is necessary to safeguard peace in this society.
"What a rousing speech from the only student in class 1-A!" said Mic "Now, it's time for the first event of the day which is... A GAME OF THRONES!"
As the word appeared on the giant screen, I couldn't help but wonder if this 'game of thrones' involves murder and sex as well.
"Now, as for the rules. Your job is to retrieve the crown of one of the kings from each of the four thrones occupied by one of the teachers. You can do this alone or in teams of five. Other than that, nothing is forbidden" said Midnight
I nodded and looked over the displayed map of the four thrones. On each one there was a teacher.
There was Cementos, on a tall, cement mountain cliff with an almost vertical wall and a narrow path to reach the top.
Next was Ectoplasm standing in what appeared to be a small labyrinth with the throne at the center.
Following this was Midnight which was standing in a small valley and lastly was Snipe who was in the middle of a western town and on a mechanical horse as his 'throne'.
Once the horn sounded, I dashed to Cementos's location. With my Sharingan, I could see the stress lines in the rock as I began waving hand seals
"Fire Style: Plasma Bullet" I called out
I spat three orbs of yellow-white plasma which zoomed through the air and struck Cementos' tower, causing it to crack and being to shatter as Cementos tried to regain some semblance of control after my devastating attack.
"And Madara starts off the event with a devastating attack. Man, this kid sure isn't playing around today" said Present Mic
I could see that while my initial attack was successful, it only destabilized the structure and with Cementos there, it wouldn't collapse as it should. I could use a Fire Dragon Bullet, but I have no idea what is next in store for me, so l'll refrain from wasting chakra. I jumped on the cliff and began to run up the side of it.
"That's right folks, your eyes are not deceiving your, he really is walking on walls. After all, he's the current number one of his year's heroics department in everything from training to academics. Though, I'm not sure who's teaching who in those classes" said Mic
The crowd laughed at his joke. After all, I was reasonably well known as a prodigy genius, so it wasn't that surprising that I didn't have a problem in academics. Technically, I've already graduated high school.
I came to the top of the cliff that Cementos was using and I was instantly faced with a few walls of concrete. I broke through the first few, but I could see this was a losing battle, so I began forming hand seals
"Earth Style: Earth Destroyer" I called out as I slammed my palms on the ground
The cliff shook as it began to collapse. Cementos was trying to stop it, but it was useless. With a simple flash step, I was behind my teacher and swiftly knocked him out with a gentle fist strike while he was distracted and took his crown. A simple body flicker later and we were in the middle of the arena while the cliff crumbled behind us.
"And here we have it, the first to complete the first round of the sports festival and in such a flashy style, Madara Midorya!" yelled out Mic "Wait, what's this is he going after the other crown too? Is that even allowed? Eh, who cares, if he wants to go for more, I say we let him, don't you" asked Mic
The crowd roared in approval as I approached the valley where Midnight was positioned. I couldn't go in there since I had no way of dealing with her quirk, but I had a better idea. I sensed that there was only Midnight in the valley proper and that most teams were trying to circle around the ridge. Well screw that
"Water style: Waterfall" I yelled out
I spat out a gargantuan amount of water alongside that witch I had taken from the atmosphere to the point where I had filled the valley. Midnight was left powerless in the face of all this water and was knocked out when the wave hit her location.
Thankfully I was on time to save her from drowning because that would have been embarrassing. I take her crown and deposit her with Cementos
"Unbelievable, did you see that? This kids on a roll.
Already two crowns down and two teachers knocked out and no other team even managed to get close to their objectives" said Mic and the crowd cheered yet again
I can almost feel the interested stares of the crowd of pro heroes that are watching the sport festival
Next on my list was Ectoplasm. He would be tricky, but his clones are somewhat fragile. Not as fragile as my shadow clones, but not that far off either. I can see the other students from the heroic and general courses giving me the stink eye. I honestly don't very much care. They're week, very week if in the five minutes I've been running around taking down not one, but two objectives they haven't done anything. I began my hand seals and slapped my palm down on the ground
"Earth Style: Mobile Core!" I shouted
pushed a lot more of my chakra in this technique than I normally do because I needed to sink the entire labyrinth. The ground lowered itself with a great tremor until I could see the top of the labyrinth clearly from there it was a relatively simple mission of jumping across the labyrinth until I reach the crown.
