12. Worthy Successor!

"What?!" They both exclaimed in shock.

"Shounen, are you sure? I think you didn't hear me right. Im asking you if you wanted to inherit my power. The number one hero's power!" All Might asked, in disbelief.

"Yeah! Why wouldn't you want his power? It's awesome and super cool and he's the number one hero!" Deku supported.

In some ways Deku was right. Why wouldn't anyone want such a great power?

I sure did. But the problem was the quirk memories of seven self righteous asshats that came along with the quirk One For All.

I value my individuality over all else and I'd rather not have seven dead old bastards puppeteering me.

Now couldn't I just exorcize them from the quirk and just take it?

Pen of Fate could certainly be used to do that.

I had done it for the small amount of blood I took from Rokuro Nomura, after all.

But there lay the problem. It was a small vial of blood, from a quirk with a fate less than 20 years old and the parasite cells in the blood were already doing that job for me.

Even without my interference, the quirk memories of Rokuro's blood would have been erased by the parasite cells taking over.

It's just that it would have taken days to happen and the blood would have spoiled.

So I hastened the process, and it still knocked me out.

Doing that for a quirk over hundred years in the making, to seven individual sets of quirk memories, wouldn't be viable.

If I had ten or so years more, yes. But as it stood, the cost of erasing the fate of seven people in a single go as I am right now, would kill me.

And I certainly can't do it one by one, or they could alert All Might of it, landing me in hot water.

No. They needed to be wiped out in one go, to avoid any suspicions.

That left me no choice but to reject his offer.

"No, no. I heard you right the first time. See, the thing is, my mommy told me not to take candy from strangers. Actually, no scratch that.

My mom left us to start a new life with her lover when I was four, so she definitely didn't teach me this.

But that's not the point!

The point is All Might-san, your offer is very suspicious!" I said, wagging my finger.

"What do you mean by that?" All Might asked, deflating.

"You see, I don't believe in free meals. There's always a catch to offers like these that seem too good to be true!

When encountering such things, there are a few possibilities that need to be considered. And in all of these possibilities my answer remains no.

The first possibility is that you are not All Might and are trying to prank me, in which case, my answer is no.

The second possibility is that you are indeed All Might and there's a catch to it, like maybe I have to do something or maybe the power has a big drawback or maybe it's a curse or something. Hell, you could just have malicious intentions!

So in this case my answer still remains no!

Now finally, here is the third and the worst case. That whatever you said is true and you have the best of intentions.

But in this case, my answer is still no!" I said.

All Might looked at me confused.

"Shounen, can you explain why?"

"Why what?" I asked.

"Why is the third possibility the worst and why is your answer still no?" He clarified.

"See, the third possibility means that you, the number one hero, have the best of intentions and are genuinely willing to give up your power to me, without any strings attached.

It seems like a really good deal. But have you considered this, All Might-san, what if I was a villain in disguise?

How well do you know me? I'm just a random person on the street and you just met me today.

I could be a bad person or someone who is power hungry, or maybe I will use your power for my own goals or to do evil things.

All Might-san, you need to be more careful about this! You can't just give away your power to any random person. It could end very badly!" I explained.

All Might looked at me incredulously before he began to laugh.

"I really chose right! You are the best candidate to inherit my power. You are careful and consider all possibilities. It means you won't just jump into action without thinking.

Being considerate and observant is a very important skill for a hero!

And you, shounen, are the perfect person for my quirk!" He said.

I facepalmed.

How did I end up digging my grave further?

Now I need to find another way to decline his offer.

"Alright, but I don't know what your quirk is. How about we start there before we jump into big decisions?" I suggested.

"That's understandable. Let me tell you about my quirk, One For All!

One For All is a quirk that stockpiles the strength of it's users and passes them on to others.

It is quirk that has been passed down through eight generations to reach me.

And now, it will be yours, uh, shounen, what was your name again?" He asked.

"Oh, right! We haven't introduced ourselves yet have we? Let me be the first to do so.