Unfortunately, Ectoplasm sent out some of his clones to stop me. Not that it worked. I am on par with some of the best in martial arts and while Ectoplasm is very good, his clones are inherently week against damage, especially damage from my take of the Gentle Fist. Eventually I reached the original and engaged him is a brutal display of martial prowess before shooting his crown off with a Water Style: Pistol and getting the hell out of doge. I'm not yet good enough to go up against someone as experienced as Ectoplasm in simple hand to hand without using Gentle Fist or Strong Fist to their full offensive potential and I don't want to hurt him.
"There he goes again folks, this is three for three, can he make it four for four?" said Mic
turned my attention to the shooting gallery that was Snipe's corner of the arena and vanished in a body flicker only to reappear on the roof of one of the houses directly behind Snipe. I once again sped through hand seals
"Fire style: Explosive Mist" I called out
I took a deep breath and spewed out an ash cloud that enveloped the square where he was fighting. I moved to take his crown when my danger sense went off and I used a quick seal less replacement with a nearby barrel, only for the barrel to be shredded with rubber bullets
"Don't get cocky, kid. I can see you even through this ash cloud" called out Snipe
I raised an eyebrow and held half a hand seal
"Explode" I say, and the cloud lights up in a reasonable explosion
"Holy crap, did you see that! He just blew Snipe right up. Man am I glad I only have to teach him English" said Mic
A slight push of my chakra and the dust cleared to show a mildly smoking Snipe who was still twitching on the ground. I calmly walked forward and took hic crown and placed it on my belt alongside the other crowns.
"And there you have its folks, the undisputed winner of the first event, Madara Midorya!" yelled Mic "We will now take a small break to prepare the arena for the next event"
I walked out the arena and into the 1-A waiting room. There I saw Aizawa-sensei waiting for me
"So, did I do good?" I ask
He huffed "I knew that you would pull something like this you overpowered problem child, but do you think you could let the others take the spotlight for a bit?"
"No, not really" I replied with a slight smirk
He sighed
"Why am I not surprised. Honestly, if it were anyone but you, the fact that three of the four teachers we had participate in this event are knocked out would have had serious repercussions against our school"
said Aizawa
My face turned grim. I have not thought about that.
"Is there a problem? Should I hold back in the next events?" I asked
Aizawa shook his head "The hero commission already know that you're a prodigy unlike any since Hawks himself. They don't know about your 'quirk' if that's what your worried about. Nezu made it quite clear that you only came to UA because you want a hero license and hinted at the fact that you'll rival All Might when you grow up. They won't riskYosing such a talent, and it's not like it's not without precedent, All Might withholds information about his quirk too"
I nod
"Madara" called out Aizawa
"Huh?" I ask, somewhat surprised that he used my
name
"This festival is a way to show your strength to the world. Don't worry about the others, focus only on winning. After all, this year's crop is lacking compared to you and once you go pro, you'll gather enough popularity that petty school squabbles won't matter. Especially given the speech you gave at the start" said Aizawa
"Ok, I'll do my best" I said
With that he left me to prep for the next event
"The next event of the sports festival is... TEAM BATTLE!" yelled Mic "In this event, the teams-sorry, team with the crowns will face against the other teams without crowns. The teams that end up with one of the four crowns at the end of the 20-minute event will go on to the final round"
I nodded to myself. For ease of use, the crowns have been replaced with headbands and because of the stunt I pulled in the last event, I will have to go No against some 80 students from the heroics and general education departments and another 120 from support and management.
This will be my ultimate test
"On one side we have Madara Midorya, the genius whose power know no bounds and on the other side, the rest of his year in UA. Who will win and who will lose?" said Mic
Across the nation people stopped what they were doing and looked at their TV screens, smartphones and tablets. This year's sport festival had attracted a lot more attention than usual. Even the villains were watching with care.
In one house, a mother and son pair were watching the TV. For Izuku, this was one of the most exciting days of his life, second only to that one when he met All Might. Finally, after so many years he would see his brother's full power unleashed.
Meanwhile, on the stadium, I was standing on one end of it with the rest of the students waiting for me in the other.
I closed my eyes as I began to tune my breathing.
All around me I could sense the chakra flowing through every human being and creature in the world. I could sense its mystical connection through all of us. I delved deeper into myself, into that pool of chakra that was normally so calm. All it took was one thought, one nudge and the chains that held my power bound broke loose.
There was a gasp from the audience as chakra exploded from my being, cracking the very ground itself. The entire stadium could feel the level of my power
"Man, what presence, just looking at him gives me the chills" said Mic
I cared not for useless talk.
Ireigned my chakra back, feeding it into my very muscles in a way I have done only in practice. I could sense the growing unease of my opponents and the excitement of the audience.
"START!" yelled Mic
My eyes snapped open showing a glowing blood red Sharingan to the world.
I began walking towards the other group as they let out battle cries and ran towards me. I too took to running.
At the middle of the stadium we met in combat. I jumped over the first few lines. I had no wish to confront the brawlers just now. Handed in the middle of a pack of gen ed students. Two well placed kicks and they were out.
twisted in midair as I vanished in a flash step only to reappear a moment later next to one big looking student that was preparing to ambush me.
I instantly charged a rasengan and used it to launch him clear across the stadium.
In the next instant I vanished again in a flash step and reappeared in the midst of a group of gen ed students that I took out in a brutal display of martial prowess.
From the corners of my eye I could see a mass of students approaching and so I vanished again.
I reappeared in the middle of the mass of approaching students. Before they could react, I grabbed two of them and flung them out at the group. My makeshift bat managed to clip a few students, but I quickly began to engage them in traditional hand to hand combat. Not that any of them had anything that could even faze me.
Sharingan plus chakra enhanced speed and reflexes are an absolutely deadly combination that ensured no one could beat me.
Punch
Kick
Doge
jump
Repeat
This was the dance I wove as I mowed down the ranks of children that were against me. Most couldn't even use their quirks in the chaos that ensued, and some were already running for the exit.
Dodging another pitiful attempt at a punch from a
1-B student I saw a couple of students further back preparing to unleash their quirks. My Sharingan sought them out and they made the mistake of looking into my eyes
"Sharingan: Genjutsu" I whispered as they froze
I needed space. I already took out a good chunk of the students, now I needed to break them up before they can regroup
"EARTH STYLE: SEISMIC QUAKE!" | roared over the sounas of battle
The entire stadium shook as a seismic pulse expanded from my location, making all the students in the arena fell to the ground.
Time to end this farce of a battle
"Earth Style: Swamp of the Underworld" I called out
The ground liquified as a good number of students sank into the mud, though a few managed to survive. I cut off the jutsu and jumped back to assess the situation.
Most of the students were out of commission, either by way of my taijutsu attacks or by being stuck in the now hardened ground. I need to develop more Earth style jutsu. They are unexpectedly useful when dealing with many opponents.
Only 8 remained from what was once 200 students
"Amazing, did you see that! He just blew the others right away like they weren't even there!" yelled Mic
This sentiment was shared all over the country as they watched one child take down a veritable army of what was supposed to be the elite of the next generation.