I'm Matsumoto Yuji, 3rd year middle schooler. Nice to meet you!" I said extending a hand, as All Might shook it.

Suddenly, I summoned my library and pulled out All Might's book.

"What's that?" All Might asked, alarmed.

"It's my quirk. Alexandria Eternal.

It contains the life stories of all the people I have ever touched." I said, lying.

I can't be revealing the entire capacity of my quirk to people yet, after all.

"So that's how you knew my name earlier!" Deku realized.

"Yup." I said, as I wiggled the book in my hand, and continued.

"This is the book of All Might-san's life!

It's not that I don't trust you, All Might, but I believe in the principle of trust but verify.

So if you don't mind, could you answer some questions?" I asked.

"That's...alright. Ask away!" He replied.

"What is your real name?" I asked.

"Toshinori Yagi." He answered.

"That checks out." I nodded, looking him in the eye, "What quirk were you born with?"

He looked at me and smiled, understanding my intentions.

"Yuji-shounen, I don't think I need to tell you this, but please keep it a secret.

I was actually born quirkless."

"What?!" Deku cried out in shock, only to be shushed by me.

"Yup. That checks out too. So you weren't lying about your quirk being inheritable, huh?" I muttered.

"So you were still suspicious?" Deku exclaimed.

"Trust but verify, remember?" I replied, as I flipped through the book, before continuing.

"It says here that your quirk is so powerful that if I used it without being ready, I could explode? You didn't mention anything about that!" I said, looking accusingly at small might.

He scratched the back of his head and laughed awkwardly.

"I was going to tell you but it slipped my mind. Besides, I would have trained you until you were ready for it! He explained.

"I see. There is also a line about how if the person who inherits this quirk has their own quirk, their lifespan is significantly reduced?" I asked.

"It's just a theory right now, but I will be honest Yuji-shounen, all previous examples do point to that being true." Small might explained.

"I see." I said, acting like I was thinking about it.

"Don't worry about it, Yuji-shounen, nothing will happen to you! And when the time comes, you can pass on this quirk to someone else who's worthy of it!" Small might assured.

"That makes it sound like a curse!" I joked, before continuing, in a serious tone.

"Sir, I am honored that you consider me worthy of your power, but....my life is worth more than any amount of power.

I am sorry to disappoint you, but, I will have to respectfully decline your offer."

I bowed deeply in apology.

Small might walked uo to me and pulled me up by the shoulders.

"You have nothing to apologize for, Yuji-shounen. I understand your feelings. I won't push you, but remember, in the future, if you change your mind or feel that you're ready to accept it, my offer still remains open to you. At least so long as I still haven't passed it on to someone else!" He said, comforting me.

"Thank you for understanding. But one more thing All Might-san.

Please remember my warning. Be careful in choosing the person who you pass the quirk on to. There is a saying, that the person who desires absolute power is the one person who should never be allowed to achieve it. Consider it when you find someone you consider worthy. Because even good people can end up doing horrible things and the path to hell is paved with good intentions.

This is even more relevant to a power as great as yours. And take care of yourself better. I read in the book that your old wounds are the reason you couldn't help defeat the sludge villain. Please get treatment and retire while you're ahead. There will be plenty of heroes to take your place, to pick up the slack. You can't be the symbol of peace forever.

This year, I'll be applying to UA. Soon, I will graduate as a hero. You can rely on me and other heroes to keep the peace you created. You don't have to bear this burden all alone." I advised.

Small might turned to me and smiled.

"You really are a kind boy, Yuji-shounen. I'm still sure that you are the one who should inherit this quirk. Come to UA, meet me. Let me train you into the heroes of the future, even if you won't inherit my power. You'll make a fine hero yourself!" He said, waving us goodbye, as he walked away.

Inwardly, I smiled in a most sinister fashion.

With this, I have made sure that One For All won't be passed on for at least another few months.

All I need to do now is to get my hands on a copy of it before that happens!

And I get a free minion out of it!