I watched as the 6 students of class B and the other 2 from Gen Ed pulled themselves to their feet, obviously shaken from what they witnessed
"Do you still wish to dance with me?" I asked loudly
Consider this my homage to my namesake
The stadium grew quiet
The 8 boys gritted their teeth and while I couldn't hear them, I saw the curses they muttered under their breaths
"Is this truly what the world can expect from the next generation? Was I wrong?" I ask in a mildly condescending tone
I see one snap. Ah, there you go
"You bastard, what kind of monster are you?" asked one of the gens ed students
"I am a hero. A pillar of strength against the evil that nests in the darkness. I am what you must strive to beat if you wish to protect all as a hero should" I say in a loud voice that carried all over the stadium
I see them falter
"Is this all you have? Do you think you can run away every time you have to face against someone so far above you that you have no hope of defeating? You are now all that stands between your classmates, and me whom you so eloquently called a monster" I say strongly, crossing my arms against my chest, peering down at them with the Sharingan
They did not respond. But I saw most of them nervously looking at each other, except for a buff student at the back of the group who was not looking at them. I saw him move and push to the front of the group. Iraised an eyebrow.
"So, will you stand and fight or will you run?" I ask at last
" don't care about your power. I won't let you get away with this. I'll get one of those crowns if it's the last thing I do" he yelled and activated his quirk
Crystals began sprouting from his hands and every exposed surface as he hardened his skin, likely in preparation for combat with me.
"I see, you still wish to dance with me, but you lack the strength to do so" I said
"He won't be alone" yelled another boy as he too activated his quirk, making some marbles appear near him
Soon after, all eight had their quirks powered and aimed at me, even if only 3 of them had the necessary long-range combat capability.
Understandable since my previous actions was meant to dispose of those exact same people.
With a battle cry, they launched themselves at me, the long-range quirk users, firing away. I dodged; their projectiles were too slow. In a flash step I closed the distance. I punched the crystal user in the gut, breaking his armor and making him vomit.
With a leap I pressed another into the ground while I kicked out with my legs hitting the two that rushed to aid him in the face and dazing them.
Following this I parried what seemed to be bone blades from another while I restrained him and then used him as a bat to take out the other three that were approaching.
With another Flash Step, I was at a far enough distance from them to allow them to regroup.
The stadium was quiet. Many not being able to believe their eyes about what happened today.
I saw the kids stand up leaning on one another for support
"Do you still wish to fight?" I ask
They did not reply. And when they were close enough the crystal guy broke into a sloppy run as he cocked his fist back
"PLUS ULTRAAAa- "he yelled
He tried to punch me in the face, but I caught his punch with one hand, centimeters from hitting my face
"I think it's time you slept Sharingan: Genjutsu" | spoke
My eyes contacted his and he crumbled to the ground, asleep.
looked at his other comrades
"Do you wish to continue?" I asked
They shook their heads and sank to the ground
"The winner of the second round is MADARA
MIDORYA!" yelled Present Mic
The crowd went wild as they rose to their feet, kicking and screaming at my victory.
"MA-DA-RA! MA-DA-RA! MA-DA-RA!" they chanted
I raised my fist in victory and they roared back in response, even the heroes were fired up from what they witnessed. Honestly, I felt like some kind of gladiator that managed to slay the lion that was supposed to eat him.
Still, it doesn't matter.
Because there was almost no one left in a good enough condition to fight and the ones that were didn't even want to be in the same room as me, it was decided to forgo the third round and I was given the medal for first place with the crystal guy coming in second.
I had some preparations to make for when I will be assaulted tonight by my brother and mother with questions.
Katsuki had always known that Madara was one of the most powerful people he would ever meet. It wasn't conscious knowledge; it was a form of intuition he's always had. The same intuition that made him yell at Deku because Katsuki knew that if he didn't do something the Deku will surpass him. It was already difficult enough to bear his habit of looking down on him, always asking if he needed help and always helping the other extras like hero.
Deku wasn't a hero, he was quirkless.
He would have put Deku in his place physically, but he knew that Madara would kill him if he did that, one way or another. The guy wasn't a villain, but he wasn't a hero either. Heck he's probably going through the hero course only to get a hero license to use his quirk.
Speaking of quirks, what the hell was his? Katsuki knew that there were strength enhancers, speed enhancers, elemental quirks, but the amount of power Madara showed was fucking unbelievable.
He was able to manipulate earth, water and some strange combination of fire and explosion and that was on top of being able to stick to a vertical surface and enhanced physical prowess.
What the fuck?
That was like five quirks worth of power at the very least. And that's not even considering the slaughter of the rest of his year. One student against 200 ended with the last 7 students still conscious and able to move surrendering while Madara looked like he didn't even sweat after the event.
Katsuki respected him for this. He had always had a great deal of respect for Madara's strength, but looking at him now, Katsuki couldn't help but compare himself to him and found himself lacking.
That made him angry. There were less than 10 months until the entrance exam, and he would be dammed if he didn't try his best to close the gap with Madara.
In all his years as a hero All Might, or as we were now known in his emaciated state, Yagi Toshinori, couldn't have predicted that a child could have such power. He had of course watched the sport festival for first years to see how young Madara was doing. He was of course expecting him to do great, after all, in their little spar All Might recognized that it was the first time since his fight with All For One that he had faced such a versatile power.
All Might was not expecting what happened, to happen.
Never in the history of UA had the sport festival been cut short because all the students had been defeated. It was unthinkable for a student to even do such a thing.
Madara did it.
Madara with a self-discovered power that he still didn't fully understand took on 200 students and won. And on national TV no less.
All Might was seriously beginning to rethink his initial opinion of chakra. He had always thought that somehow One For All could surpass it. And while it was true that young Madara did have combat training and had rigorously trained since he was very young, but to reach this level? And so soon? The kid wasn't even 15 yet and he was already shaping up to be the kind powerhouse that wouldn't be out of place in the same power bracket as All Might himself. Chakra had already proven itself versatile enough that even with full knowledge of what it can do All Might was going at more than 80% of his current power and he only won because young Madara surrendered because he was suffering from what he called chakra exhaustion, which was similar to quirk exhaustion, after flinging almost his entire arsenal of juts at All Might.
No, that spar shouldn't be used as a benchmark. It was only a way for young Madara to have a chance to use his full destructive abilities against someone who could take it and even then, All Might knew he held back least he somehow kill him.
Something that was looking like it was not out of the realm of possibility anymore.
Back on topic, though. What was less concerning was young Madara's speech at the beginning of the tournament.
"The Pillar of Strength, huh?" asked All Might seemingly to himself
Dammit, the kid was reminding him too much of how he was back in his youth, before he got One For All. Well, maybe not his casual disregard for life but his stated wish to stand against evil.
"All Might! We're here" yelled out young Izuku with a grin on his face as he jogged towards him
Next to him his brother was walking along with a content and amused smile on his face as he watched his brother take off running. All Might would be lying if he said that the kids hadn't grown on him in this last month.
"Young Izuku, Young Madara, thank you for coming" said All Might
"It's no problem All Might. So why did you call us?" asked young Madara, though by the knowing glint in his eyes All Might suspected he knew why he called them here
"I wanted to talk about the sport festival" said All
Might
"What about it, All Might?" asked Izuku
"Is it true, what you said in the beginning young Madara. About being a Pillar of Strength?" asked
All Might
Izuku turned to look at his brother.
Madara had closed his eyes and was leaning a bit backwards.
"It's true" said Madara
"So, you wish to be the one to replace me?" asked
All Might
It was a valid question. After all, he had Young Izuku as a successor of One For All. It was still unclear if the boy could take his place as the Symbol of Peace. If he even wanted it.
"What do you mean All Might? How will he replace you?" asked Izuku looking hurt
Before All Might could answer, Madara spoke
"It's not like that, little brother. He's asking if I want to replace him as the Symbol of Peace" said Madara
Something akin to relief washed across young
Izuku's face and All Might felt awful. Did he really think he was offering his brother One For All because of a simple speech after he had already selected him to be the ninth bearer of the quirk?
"Oh, I see" said Izuku
Madara sighed and closed his eyes again, falling silent
"So, will you?" asked All Might
"No" replied Madara simply
This answer stunned bought Izuku and All Might.
"I'm sorry All Might, but I can't be the Symbol of Peace. There is too much darkness in my heart for that" said Madara
All Might was bewildered. Sure, young Madara was a bit antisocial, but then again so was he. He had very few close friends and the rest was just a mask he put on to entertain the media and assure the people that everything was all right. This being said, in all the time All Might had spent with him, Madara had never struck him as an evil person. He might me more morally questionable than him but then again Endeavour was number two in the hero rankings and there were rumors.
"Oh, come on, you can't really believe in that 'curse of hatred' crap, right?" said Izuku, though it sounded more like a pleaded question
"What is this 'curse of hatred'?" asked All Might
Young Madara looked at him with those blood red eyes that never failed to make All Might shiver.
"The 'curse of hatred' is the price of the Sharinagn's power. These eyes of mine see all and record all. Nothing is ever truly hidden from them and in the process, it takes away one's ability to deny the darkens in society and the darkness in one's own soul. Also, I don't really know this, but I have a feeling that the greater the darkness within me grows, the greater the Sharinagn's powers become" said Young Madara
That was truly something terrifying. If young Madara ever slipped, or his sanity was compromised, All Might was not sure that the Hero Society could survive his fall to villainy.
"Then what did you mean when you said that you wanted to be the Pillar of Strength?" asked All Might
"I want to be someone who can stand against the darkness. Someone who society could rely on in their darkest moments until a new light emerges and when that light finally shines bright, I want to be the pillar that helps support society" said
Madara
He then turned his head and gave his brother a smile and ruffled his hair, making the other boy whine
"I already have my light right here. If I've got Izuku I don't fear the darkness within me, nor the Sharinagn's curse of hatred" said Madara
"Ni-san" said Young Izuku who was blushing but had tears in his eyes
"I won't be the Symbol of Peace because my brother is the one that will inherit that title.
Instead I will be the Pillar of Strength that will help the world transition between eras" said Madara
"And once that is done I will remain as a failsafe just in case a new threat emerges and someone is needed to eliminate it"
All Might stared at the boy and couldn't help but marvel at his convictions.
All Might knew what he had to do.
"Young Madara, will you accept an internship with me at my agency?" asked All Might
Young Izuku stopped crying as they bought turned to him with equally confused faces
"Normally after the sport festival, the students receive internship offers from different hero agencies, and you are right. It really is the end of my era as Symbol of Peace" said All Might
"Don't say that, All Might. I- "began Izuku
"No, young Izuku, this must be said and you as my successor to my quirk and title must know. My body is already failing me, as you both know and soon enough it won't even be able to support my quirk. After I pass it to you, Young Izuku, all that I will have left are some embers of One For All and when those are gone, I will remain quirkless" said
All Might
"It will be the death of All Might" said young
Madara
"What? All Might's going to die!" said Izuku looking worried, but he was calmed by his brother
"No, it will be the death of All Might, the Symbol of Peace, not Yagi Toshinori, and it will throw society in chaos" said Madara
"Unfortunately, you are correct young Madara.
That is why I wish to formally take you under my wing and help you become the Pillar of Strength so that you will be able to keep the torch alive until the next Symbol of Peace is able to take it back up again" said All Might
The boys stayed silent as they absorbed this new information. After a few minutes of silence All Might broke it
"Ok, I think that's enough for today. Go home and think it over. Don't forget, young Izuku to be on time tomorrow" said All Might
"Ok, I will!" said Izuku as he dragged his brother off the beach
"Hey, ni-san?" asked Izuku
I turned my head to look at my little brother
"Hm?"
"Did you really mean what you said, about me being the Symbol of Peace?" asked Izuku in a small voice looking at the ground, not even trying to meet my eyes.
"Offourse, lzuku. I meant every single word. You were always there to pull me back from the edge and I know that you always will be, whether I want you too or not" I said
Izuku was crying again. I hugged him and he hugged me in return
"I believe in you, Izuku. Never forget that I will never leave your side, after all, I'm your brother and that's what brothers do" I said softly
Izuku just cried harder.
My dear brother is a crybaby, but I wouldn't trade him for the world.
Now I just have to figure out how to move on from here, now that the very thing I wanted has fallen, quite literally, into my lap.
